Recent Articles | Reformed Perspective

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 your screen-free moments, minutes, hours, and days. As we get set for another fast, we have another opportunity to make a course-correction in our lives when it comes to where our hearts, minds, and eyes are directed. We’re back with 35 more activities, including some ideas from people who did the screen-fast last summer.

But first, let’s start with one of their testimonials on why it is worth taking the screen-fast plunge:

“I somewhat reluctantly signed up for the screen-fast as my wife and kids were participating, but reflecting on it now, I can see God's hand working through them and the screen-fast.

“I spent more time reading the Bible and additional study material, and more time in prayer and reflection. I was able to think more clearly after the first few days as the cheap distraction of screens was gone. This gave me time and focus to think through issues at work which I've been contending with for around a year and come to difficult decisions there that I had perhaps been avoiding. My time was better spent in devotions, exercise, conversation, family activities, and time in God's creation. I felt much better mentally, physically, and spiritually at the end of the ten days.

“I intend to do this screen-fast again in the future and strongly encourage anyone who has not done it to do so and aim to grow in service of our gracious God.”

What follows are 35 suggestions, gathered from RP readers and staff, for what you can do with all your extra screen-free time!

Make God first

Bible-in-a-year is easier – “My husband and I also had more time to work on our ‘Bible-in-a-year’ readings in the evenings as well as more time to journal and read some fiction.”
Devoted devotions – “I started each day with devotions rather than reaching for my phone and therefore skipping devotions didn’t happen anymore.”
Remembering to pray – “Helped to remind me to pray every time I went to tap an ‘earbud’.”

Break, and bake, bread

Rediscover dinner – “We had meals at the kitchen table instead of in the living room while watching YouTube.”
Hold a tasting party – It doesn’t need to be fancy. Kids could find it fun to make and sample 3 different kinds of macaroni with a couple of different ketchups. Or have a soda sampler, using shot glasses, teaching your littles to “clean their palates” before sampling the next.

Twists on reading a good book

Pay your kids to read what you want – Some kids won’t read, and others only read a certain sort of book. If you’re spending thousands on Christian education, maybe a few hundred could be devoted to upgrading your children’s summer reading by paying them to read the books you really want them reading. Maybe it’s an old classic like Pilgrim’s Progress (but be sure you have a copy with updated English) or a great Christian biography you loved. Would a couple bucks motivate them? Maybe a fiver? This wouldn’t be a great idea long-term – we don’t want them thinking reading is a job – but for the 10 days of the screen-fast maybe it’d be just right.
All together now – Try reading a picture book together – maybe one by Mo Willems about Piggie and Gerald, but any heavy-on-dialogue book would do. Then assign each family member and friend a character. Give them a few moments to create the character’s voice. Mom or dad can act the part of the narrator, and you are ready for a dramatic performance.
Library treasure hunt – Pick an animal you want to know more about, and then head to the library to research all about it. Everyone needs to choose their own animal, read up, and present your findings in a few days. Best done with adult oversight, or when your kids are able to see through most nature books’ evolutionary nonsense, and can see God’s fingerprints evident in their new favorite critter.

Love the neighbor next to you

Only head up in the room – “Quite often if you're sitting in a waiting room, someone will strike up a conversation with you, because you're available and willing to talk. You may have an impact on someone else's day. Smile and give eye contact!”
Howdy! – Go for a walk and talk, chatting up all the neighbors you meet.
Paint party – Paint the opening question and answer of the Westminster or Heidelberg Catechisms on your garage door. Then spend extra time outside, with your head up, ready for any conversations that may come.
Outdoor games night – Hold a games night on your front lawn and invite passersby to join in. Make sure they are simple short games, to make it easiest.

Be contagious

Show, don’t tell – “Over the days slowly joined me in some of my non-screen pursuits, doing jigsaw puzzles and chatting over cups of tea.” “We had family come for summer holidays, and they willingly partook (kids too)! Fishing and bike rides at 7 am rather than cartoons…win!”
Start a “What I wouldn’t have seen” journal – Every time a family member sees something they know they wouldn’t have seen if they’d been on a screen, they should write it down in this journal. It may be quite the collection before the screen-fast is done!

Actually fix things

All-in hour – Your honey-do list is getting long? Pick one hour each day for everyone to just get at whatever needs to be gotten. Dishes piling up? That door squeaking? It’s so much more motivating to work, when no one can shirk.
One room at a time – Each day, a different room. You’re picking a target, not promising yourself perfection. So pick a room, get help, and get what you can done in a set amount of time. Then tomorrow, move on to the next room whether you’re done this one or not.

Gaming together

Race remote control cars – “The quality time together was definitely better as we played cards, drove RCs at the park and made homemade cards.”
Rebound for your bro or sis – “Our whole family did a lot more reading, board game playing, and shooting hoops…. I was impressed to see them doing Sudokus, reading, looking out the window, and playing cards with each other.”

Embrace the boredom

Be bored – “My 10-year-old said that she found more space to be creative when the computer and TV was off.”
Tackle a “shower thought” – It’s no wonder so many of us get our best ideas in the shower as there’s nothing else for our brain to do in there but think. Now don’t just think about it; use your extra time to turn an idea into reality.

Enjoy your spouse

Go on walks – “It helped me reconnect with my wife. Instead of sitting on the couch consuming content in the evenings, we went for more walks and had more time to talk about what was going on.”
Go to bed at the same time – It can be hard to connect if you’re falling asleep to a device. But if you turn off the distractions, you can tune into your spouse, and vice versa. “My best recommendation for others would be to eliminate phones from your bedroom. Reading my Bible nightly is way more likely to happen when Instagram is more than a click away. That Christian influencer's advice might be insightful, but God's Word will not return empty (Is. 55:11).”
Wash the dishes together – A dishwasher is a lovely thing, but it’s sweet teamwork when a couple divvies up the washing and drying. In our busy lives, this short time right after dinner is still usually open and available, not just to work, but to flirt.

Connect with the kids

Backyard camping – Pitch the tent, get out the flashlights, and if you can, get some s’mores made. And when it’s time to sleep, have dad or mom read a story, or share a childhood adventure.
Game-night marathon – Play your kids’ favorite board or card game as many times in a row as they like, even into the wee hours of the night.

More painting

Untouched canvas – If your house has a big blank wall somewhere, do something about it. With some painter’s tape, line out, and then paint in, a humungous rectangular frame that you and your friends or family are now going to fill in with your own beautiful artistry.
Try, try again – Get small, inexpensive canvases from the store and paints, and paint your masterpiece. Then, tomorrow, paint over it. Continue until you’ve got something you love.
Help a widow – Organize a painting party (painting the fence, etc.) for a widow.

Challenges

Family read-a-thon – Make up your own rules, but here’s something you could try. Mark off a sheet of paper divvying each day in hours and put it on your fridge. Every family member writes down how many (if any) pages they’ve read that hour. The one who gets the most pages in that hour gets a point. Most points in a day gets a small prize. Most points over the 10 days gets to have mom and dad pay for a book of their choosing.
Wall of gratitude – Every hour you can write down on an index card something you are thankful for. Then tape that card to a wall. You can only do one an hour, and if you miss an hour, you can’t catch up. Each thankful card has to be original – no repeated thanks for your spouse or children, etc., no matter how grateful you are. The point is for us all to see how many different ways God is blessing us. For fun, get a pack of different color index cards, and maybe use some color pens to draw word art or a picture on each one. There are roughly 160 awake hours over the 10-day screen-fast, so see just how full you can fill your wall of gratitude.
Exercise eke-up – Set a goal, any goal. Want to be able to run for half an hour? Try running for just a tenth of that on day 1 – just 3 minutes. Then add a tenth for day 2, and run 6 minutes. Keep adding a tenth a day and by day 10 you’ll be running 30 minutes. Was that too ambitious? Then start again back at the step before it got hard and cut your increments in half. Try this same, slow-and-steady, super-small-steps approach to whatever exercise (push-ups, planking, swimming, a stretching routine) you want to get better at.
A pizza a day – Without a doubt, there is no more perfect food, what with the amazing variety of ways it can be prepared and varied. Do your research beforehand – when the Internet can still be a resource – or check out a few pizza-making cookbooks from your local library. Then plot out what kind of pizza you’ll make for each day. Preparations can involve making lists for the grocery store, and recruiting volunteers to craft each pie.
Bike where you’ve never been – Find an old-fashioned paper map and use it to plot out places in your town you’ve never biked. Then head off and see what there is to see (avoiding any dangerous spots, of course) and afterward mark it off on your map, filling in every street you’ve biked up or down.

Stretch your attention span

Read for an hour straight – Note down on a piece of paper a mark for every time you were tempted to stop reading and look at your phone.
Watch a documentary carefully – This might seem a bit of a cheat, but being screen-free is more about intentionality than abstinence. So pick a good one deliberately (we’ve got plenty of suggestions) and watch it that way too, with your thumb on the pause button so it can be stopped and discussed.

*****

Join us for our 2026 screen fast from July 13-22! Sign up here.

Illustrations by Hannah Penninga.

Entertainment

“What can I do anyways?”

35 screen-alternative ideas ***** You can’t beat something with nothing (as Eph. 4:28, Matt. 12:30, and Matt. 12:43-45 make clear). That means ...

Assorted

Real Talk: Recovering family worship

Below is a transcript of the episode. Please note that this transcript was automatically generated and may contain some errors. ***** Opening Wh...

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 be...

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 ha...

