faith

Faith that bears fruit is faith that is born from experience with a living God. It is faith that says, "I don't know where the next check is coming from. All I know is that God told me to do this and trust Him for the next step." That is faith that moves mountains and moves God's heart. God rarely allows His servant to see beyond the next faith step. However, those who are willing to take the first step and leave the outcome to Him see His works. (prime time with God)

poker

since when did poker become a sport? in searching the tv listings looking for soccer games they list soccer, baseball, golf, tennis, car racing, hockey, football, basketball. i can understand these but to say that poker is a sport. c'mon. sports are defined as an activity involving physical exertion. mind you i have seen guys break a sweat when they've gambled away their christmas paycheques playing poker and they have nothing left to take home to their wives and children.

it seems when there was a hockey strike on last year (unbeknownst to me) that poker took over the airwaves. it's bad enough that so many people squander their earnings on lottery tickets, hoping for that big win. now gambling is dubbed a sport??? i was having fun playing fish with my grandchildren when they wanted to change the game - texas hold'em. they had to change the rules for me because i didn't have a clue what a blind was, big or little.

i know someone who has squandered away her life's earnings playing bingo, lottery tickets, pull tabs. always hoping for that big win. each week playing more and more thinking this time she's gonna have a winner. over her lifetime we figure it may have amounted to in excess of $250,000.

now i see people who used to watch hockey games playing poker with higher and higher stakes. it's scary to think there is another popular, powerful addiction out there sucking the life blood out of people.

Jesus Christ superstar

went to see a wonderful play tonight. the dancers were awesome! course the fact that my 14 year old granddaughter, who in stage makeup looked a lot older, was one of the dancers had nothing to do with it. this is her first year taking dance and she was asked to perform along with other girls who have been taking dance anywhere from 5 to 13 years. and she was awesome!

soccer commentating

just watched the uefa semi-final between barcelona and milan. barcelona is my favourite team outside of costa rica so it was great to see them win. the commentating though was so boring, so unemotional. the commentating in costa rica was so exciting, so emotional. even if the game was a bit slow they could make it come alive just by their passionate commentary. sure miss it.

guatemala

going to guatemala was awesome. it's always such a blessing to be able to do for or give to others. to be physically active was great but the best part was the people. they have nothing but they are always so happy, warm and friendly. their basic needs of clean water, food, clothing and education are what we take for granted here. we brought a soccer ball and watching the boys play soccer i felt i had come home again. except they were playing in a dusty gravel pit of a soccer field.

classmates

after my little trip down memory lane this weekend i got out my old annual and had a good laugh reading all the quotes people had written in my book. and checking out the hairstyles. yuck! the school website lists some of the alumni. i was surprised to see that one classmate had become an ordained rabbi. definitely not something i imagined he would have aspired to. i wonder how many people actually achieved their goals. mine was just getting through life. my life is not how i imagined it but i guess i can deem it successful. i am getting through it. :o)

vancouver

went to vancouver this weekend. i was born and raised there and have maintained that you couldn't pay me to live there again. lived in the west end for 1 1/2 years when i was 14 / 15. wow has downtown & the west end ever changed. it was beautiful, i couldn't believe it. the trees are huge. incredible development. i wouldn't want to raise a family down there but i've talked to a few singles who love it. it brought back good memories but it was good to come back to the valley. less traffic, no crowds, wide open spaces.

desire

reading journey of desire. as the author talked about peoples desire for this or that i wondered what mine were. well i knew God is first and foremost. i couldn't think of anything else that really stirred my emotions and thought wow what a boring person i must be. then as i was just sending an email to a friend telling him a bit about my trip to guatemala i was getting so psyched. i could feel the excitement in every part of me. as i was reading the book i hadn't thought about what stirs my soul but just writing about my trip brought every nerve ending alive.

the minute i read about the trip to guatemala i knew i wanted to go. the desire was there, it filled my heart. and like psalm 37:4 says God gives us the desires of our heart.

despair

you can't just tell someone you want to commit suicide and expect that they are going to forget all about it.

your confession has burdened my heart so you're stuck with me and my rants. and after reading journey of desire and seeing you on almost every page there are lots. and lucky you i'm not even a third of the way through it yet.

"the pharisees knew more about the bible and it hardened their hearts. knowledge just isn't what it's cracked up to be."

and i want 'once upon a time...' like ever after.

your soul is dying and i'm filled with the joy of living.

jod talks about the titanic as the lovers stand on the prow. romance, beauty, adventure. eden. is that eden? is that why i always feel i belong in eden? because i want romance, beauty, adventure.

now this cracked me up. the prodigal son.
me - the prodigal coming home (to God) afer living a life apart from Him for so long. the pouting, party pooper (the other son) who has lived his entire life from duty and obligation.

i know the joy of my homecoming. he's angry (the other son) saying he hasn't got a thing in return for his life of service and Dad says "all that is mine has always been yours" in other words - he never asked. the dutiful son stands aside at the prodigal's homecoming and does not experience the fathers embrace.

think of God as a beautiful woman. you want her, you desire her. she stirs your passion, you're hungry for her. you go to seek your hearts desire. she responds to your seeking because it touches her hearts desire to be longed for. you're nonchalant, passionless, indifferent. if your hearts not in it why should His be?

if you're as passionate about God as you would be a rock, if you don't hunger for Him, if He's not your hearts desire, it's no wonder you have no joy. if you're only lukewarm is He going to spit you out of His mouth, Rev. 3:16, if you check out early on your terms.

get fired up. psalm 37:4 delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. He has become the desire of my heart and i am filled with joy. do you not ache for Him? do you not hunger for Him? like a woman, does a desire for Him not burn in your soul? are you so dead inside that there is not the slightest stirrings of desire?

i feel like a child in my simplicity, in just loving and being loved. i am rich with unquenchable joy.

you are worse than a pauper. you have a great deal of book learning but what has that given you. you have knowledge yet you have no hope, no joy.

you want to end your life to be with God. i am with God and i want to live my life for Him.

what are your dreams? what were your dreams?

you have a heart. can you feel it beating? or is it so lifeless you feel nothing?

how do you ever expect to find someone full of life that's wildly passionate about you. if you care nothing about life how can you care about God or anyone else.

this is said in love. do with it what you will. get angry if you want. but don't give up.

life in a gravel pit

and more faces

more faces

faces of panimache

doing laundry

and we think we have it tough on laundry day.

panimache

a small village at the bottom of a narrow, very steep valley. hurricane stan wiped out their crops (corn) and some homes and last year a team went there and built 7 houses. there are very few patches of grass, it's mostly dry, dusty, gravel. a few days before we arrived the church that we connected with there had delivered 35,000 pounds of food.

they speak quiche but now the children are learning spanish in school. the men and some of the older children speak spanish.

we showed the Jesus film in spanish and afterwards the pastor talked to the people and someone translated everything into quiche. about 20 people asked to receive Jesus. very cool.

the government says they are in danger, that their valley is no longer stable so they are hoping to buy land to transport them to a safer location.

water filters

these are some of the water filters we made for the people of panimache, a very poor village of indigenous mayan people. it's dry season right now and their water is a dirty, smelly creek that runs through their village. we took the water filters to the village and showed them how to use them. each filter weighed several hundred pounds and it took about 8 men to carry one filter up a 6" wide goat trail.

we started out using a plywood mold and then borrowed a steel mold from someone that was making water filters for other locations in guatemala. the steel mold worked a lot better and we were able to buy 2 molds to leave at the orphanage for a couple of men to keep making more filters, for panimache, for the orphanage, and for their own homes and families.

orphanage - casa angelina

these are the kids that are there right now although more kids were arriving almost daily.

casa angelina is an orphanage that upon completion will house 500 kids. only one house is complete right now. each house costs $40,000 to build and will be staffed by house parents. i can think of one couple who would make awesome house parents.

the abuse these kids have suffered at the hands of their parents is atrocious. a 5 year old girl repeatedly held down by her mother while her father raped her. they need so much love and care.

almolonga, guatemala

one carrot would feed the whole family.

it took almost a full day to get here but it was well worth it. the market was closed when we arrived late but we spent the night in a neighbouring town and returned early the next morning.

we went to the calvary church and met with pastor mariano. there was a funeral that day for someone in their church so the pastor wasn't supposed to be there but the editor and photographer from a newspaper in guatemala city had come to interview him. we lucked out as we and the editor interviewed him about the transformation of almolonga. he said that 33% of the population were born again christians. other than that the rest of the story about the transformation of almolonga is true.

