Golden Moment for Golden Girl!

this is Cindy Klassen ... she is a speed skater, a Winnipeger who won 5 medals in the 2006 winter olympics ... and she loves the Lord!

my heart was just blessed when this very unassuming 26 year old stated that she skates for God ... she shared her faith, when asked about it ... and it was done in such a humble way, that the reporters kept asking her more questions ... they seemed to be amazed at how she credited an injury in helping her faith grow ... "and how did an injury increase your faith?", the reporters wanted to know ... she simply stated that it gave her time to read her bible more and pray ...

Cindy helped Canada reach an all time winter olympic high of 24 medals ... we came in 3rd in all the nations ... the USA came in second at 25 medals ...

i was just blessed to see this child of God do so well in a world wide arena ... and still retain her sweet spirit of humility ...

posting about my mom ...

my mom (pictured on the left) has started blogging ... although, unless you can read Finn, you won't be able to understand much! she has called her site, Salmen ajatukset ... translated means, Salme's thoughts ...

i was chatting with one of my sister's, and we concluded that mom is so young at heart ... she is in the computer age and loves to e-mail, take digi pics and now - a blog! i hope that i will always have that zest for learning and growing as a person ...

oh, she also thinks nothing of jumping in a car and driving over 400 miles - all by herself! *smiling, shaking head* ...

fish out of water

today was a shopping day ... i actually ventured out of the area to do some REAL buying ... i hadn't done that since late November! duh? do i get out much?

along the way i noticed all the ice-fishing huts on the frozen river ... clustered close together with smoke coming out of some chimneys ... cars or trucks parked outside the huts ... just like driving on the river was something that was normal ... ? ... i don't feel comfortable doing that! it just feels wrong for some reason ...

at the moment, i am feeling like a fish out of water ... i think it's because some of my "stuff" is still in boxes, instead of in plain view ... little scripture verses that i like to have around ... hymnals ... i haven't hooked up my speakers to the computer yet, so can't play my music while i type ... and i am making do with a wee little table for my computer because i gave away my corner desk ...

yup, like fish out of water ...

not that it's a bad thing - i just need to get comfortable with my set-up ... and maybe break down and unpack a few more items ... *smile* ...

i think it is good when we leave the known and familiar to forge ahead into the unknown ...

just a few loose thoughts this friday evening ...

 

in spite of me . . .

i like our cozy rental bungalow ... it feels like a good place to wait in ... to wait for our condo? or house? whatever the Lord has in store for us ...

and to think that i despaired for a while!! worried about a place for us to move too ... wondering how the Lord was going to help us out! then i fired myself (click here) and remembered that i had a God who cared for me ... He knew we needed a place to move too and i needed to trust He would find that place for us!

looking back - i can now see how God made sure we would find this place ... even though i kept shaking my head "no" when He presented it to us!

a month ago, i called our local newspaper a day before the weekly edition hit the stands - to see if there were any rentals available ... there was one - this house ... but when we found out that it wasn’t right in town ... i didn’t even ask to see it ...

through a series of events, i was brought back to this house again and again ... first by a friend and then by a mutual acquaintance ... then finally we took a look and loved it! we also found out that we knew our landlord’s sister! ... we weren’t going to rent from a total stranger after all!

every time we raised an obstacle about renting this house ... the obstacle was taken care of ... e.g.. the driveway is long and we didn’t want to worry about snow removal - our landlord just said, no problem - he has a big plow!

maybe you remember how i prayed and prayed about it all ... and searched and searched ... and here it was right under my nose the whole time ...

in spite of me - the Lord lead us here! which is encouraging ... because in spite of me - the Lord will continue to lead and to meet our needs as they arise!

another birthday!

after having a very busy start to the year, i enjoyed a wonderful, restful day today ... it was my birthday! thank you Lord for birthdays! *smile*

we have this little tradition in our family ... we telephone each other (we live many many miles apart) and sing happy birthday ... as soon as the birthday person picks up the phone - the singing starts! so i was serenaded this morning - a couple of times ... nothing says loving like family singing off key at the top of their lungs - just for you!

leo was content with the olympics this afternoon - so i went to my aunt’s for a sauna ... now that was RELAXATION! afterwards my aunt made me her special little Finnish Crepe type pancakes ... oooooh - YUM! she also gifted me with a cake and pullä ... i felt pampered and blest!

"at the moment I have all I need - more than I need! I am generously supplied ... " Philippians 4:18a

God’s goodness knows no boundaries ...

breaking free

"Victory always begins with a cry for help. When we come to the end of ourselves and cry out for help, amazing things happen. ... God wants to surpass our best dreams, and He wants to bring us to the place of obedience that lasts."

Beth Moore from Breaking Free

now that we are moved, i will try to get back to a routine of reading a study book in the morning ... i've heard of Beth Moore, but this is the first book of hers that i am reading ... she seems to have good insight and challenges a person to go beyond just a surface faith ...

and now for the moving central update: unpacking is going quite well, it feels like home already ... maybe some sort of routine will return next week ... *smile* ... one can only hope ... as for now - we are pretty tired!!! so bedtime comes early ... nite nite from a very COLD manitoba (no big thermometer pics - we left it at the cottage!)

high speed ..... zzzoooommmmmm

YAY! i ordered HIGH SPEED ... "and the Lord shall give you the desires of your heart ... "

* * * * * * *

today was the last clean-up at the cottage ... that's what i was up to yesterday ... and finished it today ... it was a big job - but it is behind me now ... and the cottage belongs to someone else as of tomorrow ...

