Even though I'm posting after midnight, I'll admit to procrastinating tonight, and I'll consider this Friday's post!
I was flipping through channels (all three that I get!) today when I came across an interview with Mary J. Blige. I've heard her music a lot, but I never really knew a lot about her, so I listened to the show. She was talking about how she overcame addiction and found the Lord. The most interesting part was when she talked about how none of her friends understood her faith, and a lot of them mocked her, and for a while she was without any friends at all until she was able to find fellowship with other Christians. When the interviewer asked her if this was hard, she quoted Job 33:4: "The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life". Hearing her speak so candidly about how hard it was to go from non-believer to believer was really neat to listen to.
I thought more about how so many friends don't understand our beliefs, and so I did some research in the Bible and found:
"A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother".
- Proverbs 18:24
How lucky we are that in good times and in bad, the Lord is always at our side.
It's getting late so I'm headed off to bed, but since I'm incredibly far behind in my blog readings, I'll do that tomorrow!
Love In Christ-
*L
Saturday, October 28, 2006
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
I'm still alive!
Well, I've crawled out from the woodwork and am ready to post again! Apparently my sister has declared a monopoly on the one and only computer that we have at home. (I guess that's what happens when you leave home!). I've only had time to do a quick check on my e-mails, but my sister just left to go babysitting, so I've seized my moment of opportunity.
Today is my last day of real "vacation". I've got interviews booked solid tomorrow, and a deadline for the paper on Friday, so it's back to work for me tomorrow. Apart from getting together with some friends on Saturday night for the hockey game, I've been anti-social for the past few days. I've spent my time lounging around and reading (not a textbook, which is a welcome change!). Oh well, I suppose everyone deserves a break here and there!
Sunday I went to my church here at home, and it was nice to be back. A local missionary spoke, and it reminded me of how important it is for us to pray for all the missionaries and the work they're doing. For about a year now my grandmother has been sick, but up until then we used to have a family tradition where she would make a big lunch after church and we would spend the afternoon talking and discussing any new events in our lives. This past Sunday was the first time we've had a chance to do that in a year. I was so thankful that she was feeling well enough, because that was the only Sunday I'm going to be home until Christmas.
I'm taking the midnight bus back to school tonight, so I've got to run and pack up (it just feels like I was packing to come home- time goes by too quickly!).
Love In Christ;
*L
Today is my last day of real "vacation". I've got interviews booked solid tomorrow, and a deadline for the paper on Friday, so it's back to work for me tomorrow. Apart from getting together with some friends on Saturday night for the hockey game, I've been anti-social for the past few days. I've spent my time lounging around and reading (not a textbook, which is a welcome change!). Oh well, I suppose everyone deserves a break here and there!
Sunday I went to my church here at home, and it was nice to be back. A local missionary spoke, and it reminded me of how important it is for us to pray for all the missionaries and the work they're doing. For about a year now my grandmother has been sick, but up until then we used to have a family tradition where she would make a big lunch after church and we would spend the afternoon talking and discussing any new events in our lives. This past Sunday was the first time we've had a chance to do that in a year. I was so thankful that she was feeling well enough, because that was the only Sunday I'm going to be home until Christmas.
I'm taking the midnight bus back to school tonight, so I've got to run and pack up (it just feels like I was packing to come home- time goes by too quickly!).
Love In Christ;
*L
Picture from the lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer!
This is a picture of myself with Diane, one of the girls I worked with this summer. I completely forgot I had this picture until I cleaned out my inbox today and found it from the summer. This was the day I took her to get her face painted, and she picked a butterfly. It was a really hot day (this was back in July), so after a full day of running around and playing on the play structures, her beautiful butterfly had melted into a red glob!Funny story...when it was Diane's turn to have her face done, the woman working the booth asked me "so, what would your daughter like to have done?". I don't think I look old enough to have a daughter, especially a ten year old!
Friday, October 20, 2006
You can take the girl out of the barn...
One of my barn friends sent me this picture today. My friend Natalie got married last summer, and all of the "barn girls" went (we've all been friends since we were six). After the ceremony there was an hour and a half for cocktails. Instead of cocktails, the barn girls all headed into the barn (Natalie got married on the grounds of a farm, which may sound odd but was actually beautiful). There are all these hilarious pictures of us in a barn in our dressy clothes. I had to laugh at this one of me because it's so typical! The goat was adorable. Since we're all riders we spent the most time with the horses, but I came back to this little guy a couple of times. (You can take the girl out of the barn, but you can't take the barn out of the girl!).
