Skyping Bolivia

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This past week I joined with a group of colleagues on a Skype call to Cochabamba, Bolivia. The purpose of the call was to receive an update on the work of the Baptist churches in Bolivia (particularly those who have a relationship with some of our Canadian churches). My own church has entered into a three year relationship with the churches situated in the bowl of La Paz. The call was intended to give me more information on how the project is coming along and how we can continue to develop our relationship with the Bolivian churches.

As I listened to my Bolivian colleagues speak and share their vision for God’s kingdom, I was deeply impressed with their passion and commitment to see God’s reign blossom in the Bolivian context. The vision included a holistic ministry of education, micro-credit programs, establishment of churches in new areas, and health initiatives. One program of interest to me was their effort to control and diminish the Chagas disease. The Chagas disease is caused by a parasite carried by insects inhabiting the adobe of the rural Bolivian homes. The insects come out of the mud at night and bite the folks who are sleeping. The result for those infected is a devastating disease frequently ending with cardiac failure. The only way to control the disease (in simple terms) is to plaster over the adobe of the house from the inside which prevents the insects from leaving the mud and inflicting their damage on the people sleeping—especially the young children.

The only way to administer this program is house by house. Each house has to be treated individually—time consuming and arduous work. But my colleagues oversee the effort with patience, love and perseverance and the result is a slow control of a deadly, pestilence—one house at a time!

I left the call thankful that I know these folk and that I have the privilege of learning from them. Maybe all real service of love and lasting importance happens slowly one house at a time? Maybe the programs of quick results, big numbers, and flashy appeal aren’t the best way and don’t merit all of our excitement?

Maybe the turtle wins the race after all and not the lickety-split bunny! Maybe the Bolivians have it right and a house to house effort demonstrating the love and compassion of Jesus will build the Kingdom just fine and the banqueting table will be full to receive the eternally young princely king?

Diving Utila

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During the month of February I travelled with my friend Rob to the Honduran island of Utila—a sister island of Roatan and not too far from the Honduran coast. The purpose of our trip was to dive the relatively isolated island of Utila in the hope of finding pristine reefs!

We were met with rather stormy weather—our flight had to abort the landing in Roatan due to the lack of visibility and we were redirected to Belize City in the country of Belize. After a few hours (holed up in the plane) we returned to Roatan and were able to land. Unfortunately, there was no small plane to ferry us to Utila because of the inclement weather (sadly, a plane carrying 15 people had crashed during the storm on the mainland leaving no survivors) and we were stranded in the Roatan airport trying to devise a way to reach our destination. Ultimately, we found a brave soul who agreed to take us to Utila, keeping well below the storm clouds to maintain visibility.


The reefs did prove to be quite lush and worth the effort expended to reach the isle! The diving was a splendid mix of wall and canyon dives. We were met at various points by friendly stingrays, bright orange seahorses nibbling away at microscopic dishes, schools of squid (who by the way are very intelligent!) who allowed us to join their school and enjoy their changing color. And, of course, we saw a multitude of gorgeous sponges and corals covering the underwater walls.


It was a trip that included both the beauty of God’s creation and the dangers of exploring it. The storm above the sea was destructive while the waters beneath it were welcoming. This is often true simply taking a walk around a city block—one never knows what might suddenly happen. But the ocean is particularly awesome—embracing on one hand and terrifying on the other (just ask Jonah!). The world is both paradise and ‘infierno’—a gift to be received or a terror to endure.


For Rob and me it was gift, beauty and enlivening. For others that day it was crashing into the unknown in fear, terror and who knows what else. We tread a fine line between life and death, but there is much to praise God for even while we walk that line. But the unknown always takes risk and insists on remaining a journey of faith whether in Toronto or Utila.

The Resurrection

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“The resurrection shows the limitlessness of God’s reliability. ‘Strong as death is love’ says the Song of Songs (8:6) but the resurrection proves that God’s love is stronger than death. Now we are secure and safe in the love of God. Now we know that there is no limit to it. His forgiveness makes evident that our sins are drowned in his love. The resurrection reveals that our death is overcome by his love. Now we can really trust God and rely on him. All fear will disappear from our lives. The resurrection unearths the depth, the quality of the reliability of God’s love” (Peter van Breeman, As Bread Is Broken).

