School: The Sometimes Silent Killer

So, this is March and the thing that I want to do the most is make friends with my sheets again, crawl in and allow the warmth to envelop me. But I can't. Not now. I have a bit left of this year and I really can't wait for this to be done. As if this year wasn't hard enough, I'm taking 3 English courses this summer at York, like any crazy person would (duh!), and working at daycamp at the same time. So I'm crazy, sue me. I really want to get school done with as soon as possible. I will have about two weeks of amazing time to myself before I jump in the dangerous world of "post-secondary education" again. Yay. Can't wait. So excited. (Although, if you think about it, once I'm done this summer I won't have to take such a huge course load in the fall, which is a plus!). Whatever, I'm just exhausted from a really long year with lots of assignments, papers, projects, presentations, tons of reading and showing up to lecture even if you are feeling like you were just driven over by the largest truck in the world. I still went to class. I have hardly miss any NATS classes and for that I am super proud of myself and I'm doing well in that class too! Awesome! That's about it for now, but I'm sure you'll be hearing about how I want to burn all of my books by the time I'm done my summer courses :S

Till then,

Al

What a mighty God we serve! Somebody say an AMEN!! Monday was a brand new experience for me. I don’t know how many of you have seen the show Heartland (cbc.ca/video/), but it has become my new favourite show. Some of you who know the show may think it’s really stupid but it’s quite the contrary. The episodes play on Sundays at 7pm on CBC but those of us who don’t really watch TV, it’s posted online. So I was watching the latest episode and had the weirdest/coolest/most amazing God moment! Ladies, you know how emotions can get the best of us around that “time of the month”. This was a very different emotion. In this episode, one of the sisters is getting married and her fiancé springs some information on her at the last minute. He is owner of a well known oil company and it’s doing VERY well. He has flown back and forth between Alberta and Dubai. There is a deal that he has to finish, but in order for it to go through and work well, he has to move to Dubai. He tells her this tidbit of information just months before the wedding and she blows up! All that planning gone to waste!! She will not get her dream wedding or her dream dress. All through this struggle, there is one person who is constant in her life and that is her Grandpa. When she is about to get married, she hesitates. Her Grandpa talks to her softly saying “Do you love him?” At this point I burst into tears. I cried so hard my chest started to hurt. My eyes started to sting and I felt like throwing up because I was crying to hard. I couldn’t for the life of me, understand why God would allow me to go through this.


Do you love Him? Do you really love him? I know for a fact that that God’s timing is perfect (Jer. 29:11). He has everything planned for you and me. While doing this Beth Moore study, God has convicted me of some things that have been holding me back from fully experiencing His perfect love. I haven’t given the dream of getting married and having a family. I’ve just given it up to God for He has my life planned for me and will give me what I need as time goes on. You can peak at a gift and try to be surprised when you actually get it. We have already received a gift. Jesus Christ gave His life for us and we are free from sin because of that sacrifice. Even though we will keep sinning over and over again, He will keep forgiving us over and over again, not because He has to but because He LOVES us. What a promise! You can have that promise. There’s another gift! Don’t you see? He is full of gifts! He wants to give them to you. Wait on the Lord, be strong and take heart; wait on the Lord. Ps. 27:14.

Let Him in to love you and see what miraculous things will happen in your life.

Music is my life!

The really cool thing about music is that it's the way that I love to express myself. I am able to put into words how I feel about my wonderful Father in Heaven. I bought this shirt from Wal-mart and I absolutely love it!!!

Another of my songs here. I have yet to finish it but here it is.

Waves

Put to rest the turbulent waves
They are crashing against my heart
I’m too weak to handle them alone
Please calm this storm and
Lead me home

Christ the Lord is Risen Today!

Christ the Lord is risen today, Alleluia!
Earth and heaven in chorus say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heavens, and earth reply, Alleluia!

Love's redeeming work is done, Alleluia!
Fought the fight, the battle won, Alleluia!
Death in vain forbids him rise, Alleluia!
Christ has opened paradise, Alleluia!

Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia!
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia!
Once he died our souls to save, Alleluia!
Where's thy victory, boasting grave? Alleluia!

Soar we now where Christ has led, Alleluia!
Following our exalted Head, Alleluia!
Made like him, like him we rise, Alleluia!
Ours the cross, the grave, the skies, Alleluia!

Hail the Lord of earth and heaven, Alleluia!
Praise to thee by both be given, Alleluia!
Thee we greet triumphant now, Alleluia!
Hail the Resurrection, thou, Alleluia!

King of glory, soul of bliss, Alleluia!
Everlasting life is this, Alleluia!
Thee to know, thy power to prove, Alleluia!
Thus to sing, and thus to love, Alleluia!


