One Way

guys, watch this:

2009-03-13T14:44:00.001-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ulxa9Oggls4

The next mission team from our youth group is heading out soon: on April 11. I truly believe that they need to be sent, by their christian brothers and sisters who have experienced the trip and know the power that God displayed on that trip. I think we need to be praying for this team, and we need to provide our support. When we went on the missions trip, Tony and Lynette made us some support bags and i think we should do the same. All of us know how important those encouragement letters were to us. we need to bless this next time and pray that God would work in their hearts the way he worked in ours. this is our opportunity to be leaders and to see God's work in missions from a different angle. Let's send out our workers into the field. what do y'all say?

a first for everything

2009-03-03T11:26:00.000-08:00

so, this is the first post of the new year, hey? well. lets take it with a BANG!
i have realized in the past few months, that i am FAR from perfect. I am flawed.
And I thank God so much for his opportunities for me to grow in him. I would like to pray for everyone when they are faced with the fact that they are not perfect and need improvement,
that they can face it and invite into their heart to grow into a more Godly woman.
I want to become what God wants me to become, i want to rise to the challenge of
being a Godly woman and Christ-follower. I want his will to be done in my life, even
if it hurts me, becasue I will heal, and I will grow.
Please everyone, pray for Godly growth to occur in your life.

2008-11-09T19:09:00.000-08:00

Hey guys...

My blog has moved to:

http://www.letoldviceselapse.blogspot.com

Check it out sometime, if you have the chance!

♥Erika

No Words...

2008-10-20T21:42:00.000-07:00

Hey guys...I'm writing tonight with a heavy heart. I need your prayers.

About a month ago, the 22 year old sister to one of my best friends contracted bacterial meningitis, and had to be sent to the hospital. The bacteria reacts different ways in different peoples bodies, in Noelle's, it totally shut down her lungs. She spent the last month on life support in a hospital in BC.

When Tasha's (my friend's) family found out what had happened, the flew out quickly to be with Noelle. The doctors told them it was very serious, but also gave them a lot of hope. Tasha's mom has been there with Noelle this entire time, and Tasha, her brother, and her dad have flown out multiple times for short periods.

This Saturday, my school soccer team was in a tournament, and during one of the breaks, some of the people in my class went and prayed for Noelle. Tasha told us that at this point, usually the person had begun to heal, or else the doctors would ask the family to consider taking their family member off life support. Neither was the case for Noelle, because she had already fought this far, and the doctors all had hope that she could eventually pull through. However, Tasha told us that the next morning she would be flying out to say goodbye, just in case.

Noelle passed away last night.

Please keep Tasha and her family in your prayers...as well as my class, and my team...a lot of people are hurting. It would be hugely appreciated!

We praise Him, because His compassions never fail. They are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness. But we hurt right now, deeply, for a friend and a sister. We will keep our eyes on You.

READ

2008-07-24T14:22:00.001-07:00

read my blog for an exciting story

hello hello

2008-06-25T10:00:00.000-07:00

hey girlies. man i havent posted in such a long time! haha this is exciting. i miss hanging out with all u guys! anyways, im so glad school is over! although i have next year to look forward to haha... yay.. grade 12. THATS SCARRRYYY!!! ahaha.. well over the summer im doing nothing but working #1 im going to england and i need money #2 i need a car. sooo working is my best option to achieve those goals haha. so if any of u guys wanna do something this summer give me a call fo text me. i will be bored. <3

School's over for me!

2008-06-19T10:48:00.001-07:00

I'M SO EXCITED! i just got home from writing my last ever high school final! Biology 30 is over. and the last time i will be at evan hardy is in half an hour to return my textbooks. its's kinda weird but a relief to be done with the stress of studying. i can't believe i'm graduating! it's kinda scary but exciting at the same time. i'm so happy to be done with that bio final. i almost cried when i handed in my exam cause i was so happy to be done (ok just kidding i didn't almost cry, but i could have if i really wanted to). Now i have 3 more days of work before an amazing week of graduation and hanging out at the lake with all my friends! (oh yea so if you've told me you can come i need $20 asap for food and gas). anyway i'm really happy and excited. anyway i have to work in like an hour so im gonna go eat and play pacman cause guess what...........I DON'T HAVE TO STUDY! aha ha ha. i'm such a dork, but i love you all.

Why am i so selfish?

