Favourite Season?

Courtesy: Google Free

Winter's past – Spring has sprung. 

What’s your favourite season of the year? For some Canadians the preference will be for the great awakening of spring, as nature emerges from winter slumber, greening up vegetation all around, drawing people out into frequenting garden centres and labouring in their gardens.

Among sun-lovers are those who can hardly wait for spring air to warm up and summer to breeze in. Many eagerly take the tarps off their boats and check out their rods, reels and tackle boxes, for it’s summertime and the fishin’ is easy (phrase from  Gershwin) , or whatever is their summer pursuit.

Gettin' Ready

 Forget spring and summer – what about winter? Is that your favourite? Energetic, avid winter sports types, with time and money to spare, might eagerly prepare to hit the slopes, waxing their skis and dusting off their roof-rack totes.

Each season comes with certain aspects that I appreciate. However: 

There’s an indefinable something about fall / autumn that captures my heart. 

The season has carved out a special place in my soul. 

Once the greening from chlorophyll is over till the next spring, those autumn leaves reveal the glories of their previously concealed colours. They fall, drifting gently by our windows, to lay a carpet of visual warmth and cheer. 

Nature's Carpet of 'Visual Warmth'

Autumn weather more fully exerts itself as we move further into the season, and we often feel cool-edged breezes and strong winds. Purply dark clouds cavort across energetic, animated skies which, at times, pour out their grapes of wrath, the rain and wind stripping stubborn leaves from branches, overwhelming eavestroughs, while plugged-up downspouts can prove a bane. 

On the other hand, times are when we open our window

Autumn Glory -  although slowly dying!

blinds or drapes to reveal fresh mornings, with frost-tipped lawns and white-tinged roofs, opening into beautiful, sunny days. These seem to say, Enjoy, but prepare, because winter’s on its way! 

Although autumn is for many of us a busy time in community and family activities, it is also a time for introspection; a time to prepare for life’s wintertime; a season for thoughtfully appreciating the simple pleasures and treasures of life. 

Autumn reminds me of my impermanence as a material entity – as a conscious, walking, talking, collection of biologically-coordinated atoms and molecules. In other words I too, like a leaf, will fall and, like the year, my days are numbered – hardly a comforting thought! 

Nevertheless I am comforted, for our Creator God and Father in Heaven has a divine plan – life beyond this life in fellowship with Him: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in [that is, trusts in and relies upon] him may not perish but may have eternal life” (John 3:16 NRSV). 

Words of Benediction: May our hearts be wide open this very day to receive the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God our Father, and the fellowship and ministry of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

~~+~~
Peter is a retired pastor – well, sort of retired – as he is currently engaged as an associate volunteer pastor. He lives in Southwestern Ontario with his wife, May, and writes a weekly inspirational newspaper column and occasional magazine articles. Peter is author of two books: "Parables from the Pond" (Word Alive Press) and "Raise Your Gaze . . . Mindful Musings of a Grateful Heart" (Angel Hope Publishing). He and May are also engaged in leading nursing home / residential chapel services, pulpit supply and music. ~+~

Being Thankful

In a Bible study years ago, we discussed being thankful, and I’m reminded of that session often. There are days when it’s easy to give thanks, times with so much good in our lives, that it could come quite naturally. Though when we’re having fun it may slip by us to say the words. Thinking of the abundance of good food, the sunshine on a day such as today as I write this post, and friends and family around me.

In the study I mentioned, we were reminded to give thanks, even when it’s not easy, as Paul the apostle did when he talked about the thorn in his flesh. What was that about? “In all things, give thanks.” But I wasn’t thinking of Paul. I was thinking of myself and what was around me.

I struggled with that statement. I mean, how does one say thanks for turmoil within the home, or for health challenges. Or for the death of a good friend that made me sadder still. I knew friends were praying for me and it surely felt like I was climbing a mountain. Insurmountable stuff. At least that’s the way it felt.

In time, I could look back—if not at the moment—and know there were people around me holding me up, and as in the Footprints poem, that God had been there all the time carrying me. And so I could say “Thank you, God” for that.

