Pilgrim Year (series) Steve Bell Novalis In the Worship Arts program at Columbia Bible College, students often encounter the practice of the liturgical year for the first time. Although they…
Easter
From Good Friday to Easter For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he…
John 1:19–34 When was your last adventure in the wilderness and what was your best moment? Three days into a trip on the waters of Northern Saskatchewan, I peer over…
//// //// Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed A church in Burkina Faso enjoys a macaroni dinner after the Easter service. Eating together makes for a happy celebration! It’s popular for churches to sew matching…
The addition and subtraction of Lent Seasons of seeking God, and elevated intentionality in spiritual practices like Lent or Advent are useful. “Grace removes earning; it does not remove effort,”…
The first time I visited Lithuania, pastor Valdas picked me up from the Šiauliai (pronounced “show-lie”) train station and asked, “You want to see something unique? We have a little time before our meeting.”
We are the shadow people who dance with death, that great shade, our whole life long. We try to run from its darkness, we avoid it, we try to elude…
After plowing through scores of accounts, I have come to realize the manner of Jesus’ death is rarely reflected in common, idealized martyrdom stories. The majority of those who occupy…
There were certain traditions in my Mennonite Brethren upbringing; Lent wasn’t one of them. So why Lent, and why now? I’ve wrestled with this. Here’s my answer: my main motivation…
“The resurrection changes everything,” says Jeff Peters, director of advancement at MB Biblical Seminary Canada. “Christians should spend time contemplating and celebrating this pivotal event.” The seminary has produced a…
The chilly spring waters of the Pacific Ocean didn’t deter 29 people from plunging beneath the surface this Easter as a public witness to the truth and power of the gospel. On April 20, 2014, four Mennonite Brethren churches held outdoor baptisms…
I was raised in the Roman Catholic church. My rebaptism in the Mennonite Brethren church was a defining moment in my life. I invited my parents to the service at…
Every Easter, I carefully place a bowl of pysanky (Ukrainian Easter eggs) on my table as a colourful and meaningful centrepiece. The eggs are hand-decorated treasures of times spent with…
One final step I think of the immense willpower Jesus needed to be fully human, to take that final step toward a painful, humiliating, slow death on the cross, and…