Today I am feeling better, and a little less congested. That is until I got nauziated while reading this CNN Posting on a church who believes that the war in Iraq is God's wrath on us for condoning homosexuality. It is just amazing that people could believe in such garbage and then go so far as to protest at dead soldiers funerals and memorial services. This is completely unacceptable to preach such messages. You all should read the short article. Here is the link. http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/law/10/31/funeral.protests.ap/index.html
Things like this really makes me wonder what God thinks about something like this. He surely can't be anything but furious that people are painting such a distorted picture of him for all to see. All over the world this is the message that people are hearing and seeing. Our God is certainly not about hating people. I feel like I need to calm down now. How can we change this picture?
I can't seem to keep myself in good health no matter how hard I try. Yes I am taking my vitamins as well. What can you do?
That sounds like a good time to me. Well Saturday night the inhabitants of Vancouver came out dressed up for what they call the parade of lost souls. Man is that depressing. It actually wasn't too bad. I was expecting down right devil worshiping or something, but got a rather mild form of a Halloween festival. Quite honestly I found Halloween at Ohio University to be much darker in a spiritual and depressing sort of way.
This strange wizard guy did manage to creep me out though. This party did have its fair share of strange people.
All in all it was a good night and I was not over run with demons. Thank you Jesus.
Another great weekend has gone by quickly and I am left wondering and anticipating a new week ahead. Time really goes so fast here it is amazing to me. I am desperately trying my best to enjoy each moment we are here and get whatever God wants me to take away from this place.
I have the greatest father in law ever. A couple weeks ago I received a few of my favorite cigars in the mail from the good ole' boy and it made me grin from ear to ear. They are so tasty. They might make you smell a little bit, but luckily God blessed me with a woman who likes those brown turds. The big man really does take all the details into consideration. What am I talking about?
MMM...so yummy. I can just relax and ponder life's big questions with one of these babies while sitting out on the balcony. It is great. One of the big, really big questions I am constantly thinking about is why am I here? In Vancouver that is. I don't feel like I am doing anything miraculous for the Kingdom of God most of the time. So what the heck. What am I doing besides trying to maintain my sanity most of the time? Not that I'll ever really figure out all the reasons why God would have us come so far away from home without anything but faith. The best I can figure lately is that a big reason for us here is to help in restoring dignity to so many here who have been hurt and shamed for most of their lives. Making people feel valued and hopefully even worthy of love. That is awesome. I am glad to be a part of it.
I know those are pretty big words, but for some reason the cosmos aligned today and it felt like the best day ever. Why is that? Well a number of small events led me to feel this way. Let's see... well, right out of bed this morning it was a beautiful day. The air smelled great and the temp was amazing. The sun was out and everything seemed to have an overabundance of life. Then we all had some breakfast together this morning and went for a time of worship. We decided to go for a walk to one of the most amazing local parks in the area. With the fall leaves changing all sorts of colors, the sun, and the mountains in the background it seemed like I was in heaven. Literally, the way life was going on in this park on such a gorgeous day it is the way I envision heaven to some extent.
Then after that Carrie and I came home and she gave me a haircut to make me feel like a new man and not someone who has been living in a cave for about six months. Then some other great things happened that married people do and that was great. Then we watched a great movie. Little Miss sunshine has such great messages and was relaxing for me and Carrie. After that I did a little work in a basement that I have been working on. It is quite nice to see some tangible results for your labor. It really makes you feel like a man. Then a lovely dinner prepared by someone else. It tasted great. Now I am just relaxin.
Today almost felt like a vacation day or something. Maybe that is why it seemed so great. I think we all have been in great need of a wonderful, stress free day. I am so thankful. I love days like these.
This morning I awoke to the sight of a clear sunny day outside. Although it has only been about a week since I have seen that sight it feels like forever. The warmth of the sun and smell of the air were amazing. I try the best I can to revel in God's beauty. I am continuously humbled by God's creation.
Anyway, what should I do with a morning such as this. Thats right, go down the street for a little sausage and eggs. The cottage restaurant has been serving for nearly forty years and still going strong here on Commercial Drive. Although the folks in the restaurant may not be the most personable of people on the planet they are intriguing to me. They are all elderly Italian people. Sitting in the midst of that community I feel as though I am in a small Italian village or something. They go on and on in their native tongue to one another. It is really great to experience that culture just sitting in that restaurant having some eggs. So this morning I was able to experience different culture in a different more beautiful way. This morning I didn't feel like an outsider, but rather a part mixed right into everything. I gotta get about my day. Lots to do.
We are now in a new season of the year and life. Almost overnight Vancouver found itself in the fall season. With it comes colder weather, changing leaves, and a good bit of rain. I thought I would have no problem with the wet climate, but I may be proven wrong rather soon. I am currently a bit discouraged when I think about spending the majority of the next four months getting soaked every time I walk out the door.
All in all, with the new season brings new challenges as we are on the down hill slope toward coming home. That is so exciting to both Carrie and I. As we were having coffee with a new friend of ours last night I came to a realization again, which was that I need to enjoy each moment as best as possible wherever possible and not let rain keep us from doing things. I don't want to always feel that the grass is always greener on...you know that saying.