Wipeout!

My friend's husband just signed up to be in Wipeout Canada!!  I'm so excited and hope he gets chosen to be on the show!

Here's his audition: 

Feel free to share encouraging comments, or just simply press the like button.  The more views the video gets the better the chances of getting in if it comes down to popularity. 

Here's the video:



For some reason the size isn't correct...sorry about that.

Remembering the Journey...

September 2007 I embarked on a journey...a journey that went by way too fast.

I graduated from high school in June 2007 and university was something I really wasn't ever interested in going into.  There's a Bible School in my grandparent's little town that most, if not almost everyone in my family who went to Bible School went to.  I didn't have a desire to go their either (for no reason imparticular...I just wasn't interested).  But I did have to do something, and when my dad began to start preparing for what would be known as Intense Discipleship Training Centre (ID), my mind was made up...I wanted to go there.

The timing worked out perfectly...the first ID year started in September 2007.  There ended up being 5 of us who started upon this journey together...me and 4 guys.  (Coming from a family of 4 girls and ONE boy this was complete culture shock for me!  But later on when things changed I found myself missing the "good old days" when there was just me and the four guys...)

We went on a couple trips to the coast of BC...

In my first year of ID we went to Victoria for a day to meet up with Tim Schindel and experience the work he is doing there with Leading Influence Ministries.  That was a neat experience!  My dad and I were able to witness a pretty exciting once in a lifetime happening while we were there.  This trip was very instrumental in bringing the class closer together.  We all were able to go except one of the guys...and I will carry the memories of that trip in my heart forever. 

Then in second year, we were able to go down to Vancouver to be apart of Passion Vancouver!  Again, this was an incredible experience!  There were thousands of people there who were lifting up the name of Jesus!  It was AMAZING!!  And actually, Louie Giglio and the Passion team are coming back to Vancouver this November, and though I'm moving I am really, really hoping I am able to take part in it again!  There's just something about worshipping Jesus with thousands of other Christians! 

Okay, back to ID...

I learned SO much in ID. 

Each year consisted of 4 modules which were focused on different themes.  For example, we went through modules on Foundations, Character, Gifts and Callings, Leadership, Life Planning, Relationships,Outreach and Evangelism, and Church Ministries.  In each of those areas we learned A LOT (that's why it was INTENSE Discipleship :)

The program was designed to be a two year course, so I went through first year and second year.  We started out with 5 at the beginning of year one, and then later that year one of my classmates left due to his job and another one (a lady!) came.  By second year there were 11 of us! 

My dad ran the school out of our church.  It was his dream, and he loved it!  I am SO grateful everything worked out for me to be a part of my dad's dream!

So, why am I writing all this today?  Today is a very bitter sweet kind of day for me...

Due to decisions beyond our control, it was decided that after second year ID would not continue.  That news was tough to take.  Every single one who went through ID had their lives changed for good...they grew in God.  It had been my dad's dream to run a discipleship school like ID.  And in an instant it was over. 

One year ago on this Sunday in June, we had our final ID Recognition Sunday.  And today I just want to remember the journey God allowed me to go on, the people he let me become friends with, and the beginning of a seed God allowed my dad to plant in 12 individuals lives. 

There is so much more that ID held, but for right now, I think I want to go on another little journey...a journey of memories...

This one always makes me laugh...Not great quality wise, but great memory wise :)

One of my dad teaching...because ID wouldn't have been what it was without my dad's organization, commitment, enthusiasm, time and effort... Thanks Dad!

And last, but not least is a Bible.  ID was what it was because God gave a dream to my dad, and that dream was watered by prayer and action and the dream became reality.  ID was God centered...and we all grew leaps and bounds in Christ as we learned what it meant to be a disciple of Jesus Christ!

Thank You Lord for the opportunity I had to be a part of what You did in ID!

Love of Guatemala

It's no secret that after I went to Guatemala in 2005 I fell in love with the people and the country.  So, whenever I hear anything that has to do with Guatemala my ears instantly perk up. 

It helps that my mom's cousin is married to a Guatemalan, and she often posts Guatemalan news on Facebook (since it doesn't come through on our Canadian channels.) 

Anyway, this morning I found out about a crazy natural disaster in Guatemala that happened sometime in the past day or so. 

Check this CNN news article out.  It is absolutely crazy!!

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.



Over the last year of reading MckMama's blog I've been interested in her "Not Me Monday" posts, and I've contimplated writing one, but there's no way I'm too chicken to write down the embarassing parts of my week.  Nope, not me.

And there's no way that this week I've been working hard at following through on the first exercise plan I've ever tried to implement in my life.  Why would I do something like that?  I'm fit and active all the time, right!

To make matters more complicated, there is no way I made a chart that tracks my progress, and I absolutely did not anxiously weigh myself a few times during the week because I was certain I had lost a couple pounds or so.  Nope, not me.  I have more patience than that!

I also did not find myself constantly watching the food I ate to ensure I was eating the right amount of calories.  No, not me.