this was paradise

but this is home.

every time i visited my friend's paradise i couldn't wait to get home again.

i'm having trouble posting the comments to match the pictures but you can tell which one is paradise. for as much as our house isn't much it's home and still where my heart is.

everything is big in costa rica

i went to visit a friend - this was another one of her guests. when it landed on my pillow my pillow landed on the floor and spent the night there. i'm not afraid of moths but when they're this big and won't get off my pillow... my sister would so have freaked. my fear is spiders - hers is moths.

for sale

white gold, custom designed, diamond ring. $1500 firm.

prayer request for guatemala

i should mention that it isn't just about donating money. however if you would like to support me you can send your cheque, payable to northview church, c/o 1909 dahl crescent, abbotsford v2s 4b3 and note in the subject line that it's for the guatemala team. all donations are tax deductible.

it's for prayer as well. i'm not an articulate speaker at all and i'm not an extrovert and i can't get two words out of my mouth without tripping over them. i would like prayer that God would give me wisdom and insight to know what to say, how to say it, to whom and when; that He would unconfuse the language for me; and that He would empower me and make me a bold witness for Him. that He would make the people we meet sensitive to hearing His word as we share His love with them.

the trail to the beach

i love this picture. i love this country. it was about 1.5 kms from one side of the island to the other.

exile island?

maybe not but close enough. i was sort of exiled - i had to leave the country every 3 months or get deported never to return.

bringing home the groceries

ok it's not as easy as it looks when you have cans sitting on your head.

flooding

this is a picture of our front yard in costa rica when it flooded dec 2004. it was unbelieveable how fast the water came up. when it flooded the last time, 5 years before, a crocodile came out of the river and ate a chicken.

i'm just starting to get my photos organized.

prayer for giving

Today's Prayer
March 22, 2006
Dear God, Money in itself is not evil. So much good can be done through the proper use of money. I pray for wisdom and insight from You so that I will be a good steward of the financial resources which You have entrusted to my care. Please help me to invest in ministry, help other people, and think of my family as I endeavor to do Your will, with what You have provided. I know at times I don't have much and other times I have more, but whatever the amount is, may it be used to meet my needs, my family's needs, and the needs of the kingdom for financial support. Please help me to be wise and frugal, not foolish and materialistic. Please work through me, a vessel of honor for You, to minister in the world around me. Please multiply whatever I am able to give, like the fishes and loaves of bread, that it may multiply my personal and local church ministry to reach people for You, save souls, and exhort every member of the body of Christ. May You be blessed and glorified. In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.

from prime time with God

lawnmower for sale

heavy duty lawn mower, 4.5 hp briggs & stratton motor, 22" wide swath - used one month (like maybe 3 times) - $200

faithfulness vs infidelity

i loved reading the biography of jim elliot, one of the 5 americans missionaries that went to ecuador in the 50's. he was SO committed to God. he put God before himself and everyone else. when he did finally meet a woman he was interested in he continued to put God first, in everything; she came second. they had been corresponding / talking / dating for years (5 i think) before they finally BOTH agreed that God was now allowing them to come together as man and wife. in spite of being in love with elisabeth, he went to the jungles of ecuador without her because he loved God more and would be faithful to Him and the calling He had put on his life. his own personal desires were secondary. he wanted to marry elisabeth but he knew it wasn't God's will for him, at that time. he was faithful and obedient to God and was blessed for it. he knew incredible joy as he committed his life to God.

although he and the others were martyred as they and their wives fully expected they might be, they remained faithful to God. they lived to be in perfect relationship with God.

i think i will be single forever. i could only ever love a man like jim elliot, a man that was faithful to God and put Him first, in everything, before me.

infidel and infidelity

note the similarities.

infidel and infidelity describe a lot of christians - no principles; unfaithful - to God, spouse and self; disloyal; REJECTS GOD.

how is this happening in the church? among we who profess to be christians? both words are defined as having no religious beliefs.

how can we be so unfaithful and expect to have a relationship with God?
why is infidelity so prevalent in the christian church?
how can we promise faithfulness to God and each other when we say marriage vows then put ourselves before God and our spouse.

i've heard christians say they do not think of themselves as being 'religious' because that implies following an old set of rules which like the pharisees would make them hypocrites. they call themselves 'christians' which implies that they believe in God and in the truth of the bible. well forgive me for saying it but they sure as hell aren't showing or acting like it.

how can you profess to be a christian, to believe in God, yet live in contrast to what He teaches us.

if this is a christian - i don't want to be one.

infidelity

Unfaithfulness to a sexual partner, especially a spouse.

An act of sexual unfaithfulness.

Lack of fidelity or loyalty.

Lack of religious belief.

infidel

An unbeliever with respect to a particular religion, especially Christianity or Islam.

One who has no religious beliefs.

One who doubts or rejects a particular doctrine, system, or principle.

guatemala

i am planning to go on a missions trip to guatemala april 6th to supply a small village with clean, safe drinking water. they were in the path of hurricane stan last year and their water is so contaminated they are getting sick and have sores on their bodies. as well the indigenous mayans in this village worship other gods and we want to share the gospel with them.

i have no money whatsoever and no job to pay for this trip but i believe that God wants me to go.

i prayed asking that God would reveal His will. then i had a dream but i never paid any attention to it. i was waiting to hear His voice loud and clear. as i didn't believe He had answered me i prayed again. i had a second identical dream which i then understood to be His affirmation that i was going.

last night the leader phoned to say that they were buying the tickets today and as someone else had cancelled out they wanted to confirm that i was still planning on going. what could i say. it is on my heart to go, i believe God is calling me to it, but i have absolutely not a dime for it. i prayed about it, again asking God for confirmation of His will. woke up at 5am with no answer. prayed again and had another dream that someone gave the leader $500 for me.

the leader asked if i had approached my church for funding or an opportunity to speak at a service to promote it. i hadn't because there were teams already fundraising for trips to thailand and mexico.

i had applied for a job, which turned out to be vacation relief for my old job. after 26 years i thought i should qualify for it. weeks later, when the job had still not been awarded, i thought if i had a job i might be trusting in that, in myself and in my own ability to pay if i did have a job.

instead i'm trusting in God, that if this is His will He will provide. i have nothing else, only Him, and yet He is all i need.

help... i've lost

my belongings. if you have a toaster, toaster oven, ice skates, black roller skates, coffee grinder, utensils, crock pot, tupperware, bowls, red toolbox with tools inside, towels, 2 square walt disney world glasses from mcdonald's, other stuff not listed here that you don't think are yours and you don't remember where they came from any chance they could be mine. i know there are other things not listed here that are mia but i can't for the life of me think of where they could be.

if you have seen any things like these could you let me know please so i can reclaim them.

prayer

woke up at 4:19 this am. i was tired and wondered why i had woken up but didn't feel i could go back to sleep. a friend had lent me a video about transformations. i had only watched the one on guatemala and decided since i couldn't sleep anyway i may as well watch the others.

transformations - the power of prayer against the powers of darkness and the resulting transformations. out of the blue as i felt i needed to pray both of my knees started to hurt. not to be discouraged i put my pillow on the floor and was led in the spirit to pray against the powers of darkness, for my family, my friends, my church and our community of believers.

it was pretty powerful. if we could all pray against the powers of darkness think of the victories we could have.

thank You Lord.

today's devotional from prime time with God

Today's Prayer
March 12, 2006
Dear God, I pray today for parents who have broken hearts over their children who have substance abuse problems. God, help these parents know what to do, what to say, how to do and say it, what not to do or say--guide them through this most difficult thing. I pray for the children, whether young and at home or grown and out in the world, that You will work in their lives to draw them to You and to help them overcome these addictions. Give them willpower, strength, and support from the right people. Help them to see how their problems are affecting their loved ones as well as themselves. God, please intervene in this situation. Give comfort, where comfort is needed. Give boldness, where boldness is needed. Give mercy, where mercy is needed. Give strength, for it is certainly needed. I pray the blood of Jesus over these strongholds, that they will be broken and these children freed from the chains of addiction and whatever else is holding them down. I pray they will be free in Christ, and receive a fresh start. Bless them all. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Understanding the Source of Anger
TGIF Today God Is First, by Os Hillman

A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control. - Proverbs 29:11

The workplace can be a pressure-packed world. The demands that are often put on us can bring out things that we never knew were there. Sometimes we begin to think that the source of that pressure is to blame for our response to the pressure. It could be an event, a spouse, a boss, a client, a child, or even a driver who cuts us off in traffic.

