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Interview with an artistStephanie Sikma is printing Hamilton
I’ve always thought printmaking was a fascinating form of art – first carving your design into wood or lino, and then pressing that inked design…
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EducationReal Talk: Church, Home, and School
This episode can also be found on your favorite podcast platform: Spotify, Apple, Podbean, Amazon Music or on our website. Be sure to subscribe to our…
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AssortedThe antidote to desecration
A while back the polling company Ipsos Reid asked Canadians if our country was “broken.” 70% said it was, with younger Canadians agreeing the most…
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MagazineSeptember/October 2026 issue
This edition is all about celebrating 25 (more or less) issues of Come & Explore! Inside you’ll find 10 pages worth of activities and puzzles…
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AssortedEffective giving
***** By worldly and historical standards, Canadians are incredibly wealthy, with much more than we need for our daily living. And Canadian Christians are generous…
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ParentingMatrescence: the process of becoming a mother
I was deeply ashamed. “I just want to go back to before,” I said to my husband, burying my face in his shoulder. I’d been…
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Recent ArticlesReal Talk: Living as exiles
This episode can also be found on your favorite podcast platform: Spotify, Apple, Podbean, Amazon Music or on our website. Be sure to subscribe to our…
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Being the ChurchBeloved care
***** Even today, the Dutch immigrant work ethic and zeal for kingdom-building remains alive in southern Alberta, three generations after a wave of immigrants first…
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News17 Alberta babies survived an abortion and were left to die
Richard Dur, the Executive Director of Prolife Alberta, writing in The Western Standard, shared this grim statistic: “Seventeen babies were born alive in Alberta following…
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Recent ArticlesScreen-fast 2026: How’d we all do?
Last year’s screen-fast set the bar pretty high with over 900 people signing up to participate. This year, nearly 800 of you decided to once…
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Recent ArticlesReal Talk: Sunday – rest or rules?
This episode can also be found on your favorite podcast platform: Spotify, Apple, Podbean, Amazon Music or on our website. Be sure to subscribe to our…
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ParentingThe Pity Party Pit and how to get out of it
***** Homemaking and motherhood are hard. There are days and even seasons when the monotony can feel palpable as we change one more diaper, wash…
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Economics – Home FinancesBeware the new thieves
***** Gerry lost his dear wife Margaret in 2020, after nearly forty years of marriage. He never thought that he would be the lonely type,…
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AssortedNews in perspective feedback
We’re always trying to make the magazine better and need your help to do it. Let us know which News in Perspective articles – those…
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AssortedWhat’s missing?
We’d love to hear from you about what else you would like to see covered in the magazine. Was there an issue raised that was…
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ContestsThoughts from tulips to TULIP: My journey into the Reformed faith and translation
One morning in early April 2025, I am sitting on our back deck, holding a cup of coffee and enjoying the quiet stillness of the…
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PoliticsPerhaps you should run
***** Every four years, for a brief season, nomination papers open and the question becomes concrete: who will step forward to govern our towns and…
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Being the ChurchReal Talk: Work is worship
This episode can also be found on your favorite podcast platform: Spotify, Apple, Podbean, Amazon Music or on our website. Be sure to subscribe to our…
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ContestsMade new
Josh Schouwstra’s “Made New” is about the quiet witness of the Christian life, and how God can use that quiet witness to chip away at…
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NewsLiberal party support highest among boomers
More than any other age group, boomers overwhelmingly support the Liberal Party. A July 2026 poll conducted by Abacus Data asked 4,200 Canadian adults which…
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PoliticsShould Alberta Separate? Why one Christian decided to vote no
“Canada is like an old cow. The West feeds it. Ontario and Quebec milk it. And you can well imagine what it’s doing in the…
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EvangelismReal Talk: Would you risk your life for the gospel?
This episode can also be found on your favorite podcast platform: Spotify, Apple, Podbean, Amazon Music or on our website. Be sure to subscribe to our…
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AssortedRuin and restoration and our part
When the world falls into spiritual darkness and all you see around you is chaos and misery, what then? Isaiah, in chapter 24, spoke of…
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PoliticsAlberta separatism: is it wrong to go?
