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Politics

Should 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 Maritimes.”
~ attributed to Tommy Douglas, premier of Saskatchewan from 1944-1961

I am a true-blue Albertan, born and raised in this province, and I truly haven’t found a better place to live. However, with a referendum looming in October I’ve been presented with the choice of whether my allegiance is to Alberta or to my country Canada. In October, Albertans will vote on the question:

“Should Alberta remain a province of Canada, or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?”

Maybe your back goes up immediately – with words like disloyal, unpatriotic, and betrayal going through your mind. Or maybe you feel disillusioned with Canada and understand why a province would want to separate.

If I’m perfectly honest, I never felt like Alberta independence was a real thing. It’s been an idea at the back of Alberta political dialogue for my whole life, but mostly proposed in a joking way – “Wouldn’t we be better off if we were our own country?” But now the sentiment is real enough to send enough signatures on a petition to get the question put to a referendum.

Despite my skepticism of independence, I have always been sympathetic to western alienation. But my instinct was still to vote “stay” – that there was something good about loyalty, that grievance wasn’t enough of a reason to leave, that respect for my country meant not tearing it apart. But my instinct was not enough. So, when faced with writing this article, I knew what I had to do – I had to go beyond my own feelings and impressions. I needed to go out and talk to other Albertans, to figure out what exactly was going on, and to hear in their own words why they supported or did not support independence. But more importantly than that, I needed to compare their thoughts and opinions to the Word of God. What should Christians think of all this separatism talk?

Background

Let’s first start with the “why” behind the independence movement. I have sympathy for western alienation, and in my view it started with the eastern provinces viewing the development of the West as a resource for them to profit from. And while that makes sense from the perspective of Central Canada, the West never felt fully included in Canada.

Oil complicated this picture. It turned Alberta from a “have not” province based on farming to a “have” province based on oil, and gave it some power in terms of financial wealth. However, the federal government saw this as further resources to profit from, and implemented a series of taxes and programs to spread the financial wealth around the rest of Canada.

For example, here is how one prominent supporter of Albertan independence, Tim Stevens, put it in a speech on April 10:

“Alberta, having about 12% of the population of Canada, contributes nearly 20% to the federal tax revenue. And when this takes place, we have very little influence over the political future of our country. For instance, many of the elections are decided by Ontario and Quebec. And before people here even cast their vote, who our next government is going to be has already been decided.”

There is a feeling in Alberta that many provinces in Canada are happy to take our money as long as we don’t have any opinions on either how the country is run or what the federal government wants to do in our own province. Separatists will argue that through all these years, Albertans have tried through various political means to reform this system, to give Alberta a louder voice in a country they fund. Their conclusion is that the lack of success makes separation our only option.

So this is why I’m sympathetic to some of the arguments of the separatists. However, this raises several questions. Is “grievance” enough of a reason to base a new country on? Or even just the simple fact of being treated unfairly? God calls us to respect and obey our leaders, which means we have some responsibility in the place where we’re at. When do we judge we’ve made “enough” effort and our responsibility has come to an end? Lastly, there’s the question of the harm it would cause to our brothers and sisters in the rest of Canada. Even the mention of separation causes some economic instability. Is this justified?

I’m sympathetic and yet I feel a deep loyalty to Canada, and the home it provided to my Dutch ancestors fleeing the aftermath of WWII, to my husband when he immigrated, and now provides to our family.

“Personally, I argue that Alberta independence is compatible with biblical Christianity,” says Michael Wagner, another well-known supporter of independence, “but desiring Canada to stay together can also legitimately be a Christian perspective. So I don’t think the Bible requires Alberta Christians to support independence.”

Each Christian needs to think about why they are voting one way or the other.

Love for country, love for neighbor

While the motivations for separation are understandable, so is the backlash against the idea. For those who love Canada, it stirs up strong emotions. It’s like a sibling threatening to leave the family or to go “no contact.” This is true not only in the rest of the country, but in Alberta itself. While much of Alberta feels alienated from the political apparatus out East, many still feel deep loyalty and patriotism for Canada itself. Some have even become Canadian citizens specifically because they love Canada, and don’t want to be part of a different country. This is why this issue has become so divisive.

I began to reach out to various friends to hear how they’ve been thinking this issue through. “We have also been given political responsibility as those who vote,” one says to me.

“In a small way, we are those who bear the sword when we vote, when we choose what we believe is right for our nation. It is not evil to make what one believes to be the right choice in that vote. What is evil is insurrection, rebellion, and violence. But a referendum (democratic vote) is none of those things. Nor is a free discussion about why we think a political decision is right or wrong. Christians should concur with the legitimate result of the election, but they are free to think and vote as they see fit.”

It is true that mechanisms for provinces to leave have been worked out by the courts, and Alberta is not the first province to explore the option of leaving (see Quebec and Nova Scotia). It’s not immoral to explore an existing legal pathway to independence. But the motivations and reasons behind doing so may be.

Take the issue of grievances. “It’s one thing to forgive a grievance when it’s in the past,” the same friend tells me. “It’s another to remain complicit when that injustice is still ongoing. We can love (an act, not a feeling) our nation without believing that the nation has our best interests at heart.”

However, another friend argues, “As a father, I do not want to raise my boys to think that if you feel like you are treated unfairly, the answer is to threaten grievous harm to get what you want. That’s extortion and sinful.” He goes on to add, “A sovereign God has overseen this election, Carney is doing some good things in which I can rejoice, and I can pray for God’s hand in those areas that concern me and trust in Him.”

Next, I decide to reach out to my sister and get her opinion. She texts back to me: “One of the things that comes up the most often in the Bible is ‘take care of the widows and orphans and the poor’ – will separating improve people’s lives? Right now equalization payments benefit poorer provinces – isn’t that a good thing from a Christian perspective?”

I quickly text back, “One argument would be that the Bible teaches us to voluntarily help the poor, not that other people (the government) should make us help the poor.”

She replies, “I would say that it’s more that we should have an attitude of helping the poor – including through the government.”

That resonated with me, because it put into words something I had been struggling to articulate. If I want to keep Alberta’s money because I resent helping others like me in the rest of Canada, maybe my motivation is wrong. I might not agree with exactly how the government takes the money, but I should maintain my care for others even while I might advocate for better use of the money we send.

Lastly, I decide to listen to a speech available on YouTube on a Christian perspective on Albertan independence. In it, Clint Humfrey, senior pastor of Calvary Grace Church in Calgary, urges Christians to support the cause:

“That is what we need today here in Alberta. We need to expect great things from God and attempt great things for God... We ought to seek the relief of our neighbors groaning. We ought to seek the relief of our own groaning in our churches, but we also ought to seek the relief of our children’s future and the provision for them... If you have no hope, you will not be able to have the drive to see what could be done. And it starts with having hope in Jesus Christ for eternal life. And that then gives you the ability to have hope to try things… to try things all for the glory of God.”

For a brief moment, his excitement fired me up. But his vision was not my vision, though I certainly care about doing great things for God. The energy and effort required to build a new nation is not where I feel God calling me to work today, even as I try to care for my neighbors around me in my quiet, ordinary life.

Love for God

I feel somewhat lost in all the arguments for and against. My husband is one of the people whose opinions I value most in this world. So, on a recent trip out of town I took the opportunity of discussing it with him.

“Why don’t you support independence?” I ask.

“Because it’s about money,” he says. “What are we supposed to do when we’re afraid? Rely on God and keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. Yes, things are hard for people and gas prices are high. But – ” he gestures at the fields as we drive by, “wouldn’t you say Alberta is rich?”

“Ye-es,” I answer, thinking of the not-so-rich country my husband grew up in.

“So Alberta is prosperous, let’s trust God will continue to prosper us.”

“Okay, so what about this,” I say. “The argument is that the federal government does a lot of unchristian things with our money, and if we kept more of it we could use it for more Christian things.”

“Really?” he says. “Do you really think Alberta is more Christian? Alberta isn’t more Christian.”

“Why do you say that?”

“We have all the same issues as the rest of Canada.”

“But maybe statistically the number of Christians is slightly higher in Alberta?”

“Think about it,” he says. “Say the Prime Minister gives us what we want – more say, and lets us keep our money. We’d be happy, right? We say it’s all these unchristian laws, but that makes me think it’s about the money.”

I nod along because in my discussions I had come across many supporters of having more sovereignty but staying in Canada (and using this referendum as leverage to get it), or arguments that threatening separation had worked for Quebec so we should do it too. I think there are ardent separatists for whom nothing but independence would satisfy, and I hope Christians who vote to leave are not primarily motivated by the idea of leverage – but this group is smaller than the number of people who might vote “leave.”

“So, biblically,” I say, “what would you say the Christian thing is to do?”

“What does the Bible say? ‘Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s.’ That goes deeper than money – it goes to everything: respect, support, everything unless the government comes against our faith.”

I nod again, thinking of something similar John Calvin said that I’d read a while back:

“But Peter requires something more of us when he says, ‘Honor the king’ (1 Pet. 2: 17); and Solomon, when he says, ‘My son, fear thou the Lord and the king’ (Prov. 24: 21). For, under the term honor, the former includes a sincere and candid esteem, and the latter, by joining the king with God, shows that he is invested with a kind of sacred veneration and dignity...”

My husband looks over at me.

“And you know what? The government is coming against our faith. Why not fight that more? We’re willing to stand up for our money, to fight taxes, etc. We’ll fight when the government takes our money and gives it to someone else, but otherwise we stick to ourselves because we don’t want to rock the boat.”

He pauses. “There’s a reason God gave us this government, and put these people in power over us. Maybe it’s to teach us how much we need to call on Him.”

I think about all the energy that had gone into this separatism debate, and whether it was distracting us from other things.

He reaches over and grabs my hand. “Look at Psalms 35-40. I’ve been reading these in the morning lately. It’s all about the poor being oppressed. But who rescues them? God. Who fixes injustice? God. We need to cry out to Him. He’s the one who has our lives in His hands.”

Later, I look up Psalms 35-41. In Psalm 37, I read:

Trust in the Lord and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
… Be still before the Lord
and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
when they carry out their wicked schemes.
Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
do not fret – it leads only to evil.
For those who are evil will be destroyed,
but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.

We can spend a lot of time fretting in our lives, over what we perceive as unfair, over evildoers “getting away” with something, over what might happen in our futures. But we don’t need to despair when God is on our side.

