Christmas Eve

What a blessed day this was. Started off a little unorthodox with my mother jumping on my bed waking me up. (Apparently since we do it to her every Christmas morning, it was only fair that she get to do it to us! lol) The morning was filled with preparation as we were having our big dinner today and had other things to do to prepare for Christmas tomorrow.

Christmas Eve service was amazing; Jeff as blunt as usual, whipping us all into line and into the right frame of mind. It will never cease to amaze me how many people show up for these services! We went to the earliest one, apparently the least attended and their were people there over half and hour early (before us who were 25 minutes early), we barely got a front parking spot, and the sanctuary filled to overflowing. Like seriously, did everyone just decide to come to that service or were these those, once-a-year Christians filling the pews. They sure didn't get a nice, easy, fluffy Christmas message that's for sure! I hope it really made people think about their reasons for even coming into a church at all. What do they hope to prove? What is our purpose for meeting together?

After the service we prepared dinner and had it on the table around 5. It was so cool to have all these people in our house, grandparents, cousins, little baby Jayden. It was a beautiful moment. Everyone was totally absorbed by everything Jayden did. It just seems like every time I see that little boy, I love him more. The evening was filled with cheer and joy as we exchanged gifts with Jordan and Vanessa.

I loved hearing all the oohs and ahhs over Jayden, the laughter of playful teasing, the joy of shared memories and just having so many happy voices in the house was so amazing. Watching Jayden open his first gifts was such a precious, adorable moment that I know we will all treasure forever. It's little moments like these that make Christmas such a fun time to look back on and reminisce.

Pie and coffee came later followed by a hilarious game of "Things" that brought out laughter, wrestling and wore us all out. The evening was so great. Dad of course topped it all off when he looked out the window and exclaimed, "Look, it's snowing!...somewhere in the world."

I look back on the evening, in these wee hours of Christmas morning 2010 and I realize that we could not have done any of this with out Christ. I mean, the whole purpose of Christmas is to remember his birth, it's a celebration of Emmanuel. But it is also a celebration of what He did for us and how that is reflected in our lives. It is a hard time right now for our family. A very different, difficult Christmas but God's work in our lives shines brilliantly in our fellowship and joy together. The fact that any of this is even possible is proof of the hope and grace that Christ has given us. How I pray I will learn that humility that He embodied. I can never thank Him enough.

Gift Receipts

I've been thinking a lot lately about gifts and giving and Christmas in general. Ezra, one of the pastors at my church made a comment about how ridiculous gift receipts are. His comment has really stuck with me and made me see gift receipts as a great symbol of our attitudes both as givers and receivers.

For the giver, the one who goes out and spends the money, the gift receipt can illustrate our fear of rejection, our fear of getting the wrong gift, or perhaps our lack of care because we just expect the person to exchange the gift for something else. A gift receipt is a safeguard, a way out if we see disappointment as a response, we can always say, "and I included the gift receipt if it's not exactly right". Of course, for clothing and shoes which require the proper size it is understandable I suppose, but really, would it really be so much harder for us to call up a family member and ask for the right size?

As givers, we want to please, we want to bring a smile of joy and a sparkle of excitement to the face of the one we are giving a gift to. So often, we put hours of thought into a gift, days of careful listening for hints or weeks of desperate searching for the prefect thing but yet, we are so nervous in that moment of unwrapping. We so much want to please and I know I selfishly hope for affirmation as perhaps some of you do. The gift receipt not only portrays this nervous fear but also undermines all the thought we put into our gifts because it implies that even we don't think it is a the right gift. The gift receipt itself may cause doubt in the receiver.

As receivers, however, we become the problem. For I think it is our selfish desires and crummy attitudes as receivers that really creates the problem. For some reason we think that when someone is going to give us a gift, whether for birthday or Christmas, or even just something random, we have certain expectations. I always look for something I have asked for, or hinted at and feel disappointed with something not to my ideals. Or I compare my gift with someone elses' and think I see more thought or love in their gift which makes my gift seem not so great. Instead of receiving the love that comes behind the gift, I grudgingly accept the object which I may or may not like/use. We secretly hope for a gift receipt in order to have the option of choosing something we want or 'need'.

I'm beginning to see more than just stuff under the Christmas tree. Each gift is a display of love. With each purchase, someone was thinking of another person. Even if they didn't spend hours in thoughtful meditation to discern the 'perfect' gift, they thought of you or me or whoever for a few minutes while they searched, picked up, bought and wrapped that object. I think we, or at least I know I need to change the way I've been thinking. When I give a gift, I'm giving a representation of my care, my thoughts, my time, my appreciation and my love. When I receive a gift, somehow, I've got to realize that I am not just getting some random object, but all that comes with it.

In reality, the things we get under the tree are not what bring us real joy for "heaven and earth will pass away..."(Matt 24:35) and these things are not the real treasure for here on earth, "moth and vermin destroy and...thieves break in and steal" (Matt 6:19). So really, we shouldn't be putting so much hope and expectations in the gifts or even in the people we are giving to. We are all fallible sinners but with God's help, we can enter Christmas with the right attitude and have an awesome gift giving and receiving season.

Just who were you anyways?!?!?

When you think about the Bible, I'm sure there are some popular stories and people that automatically come to mind. People like Adam and Eve, Noah, Jonah, Daniel, David etc. We have lots of information about these people and we feel like we kinda know them but I've been wondering lately about the other people in the Bible, the ones we don't know much about. I want to know them more! Like, you know when you talk about heaven and seeing all these people and you get asked who you'd really like to meet? Well, I can't wait to meet the obscure people with only a few verses in the Bible. I mean, they must be important or they wouldn't be in there! And there are so many unfinished stories that I can't wait to hear fleshed out. I'll give you some examples:

Okay, so one I have been wondering about lately (seeing as it is Christmas time) is the wise men. I wonder if they will be in heaven. I mean, they came all that way to see the Savior, they must have believed He existed, so were they saved? If so, I'd love to hear their story! Like, what happened when they got home...where WAS home? Did they have families? Kids? How were their lives effected by seeing Jesus? Did they ever come back and search for Him later? Did they hear what happened?

Along those lines, what about the shepherds? How amazing would that be, to see all those angels, to see baby Jesus, to hear Mary and Joseph's story. I wonder how they lived the rest of their lives.

Another couple people I'd like to know more about would be Enoch and Methuselah. You hear so little about Enoch, but what was it like to "walk with God" and then suddenly he "was not". What a crazy life story! And Methuselah, wonder what he did all those years in his super long life!

And then there are the judges. Some of them we are given more information about but really, on the whole, we don't know much about them and I'd love to hear their life stories. For instance, Shamgar who as like one verse: "And after him (Ehud) came Shamgar the son of Anath, who struck down six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad; and he also saved Israel" Judges 3:31. Like...WHAAAT!?!? an oxgoad? really? Dude! I wanna know more!

And I'd like to know more about Boaz. What did they guy do before he met Ruth? How come he was like such a nice guy, during the brutal era of the Judges. What was their life like together?

And what about David's "mighty men"? How cool would it be to meet them!?!?

I'd also like to talk to all the people who were healed by Jesus. What must it have been like to be miraculously healed, by the Savior? To have faith and know that your daughter or servant has been given life, to see your friend raised from the dead, to walk again, to see, to be healed of leprosy, to be freed from the grasp of a demon. What about the little children that sat on His knee and were blessed. How did they live their lives?

Similarly, what about the one scribe who asks about the greatest commandment and "answered intelligently" (Mark 12:34)? Jesus said he was not far from the kingdom - did he make it? Did he believe?

And all the disciples that went out and preached and we don't have their stories, their testimonies. I can't wait to hear what happened to them, how they saw the Spirit work in other people's lives in those first years of the church.

I could go on forever probably. All these people that I want to meet and talk to, and one day, God willing, I will! It's weird how I feel this odd connection with them, though I don't know them, I know that we are family. Christ's family is vast and wonderful to be a part of. How blessed am I that God would choose me, that I have been saved and have become part of this family. Praise the Lord for His grace and love!

The funny things we do...

Is it just me and my family that finds it odd and basically impossible to pour bottled water bought with hard earned cash down the drain? I mean, it's not like it's any different than the water that comes out of the tap but we felt it imperative that we use it...so my Nalgene is now full of the precious water and sitting in the fridge awaiting someone's worthy throat.