I have deep roots in Alberta, having lived there for the first 30+ years of my life. I was also heavily involved in politics through…
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UncategorisedGlobal wealth is growing
Overall, the world’s population is richer than ever, with global personal wealth growing 10.8% in 2025, after more modest growth of 4.6% in 2024, and…
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NewsOntario’s “conservative” gov’t opposes bill that would have banned gambling ads
Ontario is awash in new gamblers. As ARPA Canada reported earlier this year: “A recent study found that since iGaming Ontario was introduced, total monthly…
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Adult non-fictionThe Amazing Generation: Your guide to fun and freedom in a screen-filled world
by Jonathan Haidt and Catherine Price 2025 / 236 pages Rating: Good/Great/GIFT The old blue rocking chair is the most comfortable chair in our house,…
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EntertainmentCan I watch a movie during my screen-fast?
***** 1. Can I still do the screen-fast if my work requires I be on a computer? Some didn’t participate in last year’s screen-fast because…
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Recent ArticlesWhat I like about my dumbphone
I’ve been using the Light Phone III exclusively for almost a year now and wanted to share a few notes for anyone who might be…
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NewsNearly 60% of violent crime cases now being stayed or withdrawn
“Justice delayed has become justice denied,” concluded a recent report from The Hub about the amount of time it is taking for criminal justice cases…
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ContestsBecause
What if you were rich as you could be? You owned everything, far as the eye could see. You loved to share these riches with…
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ContestsThe Ring
He looks down at his wrinkled fingers Thumbs the gold band wrapped around it His wedding ring 71 years ago the church bells rang Then…
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ContestsSonnet for an Unknown God – Acts 17
I saw an altar, nameless, cold, and bare, With faded letters signed “The Unknown God.” A feeling dark and lonesome lingered there, A shadow of…
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ContestsBorrowed language to thank my dearest Friend
As Moses raised the serpent up so God’s own Son was lifted high. Alas! My Saviour Jesus bled, my Sovereign Lord did die. His sacred…
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ContestsSign up for now RP’s July 13-22 screen-fast challenge!
Bring peace to your mind while raising $100 for charity. ***** Are you struggling with keeping screens in their proper place? Do you or your…
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Entertainment“What can I do?” Part II
***** For our first screen-fast in 2025, we offered up 35 ideas for great activities you and your family can do with your screen-free moments,…
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ContestsAnxiety and trust
There are moments when the world grows quiet, yet our minds grow loud. Worries replay themselves in the dark – unfinished conversations, uncertain futures, fears…
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Recent ArticlesOn being smartphone-free for five years
Way back in the Fall of 2021, I ditched my iPhone and got a dumbphone. I was sick of how my smartphone was a major…
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MagazineJuly/August 2026 issue
The 2026 “Log out. Look up.” 10-day screenfast may be done but that doesn’t mean you can’t do your own! Find out all our tips…
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ParentingGive your kids a super power
***** I’ve been thinking lately that books are incredible. They are full of adventures and worlds and characters that shape us in profound ways. They…
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Being the ChurchLove thy neighbor. Love thy neighborhood encampment…?
What comes to mind when you think of Hamilton, Ontario? The waterfall capital of the world? The armpit of the Golden Horseshoe? Or perhaps you’ve…
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Interview with an artistLaura Kroesbergen’s hyperrealistic animals
Capturing a moment in pastel ***** In her childhood, Laura Kroesbergen found she struggled with confidence in her relationships with people, but when she was…
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InternetIs AI helping you, or dumbing you down? Yes.
***** The Preacher declares in Ecclesiastes 1:9 that “there is nothing new under the sun.” He was saying it with a sense of despair, but…
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Recent ArticlesThe day is not an age
***** When my daughter was young, I introduced her to sketching and how to use colored pencils to enhance her drawings. She continued to practice…
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Interview with an artistTrees, rocks, water, sky, wildlife – Sheila Van Delft paints refreshment for the soul
The quiet cool of a forest trail brings inspiration to artist Sheila Van Delft. As an introvert, she finds she can recharge by breathing deeply…
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MusicWhen the Church stops singing
***** The first time I realized something was wrong with congregational singing, I was sixteen years old, sitting at the pipe organ bench at Tabor…
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Recent ArticlesPerfect planet
***** In our garden is a plum tree. Now this may not sound unusual except that stone fruit trees, like plums, do not grow well…
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People we should knowJ. Gresham Machen (1881-1937)
***** One of the greatest theologians of the twentieth century was an American Presbyterian named John Gresham Machen. More than any other individual in the…
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HomosexualityOpposing rainbow crosswalk results in human rights trial
Ronald Reagan once shared a quip about the difference between his country and the totalitarian USSR. “Two Soviets… were talking to each other. And one…
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EvangelismThe life and death of our campus evangelism project
When someone says, “Hey, we should do some outreach in our own community,” it’s an awkward situation since it’s so very hard to tell whether…
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HumorAlice in Blunderland
“I can’t believe that!” said Alice. “Can’t you?” the Queen said in a pitying tone. “Try again: draw a long breath, and shut your eyes.”…
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EconomicsWhy family businesses still matter (and why the Church should care)
I grew up with dirt under my fingernails and the sound of machinery in my ears. My grandparents’ farm sat on the arable land; our…
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Recent ArticlesDo leaves die?