***

I want to be fair, so I reach out to Michael Wagner by email. He replies:

“The federal government in recent years has imposed policies on Alberta that undermine the well-being of many Albertans and their families. Looking for an alternative that provides a better future for Alberta has nothing to do with greed, ungodly grievances, or threats. Independence is an option that would make it possible for Albertans to choose political leaders who will adopt policies that will benefit Alberta rather than harm Alberta.”

He also says, “It’s about justice, not greed.”

I think about the issues at hand for many evenings as I rock my baby to sleep, staring at her beautiful face and wondering about the kind of future I want for my family. For me, my journey over the past couple years has been learning to fully trust God with everything in my life. To let go of control and really believe God will take care of my life. What kind of country do I want my daughter to live in?

I think about the “what if” vision that the supporters of independence have put forward, a vision of a more Christian nation we could build if we could just start over from scratch. I think about how much easier it is to tear things down rather than to build them. I think about Canada stagnating, losing its place in the world, and what that would look like for my daughter’s future. I think about the nation that I love and what I would want to tell her about it.

Ultimately I don’t have control over the future. It is enough if my daughter is able to trust herself into the hands of God.

And in the end, I will stay Albertan AND Canadian. I don’t see a compelling vision of Alberta as a sovereign nation yet, and I haven’t given up on Canada. I haven’t done everything in my power to change the country I love for the better yet. And so I will continue to trust myself and my family into God’s hands.

Evangelism

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Politics

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News

Ontario’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 wagers increased by 654% between April 2022 and August 2025, and the number of active player accounts rose 239%. Calls to Ontario’s mental health and addictions helpline rose at an accelerated annual rate (7% above the previous trend) after iGaming Ontario was introduced in 2022. The highest increase in calls was among young men aged 15 to 24.” The province’s iGaming Ontario reported that in the 2024-25 fiscal year, it oversaw $82.7 billion in total wagers. That amounts to an average of $5,000 being bet, and $180 being lost, by every man, woman, and child in the province. How much revenue does the government get out of this? It’s surprisingly low: a little over $181 million, with the rest going to the private gaming operators. That means the government is overseeing an enormous expansion of gambling, but making only a smidge over $11 per man, woman, and child from it. These iGaming Ontario numbers don’t even account for the billions more spent on the government’s own Ontario Lottery and Gaming. While it’s hard to know just how much is being gambled through its lotteries and other offerings, what is clear is how much it contributes to government coffers: $2.25 billion in 2024-25, or $140 from every man, woman, and child. Earlier this year, billionaire investor Warren Buffett characterized sports gambling as a tax that the rich like because “they don’t have to pay it.” Why don’t they have to pay? Because it is an entirely voluntary tax – if you don’t want to give the government your money, you can simply choose not to gamble. That’s why he also agreed that it was “a tax on stupidity.” But, of course, some people have a hard time not gambling. Various estimates put the number of problem gamblers at 1.1 to 11 percent of Ontarians, or between 160,000 and 1.6 million Ontarians getting hurt by a product their government is pushing on them. As Buffett put it: “I don’t like things that make a sucker out of people. I particularly don’t like them when the government sponsors them. I don’t think the function of the government is to play its people for suckers.” So when a bill was proposed, earlier this year, to ban gambling advertising in Ontario, it was a reason to celebrate. Gambling advertising has gotten inescapable – as ARPA Canada shared, “one analysis in 2024 estimated that Canadian viewers of live sports broadcasts were exposed to 2.8 references to sports betting per minute” (emphasis added). This bill wasn’t going to undo all the damage being done, but it was certainly a step in the right direction. And, all the more remarkably, the bill was being proposed by four members of Ontario’s opposition Liberals. Things are bad indeed when even the Liberals see a need to rein things in. But the ostensibly “conservative” government said no. While they offered up reasons to oppose the Liberals’ bill, what the Conservatives didn’t do was propose an alternative to it – they spoke of the need for moving “thoughtfully and methodically” but in the meantime Ontarians are left with the destructive status quo. What’s wrong with gambling can perhaps be best understood in contrast to other ways we can make money. Gamblers make bets that, should they win, are covered by those who bet the other way and lost – your gain only comes via others’ pain. Meanwhile, if you make money any other legal way, your wealth will come by benefiting others. Whether you are a housepainter or an accountant, the money that you thankfully receive comes from others who are thankful too for what they’ve gotten from you in exchange. Your gain is also their gain. God calls us to love our neighbor, not exploit him, so wealth gained at our neighbor’s expense is an unacceptable way to take in money. More could be said, but for those who think gambling is harmless entertainment I’ll offer up just one more objection. Even if you’ve got your gambling under control, every bet you make is that little bit more motivation for the government to keep at this… to the great harm of many, who aren’t in control of their gambling. If you love your neighbor, you should be lobbying the government to stop pushing, and just simply stop running, such a destructive enterprise....

Contests

Sign up for RP’s July 13-22 screenfast 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 children find it hard not to reach for your device, almost without thinking? Last year, over 1,000 of you joined us in “breaking the spell” for 10 days. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, making it evident we would all benefit from doing this every year. So for ten days, we're going to get re-oriented. We're asking everyone – as much as it is possible for you – to steer clear from your smartphone, computers, TV, and tablets for the ten days of July 13 to July 22, 2026. Speaking of together, we’re asking you to sign up with an accountability partner – someone who can see how you are doing and egg you on. And you can do the same for them! Need a device for work, or to stay in touch with family? No problem. You are welcome to come up with your own exceptions. Just write them down in advance and stick to them. Some generous supporters have pledged to donate $10 per day for every day you manage to go screen-free from July 13-22. The money will be split between two fantastic kingdom causes – Reformed Perspective and Word & Deed – to a maximum of $20,000 split between both causes. A few tips Commit. Don’t allow yourself to make easy exceptions, even if you are having a hard day. For example, just because you are at someone else’s home doesn’t mean you can enjoy screens again. Don't get sucked in. If you still need screens for basic your job or other functions that are essential, go for it, but ensure that you are only using your tablet and phone for that and only that. For example, if you need a phone for directions, don’t take the opportunity to scroll the news. If you need a computer at work, don’t let yourself go to other websites or play an online game. Out of sight, out of mind. Help yourself by hiding your devices and make them difficult to access. Maybe even take the TV off the wall. Log out. Log out of your social media accounts so that it isn’t easy to quickly open them. Hide your app icons. If you need still need to use your phone, hide all the icons of the apps you want to steer clear of. Come up with a plan. When you find yourself wanting to reach for a screen, what'll you do instead? Make a plan. It doesn’t have to be hard or complicated. Perhaps say a prayer, take a drink of water, try to memorize a verse, do a set of 10 jumping jacks, or read a couple of pages of a book you’ve been meaning to get to. Have alternatives ready and waiting. You and your children are going to need something else to do with your screen time, so you need to have options, otherwise you'll just spend your time pining for your phone. Get out books, magazines, art supplies, a soccer ball, or whatever. For more ideas be sure to check out our article "What can I do anyways? 35 screen-free alternatives. Invite accountability. Let loved ones know what you are doing, and ask them to check in on you regularly to see how it is going. Tell them not to let you off the hook! Don't let this opportunity pass you by. Don't we all need help on this front? So don't let yourself off the hook - let's do this together! Register for the July 13-22 nationwide by filling in the form below. Loading…...

Entertainment

Can I watch a movie during my screen-fast?

…and other FAQs answered ***** 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 they figured their job just didn’t allow for it – they had to answer texts and calls, or type away on a keyboard most of the day. But everyone can join in on the fun! For kids an entirely screen-free fast is probably best, just to help them reset. For mom and dad, it’d be about stretching ourselves as much as we realistically can. To paraphrase Andy Crouch, the screen-fast isn’t about becoming Amish; it’s just about becoming a lot more Amish than we might be comfortable with. Go without Instagram, Facebook, or checking the sports scores… because that can so easily go from the seconds you intended to the minutes you didn’t. It’s about drawing a line. So sign up, note your exceptions, and then stick to them. 2. Can I still Facetime with Oma during the screen fast? If your children do regular Sunday Facetime or Messenger video calls with their grandma, should they skip those for RP’s 10-day screen-fast challenge? No siree, for at least a couple of reasons. First, the you from the future wants you to call. A good way to evaluate decisions is to consider what the you from ten years hence might have wished you’d have done now. We know that the us from then would really appreciate it if we’d kick our screen-addiction… which is a reason to get at it now. But that same future you would love it if you’d call your mom more often (and more importantly God does too – Ex. 20:12). Even during a screen-fast. So you should. Second, not all screen usage is the same. Jonathan Haidt, author of The Anxious Generation, has spoken to how face-to-face communication, even over a smartphone, is entirely different from a kid swiping through a video roll. One destroys our ability to focus, and the other helps stretch it. One involves interaction and intention, while the other is simply consumption and the abdication of deliberate decision-making. One harms us, and the other builds us up. And we all know which is which. 3. Can I watch a movie during my screen-fast? The screen-fast shouldn’t be just another time to watch the latest that Hollywood offers. But as mentioned, not all screen usage is the same, and Haidt also speaks to how watching a long-form movie – not a half-hour sitcom but one single story told over a couple of hours – is very different from viewing TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube. Those mediums’ seconds-long clips erode attention spans, making us unable to deal with moments or minutes of boredom. But even the best movies aren’t going to be one long action scene, and sticking with the story through the lulls will actually help build up our ability to focus. So, for some families captivated by YouTube shorts, watching a film could be part of taking back control. The key is intentionality. Don’t fall onto the couch and see what’s on. Watching “just something” is like eating “just something” – God gave us a brain, and we need to use it to meal plan. If you’re going to do it, deliberate so that you, and not the algorithm, decides. Pick a challenging film that will spark conversation, and get you and your family thinking and then watch it with the pause button at the ready so you can make this interactive and not simply consumptive. A movie could be an exception in your screen-fast… if it’s a movie (and not ten) and a certain sort (and not just any). I’ve offered one nominee, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, which will stretch young viewers’ attention-spans, but will certainly reward all who make it to the end. 4. What is the screen-fast actually for? First off, this isn’t about legalism and creating some 11th commandment that must be woodenly followed. It really isn’t even about screens so much as it is about regaining self-control. What we’re doing now is damaging ourselves and our kids in ways that are both obvious, and not so. When every ding has our hand flinching toward our phones, we’re never fully present – we’re always distractible and we can all feel our attention span frittering away. And it doesn’t take a genius to know screens are impacting our kids all the more so, and will cripple their ability to buckle down and just learn. But our out-of-control screen usage is also impacting us in ways we might not have even considered. In Ps. 63:6, King David spoke of how: “…I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on You in the watches of the night...” Do any of us use our insomnia like that anymore? We leave no room for long unhurried conversations with God when we fall asleep staring at our devices instead. The problem isn’t our deliberate, intentional usage, but our loss of self-control, and with it the loss of minutes going on hours, with nothing to show for it. The screen-fast is about a reset to put our screens in their place, as our tools and not our masters. And more so, it is about reorienting our lives to properly recognize God’s place as the Lord of our lives, our time and our priorities. ***** Join us for our 2026 screen fast from July 13-22! Sign up here....

