Afros, Bobcuts, and Combovers

                Hair is an interesting piece of our total makeup. It’s thin, yet durable. Along with that, it knows its place. Have you ever done your hair in the morning and try to alter it later on in the day; something as simple as changing where you part it perhaps? You spike it, curl it, straighten it, flatten it, whatever you do to it, it usually withstands the daily elements. Sure, sometimes you need to fix it later on during the day to give it an extra boost...but it’s resilient. However you do your hair in the morning will affect it throughout the day.

                Now let’s compare hair with our spiritual endurance. Just like hair, you need to get spiritually ready in the morning. We do our hair because we know we want to be ready for the day. Look presentable. God has specific appointments for us daily that we need to be prepared for. Just like you wouldn’t go to your first job interview with bed head, you shouldn’t go throughout your day without heart, soul, and mind prepared. When we neglect God in the morning, we miss out on the opportunities to share what we learn; we aren’t awake or thinking about Him all day. Sometimes it’s even necessary to add extra time for Him afterwards to regain that enthusiastic approach to the rest of the day.

                I know I have disregarded God in the morning many times and I’m sure I’ve missed out on countless divine appointments. Something always seems to get in my way, my mornings are hectic, there’s no time, I have things to do, I get no quiet time, God understands if I worship with Him later (I mean, I’m still worshipping Him , right?). These are all excuses I’ve used too many times. Is God ever too busy for me when I call on Him? Does He ever turn a deaf ear when I’m talking with Him? Does He ever push me away because I’m not worthy? Never. God is always there and all He is asking is a little time in that “chaotic” morning for Him to recharge you for another day. We always have time for our hair, don’t we? How much more should we arrange time for our Lord?

Because He Lives!

God sent His son, they called Him Jesus
He came to love, heal, and forgive.
He lived and died to buy my pardon,
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.
Because He lives, All fear is gone.
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living just because He lives.

How sweet to hold a newborn baby,
And feel the pride and joy he gives.
But greater still the calm assurance,
This child can face uncertain days because He lives.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.
Because He lives, All fear is gone.
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living just because He lives.

And then one day I'll cross the river,
I'll fight life's final war with pain.
And then as death gives way to victory,
I'll see the lights of glory and I'll know He lives.

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.
Because He lives, All fear is gone!
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth the living just because He lives!


Later in the year when we think of Easter, most of our thoughts directly focus on the commercialism of the holiday; the easter bunny, colourful eggs, various sizes of chocolate, Easter lilies, feasts, and scavenger hunts.

Just the other day I was helping my kindergarten teacher with her Easter craft for the kids. I was enjoying the project while listening to her read a story to the children. Now, this school I was at (and attended as a child) is a public school; yet my old teacher paused the story for a moment and asked the students, "Who doesn't know who Jesus is?" To my GREAT surprise, HALF the students rose their hand. She simply explained Him as a kind man who never got angry and was generous and loves us. Simple for the kids, yet hopefully enough to make them remember Him. She told them of His importance to this holiday and that it didn't start with the Easter bunny.

Now I'm sure if parents complained she could get in a little trouble for talking about the Lord in a public school, but I was pleasantly surprised that she took the time to tell those kids about Him.

What was most surprising to me though...was that HALF the students didn't know Him. Doesn't that say something to us as servants of Christ? We all, I'm sure, at some point in our lives, want or have wanted to go on a mission trip. I know I do! But we need to stop for a moment and think. Don't we have work in our own countries? Aren't there people in Canada, America, and other homelands that we live in, that don't know God? Flight tickets themselves can be thousands. Can't that money go to Christ's servants that are already in the area? Can't they witness themselves?

Just something to think about for the season. God is calling us to witness NOW. Where ever we are. We don't need to travel far to spread the gospel because there could even be people in our own families that neglect to worship our Saviour.

Today, Christ lives in me. I pray that He will make me a missionary in my own country, province, city, and home first.

The Gospel Race

You’ve trained your whole life and now you’ve made it; the Olympics are within reach. The entire summer you’ve set the morning to run and the afternoon to lift weights in preparation for the physically straining times ahead. Now you are an official participant of a running race and are planning your next moves fairly strategically.

            As the days approach, you think you have the entire route memorized and every hurdle’s position learned. The entire map of your run is set to memory and you feel strong and confident in your upcoming events.

            It’s race day and you still have the map in your mind. You know where to jump, where to turn, the “secret passages”, and everything else you believe your components wish they knew. You begin to run and things are going just as you have planned. You see people falling behind you and snicker. You feel on top of the world.

            Another bend and you realize you don’t know where you’re going. The trail of the race has taken an unexpected twist and you find yourself bewildered because it wasn’t in the plan. You stop and try to look for a sign, something that will show you that you’re going in the right direction, but there’s nothing. You still have energy to spare so you continue the race. You come to believe that the officials changed the route a little so that no one could cheat their way to the top. You don’t want to give up because you’ve trained so hard; nothing is going to stop you from finishing victorious.

            You’re near the end and see the finish line approaching. As you cross, you remember how, when the change in the trail occurred, you stopped and you beat yourself up for it because you know you should have kept going. You could have run faster. All this fades now as you see the man coming with your trophy. You’ve won.

            Just like this race, we are running a race as well. God has prepared us and “trained” us to be His disciples. When running a race in the Olympics, some small change wouldn’t stop you from running harder and faster. God has our path all marked out. We believe we have a plan for our lives and know what we want to do and where we wish to go, but God’s plans could be different. We can’t let changes in our lives hurt our chances of “winning” our gospel race. There is something that’s different in God’s race however because in His race, everyone who crosses the finish line wins. God’s race doesn’t call for you to pass others falling with a chuckle, but to stop and help them up reminding them of the prize at the end.

            God is calling you to be an advocate for His race. He promises you that, even though there may be changes in the route, He will reward you a great prize at the end; eternal life.

The Life-Changing Room: PART FOUR

            2 more hours passed before we were escorted to our car and then back into Canada. The house that we have been living in for over 4 years, still full with furniture, clothes, and appliances, would now be desolate from any from of moving life. Our school was left behind along with our friends and acquaintances. The tears never ceased to flow as the trip prolonged.

            We approached the Canadian border once more, "You know you have to do something with this car? I'm going to have to guide you over to that building over there and they'll tell you what you need to do."

            We knew this was going to happen. My mom still had payments to pay on her Pontiac so the border is entailed to impound it until we are able to finish paying the expenses. Parking the car, we didn't even need to exit before guards were at the driver's window asking questions. Someone looked familiar. It was a woman. She looked with compassion and seemed to understand what was happening. YES! It as the Canadian lady we had talked to while first entering the country. She knew our situation and with the sympathy instilled in her heart, she waved us off with our car reminding us that if we couldn't make the payments soon, we would eventually have to do something about it.

           

            This life experience left my whole family and me in the dark. We are still trying to figure out what we are going to do about school (which is SO different it would be practically impossible to finish here), about our house there, about my mom's job…we're blind to the future.

            You hear about people who lose everything, they have no hope and their life is falling apart, so they decide to take their own life. Without God, I'm sure something like that would happen to me (maybe not as life-threatening as that, but something that would eternally hurt me). God is so good. He gives me peace at heart as everything is shattered. He knows how to reconstruct for the better. I don’t understand how this will end up benefitting anyone, but God does. He sees the future, whether tomorrow or the end of time. I am given hope, willingness to use my circumstances for Him, and ever-growing patience! It's extremely hard, but worth it. Prayers are constantly being sent above for guidance and for the salvation of lives due to our pain here on earth.

The Life-Changing Room: PART THREE

            Friday morning we were packed, loaded, and out by 10am heading to the Detroit border. As the car ride continued, the vehicle grew increasingly silent. The car rolled to the gates and my mom entered the building to return our temporary living slips we were given to live there the extra 10 days. She returned to us with a gruesome look on her face as she announced that the guards there weren't going to allow us to cross; they required us to drive back to the border that first denied our visas, Port Huron. Another hour and a half later we arrived at the gates. We had to go to the same border and the same person that first denied us to try and get it renewed again. This is impossible. There is no way that the person who first denied us so discourteously will have a change of heart.

            Crossing into Canada was a breeze since they didn't want us in America anyway. We explained to the Canadian lady our predicament and she understood our condition. She gave us hope as she explained that we should try to schedule an appointment while Tim wasn't there (the guy who denied us first). We thanked her as she wished us the best of luck and we were on our way.