* * * * * * *

YAY ... high speed might even be here for my birthday on Saturday!!! wouldn't that be cool?!!!

the new view

this is our new view ... very rural ... very quiet ... *smile* ... i bet it will be lovely in the summer ... and though it is rural, our town is only 4 minutes away!

this morning i was too tired to concentrate on the Word ... but not too tired to thank the Lord for His many blessings throughout the move ... i just sat, sipping my coffee ... admiring the peaceful new scene, saying "thank You, thank You ... " over and over ...

abiding in Him DOES make all the difference ...

having praying friends/family was another blessing ...

and gratefully accepting the help that was so willingly and generously offered ...

maybe when my mind is more rested, i will see more clearly to share other blessings from these past 2 months ... hey, wait a minute! has it only been 2 months? sheesh, seems like 6 at the moment! *grin* ...

... to be cont'd ...

moved!

all went super well ...
and super fast!!!!!
it took under 4 hours to get us moved (10 people helping) ...

YAY! thank you Lord!
thank you blog buds for praying ...

now to hit the sack for the first night here in the new digs ...

Leo is already zoned out ... poor guy ...

zzzzzzzzzzzz

a new phase begins

this will be the last post from our cottage ... i think these last few days might be a wee bit busy! *smile* ...

i am feeling a little of every emotion imagineable ... we have loved our house, yet as i strip away familiar wall hangings and the rooms start to "empty" of us ... i realize again that a home is what a person puts into it - not the actual structure ... we are the beating heart of this building, not the other way around ... and our hearts will go on beating in our cozy rental bungalow ...

my faith has been stretched and exercised ... cobwebs around my heart have been dusted away ... we are entering another phase in our lives ...

many tasks await ... so i must be off ... i covet your prayers ...

oh, does anyone have any more boxes i could borrow?

abiding

i met this verse twice today ... it's an encouraging one, isn't it?

things seem to be on schedule for "the move" ... if you think of me, please pray for my stamina and patience levels ... i don't want to be unpleasant to leo - as i scurry about doing things and he rests ... i know that he isn't well, but when a body gets tired - well a body might become a wee bit cranky too!

i am learning how to ABIDE in Christ ....

are we there yet?

our faithful feline KNOWS there is definitely something up ... something very very odd ... there used to be books on the shelf he is resting on ... though the look in his eyes is none too peaceful!

i feel like a kid asking "are we there yet? are we there yet?" ... then i look in another closet and see more stuff to pack and decide ... uh, not quite!

we had more unexpected help this weekend ... friends of ours who live 450 miles away, drove down for an afternoon ... and what a busy afternoon ... dump run, shovelling a path for the movers, a truck run to the house ... they slept here one night, then had to head home this morning ... they sure did bless and refresh our hearts ...

i'm a bit weary ... but otherwise in good spirits ... leo is very uncomfortable, yet trying to lend a hand if/when he can ...

we are in the final countdown to our MOVE date ... i will post when i can ...

humming ... "my Lord knows the way through the wildnerness, all i have to do is follow ... "

the Spirit within

our world of packing is winding down to the final week ...

i've been learning things about myself during this time ... and i've been taught lessons in discipline, patience, perseverance ... also lessons in faith ... learning to trust that the Lord DOES give strength at just the right time ...

i shouldn't be afraid to say that "i can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!" ... because - it's the truth!

long way round

over Christmas i watched the motorcycle adventure of Ewan McGregor & Charley Boorman ... the 7 hour series was called - long way round ... instead of hopping on a plane from London to New York, the guys planned to ride their motorcycles EAST from London and eventually arrive in New York ... instead of the Atlantic Ocean, they would only need to cross the Berring Strait - with their bikes getting a ride in the belly of the plane ...

i was enthralled with this notion ...

the first episode showed the preparation for such an endeavour ... ... then the next 6 episodes catalogued the actual 115 day motorcycle tour ...

i was impressed with the way the guys handled themselves and their positive outlook on the journey ... they rolled with the punches and were so willing to experience the various cultures that they encountered ...

they took the long way round ...

selling our house and everything that has followed, seems to be the long way round for us ... choices we may have made, had we gone from house A to house B, would not be the same ones we are contemplating now ... i mean, we weren’t even considering a condo! now a condo is what we really want ...

our thinking and attitude needed an adjustment ... we needed to go this long way round for that to happen ... and the journey continues ... but at least it has become more of the adventure i hoped it would ...

today we took a few items to our rented bungalow ... walked around and planned out where the furniture would go ... and it felt ok ... even good ...

there remains a lot of packing to do ... the moving date is only 10 days away ... leo’s health still continues to be poor - at best ... and i am still just a little person feeling the weight of this load ... BUT i am leaning on a Mighty God ... and that should make all the difference on this long way round ...