I recall responding to a close friend one time, "If you had not done that, I would never have responded that way." Later I learned that this response had little truth to it. We all choose to get angry. No one else is to blame for our anger.

"The circumstances of life, the events of life, and the people around me in life, do not make me the way I am, but reveal the way I am" [Dr. Sam Peeples].

This simple quote has had a profound impact on how I view my anger now. Anger only reveals what is inside of me. I can't blame anyone but me for my response to a situation. I have learned that anger is only the symptom of something else that is going on inside of me. This quote now resides on my refrigerator door as a daily reminder of the truth about my response to life's situations.

It has been said that anger is like the warning panel on the dash of your car. It is the light that tells us something is going on under the hood and we need to find out what is the source of the problem. I discovered that the source of anger is often unmet expectations or personal rights. We believe we are entitled to a particular outcome to a situation. When this doesn't happen, it triggers something in us. At the core of this is fear, often a fear of failure or rejection, fear of what others think, fear of the unknown.

If you struggle with anger, ask God to reveal the source of that anger. Ask Him to heal you of any fears that may be the root of your anger. Ask God to help you take responsibility for your response to difficult situations.

back to the heart of worship

I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And its all about You
All about You, Jesus
I'm sorry Lord for the thing I've made it
When its all about You
It's all about You

it's really all just about Him

desire

sometimes what we strongly desire is not good for us in the long run.

boy don't i know that.

5 missionaries in ecuador...

martyred in 1956 - when asked why they would refuse to use their guns to save their lives said "they're not ready for heaven and we are"

wow! they loved Jesus so much they were willing to die so that the indigenous tribe of lost people might live and be saved...

amazing love.

if Jesus is Lord...

why are we so anxious about the details of our lives? why do we worry so much about our finances or relationships? Jesus offers the antidote to our anxieties: Himself.

God is God

if He is God He is worthy of my worship and my service. i will find rest nowhere but in His will...

(e. elliot - through gates of splendor)

amazing grace

that saved a wretch like me.

integrity

how many of us compromise our integrity. we know the principles God wants us to live by, yet we see something that we want and we go for it. nothing else matters. including God. we go for what we want. and we leave Him out of it.

what happens when we leave God out of our lives. i am reminded of how we told God to stay out of the schools and being the gentleman He is He has. do we really want to continue to compromise our integrity and leave God out of our lives.

we hurt ourselves and so many others by our decisions yet we may not see the impact on our lives for years. how do we live with ourselves when we know that our actions are not in accordance with God's principles. we can't possibly have peace. my spirit is in such turmoil there is nothing i wouldn't do. every thing of this world is temporal. there is no choice, there is nothing and no one that is going to bring us the joy of a right relationship with God. we can't hide our sin from Him. if we give up everyone and everything to follow Christ He will give us joy beyond our imaginings. the love we've sought elsewhere we will find in Him.

did you have integrity? did you live for God? did you compromise your integrity? are you just happy now or are you joyful to be restored to a perfect relationship with God?

our worldly relationships that are not in accordance with God's principles are not worth having if it takes us away from God. nothing and no one is. do not let yourself be deceived by evil spirits, rebuke satan, and let your spirit commune with God's Holy Spirit. listen to His voice and do not be deceived by temptation.

30 hour famine

World Vision’s 30 Hour Famine, an annual event in which thousands of young people across Canada forego food for 30 hours to raise money and awareness for hunger and poverty.

Famine participant Jesse Samok, 16, says he knows some families in his community don’t have enough food because many children come to the school’s breakfast program. Jesse raised nearly $200 for the 30 Hour Famine, which included $120 of his earnings from his part-time job. “I feel sorry for those kids who don’t have food and water or any money,” he says.

That kind of generosity is typical of Inuit, who traditionally place a high value on sharing. Year after year, they top the statistics for charitable giving in Canada. “People in Chesterfield Inlet are so generous,” Ana says. “They’d rather give to someone who is less fortunate than keep what they have to themselves.”

so if you're not doing or supporting the famine - why aren't you?

for the full story go to:
http://www.worldvision.ca/home/content-archives/content-stories/nunavut-youth-do-the-30-hour-famine/

poverty

in travelling throughout costa rica and nicaragua on mission trips for the past 5 years i saw a lot of poverty. each year after coming home to my house with just me in it i looked around at all my stuff and wondered why i had bought some of the things in the first place. each year it was harder and harder to come back to my house. i had too much. i wanted less - things. i wanted something more. i wanted to live there, not just to visit for 2 weeks each year. then God made it happen. i ended up living with a large family in a small village for 15 months last year. i lived in a dump of a house that was literally falling apart (we had a coral snake come through a hole in the floor in the bathroom) but it was filled with laughter and love. here we build bigger, fancier houses and may never run into each other, never talk to each other. before when i had asked why they fasted i was told simply, there is no food. we had potable water in our village although not everyone had water because they couldn't afford to pay for it. one cluster of 7 families had one shower between them. we had electricity, many didn't.

we take so much for granted and never give it another thought. clean, safe drinking water, enough food to eat, shelter from the storms. they have nothing and we have so much yet i wouldn't wish my 'riches' on them. here the more we have the more we want, we are never satisfied with what we have. we seclude ourselves inside from family and friends playing games on the computer. there they spend time with their families and friends. here we rush around greeting someone with hi how are you and never stop to hear the answer. there talking with each other is an important part of every day. we drive our cars to the store 2 blocks away. there people walk miles in the darkness to work 12 to 16 hours in the fields in the blaring sun or heavy rain every day for $1 an hour.

i visited schools and when asked what the greatest need was the principal said food, the children are hungry and there is no food and no money to buy it. i was going to the schools with the ministry of health to promote good nutrition. what an oxymoron. how do you promote good nutrition when there is no food? what do they eat after we've gone. there were teenagers in grades 1 because they had never had the opportunity to go to school before and kids not going to or quitting school because there was no money to pay for it.

one nicaraguan boy in our house had left his family and country at the age of 9 to come to costa rica in search of work in order to eat. he was, miraculously, reunited with his own family last year after a 12 year absence. can you imagine sending your young children to work in the fields in another country because you don't have enough food to feed them. before the sun was up i watched as young children, carrying their machetes, walked to the fields with their parents.

i have encouraged my grandchildren to watch the world vision programs so they can see how fortunate they are to have easy access to food, water, shelter, education, health care, to live in a country without fear of war.

why did i come back? God told me to. would i go back? if He sent me - absolutely - in a heartbeat.

i could say i can't afford to sponsor 3 kids but in all honesty - no i can't - i can't say that. i have so very much. they have so very little. i do not need to have more things. i do not need to change my lampshades because the colour doesn't match the walls or bedding. they need to have the very basics of survival.

girls nite out

tuesday i went to a 'girls nite out' event at northview. awesome testimony - so much so i have written the speaker to buy the cd hopefully to show at our ladies retreat. so much of it was like my life.

it was sponsored by world vision who at the end of the testimony passed around folders with pictures and information about children needing sponsorship. it was so awesome to see so many women at the world vision table afterwards to hopefully sponsor a child or get information to sponsor a child.

we can make a difference.

please go if you get the opportunity, you'll be glad you did.

worship

when i came back from costa rica and went to church there was a new group playing worship and i didn't know the songs they were playing in english. i found a spanish church and started going there on sunday nights so i could worship God in spanish.

wanting more worship i started going to the early service at northview on saturday nights then club 365 afterwards.

5:00 saturday - northview
7:30 saturday - club 365
10:00 sunday - new heights
7:30 sunday - spanish church

it's wonderful - i love it.

we are so blessed to live in a country where we can worship freely, whenever, wherever we want.

soon what was once called street church will be coming back with a new name, the gathering. an opportunity for the street people of mission to get together in community and hear worship. for some the only opportunity they may have to hear worship music. and to come forward and ask for prayer in what may feel like the only safe place to do so.

thank You Lord that we are free to go to any number of venues to worship and praise You without being persecuted.

it's all about attitude

yesterday i had the opportunity to be an irate customer but God used it for Himself. i bought a bed & desk at ikea, choked down the price, and after i went through the checkout looked at my bill. the bed was on sale for 25% off but the clerk hadn't given me the sale price. i pointed it out to her and she gave me the credit and rang the sale up again. the sale goes through instantly but the credit doesn't so the second charge wasn't approved because i was now over limit. she apologized and called the supervisor over. he spent the next 1/2 hour calling the visa centre, the bank, the visa centre again, the bank again. at first i was getting impatient, i wanted to be on my way home before rush hour started. as i could feel the impatience hitting me a God thing happened. i started thinking about a video i'd seen the night before talking about how blessed we are. i started thinking how it really wasn't such a big deal and before i knew it i was smiling and laughing. the supervisor was apologizing profusely and after a lengthy time he called another supervisor over to see how they could resolve the problem as the bank / visa said they couldn't do anything. had i been impatient it would have made me miserable and added to the discomfort the supervisor was already feeling. then the sales clerk came over and apologized again. when i thought of all their apologies i had a thought they might give me a discount coupon or something. instead i got something better. i got that good feeling that you get when you brighten someone else's day.

that wasn't as a result of my nature. i was ready to be impatient. that was a result of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. He changed my attitude from going to be miserable to choosing to - here i was going to say choosing to be in a good mood. i didn't choose it - it was His work in me. thank You Lord.

