MERRY CHRISTMAS MY GIRLIES!!!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Hey girls! I just wanted to wish you all a merry Christmas in case i don't see some of you on sunday, so yeah MERRY CHRISTMAS! and don't forget that Jesus is the reason for the season! i love you all!

falling down

no matter how many times we realize that we need to start to be good, we always come back to a point of being disappointed in ourselves. we think, finally, finally, we understand that we don't have to do bad anymore. But slowly and surely, the world pulls us back in. And then we find ourselves back at a point where we need to be saved from ourselves. We realize we put ourselves in a position that there is nothing left that we can do to save ourselves and we cry out for a hero to step in and save the day once again. Because of his love, he always is ready to come to our rescue and defend his loved ones from whatever the evil one has sent our way.
but why can't we just be saved- once and for all?
Why can't we be free from ourselves and what brings us back down to the same spot he just saved us from?
Why doew he have enough patience to keep on saving us, day after day and enough love to look past our failures and see something worth saving?
Why can we never be freed from this evil that wills us to sink down into its depths?
Why do we insist of keeping this evil, as though it was clamped to out feet like shackles when God has made a way for us to be free?
But then, these shackles, these chains that we put ourselves in, they are why we need a saviour.
This thing that we call evil is the reason we need Him.
this is a NEED- desperately important to our very capability to have any life and this NEED is for Him- all that He is- His heart.

HA! I LOVE IT!

In Florida, an atheist became incensed over the preparation for Easter and Passover holidays and decided to contact his lawyer about the discrimination inflicted on atheists by the constant celebrations afforded to Christians and Jews with all their holidays while the atheists had no holiday to celebrate.
The case was brought before a wise judge who after listening to the long, passionate presentation of his lawyer, promptly banged his gavel and declared, "Case dismissed!"
The lawyer immediately stood and objected to the ruling and said, "Your honor, how can you possibly dismiss this case? Surely the Christians have Christmas, Easter and many other observances. And the Jews -- why in addition to Passover they have Yom Kippur and Hanukkah... and yet my client and all other atheists have no such holiday!"
The judge leaned forward in his chair and simply said "Obviously your client is too confused to know about or to celebrate the atheists' holiday!"
The lawyer pompously said "We are aware of no such holiday for atheists, just when might that be, your honor?"
The judge said "Well it comes every year on exactly the same date-- April 1st!"
"The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.'"Psalm 14:1, Psalm 53:1

woot for me...

hey girls! wow its been awhile. it seems like its been ages since ive seen you all.. i just wanted to say that i really wish i could come on Thursdays more often cause i haven't been going. life is busy with the baby and school as you all know. but i don't want to use those as excuses to hang out with my favorite girls. thanks for supporting me and praying for me through everything. i dunno what id do without all of you because i rely on you so much. you guys bring me up when im down and your always there to give me a hug even if you don't know whats wrong. im glad were all sisters...

xoxoxox

i've been thinking

sooo... guess what i got today?? wait. this font is really bugging me and i cant find out how to change it. darnn it lol. anyhoo back to what i got today... a leatter from the mission! i've been getting one every month but this one made me think, i dont kno how many of you get the newsletter mailed out to you but i think its been in the past month or so that you can send in money as a donation and buy a christmas gift for some of the families out there. this time it just got me thinking how i wanted to contribute to this ministry. but my thoughts didnt stop there, i dont kno if this would work but i would love it if we could bring this to our youth group and get donations from them and turn this into a huge christmas gift. so i dont kno if this is even a reasonalbe goal, but i thought that it might be nice to support the mission even tho we are not going there this year. so basically i just want to kno what you guys think bout this, if you think it might be worth it to bring this to the youth. i thouht that at least we might be able to get something. some things you can buy are for as little as 8 bucks. thats cheap. so i think that im just going to email mike and see what he thinks. please let me kno what you think of this:) love you all soo much♥

YC

hey ya girlies!! hows it going? so i was just sitting here being bored when all of a sudden i realized that (hopefully) all of us mexico girls are going to YC together!! its going to be just like mexico! i'm sooo excited!! Whot is acctually planning on going to YC? i hope you all say you are!! YEAH!! I AM SOOOOO EXCITED!!! well i just thought i'd let you all know! ok c ya this thursday! love
samm

LOVER YA ALL

Yeah so i'm just sitting here really bored and i desided that i shoud tell all of you something ready? ok
xoxoxoxoxox

I LOVE YOU

Hey girls

Hey everyone incase you don't already know the oneway girls meeeting is at steph mochars house this week!
How are all of ya! Good i hope! ok well love yoiu!

xoxoxooxox sam

jeez guys... somebody else needs to post

Hi Erin. How's it goin'? Man, this remix is kickin'! So anywho. Today in choir I was like, "Man, I really don't want to do this." Ya, that's my story. What's yours?

It had better involve explosions.

Dang it, i can't trust anyone. i told him not to go on to my blog.- the above- in blue was written by my friend Vaughn. thankfully he did not read it- our secrets have not been revealed. (jk)
so anyway- guess what? for creative writing we actually have to write on a blog. i will soon be involved in 5 seperate blogs at the same time. which is intense. i hope the rest of the people on the school blog will not be able to find my other blogs.


So basically, i'm exhausted, sick, tired, stressed, frusterated with people, stressed, and i feel like curling up in bed and just staying there until the week is over. the only thing that is really keeping me together this week is prayer and my beautiful saviour. and what's really weird is the fact that the heavier my world seems to be on my shoulders, the more God's been teaching me hardcore how he loves me. this week espicially. he keeps on making me fall in love with him in a way i've never felt before. Because i keep on being struck with the fact that I'm a daughter of a King. I'm a wife to the saviour of the world. I'm friends to a God that is sovreign and so above me in his ways that i will never understand.
Spirit, you are alive and working. Sometimes, i just have to open my eyes. Open my eyes to the hearts around me. Open my eyes so that i might experience your glory even more than i have. I want to see with your eyes. I want to see hearts the way you do that i might learn to love your children as you do. But your ways are higher. You are God, King, Saviour while i am a child, a human with an evil heart. I am nothing without your son.
Daddy, right now i want to lift up my sisters.we all need to find worth in you. in this world were we are constantly thrown into the idea that we have to be something that they've created, help us understand who you've created us to be. You have created every thought, ever part of us, everything that we have done and will do is written down in your book even before it happened. you are the only thing that makes us complete and whole. You are the only person who could love us the way you do no one else is capable of such a huge love, of such a pure love.
I'm frusterated with the fact that words can not express who you are. I wish our ability to write and to speak would make us capable to catch a glimpse of you. i can not even come close to expressing it.
I'm not worthy to call you my father and yet you called me daughter. You called me your child. you called me love. God i want to ask that you would give us wisdom and discernment as we seek your voice in the middle of a world that has voices shouting at us everyday. Help us hear your voice clearly and know your truths and be able to seperate it from the lies that the world and even the devil throw at us everyday.
God help us to know that we are beautiful. Help us to know that we are yours. Give us an understanding of the fact that we are princesses. help us realize that along with taking up a cross everyday, you've also placed on our heads a crown that people might look at us and realize that we are princesses, who have a father that adores us. thank you for adoring us. Thank you for making me smile. Wow, whenever i'm having a crazy day, or i'm exhausted, you show me what it means to have joy.
" The spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has appointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord's favor has come, and with it, the day of God's anger against their enemies. To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory." Isaiah 61:1-3
"... for the Lord delights in you and he will claim you as his bride. Your children will commit themselves to you, O Jerusalem, just as a young man commits himself to his bride. Then God will rejoice over you as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride." Isaiah 62: 4

