marriage

What a blessing it is when you get to see such a beautiful uniting of man and wife in marriage.
This past weekend I got to attend a wedding (as the date of my sister) of a childhood friend from growing up at the same church.
It was such a beautiful wedding and so very God-centred. I cried numerous times.

bananas & onions

I was really looking forward to 2 beautifully thick slices of banana bread from the UC cafeteria. The first couple bites were delicious. I did, however miss the lemon glaze that my mom used to brush on the top of the banana bread just as it came out of the oven. The lack of lemon glaze (pretty much consisting of lemon juice) was not my ultimate letdown. It was the slightly disconcerting taste of onions that pervaded not 1 slice, but both of them. Onions? I swear it was onions. Maybe they need to clean out their pans a little better after using them to make...onion loaf?
Sick.

two

This (but not shampoo - the body wash) was one of the glorious things that made me happy today. After a good workout at the gym I hopped into a borderline-scalding shower. As I lathered up with my new honey & nut body wash that my sweet mother gave to me for my birthday I couldn't help but smile. What an incredible smell.
It made me happy.





This also made me happy:

What a sweet, sweet laptop. My hilarious husband thought it would be funny to call me and tell me he had to go speak at a small group when REALLY he was picking up my laptop from the post office.
What a tricky, tricky husband.
But how could I be mad when he smiled his cute little smile and in his hands held the beautiful package I've been waiting for!
Hoorah for little laptops!

pressure

Check this out:

Vanessa,

You recently registered for Facebook using this email address.
Please complete your registration by following the link below:

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If you did not recently register, or believe you have received this email in error, please disregard this message.

Thanks!

The Facebook Team

That's right. I finally succumbed.
There.
Now all you facebook junkies can search me out and add me.

Birthday

Yesterday was my birthday and since it was also a Saturday I was able to celebrate with my friends as well!
It was a great day and I really enjoyed every part of it;

- waking up to the delicious smell of bacon
- enjoying breakfast in bed with Jamie as we watched last week's episode of Lost that we had previously taped
- lounging around the house and then going out for lunch with Jamie to a "surprise" location
- the "surprise" location was a fantastic little cafe in Rockwood where we each enjoyed amazing rib-eye steaks and veggies
- getting ready for the big birthday bash and getting to try out new recipes
- seeing tons of friends (but not too many for our apartment) and playing games, chatting and enjoying some fantastic live music at Pablo's

This was one of my favourite birthday parties. What a great day!
And I found out that my laptop will probably be here in the next couple days instead of in a week from now!
Today I was treated to lunch with my family in Toronto and also got some beautiful pashmina scarves from my Mom (thanks Mom!).
What a blessed woman I am to have all these wonderful people in my life.
I look forward to the next 25 years and whatever is in store for me!

jewellery

Beautiful.

evangelism

A few days ago I tried to blog but it got accidentally deleted - so I didn't retry it.
Now I have much more to blog about than some freak snowstorm (which is significant in it's own weathery-type category).
This past Friday was our staff day for evangelism. All the staff came to Guelph and we paired off and went into all the popular hang-out spots at the U of G to go "sharing".
Now in the whole gamut of feelings toward doing initiative evangelism (from those who just LOVE it to those who HATE it) I fall somewhere in the "I love it" category but still don't find it incredibly easy to do - or at least I struggle to get out there and do it. Once I'm doing it, I love it...it's the whole momentum thing I struggle with.
But I do love doing it and I do love going with people I haven't gone before. In the morning I went out with MC and we approached and spoke with several girls. They were all really good conversations and 2 of the 3 conversations were longer than 30 minutes. Good, solid conversations where the gospel was presented.
In the afternoon I went out with Sean and we talked to this one guy for about 45 minutes. I was so encouraged by this conversation. Here was a guy in philosophy and was captured by guys like - I'm totally drawing a blank here - crap. Basically, he was captured by the Christian philosophers that he was studying. Here was a guy who was well informed, logical and asks himself the "big" questions of life. He was open and honestly seeking.
And then came the most incredible conversation with these two guys. This time I was sharing with Allan. These two guys and Allan and I talked for over an hour and a half about everything from the historicity of the Bible, to the claims of Jesus to absolute truth, to heaven and hell and everything! It was awesome and heated and full of debate and listening and talking and opinions and questions and ultimately was all about Jesus. In the end my heart broke for these guys who think that there is nothing more than this life. One guy even said, "I am my own god."
Wow. I can't even imagine the anger/sadness/grief that is felt by God as so many people either say that statement verbally or communicate it by their actions.
But I was so pumped afterwards. We even had to cut the conversation so we could get our rides.
Who says people don't want to talk about about their spiritual beliefs?
In a span of around 4-5 hours I only spoke to 7 people! That means that I either hung out in the bathroom a lot (which I didn't) or that the people I spoke to were really interested and the conversations just lasted longer than 5 minutes.
I've said it before, but I'll say it again, I love my job.

