Month: March 2014

I love debating with other people. It's part of my training as a pastor. At seminary or university, candidates for ministry are taught apologetics through class presentations or theological debates. The arguments usually spill over into … Read more

Every once in a while, we are confronted with statements that question whether the stories in the Bible accurately describe those events or whether they even happened, so many years ago. Many of those events are ones on which our Christian … Read more

My dear friend, Shirl, was close to the end of her agonizing struggle with multiple sclerosis, family breakdown, and abandonment, when she asked me to write her life story. It was her hope that women, who were suffering in any manner, … Read more

I have a car with computers in it. When it detects a fault, it has an instructive ding sound to let you know that there is a message. The more serious the fault, the more piercing the tone, and the more persistent and unrelenting the … Read more

At the jail where I guard, there is a row of lockers to store our clients' personal belongings while they are in a holding cell. The lockers preserve their valuables and clothing from being lost or stolen until they are returned to them … Read more

Recently, one of my daughters had to have laser surgery to fix some retinal problems. It so happened that on the same weekend we went to visit her, another one of my daughters and I unfortunately had a "snafu": a euphemism for a … Read more

For many years, I received the customary ashes for Lent without any thought to the biblical basis of this ancient practice. However, when the priest applied the ashes to my forehead in the form of a cross, I was faced with the unpleasant … Read more

Now, I think of it as Big Snow Blower Day. In January this year, after three consecutive arctic blizzards, it was a delightful relief to watch our neighbour, Don, drive his tractor and snow blower into the huge snowdrifts blocking our … Read more

I suffer from acrophobia — a fear of heights. Perhaps if I were a tall person, it might not be so bad. I get dizzy and unbalanced whenever I am up high. Standing on a ledge or a rooftop is very hard for me to do, although if I'm on a … Read more

My mother and I always joke about our cat, Simba, having servants. He seems to think that he is entitled to having everyone in the house "wait on him". This comes from the old joke about dogs having owners and cats having servants. When … Read more