Upon realizing the damage of my drone and that I have absolutely no money to fix it, I figured that I should try to sell it. As I was in my room, the Holy Spirit just hit me with a sight I haven't seen before. I looked around my room and saw a number of valuable (ish) items that I don't use anymore. I saw them all just lying around my room, unused. The thought came to me, what a waste of money I've spent on all of this, only not to use it. That money could have a much better use, it could be used to impact others, to bless others, to glorify God. I thought on this for a bit and thought, "I should just sell it all."
Since I didn't want to make any rash, impulse decisions (since I was talking about $1,000-3,000 worth of stuff), I decided to pray about it. That is when I decided to take my walk (a previous post). On that walk I spent a lot of time asking God for wisdom on if I should sell these things or not. I had pulled them all out and set them aside. Close to the end of the walk, I felt like God was saying that I should sell them, assuming that I keep to my commitment to God (that I really felt Him calling me to do): to give every dollar that I get for them.
You know, it weird like that. I feel like God is testing me. He is testing my trust of Him. I've seen through a few other circumstances that He is currently testing my patience, and now it seems He is testing my trust. I am very financially limited, in a different country and without a work visa (currently). I know I've been called to Canada and God has given me some specifics on my calling. I have no idea what I'm going to do financially next year though. I will need a car, insurance, a phone, money to keep me alive, gas money, etc... and my savings will be dry by then. And now I have an opportunity to potentially make a few thousand dollars and He wants me to give it all away!!???
God has interesting ways of testing me I must say. He has clearly told me that He will provide. That I have nothing to fear, nothing to worry about. So I believe that He is seeing if I will trust on my own attempts at income or if I will trust what He has told me: that He WILL Provide!
Tuesday, May 10, 2016
Higher & Higher &... Straight Down Faster & Faster
Yesterday the long awaited construction started on our road. The whole road is closed to thru traffic, and they started bringing large equipment in. Since I haven't used my drone in a while, I figured that it would be cool to take it up above our house quiet a ways and get a picture of the whole site. I thought, "if I did this once a day, by the end of the 90(ish) day construction, it'll make a pretty good time lapse." So I took it out for the first time in a long time. She flew great, just as before. I took her up and took a few pictures and a short video. Within a handful of seconds after I stopped the video something happened. I had been going higher and higher, but randomly the drone lost all power. At 50-100 meters (160-320 feet) up, with no power it started it's quick decent. Faster and faster it fell. About 2/3 of the way down it randomly got power again, and I heard (and saw) the motors screaming to try stop itself before an impact with the ground. But all it's attempts failed (the controller was no use at this point). Faster and Faster it screamed toward, from my view, right overtop of the barn. It went down below what I could see and I heard a loud BANG followed quickly by a THUD.
As I ran to the side of the barn I found that the drone had made it's high-speed impact on top of the old horse trailer before bouncing to the ground below. The trailer was unharmed. The drone however is not likely to ever be flown by me again. For such a fall, I am surprised by the relatively minimal damage. Two propellers broke (I have no replacements for these), part of the landing support snapped, the camera bent a bit, a number of parts of the camera gimbal broke, bent and don't look too healthy. Part of the plastic also broke (where it was previously was only cracked), the compass wires broke out of place, a few wires are not fully attached, and when I move the drone I hear lost of small loose pieces rattling around on the inside. Thus ends my enjoyable journey with the drone. Thank you lord for blessing me with the enjoyment of this toy. - it's now for sale as is.
As I ran to the side of the barn I found that the drone had made it's high-speed impact on top of the old horse trailer before bouncing to the ground below. The trailer was unharmed. The drone however is not likely to ever be flown by me again. For such a fall, I am surprised by the relatively minimal damage. Two propellers broke (I have no replacements for these), part of the landing support snapped, the camera bent a bit, a number of parts of the camera gimbal broke, bent and don't look too healthy. Part of the plastic also broke (where it was previously was only cracked), the compass wires broke out of place, a few wires are not fully attached, and when I move the drone I hear lost of small loose pieces rattling around on the inside. Thus ends my enjoyable journey with the drone. Thank you lord for blessing me with the enjoyment of this toy. - it's now for sale as is.
A Worried Walk
Yesterday around 5:00-5:15pm, I decided to go for a little walk. I told Laura that I was heading out for a walk, and before heading out I went to grab my phone. Except I couldn't find my phone. Thinking that it was no big deal, I left. I took the usual route back into the bush and looped around, which took about a half an hour. But as I came back up to the spot on the road where I turn back on to our road, I wanted to keep going, I wasn't ready to be done yet, so I kept walking. I use my walking time to sing, praise, worship and talk to God. Its really great, and what makes it even better is that while I'm spending more time with Him, I am walking in His creation in it's purest form. Anyways I kept walking down the road I was on for a few a while. I made a goal on how where I was planning to walk, though I wasn't certain how long it would take. Needless to say, I didn't really care how long it took, it just meant more time with God. So I kept walking.
Back at the Baxter household, supper had started and the Baxter's figured that I was just taking a long walk (they didn't know that I had gone anywhere but the bush). Well supper came and went I still wasn't back. I think their parenting instincts kicked in and after a bit, they got a little worried. They tried calling me, that is until they heard my phone ringing downstairs. After a couple hours they decided to go and search for me. Jim and Laura took the motorized scooter and Daniel took his bike and the went searching. Leah and Julia were out of the house with friends and neither of them had seen me (this whole time I had no idea any of this was going on).
About three hours and fifteen minutes after I left for a walk and just over 11 miles (18km) later, I casually, innocently and unaware of anything, walked up to the Baxter house. As I was walking up, Julia was coming from the other direction. We both got to the house about the same time and that is where she informed me of the situation. She called Laura and told her that I was back. Once inside, I found a large note (large font that is) on the kitchen counter telling me that if I saw this note to text Jim, Laura, and/or Daniel. So I sent them a text informing them I was home.
Note to self, don't go on a long walk without a phone in the future....
...
Anyways while I was on my walk, I was looking up a the beautiful, solid-blue sky half way blanked with clouds, and I saw I perceived as an angel form. It sat up above one of the clouds just almost floating there. As I walked along, it slowly moved with the clouds. I looked down for a bit and when I looked back up it was gone, not a trace left. I'm not 100% sure, but if I had to guess, I'd say that it was an angel and not just a cloud. It was a pretty cool experience, yet I am still not sure what the purpose of the experience was.
Back at the Baxter household, supper had started and the Baxter's figured that I was just taking a long walk (they didn't know that I had gone anywhere but the bush). Well supper came and went I still wasn't back. I think their parenting instincts kicked in and after a bit, they got a little worried. They tried calling me, that is until they heard my phone ringing downstairs. After a couple hours they decided to go and search for me. Jim and Laura took the motorized scooter and Daniel took his bike and the went searching. Leah and Julia were out of the house with friends and neither of them had seen me (this whole time I had no idea any of this was going on).
