When time becomes the right time
The New Testament speaks of time in two ways: there is chronos (chronology, the movement of time by clock and calendar), and there is kairos (the opportune time, the right moment). Life is full of chronos. We wake up at a certain time. We eat at certain times. We go to work, school and appointments…
Women who prepared the way for Jesus
Rahab acts by faith Joshua 2:1-21; 6:22-25; Matthew 1:5; Hebrews 11:29-31; James 2:23-26. Beyond the narrative in Joshua and Jesus’ genealogy, Rahab is mentioned two other times in Scripture. Both times her name appears in a list of heroes of the faith, and it seems like a miracle that this woman, a prostitute with only…
No longer, but not yet
I was engaged for four months before the big day. Engagement is an interval in time determined by things that are no longer and things that are not yet. The engaged are not really single, but not yet spouse. My experience of engagement was of a time in between. It involved longing (hey, I’m a…
Solitude and community
A peculiar thing happened to me last Sunday while I was on holidays. I felt a strong desire to attend a church service. Curious, to say the least. You see, by the time summer arrives, I’m usually churched out. As a pastor, church is not only my work life but a significant part of my…
Ten years after ‘Points of View’
On April 3, 2009, southern Manitoba-based folk group the Other Brothers released Points of View. Recorded in the studio at Mennonite Church Manitoba, the album earned critical acclaim—CBC dubbed them “the Simon and Garfunkel of the Prairies”—and a small but loyal following. Made up at the time of Chris Neufeld and Donovan Giesbrecht, the group’s…
Faith forged in disorientation
This is an unprecedented time. Unprecedented—it’s a word we’re hearing a lot in the last few months. The sense of disorientation has been palpable, from eerily empty streets to new protocols at the grocery store, an ever-increasing number of masks and people performing acrobatic feats to maintain a two-metre buffer. Somehow, this feels like a…
Called to deep hope
Mary Magdalene couldn’t have known the end of the story—how things would turn out. How could she? She, and the rest of the disciples, were no different from the rest of us. The future is cloudy at best. We don’t know what the next day will hold. Back then, no one saw the resurrection coming.…
A mother’s perspective on Advent
It is my favourite time of year, this season of Advent. The anticipation leading up to Christmas is the richest and most exciting time of year for me. Last year, I had the privilege of journeying with Mary while expecting our second child. There is nothing quite as amazing as waiting for the birth of…
Losing freedom?
I’m writing this on Jan. 18 and I’m wondering how tone deaf my article will seem by the time you read it. I have no idea what the world will be like in a few days, let alone a few weeks. Who knows what catastrophic event or pivotal moment in history will have occurred between…
Peace and popularity
I thank God for moments when people share their hearts. In the pages that follow, you may find such moments: committed volunteers in a basement archive, an inspired welder, a new twist on quilting, a gathering that puts the cross in cross-cultural, and insight from King Hezekiah on mid-grade worship services. In addition, Jonathan Neufeld…