God's in the small stuff too

do we only look for God in the big things. or do we find Him in the very small, everyday things. for the past 2 months i have been using the plastic knife, fork and spoon from the plane. yesterday the knife broke, this morning the spoon broke, this weekend i'm moving and will have regular utensils. God gives me what i need, for as long as i need it.

suffering produces character

If you find yourself in a time of suffering, now is the time to press into God. Let your roots grow deeper. Whenever there is a famine, tree roots are forced to drive deeper into the soil to find water. These times are designed to create such a deep-rooted faith that our natures will be changed forever.

boy do i know a lot of characters.

piano for sale

$800 and you pay to move it. otherwise it's going to toew's music store where they will charge $1100. need to move it soon - if not sold in a week it's going to toew's.

it's a yamaha, in mint condition and it's played regularly and i'm told it's smooth.

if you're interested send me your email and i'll email you a picture of it. i can't get the picture in the blog.

wow! what a revelation

sometimes God puts us through the experience and discipline of darkness to teach us to hear and obey Him. God puts us into "the shadow of His hand" (isaiah 49.2) until we learn to hear Him. pay attention when God puts you into darkness, and keep your mouth closed while you are there. are you in the dark right now in your circumstances, or in your life with God? if so then remain quiet. if you open your mouth in the dark, you will speak while in the wrong mood - darkness is the time to listen. don't talk to other people about it. don't read books to find out the reason for the darkness; just listen and obey. if you talk to other people you cannot hear what God is saying. when you are in the dark, listen, and God will give you a very precious message for someone else once you are back in the light. (from my utmost)

in the time of My favour I will say to those in darkness, 'be free' isaiah 49 (from God)

i can't count the number of time i've been in darkness. talked to a lot of people, read a lot of books.

in hindsight i know it was only in the time of the Lord's favour that i was delivered from the darkness.

Four places I have been:
1. Costa Rica
2. Nicaragua
3. Panama
4. Mexico

Four places I would like to go:
1. middle east
2. Africa
3. the Amazon
4. anywhere in central america

Four jobs I have done;
1. secreatary
2. receptionist
3. dispatcher
4. hairdressers assistant

four places i've lived:
1. costa rica
2. vancouver
3. new westminster
4. burnaby

four things i like to do:
1. worship
2. travel
3. dance
4. read

Four things I detest;
1. hedonism
2. materialism
3. lewd music videos
4. pornography

Four things I love:
1. worship
2. sunshine
3. plants
4. puppies

Four foods I love;
1. chocolate
2. coffee
3. avocados
4. black beans

Four people I would like to meet;
1. Jesus
2. my dad
3. peter
4. sponsored kids

here's the link

https://www1.worldvision.ca/CampaignsSecDM2.nsf/Niger05-En?OpenForm&id=03161734

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX

The HDI measures achievements in terms of life expectancy, educational attainment and adjusted real income http://hdr.undp.org/reports/global/2005/ (united nations report sept 2005)(to me that translates as the richest and poorest nations in the world.) just think what we, as the 5th richest nation in the world, could do to help the poorest nations in the world. if you're not sure check out the link at the bottom.

HDI rank - High human development
1 Norway 2 Iceland 3 Australia 4 Luxembourg
5 *** CANADA *** (what's considered the poverty level for canada? $25,000? we live in a rich nation, free from war, with enough food and clean water, health care and education.)
6 Sweden 7 Switzerland 8 Ireland 9 Belgium
10 United States 11 Japan 12 Netherlands
13 Finland 14 Denmark 15 United Kingdom 16 France
17 Austria 18 Italy 19 New Zealand 20 Germany
21 Spain 22 HongKong,China(SAR) 23 Israel 24 Greece
25 Singapore 26 Slovenia 27 Portugal 28 Korea,Rep.of
29 Cyprus 30 Barbados 31 Czech Republic 32 Malta
33 Brunei Darussalam 34 Argentina 35 Hungary 36 Poland
37 Chile 38 Estonia 39 Lithuania 40 Qatar
41 United Arab Emirates 42 Slovakia 43 Bahrain 44 Kuwait
45 Croatia 46 Uruguay 47 Costa Rica 48 Latvia
49 Saint Kitts and Nevis 50 Bahamas 51 Seychelles 52 Cuba
53 Mexico 54 Tonga 55 Bulgaria 56 Panama
57 Trinidad and Tobago

HDI rank - Medium human development
58 Libyan Arab Jamahiriya 59 Macedonia,TFYR
60 Antigua and Barbuda 61 Malaysia 62 Russian Federation
63 Brazil 64 Romania 65 Mauritius 66 Grenada 67 Belarus
68 Bosnia and Herzegovina 69 Colombia 70 Dominica 71 Oman
72 Albania 73 Thailand 74 Samoa (Western) 75 Venezuela
76 Saint Lucia 77 Saudi Arabia 78 Ukraine 79 Peru
80 Kazakhstan 81 Lebanon 82 Ecuador 83 Armenia
84 Philippines 85 China 86 Suriname
87 Saint Vincent & the Grenadines 88 Paraguay 89 Tunisia
90 Jordan 91 Belize 92 Fiji 93 Sri Lanka
94 Turkey 95 Dominican Republic 96 Maldives 97 Turkmenistan
98 Jamaica 99 Iran, IslamicRep.of 100 Georgia
101 Azerbaijan 102 Occupied Palestinian Territories
103 Algeria 104 El Salvador 105 Cape Verde
106 Syrian Arab Republic 107 Guyana 108 Viet Nam
109 Kyrgyzstan 110 Indonesia 111 Uzbekistan 112 Nicaragua
113 Bolivia 114 Mongolia 115 Moldova,Rep.of 116 Honduras
117 Guatemala 118 Vanuatu 119 Egypt 120 South Africa
121 Equatorial Guinea 122 Tajikistan 123 Gabon 124 Morocco
125 Namibia 126 São Tomé and Principe 127 India
128 Solomon Islands 129 Myanmar 130 Cambodia 131 Botswana
132 Comoros 133 LaoPeople’sDem.Rep. 134 Bhutan 135 Pakistan
136 Nepal 137 Papua New Guinea 138 Ghana 139 Bangladesh
140 Timor-Leste 141 Sudan 142 Congo 143 Togo 144 Uganda
145 Zimbabwe

HDI rank - Low human development
146 Madagascar 147 Swaziland 148 Cameroon 149 Lesotho
150 Djibouti 151 Yemen 152 Mauritania 153 Haiti 154 Kenya
155 Gambia 156 Guinea 157 Senegal 158 Nigeria 159 Rwanda
160 Angola 161 Eritrea 162 Benin 163 Côte d’Ivoire
164 Tanzania,U.Rep.of 165 Malawi 166 Zambia 167 Congo,Dem.Rep.ofthe
168 Mozambique 169 Burundi 170 Ethiopia 171 Central African Republic
172 Guinea-Bissau 173 Chad 174 Mali 175 Burkina Faso
176 Sierra Leone
177 NIGER (earnings less than $1 a day - less than $365 a year)

lottery tickets

birthday / valentine's / christmas cards... we sign them 'with love'

the next time you want to give someone a lottery ticket in their card, enclose a gift card in their name instead... feeding a child... 'with love'

valentines's - a time of love

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/default.stm
go to this site and watch the video "How the gift of a goat has helped one Rwandan community" and see how a 15 year old girl has made a difference. Ethical gifts to the developing world enjoyed bumper sales over Christmas, with Oxfam taking 5,000 orders a day. Teenager Eleanor Paish, who bought a goat, was invited to Rwanda to see how the gifts have helped communities."