About three hours and fifteen minutes after I left for a walk and just over 11 miles (18km) later, I casually, innocently and unaware of anything, walked up to the Baxter house. As I was walking up, Julia was coming from the other direction. We both got to the house about the same time and that is where she informed me of the situation. She called Laura and told her that I was back. Once inside, I found a large note (large font that is) on the kitchen counter telling me that if I saw this note to text Jim, Laura, and/or Daniel. So I sent them a text informing them I was home.
Note to self, don't go on a long walk without a phone in the future....
...
Anyways while I was on my walk, I was looking up a the beautiful, solid-blue sky half way blanked with clouds, and I saw I perceived as an angel form. It sat up above one of the clouds just almost floating there. As I walked along, it slowly moved with the clouds. I looked down for a bit and when I looked back up it was gone, not a trace left. I'm not 100% sure, but if I had to guess, I'd say that it was an angel and not just a cloud. It was a pretty cool experience, yet I am still not sure what the purpose of the experience was.
Thursday, May 5, 2016
GOD; My Future; My Calling; GOD!
Wednesday Night, prior to the start of the twelfth Session there was a time of worship. During this time of Worship God really spoke to me, His presence overtook my body to the point that I didn't really hear anything else that was said that night. I've never felt God's presence so powerfull, so present before. What happened was very similar to what happened to me back in October 2015 when The Holy Spirit flooded me when I was baptized in the Holy Spirit (http://slicanada.blogspot.ca/2015/10/sunday-evening-twenty20-ohh-my.html).
As I was worshiping, my body started tingling here and there. It started in the finger tips and it spread from there. The back of my lower leg started to tingle, then my palms. The tingling in my legs, hands and arms continue to grow stronger and spread. Then my innards: my stomach, chest and internal organs began to shake, convulsing and shaking uncontrollably. By this point I could no longer stand. I was forced down on my chair and by body continued to sake more and more, stronger and stronger, inside and out. I had my hands open out in front of me. the tingling was more than ever before. I felt my arms starting to shake, more and more, faster and faster. There was a point where I felt as though I was in a different body. I acknowledged that my body was shaking, tingling and moving beyond my control, yet I felt that I was sitting there in an un-shaking body, in the same spot, same position, yet in a controlled almost spiritual body - it definitely wasn't a physical body. It was a very weird experience. It was as though I could feel the "physical"-ness of both my physical body and my spiritual body.
I then felt my fingers being pulled, guided. I let the Holy Spirit guide my hands, and they moved all over. Then they were strongly pulled upwards. Up to the heavens. Then they slowly came down to either side of my body, pulling outward (arms still outstretched). My fingers/hands on my body were pulling me in both directions. Suddenly they were pulled backwards, toward the seats next to me. I was pressed up against the back of my chair with my arms being pulled far out on all sides and against the chairs. I felt as though (and heard in my head the thought that) I was on a cross, I was fully surrendered to God. God spoke to me there and told me that this was a representation that I was going to be persecuted for Him in my future.
My hands were then pulled back in front of me. Again, my arms were out in front of me, my fingers I felt in away moved in odd positions, as with my hands. Each finger was being pulled somewhere else. My legs this whole time had been shaking uncontrollably. After some time, I felt the presence of God not so strong within me. When I "came to" and opened my eyes, my legs and hands were still shaking and jumpy for quite a while afterwards. Life took a while to seem real again. The presence of God within me was so ... so... real like, that it was realer than life on earth. And coming out of this realer than life experience took a lot of time readjusting to earthly life again. I kept moving my fingers and hands around, trying to get use to using them again under my own strength. That took a while too, just actually realizing that my hands and fingers had been moving around so much without my will. During the experience I tried moving my hands together with my own strength, and there was so much resistance. At one pint my fingers touched and it was so unreal. I acknowledged the touch, and yet I didn't since I wasn't really in that body at the time - it was weird. Afterwards my hands and legs were shaking for nearly an hour before I regained full control over them. My muscles hurt, it was very difficult to focus and there was still a tingling feeling in my finger tips. My body was weak too, I could not move my legs or feet for more than an hour. Life took so long to really seem real, it was at least an hour before a bit of real life focus came to me and at least another 2-3 hours before life really seemed more real, as it was before. The experience also left me with a headache that was strong and sharp but came an went for about an hour.
During this experience God told me not to fear about the future; about next year. Again, God told me that I am to be here in Canada. But He also told me so much more. He told me that I am to be in Koinonia, I am to be in Ministry, I am to be in/with kids: Koinonia Kids and KCA. God told me not to fear about next year, for He is bigger and better and has a plan. He told me that resources will be provided, a visa will be provided if I wait and trust Him. He will be with me. I shall not fear. I will go with His lead.
"To be absent from the body, is to be present with me."
As I was worshiping, my body started tingling here and there. It started in the finger tips and it spread from there. The back of my lower leg started to tingle, then my palms. The tingling in my legs, hands and arms continue to grow stronger and spread. Then my innards: my stomach, chest and internal organs began to shake, convulsing and shaking uncontrollably. By this point I could no longer stand. I was forced down on my chair and by body continued to sake more and more, stronger and stronger, inside and out. I had my hands open out in front of me. the tingling was more than ever before. I felt my arms starting to shake, more and more, faster and faster. There was a point where I felt as though I was in a different body. I acknowledged that my body was shaking, tingling and moving beyond my control, yet I felt that I was sitting there in an un-shaking body, in the same spot, same position, yet in a controlled almost spiritual body - it definitely wasn't a physical body. It was a very weird experience. It was as though I could feel the "physical"-ness of both my physical body and my spiritual body.
I then felt my fingers being pulled, guided. I let the Holy Spirit guide my hands, and they moved all over. Then they were strongly pulled upwards. Up to the heavens. Then they slowly came down to either side of my body, pulling outward (arms still outstretched). My fingers/hands on my body were pulling me in both directions. Suddenly they were pulled backwards, toward the seats next to me. I was pressed up against the back of my chair with my arms being pulled far out on all sides and against the chairs. I felt as though (and heard in my head the thought that) I was on a cross, I was fully surrendered to God. God spoke to me there and told me that this was a representation that I was going to be persecuted for Him in my future.