To you daddy

Heya God,
i haven't really sat down and just talked to you in a while. and for that i'm sorry. i know your callling me to put you first. and i want to- my life is just filled with so many things right now. and i know that they are worldly things and nothing can even come close in importance than spending time with you. Like a wayward child, i'm coming back asking you to forgive me and have mercy on me. you seek me and love me and you're always talking to me and sometimes i put myself in a spot where i just don't have time to listen to you calling my name. Daddy, please get rid of this sickness that seems to not want to go away and help me to have energy and joy that i might be able to serve you.
God, right now i espicially want to lift up my sister Katie. God, i'm so glad that you've put this calling in her heart to get baptized and i'm so excited that she's going to step out in obedience and trust you. God, you're faithful and you are worthy of her trust. Help her to see that and to learn to have peace with that idea in mind. God, would you give katie the words you want her to speak and help her be authentic and honest. God i pray that your story would be told and katie would trust that it is you speaking and that she would rely on that. God, please give her strength and courage as she speaks about the tough things- the things that she's been strugging with and the things she's needed your strength for. I ask that you would strengthen her adn give her a need to rely on you. make it known to her that you are her strong tower and you will watch over her and that you love her SOO much. i know that your heart is bursting with love every time you think of your beautiful daughter and i pray right now that you would show her even a small glimpse of how much she is worth to you. I ask that you give the congregation open hearts that are filled with wonder in all that you have done in her life and i pray that you would touch them with her's and your's story. fill her heart with joy as she speaks about the glorious things you have done in her life. And God, i'm so excited for this and i know that we are rejoicing hardcore down here that one of your daughters is stepping out and telling your story. But i can't even fathom what kind of party is going on up there as you and the angels are watching her go down under the water. Thank you God that you keep on tugging at our hearts. thank you God for your plan and for your deep intimate knowledge of us. thank you that you are sovreign and yet you sent your son to live a humble life. Thank you that you understand our hearts and that you love us like little children. God, i wanna make you proud. I think all of the mexico girls want to amke you proud. so give us courage adn strength and wisdom adn integrity and discretion adn love as we step out in faith to live for you. Be our number one. You are so worthy to be our number one. nothing else should matter. Please God, take away all of the worldly distractions and help us understand your calling in our lives. WE LOVE YOU GOD. THANK YOU FOR LOVING US FIRST.

please prayyy!!!

heyy girls im going for my drivers test again next week. can u please pray for me?? thanks!!!

THURSDAY NIGHT exclaimation point

Hey guys

I'm sorry this is so late
but we will have a missions meeting at my house( 354 Sebestyen Cres) at 7:00
Bring swimsuits and yeah we don't have school on friday so I don;t know how long it'll go. but yeah I really hope everyone can come!!!

Email from our buddie G-unit

Berg Graham to me, Mike, Chet, Chet show details 3:06 PM (30 minutes ago) Reply


Hey y'all,So all is well out in Ontarioville. Midterms are stressful and there's always more to do, but that's OK...I'm getting through it and Christmas is almost here. Currently I'm studying for my last midterm...Hooray! I've had nine midterms so far this month with my tenth being tomorrow (that's my neuroanatomy that I should be studying for right now) and my brain is ready to shut down on me haha. Apparently becoming an eye doctor takes quite a bit of work...weird. I've been able to collect a few cool tools along the way so far such as my ophthalmoscope (can't wait to hear Sam try and pronounce that!) and my lens kit and everything. Basically I get to spends lots of money on really cool gadgets that let me see into the eye...it's pretty neat. It's been a long haul with finding a new "home" church out here, but I think my search has been conclusive. I've been able to connect with a few college and career people in a church down here called Waterloo Mennonite Brethren. It's a big church, but with a really young congregation.
So I've booked a flight home for the 20th of December and I'm flying back out here on the 4th. That means I should have a few days to kick around in Saskatoon. I'm going to do my best to see as many people as I can, but unfortunately I only have so much time so we'll see how it goes. SO there's a quick update on me. I'm busy, but staying alive and healthy. If you guys could pass this on to anyone interested that would be wonderful and appreciated. Thank you for all your prayers and support...God has definitely been faithful with helping me find my way out here. Take care and God bless!

face of light

sometimes i can't see your face

sometimes your voice isn't in my ear

sometimes i feel like you've left me here

and the world is still and silent

sometimes i feel like you've left me here

and the world is dark and hopeless

you are light

your face opens my eyes

your words are sweet in my ears

your face is the face of light

Don't leave me here God.

Don't act like you've forgotten me

because i know you hear my cries

I weep and my heart cries out when you seem to have left me

you are my heart

my tears will not end until you come and shine your light

come back to me.

lift me back onto my feet.

let your face of light shine on me again

God, through this pain, i trust you.

Through the dark,

the silence,

the emptiness,

the aloneness,

I trust in you.

I know that whatever i feel in this moment is a part of your plan

your glorious, perfect plan.

I know that no matter what i feel in this moment,

you ARE here

you ARE good and your love endures

i will learn to be patient

i will learn to listen harder

i will learn to look deeper

i will learn to cherish the little things, the little moments of your glory

Open my eyes God.

I want to see you

I want to see your glory

i want to see your face of light

I miss you daddy
i miss you, i trust you, i love you
daddy, friend, comforter, love, face of light.

wednesday night!

Hey girls! for those of you who maybe didn't get my email, i sent one out saying that i'm having people over on wednesday night(that's halloween). We're gonna watch a movie and hang out. lots of fun. i told everyone to give me a call if they can come . my numbers are 373-2104, 281-8372 and 382-9653. lol. and if u can bring food (chips or pop or something) that would be great but if not don't worry about it. so if you can make it come on over at 8:00. hope to see you all there. love you guys!

YOU HAVE GOT TO READ THIS!!

LOL!!!
okay my girlies, i just love the bible. its so full of wisdom and honesty and depth and every so often you find that one part that makes you laugh!

okay, read Leviticus 15:19-30!! (girls only read this)
LOL.

fights

I was walking home through the field today as normal. and then i see this huge crowd of kids on a softball diamond not very far away. and as i try and figure out whos there, i start relalizing its a lot of druggies and the more "sketchy" crowd in our school. (sorry for categorizing them- i hate putting titles on groups of people, but anyway...) this is weird because the druggie group never comes out into the field. they have their own little druggie catwalk right behind the school. and when i look over to the druggie catwalk, i realize that a whole huge bunch of druggies are running across the field to the softball diamond. there's like 50 people there and its one of the wierdest things i've seen in a long time and i am totally confused. and then i hear it as the druggies run past. whispers that catch my ear about a fight. and suddenly, i get so angry. there's about fifty students that i know that are standing outside to watch two stupid kids fight. It makes me mad. I will never understand it. i will NEVER understand how fighting someone is fun. i will NEVER understand how beating the crap out of someone is fun. I will NEVER understand how people want to watch. i will NEVER understand why 50 people are excitedly anticipatiting watching someone beat the crap out of someone else. It totally baffles me. I don't get it.
and then as i'm walking home, i'm like, FATHER, please don't let anything bad happen. Father PLEASE protect them. the words "protect them" keep running through my head.
I just........... i don't understand the stupidity of humans sometimes.

Words for Thought....

hello all my girlies. so once again, i have some more song lyrics:P ha this is a really really good song, its by aaron shust, the same guy who sings my saviour my god.. another one of my favorites:) anyhoo, this song is called give it all away, im finding that these words are really what i need right now. soo here it is. enjoy<3

Search my heart, search my mind, search my soul
Make me clean, make me new make me whole

All of my plans, all of my dreams, I lay them down before Your feet
All of my time, all that was mine, I now submit to Your design
'Cause You are the one who can make my life complete
You are the one who can give light to my feet
You are the one and only one who dared to give it all away for me

You are my strength, You are my God, you are my King
You make me laugh, You make me dance, You make me sing

Everything inside, everything outside, I give it all away
You never change, but You rearrange my heart more everyday

Hey Ya all!!

ok so i don't know if it's just me and i'm guessing its not but i really really miss mexico and hanging out with all yu girls there! man we had some really good times!! I am really hoping to go back there either this summer or next! i really want to do it soon though becasue if i put it off too long it wont happen. so i was thinking about mexico and do you girls realize that we still havn't sponsered a child like we were planinng? ok so if someone knows how to adopt a child i think that we should all pitch in ( or everyone who wants to) like $5 and sponser a child. I mean wouldn't it be fun to be able to write to our sponsered child and make her feel loved and worthy i think that it would be really cool! i was kinda hoping to sponser a kid that was new remember? as we left a huge family of kids came in. i think we could really make a difference in their life. well talk to me and tell me what you think ok! i HEART all of ya all!!
xoxoxoxooxoxx
sammi

That's IT!!!!

ok so i say that we NEED TO HAVE OUR MEETINGS AGAIN!!! so i think that maybe it could be cool to do it on fridays before youth group! but let me know what you girls think! ok well ttusoon!!
luv ya all!!
xoxooxoxox
samie

...

i miss the summer

post 101!!!!!

