"Fast before the feast!" my mother would say, as she put Christmas Eve supper on the table: codfish cakes, or her heavenly homemade baked beans. Both dishes I secretly preferred to turkey! "Fast before the feast!" Prepare the way! Not … Read more
Last night was Sunday School Pageant night. My daughter, Maggie, played Mary. It was her second year in the role! It made me think of a Christmas Eve 12 years ago, when her mother, "great with child", was a last-minute … Read more
We made it this far! 15 Years! Praise God! Was there ever any doubt we'd make it? Well… Today is our anniversary! 15 years ago we were crazy students, rolling from exams and essays right into a wedding. "What a … Read more
Can you feel it? The air is electric with promise as Jesus begins his ministry. "The kingdom of God is at hand!" Literally, so close you can reach out and (almost) touch it! Every Advent we read these words. Do … Read more
My 11 year old daughter has her Christmas list sorted by category, and colour-coded for degree of desire or need. The farmers in my congregations are wishing for a few nights of good, hard frost to set the clay in … Read more
Hark! a thrilling voice is sounding, "Christ is nigh!" it seems to say. The words of that hymn could be about John the Baptist, or about Isaiah, as we read his words in Advent light. What do the words mean … Read more
What is your dream, this December, this Advent season? What Christmas miracle would you like to see? It would be like a dream if we could wake up on Christmas morning to news that all the fighting had ended, all … Read more
In the last days of war, and the first days of Allied occupation of Germany, Helmut Thielicke preached on the Lord's Prayer to a congregation under siege in Stuttgart. Thielicke shared his congregation's fear of the bombs, their relief that … Read more
Why pray, when God is all-powerful? God can do whatever God pleases. God created the universe, set it in motion. Why pray? How could we ever hope to move the great God's hand? We pray because something in us longs … Read more
"And lead us not into temptation." Perhaps it's better to say, "Don't let us walk into temptation alone." It also suggests, "Don't leave us to be tested beyond our strength." Of course it's hard to imagine God doing either of … Read more