Phil Gunther

As a young disciple of Jesus, I lived in B.C.’s Fraser Valley in the 1970’s and 80’s. At that time there seemed to be a church on every corner; a faith community from almost every denomination. The spiritual ‘buffet’ included a dramatic spectrum of worship styles and theological bents. The ecclesiastical options seemed endless.

There seems to be a definite dearth of common sense among homo sapiens. Humour aside, we face a very serious and expanding problem among us, a lack of wisdom. My seminary professor Tremper Longman III said that wisdom is a knowing how – that is, knowing how to navigate life.

The more I ponder the negative impact of the pandemic on the church, the more deeply I am convinced that the church suffered its greatest blows not from outside forces but rather from internal conflict. Most churches witnessed divergent pockets of stakeholders anchoring themselves to convictions around defining the pandemic…

Full disclosure, my friends – I have times when I do not experience contentment. I demonstrate moments of discontent. However, I do eventually land in a space I call contentment equilibrium. Like you, I am on a journey to a spiritual satisfaction in Christ. The following is what I have learned about contentment. It has enabled me to better walk this journey…

Lent is my opportunity to move from the superficial to the supernatural; from giving up token external gestures of sacrifice to an effort of offering myself as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1).

Experience has taught me that people who live wholehearted lives as disciples of Jesus are difference-makers. Disciples that make an impact in their settings are all-in when it comes to their walk with Jesus and in their obedience to Him. They are not on the bench, but in the game, so-to-speak.

My year ended with a hemicolectomy.  This surgery removed a section of my colon that harboured a large growth.  Unfortunately, a complication developed and with it, significant anxiety.  Six weeks of recovery followed.  My physician ordered self-isolation meaning an in-person family Christmas could not take place.  In the background was the potential for the pathology report to reveal if the removed growth from my colon was cancerous.  When I submitted this writing, I was still waiting for my surgeon’s prognosis.  Friends, in a nutshell, my 2020 was a tale of trouble…

Advent is both a season of celebration and waiting. In homes, the Advent calendar (with its daily allotment of chocolates) and in churches, the Advent evergreen wreath (with its coloured candles) are dusted off and set in their hallowed places. These heart-warming symbols telegraph the approaching Christmas Day and also invite us to a period of waiting…

In a world that too often declares right to be wrong and wrong to be right, evil to be good and good to be evil, how does one live for Jesus faithfully and with integrity? As leaders, what is our counsel? What example do we set?

Article 18 of the MB Confession of Faith looks at Christ’s Final Triumph. This item of the Confession bears witness to both hope and warning: hope for the believer looking forward to being with Jesus in glory and warning for all others that life apart from Jesus awaits.

I just returned to my post as senior pastor at Parliament (MB) Community Church, Regina, after a seven-month sabbatical – my first in 20 years of ministry. As I contemplated taking a sabbatical, I wondered: How should I prepare? What will I experience? What is a sabbatical?

Are you engaged? Thinking of getting married? Like many couples, you may find yourself at a loss on how to properly manage – and share – your financial resources, both as individuals and future married partners.