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Daily devotional

More of Reformed Perspective!

woman frustrated at work
Theology

Should a Christian ever be discontent?

She sat across from me, sipping coffee, her forehead wrinkled with unhappiness. She’d struggled for two years in a job that clearly made her miserable, and which everyone else thought she should quit. But she couldn’t quite agree, wondering if there was a reason God had blessed her with the position. “I’m trying so hard to be grateful,” she said. “I just want to be satisfied with what I have.”

****

My friend’s words hit me right in my chest. I didn’t know what to say, because I’ve struggled with the exact same issues. When is it okay to give up on the path you’re currently traveling on? When is it okay to quit and change what you’re doing? We know God has a reason for everything He brings into our lives, so doesn’t it just make sense that we should figure out that reason – figure out how to glorify Him in this situation – before we think of moving on to something else?

But like so many other situations in life, we often don’t understand the invisible plans of God, or know what His goal is for us in our current season of life. And so we can be left unsure if it is okay to move on to something else, or if God means for us to learn contentment where we are.

Often, when we find ourselves feeling like I or my friend felt in that moment – recognizing the strain of dissatisfaction running through our lives – we respond with guilt. We might think this discontent points to a lack in our spiritual lives. But is discontent always wrong?

Dissatisfaction certainly can be caused by a spiritual lack. We humans never are satisfied with what we have. We never have enough. If we had the power to change everything in our lives, we still would not feel fulfilled.

But this does not mean we should never take our discontentment seriously. Discontent might be the motivation to change something in our lives that needs changing.

The value of discontent

When we look at other people’s lives, it’s easy to recognize what’s causing them unhappiness, and it’s easy to say they should change these things. In fact, we often wonder why they don’t. This person is still young, so why don’t they try a new career? Or this person has the freedom to move, so why don’t they try living in another city?

But when it comes to ourselves, we see how hard it is to justify our choices to make changes. Is “unhappiness” really a good enough reason, when we know we’re called to be content? To get here we've struggled, we've prayed, we've relied on God to achieve things – and by the grace of God we have achieved them. We know, because our strength was so weak and we needed God's strength so much to get where we are today, that our current situation is straight from the hand of God. What we need to know is if we can be grateful for God’s gifts while still choosing for change.

No wonder people hesitate to make a change!

One way forward is to consider when feelings of discontent have value. This is not to say discontentment should be embraced, but that the feeling can point us to areas of our lives we do actually have power over. So let’s look at discontentment a bit more closely.

We shouldn’t be content with just this world

First, there are some obvious things God intends for us to be discontent about. We are not supposed to be content with the fallen state of the world. We are supposed to be content that all things are in the hands of God, but we are not supposed to look at injustice be pleased about it. Some of our dissatisfaction points us to the new creation we are looking forward to. When we recognize that we never feel fully fulfilled, we also recognize that we are waiting for eternal fulfillment. We live with “eternity in our hearts” – we have a vision of an ideal kingdom this world cannot live up to.

This also means that life’s frustrations, dead ends, and futility were never meant to be part of God’s good creation. No wonder we react so strongly to them. And yet, while we understand this, we also understand God is still holding all the threads of our lives in His hands. We cling to His promise that in him everything that seems meaningless has meaning.

We shouldn’t be satisfied burying our talent

There’s another aspect of discontentment to consider. Contentment ought to be separated from passivity. A wrong emphasis on contentment can make us believe we’re not allowed to change anything in our lives. But contentment and passivity are not the same thing. Perhaps discontentment may be a challenge to us.

We may hide behind “contentment” because we’re afraid to take the risk of change, because we might fail if we try something new. But our dissatisfaction could hint that we are not reaching for goals that we could try to reach. We are not risking the bumps and falls that might develop our skills. Discontentment might tell us we are meant to challenge ourselves. And if we are taking the easier path without really thinking it through, our emotions may be a sign something is wrong. We should consider whether we need to choose a more challenging goal.

If we do not separate contentment and passivity, it can result in a fatalistic determinism. We might conclude that wherever we happen to be, that is where God placed us so it must be where He wants us to be, and therefore we should be content. But this cuts off the possibility that God also blesses us with opportunities. Determinism leads us to say—You’re still single? God must not want you to be married. You’re poor? God must not want you to be rich. Don’t try to achieve anything. Just wait peacefully. Don’t try to change. Everything you’re meant to have will just happen if it’s meant to be.

But clearly this is an unbiblical message.

Learning contentment from Paul

Contentment is still a good thing, and it is a virtue to be pursued in our lives. After much struggle, I’ve realized that while there may be something behind the vague sense of discontent that so often crops up in our lives, and that these reasons can be addressed, contentment is still the goal, not discontent.

How, then, should we pursue contentment while avoiding utter passivity? There are a few things to keep in mind.

Content even as we strive

First, contentment is about where you are in the present moment. It is not a denial of any change in the future. When Paul talks of being content in all circumstances, he was working towards a goal, and the circumstances occurred while he was attempting to achieve it. Having a goal does imply you expect to cause change in the future. So perhaps it is not the goal you’re supposed to avoid having, but the discontent over the difficulties that spring up on the way to the goal. It may in fact turn out to be that the goal is not one you’re meant to achieve, but contentment in all circumstances includes contentment during the deep disappointment that hits when you don’t achieve your goal. In other words – strive! Keep striving! But be ready to be content with what the Lord brings you.

Content in suffering

Another caveat is that contentment in Scripture, including the contentment passage in Philippians 4 (“I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content”), is mentioned in relation to suffering. It is an approach to situations that are not in Christians’ control. When life is hard, especially when life is hard as a result of being Christians, Christians are to be content. So the intent is not to say, “don’t change your life path,” but rather, “I know you’re suffering, and this is where you can find comfort.” These passages also emphasize that no circumstances of life ever prevent us from being saved by God – whether in chains or free, whether rich or poor – no one needs to be discontent because their circumstances prevent them from truly being Christians. If such circumstances did exist they would surely be reason for despair—but thanks be to God there are none!

We can be content because our circumstances do not prevent our salvation.

Content when we have choices and when we don’t

We all suffer in some way, but in comparison to many Christians in the Bible we are faced with an endless array of choices – we can choose a career, we can choose a spouse, we can choose where we want to live, we can choose to travel, we can choose our level of education. It’s not a surprise the Bible doesn’t predict that we in the future would be faced with this array of choice, and advise us on how to wrap our minds around the dizzying display. And therefore it is not a surprise when we try to apply biblical principles to our choices instead of our sufferings, and end up at the conclusion that we should never desire anything, and never try to achieve anything.

But rather than arriving at this conclusion and automatically accepting it, we should think about whether this is really correct. We are to be content in situations we can’t change, including those which are really, really hard. But our contentment in the present moment doesn’t prevent us moving from one choice to another in the future.

Second, we often think contentment means being stationary unless we’re sure God means for us to move. But Paul did not always sit and wait until absolutely sure that God was sending him somewhere else. If he was called by the Spirit he followed, but he continued to work and preach in all places while waiting for the Spirit’s call. He often made plans to go to different places, or to start new missions. When the Spirit of God prevented him from preaching throughout Asia Minor, he continued trying in place after place until he reached the sea – only then did he realized he was being called to Macedonia. In other words, sometimes we are not sure what we should do, but we do not necessarily have to wait for a firm confirmation from God before every action.

Content in the day-to-day faithfulness

Lastly, we are often discontent with our lives not because of the goals but because of the mundane tasks and the drudgery. Our actions seem so little, and so dull. We cry, like me and my friend did when we were having coffee, “I just want to work in God’s kingdom!” But perhaps the cathedral builders did the same, as they painstakingly placed stone on stone for hundreds of years, unable to see the buildings we’d gasp at in wonder today. Perhaps our grandparents did the same as they struggled to get their children to listen to a Bible story, not knowing if the generations who’d follow would do the same.

When we ask God to use our lives according to His plans, we sometimes suppress a fear that God doesn’t want us to go anywhere, or do anything. This is our fear when we walk into the office and face a mountain of paperwork that needs to be done but hardly seems worthwhile – am I really contributing to God’s kingdom, we wonder? But our God is not a God of waste. If we are to be ordinary, it will be worthwhile.

Our call to contentment brings us to a new understanding, where ordinary labour is not undervalued. We are not pressured to all conform to the mould of world-changer. We can put our hand to the task in front of us without fear our efforts will be washed from the earth, because we know they’re seen by the eyes of God.

Conclusion

What, then, is contentment?

First, it is a focus on the kingdom of God, not the kingdom of the world. It shifts our focus from yearning for the things of this world, such as money, fame, or power. We can trust there are eternal things that we are building, and contentment means that we can rest.

Second, it is not a struggle with God over what can’t change. While we are not called to passivity, in our lives we will sometimes be told “no.” This is where we are most often tempted to fight, not necessarily with our actions, but with a rebellious spirit that insists on despising the situation forced on us. Only by looking to God in His Word and in prayer will we find the strength to turn back to contentment again.

When my friend and I left the cafe, our lives were still the same as when we had come in. Yet somehow Christian company and very good coffee gave us new capacity to rest in the goodness of God.

Harma-Mae Smit blogs at  HarmaMaeSmit.com.
This article was first published in July 2018.