            Half an hour into Canada I was given an idea; my mom should call the Port Huron Customs and see if Tim was in. If he was in that afternoon, then she could always come back at a different time. She took this into consideration and made the call. After a few moments our vehicle was turning around and heading back in the direction of the gates. With the car still pin-drop still, we came to the border once again, this time being walked over to the building which would determine our entire future.

            "Phones and all other electronics are to stay in the vehicle! You can take your wallets and money, but nothing else," they directed as we piled out and into, once again, the "secondary inspection" room.

            This place brought back terrible memories. Cold faces glared back at us as if they had no heart or sense of kindness within them. Silence crept with the occasional tapping of keys on the computer. A voice finally vocalized asking my mom for the papers she brought this time around, "Why do you think you should qualify now if we have already denied you? We shouldn't even be taking this case! You should have scheduled an appointment with the man who first denied you! He's the one who knows all there is about visas and you obviously didn't meet the criteria then! We can schedule you an appointment with him, but we're not going to process you today."

            Stunned, my mother reluctantly agreed and the man went to get Tim's schedule to place us in for an appointment.

            A lady with a familiar face appeared with fire sweltering from her eyes, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!? Why do you have the nerve to come in here and waste our time!?! You don't qualify and that isn't going to change!"

            My brothers and I glared at each other, each of us itching to lash out and illustrate to that woman what she rightfully deserved. Horror moved stealthily into my being as tears permeated my eyes. The officers turned there back as if not to notice a young girl sobbing in her rather uncomfortable chair. Discussing for a moment then fiercely looking into our eyes, they had the nerve to deny us the meeting with Tim and also the requested meeting with the supervisor.

The Life-Changing Room: PART TWO

            We weren't to tell anyone about our predicament. My mom had a plan to try to get them back; her work hired a lawyer right away and prepared to fight their reason for us not receiving the paper (that my mom needed a 2 year degree for her job, even though she's worked with the company for 12 years). My nerves were itching and I was relatively quiet at school the following day. When I conversed with my dad I longed to explain to him our predicament and pray with him, but I was restricted.

            The next day my mom gave us the OK to spill to our friends and teachers what was happening. She figured there was a chance that we wouldn't be returning, so she wanted us to advise our teachers in case we didn't return. My teachers were devastated and reminded me to not lose faith. They encouraged me by saying that wherever I am placed, I will go far; but they hoped I would come back. My friends cried. During lunch, my best friend Mirna was awfully quiet and as we were leaving the cafeteria, I saw tears stream down her face as she turned away.

            Our last week passed by slowly. We packed nothing in hope of returning. My friends tried to hang out with me as much as possible before my departure. Homework didn't lessen, but neither did my effort. I continued to keep up with everything in anticipation of my return.

            My last day was hard! My best friend Emily brought me a "We Will Miss You" balloon and in my French class (the last hour of the day) people brought in snacks and we had a little going away party. My teacher informed me that if I returned I would be the one who needed to bring in food for the rest of the class. After school ended, I went to my friend Nadine's house with Emily, Mirna, and Stephanie. We ate 2 of the 7 pizzas and talked the rest of the night. Pictures were taken, and as we all departed Nadine's, tears were shed. It finally hit me that that moment could be the last time I see my friends. Emily's mom cried when she dropped me off at my house. It was a bad day all around.

The Life-Changing Room: PART ONE

It was Wednesday, Valentines Day, and I was scheduled to depart from school early. My mom, brothers and I were heading to the US border to renew our expiring visas that allow us to live in America. We have renewed the visas 3 times before and never had a problem so we thought nothing of this one particular trip.

Time passed as we sat in the chairs and listened to the voices of my mom and the officer, let's call him Tim, talk about our renewal. As people were meandering by, my attention was lost but regained as a stern voice called us through and demanded us to take a seat in the "secondary inspection" room. That's never a good thing to hear. We watched as the officer commanded my mother to fill out a piece of paper with various fields of required information. As she asked what the papers were for, they enlightened her that these papers were for withdrawal and we would not be entering back into the States that evening, or ever. What!? My school! My friends! Our house….. By this time my mom was crying, "We have our house to worry about! We can't leave now…our dog is still at home!"