Thanksgiving Thoughts

4 Thanksgiving dinners later and I'm literally as stuffed as one of the feathered friends I ate!
Ok, so I'm obviously not LITERALLY that stuffed (cuz I'd be dead if I were) but I vow to the blogging world - I, Vanessa, will never again eat 4 Thanksgiving dinners in one weekend ever again.
But it was a good time with many different families and friends and those are the memories that I will take away with me (and hopefully not this horribly bloated feeling) and remember for many years to come.
It's also a Thanksgiving that comes (or ends) with the announcement of new life - nope, it's not me who's pregnant - and the tumult of emotions that I now feel as I think of my dear friend and the precious life that is miraculously growing within her. What a new phase in my life! No one I've been close (in both relationship and age) to has started to have babies and now it's upon me. A brand new phase in my life - one that is similar to the phase when my friends started to get engaged and married. And this new phase is having a similar effect on me. I become introspective and look at different things in my life but ultimately I come before Jesus Christ with my life and my hopes and dreams and wishes and goals. I know that I want what He wants for my life - more than anything else I want what He wants. There is an increased effort and submission to Him in prayer because in all of this I realize how little I know about life but an eventual increase in peace knowing that HE knows EVERYTHING about life - and everything about MY life. My past, my present and my future. What a relieving and comforting thought.
Oh God how I praise you for your omniscience. For your Sovereignty and for your supreme wisdom and power.
I echo the words of a song:
Lord, reign in me.

family

Saturday Jamie and I drove to Toronto for Thanksgiving with my family. It was a goregeous day so we went to the Lakeshore to walk on the boardwalk and play bocce ball.
I love how family dynamics change as you all grow old enough to hang out together as "adults". Even Bear (our dog) behaved!
We had an incredible dinner together and each shared things we're thankful for - focussing on the past year and things that have happened. It was so encouraging to hear of how God is working in and changing my mom's life. It really brought tears to my eyes and made me so thankful that He really is the Great Physician and He definitely binds up the brokenhearted.
I am thankful for Family.

wants

Ah the Canon Rebel XT digital SLR. Oh how I long for one.
If anyone out there has one they want to sell to me or know where I can get one at a good price...leave a comment.
*sigh*
One day I'll have one...I just know it.

Summit

I've only been home for just under an hour but I just feel the need to write about this weekend.
Summit was incredible. God is incredible. Over 400 students came to Camp White Pine this weekend for our Campus for Christ Retreat - my buzzer just went to change the laundry - Mm...fresh laundry. Where was I?
Right. Summit. 400 students.
My heart is so full of joy and amazement that despite the fact that this year our campuses split off (and there were only 8 campuses instead of the usual 12 or so) that we had MORE students from LESS campuses turn up. Wow!
Friday night was insanely cold; minus one degree to be exact. At least, it was cold for September 29th. Despite the cold we all gathered in the Pintages for school spirit (Guelph...I'm so proud of you and I am so blessed to be working with all of you - and Mac...the fact that you had over 130 students show up is honestly a testimony of God's grace and power - it's true...even if you were a little obnoxious. :P) incredible worship and both hilarious stories and words of truth from our speaker, Alex Philip.
I also appreciated the drive up north - the colours of the trees are mind-blowing! I just soaked it in while listening to a fantastic sermon by Mark Driscoll. I love nature. That aspect alone of the weekend was a blessing in itself.
And God showed up. He truly did.
Saturday was such a great day. Worshipping in spirit and in truth, playing some great games, talking with new friends, old friends and even recent friends...my heart was just so blessed from this weekend. I think because I remember my first few Summits when I didn't know anyone and felt extremely out of place and struggled to get to know people. Now when I come I see familiar faces who know me and love me and we are labouring together for Christ - and I love that!
Saturday night was my favourite session. Alex talked about sin and its affect in our lives and its destructive nature. I was scribbling notes like crazy as he talked about Joshua from the Bible and how when one of the Israelite's committed a sin God took it so seriously that it was not only that particular person's sin, but the entire nation of Israel's sin! Sin is serious. And another point that stuck out to me is that sin is not disconnected from God. It is intimately connected to who God is and is an affront on the character of God. THAT is why it is so serious and that's why the reprecussions of sin is death. (Rom. 6:23)
Today I woke up with the worst migraine I think I've ever had so much so that I felt sick to my stomach. This was discouraging as I wanted to participate in the day's activites. I'm not sure why this happened but I know it wasn't random. So today was hard...and not my ideal way to end a great weekend, but as we drove home I started to feel better, which was really great.
I'll end with this link to a fantastic article by John Piper. It's called "The Greatest Thing in the World is to be Saved". Check it out.
Oh and you can check out my pictures from Summit at my picture blog and some videos at my video blog.

music

After months of hearing "Save your scissors" on tv or the radio I've finally gone out and got the entire cd by City and Colour.
I really enjoy this album by Dallas Green (City...Colour...clever, eh?) the former lead singer of Alexisonfire.
Green's heartfelt vocals and incredible acoustic guitar make for a solid first album on his own.
That's my recommendation.

topics

Is it good blogging etiquette to have several, diverse topics/ponderings in one blog entry?
*holding blogging etiquette in my hand near an open window*
For now, I am throwing blogging etiquette out the window.

