Shyla enjoying some sunshine:o)Friday, October 31, 2008
I am proud of my brother:o)
I grew up without knowing my dad. As did my brother also grow up without knowing his dad.
This had such a deep affect on my life. I can only imagine how hard it was for my brother.
Now that he is the dad...he is doing all the things with his children that we missed out on as kids. I am so proud of my brother who is a father of four.
You may not be perfect bro...but you are there. Right where your children need you.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
This post is in honor of my good friend Lisa. Who lives in Australia!:o)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
Thank-you for being you and for always encouraging me to press in to God.
I love you lady!:o)
P.S. I am SO glad you caught me online today!
Thank-you for being you and for always encouraging me to press in to God.
I love you lady!:o)
P.S. I am SO glad you caught me online today!
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Christmas Confessions?
Is it ever too early to start getting excited for Christmas? (I hope not cause I already keep thinking about it)
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
70x7?
Eph 4:29-32
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. (ie: grudge)
32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.NIV
I noticed that it does not say "forgiving each other, until you are tired of it and you feel that the other person should have learned their lesson by now"
Feeling conviction....and needing God's help.
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. (ie: grudge)
32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.NIV
I noticed that it does not say "forgiving each other, until you are tired of it and you feel that the other person should have learned their lesson by now"
Feeling conviction....and needing God's help.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Monday, October 13, 2008
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!:o)
Things I am thankful for right now.
-my dog
-my cat
-long walks under the night sky
-God's constant grace
-my dog
-my cat
-long walks under the night sky
-God's constant grace
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Where did summer go?
I can't believe how quickly the summer has come and gone. I am still blogging...or at least I have not chosen to quit anyways. Time has flown by and I have not had much computer time in the last while. I miss hearing what all is going on in here....I have got a lot of catching up to do!:o)
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Wow!
PM acknowledges country's racist past; 'The memories of residential schools sometimes cut like merciless knives at our souls. This day will help us to put that pain behind us.'
June 12, 2008 Sue Bailey
The Canadian Press OTTAWA
After more than a century of torment that saw the federal government strive to silence their languages and snuff their culture, aboriginal people packed Parliament to hear the prime minister say it for all Canadians: "We are sorry.'' Stephen Harper made the historic apology yesterday in the House of Commons for generations of racist policy meant to "kill the Indian in the child.''
Eleven guests of honour sat before him in a native restitution circle, some trembling with emotion. Above them in the gallery, survivors of abuse in federal schools geared to "Christianize'' them clasped each other's hands, bowed their heads, and cried. "The treatment of children in Indian residential schools is a sad chapter in our history,'' said Harper, reading from a text he helped draft with input from native advisers. "The government of Canada sincerely apologizes and asks the forgiveness of the Aboriginal Peoples of this country for failing them so profoundly. We are sorry.''
Applause repeatedly rained down on aging survivors of the church-run schools. But the most thunderous ovation was reserved for Assembly of First Nations national chief Phil Fontaine, who endured repeated sexual attacks as a little boy at the Fort Alexander residential school in Manitoba. Wearing full Ojibway regalia and headdress, Fontaine was belatedly allowed to respond to the apology in the Commons after days of contentious resistance by the Conservatives. He made it one of his finest moments. "Brave survivors, through telling their stories, have stripped white supremacy of its legitimacy,'' he said to jubilant shouts and the rhythm of drumbeats. "Never again will this House consider us the Indian Problem just for being who we are. "We are, and always have been, an indispensable part of the Canadian identity.''
Hundreds of people watched the apology on a big screen set up on the lawn of Parliament Hill, while thousands more absorbed the event at more than 30 gatherings across the country. They heard Fontaine struggle with a pain that he still carries. "The memories of residential schools sometimes cut like merciless knives at our souls,'' he said, as he fought tears. "This day will help us to put that pain behind us. "The attempt to erase our identity hurt us deeply, but it also hurt all Canadians and impoverished the character of this nation. "We must not falter in our duty now. Emboldened by the this spectacle of history, it is possible to end our racial nightmare together.''
Harper made no attempt to deny what the government sought to do when it established the residential schools in the 1870s. "Two primary objectives of the residential schools system were to remove and isolate children from the influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures and to assimilate them into the dominant culture,'' he said. "These objectives were based on the assumption aboriginal cultures and spiritual beliefs were inferior and unequal. Indeed, some sought, as it was infamously said, 'To kill the Indian in the child.' Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe drew cheers from the galleries when he challenged Harper to back up the apology with action by signing the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples -- something the Conservative government has refused to do. Duceppe also called for the federal government to negotiate with native people nation-to-nation.