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 inquisitive expression portrays the universal curiosity of the young - a good reminder to be ever curious about ourselves and those around us. In her childhood, Laura Kroesbergen found she struggled with confidence in her relationships with people, but when she was in nature or with animals she could relax and be herself. Animals’ ability to tune into non-verbal cues and communicate through them seemed, to her, to bring them a softer, calmer way of life. And horses, in particular, inspired her with their majesty, and freedom. They became a major source of inspiration for her works in pastel. Her pastel drawings are filled with the texture of hair on the horses’ necks, and veins outlining their muscles, as they gallop across the field or gaze wisely at you. Horses were her first drawing interest. However, after encouragement from her mother and others, she began to create drawings of other wildlife as well – prowling panthers, curious lion cubs, and guarded antelopes. Her faith is an inescapable part of her work. As she explains, “Since going through severe depression in my early 20s, I have come to recognize the value of life, and though my focus is still on the animal world, I now try to bring some of that ‘life essence’ into each drawing.” 'Night Prowler'24x18in.The black panther (aka the black leopard), is a melanistic leopard with a recessive gene that produces more pigment, thus creating the black coat. These leopards are mostly found in the forested areas of Africa and Asia, however, this particular leopardess lives wild in the African country of Kenya. She intuits what makes living things tick, and translates that into her work. Detail is also important: “Working in the field of hyper- or photo-realism also brings the unique experience of learning the subtle colors and intricate patterns our Creator has put into His creation. The more detail I dive into, the more detail there is to see. This gives me a beautiful glimpse of how infinite our glorious God is.” For Laura, doing her absolute best is a big part of how she brings her faith into her work. This ties into the intricate detail and realism she always attempts to capture. “The attitude of, 'it's the best I can do,' if it's not realistic, is not something I allow for myself,” she says. She tries to combine the accuracy of a photograph with the added emotion or “essence” of what she’s drawing – essentially capturing a moment in time. This influenced her choice of pastels as a medium. At first, she did all her drawings primarily in grayscale, because she found capturing color much more difficult. But after watching an online time-lapse video of an artist using pastels, she was surprised to find herself thinking, “I can probably do that.” To her delight, she found she was able to create beautiful hyperrealist drawings in pastel on her first attempt. She sees this as a major way God was working in her life at that time, as she was laid up with a fractured pelvis and was asking Him about what she could learn during her time of recovery. 'A Mother's Love'18x24in.This pastel painting captures a quiet moment between a zebra mother and son. “Pastels are a great way for me to achieve more of a 'painterly' effect without having to switch to a wet medium…though trying out painting is on my list,” she explains. She is fascinated by how much color can be put out by a simple pastel pencil. And the paper she uses can hold many layers of pencil without getting too saturated, and it contains felt so she doesn’t need to use a fixative spray to keep the pastel from smudging. She is currently not working as an artist full-time, though she did pursue this in the past, and continues to draw and create. “I do wonder in what ways God will have me use my skills in the future,” she says, “since this is a talent He has given me.” You can see more of Laura Kroesbergen’s work at laurachristinefineart.com. She also does pet portraits, which you can view there. Or contact her by email with your questions about art-related things at [email protected]. Harma-Mae Smit loves to write and think about art, despite not being an artist herself. She loves how art can reflect the Creator Himself. Send Harm-Mae Smit suggestions for artists to profile at [email protected], including their contact information....

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 – more than 900 registered for RP’s July 21-30 screen-fast challenge, and we heard about others who joined the fast without signing up. Safe to say, over a thousand people across the country came together to put our screens in their place. That is amazing! But maybe it shouldn’t have been surprising. God’s people know He wants us to make good use of the time He’s given us, and we know that our phones too often have us wasting moments that turn into minutes, which can add up to lost hours each week. We needed to hit the reset and get back control. So how’d we all do? Of the 160 responses we received, three-quarters managed to stay away from their screens for 9 days or better. They also shared stories, tips on what worked, what they found toughest, suggestions on how we could do this even better next time, and what got them most excited about the fast. And we’re very excited to share their thoughts with you. EYE OPENING One term kept popping up in the feedback – “eye-opening.” “It was a very humbling experience for me. I am a fairly busy person as it is, between nursing school, 2 kids, and running a household, but I will say that the amount of hours I still managed to waste away doing mindless scrolling or pointless video-watching was disconcerting, to put it lightly.” “I thought I was pretty good about staying off my phone, but I really had to remind myself not to pick it up. I've only had a phone since October, and already it has become such an integral part of my life.” "The screen-fast started while we were away on vacation, and what a blessing this was! At first, I thought it would be easy; after all, I had books to read, family to visit with, and a beach calling my name. I had deleted all of my social media accounts a couple of years ago. I thought I barely used my phone in comparison to others. Boy, was I wrong. I never realized how often I was reaching for my phone, oftentimes for no specific purpose other than to fill time or cure boredom! Looking at the weather, reading the news, playing games – my phone sucked me in even without social media being present! The screen-fast has truly been a blessing. It reminded me of the value of being present, of shared experiences, of all the little moments that I would have missed out on had I been scrolling on my phone. I learned that it's okay to have moments of quiet, stillness, and even boredom! Sometimes, it is in these quiet moments of being in creation that God speaks the loudest: His power in the wind and waves, His beauty in the flowers, His tenderness, care, and grace towards me in that He used these moments to calm any anxieties that were lurking within me. Thank you, Reformed Perspective, for encouraging this experience!" “My oldest (11) had a hard time sticking to the screen-fast and caved 3 times. Hard to believe how much of a pull a screen has on a person! Makes me want to live in the Little House on the Prairie times, where screens just weren’t available and outside play was their entertainment.” “I just itched to check social media and would find myself comforted by just holding my phone close, even though there was nothing to look at. I realized that I don't like this about myself.” “It was well needed and brought my screen time down to about 15-30 minutes a day from my usual 2-2.5 hours. I hope to keep my screen time down as much as I can because I’m so much more productive and observant of the world around me when I’m not on it.” TOGETHER IS EASIER Some participants didn’t know anyone else doing it, even with a thousand across the country involved. Those with friends and family joining in found it much easier. “My sister and I challenged each other and we both finished (almost) successfully. We both started reading again after having lost the habit of reading and gained the habit of scrolling. I’m very happy to be reading again and I noticed how much I can get done with the time I used to waste. I will definitely be more careful with my screen time in the future.” “I found that since my family didn’t participate, it was hard to maintain self-control when others were using their devices.” “I did it with my wife – we found that especially when we were both free in the evening, we would be more productive, but also, we spent more quality time with each other. It made me realize how often I would just reach for my phone when I was bored or between tasks; it feels great to have kicked that habit.” "We had family come for summer holidays and they willingly partook (kids too)! Fishing and bike rides at 7 am rather than cartoons…win! We enjoyed creation so much more, especially in the evenings. I loved having it as a challenge; it kept me more accountable and successful. Thanks for doing this for us!" DON’T ALWAYS NEED INSTANT ANSWERS “I have a tendency to google everything as it comes up in a conversation, and not being able to was refreshing, and kept me more focused on the person instead of the topic.” “The thing that surprised me was how often I had the compulsion to Google a question that popped into my mind, or research the proper way to do something, or make a quick purchase of something I remembered I needed. I realized that technology is very helpful, but also there is benefit in taking a pause, making a shopping list, or asking a friend rather than Google when I have a gardening question. My 10-year-old said that she found more space to be creative when the computer and TV was off. " “My kids didn't miss their own screen time, but they realized how much they asked me to look things up for them. Not having immediate access to information is not such a bad thing.” FAMILY-LIFE Less screens = more life was evident on the home front. “We had meals at the kitchen table instead of in the living room while watching YouTube.” “I noticed our kids really improved in playing for longer periods of time. If they complained they were bored, I would suggest they try an activity for 20 minutes, and often 1 hour later they would still be busy.” “We did do more different things together when we didn't spend as much time playing games or watching videos on the TV or computer. It forced my kids, in particular, to stretch their imagination a bit to come up with more different things to do. The intermittent cries of 'I'm bored!' were met with, 'Well, then you need to find something to do!' My kids had always been good at keeping busy, but it was good for them to exercise those creative muscles, and remind us all of all the options that we have, both on and off the screen.” “The main things I've been struggling with were not wasting time on my phone (e.g., games, videos), not using my phone during time with my toddler, and not using my phone in bed, so I focused on those and was able to significantly improve in those areas. It definitely helped with spending quality time with my son without distractions so that I was more focused on him and his needs.” “It helped me reconnect with my wife. Instead of sitting on the couch consuming content in the evenings, we went for more walks and had more time to talk about what was going on.” “There was a lot more interacting happening throughout the family, and everyone seemed happier. It felt like a lot less fighting happened.” “It was easier to connect and interact with my kids. I realized how much I used my phone when they were awake even though I thought I was being conscious of not using it while they were awake." “My children (4 and under) appeared less needy, and I think it is because I was more focused on what was going on around me.” “Because I was screen-free, my kids didn't even ask for screen time. My 18-year-old daughter loved it. She noticed she was far more creative and read more books (which is her natural habitat) than when she had a screen to distract her.” “It was harder than I thought it would be. Especially right before bed. But not being on screens before bed allowed more time for my wife and I to spend time together.” WANTING TO BE AN EXAMPLE “Helped me to realize that in a screen-filled world, as a parent and adult, I am an example to my daughter and the younger generation as to how much a phone has a hold on me." “It was better when the children are around not to have YouTube on in the background; I could be more present with them, even while doing dishes. I think I will continue to try to save my Podcast/YouTube listening for when the children are in bed.” “I am disappointed that I didn’t do this sooner. My oldest kiddo is 7 and I feel like my phone has been a large part of her life. It’s my job now, as it was before, to teach her, along with my other kids, how to use this technology properly and not to use and abuse it. I am striving to use it less and less, and more for emergencies, or for the free time that I’ve allowed myself to use it.” DEVOTIONS Many mentioned how helpful the fast was for their devotions, making sure time with the Lord didn’t get crowded out by inconsequentials. “Just made me realize I need to read my bible FIRST……not after the morning's scroll!” "I found I actually had time to do my devotions in the morning, even if my kids were up. Before I had been grabbing my phone if I wasn’t going to have perfect uninterrupted time for devotions.” “My morning devotions improved immediately! When you don’t have your phone in the morning you really do need to replace it with something. " READING In addition to the Bible, many, many other books (and at least one magazine) were read too. One person shared: "More reading in 10 days than the last 3 years!” "I definitely did more reading! I haven’t picked up a fictional book in a long time because, as a busy mom, I found it a ‘waste of time’ to read fiction…. somehow scrolling on my phone every evening to have some mindless down time was better?! I don’t think so. I enjoy that time in the evening to relax for a bit, but it is much better spent reading an engaging book!” “I read the whole RP magazine front to back in the moments that I would pick up my phone when I was bored.” “The biggest difference for me was dedicating more intentional time to read. I managed to finish 3 of Jane Austen's novels. I'm thrilled to add them to my recommended reading list!” “…relearned how to read a book in under a day. Been through so many books.” “…for downtime, instead of watching a show every night like I normally do, I read more and had more conversations with my family as well.” BETTER MENTAL PLACE Sociologist Jonathan Haidt is convinced that social media is fueling this generation’s teen mental health crisis, but doing without Facebook and Instagram isn’t just good for the kids. “In regards to social media particularly, the fast made me realize that while social media can be enjoyable and good, it's also almost like a subconscious burden to try to ‘keep up’ with everyone and everything all the time. Being off of it for 10 days was really freeing and refreshing.” “I… learned that when I'm anxious, instead of running to Google to try to ease my anxiety, I should run to God in prayer.” “It felt good, in the sense that my brain didn't feel distracted by useless information coming in at a fast pace. I found I could spend time on my screen sorting photos, but I didn't scroll Instagram. It took a few days to notice that my brain felt a little less full, and I felt totally focused on my life, instead of having a 20-minute binge session after lunch to be inundated with strangers’ lives. I did read more, during that after-lunch quiet time, and also before bed. My screen time didn't interfere with family time, it was just something I would do to 'wind down' or 'relax' once kids were napping or in bed for the night. I didn't miss it. One evening I did log on to find a recipe I'd saved on Instagram and ended up scrolling...I felt gross. It felt like I had to re-join the real world when I finally put my phone down, and it became very obvious to me how little value it adds to my life for the amount of time spent on the app.” “One of the biggest things for me was not checking my work email on my phone. I didn’t realize how much head space that had been taking up! It was a big relaxant to have set hours to check only on my laptop.” “My brain felt quieter. All those little moments where I would have quickly checked Facebook, or scrolled, to ‘relax’ were removed from my day and I didn't realize how much they cluttered my mind. The screen-fast really helped me to be more aware of that, which will hopefully give me more control over those impulses to reach for my phone moving forward. My husband and I both did it and found ourselves going on more evening bike rides, having more chats, and just doing more quality time things than we did before. It was so refreshing, and I think we definitely feel more connected. I also had more focused time for devotions, and because I deleted many apps from my phone, I had no reason to pick it up and get distracted. I'm hoping to keep a lot of the habits enforced by the fast because I definitely need them, and life is better when your phone has less time in your hand!” “What a beautiful challenge! My experience was that I suddenly became much more present: in my home life, my church life, and my friend life. It brought me closer to God in my devotional time, provided time for reflection, enabled me to read most of a book, and granted me a peace that I didn't even realize was missing.” “I also felt less stress because I was not being inundated with news…. Although a person never thinks they are spending ‘that much’ time on their phone, it's not just the physical act of scrolling or being on social media. It occupies mental space after you put the phone down. Your attention is divided and things you see and do on your phone inadvertently affect your mood and ability to focus throughout the day. You may be worrying about something you saw in the news and it will affect how you treat people around you, even if you cannot do anything about it, or it doesn't even really affect you. You may be in the habit of checking your phone for notifications every few minutes (you'd be surprised how often you may do this) and it can make the simplest tasks take much longer than required, which will in turn make you feel frustrated. The less time you spend on your phone, the more wisdom you will use when you do pick it up. I noticed I was much less likely to scroll Instagram and more naturally inclined to listen to a sermon in the evening after the children were in bed. I was always feeling stressed about the time I thought I was spending on my phone, and appreciate the push to try just being on it less. It has certainly been an eye-opener for me!” “I found myself more content with everything, and could easily enjoy hobbies I had long forgotten. I found myself thanking God for the little moments and was reminded of the blessings He has given me." “I listen to a lot of podcasts and audiobooks while doing housework, and not doing that for 10 days made me realize that always having something on to listen to does not help me be present with my family. It was good to have the quiet space, and engage in some spiritual warfare by taking thoughts captive that are not obedient to Christ. I’m not going back on any social medias because I’ve broken the spell that says I will miss out or not be in-the-know…. They take up too much brain space that is needed for more important things.” BETTER SLEEP "I feel I slept better because of no screen time before bed, and I read a biblical book in the morning instead of going on Facebook.” “…I had to get used to sleeping without going on my phone right before bed. I had dreams that I could remember in the morning!” MORE PRODUCTIVITY Ten minutes here, and ten minutes there, can really add up in time wasted, but also in time put to good use. “I somewhat reluctantly signed up for the screen-fast, as my wife and kids were participating, but reflecting on it now, I can see God's hand working through them and the screen-fast. I spent more time reading the Bible and additional study material, and more time in prayer and reflection. I was able to think more clearly after the first few days, as the cheap distraction of screens was gone. This gave me time and focus to think through issues at work which I've been contending with for around a year, and come to difficult decisions there that I had perhaps been avoiding.” “I am working on a baby blanket for my son (knitting) and I was able to set a minimum for how much I wanted to complete on it daily, a minimum that seemed impossible to me before, and I was actually able to meet the minimum no problem.” "My husband participated as well, and has continued to not go onto social media. I found it most difficult to not pop onto social media when waiting for the mundane things, like water to boil/meat to cook. I would often go onto social media in these moments; at first it felt odd to not scroll, but I quickly would start to tidy the kitchen in these moments, so the result is a cleaner house :) and I did spend more time in God's Word, and reading short devotions here and there instead of picking up my phone." “The first few days I noticed a significant amount of improvement in my productivity. Without doom-scrolling on my phone, I was able to head out for a walk, dust off my book, and go to bed on time. I was able to spend a little more time with family and friends. Rather than watching a movie with my girlfriend after a long day, we decided to head out for a drive to enjoy the summer weather, which was awesome! I was able to spend more time reading my Bible before bed by keeping my phone in the kitchen, and used a good old-fashioned alarm clock to wake me up.” DOWNSIDES While there was lots to love about putting our phones aside for a time, there were some downsides too. “…I also found that it made me less likely to organize get-togethers if I had to phone people up instead of fire off a quick text; the kids and I ended up not doing as many things with friends or neighbors. I did make a few nice phone calls to people, since I was conscious of phoning instead of texting.” “I had a hard time not listening to my audiobooks and podcasts. I was more available for my kids (when I listen to audios, I have noise-cancelling headphones), but I had less ambition to do projects around the house that I would normally listen to something while doing. I also missed watching something at the end of a long day, but did enjoy my walks, and more reading of a physical book compared to an audio.” "I felt very disconnected from my family without WhatsApp group messaging! I was available via regular messaging, but it turns out that one-to-one messages are a rarity... if you aren’t on the group chat there isn't much to say. My 10-year-old son said: ‘It affected me because you didn't know as much about what other people in our family were doing.’ Keeping email off my phone (both work and personal) will stay. It was very restful to not be constantly checking emails and going down rabbit holes in the moment." “I missed seeing update posts from friends on Instagram or Facebook. For example, there was a family wedding and I wanted to go on social media to see some photos. I felt that I was missing out, not being able to do this. I came to the conclusion that family and friend updates can be one of the fun things about social media.” LASTING IMPACT? How can we apply the lessons learned? Some are planning on “having periodic screen-fasts in the future.” “…our family has decided to do a ‘modified fast’ for the rest of the summer and this was initiated by our children. Our stage of life (everyone working and/or attending post-secondary) means we don’t often have large blocks of time together but it was nice to spend more time in the evening sharing about our days and chatting.” “Going forward, I’ve used the settings in my phone to limit my time on certain apps. I’ve also cut out around half of the influencers I follow on Instagram so that I’m only following people I learn from (news, DIY, Christian content, etc.)" “Now that I’m done, I’m way more okay with leaving my phone in a bag or even at home.” “Going forward, I will be deleting social media apps from my phone. Thank you for prompting us to give this challenge a try! I think that it's fair to say that it will be life-changing.” “I intend to do this screen-fast again in the future and strongly encourage anyone who has not done it to do so, and aim to grow in service of our gracious God.” “I enjoyed the screen fast, and hope to do it again, and include more of my family members.” “From the get-go, I decided not to try 10 days but figured I could do 5. And you know what? It was easy! And it was good for me. I know I spend too much time on social media and playing games on my phone. I plan to do it again on a regular basis.” TIPS The most common tip mentioned was to delete social media apps from our phones. Another idea was to buy an alarm clock instead of using your phone to wake up. Here’s more… “…eliminate phones from your bedroom. Reading my Bible nightly is way more likely to happen when Instagram is more than a click away. That Christian influencer's advice might be insightful, but God's Word will not return empty (Isaiah 55:11)." “I …have continued a few habits I built, like delaying the first phone check of the day.” “I found freedom also in separating my phone from bedtime and wake time. This led to more prayer time. I think I was allowing the phone, instead of faith, to ease me into my day and I’m looking forward to continuing practice.” “We realized that phones are still an essential part of our lives but that the 'social media' part of it doesn't need to be so extensive. A regular phone call to someone can be so enjoyable and truly connecting. I have since called many people and just had a good chat. Hoping to keep this method up. I will keep my notifications 'OFF.'” “I made a rule for myself a couple years ago, that at the start of every day, I may not look at my phone until after my breakfast devotions were finished. It really helps to be very disciplined about not falling into bad habits. Make rules and stick to them. I also tell myself that it's okay to be bored.” ***** Join us for our 2026 screen fast from July 13-22! Sign up here. Cartoons by Hannah Penninga....

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...

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...

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 enhan...

Interview with an artist

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

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....