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Assorted

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What would happen if we assumed ancient man was intelligent? One man did just that, and I haven’t been able to stop talking about it since. Which...
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In a Nutshell

Tidbits – February 2026

For want of a comma In her best seller Eats, Shoots and Leaves, author Lynne Truss highlighed the importance of commas with the story of a Panda who ...
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History

Carried

Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob, all the remnant of the people of Israel, you whom I have upheld since your birth, and have carried since yo...
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Assorted

The definition of patience

Patience. It’s a word we would never bother looking up in the dictionary because we already understand its meaning. But sometimes a well-known word ...
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Theology

Proverbs: a different sort of devotional

“Do you have a devotional that you would recommend?” I get asked this question in various forms from time to time, and I think my answer sometimes surprises or disappoints people, because I don’t recommend what they might expect. I don’t really find most devotionals fruitful. But in my mid 20s I came across the Steven K. Scott’s book The Richest Man Who Ever Lived, a book which lays out “King Solomon’s secrets to success, wealth, and happiness.” The author describes how he went through nine jobs in five years, constantly failing at everything he tried, and convinced he would never succeed. Then he was challenged by a friend to read one chapter of Proverbs, write down his insights, and find ways to apply those insights to his day-to-day activities. And do that every day again for two years. The author went on to find success in his financial and business ventures and credits it to the wisdom of Solomon. I don’t remember much else of the book, but I did take up the same challenge, though not quite as long. How I read the book of Proverbs every day for eight months, reading Proverbs 1 on the first day of the month, Proverbs 2 on the second, and so on, 31 chapters for a month with 31 days (yes, sometimes you’ll have to read a few more chapters per day for the shorter months). Each day I would read a chapter and write down my own takeaways in a notebook, leaving enough room between the notes on each chapter so I had space for the following months’ notes. I would write down verses that really stood out to me, some months word-for-word, and other months challenging myself to write it in my own words. Some months I would listen to the audio version, and some months I would read it in a different translation, to break up the monotony of reading the same words over and over, and to see if there were verses that would stand out to me more than in other translations. Why Did I become wise overnight? No, but I can attribute much of my own personal growth to studying the book of Proverbs consistently. I still refer back to my notes from years ago, and I still read through the entire book of Proverbs once or twice a year. Proverbs is chock full of wisdom on relationships, avoiding temptation, being a good steward of God’s resources, surrounding yourself with godly people, and bridling your tongue (an area where I need constant encouragement). Proverbs can be challenging to read at times. Some proverbs seem to conflict with one another, which can be confusing: how do we know when it’s the right time to “answer a fool” (Prov. 26:4-5)? Some proverbs can be very convicting and make us uncomfortable. But these proverbs are given by God not just for wisdom information (good for our head only); these proverbs are meant for the transformation of our hearts and lives. I’m grateful for Solomon’s wisdom, gifted to him by God. And I’m grateful for the one who was greater than Solomon (Matthew 12:42). It can be difficult at times to see Jesus Christ in Proverbs, and that’s going to be my next focus as I read through the book again. So when people ask which devotional I recommend, I encourage them to read Proverbs. Read one chapter every day and record your own insights. It’s been very fruitful for me and for those that I’ve recommended it to. Andrew Lootens is a disciple of Jesus Christ, a husband and father, a resident of Chilliwack, BC, and a voracious reader who is kindling the flame to write a little bit more and read a little bit less....

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Christian education - Sports, Theology

God and the 2014-15 Seattle Seahawks

All about God’s sovereignty, Man’s free will, and American football ***** When the editor suggested I write a piece about American Football, I was a little taken aback. Firstly, this did seem like an odd subject for a magazine like Reformed Perspective. “But still,” I thought, “I suppose we can hardly claim on the one hand that Christ is Lord over all of life, then on the other hand rule American Football as being off-limits.” The second reason was even more fundamental. I’m a Brit. And not a Brit that has any love, let alone knowledge of American Football. In fact, I’ll put my cards on the table right now: the game has about as much fascination for me as the game of cricket probably has to the average US Football fan – that is to say none whatsoever. So I was relieved as I read through the editor’s request to find that the American Football bit was somewhat incidental, and I was not being asked to spend hours watching old Giants vs. 49ers games on YouTube. Rather, the request was to try and make some sort of sense of comments made by Russell Wilson, the Seattle Seahawks quarterback, after his side’s victory over the Green Bay Packers in January (2015), which sent Seattle to the Superbowl. The most improbable of comebacks For those not familiar with what happened, with less than four minutes left in the game and trailing 19-7, the Seahawks staged a dramatic recovery, tying the game to take it into overtime, before going on to win 28-22. What was especially amazing was that the Seahawks’ quarterback, Russell Wilson, went from playing one of the worst games of his life, throwing four interceptions, to scoring three touchdowns in the game’s final 6 minutes. Wilson then caused a stir with his post-match comments when he was asked to explain how his team has gone from being down and out without any hope to being victorious a few minutes later: "That's God setting it up, to make it so dramatic, so rewarding, so special." Of course, this set the whole Twittersphere afluttering with many ridiculing his claim. It also set off a series of articles on the web with titles like, “Does God play a role in picking the winning team?” What are our options? So what should we make of Wilson’s comments? I think we have to break our answer into two parts, one of which deals with the general question of God’s relationship with His creation, and the other which deals with the more specific question of whether He intervened in this particular instance. The first and more general question is basically a question about the nature of God’s sovereignty, and I think the best way to look at this is to examine all the other possible answers that could have been given as to whether God really did intervene to make the match so dramatic. These positions are: God has nothing to do with Seattle Seahawks games because there is no God. God has nothing to do with Seattle Seahawks games because He does not deal directly with the created order. Although God is sovereign, He has nothing to do with Seattle Seahawks games because He could care less about US Football. God has everything to do with Seattle Seahawks games, foreordaining their results, and so when Wilson threw his interceptions, that was because of God’s direct “interception.” God has everything to do with Seattle Seahawks games, foreordaining their results, yet he does so in such a way that does not involve the kind of direct intervention Wilson suggests We can further categorize these positions as follows: God is in control of nothing because he is not there (Atheistic). God created the universe, winding it up like a watch, and then left it to its own devices (Deistic) God has created the universe, but He is only interested in “spiritual things” (Pietistic) God is sovereign and controls everything that happens, to the extent that no-one has free will (Ultra Sovereignty) God is sovereign and is involved in everything, yet in such a way that man has liberty to act and to make choices (Sovereignty) Narrowing it down I trust that readers of Reformed Perspective can see that both the first two positions are highly illogical, not to mention unbiblical. It is highly illogical to believe that something came from nothing – and by that I really mean nothing: no time, no space, no matter – not to mention also believing that the something was then capable of organizing and sustaining itself into an amazingly complex order. It is also highly irrational to believe that a creator would go to the trouble of creating an amazingly complex order, only to walk away with total disinterest, leaving it to itself. What of position three? It actually turns out to be quite odd, since it refutes the very claim it makes. Those who hold to this position tend to be loud about the “sovereignty of God,” yet they then extend this sovereignty to include about 0.000000001% of the universe that God created. Well, if God is sovereign, He is sovereign over all creation and so the idea that He cares nothing for certain parts of His creation – especially “physical things” – is a denial of His sovereignty. What of positions four and five? They actually share many things in common. Both agree that God is sovereign over all things, including Seattle Seahawks games. Both agree that God foreordains the results of Seahawks games. Both agree that God upholds all the players involved and without this the game could not have been played, let alone played out so dramatically. Yet the difference is that whilst the fourth point understands this to mean that God controls everything, down to the last interception, and so basically micromanages His creation, which seems to me to be closer to Greek fatalism than biblical Christianity, the fifth view understands this in a way that retains God’s sovereignty, but also insists on man’s “free will.” Personally I take the fifth view to be the correct one. Free will?!? I realize that this might spook some readers. “We don’t have free will,” some might say, “as we lost it in the Fall.” My response is as follows. What we lost when Adam sinned was communion with God, righteousness, holiness and spiritual life, so that we need to be saved, and have no free will to choose salvation. We are by nature dead in trespasses and sins – as dead spiritually as Lazarus in the grave was physically – and as you know, dead people can’t bring themselves to life. However, this is not the same as saying that we lost our ability to make choices in all other areas of life, though of course those choices will be dictated by our sinful hearts. So as I sit here typing, did God foreordain it? Yes. Am I doing it out of free will? Yes. This seems impossible and counter-intuitive, but then He is an "impossible and counter-intuitive" God. Here is how chapter three of the Westminster Confession puts it: "God from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of His own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass; yet so, as thereby neither is God the author of sin, nor is violence offered to the will of the creatures; nor is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established." This is a grand and frankly amazing statement. The God it presents is infinitely bigger than our imaginations can grasp. Look at it like this. Can you imagine a God who sets up the world and then gives perfect free will to his creatures so that He doesn’t know what is going to happen next and can’t control it? Yes, I can easily imagine Him. What about a God who unchangeably ordains whatsoever comes to pass, and does so by micro-managing every single detail to the nth degree? Yep, I can get my head around Him too. But what about a God who unchangeably ordains whatsoever comes to pass, yet does so without infringing on the liberty of His creatures to make choices of their own “free will”? I must confess that I am unable to comprehend such a God, or to understand how this is possible, but then again I have no understanding of how a universe can be spoken into existence either, or how the eternal Son of God can become a baby. Such things are too high for me, and I accept them by faith. What I am suggesting is that God is neither a deist God who is uninvolved in His creation, nor a pietistic God who is sovereign over a tiny portion of His creation, nor is He a micromanager who manages every aspect of it in the kind of minute details we understand by micromanaging. Rather, He is in sovereign control, upholds everything by the Word of His mouth, foreordains all things, yet does so in such a way that He is not in the business of micromanaging Russell Wilson’s passes. Conclusion But moving on to the second question, couldn’t He do that if He wanted? Doesn’t God intervene in His creation? Of course He does, and the Bible is full of instances of His interventions in human affairs. But the question is not whether He can intervene, but rather did He intervene in this specific instance? The question here hinges to a large extent on just how much priority God puts on the results of American Football games. Now as someone who upholds the sovereignty of God in everything, and the Lordship of Christ over everything, I understand that God cares about all of His creation and this includes American Football. But is this the same as saying that He cares about it to the extent that He is prepared to intervene to “change the result” and give the watching audience a good time? Emphatically no. Pietists (number three in the positions mentioned above) often want to reduce the things God cares about to “spiritual things” such as salvation, worship, prayer and Bible-reading, with everything else reduced to nought. Then over in the other ditch, there are others who want to flatten everything to make out that God cares for all things equally. This is not so. Just as we hierarchies of importance in our lives, it is fairly clear from the Bible that God has hierarchies of interest and importance. Yes, He is interested in American Football, in that He created the players, gave them the ability to play what is essentially a perfectly okay game (well cricket is better of course), and in that He calls on man to do things with all their might and for the glory of God. However, this is not the same as saying that He is interested enough in it to intervene in a game to make the game more exciting and give everyone a good time (except of course for Green Bay fans). In conclusion, though God cares about His entire creation, and though He ordained the surprising events and the result in the match between the Seahawks and Green Bay Packers, I think Russell Wilson would have a hard time making a Scriptural case that God intervenes directly in such matters. This was originally published in the March 2015 issue under the title "God and the Seahawks."...

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RP is looking for a Managing Editor!

Are you looking for a meaningful and long-term career where you can devote your time to equipping Christians to think, speak, and act like Christ? With thankfulness to God, the Reformed Perspective Foundation is looking to expand our team and mission with a significant new role: MANAGING EDITOR (FULL TIME) This new role will serve as the operational backbone of the team. He or she will keep all of RP’s content moving seamlessly from start to finish. A key function will be to ensure content is published in a timely way and blesses as many people as possible through a variety of mediums. Depending on qualifications and experience, we also welcome assistance with creating content (e.g. journalism or video production). The goal for the successful candidate is to work towards serving as the “integrator” for the RP team, as modeled in the Entrepreneur Operating System (EOS). He or she will help enable RP to achieve our long-term goal of expanding our reach to the USA, Australia, and the broader Christian community in Canada. We are looking for someone who is: Excited about devoting their life to advance our core purpose (helping Christians to think, speak, and act in Christ); Is fully committed to furthering our core values: Biblical: faithful to God’s Word and the Reformed confessions; Inspiring: a catalyst for action and a connecting to hearts Real: applying God’s Word to the nitty gritty of life Celebratory: Christ is LORD and has already won! Very organized and efficient; Excellent with utilizing technology; Comfortable with managing the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS); A great communicator, including with people who work remotely; Friendly and kind while being able to ensure things get done; Self-motivated; Humble; Looking to serve long-term (ideally a minimum of 5 years). The position will report to the Executive Editor, Mark Penninga. Duties will include: Work towards managing the RP team processes/systems, including running meetings and ensuring goals are being tracked and met; Ensure content submissions are received, thanked, and followed-up; Schedule content deadlines; Assigns tasks and deadlines to writers, editors, designers, and fact-checkers and ensure they are kept; Develops creative ways to make content go further through new technology and other mediums (electronic, audio, video, etc.); Oversee roll-out of contests/presentations/conferences (to fit with organizational schedule); Tracks analytics of all content; As much as possible, proactively guard the organization from censorship and similar challenges; Depending on qualifications, assist with content production (writing, podcasting, video production, etc.). Salary/wage: Open to negotiation and in-keeping with industry standards. Location: Our office in Smithers, BC. Deadline for applications: August 15 (We will keep the position open till it is filled. We reserve the right to not fill the position or to extend the deadline). Requirements: Must be a member in good standing of a confessional Reformed church in Canada or the US (a church that upholds the Three Forms of Unity or Westminster Standards). Six month trial period required. Interested? To apply, please send an application to RP’s Executive Director Mark Penninga ([email protected]). Please include a resume, at least two references (including an elder or pastor), and a letter introducing yourself and explaining your qualifications for the position....

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History

Our heroes have feet of clay

You find them everywhere. They’re the people we look up to. They sing, they dance, they play hockey, they win battles and they found nations. They’re our heroes. You know the people: George Washington, Wayne Gretzky, Winston Churchill, or Ginger Rogers. They’re larger than life figures that do larger than life things flawlessly. We want to be like them. Unless you’re Canadian. When an Internet poll asked Canadians who their heroes were some of the results were predictable, like Terry Fox, but there were also a few less likely individuals. Don’t misunderstand: these people did some incredible things and were certainly larger than life. However, they were also hopelessly flawed. John A. One man who topped the list was Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A Macdonald. It is to Sir John A. that much of the credit goes for the founding of the Dominion of Canada in 1867. He helped pull together a disparate bunch of English Canadian Reformers and Tories and united them with French Canadian Bleus. Then he got the British to bully Nova Scotia and New Brunswick into a grand confederation of colonies that formed the nucleus of the present day Canada. While that’s impressive, Canadians know Sir John A. in a more intimate way than that. You see, as most Canadians are aware, Sir John was bounced from office in 1873 for the Pacific Railway Scandal that involved suggestions of bribes, patronage, and all kinds of corruption. Additionally, the prime minister was a habitual drunkard. It was no secret for he bragged about his drinking, yet Canadians forgave him, returning him and his party to office in 1878. There are other unusual Canadians as well. William Lyon Mackenzie King made the list of heroes for his impressive job of shepherding Canada through the Second World War. If that doesn’t sound impressive, keep in mind that when Prime Minister Borden tried to guide the country during the previous world war, he succeeded in alienating French speaking Quebec, and much of the farming population, as well as accidentally splitting the opposition Liberal party in two. King kept peace and tranquillity, while Borden created a political crisis that threatened to undo Canada. Though a master politician, Canadians were aware of King’s oddities, including consulting with mediums, and talking to his dead dog – stuffed and sitting on the mantle. Rebel Riel Louis Riel was also on the list of heroes. While the man who initiated the only rebellions Canada has ever had may seem an odd choice as a hero, to many Western Canadians Riel is exactly that. With his rebellions at Red River and then in the North West Territories, Riel was probably the first Westerner that ever made “the East” sit up and take notice, and to perpetually alienated Westerners, that makes Riel a hero. However, Riel was a religious fanatic, believing himself a prophet and in communication with God. He had spent time in a mental asylum, and at the time of the 1885 Rebellion may have actually been mentally unbalanced. E is for equal rights...and also eugenics In its heroes, Canada is an equal opportunity employer. One of the most significant women to make the list was Emily Murphy. A successful writer under the pen name Janey Canuck, a Member of the Canadian Parliament, the first female police magistrate in the British Empire, and a participant in the landmark “Persons Case” that gave Canadian women legal status as people, Murphy has had her reputation tarnished in recent years. The United Farmers government of the province of Alberta enacted the Sexual Sterilization Act in 1928 that allowed for the sterilization of the mentally incompetent and others unfit to parent. This version of eugenics, repugnant to most modern Canadians, was strongly backed by the otherwise progressive and reform-minded Murphy. Conclusion Canadians choices for heroes have been odd. The less savory facts behind the lives of most of Canada’s heroes are well known and thoroughly documented, but Canadians picked these people anyway. Someone once told me that you can’t tell an American something bad about their heroes. They don’t want to know about George Washington’s dismal military record as a British lieutenant, and they won’t listen if you tell them that Thomas Jefferson had slaves on his plantation. They certainly don’t want to hear any suggestions that Martin Luther King cheated on his wife, or may have plagiarized his dissertation. But Canadians are different. They know the weaknesses of their heroes and accept them for that. The Bible also contains some unusual heroes, “heroes of faith” like Noah, Abraham, and Rahab. Noah got drunk, Abraham denied that Sarah was actually his wife, and Rahab was a prostitute. These were flawed people, but by God’s strength, they were allowed incredible moments and even years to do deeds that we still remember today. We look back at them, and we look up to them for those deeds. Heroes are not flawless people. They make mistakes, but that doesn’t negate the good that they’ve been allowed to do. That doesn’t mean we can’t look up to them, but it does mean we can’t idolize them. It’s healthy to know that even great women and men have feet of clay, for it reminds us who is ultimately in control.  James Dykstra is both a student and teacher of Canadian history. This article was first published in June 2017....

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News

Court rules that Emergencies Act against “Freedom Convoy” was unlawful
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Entertainment

You might relate to Mary Bennet, but you’re not supposed to imitate her
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Christian education

Where has all the creativity gone?

Education needs to be about great books and great ideas... **** "Is This the Worst-Ever Era of American Pop Culture?" That was the question asked by...
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Theology

#3 - The unknown Commandment

“You shall not take the Name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His Name in vain.” – Exodus 20:7 ...
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Assorted

In Christ

The antidote to works righteousness and the anxiety, exhaustion, and resentment that comes with it. ***** I used to enjoy rock climbing. At least, I thought I did. If you’ve tried it, you know what it feels like to be 50 feet up a cliff, clutching any hold thicker than the edge of a loonie. I would normally “top-rope,” which involved my brother belaying from the bottom and the rope running through a carabiner at the top and back down to my harness. If I fell, my brother ensured that I wouldn’t fall far. But there were occasions when we couldn’t get a rope to the top and would have to “lead climb.” The climber would take the rope up as he climbed, and, using carabiners and a sling, secure it to bolts that were drilled into the cliff, usually about every 10 feet. So, if you climbed 10 feet past a bolt and were almost at the next one, you knew that a fall at that point would send you, not just to the next bolt, but 10 feet beyond it. Even if the belayer was holding the rope firmly, he couldn’t stop you from falling 20 feet! You were on your own. Even if my mind was willing, it was when I needed the most stability and strength that my body would sometimes rebel and stiffen or shake uncontrollably. It wasn’t enough to be determined. My body didn’t cooperate with my mind. And then my mind would soon lose faith. As much as I wanted it, there was no way I could simply will myself into being able to do this – there was going to be no summit. And if I insisted on trying, there may have even been a painful fall. Lead-climbing life In many ways, the same has been true of my effort to live as a Christian. Perhaps you can identify. From our youth we are urged to “become like Christ.” WWJD or “What would Jesus do?” is ringing in many ears. Perhaps it is a Bible passage like “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me” (Phil. 3:14) or maybe a doctrine we were instructed in, such as our calling to be a prophet, priest, and king (Lord’s Day 12, Heidelberg Catechism). The underlying message we hear from many pulpits, classrooms, and dinner tables is “you confess to being a Christian, now act like it!” Throughout my life, I have been trying to make progress towards the LORD. One foot hold at a time, I have been striving to overcome fear and failure and make it to the summit. But like my twitching body on the cliff, I have been humbled time and again. As much as I willed to make progress, my body was weak. “Step it up, Mark!” I told myself time and again. As I shared in a previous article on anxiety, eventually I burnt out. I got to the point where I felt like I could barely move, let alone summit anything. It is a horrible feeling to be a father, husband, and leader, and yet incapable of basic functioning. That was about 8 years ago. My journey with understanding anxiety and stress has been ongoing, and I have been blessed with many helpful resources. But beneath it all I have discovered a spiritual root – I was trying to earn God’s favor, to measure up, to prove my status as His child. Yes, I understand what grace means, and I’m convinced that I can be justified only by faith alone, in Christ alone. I’ve clipped my rope into these spiritual truths again and again, and then tried to keep climbing up, towards the summit. But it doesn’t take long before I’m weary, restless, or anxious again. Then I’m left shaking on the side of the cliff. It has taken me too long to realize the answer has been close at hand all my life. It is captured in many places in Scripture, including: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Rom. 8:1) “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” (Gal. 2:20) “...to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Eph. 4:22-24) “For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” (Gal. 3:26-27) The theme of being “in Christ” is immersed throughout the New Testament. When Paul refers to himself, he doesn’t call himself a Christian. Rather, he calls himself a “man in Christ” (2 Cor. 12:2). Christ himself draws this out in John 15 when He describes how He is the true vine and we are branches. “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me” (John 15:4). The branch doesn’t grow itself and then find a vine or branch to attach itself to and form a partnership with. We find our life wholly in Christ. He initiates the growth, He sustains with His life-giving water, and He carries us through the winds and storms of life. “Jesus does not call us to mimic him but to manifest Him,” explains Steve Cuss, in his book Managing Leadership Anxiety. In my leadership and writing, as well as my parenting, I have constantly gotten this wrong. And the challenges I see in the Christian community suggest that I’m the norm, not the exception. “Becoming like Christ is what God does in us, not what we do. God is the active agent; we are the recipients,” explains Cuss (emphasis added). But isn’t there something we need to do? Cuss points to Scripture and explains that our first task is something we aren’t usually that keen to do: to die to our old self (Rom. 6:6, Eph. 4:22-24, Col. 3:5-10). That includes the age-old propensity to purse these false needs: Control Perfection Always having the answer Being there for everyone in need Approval The truth is that these are attributes of God, not us. He is in control. He is perfect. He knows everything. He is there for everyone. And He give us our approval. As Steve Cuss explains, “anytime a human being tries to take on a God-sized job, we get reactive.” Feeling stressed lately? Perhaps, like me, you are trying to become like God rather than living in Christ. Like many other Christians, I have spent much of my life trying to be faithful, while not experiencing the peace that Christ promises us when we abide in Him. Reformed Perspective’s core purpose Every healthy organization should have a clearly-articulated reason for being. At our December board meeting, the board of Reformed Perspective settled on this core purpose: Helping you think, speak, and act in Christ. This flows from our mission statement of “equipping and encouraging Christians to think, speak, and act in a manner consistent with their confession.” But hopefully you can also distinguish the nuance of the last two words. Instead of encouraging Christians to “step it up” by living in line with what we confess, the new focus is on thinking, speaking, and acting in Christ. We think, speak, and act not to become like Christ. Rather, like a branch that produces fruit, our good works happen because we are connected to the Vine. We already are in Christ. We already are accepted. We already are loved. I don’t have to climb toward God’s favor. I don’t have to fear my next slip and fall. Christ has already summitted for me and is holding me firmly while I complete my journey. We humbly invite you, our readers and listeners, to hold us accountable to our stated purpose, as we seek to assist you in thinking, speaking, and acting in Christ....

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News

Court case seeks to force religious groups to provide euthanasia

Providence Health Care, a Roman Catholic organization, is being challenged in a BC court for not providing euthanasia in their facilities. The same activist group that spearheaded state-sanctioned killing in Canada, launched yet another constitutional challenge to expand euthanasia. This time, its sights are on health facilities run by religious groups. Providence operates St. Paul’s hospital, in downtown Vancouver. It has been exempt from having to provide euthanasia, on the basis of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms’ guarantee of freedom of religion – Providence wants the freedom to practice medicine according to their Catholic convictions. Christians know euthanasia is murder – a theft from God of a life He created and only He is entitled to take (Gen. 9:6) – so we should never commit this evil against anyone entrusted to our care. The killing-not-caring activists are now arguing that since Providence gets public funding they should have to allow outside euthanasia doctors into every part of their facilities to do the killings that Providence won’t. They’re demanding that “murder as medicine” be perpetrated here too, even in a hospital dedicated to honoring God’s precious gift of life. Their court challenge comes even after the BC government expropriated property from the Catholic hospital in 2023 to build a killing center right next to the hospital. But that isn’t enough for the pro-death lobby, which intends to see religious groups like Providence carry out the killings in their own facilities. “This case will decide whether or not religiously affiliated healthcare institutions can continue to exist in Canada,” noted Alex Schadenberg, Executive Director of the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition. Photo of St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver is by Joe Mabel, and used under a CC BY-SA 3.0 license....

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Parenting

The part about parenting I didn't find in any parenting book

I tend to be a fairly methodical person, so what does a methodical person do to prepare for parenthood? Why, read a small library of biblical child training books, of course. But after going through those books (as helpful as they were), I wanted to compare what I had read with the source of all that godly wisdom: the Bible itself. While studying Scriptural passages on child training, I encountered a principle I had not read before. Maybe there are books out there that do mention this principle and I just haven’t read them. It’s even possible that the books I read mentioned this principle, and I just somehow missed it. Whatever the case, I was amazed that I hadn’t heard it before. I’m convinced it may be one of the most important tools in one’s parenting arsenal. Tell your kids what God has done What is this hidden, or overlooked, parenting secret? Simply put: share your testimony with your children. This involves not just the story of how God brought you to faith, but also the countless instances where God delivered or strengthened or encouraged or provided for you. The first several verses of Psalm 44 give us an example of how personal testimonies can affect the lives of future generations. This psalm is actually a lament (see the second half), but it begins with declarations of unwavering trust in the Lord, based largely on the writers’ knowledge of what “our fathers have told us” (verse. 1). Stories from the “days of old” have led the sons of Korah to trust in God’s saving power and not their own strength. Notice how often, in just the first two verses, they point away from themselves and toward God (emphasis mine) …our fathers have told us The work that You did in their days, In the days of old. You with Your own hand drove out the nations; Then You planted them; You afflicted the peoples, Then You spread them abroad. A parent’s testimony is a powerful means of grace for children, because it points to tangible expressions of God’s faithfulness. Sharing is a privilege Sharing one’s testimony isn’t a burden or a chore; it is a privilege and a joy. As C. S. Lewis has pointed out, an enjoyment of something often isn’t complete until that enjoyment is shared. You know you really enjoyed a movie or a book when you tell everyone else about it. The telling itself is the consummation of your enjoyment. Consequently, the writer of Psalm 71 begs God not to let him depart until he has had the opportunity to declare God’s strength and power to the next generation: Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to everyone who is to come (vs. 16-18). Sharing stories of how God has worked in our lives is a great way to help our children see the manifold effects of the gospel. It helps them see how mercifully and graciously God treats us, even as we struggle with our own sins and inabilities to live up to His perfect standards. The design of this God-centered focus is so that our children may set their hope in God – not in their own ability to obey Him. As Psalm 145:4 puts it, “One generation shall praise Your works to another, and shall declare Your mighty acts.” The narrative of our stories involves innumerable instances of God’s saving and sanctifying work. This practice of sharing our testimony needn’t be turned into a legalistic pursuit. Rather, our testimony is simply the story of what God has done; instructing our children is no more a “work” than me telling my wife about my day at dinnertime. Our testimony is all about who God is, what He has done, and what He has promised to do. It is the overflow of past grace that points us all toward future grace. For our children’s benefit – as well as our own – may we remember and recount God’s faithful deeds to our children. May we vividly paint a picture of our Father’s awesome wonders in action. May our stories draw the hearts of our children toward God’s loving embrace. May we delight in His wondrous works so that we relish each and every opportunity to share them. And may our sharing be the consummation of our own delight in the Treasure of our souls: God Himself. Cap Stewart blogs about movies and the arts at CapStewart.com and his substack. This article was first published in 2017....

