Living the Resurrection: What Would it Mean for our World if Christ is Truly Risen

American psychotherapist Rollo May, who had also studied theology, in his book My Quest for Beauty writes about his search for the wellsprings of human creativity and for the personal and social purposes of art. In it he recalls his visit in 1932 to Mount Athos in Greece with its numerous monasteries. He arrives at …

What is the Majority World Saying About Mission Today

With the centre of global Christianity shifting to the Majority World, what do church and mission leaders in the Global South think mission should be about today? This article describes the situation through the eyes of some prominent mission leaders from across the globe. Read more What the Majority World Is Saying About Mission Today …

The Silence of God: Living in the Saturdays of Life

In the midst of Holy Week of the Protestant and Catholic Church calendars, we focus on the events of that week. Drawing from his own dark times of doubt and despair, David, the poet and king, prophetically described the anguish of Christ in detail a few centuries earlier in Ps. 22:1-2. My God, my God, …

The Kind of People We are Called to be: Character Still Matters

Convocation Address at the Tyndale University College and Seminary’s University College Graduation, May 25, 2019 Graduating class of 2019, parents, family and friends who have supported these students, Chancellor Dr. John Wilkinson, Board Chair Steve Holmes, Dr. Gary Nelson, Dr. Barry Smith, and faculty colleagues. Congratulations graduates – one season ends! Your hard work, passion and …

Does God Call Us to Change the World: Is Transformation a Biblical Concept?

If you were to browse the websites of any Christian organization involved in addressing poverty and social injustice, you will not be able to avoid the word transformation. Speak to college students about their aspirations, it would not be unusual to hear some of them talk about wanting to change the world. Images of emaciated …

Spiritual Leadership: What I wish I had understood when I was starting out

This is no weekend war that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. Ephesian 6:12 (The Message) “It’s all great fun.” The English poet Robert Brooke naively wrote home when he served in …

Missio Dei: human responsibility and the desire for results in a move of the Spirit of God

A devotion shared with Board of Trustees of the United Bible Societies Association In a rapidly changing world, we are realizing that the present way of doing strategic planning is a challenge. At the Canadian Bible Society (CBS) we see the need to be an adaptive organization that can respond and pivot as the external …

Advent – Once Upon a Time Coming Soon

Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; 2 Samuel 7:23-29, John 3: 31-36 Advent these days seems to be a countdown to celebrating of the birth of Christ. This is seen in the Advent calendars and the excitement of children as they count the days till they can open their presents. Yet in ancient Israel, a dark and confusing …

Wise Men and Shepherds as Witnesses? Who Would Believe Them?

Any retelling of the Christmas story is never complete without the witnesses to the birth of Christ. This was not some obscure event tucked away in the back alleys of Bethlehem, being embellished each time it was retold till it became part of the Church’s mythology and festivities. Instead there were witnesses who could vouch …

Christmas and the Longings of the Poor

I remember an evening with Iranian Muslim background believers in a country near their homeland as they worshiped Christ in a small apartment which was also their church. The church was under threat of being firebombed by radicals and often had police protecting it. Ever since fleeing from their homes, they feared for their lives …

What the Poor Have Taught Me About Faith

A 2009 study by Tomas Rees on the relationship between poverty and religiousness found that personal insecurity (due to stressful situations, such as poverty, as well as other life events) was an important determinant of religiosity.[1] The poor tend to be more religious. I find the faith of the poor both intriguing and challenging. Intriguing …

Being a Witness: Rumors of another Kingdom

There are many passages in Scripture that we are so familiar with that sometimes we miss something important that is being communicated. Matt. 11:4-6, “Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead …