Psalm 118:26 (GHT13 Day 2)

Yo, today was pretty long. lol. I woke up to a rooster around 5am. shower. Then I got to explore the complex a bit. The water is just on the other side of the fence. So I spent some time in the Word. Breakfast wasn't until 8am toaday.

It was simple, but a good breakfast. After we went to the church and it was mainly in Creole. I don't think I was expecting to be fully accommodating for us, but I thought we'd be understanding more. During the first part there were some scriptures read. I think they were reading Psalm 118. Either way, I did and verse 26 kinda sums up today for me. I felt really welcomed.

There was a lot of worship, pretty charismatic. But this one kid, future worship leader, really made us smile. He was so into the worship, even though he wasn't singing. He was just clapping with all his soul. Worship is way more than just singing. It was kinda a long service, but there was gospel and there was joy + hope + love. So it was pretty sweet.

Creole is actually a lot of French, so I can actually understand quite a  bit oddly. lol.

After a really great lunch we went to the beach. It was about an hour's drive away and I was just sheer terror the whole time sitting on the tailgate while also holding a kid's hand.

Haiti is really beautiful. I kinda made a coral xylophone. lol. I was a bit distracted by some stuff, so I didn't go swimming.

Just got here. Only a wek left. Crazy.

Gotta pray. Goodnight.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

1 Thes 5:18

Yo, so, I've got a mega lab due Saturday at 11:59, but I am leaving Ottawa for a YA retreat at 8:15pm tomorrow and don't intend on driving back to Ottawa to email it to my prof... and I've got a midterm tomorrow at 6pm... So, it's like it's due tomorrow at 6? So I gotta finish this.

For your enjoyment I will put up one of the Haiti blogs. First day of work I think. lol. Nope. Sunday. Church in Haiti!

But ya. I think today I have really been complaining way too much. Kinda make me actually apply what I have been learning in Haiti from the believers. They do not have that much, as far as the world is concerned, but they are so rich in Spirit, so rich in grace, so rich in joy and love. They are thankful for absolutely everything God has given them. I drove to school today and was so upset at a puddle that I was swearing. There's something up here. I get to drive to the University I get the priveledge to attend in Canada where I also have an apartment and a laptop and all this stuff that I don't even use. And I'm mad at the weather? >.<

I complain too much.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

Prayers (GHT13 Day 1 Part 2)

Feb 16 ~8PM --> 10:30PM

Yo, so today was a lot of travelling. Short spurts of travelling. Lots of sleeping while travelling, sleeping in the van, plane, plane, bus. Everywhere. lol.

We got to New York and met a few others coming with us, but not MC. She and the Calgary team had already gone to Haiti. So it was a pretty boring flight to Haiti. First the radio needed to be replaced and the wings needed deicing. But then it was mainly sleeping and talking about pokémon for a few hours.

Oh! Prayers answered about the snow in New York! There was none / we got there early. It was a pretty small plane from Montreal.

Got to Haiti, so surreal. Couldn't really believe it. But it reminded me of Project so much: the heat; the sun; the smell; the mountains; everything. So good! Why can't I just always be on Project?

But why am I here exactly? I mean, I'm really glad I got the others here, and I'm sure that I'll be able to share about other project experiences and getting to know the other guys, maybe step up in leadership a bit? But ya, I've got a couple things to keep praying about during this trip.

I really can't believe this sudden transition. I really pray that God speaks powerfully and reveals His will for me.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

Labs and a Dachshund

Yo.

Another day in Canada, another day not really wanting to be. haha...

I woke up at 5:30 again to work on a lab report. Kinda skipped biochem to work on it. Finished early (like 25 minutes before it was due), but it seemed pretty legit for once. lol. Lab went pretty well.

I went to my parents' for dinner / I got to tell them a bit about Haiti. Then I got groceries and got to tell the cashier about Haiti / that I don't work there anymore. lol. Drive home. Procrastinate...

Got a lab due tomorrow. lol.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

PS. We're getting a puppy?!?!?!?!

Ready for Take-Off! (GHT13 Day 1)

Feb 16 5:24AM

Yo, so it's been a while since my last b-log. The last couple days have been pretty crazy. Lab reports and minor stress from other stuff, but it's all working out. I got a couple extensions on my formal reports and I got a bt of work done. My NSERC application got in yesterday morning, so I really hope that works out.

The rest of yesterday was a bit of work, but mainly not. At 6PM we went to the res caf for dinner together and then we went to NE's  floor for games, fun times, and final packing of our bags to include all of the donations from OCBC. We actually didn't end up using an extra bag. I thought we would. lol.

King Mau is an awesome game. Just saying.

But ya, we also watched 'Courageous'. It was good. Longer than I expected. A little cheesy, but a really good movie about being a good dad.

It's really surreal that we are going to Haiti. Like really, we got in the shuttle, fell asleep, and had to go through customs. I got the body scan.

Yep, so, I'm really encouraged right now. I'm writing this in a notebook that has anonymous encourage notes from my teammates on project. Honestly I wasn't doing too well yesterday morning, but God has really been just encouraging and showing His faithfulness.