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Assorted

That which bubbles up to the surface

The Reformed theologian R.C. Sproul, (1939-2017), is quoted as saying: “… laughter is precisely the kind of thing that will always confound scientists because it is so intensely human. It is that which bubbles up to the surface from the parts of us too deep to fit in a test tube. “Which is why it’s so funny, and telling, that they try. One of the most common forms of humor is when the prideful take a fall. The Emperor’s, shall we say, exposure, comes from this fertile field. How much more ridiculously prideful can man be then when he thinks he can come to a fundamental understanding of man? How can we not laugh when one of us takes another of us and earnestly tries to squeeze us under a microscope? And when our bellies begin to shake, instead of joining in the fun, the fool scientist sits down to take notes. “ That which bubbles up to the surface, that is to say, laughter, is a gift, and it is biblical. God gave us the gift of laughter. It is a good thing, for example, when we acknowledge something amazingly wonderful with a burst of happiness. Remember Sarah who, when she became a mother, exclaimed in Genesis 21:6: “God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me." Ecclesiastes 3:4 notes that there is a time “to laugh.” Likewise, Proverbs 22:17 notes that a “joyful heart is good medicine.” And Psalm 126:2, one of the songs of ascent, speaks about “mouths filled with laughter.” There are other instances, but these are enough to point to the fact that laughter, good laughter, is a gift from God and a healthy one. The Holy Spirit deemed Sarah’s laughter of such importance that her burst of joy was written down in Scripture – an illustration that acknowledgement of God’s goodness can be a time of sheer joy. The Spirit also deemed it important that Bible readers know that it is good for one’s health to shake with mirth. *** On the other hand, there are thoughtless words and “bad jokes” which can mock holy things. We have to be extremely careful in discerning what we may laugh at. There is foolish laughter, shallow laughter, and there are times when we ought not to laugh. Most people are familiar with the Reader’s Digest’s column entitled “Laughter is the Best Medicine.” As a matter of fact, waiting in a dentist’s or doctor’s office, many pick up the magazine and read the amusing stories which these pages relay – stories which cause wholesome smiles. As well, both parents and school teachers, often recount numerous delightful incidents of children redefining words, unwittingly bestowing warped meanings which generate heart-warming chuckles. Richard Lederer’s book of Anguished English records many funny bloopers and blunders in the English language. Here are some smiles unintentionally created by children during school hours. Q: “What is the capital of Italy?” A: “I” “Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston in 1809 and was found unconscious. Three days later, he died in 1849.” “A liter is a lot of newborn puppies.” “Some people can tell time by looking at the sun, but I have never been able to make out the numbers.” “The hydrogen bomb is sometimes called the itch bomb. I don’t know why.” “Our new teacher told us all about fossils. Before she came to our class, I didn’t know what a fossil looked like.” Misplaced and strange phrases, as well as grammatical errors, can entirely change meanings. These errors can feed our day-to-day existence with ear-to-ear grins. Newspapers, for example, often contain strange but chortling information. “The patient lives at home with his mother, father, and pet turtle who is presently enrolled in day care three times a week.” “She was numb from her toes down.” “She typed the list of numbers alphabetically.” “The patient’s vision was 20.20 in both ears.” “He has a long history of a short leg.” “The patient was bitten by a bat as he walked down the street on his thumb.” Norman Cousins, (1915-1990), was an American journalist. He was diagnosed with Ankylosing Spondylitis in 1964, when he was 49 years old. Things looked so bad for the man that he was told by doctors to put his affairs in order. Upon hearing the diagnosis, Norman left the hospital and decided upon an unusual course of action. Firstly, he began to take an extremely high dose of vitamin C every day, and, secondly, he rented a movie projector and began watching comedies – comedies such as the Marx brothers’ films and Candid Camera reruns. It is recorded that Norman Cousins laughed and laughed until his belly hurt. He later wrote: “I made the joyous discovery that ten minutes of genuine laughter had an anaesthetic effect and would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep.” Cousins died in 1990, not of a worsening of the Ankylosing Spondylitis condition, but of heart disease. The aforementioned book by Lederer also recorded guffaws of amusement generated by signs posted on public buildings. On a travel office: “Don’t take a chance on ruining your vacation – come to us and be sure.” On a barbershop window: “During construction, we will shave you in the rear.” On a gas station: “We’re out of Rolaids, but we’ve got gas.” On a furniture store: “We promise you the lowest prices and workmanship.” On a dry-cleaning store: “Ten-minute parking for cleaning customers only.” Outside a country-kitchen restaurant: “Restrooms/Please wait for a hostess to seat you.” On an office: “Would the person who took the stepladder yesterday please bring it back, or further steps will be taken.” In the countryside: “Quicksand warning! Any person passing this point will be drowned. By order of the District Council.” On a store: “This is the back door. The front door is around the back.” Outside a pre-school: “Please slow drively.” Signs in foreign countries, trying for perfect English, have also wreaked havoc with the English language, causing much amusement for tourists. On a building in Japan: “Beauty saloon.” On the wrapper of a Russian ice-cream bar: “Do not taste our ice cream when it is too hard. Please continue your conversation until the ice cream grows into a softer. By adhering this advisement, you will fully appreciate the wonderful Soviet ice cream.” In an ad by an Israeli professor: “41, with 18 years of teaching in my behind. Looking for American-born woman who speak English very good.” In a Leipzig hotel: “Ladies, please rinse out your teapots standing upside down in sink. In no event should hot bottoms be place on the counter.” In a Beirut hotel: “Ladies are kindly requested not to have their babies in the cocktail bar.” In a Shanghai buffet: “You will be able to eat all you wish until you are fed up!” Earth laughs in flowers. So said Ralph Waldo Emerson. We, however, live in times in which it often appears as if we can see nothing on earth about which we can chuckle or laugh. Rumors of war, economic distress, famines, hatred, a turning away from truth are reasons for sadness. And we do well to know this. Yet humor and laughter are important to the Christian life. God has created the emotion of laughter within us and, by virtue of that fact alone, we can treasure it. It can be perverted, so we do well to be careful. The preacher, Charles Spurgeon, (1834-1892), rejoiced in birds and flowers and many ordinary things around him. Yet he also often struggled with depression and personal tragedies. He remained, however, a man of great joy and humor, believing joy and humor to be vital in the life of a Christian. He loved to share good jokes with family, friends and colleagues. A fellow pastor and personal friend, William Williams, wrote about Spurgeon: “What a bubbling fountain of humour Mr. Spurgeon had! I laughed more, I verily believe, when in his company than during all the rest of my life besides. He had the most fascinating gift of laughter - and he had also the greatest ability for making all who heard him laugh with him.” Things which induce clean laughter or amusement increase our ability to perceive happiness and are a gift of God. Conversely, a somber Christian, one who never smiles or laughs, is often Christian devoid of gladness....

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In a Nutshell

Tidbits – January 2026

Thrill seeking Ray Comfort is generally a pretty calm and tactful sort, but he has little patience for Christians who want to get a rush by jumping o...
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Christian education

Teaching English from a Christian perspective, as brought to you by the Letter C
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Top 10 articles of 2025

Below is a listing of the top 10 articles we published in the magazine during 2025, starting at #10 and counting up. Click on the titles to go to chec...
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Assorted

Busyness in the home

If you have a family, you know that your loved ones are greatly affected by your decisions around time management – and your children are watching a...
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News

4 out of 5 Canadians give like Scrooge

The Fraser Institute’s “Generosity Index” for 2025 revealed that a scant 0.52% of all income is being donated to charities. To add to this, the percentage of tax-filing Canadians that donate to charity has dropped dramatically in just a decade, from an already miserly 21.9% in 2013 to just 16.8% in 2023. Manitoba stands at the top of the paltry hill, with 18.7% of tax-filers donating. Nunavut takes home the provincial Scrooge award, with only 5.1% of tax-filers giving some of their income to charity. “What is most striking about these trends is that the extent of charitable giving fell in every Canadian jurisdiction” explained the authors of the report. They also noted that Americans give more than twice as much of their aggregate income to charity. The Globe and Mail’s Jason Kirby wrote that: “between 2013 and 2023 the national net worth of households soared by 50 per cent after adjusting for inflation, owing to real estate and stock market gains, according to an analysis of Statscan’s balance sheet data.” In other words, this precipitous generosity drop isn’t simply because Canadians are becoming poorer – overall we are wealthier, at least on paper. The worldview implications beneath this story become clear when combined with a report from Imagine Canada that found that 9 out of 10 charitable donors attend a religious service weekly. Scripture tells us that “we love because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). Christians understand that everything belongs to God, and the possessions He gives us are not ours to keep but ours to steward. Because He loved us, we love those around us, and demonstrate this love also in our charitable giving....

