Dodgeball to Dance party!

Derek, me, and Blaine, at Blaine's 17th Anniversary party earlier this month

Saturday morning some of us from Eden house and a few outsiders, made up a team, and took part in a dodgeball tournament hosted at the Acadia gym. It was a fundraiser for the Wolfville farmers market, put on by the Katimavik group. We came in 3rd place! Yup 3rd place is pretty good................even if there were just 4 teams. Hopefully the next tourney will have way more teams!

After Derek and I got back home from dodgeball and getting some party food, we worked on decorating and reorganizing our living room. Derek helped me string up paper airplanes attached by strings, to the ceiling fan. Lucky we have a step ladder, because its a pretty tall vaulted ceiling. The airplanes flew great once the fan was turned on! So much better than I had anticipated!

One of Derek's numerous passions is flying. He talks about it very often. This summer we will (Lord willing) be heading to Disney World for his vacation. We got the hotel already. But we still need to do lots of fundraising for the flights and park passes. Anybody have some helpful advice for either fundraising or Disney World its self?

In the evening Eden house, (my house) hosted a flying themed fund-raiser dance party for Derek. Thanks to Blaine's sound system and Derek's music we had the dance floor shaking! Not very many people showed up, but still we raised 66 dollars. Great fun!

While dancing tonight I thought of how David danced before the Lord, and what it might have looked like. Scandalous! 

  "Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the LORD with all his might, 15 while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the LORD with shouts and the sound of trumpets.

 16 As the ark of the LORD was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, she despised him in her heart.

2 Samuel 6:15-16

I love to dance! I don't know many steps. I just dance! I know I will really miss this part of life when I move on from here. 

Stay in the LIGHT

Jason

Walking in truth

Teach me your way, O Lord,

and I will walk in your truth;

give me an undivided heart, 

that I may fear your name.

I will praise you, O Lord my God, 

with all my heart; 

I will glorify your name forever. 

For great is your love toward me; 

you have delivered me from the depths of the grave.

You, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, 

slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.

Psalm 86:11,12,13 and 15

Proverbs 17:22

         "A cheerful heart is good medicine, 

  but a crushed spirit dries up the bones."

How to build a community.

Turn off you TV. Leave your house. Know your neighbour. Look up when you are walking. Greet people. Sit on your stump. Plant flowers. Use your library. Play together. Buy from local merchants. Share what you have. Take children to the park. Garden together. Fix it even when you didn't break it. Have a potluck. Honour elders. Pick up litter. Read stories aloud. Dance in the street. Talk to mail carrier. Listen to the birds. put up a swing. Help carry something heavy. Barter for goods. Start a tradition. Ask questions. Hire young people for odd jobs. Organize a block party. Bake extra and share. Ask for help when you need it. Open your shades. Sing together. Share your skills. Take back the night. Turn up your music. Turn down your music. Listen before you react to anger. Seek to understand. Learn from new angles. Know that no one is silent, though many are not heard. Work to change this.


I saw these words on a poster at the office the other day, and thought that they were kind of neat.
This is NOT my statement of faith, or what I think Christian community should exactly look like. Nonetheless, there are some very positive things in what it said. Especially the part about having a potluck! 


Jason

Regrets

We all have them. 

Yesterday I went to McDonalds for ice cream with two of our core members  and another assistant. I had a triple thick strawberry milkshake, while the rest had sundaes. I was not really impressed with the milkshake. It tasted a bit too fake for my liking. Haha, Its funny how I already knew this already from other Triple Thick Milkshake experiences!

Later in the day Derek and I made the trip to the McDonalds in Coldbrooke to pick up Blaine from work. While we were there, both Blaine and Derek ordered the newly introduced Apple Crisp Blizzard, to satisfy there ice cream cravings. It was then that I started to feel sorry for having made my Triple Thick Milkshake choice. Why did I not think of having a blizzard instead? I knew that I liked Blizzards more than the Triple Thick Milkshakes. How could I have forgotten so easily!?!?

Spiritually speaking, the main reason we have regrets, is that we do not think about what will come after the choices we make. Squandering wonderful opportunities, because of our near sightedness. In our eagerness to satisfy our own desires, we so easily forget about what God has done for us, and how He wants us to live. 

Why not start making decisions that we know please God? Not “what kind of ice cream will I eat” decisions. But decisions, both big and small, that are packed with love for God and the people around us. Decide to do the right thing, even if it means going against what the rest of the world thinks we should do!

In Galatians 1:10, Apostle Paul said “Am I now tying to win the approval of men or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.”

Keep on running in the power HE so faithfully provides! 

Jason

Two eggs and four carrots!

                                                       Douglas and I

Living in community with the people of L’Arche has been wonderful! I feel like we are a pretty crazy family. We all have different strengths, weaknesses, giftings and needs. Such a wonderful puzzle when we are all united.

I am learning how essential it is to not make assumptions. We are all different and have our own stories. We do not know a book until we have moved beyond looking at the cover and actually read it. There is no good that comes from having preconceived notions about other people. Results in doing so are usually pretty negative, for you and the person judged.

Treat each other as a master piece. As one of great worth and value. For we have all been created by God, and are beautiful in His eyes. No price can be placed on the human soul. Jesus Loves us so much!

“Aren’t five sparrows sold for two cents? God doesn’t forget any of them. Even every hair on your head has been counted. Don’t be afraid! You are worth more than many sparrows.

Luke 12:6-7 (GOD’S WORD Translation)

Blessings

Jason

True Fruit.

“Love is patient, love is kind. Love is kind, it does not envy, it does not boast, it does not boast it is not proud. It is not rude it is not self seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes. always perseveres.” 

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.  This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples." 
John 15: 1-8

This is supernatural fruit! it is only by the Holy Spirits presence working in and through us, that this fruit grows. It is of eternal value, and will never rot!

We cannot bear this good fruit, unless we are connected to the Vine (the giver of life). For in Him we live, move, and have our being!

Jason