One of the few books that is a family heritage in our Konkel family is entitled The Descendants of OHM Abraham Wiebe 1831–1991. It is a genealogy, names of people in chronological succession with pictures. It is frankly a boring book, unless the reader happens to know the story of someone in the book. The more the reader knows, the more interesting and informative the book becomes. It may well be the most consulted book in the family library. This book is typical of modern genealogies. It is a condensed family story of generations. Continue reading From Generation to Generation→
Fifteen years after buying an 11-bedroom rooming house in Winnipeg’s beautiful but hurting Spence neighbourhood for the experiment of living out faith in community, Stephanie, her husband Travis and their kids, Shadrach and Rachel, embarked on a sabbatical.Continue reading In the Ocean of His Love→
An ever-increasing topic of conversation in the church is “How do we lead the church into an age that is increasingly secular?” Historically, it seemed a given that Christianity had a place at the table in society. But now, Christians find themselves in a minority, no longer at the front of the line.
On March 19–20, Steinbach Bible College held its annual Leadership Conference where speaker Dr. Gordon T. Smith addressed the topic: “The Soul Care of Christian Leaders in the Secular Age.” Throughout the conference he wisely challenged us to see this secular age in a different light. Continue reading SBC Leadership Conference 2021→
“We can go here because somebody has gone here before.” These were the words from my Cree friend and mentor as we made our way into the woods of northern Saskatchewan in search of moose. On both sides of the narrow “road” was a treacherous snowbank, one that easily would have consumed the front end of our truck and left us stranded many hours from any actual road.
As we pushed further and further into the forest toward our base for hunting, I would occasionally feel the truck pull out of the tire grooves packed from the previous hunters. Again I would hear him say, “Stay on the path that others have made, we can go here because somebody has gone here before.” Continue reading Mentoring and Moose Hunting: Why Relationships Matter→
Particularly, I’ve wondered about the shock experienced by the earthworm that was stretched end to end by the inquisitive fingers of my five-year-old in our garden a few weeks ago. Or the one that was scooped from the familiarity of the strawberry patch by a red plastic shovel and abruptly expelled from the garden. Would it ever find its way back? Or did it even care, simply grateful that the sharp beak of a hungry robin hadn’t carried it away?
Often in life the things that we focus on are not the most helpful things. In the midst of conflict this happens frequently and is extremely difficult to avoid.
There are three notable things that are helpful to differentiate when we are seeking to make peace with someone. The first is the words or actions that are the source of the conflict. The second are the motives behind those words or actions, and the third is the impact of those words/actions. Continue reading How Dare You Break My Mug!→
As an informal practice, The Messenger has avoided publishing Mother’s Day articles as it’s a cultural occasion rather than a holiday according to the Christian calendar. However, as the day falls on a Sunday, most churches use Mother’s Day as a way to acknowledge the contributions of women (whether mothers or not). Continue reading A Pandemic Mother’s Day→
GT: I’m Erica Fehr; I’m EMC communications coordinator and I’m talking today with the Mount Salem leadership team. Albert Loewen is Lead Pastor, Patrick Stanat is Youth and Young Adult Pastor and Jennifer Loewen is Children’s Pastor. We’re going to be talking today about safety and a core question is on whether our culture’s increasing focus on safety has actually created greater safety, created a sense of safety, or has it actually done the opposite and created a sense of risk and danger and fear—and how does that affect church ministry? Continue reading Do Safety Measures Keep Us Safe?→
Safety has been a divisive question during this pandemic. We have also heard much about clergy sexual abuse recently—again. The grim recurrence of these headlines confirms again what the church should have known: loving and protecting the vulnerable is part of the essence of biblical faith. Is this possibly the harshest thing Jesus ever said? “If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were fastened around your neck and you were drowned in the depth of the sea” (Matthew 18:6). No one can read that without sensing that Jesus had a gut-level, mama-bear instinct to protect the vulnerable rooted in the ancient Israelite concern for the orphan, widow and alien. Continue reading Love is More than Safety→
Our daughter Ruth reminds me of Ibrahim, one of my earlier Siamou language helpers. Both of them have pointed out the names of shrubs, flowers, grasses and trees, giving me an appreciation for the plants growing around us. Continue reading The Significance of Names→
A publication of the Evangelical Mennonite Conference
