There is a small forest near my home that I love to walk in at dusk. The trail is well-worn. My feet know the way by heart. Why do I choose this trail time and again? There are certainly ones that are more peaceful and full. Maybe it's because God and I have done a lot of business there together. I've looked for His divine presence in the soft pine needles on the earthen floor on more than one occasion. I've added a lot of tearful prayers to the sounds of gently swaying trees as night falls…

As I reflect on today’s scripture readings and read in John how the religious people of the day denied Christ, it makes me think of those who are skeptical of reconciliation, those who are so comfortable with this present life that they do not want to think of our past history and the life’s journey of Indigenous people who have survived residential school or descendants who are suffering from inter-generational trauma. I have to ask the question, “What would Jesus do?” “Who does He call us to be?” “How do we obey the Great Commandment?”

As we reach the end of the Advent season, it’s not lost on me that the reflection I’ve been asked to write falls on December 22nd; the arrival of the winter solstice and the longest night of the year.

The reality of encroaching darkness has been with us for some time, and perhaps – like me – you’ve had to fight the urge to crawl into bed by 5:00 pm as your body tries to tell you it’s time for sleep, and the daylight seems to last only for an instant…

Essential to any meaningful relationship is ongoing communication. We know this on an instinctive level. This is especially true of a parent-child relationship. Parents listen intently for that first word and look forward to the time when their child can communicate their needs with words rather than tantrums…

I put my Christmas tree up this year the day after Halloween. It’s the earliest I have ever done so. If you knew me, you might be surprised at that. I’ve historically been a person who gets a wee bit overwhelmed by the expectations and the busyness of the season, so Christmas decor doesn’t usually go up until after American Thanksgiving (it’s ok, Canadian friends; my husband is American, and he loves American Thanksgiving, which is why that is an acceptable demarcation of seasons in our home). But this year? This year is different…

Advent is a time of waiting. Waiting for a time when it does not feel like evil is triumphing. Waiting for God’s restoration, when all in the world will be set right. Waiting for the Christ child to return as King.

This year as I reflect on the season of advent I realize more than ever that I am tired of waiting…

It’s Monday night and I am sitting at a long wooden table. Around me are eight others from our neighbourhood, a mix of professional artists and people who just love art…

Advent is one of my favourite seasons in the church calendar. Scott Erikson, in Honest Christmas, writes: “Advent means ‘coming’ in Latin, and these weeks are meant to prepare our hearts, minds, and souls for the arrival of God-with-Us, Jesus Christ, born to the virgin Mary a couple of millennia ago. You’re supposed to feel the wait – the anticipated arrival of something you want so badly – and by feeling the wait deeply, you’ll be even more satisfied by the celebration of the arrival of Christmas Day.”

"Joy" is a word that saturates the Christmas season. It echoes through carols, decorates cards and T-shirts, yet at times, amid the tumultuous backdrop of climate crises, global conflicts, and pervasive injustice, it can seem superficial…

This past summer as the kids played in their pools and begged me for more and more bubble solution and popsicles, I stumbled upon a feature from the podcast, OnScript. The episode focused on the work of Ted Smith and his latest book, The End of Theological Education…

I love everything about surprises. I appreciate the thought and effort necessary to create a successful surprise party. The collaboration required, the time offered, and the kindness demonstrated. All that love wrapped up in the word surprise makes me feel warm and fuzzy…

For someone who deals with anxiety, the fact that the Bible often says "Do not be afraid" is always hard for me. This is how Psalm 27 begins. Stating, “The Lord is my light and my salvation—so why should I be afraid? The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble?” I can see how this makes sense…

What can the birth of a man 2000 years ago possibly have to do with people who live today? This question came to rest in my thoughts as I was mowing my lawn for the last time this year. I ruminated on it while attempting to avoid disturbing the fallen leaves that provide a safe refuge for the wildlife that overwinters in them…

Dear reader,

What are you afraid of?

(What a way to start an Advent devotional, right?)

My friend Lorraine and I stood outside gazing at the night sky filled with a million stars shining and twinkling brightly against the darkness. The air was brisk and cold but we were bundled up in our parkas and snow pants, hoods over our toques, scarves wrapped around our necks and covering our mouths, warm boots on our feet and woollen mittens on our hands so we didn’t notice how cold it was out there…

My son is named Raven and so people often send me anything and everything that comes across their feed that has to do with corvids. And so, I was reading about crows recently (as one does) and I was moved by the concept of a scarecrow…

In today’s reading from Psalm 85:10-13, the poet describes the divine forces of love, faithfulness, righteousness, and peace all reaching out for one another from every which way, meeting in a surprising collision that results in the healing of the land and paves the way for the arrival of the Messiah…

At the Ancaster Fair this past Fall I walked past one of those crazy mirrors that distorts everything. Among several ways it changed reality was to make me look thirty pounds lighter. I liked that. But it also made me five feet taller and distorted my body to look like a wavy spaghetti noodle incapable of existence…

I find the Christmas season is hard to untangle as a pastor, as a mom, and really just as a person. So many of our cultural customs have faith stories conflated with consumerism. I love how Christmas lights interrupt the darkness of our shortest days…

Perhaps after reading today’s lectionary, you were like me: uncertain of how to frame your thoughts and reflections in a way that would encompass compassion, hope, generosity, and love, considering the current political climate…

One of our farm chores that often falls to me is closing the animals up at night. As I wrap up my work and shut down my computer, the brightness of its screen gives way to my dark walk out under the stars to close up the chicken coop and ensure all of our animals have what they need for the night…

Welcome to the sixth annual New Leaf Advent Reader. I am so excited to share this collection of reflections with you! In 2018, when we put out our first set of daily reflections, I felt like I was leveraging the whole network to find people willing to write a reflection for this unknown project…