2008-06-17T21:29:00.000-07:00

this past month has been the stress month of my life.
i realized how stupidly selfish i am this morning in reviewing how this past month has gone. especially this morning, God really brought it to my attention looking over the past few entries in my prayer journal.
it seems like almost everyone has been a rushed prayer right before heading off to finish a huge assignment or a rushed prayer right before heading off to school to write a final and the prayer is unfocused because i'm trying not to waste brain power or anything that doesn't involve trying to memorize how to do a certain math problem or the legal system of canada or what i'm going to say for a certain presentation.
All these prayers are filled with words like, "God, please let me do a good job." "Let my work honor you. " and looking back, can i honestly say that this prayer is honest? am i truly trying to honor him with honoring myself?
i understand that in everything we do we are to do it well, but i seem to be forgetting the second part of that verse, or at least, not applying it on a deep level. do it well, as though working for God and not for man.
how can i think of the way i've been putting so much time and effort into studying and schoolwork as worship of God when that's all my prayers consit of?
where is the prayer that for once i'm not thinking about myself and what God can do for me? where is the worship of simply deciding to spend time in the word simply because i love him and i just want to listen to him.
it's like, because my life is full of stress, the world suddenly revolves around my problems and i abuse the fact that God has unconditional love and grace for me.
Where's the humble attitude that he is God and he's willing to speak to me if i choose to put him above everything.
Father, i wish this life was easier. i wish it was easier to choose you once and be devoted to you for life. It's so hard to realize that every moment is a choice of worship. Every second i'm given is a new chance for me to choose to pick you above everything. i want to be obsessed in everything you are.
i wish i could block out the world. i wish i could be like one of the elders that Isaiah talks about, so seduced by your glory that i could do nothing but fall at your feet, knowing nothing but your spirit and your loveliness. Take me to the other side of heaven. Teach me what it means to be obsessed.
I want to give up this obsession of self. i want to give up this idea that i need to receive from you to know that i am loved. i'm so selfish. teach me what it means to be a servant father.
I love you.
I ask for your blessing, but only if you have searched my heart and you see it to be a humble request. i know i can never deserve what you give.
i love you.

watch and you will understand....

2008-06-15T20:10:00.000-07:00

http://youtube.com/watch?v=5H_wGgtEKl0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMvkOWeCwCE&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJjH6KQ3Fhk&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHR7Qd7ceNE&feature=related

2008-06-08T15:18:00.000-07:00

hey guys i need some prayer...youth worship is playing on the 22nd, and there are a couple songs that i can play for...there is practice today. and i am going. i haven't touched my violin in over a month. i'm scared, i really am. i don't know if i can handle this, i dont' know if i can do this!

Yes!

2008-06-02T18:28:00.000-07:00

Okay all i have to say is GREAT JOB LEANNE! people are posting now! everyone else who reads this better post if you love us. anyway,...i'm really super excited for going to the lake after grad. how about you guys? it's gonna be so much fun! i'm inviting quite a few people though so some people might have to sleep outside in a tent. we've got the trailer too...hehe...it's so old and dilapitated...it's quite funny really. the furniture is upholstered with this really old material and it's so...ugly...yeah. anyway i think i might be heading up there on the monday/tuesday before to get the cabin cleaned up and stuff cause guess what....i only have 2 finals! i have a whole week off before grad so...yeah. it should be a blast guys. when we're there y'all gotta try skinny dipping. hahaha.

For marla and katie

2008-05-29T15:04:00.000-07:00

Daddy, thank you for the blessing of friendship and for each and every person that comes into our lives and changes a piece of who we are. thank you for this blog and the authenticity and support we can find here as sisters.

"Bend down, O lord and hear my prayer,
answer me, for i need your help
protect me for i am devoted to you
save me for i serve and trust you
You are my God
Be merciful to me, O Lord
for i am calling on you constantly
Give me happiness, O Lord
For I give myself to you
O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive,
so full of unfailing love for all who ask you for help
Listen carefully to my prayer, O Lord,
Hear my urgent cry,
I will call out to you whenever i am in trouble
and you will answer me."
Psalm 86:1-7

God, i know that there are things in this world that scare us and things that bring us pain. Father, that right now, you would give comfort to Katie. Hold her in your embrace and tell her again that you have a plan for her life. You have promised her a future that is good and not evil with hope and not pain or fear. Father, i pray that you would bend down and listen to her prayer. i pray that you would give her happiness in knowing that you are near. I pray that you would give her courage to realize that you have given her a gift with the violin and you take great joy in listening to the music she makes. God i pray that the pain or sorrow or anxiety that she feels about Marla would leave her as she plays and she would play her violin in honor of the long hours that Marla had taught her and in honor of the God that gave her such a gift.

