Janna Frith

To the grandmother we adored, When I think of all you have witnessed and experienced in your 92 years, one thing stands out that I have learned from you: W e can hold both sorrow and joy together. I know others will talk about your incredible hospitality, your enduring patience for everyone’s stories on those many long phone calls, your love to laugh, your super tight hugs, your faithful prayers, your love for the gospel, and your deep desire to win people to Christ. Indeed, those must be highlighted for they encompass your life’s work of loving others as Christ loves and drawing others to Him. As we bear witness to the fruit of your life, we celebrate and give thanks for your faithfulness. But when I think of the quieter details of your life, I remember how you experienced so much heartache, tragedy, and loss. Beloved husband. Taken by cancer at age 58. Beloved son. Only 24 years with him. Your days weren't easy, and your burdens were many. Only you and the Lord knew the true dep...

The sky is blue and the warmth of the sun feels fantastic. The smell of cut grass fills the air while birds peck around the yard for fresh worms. Colour is taking over my little corner of the world, dressing the branches and garden beds again. And yet, so many corners of the world lie in rubble from violence and disease. (location unknown) My heart is heavy over the violence and injustice we witness in Gaza. Over the powerful choosing not to hold back their strength, choosing the opposite of de-escalation. Sure, from our North American point of view, it’s complicated and nuanced with biased media coverage. Like so many conflicts, it’s not clear to most onlookers what the way forward is. But what is abundantly clear is that children are dying. Innocent people are dying. Too many lives are being destroyed for us to remain silent. The innocent always pay the price. The Palestinian people are worthy of a safe and flourishing life. Fear and hate and power and differing ideologies twist fac...

Every year, after a long winter, we watch in awe as spring arrives, and with it comes an inner sigh of relief and a breath of fresh hope. What can spring teach us about hope? Winter is not my favourite. I just want to hibernate warmly until warmer breezes blow, huddled in my hoodie with strong black coffee in hand. Some of us spend the winter waiting for spring. And this year, we have needed the hope of spring more than ever . We’re all a little weary hearing about the coronavirus pandemic, yet it is hard to ignore something that has invaded all our lives, turning them upside down. At the easiest end of things, we are missing our extended families and friends while adjusting to having our family home 24-7. We're anxious getting groceries, missing school and celebrations, and left wondering if we’re going to get the summer vacation we’ve been anticipating. On the other end of the spectrum, dear ones are devastated by financial and health crises as a direct result of this pandemic. J...

  What would a world be like without Jesus? 2020-04-11 Easter is different this year. The heaviness of our current circumstances fits the time to reflect on what Easter is commemorating. Our souls are already grieving the loss of life as we knew it…and there is anticipatory grief for what’s to come as lives are lost and financial security for many is stripped from beneath their feet as a result of this devastating virus. It has happened so suddenly. Yet we are rallying and supporting one another, and we will get through this together. But this slower pace of life has gifted me extra time to look back at the cross and contemplate that first “Good Friday”. Through the reading of scripture translated into my native tongue, I walked with Jesus from that last Passover meal with his closest friends to the Garden where he prayed in agonized anticipation of what was to come. Following him in his apprehension by authorities, I listened to his interactions with Jewish and Roman leaders. I he...

  What kind of light are we called to be? 2019-11-14   Halloween was extra dark this year. It had been rainy and grey all day with wind warnings for the evening. Yet candy is candy, and the kids did not want to miss out on one of the most anticipated evenings of the year. Out we went into the dark, bundled up. I grew up enjoying the joy of Halloween night with its fun costumes and plethora of candy. Yet for a couple of years before having my own kids, I second-guessed everything about celebrating such a holiday. I had myself convinced that it was a weird one for Christians to participate in. And it is, in some ways. Yet as we had children who became cute toddlers dressed up in those cozy squishable animal costumes, my convictions began to waver. Around this same time, we moved out of the city into a hamlet community. It stirred memories of my small-town childhood, where everyone seemed to know everyone. As an adult, I can look back and see that holidays brought the community t...