Can't wait for Haiti!

Ttyl

D.Fa

Poured Out

You know what?

Today kinda sucked.

I really don't want to be back here. Sitting in class for hours doing nothing. Wasting time commuting back and forth. Wearing a coat, a sweater, pants. Alarm clocks. Clocks. A busy schedule. Sitting in front of a screen.

This all seems so much less important than working hard. Always in your workplace. Wearing the bare minimum + a layer of bug spray. Waking up when the roosters do. Going at the pace of the things around me. Nothing planned, but amazing things happening. Always in real life.

But I've had to remind myself all day that there is a reason I am back. Even though this may not sem important now, there's something here too. Bigger picture I could change people's eternity by being here. Painting a house isn't that important. I have so much to be thankful for, especially for even being able to know God and have Him in my life always.

Gotta be sacrificially living too. When we are given much, we've got to be ready at all times to give as Christ did and was poured out for our laziness; poured out for our selfishness; poured out for our short-sightedness; poured out for our lack of trust in His plans.

And seeing this love, can I not suck it up for another month and trust  in Him to get me through this and all for His name's sake?gotta be something here.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

Sunny Days

Yo, so, I just got back from Haiti today. Kinda a long story, so you'll likely be hearing about it for a while. I wrote down about a page each day about what was happening, but I guess today will be a bit of a summary.

So, we were working alongside a church / orphanage in Haiti. We were a team of like 15 students from mainly Ontario and were working alongside a team of 4 from Germany who are there all year. During the day we did a lot of work on site, but in the afternoon we got to hag out with the kids, go on family visits, or other special activities. There was a lot of great stuff, but God really humbled me. There was nothing I could do apart from Him and my weaknesses were really used by Him for greater things. Our team was really unified and it was great to see such love for one another grown in such a short time.

It's crazy that it's over.

Today was weird. Wore swim shorts and a t-shirt all day, even back in Ottawa. lol

Ttyl.

D.Fa

This is Why I am in Plant Biochemistry

WOW!

So, I'm 'doing homework' by watching the suggested viewing material for my plants class.

Go here --> http://plantsinmotion.bio.indiana.edu/plantmotion/starthere.html
Click on everything!

Plants are amazing! I had no idea they 'dance' so much or that vines fling themselves around like that.

OR

That the passion flower was named after the Passion of Christ. I was just watching it flower and I was like WHOA! That's a crazy flower! Then I read this:

How the passion flower got its name.

When Christian missionaries arrived in South America in the 16th century, they found a plant which they felt was a good omen for their mission. They called it the passion flower because to them it symbolized the death of Christ. The five sepals and five petals of the flower, which are similar in appearance, represent the disciples without Peter and Judas. The double row of colored filaments, known as the corona, signifies the halo around Christ's head or the crown of thorns. The five stamens and the three spreading styles with their flattened heads symbolize the wounds and the nails respectively. The vines tendrils resemble the whips used to scourge Christ.

Passion flowers grow wild in the southern part of the United States and in South America. In the southern USA, it is also commonly known as the maypop, the wild apricot and the ocoee. The last is the Indian name that has also been applied to the Ocoee River and valley.

To learn more about the Passiflora, please visit the information-rich web site hosted by Myles Irvine devoted to the topic at www.passionflow.co.uk

Crazy!

Animals are great and all, but Plants are awesome too.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

A Very Real Feel

I don't get this very often, but a couple days ago, I felt it; 100% unworthy of approaching God in prayer.

By what can I, one who is so self centered, one who trusts in himself and yet fails so often, one who forgets to bring his worries to God and one who has done so much against Him, by what means can I come before the One, the holy, the righteous, the eternal, sovereign, unchanging, creator of the Universe?

By the blood of Christ.

There is no other way. There is nothing I could do to atone. There is nothing I could do to redeem. There is nothing I could do to fix my own brokenness. The only thing I can do is give everything back to Him and trust in Him as the solid rock on which to build my life into the life He wants for me.

Only in Him.

So, it's awesome that even in those places we can come before Him, as if we were holy and blameless because Christ has made us so if we trust in Him.

Word.

Fifty Degrees of Difference

Ya, so today I was thinking a little bit about the differences that a single week can make. Yesterday night we were having a 'snowball fight' if you could call it that. It was not packing snow, so we needed to like compress the snow for a good minute before throwing it only to see most of it disintegrate... but ya. It was really awesomely cool how God does things and I got to see KC(?) again, like three times in a week and got to talk a little about what he believes, then throw snow at each other. lol. But ya, it was cold. But a week from now in Haiti it is not gonna be cold. lol. And so I thought of some things that will / will not be different in a week's time.

Things I won't be doing in a week:

-Shovelling snow off the car
-Practicing Mandarin songs for Chinese New Year
-Helping three guys with the license plate 'Syrian' out of the snow banks
-Lab report writing
-Cramming for a plants midterm
-Applying for co-op jobs
-Wearing a coat
-Eating Mini-Wheats with Chocolate milk for breakfast at 9am
-Emailing / facebooking / electronic blogging
-Be able to be alone for hours

But I still will be doing in a week:

-Taking Malaria pills
-Wearing a hat
-Be playing crazy cards games with my sisters
-Praying for God to do great works trough us

Things I will get to do for the first time:

-Help build a building
-Not be in Canada during spring break
-See MC in person for the first time in nearly two years


Ttyl.