Today I say thank you more easily for home and family, for work that brings in income, for available health services we need, and a country at peace. I can encourage others for I have been through a few valleys, including the death of several close friends in the past couple of years, and both of my parents.

This month marks one year from Mom’s death, and though I miss her so much, I can say thanks for her life and what it meant to me, and all the things she did for me. For persistence when I was a small child and not developing as I should, for her continuing to seek answers. When she believed in me when I had trouble believing in myself, and later when she celebrated my publishing successes with me. Indeed, she was one of my best cheerleaders. Both my parents were that for me.

In a poem prompt last October in Poetic Bloomings, an online poetry group, members were asked to write about cornucopias, those baskets filled with good things and shown in art especially at Thanksgiving and harvest time. My poem took a different turn and came out this way:

Always Something Good*

It doesn’t matter the container

a straw basket, cornucopia

or a box for treasures

in spite of disappointments and sadness

there’s always something

a good night of sleep, a gift from a friend

a helping hand when needed

Slip on socks of thankfulness

even in the dark and stormy moments

when all hope seems lost

 

And so today, wherever you find yourself, I hope there is something for which you can give thanks, even in a most difficult situation. Or perhaps you have much to say thanks for right now. Let’s give thanks to God for those things he gives us, including the grace that came along with Jesus’ birth. May you have a blessed Thanksgiving!

 Carolyn R. Wilker is an author and editor from southwestern Ontario, Canada.

https://www.carolynwilker.ca/about/

* Also from Travelling Light by Carolyn R. Wilker 

Remembering Dad - HIRD

By Rev Dr Ed Hird

Since my dad passed on June 25th 2019, many people have expressed their sincere condolences by email, snail mail, and in person. The sharing by so many at my dad’s funeral reception was deeply touching.

Dad was greatly loved and appreciated by many.  I thank God for my wonderful father, Ted Hird. As I was visiting my father near the end, I heard the words “This is the generation that defeated Hitler.” My dad and his compatriots became the Builder Generation that saved the world from totalitarian fascism, and then ushered in a new season of freedom and democracy.

It fills me with gratitude to have had a loving father that believed in me.  My dad was such an encourager. He listened deeply to people, no matter what their station in life. Many people, in their condolences, told me how much they appreciated my father’s sincere interest in their lives and work. Over the years, he often sent me e-mails and notes telling me how pleased he is with my work, my family and my life.  I want to be like my late father in his remarkable gift of encouragement.   It is so easy to be someone who sees what is wrong with other people. My dad looked for that which was working and built on it.

One of my dad’s greatest gifts to me was his almost sixty-seven year marriage to my late mom Lorna Hird. Dad illustrated the truth of Song of Songs when it said that love is stronger than death. Part of my passion for renewing marriage came from watching the deep lasting love of my mom and dad for each other. Dad the engineer and Mom the artist were very different personalities who were like iron sharpening iron. My dad liked things accomplished yesterday, and never wanted to be late for dinner. His most famous expressions were always food-related: “Call me anything, don’t call me late for dinner.”

When my dad became an electrical engineer in 1950, they were still using test-tubes for radio communication. Many years later, my dad was still growing and learning.  I too want to be the kind of father who never stops learning, never stops changing, never stops expanding my horizons.  Technology is always changing, but my dad was never left behind.  Even at age 95, my father was a passionate reader who consumed books in a way that kept his mind active and fresh.  My dad often ran out of books to read, and had to switch to another library. At age 95, Dad read the draft of our upcoming novel, and then apologized for taking two days to finish it.  I want to be a father that always keeps reading, and inspires my own children and grandchildren to read for the very pleasure of reading.

My father was a born leader.  He rose from very humble circumstances to become the President of Lenkurt Electric, at that time the largest secondary industry in BC.  I saw my father make wise decisions again and again in very difficult leadership situations.  I want to lead like my father did, with wisdom and patience. My father has raised up many younger leaders who have made a lasting difference in the world.  Like my father, I have a passion for raising up a new generation of healthy leaders, what I call the Timothys and Tituses.