Happy Thanksgiving Day!!!!!
I love you all! God Bless!!
Dios de Bendiga!

hey girls

hey girls i was just thinking that if we are all not busy this thursday we should get together as the mexico girls!!! well e mail me or blog or phone me (956-3413) if you guys aren't busy ok!
luv you girls!
sami

busy enji

on my other blog, i wrote something about being busy and feeling like i'm in over my head. that feeling is growing. and it doesn't really help that i haven't gotten enough sleep in the past couple days. i keep on looking for opportunities to serve and lead, because i seriously value trying to teach younger generations. they need leaders to look up to and friends who want to help them find their Saviour. so i've been throwing myself into being a youth sponsor, a sunday school teacher, and a leader at our School's inter- school christian fellowship. but i keep on realizing the more things i throw myself in, the more important it is that i have time to be alone with my daddy and my love. It scares me and i really don't want to give any of it up because i know these kids need someone. I keep on getting scared that i'll somehow fail them and maybe it won't matter anyway to their futures. and then i heard this quote and it's been something encouraging that's kept me going and kept me realizing that this is where i need to be.
"In a very real sense not one of us is qualified but it seems that God continually chooses the most unqualified to do His work, to bear his glory. If we are qualified, we tend to think that we have done the job ourselves. If we are forced to accept our evident lack of qualification, then there is no danger that we will confuse God's work with out own or God's glory with our own." - Madeline L'Engle quote from Holy Sweat by Tim Hansel.
I don't know about you guys, but these past couple weeks have been draining and i really need to have a big gulp of the living water, but it seems i never have enough time to just sit down with him. I have to make it priority over sports, tv, and even homework, much to my parents annoyance.
God lead me to a song yesterday that just felt like it was directed directly at me. it was something i could have written. It's called "unashamed love" by Jason Morant:

"You're calling me to lay aside
The worries of my days,
To quiet down my busy mind and
Find a hiding plave.
Worthy, You are Worthy.

I open up my heart and
Let my spirit worship Yours.
I open up my mouth and
Let a song of prise come forth.
Worthy, You are Worthy.

Of a childlike faith
And of my honest praise
and of my unashamed love. Of a holy like
And of my sacfifice
and of my unashemed love."

So i was going to end of this post by asking for prayer from all of you girlies, but i'm guessing i'm not the only one out there that has been feeling this way so i want to lift up some prayer.
God, we lift to you the burdens of our days. We know that you can handle our troubles and the things that stress us out. God we look to you for peace and we know that the spring of your spirit is calm and clear. God we want to just ask you if we can dip our hands into this spring to be refreshed and revitalized. God we all know we desperately need to dip our hands into this flood of peace and love. God, would you grant us patience with the people around us and hearts that seek you above all things. God, we want more of you. Our hearts are crying out and we desperately want you to reign down on us. In, your mercy would let us come into your presence on our knees and would you give us grace for all the times you wanted to talk to us but we were too busy for you. God as we look to lead others, in our workplaces, in the church, in our sports or music, in our schools, let us know how important it is that we are lead by you. we want to teach the words of the teacher. So be near us and keep on knocking at our hearts even when we push you away for other things that take up our time. God would you grant me discipline to come to you everyday and just talk with you. Open my eyes to new wonders in your word and knew wisdoms. God please also open my eyes to the hearts of those around me. I want to help those that are in pain and who desperately need and want you. God guide their paths to mine and give me the words to say, just like you promised Moses you would give the words, give us the words.
God i want to lift up specifically those who are sick or in pain that we know of right now. I think of Steph's uncle who has west nile, would you protect and heal his body? and would you also let him know that it's okay to seek help and that he has people in his life who desperately want to help him and in doing so show your love. I think of Erika's friend who just had a miscarriage. God that is so tough and its painful to hear about. God i don't understand why it happened and i don't know what will result of it, but would you bring peace to that family and hope for a future. God i think of my friend who has an eating disorder, make your love for her blind out any thing else that showers her. God Make her know how beautiful she is to you and how much you love your bride. God i think of Rissy's brother, God i don't know what's going on with him, but you know his thoughts and his hurts. God please let Rissy be a shining light in that situation and her be able to tlak to him in love. God, for Sarah's friend at work who is cutting, i know you can fill her and give her satisfaction and i pray that you would fill her with your spirit and a taste of you that she will not be able to deny. Help sarah show that abundant life that you promise and you provide. God i pray for my friend who is gay. Father, I have NO IDEA how to talk to him. lead me to words that can express how i feel. I need to come to him in love and unjudgmentally. God grant me wisdom in that situation. God i think of Trent's brother. I don't know the specifics, but i lift up the situation to you and trust that you have full power over that situation. let trent be filled with words to say to him and patience with him. God for my little friend in youth help her know that she is wanted and she is loved and she is valued. God you love her and i know you're calling me to befriend her. Help me get through to her and help her find a community in this church. God for my friend her at school who doesn't feel valued, god let me listen to her and God surround her with people who listen to her and value her opinions. You value her, but god let us as your body show that love. God for my brother, who is about to make a big decision, i pray that you would tug at his heart is this is something your calling hiim to do. God, for those with hurts or things to bring before you that i don't know, i trust that you know and you care about those things. Lert me know if there's someone i need to talk to. god in your holy name i lift these things to you. We love you and as much as we know we fail, we know that you are perfect in your power and love. God we love you. bless our days. and thank you for my mexico girls!!

Please Pray!

Hey guys...I just found out today that one of my friends had a miscarriage...so if you could pray for her, that would be awesome.

a request..

hello my girls!!! ha i miss you guys! i only get to see some of you tonite:( ha anyhoo i was just wondering if you guys could pray for my uncle ron... he is really really sick right now. he has west nile and the dr thinks there might be other complications. soo hes going through a really rough time right now, hes in alot of pain. also, im not sure if he is saved. so yeah, it would be awesome if you could just pray for him, i would really appreciat that:) thank you hunnies♥ love

stupid..

heyy guys. k well i've done it again.. i lost something. this time it was really expensive. well i think when i lost my purse and had to change all the locks on the house, that was more expensive. but this time i feel sick about it. 2 days ago i lost a new hoodie that i bought for band. it has my name on it and my instrument and choir on it. it was like 40$ and i reallly liked it. and i lost it! i looked everywhere for it. its somewhere in my school so somebody might have taken it...
i know this sounds stupid but could u guys pray that i would find it?? thanks..
love u all!
xoxoxoxoxo

Weirdness

Hey girls ok so i don't know whats happening to me but i've been feeling REALLY weird lately and i don't know why! is anyone else feeling the same as me because i feel like i'm alone in the world right now and i don't know what to do.
well i love yoiu girls and can't wait till youth on friday! i think it'll do me some good!
ok well love you all!
xoxoxoxox
sami

i like this song:)

hey katie and mylandra... remember this song? the one that ehjae taught? ha ohh the wonderful times at the chuckwagon campfire... with mice. anyways, i've been liking this song lately. soo here it is. enjoy!

lord prepare me to be a sanctuary
pure and holy, tried and true
with thanksgiving, i wanna be a living
sanctuary for you

hee hee

wow praise god for tonight!! i lover you girlies!!

What to do.....