Science - Creation/Evolution

Perfect planet

It all had to be just right for life on Earth to survive and thrive ***** In our garden is a plum tree. Now this may not sound unusual except that stone fruit trees, like plums, do not grow well on the northern prairie. The cold winter winds can dry out the delicate branches of the plum, killing it. Yet our plum tree thrives. And it is growing larger and producing more delicious purple plums each summer. So why is it not just surviving, but thriving? Because it is planted in just the right spot; close to the house and a garden shed where these two buildings shield it from the brunt of the west and north winter winds. Conversely, in the summer the tree has good exposure to the east and south, providing it with enough sunlight and warmth to ripen the plums by the end of August. Perfectly planted planet Earth is like our plum tree, thriving because it has been placed with care. In fact, everything in the universe evidences the design of a careful Creator. Nobel Prize-winning professor of physics Charles Townes, in his 2003 article, “The convergence of science and religion,” asserted that, “we are here only because the laws of physics have certain particular values.” Townes recognized that these carefully balanced laws of physics, which “may be associated with intelligent planning,” are the reason life exists. In order for our Sun or other stable stars to exist “the properties of nuclear reaction and gravitation must be just right,” wrote Townes. This is because over-abundant nuclear reactions in the Sun would cause it to expand and eventually explode, while it would be inherently unstable if its gravity was even a little too strong. The composition of the elements available on Earth is also fine-tuned. According to Townes, the approximately 100 different chemical elements on earth – including carbon and oxygen on which life is based – could only exist if the electrical and nuclear forces were “just right and balanced.” Physicist Sir Fred Hoyle was impressed by the existence of these finely-tuned laws of physics. Even though he was a religious skeptic, Hoyle recognized that: “a common sense interpretation of the facts suggests that a super intellect has monkeyed with physics, as well as with chemistry and biology, and that there are no blind forces worth speaking about in nature. …he facts seem to me so overwhelming as to put this conclusion almost beyond question.” God placed planet Earth in exactly the right spot for life to not just exist, but to thrive. In their book The Grand Design, renowned physicists Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow gave three important reasons why Earth has the right temperature for life to exist: Earth orbits only one star, not two or more. About half of the known star systems are binary (two stars). If a planet were in a stable orbit in a binary star system it would be either too hot or too cold to sustain life; Earth’s orbit is nearly circular. “Eccentricity” is a measure of how elliptical or oval an orbit is. An eccentricity of zero will result in a perfectly circular orbit and an eccentricity of one will be an elliptical orbit resembling a very squashed circle. With an eccentricity of 2%, Earth’s orbit is very nearly circular which keeps our planet’s temperature relatively stable throughout the year. In contrast to Earth’s orbit, Mercury’s orbit has an eccentricity of 20%, causing temperature swings of 93°C as Mercury orbits the Sun. Our Sun is just the right size, and Earth is just the right distance from it for the Earth to have a temperature at which liquid water may exist throughout the year. The size of a star dictates the amount of energy it gives off, and if the Sun were just 20% larger, Earth would be as hot as Venus (464°C), and if just 20% smaller, Earth would be as cold as Mars (-64°C). “Without this magnetic field shielding our planet, the constant solar wind bombardment would strip away our atmosphere until our Earth became like the Moon or Mars." It all had to come together Our blue and green planet is unique in many other ways that make it habitable. 1. A magnetic field For example, neither Mars nor the Moon has a global magnetic field, whereas Earth does. Earth’s magnetic field extends out into space, protecting our world from the solar wind – that stream of charged particles released by the Sun. Without this magnetic field shielding our planet, the constant solar wind bombardment would strip away our atmosphere until our Earth became like the Moon or Mars. 2. Right rotation In addition, the Earth rotates on its axis fast enough and at a sufficient angle of inclination to regulate the temperature across the globe so that it doesn’t get too hot nor too cold. These temperature differences provide us with seasons, but also generate ocean currents that redistribute heat and important nutrients. 3. Moon of right size and location Our moon is also the right size and distance from the Earth to allow its gravity to moderate the ocean tides. Tidal action is not just important for mixing of ocean waters along coastlines, is also vital for the mixing of deep ocean water, the circulation of which allows the exchange of a wide variety of substances between it and the atmosphere. This action is essential to the overall maintenance of the climate system as heat, fresh water, carbon dioxide, and nutrients are redistributed. The Moon also stabilizes the degree of tilt of the Earth’s axis. Without our moon, large variations in the tilt of the Earth’s axis would result, driving cataclysmic changes to our world’s climate. 4. Stable Sun In their article “How special is the Solar system?” astrophysicist Martin Beer and colleagues reluctantly accepted that our solar system is atypical and there is the possibility “that none of the observed planetary systems is likely to harbor an Earth-like planet.” Not only is our solar system rare in that it has only one star, our Sun is in the top 10% of star outputs and its output is incredibly stable compared with other stars of similar magnitude – important factors in making our solar system a perfect place for life on Earth. 5. Goldilocks zone Ever since Isaac Newton first recognized in 1725 that Earth is the only planet in our solar system on which liquid water could exist, scientists have acknowledged that the range of distances from the Sun suitable for sustaining life is very narrow. In Strategies for the Search for Life in the Universe, professor of astronomy, and expert on solar systems, Tobias Owen declared that “in our solar system we have a situation that might be described as Goldilocks and the three planets – Venus is too hot, Mars is too cold, and Earth is just right!” The “habitable zone” occupied by Earth is now popularly described as the “Goldilocks Zone” because it is “just right” for life. Scientists have noted that the temperature of a planet directly affects the interaction between oceans and atmosphere, an interaction that is critical for maintaining a planet’s long-term suitability for life. When oceans interact with carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere, a planet that is too cold will become even colder as more and more CO2 is removed from the atmosphere by the oceans, eventually causing the planet to cool and the oceans to freeze. Conversely, a planet that is too warm will become even hotter as greater amounts of CO2 are released from the oceans into the atmosphere, raising the planet’s temperature due to the greenhouse effect, and eventually rendering it too hot to sustain life. Our Earth is perfectly situated to keep this interaction between oceans and atmosphere correctly balanced. 6. O2 needs to be OK We know that much more than the mere presence of liquid water is required to make Earth habitable. For example, a planet must also have sufficient gravity – but not too much – to retain its atmosphere. “Without our Moon, large variations in the tilt of the Earth’s axis would result, driving cataclysmic changes to our world’s climate.” One interesting fact about our atmosphere is that the oxygen level is exactly what we need for respiration, which supplies the correct amount of oxygen to our brain and organs. Too much or too little oxygen in the atmosphere will have a negative impact on human life, which is finely tuned to an atmospheric concentration of 21% oxygen. The amount of oxygen in our atmosphere is also the right amount needed for humans to work with metals. God gave us the ability to work with metals (Genesis 4:22), which requires heating ore, metals, and alloys with fire. Too much oxygen and fire will burn hotter and the flame will also spread much more rapidly, giving less control over combustion. Too little oxygen and combustion would not be a self-sustaining chemical reaction and the fire would go out shortly after the fuel is ignited. God created Earth as a place for humans to thrive (Ps. 115:16), and so He created our world, including the atmosphere, to be perfectly suited to both human life and human activity. The presence of oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere is important not only for respiration but also for oxygen-based chemical reactions which are essential for the existence of life. Professor of physiology Kenneth Olson explained that the vast majority of these chemical reactions “are driven by energy from the Sun; plants capture solar energy to oxidize water to oxygen and reduce carbon dioxide to simple sugars and other compounds while animals reverse the process, obtaining their energy by reducing oxygen to water and oxidizing sugars to carbon dioxide.” Evolution chicken-egg problem Atmospheric oxygen is also necessary to create ozone (O3), which provides an effective screen to shield the Earth’s surface from harmful ultraviolet radiation. However, notes Olsen, according to Evolutionary theory, “in the prebiotic world there was neither photosynthesis nor oxygen and life had to take its origin elsewhere,” such as sulfur-rich hydrothermal ocean vents. The problem with Evolutionary theory is that, without oxygen, there would be no protective layer of ozone and so any prebiotic life that did evolve would be bombarded by ultraviolet radiation and destroyed. The fact that our Earth’s atmosphere is oxygenated requires secular scientists to come up with a pathway to get from a prebiotic world without oxygen to the current world of complex life that utilizes oxygen. Many scientists now propose that oxygen-producing photosynthesis first evolved in cyanobacteria – algae – causing oxygen to be introduced into the atmosphere during what they call the Great Oxygenation Event. However, some scientists have pointed out that the presence of any oxygen in the atmosphere would be lethal to emerging life, including the developing algae. Why? Because oxygen is very reactive and will damage DNA and cell proteins, breaking them down. In the beginning, God created living organisms with enzymes that dispose of damaging oxygen as it enters their cells… but life emerging via Evolution would not have had sufficient time to develop these complex enzymes yet. Others explain away this difficulty by claiming that early life first developed mechanisms to deal with various reactive sulfur compounds which, with the appearance of oxygen, were then “tweaked” via evolutionary processes to deal with the presence of oxygen. Once levels of oxygen in the atmosphere increased, secular scientists suggest that more complex organisms must have co-evolved numerous mechanisms to protect themselves from reactive oxygen compounds that would literally bleach the organisms’ proteins and DNA. However, these hypotheses fail to explain how early life survived long enough to develop mechanisms to deal with reactive sulfur compounds in the pre-oxygenated world in the same way that they fail to explain how an organism could survive the rapid damage caused by oxygen long enough for any “tweaking” to take place by the very slow evolutionary processes of mutation and natural selection. The dilemma for scientists promoting Evolution is striking: on the one hand, oxygen forms highly reactive compounds that are destructive to biological life, while on the other hand, scientists contend that complex life could not have evolved without oxygen. Only some of what all needed to happen So, what are the requirements for Earth to be habitable? We’ve hardly named them all, but here’s just some of them: · right planet size, · only one Sun that is stable and the right size, · right distance from the Sun, · a circular not elliptic orbit, · the presence of a Moon of just the right size, · an inclined rotational axis, · a strong magnetic field, · the presence of certain elements in the right proportions – including an oxygen atmosphere of the correct composition, · and a large amount of liquid water. God made our planet perfectly suited to be inhabited (Is. 45:18) and for this He should be praised (Ps. 104:24, Ps. 111:2–4)! Dr. Mark Sandercock is a retired forensic chemist who worked for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and is the author of “Foundation: A Biblical Worldview.” This is an abridged extract from Chapter 5. His book is available on Amazon.ca and Amazon.com....

