The Long Journey

As I said at the beginning of worship, the next few weeks are going to be focused on how small changes, changes that we don’t think even matter, can build up over time to make a big difference. James Clear, in his book Atomic Habits, writes, “It’s so easy to overestimate the importance of one…

Love’s Bright Star

Epiphany is one of my favourite celebrations in the church year. I’m not sure why, I don’t remember any emphasis on it when I was growing up… although I overheard references to ‘Old Christmas’ when we lived close to my mother’s family in southern Manitoba in a community that was primarily German/Ukrainian and Mennonite. Maybe…

Bravely Following the Star…

What would we do if we were brave? That question, raised by Rev Deborah Blood, the Executive Minister for the United Church of Christ in Maine, at the Annual Regional Meeting last year, has echoed in my head for months. Many of our churches live in fear: fear of the future, fear of not having…

Rebuilding with Faith, Love & Community

You can listen to the audio here. First some back story… unlike much of our Scripture, this reading is dated carefully and precisely, in 520 BC/BCE, according to our calendar. Darius, the super-power of the day, recognized the right of the Jews to rebuild the Temple, but the Temple work languished. Haggai was utterly convinced…

We Make the Road by Walking

A hurricane… the beginning of Intentional Interim Ministry… a federal election called… Those set beside stories from our Bible, I will touch on all of these. In the beginning, God. In the beginning, light. In the beginning, the wind from God swept over the waters of creation, creating life. The winds last week didn’t feel…

Five Smooth Stones

There are few stories that are more familiar than the one of David and Goliath. Even the most secular people have some sort of understanding of the story. It comes from more than three thousand years ago, but still has echoes today. Israel has come into the Promised Land and become a significant presence there. With…

What’s Your F Word: Faith

Imagine the first Pentecost… That fearful band of followers of Jesus. Their beloved leader who was put to death, rose three days later and spent the next 50 days seemingly popping in and out of situations, still preaching, teaching and healing. And then he ascended into heaven. Gone away again. And then there was Pentecost… the day when the…