Author: Jim Cantelon

As I write our world is fraught. None of us has lived on the cusp of international disaster before. This is new and it is scary. I turn to scripture for guidance and comfort and the following stands out: “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust… Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge...

I’ve been connecting recently with an old friend who has just gone through a serious medical crisis and surgery. As we’ve conversed it has struck me again that in the midst of ongoing global dramas, both geopolitical and environmental, there are daily stresses suffered by all of us personally. Most relate to health and some to random accidents but all have impact. Suddenly we may be in a hospital bed surrounded by medical personnel and concerned family members and the vulnerabilities of life take centre stage. We’re thrown physically, emotionally, and spiritually, face to face with our mortality....

I’ve been asked over the past 25 years why we do what we do with WOW. The short answer is that it’s clear from scripture that we should care for orphans and widows in their distress. The long answer is that one hears and obeys the Lord’s calling to service over one’s entire lifetime. Sometimes that “hearing and calling” comes via an “epiphany”. In a book I’m currently writing, I reference the Apostle Paul’s conversion from Saul, the rabidly anti-christian rabbi, to Paul, the first missionary to the Gentiles and author of most of the New Testament’s theology: “Blinded by the intense heavenly...

We’ve just celebrated Mother’s Day and have, no doubt, emailed, texted, and/or had lunch with the women who brought us into the world and became our first educators. We’ve “praised them with great praise”, which is more than mere sentiment. It expresses the deep roots of life’s meaning. There’s almost something mystical about “mother’s love”. It seems to have remarkable, sustaining power. Again and again, we hear testimonies from people both famous and not so famous declaring the massive life-long impact of their mothers upon their lives. They sometimes seem almost divine in their presence....

As is always the case WOW’s ministry on the ground in Africa is awash in adversity. From drought, crop failure, electrical grid “load shedding” (up to 18hrs a day without electricity!) and the grind of endemic poverty, to recent USAID funding withdrawal, our champions and their impoverished, diseased volunteers and communities are hard pressed to find hope. The most pressing of these urgencies is the USAID abandonment of the anti-retro-viral (ARV) programs that have literally saved millions of Africans and Indians from death these past 20 years. Former US President George W. Bush initiated his...

Jonathan Haidt, author of the culture challenging book, “The Anxious Generation” was interviewed recently by Katty Kay of the BBC about the negative influence of smart phones on children. It’s an insightful and revealing interview (worth googling). He observes the various downsides of smartphones, one of them being that they are providing refuge of a sort for parents “over parenting” in what’s seen as an increasingly dangerous world. Parents don’t want to allow their kids out into that danger. They’d rather see them alone in house with their phones. Says Haidt, “We’re not going to restore trust...

The new year has come. Who knew we’d see 2025? I remember the prophets of doom warning that the 21st century might never come to pass. Now we’ve already lived a quarter century in this millennium. And, even though there are crises of magnitude everywhere, our world is still turning and there is hope. Nevertheless many of us saw/see room for improvement in our personal lives. Thus the ubiquitous “new years resolutions”, great intentions that soon are lost as we pick up where we left off in 2024. Perhaps the proven words of the book of Proverbs might encourage us: Trust in the Lord with all your...

I’m writing today (Christmas Eve) in the beautiful Laurentian Mountains of Quebec. We’re at the home of one of our sons. It’s snowing with about a metre already guaranteeing a white Christmas. It’s an idyllic setting. Our 12 grandchildren range in age from 24 to 8 and when we’re all together it’s raucous and fun with everyone speaking (loudly!) at once. And last night as we gathered the laughter and noise was at its peak. What was different about this gathering, however, was a moment or two when the kids grew quiet and thoughtful as they discussed the state of our/THEIR world. Theirs is a generation...

Christmas for millions around the globe is the highlight of the year. “Peace on earth, goodwill to men” springs from the intuitive knowledge of God that we all possess. There is an upward call in our souls. This may be the impetus throughout the ages to build churches with a steeple causing us to look above and reach for the heavens. Speaking of steeples, the sight of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, rising like a phoenix from the ashes after a 5 year restoration, its beauty, sanctity, and steeple rebuilt, amazed us all. In so many ways it symbolizes hope. Our war weary world needs to know...

There’s a lot to be said in terms of this era of the internet in which we live. Information, communication, and interaction globally is literally at our fingertips, our computers and smartphones connecting us instantly to the world. Indeed no generation in history has been so connected. The downside, of course, is that we’re also connected with a world in chaos with war, famine, and sorrow on sorrow. Little wonder we sometimes lie awake at night praying for peace. I often turn to the Psalms where King David, who authored many of them, reached out to the Lord for comfort. Psalm 91 is one of my...

I’m writing this brief blog on November 11th, the day when the free world remembers the fallen in two world wars and scores of regional conflicts. For many of us who are a bit younger than those who participated in battle it seems surreal as we hear accounts of the personal horrors that they went through.  And yet many of us have fathers or grandfathers, mothers or grandmothers who fought and survived. Their stories (if they’re willing to tell them—some aren’t) seem like scenes from a movie, too brutal to be real. But real they are. And you can see those memories come to life in their eyes as...

I think most of us have read of remarkable people who have accomplished a lot in the face of adversity. Usually that adversity is from without. But there are those who have battled challenges from both without and within. I blogged last time about the adversity our WOW champions are facing in South Africa, Zambia, Malawi, and India. Drought in Africa, floods in India, food insecurity, disease, and huge gaps in the electrical grid in Zambia and Malawi, and on and on. All adversities from without. But one of our champions is facing chronic adversity from within. He has come close to death twice...