And I most definately did not contemplate giving up on my quest for fitness when I weighed myself after a week only to find I gained weight.  I have more faith in the exercise process than that!

Finally, I am not having a blast writing about my exercise life, so I will not allow myself to think about what to write the next post about.  Nope, not me!

Free Rice

If you look on my sidebar you'll notice there is a new icon there.  Yesterday a friend shared this link on her blog, and I thought it was pretty neat.  If you click on the box you will be taken to the Free Rice website.  This website has multiple choice trivia type questions on different subjects and for each answer you answer correctly, 10 grains of rice are donated to help end hunger around the world!  It's pretty neat, and those 10 grains of rice add up and before you know it you've donated hundreds of grains!  Each little bit counts!  So go check it out, but beware, you just may get addicted :)

"That" Time Again

A couple posts ago I wrote a very vague post about what is going on in my life right now.  At that point I couldn't say what was going on, as my family and I wanted to ensure everything went through the right channels and so that certain people would be told before word spread to them...

Well, it's official now, and my family will be picking up all the pieces of our life and transferring someplace new.  I'm so excited, but I'm also very nervous.  Leaving the life I've known behind and starting fresh has always been difficult for me.  My family has gone through this before, the only difference is that this time it seems like a dream that I don't know if I want it to continue or if I want to wake up.  There are so many things going on in my mind right now.  We'll be SO much closer to our extended family, and that is probably the most exciting thing about this move!!  For so long we've lived around 6.5-20 hours away from our family, and now we'll live 1-8 hours away, with the majority of our family living an average of 5 hours away!!  That's so exciting!!  But on the other hand I don't want to leave the people I know here behind.  I guess I just have to remember that with change comes a price to pay, and at this point I have to leave people here so I can start fresh.  And to be really honest, I'm so thankful for the pastoring opportunity my dad has (that's why we're moving).  It will be so good for him! 

So, right now we're fixing up our house so it will sell quickly.  My room is in the process of being organized so that it will be spotless when we put the house up for sale...  Oh the things we must do!!  Things we've wanted to do are finally being done, but why is it that we always wait until we can't enjoy it before we fix everything up!?!  It's crazy!

He Who Stands Firm...

"As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. "Tell us," they said, "when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?

Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am the Christ, and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.

Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come."

~Matthew 24:3-14


Yesterday I turned on the TV and watched about 5 minutes of the news.  In those 5 minutes there were reports of major flooding in Poland, and of a deadly cyclone in India.  Earlier this month there was terrible flooding in Tennessee and tornadoes in Arkansas.  To top it all off, this year there have been many earthquakes, both small and incredibly large.  And when I read the Bible, it says, there will be wars, rumors of wars, famine, and earthquakes but we are not to be alarmed.  This is the beginning of the end.  This is the birth pains.  That's what Jesus said.

Over the last few years I've heard over and over and over again "We're living in the last days..."  And yeah, I believe that the end is coming, but reality is that we have no clue when Jesus will come back.  We don't know what the next second holds, so how can we say something like (what I hear going around all over the place) "The world's going to end in 2012!"  Um...excuse me?!?  Jesus could come back one minute from now, and yes he could come back in 2012, but like I said, we don't know.  Like it says later on in Matthew 24, " No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,but only the Father." (vs. 36)

So, what do we do?  We see everything going on in the world, and as the Bible instructs us, this is the birth pains.  The end is still to come, but the key is it IS to come.  There will be an end.  And we must be ready.  We must be prepared.  We must stand firm.

Later on in the chapter, Jesus says the following:

"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."

I've written this a lot, but it's reality:  Jesus IS coming, and He is coming SOON!  It could be today, next year, in 10 years or longer or anywhere in between, but He IS coming!  And for me and everyone else who has dedicated their life to Him, that's super exciting!  But for those who are not ready, that news can be sobering.  See what else Jesus has to say in this chapter:

"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, 'My master is staying away a long time,' and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."


I'm sharing this truth with you today, because I care.  I want you to be aware of the truth and reality of what is coming.  I know there will be people who will come across this blog post who maybe have never heard the truth of Jesus Christ.  Or maybe you have, but something in your life has brought you to a place where you have pushed Jesus and the knowledge of Him out of your life.  Or maybe you do know Jesus and have dedicated your entire life to Him and have given yourself to bring glory and fame to His name on the earth.  This message is for all of us.  It's for me just as much as it's for you wherever you are at. 

Jesus loves each and every one of us.  And He wants each of us to spend eternity with Him.  He may come back before we die, or we may die before He come backs, but at some point each and every one who has ever existed will face eternity.  The question is where will we spend eternity. 

In my life I've made a choice to stand firm in Christ.  I desire to be like that servant who Jesus talked about who is found doing what his/her master has asked of him/her.  But reality is that there is another side, and it is called hell, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.  Everyone who is not found doing what the Master (Jesus) has asked will spend eternity there.

The last thing I want to do is scare you regarding eternity, but this truth is something that so many have shied away from for too long.  I want you to be aware of what is to come. 

My desire is that your life will be used to glorify the very One who breathed His breath of life into you. 

Stand firm!