My hands were then pulled back in front of me. Again, my arms were out in front of me, my fingers I felt in away moved in odd positions, as with my hands. Each finger was being pulled somewhere else. My legs this whole time had been shaking uncontrollably. After some time, I felt the presence of God not so strong within me. When I "came to" and opened my eyes, my legs and hands were still shaking and jumpy for quite a while afterwards. Life took a while to seem real again. The presence of God within me was so ... so... real like, that it was realer than life on earth. And coming out of this realer than life experience took a lot of time readjusting to earthly life again. I kept moving my fingers and hands around, trying to get use to using them again under my own strength. That took a while too, just actually realizing that my hands and fingers had been moving around so much without my will. During the experience I tried moving my hands together with my own strength, and there was so much resistance. At one pint my fingers touched and it was so unreal. I acknowledged the touch, and yet I didn't since I wasn't really in that body at the time - it was weird. Afterwards my hands and legs were shaking for nearly an hour before I regained full control over them. My muscles hurt, it was very difficult to focus and there was still a tingling feeling in my finger tips. My body was weak too, I could not move my legs or feet for more than an hour. Life took so long to really seem real, it was at least an hour before a bit of real life focus came to me and at least another 2-3 hours before life really seemed more real, as it was before. The experience also left me with a headache that was strong and sharp but came an went for about an hour.
During this experience God told me not to fear about the future; about next year. Again, God told me that I am to be here in Canada. But He also told me so much more. He told me that I am to be in Koinonia, I am to be in Ministry, I am to be in/with kids: Koinonia Kids and KCA. God told me not to fear about next year, for He is bigger and better and has a plan. He told me that resources will be provided, a visa will be provided if I wait and trust Him. He will be with me. I shall not fear. I will go with His lead.
"To be absent from the body, is to be present with me."
These are the things I felt God saying to me:
God is with me! God will be with me. You've got a plan for my life!
"You are my child" - God
My future is in your hands. I will NOT Fear!
I will not fear! You are God!
I will wait on you
You are going to provide
You will bring the resources
You will bring the visa
You are calling me
I am here in Canada
You've called me to Canada
You've called me to Koinonia
You've called me to Kids
KCA, Koinonia Kids
You've called me to Ministry
I will suffer persecution
I will grow as you lead me deeper
You've called me to share your word
To share your love! For you are God!
You are with me! I WILL NOT FEAR!
You've put me here where you want me
You will lead me
You are with me
You will be with me
You are here, you are Moving, You are God
You are present. You are MY LORD!
You will lead me through the next step
in my life, you will guide me,
You will give me words when I speak
You will guide my feet when I walk
You are perfect in ALL of your ways
You are leading my family and I through/to
a new life. I will not fear. I will not worry.
I will not tremble, for you,
You are, PERFECT in ALL of your ways!
Your way is Perfect, your plan is best
You are bigger, you are better. You are Good!
You are a good, good Father! That is just
who you are. Your are Good!
You ARE Good! You were good! And
You WILL Always be good,
For you ARE Good!
Windsor Ontario - OBFF Conference
The past three days I, along with the rest of our class, have been down in Windsor ON (just across the US/Canada border from Detroit. We went to the OBFF Conference there at Windsor Christian Fellowship (WCF). There were about 300-400 people there (I think) from churches all across Canada, though most of them were from Ontario. We drove down there (about three hours) Monday Morning and back Thursday morning. It was a ton of fun, full of excitement, joy and power! I got to meet a number of pastors from around Canada, and I got to sit in twelve powerful messages (I really only heard eleven, but I won't go into detail about that here - it'll be in the next post). Each day the first session started at 9:00 am and the last one ended ended about 9:00 pm (with an hour or so fellowship and dinner time at the end - so closer to 10:00-10:30pm) with a 3-4 hour break in the afternoon.
On one of the breaks Bryce, Heidi (& Everly - their baby), Nathan and Bryan (Koinonia staff), Daniel, Sierra, Janette (classmates) and I went down to the river front for a walk. When we pulled into a parking spot there was a large group of what appeared to be Syrian refugees doing a rally at a park there. We took off on our walk in the opposite direction. Nathan and Bryan were speed walking, so they went off ahead, and after a bit Daniel went on a jog too. It was a beautiful day, pretty warm and altogether it was a lot of fun. We spent a lot of time talking (which was a lot of fun and very interesting) and commenting on things that we passed by. On the way back to the van it occurred to us that we forgot to pay for parking. And as we got closer to the van, Nathan and Bryan passed us for they turned around because it occurred to them too. Thankfully, we didn't get a ticket or anything. Praise God!
During one of the sessions, they (WCF) randomly gave out knife sets. We all got one. It's a 25-piece set that includes the following (food knifes not hunting knifes):
Showtime Knife, Carving Knife, Large Fillet Knife, bread Knife,chef Knife, Saw Knife, Boning Knife, Sportsman Knife, Chop and Serve, Cheese Knife, Cleaver, Carving fork, Utility Knife, 8 Steak Knives, Paring Knife, Garnish Knife, Kitchen & Poultry Shears (scissors), Knife Sharpener & a Giant Solid Flavor Injector.
Valued at $40 and all with a Lifetime Guarantee!
On one of the breaks Bryce, Heidi (& Everly - their baby), Nathan and Bryan (Koinonia staff), Daniel, Sierra, Janette (classmates) and I went down to the river front for a walk. When we pulled into a parking spot there was a large group of what appeared to be Syrian refugees doing a rally at a park there. We took off on our walk in the opposite direction. Nathan and Bryan were speed walking, so they went off ahead, and after a bit Daniel went on a jog too. It was a beautiful day, pretty warm and altogether it was a lot of fun. We spent a lot of time talking (which was a lot of fun and very interesting) and commenting on things that we passed by. On the way back to the van it occurred to us that we forgot to pay for parking. And as we got closer to the van, Nathan and Bryan passed us for they turned around because it occurred to them too. Thankfully, we didn't get a ticket or anything. Praise God!
Looking Across the River.
We are standing on the Windsor Ontario, Canada side,
and the city in the picture is Detroit, USA.
Conference Worship Time.
(Thanks to Bryce Fleming for the pictures)
During one of the sessions, they (WCF) randomly gave out knife sets. We all got one. It's a 25-piece set that includes the following (food knifes not hunting knifes):
Showtime Knife, Carving Knife, Large Fillet Knife, bread Knife,chef Knife, Saw Knife, Boning Knife, Sportsman Knife, Chop and Serve, Cheese Knife, Cleaver, Carving fork, Utility Knife, 8 Steak Knives, Paring Knife, Garnish Knife, Kitchen & Poultry Shears (scissors), Knife Sharpener & a Giant Solid Flavor Injector.
Valued at $40 and all with a Lifetime Guarantee!
Saturday, April 30, 2016
Code of Jewish Law
While at the Market today I was so intrigued by a book I found that I bought it. Well actually its a 5 book set. They are the Code of Jewish Law by Ganzfried - Goldin. For one it's really cool that it's written in both English and Hebrew. When you open up the book the left page is in English and the right page is in Hebrew. And since Hebrew is read and written right to left (opposite of English), that's the format of the book. The English text is the normal left to right, but the first page of the book is what we would normally call the last page of the book. When I turn to go the the next page I have to turn the page on the left. The title is on what we would call the back (with the binding to the right) and what we would call the front is blank (with the binding to the left).