Hey everyone, i've got a bit of a problem and i need some advice from my girls. We all know what it's like to have a crush on someone, some of us may even know what it's like to be 'in love'. But what do u do when ur so hung up on someone it consumes you. I'm not consumed by it yet but i feel it's heading in that direction. I guess my big question here is , what do u do when u like someone but you don't feel worthy? Is it worth waiting around to find out if they are 'for you' if it means waiting to date anyone. I don't want to date anyone if i can't date him but what if someone else great comes along but i miss something cause i'm consumed with him even though there may be no chance of anything happening. I don't think it's fair for anyone if the person they are dating still likes someone else too. But i can't get over these feelings no matter how hard i try. Will i ever get over it? What do i do till then? Will i be single forever because i can't get over one guy? I'm sorry guys i don't usually talk about stuff like this cause at this point in my life there are more important things i'm concentrating on but this is hard. Any advice? it would be greatly appreciated. I love you all and can't wait to see you.

hello my girlies

hey guys... girls i guess:P anyhoo i kno this is kinda random but i was just wondering if you could pray for me. there is some stuff that im just trying to figure out, im very confused right now and not liking it. so yeah, that would be fantastic if you could... actually i think that it would be good if we all prayed for the team, seeing as school and crap is starting up again ... love you all, really hope i can see you all soon:) byes♥

jr. high youth

seriously! i love jr high youth! soo much fun. the girls there are so accepting and full of energy. its fun to be totally silly with them. not to mention i'm teaching them early on to pick on mike. in a couple years.. poor mike. i went on a canoe trip with them all. you should have seen the sunset over the creek- it was amazing- i was like God, you are the bestest artist in the whole world. i had trent and mike in my canoe which made it even more fun. i don't even really feel like big, serious sponsor which is okay. its so much fun to fool around with a bunch of giggly girls. you have to meet them guys- i love them. they're awesome!!! espicially my new buddy- emily (josh neudorf's sister) (i have blackmail on josh now- hee hee) okay, littl ebit on a high after such a fun night
but now to serious stuff.
we're going back to high school tomorrow (in case you didn't know-pfft) we have to keep on making time to blog to keep each other accountable. i think we should have a girls only get together and just talk about summer, where we went, what we learnt, who we met, etc. and more importantly, how God's changing us, making us fall in love with him, and any prayer requests. is everybody here this week during the evenings? please give me a quick list of when everybody is available.

demons vs. God- guess who wins?

you know whats funny. its amazing how many different ways God can speak to you it you seek it. okay, so this morning, i was freaking out because i was hearing sounds from jeffs room and really suddenly i was just attacked with this fear that theres was a demon in there and i was sooo scared and i didn't know what to do. so i prayed and i got a little bit better, enough to go close enough to the door to close it. i was still freaking out and i couldn't concentrate enough to read my bible so i went into the living room and turned on the tv. at first i was really mad because i was sure this was the demons plan- that i wouldn't be able to concentrate so i'd be wasting my time instead of doing something and learning something important from God. (i've been reading screwtape letters- soooo good!) But then i remembered that i had a christian channel on tv so i switched to it. it had a infomertial (i don't care about my spelling anymore) on it and i was really disappointed, so i kept on flipping and then i came across this one channel that had a christian program on it and iwas watching it. guess what it was talking about?they were talking about fear and how we shouldn't be afraid because God is always beside us and he's more powerful than anything else. I just kinda sat there smiling. and then i stuck my tongue out at jeff's door as i walked past because guess what, i got God on my side and that demon has NO power compared to my God. and he's always with me

MY GIRLIES!!

Hey girls!! k we REALLY REALLY HAVE TO HANG OUT!! i want to chill with my girls and hear about all the new and exciteing things in your lives! and i want to pray with you girls like in mexico.... awww little Danny!! ( and Victoria...Steph D!!!) but yeah that's pritty much all i gots to say!! I HEART YOU GIRLS
All My LOVE!! xoxoxoxoxox
xoxxxoxoxoxo(x1 000 000)
xox Samixoxoxox

ahhhhhh!!! butterflies in my tummy.

okay still freaking out but yeah.
I got asked out over MSN tonight and I'm not sure what to say about this and I just ask that you guys would pray for me so that I would have wisdom about the situation. there are so many what if's if you know what I mean. and he's not christian so I can;t date him. But I think I like him. please just pray for me...

court date #2

heyy girls, can you all pray for Destiny again. she has another court date today at 1:30. thanks for all of your support!
xoxoxox

a long time ago...

a long time ago leanne suggested that we write down things God's been teaching us this summer. i think we need to have a time that every single girl can get together and we should have "god gossip" as trent and mike call it. i really want to know how God's been challenging you guys and i thin we all need some time to talk about the man in our lives and how he's making us fall in love with him. this blog is to keep each other accountable, so i really think we need to find a time within like the first week of school starting that we all just share.

i'm finally posting!

yay! katelynn is posting! but all she is saying is that she is bored at the lake! and she is kicking butt in settlers!! well ok i won the last two games...or something like that i don't know but anyways life at the lake is ok kinda boring and i wish i could see y'all but i can't for another week...i'm here till saturday or sunday then i'm off to the quest for a week, then a family reunion in swift current for a day and then FINALLY i am back and i can hang out with all you people!!! yay!!! so excited for that. wow my e-mail is slow on this computer. i am in the library at elbow. which reminds me...i should hurry and pick out a book! love y'all!!

FANTA WHAT!!!!!

Hey guys I hope summer is going good.

but Guess what... You can buy Fanta at Safeway. Fanta like mexico.

When I saw it I was like yes happy dance!!!

So yeah see you sunday.

Luv Mylandra

I miss you all!

Hey girls! How is everyone's summer going? Great i hope. Mine has been awesome so far. I've been at camp Kadesh for the past 3 weeks and it was absolutely wonderful. I love camp. I'm hoping to junior counsel next year. I met some amazing people there and God started to do some pretty crazy things that are really starting to change me. I can't wait to see all of you and tell you about it. I'm so excited for youth to start again. Anyway, God has been sending me some 'messages' and there are some pretty exciting things that are going to be happening for me soon that i want all of you to be a huge part of. I won't explain it all now but after school starts (sorry to bring it up guys) we have to start our prayer meetings things again and i'll tell you all about it. I hope it will be successful with God's help but i need you guys too. It's exciting. I really hope you are all having an amazing summer. Now i'm off to Erin and Jeff's ( how do you spell his name , i totally forgot, that might be wrong) to play settlers even though i have no idea how. Oh well it will be fun. I love you all and i miss you.

i miss you:(

heyy all you girls!! man i havnt seen any of you in forever!!! ugh and im gone for another 2 weeks:P well i might be at church next week... and those of you who are wonderful and are going to sr teen at the quest... i'll be seeing you all weeek!!! lol that;ll be fun. yeah but anyhoo, finally got access to internet so i figured id post.. not that i have anything to say... bc is nice tho, i think i wanna move here:P sooo...im gunna go... lover you all sooo much, cant wait to se you all again♥♥tootles

gifts inventory.

wow, i just went through that big long inventory thinger, and it's seriously amazing how much God has changed me since starting the mexico journey. seriously! you guys should go back and try to see what's changed in your life.
http://buildingchurch.net/g2s-i.htm
wow, God is good. he gives and takes away. he turns our paths and changes where we're at.

miss ya

hey guys whats up? i got the email as u can tell. finally.. thanx.lolbut ya, whats up? and where the heck is everyone? i miss ppl and i think that the people that havent ditched should all get together. iunno just a thought. it would be cool to see everyone again. ttylmiss ya

Hey girls i just realized that whoever invited ppl to our blog didn't send it to Shauna or Stephanie M!! leet do it!! mmk?

tddm

heyy girls! a few posts ago, erin told us about a site that she has been going to. its basically like teen devos. now,i don't know about the rest of u but sometimes getting your devos in is hard!!! but this site has really helped me remember. everytime i go to check my email, they have emailed me a devo. its like God is sending me a little reminder that i need to spend time with him. i dunno if that would work for any of u but it definatly does for me. try it!
xoxoxox

What Beauty?

what beauty is hidden for all to see,

if we would seek we would be blinded by it.

what beauty was in his face while he hung

the face that people learned to be the face of the Messiah

contorted and twisted and bloody and painful even to look at

but still showed unmatchable peace.

what beauty was in his eyes

the eyes that looked on children with love

the eyes that looked on a sinful and evil wordwith love

and did not punish though he had power and authority

but sacrified himself

what beauty is in those eyes?

for his eyes said more than any poem can

it made hearts sing with more beautiful melodies than we could fathom.

if we were to look in those eyes, even though he was dying,

we would see life.

life that we've never dreamed.

life that need not thirst or hunger.

what beauty is in the scars on his hands.

the hands that he used to serve by washing his disciples feet

the hands that were used to draw a line in the sand where he gave grace

the hands that were used to touch a leper.

