I have no doubt about that. Jesus would wear a mask. There are two reasons that I am certain that Jesus would wear a mask if he were here today in the midst of this pandemic.   First, Jesus declared that the second greatest commandment is “Love your neighbour as your self.” Wearing a mask is about loving your neighbour. If you have COVID and are asymptomatic and if you do not wear a mask, then you are spreading the virus to your neighbours, friends and family members. They could become very sick and possibly die from the disease, or they could...

“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28 We are hearing much weariness in people as this pandemic continues with numbers rising and warnings of stricter measures.  We wonder about how much more we can take.  We yearn to see family and friends without worrying about safety protocols.  We long to anticipate a Christmas as we’ve enjoyed in previous years, even as we know this Christmas will be different.  We wish to be rid of masks and distancing and hand-cleansing, and most of all the fear and worry that vibrates within us. ...

This week we are remembering those who served and those who are currently serving our country through the Canadian Armed Forces. We remember their family members and friends, especially those who are grieving the loss of one who served.   We remember those armed forces members who continue to suffer physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually after their service to this country, those for whom depression & post-traumatic stress is a daily reality for themselves & their families.   We remember civilians bombed and driven from their homes, and refugees living in camps, longing for a new life.          ...

There was snow on the ground this week. We are grateful that it held off for so long, compared to last year. It allowed us more time to be outdoors for safe distanced connecting. But now the snow reminds us that winter is around the corner (though there will still be some warmer times). There is a weariness to this all – masks, hand-sanitizing, physical distancing, staying in small cohorts of people and not being able to engage freely with friends and even extended family.   Yet, we have no more control over the pandemic than we do over the weather....

  I’m tired of all this. I don’t want to hear another word about pandemic or COVID. But that’s not the way it works. I can turn off the news, but that doesn’t end the pandemic. I can ignore the case numbers, but they still are what they are. It doesn’t matter to COVID-19 whether we are tired of it or not. It is a virus and it will spread as long as we provide it the means to do so. It does not get tired of doing so.   I was thinking of those who lived through the first...

This is a season of discontent. Nothing feels quite right. Whether in our jobs or in our family relationships (outside of our bubble), it just doesn’t quite feel like we are doing the job we want to be doing. As teachers, nurses, doctors, ministers, store clerks and also as grandparents, neighbours and friends, almost everything that comes so naturally to us, in how we do our job and how we relate to those around us, is now restricted or requires numerous protocols. It is exhausting and frustrating. It leaves us feeling so dis-satisfied and discontented.  When we feel this way, the...

Grace and Peace to you this day.   You are in my prayers today as I bring thoughts of you to my mind and hold you in my heart. These days are indeed filled with scatteredness and all the trembling that comes with anxious times. Today I am especially mindful of all the lacks and losses we are experiencing. All we can do is find our tears and grieve. What?!, you say. What do you mean find our tears? Isn’t this the time to be strong and be resilient in the face of such a crazy time? Stay with me now....

Every night when I leave our church building I fix my eyes upon the pendant light shining in our church's front entry way which we keep on 24 hrs as a beacon of hope in the downtown.  I often gaze at this light and pray for all those folks that I couldn’t get to that day, for all the folks that I was able to be with and, for all those who might cross my path tomorrow.  I imagine the light guiding those who need hope, peace, healing, and love in their lives to “safe harbour”—to safe respectful sanctuary—to the unconditional...

November 11, 2017   Good morning everyone.  I invite you to hear these words from poet and writer, Susan Bentall Boersma:   There is a yearning  in hearts weighed down by ancient grief  and in centuries of sorrow.  There is a yearning  in hearts that in the darkness hide  and in the shades of death abide,  a yearning for tomorrow.   Captured in the ritual of today’s ceremony of remembering and silence, there is a yearning.  There is a yearning for an end to strife and violence and needless suffering.  There is a yearning for right relationships and justice amongst all...

I just made a coffee date with a friend.  We meet about once a month to check in about life, the universe and everything. The topics flow from what’s going on at home, to what we’re noticing around us, to recent discoveries in the world of science or how to best come alongside our adolescent sons.  It’s great.  I’m grateful.   I just wanted to share that.  Partly because I have the sense that this is becoming a rare practice (which is why I feel grateful).  Lately and for whatever reason, I am aware that in our North American context, there...