Jul 25, 2010
Hello all! This blog post is dedicated to the Bonsai house (Bethany, Chantelle, Katie, and me!)
It is Sunday July 25, 2010 and we are seated at Panera’s about to start our 3 PM devos. Our theme for our last house devotion this year is: Things God’s brought us through this year. We took turns expressing the various stories of God’s faithfulness, but I won’t list it in the order that we did it because it would take a while, and it’d be super long. So I’ll just list what each person said in list form. 🙂
Katie:
Gave me a house that I can laugh with, a nice Christmas even though I was away from family. Grace to learn and transition to my new role at work. God gave me a lot of grace this year to handle the pressure of not being around my family; my nephew, Wesley, was born this year!!
Gave a lot of grace with Susanna and Pam gone in February. Shook me from my apathy and showed me where I needed change. He was really clear with me when I needed it. He gave me a lot of opportunities to trust Him, and has been patient with me. We have a quote book!!
God gave me the grace to follow someone’s lead even when it didn’t make sense. He gave me wisdom and discernment through this year. Gave me people I can talk to, and helped me be more open. We have some house videos! He gave Alley, Bethany, and Chantelle grace to follow my lead, and gave me family to take care of me when sick. He helped me keep Bethany and Alley from killing each other.
Bethany:
Healed me (health). He gave me sisters (House mates). My family has changed in the Lord. We got to go camping! He helped me to not be depressed and taught me to take control of my thoughts. Gave us grace in public speaking, raised all our support, and helped us in time management. He gave us interns!
Let us go to Asia, I got to go to FL with Chantelle. He helped me be more open, and we were able to bond as a house quickly.
Chantelle:
Healed me (health). Made me happy by giving me free decorations for Christmas. He taught me to trust Him and be gracious when I’d been hurt. I have freedom in knowing that Jesus is the only thing beautiful about us. Brandon accepted the Lord!
I survived without my family, and God took care of them in relationships, church, and in growing them. He also gave me a whole family outside of home that I can go to whenever I need to. He showed me how prideful I was in the beginning of the year and began to break me. In my hour of need He gave me Psalm 31. Helped me to be depressed…
Taught me that romance is not the center of my life. He made me love heaven more than earth. Gave us grace in public speaking, raised all our support, and helped us in time management. He gave me a fiancé even though Katie said I couldn’t have one (hehe). Allowed my family to come to graduation and let us go to Asia.
He gave me new supporters throughout the year. Gave me grace when Stephanie left, and leaders I can talk to. Gave me a great church to go to (AKA: the Village with Matt Chandler)
Alley:
He taught me how to trust people, and healed my heart. Taught me to trust Him through every situation (AKA: Ducky), and took over for me with my family… they’re alright! 😀
Gave me a whole family outside of home that I can go to whenever I need. I’m not as concerned with my self-image. He intensified my discernment and made me more intense and passionate. I came to the point where I’m not afraid of my future. Gave us grace in public speaking, raised all our support, and helped us in time management. He made me more transparent, and gave me more of an appreciation for the body of Christ.
He gave me IT guys that could save my computer multiple times. We went to Asia. I got to be my aunt’s maid of honor, I joined staff. We got new supporters throughout the year. He gave me someone to go to when Stephanie left, and future apartment mates that I can be open with, gave me a tan!! The Village Church that I could go to and be challenged.
House:
Snow Days! Sick buddies.
I hope you enjoyed reading a bit of the Lord’s faithfulness with us through this year. 🙂 Remember, He is ALWAYS faithful.
– Signed,
The Bonsai house
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Jul 20, 2010
Tuesday 20, 2010/Graduation Day arrived so quickly and oh was it amazing.
Some of my highlights were
- Gayle Erwin (author of the Jesus Style) encouraging us to use the gifts God himself had given us to edify and encourage the body. Thank you Uncle Gayle!
- Hearing from our house leaders.
- Sharing something with our familes, leaders and staff.
- Watching the Slide show of our year
- Getting letters from Pastors and GFA leaders
- Getting a beautiful piciture of a sister in Asia praising the Lord!
This is laughable but looking back I can remember in Aug 2009 one of our leaders told us our year would be over “like that” and he snapped his fingers. At the time I didn’t believe him because it was already going too slow for me. I wanted it to be done and over with ASAP. (HONEST TRUTH-note: my mind soon changed)
I have had a wonderful year, one that if I had toI would do over again 🙂 My class mates are true gems and I am so blessed to have spent a year learning and growing with them
Man : ( it is already over . I can’te believe it!
