Edhird's Blog

May 24, 2016
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Alan Gilman’s endorsement of Restoring Health

My good friend and mentor, Ed Hird, has authored an insightful call to holistic heath. Teaching from the tiny, but power-packed New Testament book of Titus, Ed prescribes an effective cure to North America’s “pirate” culture. Titus’s mandate to minister the Gospel on the pirate-ridden island of Crete in the 1st century is a God-ordained antidote to our overly-addicted, overfed, materialistic, and arrogant culture. Ed weave’s interesting stories of key individuals from Benjamin Franklin to Johnny Cash to illustrate key points in Titus.

The Bible is God’s epic story—
his holy, inspired and authoritative revelation of his plan to rescue a broken world.

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To purchase any of our six books in paperback or ebook on Amazon, just click on this link.

May 9, 2016
by edhird 1 Comment

Like Father, Like Son?

By Rev. Dr. Ed Hird

One of my favorite times of year is Father’s Day. I am so grateful that my father was here on earth for so long. When a person deeply admires their father, it is easy to feel that one can never fill their shoes. When I lost my voice for eighteen months in December 1980, I remember feeling that I must be disappointing my father. What I have discovered over the years is that my father has been one of my greatest supporters, and has never stopped cheering for me.

Recently I read the book Rebel with A Cause, which described the fascinating relationship between the late Billy Graham and his son Franklin. Growing up is rarely easy, especially for those with highly successful, famous parents. During his time of rebellion, Franklin learned that he could truly be himself rather than have to be another Billy Graham. Franklin commented: “Almost every child who has a famous parent struggles with finding his own way and wondering if he is being viewed as an individual, not just an extension of his father or mother.” Finding out whom we really are takes time, self-reflection, and willingness to grow.

Franklin’s deep love for his now ninety-seven year old father shines through every page of this book. You can also see how the family sacrificed because Billy Graham, being in such demand, was away for long stretches of time. Successful parents are often forced to travel a lot, often at great cost to their families. Franklin’s mom Ruth was a rock of stability and caring in the midst of the whirlwind of Billy Graham’s global travels.

A major part of Franklin working through his rebellious phase was through his participation in the early days of Samaritan’s Purse, a relief agency perhaps best known nowadays for Operation Christmas Child. Franklin commented: “…I didn’t like seeing people getting hurt when they couldn’t do much to help themselves.” The Graham family has a deep spirit of adventure which causes them to sometimes hang over the edge. Out of compassion for workers at a Jordanian medical clinic, Franklin and a companion drove a much needed land rover from England to Jordan, travelling thousands of often precarious miles through nine countries, including Turkey, Syria, and Lebanon. When international or North American tragedy strikes, Franklin through Samaritan’s Purse is often one of the first to be there helping. The book tells gripping stories of risking life and limb as lives are helped in the tumultuous Middle East and in war-torn countries like Rwanda during the 1994 genocide. Through Samaritan’s Purse, many doctors and nurses like Dr. Kent Brantley have served in places like Liberia during the Ebola epidemic, even sometimes contracting and surviving the virus themselves. Samaritan’s Purse reminds us that the love of God and love of neighbour go together. Jesus not only shared good news with people. He also practically fed the poor and healed the sick. May we too on this Father’s Day be people who love both God and neighbour.

The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin

-an article expanded from the April 2016 North Shore News/Deep Cove Crier

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

April 24, 2016
by edhird Leave a comment

Angus Reid: 85% of Canadians Still Pray

By Rev. Dr. Ed Hird

Does prayer still have a future in Canada? At the 50^th BC Leadership Prayer Breakfast, Dr. Angus Reid the keynote

speaker gave us the latest Angus Reid Institute results from polling 1500 Canadians on prayer. Held at the Vancouver Hyatt Regency, dignitaries like our former Premier Christie Clark and former Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson brought greetings to over 1,000 BC leaders. Angus Reid, a well-known Canadian pollster, informed us that while weekly church attendance has dropped from 56% in 1966 to 15%, 85% of Canadians still pray, at least occasionally. Reid found that weekly prayer by 40% of Canadians (12 million people) has remained relatively constant over the past century. 70% of Canadians who pray frequently say that their prayers are answered always or often, in contrast to just 25% of Canadians who pray infrequently. Frequent pray-ers, said Reid, focus more on thanksgiving than in just asking for help. Contrary to some snobbish stereotypes, he also found that university-educated Canadians (33%) are more likely to pray daily than high school dropouts (26%). Reid’s data showed that new immigrants are twice as likely to be frequently prayers as native-born Canadians. This confirms my experience that new immigrants are much more open to the gospel and attending church than often jaded Canadians who come from a Christian heritage. It is no wonder that, according to Jonathan Bird of the Vancouver Consultation, one third of Vancouver churches conduct their worship in languages other than English.

