By Calvin Brown. The leading of the Lord towards Bill's part-time role as Administrative Assistant at the Renewal Fellowship, following retirement from a 30-year career at Procter and Gamble, fulfils a life-long ambition to serve the Presbyterian Church. … Read more
Breaking Free
By Bruce Twining. Dr. Archibald Hart modelled personal sharing, encouraged creative habits, and valued openness to the Holy Spirit's renewal work of breaking us and transforming us into greater Christlikeness. Healing comes from dealing honestly with our wounds. … Read more
Living Churches feature: McKercher Drive Church, Saskatoon
By W.J. Fenton. Worship services convey a sense of joy, of hope, and of expectancy. The concept of joining together as a spiritual “family” has been encouraged. Elders with different but complementary gifts make up a strong and unified Session. … Read more
Liturgy of St. Patrick’s Breastplate
By Calvin Brown. This liturgy is designed for use on or near St. Patrick’s Day. … Read more
Why I signed it
By J.I. Packer — Evangelicals and Catholics Together: The Christian Mission in the Third Millennium” (ECT) is the title of a programmatic statement composed by eight Protestants (leader, Charles Colson) and seven Roman Catholics (leader, Richard John Neuhaus) and endorsed by 12 more Protestants and 13 more Roman Catholics. It appeared in the journal First Things in May of this year and, shortened, in the Spring edition of Touchstone. The statement is not, of course, official, nor has it any more authority than the personal credit of … Read more
Listening To Sermons As An Act of Worship
By Mark Graves. In his informal style, Mark writes on the sermon, considering it from the perspective of the pew. It is worth meditating on this “means of grace” that each Presbyterian, in their communicant vows, promises to diligently use. … Read more
A Heart for God, by Sinclair B. Ferguson
Reviewed by Jack C. Whytock. Ferguson has tackled the most profound pursuit we are to be engaged upon – to have our hearts yearning ever more to know the richness of God Almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and hence to have an obedient heart. … Read more
Testing the Diversity of the Presbyterian Church within Canada
By Jonathan Dent. Jonathan Goforth used the Revivalist models of Finney and Moody in China. In meetings, he prayed, sang hymns, taught the Word, and called for testimony. Hours were spent in the confession of sin and repentance. Revival broke out wherever Goforth went. … Read more
Worship Workshop: The Challenge of Solidarity
By Joe Reed. As evangelicals enter new relationships with Third World Christians, God through them challenges how we look at the world, shaking both the content and the vocabulary of those relationships. … Read more
Not All Glitz and Glamour – A Canadian Church Leadership Conference
J.H. (Hans) Kouwenberg reports on the principles and core values underlying the growth and success of Northview Church in Abbotsford BC, presented at a leadership conference attended by over 170 pastors and lay people … Read more
The Elders’ Institute
By Mary Rogers. The Elders' Institute was founded to provoke Canadian Presbyterian elders and other leaders to lead the church into more faithful, effective, and wise ministry and mission, using both online distance education and face-to-face "On the Road" events. … Read more
Biblical Foundations for Small Group Ministry: An Integrational Approach, by Gareth Icenogle
Reviewed by J.H. (Hans) Kouwenberg. In the Old and New Testament context for small groups, community is found in the very nature and character of God and in the way God works to bring people into a new humanity that is learning how to care for one another. … Read more
Christmas
By Eugene Peterson. People worry about keeping Christ in Christmas, but not about keeping the tree in Christmas. In many homes, no carols are sung, no prayers offered, and no nativity story told, but few lack a Christmas tree. But I do remember a Christmas with no tree. … Read more
Hath God Said …?
Dr. Edith Humphrey outlines the scriptural vision for human sexuality as a basis for her sober analysis of attempts to relativize Scripture and tradition at the point where they deal with homosexual practice as an abomination in the sight of God. She closes with reflections on a proposed rite for the blessing of same-sex unions. … Read more
Cote des Neiges Report
On October 1, 1983, almost a hundred representatives of the Renewal Fellowship, from five provinces, met at Cote des Neiges Church in Montreal to hear Dr. Roger Nicole explore the theme of renewal. Sylvie L. Sparks writes of her vision for Reformed ministry in Quebec, and Luc Thibaudeau gives his testimony of his faith journey. … Read more
The Word of God
Thomas F. Torrance underlines the centrality of the Word of God written and the Word made flesh. … Read more