The book itself so far is very interesting. I am only a small handful of pages into the first book. The first book has 47 chapters (each about 3 pages long - all on a different area of the laws). I am hoping that as I read these books I can understand more the traditions, laws and culture of the Jews in Bible times (particularly Jesus' time). I hope that this will help me understand the Bible better, since I will have a bit more context of the culture of when the Bible took place.
I have to say some of the laws seem quite crazy. And I didn't realize that they had laws for just about everything, nearly every aspect of life has a huge list of laws. I can see how the Jews in Jesus' day didn't want to give up the laws. If I had spent my life learning and perfecting these laws, I would not want someone just coming in and saying that they're less worthwhile. That would make me angry. So I now have a much better view of how the Jews might of felt. It's crazy how many laws there are, and how specific and detailed they are!
The book itself so far is very interesting. I am only a small handful of pages into the first book. The first book has 47 chapters (each about 3 pages long - all on a different area of the laws). I am hoping that as I read these books I can understand more the traditions, laws and culture of the Jews in Bible times (particularly Jesus' time). I hope that this will help me understand the Bible better, since I will have a bit more context of the culture of when the Bible took place.
I have to say some of the laws seem quite crazy. And I didn't realize that they had laws for just about everything, nearly every aspect of life has a huge list of laws. I can see how the Jews in Jesus' day didn't want to give up the laws. If I had spent my life learning and perfecting these laws, I would not want someone just coming in and saying that they're less worthwhile. That would make me angry. So I now have a much better view of how the Jews might of felt. It's crazy how many laws there are, and how specific and detailed they are!
Canada Application + $2 Bills = Word From God
As I might of stated before, I feel that God is calling me to "wait" as far as applying for a work permit or Permanent Residence (PR) for next year (in Canada). This I struggle with, since in cases like this I am not normally patient. I want to do something. I want the satisfaction of doing my part. Yet I've felt that God is calling me to "wait." Recently I've noticed several news articles about moving to Canada and I've slightly looked into them. People have mentioned to me that when God says wait, it's possible He means to apply and let Him do the rest. I thought that I might give that a try (though I feel more peace about not applying right now). However, I am now more sure that I am to do 'nothing' this time, as far as waiting goes. How did I get to this point?
I've had a $100 block of $2 bills (5o $2 bills - USA) and I've had them for sale on Kijiji (like Craigslist) for quite some time. From experience, I've found that I can sell them at a coin shop at the market, but for a quite low price, or I can sell them on Kijiji for good profit. Well, it has been a while that the ads have been on Kijiji without any response, and I've kept reposting and reposting the ads. So, in my impatience, I figured I'd try to see what the Market shop would give me for them today. I didn't not bring this idea before God though, I just did it. The shop offered me $150 CAD for them (they are worth $125 CAD) so I sold the block to them for profit, again I did this without confirming with God whether I should do it or not.
When I got home, I found that about the same time I had sold them to the coin shop, I had received a reply from my Kijiji post. The Kijiji guy offered me $250 for the block. If only I had waited and consulted with God first...
All this to say, I now feel like that this is what God is saying will happen if I act on an application now. Yes, I can apply now without Him and it may work out good, but if I wait until He works it out, things will be even better.
I've had a $100 block of $2 bills (5o $2 bills - USA) and I've had them for sale on Kijiji (like Craigslist) for quite some time. From experience, I've found that I can sell them at a coin shop at the market, but for a quite low price, or I can sell them on Kijiji for good profit. Well, it has been a while that the ads have been on Kijiji without any response, and I've kept reposting and reposting the ads. So, in my impatience, I figured I'd try to see what the Market shop would give me for them today. I didn't not bring this idea before God though, I just did it. The shop offered me $150 CAD for them (they are worth $125 CAD) so I sold the block to them for profit, again I did this without confirming with God whether I should do it or not.
When I got home, I found that about the same time I had sold them to the coin shop, I had received a reply from my Kijiji post. The Kijiji guy offered me $250 for the block. If only I had waited and consulted with God first...
All this to say, I now feel like that this is what God is saying will happen if I act on an application now. Yes, I can apply now without Him and it may work out good, but if I wait until He works it out, things will be even better.
Putting the Power of "Praise" Back in Praise & Worship
These are some of the notes that really stuck out to me at Gateway's Leadership Conference 2015.
Psalm 47:7 "For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise." (NIV)
Psalm 47:7 "For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise." (NIV)
What is Praise?
"Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants
You have ordained strength,
Because of your enemies,
That You may silence the enemy and the avenger."
-Psalm 8:2 (NKJV)
Now look in the second line at the word "ordained"
Ordained means created for a purpose
God doesn't need our praise, though he loves our praise
God doesn't depend on Praise
Why? - Psalm 8:2
-Because we have an enemy.
This enemy is spiritual, therefore we need a spiritual weapon:
This weapon is: Praise, Power, and Worship
Implementing that back into Psalm 8:2, look at the last line.
'Praise silences the enemy (foes) and stills the avenger.'
Enemy (foes)
The enemy we once faced in the past
Avenger
The enemy we face now
The purpose of Praise is war
Praise is war (Spiritually)
Praise is NOT the same as worship!
Friday, April 22, 2016
Traveling Troubles
This morning I got up at 3:30am and left at 4:00am for the airport (thank you Daniel for being willing to drop me off that early). I was heading back to the States for my grandpa's visitation and funeral. As the plane was taxying down the runway the pilot received word that all incoming traffic to Chicago O'Hare was stopped (likely due to weather) and there was going to be an hour delay. However we had to stay in the plane, just in case they let us leave earlier, which they did (thankfully). We only had to wait 20 or so minutes extra, I think. Upon landing in Chicago O'Hare International Airport (2nd largest in the world), I had a 3 hour layover until my next flight.
However a few minutes before we were suppose to board, they not only changed the gate we were boarding, but they also moved our boarding area to the other side of the airport. Upon reaching the other side and waiting longer than a few minutes, it became clear that the plane was late. After about 15 minutes, they announced that the plane was late and it would be another 15 minutes before it arrives. 30-40 minutes later we were finally being taxied down the runway.
It truly was a quick flight (about 30 minutes). The plane landed in Moline IL later than expected, but that's life. I was planning to meet Jerry (grandma's brother), grab my luggage and drive home for the visitation. However, after finding Jerry (and Mary!) my luggage was not coming in. So we went and talked to the people at the front desk to find out that my suitcase was still in Chicago. Well I couldn't just come pick it up when it finally came in because Moline is 90 minutes away from Princeville. We asked if they could just fly it straight to Peoria, but they said they couldn't do that. So it's suppose to be flown to Moline and then to Peoria from there, and then to Jerry's house (in Princeville). They said that it should land in Peoria late tonight (Friday) or early tomorrow morning (Saturday). I should have it on Saturday.
