Some time ago, I was asked to visit a lady in the hospital. She had just survived a serious operation, she was in extreme pain, and she was worried about her husband who was at home alone and not coping well. She wanted to tell me about … Read more
So far in this whole year of our Lord, 2016, my wife and I have travelled to many towns and villages in our area to lead in worship in our Presbyterian churches. Some were without a minister, and in others, the pastor was on leave or on … Read more
As a pastoral care volunteer at the local Long Term Care Centre, I have on several occasions been asked to be with a person nearing death, who was in the "Comfort Room" with family members present. At some point, they would expect me to … Read more
At the time of writing, here in southern Ontario, Canada, we are experiencing a very hot and dry summer. The grass in our yard, as well as in the neighbourhood, is turning brown, and vegetable gardens are in dire need of water. In … Read more
When some of us get together and discuss the future of our churches at various functions or meetings, or with pastors on a personal basis, the conversation always seems to come around to the perception that attendance in a number of … Read more
On June 15th, 2015, one of my two remaining sisters, three years my junior, was admitted to the hospital. At that time, she was suffering from an undisclosed intestinal problem. She was unable to eat properly, and she was dehydrated. The … Read more
In the 1970s, we moved our European/Middle East head office to London, England. We had some big projects on the go, and we were in need of a payroll person to calculate the weekly and monthly payroll for all our employees, both in the … Read more
During the 1970s, the pipeline engineering firm for which I worked had a big contract with a French firm, and we had two offices in Paris. As head of the financial division of our firm, I made many trips to our offices. One evening, on the … Read more
I have noticed that more and more people are carrying a water bottle with them at all times, when they are walking or jogging, driving the car, in church, and at sports events. We are often reminded that water is good for us, even when … Read more
One of the places that we visited on our cruise last February and March did not have a large enough harbour to accommodate our ship. So we dropped anchor offshore, and then, people were taken to the shore in small boats. We stayed on … Read more