stormy

So..tonight I went for a walk to the river. Just as I was getting to the park,about 30 minutes from home, I noticed it starting to get a bit dark and thought a storm might be blowing in. My first clue should have been the bugs fleeing for cover but I thought I could get a few minutes at the river before it rained.

I wasn't sitting more than 2 minutes when it got really dark and quite windy. The rain started and I moved over a bit closer to where I hoped trees might shelter me. I thought it might be kind of fun to watch the storm - I didn't mind getting wet. (It was supposed to feel like 40 degrees Celsius today, don't know if it got that hot, but it was pretty warm...). Some older guys were there too. One moved down to sit beside me. He offered me a cigarette and I declined. He was asking questions and making me a little uncomfortable, but I thought I could handle it - maybe he needed to meet Jesus?

There were small branches whipping past my head. The guy beside me offered that we could go and sit in his car. This plus the debris flying past me was enough for wisdom to kick in and say "abort mission". Thankfully the lovely Wilkins porch was not too far away and I was able to get to shelter with just a few glances from curious neighbours. Apparently the wind was strong enough to collapse the main stage at Bluesfest (a big music festival in Ottawa) so it is probably good that I didn't try to wait it out.

So that's all. No moral of the story...just a random thing that happened today.

refreshing

Man.. I'm tired. Planning a wedding is a lot of work! We have less than a week to go before Allison and Isak's big day. Honestly, things are in good shape, there are just some final details to get in place and a huge logistical co-ordination exercise to make sure everyone is where they need to be with the right tools at the right time to pull it all off. But things didn't get to this place without a lot of time and energy going in to them. I have been eating, breathing, and sleeping wedding for a few weeks now, plus it seems those "extra" things I agreed to at one point all happen at the same time! (exams for work, board meetings, helping people who are away, etc.).

Really I've been doing well. But this morning, it all just sort of hit and I was GRUMPY- tired and caught up in the emotion of other people's transitions, as well as my own.

But this is not the point. The point is that God is so good and His presence is so sweet. The ANC Ottawa body came together this morning, and God showed up, as He always does. As we worshiped, I completely forgot about being tired and found myself genuinely caught up by the resurrection life He gives - dancing and singing and grinning and jumping and worshiping the one who restores and refreshes my soul. It is like jumping in cold water on a hot day. God you are so good to me.

joy and peace

I realized that I am getting faster at recognizing the presence and absence of joy and peace in my life...hallmarks of the Kingdom (Rom 14:17). When I notice these gifts are present, I have found myself excited that the Kingdom of God is tangible in my life. When I notice the absence of peace or joy, I have been getting faster at asking God what the lack of peace is about and then either telling it to go or dealing with the root.

Just as I am typing this, I am realizing that this is the working out in my life of a prophetic word I shared at ANC Ottawa a few weeks ago. For me, I thought the way God got my attention to share the word was cool and new, but I didn't see the immediate application in my own life at the time. The word was essentially this:

"For those who feel they are at a crossroad - there may be two paths to choose from or multiple ways to go - the way forward is in the Holy Spirit. And I have put signs posts to mark the way: peace and joy. So look for the peace, and go that way. Look for the joy, and go to it."

Thank you Jesus for your peace and joy that you give freely to us.

wedding prep

My roommate/best friend is getting married in 17 days (not that we're counting...) so wedding prep is in full swing at our house. I have become the unofficial wedding planner so we have lists, seating arrangements, decorations, favours, flowers, song selections and all those things well underway.

I have one friend who doesn't believe in/agree with weddings. I don't think she means marriage...she actually means weddings. She thinks it is a big waste of money and a ton of work for one day. She has a point...however, I am realizing that I think weddings are actually a big deal. The couple is making a commitment that is worth celebrating in a way that reflects the big-ness of it all.

God is in the business of planning a wedding, therefore, so are we. We are actually playing a critical role in the wedding prep because we are going to be the Bride! Today I asked God about how His wedding preparations are going. He reassured me that progress is being made - preparations are underway. I asked if He would show me what the Bride will look like and He said "not yet". I don't know what the church will look like in the end, but I know she is getting ready. Jesus, the bridegroom, is already ready and is waiting for when His church is ready and says, with His Spirit, "come". In reality, it is Christ who is preparing His church... but we can play an active role. I seek to see the Church unified and sparkling - glorious without blemish or wrinkle. I believe that the feast at Christ's wedding will be a huge one and the party will be pretty amazing. I can't wait to participate!


Weddings reflect something of God's bigger purpose, so in my opinion, they are worth doing right. To me, it is worth the effort to throw an excellent party that reflects that bigger purpose, honours the bride and groom, their families and their guests and respects the resources God has entrusted to us.

This is what I will be thinking about while I'm tying ribbons and cutting out place cards.

caution: slippery

Lately I have been walking lots...and dipping my feet in the river whenever possible. (These will have to be a different post..) The river is about half way between my house and my office, but the bridge is several blocks down so it takes me a bit out of my way. Sometimes, when the river is low enough, it is possible to walk across the river on some rocks that create the top of a tiny little waterfall.

I have walked across the river a few times on my way to work. It cuts off at least 10 -15 minutes. Today, I stepped into the river and noticed it was a bit slipperier than normal. But after wading around for a minute or so, I decided it was okay to cross. On my way across I noticed the slipperiest places were where the water wasn't moving as fast across the rocks and algae had been able to grow thicker. I had to grip the rocks well with my toes so that I wouldn't fall. It was just as I was about to reach the far shore that suddenly my grip wasn't good enough and I slipped and fell into the river. Thankfully, I wasn't wearing my work clothes and my backpack and purse didn't actually get very wet... but from the clothes I was wearing, it was certainly clear I had been for a swim!

On my way across the river, the Lord spoke to me about how important it is that we stand firmly on The Rock - Jesus. He is our foundation and the only solid thing in life. We will be most secure when we are standing where the river is flowing - we need the life of the Holy Spirit to be flowing in our lives, otherwise things get stagnant and that's when there is a danger of slipping, losing our footing or falling down.

royalty

There is nothing overly spiritual or deep about this post. Yesterday William and Kate arrived in Ottawa and a colleague and I walked the few blocks up to the war memorial to catch a glance. We arrived probably only 45 minutes before they were scheduled to arrive (at 2:30) and the place was packed. People had started arriving at 5 a.m. to get front row "seats". However, we did manage to find a little place with a surprisingly good view. I had no idea it would be so exciting to see them, but I was giddy. They drove up and waved from the car and everybody screamed. They got out and did their thing... our best view was of them coming back and getting in the car. I have a few okay pictures/videos that I will try to get up... I missed the best video, though I thought it was recording, it wasn't. But that's okay - what a fantastic memory that I will have for a long time.