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Magazine, Past Issue

July/Aug 2025 issue

WHAT'S INSIDE: Screen-fast, sports betting, & environmental stewardship

Our 10-day screen-fast challenge that we presented in the last issue is getting traction. Marty VanDriel has a story that shares how the fast went for him and others who gave it a try.

But that was just the start. Some generous supporters have recognized how important this issue is, so they are offering up a little extra motivation for us all. They have pledged to donate $100 to two fantastic kingdom causes – Word & Deed and Reformed Perspective – for every person who commits to and completes a 10-day fast from their screens from July 21 to 30 (to a maximum of $20,000 split between both causes).

Screens aren’t evil, but as the cover illustrates so well, screens can keep us from seeing reality – from seeing God’s loving hand upholding creation, this world, and our lives. Here now is your opportunity to join with some family and friends and maybe your whole church community to put screens aside and see the rest of the world unfiltered. Check out page 19 for more details or click on the QR code above to sign up.

Since sports betting was legalized in 2021, it has taken Canada by storm. If you watch any hockey you’ve noticed a lot of betting ads, and they bring with them a growing temptation for Christians to make some money while enjoying their favurite teams. But as Jeff Dykstra explains, we have good reason to steer clear of sports gambling.

In this issue we also do a deep dive into the topic of environmental stewardship by sitting down with two Christian women who work for an environmental group in the middle of a logging community in northern BC.

If you are an adult who tends to skip over the Come & Explore kids’ section, we encourage you to give this one a read. It will be sure to make you smile.

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or click here to download the PDF (8 mb)

INDEX: Are you still able: A nation-wide challenge to experience life without screens / Creation stewards in a logging town / Who do you want to be? RP's 10-day screen-fast challenge / We took the no screens challenge... and now we're changing our habits / What can I do anyways? 35 screen-alternative ideas / Is TikTok the ultimate contraception? / How to stay sane in an overstimulated age / Defeated by distraction / How to use AI like a Christian boss / Who speeches were they? On AI, and others, writing for us / The Way / Who is Mark Carney? / What if we said what we mean? - the political party edition / Am I lazy or just relaxing? What does Proverbs say? / Get out of the game: Christians need to steer clear of sports gambling / Man up: ARPA leaderboards and the call to courageous action / Christians don't pray / Our forever home / Calvin as a comic / The best comics for kids / Fun is something you make: 11 times for family road trips / Come and Explore: Mr. Morose goes to the doctor / Rachel VanEgmond is exploring God's General Revelation / 642 Canadian babies were born alive and left to die / 90 pro-life MPs elected to parliament / Ontario shows why euthanasia "safeguards" can't work / RP's coming to a church near you



News

Canada’s population almost shrinking

The latest population estimation from Statistics Canada is revealing a startling change: Ontario, Quebec, and BC all saw population declines in the first quarter of 2025.

The country as a whole grew by only 20,107 people, which, as a percentage, amounted to a 0.0% increase, the second-slowest growth rate in Canada since records began in 1946. The record prior was the third quarter of 2020, when border restrictions from the Covid-19 pandemic prevented immigration. The decrease has been attributed to announcements by the federal government in 2024 to decrease temporary and permanent immigration levels, with targets of 436,000 for this year, which is still well above the 250,000 level prior to the Liberal government taking office in 2015.

So, in the first quarter of 2025 we lost 17,410 people via emigration to other countries, and there was also a drop of 61,111 in non-permanent residents – people on temporary work or student visas, along with their families. The data also shows that there were 5,628 more deaths than births in the first quarter, largely due to Canada’s quickly declining fertility rate. That’s a collective loss of population of 84,140 people.

Then, going in the other direction, we had 104,256 people immigrate to Canada, for that small net increase of 20,107.

While it is a blessing that people from other countries are still willing and able to move to Canada, it is sobering to note that two-thirds of the world’s populations are now below replacement rate and the world’s population is projected to start declining later this century.

God’s first command to humanity was to “be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it” (Genesis 1:28). Imagine what the world could look like in a few generations if Christians fulfilled this cultural mandate with enthusiasm while the rest of the world continued on its course.


Today's Devotional

July 11 - Fellowship in the truth (II)

“If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father.” - 1 John 2:24 

Scripture reading: 1 John 2:24-27; 1 Corinthians 2:6-16

As we were reminded of yesterday, fellowship with God outside of the truth that is Jesus Christ is impossible.  Thankfully, we have been given two wonderful aids to bring us to >

Today's Manna Podcast

Manna Podcast banner: Manna Daily Scripture Meditations and open Bible with jar logo

Creation: In His Presence

Serving #900 of Manna, prepared by D. VandeBurgt, is called "Creation" (In His Presence) and is based on Genesis 1.















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Entertainment

“What can I do anyways?”