God, for Marla, we ask that you would be near her as well. God, you are a god of compassion and unfailing love and i pray that whether or not Marla knows you now, your presence would be made know to her as she goes through a time of undertainties and fears. Give her strength to fight adn joy through pain. Saviour- you can move the mountains- you are mighty to save, my God is mighty to save. God, I love that you have promised us hope and i love that one who is all-powerful and holds everything in his hand cares so deeply for each and every life. God, only you have the power to save.

I pray also for Katie, that her faith in you would be strengthened and she could grow deep in understanding of what it means to trust you adn love you even though she may not understand you. draw her deeper into trusting you with her whole heart and mind. i know you love her.

for leanne...

2008-05-27T14:53:00.000-07:00

alrighty so leanne has been bugging all of us to post but she sent me a message saying i MUST have something to write about and well i guess i do (kinda) so i guess i'll write.

so you all know that i take violin lessons, i've taken them since i was 4 years old. and for the last....three years? four years? i don't know exactly but anyways i've been taking lessons for a lady named marla and she's really good and i really like her. and we've actually kinda become friends i guess you could say...but well we have a really good time every week and yeah anyways. well about a month ago now (maybe a month and a half? i suck with time) she was diagnosed with breast cancer. she had surgery and is now going though chemo and so far it's been ok but it hit me really hard. when i found out i broke down and cried, i mean, i cried in front of my mom for goodness sakes, which is something i can't even remember the last time that happened. so i haven't even seen marla since like 2 weeks before i found out she was diagnosed, as my lessons were cancelled for the rest of the year. i don't even know if i'll have lessons next year. but it's really strange, how hard it hit me. i mean, i still cry about it. people will ask me how violin is going and i say fine and then i leave and compose myself or have a little cry party. it's a little odd. i never realized that something like that would hit me so hard. maybe i'm just extra emotional? but it hurts. i can't play violin. i have played twice since i found out; once because my mom made me practice and once for worship night for youth a couple weeks ago. and i cannot explain in words how hard it was for me to play. especially when i practiced my pieces. there are so many memories and so much of marla there, and i just can't do it. i can't play. which is odd, because really i love violin and i love to play and usually when i don't play for a couple days i miss it and my fingers itch to play. but i don't miss it. well i do, really, but i don't want to play. it hurts too much to play. and i don't know why.

so there you go, leanne and everyone else. that's part of my life right now.

2008-05-25T20:09:00.000-07:00

AHHHH!!! why wont anyonw pay attention to you bloggie?? i feel sorry for you. hey, guess what guys, its officially been a year since we went to mexico.

2008-05-10T12:34:00.000-07:00

i have decided that none of you guys care about the blog anymore.(tear) tut tut. i thaught that this blog could be a place where we could put out problems on eachother and need for prayer. i think that we should all take a look at our lives and re evaluate what has gone on since we came back from mexico.

Calling all willing warm-hearted servants!

2008-04-25T14:29:00.000-07:00

Hey girls! Wow haven't blogged in awhile. Anyway, i need to know if any of you girls are interested in helping me out with a huge fundraiser for an organization called Free The Children....eh? I know you all want to cause you're all very giving people and you LOVE to help others. So if you are at all interested (100% committed volunteers will be needed), talk to me at youth or church sometime in the next couple weeks and i'll explain in more detail what some of my ideas are. It's gonna be great!

casting crowns- here i go again

2008-04-24T20:19:00.001-07:00

i found a new song that i really am liking right now. the lyrics are pretty powerful.
i mean, if we all truly believe that we need a saviour, and we're going to heaven, and that God really loves everyone, shouldn't we want to share it?
anyhoo, this song really applies to my life.

Chorus:
So maybe this time
I'll speak the words of life
With Your fire in my eyes
But that old familiar fear
is tearin' at my words
What am I so afraid of?
'Cause here I go again
Talkin' 'bout the rain
And mullin' over things
that won't live past today
And as I dance around the truth
Time is not his friend
This might be my last chance
to tell him that You love Him

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mU59fKjbY3I

my play!

