It's probably not what you think... It's a song title. I was at a network meeting this week and this was one of the songs that we sang. In light of everything that has happened over the last months this song hits home. It goes like this:
Good Good Father - Chris Tomlin
Oh, I've heard a thousand stories of what they think you're like
But I've heard the tender whisper of love in the dead of night
And you tell me that you're pleased
And that I'm never alone
You're a Good, Good Father
It's who you are, it's who you are, it's who you are
And I'm loved by you
It's who I am, it's who I am, it's who I am
Oh, and I've seen many searching for answers far and wide
But I know we're all searching
For answers only you provide
Cause you know just what we need
Before we say a word
Cause you are perfect in all of your ways
You are perfect in all of your ways
You are perfect in all of your ways to us
Oh, it's love so undeniable
I, I can hardly speak
Peace so unexplainable
I, I can hardly think
As you call me deeper still [x3]
Into love, love, love
If you don't know, my family was rocked hard these last 2 months. 2 months ago, my Oma passed away. Exactly 4 weeks later, my Opa passed as well. While their passing is hard, and it will be for a while, I find comfort knowing that they are both free of pain and suffering and worshipping at the feet of Jesus. While it's still hard knowing that they are gone, there is peace that comforts me. Peace in knowing that they are with their Savior and that I will one day see them again. My family is dealing with this in many different ways. Some are searching for answers that they may never get, others are finding answers in the only place they come from.
One thing I have come to know over these last 2 months is that God is never far from where I need Him. He has provided friends who comfort, and a church family that truly cares. He is there when I am so overcome with emotion and crying my eyes out. He is there in the memories - reminding me of how much I was loved and how much their faith has been passed down through the generations. He is there giving me peace when I can't fathom that they are gone. He is there in the hope - in me knowing that this isn't the end and that there is so much more to come after we die. Death isn't the end. There is still eternity with Jesus to come for those who accept Him and the life He gives.
Friday, March 4, 2016
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Welcome to 2016
So life has changed a lot since I last updated my blog. My last post was about my graduation and my grad trip! A lot has happened since then... so I might have more than 1 update for you (and it might be a long one...)!
Let's travel through the Summer months...
May was all about graduation and job hunting... I had been in a few conversations with some churches and while some of them didn't really pan out.. a few looked promising. But mostly I worked and kept looking for jobs. May was also the month that my grandfather passed away. It was weird going to his funeral, but my nieces made up for it. We were at the grave site saying our final goodbyes after he had been lowered into the grave. My soon-to-be 4 year old niece looked into the hole and said "Good-bye Great Grandpa! Have fun in Heaven!" Only from the mouth of a child! But truer words there wasn't.
June brought some more interviews and resumes sent out. At this point it was starting to feel like I was never going to find a job. The church I had been working at had graciously extended my contract until the end of the summer so I wasn't too worried about a job for the summer... but knew I had to find where God wanted me. I had an interview with a small church in Northern Saskatchewan and it looked promising! It was almost what I wanted... but I figured it didn't hurt to move forward with them.
June was also the month that my bestie left for a summer at camp... We had been housemates for over a year at that point and we loved living together! It was going to be an interesting summer!
July marked my candidating! If you don't know what that is, it means that I travel to a church and see what it would be like at the church there... for me it also meant sharing about my life and connecting with the youth and families of that church. I drove to this small town in Saskatchewan for a weekend and left feeling positive. It also felt like God was asking me if I truly trusted Him and His plan for my life. At that point, I said yes, but believing that I was going to end up at this church. I got a call about a week later saying that they felt that God wasn't bringing our paths together. Honestly, I think I was expecting that. It was the conversation with God on my home the previous week that gave me the feeling. I wasn't over-joyed at that point, but kept trusting that God would bring me where He wanted me.
I have to say that at this point, I had already been talking with a church that was looking for a Children's Pastor (also in Saskatchewan - but not so small of a town). There was also a church that I had looked at but while I was interested in the position, I really didn't want to be in another Chinese church or so far from my family - so I dismissed it from my mind. I was, in essence, telling God that I would go where He placed me with conditions... not always a good thing to do... but more on that in a bit!
Back to this other Saskatchewan church.. They decided to fly me in for a day of interviews.
Welcome to August!
The interviews went well, and I flew home that night positive about this. I could see myself working at the church and living in that city. But about a week later I got the phone call. The one saying that we were not moving forward with candidating. I was crushed. I didn't know what to do. Here it was almost the end of August and I had no job.. so what did I do? I moved home. S&A were moving north because she got a job that she loves so I had to find something else... so I moved home.
Welcome to September
I was able to spend some time with my brother and his family at the beginning of September. I really was excited to be spending time with them. I was already in conversations with 2 other churches at this point. The job description for both churches were essentially the same - both were Pastors of Children and Youth Ministries. One was the church that I had grown up in and the other? Well, remember that church that I had previously decided that I really didn't want to work at... well... it was that church. God had been doing some work in my heart and reminding me that I had said yes to His plan when He called me into ministry. It wasn't really right to say no to going somewhere because I didn't want to.