In a Nutshell

Tidbits – May 2026

On logic Sherlock Holmes and his faithful companion Dr. Watson once went on a camping trip. Some hours after they lay down for the night and went to sleep Holmes awoke and nudged his faithful friend. "Watson, look up at the sky and tell me what you see." Watson replied, "I see millions and millions of stars." "What does that tell you?" Holmes asked. Watson pondered for a minute – accompanying Holmes for years had given him countless opportunities to see the power of careful observations, and, as he was no intellectual slouch himself, he thought now might be a good opportunity to put his own keen observational abilities on display. "Well, Holmes, astronomically speaking it tells me that there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Astrologically, I observe that Saturn is in Leo. Horologically, I deduce that the time is approximately a quarter past three. Theologically, I can see that God is all-powerful and that we are small and insignificant. Meteorologically, I suspect that we will have a beautiful day tomorrow. What does it tell you, Holmes?" "It tells me, Watson, that someone has stolen our tent!" Source: Adapted from a joke making its way around the Internet Simply and truly... There once was a man whose parents had given him the highly unusual name of "Amazing" when he was born. They gave him the name in the hopes that he would live up to it and achieve great things. But as far as most people were concerned, Amazing never seemed to do anything to live up to his name. He never even got far from where he was born. He worked in the family business, and had some limited – one might even say quite normal or ordinary – success and married his high school sweetheart. While she thought him quite extraordinary, no one else did, and his name left him as the unfortunate butt of countless jokes. These jokes so bothered him that he told his wife that when he died he didn't even want his name put on his tombstone; maybe then the jokes would stop. Well, when Amazing did finally die, his wife honored his request. But she also wanted to have people finally understand how extraordinary her husband had been. So in place of his name she had this inscription placed on the tombstone: "Here lies a man who was loving and faithful to his wife for 60 years." And now, whenever people walk by, they point and say, "Well, isn't that Amazing!" Source: A joke passed along by my father-in-law 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. The next time you’re grumpy… I saw this four-step cheer-yourself-up process on my sister-in-law’s social media feed and had to try it out. And it worked! Whisper “beep boop” to yourself. Repeat randomly over the next couple minutes Pinch your nose and say “sneep snop” Nose pinched, say “boopdedoop” in a really deep voice Nose still pinched, say “bubbles” in the angriest voice you can Give it a go and let me know if you find it effective too (the fourth one really gets me). But why does it work? The world often acts as if emotions control us, but God talks about self-control as being a fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23). There’s a sense too, in what God tells us, of emotions being actions we can do. So we might not be called to feel happy, but we are commanded to rejoice always (Phil. 4:4), and rejoicing is something we can express no matter how we might feel. This involves a person trying to actually control their emotions. And because the attempt is something that lines right up with God’s commands, the fruit that results is good. God’s love comes out in His commandments, such that obeying God is good for us. What is the purpose of your home? Some years back Rev. Peter Moelker wrote a head-clearing piece titled "My home, my idol?" in Faith in Focus. He asked Christians to give their head a shake and really think about why we buy, renovate, paint, scrub, tidy, dust, vacuum and have our homes: "Have you ever sat back and asked yourself the question: 'what is my home really for?' What is its purpose? A place to store our stuff? A museum to be shown to select guests? A fast-food restaurant to prepare quick meals for those who hurriedly pass through? What is the purpose of my home? The Bible tells us that our homes are to be places where children are instructed in the Law of the Lord (Deut. 6:7, 11:19), where the righteous experience the Lord’s blessing (Prov. 3:33), where Christians fellowship and worship God together (Acts 2:46), and where others are invited in to enjoy that same blessing of the Lord (Acts 16:15, 18:26, Romans 12:13, 16:23, 1 Peter 4:9, 3 John 1:8)." We might be embarrassed to have guests over when our home isn't pristine and smelling of lemon-scented Mr. Clean, or when we're having some problems with the night's menu. But if we realize the purpose of our home is for it to be used to the glory of God, rather than presented at its best for our own glory we'll have the proper perspective and not sweat such little stuff. Sola Opus Dei "I guess you could say we’ve been saved by works. His.” - Shai Linne, "Active Obedience" from his album Lyrical Theology Part One Why God can't make a square circle Here’s a trick question atheists pose: "If God is all-powerful, can He create a rock so heavy He can't lift it?" If Christians answer yes, then God must not be all-powerful since He can't lift the rock. And if we say no, then it again calls into question God's omnipotence – He must not be all-powerful, because it isn't within His powers to make such a rock. But the question misunderstands what Christians are saying about God when we talk about God's omnipotence. While we claim it is within His power to do anything, we aren't saying it is within His character. There are, in fact, many things God cannot do, because to do them would violate His own character. For example, God is eternal, so He cannot cease to be. He also cannot lie, and cannot abandon His elect. And, for the very same reason – because it would violate His character – He cannot make a rock so big He can't lift it (or make a square circle, or homosexual marriage, etc.). God's character is the very basis for reason and logic, and He will not do anything that would violate the essence of Who He is. Diversity by Rob Slane Up is like down when left is like right Cold may be hot when the day is like night The cat and the dog are the same only when The men are like women and the women like men Celebrate diversity for sure, but recall That small really is small and tall really is tall Calling smiling a frown will not make it a frown Up really is up and down really down Updating a "classic" Have you noticed how grim many nursery rhymes are? Jack goes up a hill to get water and ends up cracking his head, while precariously perched Humpty Dumpty breaks his whole body... irreparably. Years back, I decided I absolutely had to draw the line when I made the mistake of reading "rock-a-bye baby" as a goodnight story to my two-year-old. I quickly made a last-line revision that would be far more conducive to my toddler having a restful – nightmare-free – sleep. This is how my version goes: Rock-a-bye baby, on the treetop, When the wind blows, the cradle will rock, If the bough breaks, the cradle will fall, And Daddy will catch them, cradle and all. On patience “Patience is a quality you admire in the driver behind you, and scorn in the one ahead." “Living would be easier if men showed as much patience at home as they do when they’re fishing.” Source: God’s little instruction book Man vs. beast "...our best moralists tell us to treat other animals well – never dreaming of telling the animals to treat us well!" – C. John Collins explaining how even those who say we came from the animals can't help but acknowledge how distinct we are from them. ...

People we should know

J. Gresham Machen (1881-1937)

Stood strong against the tide of liberalism engulfing the Church ***** One of the greatest theologians of the twentieth century was an American Presbyterian named John Gresham Machen. More than any other individual in the English-speaking world, Machen led the intellectual defense of Biblical Christianity against the attacks of theological liberalism in the early twentieth century. Machen was among the top-ranked Biblical scholars of his generation, and he was the point man for conservative Protestantism when it looked like believing the Bible was no longer going to be plausible for educated people. Started OPC & WTS Among Machen’s achievements was the founding of three notable institutions: Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, the Independent Board for Presbyterian Foreign Missions, and the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. All three of these institutions continue to exist today. One of the most recent biographies of Machen is J. Gresham Machen: A Guided Tour of His Life and Thought by Stephen J. Nichols. Nichols recounts Machen’s life and also describes the significance of his books. Machen was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1881. His father was a successful lawyer and his mother came from a well-to-do family in Georgia. She was a staunch Presbyterian and raised her son to love the Bible. He did very well at school and ended up attending Johns Hopkins University. Subsequently he decided to do graduate studies at Princeton University while taking some divinity courses at Princeton Theological Seminary (PTS). It’s important to note the historical significance of PTS. That seminary was the leading conservative Protestant seminary in the English-speaking world from about the mid-1800s until 1929 (when it would be taken over by theological liberals). In the latter part of the nineteenth century and initial part of the twentieth century, the best known of the Princeton theologians was Benjamin Breckenridge Warfield the leading defender of Biblical Christianity in his day. Warfield would have a strong influence over Machen, and the two became friends. In the lion's den If this short article has whetted your appetite to learn more about J. Gresham Machen, you'll be interested to know there is a 41-page biography by John Piper available online, for free. Gresham's biography is packaged with 2 others, about John Owen and Athanasius, in Piper's Contending For Our All. A free pdf copy of the book can be downloaded here. During the 1905-1906 academic year, Machen studied in Germany under Wilhelm Herrmann, an influential and articulate theological liberal, who argued, among other things, that it wasn't even vital whether Jesus really lived. Machen’s conservative views were severely challenged at this time, but ultimately he was able to resist Herrmann’s sinister theological perspective. After returning to America, Machen became a professor at PTS, teaching the New Testament. He was ordained as a minister in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) or PCUSA in 1914. When the United States finally entered World War One in 1917, Machen volunteered to serve in France with the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA), where he would operate a canteen, serving refreshments to French and American soldiers on the front line. Although he didn’t engage in combat himself, he saw the fighting and its effects first hand. You can’t split a rotten church During the first two decades of the twentieth century, the insidious tentacles of theological liberalism were rapidly spreading among the Protestant churches of North America, turning people away from belief in the Bible as a supernatural revelation from God. The stage was being set for a showdown between orthodox believers and the adherents of fashionable unbelief. Machen discussed with B.B. Warfield the possibility of a split in the PCUSA that would separate real Christians from the theological liberals. But as Nichols records, Warfield, seeing the widespread success of liberalism among the leadership of the PCUSA, famously replied, “No, you can’t split rotten wood.” In 1921 Warfield died, and with him (in the estimate of many people) Old Princeton also died as the stalwart defender of theological conservatism. Soon the pack of liberal wolves (in sheep’s clothing, of course) would seize control of the seminary and place it in the service of unbelief. On a more positive note, Machen’s first book entitled The Origin of Paul’s Religion was published in 1921. In each of his books Machen would defend historic, orthodox Christian beliefs against the rising tide of liberalism. Theological liberalism, as Nichols helpfully summarizes it, takes “as a starting point the position that the Bible is not a divinely inspired book, but a human one, deriving from a religious community and traced with legend and myth.” Machen had a thorough knowledge of the current scholarship on the apostle Paul and was able to defend genuine Christianity against its challengers. Christianity and Liberalism Besides being a theology professor and author, Machen was becoming increasingly popular as a speaker at various Christian events. In the theological battle between conservatism and liberalism, Machen was beginning to take center stage as the conservative champion in the academic field. In 1923, his book New Testament Greek for Beginners (a text for learning Biblical Greek) appeared to wide acclaim. It’s still in use today. But it was another of his books published in 1923 that would become his most important: Christianity and Liberalism. “With this book,” Nichols writes, “Machen emerged as the singular spokesperson for the rigorous defense of orthodox Christianity in response to the challenge of liberalism.” It became a classic, clearly demonstrating that historic Christianity and theological liberalism are, in fact, two entirely different religions. Due to his efforts in defense of the truth, Machen received the support and accolades of fellow believers. From some of those on the other side, however, Machen received hate mail. According to Nichols, one liberal sent him a letter addressed to “Prof. of Bigotry” that referred to his “miserable theology” and instructed him to “learn to be a Christian or else get out.” The fall of Princeton Seminary As time went on, momentum was clearly on the side of the liberals within the PCUSA, and in 1929 they managed to “reorganize” the governing board of Princeton in such a way as to give control to liberals. Nichols states that with this development, Machen “was left no real choice but to resign.” As a result, with a small band of supporters he founded Westminster Theological Seminary (WTS) in Philadelphia in 1929, with the intent to recreate a seminary in the image of Old Princeton. Among others who left PTS to join with Machen in this endeavor were Cornelius Van Til and John Murray. Some PTS board members also resigned in order to be on the board of WTS, including Samuel Craig, the founder of Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Company (or, as it is more commonly known today, P&R Publishing) In 1930 Machen produced another significant book, The Virgin Birth of Christ. Liberals, of course, denied that Christ had been born of a virgin because they were unwilling to believe the miracles recorded in the Bible. Nichols writes that this book became “the standard scholarly defense of this crucial, orthodox doctrine for decades to come.” The final battle A decisive showdown between conservatives and liberals in the PCUSA finally occurred in the mid-1930s. In 1933 the PCUSA (along with six other denominations) released an official report entitled Re-Thinking Missions. It “advocated a paradigm shift in missions premised on the notion that Christianity is not the exclusively true religion.” This was the liberal view: Christianity should accommodate people of other religions rather than proselytize them. A battle within the PCUSA ensued between conservatives (led by Machen) who believed that Christianity is the one true religion, and the liberals who were religious pluralists. To make a long story short, the liberals won. In response, Machen founded the Independent Board for Presbyterian Foreign Missions (IBPFM) so that conservative Presbyterians could give money to missionaries who believed in evangelizing non-Christians. Having a missions board that is not under the authority of the church is not the Biblical ideal, of course, but the intent was good. However, the General Assembly of the PCUSA declared the IBFPM to be unconstitutional and proceeded to discipline its supporters. Nichols notes, On March 29, 1935, making front-page news in The New York Times – "Presbytery to Try Machen as Rebel," ran the headline—Machen was officially defrocked and stripped of his credentials. Machen appealed this decision but his appeal was rejected by the General Assembly in 1936. Then in June 1936, Machen and his supporters founded the Presbyterian Church in America. In 1939 its name was changed to the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) due to a lawsuit filed by the PCUSA. Machen had a lot of work on his hands as the leading figure of both WTS and the OPC. He was becoming worn out and exhausted. Then in December 1936 he took a train out to North Dakota to help a struggling congregation there. He caught pneumonia and died on January 1, 1937. His death was a tragic loss for the cause of truth. But he had fought a good fight and left numerous books that would help to strengthen believers in their faith. He also left the institutions he founded that would continue to maintain a testimony against theological liberalism. Conclusion Gresham Machen was widely recognized as one of the greatest Christian scholars of his generation. He used his God-given talents, education and social standing to uphold Biblical Christianity in the face of unrelenting attacks from theological liberals who sought to undermine the faith. Machen was the conservative scholar of highest standing in this struggle, and his efforts encouraged many Christians to stand fast for orthodoxy. Of course, Biblical Christianity would have survived even without Machen, but he demonstrated that genuine Biblical scholarship supported the truth of the Bible. The conflict wasn't between educated, intelligent liberals and uneducated, ignorant conservatives as some believed. The liberal scholars could not refute Machen's work. Christians did not need to fear that their religion was being disproven by modern scientific discoveries, as the liberals alleged. In his own way, Machen lifted high the standard of orthodox Christianity, providing a rallying point for those who continued to believe the historic faith. The tide of opinion in his day swirled furiously against Biblical Christianity, but he was a rock against which the waves of unbelief harmlessly broke....

