Ya Pictures!

So I got my laptop. Fairly fast too thanks to Dell! Thought I'd post some pictures that I've been wanting to for awhile. The first picture I'm very proud of because it's of a buch of my family at Christmas time. I wasn't able to see them for awhile until this time. The girl I'm holding is Serenity next to her Mom Shalom (my sister). I hadn't seen them in a long time, it was nice to have my niece be so glad to see me (wish I could/would have spent more time with her).

This second picture is my drive on the way to work one day. It made me joyful to think of the wonder of our God and how He provides such simple beauty some mornings especially.

Don't Leave Me!!

Ya Ya. Okay so I haven't written for a while and probally the few people who actually read this blog have stopped by now. So I suppose I'll just have to "talk" to myself for awhile hoping someone someday will "hear" me. Reminds me of a Country song that I don't know the words or the title or even the artist for that matter:) Well I can't think of too much to write right now. I got set up with Facebook, I'm not sure about the whole thing but I see potiential for it to make connections that would go beyond the computer. I already found some long lost people on there.
Other then that I should be getting a laptop anyday now which in part will hopefully allow me to have easier and more useful access to the internet as well as do things such as post pictures and all that Jazz. Chow for now.

A Simple Prayer

"Whoever pursues rightousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honor." ~Pr. 21:21

"Humility and the fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life." ~Pr. 22:4

"...But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness." ~1 Tim. 6:11

"...Take hold of the eternal life to which you where called..." ~1 Tim. 6:12b

"...so that they may take hold of the life that is truely life." ~1 Tim. 6:19

"My people have committed two sins; They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water." ~Jer. 2:13

"...'If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me [Jesus] and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.' By this he meant the Spirit..." ~Jn. 7:37-39

"Father, you are the author and giver of life and more importantly of your life, "The life that is truly life". Lord you are the thirst quencher the one who gives fresh pure lasting water for our growth and fulfillment! So, I ask you Lord, where is the reality of this life in me? Where is the stream of living water teaming within me? Where's the abundance? Where's the fulfillment? So often, despite my desire and effort to follow you, I feel so empty, like I'm floating around in some useless merry-go-round. Help me to get off and run with passion, fulfillment and joy toward your heart and your ways. Help there to be a radical change in the way I live, spend my time and view my life. May I make each moment count for eternity. May I rejoice in you and the wonderful people in this world. Help love, among other things, [to] revolutionize the way I walk; Nearer to you, nearer to others, passionate about the unity and life therein! Amen."

Can Mankind be "Good" without God?

The following is a Journal excerpt of mine from Jan 9, '07:

"Desire without knowledge is not good, and whoever makes haste with his feet misses the way." ~Pr. 19:2
"Whoever gets sense loves his own soul; he who keeps understanding will discover good." ~Pr. 19:8

I was just watching "The National" tonight, namely the section called "The Lens". What they attempted to search out was the question, "Can mankind be good without God?"... What I appreciate about the program is that people are thinking and talking "educated-ly" about it. What I hate about it is all the lies of Satan that are taking hold of people's lives and belief systems even (in one case on the show) despite the death of one couple's son! These are not all people who put the blindfold over their own eyes but they are so blinded by what they derive truth out of... If there is no God, and therefore no basis for good and evil, how can there be truth from which to draw at all?...
Really the question is not "Can mankind be good without God?", the answer is simple, NO! Why? because mankind cannot be good even with God!!! As Jesus himself said, "...No one is good except God alone." (Mark. 10:18) this truth is profoundly true and set forth throughout Scripture! Not only that but each day proves again and again the reality of this truth. So too history proves it's reality (i.e. WWI and WWII). From one's own life, look at yourself (your not perfect)! How can you expect good to come out of a system that rejects it's strongest Ally (God)?
Where the real nail is hit has to do with the false perception the world has on what qualifies a person to be "good"... People have watered down God's commands, and even their own consciences, because they do not understand a system in which they cannot attain that which is required of them, nor do they want to believe in such a thing. The atheist or "humanist" is not the only one with this false understanding. All religions who do not have Jesus Christ as our substitute, and faith alone in His work as a satisfaction for our sins and as the basis for salvation, fall short. They fall short because, just as the humanist, they trust in themselves or their methods. Blinded from the reality of their need they walk on their "merry" way to the pit's edge sometimes even shutting their ears to the few of us who do cry out pleading for them to change their course!
How we need people who will do all that's within their power to change the course of the multitude starting and continuing in the most important discipline, Prayer!