What 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 interested. First, the LPIII is not a smartphone at all. It truly is “dumb.” It doesn’t have email, a web browser, social media apps, or YouTube. It only has these basics: phone texting maps camera podcasts a calendar music notes calculator an alarm a timer I purchased the LPIII because it’s truly a dumbphone and doesn’t have any of the distractions that smartphones have. Second, it works well! Calls and texts are as they should be. The camera isn’t top-of-the-line, but it does a pretty good job. The podcast and music tools work as I’d expect. I load podcasts and music from my laptop on the Light Phone dashboard website. Easy! The Bluetooth works nicely with my earbuds and with my car’s aftermarket Pioneer radio. You can brighten/dim the screen using the little wheel on the side of the phone. There’s even a night mode that minimizes the blue light output. I love that you can use this phone in the sun and still see the screen just fine. Third, the LPIII is sturdy. It feels solid in my hand. It has a removable battery so I can replace it in the future if need be. Speaking of battery, I get around 2-3 days per charge. Fourth, there is a learning curve to using the phone. The user interface is not like your smartphone. That’s because it’s not designed to suck you in for hours at a time. Smartphone companies and app developers aim to keep users on the phone as much as possible. The Light Phone team does not have that philosophy at all. They purposely made the phone not addictive. Although the OS was new to me, I did adapt to the interface in just a week or two, and now it’s fine – I have no complaints. I realize the phone is not cheap ($699 right now – though the older version is half that). However, this phone is worth it to me for these reasons: my monthly phone bill is half what it used to be. That is a savings of around $250 per year. I don’t have to upgrade this phone every two or three years because the battery is easily replaceable, and Light will keep updating it as they have with the previous version of the phone. I don’t have to worry about data mining, creepy spyware, purchasing apps, or expensive subscriptions. I will never be addicted to this phone, nor will it distract me from being present. It’s hard to explain how wonderful it is not to be tethered to my phone. I often go for hours without touching my phone or thinking about it. LPIII is not for everyone. Don’t order it if you want a dumbed-down smartphone. There are apps and hacks for that. But if you’re looking for a good full-time dumbphone or a dumbphone for untethering on evenings and weekends, I’d suggest you check out the LPIII. There are other good dumbphones out there – I think several more came out in the last two years – but the LPIII is one of the best ones on the market right now. ***** Join us for our 2026 screen fast from July 13-22! Sign up here. Before ordering the Light Phone III at theLightPhone.com be sure to check with your carrier to see if they support it. Canadian plans are $29 to $39 plus tax (though without a long-distance option)....

News

Nearly 60% of violent crime cases now being stayed or withdrawn

Entertainment

“What can I do?” Part II

35 more screen-alternatives ***** For our first screen-fast in 2025, we offered up 35 ideas for great activities you and your family can do with you...

Entertainment

“What can I do anyways?”

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Parenting

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Technology

On 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 distraction in my life. My phone began to use up too much of my brain space and mental energy. Parts of my brain were always thinking about stuff on my phone: baseball scores, texts from friends, emails, my eBay store, a backpacking forum, and other similar things. Though I haven’t ever done too much with social media or YouTube, I was still on my phone way too much. I tried apps that helped minimize screen time, and they did help to some extent. But I wanted to try a clean break and get a dumbphone. Great advice is readily available By the way, it is pretty easy to try out a dumbphone. Most flip phones aren't terribly expensive, and you can often just swap SIM cards with your other phone. I started with a Nokia 6300. Then I got a CAT S22 flip phone and debloated it. I also tried out a $25 TCL flip phone. More recently, I got a Light Phone II. Note: The book Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport was a huge help in my move to a dumb phone. I highly recommend it! Jose Briones' book, Low Tech Life is also quite helpful. There are plenty of resources out there to help people minimize their phone usage because it is such a big problem. Fast-forward to over four years later: I have not gone back to a smartphone. And I’m not planning on doing so in the near future. For me, life is better without a smartphone in most situations. I can hang out with my friends and family and be completely present with them – my phone isn’t tugging at my attention. It’s no longer on my mind at all. I can stand in line at a store and talk to people or just think about random things rather than stare at a phone out of boredom. I don’t need email or a web browser when I’m at a baseball game, a movie, or out shopping for groceries. I still text a few times each day and make phone calls, but I’m pretty much never on it. In fact, without a smartphone, my brain is less cluttered, my thoughts are less distracted, and my attention span has increased. I don’t ever suffer from dopamine withdrawal, and I’m not anxious or in a zombie-like state from doomscrolling for hours. And no longer does a smartphone affect my sleep. I have more time each day because I’m rarely on my phone. For me, minimal phone time has had maximum life benefits. Speaking of anxiety and doomscrolling, another book I recently read is The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. It is a book that documents the rise of adolescent/teen anxiety, depression, and other mental issues in the last ten years or so. The reason for these increases, Haidt argues, is that most children in the last ten years have had a screen-based childhood rather than a play-based childhood. It's a good book for parents to read. The author's advice and my advice is this: don't get your kids a smartphone until they're older – I'd say 17 or 18. As another author bluntly put it, don't get your kids a smartphone until you're prepared to deal with pornography in the home. Dumbphones, flip phones, and helpful apps Now, I realize that some people with certain jobs might be unable to move to a dumbphone because of their work or travel. For example, a friend of mine is a dispatcher and his smartphone is crucial for him to get his job done well. If your phone is truly important for work, you could perhaps get a dumbphone for evenings and weekends. As I mentioned above, you can also find apps that help minimize your screen time. There are various tried-and-true ways to help you avoid excessive screen time and its associated negatives. For those of you who don’t absolutely need a smartphone for work or another legitimate reason, I’d challenge you to do a digital detox and stop using one for a set number of days. Read Digital Minimalism and follow the advice there. Or read Catherine Price’s How to Break Up with Your Phone and give it a shot. As I mentioned earlier, cheap flip phones are an option for a digital detox. Thankfully, quite a few dumbphones and semi-dumbphones have come out in the last few years (see Dumbphones.org for a helpful list). Your brain will thank you I know that for some people, giving up a smartphone is almost impossible because the level of addiction is high. We’re not called the “dopamine nation” for nothing! But trust me, you can break up with your smartphone. You can take steps and develop habits to get your life back, regain your mental focus, and be present once again. You may want to get rid of your smartphone! Do you dare? Or maybe you just need a good app and an accountability partner. Whatever the case, I can say, based on some years of experience, that living without a smartphone is possible and beneficial. But even if you don’t totally give up your smartphone, I hope you find that drastically minimizing your smartphone use is a personal goal you make. And I guarantee that if you seriously cut down on your phone use, your brain will thank you! ***** Join us for our 2026 screen fast from July 13-22! Sign up here. Shane Lems is the pastor of Covenant Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Hammond, Wisconsin, and blogs on books (and dumbphones too) at ReformedReader.wordpress.com, where a version of this article first appeared....

News

Are you still able?

A nation-wide challenge to experience life without screens ***** It used to be different, not all that long ago. Carrie is a teen who always had the kind of contagious smile that would get her friends smiling right back, no matter their mood. She used to shoot hoops with her younger sister after dinner. She enjoyed heart-to-heart chats with her mom while doing her hair. And she treasured many of the devotionals that her dad read to her by the glow of her small bedside lamp. George, a mechanic and all-around handyman, has always counted himself blessed to be married to his wife of 26 years. He was the kind of dad who’d get down on the ground to play with his kids. While three of his kids have moved out, his two youngest children still live at home. George has served as a deacon in his church, where his love of tinkering was a help not only to his own family but to some of the older couples in his ward. Liz’s life changed after losing her husband eight years ago. But she did an amazing job doting on all five of her children, her 23 grandchildren, and the seven great-grandchildren. She’d always make it out for every one of their milestones to give out hugs, and to remind her growing clan of God’s goodness and love. Then, not right away, but over the weeks and months and years, things changed. Carrie’s sister, mom, and grandparents now don’t see much of Carrie. OK, they see her, but not her eyes. Carrie is mostly head down, scrolling on her phone and messaging with people they don’t even know. Her mom has a hard time remembering when they last shared a good chat, or when she last saw her daughter’s beautiful smile. Dad’s devotionals were replaced by someone Carrie follows on Instagram who posts short reflections… which Carrie reads when she has time. George’s wife knows that her husband is still committed to their marriage. But she is having a hard time competing with the attention he gives to his various YouTube subscriptions. His ward doesn’t see him much outside of church, and he seems to spend more time watching clips about fixing cars than actually fixing them. And lately his scale seems to be out by at least 10 pounds. Instead of dropping by with a card, Grandma Liz now sends a WhatsApp message when her children and grandchildren celebrate a birthday. She has become very hesitant to head out her front door. It’s all the nightly news she’s been watching, which is making the world look like an ever-scarier place. Even when she makes a grocery trip, she stays out for as short a time as possible. Carrie, George, and Liz all go to the same church, and share this in common too: they have all slowly become dominated by their screens. None of them think it’s a real problem, but, if pressed, they will agree that they spend more time on their screens than they did a couple of years ago. But isn’t that just life today? Increased screen time may well be one of the biggest changes our world has experienced in the past half-century, with one estimate putting the global average for daily Internet usage at 6 hours and 38 minutes. The correlation between screen time and anxiety, mental health challenges, and weight gain is well-known now. What isn’t so well documented, or discussed in church, is the impact that screens are having on our pace as we “run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus” (Heb 12:1-2). Putting screens in their place When Reformed Perspective did a deep dive into this topic last spring, we promoted The Tech-Wise Family by Andy Crouch. Crouch correctly shifts the focus from whether a particular type of technology can or can’t be allowed, to instead how these technologies can be put in their proper place, so that priorities like family, friends, and faith remain priorities. But how is this going for you? Screen time, like money and sex, has become a sensitive topic – okay to talk about in generalities, but don’t get personal! We’re all quick to be defensive and shut down the discussion if anyone dares raise the topic of our own usage. That’s why we challenged our readers to a 10-day screen fast in the last issue. The goal of such a fast isn’t to eradicate screens from our lives. But don’t we all see wisdom in implementing a reset? Let’s test it out, to determine just how reliant we are on our devices, and what sort of impact this dependence may be having on our relationships, including with our LORD. Last month our Assistant Editor Marty VanDriel gathered a group and gave the challenge a go, and you can read about how their screen fast went. Now we’re issuing the challenge again because some generous supporters have presented us with quite the offer. For every person that commits to, and completes, a ten-day screen fast from July 21 to 30 they will donate $100, split between two charities (Word & Deed and Reformed Perspective). They will give up to $20,000! Could you do it? Do you have what it takes to put your screens aside for 10 days? (The screen challenge allows exceptions for necessary activities, like your job and making a phone call.) It may be hard to do this by yourself, so would you consider asking some of your family, friends, and siblings in the LORD to join you? If you can get a group of 10 together, that can serve as a great accountability and encouragement. Plus, it will lead to $1,000 going to two very good causes. And if you don’t think screens are much of a challenge for you, we encourage you to ask your loved ones if they think you should give this screen fast a try. This challenge isn’t so much about saying no to screens as it is about saying yes to other priorities. That’s why we’ve put together 35 ideas for fun, productive, and meaningful activities you can challenge yourself to do during these 10 days. Enjoy some time travel Can you remember not having your phone in your pocket, or not hearing the ping of a new message on your tablet? Although we think screens are essential, we have the power to make necessary changes in our lives. A screen fast can serve as an important reminder to yourself that you don’t have to keep living the way you have. Instead of scrolling, Carrie can shoot some hoops with her sister again. George can go for a walk with his wife, and drop by the home of the young man in his ward who hasn’t been coming to church much lately. And Liz can write a card and deliver it in person to her granddaughter. Yes, you can ignore this screen fast, and hope that your family members and friends don’t bring it up either. But before you brush it aside and reach for your phone, consider for a moment what you want your legacy to be at your funeral. Which Carrie, George, and Liz do you want to be? The one before the screen addiction, or the one after? Join us for our 2026 screen fast from July 13-22! Sign up here....

