new post - stony plain

Hey everyone who actually reads this here blog of mine. I know that I do not post nearly often enough. I really have very little to say at this time. Summer teams is going well. I am currently staying at the Canada's Wonderland of host homes. It has everything you could want and more. A home theatre in the basement, decorated like a castle. They have an outdoor pool, a soccer feild and a baseball diamond. They also have a paintball course, some quads, big T.V's everywhere, including in the attic, whic has become our room for the week. Attached to said T.V. is a PS2, PS3, Nintendo Wii and a dvd player. Not only is the house amazing, and beautiful, it comes with wonderful children. They are fun, active, not spoiled, ready to share and laugh at us as we experience the joys of previously mentioned Nintendo Wii. Anyways, I guess I will just share this house with you all, it is quite a joy to get to stay somewhere so fun with such amazing kids.
Apart from this week of fun home-ness, VBS is going well. This is week 4, so I have 3 and a half to go before starting at LCBI. It is all coming quickly.
In other recent news, I attended Colin and Jen's wedding in BC this past weekend, it was very fun to see everyone and just have a chance to hang out, laugh, play some games and plan some crazy adventures... maybe a trip to the Yukon... Anyhoo, I am outta here for now. I will try to post more and give you some cool God stories soon!

summer teams... again... what the?!

What is with God and curve balls? Does any body understand? I sure don't. I am starting to think that I don't ever actually want to get comfortable in life. It seems as soon as I get comfy, content with my life and all it seems to hold, relaxed into the every day routine of it, God comes along and decides to shake things up a little. I am not ranting, nor complaining, just noting what is seeminly becoming a pattern. Maybe it is that God doesn't yet want me forming roots to anything but him, maybe it is that God knows I will start getting self-sufficient if I follow routine too long. Maybe it is just that I stop looking to God when it seems things are regular, and then I start to get scared of change. Any of these options could be legit, as well as many others I am sure, but either way, my life feels crazy right now. I have become the newest member of the all girls' CLBI summer tour team. Now, let me say that training is already half over, and I have had no warning of such an event. As of this morning I had 3 other jobs, a nice room in a basement suite, an amazing roomie coming back form Mexico any day now, and a great summer planned. I have had no real adjustment time, but i am somewhat excited for this new adventure. I think I will be more excited once I catch up with all that is going on. I will keep you all posted, and if you would care yto pray for my team, for teh churches we will be visiting and for all of the kids that i will get to play with this summer, that'd be swell. I will note that I said I would never be part of CLBI summer teams again after last summer, I had my fill, 3 summers of living out a suitcase teaching kids about Jesus is more than enough for any normal human.. I am apparently not a normal human because this is summer #4. There's an update of God and his sense of humor in my life. I'll keep you posted.. when I figure all of this out.

equally yolked?

So you know that verse in the Bible where God talks about being equally yolked to one another? Yeah, it is a good verse. I have been thinking about it lately, and thinkning about what that means. I was reading Velvet Elvis, by Rob Bell. (I also really enjoy his nooma videos for that matter...) Anyways, reading about yolks and Rabbis. Rob mentions that a yolk is a Rabbi's way of interpreting, teaching, living the Bible. In the nooma video "dust" he talks about disciples and all taht goes into becoming one. To learn under a Rabbi it takes a lot of proving that you are the best of the best of the best and that you are smart and have a passion and desire to learn under this Rabbi. Ok, I could go on abotu this and hit another tanget all together, but that is not what I am going for.. so... I was thinking about this yolk thing. It is somone's way of interpreting, living, experiencing the Bible. In the equally yolked verse, we always invision a yolk as an oxen's yolk, used to pull something. I do think that it is imortant to use that pictre, but also maybe this one. If our yolk is how we live, and Jesus calls us to take His yolk upon us, because His yolk is easy and His burden is light, then don't you think He is calling us to be just like Him. If I have a great desire then to do this, to lern and live a certain way, it is then important to be with someone equally passionate about this. If I have a learning style and really like Pastor Joe from this church over here, because I like his yolk, the way he teaches and the way he sees what God is saying to us. If I seem to click with Pstor Joe's teaching style, and am getting fed and growing closer to God though him, the it is probably important that I find somone who can also click with Pastor Joe. If I find someone who can click with Pastor Bob, who has a totally different teaching style, how then will we share our thoughts and lives and walks with God? If one is not equally yolked in this area, not just in the being "Christian" or not, then one or both people have potential to be hindered through this relationship. Basically what I am getting at, is that I see it important to be living an on fire life for Jesus, and if you find a relationship with someone who is a Christian but is happy at the basic level, then you won't truly be equally yolked. Think about it.