The apology is part of a massive compensation and healing package expected to top $4 billion. About 100 men and women, many of whom have struggled with addictions they trace to residential schools, offered prayers early yesterday for those who didn't live to hear Harper's statement. About 150,000 students attended 130 church-run schools for much of the last century. It's estimated that more than 80,000 are still living. While many students say they received a good education, Ottawa acknowledged in 1998 that physical and sexual abuse was rampant in the once-mandatory institutions. That same year, the United Church officially apologized for such devastating harms. Bewildered children, many of whom did not speak English and had been forcibly taken from their homes, were harshly punished and sometimes beaten for speaking their languages. Others were subjected to the sadistic attacks of sexual predators, some of whom terrorized the youngsters in their care for decades with impunity. Harper's apology was expected to trigger horrendous memories for many people.
The Assembly of First Nations worked with Health Canada to ensure counsellors would be available on Parliament Hill and at related events planned in most provinces. A 24-hour, toll-free crisis line can be reached at 1-866-925-4419.
Many former students have said all along that a sincere apology from the heart of a prime minister would be worth much more than money. The Conservatives refused such calls for months after they took the helm in 2006, but have since turned about. Still, yesterday's statement won't be enough, said Gilbert Johnson. He was among the 18 claimants who went public with horrific accounts of rape and beatings at the Port Alberni residential school on Vancouver Island. Dormitory supervisor Arthur Henry Plint, now deceased, was convicted in March 1995 and sentenced to 11 years. That groundbreaking court victory gave many others the courage to come forward, bolstering class-action claims that ultimately pressured Ottawa to settle and, finally, apologize.
The Canadian Press Johnson, now 54, had no plans to attend or even watch Harper's statement yesterday. "If the government had any care, it would have given an apology to us years ago,'' he said. "As far as I'm concerned, he's a little late.'' His old classmate and close friend, Willie Blackwater, disagrees. He was overcome with emotion as Harper spoke and said he wouldn't have missed what he called a moving apology from the heart. "We didn't know what the wording was going to be but I think they covered everything. They talked about the pain, the assimilation, the destruction of family and how it's still affecting our communities.'' Blackwater wiped tears and drew a breath when asked if he liked the apology enough to forgive. "If I'm able to forgive my perpetrator I can forgive Canada,'' he said of Plint. "And I've forgiven my perpetrator.'' He then smiled and added: "It took a long time. I would have forgiven them a long time ago if they did this.''
THE APOLOGY
Mr. Speaker, I stand before you today to offer an apology to former students of Indian residential schools. The treatment of children in Indian residential schools is a sad chapter in our history. In the 1870s, the federal government, partly in order to meet its obligation to educate aboriginal children, began to play a role in the development and administration of these schools. Two primary objectives of the residential schools system were to remove and isolate children from the influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures, and to assimilate them into the dominant culture. These objectives were based on the assumption aboriginal cultures and spiritual beliefs were inferior and unequal. Indeed, some sought, as it was infamously said, "to kill the Indian in the child.'' Today, we recognize that this policy of assimilation was wrong, has caused great harm, and has no place in our country.
The government now recognizes that the consequences of the Indian residential schools policy were profoundly negative and that this policy has had a lasting and damaging impact on aboriginal culture, heritage and language. While some former students have spoken positively about their experiences at residential schools -- these stories are far overshadowed by tragic accounts of the emotional, physical and sexual abuse and neglect of helpless children and their separation from powerless families and communities.
To the approximately 80,000 living former students, and all family members and communities, the government of Canada now recognizes that it was wrong to forcibly remove children from their homes and we apologize for having done this. We now recognize that it was wrong to separate children from rich and vibrant cultures and traditions, that it created a void in many lives and communities, and we apologize for having done this. We now recognize that, in separating children from their families, we undermined the ability of many to adequately parent their own children and sowed the seeds for generations to follow and we apologize for having done this. We now recognize that, far too often, these institutions gave rise to abuse or neglect and were inadequately controlled, and we apologize for failing to protect you. Not only did you suffer these abuses as children, but as you became parents, you were powerless to protect your own children from suffering the same experience, and for this we are sorry.
The burden of this experience has been on your shoulders for far too long. The burden is properly ours as a government, and as a country. The government of Canada sincerely apologizes and asks the forgiveness of the aboriginal peoples of this country for failing them so profoundly. We are sorry. In moving towards healing, reconciliation and resolution of the sad legacy of Indian residential schools, implementation of the Indian residential schools settlement agreement began on September 19, 2007.