            They questioned us, rather annoyed, "There's no one home with the dog? What about your husband? Ma'am, I can ask if we are permitted to give you a few days but we don't usually do this."

            "Sir, I don't have a husband. If I did, he would obviously be here with me. My children have school, what are we supposed to do?"

            "You should never have fully moved here in the first place! Every person in America on a visa should have a back up home in Canada, or any other country, waiting for them because these documents don't last long. That's your problem to deal with, not ours."

            With tears streaming down the faces of my siblings and mother, I was there to comfort. My older brother had his girlfriend to worry about, my younger brother was crying because my older brother was, and my mom had a lot to think about (job, house, our schooling, her car, and everything else). Why am I not crying along with them? We now have 10 DAYS to leave the country and … I am not shedding a tear.

Hands Reaching Out

My hand reaches out longing for relief,
My eyes swell as I wander.
I focus my mind praying for belief,
Doubt is real as I ponder.

I think of the joy that once filled my heart,
Laughter and smiles galore.
Now times are rigid and I fall apart,
The days are battles and war.

I blame myself for the times that I face,
The things I shouldn’t have done.
I wish I had a foundation and base;
A fortress, joy, just Someone.

With all the problems occupying mind,
I neglect my Saviour God.
He is calling my name, “Come, be refined.”
I’m discomfited and odd.

I open God’s word and to my surprise,
He loves all, forgave and died.
He wants me to be free, honest, and wise,
Putting downbeat thoughts aside.

Now when I struggle with hands reaching out,
God is the first one I call.
Peace fills my spirit and casts away doubt,
I know I never will fall.

--A poem I wrote this week while I was getting discouraged and questioning the moments taking place in my life. I neglected to remember that God is always there and holding me every step I take. It seems as though when circumstances deteriorate and my emotions and life is at a low, that I cloud my thoughts with everything negative and push Christ away. May I always remember to raise my hands in prayer to God for comfort, and peace will transcend over my soul.

Climbing the Hills

For I have stayed on God’s paths; I have followed his ways and not turned aside. Job 23:11

We were trudging up a rather snowy, elongated incline and my legs were beginning to wear out. I began to realize, however, that when I kept my eyes attentive on my dad’s footsteps in front of me and trailed the path he formed, it permitted a more bearable hike. As soon as I took my focus off of the track before me and set my eyes upon the rest of the climb I still was obligated to finish...I became disheartened and wearied much more quickly.

This reminds me of Jesus. He is guiding us and leading the way. As long as we are sure to follow in His footsteps and the path He has marked out, the trials and hardships we are hurdling over at that instant don't seem as treacherous. However, when we focus our eyes on the seemingly endlessness of our problems, we quickly become dismayed which increases in us the urge to give up.

God has a path right in front of you; focus not on the apparent boundlessness of your struggles, but upon the feet of your Saviour.

Keep Your Eyes Straight Ahead

“Sensible people keep their eyes glued on wisdom, but a fool’s eyes wander to the ends of the earth.” - Proverbs 17:24

 My dad and I were walking across a snow-covered tree that had fallen over a ditched river in the woods. Being very cautious so that we were sure not to slip and fall, we made our way across. Upon reaching the other side, my dad made a comment to me, "You know it's funny how our minds perceive depth. If this log was up as high as the CN Tower, you wouldn't catch me walking across it." Isn't that true for the most of us? Sure, we can do something when there is no/little danger at stake, but when there is a substantially greater margin with which to fall, we back out. The same is with our spiritual lives...we are willing to serve God through thick and thin; when it's easy and there isn't much room for error. However, as soon as the stakes are high and we face the chance of ridicule, failure, rejection, persecution, etc., we tend to back out with our hands above our heads.
              God wants us to keep our eyes on Him. If I were to have walked ahead on that log, not knowing what was underneath me, I have no doubt I could have done it with much more ease. The same is with God; we can handle those heights as long as we keep our eyes up and not look down at the world and the numerous ways to fail. God is our refuge; even if we lose our footing...He is there holding our hands and continually ready to pick us up when we falter. Turn your eyes to the Lord today and don't look down at the ways the world taunts you. God is there and is your refuge.