faith

I was at church yesterday and the pastor talked about faith. Is faith a noun or a verb? Is it something that we can grasp or it is something that we must put into action? I pondered this and other points of the sermon throughout the day and as I lay in bed. I have come up with a few thoughts of my own on this topic. To have faith is to live. Everyone has faith in something. It may not be in a diety or higher power. It may not be in God. Faith gives us reason to do what we do. Without faith, say in God, we would not have the ability to trust, to surrender control or to walk blindly beside Him, knowing that He ultimately knows where He is taking us. So this comes back to the question of whether faith is a thing or an action. I don't know that faith is tangible on its own. I think that faith becomes tangible through the things that we do. People can see our faith in the way that we live, in the trust we have in God, in the ability we have to surrender control, and in our willingness to walk blindly. As I said before, without faith in something or someone, we would have no trust in that person. When we trust God, even a little bit, it is proving that we have faith, it is puitting our faith into action. This is the same with surrender. Most of us struggle with handing over control of our lives to anyone, including God. When we are in the passenger seat of a car, we are not in control, but we are making a statement that we have faith in the person driving. We trust that they know what they are doing and that they are going to get us where we are going safely. When we surrender control to God and take a "leap of faith", we are trusting that God has our best in mind and that He will not let us fall. To have faith gives us that freedom to live the life that God intended for us to live. The verse in Jeremiah, 29:11, states that God knows the plans He has for us. He wants for us to prosper and not to be harmed, to live a full and exciting life filled with hope and a future. This verse means nothing if we have no faith in God. We can not experience this life that He has for us if we do not trust that what He says is true. For us to believe that statement as true, we are demonstrating our faith. Therefore I have really come t the conclusion that faith is freedom. Freedom to live. Freedom to have a full and amazing life. It is giving God freedom to give us a full and amazing life. These are just my thoughts. Feel free to question, to discuss, or to completely disagree. This is just something that I have been thinking about lately, brought back to mind by a sermon, and now written out to try and grasp slightly what God is teaching me. Is fainth a noun or a verb?... I don't really know. Maybe it is both.

everything changes

Wow, it has been a while since I posted last. Life is a crazy gong show right now with everything. Life as I currently know it is changing before my eyes, and I am scared and very excited. God has a cool adventure for me this summer it seems. I will be staying in the same place for the whole summer. This is weird for those of you who know that I have been on travelling ministry teams for the past 3 summers. My current amazing roomie is leaving me this weekend to embark upon her own adventure in Mexico for 2 months. She will be "replaced" by 3 others. I will be joined in this fine basement by 1 other girl, and 2 guys. The guys will be our living room "squatters", Tasha and I will have our own rooms, which will be nice. It is weird to know that I was not at CLBI this year, but I was there. I made some pretty amazing friends who I will miss, and hopefully see around. God has blessed me much this year, and I know that this blessing shall continue into the summer, as crazy as it may get. I guess I don't have any cool stories at this point, but I will keep you updated on the shananigans that arise. I may even post some pictures at some point. My humble abode still holds its open-door policy, so if ever you need a place to crash in Camrose, call me up. We'd love to have you join the memories of this summer!

the magical "refresh" button

Yay!! I figured out that by simply clicking on the "refresh" button at the top of my screen I can finally see my real blog again!! I was stuck for soooo long on 1 post and nothing further... I even changed my blog completly to see if I could re-set it... and all I had to do was click the stupid "refresh" button!

here i am! pick me!