Years of work by survivors, communities, and aboriginal organizations culminated in an agreement that gives us a new beginning and an opportunity to move forward together in partnership. It will be a positive step in forging a new relationship between aboriginal peoples and other Canadians, a relationship based on the knowledge of our shared history, a respect for each other and a desire to move forward together with a renewed understanding that strong families, strong communities and vibrant cultures and traditions will contribute to a stronger Canada for all of us. God bless all of you and God bless our land.
Excerpts from Harper speech
www.therecord.com - video of speech
June 12, 2008 Sue Bailey
The Canadian Press OTTAWA
After more than a century of torment that saw the federal government strive to silence their languages and snuff their culture, aboriginal people packed Parliament to hear the prime minister say it for all Canadians: "We are sorry.'' Stephen Harper made the historic apology yesterday in the House of Commons for generations of racist policy meant to "kill the Indian in the child.''
Eleven guests of honour sat before him in a native restitution circle, some trembling with emotion. Above them in the gallery, survivors of abuse in federal schools geared to "Christianize'' them clasped each other's hands, bowed their heads, and cried. "The treatment of children in Indian residential schools is a sad chapter in our history,'' said Harper, reading from a text he helped draft with input from native advisers. "The government of Canada sincerely apologizes and asks the forgiveness of the Aboriginal Peoples of this country for failing them so profoundly. We are sorry.''
Applause repeatedly rained down on aging survivors of the church-run schools. But the most thunderous ovation was reserved for Assembly of First Nations national chief Phil Fontaine, who endured repeated sexual attacks as a little boy at the Fort Alexander residential school in Manitoba. Wearing full Ojibway regalia and headdress, Fontaine was belatedly allowed to respond to the apology in the Commons after days of contentious resistance by the Conservatives. He made it one of his finest moments. "Brave survivors, through telling their stories, have stripped white supremacy of its legitimacy,'' he said to jubilant shouts and the rhythm of drumbeats. "Never again will this House consider us the Indian Problem just for being who we are. "We are, and always have been, an indispensable part of the Canadian identity.''
Hundreds of people watched the apology on a big screen set up on the lawn of Parliament Hill, while thousands more absorbed the event at more than 30 gatherings across the country. They heard Fontaine struggle with a pain that he still carries. "The memories of residential schools sometimes cut like merciless knives at our souls,'' he said, as he fought tears. "This day will help us to put that pain behind us. "The attempt to erase our identity hurt us deeply, but it also hurt all Canadians and impoverished the character of this nation. "We must not falter in our duty now. Emboldened by the this spectacle of history, it is possible to end our racial nightmare together.''
Harper made no attempt to deny what the government sought to do when it established the residential schools in the 1870s. "Two primary objectives of the residential schools system were to remove and isolate children from the influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures and to assimilate them into the dominant culture,'' he said. "These objectives were based on the assumption aboriginal cultures and spiritual beliefs were inferior and unequal. Indeed, some sought, as it was infamously said, 'To kill the Indian in the child.' Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe drew cheers from the galleries when he challenged Harper to back up the apology with action by signing the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples -- something the Conservative government has refused to do. Duceppe also called for the federal government to negotiate with native people nation-to-nation.
The apology is part of a massive compensation and healing package expected to top $4 billion. About 100 men and women, many of whom have struggled with addictions they trace to residential schools, offered prayers early yesterday for those who didn't live to hear Harper's statement. About 150,000 students attended 130 church-run schools for much of the last century. It's estimated that more than 80,000 are still living. While many students say they received a good education, Ottawa acknowledged in 1998 that physical and sexual abuse was rampant in the once-mandatory institutions. That same year, the United Church officially apologized for such devastating harms. Bewildered children, many of whom did not speak English and had been forcibly taken from their homes, were harshly punished and sometimes beaten for speaking their languages. Others were subjected to the sadistic attacks of sexual predators, some of whom terrorized the youngsters in their care for decades with impunity. Harper's apology was expected to trigger horrendous memories for many people.
The Assembly of First Nations worked with Health Canada to ensure counsellors would be available on Parliament Hill and at related events planned in most provinces. A 24-hour, toll-free crisis line can be reached at 1-866-925-4419.