Here the thing though. The visitation was today, so I had to ware what I was waring - thank the Holy Spirit for telling me to ware nicer clothes this morning. Plus the funeral is tomorrow morning and all of my dress clothes are in my suitcase. So I am praying that it will come in time. Thank goodness that while I was here over Spring Break I moved all my stuff to grandma's house, because I actually have some more comfortable clothes to ware to bed tonight. Praying...
However a few minutes before we were suppose to board, they not only changed the gate we were boarding, but they also moved our boarding area to the other side of the airport. Upon reaching the other side and waiting longer than a few minutes, it became clear that the plane was late. After about 15 minutes, they announced that the plane was late and it would be another 15 minutes before it arrives. 30-40 minutes later we were finally being taxied down the runway.
It truly was a quick flight (about 30 minutes). The plane landed in Moline IL later than expected, but that's life. I was planning to meet Jerry (grandma's brother), grab my luggage and drive home for the visitation. However, after finding Jerry (and Mary!) my luggage was not coming in. So we went and talked to the people at the front desk to find out that my suitcase was still in Chicago. Well I couldn't just come pick it up when it finally came in because Moline is 90 minutes away from Princeville. We asked if they could just fly it straight to Peoria, but they said they couldn't do that. So it's suppose to be flown to Moline and then to Peoria from there, and then to Jerry's house (in Princeville). They said that it should land in Peoria late tonight (Friday) or early tomorrow morning (Saturday). I should have it on Saturday.
Here the thing though. The visitation was today, so I had to ware what I was waring - thank the Holy Spirit for telling me to ware nicer clothes this morning. Plus the funeral is tomorrow morning and all of my dress clothes are in my suitcase. So I am praying that it will come in time. Thank goodness that while I was here over Spring Break I moved all my stuff to grandma's house, because I actually have some more comfortable clothes to ware to bed tonight. Praying...
Wednesday, April 20, 2016
Edwin E. Baurer
Grandpa, You will be missed. Yet I am Jealous of you. I love my life here on earth, but I would love to be where your at with God. I am thrilled that you are getting to enjoy the pleasures of Heaven and the excitement of no more pain. You have inspired me to always turn what I have back to the Bible. Throughout my child hood, you always brought things back to the Bible. You loved quoting new verses and loved hearing your grandchildren learn them as well. You also left me with the memory of new extravagant words. You always had a new word that I've never heard of before. :) so many good memories you have left me. Thank you!
This Saturday at your "funeral", will not be a time where I will hugely mourn the fact that you are no longer here. But it will be a continuation of the time here where I an rejoicing that you have gone to be with our savior. I don't like calling it a "funeral" since that's not what it is: it is a CELEBRATION! A celebration of your life, a celebration of your new life in a new body with Christ, it will be a celebration for Christ!
As at first thought how disturbing it sounds, I was praying that you would die the last few days of your life here. But hear me out. I didn't want you to be in the pain, misery and loss of life state you were in. I knew that God was calling you home, and I wanted you to go and be with God. I wanted you to go in peace and life. And I am so excited that you did. God called and you answered.
Over the past few years in the nursing home, you have been nearly driving us (family, nurses and others) crazy with your ideas of going home. :) Well, after many tiring days, weeks, months, and years, you finally made it. You are HOME! Congratulations! I am so happy for you. I am looking forward to when we next meet: when we will be together with God for eternity.
HALLELIUJAH!!!
Sunday, April 17, 2016
Baking Tips/Lessons
Valuable Baking Tips/Lessons learned from experience (today)!
1. Melted Skittles are extremely difficult and time consuming to work with (particularly when you don't intend to melt them).
2. The theory of baking something, "doubling the heat will cut the baking time in half" does NOT work.
3. Bringing back the phrase that my mom (Linda) repeated over and over again all throughout my childhood, "do it right the first time or it takes twice as long."
In the process of finding out Baking Tip/Lesson #1 & #2, Lesson #3 came to be very true (again). The 2.5 - 3.5 hour prep/baking time has turned into something closer to a 5-7 hour prep/baking time. Thus consuming nearly all of my Sunday afternoon and evening.
Valuable Lessons were learned today. Don't make the same mistakes I did. Enjoy!
Saturday, April 16, 2016
Kung Fu Panda 2 - What Christ has Done for us!
I just finished watching Kung Fu Panda 2. Though this time, I observed that I unintentionally watched it in a different way than I've ever done with a movie before (especially a animated kids movie). I watched it for entertainment, but I got more out of it than just entertainment: the Holy Spirit showed me the spiritual life applications through out it. And I have to say, this movie is full of them!
A particular quote from Po that stood out was,
"Fine! You stay in your prison of fear,
with bars made of hopelessness,
And all you get is three square meals a day of shame, but...."
Upon pondering over this quote afterwards and asking the Holy Spirit to show me why it stuck out, I can conclude the following.
This quote is a description of our life in sin. This is our sin nature. Without Christ we life in a "prison of fear, with bars made of hopelessness" and all we consume is shame and despair. We were lost, in chains and not living life as God meant for us.
"But..." Christ came to change that. We deserved the penalty of death for our sin, we were just waiting in prison for our sentence to be carried out. But Christ came and died for us. He paid the price of our sin, even though He Himself was sinless. His death for us paid the price we were to pay.
But it did not end there, no. He rose up again! He came back to life! He conquered death and defeated the grave! He overcame our sin! Life in and with Him is a life in which we do not have to fear. Through Him, we are no longer a slave to fear, we are no longer stuck in our prison of fear, we have been set free! The bars of hopelessness have been broken! The chains are gone, we have been set free! Christ has taken our sin, He has taken our shame, and now we consume life as it was meant to be. We are alive in Him!
A particular quote from Po that stood out was,
"Fine! You stay in your prison of fear,
with bars made of hopelessness,
And all you get is three square meals a day of shame, but...."
Upon pondering over this quote afterwards and asking the Holy Spirit to show me why it stuck out, I can conclude the following.
This quote is a description of our life in sin. This is our sin nature. Without Christ we life in a "prison of fear, with bars made of hopelessness" and all we consume is shame and despair. We were lost, in chains and not living life as God meant for us.
"But..." Christ came to change that. We deserved the penalty of death for our sin, we were just waiting in prison for our sentence to be carried out. But Christ came and died for us. He paid the price of our sin, even though He Himself was sinless. His death for us paid the price we were to pay.