Parenting

Give your kids a super power

Reading to your kids will give them something better than the ability to leap tall buildings ***** 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 make us laugh and cry and think. They dispel boredom, boost grades and reduce poverty. Giving kids access to books is like giving them a super power. There is only one problem: Not every child can unlock this power. They may be literate and able to read, but they aren't readers – kids who love good books and devour as many as they can. If you can raise your children to be readers, you will unleash a power that will change their lives. Parents say, “I wish my son would read, but he just doesn't enjoy it." How do we get kids to fall in love with reading? Of all the skills we want our children to master, reading is near the top of the list. We want our children to love words so that they will be daily readers of the Word. The Bible is a challenging book, and our children need to be able to read and understand it in order to grow in their relationship with God. We want them to read Christian literature so that they will grow in faith and that they can be a blessing to others. And one day, our boys might become elders or deacons, and they will need to do a lot of reading. If they are fluent readers, their task will not be such a burden. Raising readers is a priority for Christians. So how do we get them to change from those who love the image to those who love the Word? A soccer lesson A baby is not born wanting to read, any more than he is born wanting to play soccer (believe it or not!). So what makes kids learn to love soccer? Usually, someone in their life is excited about the sport and introduces them to it. They practice with their mom or dad or brother or friend, and the more they play the better they get. Soon they enter a positive upward spiral: They enjoy soccer because it's fun, so they play lots and they improve – and they love soccer even more! To get proficient at a skill, children need to practice it over and over. But they are the same as adults: they tend to avoid things that give them pain and to do things that give them pleasure. Learning to read involves a certain amount of pain. Have you ever sat next to a child sounding out her home reader? Yeah, I know. If it’s painful for you, what do you think it’s like for your child? Children need to read a lot to get proficient, but they won’t unless it's enjoyable. So they enter a negative downward spiral: They don't enjoy reading because it's hard, so they don't practice and they fall further behind – and they hate reading even more! If only we could make the pleasure of reading outweigh the pain long enough for kids to become proficient readers. Then the super power will be unleashed. When they start to read because they want to, a whole new world of ideas, delights and experiences will open up before them like the view from a mountain peak. In love with reading So how do we get our kids to fall in love with reading? With books? The answer is very simple: We read to our kids out loud. We start as soon as we can and we read for a minimum of fifteen minutes. Every day. Throughout their childhood. It’s not complicated. It doesn’t cost any money. But it is the secret to raising readers. How does this help? You might be wondering, "If I'm doing all the reading, how is that helping my child to read on her own?" Reading to kids is like advertising for books. From a very young age, children learn that great books are a source of joy and delight. They associate these books with the pleasure of snuggling on your lap. They are drawn into the story so that when you stop, they say, “Oooh, keep reading, keep reading!” And they steal the book off the shelf and read the next chapter on their own because they can’t wait to find out what happens next. They are highly motivated to master this skill. The pleasure outweighs the pain. Most kids start school eager to learn to read. But as they go through the grades, this interest drops lower and lower. They might know how to read, but they never pick up a book. What is happening? The advertising has stopped. Parents figure they don't need to keep reading to their child now that he can read on his own. But here's the thing. A child's level of comprehension is way above his reading ability until about grade eight. The gap doesn't close until age 13 to 14. That means in the early grades he’s stuck reading “Matt and Pat put on a hat” when what he’s thirsting for is adventure stories, with knights and spies and fearsome foes and daring-do. But he can’t read that on his own yet. He is stuck reading simple, boring books. Then the pain outweighs the pleasure. It's not worth the slog. We have to keep advertising. We have to keep reading out loud. Wait, there's more Reading aloud is such a bonding thing to do with your kids. The story characters become part of your family culture. You laugh and cry together. You discuss serious topics together. You read chapter after chapter way past bedtime because it’s too exciting to stop. It’s a simple, beautiful activity in which your children feel very loved. My dad was a very busy man, and he had a hard time talking to his children. But one of the ways I knew that he loved me was that when I was a teenager, every night, I would go into his study, and he would read The Viking Saga by Henry Treece. My dad was diagnosed with cancer when my youngest sister was 10 years old. He kept reading The Hobbit to her every night until he was too sick to continue. Those moments are now some of her most treasured memories of her dad. Reading to your children is one of the most powerful things you can do for them. But how do we compete for their attention in an age of screens and constant entertainment? And where do we find the time to fit this into our hectic schedule? And what if I'm not good at reading? To help, here are twelve tips for developing a read-aloud habit in your home. 12 tips We all have the same twenty-four hours in a day and we find time for whatever we think is important. The bottom line is: reading to our children only happens if it's a priority! And here’s how to do it. Start small. It’s better to read every day for five minutes, than to wait for that elusive half hour of "free time." Build the habit and the attention spans slowly. Decide on a set time and place. Write your plan down, post it on the fridge and tell your kids you are starting a new habit. Attach reading aloud to a habit your family already has, such as eating a snack after school. Let them know “It’s book reading time!” Soon they will be reminding you! If your children are very active, pick a time when their energy levels are low and they would appreciate snuggling in for a story. Every child is happy to listen to a story if it means bedtime will be postponed. How well you read doesn’t matter. As the parent, you are the best reader for your child, especially fathers. Pick a book that you enjoy and don’t be afraid to skip boring bits. Look for other pockets of time to read out loud. Keep a book in your bag for when you are waiting in the car or the doctor’s office. Resist giving them a screen to keep them occupied. You want to feed their brains, not damage them. Read around a campfire. Listen to audio books during long car rides – or short ones! You’d be amazed how much of the Bible you can listen to over a year of driving kids ten minutes to school. The NIV 1984 (dramatized version) is a favorite for our kids, with its sound effects of swords clashing and cargo splashing overboard. Record yourself reading aloud on your smartphone. Young children can listen to it while you make dinner. Have lots of great books in the house. Check out book sales and thrift stores. Give kids a bookshelf to start their own collection, and let grandparents know what titles they can give as birthday presents. Visit your local library regularly (with discernment!). Make use of their online reservation system to make requests. Children should see you enjoying books, so model reading for yourself. Keep reading to children even after they learn to read. Let’s do this together Many of the ideas in this article are based on The Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease, first self-published in 1979 and now in its 8th edition. I highly recommend it, especially because it contains extensive lists of books for all ages. It might make for a good selection for any book club you are in, or want to start. Tackling it together could be a wonderful encouragement – we can help each other keep up with this important habit. Let me leave you with the concluding verse from a Strickland Gillilan poem: You may have tangible wealth untold; Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold. Richer than I you can never be – I had a Mother who read to me. Amanda Poppe writes Christian fiction for children ages 8-12. Find her at amandapoppe.com and download a free short story to read to your kids. A version of this article first appeared in Una Sancta....

Being the Church

Love thy neighbor. Love thy neighborhood encampment…?