How can you not be thankful for the life that you have after reading or singing this hymn? I realize how much I have taken advantage of these songs of old that I listened to growing up. There are some great songs out there and powerful too, but some of the most powerful ones, I've been hearing since being in my mom's womb :)

I hope you will find the joy that you so desire this Easter! Jesus died and rose again to wipe clean our dirty slate with his blood so that we can have a fresh new start :)

Leader's Reflection

I have been participating in a bible study that Beth Moore wrote on John called “Beloved Disciple”. All through the weekly readings I have noticed times where Beth Moore says to look at a passage of scripture with a different set of eyes. Now, picture this with me. Mary Magdalene is walking on a very familiar path, towards where Jesus is buried. As she is coming up to the tomb, she notices that something is different. Not just anything, but THE STONE IS ROLLED AWAY! Who would open the mouth of a tomb? Stunned, she runs to find one of the disciples. Simon Peter and the disciple Jesus loved hears the news and follows her back to the tomb. They enter the tomb and see the linens folded neatly in a pile. Imagine with me what their reactions would be like. Bewildered, shocked, confused. Where could Jesus be? Mary stands at the mouth of the tomb in tears, wondering what could’ve happened to her Lord, when two angels appear on the bench where Jesus’ body was laid, one sitting at the head and one sitting at the foot. What would you be thinking in a situation like this? There are angels in front of me! Why and how are they so bright? They don’t look anything like the pictures! Then something crazy happens. They speak to her! “Dear one, why are you crying?” She says to them, “They have taken away my Lord and I don’t know where they have put him.” Disappointed, she turns around to leave, she sees someone standing. This man asks her, “Why are you crying, who are you looking for?” I imagine Mary to be under a lot of stress at this moment. “Please sir, if you have taken him away, tell where you have taken him so I can go and get him.” She still hasn’t recognized the man. “MARY!” She has just looked into the eyes of her loving Lord! What a treasure! “Don’t cling to me for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Whenever there is something that I need to do, I try to look as deep as I can to see what it is. I feel a lot like Mary in this situation. Sometimes we walk straight past Jesus himself when he’s trying to help us find what we are looking for. There are some things that we need to ask God to help us find, but when we get impatient and want to do it ourselves, that’s when we miss the point. How many times have you walked right past the thing that He is trying to show you? Run with me to the garden like Mary did and see the amazing story of our Lord ascending to take his place at His Father’s side.

"Come, follow me and I will make you a fisher of people!"

Jesus is walking on the white sand beach. The sun is shining brilliantly upon God's natural abundance. It is a very bright day. He continues to walk until he sees Simon and his brother Andrew in the distance, out at sea. Through the beautiful blues and greens of the sea, Jesus notices them throwing their nets into the the water. They are, afterall, fishermen and this is how they made their living. Jesus, with a voice like none other, carried by the wave across the sea, called out to them, with a gentle smile, "Come follow me and I will show how to fish for people." I can just imagine what they must have thought. Others would have thought this man to be crazy, but Simon and Andrew dropped their net immediately and followed him. Then something else happened. Jesus continued on his journey, this time with Simon and Andrew. Jesus saw two more men with their nets. He too called James and John. They also dropped their livlihood and followed a man who called them from the waters. The four of them, Andrew, simon, James, and John knew they needed to follow Jesus, even if that meant leaving behind the jobs that served as provision.

Moving In...Moving On

Hey everyone!

This is a really exciting time for me. I have just had the most amazing weekend of my life...almost :) I was leading worship at Rexdale this weekend and it went really well!! Let me try and start from the beginning...my thoughts may be all over the place:)

I have been going through some stuff lately that has been really hard to deal with. Not going to back to York has been one of them and then finding a job has been another. I made my decision to not go back to York this year because I wanted to be able to take as much time as I needed to work and get established in my new place. I just got a job as well at Gymboree at Yorkdale so that is an awesome plus!! This means I can pay rent :) That is very important!!This is a job that I will be able to enjoy! I will be selling children's clothes but at the same time I get to play with kids which is another plus! I have a really awesome manager who is a very outgoing person and I get along with her very well!!

I was at my apartment today just getting everything set up and it looks really good!!!! I'm getting really excited to be on my own. I'm scared to be on my own because there will be no one when I walk into the door but I know that will change. I

My mom took me to get a few things today at Wal-mart and that was really fun! I loved walking down all the aisles and looking at stuff! I got some pretty good deals...

I just wanted to let everyone know that you are welcome over anytime! Don't hesitate to call...I will most probably say yes to you coming over!

Thanks for listening...there is a lot more but I still have a lot to process :)

Thanks for reading :)

Ali