Of particular interest was Reid’s discovery that childhood prayer greatly shapes one’s likeliness for praying as an adult: “If you prayed frequently as a child, the chance that you would be a non-prayer today is 7 percent (i.e 93% would be praying adults). If you didn’t pray as a child, the odds that you would be a frequent prayer today is 6 percent (i.e. 94% would be non-praying adults). This reminds me as to how faith survived in Russia during the seventy years of atheistic communism. The key was grandparents who taught their grandchildren how to pray even when their children were officially forbidden to attend Sunday School. Many Canadian parents have bought into the tragic idea that it is better to not expose children to religion or church until they are adults, when they can ‘make up their own mind’.

Even though I did not meet Jesus until age 17, I was blessed to be taught to pray as a child by my mom, as well as in Sunday School. Prayer was something that I linked with remembering one’s family before going to sleep, and in saying grace at the dining room table when my nana came to visit. Imagine how we might shape the future of Canada if we invested in helping the new generation learn how to pray. If we will prayerfully strengthen the new generation, then prayer will have a Canadian future. Lord, teach us to pray.

The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin

-an article previously published in the Deep Cove Crier/North Shore News and the Light Magazine

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

April 16, 2016
by edhird Leave a comment

Check out the Alpha Film series Episode 01

You are encouraged to check out the ‪#‎Alpha‬ Film Series | Episode 01: Is There More To Life Than This? It has the integrity of the original Alpha Course videos, set in a wonderful new media backdrop. Pray about showing this to your friends, family, neighbours or coworkers in the context of a meal.

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

April 13, 2016
by edhird Leave a comment

Just Imagine: Marcia Laycock’s endorsement of Restoring Health

by Marcia Laycock
Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is a book that will both challenge and encourage the spiritual leaders of our day. It will also inspire those who are just blossoming, those who are on the edge of their destinies.
In his book Rev. Ed Hird uses Titus, the Apostle Paul’s second in command, as a template. As he moves swiftly and eloquently through one of the smaller and often neglected books of the Bible, Rev. Hird lays out a pattern that can be followed today. The parallels with the first century church Titus helped establish and the struggles we face in our churches today are startling and undeniable.
Rev. Hird states – “If the wisdom in the 45-sentence book of Titus can revolutionize a pirate island, it can even transform a pirate continent like North America. Signs of our North American toxicity include gun violence and the insanity of the shooters, obesity when there is no shortage of food, and a wealth of communication tools while many are no longer talking any more.”
“I have become convinced that North America desperately needs to recover from its toxicity, and that the key to restoring its health is found in strengthening a new generation of holistically healthy leaders, as illustrated in the person of Titus.”
The Second in Rev. Hird’s series,
Strengthening a New Generation of Healthy Leaders, this book is endorsed by such notable spiritual leaders as Dr. J. I Packer, Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology at Regent College and Peter H. Davids, Ph.D. Visiting Professor of Theology, Houston Baptist University.
Rev. Hird ponders – Imagine what would happen if every congregation had a Titus in their midst. Imagine what would happen if tens of thousands of healthy Tituses were strengthened and released throughout the pirate continent of North America and to the ends of the earth.
Imagine what could happen if every church leader in the country read this book.
-A book review by Marcia Lee Laycock
– author of A Traveller’s Advisory: stories of God’s grace along the way
-Marcia was raised on an island off the north shore of Lake Huron, ran away to Alaska and then the Yukon, had a “road to Mayo” conversion in 1982, leaped by faith into Briercrest Bible College with her husband in 1985 and landed in the “promised land” of central Alberta in 1988.
She also had the privilege of living a few miles south of the Arctic Circle (Dawson City Yukon) and a couple of degrees south of the equator (Papua New Guinea).
For the past thirty some years, she’s been a pastor’s wife, mother of three girls, caretaker of two dogs, two cats and sundry fish, and oh, yes, a freelance writer.
She now has two award-winning novels in print as well as three devotional books. Her ebooks are available on www.smashwords.com and some on Amazon, Barnes and Noble etc.
Marcia is honored to have served on the executive of Inscribe Christian Writers’ Fellowship, been a long-time member of The Word Guild and American Christian Fiction Writers, and been privileged to teach for some of these groups.
She is also a sought-after speaker for women’s retreats and one day events, having spoken widely for Stonecroft Ministries. You can contact her for available dates and topics.