A more broken down part of Hamilton. 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 visited recently, and found the “Social Services Capital of Canada” to be seriously… hurting. The city is fraying at the edges. Encampments continually crop up in our parks, leaving behind needles, actual mounds of garbage, and disturbed souls hanging out by the playground. It’s a city where drug addicts shoot up on streets, many bent in the signature “fenty-fold.” Police recently discovered a labyrinth of tunnels in our largest park, connecting tents to a generator and tapping into the city’s power supply. This is where my kids play next to the “Truck Man,” who lives out of a beat-up black pickup and occasionally flashes his brass knuckles. Just last fall, thieves broke into a nearby vehicle. Discovered by a vigilante neighbor, they dashed within five feet of my kids as they played in our yard. Down the escarpment, my friend’s aged neighbor was attacked in his own home last year, stabbed to death by a homeless man on drugs. This is the new Hamilton, and we’re all still trying to cope with it. When I see a new tent being pitched just down the road, I cringe. Not another one. Not more brokenness and filth in our neighborhood. Please just move away! Then I feel a twinge of guilt because Jesus calls us to love our neighbor (Matt. 22:39) and minister to the least of these (Matt. 25:40). He reaches out to the most vulnerable and rejected of society, and commissions us to do the same. “Please move away!” isn’t in the Great Commission. My cringing disgust and Christ’s commands have created a strong dissonance within me. I suspect that many Canadians and Americans feel the same, as our lands slip deeper into brokenness and ruin. An idolatry of comfort Winston Bosch is the pastor ofHamilton's Streetlight Christian Church. Pastor Winston Bosch ministers to Streetlight Christian Church, a missional Canadian Reformed congregation set in Hamilton’s inner city. After serving impoverished peoples (both in Hamilton and abroad) for over seven years, Bosch still feels that dissonance. “I’m constantly uncomfortable,” he admits. “Christ is no longer here on earth, and so we His Church go about sharing the Gospel, being the voice and hands of the Good Shepherd. That involves getting dirty and messy with poverty and it’s uncomfortable. We share in His suffering.” As middle-class Canadians, we’ve been shielded from much of the brokenness of this world. But it’s moving in, it’s around the corner and it’s in our face. That desire to hunker down with our families in a fortress, walled off from the problems of the world? Maybe it points to something hidden deep in our hearts. Pastor Bosch calls it “the idolatry of comfort.” “If the religion that the Lord accepts as pure and faultless is to look after orphans and widows and to keep one’s self from being polluted by the world, then the Lord also wants us not to be polluted by the world of comfort and ease, but to move towards suffering.” Move towards suffering? That’s tricky to do, especially when that suffering comes with a smell or bed bugs. Yet the Scriptural imperative to minister to our poor is clearly written throughout Scriptures. James 2 lays a finger on our tendency towards favoritism. “Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in…” Who do we give the best seat to? James brings us back to the second great command, love your neighbor as yourself. So how do we? Let’s tackle that question step by step. The “problem” – a closer look at our poor and needy Admittedly, I’ve been quick to spout out all sorts of excuses when I see homeless people. “Why don’t they just get a job? They’re only on the street because they can’t do drugs in shelters…” And there’s some truth in those objections. But when you look closely at the real facts, these trite little phrases ring hollow. Last year the City of Hamilton reported that only 747 shelter beds are available for the estimated 1,500 homeless people in the city.1 Across the lake in Toronto, dozens of calls requesting shelter (and as many as 150+ requests a day during certain months) were not matched to a bed last year. Though the 2026 numbers seem to be improving, unmet requests can mean death on frigid Ontario winter nights.2 That can mean death on those frigid winter nights. For many, Pastor Bosch says, it’s easier to skip the shelter lineups and just live in a park. We’ve all felt the financial crunch as the cost of living has risen – that’s had an even greater impact on the poor. Our social services are overwhelmed and insufficient to meet the needs of many. Consider the prospects of someone on disability support in Ontario. They can receive up to $1,408 per month.3 About $1000 of that goes to rent (if they’re lucky! Market rent on studio apartments averages $1450, although individual rooms are under $1000 if you can weather the safety hazards). $125 buys a bus pass, leaving just $283 for the month’s groceries. Bosch says that social workers will actually tell their clients, “‘Look, your Ontario Disability is not enough for rent and food, so you need to go around to all the churches and ask for help. That’s the only way you’ll survive.” Another contributing factor to poverty is disability and mental health struggles. Teresa Howe is a community engagement manager for Indwell, a Christian charity devoted to providing affordable housing. She reports that almost 80 percent of Indwell’s tenants have a chronic mental health diagnosis, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, etc. “We don’t have cures for any of these,” Howe reflects. “It’s just something you’re living with… But a large part of challenges are gone when they have supportive housing. If people are taking meds regularly and going to appointments, we can help prevent hospitalization.” Serving at Mission in the Margins Of course, addiction is a huge driver of poverty and homelessness – as is painfully obvious on Hamilton’s streets. Howe says Indwell has many supports in place for tenants struggling with addictions, to help them “meet their recovery goals.” This approach breaks down when tenants show little in the way of recovery goals, but at this time and place in Canada, it’s something. “Their best chance at recovery is stable housing,” Howe says. “Whoever got sober living in an encampment or under a bridge?” But what does providing stable housing look like for unstable people? If it is accompanied with any sort of requirements – like sobriety – some won’t accept it. And it if is provided with no obligations, it doesn’t take a prophet to predict what an apartment or small room will soon look like if an addict treats it with the same respect they give their own body. A more drastic abstinence-focused approach is necessary – but more on that later. Perhaps the most heartrending aspect of all this is family and generational breakdown. Pastor Bosch tells story after story of this, as adults with a history of enormous trauma raise children of their own. In Streetlight Christian Church, where Bosch pastors, the vast majority of church members coming from surrounding neighborhoods have suffered extreme trauma, like severe physical or sexual abuse and neglect. Grandparents raise their grandchildren, because parents are addicted and off the radar. Bosch recalls one kid whose only real interaction with either parent was searching out his mom in an encampment on his birthday every year, and getting a few bucks as a present. One fellow recently told Bosch that he had four different names before turning five years old – because every time he was “thrown around” to another home, the caregiver would give him a new name. There’s a 17-year-old girl who came to Streetlight’s family support worker. She was born in a tent, her birth never registered. The worker went to enormous lengths to get government ID so this girl could then attend school. This is the legacy that is passed on – a burden of generational problems, both learned (addiction, etc.) and inborn (e.g. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders.) “We have six-year-olds coming in with no bowel control,” Bosch says, “They stink and are dirty, they have no shoes in the winter… when that person becomes an adult, there’s a good chance that person will be on and off the street.” Jim*, a 16-year-old young man, was raised by his grandparents. They gave him marijuana as a child when he was anxious. With no one sending him off to school, Jim’s attendance was spotty. He came to Streetlight, and began a youth internship, setting up chairs and cleaning. Jim shared his two life goals with Streetlight’s youth worker: he wanted a job (nobody in his family had a job), and a family that sat down to eat together (the very things we usually take for granted!). Jim applied to jobs with nothing on his resume but the Streetlight internship. One day he came up to Bosch, beaming. “Pastor Winston, guess what – I got a job!” Streetlight celebrates the wins, but doesn’t lose sight of the pattern. Family and generational brokenness are the norm, the legacy being inherited. It’s a community crying out for the healing of the Gospel. And it brings me back to my own, beautiful upbringing – two godly parents, five wonderful siblings, a home and three meals a day. What do I have that I haven’t been given? The need for a multi-pronged response Things look pretty dark for Canada. We’ve cast off our Christian heritage with vitriolic fervor and are reaping the rewards of godlessness. Poverty is moving in quickly. Brokenness is becoming the norm. Amidst this, may Christ’s Church shine out like a city on a hill. Serving with Mission in the Margins Pastor Bosch sees a strong need for a multi-pronged response to homelessness and addiction. Much like Christians have split the pro-life cause into political action (lobbying for legal change) and mercy ministry (pregnancy centers, etc.), Bosch sees room for a similar approach here. On the political front, Canada’s soft response to encampments has had a ruinous effect on our communities and the homeless themselves. Alberta Social Services Minister Jason Nixon points out that encampments are not a humane response to homelessness – they quickly become cesspools of homeless-on-homeless abuse, drug addiction, human trafficking, often being run by drug cartels. By contrast to much of Canada, Alberta disassembled many homeless encampments and provided residents with social services, including rehab and mental health supports. This hasn’t been a seamless process, but it’s a better response for all concerned than simply enabling lawless encampments.4 As Romans 13:3 says “For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad.” It’s time for the government to take up its role in protecting the vulnerable and punishing the evil-doer. In the realm of drugs and addictions, the federal government has moved from prevention to “harm reduction,” effectively turning itself into a colossal drug dealer.5 The Association for Reformed Political Action (ARPA) recommends an alternative model similar to Portugal’s, which offers addicts a choice between treatment or legal penalties. The sad truth is that many addicts are, well, addicted and won’t choose treatment of their own free will. Addiction motivates many homeless people towards violent or criminal activity, thereby harming residential neighborhoods and parks. A move to mandatory treatment would greatly improve the lives of our addicts, homeless and general population. To date, ARPA does not have an active campaign pushing for this approach – it remains an area of need for Christian political action. When you throw in the crush of waves of recent refugees and an overwhelmed social system so bureaucratically constipated that accessing services is a monumental job, things are dark for impoverished and homeless Canadians. So what’s a Christian to do? The Church’s response – far from easy to know what to do Ministering to the homeless gets complicated. My cousin Steven Williamson pastors Cornerstone URC in London, Ontario. London is known as the “Zombie Capital of Canada,” and Williamson’s church is in the thick of it. The church has actively reached out to the homeless camping on church property and in the neighborhood. Williamson tells the story of one fellow – we’ll call him Zach. Zach attended church and Bible study for four months, bringing his backpack along with him every time. One morning, a church member nudged his bag – Zach began screaming and shouting. He turned violent, pulling a long butcher knife from his backpack. A week later, he returned. Williamson and some other fellows escorted him out the door, locking it behind him. Zach then attempted to throw bricks through the windows but couldn’t break the safety glass. He tried to enter by sliding his knife through the double doors and opening the lock, while Williamson held the doors shut from inside. That wasn’t in his seminary training! “Our justice system is not protecting us properly,” Williamson commented. He discovered that the man had a whole history of pulling knives on others. “The church bears the basin and the towel, but the government bears the sword. We have to hold our government to the fire.” Williamson and his church are in a tight spot. “We want to be kind and merciful, but we also need to be safe. We don’t really have many good answers and it feels very much beyond us as a church.” Streetlight Christian Church The Church shines brightest in the dark. Someone told Pastor Winston Bosch the other day that, “If Reformed Christians and Roman Catholics were not doing work in Hamilton it would be like hell on earth.” Bosch says most of the real ministry to the poor is being done by Christians. “The church is active and the Gospel is going out.” Streetlight Christian Church has been reaching out to the poor regions of Hamilton for 26 years. They work with many people upstream or downstream from homelessness. Serving with Mission in the Margins An active part of their support is working together with city and housing workers to help people navigate social services. Many folks need help recovering identification papers or, with the many who are illiterate, simply reading documents. Streetlight holds adult Bible studies, and offers community kids’ sporting opportunities. They also offer weekly meals, Bible lessons and discipling for those who want to know God more. The church provides a sense of love and community, always accompanied by the good news of the Gospel. It can be discouraging work. Bosch says the Streetlight team has to “fight for joy, seeing where wonderful things are happening.” And there are many. Like one teen who recently asked Streetlight’s youth worker, “I’m a Christian… is that an insult to my First Nations ancestors?” Or the folks who used to be sleeping outside the building, now coming to church healthy and clean. And the 16-year-old girl from a loving – and very Buddhist – family. “I think I’m a Christian,” she told Bosch, “But my parents are Buddhists…” How does she reconcile these two things? Healing and growth don’t always look like we’d expect. “I meet so many people in downtown Hamilton that are believers,” Bosch shares, “and their life is just a living miracle. Everything in life has been against them. And they’re still alive. They live in a tent, but they’re praising the Lord! The Holy Spirit is doing work right now, in unexpected places.” The miracles are all around, for those with eyes to see. Bosch recalls a church member – once a drug addict, now a believer. Her life is still a mess. One day Bosch found her outside, screaming and cursing out another church member. Bosch tapped her on the shoulder. “Hey, can I talk to you?” he asked. Her response caught him by surprise. “Praise the Lord, Pastor! Five years ago, I would have beat the s* out of that b*, and today all I did was yell at her. The Holy Spirit is working in my life!” And so He is! Mission to the Margins As a young man Jeff Hesselink walked away from his loving Christian family and struck out for western Canada, and ended up on the streets. Now, in the city of Cambridge, Jeff Hesselink works as a chaplain with Mission to the Margins, ministering to the homeless and impoverished. In the nearby city of Cambridge, Jeff Hesselink works as a chaplain with Mission to the Margins, ministering to the homeless and impoverished. The Gospel is at the heart of everything they do. “What we bring most of all is the message of the Gospel, but we do that in conjunction with meeting people’s tangible needs as much as we can.” Twice a week they work with churches to provide meals to those who need it. A Gospel message is served before the meal (prepared in-house by church volunteers.) Guests are welcome to the ministry’s food bank, clothing room, and laundry and shower facilities. Throughout the week, the ministry offers pastoral, grief and community support, a bike repair clinic and mentorship. “Here, in this place,” Hesselink says, “People find a warm place like home on cold winter nights; a refreshing place to halt their unceasing march, to come cool off from the oppressive heat of scorching summer days. And here people find relief from that crushing, suffocating plague of loneliness… All this is nothing new or innovative. The church has been caring for the poor and needy like this… since its inception.” Hesselink knows firsthand that unceasing march. As a young man he walked away from his loving Christian family and struck out for western Canada. He came to the end of himself and made a deal with God: either God would reveal Himself to Hesselink, or the desperate young man would call it quits – because life without Him was unbearable. God heard, and answered in a powerful way. Hesselink vividly recalls those days. “Suffice it to say that as I made my way West I was given a new life, and a hope and a future in Him.” Hesselink had peace – but he didn’t have a home. “Here on the streets, in a city I had never been in before, people treated me like I was a thing and not a person, like a garbage can or street post they needed to get around...” Many years later, God has given Hesselink a home, a family and a calling – to reach out to others on the margins, as he once was, with the hope of the Gospel. He recalls a recent conversation with Barry*. As they were discussing Matthew 7, Barry asked in a hushed voice, “How do I do it? What do I do? How do I take the next step in Christianity?” Essentially it was the question of the Philippian jailor, “What must I do to be saved?” The Gospel will triumph in Hamilton, Canada, and the world As Canada slides into deeper poverty and brokenness, Christians need to shine the light of Christ to the impoverished and homeless. The call is both personal and corporate. On a personal level, it starts with seeing the resident homeless man, not as a “street post” to get around, but as a person made in the image of God. We can pray for them and offer to buy them food or other necessities. Corporately, we as churches have a mandate to minister to the least of these. Partnering with an inner-city church or Gospel-driven ministry is both obedient and redemptive. The seed of the Word will fall on good earth. Bosch and his church are seeing that. They work with eyes open to the suffering, and with sights fixed on the future. “I know the end of the story,” Bosch says. “I’ve read the end of the Bible and Jesus wins! There’s no more suffering. He’s going to take His nail-scarred hand and wipe away every tear… He’s going to make all things new. And all the brokenness, sin, suffering and bad decisions; all of that will be pushed into outer darkness and will be made right. Jesus is doing that. He’s going to win!” Names with an * have been changed to protect privacy. Pictures graciously supplied by Jeff Hesselink. Endnotes 1 https://www.hamilton.ca/city-council/news-notices/news-releases/city-calls-enhanced-support-government-partners-address 2 https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/data-research-maps/research-reports/housing-and-homelessness-research-and-reports/shelter-system-requests-for-referrals/ 3 https://www.ontario.ca/page/income-support-odsp 4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2V8nKqLkFg 5 In an effort to move addicts away from dangerous street drugs, Safe Supply Centres offer “safer supply” drugs – prescription fentanyl and other drugs. https://arpacanada.ca/articles/canadas-drug-crisis-a-wicked-public-policy-problem-part-4/...