Well, there's one of the few pictures of me that I like. I'll try to find others (as requested!!).
*L
It's finally Friday!!
What a crazy week! Of course, during Midterm week, the girl across the hall decided to download movies and videos, and since we share an Internet connection, everything was slowed down. I was trying to get to my notes (a lot of my courses have a lot of material online), but it was almost impossible with the slow connection. I tried to post on Blogger Wednesday night, but after twenty minutes the page was still loading, so I just waved the white flag and gave up! After spending way too much time in the computer lab at school, I'm glad to finally be back on my trusty laptop.
I've still got a lot to do before heading home for the week-end so I have to cut this short, but I just thought I'd post something small because I haven't been on here in a while. I should be able to get an Internet connection at home, so I'll try to post something better later.
Love In Christ;
*L
I've still got a lot to do before heading home for the week-end so I have to cut this short, but I just thought I'd post something small because I haven't been on here in a while. I should be able to get an Internet connection at home, so I'll try to post something better later.
Love In Christ;
*L
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Closed-loop vs. Open-loop
As a Human Kinetics major, I’ve spent the past four years studying the human body. As a senior, my courses this year deal with very specific topics of the body and motion. I’m taking one course called “Motor Learning and Control”, and it’s all about how we learn and how muscle systems adapt to learning. Next week is the unofficial midterm week, so I spent the week-end studying. Today I was reading over my text, and I focused on the chapter about control patterns. In class we briefly discussed open- and closed-control loops, but the text went in to the much greater detail. To give a brief definition, an open-control loop is a thought pattern where your body doesn’t have to think about what it’s doing, and your brain doesn’t receive any feedback; a closed-control loop occurs when you actively have to think about every motion, and you consciously receive feedback. That really made me think, not only about the midterm, but about how there are “open-control loop Christians” and “closed-control loop Christians”. I know some people who are “open-control loop Christians”; they just sort of go through the motions, not really thinking about their walk with the Lord. In fact, I was even one for a while (anyone who’s read my testimony will know that!). Thankfully, I found my way back and I’m now very much a “closed-loop control Christian!”.
It really amazes me how the Lord works. I’ve been looking in to taking a course on the book of Mark, so today for my devotions I read through some passages from Mark to prepare me for the course if I end up taking it. I found this passage: “These people honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.” (Mark 7:6-7). That’s exactly what I was thinking about earlier today!
Philippians 4:4 says “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”.
Have a safe week, and remember to rejoice in the Lord!
Rejoicing in Him-
*L
It really amazes me how the Lord works. I’ve been looking in to taking a course on the book of Mark, so today for my devotions I read through some passages from Mark to prepare me for the course if I end up taking it. I found this passage: “These people honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.” (Mark 7:6-7). That’s exactly what I was thinking about earlier today!
Philippians 4:4 says “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!”.
Have a safe week, and remember to rejoice in the Lord!
Rejoicing in Him-
*L
Friday, October 13, 2006
Jack's kitten pictures
He slept so much when he was a baby!
Here you can see his runny nose and watery eyes...
He's starting to look like a normal kitten, but still really tiny!
Isn't he just the cutest thing?? I feel like a proud Mom!
Here you can see his runny nose and watery eyes...
He's starting to look like a normal kitten, but still really tiny!
Isn't he just the cutest thing?? I feel like a proud Mom!
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
"Love thy neighbour"...easier said than done
Last night I was looking forward to going to bed early, drinking a relaxing tea and reading a book- the perfect way to wind down after a long week-end. Sadly, my perfect evening came to an end when I was brushing my teeth.
Remember my problems with the girl across the hall? One of the things that drives me nuts is that she'll go away for days at a time and leave food out. I've always been paranoid that she'll attract rats or something and that they will find their way over to my place. We each have our separate apartments, but both of our back doors connects to a small landing that connects to the bathroom we share. I was standing in the bathroom with the door open brushing my teeth and minding my own business, when all of a sudden I see a mouse slide out from under the door leading to her apartment, scurry across the landing, and shimmy its way under my door. Every front door in the building is like any regular front door, but the connecting back doors are like a bedroom door- slightly off the ground. The mouse had more than enough room to easily slide under the door. It took me a few seconds to actually comprehend what had happened! Then I had a sinking feeling in my stomach- my two cats were in the apartment.