Alright all you friends of mine. I am home! Yes, you read right. I am in Saskatoon for a limited time only. Get me while you can, only 1 week remaining!!! Ok, so for real. I am here, in Saskatoon for the week. I am leaving on Sunday the 1st in time to get back to Camrose for the choir/ministry tour concert thingy at 7.. I think. I will be in Outlook for 3 days (mon-wed) but I am around for the remainder of the time between now and then. So, if we are friends and you live in saskatoon, I would love to see you and catch up an have some good times, maybe even make some memories to fuel this here blog thing of mine.
As for anythng new and exciting/interesing or profound... I got nothin'.

Patti-Wagon home again... and in one piece too!

So, funny story.. I have comments for the last post that I published.. the "somewhat bitter...maybe?" one.. but when I go on my own blog, I can't see it. Weird. Anyways, as of yesterday, March 14, 2007, I have a car again. The Patti-Wagon in all its glory is being driven by myself again. It is totally fine, and actually cleaner than it has ever been because it got cleaned at the auto body shop when it was inspected. I don't know what God wants me to know from this experience, but whatever. I also found out that I will not be working at the great place of Camp Luther this summer. I am a little bummed about it, but I know that God has something mighty fine for this summer for me, so I shall sit and wait patiently for what plans He has for me. I am still trying for LCBI in the fall, so we shall see. Life is all around just dandy these days. Nothing too new, hence the not frequent and somewhat boring blog entries. I will think of something cool soon and write about it.

somewhat bitter...maybe??

Alrighty...For all of you who have realized that my car was stolen, it has now been found. Yes, it has been recovered in the city of Edmonton AB. I have yet to decide if this is a good or bad thing. Tomorrow I will go to the city to drop off my car keys to a mechanic who now has my car. He will then do a full inspection of Patti-Wagon and decide if it will be fixable, if anything needs fixing, or if it is forever gone. This has been a very frustrating 6 weeks of car-ness, let me assure you. I am currently in a bitter and annoyed mood and could proabably rant for a while about this and a matter of other subjects, but I will just end here and hope for a brighter day tomorrow.

Christ-like

I have recently been reading the book Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller. It is really an amazing book, and it makes me think. I have been thinking about Christianity, love, life, and oh so much more. There is a part in the book about how he and some friends set up a confession booth one day. It wasn't so that people could confess to the Christians and be forgiven, it was so that as Christians they could confess and be forgiven. They confessed to not being perfect. They apologized for having done wrong things and for having been imperfect examples of Christ and giving Him a bad name. they apologized for the crusades and the judgement that so many Christians hold on others. I thought it was amazing really. We as Christians can get so caught up in ourselves and in how we are doing the right thing, and how we are saved, and forgiven and going to heaven, and how the rest of the world sucks because they are sinners and won't ask to be forgiven because they don't think they have done anything wrong. We judge when God clearly tells us that He is the only judge. We hold grudges just like the next guy. And, contrary to popular belief, we sin, yes, we sin, and no, not only on tuesdays. We gossip, we covet, we compare ourselves to others. We may not have sex with our boyfriend, we may not be having an affair, we may not have a crush on someone of the same sex as ourselves, but we are just as wrong. We are forgiven. Don't forget that. We are not perfect, just forgiven, because God, being full of His out-of-this-world type love and grace, grabbed our hearts and allowed us see where we had done wrong and where He desires for us to be mended, and then He went on to forgive us. We are called to love, not judge. We are called to love for the sake of loving, not for the sake of getting anything out of it. If we love everyone we meet, we are not losing anything. They may not come to know God, they may not ever step foot in a church, they might even commit suicide in 2 days, but we know that we loved them. If only for the moment that we knew them, we loved them as Christ loves us. So, from me to you, I ask your forgiveness for failing as an example of Christ. I have not been who I am called to be. I have not loved as I am called to love. I have judged when it is not my place to judge. But, with God's help and gentle, and sometimes not so gentle nudges and reminders along the way, I will hopefully, one day, be an example of the Christ-like person that I am called to be.