christmas - a time of giving. what about the rest of the year?

how much are you spending for valentines? for one day to show someone how much you love them. what about for the same amount of money you could buy a piglet, or 2 rabbits or 2 ducks to help feed a whole family or seed packets and tools to enable them to grow their own food and/or earn income... or if you were really doing it up big with a night on the town you could buy a goat for the same amount... now that would be love.

matthew 25:35 for I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink.

if a 15 year old girl, still in school, can make a difference... you can too... if you love enough.

i dare you

I heard a story about a small church that was having a reunion. A former member who attended the celebration had become a millionaire. When he testified about how God had blessed him over the years, he related an incident from his childhood. He said that when he earned his first dollar as a boy, he decided to keep it for the rest of his life. But then a guest missionary preached about the urgent need on the mission field. He struggled about giving his dollar. "The Lord won, however," the man said. Then, with a sense of pride he added, "I put my treasured dollar in the offering basket. And I am convinced that the reason God has blessed me so much is that when I was a little boy I gave Him everything I possessed." The congregation was awestruck by the testimony—until a little old lady in front piped up, "I dare you to do it again!" from our daily bread feb 3/06.

from bbc news "Before Christmas I asked Zambia's finance minister, Peter Ngandu Magande, who is to blame for the poverty of so many of his countrymen.

He wrote: "Poverty . . . Most times is the perception of other people who decide to give a tag of poverty to another person . . . Only two days ago, someone in Europe defined me as being poor because I receive a monthly salary of $1,400 against his $5,000".

$1400 a month is poor by some standards but $1.00 a day is extreme poverty by anyone's standards and yet most of the world's population live like this daily.

check out bbc news on other countries and learn about poverty. we, one of the wealthiest nations, know nothing about real poverty.

Dominic Nkhata, 29 and his wife Patricia, 27 are a young Zambian couple with a two-year-old daughter. Dominic works as a factory hand while Patricia is a housewife. The couple are also responsible for four orphans, the children of Dominic's deceased sisters. The family live in two rooms in one of Lusaka's poorer neighbourhoods, a shanty town called Garden Compound, about five kilometres outside Lusaka city, and are typical of the millions of Africans who live on less than a dollar a day.

can you imagine trying to feed 7 people on less than $1 a day? oh did i forget to mention that most of their income goes to pay rent. or that they are dying of aids so they will leave 5 young children to care for themselves.

what are you doing to end poverty? are you doing enough? are you doing anything?

or are you buying another new cd, a new set of dishes or towels or decorations to go with the new paint job?

what do you perceive as poverty? your $3,000 a month, $2,000 a month. it's true the more you have the more you will spend. have you ever thought of spending it on someone other than yourself?

do you already sponsor a child somewhere? or two? if you can do one you can do two. if you can do two you can do three.

what would you give to have clean drinking water? food to eat?

can you not find it in your heart to deny yourself one new cd a month or one timmie's or starbucks coffee a day and send it to support a family in africa or india that is literally starving to death.

i dare you.

you are so not worthy

I love you so much I gave my son's life for you.

ok so who are you going to believe. if you're a christian you have to believe the 2nd one because it's God telling you how much He loves you. right out of the bible - john 3:16.

how many of us had / have parents or other people in our lives telling us we weren't worthy.

well we're not, not in and of ourselves. it's only because God loves us so much that we become worthy. He gave us His Holy Spirit to live in us so how can we say we're not worthy. He made us co-heirs with His only Son Jesus, so how can we say we're not worthy.

so there's the truth - that's from God. and there's the lie - that we know is from satan because he is the father of lies.

who are you going to believe?

believe it - you are worthy. you are a precious, worthy, child of God.

my point is

i fear that there may be quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder. 1cor12:20

a perverse man stirs up dissension and a gossip separates close friends. prov 16:28

without gossip a quarrel dies down. prov 16:20

if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. but if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. matt 6:14,15

if any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone john 8:7

do not judge or you too will be judged. for in the same way you judge others, you will be judged and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brothers eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? how can you say to your brother, let me take the speck out of your eye when all the time there is a plank in your own eye. you hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brothers eye. matt 7:1-5

not everyone who says to me Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. matt 7:21... then i will tell you plainly, I never knew you. away from me you evildoers. matt 7:23

i like how greg did his sermon yesterday. he spoke God's truth, right out of the bible. the truth - it's staring you right in the face, you can't miss it.

ok so yesterday i used harsh words to make my point. i spoke my truth - lies and gossip hurt. today is God's truth, right out of the bible.

my command is this: love each other as I have loved you. john 15:12

even though we have sinned / are sinners... He loves us! and He wants us to love others... the same way.

if anyone says i love God, yet hates his brother, he is a liar. 1 john 4:20

love for enemies

matt 5:44-48 but I tell you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise and fall on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. if you love those who love you what reward will you get? are not even the tax collectors doing that? and if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others? do not even pagans do that? be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

whoa - that's a tough one. love your enemy. love those who persecute you. that is so hard to do. but it is possible. God makes possible the impossible.

i know when i was in high school and people were persecuting me i could never have forgiven them. i didn't have it in me to forgive them. i was crushed in spirit. but God says in psalm 34:18 that He is close to the broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

it's true - believe it.

christian love

how does that song go - you can tell we are christians by our love.

omg - if we are an example of christian love the rest of the world's in trouble.

sharing the gospel. what is that? what is the gospel? God's truth? what is God's truth? love Him above all others. love others. john 13:34 as i have loved you so you MUST love one another. He didn't say speak it - He said DO it.

1 john 4:19-21 we love because He first loved us. if anyone says i love God yet hates his brother he is a liar. for anyone who does not love his brother, who he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. and He has given us this COMMAND: whoever loves God MUST also love his brother.

so - do you love God... or are you a liar?

breaks my heart

it breaks my heart that we christians who are supposed to be living like Christ are the most unforgiving lot. if it breaks my heart what do you think it does to the heart of God. He who has told us to love each other and forgive each other as He has forgiven us.

He tells us to lift up the body of Christ. that's our job. He tells us not to judge - that's His job. and yet we're slamming each other, spreading lies, spreading gossip. who's side are we on? who are we fighting? we are supposed to be fighting the enemy. WE are not the enemy. that's satan. if you are not fighting FOR Christ you are fighting AGAINST Him.

who are you living for? Christ? are you sure?

or are you living like and for satan?

stix and stones

i tell myself that if i am living for an audience of One that i am not going to care what people say about me. right now people aren't accusing me of anything, (at least not that i know of although we seem to have a way of being nice to each others faces but saying ugly, hurtful things behind each others backs) but that was not always the case.

when i was in grade 8 i had a reputation. people i didn't even know called me a slut, described in the dictionary as a)A woman considered sexually promiscuous, b) A woman prostitute, and c) A slovenly woman; a slattern. why? because in their dirty little minds i was not following the socially acceptable role they thought i should be?

i wore black eyeliner and i wore skirts a bit shorter than others. that was the only thing that made me different than everyone else. did that make me a harlot? it's what i was accused of. it was hurtful. girls rejected me - were they jealous? boys paid attention to me. why? because 1 boy that i went out with lied and bragged to others saying he had 'scored' with me so the rest of them thought they could too.

it was the same at home. accused of things i had never done. i finally ran away and after a couple of times i was placed in a foster home.

i changed schools and when i started at the new school i changed my name and i started making friends. then someone discovered my real name and learned that i was 'that girl' from the other high school that had that bad rep. they couldn't believe i was the same person that the bad rumours (malicious lies) were about. i was accepted. they didn't throw stones.

who are you accusing?

who are you spreading malicious lies about?

why are you spreading malicious lies?

and you call yourself a christian? in the dictionary a christian is described as

a) Professing belief in Jesus as Christ or following the religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus.
b) Relating to or derived from Jesus or Jesus's teachings.
c) Manifesting the qualities or spirit of Jesus; Christlike.
d) Relating to or characteristic of Christianity or its adherents.
e) Showing a loving concern for others; humane.

how can you if you are throwing stix and stones. first of all if you are without sin then go ahead and throw stones but we all know none of us are.

second are you showing loving concern for others? spreading lies and malicious gossip is not loving concern. it is not manifesting the qualities of Christ. it does not relate in any way to the teachings of Jesus.

so who do you think you are?

and you call yourself a christian.

i call you a liar.

kids on the internet

there are other stories to share with your kids about the dangers of disclosing personal information on-line at the following link.

http://www.operationlookout.org/pred/warning_for_kids.htm

Missing Teen

Abused By Man She Met Online
September 13, 2004

By Kim Riemland

The 14-year-old girl was found after reportedly being kidnapped, raped, and beaten by a man she met on the internet.

