I am truly thankful for my parents’ coaching; reminding me to stay the course, to hold the line, to never walk away. However, my life experiences have taught me that sometimes the best decision is, in fact, to bring something to an end.
My mom sensed when we were on the verge of quitting and rallied us by saying, “Just one more pail. Just one more pail.” In response, we kept on keeping on, rock after rock, pail after pail. Eventually, the seemingly impossible work (from a young boy’s perspective) was completed, and the aches forgotten.
Christ Jesus is risen – He is risen indeed! Let us rejoice and be glad in it. Three days from an ending to a beginning three days from mourning to…
Today, we as disciples of Jesus are to be good news people in bad news times, not with stories of stray cats or Colorado foxes or even a ‘chicken soup’ like feel-good testimony, but with life-transforming news that brings hope, peace and joy to the present and future. And friends, we can bear witness of such a thing.
“Your life today is a result of your thinking yesterday. Your life tomorrow will be determined by what you do today.”
John C. MaxwellSKMB Assembly 2022 – Do Not Lose Heart On March 12th approximately 85 participants took in the online SKMB Assembly 2022. The day began with a pre-Assembly session specifically engaging…
I wonder if God would judge our culture as being any better or worse than the one of Jesus’ time? I wonder if Paul would determine the church of his time to be better or worse than the church of 2022? I wonder if the plan God revealed in Christ Jesus 2000 some years ago – a gospel narrative couched in humility – has any less impact and transformative power today?
How is the gospel advanced? By passionate and capable ambassadors of Christ? Yes. Through a clear proclamation of the gospel? Yes. By demonstrations of love and miracles? Yes. With good strategy and robust financial resources? Yes. But how is the gospel best advanced? Hailey, this devoted and humble saint from the church I once pastored, claimed it was upon our knees, praying.
This season is one where relentless anxiety about the vacuum of unity within the Body of Christ is prevalent; a time when fear abounds about yet another ideological, political, or philosophical conflict breaking onto the ecclesiastical landscape.
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.
- Arts & CultureBible studyfeature articlesFeaturesfilm/theatreinspirationalLife & FaithMB Herald
‘Safety’ labels, Indiana Jones and wisdom
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…
Dad’s secret of contentment was perhaps less complex than many believe. As he saw it, it was living from a place of (using a common expression) letting go and letting God, because the Father does indeed know what is best.