35 screen-alternative ideas ***** You can’t beat something with nothing (as Eph. 4:28, Matt. 12:30, and Matt. 12:43-45 make clear). That means if you want to do RP's 10-day screen-fast challenge July 21-30, it isn’t realistic to expect to manage without your phone if you haven’t made plans for what you’ll do the next time you’re tempted to reach for it. So here are ideas for what you and your family can do with your screen-free moments, minutes, hours, and days. Plan away Short-term - Using the list below and a brainstorming session with family or friends, create a list of activities for your 10 days of screen-free time. Medium-term - pull out a big piece of craft paper and along with your family create a list of items you’d love to do this summer. Long-term - Spend an hour writing out a list of 50 goals, big or small, for your future. Share and refine it with input from family and friends. On the homefront Clean one room at a time – you have 10 days, so what if you took on one room a day, and gave it the “clean, organize, and de-clutter” you’ve been meaning to do just about forever? Honey-do list - make your better half happy by fixing something. Hospitality Host a dinner for friends and do it up with candles. Make meal prep part of the entertainment by learning to make something new. Sushi anyone? How about calzones? Put on a games night, and invite your friends to bring along their favorites. Invite someone you might not normally interact with. Focus on games that allow for conversation (the less intense sort). Search for “board games” on ReformedPerspective.ca for our suggestions. Reconnect Is your family spread across the continent, or around the world? Pick up the phone and chat away – phone one person a day. Everyone loves a letter – make a package to mail away to grandma and grandpa. Read something awesome While your local library likely has too much weird stuff to want to take your kids there, you can reserve books to pick up. Before you turn off your computer to start your screen fast, be sure to check out RP’s recommendations for picture books, graphic novels, biographies, and novels for all ages. We have hundreds of nominees for you at Reformedperspective.ca/books. Remember to take a book with you wherever you go to fill in those spare moments when you used to play a phone game. New Testament Bible reading challenge anyone? If you read for a half hour each day, starting at Matthew, you could make it through most of the gospels in 10 days. Listen to a dramatized audiobook like the Chronicles of Narnia. Interview someone Interview your grandparents or parents or an inspirational someone you’d like to learn from… but first, alone, or together with friends or family, come up with a list of 20 questions to ask them. How did they meet their spouse? Was there an important lesson they learned the hard way? How have they seen God acting in their life? If they could go back in time, what would they tell their 15-year-old self? Etc. Interview your cat, dog, or even your favorite book, and imagine the answers they’d give. Be sure to write it all down, so you can share it with your family! Start (or share) a hobby Always wanted to learn to crochet, draw, or play the guitar? Get yourself prepped to give it a real go by either finding someone who will teach you, or finding a book or maybe even a video series (maybe that’s one of your exceptions?). Teach your kids, or a friend’s kids, how to sew, whittle, sketch, paint, or hit a baseball. Get some exercise Go for a long walk each day or head out on a hike with your spouse, family, a friend or two, or take the time alone to talk with God. Try something new. Pickleball anyone? Rock climbing? How about swimming? Or what about a program to help with your achy knees? Volunteer Babysit for a couple so they can have a nice evening out. Ask your oma if she needs any help around her house or yard. Deliver some Let Kids Be brochures door-to-door for ARPA Canada. Staycation Become a tourist in your own backyard and check out your local attractions – museums, zoo, historical sites, hiking and biking trails, playgrounds, thrift stores, and more. Build a fire in your backyard, roast marshmallows, make s’mores, stargaze, and swap tall tales. Reboot your gratitude Start a gratitude journal and journal daily – God has given us so much that we can easily overlook the blessings all around. Give Him glory by taking the time to see it all. Make it a family challenge to come up with 5 (or more, or less – see how hard or easy it is) events, people, or things that made you happy today. Write each one down on a notecard, accompanied by some related artwork, and post them to a hallway wall. For motivation’s sake, come up with a small reward (a Hershey kiss?) for each notecard, and a small penalty (one push-up per) for whatever each participants falls short of. Click away Create a photo scavenger hunt for your friends – a list of 10 items for teams to search out and find in the great outdoors and take a picture of to prove they found them. Items can be anything, but they should be possible, but hard, to find like a four-leaf clover, or something in nature shaped like a Z, etc. Take pictures for RP's summer photo contest. Find the rules and deadline by clicking here. An evening inside Read the same book together, out loud with one copy (taking turns, and maybe while doing a puzzle) or quietly with multiple copies. Be interruptible so you and your kids can share your favorite parts. Create your own game together. It can be whatever you like, but two easy and fun possibilities involve variants on Pictionary and charades. The first step is to create a “deck” of 100 things you’ll either draw or act out with every player contributing ideas. You can now divide into teams, or just take turns being the drawer or actor, with everyone else guessing. Mix it up by giving the option of acting or drawing the card. Play a round and get everyone to offer up a new twist on the rules and then vote on your favorite and play again. Write Write about your experiences doing the screen-fast and think about sharing it with RP! Write a letter to your younger self and share the 10 pieces of advice you’d want him to know. Falling asleep Fall asleep to a devotional. If you find it hard to get to sleep at night without a screen, try reading a devotional. Prayer, and then a few minutes reading, can help you hand off your concerns to God. If you’re married, take turns doing the reading. Couples can use the undistracted time at the end of the day to be fully present with their spouse – emotionally, spiritually, and physically. Turn off the screens and turn toward each other. Challenges Everyone loves a competition so create a challenge a day and recruit your family and friends. Examples could include doing 100 of anything (push-ups, squats, etc.) over a day. Or going 24 hours without saying anything negative (do a pushup/squat when you blow it). Track how many times you reach for or pine for your screen using a communal tick – maybe a sheet of paper on the fridge. See how you compare to your friends, and how your first day compares to day 10. Challenge your kids to find 10, 20, or even 100 things in their room (or the house) to throw out or give away. Plan out the next challenge that Reformed Perspective should do. Pictures by Hannah Penninga....

