You’ve probably had this experience with one of your children—the experience of trying to explain something that was a part of your childhood, but is completely foreign to theirs. Though we aren’t that far removed from the years when we were young, the pace of technological change has been unparalleled. What was mind-blowing in the…
We have entered into an age in which many people are leaving behind their printed Bibles in favor of digital equivalents. On one level that’s of no great concern. After all, people are not leaving behind the Bible altogether, but merely exchanging one medium for another. If Paul could say, “Only that in every way,…
I have been spending a fair bit of time researching the topic of social justice—something that has probably become obvious to you if you’re a regular reader of this site. The more I read, the more I see how much of the battle is not merely one of competing ideologies, but of competing vocabularies. John…
Corrie Ten Boom famously compared God’s providence to a tapestry which, as it is being woven, seems to be little more than a mess of threads and knots. But when finished it is turned over to reveal its beauty. You can read this in a poem she popularized titled “Life Is But a Weaving.” But…
Every now and again Aileen gets into cooking shows. Every time she does, it works out well for me. And for her. And for the kids. It could be Top Chef or Master Chef. It could be The Final Table or The Great British Bake Off. It doesn’t really matter. She starts watching and before…
If you’re into Kindle deals, unfortunately today is not your day. But I’m pretty sure there will be a batch tomorrow. Holding Grief and Joy in Tandem Lara d’Entremont reflects on holding grief and joy in tandem. “While living on this earth marred by sin’s curse, we will always be in this awkward place of…
Suffering is never pleasant. We never welcome trials as we do joys, for suffering always brings sorrow, it always brings pain. Sometimes a loved one is taken from us and we experience the aching grief of absence. Sometimes we suffer the loss of money, property, or position and we mourn what has been torn from…
An element of worship we treasure at Grace Fellowship Church is the Call to Worship. This is the element at the beginning of the service that is essentially a declaration that we are now beginning something special, something different from everything else we will experience through the week. As we explicitly call people to worship,…
The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath. Sabbath is a gift God has given us for our good. We are feeble creatures who need rest, yet foolish creatures who would otherwise work ourselves to the bone. The sabbath is a reminder of our weakness, of our finiteness, of our inability. It…
You do not need to be a particularly astute observer of society to understand that we have entered into a time of great transition and even great upheaval. A new worldview based around a very particular conception of social justice is quickly gaining traction. Traditional understandings of sex and gender are being overthrown. New words…
Toronto is the most diverse city in the world which means that Toronto churches are among the most diverse churches in the world. If over fifty percent of the people who live in the city were born in a country other than Canada, which is exactly the case, then in all probability over fifty percent…
It’s always a blessing for me to see the launch of a new blog, and perhaps especially so when that blog has been founded by a young Christian. I’m convinced there’s still a place for Christian blogs, even in 2020, and I am eager to give whatever tips I can to help these new bloggers…
It is God’s desire that there be unity between his people, and for that reason Christian unity is a prominent theme in the New Testament. Jesus prays for it in his High Priestly prayer, Luke describes it in his history of the early church, Paul demands it of the congregations he writes to, Peter appeals…
It’s not a memory I’m proud of, but every now and again I feel the need to revisit it. I guess if Peter could tell the tale of betraying Jesus—after all, how else would the biblical writers have known the fine details?—, I can tell my tale of failing to be like Jesus. I can…
The fool of the book of Proverbs is a vivid illustration of practical atheism, for this foolish man lives as if there is no God and as if God isn’t concerned about human behavior. The fool may not actually deny the existence of the divine, but he practically denies it by choosing to live according…
It is one thing to hear, but another thing to listen. Good communication and healthy relationships depend upon not only hearing the words other people say, but on carefully listening to what they mean to communicate. To listen is to love. But if we are honest, few of us are good listeners. It’s easy enough…
In recent days the topic of social justice has received much attention within the church and without. As Christians we are committed to living according to God’s Word, and so we have rightly been turning to the Bible to learn how it would guide us. We have been scouring its pages to see what it…
Christians have a unique relationship with money. We maintain a healthy desire to have it, but at the same time we maintain a respectful fear of it. We believe that money equips us to do all kinds of good deeds, but also believe that the love of money is at the root of all kinds…
A short time ago I compared certain evangelical churches to a meatless, cheeseless, crustless pizza. Just like removing too many elements of a pizza will call into doubt whether something still qualifies as pizza at all, removing too many elements of worship should call into doubt whether something still qualifies as a worship service. A…
You might be tired of hearing it, but that doesn’t make it any less true—these have been difficult days for pastors. And I think you need to hear as well that there are more difficult days ahead. That being the case, for the sake of your pastor and the sake of your church, he needs…