But it did not end there, no. He rose up again! He came back to life! He conquered death and defeated the grave! He overcame our sin! Life in and with Him is a life in which we do not have to fear. Through Him, we are no longer a slave to fear, we are no longer stuck in our prison of fear, we have been set free! The bars of hopelessness have been broken! The chains are gone, we have been set free! Christ has taken our sin, He has taken our shame, and now we consume life as it was meant to be. We are alive in Him!
Friday, April 15, 2016
The Holy Spirit
I had a lovely walk God tonight in His natural creation. As we were talking the Holy Spirit spoke to me these 7 words that really stuck out to me,
"My plan for you outweighs your fears" - The Holy Spirit
"My plan for you outweighs your fears" - The Holy Spirit
Coffee - m414
In celebration of 4/14 (April 14th; m414 is a missions program reaching out to the next generation - ages 4 through 14), we had coffee. Oto, out Missions Pastor, was in with us for class and He brought in some Honduran Coffee and we all brought in our French Presses (those of us who had them) and we made a bunch of Honduran coffee. It was actually pretty good (as soon as I added in enough maple syrup).
(Only part of our class was in the room when we took the pictures)
Thanks to Oto Perez for the Pictures!
Tuesday, April 12, 2016
March Break/Spring Break
So about a month ago when I got back from Central America
and returned to the States for Spring Break, thinks seemed to get flipped
around a bit in my life. I’ve posted
this so late mainly because the moving fact wasn’t entirely public at the
time. So the day that I got back, I learned
so much (that I didn’t necessary want to hear). I was informed that our family was moving to
Texas! This shocked me, like I knew that
its was a consideration, but it’s been in “consideration” for years. Plus Abi just started High School, so I didn’t
think they would actually take here out from such a great environment until she
graduated. The fact that they have
decided this though, settles with a tiny bit more peace than I thought. I know my dad well, and I know that he would
not of made this decision without being absolutely sure that it was the will of
God. So I trust that whatever happens
next in their stage of life in Texas is far better than our life in Illinois
(though that though seems nearly impossible).
But recalling the past few times we’ve moved, there have been great
opposition from those around us, things seemed like they couldn’t get better,
and yet every new place we’ve lived has been far better than the previous
place. Though I do wish that they would
stay in Illinois, I trust that God has a plan, for He and He alone can see the
bigger picture.
Not only did I find out that they are moving, but they are
possibly moving before I graduate. This
isn’t for certain yet, but it is a possibility (with reasonable reasons). This really turned my world around. I didn’t come ‘home’ expecting this. And while I was ‘home’ I didn’t feel at home,
not until I returned to Canada (this was all before I knew I was moving to
Canada). Because of all of this
craziness I spend a few days packing and moving all of my stuff out of our
house and into my grandma’s garage. I am
very grateful that she allowed me to move my stuff there temporally, I told her
that I would I have a bunch of it gone by August 1, 2016. So I am planning to do a garage sale sometime
in July (I’m not entirely sure where and when yet) so I sell lot of.
Alarms, Alarms & More Alarms
This morning we did our class’s weekly early morning prayer
(from 7:00am to 8:10am-ish) at the church (class starts at 8:30am). So I wanted to ensure that I was able to get
up early enough to have plenty of time to get ready. I know that I have a bad habit of going
through a few alarms in the morning so I had a plan. I wanted to get up around 5:00am and we had
to leave around 6:25am. So from 5:00am
to 6:17am, I set 23 alarms to go off just in case. I wanted to get up as early as possible, with
the most amount of sleep. I tested the
volume of the alarms and double-checked them before drifting off to sleep. The next thing I knew was Daniel woke me up
at about 6:12am, 21 alarms past 5:00am.
I had heard nothing from my alarms on my iPod. As Daniel checked it out on the drive, he discovered
that I had forgotten to turn on the setting that syncs the normal volume with
the alarms volume, and the alarm volume was off. So setting the 23 alarms didn’t do me any
good this morning. Thank you
Daniel.
Thursday, April 7, 2016
God Speaking
Wednesday was our Final Life Group for spring. The life group I've been helping lead was The Shift (boys): grade 5-8 boys. We've each week compared a superhero to a bible character. For the final week our bible character was Jesus, and since no superhero can even compare to Jesus, our superhero was also Jesus. We watched a number of clips of different events in Jesus' life (each about 10 minutes long) and then one of us leaders spoke after each clip. I was asked to speak after the clip of feeding the 5,000 and Jesus walking on the water. As I was speaking to the kids (3 of them, plus 3 other teachers/helpers), God spoke to me in my life. I had a general idea of what I was going to say, but as the Holy Spirit spoke to me while I was talking, I was able to expand on what I was saying.
I knew that I was a few minutes away from talking to the kids, and I suddenly be came very anxious, nervous and a bit worried. The fear thoughts started to flood my head. I kept trying to turn my focus back onto the fact that God is with me, whom shall I fear. Then the Holy Spirit spoke to me, "do you believe what you are about to teach?" He showed me that I truly believe that God provides and I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, then I should have no problem speaking to others.
The next two paragraphs are the first two paragraphs of what I said to the class. The second paragraph is where the Holy Spirit really spoke to me, based off of the first paragraph.
In the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus was a provider. He lead, taught, and provided. Notice that Jesus DID NOT feed the 5,000. The disciples did. "..He blessed and broke and gave the bread to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes." (Matthew 14:19b, NKJ). It was the disciples who actually fed the people. Earlier the disciples had asked Jesus about food for all the people. Jesus replied with, "You give them something to eat." (Matthew 14:16b, NKJ). Jesus had called the disciples to feed the people. Now the disciples had a need that seemed impossible, but through faith, Jesus provided. Jesus provided for the disciples so that they could carry out the calling that Jesus gave them, "You give them something to eat." Jesus won't do it for us, He wants us to learn. He will help us, walk us through it and provide for us, in His own way on His own timing, but He still wants us to do what He has called us to do.
This really hit home to me because I see this in my life right now. As I said weeks ago, I felt very strongly that God was calling me to Canada. So I said, "okay God, I'll move to Canada." But then a problem arose, the earthly authority seemed to be agains that. Canada told me I was not eligible to apply to be a Permanent Resident. I really felt that God was calling me to Canada, yet they way I saw to do it suddenly seemed impossible. But since I ran into that problem God has started to provide. He has suddenly put many people into my life to speak to me encouragement, words of peace and direction straight from God. He is showing me that He will provide, for He is with me. I just have to be patient. I am on His time schedule not mine. God still wants me to do what He has called me to do (to move to Canada) and He will provide for me. He will walk me through the tough times and the smooth times; He will be with me at all times. He reassured me resurfacing Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
I knew that I was a few minutes away from talking to the kids, and I suddenly be came very anxious, nervous and a bit worried. The fear thoughts started to flood my head. I kept trying to turn my focus back onto the fact that God is with me, whom shall I fear. Then the Holy Spirit spoke to me, "do you believe what you are about to teach?" He showed me that I truly believe that God provides and I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, then I should have no problem speaking to others.