The first church I didn't really want the position they were offering. I didn't really want to go back to small town British Columbia after all God had done in my life over the last 10 years. So I said "Ok God. If you are calling me to this other church then you have to open the doors. You lead and I will go. If you are calling me here then I will go."
Well... I had my first round of interviews on a Monday afternoon. The interview went really well. I was able to communicate well and we parted ways...expecting to hear back within a week if they wanted to move forward with the next interviews.
I'm going to interject here... When I told God that I would go it was almost as if He said "FINALLY! Let's do this!" This process with the church was definitely God leading.
Back to the process... I was expecting to hear back from the church at about the week mark - enough time for them to talk about me and to bring me up to the board... well... It was 45 minutes after my interview that they called me back. They wanted to bring me in to candidate for a weekend at the beginning of October. I was shocked! It was definitely God's doing. They were going to make the recommendation to the Elder's Board to bring me in. So I said yes to candidating!
It was at this point that I was also preparing myself for the possibility of them saying no to me. It had happened before - so it could happen again... but this round felt different than previously.
I flew to Winnipeg on Oct. 2 to candidate and it went well. I really enjoyed getting to know people and being able to meet the kids and youth I would be working with. While I was there, I managed to get in a few more interviews - including the one with the Board of Elders and the Children's Ministry Team. It was an extremely full weekend and as I flew home that Monday, I knew that God was definitely doing something.
I was supposed to hear back at the very least a week later - time enough for everyone to give their feedback and opinions. Time enough for them (and me) to pray and discern where God was leading... well... like I said, I flew home that Monday and late Wednesday night I got an email from one of the church Elders saying that I got the job!!! They were going to draft an offer letter to me and that they were excited God brought our paths together!
While I may have originally said that I didn't want to work in a Chinese church again, I came to the realization that God had been preparing me for this over the last 10 years. Moving to Edmonton and attending a Chinese church and then to Calgary to pursue my MALM and working in a Chinese Church had all prepared me for this position. That doesn't mean that it doesn't come with its challenges but that God had been leading and directing me here.
SO I moved at the end of October to Winnipeg, Manitoba. I moved halfway across the country because I believe that God has called me here to serve this church. I can't believe how much God has done to prepare me for this and how much He has already blessed me here.
As I am sitting here writing this, I have been in Winnipeg for 3.5 months already. I have friends here and great co-workers. Together we are serving our church and God has called each of us here. I have gotten involved with a small group and they have been wonderful to get to know and a great group to be apart of. Their support, laughter, and friendship has been such a blessing as I have started this next phase of my life.
It doesn't mean that this job doesn't have its difficulties or mountains to climb... because it most definitely does... but it means that God has been faithful to what He has called me to. If you've read any of my previous posts you will (or should) see that God has been leading and directing my life. He has led me here. He promised me this when He called me to ministry. I've discovered that it is only when you look back on what God has done can you see how all your experiences line up to what He has called you to do. I never imagined that when I walked into my church in Edmonton that God was going to call me into ministry - and at a Chinese church no less!
God has been faithful and I know He will continue to be. I will definitely been keeping you updated more often on what God has been doing! Sufficient to say... I am excited to be here in Winnipeg and working with this church. I am also excited to see how God is going to use me here.
If you've made it to the end, I applaud you! It's a long update but a needed one! I've got more to share, but for today this is enough.
Let's travel through the Summer months...
May was all about graduation and job hunting... I had been in a few conversations with some churches and while some of them didn't really pan out.. a few looked promising. But mostly I worked and kept looking for jobs. May was also the month that my grandfather passed away. It was weird going to his funeral, but my nieces made up for it. We were at the grave site saying our final goodbyes after he had been lowered into the grave. My soon-to-be 4 year old niece looked into the hole and said "Good-bye Great Grandpa! Have fun in Heaven!" Only from the mouth of a child! But truer words there wasn't.
June brought some more interviews and resumes sent out. At this point it was starting to feel like I was never going to find a job. The church I had been working at had graciously extended my contract until the end of the summer so I wasn't too worried about a job for the summer... but knew I had to find where God wanted me. I had an interview with a small church in Northern Saskatchewan and it looked promising! It was almost what I wanted... but I figured it didn't hurt to move forward with them.
June was also the month that my bestie left for a summer at camp... We had been housemates for over a year at that point and we loved living together! It was going to be an interesting summer!
July marked my candidating! If you don't know what that is, it means that I travel to a church and see what it would be like at the church there... for me it also meant sharing about my life and connecting with the youth and families of that church. I drove to this small town in Saskatchewan for a weekend and left feeling positive. It also felt like God was asking me if I truly trusted Him and His plan for my life. At that point, I said yes, but believing that I was going to end up at this church. I got a call about a week later saying that they felt that God wasn't bringing our paths together. Honestly, I think I was expecting that. It was the conversation with God on my home the previous week that gave me the feeling. I wasn't over-joyed at that point, but kept trusting that God would bring me where He wanted me.
