In my last post, I shared with you that I will be going to Guatemala in a years time.
It seems so far away but there is still a lot to do in preparation.
We are planning fundraisers and completing a team devotional.
First things first, we started an online fundraising campaign.
'Go Fund Me - Medical Fund for Women in Guatemala'
www.gofundme.com/guatemala_2016
This crowdfunding effort will hopefully bring a lot of attention to our cause.
Next on our list is a community yard sale.
A local church will be hosting the event on July 4th, 2015.
We will have 2 tables for sale items, 1 with information, and 1 with free snacks!
While we want to raise money here, our main goals are team building and awareness.
At our local churches, we will display suitcases as our donation boxes.
We are asking for 'travel' size items such as toothpaste, soap, nail polish, etc.
Eventually, we will make small gift bags for the women in Guatemala.
Thanks to 'Our Daily Bread Ministries', we will also include Spanish devotionals!
Later in the year, we will have a zumba fundraiser and three chili cook offs.
Thanks to everyone who supports us financially or in prayer!
29 June 2015
27 June 2015
GUATEMALA 2016
Once again,
I am planning to go on another mission trip (vacation with a purpose)!
This time I will be going to Guatemala with a group of women from different churches.
We will be volunteering at a women's medical clinic.
While doctors administer the Pap tests, we will be the moral and spiritual support!
Our team is excited to speak with these women about the wonderful love of Jesus.
Our trip is July 1st, 2016 - July 12th, 2016.
This will be the shortest trip that I have ever been on.
However it may work, I pray that we are following God's guidance.
It might seem too short, but I believe there is a reason for that.
I don't think God wears a watch... 12 days + salvation = eternity!
Sounds great to me.
For the next year, I will be working at a retail store close to home.
(no, I didn't find the right Recreation Therapy job...)
I think God has a plan for me, working at this retail store.
It may not be what I went to school for, but I can see that God is working in me.
Eventually, I would love to work with children who are facing adversity.
Until that door opens, I am praising God in the hallway!
Our team will also be working on a lot of fundraising this year.
We are having a garage sale, zumba-thon, and three chili cook offs.
The money will go directly to the women of Guatemala.
They will receive medical testing and the appropriate treatments.
I am forgetting the most important part...
This will be my first time travelling with my mom!
It will also be her first time on a mission trip.
I hope she experiences the same joy that I felt on my first 'vacation with a purpose.'
I am planning to go on another mission trip (vacation with a purpose)!
This time I will be going to Guatemala with a group of women from different churches.
We will be volunteering at a women's medical clinic.
While doctors administer the Pap tests, we will be the moral and spiritual support!
Our team is excited to speak with these women about the wonderful love of Jesus.
Our trip is July 1st, 2016 - July 12th, 2016.
This will be the shortest trip that I have ever been on.
However it may work, I pray that we are following God's guidance.
It might seem too short, but I believe there is a reason for that.
I don't think God wears a watch... 12 days + salvation = eternity!
Sounds great to me.
For the next year, I will be working at a retail store close to home.
(no, I didn't find the right Recreation Therapy job...)
I think God has a plan for me, working at this retail store.
It may not be what I went to school for, but I can see that God is working in me.
Eventually, I would love to work with children who are facing adversity.
Until that door opens, I am praising God in the hallway!
Our team will also be working on a lot of fundraising this year.
We are having a garage sale, zumba-thon, and three chili cook offs.
The money will go directly to the women of Guatemala.
They will receive medical testing and the appropriate treatments.
I am forgetting the most important part...
This will be my first time travelling with my mom!
It will also be her first time on a mission trip.
I hope she experiences the same joy that I felt on my first 'vacation with a purpose.'
25 June 2015
23 June 2015
22 June 2015
OVERWHELMED BY THE WORLD
Dictionary.com has five explanations for the word overwhelmed.
1. To overcome completely in mind or feeling.
2. To overpower or overcome, especially with superior forces; destroy; or crush.
3. To bury beneath a mass of something, as floodwaters, debris, or an avalanche.
4. To load, heap, or address with an overpowering or excessive amount of anything.
5. To overthrow.
Is "overwhelmed" the right word to use?
In my opinion, yes!
Whether we are sailing through life or extremely stressed by everything...
We are overwhelmed by the world. I am overwhelmed by the world.
I wish I was overwhelmed by Jesus!
However, in complete honesty, I am not.
Not completely overcome in mind and feeling.
I am a Christian buried beneath a mass of something else; distracted by the world.
How can I move forward without being overcome by fame and fortune?
In the world we live in, we have to have money to survive.
We work our way to the top so that we can afford life.
There are no ifs, ands, or buts.
You could go 'off grid' and say good-bye to civilization... but... that's not the point.
As noted in Genesis, God did give us this world to live on!
I am very thankful for that. Beauty is all around us.
It is setting our eyes purely on Jesus that is the challenge.
JESUS already paid His life for ours.
So, now we have to learn how to live in a materialistic world without being buried in it.
As Big Daddy Weave once said:
I delight myself in you (God).
Captivated by your (God's) beauty.
I'm overwhelmed, I'm overwhelmed by you (God).