***** Fall in America and throughout much of the Northern Hemisphere is a beautiful time of year. Bright reds, oranges, and yellows rustle in the…
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Being the ChurchTitus 2 young men are not boys
***** In Titus 2 Paul gives instructions to older women, younger women, older men and younger men, and gives instruction concerning the care of children….
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Culture ClashesWhich conspiracies are true?
A quick survey of X or the top YouTube-influencer-content on the Right reveals that conspiracy theories have never been so widely spread or fervently believed….
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EconomicsThe Parable of the Talents: the Bible and entrepreneurs
The parables of Jesus teach eternal truths, but they also offer surprising practical lessons for worldly affairs. In the Gospel According to Matthew (chapter 25,…
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MarriageAdvice to new brides
“Oh, a coffee maker! Just what Peter and I need – thank you so much!” Bridal showers are a fun, valuable tradition. The bride-to-be’s family,…
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PoliticsWhy I’m grateful for the notwithstanding clause
Legislatures make laws, the executive enforces them, judges interpret and apply them in specific cases. Three branches, checks and balances – that’s Civics 101. As…
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Book ReviewsThe barber who wanted to pray
by R.C. Sproul 2012 / 33 pages Rating: GREAT R.C. Sproul has written a half dozen picture books to date, all of them great instructional…
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Recent ArticlesThe beauty of 52 Sundays
***** There is something disarming about the Heidelberg Catechism. It doesn’t begin with abstract definitions, but with comfort. Our only comfort. Many of us have…
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Recent Articles6 days or 24 years: why does the difference even matter?
I recently set about the task of making an enclosure to keep animals, and I want to tell you how I did it. This may…
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AssortedWhen there is smoke…
You think you know someone. Five years – truly, has it already been five years that we have spent morning, noon and night working side…
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Recent ArticlesWild about beetles
From a young age some people are fascinated by beetles. For example, English author A. A. Milne wrote a delightful poem concerning a boy and…
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EconomicsFriedrich Hayek (1899-1992) showed us that free enterprise is necessary for freedom
One of the greatest social theorists of the twentieth century was a libertarian – some would say conservative – economist named Friedrich Hayek (1899-1992). Hayek…
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Being the ChurchRetirement: What are you retiring from? What are you retiring to?
***** “Retirement is unbiblical,” she told me, her fist firmly pounding her desk. Alice had been the company bookkeeper for about 50 years. She lived…
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HistoryThe case against the draft
***** Across the Western world, military recruiting is sputtering. In 2022 and 2023, the United States Army missed its enlistment targets by tens of thousands,…
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NewsHealth-adjusted life expectancy plummets
Canadians can expect 3.5 fewer years of good health compared to a decade ago, according to recent data published by Statistics Canada. Life expectancy has…
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AssortedHow to plan for your next chapter as a senior
By the year 2030, one in four Canadians will be over the age of 65. In my role as the CEO of two seniors’ living…
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Culture ClashesWhen sports is an idol
***** In July 1924, Scottish sprinter Eric Liddell refused to race in the qualifying heat of the Olympic 100-meter competition. A devout Presbyterian, Liddell had…
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Bricks2026CAN YOU BUILD IT BETTER? – the brick-building contest results!
We had another wonderful response to our brick-building contest. We asked whether entrants could think of “things that aren’t but should be” – we wanted…
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EducationLife skills every high school graduate needs to know
What skills should every child learn? Schools have traditionally focused on the 3 R’s of education: reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmatic. (All right, whoever came up…
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AssortedA theology of cleaning?
Solomon was a wise man. But as a king, he passed over some vivid illustrations in the futility chapter of Ecclesiastes. Allow me to add…
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Economics – Home FinancesA business tithe on sales?