I have to say that at this point, I had already been talking with a church that was looking for a Children's Pastor (also in Saskatchewan - but not so small of a town). There was also a church that I had looked at but while I was interested in the position, I really didn't want to be in another Chinese church or so far from my family - so I dismissed it from my mind. I was, in essence, telling God that I would go where He placed me with conditions... not always a good thing to do... but more on that in a bit!
Back to this other Saskatchewan church.. They decided to fly me in for a day of interviews.
Welcome to August!
The interviews went well, and I flew home that night positive about this. I could see myself working at the church and living in that city. But about a week later I got the phone call. The one saying that we were not moving forward with candidating. I was crushed. I didn't know what to do. Here it was almost the end of August and I had no job.. so what did I do? I moved home. S&A were moving north because she got a job that she loves so I had to find something else... so I moved home.
Welcome to September
I was able to spend some time with my brother and his family at the beginning of September. I really was excited to be spending time with them. I was already in conversations with 2 other churches at this point. The job description for both churches were essentially the same - both were Pastors of Children and Youth Ministries. One was the church that I had grown up in and the other? Well, remember that church that I had previously decided that I really didn't want to work at... well... it was that church. God had been doing some work in my heart and reminding me that I had said yes to His plan when He called me into ministry. It wasn't really right to say no to going somewhere because I didn't want to.
The first church I didn't really want the position they were offering. I didn't really want to go back to small town British Columbia after all God had done in my life over the last 10 years. So I said "Ok God. If you are calling me to this other church then you have to open the doors. You lead and I will go. If you are calling me here then I will go."
Well... I had my first round of interviews on a Monday afternoon. The interview went really well. I was able to communicate well and we parted ways...expecting to hear back within a week if they wanted to move forward with the next interviews.
I'm going to interject here... When I told God that I would go it was almost as if He said "FINALLY! Let's do this!" This process with the church was definitely God leading.
Back to the process... I was expecting to hear back from the church at about the week mark - enough time for them to talk about me and to bring me up to the board... well... It was 45 minutes after my interview that they called me back. They wanted to bring me in to candidate for a weekend at the beginning of October. I was shocked! It was definitely God's doing. They were going to make the recommendation to the Elder's Board to bring me in. So I said yes to candidating!
It was at this point that I was also preparing myself for the possibility of them saying no to me. It had happened before - so it could happen again... but this round felt different than previously.
I flew to Winnipeg on Oct. 2 to candidate and it went well. I really enjoyed getting to know people and being able to meet the kids and youth I would be working with. While I was there, I managed to get in a few more interviews - including the one with the Board of Elders and the Children's Ministry Team. It was an extremely full weekend and as I flew home that Monday, I knew that God was definitely doing something.
I was supposed to hear back at the very least a week later - time enough for everyone to give their feedback and opinions. Time enough for them (and me) to pray and discern where God was leading... well... like I said, I flew home that Monday and late Wednesday night I got an email from one of the church Elders saying that I got the job!!! They were going to draft an offer letter to me and that they were excited God brought our paths together!
While I may have originally said that I didn't want to work in a Chinese church again, I came to the realization that God had been preparing me for this over the last 10 years. Moving to Edmonton and attending a Chinese church and then to Calgary to pursue my MALM and working in a Chinese Church had all prepared me for this position. That doesn't mean that it doesn't come with its challenges but that God had been leading and directing me here.
SO I moved at the end of October to Winnipeg, Manitoba. I moved halfway across the country because I believe that God has called me here to serve this church. I can't believe how much God has done to prepare me for this and how much He has already blessed me here.
As I am sitting here writing this, I have been in Winnipeg for 3.5 months already. I have friends here and great co-workers. Together we are serving our church and God has called each of us here. I have gotten involved with a small group and they have been wonderful to get to know and a great group to be apart of. Their support, laughter, and friendship has been such a blessing as I have started this next phase of my life.
It doesn't mean that this job doesn't have its difficulties or mountains to climb... because it most definitely does... but it means that God has been faithful to what He has called me to. If you've read any of my previous posts you will (or should) see that God has been leading and directing my life. He has led me here. He promised me this when He called me to ministry. I've discovered that it is only when you look back on what God has done can you see how all your experiences line up to what He has called you to do. I never imagined that when I walked into my church in Edmonton that God was going to call me into ministry - and at a Chinese church no less!
God has been faithful and I know He will continue to be. I will definitely been keeping you updated more often on what God has been doing! Sufficient to say... I am excited to be here in Winnipeg and working with this church. I am also excited to see how God is going to use me here.
If you've made it to the end, I applaud you! It's a long update but a needed one! I've got more to share, but for today this is enough.
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