The next two paragraphs are the first two paragraphs of what I said to the class. The second paragraph is where the Holy Spirit really spoke to me, based off of the first paragraph.
In the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus was a provider. He lead, taught, and provided. Notice that Jesus DID NOT feed the 5,000. The disciples did. "..He blessed and broke and gave the bread to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes." (Matthew 14:19b, NKJ). It was the disciples who actually fed the people. Earlier the disciples had asked Jesus about food for all the people. Jesus replied with, "You give them something to eat." (Matthew 14:16b, NKJ). Jesus had called the disciples to feed the people. Now the disciples had a need that seemed impossible, but through faith, Jesus provided. Jesus provided for the disciples so that they could carry out the calling that Jesus gave them, "You give them something to eat." Jesus won't do it for us, He wants us to learn. He will help us, walk us through it and provide for us, in His own way on His own timing, but He still wants us to do what He has called us to do.
This really hit home to me because I see this in my life right now. As I said weeks ago, I felt very strongly that God was calling me to Canada. So I said, "okay God, I'll move to Canada." But then a problem arose, the earthly authority seemed to be agains that. Canada told me I was not eligible to apply to be a Permanent Resident. I really felt that God was calling me to Canada, yet they way I saw to do it suddenly seemed impossible. But since I ran into that problem God has started to provide. He has suddenly put many people into my life to speak to me encouragement, words of peace and direction straight from God. He is showing me that He will provide, for He is with me. I just have to be patient. I am on His time schedule not mine. God still wants me to do what He has called me to do (to move to Canada) and He will provide for me. He will walk me through the tough times and the smooth times; He will be with me at all times. He reassured me resurfacing Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
Monday, April 4, 2016
Prayer | Confusion | ...
I am at loss. I don't know where to go next, what to do next. I feel very strongly that God has clearly called me to be in Canada, that my future is in Canada. However, based off of the information that Canada is telling me, I am not eligible to apply to be a permanent resident. I'm confused, I know that God has called me here, yet I currently see no way to get here. I've spent a little time thinking about applying just for a work visa or a study visa, but I feel like God wants me to work towards residency. I don't know where else to look. I don't know where else to turn. I know that God has a plan, a view of my life that I cannot see. It just confuses me right now. I feel like I need to do something, in the sense that my application likely won't just appear out of the blew, but I need to be working on applying for residency now. That's where the confusion comes in. Again, I am at loss. I feel like the door that God's given me the key to has been slammed shut in my face. I just have to now find the key hole. Lord Please direct me! I don't know where to go, what to do, who to talk to. I am in need. I ask that you will open doors wide open to show me where, how, when and what to do next. I don't know fully why I am not eligible to move to Canada, but I am trusting you. Lord, take the wheel of my life, lead me where you want me to walk. Show me your way, your will in this. I feel like I am without direction, that I am unprepared for my future. My life seems so full of impossibilities, it's very overwhelming. Yet as I sit here struggling with my situation, I am reminded of your church Lord. Your people here in Canada, here in North America, and here on earth. Your children are suffering, hurting and are going through great spiritual battles at this very moment. My situation is so little to all that you are. Therefore I come here to express my feelings, not my complaints. I am here to share my life, not to forget about other's and I am here to release what's on my mind and heart, not to burn inside with anger.
Kuepfer's House
Yesterday after church our class went over to one of our classmates house (Janette Kuepfer). They had prepared a amazing lunch for us, and then we just hung out and played games and stuff. Some of the games we did included Signs, Pie Face, and Four on the Couch. Here and there we had some snacks (that each of us had brought) and we had a lot of fun. Even though hanging out with all of my friends and spending time with them was a lot of fun, that wasn't the most enjoyable part. As we (Daniel and I) were about to leave, Wayne and Loretta (Janette's parents) asked Daniel and I about our Missions trip. And for the next 70-80 minutes Daniel, Janette, Wayne, Loretta, and I had a really good talk. This, I would have to say was the most enjoyable time. It brought back a lot of good memories, we talked about a wide rage of topics and altogether had good conversation. A year ago, I would of found that very boring, but I really enjoyed it this time.
Prior to getting into this conversation though, I was just sitting in their living room looking around. Though there was very little/faint resemblance, their house brought back a ton of memories from our house in Texas (which it's been 9 years since we moved out of that house). I was just flooded with these memories, more that I ever have had before. It was as if I was in the house again. It was as if I was in our living room, looking to this and that, as nearly the entire house unfolded in my head. I saw the beauties of the view out the front windows. I walked down halls I haven't seen in ages. Many memories that were made in that house came back to me. Then I saw a picture of the front of a house on the Kuepfer's wall and though it was largely different, it reminded me so much of the front of our Texas house. Then for the next 10 minutes or so, it seemed that nearly the entire 4 years that we were there just came back in clips of memories. It was a great time. However I found it hard to snap out of it. Daniel and Amanda apparently had been talking to me at different time, but I was off in another house that I didn't comprehend their words. Daniel then started asking me specific details about the memories, like what was God showing me through it all and stuff. This really got me thinking and it's amazing all that I found. I can honestly say that I've never had an experience like this before.
To end the night off on another good spin, when we left (around 10:30pm) it was snowing, so beautifully, with already 3-4 inches of snow on the ground. It was amazing!!!
Missions Trip Pictures
For those of you that have been following my blog to hear about our Missions trip, I have just updated all the posts that I did with more pictures from our trip. There are now hundreds more pictures of our trip.
To find the pictures, you can either go back to those posts or click the links to them below:
Guatemala Day 1 - http://slicanada.blogspot.ca/2016/02/guatemala-day-1.html
Guatemala Day 2 - http://slicanada.blogspot.ca/2016/03/guatemala-day-2.html
Guatemala Day 3 - http://slicanada.blogspot.ca/2016/03/guatemala-day-3.html
Guatemala Day 4 - http://slicanada.blogspot.ca/2016/03/guatemala-day-4.html
Guatemala Day 5 - http://slicanada.blogspot.ca/2016/03/guatemala-day-5.html
Guatemala Day 6 - http://slicanada.blogspot.ca/2016/03/guatemala-day-6.html
Guatemala Day 7/Honduras Day 1 - http://slicanada.blogspot.ca/2016/03/guatemala-day-7.html
Honduras Day 2 - http://slicanada.blogspot.ca/2016/03/honduras-day-2.html
Honduras Day 4 - http://slicanada.blogspot.ca/2016/03/honduras-day-4.html
Saturday, April 2, 2016
World's Largest Maple Syrup Festival
So today I went to Elmira's (the town Julia goes to school in) Maple Syrup Festival.
