I have a tattoo on my arm (much to the chagrin of my dear mother) with the word ‘shalom’ written in both in English and Hebrew. The colours used: red, yellow, black and white represent all people of all nations. The words are written on an ancient scroll with a fish, which symbolizes Jesus, bursting out of it. It says that ‘peace’ has a name, and His name is Jesus.

William James Pearson penned this very famous Salvation Army hymn in the late 1800’s, shortly after the organization was founded. But early Salvationists knew then what they know now; ‘joy’ is not the same thing as ‘happiness’. The world is full of pain and suffering and it touches us both personally and professionally.

Now that it’s February, we switch our attention to the missional theme of the month; LOVE. We chose ‘love’ for February because Valentine’s Day falls on February 14^th. It’s a time where we intentionally express our love and appreciation for our partners, families and our friends.

The prophet Micah did not say that what the Lord requires of us is to dress up in our best clothes, head out to church every Sunday morning, sing some songs, clap our hands, listen to a sermon, and drink a cup of coffee in the lobby afterwards with the other people in the congregation who look and think just like us.

Original song performed by Dion Oxford. Music by Corey Lacey. Watch video

I spent Valentine's Day away from my family this year. It sucked! I'm in Myrtle Beach right now and have been since the beginning of February. I came here because winter takes such a brutal toll on my health (due to my life with MS) that I'm trying to avoid as much of winter as possible. So I'm skipping February! Now that I'm eternally thankful for.

Erinn and I have had a fun couple of weeks. Our daughter has been away at 2 summer sleepover camps in a row and we've had opportunity to have a bunch of 'date nights'. We both love going to the movies, we did that a LOT when we were dating and first got married before Cate came along, so we've gone to see 3 films in the past 8 days. That feels like more than we've gone to in the past 10 years.

Dion Oxford, a multiple sclerosis patient, says his health has improved since he received treatment at the same clinic where Mahir Mostic died. Watch Video

Dear winter,
I have a confession and an apology to make.

I don’t hate you.

In fact, I think you’re beautiful. I’m sorry that I’ve been so angry at you for a few years now. I realized today that it’s not you that I’m mad at. It’s this awful disease of MS that I have that makes it so very difficult to get around in winter. I’m sorry for the misplaced anger. Please forgive me.

I'm been clean for 5 days now.
And sober.
Yes. I'm an addict. And for the umpteenth time in a row I have committed to kicking my addiction as a new year's resolution.
It's slowly killing me. It's damaging my health. It zaps my energy. It clouds my thinking.

Holy God, on this first Monday of November, we thank you for the wonderful fall colours all around us and the beauty of your creation in this season of transition. We praise you for the wonder of the rhythms of how your creation works. For the reminders of your presence and your unfathomable imagination in the way that you have designed the universe. We are overwhelmed by your greatness and even more amazed that despite the awesomeness of the cosmos, you still know and love each one of us by name.

Well I guess I'm keeping up with my trend of writing one post every couple of months. It's kinda pathetic I know, but it is what it is.
On Thanksgiving weekend I found myself at a loss for words. Not in every area of my life, those of you who know me best would know I'm never short of having an opinion on something or other, but just in the area of being able to name what I'm thankful for.

This is that weekend when we find ourselves both reflecting on how fast the summer blew by and also planning for new fall season beginnings (school, church, work, etc). For me, this Labour Day weekend of reflection and preparation seems multiplied by a gazillion. There's so much that I'm leaving behind and there's also so much to prepare for.

Ron Mainse catches up with Dion Oxford of Gateway Ministry at the Street Level Conference. Watch Video

“Heavenly Father, in your Word you have given us a vision of that holy City to which the nations of the world bring their glory: Behold and visit, we pray, the cities of the earth. Renew the ties of mutual regard which form our civic life. Send us honest and able leaders. Enable us to …

A Prayer for the City Read More »

I haven’t been going to church this summer. It’s too hot and humid. My tolerance for humidity has significantly decreased from last year to this due to MS related complications. When it’s humid I can barely put one foot in front of the other. It’s hard enough as it is. So when I told my …

Summer Church Read More »

Usually when summer arrives and winter is officially behind us, it’s a symbol of a time to come up for air, take a deep breath, and enjoy the slower pace of life and work for a couple of months. But when you’re homeless, there’s no such thing as summer holidays. There are no cottage plans.No …

It’s summer. And things are heating up! Read More »

Well it’s pretty clear I can’t seem to find a regular blogging rhythm. The last time I was here it was the middle of winter. Now it’s late spring, the snow is all gone (knock on wood), the flowers are blooming, and summer is imminent. (Though I’m still wearing a sweater lest I freeze. But …

Late Spring Thoughts Read More »