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Being the Church

Being thrifty and finding hope

In his “science of happiness” class at Harvard Business School, Arthur Brooks teaches that of the five things you can do with money, four could make you happy. What are these four, and what’s the fifth one that can’t bring joy? As Brooks explained on The Ramsey Show: “You can buy experiences, you can buy time, you can give it away, or you can save it…. your brain is telling you to do the one thing that won’t bring happiness, which is to go buy stuff.” Although Brooks is generally correct, a recent visit to the Hope for Children Thrift Store in Langley, BC, taught me that there is an important exception. There I experienced how buying and selling “stuff” can bring more than happiness. It can bring hope. That isn’t because it is a bargain, regardless of how much that may make our heart sing at the till. Rather, it is because of the people and mission that drive the store. Peel away the surface and you discover that by buying “stuff” at this thrift store, you end up accomplishing all the other ways that Brooks says your money can buy happiness: buying experiences and time, saving, and giving things away. In other words, this thrift store reveals the secret to how our “stuff” can be used to bring lasting hope and joy. Saving a dollar Taking a few steps into the thrift store, the first thing I noticed was people. Everywhere. The place was hopping. Customers were swarming the clothing racks and the till. I watched as one lady, who appeared to be homeless, asked the volunteer at the till to show her a piece of jewellery that caught her eye in the display case. The item was only a dollar or two, and the would-be buyer was eager to try it on. The store wasn’t entirely new to me. My mother-in-law has volunteered here for years and, when we visit the area, my family frequently shops at the store. Even when we aren’t in the area, my mother-in-law often has a list of items to keep an eye out for – things our family needs, like a pair of boys’ running shoes, or winter mitts. Coming from a family of ten, I was raised on thrift store finds, and I became a thrift shopper myself when I moved out of the home and attended university. I have grown to love thrift stores, not just because of the cost-savings, but also because they accomplish so much more. That is why I went to Hope for Children – to pull the curtain back on the side to thrifting that so many don’t see. Saving vulnerable children I turned away from the till to be greeted by the store’s bright-eyed manager, Fiona Jansen. She took me to the one small place in the building where there wasn’t a bustle: the volunteers’ coffee room. Jansen explained why the thrift store was first started 10 years ago. About 17 years ago, Jeremy VanBeelen and Duane Visscher, two young men from the local Reformed community, had traveled to an orphanage in Mexico for a short-term mission project. The work pulled on their hearts so much that they stayed, devoting their lives to the orphanages. “We had a couple of families connected to the ministries that were serving in Mexico,” Jansen explained. “The thrift store is a really great way to raise money…and so people got excited.” With the help of some people who had experience running a thrift store, a core group got “Hope for Children Thrift Store” off the ground. The store was named after the organization overseeing the orphanages in Mexico. Indeed, the thrift store has been a great way to raise money. Around seven years in, they had raised over a million dollars for Children of Hope, and the total is now well over $1.2 million today. “We don't support any day-to-day or salaries… because if something were to go wrong, all of a sudden the children couldn't eat or a family wouldn't get their salary.” Instead, they fund infrastructure projects, including dorms, solar panels, vehicles, and security walls at the nine orphanages and soup kitchens in Mexico. Jansen was able to witness the impact of the support first-hand, joining a tour of the orphanages. “I went as the thrift store representative, and then we toured all the different ministries that we were supporting. That Sunday we had a service at Pan de Vida and I was sitting beside a Mexican lady. I didn't know her, and I couldn't speak with her, but afterwards they introduced us. ‘These are the members of the board from Children of Hope, and this is Fiona. She's from Hope for Children, the thrift store,’ and this lady turned to me, and she was just crying. And she's , thank you, thank you. “It was quite amazing to see the gratitude, and then to see the good things that are going on there. God is doing amazing things there, and to hear the stories of the children: what they've been rescued from, how they're growing, and that they're safe and learning about the Lord. It's amazing.” The joy of meaningful work Some of the crew from a typical Thursday morning. The thrift store blessings don’t end with the recipients of the money. It extends to over 80 volunteers who keep the store running. Jansen explained that they welcome volunteers from all walks of life, from high school students looking for volunteer hours on their resume, to adults who are