Month: August 2018

In Jesus' time, menstruation and gynecological issues made women unclean. Leprosy made anyone afflicted unclean. Being of a certain race or from a certain place, such as Samaria, led to one being relegated to second class, compared to a … Read more

"Want to know my worst day driving a bus?" a driver asked me one summer day. "There was a woman on the very back seat with groceries in a couple paper bags. In one of them was a big watermelon. She was busy talking, not payin' much … Read more

One of my favourite Appalachian songs, which was recorded by Johnny Cash years ago, is called Wayfaring Stranger. It's a beautiful hymn with a haunting mountain melody. I love the plain, simple lyrics which express faith in terms of our … Read more

Recently, my husband and a friend were outside cutting down trees on our property. The area where we live is surrounded by many maple trees and silver birches. Unfortunately, many of the birch trees are dead and need to be taken down. They … Read more

What do car washes and love have in common? This isn't a joke; it's to get us thinking. Obviously, both improve life: of vehicles, or of people. But that's not what I had in mind that day when I stood at the carwash mulling over the … Read more

One chose to stay on the farm; the other chose city life. When my mom was a junior in high school, she chose to leave her family farm and marry my dad. Her new life would take her away from her country upbringing and plant her in cities … Read more

For two decades, my wife and I led the weekly Young Adult Class (14-19) at our church. The first weekend in February, we would have a retreat at an inviting resort. We always had a guest leader who would journey with us to enjoy a weekend … Read more

I recall an instance in my life when I found forgiveness to be an extreme struggle to resolve. One evening, I had just finished reading Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37 . I closed my Bible, and said out loud, … Read more

This year, we had a large load of gardening soil delivered to our house. Then, my brother and I got busy shovelling it into pails and carrying it to the various garden beds to top them up. We did this, as many gardeners already know, … Read more

When Prince Harry was married this year, several Canadians unexpectedly received personal invitations to the royal wedding in England. Of course, they were thrilled to accept. Wouldn't you? It reminded me of a time in a small village … Read more