Goodbye My Love

It was a sad day on January 28, 2007 for Patti and her beloved Patti-Wagon. Patti-Wagon was taken away from Patti by some evil doers in the city of Edmonton Alberta. Patti, like any other lover, searched high and low, not wanting to miss any hints of where Patti-Wagon might have gone. Patti even journeyed to the local Law Enforcment agency to report her missing love. After a sleepless night, Patti called her insurance people, to see what needed to be done in the event that Patti-Wagon did not reunite with Patti in the nearest of futures. After 2 painful weeks of mourning, Patti must say a heartfelt farewell to Patti-Wagon, as it seems they shall never see eachother again. The insurance people will let Patti know in the next week of how much they will give her for the unfortunate loss of her first true love. Patti knows that no amount of money will fill the hole that is left in her heart, but it may help make it possible for Patti to find a new love one day. Patti-Wagon will be remembered forever with cherished memories of road trips and good times had by all who got to experience Patti-Wagon in all her glory.

Author's note: The 1986 Toyota camry seen above, is not the Patti-Wagon, but Patti sadly has no pictures of her beloved one.

tag, you're it

I guess I messed up and one of my tagees has already played and doesn't wanna do it again.. so I tag you! And by you, I mean Ang Allen, my dear Saskabertan friend....or maybe she is an Albertewanian.. either way, tag, your turn.

Toilette Tag...?

I have been tagged, and I don't exactly know what this means, but I think I am supposed to write 5 random facts about myself and then tag 2 people... so here goes.

1. I don't like cheese whiz. I honestly think the stuff is gross. I have never liked it. I mean, it is one of those things that every kid should like or something, but it is gross and when it is in a recepie, no matter how amazing this recepie has proven to be, I will think twice before embarking on a journey to remake said dish. (for the record I did have to use it this week to make an amazazing hashbrowns dish...)

2. I once broke my brother's finger. I don't mean like, whoops, I guess your finger is fractured, maybe we shouldn't play that again, kind of broken. I mean whoa, your finger is like demolished, and you're 11 and have to get plastic surgery type broken. In my defence, it was a total accident, and I had nightmares for a month.

3. I like to tell people that I knit when they ask what sort of hobbies I have because I think it sounds cool, but in all honesty, I have only ever successfully finished knittting 3 things... the last of which was finished before last Christmas.

4. I secretly.. or not so secretly enjoy making people do things they never thought they would do. Example, getting sunshine Jenny all dressed up for the CLBI Christmas choir concert. Another example, having Patrik, the Swiss kid, who hates being known as the Swiss kid, come over and watch stupid movies that Angela and I convince him are amazing, like the Mighty Ducks...all 3 of them...(we have watched 1 and 2, so the end is near...until I can think of another oh so amazing movie to watch)

5. My secret ambition in life is to travel all over the world, teaching everyone I meet how to play toilette tag, until it is so popular and loved that it becomes the newest Olympic event!


I guess it has come time for me to tag 2 people. I choo choo choose you! (and by you I mean Heather Manamana Morey, and Ashley Nooksack (last name unknown)

Bald for Jesus, The Journey

Hey all, I realize now that these pics are all backwards and that the explanation is down at the bottom, but read and enjoy.
My little tuft...all gone...

me and amy, my wonderful stylist...
me and vemmy, my support... along with many others...

well, no going back now...
half way there...

my one and only mohawk... almost there...

the beginning of the journey...
a bob cut...
getting my mullett...
my one and only mullett...
a cute short do...

