Butterflies

Colours
Floating. Fluttering. Flying. Falling and swooping and landing.
Symbol of change
                    of Hope
                         of endurance
With wings they bring a symbol of hope that the One can truly bring
they bring a remember of strength that the One can offer
The colours provide a picture of the colours that the One wants to offer in life

Remember the colours
The delicate hand that he used to paint each wing
the same hand that painted each of your features,
the same beautiful mixture of colours that he used to paint your eyes and your hair.

Remember them flying
high above the world and its problems
the One can give you the same wings to fly
To fly high and conquer all that comes against you

Remember.
Remember the butterflies.


Dedicated to a good friend

Obliterating Singles Awareness Day

For many years (more like 2yrs...ish) I have called labelled this upcoming holiday "Singles Awareness Day" rather then Valentine's Day. I have come to realize that I need an attitude adjustment. How did I come to this? well.... I am currently sitting at school with a four hour break ahead of me and not looking forward to the work that has to get done. So I decided to take a break by reading some blogs and found a new one to follow! (Which is aways exciting!)

One of them mentioned that Valentine's Day is a celebration of love. A purposeful, planned time to spend with those you care about. It can also be a day to be reminded of the ultimate love that was given and where this beautiful love all began. I have declared to have been single for most of my life, and to an on looker it would appear that way. But in all reality my heart has been taken for a long time. I have been in a relationship with the same wonderful person since I decided to give me heart to him. This man has helped me though the most challenging times of my life and has also walked with through the joyous parts. It the challenging times he carried me and in the happy moments he smiled down at me. I am just starting to get to know him though. That's the beautiful thing about the relationship between him and I. He knows everything about me and each day I learn a little more about him. And as I learn to give more and more of myself to him, I fall more and more in love with him. This man is my saviour, my knight in shining armor and also happened to be there at the creation of the universe. In short he is perfect. This Valentine's day rather then feeling sorry for myself or being upset that I have to study I can rejoice because I have a beautiful romance growing within my heart.

The best part is that my lover;  HE IS LOVE.

1John 4:8 

Holding Me

I have to say that I really do enjoy God's little blessing that he grants us each day. Like yesterday for instance I watch a little red head girl shout her friends name because he was coming to join her in the pool for swimming, and of course having a cute smile on her face.

Driving home and its starting to get dark later. I drove home this week with a sunset behind me an a huge moon that was just coming out in front of me.

Knowing at the end of the day, when I crawl into bed I have one stable thing in my life and that being Christ.
This week will not be an easy one. Mentally I have so much to get done homework wise and I don't know how much sleep with actually be permissible. Then emotionally so many of my friends within the program feel the same way, wanting to give up and are wondering if nursing is actually for them. It makes me sad to hear such things spoken. Especially when you can see that they are going to be an excellent nurse. I feel burdened by their struggles and I am desperately clinging to the one that is holding them all in his hands.

Holding Me
Problems of life, both mine and others
Weighing on my back
Stressors have comsumed my body
wondering when they will escape
So Jesus to you I run, to you I take my refuge
You are the one that holds all things in your hands
Hold me Jesus, my body. thoughts. emotions.
Feed your stength into me from your hands
Through me may your strength stream to others as well
I know that you will keep me going
Going to the end
But Jesus, if it's ok, make the end come soon
Or at least make it seem that way
~erika

Keep me Going

So tonight I was dialogueing with a friend about the torturous homework brought upon us over the next two weeks. I honestly have no idea how I am going to do it and be successful with it all, esp. since I have discovered that unlike doing an allnighter for a paper, doing an allnighter for a presentation and have to then sit in class for another 4 hrs is so! not cool.

I was thinking about it though and this whole nursing program and esp. over these last few weeks I have seriously doubted that this is the field that I want to be in. I have quickly failed to forget who got me here in the first place, My Prince. Each step from the first day that stepped onto Heritage campus he was calling me back to his ministry. The place where he got my attention back on missions and was the one that showed me that Nursing was an option; a very good option. The profession its self is an act of compassion, serving the patients, helping the sick as Jesus calls us to do. It can take me places where other people can not go, into places that are not yet reached.