FIRCREST - A teenage girl who disappeared from her home in Camas nearly two weeks was reportedly kidnapped, beaten and raped by a man she met on the internet.

The girl's mom used her daughter's web postings to help track her to a home in Fircrest.

A Fircrest police officer knocked on the door and found the 14-year-old girl lying on a bed inside. She was nearly naked and dazed.

The officer also found rooms filled with what investigators believe is evidence of abuse.

The girl suffers from a form of Autism. Detectives say she met her suspected abuser, a father of three, online. What police say happened after that is sickening.

"We recovered a lot of sexually related materials. It looks like he had a couple of rooms set up in the house for videotaping and hardcore sexual activity," said Det. Ed Troyer with the Pierce County Sheriff's Department.

"And we've recovered digital cameras and computers so we still have a lot of evidence to go through," he added. "We believe that there were some things going on there that may have been going on for some time."

The 47-year-old man is charged with kidnapping, rape of a child, and sexual exploitation of a minor.

Court documents detail numerous allegations of sexual abuse.

Documents say the girl told detectives he also hit her with a whip, put a hood over her head, and hit her with a bamboo stick. When he left the house he would chain her to the bed.

After being missing for nearly two weeks, the girl called her mom from the hospital Sunday night.

"I didn't even know it was her, I thought it was her sister at first," said the teen's mom through her tears. "Then she said 'mommy, it was a bad man.' I realized it was her and all we could both do is cry."

The prosecutor says toxicology tests will determine whether the girl was drugged. Video tapes and computer drives seized at the home may tell investigators even more about what went on inside.

The girl is now home and away from the man who she calls "the bad man she met on the internet."

Prosecutors believe there could be other victims in the case. Other people might have also been involved in committing the crime.

The suspect is being held on $250,000 bail.

Copyright 2004 Fisher Communications, Inc. (KOMO TV)

shannon's internet friend

please share this with your kids - it's worth repeating over and over.

Shannon could hear the footsteps behind her as she walked toward home. The thought of being followed made her heart beat faster.

"You're being silly," she told herself, "no one is following you." To be safe, she began to walk faster, but the footsteps kept up with her pace. She was afraid to look back and she was glad she was almost home. Shannon said a quick prayer, "God please get me home safe."
She saw the porch light burning and ran the rest of the way to her house. Once inside, she leaned against the door for a moment, relieved to be in the safety of her home. She glanced out the window to see if anyone was there. The sidewalk was empty.

After tossing her books on the sofa, she decided to grab a snack and get on-line. She logged on under her screen name ByAngel213. She checked her Buddy List and saw GoTo123 was on.

She sent him an instant message:

ByAngel213: Hi I'm glad you are on! I thought someone was following me home today. It was really weird!

GoTo123: LOL You watch too much TV. Why would someone be following you? Don't you live in a safe neighborhood?

ByAngel213: Of course I do. LOL I guess it was my imagination cuz' I didn't see anybody when I looked out.

GoTo123: Unless you gave your name out on-line. You haven't done that have you?

ByAngel213: Of course not. I'm not stupid you know.

GoTo123: Did you have a softball game after school today?

ByAngel213: Yes and we won!!

GoTo123: That's great! Who did you play?

ByAngel213: We played the Hornets. LOL. Their uniforms are so gross! They look like bees. LOL

GoTo123: What is your team called?

ByAngel213: We are the Canton Cats. We have tiger paws on our uniforms. They are really kewl.

GoTo123: Did you pitch?

ByAngel213: No I play second base. I got to go. My homework has to be done before my parents get home. I don't want them mad at me. Bye!

GoTo123: Catch you later. Bye

Meanwhile...... GoTo123 went to the member menu and began to search for her profile. When it came up, he highlighted it and printed it out. He took out a pen and began to write down what he knew about Angel so far.

Her name: Shannon Birthday: Jan. 3, 1985 Age:13 State where she lived: North Carolina Hobbies: softball, chorus, skating and going to the mall.

Besides this information, he knew she lived in Canton because she had just told him. He knew she stayed by herself until 6:30 p.m. every afternoon until her parents came home from work.

He knew she played softball on Thursday afternoons on the school team, and the team was named the Canton Cats. Her favorite number 7 was printed on her jersey. He knew she was in the seventh grade at the Canton Junior High School.

She had told him all this in the conversations they had on-line. He had enough information to find her now.

Shannon didn't tell her parents about the incident on the way home from the ball park that day. She didn't want them to make a scene and stop her from walking home from the softball games.

Parents were always overreacting and hers were the worst. It made her wish she was not an only child. Maybe if she had brothers and sisters, her parents wouldn't be so overprotective.

By Thursday, Shannon had forgotten about the footsteps following her. Her game was in full swing when suddenly she felt someone staring at her. It was then that the memory came back.

She glanced up from her second base position to see a man watching her closely. He was leaning against the fence behind first base and he smiled when she looked at him. He didn't look scary and she quickly dismissed the fear she had felt.

After the game, he sat on a bleacher while she talked to the coach. She noticed his smile once again as she walked past him. He nodded and she smiled back.

He noticed her name on the back of her shirt He knew he had found her. Quietly, he walked a safe distance behind her. It was only a few blocks to Shannon's home, and once he saw where she lived he quickly returned to the park to get his car.

Now he had to wait. He decided to get a bite to eat until the time came to go to Shannon's house. He drove to a fast food restaurant and sat there until time to make his move.

Shannon was in her room later that evening when she heard voices in the living room. "Shannon, come here," her father called. He sounded upset and she couldn't imagine why. She went into the room to see the man from the ballpark sitting on the sofa.

"Sit down," her father began, "this man has just told us a most interesting story about you." Shannon moved cautiously to a chair across from the man How could he tell her parents anything? She had never seen him before today!

"Do you know who I am Shannon?" The man asked. "No," Shannon answered."I am a police officer and your online friend, GoTo123." Shannon was stunned. "That's impossible! GoTo is a kid my age! He's 14 and he lives in Michigan!" The man smiled. "I know I told you all that, but it wasn't true.

You see, Shannon, there are people on-line who pretend to be kids; I was one of them. But while others do it to find kids and hurt them, I belong to a group of parents who do it to protect kids from predators. I came here to find you to teach you how dangerous it is to give out too much information to people on-line.

You told me enough about yourself to make it easy for me to find you. Your name, the school you went to, the name of your ball team and the position you played. The number and name on your jersey just made finding you a breeze." Shannon was stunned. "You mean you don't live in Michigan?" He laughed. "No, I live in Raleigh. It made you feel safe to think I was so far away, didn't it?" She nodded.

"I had a friend whose daughter was like you. Only she wasn't as lucky. The guy found her and murdered her while she was home alone.

Kids are taught not to tell anyone when they are alone, yet they do it all the time on-line.

The wrong people trick you into giving out information a little here and there on-line. Before you know it, you have told them enough for them to find you without even realizing you have done it. I hope you've learned a lesson from this and won't do it again."

"I won't," Shannon promised solemnly.

"Will you tell others about this so they will be safe too?" "It's a promise!"

That night Shannon and her dad and Mom all knelt down together and prayed. They thanked God for protecting Shannon from what could have been a tragic situation.

Please send this to as many people as you can to teach them not to give any information about themselves.

This world we live in today is too dangerous to even give out your age, let alone anything else.

