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As I've been conducting my duties as Chaplain at the Salvation Army in Edmonton, Alberta at the Edmonton Centre of Hope, I've been learning more and more about myself and others. I've also been conducting workshops and sessions at other not-for-profit organizations and churches. All of this has taught me my latest life lesson. That life lesson is that I need to listen more and speak less. When any of us is listening to someone else talk, we are often quick to want to jump in...
Well, it's 2024, and many people have made New Year's resolutions and are trying to make this year better than 2023. Although some people do make changes around the New Year and do stick to their resolutions, life isn't always that easy to plan and navigate. In reality, life happens to all of us. Overdue bills, sickness, disease, death, and car accidents. Even for believers in Jesus, not all will go well. So, with this in mind, I will attempt to encourage you and myself. When...
I've just finished going through an eight-year journey with my daughter, who recently passed away at the age of 22. She was diagnosed with cancer when she was 15, but after chemotherapy, that cancer went away and never came back. Then at the age of 19, she was diagnosed with stage three ovarian cancer, which over the course of three years ravished her body until she left this world to be with Jesus. It was a very rough journey that I just came through. There were many sacrific...
As an Indigenous person who's also a follower of the Jesus Way, I have found people who always have reasons for not wanting this way of living for themselves. Some also have an interest to some degree but have had an experience of some kind that has hindered them from exploring this way of living further. And then some people have no interest at all in following Jesus. I reflect on my own life journey. I was raised in a non-Indigenous family going to church at least two days...
When I reflect on my life, as I'm about to turn 55 on July 01, 2023, my heart and my mind keep going to the topic of wisdom. As an Indigenous man who's also from the Sixties Scoop generation, and whose mother and uncles and aunts went to residential school, I realize we were all left with what is called intergenerational trauma. As a follower of the Jesus Way who's born again and set free from sin, I'm also told in the holy scriptures from the apostle Paul that our struggle wi...
Spring is here, and it's so nice to have this change in season, I'm comforted by some simple things. I'm comforted as I leave the window of my office open and hear the birds, squirrels, and wind. I find comfort and healing from these aspects of nature that surround me each day. Most of us already know that animals, no matter what kind, size, or where they inhabit their living space, communicate with each other all the time. They warn each other of danger. They fight with each...
Whenever I've spoken to a group of people or when I wrote my first two books, I've focusd at some point on experiences that I've gone through from birth until later adulthood, including my being a residential school survivor. One reason I do this is from wanting to connect with people more deeply. When I focus on my story, I hope my account can connect with other people's stories and make my main points more visual and relatable. We all love stories. That's why most of us grew...
When I was adopted as a two-year-old, I went through a volatile time, like many foster children do, when they can't stay with their biological parents or family. I was moved around 12 times before settling with the Stelters who raised me. Then, by age five, I went to various child psychologists and psychiatrists to help me with my behavioral problems. I was even put on liquid valium to calm me down, but according to my child welfare file, it didn't work that well. The file...
When I was a kid, I was known for not being able to sit for any length of time and be quiet or still. I think this is the case for most children. Children need something to do with their hands and minds, and when there is too much quiet time, it drives them crazy. This is why in the average Sunday school class, the teacher not only talks and tells a story, but often does so with pictures. Then that leads to drawing, coloring or cutting and pasting. As someone who passed the...
As I go through life on this journey of ups, downs, valleys and mountain peaks, I discovered a few things. One of those things is that when you do something on a regular basis, it usually produces results. As an Indigenous man and believer in Jesus, I want to produce fruit that will last. Someone who professes to be a Christian should also not only believe in Jesus and the scriptures, but should live that faith out in action (Matthew 3). Then those actions should make...
I am a Sixties Scoop Survivor and someone who was adopted and then met my biological family later in life. Then there are a number of other pieces of the pie of my life-issues of addiction, rebellion, and the issues of having two sets of families. Then add issues related to health and the health of family members and all the other experiences good and bad that have happened in my life and in most of our lives. Then there are issues that may not happen to us directly, but...
As I reflect on how many of us as Indigenous people have contributed to the highest set of statistics, in a variety of social ills, I'm left with many thoughts. It makes me think more deeply about all the obstacles to success we as have faced throughout North America. So many different tribal groups and so many souls. When I do think more deeply about all we've been through over the last 500 years, my own life fits part of those higher statistics. It's a process of reflection...
When I take a look at my life and everything I've gone through-all the good and the bad-I see various reasons why I went through bad times. The reasons were usually a result of at least one of four things: 1-Temptation and sin; 2-The pressures of the world and bad influence of friends; 3-The attacks of Satan and his demons; 4-Things beyond my control that I didn't ask to happen, want to happen or invite to happen, but nonetheless happened. 1-Temptation and Sin: During my late...