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Being the Church

Older men still have a job to do

Faithful children of God may look forward to sharing Jesus’ glory in the presence of the Father. “To live is Christ; to die is gain.” Why, then, does the Lord God not take people home to Himself as soon as they become empty nesters or, perhaps, when their spouse dies? Why does He let the older become old? The question is important, if only because there are numerous older men in the churches who feel they have no task to do, are out to pasture. In this article we will consider Paul’s instruction concerning the “older men” as he words it to Titus 2:2: “Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love and in endurance.” To give you the punch line right away, God keeps older men on earth because He uses them to build up His church. Men are not women God created two genders in the beginning, but did not make them at the same time. He first made a man, and placed him in the Garden with the command to work it and take care of it (Genesis 2:15). He was, in other words, responsible, and commissioned to take initiative in fulfilling his duties before God. The Lord saw that it was not good for the man to be alone, and so made a “helper” (Genesis 2:18) to be with him. In the relation between the man and the woman in Paradise, he was the leader and she was not; she was the helper and he was not. So when God came to the Adam and Eve after their fall into sin, he sought out the man: “where are you?” (Genesis 3:9). Similarly, when the Lord sought to call a family from Ur to go the land of promise, He did not call Sarah to take her husband and leave her mother’s household, but He summoned Abram to take his wife and leave his father’s household (Genesis 12:1). The point is that the man is, by God’s ordinance, the leader in family and society. As leader, the man invariably gives leadership, whether active or passive, where positive or negative. When Paul, then, tells Titus what to teach the older men, he’s instructing him in relation to that part of the human race commissioned to take responsibility and give leadership. How we view older men The men Titus must teach are "older." The term "older" is, of course, relative, and really depends on how old Titus is and perhaps depends too on the average age of the congregation where Titus ministered. Paul uses the same word to describe himself when he was some 60 years old (Philemon 9). Irrespective, though, of what age one wishes to peg to the term "older," the term certainly describes a person who has been around the block a few times. The "older" have, in other words, spent years in the school of life and so are in a position to show others how to do life. Now, our Canadian culture says that “older men” deserve the opportunity to kick back, enjoy life and play with the toys they’ve accumulated. But beneath this seemingly generous attitude is the thought that the older men are actually out of touch, can’t keep up with the fast pace of the younger, and are beyond their "use by" date, so they should be retired from any leadership roles. There is an echo of this thought in the church, to the effect that the older men (are made to) feel passed by and even uncertain about their purpose. The result is that they retreat into their seniors’ circle... and become an untapped resource. Their role This was not the intent of the Lord God. He created the first man (and woman) in His image, and gave the command to “be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over...” (Genesis 1:27f). Children born in Paradise, however, would not know by instinct how to rule over God’s world in a way that imaged God; the older generation was to teach the younger how to do this. Of course, the longer Adam lived, the better He’d know what God was like, and so the better equipped he’d be to teach coming generations how to “rule over” God’s creatures in a way pleasing to God. Clearly, as the God-appointed leader, the responsibility to train those after him was primarily Adam’s. The fall into sin obviously complicated the task enormously. But it didn’t change the expectations God had for Adam as he grew older, or for the subsequent generations of older men. So God told Moses that He poured the plagues on Egypt “that you may tell your children and grandchildren how I dealt harshly with the Egyptians... that you may know that I am the Lord” (Exodus 10:2). Moses, we need to know, was more than 80 years old (see Exodus 7:7) at the time God gave him this instruction. Talk about the role of “the older men”! Fully in line with this command is the prayer of the psalmist: “Even when I’m old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your might to all who are to come” (Psalm 71:18). Because of this God-assigned role of the aged, the Lord commanded the youth of Israel to respect the seniors (and not just the grandparents). As an older man approached them, the youth were to “rise” and “show respect for the elderly” (Leviticus 19:32). Here was recognition that the older have learned so much in God’s school-of-life and were a reservoir of experience and wisdom for the younger to tap into. Sadly, not all older men speak only wisdom. Job’s three senior friends spoke the language of fools in their reprimands to Job (cf Job 42:7; 32:6ff). Solomon advised older folk not to say, “Why were the old days better than these?” (Ecclesiastes 7:10). Young people live in the present (not the past), and in the challenges God gives today they need encouragement – and not the signal that today is too hard. Older men, in other words, need to make it their business to be careful how they analyze the present in relation to the past; their analysis requires ongoing Bible study and thought. All this Old Testament material comes along in Paul’s instruction to Titus. For the benefit of the churches of Crete, Paul draws out the implication of the role God has assigned to the “older men.” Given that role, Paul says these older men are to be:: temperate worthy of respect self-controlled 1. Temperate The term “temperate” in Titus 2:2 translates a word that appears elsewhere as “sober” or “sober-minded.” The term is often used in relation to drink and so becomes instruction in being moderate in how much you drink. Yet Paul’s point is not that older men are simply to exercise moderation in drinking. Rather, in all of life one is to be moderate, not indulgent, not extravagant, not into excess or glut. Herein the “older men” of the church would contrast with the typical attitude of the Cretans around them, who were “always... lazy gluttons” (Titus 1:12). What, though, is wrong with excess? Why must Titus make a point of telling older men to be moderate? Older men (should) have learned the truth of Solomon’s words in Ecclesiastes 2, when he tried all sorts of excess in his attempt to make sense of life. As many young men do, Solomon sought fulfillment in wine, houses, gardens, women, song, parties, and more. But the more he tried, the more he realized that things do not lift us out of the thorns and thistles of a life outside Paradise. His conclusion was this: “when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind” (Ecclesiastes 2:11). That was the advantage of older age: Solomon could tell the younger of his realm that he’d been there, done that... and they should take instruction from him and not repeat his futile search. This is the message Titus was to instruct older men to convey to the younger. Those older men had been around the block, had tested the value of more and more stuff, and so were in a position to vouch for the truth of Ecclesiastes 2. These “older men” have “fought the good fight,” “have finished the race” (2 Tim 4:7), and now await the summons of the Lord to enter the presence of their Father. So their lifestyle was to model that life is not about food, property, looks, degrees, music, chocolate, gin or women. Instead, their lifestyle should reflect the delightful fact that “the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared” (Titus 2:11); Christ has come to redeem sinners, take away the cause of our eternal hunger and misery, and through His self-emptying on the cross restored sinners to Paradise. Since that’s so, one needs to be consistent and say “no” to ungodliness and worldly passions (2:12), “no” to more toys, more drink, more "buzz," etc, and live instead “godly and upright lives in the present age, while we wait for the... glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (2:13). When a "temperate" lifestyle is in place, a man will be moderate in his demand for food and drink, for wealth and holiday. “Older men” have learned through the school of life to get their priorities right, so that their emphasis lies on service to the neighbor, a service that reflects God’s love for us in Jesus Christ. 2. Worthy of respect Titus is also to instruct “older men” to carry themselves in a dignified manner. Again, the point is not so hard to grasp. Older men have buried parents, and perhaps also a spouse or a child. They have been through war, sickness, fire, flood, drought and more – and so learned through the hard knocks of life that life is not a joke. They’ve learned that trials come from God as so many divine teaching moments whereby the heavenly Father would train us in the school of life for further service and to be more fruitful for His glory. Older men (ought to) know this, and so take God’s reality seriously in the hard knocks of life; always the question presses on their minds: what is God teaching me through this? No, this does not make the older boring or gloomy (as if life is not enjoyable). On the contrary, living every step of life in the awareness that you live every moment in God’s school makes life exciting and fun. Older men model this awareness – for the benefit of the rest of congregation. That’s the sort of leadership they are to give. 3. Self-controlled Finally, Titus must tell “older men” to be disciplined. They, after all, ought to have learned how to get the passions and instincts of youth under control. As a result, they act less out of impulse, with decisions more thought through. They’ve learned to live life sensibly, seriously, and so with fitting restraint. So their lives displays good health (not necessarily in body but) “in faith, in love and in endurance…” The same need today This, then, is what Titus was to encourage the older men to exemplify among the Christians of Crete. But the sort of lifestyle this behavior encouraged, contrasted with the excess that Cretans typically celebrated. Recall again Paul’s summary of what Cretans were like: “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons” (Titus 1:12). We can imagine the “lazy gluttons” of the island; we know the type: shrunken biceps and ample waistline assembled in the coffee shops and beer parlors, talking about the latest horse race, hockey game, cruise, property deal, woman. How thoroughly North American; truly, there is nothing new under the sun. The new Christians of Crete were raised in that culture, and remained greatly influenced by what was accepted around them. How tempting, then, to adopt the same attitude; “eat, drink, and be merry...” Hence Paul’s instruction to Titus: since older men are by God’s ordinance to be leaders, instruct them to be temperate to be examples for the women and younger men to follow. This, Paul figures, is necessary to build up congregational life (1:5a). Value The Lord has prepared a glorious future for His (older) children, yet leaves older brothers on this earth for a purpose; they remain here to be examples for rest of congregation. So, older men, take up the task with confidence! You’ve been through the school of life, and so know that neither things nor pleasures give fulfillment, salvation, or purpose; by faith you know that Jesus Christ has restored us to God. That being so, model the gospel for the benefit of the rest of the congregation: be moderate, dignified, self-controlled in a manner that the younger of the flock can see. This is the service to which you remain called, until such time as God Himself relieves you and gives you the crown of glory. Conclusion There is definitely so very much in the congregation for which we may be thankful. That includes the large number of older brothers in our midst. They are here, by God’s providence, for a reason. My conviction is that they are under-utilized. No, I’m not thinking now of consistory work; it may be that the Lord is no longer calling the (much) older brothers to this task anymore. I’m thinking instead of how the older, without exception, have a role to play in relation to the younger. Let the older men take their mentorship role seriously, being deeply aware that God leaves them in this life in order that they might model the gospel for the benefit of the younger and even seek out the younger to speak to them of the works of the Lord as they experienced them over the years. It’s a privileged fact: the younger need your leadership, example, and instruction. Recall Psalm 92:14f “...the righteous...will still bear fruit in old age...proclaiming, ‘The Lord is upright; He is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in Him’”   Healthy church life needs the continued involvement of the older men. Rev. Bouwman is a minister for the Canadian Reformed Church of Smithville, Ontario. This article was first appeared in the December 2012 issue....