2008-04-15T19:54:00.000-07:00

hey guys i know i talked to some of you about this but just to remind you, i'm in one acts this week if you want to come watch.....haha wednesday thursday friday 7:30, there's three plays and it's $3. which is pretty cheap! so yeah if you want to come watch....then you should come lol

APRIL

2008-04-14T20:17:00.000-07:00

haha wow guys.. no posts in april yet. yay for gracee shes posting!! lol well how are u all?? im doing pretty awesome! and im just sittin in my room listning to music.. yay me..lol i love you all and cant wait to see u guys friday!!!!! yay for worship night!!! yay grace and paul!!!! lol u say yay too much.... xoxoxoxoxo

Love

2008-03-26T20:35:00.000-07:00

I am in peru

it is sweet, i fell in love many times, with jesus, with this land, with being a missionary, with a boy, with my friends

do do do from a friend in egypt....

2008-03-23T12:18:00.000-07:00

SO I was thinking today on the bus...
Why were there ancient egyptians in egypt and what was their purpose....????
well then I heard a conversation in front of me and It got me thinking....
Maybe there were ancient civiliztions in the world to provide tourisim to places in the world where there isn't really anything else spectacular(i mean that very Very loosly. but anyways I think the ancient egyptians were there provide a way of life to the people here... like the fact that most of their econmy is based on tourism without the pyramids and temples what do they have here??.....the disguting Nile....I bet Katelynn and Steph can atest to this since they are on a cruise onit now and it really is pretty gross...I love you guys lots and one more thing....

HAPPY EASTER!!!!!!!
(P.S the driving here is about 15 times worse than in mexico and the men are like millions of times worse here)

I'm sorry

2008-03-21T17:20:00.000-07:00

I can’t believe it.
It’s so amazing.
My mind is confused by its beauty.
How did you stand Jesus?
When the world did nothing.
When all hope was gone.
When your Father fully abandoned you.
When it was your turn to stand.
When you took on every sin, every heaviness, every pain, every sorrow, every evil, every injustice, every broken heart, every judgement passed, every tear shed, every knife plunged, every fear, every shout that caused one to be lost.
I think of myself and am ashamed of my weakeness.
You were human yet you took on every evil.
The one that gave you strength could no longer be with you
Because of the evil you took on.
You were alone.
I can’t imagine the pain and emptiness of such aloneness.
I’m sorry I wasn’t there to hold the cross for you.
I’m sorry that I was too caught up in being the voice in the crowd that mocked you.
Forgive you for mocking you still.
You stood alone
Your father could no longer give you strength
He could no longer be near you
Because of the evil you took on.
Because of the evil that I clothed you in.
I know my hands were there as the cloak was drapped around your shoulders.
I know that my finger was pricked in making a crown of injustice that would sit on your head. Did my heart know then that you were my king?
I am pained by whatever pain I caused you.
I’m sorry.
I know those words mean nothing.
But I’m speechless and my heart’s cry can find only the words:
I’m sorry.
You were human.
I think that I have been good.
Then the arrow pierces deep inside my heart.
The arrow that bellows of the fact that I am the worst of sinners.
I am no less guilty to the one who swung the hammer that plunged the nail in deeper. I know my hand was there also giving the arm that swung the hammer my strength. Pushing the nail deeper until pain was no longer- just numbness. Just an ache that my heart, the heart of your daughter, the one you love, chose to swing the hammer.
I’m sorry.
Why would you do it?
I will never possess the power to understand even a fraction of why all that pain was suffered for the one inflicting the pain.
Why would you do it?
I’m not even worth one scar.
Why would you do it?
Was my face in your mind?
Why would you do it?
My face is not worth a single whip.
I’m sorry, Jesus.
I'm sorry Precious one
I’m sorry for what they did to you.
I’m sorry for what I am doing to you.
I’m sorry.

I agree

2008-03-18T21:00:00.000-07:00

Okay, so, mylandra's in Egypt which is really cool- but i'm really jealous about...
my parent's got rid of the van and bought a new car and i didn't even know about it until i saw a strange car parked in our drive-way. trent has a really cool new bunnyhug- seriosuly, i hope he wears it on friday so you guys can see it- its tremendous! (good word)
i'm getting mad at my law class cause we always have debates that somehow lead to how christianity has brain-washed our culture and we all need to free ourselves from such an unliberal culture. grrr. seriously that smart guy was right about post-modernism being everywhere in our culture. the enemy was really smart in creating such a thought in our minds. grrr. anyhoo, it would really honor me if you guys could pray that i would remain strong in my faith and be willing to have courage and speak the truth in love. thanks- love you.

Oops!

2008-03-18T20:15:00.001-07:00

i just realized i made a typo. it's WRITE not RIGHT. Sorry.....it was bothering me. just so you know i'm not an idiot. i'm weird....but not an idiot.

Where has everybody gone?

