Messy
By Janelle Ross A hundred years ago, back when I was inching my way out of the nest and learning how to use my fresh wings, I worked in the field of computers. Actually, I went to Bible college, spent a couple of years in Australia, came home and worked a bit, started a General Arts degree with a major in French (merci beaucoup) and switched to a technical degree in computer programming at a now-defunct college. Then, I worked in the field of computers. I helped the government keep track of the students attending elementary, junior high, and high…
Read MoreHello/Goodbye
By Jennifer Wallace “Hello/ Goodbye” is a show that airs on CBC that grips my heart; it taps into emotions that are so quick to surface. The interviewer is good at what he does. Without being obtrusive, he asks questions and strangers open up their lives to him in these beautiful reunions and departures at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport. There is something intensely attractive and universal about hellos and goodbyes. They are the moments we remember. It was summer. John and I and the kids were driving out to Ontario. We were excited for the road trip, excited to see…
Read MoreThen Am I Not Praying?
By Mary Muirhead I have often bemoaned the fact that I do not pray as often, as faithfully, as fervently, or, dare I say, as successfully as I ought. Shame on me! I’d better do something about that set up a specific time or times for prayer start a(nother) prayer journal find a prayer partner learn a new prayer language read Scriptures or spiritual books on the subject Now I may seem, or even think of myself as a joyful confident Christian woman, so why when I think about solutions to any of life’s problems do I invariably begin by…
Read MoreGrateful
By Andrea Muirhead I remember being at the eye specialist with my 90-year-old Grandmother. She had little sight left. She already had cataracts removed and now we were checking what else the specialist could do. The doctor was not as attentive or as kind as I wished him to be. He reported the grim news that nothing more could be done to help my Grandmother’s eyesight. I will never forget her reaction. She seemed to be looking into the past as she stroked the armrest of her chair and simply said that it was fine… her eyes had seen many…
Read MoreFreezing Rain
By Mira Krahn I was looking forward to this winter. My winter a year ago in South East Asia was cold, but lacking the clean, fresh look of piled snow. I love the silence in the air when flakes fall at night. I love the crisp crunch beneath my boots. I miss the winter walking I did as a university student, parking far away to get a free spot. I love feeling hardy once I escape the cold, mascara smudged and hair frosted. This week hit a windchill low of -40*C. The next day had freezing rain. On that day,…
Read MoreEncouraging One Another
By Deanna Cook Have you heard of Kahoot? It’s a game but it’s also designed for social learning in the classroom. The questions have four multiple choice answers displayed on the whiteboard. Points are rewarded for speed and answering correctly. Students get to enter their nickname and at the end of every question, the five highest scores are displayed on the board. My grade twelve class plays it every Thursday in homeroom. I have created numerous games centred on Bible stories. Some games are general- Old Testament stories or Jesus’ parables. Sometimes the game is centred around specific themes- like…
Read MoreKinship
By Sara Pippus “Kitimākēyimiso,” I heard him call to me as we pulled away from the old school house, so many summers ago. Be kind to yourself — what a beautiful way to say goodbye. I can close my eyes and be back there and feel the midsummer sun putting endless freckles across my nose and helping turn the crops around the yard a golden hue. I have not forgotten him or the summers we spent chasing grasshoppers and each other all over the dusty prairie. The smell of wild clover drifts through the yard mingling with laughter from the…
Read MoreTeach us to pray
By Mary Muirhead And so we pray … for success for wisdom for health for peace for ourselves for others for those whom we love sometimes even for those whom we do not love maybe – sometimes sometimes for those whom we consider enemies “Who is my enemy?” as no one asked Jesus how would He have answered I wonder? during a war we seem to know and are we not always ‘at war’ with somebody somewhere for reasons both clear and unclear in the Psalms we read mixed right up there with the psalmist’s praise deep repentance and humility…
Read MoreChoosing Rest
By Janelle Ross I am supposed to be going to a church thing today and, the truth is, I’d rather stay home. I’m writing this to those of you who know what I’m talking about. Maybe even to those of you who don’t. It’s not that I hate church things. It’s just- well- it’s been a really long, people-y week. It’s been jam-packed full of working hard with some super-awesome children with special needs while still trying to spend quality time with my homeschooling teenaged son and the rest of my coming-and-going family. And then there’s all the “stuff.”…
Read MoreLightbulb
By Trinda Jocelyn Faith has been a concept I have always struggled with. I have spent far too long battling with my misconceived notions of what faith is. Somehow, I have always thought that faith was something that is solely my responsibility, something I was going to have to develop on my own. I was going to have to get this faith thing straightened out if I was going to reach my eternal home and perhaps I would stop feeling so darn guilty about my failure to live the picture of a faith filled life I had. My faith was…
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