well well well...

Okay, here we go...this is going to be covering the last two weeks. I hung out around the camp for almost a week while most of Kaleo went to Saskatchewan for a youth event. I got to spend some much needed time sleeping, reading, and generally being by myself. I love living here in community, but there are days where it is nice to have some space. I also got to enjoy some movies and some quality vegetating. There hasn't been a lot of free time lately to do that. Because it was reading break, my church opted to cancel youth and allow me a week off, which was kind of them but ultimately unnecessary. I kind of want to make the most of the few weeks that we have left together and really seize the opportunity to pour into their lives.

Of course, as per usual, there have been a host of papers to write amidst the flurry of activity that starts up as soon as all of Kaleo is together. Time management has definitely improved as I budget time on the fly in an effort to partake in as many of the festivities and activities as possible while getting what seems to be an inordinate amount of school work completed. We finished our Theology class on this most recent Thursday, and on Friday I took my youth to a Manafest concert (Christian rapper from BC...not a bad entertainer, but he sweat like a polar bear at the beach) after going to Victoria to get a few shots so I don't get sick and die in India. Not really on the agenda for our trip, dying...

Saturday was characterized by reading a book I would rather not touch and answering impossible questions. I mean, does this prof seriously expect me to critique a theologian's work? The man wrote a book on missions and I struggle to spit out six pages on command; I'll go out on a limb and suggest he may be a tad more knowledgeable than I. In any case, I got it done twenty minutes before the deadline and passed it in without too much trouble, although there may be smoke damage due to my brain overheating. I also shaved my beard and got a hair cut, which when coupled with my wearing contacts rather than glasses completely changes my appearance and rendered me unrecognizable, so I'm told. Funny story: When I went to the hair stylist, I kept a mustache just for kicks. she barely allowed me to sit down before she suggested that I allow her to it off, free of charge, because I clearly didn't wear a mustache well. Seriously? What if i really liked my facial hair? what then lady? I still gave her a tip; I figured a woman who would risk being so bold probably didn't get them very often.

This Sunday I helped teach Sunday school, and came to the realization that I really like those kids. I mean, I enjoyed being with them and endured the occasional frustration without totally giving up on them, but today I decided I really, really like those kids. and not just the kids, but the whole church. I have come to genuinely appreciate my entire church, even the characters who were (and sometimes continue to be) a tad annoying. I genuinely care for them all and want the best for them...which, if you will hearken back with me to the days when I began working there, you will remember was not always the case.

Things I've learned these couple of weeks: God is unchanging, and yet I can't figure him out. I know that's because I'm human, but sometimes I feel pretty dumb. Also, God has a sense of humor...like when you promise yourself and your prof and those around that you will never ever do something, and then God seems to indicate that that is exactly what your going to do, so there. haha, oh you foolish human nature... I've been working hard to discern God's plan for me for next year. "I know the plans I have for you..." some people argue that we can make any old decision and God will bless it as long as it is withing the scope of his will, which is general and merely a set of guiding principles rather than specific instructions. I agree to an extent, but I also believe that there are circumstances where God has real directions and real expectations, and we use our supposed belief that God doesn't give those kinds of instructions as an excuse not to bother listening and patiently waiting on the Lord. And so I wait.

You could pray for me and my team as we prepare to go to India, for safety in travel and during our stay there, and for the health of all those involved (a nasty cold is flying around, and I have thus far succeeded in avoiding it). Thats all for this post folks...take care, and keep your stick on the ice.