And further, does anyone else find it just even more tempting to go buy Starbucks drinks simply because they are served in an adorable Christmas cup with cute little sayings on them??

Or what about the sudden rise in my fruit consumption as I feel like I have to eat like 4 Mandarin oranges a day because they are SO good and they are only around this time of year! Anyone else...or is that just me...?

And then there is that avoidance of leaving the house due to the wetness coming from the clouds. It's just not fun to flatten your hair, have to put on a jacket, wear shoes that won't get soaked through and use the irritating windshield wipers. Maybe I should move...

Rude awakening

Dad woke me up this morning talking to Danae and I forced my eyelids open (seriously, it was hard work! It took TWO TRIES), saw that it was still dark and realized Danae was still here so it had to be before seven (I have no idea who this girl is who now gets up early and is actually able to FUNCTION before seven! I'm like...this would have solved a lot of stress problems last year my dear. haha). Anyways so suddenly I remember that it was supposed to snow last night so I sit up, flip the curtain up (not really expecting anything - after last year's fail winter, I wasn't too hopeful) and there it is! All this beautiful soft white stuff coating the roof and falling from the white clouds...which actually I couldn't see because it was still dark outside. So basically I got really excited and jumped out of bed, ran out of my room and Danae and I smacked each other into a huge hug squealing and then Mom yells from the bedroom so we go jump on her bed then Janelle yells from downstairs so we run back out there and then...I go back to bed.

Ten minutes later, I get back up because I can't sleep anymore. It's only 6:45 in the morning. I haven't gotten up that early in like 2 months or longer...but here I am. It's crazy how much more time it seems there is in the day! Oh and, it's still snowing!!

Oh and by the way. I have decided to keep blogging through my Christmas break for all who were wondering. I know many of you would be disappointed if I took a break and I can't let my loyal supporters down! (sometimes I pretend that there are lots of people out there reading me... but then sometimes that is a little frightening so I stop pretending). Anyways, I enjoy it too much so I will just keep it up. And also, I decided it works anyways because, as I learned in Jackson, a "hole" is really just an old fashion word for valley or area between mountains so I'm still in one. From now on, it shall be called, the "Fraser Hole". Has a nice ring to it doesn't it? How do you like that all you Abbotsfordians? You live in a hole too!

Home, a little unorthodox, but I got here

Was rudely awakened this morning by some hungry crows thumping and knocking on the roof. Apparently people think it is oh so funny to dump their pita bread stuffs everywhere and in doing so attract a million birds to come to the feeding grounds and then since it is so BLISTERINGLY cold out there, the bread is solid rock so the dear old birds fly to the roof tops and smash it on the shingles and patter about trying to eat the stuff. It's a good thing I love being home, or I might have woken up ticked this morning.

By the way, sorry I have been gone so long if you were wondering where I've been. Here is the story since I last posted. Sorry, it's a little long.

I don't really know what to write. This homecoming, this past weekend was not at all what we had all envisioned: big welcoming party at SEATAC, going shopping at the Outlet mall, staying up late looking at pictures and sharing memories and just enjoying being home. God had other plans and though I see His hand of timing through it all, it is still hard to adjust - hard to even believe all the stuff that happened the past few days.

I guess I'll start with Thursday. I got news that Uncle Dave wasn't doing well and my family was driving up to Kelowna to be with the family. We changed my flight to fly into Kelowna and my dear friends at the collage gathered around me and we prayed. Friday morning, in class, I got the text: "Uncle Dave is with Jesus. Hallelujah!" and well, everything changes. I couldn't go back to class but had a nice quiet time with my dear friend Elisha. God totally sent her there for me and we could comfort each other and talk and it was okay. Since I couldn't be home with my family, there was no better place for me to be. I thank God again and again for putting with that group of people. They were so awesome and supportive.

Leaving school was hard. We drove off in a big caravan at about 2 and it's weird how I feel like I've left a piece of myself there and with those people. God is really doing stuff in our class and I miss them already. Hours later I get to Tatiana's house and stay the night with her, then we drive out at 8:30 the next morning to the Denver airport (that place is HUGE by the way and just SLIGHTLY intimidating...I admit, I almost threw up but I survived). Got on the plane at 12, got to Seattle at about 2ish, got on another plane at 3 (oh but before that I had to find the gate - had to TAKE A TRAIN!!! - I felt so independent and smart finding it all on my own but in reality, it wasn't hard. The airport people are quite talented at making stuff easy to find - thank goodness!).

So I got Kelowna at about 4:30pm but had to wait a hundred hours to get off the little plane (which Dad told me was so small that we were going to do a loop-de-loop before we landed...didn't happen but it was atrociously loud in there). Then I had to wait a million years to get my bag - BY MYSELF because we came from the US and had to go through customs which was another billion year long line-up. However that wasn't bad because as I'm standing in line all antsy I hear a whistle, look up and through the sliding door leading out of customs I see my siblings with balloons waving frantically and shouting. I wave back and as the doors slide shut everyone in line slowly turns and looks at me and I'm like..."hehe, my family..." and I can't help but smile. So that happens a few more times and then suddenly I hear this garbled, "Annaaaaleaaaa???!! Analeeeaa!!" and so on...and my brother is at the wall (which is like not a real wall) and he is on the floor trying to see me under it...and then he is at the crack saying my name and I can see their silhouettes through the wall but what am I supposed to do, just yell back with all these strangers in line who already think I'm a weirdo?? haha This one old lady is like "they sound pretty excited" (I'm thinking...well that's an understatement, they sound like crazies!!!) and I'm like, "I've been gone for awhile.."

So I finally get through customs and there they are! My sisses with balloons and an obscenely bright poster and my Mom and Dad, my brother, my cousins, the Swaans, my grandparents and the whole seen is so perfect, well as perfect as it could be in the situation. After much hugs and a few tears, I get to hug my beautiful nephew, and then I spot a Tim Hortons cup and have an immediate craving and I want to kiss the ground cuz there is really no place like Canada, people!

It was hard though because my homecoming was tempered with the news of Uncle Dave and I was so glad to be there to comfort my dear cousins and Auntie but could've talked for a year about all my stories and couldn't stop hugging people and smiling. It really was a joyous occasion because Uncle Dave is in such a better place, but it is so hard being back here you know. I had bursts of joy tempered with sadness and it was just a confusing mix of emotions that really leaves you quite exhausted.

So we drive home on Sunday and I talked the ENTIRE drive home. Most of you won't be surprised by this. It was the shortest 3 1/2 hour drive ever!

It is so amazing to be home, back in Abby. A few things have changed...and the cold was unexpected (I just left this weather in Jackson!) but it's my town, my people. There is really no place like home and it's great to be back

C'mon let's all be kids again

Katy

Pastor Don always calls us kids, today he even called us children and ya know, coming from another person, we might be tempted to take offense but I find it strangely comforting and encouraging when he says it. I know that he loves us so much and it is a term of endearment but more than that, it is a compliment in a way for we are enthusiastic as children as we learn all this new stuff. It is cool to be a kid, I mean, it's not like I'm old or anything but I haven't really thought of myself as a kid for awhile and it's really refreshing. It gives you complete freedom to ask questions, to learn without worrying about what others will say. Kids have an innocence and aptitude for learning that I think we slowly lose as we grow older.

Jackie

I watch Katy, Jackie, and Ally (Jared and Annie's kids) each day and I've been really thinking about this a lot today. The girls are so free to laugh, so quick to accept, so quick to love and trust. I find it sad that I have lost this ability. I mean, it's necessary because the real world isn't a Bible Collage campus and we can't just go around letting strangers scoop us up, eating meals beside and chattering to whoever will listen, etc. But sometimes I wish it were not such a place that hardens people so much and makes us all afraid to trust others. It has been such a blessing living here these three months and I feel the trust of a child with everyone around here - the collage and the church. I feel safe, like a child with her family. Yet, of course, I've also observed the girls pull fits and cry, demand things selfishly as children and compete with each other and I have to say, I feel like we all somehow maintain that part of our childhood to some degree. I know I still have a tendency to want attention, to want my needs met first, to cry when I'm frustrated or stressed. Unfortunately, my mind is not as quick to forgive, forget and get over whatever issue I'm fretting about. I think there is a lot we can learn from kids and in some ways, things we could change about ourselves.