the hands that he hung by to serve, fogive, and heal me

what beauty is in the scars on his feet.

the feet that he walked across the earth with

the feet that he walked to undeserving lands

what beauty is in the story of love

who can match such a love

who can fathom such a love

why does this beauty sting our eyes to look at

what beauty is in the heart of the saviour

the heart that did not condemn

but asked forgiveness over the ones who hung him there

asked forgiveness over us

asked forgiveness over me

because i hung him there.

i hung him there and he asked forgiveness over me

that heart that did not condemn,

even as it beat its very last

what beauty is in that heart?

how beautiful is our saviour?

just for fun

This is totally off topic,

but remember the good ol' days?

wow, lol

which one was your favorite

Please Pray II

hey girlies hows it going? for me it's pritty good i just got my paycheck today so thats pritty sweet!
ok well i really need your prayer tonight girls i'm going over to my moms best friends house to pray over her little boy (demons seem to be involved) and i really would appreciate it if you would all spend even 3 minitus to pray for Landon (her boy) right now! and if God is calling you to come and pray for him in person phone me today at my home phone # and today is Thurday and were praying for him at 7:00pm! thank you girls sooo much!
All My LV
Samm
xoxoxoxoxox

please pray...

heyy guys... hows ur summers going? mines pretty good i guess... lotsa work:P but to the point of this post... i have a really good friend who is going through some tough things. she cant really go to her house these next couple of days b/c there is some creepo living there for the week. she's been spending nights at my house. could you please pray that God would just protect her and keep her safe, as well she is a fairly new christian... and her dad is strong athiest = a not good situation. she is not allowed to come to church or youth, so i also ask that you would just pray that God could soften her dads heart and that she would not stray from what she knows is right. thankyou sooo much girlies♥ luv yas... miss you

Dear Jesus,
Lord there are many prayer requests in our little group of girls and i just pray that you would help us to know what you want us to do for our lives. Lord we know that you will let us know in your own time and that you tell us to live from day to day instead of looking into the future but that is soo hard sometimes lord. Please give us peace and understanding in your work and word lord. help us to remember that everything we do you prepared in advance for us to do. Lord you are amazing and i give my future and my life to you so please show me what to do for you, show me what you want me to do to honor you lord. All the Glory to you God!
Amen.

Hey Girlies i was just wondering if any of you would be able to get together sometime soon so that we can pray for eachother and encourage eachother, iron sharpens iron right?! ok well i luv you all!
xoxox sammie

hello world

heyy girlies! its been awhile. i've been busy with my new job and all. come visit me and ask me where something is... maybe marshmallows perhaps??? well its much nicer at work with erin around. at least there is someone to talk to besides stupid boys..lol they're not that bad, they are slightly annoying but i also have a brother whos that annoying..also leon..lol but yeah, so life's been pretty good. i haven't told many people this but i failed my history exam that i took, i probably could have studied more. anymays, im taking it again on Augest the 10th. please pray that i will at least pass, im VERY scared. but ya, well also i need you guys to pray for me that God would speak to me. im having troubles deciding if i should keep my job for the school year. i already have a few activities on the go such as guitar and piano, also im the prezident of the SRC again.. yes im a nerd..lol but i need the money for a car and such, i feel too old for allowance. anyone have any ideas???
xoxoxoxx

Randomness??!!??

Hey guys,
I haven't posted in a while WOW!!!
SO I hope everyone's summer is going great!
I was just looking through some verses tonight and I found this really great one and I thought you guys should hear it...

Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again-Rejoice! Don’t worry about anything instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all He has done. Then you will experience God’s peace which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4, 6-7

I know you girlies have probably heard this one before but I think it is such a straight forward approach to Christianity. It is so simple but so difficult to accomplish this task that God has laid out for His followers and it is only by His power that we can recieve His peace and be strong and courageous in the Lord. And I know we all long for peace in our lives. Dios de Bendiga!!!
Love Ya!!

prayer, my lovelys, would be lovely.

okay, so i'm about to send my coach an email with pretty much most of my testimony. guys, i believe that God can break through the lies surrounding him. please pray that his heart would be open and he wouldn't be stubborn and my words would somehow affect him.
Father, let him seek after you. hes so close, if he could just take a single step forward, he could be with you. God, open his heart. i'm crying out for this and i place it in your hands. bless this day. please, let your love flow in abundance.

how was the retreat girlies?

everybody has to comment with their own thoughts, experiences, lessons learnt, etc. just like around the fire in mexico on our last day. how was it ya'll? i heard there was a boat this time?

I can't get it out of my head!!!

falling on my knees in worship.
giving all I am to seek your face.
Lord all i have is yours
my whole life i place in your hands
God of mercy, humble i bow down
in your presense at your throne
I called, you answered, and you came to my rescue
And i wanna be where you are.

the gathering

hello girlies!! well tomorrow is wednesday...and do you know what that means? me neither! haha well actually erika is spending a few days at my house and we were thinking we could have a girl gathering tomorrow night! just at my house (126 mulcaster cres.) from like 7-11 type thing. no idea what we'll do yet...bring some food i guess. haha any suggestions? but yeah my parents aren't home for the night and said we could have a bunch of girls over so y'all can come for part or all of the night if you're around! so just leave a comment if you're planning on coming...or just randomly show up that works too haha but please come we haven't seen y'all in like forever so let's get together and chat and catch up. see ya tomorrow?

wow, more amazing words from my devotional site. this is awesome

A Woman From IndiaBy: Doug Bischoffmailing@tddm.org
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“If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all.” Isaiah 7:9 In our neighborhood, there is an Indian woman (like from India) that I see walking all the time. As I’m writing this she just passed by the window. Given her current rate of walking and her normal round-the-block frequency, I would estimate to see her again sometime around September. As my uncle would say, “She could lose a foot race to a 1-legged centipede.” I know he’s kind of weird. Anyway, back to my story. I first noticed this woman about 3 months ago as she went for her evening walk. I was mowing the yard and had just started when she went by. About 45 minutes later, there she was again. And we don’t have that big of a block. But what she gives up in speed she definitely makes up for in consistency. Every night, several times around the block. Good thing it’s summer or she would need a flashlight around lap two! Our Christian walk is to be like that – slow and steady! Not a burst of speed right out of the blocks and then falling behind. This verse points to the consistency of standing firm. Little by little, step by step, keep moving forward. I’m not really wired for that. I want big explosions of growth. Somehow, that doesn’t happen. Wherever you may be, keep moving forward. Stand firm and ease forward.

Love

Dear Jesus,
God i love you sooo much, and i love these girls lord. thank you so much for putting them in my life to give me strenght and hope and love and a better understanding of you lord. You have given so many girls in our group the gift of wisdom lord and as you say over and over in the bible lord it is an awsome gift that should be treasured . lord please give the girls you have blessed with this understanding the courage to give us your words of wisdom lord. Lord there are also girls in our group who have the gift of prayer lord and i just ask that you would give them courage to speak out and pray for you lord and help them not to be afraid of saying something stupid lord because if you call them to pray no matter how dumb it might sound to us it'll be what that person needs lord. and lord there are girls in our group with soooo many other talents and spiritual gifts lord and i just pray that you would help them to use them for you lord with out fear.
I love you girls and don't you ever forget that!
samm

Sponsership / Again

ok so just so everyone knows everyone who wants to sponser need to contact me and we need to get together and DO THIS THING!!! LOL!!! hahahahhahaha! ok i must be overtierd because i can't stop laughting over that!! LOL!!! o sorry back on topic ok so yeah if we can get together that be great.. o and so far i have
-Leanne
-Rachel
-Mylandra (?)
-Erin (?)
-and ME!! Samm

so if you girls and anyone else who wants to sponser could phone me at 956-3413 that would be great......... o yeah and Erin do you have the sponsership info?? ok well talk to you wonderfuly amazing, Godly woman later!!! luv ya all!!!!

Why do you believe in God?

