My granddaughters love to play hide-and-go-seek. They will spend hours at it, if I am willing to play with them. When it is my turn to seek them out, I discover their hiding spots quickly. When it is my turn to hide, however, it often … Read more

In the 1970s, we moved our European/Middle East head office to London, England. At that time, one of our external auditors told me this story. Two men shared an office; they had desks facing each other. They had worked together for a … Read more

"One, two, three, eyes on me!" I would sing to my Grade One class. I needed to get their attention at the beginning of the lesson to give them instructions and to start teaching them. If they were noisy or if they had wandered from the … Read more

Music is a wonderful vehicle for expressing deep thoughts and emotions. A childhood friend and I were reminiscing recently about how rich and meaningful our early church experience was. This was due, in part, to the role that music had … Read more

In our endeavour to keep a clear conscience, we must work on having a clear conscience not only before God, but before man as well. God expects us to be ambassadors of heaven, and to do this, we must be exemplary citizens on the earth in … Read more

Oh, my goodness! Usually, I'm not one to be lacking words, but how could I answer the question that I had just been asked? In my head, I thought that it certainly couldn't be a quick, flippant response, nor preachy. *Lord, help me to say … Read more

As usual, Frank, my gelding, was standing against the corral gate when I went out to feed and clean. As I opened the gate, I asked him to step back so that I could get myself and the cleaning toboggan through. He did step back, but just … Read more

Are you aware of God-given opportunities? At the time, I wasn't! My cousin turned 80 on Friday, April 24th. Two days before, my phone rang, and thankfully, I recognized her Rochester area code — not a telemarketer — so I answered … Read more

The famous preacher, Charles Price, wrote: We talk a lot about leadership, and rightly so, but our role is never to lead. It is to serve, and God is the one who makes leaders out of servants. If we want to know who our future leaders … Read more

A beefy guy with a buzz cut has a half-smoked cigarette behind his ear. Sitting next to him is a kid with a nose ring and eye makeup, wearing a black hat that says, "On my way to hell!" Those of various faiths board, in turbans and … Read more

Several years ago, I learned two profound lessons from a young girl. 1. When you become aware of a problem, always try to figure out how you can help. My wife and I had decided to fly from Toronto to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, to visit … Read more

A story passed down from 1916 in our family is of my grandfather yelling to my grandmother, in a frantic moment when their farm house was on fire with no hope of it being saved, "If you go into that house one more time, I'll not go in. Our … Read more

At a picnic this past summer, I left my wide-brimmed, white cotton hat on a lawn chair to save my seat while going through the food line. When I returned with my loaded paper plate, someone was sitting on my hat! Shutting my mouth, I … Read more

During this past Easter season, there were a number of movies on television which those who make up the schedules felt were appropriate for the season — movies such as The Robe, The King of kings and Easter Parade — just to mention … Read more

My wife Ruth and I farmed sheep for a number of years, and those sheep taught us many valuable lessons. Farmers are noted for being a diversified group of people, and some seem to be of the opinion that there is nothing that they cannot … Read more

It was only 4:45 a.m., but I was up and out in the backyard trimming back rampant wild roses. As I clipped away, I was glad to be able to make good use of the daylight hours, as I know that here in the north, the darkness will soon be upon … Read more

As of the middle of July, over 32,000 square kilometres of forest had been burning in Canada's summer heat, with the largest wildfires in Saskatchewan. Over 13,000 people had been forced to leave their homes. There is nothing like the … Read more

At the supermarket, I wheeled my three articles, precariously balanced on the front bar of my two-front-wheel, two-back-skids walker, into the last check-out aisle signed "Limit 12 Articles". The lady in front of me had just put a few … Read more

I left my apartment to take my daily walk around the block with a few of my booklets in the basket of the walker that I use to get around with these days. I don't like to feel shut in and unable to meet people. Before I closed my door, I … Read more

Many years ago, my mom tried to teach a class how to knit. Ten others learned to knit from her, but I didn't. The reason for this is that everyone else, including my mom, was right-handed, and I was the only left-handed person in the … Read more

For the past few weeks, I have felt the Lord speaking to me on the subject of having a tender heart. At first, I didn't understand what this meant, so I have been praying and searching the Scriptures to help me figure this out. Along the … Read more

It fell to my lot to grow up near a church which we attended on a regular basis. All my siblings and I went from the beginners' department to the Bible class by passing the Scripture examinations. I had three teachers in the Bible class, … Read more

The road that I travel to work is going to be widened; this work is scheduled to take seven years. When I heard the time frame, I began to grumble about the inconvenience of it taking so long and being my route to work. I began to do the … Read more

I like my set of little living-room tables. They are finished in a warm brown walnut. The middle-sized one sits under the largest, and the wee one under both. I bought them tagged as is at the furniture store. The wee table had a … Read more

Last fall, a bike ride ended in a visit to a coffee establishment that is close to my home. I left my bike unlocked as I sat enjoying my coffee at a table near a window. Usually, I take my helmet in with me, but for some reason, I hung it … Read more

This morning when I was praying for the salvation of several relatives, as well as many individual friends, a question suddenly popped into my mind. "Do you really believe My return is imminent, Sharon?" A shiver ran all over me … Read more

An idle glance at the licence plate on the car stopped ahead of me brought an unexpected message and response. The words I saw on the personalized plate: "BE GLAD". We were in traffic waiting to exit a shopping mall … Read more

Every morning, I have a cup of tea. I use my favourite mug. It holds 16 ounces and keeps my drink hot. It's ceramic and thick-walled, and the handle can fit all four fingers. The lip on it is rounded … Read more

I once met a young woman who was passionate about insects — and that made her a true authority on them. Her life's goal, even as a child, was to study and know insects. She read literature on insects, researched … Read more

The highlight of the Daily Devotional tour of central Europe last summer was, of course, the Oberammergau Passion Play. This five-hour presentation of the last week of Jesus' life, from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday, has been performed every ten … Read more

Throughout my forty-six years in Australia, I have continuously frequented the various parts of the ninety-mile beach along our Victorian coastline. The gold and cream-to-white sand, the blue-green sea with its fragrant foamy spray, the breezes and winds are to … Read more

When I was a young girl and fussing as to how I looked before I would go out, my mother always reminded me that it was what was on the inside that counted. She would say to me, "The world … Read more

Recently, I watched a Christian film entitled Perfect Stranger, based on the novel Dinner with a Perfect Stranger by David Gregory. Having a great interest in Christian apologetics, I was deeply moved by the movie's presentation of the Gospel. This … Read more