seeking community and a chance to make a difference, and seniors who are eager to bless others with the skills and experience that God has given them through their lives. A core group of these volunteers has served with Hope for Children since its beginning. One of these volunteers is Jake Bredenhof, who stepped into the coffee room while Jansen and I were meeting. Bredenhof started working at the thrift store in 2015, as he was in the process of selling the family’s chicken farm in the neighboring community of Cloverdale. Although Jake and his wife Lee later moved to Abbotsford, they both are happy to make the 25-minute commute to continue serving at the store. Jake works in the back, where new donations arrive. “Every day is a little bit like Christmas because you don’t know what is in the next box,” he explained. He sorts the books, jewelry, bedding, clothes, appliances, and is “basically the front-runner of all the donations that come in.” “You meet a lot of really nice people, who have been donating to the store for years already.” Jake and Lee aren’t the exception in his congregation, the Aldergrove Canadian Reformed Church, which has over 60 seniors. Some drive for the Cancer Society, others for Meals on Wheels, and others volunteer at the local food bank and other thrift stores closer to Abbotsford. “It is a stewardly way of giving back to the community,” he reflected. Jansen also pointed to a picture of a lady on the bulletin board of the coffee room, who recently passed away. “She was 80, and she was feeling blue, and her doctor said ‘you need to find something to keep you busy.’’’ The answer was right around the corner. “She was walking home from the doctor's office, and she saw this store, and she said ‘they do things to help kids. I love kids. I'm going to see if I can volunteer.’ She volunteered here till she died.” I asked Jansen if there was anything surprising that she’d learned working at the store. “I would say that I gained a whole new understanding of age. So many of my volunteers are well into their 70's and even 80's and yet here they are working hard and loving it. Retirement doesn't mean sitting on a rocking chair and watching the world go by. I have been amazed at how active and selfless volunteers are, at any age.” Jansen also shared that some of their volunteers aren’t Christians, though they open the day with devotions. “But most of the time people sit there and participate, and we've had positive things come from that too.” She gave the example of a girl who had drifted away from church but, through the fellowship at the thrift store, came back and was baptized. Bredenhof noted that allowing non-Christians to volunteer has “never been a problem.” When I asked Jansen what in particular the volunteers enjoyed about serving at the thrift store, she shared that some simply enjoy interacting with the community, being able to hear the stories of those who come in and even being able to share the Gospel with them. “People love to tell them about where the money's going, and then they can share stories about what's going on in Mexico.” A volunteer wearing very cool thrifted pants. “When I was in need you fed Me and clothed Me” The thrift store doesn’t just provide for the needs of those in Mexico. The clothing and used goods provide critical relief for those in need in their own community of Langley, including some of the homeless who frequent the store. “At certain times of the month they are coming and paying, and other times of the month they're not. There are times when people will ask and I will always say yes.” Jansen also explained that for those who ask frequently, she will only provide free clothing once a month. “I've had a woman come, and she says ‘I have to go to court. I have nothing. Can I have an outfit?’ We gave her an outfit.” In addition to the clothing and merchandise, the thrift store has a shelf with free food. “We have a guy who started on his own picking up food. I think he saw it getting chucked at Safeway. So now he goes to a few different places every day, and then he brings it to us, and then we put it out on our free shelf.” Because of the free food, every day there is a lineup outside the door, waiting for the store to open. That said, Jansen explained that the majority of the shoppers aren’t in that kind of need. “We get a lot of crafters who come specifically for our crafting department because we have an exceptional craft department for our thrift store.” To add to this, “we get young people who are just out having a good time together with their friends.” Overall, there aren’t as many low-income people as she expected. Lasting hope Arthur Brooks is correct that “buying stuff” generally won’t bring happiness. God made us with hearts, souls, and minds, all of which were made for so much more than consumption. We were made to experience fellowship with God and our neighbors. My visit reminded me how that is exactly what Hope for Children, and so many other thrift stores, accomplish. Stuff fades and eventually is thrown out. But the relationships forged through service and generosity abide eternally. So, if you want to buy happiness, visit your local thrift store. Pictures graciously provide by Fiona Jansen....