Ally

I pray that I am always a kid - in a way that I am always ready to learn, that I accept wisdom and realize that I do need discipline and guidance like a child sometimes. I want to be God's kid - always trusting, loving unconditionally, excited over every word that He has to say and waiting anxiously for my Father always. I thank Him for giving me the chance to be considered a kid again under Pastor Don's wise teaching and I pray that He gives me a child's mind, open and receptive, yet wisdom beyond my years to discern and find the truth.

Hello WINTER!

I said a fond farewell to the grass on Sunday as it was slowly overtaken by the army of little wet, flecks of shredded cloud. It was with joy (and a little trepidation) that I noted this was probably the last time I would see the brownish-green blades until March or April next year. It has been snowing pretty much nonstop since Sunday, with quite the fierce wind blowing in today and it is suggested that the snow will continue as such for the foreseeable future. As such, when I return in January, there is likely to be 2 -3 feet of snow if not much more. At the moment this brings only excitement (as a Canadian who lives in a generally warm, wet climate but still has the blood of a Manitoba-living mother and Calgary-born Father in her and always longs for such things as two feet of snow to flounce through) however I do fear that after a few weeks, the cold will get to me and I will wish for rain. Also, I dread the coming of warmth which will bring mounds of slush...not enjoyable or nice to look forward to and therefore I refuse to dwell on the subject and will instead simply stare out my window with comfortable happiness as the world slowly loses all colour...

Oh the joys of living at the Rocky Mountain Lodge: not only do we get mounds of snow but the septic system is so high tech that we even have guys who come out and clean our septic tanks for us! Now that is service...the smell however is not so fabulous. It was an interesting class yesterday, first trying not to breath too deeply, then, trying to keep warm as we opened both doors and let the great icy wind gust through the classroom to air the place out. I be thinking we won't be able to do that for very much longer.

With all the snow comes thoughts of Christmas and though I know many of you may not be there yet, it's coming my friends. Are you ready for it? I, for one, am psyched! I don't know if I have ever before looked forward to Christmas as I do this year. Of course this is probably due in part to being finally back with my family and really, it does make it all the more special. We are already avidly listening to Christmas music around here and buying presents and we even have a tree up! Workday in the kitchen was cheered by 3 hours of Christmas music. (Heather found Alabama Christmas and I was beset by nostalgic emotions as old memories surfaced.) What is it about Christmas music that can lighten any atmosphere, brighten any spirit and bring a smile to every face - even those who have to cut up peppers for 2 hours and end up with orange stained hands and finger nails!?!? Ya know, maybe it truly is the most wonderful time of the year...or maybe I'm just too easily influenced by sleigh bells and songs of snow.

A small request

Well, Formal Night was basically a blast (see the photo page for pics) and I didn't get to sleep til after 2am but it was SOOO fun! It is so weird to think that this is my last Saturday here for awhile!

So anyways, I wanted to let you all know about this really cool thing that the college did. Eric Hovind, our last professor has this ministry called Creation Science Evangelism and they are having a contest. You have to make a movie and in one minute explain why you believe God is real. So some of my classmates made one and we would love to win and are planning on donating the prize to the college. The other thing is Eric asked us to do it because he wants us to win because there is an atheist who did one and it is really good - no one will know that he is an atheist and his movie is really good and it would just not be cool if he won so if you could all go on and vote for our video - it is really good, seriously and support the college that way, it would be great!

So, I put the link in the News section but here it is too: http://www.drdino.com/. And you click on the Enter contest button on the orange bar on the bottom and then click see all - ours is by Christopher Simon so it would be awesome if you could vote, tell your friends to vote and vote everyday! haha

Thanks so much all!

Humming Hymns

First of all...HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!

Secondly, I got 100% on my final...it was true/false...except not really...cuz they were all true so as long as you figured that out, well it was pretty simple. haha

I just had to remark on how much we sing hymns here. I mean, I think I have sung more hymns in the three months I have been here than in my whole life put together. I love it! We sing them to start off every class (well Pastor Don's classes and some other profs do it too) and we sing at least one every Sunday. There is just something neat about everyone opening up their own hymnal and singing together a song that Christians have been singing for hundreds of years. Especially in class, it produces these community effect, all of us raising our voices, no music, people harmonizing and sometimes making mistakes - it's beautiful really. I have learned so many new hymns and of course sang many popular ones that I have heard many times before. Hymns aren't really any different than any other worship song but their history just seems to travel with them and every time they are sung, with every person who sings one, another event is added to their story. I dunno, maybe this is all just crazy and I'm just sentimental but I have really enjoyed the hymn singing hear. Don't get me wrong, I love our more modern worship songs and prefer them most the time but I have found a new appreciation for old hymns that I never had before.

Yes, no, maybe, I dunno

WARNING: long post

Controversies in the church... it's a controversial subject. I mean, seriously. Did you know there is even a controversy about whether there should BE controversies!? We are supposed to be studying 21 controversies this week but so far, we've gotten through 3. What can I say, it's Pastor Don!

John Piper says, "Controversy is essential where precious truth is rejected or distorted. And controversy is deadly where disputation about truth dominates exultation in truth." Jesus wants the Church to be united and commands us to love above all things (Col. 3:14) so even if we disagree, we should still be able to love each other! As Christians we are all part of the body of Christ - ONE body so no matter the controversies, we can't tear that body apart or it becomes wounded and dysfunctional. We are to speak the TRUTH in LOVE (Eph. 4:15) that iron may sharpen iron (Prov. 27:17).

We talked a lot about Charismatic churches and the gift of tongues. It is by far one of the most controversial topics out there. I remember a while back when Jeff first addressed the issue at Northview. It was the first time I had really even heard much about the gift of tongues and it kind of scared me. It frightens me still a little to think that there are churches out there in which speaking of tongues is commonly the main part of a church service - where everyone speaks in tongues and is expected to be able to do so. The Bible states that not all will have every gift. There are a variety of gifts given directly by the will of the Spirit and therefore, though we have different gifts, they are all from the same source as 1 Corinthians 12 emphatically states. If the Holy Spirit gives the gift, well then I find it a little disconcerting to hear that many Charismatic believers try to get everyone to speak in a tongue, they try to help them along but NOT everyone will do so and we shouldn't try to if it isn't given to us. Moreover, I don't even know if I believe the gift still exists today. 

Pastor Don said that most theologans say there are 3 options for the manifestation of 'tongues' today: 1 It is the work of the Holy Spirit 2 It is from the evil one (who can duplicate and pervert the gifts) 3 it is something from the Fall that is manifesting itself as a shadow of perhaps something that Adam and Eve could do. Whatever it is, I believe as Pastor Don does that if you speak with tongues, you should get an interpreter, or pray for an interpretation as it says in Corinthians because you need to know what you are saying as it says in 1 Corinthians 14. Without an interpretation, the gift is not edifying to the church and as it has today, it actually divides. 

I found it amazing that the love chapter (1 Cor. 13) was found right in the middle of these two chapters on the spiritual gifts. I had never noticed it before. In fact chapter 12 ends off with: "And I show you a still more excellent way" and goes on to talk about the how the spiritual gifts are nothing if you have not love. I had never seen all the parallels to the spiritual gifts in this familiar chapter on love and I now see it in a whole new light. Further, Don pointed out verse 8 which states that the gifts of prophecy and knowledge will be done away and the gift of tongues shall cease. Now we looked into the tenses these were written in in the Greek and done away is in a tense which implies that something will stop the prophecy and knowledge but cease was written in a way to indicate that the gift of tongues shall stop itself. Perhaps the very purpose of the gift had a built in purpose which would cause an end to it. Pastor Don personally believes that the gifts of healing, tongues and miracles are no longer manifest today and I think I have come to agree with him. Yes healing does occur as do miracles but people do not have these gifts in a way in which they used to occur in the early church. 

This has become a really long post and I don't know if it makes much sense as I am just sorting through our class discussion in my mind and it is coming out as such. There is so much more that we learned and the text has so much more information but I don't want to bore you all with little details. I'm sure some of you would love to sit in on the class and maybe we can discuss these things some more when I get home in TEN DAYS!

If I was a rich man...

So that's it. I didn't get very far as I fell...but still, pretty great. I got talent I think. haha

I hope this made you smile and inspires you all to dance and wear Snuggies...okay maybe not but I hope you laughed. 