2008-03-18T20:01:00.000-07:00

Okay so here's the thing that really bothers me. All of us girls from the mexico team used to be tight, we still are but we never hang out all together anymore and that SUCKS! i'm sorry but i miss you guys and i find it really sad that none of us (including myself) ever right on the blog anymore. i don't know what's goin on wit you guys, whats happening in your lives. well some of you i do...sort of....but before we used to right stuff on the blog about what exciting things were happening for us or what we needed prayer for. and we need to hang out ALL OF US! we NEED to be a team still, the mexico girls team. i mean seriously girls.... think about it.....WE NEED EACH OTHER and i wanna be great friends with all of you for a very long time. Relationships of any kind need to be given effort and they need to be nurtured. I don't want to run into you girls at church five years from now and not have anything to say to you because we never talk. so let's all make an effort to hang out more often and keep each other posted on....life. I'll go first.....well... i would...except i have nothing exciting what so ever going on in my pathetic little life. Umm....i'm buying a canoe and that makes me happy. Other than that i got nothin. So.....what's goin on with you girls? You should all write a little something this week or talk to me on friday at the pancake breakfast or...sometime this week...TALK TO ME! and all the other girls. I LOVE YOU GIRLS and i don't want us to drift apart. When you read this i challenge every single one of you to write something about your week...something good....something bad.....something sad....something dull...something lifechanging or profound. Come on i know you can do it. I dare ya!

Canoe Trip?

2008-03-13T12:11:00.000-07:00

Hey does anyone wanna go on a canoe trip with me this summer? I think we should plan a canoe trip. Why? Because it would be fun. Thats why. So who's in?

poor blog....

2008-02-29T10:49:00.001-08:00

poor, poor blog.
so saddened by all its friends leaving...
i'm so sorry my darling blog. i will make more of an effort to talk to you.

anyone

2008-02-26T14:06:00.000-08:00

does anyone feel the way i do? in the past week i have been thinking about life alot, and i have realized, i do not have a christian friend at my school, and im not that close to anyone that i hang out with at school. i miss you guys, but i cant transfer over to even hardy right in the middle of my last semester. this sucks.
but im going to be sponsoring a kid in rwanda and im scared, what if i dont have enough money, what if i want to quit my job. im scared.

will u be my valentine?

2008-02-14T19:07:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentines day everyone!!! i love you all...

on a not so serious note..

2008-02-05T17:48:00.000-08:00

hey guys. so from what i hear on facebook the plan this thursday is to meet at Tim Hortons on 8th street (oh wait which one.. the new one or old one?? i think we should go to the new one....) at 7:30..

An absolute

2008-01-31T13:29:00.000-08:00

There's been a question popping up inside my mind a lot. It bugs me because this summer I was introduced to a feeling of full faith. Without question. God spoke to me in a way that I couldn’t deny it. With that truth came a joy and a freedom that I will never be able to express in words. It was like what Jesus said in John 8:32, “And you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” This is why I encourage everyone to seek truth. Because when you find him, this person of truth, he does give you a freedom that is so amazingly beautiful.

Since the summer, the world has been changing my view. Which kind of sucks. The world is full of voices that claim to be truth. The world is full of voices that claim that they will give you this freedom and this joy that I know that only the father can grant. Its hard for Christians, especially teenagers in high school to go through these years and not be deceived by the lies that are always upon us. Its hard for us to maintain an integrity that we know our father would be proud of. Its hard to be in this world and not of it. Our battle is not one that will end while we are on this side of heaven. Even Paul, the one that wrote over half of the New Testament had shown his struggles, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward that goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:12-14.

I'd rather go back to full faith without question. But I know this question was put in my mind, so I would be able to have an answer for my faith for anyone who asks. I know this is a chance for me to grow and a chance to be challenged in a way that will help me be able to protect my heart and mind from the evil one.

The question that has been so persistently in my mind:
Is there such thing as absolute truth?

If you think about it, we all come from different worlds. We all come from different mindsets about this world and how it operates. So, according to this idea, it would seem that everyone is entitled to their own standard, and through that, everyone is entitled to his or her own truth.

Within my group of Christian friends, we all have different opinions on what a life of integrity looks like. We all have different standards and different ideas about the life that God wanted us to lead. We sometimes define this as discipline. A friend of mine for example, feels that yoga isn't right for Christians to partake in. This was something I had never had a problem with and I had actually partaken in yoga before. Granted, of course, I did not have the knowledge of the fact that each yoga pose was a different stance for worshiping a Hindu God. But now that I do know that, I have to ask the question, is that going to change my view of it? I had never believed while I was doing it, that I was a worshiping a Hindu God. But now that I have that knowledge, I cannot simply take it so easily for granted. It would seem, in this case that truth has changed because of new found knowledge.