Interview with an artist

Laura Kroesbergen’s hyperrealistic animals

Capturing a moment in pastel ***** 'A Whole New World'15.5x21.5in.This lion cub's...

Technology

Less screens = more life

What we learned by stepping away from our phones for 10 days ***** We were hoping for 200 to sign up. Turns out a lot of us were ready for this –...

Internet

Is AI helping you, or dumbing you down? Yes.

3 questions to help us use AI better. ***** The Preacher declares in Ecclesiastes 1:9 that “there is nothing new under the sun.” He was saying i...

Parenting

Real Talk: How to lead your family

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In a Nutshell

Tidbits – June 2026

Done before the first down Notre Dame’s famed football coach Knute Rockne wasn’t above employing psychology to give his team an edge. A legend is told of how, when he was about to face the much better University of Southern California (USC) team, he spent the week beforehand scouring the city of South Bend for its largest men. He found a hundred, all 6’5” or taller, and every one of them weighed 300 pounds or more. Then he decked them out in Notre Dame uniforms and the pads and helmets only made them look even bigger. When it was game time, he marched them out. One after another, these giants ran onto the field, right past the opposing players. The USC coach kept telling his guys, “They can only field 11 men at a time,” but it didn’t matter. None of them played a minute, but the opposition was so intimidated at the sight of them that they dropped passes, committed fumbles, and even ran into each other in their crossing routes. And Notre Dame won the game. Did it happen? Maybe. But the reason the story is told is because this sort of thing does happen. Think of the men who spied out Israel and got intimidated by the giants of the land before any battle was even fought. Consider today’s battles and how often God’s truth is more loudly defended by non-Christians like Ben Shapiro or Jordan Peterson than by us – we’ve run from the battle and left it up to others, scared of what we might, but haven’t yet, had to face. How often are we beaten before we’ve even begun? Thankfully, our God is not just mighty – bigger than any giant on the football field sidelines, or standing in front of a Canaanite army – but He is also gracious and forgiving. So let’s fall on our knees, and get ready to put up our fists when God next calls us to fight for His glory. Source: adapted from Michael Hodgin’s “1001 More Humorous Illustrations for Public Speaking” O Canada! A Canadian woman and a Saudi woman were arguing about which country was better. The Canadian said, "Canada has more than its share of problems, but at least here I can freely walk up to Parliament Hill, head to the Prime Minister's office, and loudly complain, 'Mark Carney, I don't like the way you're running this country.'" "But I can do that in my country too!" the Saudi woman exclaimed. "I’m free to walk up to the palace, go to the King's office, and loudly complain, 'King, I don't like the way Mark Carney Harper is running Canada!'" Source: Adapted from a Reagan joke about Russia and the US 4 of a kind Grace and Mercy are two words with distinct meanings…but do you know what they are? Through sheer repetition some Christian words seem to blend into each other and we forget their distinct meanings. But their differences do matter. Below are three short definitions that describe the following four words: Grace, Mercy, Justice and Persecution. not getting what you do deserve getting what you do deserve getting what you don’t deserve Test yourself. Do you know what definition applies to each word? The answers follow: Not getting what you do deserve, is God is merciful when He doesn’t send us to hell. We deserve to go to hell, but fortunately Christians don’t get what we deserve. Getting what you do deserve, is God’s justice requires that sinful man be punished. Jesus took our deserved punishment on Himself and thus fulfilled God’s requirement for justice. Getting what you don’t deserve is Persecution. If justice is about getting punished when you do something bad, then persecution is about getting punished when you’ve done nothing, or done something good (like handing out a Bible in China). Persecution is, therefore, getting something bad that you don’t deserve. This definition is a little tricky, however, because it can also be a good thing to get what we don't deserve. That's exactly what Grace is! Our salvation and adoption as God's children is ours entirely out of grace – we have done nothing to merit this reward. It is through grace alone. Another reason everyone should study economics A story is told about an old man who was called silly names by the neighborhood kids and he couldn’t get them to stop. Then he hit on an idea. The next day, when the children gathered around him, shouting their taunts, he told them that next week he was going to pay them to insult him – if they came on Tuesday, four days later, he would give them each a dollar to shout their insults at him. They agreed, and the immediate impact was that the children stopped hassling him – it seemed they were saving up their insults. Then, come Tuesday, the man did as he promised, giving each of the little bullies a dollar for shouting insults at him. Then he announced that he’d pay them the next day too, but just 50 cents each. Wednesday they all gathered again, threw their insults, and were given 50 cents each. Afterwards the man announced that he’d only pay them a penny for their insults tomorrow. “A penny?” the ringleader complained, “that’s not even worth it.” And they never taunted the man again. Source: adapted from Michael Hodgin’s “1001 More Humorous Illustrations for Public Speaking” Do you like being corrected? David did. We’re supposed to love correction. Not throw a fit in response to it, or even stoically accept it. No, we’re supposed to love it. Proverbs 9:8 is just one of the texts where God makes this point: Don’t reprove a scoffer, lest he hate you. Reprove a wise man, and he will love you. God tells us that reproof is, in fact, a sign that He loves us: “whom the Lord loves, He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives” (Heb. 12:6). This verse makes good sense to any parent – it’s a lot easier to not discipline our kids, to just let it go this time (and the next, and the time after that), but if we love them, then we want to teach them what’s wrong and right, and that will necessarily involve reproof of some sort. Still, “love correction” is a hard command to follow, so it struck me when I came across King David’s response to the prophet Nathan’s rebuke. As you’ll recall, Nathan came to David after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba, and murdered her husband to cover it up (2 Samuel 11-12). Nathan came with condemnation, and a curse. Though David confessed his guilt, Nathan informed the king that the LORD would kill the child that he had conceived with Bathsheba. And the child did die. We would all understand it if David didn’t think all that kindly of Nathan after that. But, despite his great sins, David was still a man of God, and he shows this in his response to Nathan’s reproof. In 1 Chronicles 3:5 we read that, of the four sons David had with Bathsheba, one was named Nathan! Here, then, is a man who was reproved, and seems to have loved the messenger who brought him that correction. Presuppositions When a little boy asked his grandfather whether he’d been on the ark with Noah, his grandfather had to laugh, and assured the boy that no, he had not been on the ark. “But grandpa,” the boy asked, “then why didn’t you drown?” Are we conservatives? Dave Rubin, Douglas Murray, and the DailyWire's Spencer Klaven are all self-described "gay conservatives," and how can that be? It's because "conservative" is a term that has meaning in comparison. So long as a position can be placed on a spectrum, there will always be liberal and conservative versions. If an anarchist wants to destroy all of Western Civilization, and I want to destroy only half of it, I would be the conservative anarchist. And if a couple of college ethics professors want to euthanize all disabled babies now, and I want to wait a few years, I am the conservative eugenicist in this conversation. In much the same way, conservative and gay go together just fine too. That’s why God's people need to understand that if we want to express our loyalties clearly, we need to come out as Christians, not conservatives. Conservative Christians even, but not simply conservatives. Showing and telling A half dozen writing tips that highlight what’s to be done, and how not to do it. Don't use a big word where diminutive verbiage will suffice. Check carefully to see if you any words out. Avoid clichés like the plague. It’s generally a good idea to be specific. Colorful, vivid, descriptive, multi-layered adjectives are overdone. Don’t re-use the same words. Use different words. Other words. That speck in your neighbor’s eye The faults we spot so easily in others may well be the ones we excuse in ourselves. Of course, there is some artistry in our self-deception – we aren’t going to bluntly say, it is wrong for my kids to be curt and impatient, but I’m allowed to be. No, we’ll say it’s wrong for them, but then relabel our own conduct as something more acceptable or even admirable, as this poetic ditty demonstrates: Stubbornness we deprecate; firmness we condone. The former is our neighbor’s trait; the latter is our own. Source: Michael Hodgin’s "1001 More Humorous Illustrations for Public Speaking" Berra-isms Major league player and coach Yogi Berra had quite the way with words. Here are a few of his most famous “Berra-isms,” with wisdom to be found, if you’re willing to ponder. It ain’t over ‘til it’s over. If you don’t know where you’re going, you might not get there. Ninety percent of the game is half mental. You can observe a lot by watching. When you come to a fork in the road, take it. If you can’t imitate him, don’t copy him. ...