Until next time, I remain yours truly: "the girl dancing while wearing a Snuggie"

Randomness and Reviews

 

Guess who's done her Christmas shopping!?!?!? And had a blast too. Kaitlyn, Lish and I went into town around 3 and spent hours there just browsing around - checking EVERY store before we bought stuff to make sure we got the best. hehe. We had such a great time together searching high and low for the coolest touristy stuff for our families.

Oh and another cool thing, the US capitol picks a tree every year to set up at the White House and they picked one from Jackson this year so they were doing this little parade thing at 4:30. I'm telling, you ALL of Jackson was in the square - and I didn't know there were that many people in Jackson! It was crazy. The parade shindig was pretty lame but the tree - THAT was worth seeing. It was huge. I heard someone said it was 70ft! It was pretty sweet to see and all these people had like little sprigs from it and there was like a brass band playing and they had put the lights on the arches and stuff and it was all just so Christmasy and full of community spirit.

 

Also this weekend, we totally watch Toy Story 3, Fiddler on the Roof, and The Inheritance. I know, pretty crazy for a school that said we weren't allowed to watch movies. Anyways, Toy Story 3 was pretty amazing, I have to affirm all you people who kept telling me it was. However, I didn't find the monkey as creepy as the baby. Also, we decided it was ALMOST the worst movie in the world - (spoiler alert for all you who were like me and haven't seen it) you know the part where they are like all sitting holding hands ready to die in like the burning pit of Mt Doom? Well, ya, that would have been really stupid. However, it turned out pretty fabulous and not even THAT said, like you all said. I would give it a 41/2 out of 5 stars

Fiddler on the roof...now that was kind of a sad movie...just kind of. haha. Jessica was like, THAT'S IT!?!? and so I cheered everyone up with my imitation of the old man's dance (you know when he's marching around the barn singing "If I was a rich man...") Ya...ahem. They made me do it again for a video and me of course, ended it off by slipping on my Snuggie. which I happened to be wearing, and falling flat out. I will try to upload the video maybe so you can all laugh. Fiddler gets 3 1/2 stars.

And The Inheritance was also a pretty fab movie. Based on the novel by Louisa May Alcott, it actually didn't turn out how I thought it would which was pretty surprising. I mean, don't get me wrong, I still predicted most of it along with half the class but the ending wasn't what I thought it would all turn out to be when we first started it. It gets 4 stars.

So there you have it, some random stories from the weekend and some movie reviews. So go put on some Christmas music, smell some pine trees and drink in the anticipation for another coming Christmas season!

Surprised my head is still attached

We spent a while in class today on atheist blogs and wow, that is a scary place to go! The people on the other end ...well, they aren't Christian and they don't pretend to be. Seriously, they practically bite your head off every time you try to say anything. They are so mean! and I don't even mean just unkind, most of them are cussing you out, calling you names, putting down your intellect - everything except giving a real response to your questions. We went in there with 1 Peter 3:15 in our hearts (But sanctify the Lord God in you hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear)

It has been an enlightening experience but it saddens me so much. Those people are all so lost and there is no way that we can convince them of their folly. Everything we say really does sounds like foolishness to them and just like 2 Cor. 2:14 says they just can't understand or accept the things of God. But, we did not go into the lions den for their sakes, but for God's glory. We knew that we wouldn't convert anyone but the Holy Spirit can work through our feeble efforts and it debating like that really helps to sharpen and strengthen your own faith. But beware if you try it because it gets frustrating when they twist your words, it is disheartening to see that you are getting nowhere and despite it all, their comments hurt sometimes. However, I have found that my pity for them greatly overcomes any anger or hurt I may have. They are truly lost. 

I thank God that He saved me. It is only by GOD'S GRACE that I am on this side of the argument and not yelling terrible things back to a bunch of Christians in Wyoming. How great is my God!?! I can not even understand why He picked me and I know I don't truly grasp the magnitude of what He has done for me. How can I help but want to live every second for Him. I pray that I will continually glorify Him in all I do for, that is the least I can do.

To the Streets

Today, after lunch, we went as a class with a few staff members and witnessed to the people of Jackson. It was the first time I have ever done something like that and it was nerve-racking but exciting. I walked around with Shannon and though we didn't get into any deep conversations we were able to give out gospel tracts to quite a few people.

I still don't really know how I feel about tracts except that I know that God, the Holy Spirit can use anything and I believe we planted some seeds today. A few people in the group were able to really talk to people that were open to hearing the gospel. It was an amazing experience and I'm praying God will use the little work we have done here to glorify Him.

I fear that we as Christians really don't share our faith enough. Every time we leave the house we should be looking and ready to tell others the good news. We learned a lot about "The Way of the Master" and how to share the gospel by first starting with the law so that a person can see their need for salvation. I feel more equipped to actually talk to people because I know how to talk to them.

Also I have really seen how we need to go out there and tell people. I mean, Jesus commanded us to tell the world and even if people reject us - they are really rejecting God and they will have no excuse on Judgment Day. Judgment is real and I do care about my fellow man; if we truly believe what the Bible says then...all those lost people are headed for eternity in hell and if I can share the gospel with them and the may Holy Spirit uses me, then how can I not go out there?

Forgive me

Another challenge. Think of the gospel message today. Have you ever realized how much humanistic ideals have crept in. I was completely blown away today. Humanism says that the end of all being is the happiness of man; the reason for existence is the happiness of man. I know, you are denying that this is part of the gospel but think about it. How often have we heard "Jesus loves you so much and He wants to bless you and give you a reason to live. He will change your life and give you a joy you never knew" or something of that kind. Since my childhood, I remember praying that "everyone will become a Christian so they will go to heaven." How often have I feared for my friends or acquaintances because I want them to go to heaven. I'm only hoping for their happiness in the end. I don't want them to be damned to an eternity of terror. But the very purpose of salvation isn't for mankind's happiness - it's ultimately for God's glory

Is your salvation based on the end result of your happiness. What if it was only hell that awaited you in the end. Would you still serve God, simply because He is worthy. Would you still give your life to the only one who actually holds control. Are you willing to give EVERYTHING in your service to Him? Jesus did. Why are you a Christian? Are you sure you want to be a Christian.

Listen to this youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtFZhuFBlOo take a break and watch all 5 parts. If you aren't effected by this...I don't know what to say.

Feel free to leave a comment and let me know how you feel about it. My first reaction: I cried

Significantly insignificant

Our first day of Eric Hovind's class blew us all away. God has convicted each one of us through this gifted man and wow. I'm excited but a little afraid of what the week is going to bring.

It's all about your worldview. That determines everything about you! And there are only two options:

God did it all or...
                                                                  He didn't
What you think about God tells a whole lot about you and determines how you live. Did you know that the word universe comes from Latin and means one (uni) spoken sentence (verse). I mean seriously! The scientists have spent hundreds of years debating how the "one spoken sentence" came into existence...ummmmmmmm...

It's a fact that every argument against God can be reduced to foolishness. Psalm 14:1 says "the fool hath said in his heart, 'there is no God.'" Furthermore Romans 1:18-22 tells us that EVERYONE knows God. They are willfully suppressing the truth. Since the creation of the world, God has shown Himself to man and yet man has rejected Him purposefully in sin. Eric says that the reason people scoff at the Bible is never because of science - it's always because of sin. People know the truth but they choose to go against God and live their own way. In reality, there is no such thing as an atheist because to say there is no God means that you know EVERYTHING about the earth, the universe and beyond. You have to know all that is out there in order to say resolutely that there is no God...but in that case, if you know everything, then you yourself are god...so...there is a god...YOU.

But no matter how much we argue and debate, even if we KNOW we are right, we will never convert anybody. It is only by the grace of God, through the Holy Spirit that anyone can come to salvation in Christ. Sometimes I think I give myself too much responsibility in this matter because I blame myself for my inadequate presentation of the gospel and I freak out about people I know, my school friends, the WORLD that doesn't know Christ but in reality, it's God who brings people to Himself. Yes He uses us, but...He doesn't have to - He doesn't NEED us! If He did, He wouldn't be God.