People we should know

That cloud of witnesses....

Mina and Marco in Egypt Open Doors is a non-denominational mission working in over 60 countries where Christianity is socially or legally discourage...

Homosexuality, News

Opposing rainbow crosswalk results in human rights trial

Contests

RP’s "Log out and look up" screen-fast challenge is July 13-22

Pornography

No satisfaction: James’ Epistle on pornography

If I were to do a sample of readers to ask what they think is the driver behind pornography, my guess is that the most common answer would be just one...

Evangelism

The life and death of our campus evangelism project

When someone says, “Hey, we should do some outreach in our own community,” it's an awkward situation since it's so very hard to tell whether they are just saying the right, polite thing, or whether they really mean it. At a Bible study some years ago the man making this particular statement did indeed mean it. Someone else in the group then went a step further and described a small campus outreach project they’d seen a Christian Reformed evangelist do. It was really simple. You set up an information table on campus on a regular basis, and from the contacts you make you set up a Bible study. People became enthused, and after a couple of meetings a small group of Canadian Reformed University of Alberta students was organized and recruiting their fellow students. The recruiters were trying to get people to man the information table on campus in the university's mall in teams of two, for one hour a piece. The response was amazingly enthusiastic on the part of the students, and so the following term a second information table was set up in the Student Union Building. The Bible study generally did well, attracting one or two people from the general campus population that didn’t know these Canadian Reformed students. A couple of them even came to church for a while. Areopa-what? The project needed a name. In Acts 17 Paul goes to a place of learning in Athens called the Areopagus to explain his God to all who wanted to who wanted to hear, and so the campus outreach effort was dubbed “The Areopagus Project.” While it was a clever name, it was sometimes confusing. When members of other Christian groups on campus asked about our efforts, they didn’t understand why we chose the name “Areopagus.” When we called the Bible supplier for a new case of Bibles to be sent to “The Areopagus Project,” she could hardly pronounce, let alone spell the name. Even so, somehow it stuck. The project was, in a way, kind of amazing. It was organized, and run by students. There was no paid missionary, campus outreach worker, or other ministerial help to backstop our efforts. It was just average students enthused about spreading the gospel. However, we soon realized we needed some help so we took advantage of a rare opportunity. Edmonton was one of the few places in the world where our own Canadian Reformed denomination had a denominational “sister church” in the same city. We brought in Rev. Tom Reid and Dr. Peter Heaton, minister and elder of the local Free Church of Scotland congregation to give us advice and additional manpower. In a very practical way, members from the two denominations cooperated in campus outreach. Without synodical committees or letters shuttling back and forth, we experienced a practical, communion of saints with Christians from a different background. Reformed and Presbyterian Calvinists learned to cooperate despite having different histories, songbooks and traditions. Hard questions Though a lot of neat things happened, it wasn’t all easy. When people stopped by our information table to talk, they asked tough questions. “Does God hate homosexuals?” “My best friend doesn’t believe in God, is she going to hell?” “Since there is no God, why do you waste your time worshipping him?” In a comical way, there was one question that summarized people’s attitudes. Noticing the banner on our table, with a cross and the word “Reformed,” one woman asked, “Should I be offended by that?” Though she was genuinely puzzled, and we couldn’t help but smile, there was something to what she said. The truth of the gospel is offensive to those who don’t believe because it challenges everything they stand for. By sitting at that table and honestly trying to answer people’s difficult questions, we learned that the Bible does offend people, and that what we believe is radically different from what most people believe. Any Christian who ever steps onto a secular university campus soon learns that at least every once in a while his faith will be challenged. He will have to learn to stand up for his Father. In that way, The Areopagus Project was not so unusual. A Christian is always somewhat visible at a university, and this just made us more visible. By being visible, it meant that, in a small way, we did learn to stand up for God. We lost a little bit of the nervousness and the fear that comes from being the only one in a crowd who’s obviously different from the rest. Measuring success There were unexpected results from The Areopagus Project. Members of the three congregations involved got to know each other much, much better. In fact, they got to know each so much better after sitting at the table together, that two of them got married. Another member of our group married a Bible study participant who was an ESL student from Korea, and a member of a sister church out there. Friendships between Canadian Reformed and Free Church members persisted. Most of them started at the Areopagus, but continued into regular, everyday life. These sorts of projects are usually measured in terms of “souls saved.” Honestly, we couldn’t tell you, for certain, of a single soul that was saved as a result of our work. So was it worth it? Were the hours spent hunting down pamphlets, manning information tables, making phone calls to set up schedules, and helping out at Bibles studies productively spent? Without a doubt, yes they were. We put Bibles in the hands of 150 people who might never have seen them otherwise. We challenged hundreds of people to think about their beliefs and presuppositions, and we learned a little bit about defending our own beliefs. We can’t say that we saw the plants grow up, but we certainly sowed the seeds, and God may cause them to grow in the years to come. All good things… The students who started The Areopagus Project graduated and many moved away. And without them, the work didn’t continue. While that’s kind of sad, there are now former students and “graduates” of The Areopagus Project who know that evangelism isn’t the sole duty of missionaries but can and should be carried out by average church members. In a small way they’ve started to see the possibilities. While the death of The Areopagus Project may close one door to bringing the gospel to our community, the fact that so many university students worked in this project will undoubtedly open others. This article was first published in the September 1999 issue under the title “The life and death of the Areopagus Project.”...