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Blessed are the busy?

Should we be trying to be less busy or be busy better? ***** It’s not really the worst problem to have: too many good things to do, and not enough time to do them all. Maybe that's why, when I talked to so many women about busyness, they admitted to stress and struggles around their busy schedules, but also expressed gratitude for all the things that fill up their days. The question for most of us isn’t whether or not we’re busy (and sometimes too busy). Rather, we wonder if we’re always busy with the right things, and for the right reasons. We want to figure out how to cope with the reality of busyness, and maybe find a way to bring a little more balance and sanity to our lives. BUSYNESS: A HEART ISSUE “I don’t want to miss out on opportunities, mess up relationships by disappointing people, or misstep right out of God’s will. I struggle with keeping some sense of balance in my life. I struggle with worrying about what others think of my decisions...” – Lysa TerKeurst, The Best Yes For better and worse, busyness is as much a heart issue as it is a physical one, and maybe that’s why it’s such a hard one to grapple with. It’s difficult to untangle our motivations for the choices we make with our limited time and energy. Sometimes our busyness is driven by the wrong things, like a desire to please or earn admiration, or by misplaced priorities. Often, though, we’re acting out of a sincere desire to serve God and others, and to be good stewards of the time and opportunities God has given us. We feel keenly the weight of others’ needs and expectations. At the same time, we constantly fight the temptation to compare – and judge. These struggles of the mind and heart lead to a lot of soul-searching. And, as was made clear by some of the thoughts that were shared with me, they are the cause of very real distress for many Christian women. “It can be really quite hard to assess if I am truly called to a new thing or if I should stay the course on what I am doing. It’s hard to assess my motives. And even when I make a decision, I easily second-guess myself.” “Do we make ourselves busy to avoid judgment from others who look at us and think we should be doing more? I feel that sometimes.” “Too often we connect our personal worth and value to the stuff we are busy with.” “... this is what drives me: If I don’t do it, I’ll disappoint someone who matters – or even who doesn’t really. If I don’t do it, I’m lazy... or I’m unstewardly: I can save money by canning and baking and freezing. I’m failing my kids: if I don’t bake, and can, and preserve, I’m feeding them cancer or other diseases. I’m not letting them grow to their fullest potential by taking their sports and music from them... Will I fail my calling and deny my promises at baptism if I don’t do all these things? ... where am I trusting God in all this?” We really do want to be “Proverbs 31 women,” capably accomplishing all our tasks (and then some) with a godly heart and a serene smile on our face, but there just isn’t enough time for everything. We’re only human, but sometimes feel guilty about our very natural weaknesses and limitations. When can we legitimately say that we are “busy enough”? As Kevin DeYoung puts it in his excellent book Crazy Busy, we’re constantly told that: “we should pray more, give more, show hospitality more, share our faith more, read our Bibles more, volunteer more.... Where do I start? Where do I find the time? How can I possibly meet all these obligations?... I think most Christians hear these urgent calls to do more (or feel them internally already) and learn to live with a low-level guilt that comes from not doing enough.... That’s not how the apostle Paul lived (1 Cor. 4:4), and it’s not how God wants us to live either (Rom. 12:1-2). Either we are guilty of sin – like greed, selfishness, idolatry – and we need to repent, be forgiven and change. Or something else is going on. It’s taken me several years, a lot of reflection and a load of unnecessary busyness to understand that when it comes to good causes and good deeds, ‘do more or disobey’ is not the best thing we can say.” PRIORITIES “I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer.” - attributed to Martin Luther When the author to the Hebrews encourages God’s people to “run with perseverance the race marked out for us,” he doesn’t just tell us to throw off “the sin that so easily entangles,” but also urges us to lay aside everything (or “every weight”) that hinders. These “weights” aren’t necessarily bad in themselves – they’re distinct from the “sin” that’s also mentioned – but they draw our attention away from the race that’s in front of us. At its most simple, figuring out a way forward comes down to priorities. If we’re not able to do everything (and we’re not!), we need to identify and prioritize the most important things, the things that can’t be left undone. I think, at heart, most of us know what those most important things are: our relationship with God, our relationships with those closest to us, the daily calling God has put in front of us in our different roles, our own wellbeing (physical, mental, emotional, spiritual). But sometimes taking time for devotions can feel like a leap of faith (“How can I sit down now if I hope to get everything done this morning?”) or, worse, like just another chore; and it’s easy to brush off “relationship time” or adequate sleep when other things feel more urgent. The women I talked to also pondered the importance of well-ordered priorities in their lives, and how to stay focused on the things that really matter. Their helpful suggestions included asking ourselves some pointed questions. “How does my time use match, or not match, what I’ve identified as my priorities?” If God is number one in my life, does my daily and weekly schedule reflect that? Or do things that are far less important, but feel more urgent, keep crowding out Bible study or church activities? “What are my personal non-negotiables?” For one woman, these daily must-do’s are “devotions, going outside into God’s creation (even if it’s just for a short time), and making a good dinner. These are non-negotiables for me because they’re all very important for my physical, emotional and spiritual health as well as my family’s.” Others’ lists are different, but making conscious, deliberate choices about our priorities is key. “Is any one part of my life drastically out of balance?” We’re complex beings, and the different parts of our lives and selves – mental, emotional, physical, spiritual, social, work – affect each other. A Christian counselor shared with me that the biggest cause of stress, in her experience, is an imbalance between these areas. We need regular sleep, exercise, and healthy food. We need relationships that rejuvenate us (especially when other relationships in our lives are more difficult or draining). We need Sunday rest, breaks, and times of quietness. “Am I minimizing ‘artificial busyness’?” Some of the things that make us feel busy actually lack substance. Social media is a big one for many of us. As one woman commented, “This isn’t natural human connecting and working on relationships, this is a substitute” – so we’re better off focusing on the people in front of us, rather than on the virtual relationships and conversations that can divert so much of our time and energy. “Am I too worried about what others think?” Peer pressure, and others’ expectations (real or perceived), are a huge factor in keeping us busy – sometimes with the wrong things. Maybe if you’re willing to raise some eyebrows by challenging or resisting an unhealthy trend, others will gratefully follow. “Am I bringing my decisions, and my struggles, to God?” Many women emphasized the key role of prayer and time in God’s Word in their decisions around time use, and their struggles with feelings like guilt, discouragement and inadequacy. Making time for personal devotions actually is a leap of faith – one that not only honors God, but also grounds us, reminds us to trust God (and humbly recognize our own limits), and helps us make wiser decisions. So how can you have a Mary heart when you have a Martha to-do list? Start by knowing your priorities, focusing on them first, and trusting God to help you sort through the rest. As Kevin DeYoung put it, “The antidote to busyness of soul is not sloth and indifference. The antidote is rest, rhythm, death to pride, acceptance of our own finitude and trust in the providence of God.” WHAT DOES GOD REALLY WANT FROM US... AND FOR US? “It is extraordinary how little the New Testament says about God’s interest in our success, by comparison with the enormous amount it says about God’s interest in our holiness, our maturity in Christ, and our growth into the fullness of his image.” – J.I. Packer, Rediscovering Holiness We all want to be faithful and fruitful... but this desire can easily veer off course. What is it that God most wants from us, and for us? The fact that He made us with very real weaknesses and limitations tells us something. He created us to need sleep, and in fact a substantial number of hours of it. He sometimes gives us extended, enforced periods of waiting and inactivity. These realities can be very frustrating for us. Couldn’t we accomplish so much more for Him if we didn’t have these limitations? But evidently – and amazingly – God is more interested in us, and the sanctifying work He’s doing in us, than simply in our raw productivity. We’re not merely servants with long and burdensome lists of tasks; we’re loved children. What a freeing thought, and what an undeserved honor! When we start evaluating ourselves (or others) based on how much we can accomplish, we’re using a skewed measurement – and not the one God uses. On a personal level, we may be showing Pharisaical tendencies, trying to earn the favor of God and others. On a larger scale, we’re starting down a very dangerous path, as we buy into a worldview that equates worth with ability, leading to devastating social consequences. By all means, let’s do our best to be faithful stewards of the time, energy, resources, and opportunities God has given us, and let’s be busy with many good things for Him. But let’s not forget His priorities for us, since “we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God” (1 Cor. 2:12). STEWARDING OUR TIME “Stewarding my time is not about selfishly pursuing only the things I’d like to do. It’s about effectively serving others in the ways I’m best able to serve and in the ways I’m most uniquely called to serve.” - Kevin DeYoung, Crazy Busy Sometimes we live at the pace of craziness because of unconsciously wrong priorities or confused expectations; other times it’s because of factors that really are outside our control, and we just have to hang on for a season that’s busier than feels ideal. (Often we learn a lot in these seasons, and God certainly uses them too.) But sometimes we bring the craziness on ourselves, and change is needed. It takes mature self-discipline, planning, and some self-denial to be good stewards of our time. But, by God’s grace, these things are within our reach. So let’s take the steps needed to curb our bad online habits. Let’s stick to a reasonable bedtime, or maybe meal plan (I know that makes some of us shudder), or say a polite “no” to something good so we can say “yes” to something better – whatever it takes in your particular life and circumstances. (See the sidebar article “Taming busyness” for more practical tips from other women.) One helpful but sometimes hard-to-implement principle is to leave room for “margin” – defined by Christian author Dr. Richard Swenson as “the space between our load and our limits.” For most of us, there’s rarely a week or even a day without some unexpected interruption, need, or crisis – a fender-bender, a lost pair of glasses, a washing machine malfunction, an unwelcome visit from the flu bug – and if we don’t have any “wiggle room” in our schedule, these unexpected problems can quickly derail us and cause disproportionate stress. Again, knowing our priorities helps us in this area too; if our secondary to-do’s don’t get done because of a sudden change of plans, we’ll be less fretful if we know we at least made time for our key tasks or goals. We also need to realize that using our time well doesn’t always look like we think it should. As Kevin DeYoung points out, caring for people – which should be a priority for all of us – is “often wildly inefficient. People are messy, and if we are going to help them we will wade into a lot of time-consuming messes.” Many of the most important things we’re busy with don’t fit nicely on a to-do checklist. Finally, being stewardly with our time means making constant choices, big and small, based on our priorities and on other factors. We may care about a lot of things, and be concerned about a lot of things (and people), but that doesn’t mean God is calling us to meet every need. So how do we decide if a new commitment should be a “yes”? Here are a few questions that other women have found helpful to consider: “Have I counted the cost?” Like the builder in Luke 14, we need to “count the cost” before we start a project. As one woman commented, “The task itself is always only a fraction of the commitment”; but too often we aren’t realistic about what something will required from us. Most activities involve not only a time cost, but also a mental/emotional energy cost – which affects both you and the people in your life. “Does this fit with my strengths – or, if not, will it stretch me in a positive way?” It’s okay to play to our strengths. One woman I know dislikes making meals for other families, but enjoys cleaning and organizing. For years she would feel stressed every time a church meal request came out – and either sign up and dread the whole experience, or not sign up and feel guilty. Now she offers to help in other ways: “I often will say “what is causing you stress right now?” – and then see if I can help in that area. I’ve done anything from researching and buying an iPad for someone to re-organizing a pantry or cleaning out a shed.” Another woman agreed, “When we use our strengths, things tend to go more smoothly and with less stress.” Of course, there are times when we might be ready for a helpful “stretch,” so it’s good to keep an open mind – and a prayerful heart – about new opportunities as well. “Do I feel passionate about this?” Although some things aren’t particularly exciting and simply need doing, we’re naturally drawn to some tasks more than to others, and it’s okay to factor that into our decision-making. Do I believe this activity is really worthwhile? Does this activity “fill me up” or drain me? Do I feel energized when I think about doing this? BLESSED TO BE BUSY “Lay your life down. Your heartbeats cannot be hoarded. Your reservoir of breaths is draining away. You have hands, blister them while you can. You have bones, make them strain – they can carry nothing in the grave.” - N.D. Wilson, Death by Living Busyness means life – the blessings of relationships, of talents, of energy, of opportunities, of good tasks to do. As Kevin DeYoung puts it, “the reason we are busy is because we are supposed to be busy.” We are blessed to be busy. It’s okay to work hard; the Bible has nothing good to say about “the sluggard.” It’s okay to be tired – as long as we recognize the line between healthy fatigue and unhealthy exhaustion. It’s okay to be stretched; often it’s how we grow. So let’s be busy carefully and deliberately, prayerfully and peacefully – not taking on burdens we were never meant to carry, and not because we find our self-worth or our life’s meaning in the things we’re busy with. And let’s give grace to ourselves and others – the same grace God extends to us in our weaknesses. We can never truly know what our neighbor is dealing with, or what limitations he or she grapples with, so let’s be careful about judging, pressuring, or comparing. “For each will have to bear his own load” (Gal. 6:5). A quick note to the married and mothers among us: don’t add to the strain of your single/childless friends by assuming they have all kinds of time you don’t. They may not have a family to take care of (though they may well be caring for parents, without the help of a spouse), but they also aren’t sharing the daily tasks of cooking, shopping, car maintenance, and so on. Let’s “bear each other’s burdens,” not add to them. “Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls.... So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God” (Rom. 14:4, 12). “So let’s do what needs to be done with a happy heart, thankful for each of these opportunities and the evidence of life they represent. Whistle while we work. Do a great job.... Just remember not every responsibility can be your responsibility.” - Lysa TerKeurst, The Best Yes...