But He is God. and oh, what a God He is. He is worthy to be praised. Just look at some pictures of the universe! Look at the stars, the galaxies, the planets and you can't possibly help but see God. The amazing thing is, it's all out there for HIS GLORY (Psalm 19:1). In fact EVERYTHING God does is to His glory. Think about it, if man's greatest goal is to glorify God, why would God's be any different. God has no one else to give glory to but Himself for He alone is worthy. Even at the cross, it was all for His glory.

It is impossible for us to understand how huge His love for us is until we begin to grasp how huge our God really is. And in doing this, maybe we will understand how significantly insignificant we really are. Just look at a picture of the universe if you need a wake-up call. Isaiah 40:17 says that the nations are nothing to God...and I, I am just one person among the nations. That God loved us enough to save us from our sin, to redeem His fallen creation, in His ultimate plan for HIS GLORY, is unbelievable. There is nothing I can give that isn't already His and I feel completely unworthy in His presence yet He welcomes me, moreover, I can call Him Father!

My only response is: How can I live today, for His glory?

Cakes, Quizzes and Cornpops

Yep, I'm still alive out here. Sorry about the delay in writing but it's been a pretty crazy week. I'll admit, today was super lazy for me and I could've blogged anytime. Don't ask me why I'm doing it now, at 11:30...

After a week of daily quizzes, lots of reading, deep theological stuff and an essay-type book report, today was blessedly quiet and I got a lot of chill time in. I started of the day with a solid meal of Cornpops (Canadian of course, the only way to go) and then Kaitlyn and I made 3 cakes for the cake-walk tomorrow. Oh, I totally forgot, tomorrow, instead of Halloween, the church is putting on a fun fair type thing and so I'm basically gonna be at the church all day helping set up and stuff. I've got to take some pictures of the cakes because we had such a blast. We made them all double-tiered and Kaitlyn broke the first one we made but we tried to stick it back together but it was doomed from the start. We ended up just making the huge crack down the middle and subsequent crumbled explosion out the side just look purposeful and lovingly called the cake "Landslide" as per Kenton's suggestion. The other two turned out really well. We made a carrot cake which Kaitlynn decorated amazingly with this nasty orange frosting and then a chocolate heart-shaped cake which I covered in chocolate shavings. They are pretty beautiful I have to say.

But that's not where all the cake fun ends. After spending like 2 hours making cakes, as you would expect, we were craving cake like CRAZY! Luckily we had rescued a bunch of store-bought ones from certain death in the garbage yesterday so we proceeded to chow-down on not so fabulous chocolate cake. I mean, I don't even know why we ate that much, it really wasn't that good but it was chocolate and we were craving...what else can I say?

What about God?

Have you ever really thought about God? Just sat there and contemplated Him? I mean, the implications of a real, active, powerful God living today are huge! but even more frightening is the idea that there is no God. For if there is no God, then there is no reason to live. Ask yourself: does the fact that God exist, really matter? Why?

If God did not exist, there would be no purpose, no absolutes, no morality and no hope. The very existence of God gives us the life we have. Without Him, there is no point.

The above question may have been answered easily and by rote for many of you but now I ask you to contemplate: What if you could have heaven (no pain, no tears, perfect happiness, complete, eternal bliss) - without God? Would that be enough?

This question really made me think. It really gets to the core of why you believe. I mean, how many of us will say that the fear of hell had nothing to do with their salvation? How many of us would claim that they haven't ever just wished this life were over so that they'd be in heaven - not thinking only of God's presence, but a rest; a relief from the struggles of this unfair world? How many times do we comfort the mourning with "don't worry, they are in a better place" or "he doesn't feel anymore pain" or "next time you see him, he will be able to run and pick you up in a hug". Don't we all just ache for the day when we have brand new, perfect bodies? I must admit that the joys I imagine when I think of heaven don't always list God's presence at the top. But this question has changed that view for I took it really seriously. For awhile, I kind of panicked, to tell you the truth. I felt for a moment so shallow and pathetic but I thought about it more and I now know for sure the answer to that question beyond just the Sunday school-taught response.

Heaven would not be enough without God. As Pastor Don said, paradise is wherever Jesus is - but what if you could have paradise without Jesus? Well, I contemplated this and realized some basic things: my life on earth is pointless without God, and hopeless without my savior - why would heaven be any different? Furthermore, I realized the blessings I have received through my relationship with Christ and how much more would blessings abound seeing Him face-to-face!? I realized that you could conjure up the greatest bliss, the most beautiful place, the perfect world but it would all be fake because as soon as you take God out of the picture there is only emptiness, worthlessness, and purposelessness. A paradise without Him would be one in which we were all robots with no emotions, no opinions, and no ability to enjoy because there would be no reason for such feelings. Without God, we are dead, no matter in what condition or circumstance we find ourselves whether in heaven or hell.

Since we've no place to go...

Let it SNOW BABY! So basically today has been a blast. First thing I did this morning was peek through the blinds and I have to admit, I was shocked to actually see snow. Like, back home, a night of pouring rain would never culminate in SNOW! Everyone was practically giddy with excitement and as the snow continued to fall all morning, you could feel the anticipation rising.

Kaitlyn was so cute. She had never been in falling snow before - just seen in on the ground and she was like a little girl. Most of the snowflakes were like little hailstone-pellet things - you know the type and so she was sad and wanted to see a real snowflake. She held out her hands by the door and suddenly there is this cute little squeal, "Oh my, it looks like a snowflake! Oh, it melted!" It was so adorable and she made me smile all day. I was sitting in my room like, "I love snow!" and she's like, "So far, I like it to". haha

 Class was amazing and I will have to write about it sometime soon but at the moment I have too much to do to go into it. When we got out of class there was probably 3 inches which quickly prompted a snowball fight and Chase fashioned quite a magnificent snowman...with help from some others.

It has been such a fun day and it feels like Christmas. It's hard to believe, with snow on the ground, that Christmas is 2 months away!

So basically, be jealous all you Abbotsfordians! We're having a blast out here (feel free to visit any time!)

Just another day in Jackson Hole

Today it was raining...all day...and I really mean - ALL DAY! However, don't misunderstand me! Those are pauses intended to pique your interest and arouse your curiosity, wonder and excitement - not pauses indicating boredom or to accentuate the fact that this was unacceptable thing. For indeed, I met the grey drippy day with unusual gusto and zeal, for it has been quite sometime since precipitation of any kind has fallen from these stark blue skies. The mighty drainage of the "visible mass of droplets of water or frozen crystals suspended in the atmosphere above the surface of the earth or other planetary body*" invoked an internal "visible mass of droplets of water or frozen crystals suspended in the atmosphere above the surface of the earth or other planetary body" of nostalgia which brought me back to my early days back when I lived on the far western part of our frozen winter neighbour up North. How I used to soak up every droplet of condensed vapour, particularly relishing the drenching downpours which flooded roads and gutters instantly and sent visibility levels down to nil. With these heartwarming memories soothing my heart, the day could only get better. And so it did -

--------We interrupt our regular broadcast schedule to bring you this breaking news update.--------

Today, 25 miles from Jackson, WY (though nobody really knows where that is so giving the location is pretty much obsolete information - its the square state kinda centrally-northerly-ish and the town is like on the western side...) an earthquake measuring 4.8 on the Richter scale struck, causing a landslide in the mountains and was felt for 330 miles around (except not at Community Bible Church in Jackson itself where a certain congregation populated with students from a certain Bible College, including a certain somebody with certain characteristics (humility being foremost) and an amazing personality... happened to be in worship service and apparently missed out on the whole fascinating affair). It occurred at approximately 11:45 this morning  (mountain time) and so far no damage, other than the landslide, and no permanent deaths have been reported. It was actually altogether a rather uninteresting happenstance that requires no further embellishment but since I like to hear my own voice I will take this moment to recite a poem - a favorite, often recited by a dear friend:

Curious fly

Vinegar jug

Slippery edge

Pickled Bug

--------We will now returned to your regularly scheduled program--------

So...what was I talking about...oh the rain...right...was I really just talking that long about the weather??? What am I an old lady with nothing insightful to say!?! This is just plain old embarassing and I can no longer continue. I'm deeply sorry about this, but you will just have to wait until tomorrow. I had all these plans for a deep, theological post but...well, as you can see, I got interrupted...so, you will just have to wait. But tune in next time for: how to pickle-

------BREAKING NEWS!!! IT'S SUPPOSED TO SNOW TOMORROW!!!-------

*Wikipedia def

Poodle skirts and milkshakes

Gather round! Listen up! Get excited! It's the moment you've all been waiting for: my recount of our 40s/50s night!!!!

okay, so maybe you weren't that excited but you should be because it was AWESOME. They gave us two hours to get ready (for the girls of course. The guys are like...what are we supposed to do? We answered: shower, sleep, whine...as usual). It was so fun, all of us doing each others hair, everyone being all like, "you're so cuuuuute!!!" The funny part was, the girls all got to the lodge before the guys! It was all decked-out with polka dots and streamers and looked so fab. Of course there was awesome music playing.