Church history, People we should know

There was a man: Ulrich Zwingli

“Many men are like unto sausages: Whatever you stuff them with, that they will bear in them.” – Russian writer Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910). “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old, they will not turn from it.” – Proverbs 22:6 **** There was a man. But first there was a child. This particular child was born on New Year’s Day in 1484 in the small village of Wildhaus. He lived in a cottage whose roof was weighed down with stones to protect it from gusty winds traveling down from surrounding mountains. Wildhaus lay in a valley and was located in the Swiss canton of St. Gallen. This canton was one of the eight cantons, or territorial divisions, in Switzerland, and was noted for its textile production. Respected for their amazing output of stunning embroidery, many women of the village were expert needleworkers. It is easy to imagine that the child saw his mother embroider intricate and beautiful patterns on cloth and that his eyes were fascinated by the detailed stitching and designs that flourished under her hands. But the strange truth was that when the child stood in the doorway of his home in Wildhaus, his father instructed him in embroidery as well – embroidery, not worked at by his mother, but fashioned and created by the Lord God. There were mountains decorated with glaciers, embellished with gorges, fashioned with meadows and flowers, and flowing with streams and rivulets. “Look,” said the father, “look and see what God has made.” And the child was shown incredible illustrations of the majesty of God. And a wonderful awe for the Creator was planted in the heart of the child. Quite the family The child’s father was the bailiff, the magistrate, of the parish of Wildhaus. He was an upright man and had the respect of everyone in his community. As well as being the bailiff, the father’s calling was that of a shepherd. The child saw his father leave in the spring, together with two older brothers, as they drove a flock of sheep up the mountains to the high pastures. He watched them climb until they disappeared from his sight. When summer began to decline and lengthening nights began, the child anticipated their return and daily watched for them to come back home to the cottage. He knew that a time of village companionship would begin – a time when neighbors would gather together in one another’s homes and fill the evenings with stories and songs. Perhaps they would speak of the Pied Piper, who in the year of the child’s birth, it was said, had carried away 130 children who were never seen again. It was speculated that this piper was the devil. Or perhaps the villagers who were gathered together, spoke of the Inquisition in faraway Spain and shuddered at the tortures being inflicted on those who disagreed with the church. It is also possible that they spoke of long-ago heroes who had defended the Swiss mountains from enemies. And everyone, including the child, would feel patriotism surge through them. The child also had a grandmother. She was a pious woman. At times the child would sit on her knee, and she would tell him stories about heroes of a different kind. Into his small ears, she recited tales of saints in church history – and she told him about heroes in the Bible, heroes who had climbed hills in Judah and who had defended their homeland. She spoke of Jesus, born in a cradle in a stall in Bethlehem; she narrated the story of Calvary; and she took him to the Resurrection. Having no Bible, she could only recount what she had learned from priests but the first seeds of truth were imbedded in the heart of the child. From one school to the next The child had a name. He was baptized Ulrich. Of the eight sons his mother bore his father, he stood out in ability to learn. His parents recognized this as a special gift and sent him to board with his uncle, Bartholomew who lived in nearby Wesen. An earnest and honest priest, Bartholomew sent his nephew to the village school. Soon, however, the child had learned all there was to know in the Wesen village school. Consequently, his father and his uncle arranged for Ulrich to go to a school in Basel. He was now ten years of age. Again, it soon became apparent that the boy outshone his classmates and from Basel he was transferred to a school in Bern when he was twelve years of age. In Bern, Ulrich excelled in debating, poetry, philosophy and music. Indeed, he was so talented in all the subjects he was taught, that the Dominicans of Bern asked him to join their order, young as he was. However, Ulrich’s father and uncle, who had been salted with Reformation ideas, were averse to this. Aware of the child’s potential, they determined they would educate him for the church, but under the tutelage of those acquainted with the new ideas. Consequently, they enrolled Ulrich in the University of Vienna. From Vienna, Ulrich went back to Basel from whose university he graduated in 1506 with a Master of Arts. He was now twenty-two years of age and obtained the position of parish priest in the village of Glarus. Started on the right path, time would prove that he would not diverge from it. Ulrich’s last name was Zwingli. It is said of him that at no time did he use the title “Master of Arts,” but was quick to say: “One is our Master, even Christ.” 67 Articles History records many things about Ulrich Zwingli. Even as Luther wrote ninety-five theses, Zwingli penned sixty-seven. Even as he had seen his earthly father guide sheep up to highland pasture, so he wanted to lead the Swiss people up to the mountain of God, up to the truth of the heavenly Father. Some of Zwingli’s theses read: The sum and substance of the Gospel is that our Lord Christ Jesus, the true son of God, has made known to us the will of His heavenly Father, and has with His sinlessness released us from death and reconciled us to God. Hence Christ is the only way to salvation for all who ever were, are and shall be. He who seeks or shows another way errs, and, indeed, he is a murderer of souls and a thief. The true holy scriptures know nothing of purgatory after this life. Christ is the only mediator between God and ourselves. When the position of leut-priest (preacher and pastor) in the Great Minster (monastery church) in Zurich became vacant in the latter part of 1518, Zwingli became its spiritual guide. Seven years later, in 1525, Zurich’s great council adopted many of his suggestions. The Latin mass was replaced by a simple communion service; a German-language Bible was introduced; the clergy were allowed to marry; the church’s land property was secularized and its jurisdiction heavily restricted; and images were destroyed or withdrawn from the churches. Grace where God allows Mandatory fasting became Ulrich’s first public controversy. The dispute began on the first Sunday of Lent, which meant it was the onset of forty days of mandatory penitential fasting before Easter. During these forty days only one meal a day was allowed in the evening – meat, eggs, and butter were strictly forbidden. It so happened that, on this initial Sunday, a few months after Ulrich’s thirty-eighth birthday, some citizens of Zurich prepared to meet together. In Grabengasse, in a home just a hop, skip, and jump away from Zurich’s city walls, these men knocked on the door of Christoph Froschauer. It was late afternoon, the time folks prepared to eat, and the sun was setting. Christoph Froschauer was a printer and a man of some note in Zurich. He was in charge of all the printing for the city government. Christoph himself answered the door, heartily welcomed the men and ushered them into his parlor. They all sat down. It was a varied group of men in that parlor. Two of them were priests, and one of these was Ulrich Zwingli. Reclining next to the priests was Hans, a tailor, Laurenz, a weaver, Niklaus, a shoemaker, two unnamed printing employees, and Heinrich, a baker. They had these matters in common: they were all tradesmen, they all loved the reforming ideas which Ulrich was preaching, and all were willing to be part of the change they were about to stir up. As the men were talking amongst themselves, Elise, Christoph’s wife, walked in with serving platters. The platters held sausages. Crispy and golden, juicy and flavorful, they smelled and looked good. They tickled the appetite. Everyone (with the exception of Ulrich, who tacitly approved of the events by being present), ate the meat with great relish. Celebrating Christian freedom in the matter of eating and drinking, the men enjoyed their fellowship and then, bidding one another farewell, returned to their homes. Subsequently, after the news of their meal leaked out, all, with the exception of Ulrich, were jailed. As the men sat behind bars, Ulrich took to the pulpit and preached. He exegeted New Testament passages that pertained to fasting, to keeping traditions, and to abstaining from certain foods. He argued that although fasting served a valuable purpose, especially as an act of personal or corporate piety, there was no biblical basis for making fasting obligatory for all Christians. Some of his words were: “…abstinence from meat and drink is an old custom, which, however, later by the wickedness of some of the clergy, came to be viewed as a command.” He summarized by saying, “…if you will fast, do so; if you do not wish to eat meat, eat it not; but leave Christians a free choice in the matter.” The consequence was that the Bishop of Constance sent a delegation to investigate the matter. The Zurich Council called for a debate between Zwingli and a representative of the bishop. In that debate the representative could not refute Zwingli’s scriptural defense and both the Council and the people of Zurich cheered. All sided with Zwingli. Consequently, the child who was now a man, was free to continue his preaching. One year after the gathering in Grabengasse, all mandatory fasting was officially abolished in Zurich. The Council followed, not only Zwingli’s lead in “sola scriptura” as opposed to tradition instituted by men, but also began abolishing other traditions of the Catholic church. Zwingli lived and preached in Zurich until his death in 1531. He was killed in battle during the Second War of Kappel – a battle fought between Catholic and Protestant forces. He was 47 years old. After the Second War of Kappel, Swiss cantons were given the freedom to choose Catholicism or Protestantism and an uneasy peace rested between them. Zwingli believed that a united Protestant Switzerland would represent God's true will for the Church on earth and that Catholics who refused to recognize this were not only standing against Zwingli and his teachings but against God himself. Not the same church Today there is a Swiss Reformed Church. It was begun in 1920. In 2024 it had a total membership of approximately 1.78 million with 982 congregations in various cantons. It allows the ordination of women and has embraced inclusivity by permitting blessings for same-sex civil unions. The rather sad 2000 census in Wildhaus recorded that in Zwingli’s birthplace 468 people were Catholic, while 572 belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Of the rest of the population, there were 17 individuals who belonged to the Orthodox Church, and there were 17 individuals who belonged to another Christian church. There were 49 who were Islamic. There were 3 individuals who belonged to another church (not listed on the census), 88 belonged to no church, were agnostic or atheist, and 46 individuals did not answer the question. Done for the Lord We might automatically surmise that Zwingli would be disappointed in the modern day apparent disintegration of his life’s work. Add to this, he did not live to see the amazing results that followed soon after his passing. Yet this Swiss child, who became a man, knew a wonderful surety. He was a child of God. Through the Holy Spirit, he had stood up for Truth; he had faithfully exegeted God’s Word; and he had daily turned to his Father. He had used the time allotted to him well and, consequently, was given contentment. Hebrews 6:10 echoes his reason for living and his hope for the future: “God is not unjust; He will not forget your work and the love you have shown Him as you have helped His people and continue to help them.” Zwingli’s life and his death encourage us to work, to work in these days which often seem rather hopeless in results. They point us to 1 Corinthians 15:58: "Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and immovable. Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." Christine Farenhorst has written for Reformed Perspective going back 35 years. Her most recent book is “Upheld: A widow’s story of love, grief, & the constancy of God.” The picture of Zwingli is adapted from a painting by Hans Asper in 1549....