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable..

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

March 13, 2016
by edhird Leave a comment

David Bentall on Leaving a Legacy

By Rev. Dr. Ed Hird

Every week I meet with people for coaching sessions in local coffeeshops. Since doing a Deep Cove Crier article on David

Bentall’s earlier bestselling book The Company You Keep, I met weekly with two other people to do a book study on David’s books. His newest book Leaving a Legacy has taught me a lot about the possibilities and pitfalls of family businesses. David is from the third generation of a Greater Vancouver family whose members are well-known real estate developers.[1] For twenty years, David worked in the family business, including seven years as president and CEO of Dominion Construction, during which time they built the $100 million Rogers Arena.[2]

In reading David’s new book, I learned that family businesses on average last twenty-four years, twice as long as other companies.[3] The oldest family business Kongo Gumi Company has been in existence for 1414 years so far.[4] The average CEO only last five years, in contrast to family business leadership that can last for decades.[5] I had no idea that approximately 85% of all companies worldwide are family businesses.[6] As the ‘economic engine of the global economy’, family businesses provide 50% of North American wages.[7]

David’s book helps family businesses to integrate family and business, so that one’s business does not destroy one’s family.[8] Wise families always put family first and business second. David comments: “In business, success is measured by profits earned; whereas in a family, the yardstick is love.”[9] Money given unwisely to one’s children ends up being a curse: “They don’t need more money or more stuff. They need more of their parents’ time and more of their love.”[10] One of the challenges of family businesses is that the new generation has often not been mentored regarding what it really means to work.[11] David encourages family business members to initially work outside of the family firm in order to gain perspective.[12] Growing up in the shadow of highly successful parents can cause the new generation to suffer from an acute sense of inadequacy. David comments: “To say that my self-esteem was fragile would be an understatement.”[13] Many family businesses suffer from lack of good governance policies and structures.[14] Less than 1% of family businesses, says David, have effective boards.[15] The Bentall family paid a high price because of this omission, resulting in a ‘fractured wasteland of broken relationships’.[16] David has dedicated his life as a consultant and executive life coach helping other family businesses avoid these same costly mistakes.[17] His transparencies about his own leadership foibles make compelling reading. He freely admits that he used to suffer from the need to always be right.[18] “Nothing was too sacred for me”, said David, “I began charging about the company, tilting at windmills.”[19]

David and I go back a long way. He was there the night that I came to a personal faith in Christ at age 17. David mentored and encouraged me in my first steps of faith. He has been able to integrate his faith and his business life in a way that is not often seen. Genuine faith walks the walk, not just talks the talk.

One of the generational strengths of the Bentall family is integrity.[20] Granddad Charles Bentall was famous for building downtown skyscrapers on no more than a handshake.[21] Jimmy Pattison commented: “David C. Bentall is a man of great integrity and depth. He’s also insightful and caring.”[22] My prayer for those reading this article is that we too will leave a lasting legacy of integrity.[23]

The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin

-an article previously published in the North Shore News/Deep Cove Crier

[1] David C. Bentall, Leaving a Legacy (Castle Quay Books, Pickering, Ontario, 2012), 5.

[2] Bentall, 5. 71.

[3] Bentall, 143.

[4] Bentall, 134.

[5] Bentall, 76.

[6] Bentall, 124.

[7] Bentall, 142.

[8] Bentall, 125.

[9] Bentall, 147.

[10] Bentall, 190.

[11] Bentall, 133.

[12] Bentall, 137.

[13] Bentall, 136.

[14] Bentall, 145.

[15] Bentall, 163.

[16] Bentall, 59.

[17] Bentall, 240. “…most importantly, I want to offer the next generation mentoring and coaching.”