Science - Creation/Evolution

The day is not an age

Billions of years don’t fit with the Bible ***** When my daughter was young, I introduced her to sketching and how to use colored pencils to enhance her drawings. She continued to practice and develop her technique until now, as a young woman, her skill has far exceeded my ability to draw. After examining one of her drawings of a horse – so real that its muzzle looks soft to the touch – one would never believe that she just randomly chose a few colored pencils, blindly allowing them to contact the paper in random strokes. Yet, this is how some Christians attempt to reconcile the historical account of Creation, the world of order and beauty recorded in Genesis 1-2, and the “fact” claimed by secular scientists that everything in the world around us is the product of random processes, occurring without a plan, over a very long period of time. What if we stretch the days? There are good reasons to believe that God did create everything in six, literal 24-hour days (Gen. 1:1–31). However, some people feel the need to interpret each “day” in Genesis 1 as symbolic of millions or even billions of years, because Science tells us that the universe was created by the Big Bang, that the Solar System and our Earth formed out of the chaos of this unique explosion, and that all life came about through the random processes of Evolution. This attempt to reconcile the Bible with science is called the Day Age Theory because it posits that each “day” in Genesis 1 represents an ‘age’ that is millions or billions of years long. The problem with the Day Age Theory is that it contradicts the Biblical narrative. This theory assumes that the reigning cosmological theory for the origin and history of the universe – from the Big Bang to the evolution of all life on Earth – must be correct because it is proven by Science. However, the Day Age Theory does not reconcile scientific belief with the events described in Genesis 1 because the order of events in Big Bang cosmology are completely different from those given in the Bible. The Sun or Earth: which came first? Secular science says that the Sun came before the Earth, and the Bible says the opposite. So who are you going to believe? For example, Genesis asserts that: the Earth was formed (on Day 1) before the Sun and stars (Day 4), plants were formed (on Day 3) before the Sun (Day 4), and that birds were formed (on Day 5) before the land animals (Day 6). Secular scientists, on the other hand, claim that: over 4 billion years ago the Sun formed first from a collapsing solar nebula, followed by the planets, including Earth, plant life only began to colonize the land around 450 million years ago, and some land animals (i.e., dinosaurs) evolved from birds. The Day Age Theory is, therefore, entirely at odds with the Biblical account and so it does nothing to reconcile the historical account in Genesis with scientific opinion. History can be symbolic too because God writes it The Literary Framework Hypothesis dispenses with the need to harmonize the “facts” of scientific cosmology with the Biblical narrative by teaching that the Biblical account is not intended to be taken as a chronological history but as a figurative, poetic narrative that teaches that God is the creator of all things. This notion that the Biblical narrative is allegory or poetry stems from a perceived parallel structure between Days 1-3 and Days 4-6. Beginning with Genesis 1:2, which describes the cosmos as “formless and void,” this argument contends that Days 1-3 create the “form” and Days 4-6 fill the “void.” However, as Dr. Noel Weeks has pointed out, “even though there is no logical reason why the presence of a structure should prove that a passage is not to be taken literally, this idea seems to have great emotive appeal.” Just as the process of constructing a building follows an ordered process – site preparation, laying the foundation, erecting the framework, etc. – the process of creating the universe will also be structured and not chaotic. Therefore, the presence of a structure in the creation narrative actually supports the fact that this is a record of a real historical and creative event that occurred over six literal days. In addition, parallel literary structures are also found elsewhere in the Bible, such as in the historical narratives contained in Exodus and the gospel of Matthew. For example, in Matthew 2, Jesus took a journey into Egypt and was led back into Israel, fulfilling the prophesy that “out of Egypt I called my son,” which parallels the nation of Israel being led out of Egypt by the Spirit of God, with pillars of fire and smoke going before them (Ex. 13:17–22). Also, the people who came out of Egypt passed through the waters of the Red Sea (Ex. 14), which Paul describes as passing through the waters of baptism into Moses to be identified as God’s people (1 Cor. 10:1–4), parallels Jesus passing through the baptismal waters and being identified as God’s Son (Matt. 3:13–17). Many other parallels could be listed, making it evident that parallel structure in a narrative does not indicate that the text is allegorical. Rather, it demonstrates God’s involvement in history. As with the examples of historical parallels described above, historical events and objects may also have spiritual significance. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, points out the error of assuming that because something described in Scripture has spiritually symbolic significance it could not exist as a “visible and material object.” He writes: It is arbitrary to suppose that there could not have been a material paradise, just because it can be understood also in a spiritual significance… there was no rock from which water flowed when Moses struck it, just because it can be interpreted in a symbolic sense, as prefiguring Christ; which is how the same Apostle takes it when he says, ‘Now the rock was Christ’ .” In the same way, states Augustine, one may attribute symbolic significance to the Tree of Life (cf. Gen. 2:9, 3:33; Prov. 3:18; Rev. 2:7, 22:2) and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil – even the entire garden paradise of Eden: “There is no prohibition against such exegesis,” says Augustine, “provided that we also believe in the truth of the story as a faithful record of historical fact.” Jesus taught that Genesis was literal The Bible clearly teaches that humans did not evolve but were created, first man and then woman. Dr. Weeks asserted that Genesis 1 is to be understood literally stating that “a number of passages which refer to the original creation of man and woman and their relationship may be considered together (Matt.19:4; 1 Cor. 11:8–9; 1 Tim. 2:13–14). Note that the account is taken literally and made the basis of teaching on the relation of man and woman. Even if in only this point we take issue with evolutionary theory we find ourselves in complete antithesis to naturalistic evolution.” The gospels contain several examples of Jesus referring to the events recorded in Genesis as real history. When speaking of the prophets who had been martyred by the Jews, Jesus refers to Abel as the first martyr and Zechariah as the last (Luke 11:48–51, Matt. 23:49–51). In Matthew 19:5–6 (and Mark 10:7), Jesus quotes Genesis 2:24 to clarify that marriage is between one man and one woman: “‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’. So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate.” Jesus uses the real history of Genesis to explain the basis of the marriage covenant. Finally, Jesus tells us that His return will bring judgement on everyone in the world in the same way God judged all people in Noah’s day. In Luke 17:26–27, Jesus says that “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all” (also Matt. 24:36–44). The world-wide flood recorded in Genesis 6-9 was a real event, and so Jesus expects his listeners to believe that the final judgement will be just as real. Still, some people are tempted to believe that God used millions of years to create because the Bible says that, “with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” (2 Pet. 3:8). However, we need to look at the context of this statement. The whole passage says, “But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” Peter is not writing about long ages of creation but about the Lord’s willingness to wait patiently so that every person has an opportunity to repent and restore their relationship with God. Peter is repeating the same illustration that he used in his first letter where God waited patiently so that people would have every opportunity to repent and be saved “when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared” (1 Pet. 3:20). Even with the help of his sons and hired men, it would have taken Noah many years to build and provision a ship as large as the ark and so those aware of Noah’s project would have had a long time to come to repentance. In other words, God is more than willing to wait a long time so as not to lose anyone (Eze. 18:23). Gradualistic assumptions took hold While there were exceptions, in the late-seventeenth to mid-eighteenth centuries, scientists seemed to readily accept the Genesis account of a global flood, concluding that it was responsible for the Earth’s geology, including the creation of fossils. Grand Canyon formed gradually? If you assume that “all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation” then the Grand Canyon’s depth and size, and the small river running through it would all be evidence of it being formed over tens and hundreds of thousands of years. But the Bible speaks of things being different in the past than they are today, with a worldwide Flood and its enormous volume of water able to carve out much more quickly what would take a small river eons to do. But by the end of the eighteenth century the majority of scientists began to favor a more “naturalistic” view of geology, no longer seeing a need for their ideas to fit with the Biblical account of Creation nor its account of watery catastrophe on a global scale. This naturalistic geology relied on slow and gradual processes, such as the laying down of layers of sediment to form layers of rock. Physician James Hutton, considered the father of contemporary geology, stated that the natural forces we observe shaping the Earth in the present also operated in the past, slowly and gradually over long periods of time. In his treatise on the subject, Theory of the Earth, Hutton says that “in examining things present, we have data from which to reason with regard to what has been..., therefore, we are to examine the construction of the present earth, in order to understand the natural operations of time past.” Hutton writes that such slow and gradual processes occurred on Earth “for millions of ages.” Hutton’s gradualist, or uniformitarian, views were later popularized by Charles Lyell in his three-volume work titled Principles of Geology. And it was the acceptance of slow and gradual geological processes that provided Charles Darwin with the long-ages required for his theory of biological Evolution, Origin of Species, published in 1859. This dramatic shift in scientific thought, currently held by many scientists today, was the antithesis of the Biblical account of Creation contained in Genesis 1. Thus, The Day Age Theory was invented in an attempt to reinterpret the days of Creation as symbolic of the “deep-time” required for the Big Bang and biological Evolution required by scientific thinking. God foreknew that people would invoke ideas like uniformitarianism to deny the historicity of the global Flood and bring doubt concerning the final judgement of the world: “Scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation. For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished” (emphasis added; 2 Pet. 3:3–6). Thus, it should come as no surprise that, rejecting the Creation account in Genesis 1, scientists claim that the Universe formed 15 billion years ago after the Big Bang, and the geology of the Earth was formed by slow, gradual processes over millions of years, and that life evolved over millions of years. When we are encouraged by scientists to believe that the universe was created over billions of years, and that life evolved over millions of years, we are being asked to doubt God’s Word. Logically, once the beginning of the Bible is called into question, we will also begin to doubt everything else written in the Bible as well. Did God really say? Hearing ideas that may cause us to doubt God’s Word is not a new phenomenon; in fact, sowing seeds of doubt was the first ploy used by Satan to deceive humanity. It was not long after God created a world that was “very good” and placed the first couple in the Garden that Satan came along and tempted them to doubt God’s word. We read in Genesis 3:1 that “ said to the woman, ‘Did God really say....’” In this way Satan caused the woman to doubt God’s goodness, convincing her that God does not really mean what He says. Some people do not want to believe in a God Who will hold them to account for their thoughts and actions. They do not want to acknowledge that they are sinful – that they disobey God – and that the only way to restore a right relationship with God is through repentance and belief in Jesus, God’s Son, Who died to redeem them and was raised from the dead (Rom. 10:9). Nor do they want to believe that Jesus will come again to judge each one of us. As a result, they make up their own stories about how the world began so that they can write God out of history, pretending He does not exist. The apostle Paul wrote that some people would deny God and create their own stories: “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Tim. 4:3-4). We are living in such a time and Big Bang cosmology and Evolution are those myths. When Satan uses the authority of science to cast doubt on God’s Word – “Did God really say...He created the heavens and the earth in six days?” – remember how Satan deceived Adam and the woman in the garden, which had devastating consequences. Dr. Mark Sandercock is a retired forensic chemist who worked for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the author of “Foundation: A Biblical Worldview.” This is an abridged extract from Chapter 4. His book is available on Amazon....