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My journey with books

It has been a long journey of books for me. I grew up with books, and as a child read from The Book of Knowledge encyclopedia, the Bobbsey Twins series and Grace Livingston Hill’s books. It was my own love for books which had me keep my nursing and my Bible College textbooks. But it was not until I met my husband-to-be John that I really discovered what it was to have books in the house – here was a man who loved books! On our very first date, when I mentioned that I had Berkoff’s Systematic Theology, John asked if maybe he could borrow it some time. I thought to myself, “There is no way he is going to get that textbook - I’ll never see it again!” For our first 3 months of marriage we lived with John’s parents in Oshawa, Ontario before we went to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where John was to study at Calvin Seminary. During those 3 months, I decided to straighten out John’s bookcases. That meant I put the books all in neat rows according to height and size – I was tired of look at those messy shelves. John was not a happy camper when he came home and found out that his books were not in subject order. Oh well, live and learn, in those early marriage days. More and more books Throughout his ministry, the supply of books increased. John mostly bought books at garage sales, library sales, or people would kindly give him books from their collections – he would never say no to that. But then we would need more bookshelves and more space. In all our moves the books came with us. From Vernon, BC to Wellandport, ON they came by train in the deep of winter. None were lost. He took about 400 books with us to the Philippines – ones he needed for teaching at the seminary. It was a challenge to sort and choose. He took some Dutch books as well, only to find that the bok-bok worm liked the glue in his Dutch books (but they had no interest in his cheap paperbacks). In all our pastorates John has his study in the house, taking up a bedroom for his books. In Wellandport the church built a special addition on to the parsonage for his study. That was much needed – our family of six needed the room. And the quantity of books continued to grow. All sorts John was happiest when he had a book and pen in his hand to make his own personal notes and scribbles – he did not use a highlighter for his markings. And he was quite an eclectic reader, his reading ranging from The Communist Manifesto to Francis Schaeffer’s writings. One of his favorite books to read again and again was Augustine’s Confessions. Right up there among his favorites were C.S. Lewis, Chuck Colson, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, and A. Kuyper. There was no end of his favorite special writers. I could tell when John was tired – that’s when he would pull out a good Dutch novel. Though he was a serious reader, John enjoyed a good mystery, the likes of Agatha Christie or G.K. Chesterton. Tools in his toolbox John was often asked if he had read them all. Yes, he would say. Mind you, some of them were strictly reference material for his sermons or articles. Did he keep every book he got from day one when he started his ministry? Believe it or not, he gave away a good number to future seminarians and threw out others that were no longer relevant or falling apart. Did it make a dent on the shelf? Hardly. At one point I had to put my foot down and say I did not want bookshelves in our bedroom or kitchen. Looking after all these books was a challenge, especially when it came to dusting and straightening up the shelves. Books are real dust collectors so every year around Christmas or New Years I would take them down, shelf by shelf, and give them all a good dusting. I would find pieces of paper stuck in a book, along with clippings, articles, and any other kind of paper for his notes. Yes books were part and parcel of John’s ministry and our married life. Books were his tools, just like that of a carpenter or painter. They had to be accessible somewhere, even if that meant a pile on the floor by his chair and not in a box in the cupboard. Passing on the tools The time came in John’s last 2 months when he could not hold a pen or a book, let alone have the stamina to read. That was a blow to give up something he loved dearly all his life. One of my hardest times was to go into his study where I saw piles of books he had gathered for his articles, his pens his notes and the discarded scraps of paper in his wastebasket… all just where he left it to the point of no return. A year later I sorted out John’s Dutch books, computer filed each title and author, boxed 1,300 of them and took them to the Canadian Reformed Seminary in Hamilton. I did the same with his English books, computer filed each title, and author, boxed 3,600 books, and took them to Redeemer Christian College University in Ancaster, Ontario. A few books went to family and to several of John’s colleagues. That was John’s wish and prayer – that his books would be used for God’s glory and His Kingdom. So this is my journey with books – from a few boxes when we arrived in Vernon, BC in 1966 to our life in London, ON where I took out over 200 boxes of books. The journey has been long and good and I certainly have no regrets living surrounded by books! For 13 years Rev. Johan Tangelder (1936-2009) – John – wrote articles for Reformed Perspective. You can find many of those articles here, and many more on his website. This article first appeared in the July 2011 issue....

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