"The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and whoever captures souls is wise." ~Pr. 11:30

"Father, Help me to have the wisdom and your anointing to change lives for eternity. Not that I would change lives and hearts but that you'd do that work through me, that I would be continually faithful to that which you have called me. Amen."

Blessings, Moving, Friends and Family

Well, well, well much to write about since I last wrote (as much has happened). I finally got to Alberta, we ended up being a day late due to the extended amount of time it took to pack up and clean my house in Melfort. Wanda-Marie, who helped me move and who loves to pack (actually not at all) just about killed me when she saw that I was far from being packed up when I was supposed to be (we ended up leaving not quite 24-hours from when we planned to... I don't know what she was claimplaining about :) Much thanks to her tough).
The people that I left behind are a good group to be sure! I'm sure I will miss them even as I seek to establish myself here in Edmonton (area). I very much enjoyed and appreciated the youth group I was able to be a part of there, what a great group of kids! They were sad to see me go and I was sad to leave them and yet I know it is the Lord's care that they are under and He will indeed take good care of them (unfourantly I don't have any pictures of them). I will also miss the people of the church (Lost River Church, a.k.a. Bethany Mennonite Church) I have found the people within the church to be so loving and giving! My dear friends from the Bible School (i.e. Tim G., Matthew T., etc.) and the McAurther gang show themselves to have been rich blessings in my life over the last couple of years especially. Last of all I realise what a blessing it was to have Pastor Jeff (my mentor, pastor, and friend) in my life to tell me things I didn't want to hear and to lead, direct, and pray for me and my ministry both present and future.
I'd like to let them all, and you all, know that I percieve the work/ministry I'm at now with the Group home to be rewarding, enjoyable and difficult. I realized a bit more of the reality of the whole situation and the boys lives as I went through the orientation and helped on a shift with the boys. For the most part the boys that are in the home fall under the categary of FASD (Fetal Alcohol Specterm Disorder) and there is much to learn in reguards to how to go about helping, displining, and shining forth hope and a future for these young boys (Group home #1 ages are 8-12; Group home #2 ages are 12+). For the first little while I'll be continuing to live in the second Group home until my cousin gets his place. It was interesting to have an electronic detector on my door so everyone in the house knew when I was going in and out of my room; we took care of that though, now I can go in and out without anyone knowing (oh the great freedom I now have!).
Switching from that I'd like to praise the Lord for the family that is up here now... I was able to vist with Susan, Mary-Jane (MJ) and John-Paul (Jay) along with their kids (Faith, Holly, Grace, and Joshua). Also a blessing is that my sister Shalom is down from Victora with her dauther Serenity; Hope is also coming down before Christmas (hopefully with Alisha)! Mom and Dad seem to continue to do well for the most part, it still takes some getting used to with my Mom doing so well these days, Praise God! Right now I'm enjoying all the "Uncle Paul" and laughing I get from the kids. I know that these kids don't have a lot of men in there lives (esp. Serenity) and I love to be a part of curbing that.

Thank you for your prayers, some things that you can pray specifically for are:
- That I would continue being a blessing to both of my families here
- That the Lord would grow within the Group home workers a passion and faith in the Lord for the boys in the home and that they would come to know and searve the Lord wholeheartedly
- I'd be able to get everything in for working in the home (i.e. Driver's lience and Abstract, Social Work Check, etc.). My "first" shift starts tomorrow 9-9
- That we would all enjoy the true meaning and reality of Christmas and not allow Satan to rip down the great blessing of the season (so often we can get sidetracked toward the urgent rather then the important)

I'd also like to praise the Lord that it seems car insurance won't be much more here then in Saskatchewan!

Moving West (this) Young Man!

Times are full of change these days... I feel like I'm always moving! It was nice to have had some kind of stability over the last little while though (being around the same general area). Now I'm preparing to move to Alberta again!! Back to my "home", the plan has come up quite quickly as I recieved a phone call from my Mom (Betty) telling me that Uncle Errol and the group home is very much in need of a full time "youth worker". So after some thinking and praying I feel as though that is what I need to do. Likely before Christmas I'll be at the group home for "troubled boys" (my definition) and my job will be basically to supervise, play, interact and impact these young boys as best I can. I believe it will be quite a streching time but also well worth it. To go from Melfort where a one bedroom apartment is about $360/month (including heat and water) to Edmonton area where I have found no one bedroom apartments for less then $1000+/month is going to be a strech in itself I'm sure. Not to meation the other high costs of living (i.e. car insurance)... You ever notice that despite the high cost of living it remains so popular? :)

Well I suppose that is all for now... I really should finish up the youth bible study for tomorrow and other inportant things.