[18] Bentall, 134, 334. “I have always wanted to be right, and I really don’t like being wrong…During the first 10 years of my career, I didn’t understand that love trumps being right. Blinded by my own self-righteousness, I was a strident advocate of doing things right. Unfortunately this created in me a very critical spirit.”

[19] Bentall, 224.

[20] Bentall, 234. “A person of integrity is someone who is incorruptible and honest, someone who firmly adheres to a moral code.

[21] Bentall, 24.

[22] Bentall, 4.

[23] Bentall, 242. “If we build a business, we may leave a legacy of industriousness. If we serve, we may leave a legacy of service. If we love, we can leave a legacy of love. Our legacy will not be created tomorrow; it is created by how we live today.”

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

February 20, 2016
by edhird Leave a comment

Risen: A delightful Easter movie

By Rev. Dr. Ed Hird

Last night my wife and I went on a date night to the opening night of the Risen movie. I was pleasantly surprised by how entertaining and original the movie was about a familiar theme. It is too easy to be jaded about faith-based films, as they have not always be of high production and creativity. Seeing Easter through the eyes of a cynical Roman soldier works well for our postmodern culture. Though I am already a believer in Jesus’ physical resurrection, this movie actually encouraged my faith and my confidence in the reasonableness of Jesus’ resurrection, in the face of the other explanations. Do yourself a favour and give this movie a chance. If you enjoy it, help send it viral.

Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

February 19, 2016
by edhird Leave a comment

Rev Gavin Pate’s endorsement of Restoring Health

Rev Gavin Pate, serving at All Saints Dallas, is the Administrator for the Anglican Mission in the Americas. We had the privilege of hearing Gavin+ preach.

Rev. Gavin Pate, Administrator for the Anglican Mission in the Americas, gave a thoughtful sermon on Sunday at St. Simon's NV.:

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

February 11, 2016
by edhird 1 Comment

Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations at Easter

By the Rev. Dr. Ed Hird

Do you have great expectations for Easter? I have always loved Easter, particularly our Easter family turkey dinners. My earliest childhood Easter memories are of bunnies, chocolate, eggs, bonnets, lilies, flower crosses, and joyful singing. Easter can be a time of reconnecting and celebrating, a time of healing and new life. In Dickens’ Tale of Two Cities, as the hero Sydney Carton takes his friend Darnay’s place on the guillotine, he repeats Jesus’ Easter words: “I am the resurrection and the life; he that believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever lives and believes in me, shall never die”.[1] Most of us, because of the unforgettable Christmas Carol book, associate Dickens more with Christmas than Easter.[2] Yet Dickens had great expectations not just of Christmas but also of Easter. Dickens was a true Easter person. In most of Dickens’ novels, there are Easter moments of unexpected hope, transformation and breakthrough. Dickens rarely leaves us stuck in despair. The Easter moment in Oliver Twist was Oliver being welcomed into the kindly Brownlow family.[3]

In Dickens’ book Hard Times, life without mystery, creativity, and the supernatural is portrayed as barren, meaningless, and empty. In contrast to Easter, the materialistic philosophy in Hard Times taught that everything could be reduced to utilitarian facts and monetary gain: “Now, what I want is facts. Teach these boys and girls nothing but facts. Facts alone are wanted in life. Plant nothing else, and root out everything else…”[4] Even heaven, said the teacher Thomas Gradgrind, could only be entered through earning one’s own salvation: “Every inch of the existence of mankind, from birth to death, was to be a bargain across a counter. And if we didn’t get to heaven that way, it was not a politic-economical place, and we had no business there.”[5] Other people to Gradgrind were little more than depersonalized machines only to be valued as they served the industrial complex. Gradgrind was like an Easter Scrooge, saying ‘bah humbug’ to anyone with great expectations. But no matter how hard he tried, Gradgrind could not crush the Easter imagination, expectations, and compassion seen in Sissy.[6] Only when Gradgrind’s daughter Louisa emotionally collapsed did Gradgrind finally realize that life is more than just bare cold facts, saying “The ground on which I stand has ceased to be solid under my feet.”[7] Through his Easter moment, Gradgrind began “making his facts and figures subservient to Faith, Hope and Charity, no longer trying to grind that heavenly trio in his dusty little mills.”[8] Even Scrooges and Gradgrinds can discover great expectations.