Many times, when the world, non-believers in Jesus, talk about the issue of power, they refer to using your inner power to obtain success. The world says you just need to focus on the positive and tap into your inner child and focus on yourself. They say spoil yourself, look after yourself, and treat yourself. These are common catch phrases associated with personal accomplishment and reaching your dreams. In North America we saw the abuse of power with the way some early settl...
When I was growing up, I used to see my siblings doing chores, such as mowing the lawn in the summer or shovelling the sidewalks in winter. Like most small children, my turn came when I I matured and was able to physically do those chores. Then as a teenager, two of my chores were to wash the supper dishes Monday to Friday, vacuum the rugs at least once a week and mow the lawn once a week in the summer. When I was in this teenage phase, I usually dragged my heels when it came...
I'm the type of person who really must concentrate when it comes to listening to others. Even though I do the work of a pastor, it's still a challenge to me. Even when I'm sitting in church listening to another pastor preach or when I'm at a special function, like a graduation ceremony, or wedding, it's hard for me to sit and just listen. As I'm completing my doctoral studies, part of my research is to interview 30 Cree Christians. This too is a challenge for me-to stop...
When you read Beyond the Sixties Scoop by Deborah Ironstand you'll be taken on a journey of brokenness, healing, and resiliency. Deborah writes about childhood memories of living off the land with her mother, grandma, and grandpa in a traditional Anishinaabe and Ojibway household. Then came the foster care system. With her mother experiencing the Residential School System and Deborah being from what has been called the Sixties Scoop generation, life was hard. Although she had...
I once heard a man wiser than me say that looking at someone's worldview is like looking at an iceberg. There is what you initially see on the surface of the water and then most of the iceberg is under water. The same is true with an Indigenous person's worldview. You see the behaviors on the surface of someone's life, but there are the reasons for these behaviors that the average person does not know about unless they understand that person's worldview, such as the unseen...
When you go to West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton, there are many attractions. When I was a teenager, I went on the roller coaster that goes upside down and twists, while rushing forward at high speeds. When I reflect on this teenage experience, I remember it as fun but a little tense. Then about six years ago I went on the roller coaster again because my daughters, who were teenagers at the time, went on some rides and somehow, I went on the roller coaster with my wife. When I...
As a child and as a teenager and even as an adult, several times I would act in a certain way that wasn't helpful in my moving forward in maturity. I would make mistakes and endure their consequences. Many times, I would not change my behaviour, which meant changing my mind, until I got caught doing something inappropriate, or unacceptable to my own welfare or the welfare of the community. One evening I listened to a preacher online who explained that the word "repentance"...
Many of my fellow Indigenous People, Native North American People, and other people groups that have been victims of oppression and injustice have struggles with the issue of trust. Our journey of life is filled with many aspects that cause mistrust or broken trust or no trust. How do we recover from such a dilemma that truly does affect every aspect of our lives and weighs down our hearts? In fact, breaks our hearts. With my upbringing, which included being a Sixties Scoop...
I have come to realize over the years that we Indigenous people are historically event-oriented people, rather than time-oriented people. Our worldview is for the most part the opposite of the European or western worldview. This has caused so many conflicts over the years. The settlers came with a worldview focused on an individualistic and for-profit approach to life as opposed to a communal and sharing approach to life with the Indigenous People. When we look at the Word of...
Many times I have heard non-Indigenous people say that they wish Indigenous people would "just get over it." Just get over all this talk about residential schools and financial payments from the government, and just move on with life. Most of the people who say this already have an established career, or sense of stability in their lives. These aren't people who are necessarily well off financially, but they have managed to make strides with their homes and their jobs and...
Over the course of the last five years I have had knee replacement surgeries on each of my knees. I had the surgeries because of chronic pain in the knee joints, arthritis in the joints and because the cushioning in the joints were gone. If anyone has had knee problems, you can relate to what I went through. Before I had those surgeries, I used a cane to help lessen the tension on those knees. Then, as I was recovering from those surgeries, I used a walker, then two crutches...
I was part of the Sixties Scoop generation and so although I am Indigenous, I grew up in a different world, compared to my relatives on the reserve. Growing up in the city, we used to have company over to our house on a regular basis-especially on Saturday night. My parents were also part of a church bowling league and so on Saturday night my brother and sister would babysit me and have authority over me for that night. As I got older, I would go to youth night, where we would...
