Charles Albert Tindley (1851 - 1933) was born to a father who was a slave and a mother who was a free woman. His mother died when he was two and he was hired out to work when he was seven. He never had the opportunity to attend school, but taught himself to read in … Continue reading Leave it there
spirituality
An exuberant storyteller
Joe Wheeler was frequently found at a table in the coffee shop in Saskatoon's lone Christian bookstore. He had accumulated a wealth of Bible knowledge and a wealth of experiences over his lifetime and loved to share this wealth with others. Sometimes I was one of those others. Image by Alfred Derks from Pixabay Joe died 16 months … Continue reading An exuberant storyteller
Misunderstanding the Gospel
In 1655 the plague spread through London, killing a quarter of the population. The city was rife with reports of strange visions, prophecies and rumors. Daniel Defoe wrote about the happenings during the plague, writing in the first person although he was only four years old at the time. Nevertheless, the book is not fiction … Continue reading Misunderstanding the Gospel
More than one side to history
My Grade 11 and 12 classroom had a library — a two shelf bookcase. I read all the books in that library, in class time, during those two years. One book was a history of an era we had recently studied in Social Studies, but gave a different version of that history than our textbook. … Continue reading More than one side to history
A more intense exercise
The Canadian Heart and Stroke Foundation recommends aerobic exercise to improve cardiovascular health. That kind of exercise also improves energy levels, alertness, helps maintain a healthy weight, or lose weight if necessary, and avoid diabetes. Aerobic exercise can be any physical activity that raises your heart rate and is sustained for some time. Heart and … Continue reading A more intense exercise
Flotsam and jetsam
At the beginning of Creation, God separated earth and sky from the primordial sea. The sea remains as a constant threat to the earth and those that dwell upon it. The sea is chaos, unpredictable, ever changing, ever threatening to overflow the boundaries that God set for it. The Bible depicts the multitudes of mankind … Continue reading Flotsam and jetsam
Getting from survival to revival
I trust that most of us have coped well during this time of enforced hibernation. Now spring has come, nature is alive once more and we want to be too. What now? Do we go back to the way things were before our hibernation? Is that even possible? What is normal going to look like … Continue reading Getting from survival to revival
The COVID conundrum
Saskatchewan doesn't have a huge population, perhaps we're an anomaly in the big picture. The COVID infection rate is edging up to 0.05%, the death rate is 1 for every 200,000 people in the province. The seasonal flu has infected far more people, the death rate is much higher — even if half of us … Continue reading The COVID conundrum
Exegesis vs Eisegesis
(First posted six years ago) I know some people will see this title and will already have a pretty good idea of what I am going to say. Others may wonder why I am using such fancy words. I hope you will all bear with me, read the post and feel free to comment. In … Continue reading Exegesis vs Eisegesis
Only an empty box
Agnes grew up 100 years ago on a farm in southwestern Saskatchewan. Her parents were members of a church which called itself Mennonite and worshipped in the German language. At home the family spoke a Low German dialect called Plautdietsch, and English. There were 14 children in the family, spaced about two years apart. Agnes … Continue reading Only an empty box
Flatlander Faith 