Fun Fact: "Elmira Maple Syrup Festival is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the World's Largest Single Day Maple Syrup Festival!"
Over 60,000 people come to this Festival!!! (Elmira's population is less than 12,000 people). I came about mid-day planning about a half an hour to find a parking spot - it was needed. As I drove into Elmira, I realized that most parking lots were charging about $5 for all-day-parking. I had not budgeted for this so I continued to drive all around looking for a spot to park for fee to no avail. after about 20 or so minutes I decided to drive over to another area of the town. It then hit me, I should be asking God for help, If God isn't with me, how can I ever do anything on my own? So I asked God to guide me to an open spot within walking distance of the festival. I asked Him to show me where I could and couldn't park. Within less than a minute there before me was, on the side of the road, room for two cars wide open just a few blocks away from the festival. People who looked like they were looking for a spot kept driving by searching and searching. It was as though God blinded their eyes from this spot. As soon as I pulled into the front half of the spot the second half was almost immediately filled. It was as though God was saving this spot just for me - Thank you Lord!!!!!
I spent only about an hour there, walking around looking at all the food and stuff. I had been told that I have to try their pancakes. They taste test all the maple syrups around and judge which one is best. Whoever has the best syrup, the festival buys a hundred-plus-some gallons of their syrup for the festival, plus they get the first, front-most booth and bragging rights. I have to say, it was good syrup. I also got some really good fudge.
Later on this afternoon, I was at Walmart to get supplies for Fruit Salsa that I plan on taking to two different "event" things this coming week. The problem was I only had $13 (CAD) in my budget to get enough supplies for both "events". After figuring out the lower cost items, the total came out to be $24. I thought to myself, I will just use some of my other spending money (from another part of my budget) to cover the extra costs. Then I decided that didn't help me at all if I want to learn how to stay on a budget. So I figured that If I wanted to make this specific dish, I had to find a way to fit it within my budget (which was a good thing too, since I later checked and I only had $12.45 with me). It took me about an hour, but with God's help I was able to take $10 off the total cost. However, even though the total was now only $14, I only had $12.45 on me. Upon asking God again for help, I felt Him saying, "hey, you don't have to shop at Walmart. Go find another store, see if they are cheaper." So I went out to my car, and for what ever reason (I don't remember) I just happened to look in my glove box. And it was a good thing to, there I found some change. From time to time I will place loose change here and there in hopes that I will forget about it and it will be of great use at times when I think I am out of money. So I looked through out my car, and what do you know, I found $10.80 in change. So I went back into Walmart and bought the supplies which turned out to be less than $14, and returned home. Thank you God once again!
Fun Fact: "Elmira Maple Syrup Festival is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the World's Largest Single Day Maple Syrup Festival!"
Over 60,000 people come to this Festival!!! (Elmira's population is less than 12,000 people). I came about mid-day planning about a half an hour to find a parking spot - it was needed. As I drove into Elmira, I realized that most parking lots were charging about $5 for all-day-parking. I had not budgeted for this so I continued to drive all around looking for a spot to park for fee to no avail. after about 20 or so minutes I decided to drive over to another area of the town. It then hit me, I should be asking God for help, If God isn't with me, how can I ever do anything on my own? So I asked God to guide me to an open spot within walking distance of the festival. I asked Him to show me where I could and couldn't park. Within less than a minute there before me was, on the side of the road, room for two cars wide open just a few blocks away from the festival. People who looked like they were looking for a spot kept driving by searching and searching. It was as though God blinded their eyes from this spot. As soon as I pulled into the front half of the spot the second half was almost immediately filled. It was as though God was saving this spot just for me - Thank you Lord!!!!!
I spent only about an hour there, walking around looking at all the food and stuff. I had been told that I have to try their pancakes. They taste test all the maple syrups around and judge which one is best. Whoever has the best syrup, the festival buys a hundred-plus-some gallons of their syrup for the festival, plus they get the first, front-most booth and bragging rights. I have to say, it was good syrup. I also got some really good fudge.
Later on this afternoon, I was at Walmart to get supplies for Fruit Salsa that I plan on taking to two different "event" things this coming week. The problem was I only had $13 (CAD) in my budget to get enough supplies for both "events". After figuring out the lower cost items, the total came out to be $24. I thought to myself, I will just use some of my other spending money (from another part of my budget) to cover the extra costs. Then I decided that didn't help me at all if I want to learn how to stay on a budget. So I figured that If I wanted to make this specific dish, I had to find a way to fit it within my budget (which was a good thing too, since I later checked and I only had $12.45 with me). It took me about an hour, but with God's help I was able to take $10 off the total cost. However, even though the total was now only $14, I only had $12.45 on me. Upon asking God again for help, I felt Him saying, "hey, you don't have to shop at Walmart. Go find another store, see if they are cheaper." So I went out to my car, and for what ever reason (I don't remember) I just happened to look in my glove box. And it was a good thing to, there I found some change. From time to time I will place loose change here and there in hopes that I will forget about it and it will be of great use at times when I think I am out of money. So I looked through out my car, and what do you know, I found $10.80 in change. So I went back into Walmart and bought the supplies which turned out to be less than $14, and returned home. Thank you God once again!
Lifehouse Skit (in Honduras)
Our SLI Class (Servant Leadership Institute in Ontario, Canada) took a Missions Trip to Guatemala and Honduras in early March 2016. We did this skit, along with others, at many different schools throughout the areas that we were in. This particular video was actually at a church in the hills of Honduras. Our plans to just attend the church changed last minute when we were asked to do the entire Church service. One of our leaders, fluent in Spanish, preached the main service, while my classmates and I did the skit, some songs, short messages and testimonies.
Friday, April 1, 2016
Abi
So I got to spend some quality time on the phone with Abi yesterday!!!!! I called home and she picked up the phone. It was sooo great to hear her voice again and to be able to talk to her. God has blessed me with such a great sister!!! We had some great conversations and.... yeah.... it was just a lot of fun. Thank you Abi, I loved it more than you know!
April Fools Day
Unfortunately due to the lack of time, resources, finances, and stuff, this year I did the least I've ever done for April Fools Day. - And neither of my pranks work (that I know of). I only did two, 1) Whoopee Cushions under the couch cushions in the SLI room and 2) Chocolate Chip cookies for the Church staff. However these were no normal cookies. Next to the plate lay a sign that read "Caution Very Hot! Eat at your own risk" with the thought that people may think they were "hot" as in just out of the oven and then eat them because they were quite cool. Mixed within the several dozen cookies was six habanero peppers (within the top 20 hottest peppers in the world). Daniel tried some of them afterwards and actually said they were pretty good, though hot.
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