I have my own cat back at my parent's house, but here at school my landlord takes in the cats that no one else wants from the Humane Society, and during the school year I take care of two of them. One of them is developmentally delayed, so I wasn't worried about him catching the mouse. The other one is a hunter. I really didn't feel like dealing with a mouse corpse, or worse yet a half-dead mouse, so I ran in to my room to save the mouse. The mouse was hiding underneath my dresser and Gigi (one of the cats) had her paw as far in as it could go. The mouse ended up being chased back into the other apartment. Today I made a trip to Canadian Tire and bought a mouse trap (the humane ones, of course) in case he decides to come back. I also had another chat about leaving food out with the girl across the hall, but once again that conversation didn't go well.
It wasn't the mouse that made it an unpleasant event. I love mice and everything in the mouse family- I rescued two hamsters two years ago when their owner was going to flush them down the toilet (which makes me angry every time I think about it). I horseback ride, and worked at the barn for years(I still cover the occasional shift when I can), so mice are a fact of life for me! Mice belong in barns; with all the hay, horse food and country living, it's like a mouse haven. My building should NOT be a mouse haven. It annoyed me to no end that I've been saying all year that leaving food out would attract mice, and it did! I'm a clean person, so I don't want to deal with this when it's not because of me.
There, it felt so much better to vent and get that off my chest!
Leviticus 19:17-18 says :
"Do not hate your brother in your heart. Rebuke your neighbour frankly so you will not share in his guilt. Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbour as yourself".
Well, let's just say that's easier said than done! I guess that will have to be my mission for the week. Keep praying for me as I try to love the girl across the hall!
Off to check on my mouse traps...
Love In Christ;
*L
Remember my problems with the girl across the hall? One of the things that drives me nuts is that she'll go away for days at a time and leave food out. I've always been paranoid that she'll attract rats or something and that they will find their way over to my place. We each have our separate apartments, but both of our back doors connects to a small landing that connects to the bathroom we share. I was standing in the bathroom with the door open brushing my teeth and minding my own business, when all of a sudden I see a mouse slide out from under the door leading to her apartment, scurry across the landing, and shimmy its way under my door. Every front door in the building is like any regular front door, but the connecting back doors are like a bedroom door- slightly off the ground. The mouse had more than enough room to easily slide under the door. It took me a few seconds to actually comprehend what had happened! Then I had a sinking feeling in my stomach- my two cats were in the apartment.
I have my own cat back at my parent's house, but here at school my landlord takes in the cats that no one else wants from the Humane Society, and during the school year I take care of two of them. One of them is developmentally delayed, so I wasn't worried about him catching the mouse. The other one is a hunter. I really didn't feel like dealing with a mouse corpse, or worse yet a half-dead mouse, so I ran in to my room to save the mouse. The mouse was hiding underneath my dresser and Gigi (one of the cats) had her paw as far in as it could go. The mouse ended up being chased back into the other apartment. Today I made a trip to Canadian Tire and bought a mouse trap (the humane ones, of course) in case he decides to come back. I also had another chat about leaving food out with the girl across the hall, but once again that conversation didn't go well.
It wasn't the mouse that made it an unpleasant event. I love mice and everything in the mouse family- I rescued two hamsters two years ago when their owner was going to flush them down the toilet (which makes me angry every time I think about it). I horseback ride, and worked at the barn for years(I still cover the occasional shift when I can), so mice are a fact of life for me! Mice belong in barns; with all the hay, horse food and country living, it's like a mouse haven. My building should NOT be a mouse haven. It annoyed me to no end that I've been saying all year that leaving food out would attract mice, and it did! I'm a clean person, so I don't want to deal with this when it's not because of me.
There, it felt so much better to vent and get that off my chest!
Leviticus 19:17-18 says :
"Do not hate your brother in your heart. Rebuke your neighbour frankly so you will not share in his guilt. Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbour as yourself".