Well, in a matter of weeks the new August class will arrive and begin their School of Discipleship journey. I hope and pray that theirs is even more wonderful than my own.
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Jul 10, 2010
The other day I had a prominent US pastor call into GFA. I got so excited because I really respect his life and heart for God. I was telling my friends, “Guess who I just talked to” and they were like “No way” and I was like “Yeah ” (Ha !I sound like a teen from CA).
I got to thinking about it later and how often do I genuinely get excited about going into the presence of God. I mean I get to talk to Him every single day and He is after all-GOD King and Creator of this entire Universe, the one who gave His His only Son for me.
So yeah, there are great men and women out there who serve the Lord, they should have our respect-But our Praise should go to God alone.
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Jul 6, 2010
In class we went through a book called the “Pursuit of God.” Then we had to share in front of our classmates what we thought and learned from the book. This is what I shared, in teaching format. (Sorry if its a little long)
Who is God to You?
Is He like the president? Some one that you know is there and is high and important, maybe one day someone you think it would be cool to meet; someone that passes laws that you can or cannot choose to follow?
Or, is he like your favourite movie star or singer? A person you greatly admire and dream of meeting one day but, you know it will probably never happen. A person you love and respect and do some of the same things He does, but, all in all your lives are almost completely different. OR…
Is God your best friend? The person that you spend most of your time with; Someone, who you would go to the moon and back for if they asked; Someone that you talk to on a daily basis and he\she talk back.
My whole LIFE, Up until a couple of years ago God was the president! I didn’t pay much if any attention to Him, like I do the prime minister of Canada, but I followed the rules and behaved well. Then 2008 in my senior year of high school God totally revolutionized my Life. He became a personal, loving God, a God that gives good gifts to His children, a friend. That in essence is what the book “The Pursuit of God” is all about. God can be known as much as you and your friends know each other. He can be felt, and loved as if He were your spouse. And the best part about all this is He desires that kind of relationship with each and every one of His children. Praise God! Doesn’t that sound great?
However… This Kind of relationship does not come without a cost. If you truly desire a close relationship with Christ then everything else in your life must take second place. God is not pleased to give Himself fully to you, unless you give yourself fully to Him. Paul said it well in the third chapter of Philippians.
Paul, a man of the Law was blameless, a Pharisee of Pharisee’s. He was looked upon as a righteous man, respected by all. Everything he had a Pharisee though, he gave up. Look what he says in verse 7and 8.
“But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may Gain Christ. Christ is worth your whole life, and more.”
The book put what I have been feeling into words, and strengthened my resolve to seek God, to expect great things of Him and to make Him my all, my everything. I want to be able, with Paul to say. I have counted all things as rubbish that I may gain Christ. How is this done? Some practical steps though that are sure to help.
For one, if anything in our life is important to us, we must ask ourselves. If God asked me to give this up, would I be able to? If God asked me to sacrifice my very own son like he did to Abraham would I be able to? Even if you don’t have children that can apply to many things. Money is a big one, food, clothes, friends, family, yes even your very self. If God asked you to go to a foreign country to preach the gospel, in which you would probably die. Would you? I know I wouldn’t, and that’s why we need this second step.
We must be constantly asking the God of the universe to change us, mould us and give us the strength to give up everything for Him. You just can’t do it alone. Philippians 2:13 says, “For it is God who works in us to will and to do for his good pleasure.” Cry out to God, it is the only way.
To end, I would like to share this quote with you written by Brother Yun and a Chinese House church leader.
“I had experienced so much in those four years, but God had been faithful. I’d suffered some horrible tortures, but God had been faithful. I’s been dragged in front of judges and courts, but God had been faithful. I’d been hungry, thirsty, and had fainted from exhaustion, but God had been faithful.
Through it all, God was always faithful and loving to me. He had never left me nor forsaken me. His grace was always sufficient and he provided for my every need. I didn’t suffer for Jesus in prison. No! I was with Jesus and I experienced his very real presence, joy, and peace every day. It’s not those in prison for the sake of the gospel who suffer. The person who suffers is he who never experiences God’s intimate presence.”(The Heavenly man, pg 187)
Have you experienced that presence? Who is God to you?
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