***** Every sale has a story and an opportunity behind it. • Someone trusted you and chose your product or service. • And as believers,…
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AssortedBlessed are the caregivers
***** Although we don’t get a diploma and cap, many of us graduate from the role of caregiver when our youngest child spreads their wings…
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Interview with an artistAnne deJong is taking a palette knife to the Rockies
Breathe in the crisp mountain air. Allow the hustle and bustle of everyday life to drift away on the breeze. Drink in the beauty of…
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NewsNo jail for man who admits to killing his partner
“An Ottawa man who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death of his ailing husband has been sentenced to two years less a day of…
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AssortedHow to catch Ice Age Man using digital reindeer
What would happen if we assumed ancient man was intelligent? One man did just that, and I haven’t been able to stop talking about it…
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Amazing stories from times pastCarried
Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob, all the remnant of the people of Israel, you whom I have upheld since your birth, and have…
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Recent ArticlesProverbs: a different sort of devotional
“Do you have a devotional that you would recommend?” I get asked this question in various forms from time to time, and I think my…
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NewsCourt rules that Emergencies Act against “Freedom Convoy” was unlawful
Four years ago, in February 2022, Canada’s federal government invoked the Emergencies Act for the first time since it was enacted back in 1988, granting…
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EntertainmentYou might relate to Mary Bennet, but you’re not supposed to imitate her
Mary Bennet gets a lot of good press. In Pride and Prejudice, she is one of the heroine Elizabeth Bennet’s three younger sisters, and she’s…
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Adult fictionSincerely, Stoneheart
by Emily Wilson Hussem 2025 / 240 pages Rating: GOOD/Great/Gift I can’t find my car keys! Can you relate to this panicked searching? If you don’t…
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AssortedIn Christ
***** I used to enjoy rock climbing. At least, I thought I did. If you’ve tried it, you know what it feels like to be…
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NewsCourt case seeks to force religious groups to provide euthanasia
Providence Health Care, a Roman Catholic organization, is being challenged in a BC court for not providing euthanasia in their facilities. The same activist group…
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AssortedBusyness in the home
If you have a family, you know that your loved ones are greatly affected by your decisions around time management – and your children are…
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News4 out of 5 Canadians give like Scrooge
The Fraser Institute’s “Generosity Index” for 2025 revealed that a scant 0.52% of all income is being donated to charities. To add to this, the…
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AssortedBlessed are the busy?
***** It’s not really the worst problem to have: too many good things to do, and not enough time to do them all. Maybe that’s…
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AssortedMy journey with books
It has been a long journey of books for me. I grew up with books, and as a child read from The Book of Knowledge…
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AssortedNavigating failure
Fear of failure can paralyze you. There’s a lot to be said about how, in order to succeed, you need to be comfortable with failure…
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AssortedTaming busyness: practical tips
“If I’m caught up on my laundry, does that mean I’m not doing enough for the church?” “Am I allowed to fit in time for…
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Recent ArticlesTopsy-turvy world of bats
People have a love/hate relationship with bats. While these animals are interesting and exciting to some, the more common response is very negative, to say…
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PoliticsCanada’s law was based on God’s Word
***** Canada’s law was largely based on God’s law. That’s a claim many would dispute – they don’t want to give God credit for the…
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Adult non-fictionHow an Economy Grows and Why It Crashes
by Peter Schiff and Andrew Schiff 2014 / 304 pages Economics affects everyone but few people care to learn much about it. All the numbers…
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Pro-life – AbortionYou can save pre-born lives this summer
Yesterday I stood on a sidewalk holding a sign. It read, Pregnant? Need Help? I watched as the crowds hurried by and saw, on our…
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Dying WellMoth and rust resolutions
Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for…
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Interview with an artistCreated to create: a practical person’s thoughts on creativity
I can vividly recall one spring afternoon many years ago when I came across an unexpected sight in the woods near my childhood home: an…
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AssortedThe evil of simplicity
If ever there was an idol thoroughly ripe and ready for a great heaving into eternal hell fire, it has to be the idol of…
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Articles – BooksWe are not trashcans: how to analyze stories
Why is it important for Christians to understand stories? Obviously, God loves to tell them. Our world is saturated with His stories and the stories…
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NewsBible labelled as hateful by government MP
Liberal MP Marc Miller serves as the chair of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. On October 30, 2025, he…
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Recent ArticlesWhen God goes to war: holiness, judgment and hope
“Will not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” – Gen. 18:25 We don’t deny God’s wrath. We just don’t talk about…