D.Fa

Y.O.G.O.

Lord,
what would it mean to truly surrender my life to you?
what would it mean to deny myself daily as I follow after you?
what would it mean to give up my plans and my goals and my dreams to seek your will in my life?

Can I even call you Lord when I pretend to be in charge of my life?

Teacher,
what would it mean to learn from you all I need to know?
what would it mean to truly listen to your Spirit's guiding and leading in my life?
what would it mean for your teachings to be taught through me to those you'd have me teach?

Can I even call you teacher when I try to learn on my own?

Father,
what would it mean to come before you as a child?
what would it mean to truly rely upon your strength and love as only you can provide?
what would it mean to fully understand the depth of love and pain poured out and endured to adopt me into your family?

Can I call you my Daddy?

---

When I seek what I want for myself, my future, my glory, my life,
when I seek what I want for myself,
when I seek what I want,
when I seek what I,
when I

but You,
but You gave,
but You gave Your only Son,
but You gave Your only Son so that all would You'd draw to Yourself,
that they may know You and truly live.


You have seen me.
You have loved me.
You have called me.
You have saved me.
You have a future prepared for me.

I want to be able to say "where you lead me, I will follow", honestly I do. I have seen you do so much in my life, if you are calling, can I follow?

Father, take my hand and lead me. Show me the path laid out for me.
Teacher, impress in me your wisdom and knowledge. That which has been understood since creation.
Lord, consecrate me wholly to You. Even through the most dangerous path, may I trust You and give You all I can.

Word.

D.Fa

Cramming is in no way a good idea. Just Crazy

I don't know what to do with the next 15 minutes. I guess that means I get to chill with you guys. xP

But seriously, this week is crazy. This next week, crazier.

I'm really excited to be able to go to Haiti over reading week! Like, really excited! It's going to be amazing! But also, there's kinda another side to this story that I seem to have been forgetting about. In University, sometimes your professors see that week break and determine you have time to do formal lab reports and do independent research and studies on your free time, so they assign more.

Ya right I have more time. >.<

So that means this next week I will have a lot of work to do before I go. I actually think I may just stop living my life for a couple days so I can just get the work done. lol.... Not really excited about that. I also have had no time to study for my midterms, so I really deserved to get bad marks on them.

I walked out of my midterm on Friday not caring at all what mark I got. Like there was a lot of guessing and filling in the blanks based on conceptual logic, rather than actual knowledge. I was assuming a pretty low mark. But two of the three midterms would be dropped (or so I heard) so I walked out not thinking about it at all anymore and just went to go meet up and go see the fireworks with P2C people. Seems like I did pretty well.

Yesterday I also had a midterm. This one required a lot of studying. I didn't really get to it until like Monday night. It's kinda a a lot of stuff from a bunch of classes I have already taken, but he goes into a lot of detail and expects us to regurgitate the details. So, I was pretty doomed. Went to school early to read the last half of the notes for the classes I hadn't gone to (as far as paying attention goes) and a couple of my friends from the labs came by and crammed with me and pointed out that a lot of questions from the reviews will be on the midterm. So, with half an hour until the midterm I opened the first of 8, 7-page review question documents (with solutions) and ya. A LOT of the questions were on the midterm word for word.

But ya. On Monday I found out I have a midterm next Tuesday... Gotta study for that one too.....

But, like, God's grace in these tests. So good. I really need to learn to study better though.

I hope you guys are doing well in this respect.

Study well,

D.Fa

What's this I hear?

So sometimes I hear something that is outrageous and doesn't make sense.

The other day my friend AS said that if I say "ee", there could be someone else who could say "eh" in such a way that the numerical values possible for describing the sounds could be identical, but that our brains perceive them differently. That there's nothing different with them as can be measured right now. I was like "no way! There must be something we aren't measuring here!" But the linguistic physicists don't know.

For months now girls have been telling me "your hair is going to stop growing at some point unless you cut it" and I'm like "that makes no sense. The hair is only alive at the follicle. Cutting the ends won't make it grow more." But finally the other day it was explained to me better. My new understanding is that your hair cuts itself when it gets to a certain length! It's like our hair was meant to be that length! Self-cutting homeostatic hair! Wow! In a much more rudimentary language the ends of your hair split and a little bit falls off. This reaches a certain dynamic equilibrium, unless you cut the split off and treat your hair better. Hmmm. That's cheating. lol.

Ummmm, a bunch of my friends are being accepted on Project!! This is really exciting!! But what is weird to me is that they didn't get their references in until like just this week. When I was applying and got my references in just before the deadline, I didn't hear back until like Valentine's day! >.< So early. i guess earlier is better. haha.

Did not get much done today... Gotta study tomorrow and do lab reports and apply for co-op jobs. . .

>.<

Ttyl.

D.Fa