Thanks to: http://community-2.webtv.net/imcraftee2/AWarningforKids for this vitally important word of warning to kids and parents regarding Internet Safety.

cat

looking for a good home for my cat. susan / liz has been taking care of my cat while i've been gone but i need to find a home for her. she is fixed and is used to a quiet environment. my granddaughter talked me into getting a kitten but as it turned out she is allergic to cats and now as well i can't have any pets in the apartment.

my new apartment

a friend suggested maybe God wants me to be in abby. i wasn't looking in abby, i didn't want a ground floor apartment, i wanted a view, i didn't want a busy street. actually when i think of what i didn't want i wonder how i got the apt i did.

friday i had driven by an apt in mission and there was nothing for sale. saturday after i put an offer in on my apt i learned that there was another showing 3 hours later. then tuesday i saw a for sale sign on the apt in mission. i called about it yesterday. s/w corner, top floor, view. i would have put an offer on it. it was more money than mine, and less square footage and had a balcony. mine is a ground floor garden apartment where i can plant flowers, veggies. it is just so me i can't wait to be in it.

not sure if God wants me to be in abby or not but it's weird how it's all come together.

for sale

yamaha piano in mint condition - offers??? (i don't know it's value and am trying to determine same)

extra heavy duty lawn mower - used one month (like maybe 3 times) - $225 or???

disposable income

talking to a friend about this recently, before i bought the apartment, and i thought wow what is that. will i really have some???

was going to rent an apartment - $750 / month

wanted to buy a sweet little mobile home in mission - spend all my money on the purchase then still pay $425 pad rental + heat.

thought about buying a mobile home out in deroche - spend all my money on the purchase, plus some, then still pay $325 pad rental + heat + huge amounts on gas back and forth.

bought a cute little apartment in abby where i can walk to almost anything or take the bus (definitely used to that) and my mortgage + a smaller maintenance fee (includes heat) will be way less than renting; equal to or less than buying either mobile home and it is mine and won't lose the value like a mobile home will.

will i have disposable income? nah but never had before so i won't be missing something i never had. but maybe after i get a job???

and the apartments that i looked at to buy in mission were $12k to $25 more than what i paid.

thank You Lord. and like a dear friend pointed out i have only been back 3 weeks. and the apartment is so bright, it is so me. i am so excited.

wow God is so very good to us.

cable tv

ok so i'm not just computer illiterate - what is all this?

Shaw Cable TV
Shaw Digital TV
Shaw On Demand
Shaw High Definition TV (HDTV)
Shaw High Definition Personal Video Recorder (HD+PVR)

obviously you can't just plug your tv in, turn it on and watch something anymore.

have i been gone that long? has it really only been 15 months???

internet service

since i have been away for awhile and it has changed so much i'm wondering if anyone can tell me who is a good isp.

i am so not computer literate so don't know the difference between - for example

Shaw High-Speed Lite Internet
Shaw High-Speed Internet
Shaw High-Speed Xtreme-I

Can't decide which High-Speed Internet Service is right for you? Choose your speed???? what is this - greek?

also price is a factor as well.

impact

talking to a friend about mercy last week. she said maybe she wasn't feeling very merciful this particular day.

i met a woman at the pool yesterday who sang praises about my friend. telling me how awesome she is, about how she is so compassionate. this woman is struggling in life right now and when her father passed away recently my friend was always there to offer her comfort and support.

compare it to a woman (or man) who goes to work to support her family or stays home to raise her children. we are not all meant for the same thing. we are not all gifted with the same things. but whatever or wherever we are we can make an impact in someone's life.

another woman at church on sunday said she wished she could do something more besides 'make teddies' wow! we have no idea how valuable we are. i couldn't make a teddy if my life depended on it. but when children are traumatized the police give them teddies. they cling to them like they are life supports. i can imagine the faces of the children around the world receiving her teddies. they have probably never received such a glorious gift in their lives. nor will again. and she wishes she could do more. it's too bad she can't see the joy she brings to these children. what joy it would give her.

it doesn't matter where God has placed us. it matters what we do with what God has given us.

i see very ordinary people all around me that are doing such amazing things for God and they aren't even aware of it. awesome!

i'm in awe of God's majesty. i'm in awe of His love for me.

furniture and stuff

ok so because i have bought a place i will be needing all the furniture and furnishings that everyone in church was so kind as to store for me in their living rooms or kitchens or bedrooms.

i don't need anything immediately but wanted to give you all notice so if you are using it you will have time to replace it with your own. and thank you all so very much.

bought a home

i was going to write bought a place but it came out bought a home. so many places in my life have been just that - a place. it's where i sleep at night. i think this is going to be different. it is so bright and homey.

for as much as i was so very excited to buy it, it all came together amazingly fast and unexpected, when i got into bed saturday night i got very sad.

a small, literally falling apart, dumpy house in costa rica has been my home for 15 of the past 17 months. obviously it wasn't the house that made it home but the family. my suitcase was my closet/dresser which was zipped up immediately so as to keep out the huge freaking spiders. for a couple of months i had been feeling that when i finally left cr at the end of december it would be the last time i would ever be there. now having bought a home here the financial reality of it hit home and the thought of never seeing "my family" again brought me to tears. but as ever thanks to God for His supernatural peace i am as excited as ever again.

cool pool

the kids took me to the new mission pool today. we were in the water for over 3 hours. i spent most of the time in the hot tub. it was wonderful - finally some warmth. it was fun playing with the kids.

new chemicals in the pool are a lot better than the old chlorine. i can see we're going to be spending more time in the pool.

until the summer comes. the kids have an above ground pool at their house.

feeling used?

i have been used many times by many people and i have used people. it was never a good thing. the connotation was always something bad.

not so anymore. now to be used is a good thing. i long for, i desire to be used... by God... for His joy, for His purposes. now to be used, by God, for His glory, is such a blessing, such a joy.

joy

the presence of God in your life.

church in amparo - a long time ago i told the pastor i didn't see a lot of joy in our church. he said people came but they were always expecting miracles. before christmas i bought a nativity scene for the church and the pastor said some people had approached him and said it had to go. it was idol worship. we talked about it and both felt that they were like pharisees, living under the law of moses and not knowing the joy of an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ.

last night in church as we were worshiping i noticed a man with his hands in his pockets. i wondered why he was there. i didn't sense any joy about him at all and wondered how can you worship God with your hands in your pockets.

later at club 365 scott talked about joy. it was wonderful last night. you could see and feel the joy. and i have to add, except for 1, i knew all the songs by heart and could sing them all. it was awesome.

actually that's why i wondered about being a christian. joy. a friend i had known for 30 years had become a christian and she always seemed so joyful. i wanted what she had. i asked her how she got it and she said she had just prayed about it. well not having a clue as to how to go about it i went to a couple of churches. found one i liked better and started attending regularly. the people were very warm and welcoming. the church bulletin had an email address for the pastor. i started emailing him about all the crap in my life and a barrage of questions - how did you get that joy, how did you become a christian. i was new to the internet and thought i was completely anonymous. not! little did i know. then one day in church he called me by name and i just about fell over. omg he knew all this stuff about me. thankfully now (in a way) he has bad memory so he wouldn't remember any of it.

thank you scott. for telling me about joy and helping me to find it. God is my life saver but you threw me the life-line.

joy - in case you missed it - it's the presence of God in your life. it's an intimate love relationship that fills your being. it doesn't matter whatever else may be happening in your life, if you have this relationship with God you have joy. He is internal and eternal. everything else is external and is not what gives you joy, happiness maybe, but that doesn't last.

you know Christ as your Lord and Saviour but don't have joy? what is coming between you? to have this joy you have to be in a right relationship with God. it's agony to have unconfessed sin in your life and feel separated from God. nothing is more important than to restore that relationship with God. nothing can compare to know the joy again of being in that right relationship.

if you don't have it and don't know how to get it ask God. He loves you so much He wants to have that relationship with you. He wants you to know the joy of loving Him and being loved by Him.

nothing else in life is more important.

home

heard a song on the radio today, "praising under open skies". the words "wherever you are, wherever you've been, He's been there" made me think of my own situation. i am looking for a place to call my own. Jesus never had a home to call His own.

end of the spear

movie about the true story of 5 missionaries killed in ecuador and how their deaths transformed lives. an amazing story of forgiveness.

coming to theatres jan 20th. i was so looking forward to going - and then i read that it's not being released in canada... just yet.

please pray for overwhelming attendance this weekend that would encourage the producers to show it in theatres in canada. also pray for transformation in the lives of everyone that has an opportunity to see this movie.

great website too. one person suggested taking the movie to people in prison. awesome idea. to show violent people how violent tribespeople were transformed.

church

went to a spanish church tonight. didn't know a soul but i knew the music. i could worship in spanish and it was wonderful. afterwards most of the people welcomed me and invited me to come back. met a couple who moved here from costa rica so it was cool to talk to them. even though i didn't know a soul i felt very at home there.

nh - must be a lot of new english music out there cuz i haven't recognized most of the songs sung in church last week or this. it makes me sad cuz it's hard to worship when you don't know the songs.

obedience

thought i was. when God said "but only for one year" for me to be in costa rica. i thought what harm could it do to stay a couple of extra months so i could be with the family at christmas. i wanted to be with them.

last night i had a very emotional time with God asking Him if i have been obedient to give me more. i want more, use me, send me. somewhere, anywhere, i want to go. notice - i want, i want. what does God want?