Without him I would have given up a long time ago, so Jesus grant me the strength that I need to get through these next two weeks. Let your strength be a witness to your power through me and do not let me take the credit that you deserve. As you and I journey though these next two weeks may your light shine upon my friends and offer them peace, just as you have granted me. Let the little sleep that we do get be enough to sustain us through. May you also bless us a few laughs too. May my friends to seek after you even if they do not know you, and if you will, give me one more chance to share something about you.

Most of all thank you for not letting go. When all else fails, and everything around me has seemed to fall to pieces you remain the same. You never let go of me, my prayer is that my soul will never turn against your will and I will never stop looking at you. My beautiful prince, for all you have done I thank you, for all you will do, I praise you!

Love from a daughter of the King
~Erika

The topic of the night was marriage and remarriage. When I heard this I was like ok....how do I apply this? I'M NOT MARRIED....not even in a relationship....SINGLE! How does this apply to me? I am not go to go into detail about we discussed because I will not be able to articulate it well but basically the punch line of the evening was

Remember the Value of Marriage

  

The pastor went back to Genesis and pointed out some pretty cool things

1. Marriage is to be a reflection of community and relationship between a Triune God (mirror reflection of God) therefore our greatest satisfaction in marriage is when this mirror image can be seen

2. When united as one flesh more then just a physical sense, "two people headed in the same direction, while maintaining who you are and your own gifts"

One flesh literally means -ONE unit, when I think of that I think of same thoughts actions, reactions, emotions etc.

 

 

So how does this apply to me? Well this is what I came up with based on prior knowledge

1. CHOOSE CAREFULLY -- since my marriage is to represent or have an mirror image to God I don't want to be doing that with just the average Joe. I want that person to be best qualified to match me so that we can function as a single unit

2. WAIT -- becoming one flesh is more then just becoming physically one person but also emotionally. Having been in a few relationships myself, as we developed those emotions for each other we give them to that person. And in return I got some of theirs. Now since we were connected in that way we are now separated I am not 'whole' as  I once was. Now God is a God of restoration but some things can not be taken back. Due to the value of marriage and what it represents I was reminded that guarding my heart is so important.

3. DATING FOR MARRIAGE -- The value of marriage is so high that it should not be messed with. ex. If you were hanging something on a wall you wouldn't start just drilling random holes until you found a spot but rather you would think it through so that it would look great and have no extra holes in the wall. Same with dating, you don't want to date around until you find something you like, rather you wait until you know for certain that Mr. or Mrs. Right is actually right.

I wrote this out a while back but I think its one of those things that can be a reminder to us. It was an interesting and challenging motion that was put forward and is often hard to except. But if one does then the results will be beyond what was ever imagined!



Stories

The little stories that you share with people are often what brings along a good laugh, a good cry and everything in between. I was visiting with an friend who is quite elderly and he says that often those who pass away,  the stories that those people have are often lost because no one has taken the time to give a ear and listen or to write them down.
So I decided to write some of them down because from his stories there are always lessons to be learned.

Back in the 1970's he was a pastor of a church. During this time the government was willing to pay for half of the cost for someone to come over and become new Canadians (people who were refugees). His congregation suggested that they wanted to participate in this so they sponsored 2 families to come over, 2 moms and four children. Many of the details were uncertain but shortly after he received a call that the families had arrived in Canada. He and his wife then came and picked them up and set the families up in there own home and he and is wife slept in the trailer out back.

During this time, to take a sabbatical was also being pushed onto pastors (my guess is that this was relatively a new thing) so two weeks after these two families arrived he was leaving to go to a school to take various courses. During these two weeks that they spent together him and his wife worked really hard to teach these ladies all that they needed to know to live here in canada. They taught them about how to use the tools in there home. He said that the first night that they stayed in their house they left all the lights on becuase they did not know how to turn them off.

He left for his sabitical and the other members of the church were able to find the family a new home and the families got settled. Now many years later in 2011 these ladies found this pastor and called him and asked to visit him. He, due to his poor health was only able to see them for a short 20 minute visit was imensly blessed. These women stayed true to their word and only stayed for twenty minutes but gave him the biggest hugs he has ever recieved, never has been squeezed so hard in his life.

When he finished that story I was amazed how times had changed and how one person can change another person's life. People should not forget these stories and be remind how a little care and hospitality can go a long way. I hope that more people now will remember these stories and be encouraged by this mans wonderful life.