Last year, COVID-19 restrictions made life tough for all of us. Here in Alberta, Canada, we couldn't get together for Christmas with our family as usual. Our visits were limited to brief encounters outside as my husband and I delivered …( read more )

A beautifully crafted stained-glass window is a marvel to see. Warm, clear sunlight streaming through the coloured panes illuminates Bible people and stories. Often, the figures are angels, with adoring faces and luminous robes, announcing …( read more )

In the year 1972, our second baby was due at Christmas. But on December sixth, Christmas was the farthest thing from my mind as the first contraction of labour's onset pulled me over double. "George!" I screamed. Our baby had just decided …( read more )

Last Christmas, Ade was four, and she was obsessed with watching the movie, The Grinch, over and over again, even after Christmas had long since come and gone. The Grinch's heart was changed as he witnessed how all the evil which he …( read more )

Mary and Joseph were the antithesis of helicopter parents. Wikipedia defines a helicopter parent as one "who pays extremely close attention to a child's or children's experiences and problems, particularly at educational institutions. …( read more )

Informed by the news media these days, I am led to be praying for the nations of the world where bad things are happening, trusting that God has got this. Today, I felt the need to pray for my own nation, England. It seems to me that …( read more )

When my youngest son, Joseph, was 17, he wrapped Christmas gifts and placed one under the tree for me. It was wrapped in camouflage gift wrap with matching duct tape. He even made sure that he used a gift tag with a deer on it. Pure boy! …( read more )

My most cherished nativity scene (of which I have many!) is one from Malawi that I brought back with me in 1998. This nativity scene almost got me arrested — or worse! Let me tell you the tale. I'd spent over two weeks visiting mission …( read more )

Pregnant with our last child, I begged my husband to stop sending the Unwed Mother Worker from her job with Children's Aid to visit me whenever she was near the tiny village where we lived temporarily. My husband was her boss, so she had …( read more )

Decorating the Christmas tree is an integral part of the celebrations each year. I once helped out at a commercial Christmas tree farm near Ottawa, Canada, in December. It was an impressive operation: planting spruce, balsam fir, and pine …( read more )