Interview with an artist

Trees, rocks, water, sky, wildlife - Sheila Van Delft paints refreshment for the soul

48x36 acrylic on canvasNear Cathedral Grove on Vancouver Island – Sheila finds the forest one of the places where she recharges the best. She is so grateful to live in the country with trees all around her – and the endless inspiration they provide! 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 in the midst of nature. And in her work, she brings that feeling to others, through haunting scenes of groves on Vancouver Island, fog-filled vistas of the West Coast Trail, or serene views of a lone eagle surveying his kingdom. “When I think deeply about why it’s always nature ,” she says, “I realize that I’m painting my longing for the new earth and fellowship with God. Adam and Eve in Paradise enjoyed perfect nature with God, and the renewed earth will also have landscapes and seascapes, trees, animals, and big skies – all perfected and even more incredibly beautiful than what we enjoy here because of the redeeming work of Jesus. I long for this, and dream of this, and in my own way, must paint it again and again.” Sheila is blessed to be able to work in art full-time – part-time as an art teacher and the rest of the time in her home studio. A typical day for her might involve: catching up on email requests and admin tasks, painting, taking a break for household tasks, taking the dog for a walk, brainstorming the next twenty paintings, painting some more, reluctantly making dinner, and then painting the rest of the evening because, really, it’s her favorite thing to do. 36x24 acrylic on canvasThe artist’s granddaughter in a field near her home in Ontario Van Delft has been an artist since she was a child, encouraged by her parents. Later, she studied graphic design, and then even later, as a mature student, she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Arts. Through it all, she honed her skills, motivated by Colossians 3:23: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” “I sometimes have market customers tell me that they feel so at peace when they look at my work, or that they don’t want to leave because it’s all so beautiful. I marvel at this! How can it be that what I do can have this effect? It’s all God’s hand working through my hand.” One of the things she’s most proud of is her work as a high school teacher. Through it, Sheila nurtures her students’ ability to use their talents to share beauty and truth. Students she never expected have come up to her and admitted she made them care about art, and that brings her a feeling of fulfillment. “When I try capture emotions like awe, contentment, gratitude, harmony, joy, peace, and wholeness in my paintings, I think others can feel that too. And that’s why I paint, so others can also feel the hopeful anticipation of the better life that is coming. I’m trying to share a bit of Heaven.” Learn more about Sheila Van Delft's work on her website, where you can also stay up to date about the markets and other events where you can view her work in person. And she shares her work on Instagram and Facebook. Send Harma-Mae Smit suggestions for artists to profile at [email protected]...

Music

When the Church stops singing

or, What I learned from the organ bench ***** The first time I realized something was wrong with congregational singing, I was sixteen years old, sitting at the pipe organ bench at Tabor Presbyterian Church in Portland. The hymn introduction ended. I lifted my hands for the first verse – and almost no one sang. A few scattered voices appeared, hesitant and thin. The melody was there, printed clearly in the hymnal, but the room itself stayed quiet. From the organ bench, with the congregation behind you, silence is impossible to ignore. I remember thinking, Is this normal? Over the next several years I played organ in several churches around Portland, and that moment kept repeating itself. Some congregations sang with surprising strength. Others barely sang at all. I remember one Sunday playing “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” The first verse was hesitant and quiet, but by the final verse the congregation had found its voice and the room suddenly felt alive. The difference between those two moments – the hesitant beginning and the confident ending – revealed something important: congregational singing does not simply happen. It is something churches either cultivate intentionally or gradually lose. The sound Scripture expects The New Testament assumes that the gathered Church sings. Paul writes in Colossians: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” (Col. 3:16). Notice what singing does here. It is not merely an emotional expression. Through singing, believers teach and encourage one another. Truth is carried not only through sermons but through the voices of the congregation itself. Paul makes the same assumption in Ephesians: “Addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart” (Eph. 5:19). In both passages, singing is participatory. The church does not merely listen to music; the church sings. For centuries, Christian worship assumed this. Choirs and musicians might assist, but the central voice in worship was the congregation. Today, that assumption is not always as strong. When worship music becomes something we watch One of the things I noticed while playing in different churches was how dramatically congregational participation could change depending on how music was led. In some congregations the moment the introduction ended, the singing began. The sound filled the sanctuary almost immediately. Even people who did not sing especially well sang confidently because the music supported them. Other congregations responded very differently. The musicians played beautifully, the sound system was excellent, but the congregation remained hesitant. A few voices scattered here and there, but many people simply listened. This shift often happens gradually and unintentionally. Churches want music to sound good. Musicians want to serve faithfully. Technology makes it easier than ever to produce polished sound. But the unintended result can be subtle: music becomes something happening at the front of the room rather than something shared by the whole church. From the organ bench, that difference is unmistakable. The quiet disappearance of church musicians Another challenge is less visible but just as real: many churches struggle to find musicians. When I first began playing as a teenager, many congregations still had longtime pianists or organists who had served for decades. These musicians often trained younger players and gradually passed on their role. That pattern is becoming less common. More than once a pastor quietly asked me if I knew anyone who could play because their longtime pianist had retired and no one was ready to replace her. Sometimes churches relied on a single volunteer carrying the entire responsibility for music week after week. This shortage changes the dynamic of worship in ways many people never notice. When musical leadership becomes fragile, congregational singing often weakens as well. Leading congregational singing requires a particular kind of musician – someone who understands that their role is not performance but support. What the organ bench teaches From the organ bench, you quickly learn that congregations sing best when they feel supported. If the accompaniment is steady and confident, people join in. If the tempo drifts or the melody becomes difficult to follow, the congregation hesitates. Some Sundays the congregation would surprise me. A hymn I expected to struggle suddenly filled the room, especially on the final verse when people realized the organ was carrying them. When that happens, the room changes. People sing more boldly. The sound grows stronger with each verse. The organ historically served this role well because its sustained sound naturally supports voices. But the deeper principle is not about instruments. Congregations sing best when the music invites participation rather than replacing it. Why this matters It might be tempting to treat this as a small issue. There are certainly larger challenges facing the Church today. But Scripture treats the gathered worship of God’s people as something deeply significant. When a congregation sings together, the Word of Christ dwells richly among them (Col. 3:16). The truths of the gospel are not only preached but sung. Believers encourage one another through shared confession of faith. Children hear their parents sing. Older members who can no longer serve in visible ways still contribute their voices. Corporate singing reminds us that worship is not about personal preference. No one in the room loves every song equally. Yet everyone participates. In that sense, congregational singing becomes a small picture of the unity of the Church itself. Recovering the sound of the Church The encouraging news is that strong congregational singing is not complicated to cultivate. Churches that sing well usually share a few simple habits. They choose songs ordinary people can sing. They train musicians to support the congregation rather than showcase themselves. They encourage participation openly rather than assuming it will happen automatically. In several churches I played in, the problem was not that people refused to sing. The problem was that no one had intentionally thought about how to help them sing. Once that question was asked, the difference could be remarkable. Listening again One of the strange privileges of sitting at an organ bench is that you learn to listen carefully to the room behind you. When a congregation really sings, you feel it through the bench and pedals as much as you hear it. The sound moves through the room like a single voice made up of many imperfect ones. It is not polished. Some voices drift off pitch. Some enter late. Yet the sound carries a unity no performance can create. It is the sound of the church speaking together. And once you have heard it clearly, you begin to notice when it starts to fade. The question facing many churches today is not simply what style of music they prefer. The question is whether the congregation itself is still expected to sing. Felix Lilly is a musician in Portland, Oregon who has served as a pipe organist in several local churches. He writes about church life, music, and Christian discipleship....

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Trees, rocks, water, sky, wildlife - Sheila Van Delft paints refreshment for the soul

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