Humor, Satire

Alice in Blunderland

"I can't believe that!" said Alice. "Can't you?" the Queen said in a pitying tone. "Try again: draw a long breath, and shut your eyes." Alice laughed. "There's no use trying," she said: "one can't believe impossible things." "I daresay you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast." - Based on "Alice in Wonderland" by Lewis Carroll (to whom I apologize for what follows ...) ***** As Alice rode in the carriage with the Queen through the streets of Blunderland, she couldn't help but remark upon the carefree attitude of the people. "Of course they're optimistic and lighthearted," sniffed the Queen, rather condescendingly, "And with good reason. Many of them have completely shelved the silly notion that there is a real God. Others who used to hold high positions in churches - when churches were still fashionable - managed, through various clever devices, to reduce their congregations to the point where Church doors had to be closed and property sold to other interests. "But by far the greater part constitute those who have finally accepted the sublime principle of compromise - you know, those who found out how to mix what remained of their faith with secular ideologies so as to hammer out a lifestyle they could be comfortable with. Thanks to them we still have a church of sorts but one which can easily be controlled by an astute administrator such as myself!" "But how on earth did all this happen?" cried Alice, aghast, "Isn't this a Christian country?" "It was," remarked the Queen, "until enlightened theologians managed to take control of church courts and other key offices and substitute the gospel of Man for the Gospel of Christ. Then the people themselves, spoiled by an impossibly high standard of living which gave them everything and demanded nothing, were easily diverted down the broad road of liberalism. Final victory was assured, of course, when their morals degenerated past the point of no return. "Still, I'm rather uneasy about a handful of diehards who, rumor has it, dare to insist that the Bible is of prime importance in the scheme of things - more important even than being politically correct! That is absurd, of course! As I understand it, they actually believe it to be God's own Word. Anyway, they're impeding real progress and need to be taught a sharp lesson. It may come sooner than they think!" "That seems to be a rather harsh attitude," said Alice in dismay. "Well, the best medicine isn't always the tastiest," snapped the Queen. "Still, it does seem rather unfair," murmured Alice. "Not at all," said the Queen self righteously, "Look at the bulk of the people. You were the one who remarked on how carefree and contented they seem to be." "That's true," admitted Alice. "But I don't understand. Under the circumstances, I would have expected them to be just the opposite." "That's because you know nothing about blunderthink," announced the Queen imperiously. "In this land, the people don't believe in pie-in-the-sky-by-and-by; they believe in social-evolution-in-the-here-and-now. They're happy because they know that the more they perceive themselves as self-realizing people, the better off the world will be somewhere down the road." "I see," said Alice, but she didn't really. "I daresay they look at things differently in your country," said the Queen disdainfully. "Quite," said Alice humbly. "Well," said the Queen, displaying more than her usual degree of tolerance, "what is the term you would use to describe the erosion of old-fashioned faith?" "I don't know very much about theology," said Alice uncertainly, "but I believe it would be called apostasy." "Exactly," said the Queen triumphantly, "that's just the kind of primitive reasoning one has come to expect from a foreigner these days! In Blunderland we are more intellectually astute. For example, when we were faced with what you call 'apostasy', we simply redefined its apparent heresies as a victory over narrow sectarianism." "But how can that be?" asked Alice, now thoroughly confused. "By applying the basic principles of blunderthink," explained the Queen, barely disguising her contempt. "In essence, blunderthink is a form of mental discipline by which we are enabled to rise above mere facts, through the application of selective moral reasoning. If, for instance, we choose to consider sin as a triumph over excessive religiosity rather than rebellion against God, and convey this idea to the people through every means at our disposal; and if we consistently scoff at the 'traditional' Biblical definition and those who take it, the people will soon begin to come around to our viewpoint. Now, if the majority accepts something we tell them, why then it's true, isn't it?" "In politics it seems to be true," said Alice carefully, "but I'm not as sure about religion." "Very well then, let me give you another example," said the Queen doggedly. "No doubt in your country when Christians are inclined to follow current, popular trends rather than the teachings of the Bible, you assume they're compromising the faith." "Of course," said Alice. "Nonsense!" said the Queen testily. "Here in Blunderland we would simply construe the acceptance of current trends as part and parcel of getting on with the Christian mandate." "And the people would believe it?" blurted Alice, astonished. "Certainly they would believe it!" snorted the Queen, "if we told it to them often enough and their scholars and theologians were more terrified of being out of step with the times than with God. The fact is, they unhesitatingly champion every popular viewpoint these days, particularly if it contradicts what used to be held as plain Biblical teaching! Why? Because they yearn to be recognized as intellectuals rather than 'primitives' - it's the nametag that scares them!" "I think I'm beginning to understand," said Alice, "blunderthink is what is called brain-washing in my country." "How dare you?" shrieked the Queen, "Off with her head!!" But the guards were used to the Queen's tantrums and wearily reminded her that capital punishment in Blunderland, even for the most monstrous crimes, was a thing of the past. "I'm sorry," said the Queen, when she had regained her composure, "I can't bear to be contradicted." "Well then," said Alice, trying to remember what the Queen had told her, "let me see if I understand it correctly. Apostasy is simply a victory over narrow sectarianism. Sin is triumph over excessive religiosity. Current social mores are simply a new way of expressing the Christian mandate. Is that it?" "Dear girl," said the Queen, "that's just the beginning of blunderthink - it's such an adaptable concept. Let me run a few more ideas past you. For instance, when Christians embrace other religions as equal inheritors with Christianity, this broader-based faith will have much more political whack than any single religious organization ever had before. And when all belief systems are joined into one ecumenical World-Church, religion will indeed be a formidable force to reckon with. More importantly, when the brotherhood-of-all-men concept finally gains universal acceptance, wars will cease and we will finally have succeeded in the ambition of the ages - bringing the Kingdom of God into being through our own efforts!" "Bringing the Kingdom of God into being through our own efforts," echoed Alice. "That's wonderful! Why, all of society's problems could be solved this way, not just religious ones. Think of the time and effort that could be saved by looking at everything the blunderthink way ... Immorality is moral. Poverty is wealth. Sickness is health. Hell is heaven. Death is life and ... socialism is the Kingdom of God. Why, there's a positive side to everything!" "You're on to something big, young lady," smiled the Queen fondly. And giving Alice a conspiratorial pat on the knee, she confided, "I'll convene Cabinet right away and get the show on the road!" ..BUT the Lord said, "Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! ... Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him! Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the LORD of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel." - Isa 5:20,23,24 Folks, the 'show' isn't destined to make it very far down the road... Bruce Pringle is a member of the Reformed Presbyterian Church in Smith Falls, Ontario. This was published in the July/August 1999 issue...

Internet

Do we "like" sin?

Welcome to the Information Age. With apps like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, we now have a window into the lives of our friends, family, acquaintances and even complete strangers. Business owners can now Google prospective employees, parents can check Instagram to vet new friends of their children, and a woman can search Facebook about a potential boyfriend. We can track down long lost friends from high school and keep in touch with family around the world. The benefits are evident in our churches too, in how we can share information about prayer requests, children’s illnesses, bus routes being late, weather conditions, and new study groups. Via these social media forums, users are connected together in an online virtual world where our interests and ideas can be shared at the speed of light to our online peers. We can share articles that we deem interesting or important, and we can take political stands on issues. With a click of the button, we can friend and follow almost anyone we want. We like or dislike our way through thousands of gigabytes of information, telling everyone our favorite TV shows, games, authors, preachers, speakers and much more. But how does our online presence reflect our allegiance? Do our likes match up with God’s own? Many brothers and sisters seem to disconnect the online version of themselves from the real (or maybe their social media presence is their true self?). Christians will watch horrific godless shows and discuss them and like them on Facebook. Some may share photos of themselves in provocative poses with minimal clothing, or share pictures of drunken partying. We’ll fight with others online, speaking wrathfully, and assume the worst of whomever we’re arguing with. Disputes with our consistory, or our spouse, will be aired publicly and captured for all eternity. We’ll speak derisively about our employers, or our minister, family members, or friends. Online Christians will use filthy language, or casually take God’s name in vain in ways that they would not in the offline world. The Bible calls this disconnect an unstable “double-mindedness” (James 1:8, 22-25) – we are trying to be two people, each serving a different master (Matthew 6:24). Not only are we responsible for how we present ourselves online, we’re responsible for what we like and follow. When we see pictures of brothers and sisters sinning and like them, when we click thumbs up to a godless show, or blasphemous musician do we understand what we are telling everyone? Though it may take little thought – just a quick click of the mouse and a friendly like or thumbs up – what we are saying is I agree, I like this, I love this, this is good. Though it seems harmless, this is encouragement. When I sin and someone says good job,they are enabling me. That is not love. That is sinful. It is wicked. We should not condone sin whether online or off. In fact, we should love one another enough to be willing to privately approach and hold our brothers and sisters accountable. Maybe we think this a task better suited to elders. But not all consistory members are on these online forums. They don’t always know what is happening on Facebook or Instagram. And it is not their job to follow every one of us everywhere we go. As brothers and sisters in the Lord, we need to hold each other accountable out of love for each other (Eccl. 4:9-12). And we need to do so out of love for our Lord – the world will get their ideas of Who He is based in large part on how we, his ambassadors, act. Finally, whether we sin in daily life or online, God sees. In a world of both hate and tolerance, filth and fanaticism, we need to be careful not only in how we behave online, but also in what we like, share and post and therefore condone, as well. This article was first published in the Mar/Apr 2019 issue of the magazine....

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

Life's busy, read it when you're ready!

Create a free account to save articles for later, keep track of past articles you’ve read, and receive exclusive access to all RP resources.

Search thousands of RP articles

Helping you think, speak, and act in Christ.

Get Articles Delivered!

Helping you think, speak, and act in Christ. delivered direct to your Inbox!

Kids

Magazine

Articles

Book Reviews

Movie Reviews

Daily devotional

Contests

More of Reformed Perspective!

Newsletter

Real Talk

Manna

About Us

Advertise

Contact Us

Shop our merch!

Magazine

Book Reviews

Movie Reviews

Past Articles

Kids

All Contests

Bucket List Book Club

Screen Fast

Entertainment

“What can I do?” Part II

35 more screen-alternatives

Make God first

Break, and bake, bread

Twists on reading a good book

Love the neighbor next to you

Be contagious

Actually fix things

Gaming together

Embrace the boredom

Enjoy your spouse

Connect with the kids

More painting

Challenges

Stretch your attention span

Entertainment

“What can I do anyways?”

Assorted

Real Talk: Recovering family worship

Technology

On being smartphone-free for five years

News

Are you still able?

Parenting

Give your kids a super power

Being the Church

Love thy neighbor. Love thy neighborhood encampment…?

Interview with an artist

Laura Kroesbergen’s hyperrealistic animals

Technology

Less screens = more life

Internet

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

In a Nutshell

Tidbits – June 2026

Science - Creation/Evolution

The day is not an age

Interview with an artist

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

Music

When the Church stops singing

Science - Creation/Evolution

Perfect planet

In a Nutshell

Tidbits – May 2026

People we should know

J. Gresham Machen (1881-1937)

People we should know

That cloud of witnesses....

Homosexuality, News