Everyone looked so awesome and the food was so good. We had made stuffed mushrooms for work day (oh and Lesley and I made 4 DOZEN banana muffins and 7 loaves!) and then they made us burgers, pizza and milkshakes of course.

We played some games - like riddles really but had a lot of laughs and then....WE DANCED!!! It was so fun. Not many people actually knew how to swing or jive or anything but that's really the beauty of it, everyone just made it up. I taught a bunch of people the octopus and some other steps and we all basically just made up stuff and got really hot and sweaty but had such a blast. We are probably gonna plan more nights like that; for swing dancing because everyone really liked it.

The world outside of Jeremiah????

What a week it has been - what a day!!! I have spent the last two days reading like every second that I was not in class. Today I read Jeremiah for probably over 4 hours! At dinner, I was like all out of it, recovering from 40 chapters of misery and judgement and turmoil etc. That poor guy though! Can you imagine knowing all about the doom of your country - having to tell it and having NO HOPE that it could be avoided!?! What a terrible life and yet he continued to trust God. I find it so crazy that the Israelites like, knowingly and willfully refused to acknowledge God at all. They ignored and persecuted his prophets and didn't listen at all...but then, I guess I'd rather pretend they were liars than accept their message.

I have learned so much this week and had a blast. We did a "Walk Thru the Prophets" class, touching on all the prophets in the OT. It was super fun, with all different types of learning styles used and a great teacher. I've never really looked into the prophets much, other than like, Isaiah and Daniel but now I know where they all fit and I've read parts if not all of most of them. Things are becoming so much clearer in the big picture. Each class, I am able to add more pieces to the puzzle of history. The Bible has so much more in it than I have every experienced or imagined. It's not hard to believe that I will never figure it all out. There will always be something more to learn - it's inexhaustible!

I was also supremely blessed tonight with a video of my dear nephew. It was a beautiful ending to this day filled with rather depressing topics (when one read's Jeremiah, it is hard to keep a light spirit). Though I am having so much fun here and learning sooo much, I can't wait to come home and see all my family and friends and well tonight, I just really wanna hug my little nephew!!

Welcome to Kansas!!!

Yesterday morning I woke up as usual (hearing all the other people get up, move around, but thankfully no longer listening to the squeaky bathroom door as Jared FINALLY oiled the hinges!! You know, it is quite nice to not actually need an alarm clock but it would be equally nice to actually get to SLEEP to the time I would like to sleep...) got ready for class, walked out the door, looked to my left to stare at the beautiful Tetons (as I do every morning) and BEHOLD! they were GONE! There was this crazy intense fog and it seriously looked like there was no mountains there at all. It was sooo bizarre. By late morning they were back and that was an extreme relief to all of us who thought we may have been mysteriously transported to the other side of the continent.

Okay, this week has been unbelievably crazy! We have two classes going but unlike we first thought, it isn't Eric Hovind's easy class along with Dr. Janssen's - it's this other guy with all this science and creation stuff and yes it is totally interesting and stuff but it is soooo much thinking! And his classes are our evening ones so we have like dead brain from all day and we have SO much reading for Dr. Janssen's class and well basically, I should not be on here blogging because I am going to be reading all night and I already feel like I could fall asleep - at my desk.

However, I am thankful for my health right now because my dear friend Elisha is really ill with a headache - she has been getting them everyday for like 2 weeks and we can't figure out what the problem is so if you think about it, please pray for her!

So who's the quarterback??

So last night I went to my very first legit high school football game and it was basically a BLAST. It was the Jackson Broncs vs the something Warriors (we were like which team are we? the black, orange and white or the white, orange, and black? - apparently they are popular colours down here) and the poor Jackson team failed pretty bad but it was still pretty fun just to go do something. I basically made fun of people the whole time but it was amusing. I mean, it's not like the football players could hear me mocking their funny looking cleats! Seriously though, they looked like old man slippers because they were like white and with black towns and then they wore white socks so it just looked ridiculous. Then there was this little scrawny ball boy that I made up all these stories about because he was wearing a jersey too big for him and Lish and I couldn't figure out what his purpose was (before someone told us he was the ball boy). Then there's the cheer squad...um they were like pathetic and I kinda felt sorry for them. They threw all these orange footballs at the crowd, like as a give-away thing but then when they were doing this 'dance' a bunch of people threw them back! It was so sad!! But really, they were terrible. Oh oh oh! and it was the homecoming game so they like did this lame ceremony to the homecoming king and queen and it was sad as well and Cort almost threw his football at the king because he was actually like a retard but I said he couldn't haha.

We had so much fun though and laughed all the time. Lish and I don't really know much about football and spent the first half trying to figure out who the quarterback was bahaha. There was about a dozen of us there (8 students and some other random people we knew from church and stuff) and it was just AWESOME. Oh ya, and there was this guy from our church, named Matt, playing on the team and even though most of us never talked to him, every time he touched the ball we all screamed and yelled. It was great.

Oh and last night Anne had a Norwex party and everyone had a blast at that too. It is just so funny how everyone gets so into cleaning supplies. I think they even had some of the guys there too! Tom had to buy the car cloth. haha

After the game we came home and watched Loving Leah with the college at Pastor Don's house and it was also a blast. As you can tell, yesterday was pretty much...a blast. It was really funny though because every time someone kissed on the screen everyone would like 'freak out' and Pastor Don is like, "you guys can handle this!"

Then AFTER the movie I learned how to make an AWESOME airplane that actually flies really good. So by now it is 12:30 and I try to go to bed but it takes til about 1 before the place actually quieted down. haha

But wait, there's more! Actually it's kinda back in time but I forgot to mention the raking leaves. For work day me and 4 other people raked leaves for like over 2 hours. It was pretty tiring but then, the last load, we just jumped into the middle of the leaves and threw them all over and then we all had leaves in our clothes and hair for the rest of the day. It was SO fun and like childish but just awesome.

anyways, so if you hadn't figured it out...we have a lot of fun around here. Be jealous

Thanksgiving and Moose Hunting

Okay so first of all, I must say that ONLY at JHBC will class be postponed due to a successful moose hunt. We got word at our break (about 10:30) that Scott had shot a huge moose and so they stopped class while everyone had to go "help" with it. I mean, they actually did need a few more people as there was like only 3 guys up there but seriously...most the school left. It was hilarious and I just had to let you all know so you can laugh with us.

Now, I know that Thanksgiving is over but I just got my dinner last night and people were asking me all about it and it's funny because the first thing they ask is like about where it comes from and stuff. That kind of historical info is apparently WAY more important to Americans. Theirs is like to do with Pilgrims and Indians (they never call them Natives or anything, always Indians) and such. So I was like, "uhhh, a celebration of the harvest I think" and well, have you ever thought about it? We don't really seem to care too much about the history so much as the food.

So anyways, I looked it up because I was curious and it DOES celebrate the harvest now and ever since 1959 when Parliament officially designated it the second Monday in October saying it was to be "A Day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed". But it had been celebrated before in all different ways and for all different reasons! For instance, the Natives all had harvest celebrations but the main guy who started thanksgiving celebrations was Martin Frobisher who was an explorer and was celebrating his safe return home. Then there were the French settlers who celebrated the Order of Good Cheer. Then after the Seven Years War, people celebrated "thanksgiving" and and then after the American Revolution those loyal to the British brought their traditions over.

The first time Thanksgiving was a civic holiday was April 5, 1872, celebrating the recovery of the Prince of Wales from an illness. After 1879 it was observed annually but announced each year on a different day and for different reasons for which to be thankful for.

So really, we do have quite an interesting history surrounding our thanksgiving...who would've guessed?!?

I can't feel my TOES!!