Hey girls ok i have a stumper, and i feel really bad because this is one question i should be able to answer but it's so complicated. so i was at work one day last week and a guy came up to me and asked me what i thought of the "million dollar bill" i receved. ok so first i will tell you about the million dollar bill. ok so one day a work this guy came in who was a christian and gave some of us who were working there "million dollar bills" and on the back they said stuff like " buy imagining "it" you have already comitted addultery in Gods eyes." and stuff like that and how to become a christian and that God will forgive you. ok so anyways he has a poro addiction and he asked me why the bill was so great and why i believed in God. so i told him i wouldn't preach to him but would still try to explain why and he told me just to preach because he wouldn't get mad or offended. and you know for me God is more so a feeling and eternal joy and it was REALLY hard to try and explain to him so if you guys can please give me some wisdom that would be great!! thanx!

erin on the workforce- boring, you really don't have to read this if you don't wan to. i just felt sorry for our blog

i was going to post on my blog, but then i came to this blog and i felt somewhat sorry for it. poor, neglected blog, all alone in the world. so, although probably none of you really care about what i have to say. jk, i know you guys love me and even if you think i'm stupid for boring you with my painfully boring exsistance you're still going to read this post because, number a) it's the first new post in a while, number b) you love this blog as much as i do, and number c) no matter how boring it is, you love me
i think my jobless status is definately about to change. and i'm not sure if its a good thing...
i applied a week ago at Old Navy, i thought they were desperate for workers but i never got a call back or anything. i went today to drop off my resume and they said they'd be in touch.
i dropped off my resume at Sobeys- yay gracie, at Safeway, London Drugs and Tim Hortons- yay sam and steph! i got an interview at Timmy Ho's on the spot and they sound like they really need some workers or something. i don't want to be overconfident, but i'm pretty sure i'm going to get a job there. Tammy is pretty cool. and then when i got home, there was a message that Robyn phoned, she has my resume and wants me to phone her back tonight. whether that's a good sign or a bad sign, i'm pretty much okay with it either way. i didn't even see Robyn when i went in.... that's all i really got to say. i hope i get a good job...

Sponsership / Again

Hey girls, it's me again. I was just wondering if anyone else would want to help sponsor Victoria and Brenda. Rachel, Leanne, Mylandra and myself are already on the team and we are going to sponsor both of them $30 and together thats $60 so if 2 (or more) ppl go in with us it will only cost us $10 each. ok thanx Samm

More Randomness

So once again i'm sittin here, wanting to write something, but not knowing what to write. So i'm gonna write whatever is on my mind right now. Just to warn you, this could be a little frightening. Just kidding. If anything it will be rather boring. So,....i'm pretty excited for baby to come. I keep calling it baby just cause i don't know what else to call it. Calling it 'IT' isn't the greatest either but geez if lynn would hurry up and pop it out already and give it a name i wouldn't have to call it 'baby' or 'IT', so you can see that it's not my fault. I definately think it's a boy. What do u guys think? I love babies. I want a baby. Guys.....i have something to tell you.........just joking. Don't worry that won't be happening for a long time. At least 5 years. So ya, babies are great,....and so cute! You know what else i love? SUMMER! One more exam and i'm free! I CAN'T WAIT! and camp is gonna be so much fun. Leanne! We're goin to camp! I also love camp and kimmy's gonna be there so it will be even more awesomer. IT IS TOO A WORD! You know what's a funny word? Spleen. Hehe. See? I'm so weird aren't i? Life wouldn't be as much fun if i wasn't a little bit crazy. So,....what's everyone else doing this summer? Since i might not see some of you guys before you go away or before i go away( B.C. here i come!) , you should definately write something on the blog and tell us all what ur doin. I love to hear about what people are doin for their vacations or summer holidays or whatever you wanna call it. I'm definately gonna do some serious reading...and writing...and picture taking etc. Twill be fun fun fun. I love the Dixie Chicks. listening to them right now. Yup. I love country music. Yup. I think this is gonna end up being a pretty long post. Oh well. Deal with it! So ya i really hope that retreat thingy at my family's cabin works out sometime at the end of the year, or next year if not this year. That would be amazing! I should probably go to bed so i don't end up falling asleep during my final tomorrow. Last day! Yahoo! Talk to you all soon i hope . I love y'all. That's right i said y'all. Don't know if that's how you spell it but i said it. Ta Ta my girlies.

step back to see God's work

heya, this is a random post, but i was just reading over all of our posts on this blog and looking at the different stuff Gods been doing in our lives. isn't it awesome to be able to look back and see what God's done with us since Mexico

Is he enough for you?

i guess i've been challenged to look at my life. i remembered the time that Trent spoke on the question, "Is God enough for you?" i hope you guys were all there.

this is something God's bringing to me lately and i don't know hhow to react or how to answer. i think fellowship is HUGELY important and i love you guys more than anything, but if everyone could, just for a second, imagine your own life without this blog site, without the mexico team, without sn. high sponsors. Is God enough for you? could you handle being alone? would you worship with the same confidence if you didn't know a single soul in the church service? would you stay commited to journalling and praying if there was no one there telling you that its important or what they learnt on a weekly basis? how different would your worship of God be if there were no other Christians around you? Is God enough for you?

which, don't get me wrong, i guess this is exactly WHY we need fellowship and the support and prayer of other Christians. but God's been asking me, how strong would you be, if you TRULY had to rely on me for everything? if i was all alone and i had nothing but my prayer journal and my bible, how long would i stay commited, stay praising him?

look at the life of Job. he had everything taken away that could possibly be taken. and yet he praised God. faith like that is amazing to me. Job is my hero because everything and everyone in his life was telling him that God had abandon him and that he should curse God, but somehow in the end, he was still blessing God's name. Job is my hero.

i don't have any answers to all these questions because God has blessed me hugely with wisdom, comfort, prayer support from the people around me. i am so thankful for all of you. i love you guys with everything that i have. but i'm just wondering, if i didn't have you guys to turn to, to give my troubles to, Is God enough for me?

in this storm

heyy guys... so, i was just blaring music through my house when this song came up, and yes, it is by casting crowns. so anyways, i was really listening to the lyrics and it was just crazy how this song kinda summs up soo many things that i have been pondering. it just reminds me how God is always, always there, even when we feel we can't feel or hear him. so yeah, here are the lyrics... and yes, i do like posting songs like this, lol you'll prolly see this more often than not... enjoy girlies, love you♥

I was sure by now
That You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say "Amen", and it's still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

I'll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I've cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry
You raised me up again
My strength is almost gone
How can I carry on
If I can't find You

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God who gives
And takes away

I'll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I've cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The Maker of Heaven and Earth

devotionals

i encourage ya'll to subscribe to this devotional thinger. its not really deep or anything, but it really encouraging to end or start your day with a small story of what God's doing in someone's life and just to learn something small. i really like the stories they've had so far, so if anyone's interested go to: www.tddm.org. in the yellow at the top, just type in your email address and subscribe. its really worth it.

yay, whoopie for me!!

*singsong voice* i'm gonna be a bridesmaid! i'm gonna be a bridesmaid.
i'm soooo excited. i haven't even been to a wedding that i can remember and now i'm gonna be a bridesmaid!! I AM SO EXCITED!!
have you noticed how much fun happy dances are. ever since mexico, i keep on happy dancing. i got so much to be happy for!!
my favoritist cousin in the entire world who i have always wanted to be like is getting married and she chose me to be one of her 3 bridesmaids. i lover her more than like anyone in the entire world. (well, maybe not, but i definately lover her lots and respect her soooo much!) yay, i get to be all pretty and walk down the aisle with this boy my age (who's apparently a christian and into sports- but lets not get ahead of ourselves)
I'm gonna be a bridesmaid. i'm gonna be a bridesmaid. i'm soooo excited!

Fellings....

hey girls how's it going? I LOVE YOOU!!! ok so he's what God has been showing me this week. It's been really hard for me to get over Sam. So one day i started reading the scripty thing from that lady in church at mexico and i came across the line... you need to stop living by feeling and start living by faith ( i think that's what it was) but anyways God just told me that it was the same for me and guys and i was like "say what?" and so i started praying and God asked me if i trusted him( jsut like erin) and i was like yea. so i asked God to show me what he ment and the next day i was like ok i do like sam but that doesn't matter becasue i want what God wants for me and just like that 'snap' those feelings went away. So i just want to remind you guys not to live by feeling....even though i totally love you guys!!!