In The Life of our Lord, Dickens’ least-known book, he shared with his ten children the deep faith that he had not only in Christmas, but also in Easter. Easter for Dickens was about great expectations, about Jesus’ resurrection love: “No one ever loved all people so well and so truly as He did.”[9] To Dickens, Jesus “was always merciful and tender. And because he did such good, and taught people how to love God and how to hope to go to heaven after death, he was called our Saviour.”[10] Dickens explained that the Saviour would teach men to love one another, and not to quarrel and hurt one another; and his name will be called Jesus Christ.[11] Dickens believed in the Easter resurrection of Jesus, saying “as he is now in heaven, where we hope to go, and all to meet each other after we are dead, you can never think what a good place heaven is without knowing who he was and what he did.”[12] In The Life of our Lord, Dickens recorded five accounts of Jesus’ resurrection appearances after his crucifixion, commenting that the resurrected Jesus “was seen by five hundred of his followers at once, and He remained with others of them forty days.”[13]

Charles Dickens had great expectations at Easter, because he looked past the Easter baskets, bonnets, and bunnies to the very heart of Easter: Jesus’ death and resurrection. As an Easter person, Dickens wanted his children to know because Christ is risen indeed, there is always a way forward, even in hard times. My prayer for those reading this article is that this Easter would be a time of great expectations, great breakthroughs, and great hope.

The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin

-an article previously published in the North Shore News/Deep Cove Crier

[1] Charles Dickens, Tale of Two Cities, 3.9.89. Right before his guillotining, Carton memorably said: “I see a beautiful city and a brilliant people rising from this abyss, and, in their struggles to be truly free, in their triumphs and defeats, through long years to come, I see the evil of this time and of the previous time of which this is the natural birth, gradually making expiation for itself and wearing out.” (3.15.46)

[2] Charles Dickens, Christmas Carol, http://www.stormfax.com/1dickens.htm

[3] Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist, https://books.google.ca/books?isbn=1904232469 , 40, http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/730

[4] Charles Dickens, Hard Times, (Pocket Books, Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc., 2007, New York, NY), 9.

[5] Hard Times, 376.

[6] Hard Times, 410.

[7] Hard Times, Third Book, One Thing Needful, Chapter 1, p. 2.

[8] Hard Times, Chapter IX, https://books.google.ca/books?isbn=1136413251; http://www.victorianlondon.org/etexts/dickens/hard_times-0037.shtml

[9] Charles Dickens, The Life of Our Lord, http://www.chucknorris.com/Christian/Christian/ebooks/dickens_life.pdf

[10] The Life of Our Lord, 8.

[11] The Life of Our Lord, 14.

[12] The Life of Our Lord, 3.

[13] The Life of Our Lord, 31.

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

January 20, 2016
by edhird Leave a comment

Endorsement by Ron Hughes of Restoring Health: Very inspiring

By Ron Hughes

Reading “Restoring Health: Body, Mind and Spirit” by Ed Hird was a great way for me to start the new year. Ed’s insights based on scripture, historical research, and personal experience bring Paul’s letter to Titus to life.

Ed points out that Crete’s 1st Century pirate culture and North America’s 21st Century post-modern, highly-individualistic, pleasure-driven culture run on uncomfortably close parallel lines. The apostle’s advice to Titus serves us well today. It is especially appropriate for encouraging young leaders, but any serious Christian will benefit from reading it.

Doctrinally sound and vividly written “Restoring Health: Body, Mind and Spirit” was so inspiring that by the time I was two thirds of the way through it, I had begun using the book as a springboard for a couple of talks I had to give.

I commend this book highly to anyone who wants to understand and engage secular culture while building up believers who are seeking to live in Kingdom culture.

Ron Hughes

Author of Living at the End of The Rope

FBH International

President

FBH International is a multi-language internet and radio ministry

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. Dr. JI Packer wrote the foreword, saying “I heartily commend what he has written.” The book focuses on strengthening a new generation of healthy leaders. Drawing on examples from Titus’ healthy leadership in the pirate island of Crete, it shows how we can embrace a holistically healthy life.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Share this:

By Rev. Dr. Ed Hird

The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin

-an article expanded from the April 2016 North Shore News/Deep Cove Crier

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Share this:

By Rev. Dr. Ed Hird

Does prayer still have a future in Canada? At the 50th BC Leadership Prayer Breakfast, Dr. Angus Reid the keynote

The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin

-an article previously published in the Deep Cove Crier/North Shore News and the Light Magazine

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Share this:

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Blue Sky reveals how a mother’s most basic instinct isn’t for survival… but for family.

