I love libraries. In our family, we have four favorite places for ‘down-time’ and restoration: beaches, parks, gyms, and libraries. I see lifting weights and lifting up books as equally stimulating and healthy. One exercises the body; the other one the mind.
My late parents loved books. My father read so extensively that he exhausted virtually every library he joins, and had to move on to another neighbouring library just to find new options. Scholars have discovered that the best way to motivate one’s children to learn is by example. If your children never see you reading, it has a profound impact on their likelihood to pick up a book themselves. There is no better way for your children to expand their minds than to turn off their video games, iPods, or TV, and actually crack open a thought-provoking book or e-book.
The latest library book that has fascinated me is Dr Andrew Pettegree’s “The Book in the Renaissance”. Dr Pettegree is the Head of the School of History at the University of St. Andrew’s in Scotland, and founding director of the St. Andrew’s Reformation Studies Institute. I have learned so much from reading this amazing book. I was shocked to discover that before the sixteenth century in Europe, educators did not teach history in school. One of my growing passions is history, which is why I included so much Canadian history in my last book ‘Battle for the Soul of Canada.’ Dr Pettegree comments that “the teaching of history was in many respects the most original curricular innovation of the Renaissance period. History was not taught in the classrooms in classical times…”
I was also surprised to discover that in England, there was no formal provision for teaching writing in the grammar schools. Few classrooms even had desks. If one wanted to learn how to write, it had to be done during school vacations, perhaps employing a private writing master.
The existence of books can be traced back to before the 7th century BC. Some of the earliest books in Mesopotamia were made of clay tablets. Others were made of silk, bone, bronze, pottery, shell, dried palm leaves, or wood. The Greek word for ‘book’ biblos originally meant “fibre inside of a tree”. The Chinese character for book is an image of a bamboo tablet.
The ancient Egyptians developed a very sophisticated form of book-making, using papyrus made of stretched-out reeds, pasted together in scrolls, sometimes up to forty feet. Beginning in the 3rd century BC, parchment made out of animal skins gradually replaced papyrus as the dominant form of book-making. Parchment was both very durable and very expensive. Until the invention of the Gutenberg printing press in the fifteenth century, virtually all books were handwritten manuscripts, often painstakingly transcribed in monasteries.
We are all very aware of how the internet and social media has revolutionized our 21st century. Gutenberg’s printing press was just as revolutionary. Before Gutenberg, books were only for the wealthy elite. After Gutenberg, books democratized Europe by making new ideas available for ordinary people. His revolution did not just birth printed books, but gave rise to newspapers, further educating ordinary people and infusing their minds with dreams of freedom and equality.
The first book that Gutenberg printed was the Bible. The ready accessibility of the Bible in one’s own language was a radical innovation that many bureaucrats resisted with a passion. Bibles were burnt openly in every part of Europe. Tyrants knew that if ordinary people were given a chance to read the Bible for themselves, liberty would break out everywhere. As the Great Physician put it, you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.
I was fortunate to be number seven of the eight people to receive an IPhone 4 at a local phone store. My only problem was that I didn’t know how to make it work. So I went back to the phone store, asking about the user guide. None of the three employees had ever seen or read the user guide. All had IPhone 4s. “How did you learn to use it?” I asked. One of the young employees said to me “I just pressed buttons until something happened.” Eventually I found the user guide, and actually read it. What an amazing difference it made. As my math teacher said in Grade 10, “When all else fails, read the instructions”. We live in an amazing age when most of us are able to read, yet we still often fail to make the most of this gift.
Gutenberg gave us the gift of printed Bibles available for all to read. Isn’t it about time that we take a look once again at God’s user manual?
The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin
– previously published in the 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.
-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.
To receive a 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
-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
To purchase any of our six books in paperback or ebook on Amazon, just click on this link.
As my middle son Mark and I were playing tennis at the local tennis courts, I was reminded once again that tennis is a lot harder that it looks on TV! The proverb ‘It is better to give than receive’ applies well to my tennis game. Perhaps the reason why I do better at badminton than tennis is that tennis requires a remarkable speed to ‘receive’ incoming rapid-fire shots. On our ‘Island Hall Parksville’ honeymoon thirty-three years ago, my wife and I discovered that we love each other deeply, but tennis was not our secret to marital intimacy.
As I was recently out visiting, drinking tea and chatting, the famous tennis player Serena Williams appeared on the TV screen. Serena is a phenomenal tennis player who makes it looks so easy. There is an art and rhythm to her game that is gripping.
Watching Serena on TV reminded me of a promising young North Shore tennis player Rishan Kuruppa. A while ago, the North Shore News did a write-up on Rishan, as he trained at the North Shore Winter Club under the leadership of retired pro Grant Connell. Rishan has a deep passion for tennis that touches everything in his life. He eats, sleeps, and breathes tennis. I remember Rishan telling me how he daily ran up the Grouse Grind as part of his tennis workout. It left me feeling rather envious and relieved at the same time.
One of my favourite places to work out has been the Parkgate Gym. I’ve often run into Rishan there lifting weights and running backwards on the treadmill. One day we were both on parallel treadmills. I was on a fast walk at ‘4.2’ and Rishan was running at ‘7.5’. Having just received a tennis scholarship for the University of Tennessee, Rishan was determined to be fully up-to-speed before he left Deep Cove.