Great leaders pass on the torch to others. Through my father, God passed on to me my gift and passion for writing.  Writing for me is like breathing. That is why I invested thirty years communicating as a Deep Cove Crier/North Shore News columnist. When my father wrote, he was sharp, crisp and clear.  I loved to receive from him new chapters every couple of months about his massive autobiography. My dad often told me about how he wished that when he was younger, he had asked his older aunts about family history. By the time he became curious about his own history, his aunts had passed on with their family stories unrecorded.

I often wish that I had my father’s carpentry skills.  It is remarkable how many gifts that he built through love for various members of our family, including my book shelves and my wife’s dining room cabinet.  My dad was always willing to help whenever he could. My dad was so gifted at fixing things that I often felt inadequate in comparison.  Later in Dad’s life, I watched him closely and noticed that he didn’t always fix things on the first try. Sometimes, it was on the seventh or eighth try. He never gave up. Observing my dad’s perseverance inspired me to give myself more grace in mechanical things.

My father developed a strong faith over the years that has been a great encouragement to me.  The late Rev Ernie Eldridge, Rector of St. Matthias Anglican Church, in his own quiet way, had a huge impact on my dad’s spiritual development. Ernie wisely appointed my dad as the Property Chairman for St. Matthias, helping my dad feel like he belonged as he fixed things at the church.  Ernie persuaded my dad to become publicly confirmed at age 48. Looking back, I believe that my dad’s Anglican confirmation was a major spiritual breakthrough that resulted in my coming to personal faith in Christ a month later.

As a former agnostic, my father became very interested in understanding the bible for himself.  It is great that I was able to openly chat with my father about our common faith in Jesus Christ.  I will never forget when my Dad discussed with me about Rev. Ernie’s invitation for Dad to be a lay administrant serving communion. Dad deeply respected my mother’s spirituality, and sometimes didn’t feel like he was as spiritual as mom. After dad told me clearly that he had received Christ as his personal Lord and Saviour, I encouraged my dad to take this step.  This was another major breakthrough in my dad’s Christian journey.  My dad was simultaneously a very public and a very private person. Near the end of Dad’s life, we celebrated Communion together many times in his apartment. Taking the Alpha Course four times was a major step in my father’s spiritual pilgrimage.

Near the end, my father’s deafness became more severe. Fortunately Dad could still read messages that I wrote for him on his IPad. One of my final IPad messages to him was “I love you, Dad”, to which he whispered to me “I love you too, son.” I deeply miss my Dad, givethanks for his life well-lived, and look forward to his future embrace in heaven.

The Rev. Dr.  Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin

-an article previously published in the Deep Cove Crier/North Shore News for Father’s Day.

In debating an atheist, a neurosurgeon tries philosophy… Denyse O'Leary

Michael Egnor

That’s novel. Neurosurgeon Michael Egnor is a Thomas Aquinas. fan and Jerry Coyne is an atheist (professionally, a Darwinian evolutionary biologist):

In my ongoing debate about God’s existence with biologist Jerry Coyne, who writes at Why Evolution Is True, frequent reference is made to Aquinas’ Five Ways, particularly to his Prime Mover argument. It is the most popular formal argument for the existence of God, and it is often misunderstood and, when understood, often misrepresented. Atheists, in my experience, never get it right. If they did, they wouldn’t be atheists.

The first three of Aquinas’ Five Ways share a similar logical structure, and are called the cosmological arguments. More precisely, these arguments probably ought to be called the cosmogonical arguments, because they are proofs based on origins of things. I’ll stick with habit and call them cosmological, but keep in mind that what ties them together is that they are proofs of God’s existence based on the beginnings in nature.

In this post I’ll lay out the logical structure, and in coming posts I hope to apply the structure to three kinds of beginnings in nature: the beginning of change, the beginning of causes, and the beginning of existence itself.