Pride

well, Leanne, i totally agree with that whole accountability thing and writing about what God's been putting on our hearts.
Something that i've been constantly struggling with for the past couple weeks is pride. and i guess a lot of this pride has been coming mainly from leaning on myself for answers and somehow thinking i'm smart enough to get through something without looking to him to see if its what he wants or giving glory to him. and then after all is said and done, usually i find that i'm being a totally hypocrite, or else i'm embarassing myself or else i'm on my knees looking for forgiveness from Him and from others.
like, a couple weeks ago i was walking through the field and it's just this wide open flat space by our school and God's like, "Erin, close your eyes." i'm like, "What?! your kidding me right?" he's like, "do you trust me?- close your eyes" anyway, i close my eyes and i'm walking through the field and i go for about a full minute with my eyes close and finally when i open them and i am so far off the path its kinda embarassing and i'm pretty sure that anyone behind me probably thinks i'm drunk or stupid. and i get mad at god for making me feel stupid and he tells me, "Erin, that's where i wanted you. don't you understand that? it's not about where you feel like being and how you feel when you are there. it's about following me and trusting that i will put you where I want you. and sometimes, your idea is going to be different from mine and sometimes, my way might feel embarassing to you. but you're doing it for me. and i am being honored when you make yourself look small timen and when you give up your pride.
i really want to give up my pride and i know it's a daily thing and not something thats just going to go away. i guess mostly i need to talk less and listen more. i need to actually think about what i'm going to say and ask if it will honor God. i need to serve without pride. its so hard to try and forget about what people think.
"The Lord detests all the proud of heart.
Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished."
Proverbs 16:5
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight"
Proverb 3:5-6

Father, I need your forgiveness for my pride. it's totally detestible to you. give me grace and help me learn to listen and give up this image of myself. i need to learn to trust that whatever you hold in store for my future is better than if i could write my own lifestory. Forgive me father for thinking that somehow my ideas are better than yours. Help others to forgive me too as i learn to deal with this pride. i pray that whatever comes from my mouth would be only good, and only uplifting to those around me. i want to live a life that praises you with what i say and even more importantly, what i don't say. give me disgretion and a heart that only responds to what you say and not what the world around me tells me.
I need to be still and quiet before you. here and now, i devote my mouth to you and i ask you to convict me in ANY unwholesome talk that comes from my mouth. have patience with me God and please forgive me for this stupid pride. make me fall flat on my face over and over again until i finally realize that i have to look up to you before i put my next foot on the ground. I love you God. Amen

Hope you guys can all forgive me

AHH! guys, i am sooo sorry! please forgive me! everyone involved in the "four amigas" and the support4ever blog, i'm sorry. i got the wrong impression and i made it into something bigger than it was.
i guess i got the wrong impression about the whole four amigos. i was talking to someone about it and i guess i wasn't listening as good as i should have. i thought that they were being more serious than they were and that the other blog was somehow hurting their feelings. i guess they were just joking and i'm soo terribly sorry. please disregard the post on the "support4ever" blog.
please forgive me guys. i guess i wasnt listening. i'm going to forget the whole thing happened and i guess i'm asking you to forget about it too.
SOOO SORRY!!!

erika...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ERIKA!!!!

Thursday

This thursday it's at Tim Hortons on 51st at 7
can't wait and good luck on your finals

Sponsership

hey girls me again, i was just reading some of the blogs and i came across on that was talking about sponsering a child from mexico and god has really laid that on my heart. i've decide to sponser Victoria and was wondering if anyone else wanted to sponser her with me if you do let me know i still haven't sent the letter in yet

all my love
sammie

hey girls! i finally found out how to use this blog thingy!! How have you all been?? good i hope! i haven't had time to read many of your post yet but i will!!! i love you all!!
Blonde(y)
does that make sense??

Bloggy

Hey guys,
I just started a blog and it's sucky right now but it'll get there so here it is if you want to check it out... how do you do a cbox?
www.anordinarylifemeanttobeextraordinary.blogspot.com
Enjoy!!!

unification of one body

"Let not the sun go down upon your wrath." Ephesians 4:26.
"Confess your faults one to another." James 5:16.
"Forgetting those things which are behind." Philippians 3:13.
"Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." Ephesians 4:32
we are one body. moving with one purpose and Christ as the head. remember that. and remember what trent said at the start of the week about if you have a problem with your neighbour, don't let the sun go down without confronting them. we need to do this to stay unified.

Gossip

What is Gossip?

well my handy dictionary said gossip is...
A person who habitually spreads intimate or private rumors or facts.

now lets break that down even more habitually means... according to routine or established practice or according to habit or custom. and intamite or private means...( i know your not stupid but yeah.) Very personal. so basically so far we've got gossip = routine spreading of personal things fact or fiction. So yeah know that I understand that where does that leave me. Where is the line? I have heard that statement so many times. so where is the line according to God and his views on gossip...Is it like that saying that goes something like only do what you'd be comfortable doing if your dad was watching. IS that the same with God only say what your saying if you'd say it to God. I know there are some verses out there like... 23 You say, “I am allowed to do anything”but not everything is good for you. You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is beneficial.1 corinthians 10:23 and the one that says don't make another believer stumble because of your actions. So basically don't say anything if it's going to bring someone down. THat is so difficult. THis is one of my biggest struggles with the bible. because it is not black and white but don't get me wrong I also love it because then I have to search and spend time with God. I'm so used to just having things come naturally to me. I'm not trying to brag but I know that my life is not difficult even though I complain and there are people living in the streets or dealing with difficult family situations. so... How do you draw that line? so basically I'm back where I started and I don't know. is this line a personal thing or is this line set between God and I. Why is there gray area?I know I'm not the only one dealing with this and I hope there is someone out there with more wisdom on this topic. I'm nt even sure why I'm writing this...

Random stuff

Well, i got to school today at 8:25 as usual and i totally forgot that i didn't have first period. I know i'm a dingus.So here i am in the library at school, bored out of my mind. So i'm writing a whole bunch of random stuff cause i feel like it. My first final is tomorrow.Ahhh! i'm scared. Actually, not really. I'm doing good in math, it's chemistry and physics i'm worried about. Anyway, 8 hours in the library everyday should fix that problem.Lalalalalala i'm so bored and i don't know what to write anymore.Hmmm.Music, i like music. Music would be nice right now but i don't have music so i can't listen to musis which sucks cause i love music. I CAN'T WAIT FOR SUMMER HOLIDAYS TO START IN LIKE 8 DAYS!i love summer so much.Can't wait to go to the lake leanne! Oh yeah for all you amazing girls, if it all works out, and i think i told some of you, i am planning to invite all the mexico girls out to my family's cabin in september as sort of a retreat thingy(would cost money like the youth retreat). Not for sure and if it doesn't happen this year it will happen next year.so yeah it should be fun.OH my goodness! You know what i just thought about? I'm graduating next year! that's a scary thought. I don't even know what i'm doing after high school. Oh well i'll worry about that later.Sorry for writing such a stupid long blog.Well, maybe it's not that long. I can't tell.Guess what else i thought of?
THE GAME! Hahahahaha

Big Praise Item!

I made S.R.C.! I'm quite excited...so excited, in fact, that these two sentences get their own post!

... (too lazy to think up a title)

Rach, i totally agree, since i got home, it feels like i'm just not putting effort in because it seems pointless. i was talking a little to trent and graham about this and they said that we need to honor God in everything we do. that's one of the only things that has kept me doing anything in school lately. I have faith that God will help you pass physics. I will be praying for everyone.

Hey erika, i was wondering if you could do that list of other blogs we read because so many people have their own blogsite too. this is mine by the way:
http://www.rinner-thatrac8ballgurl.blogspot.com/

Prayer Request

Hey everyone,

As everyone knows, school is almost over for the year(Yahoo!). I know we could all use some prayer for our finals, some more than others (cough cough). Since coming home from Mexico, my mark in Physics 20 has dropped 11% and now if i don't pass the final i will fail the class. Guys, I really really don't want to fail physics. I have already started to study hard core for my exam but i know that i need God to help me out on this one. If you could all pray for me i would be very grateful. I love you all.

Thursday Meeting

Hey girls,

So what are we doing this thursday? When and where? Can someone send out an email?

