When I was a university student, a cleverly engineered carillon warned me I might be late as I biked past it on my way to class. The bells played different tunes at each quarter hour, and at noon a small…
Recently I was part of a team that put together a conference on MAiD (Medical Assistance in Dying). Two ministers that I know approached me and the non-profit organization with which I work, to see if we might together plan…
We like to say that as Christians, as kingdom people, we live in the ‘already, and not yet.’ The kingdom of God is at hand – already we are saved and set apart, being sanctified; we repent of sins, follow…
Recent news headlines show that we are living at a time of heightened backlash against immigration. Anti-immigration anxieties have animated political forces around the world and immigrants are regularly scapegoated for all kinds of social problems, especially on social media.…
On the eve of the Thanksgiving long weekend, I was waiting in the early morning ferry line up in Snug Cove, making my usual way from Bowen Island to UBC when someone knocked on my car window. A little startled,…
Over dinner with friends a few weeks ago, conversation got around to how we navigate through life-altering crossroads. One friend shared advice that intrigued me about making decisions based on our values, not our circumstances. In difficult moments, certain decisions…
Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving . . . Psalm 147:7 I don’t often have fast food, but on a whim I recently popped into an A&W near the UBC campus. As I sat waiting for my order I noticed…
Our friendship grew slowly, over many years. She lived in my neighbourhood with her partner, in a very large old house – twice the size of mine – located only a few doors down the street. You had to climb…
In the song ‘Straight Street,’ J.W. Alexander and Jesse Whitaker say, “Well I used to live on Broadway, right next to the liar’s house, my number was self-righteousness and a very little guide of mouth.” This song is about conversion, a…
It’s commonly assumed that the taking of a breath is the first thing we do outside of the womb. Research, however, indicates that on average it takes a full 10 seconds before a newborn takes their first gulp of air.1…