Winfield United Church

by Traci Hubbard A teacher tells her class of young children that they should bring a symbol of their religion to class the next day, for the purposes of cultural enrichment. The next day, the teacher begins to go around the room, asking children to show what they brought. The first little boy says, "I'm Jewish, and this is a menorah! We light it to celebrate Hanukkah." "Very good!" says the teacher. Then, turning to the next student, "Now how about you?" The little girl stoo

By Traci Hubbard I am betting that most of us know that to get a squirrel to like us, all we have to do is act like a nut. Folks, there has always been a ton of misinformation floating around. Winston Churchill was brilliant in using misinformation to guide his enemies to the wrong places. In 1 Kings 3, we see that Solomon has become the king of Isreal and it appears that YHWH has handed him a blank check by asking, “What do you want?” Notice, this is not a Genie in a bottle

Bob Thompson               The last Sunday of the year – four days before the start of a new year. Always, at this time of year, talk turns to the resolutions we are going to make for the new year. Nowadays, the talk is mostly cynical – about how long it will be before we break those resolutions. But it isn’t necessarily a bad thing, to be thinking about New Years resolutions.               I looked up the origins for making New Years Resolutions, and the practice goes back a

By Traci Hubbard Have you ever been in the car with someone who drives like you have extra lives?  Let’s start with the obvious: Everyone loves the idea of love. We put it on mugs. We send heart emojis in our texts. We quote it at weddings. But actually, loving like Jesus ? This is where things get… complicated. Because Jesus doesn’t say, “Love people who agree with you, who are polite, emotionally healthy, and return your texts.” Nope. The map of Jesus’ ways has directions l

By Traci Hubbard This past Friday, I was in the Orchard Park Mall in Kelowna and saw a sign that read, “No Talkie until Coffee.”  I laughed and immediately thought this is something my daughter Sarah would say. So, why don’t we begin this reflection with the confession that most of us wake up somewhere on the spectrum between “Good Morning Sweet Life” and “Don’t talk to me until I’ve had my coffee.” A few years ago, my best friend and her husband purchased a piece of furnitu

by  Traci Hubbard Micah 5:2–5a; Matthew 2:1–15 Peace is a word that evokes tranquility, but in reality, peace often feels as rare as a sunny winter day in Lake Country. Peace isn't the absence of noise or conflict. It is the presence of something deeper within us, a steady calm even when life has us running around like a squirrel looking for an acorn. We all search for peace.  Some of us look for it in nature, some of us try yoga and end up stuck in a pose, calling it 'restin

by Traci Hubbard                                          Welcome to Advent, the season when we dare to hope, even when the world hasn’t yet given us a reason to. Advent is not a “Hallmark Christmas Movie” where everything is tidy, glowing, and smells suspiciously like cinnamon. Advent is the season that whispers, “Even in the dark, God is already on the move.” Advent is God’s invitation to walk in hope before we see the light. If you’ve been in a mall recently, you know Adve

by Traci Hubbard Isaiah 42:1–3 & Luke 4:18–19 There’s a wonderful line that shows up in both Isaiah and the Gospel of Luke—God is on the move. Isaiah 42 paints the picture of God’s chosen servant who brings justice, hope, and healing: “Here is my servant… he will not cry out or lift up his voice… a bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench.” And then centuries later Jesus stands in the synagogue, reads from Isaiah, and says: “The Spirit of th

By Traci Hubbard First date conversations are important for gaining understanding around the person which will inform us if we want a second date. Here is an example:  One person asks: “What do you do for a living?” The other person answers: “I work with animals every day!”  “Oh how sweet! What is it that you do?”  “I’m a butcher.”  Asking open ended questions for depth and clarification are important.   There is a saying: “Experience is the best teacher… but sometimes it giv

by Traci Hubbard Scripture:   John 15:13 – “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” Every year, on November 11th, Canadians pause to remember. We stand in the crisp autumn air, wearing our poppies, hearts heavy yet grateful. The silence at 11 o’clock is not empty—it is full. Full of memory. Full of honor. Full of love. Remembrance Day is not just about looking back at history—it’s about looking within ourselves and asking, “What kind of p

Traci Hubbard November 2, 2025   So, this happened...this past Friday, I was running errands, and I encountered a very awkward moment…a Zombie was out looking for brains and walked right past me.   Lately, if you called my cellphone, my greeting would say, “Hi, you've reached the cell phone of major disappointment, leave a message and when I get back to myself, I'll get back to you.” I’m just kidding, I didn’t leave that greeting, but I felt like it.  I have been experiencing

By Jim Hannah May these words that I speak and these songs I sing be grounded in my soul encouraged by the spirit presence in me; and may these words and songs you hear be captured by your soul, enlivened by the spirit presence in you. Amen. Humanity, in many ways, has lost its way. This bizarre notion that we are separate from and better than the rest of creation is not only crippling the planet but is also vastly compromising human life as well. And worse, it seems to me, i

by  Traci Hubbard Howard was in trouble. He forgot his wedding anniversary. His wife was extremely angry. She told him "Tomorrow morning, I expect to find a gift in the driveway that goes from 0 to 200 in 6 seconds AND IT BETTER BE THERE!" The next morning, Howard got up early and left for work. When his wife woke up, she looked out the window and sure enough there was a box gift-wrapped in the middle of the driveway. Confused, she put on her robe and ran out to the driveway

by Traci Hubbard                            October 19, 2025   All of our humanity is dependent upon recognizing the humanity in others. Alan Watts wrote, “I have been searching for years for that ideal place. And I have come to the realization that the only way to find it is to be it.” Folks, our lives are not our own if we only care about what other people think.   I was thinking about things that are underrated, and one of them is letting people be who they are. Let people

by Traci Hubbard (c) Hubcatstide 2025 I don’t know how many of you are aware that the rapture was predicted to happen last week. Since we...

How many of us love food? Lasagna, enchiladas, wood fired pizza, chips and salsa, Pico de Gallo, basically my diet. But here’s the...

by Traci Hubbard  You know, I used to be addicted to the Hokey Pokey, but...I turned myself around.    It was Christmas Eve 1984, and I...

by Traci Hubbard      Why is Peter Pan always flying? He neverlands. I like this joke because it never grows old. In 1988, I was at a...

By Traci Hubbard   Ed Sullivan didn’t just run a variety show; he practically moonlighted as St. Peter at the Pearly Gates, only with...

By Traci Hubbard A little girl asked her mother, "How did the human race appear?" The mother answered, "God made Adam and Eve and they...