Bald For Jesus

Hello friends. I have set out on an adventure. This adventure is to seek and discover my true inner beauty and self worth. As you know, my good friend Jen got diagnosed with Lukemia in december. I told her that I would shave my head for her if it would help her to handle her own baldness. She is doing just fine with her lack of hair, and I was very happy to hear this. I had begun to doubt whether I would be able to go through with shaving my head for her or not. God used this to convict me in a strong way. He asked me what I was scared of and why it was such a big deal. I realized that I was getting a lot of my self worth and sense of beauty from my hair, as many girls do in our culture. If we have a bad hair day, we feel gross, a good hair day, we feel pretty. God told me that he saw my beauty deeper than my hair. He saw it from my heart and told me that I was beautiful because he loved me. He wanted me to see that too, to know that my beauty comes from Him, from deep within my heart. "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight." -1 Peter 3:3-4 So, He told me that I had to shave my head, Jen being fine and all. I was terrified and argued with God all weekend. But, I am the winner of a game called "I lose", and basically I lose. So, God won and I lost... all of my hair. I am feeling really good though. I am excited for this journey and for what God has in store for me. I don't feel ugly like I thought I would. I was very scared that I would look like a boy and not be pretty anymore, but God has shown me otherwise. I am excited for this to be a testimony of my faith and that this adventure can speak to many people in many ways. I am excited to see God use this experience to show himself to me and for our love to grow deeper and truer than ever before. I knew that God loved me but I didn't know in my heart God's love for me, and this is what I am getting to experience now.

Alrighty, I have decided that working like a crazy mad woman is really not all that fun. This week I worked 5:30-12:30(give or take)Tues, Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sat. I also worked 9-5 Wed, Thurs, Fri. This is nutty... and it could have been worse. But, I am thankful that it was not. I have come to a decision. I am leaving Staples and the eays button and moving on to new things, higher grounds, better places... etc, you get the point. I am becoming a cook/server at O'Shea's, full time. I am excited for this adventure and we shall see how it all works out. Tis the new year, and i am stolked for all of the adventures that this year holds.

Untitled

Hey friends. We saw God heal that Patti-Wagon, and now we are going to see Him heal Jen. For those of you reading my blog who don't already know, Jen has Lukemia. Sorry to put it like that, but I am not good at padding things. She is going to be alright. God is good and he does amazing things every day. This is the "best" Lukemia to have, and there is an uber high success rate for healing. I don't have a whole ton of info, but Colin will be updating his blog regularly. It is colin zimmerman dot blogspot dot com (all one word). Check it out. It is also linked from Jen's blog...the address I am unsure of. It is either jens top secret dot blogspot dot com or jen top secret dot blogspot dot com. There is no use worrying, but prayer has great power, so just do that. God knows this whole situation, and ultimately we want Him to be glorified through whatever happens.

How God Cured Patti-Wagon

OK, bloger-ness...lemme think... I AM GOING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS! That is news. I am actually leaving the "city" of Camrose and venturing to the city of Saskatoon... in my car... which is now fixed...By God. Ok, let me tell you this story.....
Once upon a time there was a little blue car named Patti-Wagon. He was sick for about 3 weeks, which is a long time. He was tired, too tired to even move. He sat, being covered by snow and ice on the side of the road for 3 long, cold weeks, until one day he was rescued. It was a wednesday morning, and a nice lady came along and took pity on Patti-Wagon. She scraped him off, called a tow truck and took him to a nice, warm place with lots of people. The people looked at Patti-Wagon and figured out why he was so sick and worked to make him better. Within a few days, Patti-Wagon was up and running again. The nice people phoned Patti-Wagon's owner to let her know that Patti-Wagon was better, all she had to do was pay and she could drive Patti-Wagon home again. Then Patti-Wagon's owner was blessed that day. Someone else paid for Patti-Wagon. Patti-Wagon was all better and his owner was blessed so much that she was beaming all day and just wanted to bless others.
Good story eh? God blessed people in all sorts of ways, through all sorts of people. So, because of that blessing, I am taking 4-5 days off work, and I am going home to visit my Saskatchewan friends and family. Have a wonderful Jesus'-birthday season. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.