As we delight ourselves in His blessings, show the world how great He is!
Totally surrender yourself to His beauty.
Be overwhelmed by Him.
Use your blessings to bless others. Money, friendships, opportunities, food, etc...
1. To overcome completely in mind or feeling.
2. To overpower or overcome, especially with superior forces; destroy; or crush.
3. To bury beneath a mass of something, as floodwaters, debris, or an avalanche.
4. To load, heap, or address with an overpowering or excessive amount of anything.
5. To overthrow.
Is "overwhelmed" the right word to use?
In my opinion, yes!
Whether we are sailing through life or extremely stressed by everything...
We are overwhelmed by the world. I am overwhelmed by the world.
I wish I was overwhelmed by Jesus!
However, in complete honesty, I am not.
Not completely overcome in mind and feeling.
I am a Christian buried beneath a mass of something else; distracted by the world.
How can I move forward without being overcome by fame and fortune?
In the world we live in, we have to have money to survive.
We work our way to the top so that we can afford life.
There are no ifs, ands, or buts.
You could go 'off grid' and say good-bye to civilization... but... that's not the point.
As noted in Genesis, God did give us this world to live on!
I am very thankful for that. Beauty is all around us.
It is setting our eyes purely on Jesus that is the challenge.
JESUS already paid His life for ours.
So, now we have to learn how to live in a materialistic world without being buried in it.
As Big Daddy Weave once said:
I delight myself in you (God).
Captivated by your (God's) beauty.
I'm overwhelmed, I'm overwhelmed by you (God).
As we delight ourselves in His blessings, show the world how great He is!
Totally surrender yourself to His beauty.
Be overwhelmed by Him.
Use your blessings to bless others. Money, friendships, opportunities, food, etc...
16 June 2015
PANTENE BEAUTIFUL LENGTHS
On Friday June 12th, my mom participated in the annual Relay For Life.
She raised a few hundred dollars and walked the whole night.
I am proud of her and very thankful that she is still here to share her testimony.
My mom walked as a survivor, but also in memory of friends and family who left this world as a result of cancer.
The walk began with a 'survivors' lap where a sea of yellow shirts circle the track.
Next, was the family lap where everyone joined in to support the survivors.
During this lap, I had a HUGE surprise for my mom.
With my baseball cap and hoodie on, I secretly handed her a bag full of my hair.
I was donating 25" of my hair to the Canadian Cancer Society
(Partnered with Pantene Beautiful Lengths).
Oddly enough, I had 4 braids of hair, so we could each hold one for a family picture.
Look at the difference...
She raised a few hundred dollars and walked the whole night.
I am proud of her and very thankful that she is still here to share her testimony.
My mom walked as a survivor, but also in memory of friends and family who left this world as a result of cancer.
The walk began with a 'survivors' lap where a sea of yellow shirts circle the track.
Next, was the family lap where everyone joined in to support the survivors.
During this lap, I had a HUGE surprise for my mom.
With my baseball cap and hoodie on, I secretly handed her a bag full of my hair.
I was donating 25" of my hair to the Canadian Cancer Society
(Partnered with Pantene Beautiful Lengths).
Oddly enough, I had 4 braids of hair, so we could each hold one for a family picture.
Look at the difference...
11 June 2015
CONVOCATION DAY
Today I graduated, with honours, from the Recreation Therapy program.
It is hard to believe that this journey began just two short years ago.
Looking back, I am so grateful for everything (even the hardest of times).
I can honestly say, I would not be the person who I am today without this experience.
From the wonderful teachers to the friendships that were formed, I am so blessed.
I now have an education and so many good memories to be thankful for.
When the projects piled up and the exams kept coming...
Dare I say it, I couldn't wait for school to be finished.
I wanted to join the 'real' world and pay off my student debts.
This is not exactly how I feel anymore.
After walking across the stage and saying good-bye, I knew that I had reached the next step.
I look forward to my future.
However, I am going to miss school. The structure. The people. The learning. Everything.
School was a big part of my everyday life. It's finished and it is time to face the 'real' world.
I thank God my Father for blessing me with this opportunity and for giving me strength!
Thanks also to my proud support team (mom, dad, and little bro).
Next step? I will have to seek God's guidance and follow His will for me!
*** Guatemala 2016?
It is hard to believe that this journey began just two short years ago.
Looking back, I am so grateful for everything (even the hardest of times).
I can honestly say, I would not be the person who I am today without this experience.
From the wonderful teachers to the friendships that were formed, I am so blessed.
I now have an education and so many good memories to be thankful for.
When the projects piled up and the exams kept coming...
Dare I say it, I couldn't wait for school to be finished.
I wanted to join the 'real' world and pay off my student debts.
This is not exactly how I feel anymore.
After walking across the stage and saying good-bye, I knew that I had reached the next step.
I look forward to my future.
However, I am going to miss school. The structure. The people. The learning. Everything.
School was a big part of my everyday life. It's finished and it is time to face the 'real' world.
I thank God my Father for blessing me with this opportunity and for giving me strength!
Thanks also to my proud support team (mom, dad, and little bro).
Next step? I will have to seek God's guidance and follow His will for me!
*** Guatemala 2016?
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