His Word on my heart.

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"You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not in ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets but on tablets of human hearts."

2Corinthians 3:3

My intention

I met someone for the first time tonight who has recently (a year or so) come to know Jesus. It was so refreshing and such a reminder to me. It brought me back to all of the experiences I have gone through in the past few years , to the feelings of thirst, the unveiling of truth, the restoration, the healing. It reminded me of the pureness of God's love..

It also reminded me of how transparent I used to be. I beleive that I have become more guarded, more selective and in all honesty lazy...

I went back and reviewed my facebook blogs, and this blog and realized that amongst many other things.. one practice that I need to get back to is blogging.

I never used my blog as a voice to the world, but more so as my journal of thoughts, lessons learnt, experiences. I used to blog often on Sundays after the gathering, collecting my thoughts and impressions.These Sunday blogs forced me to reflect on the message a little while longer, forced me to go a little deeper.

Intention- For any relationship to grow you must be intentional in spending time with the other person.
I must become more intentional about spending time with God.

Church and community

"The church is not something additional or optional. It is at the very heart of God's purposes. Jesus came to create a people who would model what it means to live under His rule. It would be a glorious outpost of the kingdom of God, an embassy of heaven.

This is where the world can see what it truly means to be human. Our identity as human beings is found in community. Our identity as Christians is found in Christ's new community. And our mission takes place through communities of light." - Tim Chester and Steve Timmis

Prayer meeting

Joined Westside for prayer this evening. It was invigorating and refreshing.

Praying for others and prayers of thankfulness and gratitude definitely made me feel closer to God tonight.

My husband.

It is 7am and Joel has just left for a new job. It is a temporary position with a kitchen accessory store. He somehow managed to make a deal with the manager to work for them sporadic days in order to still be able to look for a better job.

I am thankful that this woman gave him this opportunity.

I have never met a more determined man. He does not let things get him down for too long and just keeps pushing forward. Although still within reason, he dreams much bigger than I do. This is slowly teaching me to let go and to beleive that big dreams through hard work could 'possibly' be attainable (I'm working on it.)

There are times where I overhear Joel being interviewed over the phone in french (which he only began speaking last year) and am so proud. I am so so proud and in awe. I put myself in his shoes and it sends a pang straight to my heart.

I am so thankful for Joel. I pray for the right opportunities to open up before him, that we continue to trust that we are simply in waiting and that God is preparing him for that 'perfect' job. I pray that God bring his dreams to fruition.

Love.

As I search to be closer to Jesus and as I pray to have more faith, I am often drawn to all of the blessings he has brought to my life. I am thankful because I have truly been so so blessed in the past 3 years.

Nonetheless, I am now searching beyond those memories. I want to be thankful to God for who He is.. beyond all that He has done for me.

I am searching to love Him with a deeper love. I want to love Him simply because of who He is, who He has been and who He will always be.

Waiting....

As I wait on news from a company on whether or not my husband got the job..I hold on to the promise that God made me.

He provides.
In His time.
When we have faith.

Over and over again, God has reminded me that He will always come through. The result is not always what is expected, which that in itself is sometimes hard to accept. Nonetheless, looking back... God has had providence in my life.

I pray more than anything.. for more faith. To trust that whatever may come, God has it all under control.

A pause to remember..

June 16th. Without fail, a day every year where I am reminded of all that God has done and how great He is.. A day where I look back and reflect. An anniversary which allows me the time to pause for a moment and thank God.

"Give thanks to the Lord and pray to him.
Tell the nations what he has done.
Sing to him; sing praises to him.
Tell about all his miracles.
Be glad that you are his;
Let those who seek the Lord be happy.
Depend on the Lord and his strength;
always go to him for help.
Remember the miracles he has done;
remember his wonders and his decisions.
You are descendants of his servant Abraham,
the children of Jacob, his chosen people.
He is the Lord our God.
His laws are for all the world.
He will keep his agreement forever;
He will keep his promises always."

Psalm 105: 1-8 NCV.

God provides

This is an image of one of my first trips to Cuba. At the time, I thought that the amount of stuff I was bringing down was alot.. Throughout the years, it has multiplied and God has always provided.





In the past years, I have had more than one missionary couple help me along the way. One trip, I received 4 garbage bags of brand new tshirts. Another time, a client dropped off all of his childrens' old toys.


Every time, God has provided, He has always made it possible to bring the gifts down and has always gotten me through customs.


It is my ongoing prayer that God continue pressing me towards Cuba... a few months ago I wrote:
" Take my dreams. Lord give them wings. Lord with you, there's nothing I cannot do. Lord give me the conviction to continue. Lord rearrange all circumstances and push me back.."


And He has.. financially, with perfect timing, and through donations galore.. He is giving me the conviction to continue and arranging all circumstances pushing me back.


These trips for Cuba (and the preparation for them) are the moments in my life that bring me the greatest joy. I would love to spend my life collecting and giving.

Looking back at the picture above and now standing amongst today's donations (below)... it's just amazing to see where God has brought me.




I have to admit.. I am nervous about this trip. It's a good thing though..it keeps me trusting God. Trusting that all this stuff will fit into my suitcases, that I will be within the allowable weight and that He get us through customs. Trusting that every piece brought down has its purpose and that He will guide us as we find its recipients.. Trsuting that He put this all on my heart and that He is always at work. Trusting He will teach me, remind me, help me bring Him glory through it all.



(If you read this blog before our return May 3rd.. please keep us in prayer. THANKS!!!!!!!!)

On my heart.

God,
you are so good to me.

Thank you Jesus.