Jesus is Lord! He has broken through the death barrier and as a result leads and draws us into his life. He has given us the best thing—eternal life!

Let us remember that while we live under the human overcast the light of resurrection still shines above and will win the day.

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Work/Play

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The first week of Lent!

Tomorrow night at my church our community children’s program is enjoying ‘pancake Tuesday’—not a bad way to begin a time of reflection. I thought I might resume my blog by offering some ideas to help our journey towards the light.

Brother David Steindl-Rast has some insight for us on the dilemma of work/play:

‘Human activity is of two kinds: work and play. We work in order to achieve some useful purpose. But we play for mere enjoyment. Play is meaningful in itself. We can become so purpose-ridden in our work that even after work we can no longer play; we can at best give ourselves another work-out. Usefulness is crowding out enjoyment. What a waste of time! But we can rescue work from becoming mere drudgery. We can learn to work playfully. That means doing our work not only for its useful results, but also for the enjoyment we can find in it all along when we do it mindfully, gratefully. Grateful work is playful work, leisurely work. Only leisurely work is, in the long run, efficient. Only when we work playfully are we fully alive.’

What does this have to do with Lent? Lots! We have to live our way through Lent as we work and try to relax. Brother David sees the connection of making work playful which is important if we are going to ‘redeem this time’ and make it spiritually productive. The more we can connect our work and play the more we will be open to the Spirit’s voice that invites us to go deeper and to be grateful for the ability to both work and play.

Praise and Thanksgiving

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The wonderful Puritan devotional book ‘The Valley of Vision’ contains a prayer of ‘praise and thanksgiving’ which I offer for your encouragement as the thanksgiving season draws to a close:

O my God,

Thou fairest, greatest, first of all objects,
my heart admires, adores, loves thee,
for my little vessel is as full as it can be,
and I would pour out all that fullness before thee
in ceaseless flow.

When I think upon and converse with thee
ten thousand delightful thoughts spring up,
ten thousand sources of pleasure are unsealed,
ten thousand refreshing joys spread over my heart,
crowding into every moment of happiness.

I bless thee for the soul thou hast created,
for adorning it, sanctifying it,
though it is fixed in barren soil;
for the body thou hast given me,
for preserving its strength and vigour,
for providing senses to enjoy delights, for the ease and freedom of my limbs,
for hands, eyes, ears that do thy bidding;
for thy royal bounty providing my daily support,
for a full table and overflowing cup,
for appetite, taste, sweetness,
for social joys of relatives and friends,
for ability to serve others,
for a heart that feels sorrows and necessities,
for a mind to care for my fellow-men,
for opportunities of spreading happiness around,
for loved ones in the joys of heaven,
for my own expectation of seeing thee clearly.

I love thee above the powers of language
to express,
for what thou art to thy creatures.

Increase my love, O my God, through time
and eternity.

Gratitude Takes Nothing for Granted

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As we move towards thanksgiving (at least on Canadian soil!) we are encouraged to be ‘mindful’, ‘aware’, ‘attentive’ to the gifts that come our way each day—to stop rolling around in the past or in the future—and simply receive the gift of the present moment! What gifts await us if we simply open our eyes to the beauty of the ‘now’? Thomas Merton reminds us of these themes in his exquisite book ‘Thoughts In Solitude’:

“To be grateful is to recognize the love of God in everything He has given us—and He has given us everything. Every breath we draw is a gift of His love, every moment of existence is a grace, for it brings with it immense graces from Him. Gratitude therefore takes nothing for granted, is never unresponsive, is constantly awakening to new wonder and to praise of the goodness of God. For the grateful person knows that God is good, not by hearsay but by experience. And that is what makes all the difference…”

So when Thanksgiving Day arises on the calender please take time for some thoughtful reflection and be grateful for your many ‘small ‘s’ sacraments (all the ways the Holy breaks into your life):

e.e. cummings leads the way: “i thank you God for most this amazing day; for the leaping greenly spirits of trees and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything which is natural which is infinite which is yes”.

