Sermons
Why ask why?
Asking questions seems to be fundamental to the human experience. I seem to recall my developmental psychology professor telling the class pre-schoolers can ask more than four hundred “Why” questions a day; a statistic I can easily believe. Being asked questions can be irritating but it can also be illuminating. When someone asks you why you do something, sometimes you realize you don’t really know. “Why do I wear a…
Endings can be hard
Endings can be hard, especially when we don’t know when they will be coming or what they will look like. Oh wait, did you think I was going to bang on about death and dying again? Not this time. This Sunday we are talking, briefly at least, about eschatology. Eschatology is the study of the last things, especially as they relate to how God is going to wrap up this…
Keep on. Keep on. Keep on.
Perseverance. Much like patience, you can tell it is a virtue rather than a vice because it is so hard to do. The book of Hebrews has a lot of good things for us. We looked at faith last week and this week we are looking at something that comes from faith. One of the things I was trying to point out in the sermons was how faith is one…
Temptation and deliverance
I filled in for the Rev. Norma Holtslander, my stepmom, at First Baptist Place this evening. She has been going through the Lord’s Prayer phrase by phrase and when she was unable to be at the service, I got to do Matthew 6:13 which reads: And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. (NIV) or And do not bring us to the time of trial, …
Talking about faith
Faith. Faith is a big topic in some circles, like this one. It is one of the big three in 1 Corinthians 13, i.e. faith, hope, and love. It is something we need to see God. Depending on the translation you consult the word “faith” occurs somewhere between 247 and 274 times in the Bible. It will not surprise you then when I say it is a word with many…
How much is enough?
How much is enough? If you are an exasperated parent, “enough” is usually enough. If you are a hoarder, there is never enough Our texts for this Sunday give us a couple of perspectives on possessions; one pessimistic and one optimistic. The interesting thing about these two perspectives is they are both wrong. As anyone who listens to me much at all knows, I am deeply suspicious of either/or thinking…
The same but different
One of the most familiar passages of Scripture in all of Scripture is the Lord’s Prayer. About the only passage I can think of which might be better known is Psalm 23. I have a recollection of when I was growing up we recited the Lord’s Prayer in school, I am disinclined to weigh in on the value or lack of same for that practice. Many recovery groups use the…
Rev. James Frost 1931-2019
The message below is the one I preached, or the meditation I shared, at the funeral of my father-in-law, Rev. James Frost. I hope it is a blessing to you. It was an honour to do it. Rev. James Frost Funeral message Blessings,
The flip side of the Good Samaritan
Before we get going, I have a question for anyone who cares to respond, I will be officiating at my father-in-law’s funeral this Friday (10:00 AM at First Baptist Regina if you are in town and interested) and will in all likelihood record whatever I say, let me know if you would like me to post it here. Every so often I find myself forgetting what the Gospel accounts actually…
The neighbours have moved
Neighbours, we all have them. Sometimes we get along with them, sometimes we don’t. Our current culture frequently has us living next door to people for years and never even knowing their name. Most of us have had an example or two of what it means to be a neighbour, one of the most famous is just in the picture. Did you know he was, among so many things, a…