So...I just played volleyball outside...in 9 degree weather...on a sand volleyball court...in bare feet...in the dark (well almost dark). I'm pretty sure I almost got frost bite. Seriously I don't think my feet have ever been that cold! We were all like shouting in pain. It was like playing on ice or in the snow. It was all wet from rain earlier today and then like just plain old FREEZING! But hey, it was kinda fun...a little...and my feet feel all warm and fuzzy...I can like feel my pulse in them ...

Soooo Happy Thanksgiving to all you Canadians out there. I was supposed to join you all for thanksgiving dinner but someone forgot to put the turkey out so...it didn't happen. I was kinda depressed and almost went on a hunger strike but then I figured that was very thanksgiving-like...not very thankful so I ate the food. It was actually really good as usual (pork tenderloin and scalloped potatoes) so I guess it's good I ate it.

Oh and guess what!?!?! Last night we watched Pride and Prejudice!! (the new one so not that great but still really fun). Heather told me I wasn't allowed to mock it...but I couldn't helped it. plus everyone else in the room wasn't helping either haha. It's funny how we all get so psyched about movies now since we never see them. We all were like crammed in this little room with tons of pillows, popcorn, drinks, and chocolate. I was munchin' on Oreos and Peanut Butter and Jalapeno Cheddar Chips (from my dearest Bonnie!) and it was basically awesome.

Sorry, no theology today but I did put up some pics from the Mount St Helens trip so check em out.

TEN/TEN/TEN!!!

Did you realize this is only gonna happen TWO MORE times and then not for like another CENTURY!!! ya, I know, crazy right!!?! (what can I say, I'm easily amused)


So, I'm back, we made it safe and sound. It was pretty much completely and totally AWESOME. I got to see soooo much stuff and learn all this geology from a creationist, Biblical perspective. We saw tons of evidence for the Genesis flood and Lake Missoula Flood (a HUGE flood during the Ice Age) and then of course Mt Saint Helens which was amazing. We went with a legit guide so I learned way more than the last time we went and we also like, took a hike down to the valley floor and saw the huge canyons carved by the 1982 eruption. There is so much more to that mountain...more like a crater now...than first meets the eye. There is a little museum there called the 7 Wonders museum where they present 7 things that Mt. Saint Helens taught scientist and are evidence for a young earth, the Genesis flood - basically, the Bible! It was soooo cool to learn it all and SEE it first hand.

The whole trip really kinda made me sad though because there are so few who actually hold to the truths that we were learning. I mean, most the world follows evolution blindly but there are Christians - CREATIONISTS - who don't believe in a young earth or a global flood. So many Christian universities are teaching a LIE and it makes me so upset. I mean, LOOK AROUND YOU! Creation is an open book for those with eyes to see. There are things on this planet that make NO sense unless you get the answers from THE BIBLE!

And then there are those who look at the fossil record and say that "it's obvious there are millions of years of fossils here so the 6 days of creation can't be literal"...ummmmm since when does the CURSED creation trump God's WORD!?!?! hello people! If the Bible says it is so...then IT IS! Just because the earth today doesn't seem to match it doesn't mean you change the Bible to match the earth!!! If I'm not mistaken...you'd be making a LOT of changes because creation is disintegrating around us but God's Word will endure forever so...what should be used as the truth here???

So ya, I'm kinda down about all this because there is so much truth to be seen if only you will look with the right pair of glasses - KNOWING the truth and finding evidence...not using 'evidence' to tweak the truth.

The wheels on the bus go round and round

Hey everyone!!! soooo I got internet again. We have been so fortunate as to be stopping at many places with free wireless and so I have decided to join the rest of the populous and get online.

We are currently at Mount St Helens...well, like 15 minutes away but, CLOSE ENOUGH!!! I was on the bus again yesterday and it was full of chocolate, snuggles with Lish and singing. We stopped at Dry Falls and the Feathers, which were SO cool. We climbed up on top of them and it was pretty fab. Some people gave us all heart attacks with their unintelligent feats of climbing. Don't worry, I stayed relatively safe.


We also went to Walmart last night because we were stranded! We couldn't get into the church we were staying in until 8:30 so we drove around, ate pizza and then went to Walmart. I bought a trail mix that is like AWESOME. It's got pineapples, papaya, macadamia nuts, almonds, cranberries, and more!! and I also got a SUPER CUTE HAT!

So tonight we are at another church and we're gonna be here for two nights and hopefully I will sleep well because we are all separated into smaller classrooms and there is only two other girls with me so it's all good. Tomorrow we go up to Mt. St. Helens!!

Well, I'm off to the shower! (we only have one...sooo we all have to share and my turn is up!!)

Ice, ice, baby

Soooo I got internet!! We are currently in...actually...I don't even know where we are exactly...but it was awesome getting here.

We stayed in the professor's house yesterday and I didn't really sleep at all last night...those who know my need for silence at night can guess what happened. Tonight...will probably be the same...oh man.

This morning we had three hours of class and then started out. I was in the backseat of the Buick with Josh and Danilo in the and Cally and Holly driving. We had a BLAST! we like rocked out the whole 6 hour drive. We would drive the Buick up past the other cars (2 suburbans and bus) and be like acting crazy and then once we went up and were like "sleeping" and then once we went past and we were having a pillow fight...things like that. It was SO AWESOME!! By the end we were dancing the Macarena, dancing to Ice Ice Baby, YMCA, We like to Move it, Can't Touch This, etc. It was so funny and we died laughing. I never thought I'd have so much fun with two random guys and Cally and Holly (Cally is an RA and Holly is the administrator).

So tomorrow I'm in the bus...maybe I will sleep - apparently it's another long drive. yay.

I'm sorry if this post made no sense...I'm kinda worn out... all that dancing ya know...

Well, tomorrow we're in Washington - going to the Grand Coulee Dam so that should be fun. Love you all and good night

Going, going, gone!!!

okay, so TODAY IS THE DAY!!!

I can't write much as we head out for our road trip in like 2 hours!!! I will be bringing my computer but I don't know if we will ever have internet so this may be my last post for awhile. I will be back on the ninth I believe so look for a post around then.

Some updates: I totally did it! I was vegetarian for a day! (I almost wrote a "find your inner woman" about it but decided it wasn't that great an ability to be vegetarian...well I mean it takes A LOT OF EFFORT but, it's really not that admirable...jkjk)

Also I finished my 8 page paper and if you'd like to read the "Four Periods of OT History", let me know and I'll email it to ya. Also, the test was today and I think I rocked it!

Just a side note, doesn't the Old Testament sound so gangsta when you call it the OT??? I love it. It's like the Word! haha, I know, I'm a dork but it is just amusing.

Anywho, I'm off now and I'll miss you all!!!! Don't get too bored without me! haha

Hey Russia, do you have a national nut?

So the other day we were just like chillin' in the Commons, eatin' Mac and Cheese (Rui's first time, SUPER funny actually cuz he was like FREAKING out as we put all the butter in. We're like, "it's a nasty American dish, just don't look. It tastes good - just don't think about it." He did end up liking it, so this is good - all I can think of is Massimo from Wedding Planner) anyways and we started discussing nuts. Why? Someone brought up hazelnuts. I LOVE hazelnuts. I was like they are a "dignified" nut. And then I'm like, "Peanuts are nasty...what would you call them?" We decided peanuts are "domesticated". And so we began to classify nuts. Cashews were just "weird" and almonds and pecans fit together in a category of "distinguished". Then we're like, "what about Brazil nuts?" I mean, what do you classify a large, foreign nut as? Danilo pipes up with, "You know, in Brazil, we don't call them Brazil nuts. We call them Para nuts because that's the state they come from." I don't think we ever actually classified them because Brian asks me, "Hey Russia, Russia, does Russia have a national nut?" (Brian has called me Russia since our first hike together when Jessica told him I was from Russia accidentally - he knows I'm not actually Russian...at least I think he does) and we're all like, well does the US have a national nut? It was decided that we should look it up and the classifying came to an end on that interesting note.

Anyways, the moral of the story is WE were really the only nuts actually in the vicinity. Take me for example: I should be working on an 8 page paper, or studying for the quiz tomorrow, or reading the rest of the assigned Bible reading or memorizing Psalm 119: 25-32 but no, I'm here writing random nonsensicalness on my blog.

Seriously though, this week is like insanely busy! Good news is...I washed my sheets today!!!! teehee, so excited to sleep in them tonight. Oh AND I bought icecream bars because, well I love icecream and it was SO HOT today and well, they were cheap. Come to think of it...I didn't eat any of them yet.