Many former students have said all along that a sincere apology from the heart of a prime minister would be worth much more than money. The Conservatives refused such calls for months after they took the helm in 2006, but have since turned about. Still, yesterday's statement won't be enough, said Gilbert Johnson. He was among the 18 claimants who went public with horrific accounts of rape and beatings at the Port Alberni residential school on Vancouver Island. Dormitory supervisor Arthur Henry Plint, now deceased, was convicted in March 1995 and sentenced to 11 years. That groundbreaking court victory gave many others the courage to come forward, bolstering class-action claims that ultimately pressured Ottawa to settle and, finally, apologize.
The Canadian Press Johnson, now 54, had no plans to attend or even watch Harper's statement yesterday. "If the government had any care, it would have given an apology to us years ago,'' he said. "As far as I'm concerned, he's a little late.'' His old classmate and close friend, Willie Blackwater, disagrees. He was overcome with emotion as Harper spoke and said he wouldn't have missed what he called a moving apology from the heart. "We didn't know what the wording was going to be but I think they covered everything. They talked about the pain, the assimilation, the destruction of family and how it's still affecting our communities.'' Blackwater wiped tears and drew a breath when asked if he liked the apology enough to forgive. "If I'm able to forgive my perpetrator I can forgive Canada,'' he said of Plint. "And I've forgiven my perpetrator.'' He then smiled and added: "It took a long time. I would have forgiven them a long time ago if they did this.''
THE APOLOGY
Mr. Speaker, I stand before you today to offer an apology to former students of Indian residential schools. The treatment of children in Indian residential schools is a sad chapter in our history. In the 1870s, the federal government, partly in order to meet its obligation to educate aboriginal children, began to play a role in the development and administration of these schools. Two primary objectives of the residential schools system were to remove and isolate children from the influence of their homes, families, traditions and cultures, and to assimilate them into the dominant culture. These objectives were based on the assumption aboriginal cultures and spiritual beliefs were inferior and unequal. Indeed, some sought, as it was infamously said, "to kill the Indian in the child.'' Today, we recognize that this policy of assimilation was wrong, has caused great harm, and has no place in our country.
The government now recognizes that the consequences of the Indian residential schools policy were profoundly negative and that this policy has had a lasting and damaging impact on aboriginal culture, heritage and language. While some former students have spoken positively about their experiences at residential schools -- these stories are far overshadowed by tragic accounts of the emotional, physical and sexual abuse and neglect of helpless children and their separation from powerless families and communities.
To the approximately 80,000 living former students, and all family members and communities, the government of Canada now recognizes that it was wrong to forcibly remove children from their homes and we apologize for having done this. We now recognize that it was wrong to separate children from rich and vibrant cultures and traditions, that it created a void in many lives and communities, and we apologize for having done this. We now recognize that, in separating children from their families, we undermined the ability of many to adequately parent their own children and sowed the seeds for generations to follow and we apologize for having done this. We now recognize that, far too often, these institutions gave rise to abuse or neglect and were inadequately controlled, and we apologize for failing to protect you. Not only did you suffer these abuses as children, but as you became parents, you were powerless to protect your own children from suffering the same experience, and for this we are sorry.
The burden of this experience has been on your shoulders for far too long. The burden is properly ours as a government, and as a country. The government of Canada sincerely apologizes and asks the forgiveness of the aboriginal peoples of this country for failing them so profoundly. We are sorry. In moving towards healing, reconciliation and resolution of the sad legacy of Indian residential schools, implementation of the Indian residential schools settlement agreement began on September 19, 2007.
Years of work by survivors, communities, and aboriginal organizations culminated in an agreement that gives us a new beginning and an opportunity to move forward together in partnership. It will be a positive step in forging a new relationship between aboriginal peoples and other Canadians, a relationship based on the knowledge of our shared history, a respect for each other and a desire to move forward together with a renewed understanding that strong families, strong communities and vibrant cultures and traditions will contribute to a stronger Canada for all of us. God bless all of you and God bless our land.
Excerpts from Harper speech
www.therecord.com - video of speech
Take time to smell the roses!
I went to an appointment yesterday and in the office they had a rose sitting in a bowl of water...so the first thing I did when I stepped up to the counter was to drink in the smell. Which got me thinking about how busy life can get sometimes.
I am starting my fourth week of school this week. I am at The Academy Of Learning taking a Business Office Skills course. The compensation board has decided to pay for retraining so that I can get a better job. The course I am taking costs over $8000.00. I don't like school but I know that this is a blessing so I am putting my all into it. I have to maintain an average of 75% or higher to pass the course.