If you’re a fan of Karen Kingsbury, then you’ll love Blue Sky. Get your copy today on paperback or kindle.

-Click to check out our marriage book For Better For Worse: discovering the keys to a lasting relationship on Amazon. You can even read the first two chapters for free to see if the book speaks to you.

In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook. It is also posted on Amazon UK (paperback and ebook), Amazon France (paperback and ebook), and Amazon Germany (paperback and ebook).

Restoring Health is also available online on Barnes and Noble in both paperback and Nook/ebook form. Nook gives a sample of the book to read online.

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

To receive a personally signed copy within North America, just etransfer at ed_hird@telus.net, giving your address. Cheques are also acceptable.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Indigo also offers the paperback and the Kobo ebook version. You can also obtain it through ITunes as an IBook.

-Click to purchase the Companion Bible Study by Jan Cox (for the Battle of the Soul of Canada) in both paperback and Kindle on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca

Share this:

by Marcia Laycock

Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is a book that will both challenge and encourage the spiritual leaders of our day. It will also inspire those who are just blossoming, those who are on the edge of their destinies.

“I have become convinced that North America desperately needs to recover from its toxicity, and that the key to restoring its health is found in strengthening a new generation of holistically healthy leaders, as illustrated in the person of Titus.”

The Second in Rev. Hird’s series,

Strengthening a New Generation of Healthy Leaders, this book is endorsed by such notable spiritual leaders as Dr. J. I Packer, Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology at Regent College and Peter H. Davids, Ph.D. Visiting Professor of Theology, Houston Baptist University.

Rev. Hird ponders – Imagine what would happen if every congregation had a Titus in their midst. Imagine what would happen if tens of thousands of healthy Tituses were strengthened and released throughout the pirate continent of North America and to the ends of the earth.

Imagine what could happen if every church leader in the country read this book.

-A book review by Marcia Lee Laycock

– author of A Traveller’s Advisory: stories of God’s grace along the way

-Marcia was raised on an island off the north shore of Lake Huron, ran away to Alaska and then the Yukon, had a “road to Mayo” conversion in 1982, leaped by faith into Briercrest Bible College with her husband in 1985 and landed in the “promised land” of central Alberta in 1988.

She also had the privilege of living a few miles south of the Arctic Circle (Dawson City Yukon) and a couple of degrees south of the equator (Papua New Guinea).

For the past thirty some years, she’s been a pastor’s wife, mother of three girls, caretaker of two dogs, two cats and sundry fish, and oh, yes, a freelance writer.

She now has two award-winning novels in print as well as three devotional books. Her ebooks are available on www.smashwords.com and some on Amazon, Barnes and Noble etc.

Marcia is honored to have served on the executive of Inscribe Christian Writers’ Fellowship, been a long-time member of The Word Guild and American Christian Fiction Writers, and been privileged to teach for some of these groups.

She is also a sought-after speaker for women’s retreats and one day events, having spoken widely for Stonecroft Ministries. You can contact her for available dates and topics.

P. S. Click this Amazon link to view for free the first two chapters of our new novel Blue Sky.

“I’m afraid there’s been an accident…”

Sandy Brown and her family have just moved to Spokane, Washington where her husband, Scott, is pastoring a new church. With a fresh start, Sandy is determined to devote more time to her four children. But, within weeks of settling in their new life, the Brown family is plunged into turmoil.

Sandy receives shocking news that her children aren’t safe, which brings back haunting memories of the trauma she experienced as a girl. Then, the unthinkable happens…

A brutal attack puts Sandy on the brink of losing everything she’s loved. Her faith in God and the family she cherishes are pushed to the ultimate limit.

Is healing possible when so many loved ones are hurt? Are miracles really possible through the power of prayer? Can life return to the way it was before?

Does prayer still have a future in Canada? At the 50^th BC Leadership Prayer Breakfast, Dr. Angus Reid the keynote