Child Sponsorship

i'm not sure if anyone else has already gotten in contact with FFHM and if they have sorry. I decided to email and ask. i'm haven't really got a whole bunch finalized but i was thinking if we are planning on a full sponsorship, we should try to have a meeting on how we want to do this. this is the first email i got from FFHM. I can take the responsibility of taking all the money from each member involved and sending it together or we can all sponor seperate. anyway, i need feedback and anyone wanting to be involved, we should have a meeting.


Dear Erin,
You can sponsor a little girl at the Baja mission if you choose. Please tell us the age range you would like the
child to be and if you have a specific child, let me know and we will see if she is open to new sponsors. Usually sponsors
donate $25 or $50/ month for co-sponsorship, but you can give up to $200/month for a full sponsorship.

You can contact me at cindi@ffhm.org with any questions you have about sponsorship.

Regards,
Cindi Fink

comments to big for the comment box on "Hearing from God"

oh my goodness. I am soo glad you wrote all that stuff because i've been having the same thoughts that you wrote about in my head, but i didn't know how to express them. Erika, you are such an amazing woman of wisdom through God.

Just to echo, God is not a feeling. feeling is fleeting. I remember two summers ago when i went to the quest with you- Katelynn, Grace, and Steph. the year before that was one of my first spiritual highs and i was totally ready for it again. Anyway, that week i felt absolutely nothing from Him. I was so frusterated that i didn't feel anything i talked to ally- (remember ally?) and then she, the speaker Jason and i all talked and that was one of the first times that i got told that faith is not based on feeling. I didn't quite understand that and i was still a little miffed at the fact that God seemed to be ignoring me.

Last year I was ready again for the spiritual high and although i did get some, it wasn't as earthshattering as i somehow thought God should provide for me. Now i realize that i wasn't being patient for Him. He's the one with the perfect will. He (i'm really sorry for using this) wears the pants in our relationship (LOL- sorry, okay focus erin...) When he comes to you, it is the most beautiful thing you will ever taste, see, hear, experience. But he's the one in control. He is the one with the perfect will. I had to give up on somehow thinking that he should listen to me even though i was calling out. He's always testing us. and he will never test us farther than we can go.

What i got to experience down in Mexico was nothing short of the most beautiful thing i've ever known. (i say this NOT to rub it in your face at all). I know that i keep on telling about how i got to see and feel joy firsthand. But i guess i haven't told why this joy came. in the depths of my spiritual desert, when i felt like i would never get out if i didn't get out soon, that's when something even bigger than finding joy happened. The sermon on manna gave me something more solid than i've ever felt before. That sermon was when i realized that he WILL never leave me. I'd heard it before. I'd "known" it. But i never quite "knew" it. He said through someone else, I will never leave you. and for the first time, i TRULY believed it. you need to live based on faith and not feeling. the Bible is fact. live with faith that is dependant on fact. He showed me that he loves me. even though it wasn't necessarily Him speaking, when Carrie gave that sermon, it was like God had ordained that moment from before i was born just for me and Him. I wish more than anything i could express this. I wish more than anything one of you had gotten to get this gift because it's SOOO AMAZINGLY BEAUTIFUL. it's not something i can tell you that you will just understand. I pray that God will show you. He's not really talking to me right now and i have every reason to think that maybe he's not there except that i know now that nothing could make me think that after what he did. i want to express this so bad, but it's not something i can express.

I also realized on the thursday or friday after church in mexico that it didn't have to be me. i don't know why he chose to give me this gift. Goodness knows i don't deserve it. But i need everyone who stood that day at church to know i would gladly give this gift to anyone if i could. It's too beautiful and i want to share it. But i also know his will is perfect. and you will get gifts from Him that i will want more than anything.

Patience is a pain. But it is written that love is patient and if you love God, be patient. He is always with you. more than anything you need to know that. He is with you. and when the time is right He will come to shower you with blessings. Keep thirsting after Him. Keep collecting your manna daily. your pain will turn to blessings.

Another thing that i want to echo that Erika said. dont' make time in your day to just sit in his glory and don't look for something big. be content in the things he brings. I went early to help set up on friday with Jeff and mylandra down to the forestry farm and they have a fishing pond out there. i sat on a rock and just listened to the pond and watched the beauty of the pond and that was a blessing. look for little things.

He gives and takes away.

He gives and takes away.

My heart will choose to say,

Lord blessed be your name.

i will pray for you who are still feeling lonely.

Hearing from God

So, a lot of you have been posting things about not really experiencing God here...for yourselves, in your normal lives...but I want to challenge you in saying that there is no need for this to happen! It's true that God will take you through spouts of spiritual dryness, to show you that you absolutely need Him, but that doesn't mean we can't hear from Him, even through those times! I want to ask you all a couple of questions:

1. Do you know who you are in Christ?
For those of you who were in the service today, I guess this is kind of like when Pastor Chet said that we need to come to the realization that we cannot be completed by any other person (not even through marriage)...only by God. This is just my personal belief, but I think that before you start dating, you need to establish yourself as a woman of God. Otherwise, it becomes incredibly easy to compromise yourself and settle for "completion" through the world.

2. Are you always waiting for some big flashy sign from God?
Being natural (carnal), we want to hear or see or touch the Holy Spirit naturally. We want a natural sign! And sometimes God does send us natural signs...but the Holy Spirit does not operate naturally, but supernaturally and spiritually! What does this mean? We need to be in tune to God's voice spiritually! And how do we start to hear God's voice? It all starts in His Word! The more you know of the Word, the harder you will be to deceive. The harder you are to deceive, the harder it will be for Satan to get you off track, and when you are on track, fighting the good fight of faith, then you will live victoriously. God does not only want to help us in what we have labelled "spiritual stuff". He wants to be a part of our lives on every level! He wants us to ask him to help us wake up, do our hair, get dressed, and drive to school. And I want to be a part of all of your lives on every level, too! (I threw this in here because I noticed that Katelynn posted a thing on her other shared blog and said that it was too random and pointless for the One Way blog. No way! We want to be involved in even the most pointless and random things, and so does God!) Anyway, it's like Mike said this morning: eternal life (or life to the full) doesn't start when you die: it starts now! I'm not sure if this means anything to anyone, but I felt like I should share this with you guys! I want to leave you with something that my mentor told me:

In order to hear God, we need to get into his Word! Why? Because...
from God's word comes faith
From faith comes hope
From hope comes joy
From joy comes strength
and from strength comes the VICTORY!

Amen and amen, again and again!
He takes over my scars and I put my life in His.

Oh, and just to follow suit to Grace and Katelynn, if you guys want to read my blog (which hasn't been updated in ages!), you can check it out at http://anotherdayapart.blogspot.com

if we are the body...

heyy hunnies!!! well its my first post... imagine that! yeah well anyways, im just bored, sitting here on the computer(obviosly). anyhooo... about that title... well its actually a song by casting crowns. its a really good song, here are the lyrics:

It's crowded in worship today

As she slips in

Trying to fade into the faces

The girls' teasing laughter is carrying farther than they know

Farther than they know

CHORUS

But if we are the Body

Why aren't His arms reaching

Why aren't His hands healing

Why aren't His words teaching

And if we are the Body

Why aren't His feet going

Why is His love not showing them there is a way

There is a way

A traveler is far away from home

He sheds his coat

And quietly sinks into the back row

The weight of their judgmental glances tells him that his chances

Are better out on the road

CHORUS

But if we are the Body

Why aren't His arms reaching

Why aren't His hands healing

Why aren't His words teaching

And if we are the Body

Why aren't His feet going

Why is His love not showing them there is a way

Jesus paid much too high a price

For us to pick and choose who should come

And we are the Body of Christ

Chorus (2x)

If we are the body

Why aren't His arms reaching

Why aren't His hands healing

Why aren't His words teaching

And if we are the body

Why aren't His feet going

Why is His love not showing them there is a way

Jesus is the way

yeah... so those are them... the lyrics just really made me think. ha, its just like what leanne was saying yesterday bout love... we really need to show that love to everyone around us. what a challenge. we need those arms to be reaching, those hands to be healing, and those words to be teaching. i think that we need to put this body to work.