OH OH OH!!! Tomorrow is hug a vegetarian day just BTW! So, there is like, ONE vegetarian here. And so tomorrow we may all decide to partake in only vegetables  (and fruits and icecream...and other non-meat stuff) in her honour...plus then we all get hugs!!! (actually I think many people will have major issues with this idea but, well, I'll let ya know how it all goes!

Find your Inner Woman 5: the Researcher!

That's right! Today I was a researcher - not that that's something new or anything. Most of you know how I'm kinda a geek and really like research...like REALLY like research. And what better thing to research than God's Word!?!?!

We had to do a word study for our Hebrew-Greek class and I did mine on the Greek word ὑπομονή, hypomone for those of you who don't read Greek...probably all of you...and for those who can't translate that off the top of your head (me included) it means perseverance, endurance, steadfastness, things like that. I was studying specifically the reference in James 1:2-4. It was so much fun and so enlightening. I mean, I knew most of the stuff that I learned but not in like the fully clarity I discovered today. I looked up all the other places it was used in the NT and had to categorize the instances by meaning and oh man, it was tough work but so worth it. I used all these different tools including multiple translations of the Bible, dictionaries, commentaries, and Great Treasures (an awesome website! It's on the sidebar of the blog if you wanna check it out - highly recommended). Basically the whole experience was a researcher's dream. I mean, I'm really only a beginner in studying the Bible but I have learned so many new ways and have so many more tools with which to learn and study, it's just FANTASTIC. 

I know some of you may have trouble really comprehending my zeal in this post, but I think every Christian should be this interested in studying the word. I don't care if you hate research for history or science or studying old classic literature - when it comes to God's Word, there should be a completely different category for study in your brain. It's the only study, the only research, that REALLY matters. God's Word is the greatest thing we could possibly read. I mean, why aren't we more excited about this!? Shouldn't we be sitting night and day, reading, discussing, discovering all it has to say? Yet we spend most our days doing pointless things and devoting the least amount of time to the Bible as we feel we can get away with. How troubling to think of. I dunno, if you struggle with this as I do, try a couple days, nay even a couple hours of just wholeheartedly getting into the Word. (and I don't mean going to youth or church) I mean sitting down with a highlighter, a pen, a notepad, a concordance, a dictionary, a couple versions of the Bible, a couple commentaries (or a laptop as it has all this on it) and immersing yourself in the depths of this Book. You won't get bored, I guarantee it. And you'll never be finished, there is always something else to look into. This Book is inexhaustible so take advantage of it! It's not like you have to save it or ration it across your lifetime! You'll never learn it all but you can surely learn A LOT! 

Oh and this post applies to men as well. haha

What is truth?

Tonight I went to Koinonia with a bunch of other students (college-age church group) and we started the Truth Project video series. It really got me thinking because they just ask these simple questions and we know the Sunday School answer but there is so much more to them than we think. Like the question "Why did Jesus come into the world?" The professor got so many answers and though they were good answers (to save us, to set the captives free, to redeem us, etc), they were not the Biblical answer. Jesus himself tells us that he came to "testify to the truth" (John 18:37) as if "truth" was on trial. In reality, it would seem it really is, when you think about it. The whole Bible outlines this cosmic battle between the truth and lies. God is Truth, He embodies Truth, He is the source of Truth and Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44). He's been lying from the very beginning, perverting God's truth.

It was also interesting the answers they got to a survey of random people for the "simple" question: "What is truth?" Most were like, "Truth is...um....well it's hard to describe..." Some Unitarian lady was like: "Well it's like we are all inside this giant cathedral and there are many many windows in the cathedral, all different and the light comes in a different angles and is refracted differently and depending where you are or where you look, you see something different. That is what truth is like. It's the way you see the light" and I'm like...here's an idea: walk outside the doors of your giant cathedral of confusion and refraction and look at the source of the light! Get to the bottom line! There isn't multiple truths - there is only ONE - it's just perverted (or refracted if you put it her way!). Interestingly, a 13 year old boy had some interesting points such as: "there has to be an ABSOLUTE truth for the world to function at all." Indeed there has to be something for us to base wrong and right off of, for us to base our morals on, but who defines it? and where does it come from?

The only answer is God. God is truth and the anchor of all we believe in. More specifically, when you think of hope - what do you hope in? what do you have faith in? what do you trust in? You don't hope in HOPE or have faith in FAITH...you have to have some concrete, something to anchor yourself to and that is TRUTH and the only truth is "that which affirms reality as perceived by God".

My final point will be the same challenge as they gave us on the film:

"Do you really believe, that what you believe is really real? If so...are you living it out? From where I see it, if I truly believed EVERYTHING in God's Word, then why do I live the way I do? Why do I have so much fear and trepidation? Why am I afraid to share the Gospel with everyone I meet? Part of the problem is probably that we don't even really KNOW what it is this that we are believing. I mean, we know the Gospel and believe it and we know some theological points, but the average Christian doesn't know the half of what the Bible contains and therefore is missing core pieces of the Truth. The more I learn here at JHBC, the more my faith is affirmed and I see how it all works together. The more I learn, the more I realize that God's word is ABSOLUTE TRUTH and the truth has the power to SAVE, to REDEEM, and to set us all FREE.

The administrator is throwing lettuce...I LOVE this school!

So we started Hebrew/Greek today and it really wasn't as bad as we were all afraid it would be. Mind you it was basically just the introduction stuff this morning so...it'll probs get a lot worse. We did mostly Greek this morning and this afternoon we are doing some Hebrew. I'm scared! Hebrew is like SOOOOOO foreign. It just looks like a bunch of lines and dots!

We had like the BEST hamburgers for lunch today. There was bacon left over from breakfast, fried mushrooms - like huge mushrooms, and fat homemade burgers. SO good. They were like picture worthy, seriously I wish I had my camera! Just as we were finishing up, Stephen got a bunch of lettuce thrown at him and we found it, it was Holly only she had meant to hit Josh. bahaha, it was pretty awesome.

So anyways, I was gonna tell y'all about Yellowstone a bit. We spent 12 hours in that bus but it felt like so much less. We had an awesome tour guide who had the day off but came with us so we learned SO much. We saw Old Faithful at the 10:35 eruption (it went off at 10:45) and it was SOOO cool. I took a begillion pictures (gotta love continuous function on the camera!).

Then we headed to this HUGE hot spring place where the water just sits in pools of boiling crystal blue water and the steam blows all over and it's all warm and it doesn't even smell. The big one was called the Excelsoir Geyser Crater because it used to be a huge geyser but doesn't erupt anymore. The bacteria mats all around the springs are pretty cool too, all bright orange and awesome-looking.


Then we moved on to the mud pots which were basically hot springs with mud on them so it all like bubbles grossly and it's not really that pretty but there was some cool things to see there. Oh, the sulfur smell as pretty fab around here too. haha. Jesse (our guide) told us this story of a dog that ran into one of the hot pools and like boiled to death and a guy who jumped in to save him died as well. Sooooo gross!

We then journeyed to the falls. I don't know what they were called other than upper and lower. We went to three viewpoints: top of the upper, top of the lower and the lower from a distance. This pic is from the top of the lower. There are a couple more on the picture is from the lower falls which are bigger I believe.

So that was super cool but also irritating because we had a pretty long walk down to the falls but then, an arduous walk back up all these switchbacks and we were all having nightmarish flash-backs to our backpacking trip!

Below: Me, Kaitlyn and Josh (the RA) at the upper falls

The last main stop was the mud volcano...it wasn't very volcanic...but there was also this cool hot spring with a cave where all this steam came out and it sounded like a dragon breathing!!! pretty neat I have to say. As we left, we saw a bunch of Bison and that basically completed my day with much happiness.

The final stop, besides the one by the sign was for ice-cream and souvenirs and I got a copper bracelet and some delicious ice-cream. All-in-all it was a fabulous day and I think everyone should come see this amazing park in their lifetime. We didn't even get to the upper loop of the park so there is TONS more to see and I don't know that it would ever get old to me. God's creation is unbelievable even in its cursed state - can you imagine how amazing it would be as it was created!! No...we can't because we have these cursed, fallen minds so we can't even IMAGINE something that beautiful!