Well, let's just say that's easier said than done! I guess that will have to be my mission for the week. Keep praying for me as I try to love the girl across the hall!
Off to check on my mouse traps...
Love In Christ;
*L
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Happy Thanksgiving!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!! Hopefully everyone is enjoying their turkey dinners. I ended up not going home for Thanksgiving this year, but staying at school to work on my studies and the newspaper. This is the first holiday ever that I’ve spent away from my family, so it was a little sad. I called home tonight and talked with everyone, so it made it a little easier.
I’ve had these two poems since I was in high school, and I read them every Thanksgiving. It really makes me appreciate what I have. I don’t know who wrote them, so if anyone knows, let me know! Enjoy:
I Am Thankful For…
…the mess to clean up after a party because it means I have been surrounded by friends.
…the taxes I pay because it means that I'm employed.
…the clothes that fit a little too snug because it means I have enough to eat.
…my shadow who watches me work because it means I am out in the sunshine.
…the spot I find at the far end of the parking lot because it means I am capable of walking.
…all the complaining I hear about our government because it means we have freedom of speech.
...that lady behind me in church who sings off key because it means that I can hear.
…the piles of laundry and ironing because it means my loved ones are nearby.
…the lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning, and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home.
…my huge heating bill because it means that I am warm.
…weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day because it means that I have been productive.
…the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours because it means that I am alive.
Be Thankful
Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire.If you did, what would there be to look forward to?Be thankful when you don't know something,for it gives you the opportunity to learn.Be thankful for the difficult times. During those times you grow.Be thankful for your limitations,because they give you opportunities for improvement.Be thankful for each new challenge,because it will build your strength and character.Be thankful for your mistakes. They will teach you valuable lessons.Be thankful when you're tired and weary,because it means you've made a difference.It's easy to be thankful for the good things.A life of rich fulfillment comes to those whoare also thankful for the setbacks.Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,and they can become your blessings.
-Author unknown.
It’s a tradition at my house that every Thanksgiving we go around the table and say what we are thankful for. Last year I said “I’m thankful for my family, good food and good company”. This year I think I’d say the same thing, but adding on “and I’m thankful for the love of our Lord Jesus Christ, and for everyone who supports me in my walk with Him”. May you all have a great Thanksgiving, and eat some extra turkey for me!
Thankful to be in His loving arms-
*L
P.S. In the spirit of my week-end, if I were to add anything to the first poem, it would be “ I’m thankful for homework, because it means I am getting an education”. I’ll have to keep that in mind as I go back to tackling the books!
I’ve had these two poems since I was in high school, and I read them every Thanksgiving. It really makes me appreciate what I have. I don’t know who wrote them, so if anyone knows, let me know! Enjoy:
I Am Thankful For…
…the mess to clean up after a party because it means I have been surrounded by friends.
…the taxes I pay because it means that I'm employed.
…the clothes that fit a little too snug because it means I have enough to eat.
…my shadow who watches me work because it means I am out in the sunshine.
…the spot I find at the far end of the parking lot because it means I am capable of walking.
…all the complaining I hear about our government because it means we have freedom of speech.
...that lady behind me in church who sings off key because it means that I can hear.
…the piles of laundry and ironing because it means my loved ones are nearby.
…the lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning, and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home.
…my huge heating bill because it means that I am warm.
…weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day because it means that I have been productive.
…the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours because it means that I am alive.
Be Thankful
Be thankful that you don't already have everything you desire.If you did, what would there be to look forward to?Be thankful when you don't know something,for it gives you the opportunity to learn.Be thankful for the difficult times. During those times you grow.Be thankful for your limitations,because they give you opportunities for improvement.Be thankful for each new challenge,because it will build your strength and character.Be thankful for your mistakes. They will teach you valuable lessons.Be thankful when you're tired and weary,because it means you've made a difference.It's easy to be thankful for the good things.A life of rich fulfillment comes to those whoare also thankful for the setbacks.Gratitude can turn a negative into a positive.Find a way to be thankful for your troubles,and they can become your blessings.
-Author unknown.