But, is that possible? Truth is truth- is it not? Truth doesn't change does it? My change in knowledge about yoga seemed to change the truth I believed about yoga. This is where we take a look at the frailty of lies.
Proverbs 12:19: "Truthful words stand the test of time, but lies are soon exposed."

Where truth is constant, lies change frequently.

First of all, lies are all around us. Take a piece of untrue gossip for example. We make it to be true in our mind until someone can prove that it is a lie. Which each new person that receives the piece of gossip comes a new perspective and the story becomes more and more distorted. Gossip changes frequently. It you were to hear a story that is absolute truth however, how often will it change? Never- because truth transcends perspective. The only part of truth that will distort it is our knowledge or perspective of what the truth looks like. And, in that sense, it can no longer be called truth because truth cannot change.

The second point I want to make is that this seems to jive with everything that God says about his personality. He calls Himself a rock, unchangeable, faithful. Throughout his word, we see the truth of these claims. He is constant and does not change. Paul says in Titus 1:2: “…-A faith and knowledge resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time…”

Jesus said himself, "I am the way, THE TRUTH, and the life..." he explicitly says that he is truth. Because I believe that whatever God says is truth, if Jesus says he is truth and those words came from his father, who speaks truth, it must be absolute truth. What does that mean though? How does Jesus being truth affect us?

If Jesus is truth, than that must imply that whatever he says must be truth as well. That affects our whole perception of who Jesus is and who God is. Jesus, made a ton of claims while he was on earth, and in John especially, we see that a high percentage of them are claims about his father- claims about God. In chapter 5 verse 31-36, Jesus says, “If I testify about myself, my testimony in not valid. There is another who testifies in my favor and I know that his testimony about me is valid… I have testimony weightier than that of John. For the work that the Father had given me to finish, and which I am doing testifies that the Father has sent me.”

If you believe in the truth of Jesus, than you have no choice but to believe in the truth of God. Each entity proves the other. If you believe in the truth of God than you must believe that the bible is true and if you believe in the truth of the bible, than you must believe that there is a God who desires to be with us, to see life change in us, who wants us to go out and make disciples of many nations.

But what about for those who don't believe in this truth that I believe? Does the fact that we are all humans with the ability to form opinions fight against the idea of absolute truth? God's word also says that he is the one who granted us freedom of thought, opinion and action. He is the one who said to his children, yes I have given you the truth to believe in, but it’s your choice to believe. It’s your choice to acknowledge that I am God, that I am real, that I am absolute truth.

Can I make an argument within this quest for truth that points to the God that I believe in? Can I say in a totally unbiased mindset that everyone on earth should believe the God that I believe because I believe he is truth? As much as I would love it for everyone to believe the truth I believe, that doesn’t make it truth until they find it for themselves. Going back to my yoga example, truth wasn’t truth to me until I saw or heard or experienced it for my own eyes.

What I can conclude from this that there is an absolute truth. There is a truth that cannot be changed by perspective. God is truth. Jesus is truth. The bible is truth.

Saying that, I also must conclude that we live in a world where truth is hard to find. It will ever be distorted by perspective. Distorted by small changes that turn it into lies. The question I now must take into account is Am I going to be a representative of God- a representative of truth, to a world that is full of lies? Am I going to encourage truth seekers? Am I going to take this freedom that I’ve found through the discovery of truth and share it?

Are you?

bored.bored.bored.

2008-01-29T08:40:00.000-08:00

at school. bored. harrison and sam are talking to me. im not even listening to them. haha. i have biology next. not fun. i dunno why im typing like this. probably cause im bored. so whos all coming to robyns? im hungry.

RETREAT

2008-01-24T18:58:00.000-08:00

OKAY STAND UP.
RIGHT NOW.
I MEAN IT. I'M WATCHING YOU.
YOU BETTER BE STANDING.
IF YOUR STILL SITTING I'M GONNA BE MAD.
OKAY, NOW START JUMPING.
YES, I SAID JUMPING- AS IN UP AND DOWN.
OKAY, NOW THAT YOU ARE JUMPING- AND YOU HAD BETTER BE JUMPING, FLAIL YOUR ARMS.
OKAY, NOW THAT YOU ARE FLAILING AND JUMPING- AND YOU HAD BETTER BE, GIVE OUT A LITTLE SCREAM AND GO ALL OUT HAPPY DANCING
HAPPY DANCE!!!! HAPPY DANCE!!!! THE RETREAT IS TOMORROW!!!!! HAPPY DANCE!!!!

please prayy

2008-01-19T09:51:00.001-08:00

so i forgot to pray about this in my small group last night. but most of u know Colton Garbe who used to come to our youth group, anyways, his grandma passed away recently and his moms taking it pretty hard. just pray that God would be with them right now and that they would be at peace. thanks girlies... oh and i have news... read my blog..hahah or the chat box thinger in the corner..haha love u all!!!

