Editorial: From innovation to discipleship: EMC churches are flourishing!
♪ Written reports from four of EMC’s nine regions were easily available online but, since they didn’t figure in the meeting’s agenda, I had not taken time to read them.
Editorial: Rethinking well-behaved churches and embracing God’s transformative power
♪ A FEW YEARS ago, after an Abundant Springs* weekend, we heard back from Briercrest about how respectful and well-mannered EMC students were compared to some of their other groups. Naturally, we congratulated ourselves because that spoke so well of the students, families and ministry leaders in EMC churches.
What We Teach Our Children Matters
I remember how it felt, if little else. Wow, I must be really bad. Whenever I sin, God can’t be with me. This is the message I internalized as a result of the teaching on sin I received at an early age: “God cannot be in the presence of sin.” With an object lesson to illustrate the point if we were lucky.
Editorial: If 71 percent of us are introverts, how do fulfill our mission to love others? One hundred little things.
On the one hand, there is this great need—so many heartbreaking situations and so many lonely people. On the other hand, according to a 2019 Angus Reid poll, (A Portrait of Social Isolation and Loneliness in Canada today - Angus Reid Institute), 71 percent of Canadians are introverts, meaning most of us find it difficult to reach out to other people. That’s a tall hurdle, but let’s break it down a bit.
Editorial: Out of the Waters, Deliverance!
Dustin Burlet’s feature article (starting page 6) draws some interesting parallels between the Noah’s flood and the advent of Christ, asserting that both are acts of divine deliverance.
Troubling Times—A Call to Pray
The news we are reading and seeing has many of us sad, disturbed, and praying for peace. The conflict that has developed in Israel is concerning. The headlines are relentless and horrific. A brutal attack, followed by retaliation and now a humanitarian crisis. As this story unfolds, we hope that the narrative will shift to resolution and peace. That lives can be spared.
Editorial: When Christians Behave Rightly
In Joshua Coutts’s article, “Good news in a secular age,” he points out how Christians behaving badly is an obstacle, even for Christians themselves, to believe in the good news of the gospel. This is not a new problem.