First topic.

I am unsatisfied with my current blog template. All that work for naught. I can't put my finger on it. Too girly? Not me?
I also don't like how it doesn't load up properly.
And I'm secretly jealous that Terra's choice of blog template is just as wicked-awesome as I had envisioned it to be when I realized (or thought I realized) that it didn't allow for comments. But alas. My gifts of observation must have been rusty or I would have noticed that indeed...it does allow for comments. But I chose this template instead. No doubt I will probably change it again some time tonight.
Simply because it is bothering me.
And I don't like the name.
We'll see.

Second topic.

Yesterday I attended Uche and Melissa's wedding in Buffalo.
Some thoughts:
- this is the third wedding I have been to/seen this summer where the bridesmaids were in rich, red dresses. It looked nice...it's just a funny observation.
- the message in the service was really good. The pastor used Ephesians 5:22-33 as his base and he expounded it so beautifully and richly as well as applying it to their specific situation and personalities.
- the reception - oh the reception! It was held in this goregeous mansion where we were wined and dined with all the best appetizers, dinner, dessert and great service. The speeches were meaningful but not rambling and there weren't five million of them - thank goodness!
- Chris Shipley's prayer of blessing on Uche and Melissa during the ceremony was the most beautiful wedding prayer I have ever heard. God has so clearly gifted him with an understanding of what prayer is and how to pray...it moved me to tears.
- seeing old friends was great
- shopping at the outlet mall on the way home was also great as I FINALLY found a fall/spring jacket (incidentally the same one as Jenna had picked out ... first the vest, now the jacket)

Third topic.

Babies. I was at a baby shower today for someone in the family (sorta - like a step-cousin-in-law...does such a thing exist?) and it was very...thought provoking.
First: I am fully and completely amazed at God's grace for giving me such a husband who loves me, respects me, cherishes me as well as someone who has a deep relationship with God.
"How is this related to babies?" you might ask.
Well after cringing inwardly at the behaviour and words of one of the men there and bearing witness to his lack of respect for his wife and their first child I was overwhelmed with a sense of relief and thankfulness to be with a man who does respect me and to know that I have no doubts that he will be the most amazing father - full of love and care, discipline and wisdom towards our children.
And then began the comments about Jamie and I and our future children. I don't really mind the comments so much. I look forward to the day when we have kids. And Jamie and I have talked about tons of things concerning our future and we are confident that when we have kids it will be at the right time for us - not our families or friends, but for us. So...in the meantime I will smile and accept their comments knowing that they are probably just as excited (maybe not quite as excited) as we are about bringing new life into this world some day.

puddles

Today was a good day for many reasons but one lovely trip down memory lane was perhaps my favourite. It was my favourite because of how unexpected it was.
The story goes:
After dinner tonight Jamie and I traipsed off to the grocery store. Zehrs.
I love Zehrs. Now mind you, it wasn't the amazing Imperial Zehrs but any Zehrs is better than Price Chopper or Food Basics.
Ok, so I'm a food snob. I like my frills!
Leaving the rabbit trails behind...
So we're slowly making our way. Up and down each aisle. Perusing. Looking at all the fantastic and strange fruits and vegetables.
When just as I'm about to grab some Soup To Go, I look up to see a familiar face talking to Jamie.
It's Jared.
From the summer camp Jamie and I worked at 7 years ago.
The same summer we started dating.
So it turns out that Jared and his wife life a few houses down from the Zehrs. And he invited us over for dinner! Did I mention he's a trained chef?
Maybe we'll be couple friends!
It's little reunions like this that make me smile on the inside and on the out.
Such a little, silly thing and yet...God knew exactly what He was doing when he put us both in Zehrs.
Thanks God...for the many blessings you pour out on me - they are raining down on me and I am jumping in the puddles.

hockey

Today was a good day.
I forgot how much I really enjoy hockey.
And live sporting events in general.
Jamie and I went to see the Leafs Blue & White game.
This is an annual event before the first pre-season game where all the Leafs suit up into two teams - one team wears their blue jerseys and one team wears their white jerseys.
Then no matter what happens - the Leafs win!
An idea situation if you ask me.
I'm looking forward to this hockey season and one that ends with the Leafs hoisting that silver cup in the air.