.home.

im sitting here on my balcony at a hotel in san diego. just enjoyed some hot tub time, vegging out with steph, and the only decision i have to make tonight is where to go for dinner. 

im about to head home to ontario for a 2 week vacation/visit.  im sooo excited to see my friends, catch up in person, visit my church, be with some family... when i thought about going home earlier, I wasn't quite 'ready'. im ready now and cannot wait to see people near and dear to me.

but its funny. the word home. b/c right now my home is that little house at EOC. my home is in Ensenada. violence, swine flu, and all... (all of which i think are quite hyped up... anyways, perhaps another post! just know im nore than safe and healthy and no need to worry!)

anyways. im friggin' blessed. to have so many places to call home.

.some pics from the past few.

road trip to san carlos!

the meillon brothers

donations are fun things. today it was sunglasses.

um. highschool musical still has its place in my heart in mexico.

a visit from my sister and her family! :)

our new saturday night beachtime tradition

myra y rodolfo

with my girls steph & myra at the beach

.raindrops on roses....

these are a few of my favorite things [of the past few days at least...]

~ sunny gorgeous weather! Today was actually too hot (high of 37C)
~ talks with Ana
~ dutch blitz madness
~ afternoons at the beach, eating savechi, and rescuing lady bugs
~ surprise visitors
~ quiet days in the office - working on the new webpage (yup. ima geek...)
~ enchiladas at Lakipackis
~ being silly with Stephanie
~ freezies that make your tongue blue...

what a great weekend it twas!

.rescued.

i admit my approach to easter and holy week was far from holy. with having our biggest week of the year hit easter, good friday only meant 'it was a good friday because the teams were leaving and i get to sleep!'. i hardly thought about what it really meant.
but i am thankful for moments when God rescued me from my business to open my eyes to see his glory. his resurrection. his beauty. and isn't that what easter is really about?

things i had perhaps seen or heard many times before, touched my heart in new ways this week.
...talking to a single mother of 5 kids. whose husband left her for another women two streets over, who still returns to her house when he's drunk and beats the kids. my heart ached. that motivating ache.
...driving through the lush green hills and mountains... which that day seemed brighter and clearer
... hearing the excitement of our first mexican 'intern', Sandra, be empowered and passionate about serving her fellow Mexican brother and sisters in need. in hearing her desire to stir up the youth in her church to step outside the church and change their country.
... listening to youth talk about changing the world. and having their heart changed in the process.
... being encouraged. supported. prayed for. and hugged by friends and teammates.
... driving around with Marvin (our video guy) and a new friend Billy (a talented and passionate photographer) talking about their perspective of the world behind their lens.
simple things that reminded me of God's presence in this world. today. now. in my life.

and last night a few friends gathered together to share in communion. Good Friday was always one of my favorite services at my church, and knew I needed to take some time to stop. think. reflect. so we gathered in scott & ana's living room, candles lit, a guitar, some wine & bread... reading scriptures... remembering Jesus's words... listening... worshiping.

God has rescued us. And he is still in the process of rescuing us from the mess of this world. And he wants us to help.
And I am so glad He rescued me this week from allowing business and 'ministry' to rob me of His beauty.

Happy Easter.
Christ has risen. He has risen indeed.

.fullness.

Im learning a bit about fullness these days. We have over 215 campers here this week, plus our staff and extra staff we've called in just for this week puts us at about 250 people on site! We have people sleeping in tight quarters, we have two dining halls, we have buses and vans, we have a full camp.

Amidst the busyness of a week of a week like this, amidst the running around, organizing, and answering questions...there's an excitement in having so many people here. full chapels. full worship. full community.

We are building 11 houses this week and 8 other ministries including a cement project, children's ministries, women's ministry, and clothing distribution. It's amazing how much work 215 people can do in only 4 days! Hundreds of lives are being touched this week... hundreds....

In these weeks of business I too am reminded in the need to be filled with his love, perseverance, patience, and Spirit. I need the fullness of God to be dwelling in me as I strive to serve and care for these teams and people. When i try to do it on my own strength, i run dry. i fall short. i mess up. and i don't see the fullness of God in what's happening around me. I end up missing those moments when a little bit of heaven crashes down to the earth. And i don't want to.

May you be filled with the fullness of God today...

.i suck.

Sooooorrrrry. i hate blogs who aren't updated and now i am one of them. Its been too long since i updated you all. I thought it was time I got on top of it again.

I suppose it's because now we are having teams in more regularly again, I am getting back into a more 'predictable' rhythm of things. We've had two weeks of teams, and two more ahead of us. Lots of Canadian teams which is always fun - in particular a team from St. Andrew's United Church in Niagara Falls is down this week. This is a sister church to my home church at Wellington and was the first church our youth group partnered with some 6 years ago when I took my first team down here. It's just neat some familiar faces and be encouraged by folks who have seen me grow and serve over the years. It does make me excited to head home in a few weeks for a holiday and visit with friends and family back home. Ill be heading back to Ontario end of April, beginning of May for a couple weeks. I hope to hook up with many of you friends!!

Im writing this blog the night before the busiest week of the year around here. Next week we will have 250 campers & staff here at the camp. INSANE! We don't really have capacity for all those people but have just enough room to squeeze everyone in (with the help of a nearby hotel). The past week has had its stressful moments but Im sure will be fantastic week. These big weeks can be exciting and keep us on our toes.

I hope that amidst all the business I wont miss the simple moments. This week there was this dear grandmother who was receiving a home for herself, her husband, and her grandchild. This lady was so full of joy and life. When she received her house she wept. When the team presented her with a cross with the lord's prayer in spanish on it, she wept even more. And after entering the house and discovering the gift basket and other gifts for their family - she was lost for words! I have never seen someone so excited about curtains and clothespins before! It was like watching a child at Christmas! Such pure joy! A simple moment... Im glad i got to witness.

So this week i pray for simple moments of joy even in a full week of [organized] chaos!