Rishan had often competed in the United States and began telling me, while on the treadmill, about some lively churches that he had visited in his tennis travels. I asked Rishan if he knew Jesus on a personal basis. Rishan said ‘no’ and genuinely asked me if I did. I shared my story of how I met Jesus on a personal basis while in Grade 12. Still fast-walking at ‘4.2’, I asked Rishan if he would like to ask Jesus into his life. Rishan, still running at ‘7.5’, promptly agreed, and so I led Rishan in a ‘treadmill’ prayer, to ask Jesus to be his Lord and Saviour. After prayer, Rishan said to me: ‘That’s great. I can feel Jesus’ peace.’
I believe that Rishan Kuruppa is a better tennis player today because of the inner peace that he received that day on the treadmill. Running, walking, or sitting, I believe that such inner peace is available to all those reading this article. Prayer anyone?
The Rev. Dr. Ed Hird, BSW, MDiv, DMin
-previously published in the Deep Cove Crier/North Shore News
-The sequel book Restoring Health: body, mind and spirit is available online with Amazon.com in both paperback and ebook form. In Canada, Amazon.ca has the book available in paperback and ebook.
-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
To purchase any of our six books in paperback or ebook on Amazon, just click on this link.
Many of us in the 21st Century have become too busy for our families, too busy for our spouses, too busy to rest, too busy to play, too busy to pray, too busy to read this. Bishop John McNaughton comments that we live in a society where busyness is seen as a virtue and the quality use of time is understood only by a few.
I was somewhat lazy in Senior High School, but by the time I was working on my Masters Degree, I was in full gear academically. I was working 14 to 16 hours a day on major papers and loving it. The only trouble was that I was too busy for my family and never noticed. Only years later did I fully realize how I had robbed my family of vital time that we needed to spend together. Fortunately for me, my family is very forgiving and since then I have learned basic time management principles from the bible that have taught me to be a better husband.
Learning to say “no” as Jesus did is vital to my developing a less cluttered time schedule. So often we can feel put upon with details, frantic with schedules, and wearied by demands. The problem is that we’ve said “yes” to too many time commitments that God never asked us to take on. Listening to God first and obeying Him really helps me to just say “no”.
Procrastination is one of the deadliest diseases which we fight each day whether in our work, family, or spiritual life. Procrastination is such a serious problem that we even procrastinate in facing our procrastination. The bible helps me overcome procrastination by reminding me that time is short (1 Corinthians 7:29). When I realize that time is short and that Jesus could return at any moment, it spurs me to make the best use of the remaining time I do have.
I saw a bumper sticker at Sherwood Park Elementary School that said “The best thing to spend on your children is time!” A key way to restore your family relationship is to begin to trace back the family and marriage time that T.V. has stolen from your family. Research shows that while fathers think they spend 15 minutes a day with each child, they actually only spend 37 seconds a day per child. In contrast, families watch 7 hours of T.V. per day. My prayer for those reading this article is that time for spouse, family, and God will become prioritized in our busy lives.
-previously published in the Deep Cove Crier/North Shore News
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.
-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.
To receive a 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
-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
To purchase any of our six books in paperback or ebook on Amazon, just click on this link.
The latest library book that has fascinated me is Dr Andrew Pettegree’s “The Book in the Renaissance”. Dr Pettegree is the Head of the School of History at the University of St. Andrew’s in Scotland, and founding director of the St. Andrew’s Reformation Studies Institute. I have learned so much from reading this amazing book. I was shocked to discover that before the sixteenth century in Europe, educators did not teach history in school. One of my growing passions is history, which is why I included so much Canadian history in my last book ‘Battle for the Soul of Canada.’ Dr Pettegree comments that “the teaching of history was in many respects the most original curricular innovation of the Renaissance period. History was not taught in the classrooms in classical times…”
papyrus made of stretched-out reeds, pasted together in scrolls, sometimes up to forty feet. Beginning in the 3rd century BC, parchment made out of animal skins gradually replaced papyrus as the dominant form of book-making. Parchment was both very durable and very expensive. Until the invention of the Gutenberg printing press in the fifteenth century, virtually all books were handwritten manuscripts, often painstakingly transcribed in monasteries.
Bible. The ready accessibility of the Bible in one’s own language was a radical innovation that many bureaucrats resisted with a passion. Bibles were burnt openly in every part of Europe. Tyrants knew that if ordinary people were given a chance to read the Bible for themselves, liberty would break out everywhere. As the Great Physician put it, you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.
in Grade 10, “When all else fails, read the instructions”. We live in an amazing age when most of us are able to read, yet we still often fail to make the most of this gift.
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.
-Click to check out our newest marriage book 
By the Rev Dr. Ed Hird
I saw a bumper sticker at Sherwood Park Elementary School that said “The best thing to spend on your children is time!” A key way to restore your family relationship is to begin to trace back the family and marriage time that T.V. has stolen from your family. Research shows that while fathers think they spend 15 minutes a day with each child, they actually only spend 37 seconds a day per child. In contrast, families watch 7 hours of T.V. per day. My prayer for those reading this article is that time for spouse, family, and God will become prioritized in our busy lives.
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.
Edhird's Blog 