The Jesus Revolution

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Peter Van Breeman calls us to a new way of living, he writes:

“Abraham Lincoln once said, ‘I don’t like that man: I must get to know him.’ When we do not like a person, we have not gone to the depth of that person. This is Christian: to believe in the good of every person. This is the revolution which Christ taught.”

Charles de Foucauld phrased it this way:”We must dare to be love in a world that does not know how to love”. The Jesus revolution calls us to love others out of the place of knowing that we are deeply loved by God. Abba pours his love into us and then we pour this same love into the lives of those around us.

One by one the Jesus revolution spreads and ultimately the world emanates his agape love and shalom for all.

The Dream of a Serving Church

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In my last blog entry I referenced John Stott’s dream for his church ‘All Souls’ in London. Here is another section from his prayer which also caught my eye and which remains exceedingly relevant for the church today:

“I have a dream of a church in Weston which is a serving church-
which has seen Christ as the Servant and heard His call to be a servant too
which is delivered from self-interest, turned inside out, and giving itself selfishly to the service of others
whose members obey Christ’s command to live in the world, to permeate secular society,
to be the salt of the earth and light of the world
whose people share the good news of Jesus simply, naturally and enthusiastically with
their friends
which diligently serves its own parish, residents and workers, families and single people,
national and immigrants, old folk and little children
which is alert to the changing needs of society, sensitive and flexible enough to keep adapting
its programme to serve more usefully
which has a global vision and is constantly challenging its young people to give their lives in
sevice, and constantly sending its people out to serve
I have a dream of a serving church.”

May we see the importance of moving beyond ego and embracing our world in a serving manner. It is this movement from ‘living to loving’ which will ultimately set us free from attachments and liberate us to flow in an unencumbered, healing manner amongst the darkness and light of humanity.

The Dream of A Caring Church

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When I was 22 I travelled out west and did some studies at Regent College. One of the first professors I studied with was an Englishman named John Stott who had come over from London to teach some summer courses. Years later I led some worship times with him at McMaster Divinity School. I was saddened this past summer when I was in Oxford and learned that he was quite ill struggling with Alziemer’s disease. Ironic to think that this brilliant man who has written so many wonderful books has now lost substantial mental capacity (a reminder of our own diminishment that will eventually take place).

The following excerpt is taken from a prayer he wrote for his own church of All Soul’s in central London which I adapted for my own church in Weston,Toronto:

I have a dream of a church in Weston which is a caring church—
whose congregation is drawn from many races, nations, ages and social backgrounds,
and exhibits the unity and diversity of the family of God
whose fellowship is warm and welcoming, and never marred by anger, selfishness, jealousy or pride
whose members love one another with a pure heart fervently, forbearing one another, forgiving one another, and bearing one another’s burdens
which offers friendship to the lonely, support to the weak, and acceptance to those who are despised and rejected by society
whose love spills over to the world outside, attractive, infectious, irresistible, the love of God Himself. I have a dream of a caring church.

When I saw this piece I was impressed with his spirit and desire to see an embracing, vibrant, healing faith community. Such a church would be a lovely place and I do pray that my own faith community will more and more radiate such qualities.

So a big thank you to Rev. John Stott and a shared desire that his dream for the church of Christ may become a reality in faith communities around the world!

Extreme Wild West of Vancouver Island

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If you drive from Nanaimo and head over the mountains of Vancouver Island you will eventually reach the surfer town of Tofino. Once there go to Long Beach and dip your toe in the extreme western coast of this massive country of Cananda. These are not gentle waters—the waves pour in all the way from Japan—huge thundering waves delighting surfers hearts and meditative souls who love to tread the sand in sync with the crashing waters!

The Psalmist invites us to praise God for His beauty in creation:

“Let the sea roar and all that fills it;

the world and those who live in it.” (Ps.98:7)

“Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it;

let the field exult, and everything in it. Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord…” (Ps. 96: 11-12)

May we rejoice in Abba wherever we find ourselves in this great world even to the extreme western coast of Vancouver Island!