It’s a tradition at my house that every Thanksgiving we go around the table and say what we are thankful for. Last year I said “I’m thankful for my family, good food and good company”. This year I think I’d say the same thing, but adding on “and I’m thankful for the love of our Lord Jesus Christ, and for everyone who supports me in my walk with Him”. May you all have a great Thanksgiving, and eat some extra turkey for me!
Thankful to be in His loving arms-
*L
P.S. In the spirit of my week-end, if I were to add anything to the first poem, it would be “ I’m thankful for homework, because it means I am getting an education”. I’ll have to keep that in mind as I go back to tackling the books!
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Front page!
I'm sitting here in the computer lab on campus writing this. My poor little laptop has died again, and has been sleeping over in the tech room for the past two days (which is why I once again haven't been posting). Fingers crossed it gets fixed by tomorrow so I'll have it for the Thanksgiving week-end.
Today definitely had it's ups and downs. I'm one of those people that hates to fight with other people and I usually put up with a lot- it takes a lot to make me lose it. The girl that lives across the hall from me has been making my life difficult for the past year, and today she just took things way too far and I lost it. I really hate stupid people! So, now I have that situation to deal with.
I feel awful about venting about my across-the-hall issue, because it seems like lately everyone has been having a hard time. The other night I stayed up really late talking to a friend from back home about some issues she's going through, and then another one of my friends up here has been going through some things to. She actually is a "Sunday Christian", so our conversations have touched on religion. I'm praying that the Lord will help me say the right things. Please pray for Nat and Elaine.
On the good news side: the campus newspaper came out today and the feature story on the men's soccer team I was working on made...front page, above the fold!!!! I had no idea that was going to happen until I got to the office this morning, and it was definitely a welcome surprise!
Well, it's getting late and the game is over, which means it's time for me to head home. Hopefully tomorrow will bring more of the good news and less of the bad news (and hopefully I'll be typing this on my own laptop!).
The Lord upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.
- Psalms 145:14
Love In Christ;
*L
Today definitely had it's ups and downs. I'm one of those people that hates to fight with other people and I usually put up with a lot- it takes a lot to make me lose it. The girl that lives across the hall from me has been making my life difficult for the past year, and today she just took things way too far and I lost it. I really hate stupid people! So, now I have that situation to deal with.
I feel awful about venting about my across-the-hall issue, because it seems like lately everyone has been having a hard time. The other night I stayed up really late talking to a friend from back home about some issues she's going through, and then another one of my friends up here has been going through some things to. She actually is a "Sunday Christian", so our conversations have touched on religion. I'm praying that the Lord will help me say the right things. Please pray for Nat and Elaine.
On the good news side: the campus newspaper came out today and the feature story on the men's soccer team I was working on made...front page, above the fold!!!! I had no idea that was going to happen until I got to the office this morning, and it was definitely a welcome surprise!
Well, it's getting late and the game is over, which means it's time for me to head home. Hopefully tomorrow will bring more of the good news and less of the bad news (and hopefully I'll be typing this on my own laptop!).
The Lord upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.
- Psalms 145:14
Love In Christ;
*L
Monday, October 02, 2006
Jars of Clay
Today, after classes and newspaper work, I decided to tackle some housecleaning. Floors, bathroom, mirrors- all have suffered lately due to my hectic life. (I'm proud to say that right now they sparkle!). I'm definitely a person that has to listen to music while they're doing something (expect reading- I need complete silence for that). Nothing good was on the radio and my regular CD collection has been getting boring, so I decided to rummage around in my older CD's to find something. I ended up putting on an old "Jars of Clay" album that I bought when I around twelve. Billy Graham came to Ottawa and I went with my friend Melanie. Michael W. Smith and Jars of Clay performed and we ended up buying both CD's.
I did my daily readings after cleaning, and I decided to look up the verse that Jars Of Clay got their name from:
"But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us".
- 2 Corinthians 4:7
That made me think of another verse concerning clay:
"Yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand".
- Isaiah 64:8
For something as simply and mundane as clay, it certainly creates some interesting analogies!
In His Love-
*L
I did my daily readings after cleaning, and I decided to look up the verse that Jars Of Clay got their name from:
"But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us".
- 2 Corinthians 4:7
That made me think of another verse concerning clay:
"Yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand".
- Isaiah 64:8
For something as simply and mundane as clay, it certainly creates some interesting analogies!
In His Love-
*L
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