The cosmological arguments have two cornerstones: the law of non-contradiction, and the metaphysics of potency and act. Both principles are Aristotelian, developed in fullest form by St. Thomas Aquinas.Michael Egnor, " Introducing Aquinas’ Five Ways" at Evolution News and Science Today

Jerry Coyne

Most people today may not have learned in school that the Scholastics, including Aquinas, restored the importance of classical Greek and Roman learning, incorporating the thinking processes into philosophy, including natural philosophy (later, science) and theology. So, although Aquinas was a theologian and, in the Catholic tradition, a saint, much that he talks about is not especially “religious.”

More by neurosurgeon Michael Egnor on how the mind differs from the brain:

Science points to an immaterial mind. If one did not start with a materialist bias, materialism would not be invoked as an explanation for a whole range of experiments in neuroscience. and 

Neuroscientist Michael Graziano should meet the p-zombie. To understand consciousness, we need to establish what it is not before we create any more new theories.

Further reading on the abstract nature of thought: A simple triangle can disprove materialism. Conventional descriptions of material processes do not help much when we are trying to account for abstract thought.

and

 Four researchers whose work sheds light on the reality of the mind: the significance of Wilder Penfield, Roger Sperry Benjamin Libet, and Adrian Owen. The brain can be cut in half, but the intellect and will cannot, says Michael Egnor. The intellect and will are metaphysically simple.
Republished from Uncommon Descent

Running to Jesus by Rose McCormick Brandon

One morning in 1741, Nathan Cole, a Connecticut farmer, heard from a neighbour that George Whitefield, an evangelist from England, would soon be speaking nearby. At this time, a cloud of spiritual hunger had descended on England and America. Whitefield, the Wesley brothers, and American Jonathan Edwards found themselves at the epicenter of a great spiritual awakening.

George Whitefield

On hearing the news about Whitefield, Cole dropped his tools and ran for his horse, fearing he would be too late to hear the preacher. He and his wife mounted the horse and galloped off. When the horse tired, Cole would dismount and run alongside till he was out of breath then climb back into the saddle. With twelve miles to travel, Cole wrote, “It was as if we were fleeing for our lives.”

When the Coles came within a mile of their destination, they heard “a noise like a low rumbling thunder and found it was the noise of horses coming down the road. A cloud of dust arose into the air over the tops of the hills and trees. No one spoke a word but every one pressed forward in great haste.” When Cole turned and looked towards the river he saw ferry boats crowded with people. “The land and banks over the river looked black with people and horses all along the twelve miles. I saw no man at work in his field.”

When Cole heard Whitefield preach he said it gave him a heart wound. He saw Whitefield as a man "clothed with authority from the Great God." He had believed himself to be a good man, but that day Cole realized his goodness would not save him. He needed Jesus.

What Cole experienced is the same hunger of the spirit that led thousands to follow Jesus around the countryside. They went without food, slept out on the hills, left their homes and work for the sole purpose of hearing Jesus. They listened intently because they experienced the heart wound that Cole described. The teachings of Jesus pierce the soul. They get into the crevices of our spirit. They change us.

One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God. Luke 5:1

The human soul hasn't changed. We are no different than the people who followed Jesus and those who galloped to hear George Whitfield preach about Jesus. Our souls hunger for God. Money, success, false religions, adventures, and earthly delights can suppress that hunger for a while, but no person or thing can satisfy it. Only Jesus.

When the Spirit of God moves, whether on crowds or on an individual, He causes people to drop everything as Cole did, and run toward Jesus as if their lives depended on Him. Because our lives do depend on Him.

Can revivals like the Great Awakening happen today? Before the awakening, the Christian church was careless and compromising. They weren’t living for God. Weren’t treasuring and obeying His Word. Sound familiar?

A study of any revival shows that prayer is the main precursor to revival. Christians worldwide are right now praying that a desire for God will cause millions to run to Him.

 Quoted portions from George Leon Walker, Some Aspects of the Religious Life of New England (New York: Silver, Burnett, and Company, 1897), 89-92.

***

Rose McCormick Brandon writes Bible lessons, devotionals, articles, biblical essays and books from her home in Caledonia, Ontario. She's the author of Promises of Home - Stories of Canada's British Home Children and One Good Word Makes all the Difference. She is a member of The Word Guild and grateful to be the recipient of awards for inspirational/devotional, personal experience and article writing.