The One Who Never Leaves

2008-01-15T08:21:00.000-08:00

God you are sooo amazing! I look back at all the answered prayers you have made for us, for all the love you lay on us. For the comfort for the learning for the safty for the peace you give us. Lord right now Erin is going through a tough time. You know what is happening and what its about lord. You know what she has to give up to you. And I ask you for the courage and streanth she needs to do this. I ask you to remind her of her comitements to you. To remind her of your unfailling love and your undieing comfort. God just let her be at peace with you this week let her give up what you have told her to and let her understand why she had to give it up. Let her see your path for her life not her own. And God that is a constant struggle and sooo hard sometimes but let her realize how much better her life will be when she finally surrenders to you lord. Show her that every single day of her life has a purpose and that you have layed it out infront of her lord. Be the center be the core be the everything of her.
Your love is amazing
steady and unchangeing
Your love is a mountian firm beneath my feet
your love is a mystry
how you gently lift me
when i am surrounded your love carries me
Halleluia
Halleluea
Halleluia
your love makes me sing!!
Amen

This is for all of you girlis not just erin! i love you all!
God Bless
xoxox
sammie

would appreciate a little prayer

2008-01-11T11:48:00.000-08:00

Hey sammie. First of all, you are awesome and your heart for encouragement always shines through.
i'm responding to your post a while ago, because i've been struggling- not tons- but still struggling, espicially with jealousy. I can feel a constant battle going on inside of me- one part trying to convince me to conform to the world and one side telling me to fight with everything in me for my integrity. And i'm trying- but the thoughts keep coming. If all you girlies could pray that my actions would portray a heart of integrity and I could learn to trust God to fight for me, i would really appreciate it.
LOVE YOU ALL!!

THIS THURSDAY

2008-01-08T19:44:00.000-08:00

at my house! 126 mulcaster cres! call if you need more directions! let me know if you're coming! bring food! 7:30! love!

2008-01-04T07:44:00.000-08:00

Hey girls! how are you all doing? i feel like i haven't REALLY talked to all of you in FOREVER!! how are you for real. Do you need prayer for anything? Are you really struggling with something right now that has been like a cloud over your head that wont go away? or bricks on your back that keep pilling up and up? I hope that we can be really .. well real with each other. I LOVE you all soo much! ok well i'll see you all soon k! love xoxoxox

sammy

2007-12-24T08:16:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS MY GIRLIES!!!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2007-12-22T16:53:00.000-08:00

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

2007-12-19T13:45:00.000-08:00

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!

2007-12-13T15:28:00.000-08:00

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...

2007-12-10T19:02:00.000-08:00

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

2007-12-10T16:13:00.000-08:00

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

2007-12-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

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

hi!!!waves

2007-12-07T15:15:00.000-08:00

yo ma homegirls! hows yall? im excited for snowboarding, anyone else? well, every one eat, and be merry!

LOVER YA ALL

2007-11-28T11:48:00.000-08:00

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

2007-11-26T06:40:00.000-08:00

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

BSE

2007-11-21T21:24:00.000-08:00

The importance of Brest Self-Examination (BSE)
hey girlies, im really hoping that no one else can read this blog, because i am talking about breasts. I cant stress enough about how important it is to do Breast self examinations every month, because last thursday, i found a lump in my breast. now dont freak out. I got it checkecd out by the doctor and its just a cyst( a fluid filled thinger that is because of a blocked duct or something) thankfully, its totally harmless, the only thing is that it might cause me pain, and i really cant do anything about it. its aabout as harmful as a headache. but im only 17,what if it wasnt a cyst? and i didnt catch the lump? and what if it was cancer? This is why im telling you guys to do breast self-exams. i know some people are really sqeemish when it comes to breasts, even touching your own, *cough*sam*cough* but really encourage you guys to check it out and get to know your own breasts. because now that i have had a cyst, i cant tell wether there are others forming, becuase i dont know what my breasts usually feel like. Yeah, i didnt want to freak you guys out, and i dont want you guys freaking out about it, because like i said, its just about as harmless as a headache. but seriously, BSE's are REALLY REALLY IMPORTANT!