ok what about the part where He very clearly said "but only for one year" and i stayed longer. i was staying for me not leaving for Him as He had told me to do.

david inquired of God and God said attack and gave him victory. david inquired of God again and He said do something different then attack and again He gave him victory. each time David talked to God and was obedient. he depended on God. 1 chron 14:14

how often do we live our lives thinking we know best, better than God. what if God has a different plan for our lives. He says He knows the plans He has for us. jeremiah 29:11 and i believe Him. if we want to have God's blessing we have to be obedient and listen to Him.

rain

everyone is complaining about the rain. i'm surprised that i am not. i guess i would be too if i hadn't spent the past 14 months living in costa rica where it rains every day for 10 months. flooding, mud/landslides, bridge washouts, yeah. i'm just thankful that it's not snow. i just wish it was warmer.

bible

i've read it front to back a couple of times and i've read the nt many more times. each time i seem to glean a new insight, something i've read several times suddenly becomes clear and has meaning.

but this time - wow! i started at the beginning again, thinking i would do my daily reading to read the bible through in one year. as i've been reading it, it's like i don't remember reading this before, it's almost like reading a new book and i can hardly put it down.

lies, aldultery, murder

king david. guilty. it took the life of his child to bring him to repentance yet when he did God blessed him because he was a man after God's own heart.

God asked for the life of abraham's son yet He spared him when He saw that abraham was faithful.

Jesus suffered and died the same horrible death for your lie, my adultery, ted bundy's murders. but He is faithful and forgives us when we repent.

are you faithful? are you repentant? do you need forgiveness?

hypocrites

what hypocrites we would be if we are forgiven but not forgiving.

forgive

if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. but if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

matthew 6:14,15

and who among us is without sin.

think about it.

please

don't know what to do with myself but know i want more of God and want to do more for Him.

susan is planning a mission trip to mexico city in june but i don't feel called to go on that.

just checking out world vision's website and there are 2 trips that really got my heart going. one to el salvador and the other to honduras. one to build houses, the other to build gardens/irrigation systems.

sent an email to world vision to see if there is space. completely wired and probably won't sleep thinking about it. part of the deal though is that when you volunteer with world vision they ask that you find sponsors for 3 children in the country where you will be going.

blew me away 3 years ago in that i was blessed by 5 other people wanting to sponsor children. it was obviously such a God thing.

now i want to go again and again need sponsors for 3 children in each country.

i also think i need to talk to God about it to determine His will in the matter but when it touches my heart so deeply i can't imagine that it isn't His will.

please pray about this and if you feel you would like to sponsor a child in el salvador or honduras please let me know.

thank you and God bless you.

tests

hated taking tests in school but taking them on-line when it doesn't matter what the results are is ok. took one tonight that says i'm ready for clergy. that would be no.

i just love God and my heart has been aching for more of Him today. i am in need of more worship.

i need my own place. my own private space where i can talk with God. my time with God is usually very emotional and i want to sing out loud. i cry and people want to know if i'm ok. i'm ok. i just want to spend more time with God, alone. and it's hard when you don't have your own space.

i talk to Him as i'm driving down the road but driving becomes difficult when i can't see through the tears. tears of joy, tears of loving Him, tears of wanting more of Him.

tickle tests

Congratulations, Teri!Your IQ score is 127

This number is based on a scientific formula that compares how many questions you answered correctly on the Classic IQ Test relative to others. Your Intellectual Type is Facts Curator. This means you are highly intelligent and have picked up an impressive and unique collection of facts and figures over the years. You've got a remarkable vocabulary and exceptional math skills — which puts you in the same class as brainiacs like Bill Gates. And that's just some of what we know about you from your test results.

and for $12.95 you too can purchase your complete iq report. i think they have me confused with someone else. either that or we are all geniuses.

like when several bloggers were checking to see the value of their blogs. never figured out how that worked - i did that too and scored an amazing zero.

need to nest

i have a pillow for my head but need more. i have a room with friends while i search for a home. thought i'd found something and was ready to buy it - it got an accepted offer 4 days ago.

there's not much out there in my price range, and i considered this property high but am so anxious to have a place i can call my own that i would have taken it.

feeling lost, so far from home, with no place to call my own.

ikea

ikea - who's going to ikea. i need to go and buy all new bedding and whatever else i can't find that i gave away.

call me if you're going but don't leave a msg yet cuz i can't figure out how to get my messages out.

prospero ano nuevo!

happy new year!

back in canada. it's freaking cold here, i hate it. 7 degrees in abby today. 30 degrees lower than if i was at home. in costa rica.

can not believe the housing costs here. will never be able to afford to buy a house again. looking at buying a single wide mobile home but couldn't believe you still have to pay $425 each month for a pad rental.

being a mom

i sucked at being a mom. and it was only in the last few years that i realized that although my mom sucked at it too it was the best that she knew how to be. thankfully, with God's grace, we have a better relationship now than we have ever had.

mothers - we aren't perfect. we do the best we can with what we have. sometimes it isn't enough. sometimes we get lucky.

think you're in control???

think again.

yesterday am jonny, dany, mefy, eitel and i are sitting at the bus stop at 6.00 waiting to go to the bus terminal to go to playa jaco. eitel flipped over backwards and dany picked him up and was going to call him a clown when we saw that he was having a seizure. foaming at the mouth, eyes rolled back in his head, shaking uncontrollably.

we didn't get to jaco. i spent yesterday holding eitel's hand all day in the hospital. although he walked into the hospital he had no recollection whatsoever from sitting at the bus stop to waking up in the hospital.

he is ok now and has gone home in a car with marco, the oldest brother that is a nurse. the ct scan was normal and everything else appeared to be normal. the doctor said some people may have one seizure in their whole life and never another but he has referred him to a specialist.

i had thought i would have gone to the internet yesterday in jaco to wish everyone a merry christmas, like a private more intimate note to friends, i thought today i would have been at the beach with the boys. instead i am here in the internet and they are playing ps2 and getting their hair cut. it's not how i thought i would have been spending christmas.

they want to go to a place that's like playland tonight and i'm coming down with a cold so that's about the last thing i want to do.

for whatever reason eitel had the seizure yesterday at the bus stop it was definitely a God thing. it could have happened in jaco where there is no hospital or in the water and had serious consequences.

we are not in control. we are at God's mercy and i thank Him that He is merciful.

feliz navidad

y prospero año a todos.

merry christmas and happy new year to everyone.

i am in san jose today and going to playa jaco, the beach, very early tomorrow morning with jonny, dany, mefy and eitel for christmas. we will go to another beach, pajaros, just north of puntarenas, to spend 2 days at the house of patricio's father. everyone, all the brothers and sisters and their families will be there. dany and i will come back to san jose 28th and i will leave for canada 29th.

looking forward to seeing everyone.

Dios le bendiga.

God bless you.

needing a ride / room / apartment / basement suite ??

the ride is a definite need from the airport to mission. arriving 10:42 p.m. thursday dec 29.

also if someone has a spare room, basement suite, apartment i can have until i can find something.

does anyone need a housesitter for a week or 2 or month until i can find something?

tourists

the more i meet the more i don't like. most of the ones i have met are european and american. they seem to want to drink and be stupid. they want to go topless or naked on the beaches of costa rica and panama. i find them arrogant.

for as sexual a people as the ticos are they are offended by the nudity on the beaches because they take their children there. the tourists don't care.

i am more at home and comfortable with the locals.

the people in bocas del toro were not at all what i expected. most were very warm and friendly to me. the ones that weren't basically ignored me as they did other tourists and i felt it was because the rudeness of the majority of tourists has turned them off all of them.

on the road again

the time is flying by now and soon i will have to leave. got back last night from a 3 day whirlwind shopping tour to golfito and paso canoas in the south west corner of costa rica at the panamanian border. almost two days on the bus.

went to the south east corner of costa rica and panama for 4 days before that.

tomorrow i am going to tortuguero, the north east corner of costa rica. most of my time is spent on buses but this country is so beautiful i haven't wanted to miss any of it but at least i will see a bit of it.

i saw the northwest corner when i went to nicaragua one time.

it is a paradise for anyone but in particular for a horticulturalist. i have a friend who is one and he would be beside himself looking at the flora here. the plants are so beautiful and the trees are amazing.

when i went to panama last week i was so busy taking pictures i wasn't paying attention. (if you know me you won't be surprised) i ended up crossing the border and had to be called back because i hadn't gone through customs. again!