Love you guys!, Leanna

jeez guys... somebody else needs to post

2007-11-21T11:20:00.000-08:00

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

2007-11-15T17:35:00.000-08:00

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!!!

2007-11-09T10:39:00.000-08:00

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

THURSDAY NIGHT exclaimation point

2007-11-07T09:01:00.000-08:00

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

2007-11-06T13:39:00.001-08:00

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

2007-11-01T21:27:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-10-29T17:36:00.002-07:00

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!

2007-10-29T17:36:00.001-07:00

YOU HAVE GOT TO READ THIS!!

2007-10-27T20:48:00.000-07:00

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

2007-10-22T14:41:00.000-07:00

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....

2007-10-19T22:59:00.000-07:00

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!!

2007-10-17T09:53:00.000-07:00

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!!!!

2007-10-15T11:14:00.000-07:00

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

...

2007-10-09T21:13:00.001-07:00

i miss the summer

hey

2007-10-08T21:59:00.000-07:00

hey. im going for a job interview tomorrow and i would ask for prayer that i would be able to keep my head(which is difficult for me). yeah, i kind of really need this job so i can get to peru and yeah. i really want it. love you all.

post 101!!!!!

2007-10-07T12:42:00.000-07:00

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

POST 100!!!!

2007-10-02T19:08:00.000-07:00

haha! we have officially posted 100 times! I love you girls and i think we should go out, and then you should be my girlfriends! haha! well, we should find a day when we can all get together, which should prove difficult, because I am going to try and get a job tomorrow. Pray for me! please! and then i will be so busy that you will have to book me in advance. at least two weeks. or you could just come to yoga with me and rachel! yay!ttyl. love you girls!

hey girls

2007-10-02T12:01:00.000-07:00

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

2007-09-26T12:22:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-09-19T18:18:00.001-07:00

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..

2007-09-14T17:18:00.000-07:00

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..

2007-09-06T14:25:00.000-07:00

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

2007-09-05T10:26:00.001-07:00

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:)

2007-09-03T14:21:00.000-07:00

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

2007-08-30T20:23:00.001-07:00

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

What to do.....

2007-08-29T21:29:00.000-07:00

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

2007-08-29T15:12:00.000-07:00

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

2007-08-28T20:28:00.000-07:00

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?

2007-08-22T10:20:00.001-07:00

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!!

2007-08-21T11:14:00.000-07:00

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.

2007-08-19T23:50:00.000-07:00

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...

bring him home

2007-08-17T20:22:00.000-07:00

Hey you guys, you might know corwin theissen, the leader of D4, hes a really rad guy. but we need to spread this, he is trying to adopt a boy named wilbur from nicuragua and he needs lots and lots of prayer. you guys can visit the blog:

http://www.bringwilburhome.blogspot.com/

pray pray pray. thanks.

court date #2

2007-08-14T07:58:00.000-07:00

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...

2007-08-13T09:46:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-08-08T14:25:00.000-07:00

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!!!!!

2007-08-06T21:48:00.000-07:00

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!

2007-08-06T12:24:00.000-07:00

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:(

2007-08-05T22:17:00.000-07:00

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.

2007-08-05T21:35:00.000-07:00

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

2007-08-04T16:36:00.000-07:00

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

2007-08-01T16:11:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-29T09:38:00.000-07:00

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?

2007-07-27T20:34:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-26T20:33:00.000-07:00

This is totally off topic,

but remember the good ol' days?

wow, lol

which one was your favorite

Please Pray II

2007-07-26T15:20:00.000-07:00

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...

2007-07-23T14:53:00.000-07:00

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

2007-07-20T23:02:00.000-07:00

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

Jello

2007-07-20T21:28:00.001-07:00

hi, i just wanted to ask for prayer on the same subject as gracie, I am being called to go on another mission trip to peru, and next year is going to be tough. because i will need to hold a job for paying for it and then i will need to decide what im doing after high school and then i need to keep my grades up and attend youth and mission meetings and i also want to help out with D4 at ebenezer. i also want to take art classes. above all, i need to stay strong in my faith for God. this next year will be extreemly difficult. please pray.

hello world

2007-07-20T09:23:00.000-07:00

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??!!??

2007-07-18T23:27:00.000-07:00

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.

2007-07-17T10:49:00.001-07:00

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.