I am starting my fourth week of school this week. I am at The Academy Of Learning taking a Business Office Skills course. The compensation board has decided to pay for retraining so that I can get a better job. The course I am taking costs over $8000.00. I don't like school but I know that this is a blessing so I am putting my all into it. I have to maintain an average of 75% or higher to pass the course.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Another one of the many forwards I have received!lol
Subject: 6 Questions - 4 Answers!
Four Places I Go To Over And Over (Not Necessarily in this order!)
- Work
Church
Shopping
Fishing!
Four People Who E-Mail Me: (Regularly)
Brendan
Tom's Mum
Aunt Judy
Facebook!lol...I know it is not a person...but it is because of ppl that I get messaged
Four of My Favourite Foods:
- Chocolate
Crab
Lobster
Garlic on so many things!
- Places I Would Rather Be Right Now:> Australia
New Life Girls Home
Parry Sound
Syracuse
Four People I Think Will Respond: I never know who to put in this spot!
?
?
?
?
Four Places I Have Lived:
- Parry Sound, ON
Consecon, ON
Peterborough, ON
Port Hardy, BC
Four TV Shows I Watch:
- House
American Idol
That 70's Show
The Dog Whisperer
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Fishing with my friend Lindsay!:o)
Fishing!!
Bass 19"- 3 1/2 pounds
Perch!Saturday, May 31, 2008
The Day the Paint Box fell from Heaven'
(This is a real place outside�Bakersfield,California)When God Paints...
We live in an awesome world.
�Make it an awesome day.Live simply.
�Love generously.Care deeply.
�Speak kindly.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Yes...I am still blogging!
Life has gotten so busy....I don't know where all the time is going but I am still busy for the next couple of weeks for sure. Getting ready for the First Nations Conference at Desert Stream (May 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th) and also getting ready for the 20th anniversary at New Life Girls Home (August 16th). So.....see ya in a couple of weeks!!!
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Saturday, March 22, 2008
I miss being home!
The cat was here first. Usually he will leave if the dog lays on him...but he stayed for quite some time. I think he missed me.
My lap dog! She rolled over as soon as Straggles left.heheMonday, March 10, 2008
Trip to Australia??
Tom and I will be celebrating our fifth anniversary this May! When we were on our honeymoon we decided that we would be travelling after five years whether we needed to or not!lol So we are planning a trip to Australia to visit with a dear friend of ours. So...what would you want to see if you were going to Australia? (I am trying to decide what we are going to do while we are there):o)
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
I have the best husband ever!:o)
Not only did he buy roses for me (on the right) but he also bought roses for Rebecca! (on the left)
Just for laughs
Pastor's Business Card
A new pastor was visiting in the homes of his parishioners. At onehouse it seemed obvious that someone was at home, but no answer cameto his repeated knocks at the door.Therefore, he took out a business card and wrote "Revelation 3:20" onthe back of it and stuck it in the door.When the offering was processed the following Sunday, he found that his card had been returned. Added to it was this cryptic message,"Genesis 3:10."Reaching for his Bible to check out the citation, he broke up in gales of laughter. Revelation 3:20 begins "Behold, I stand at the door andknock." Genesis 3:10 reads, "I heard your voice in the garden and I was afraid for I was naked."
Monday, February 11, 2008
My dog likes her food....but...she also eats her crap. WARNING: If you have a weak stumache...this post may not fare well with you.
Today I cooked another one of Shyla's favourite meals for her. Chowhound Chicken Soup! It has chicken/water/carrots/celery/rice. She likes this and it makes sense to me. What does not make sense is that she also will eat her poo. This does not shock me...I have seen many dogs eat poopcicles in the winter time. What shocked me today was when she turned around and ate her freshly plopped poop! We are talking...it was still steaming on the snow! How incredably gross! I don't usually have a weak stumache...but the sight of that made me want to vomit! So? What shall I be doing about this? I am going to go out and pick up her droppings as she goes I guess is the only solution. Banging on the window and yelling no didn't do anygood! (for some reason...I don't want her kisses these days) Nasty...just nasty! Sorry....I just couldn't keep it to myself.lol
Grace...
a.
the freely given, unmerited favor and love of God.
b.
the influence or spirit of God operating in humans to regenerate or strengthen them.
c.
a virtue or excellence of divine origin: the Christian graces.
d.
Also called state of grace. the condition of being in God's favor or one of the elect.
It's pretty amazing......this one small word....with so much meaning. There is nothing we can ever do to earn grace and we certainly don't deserve it. It boggles my mind again and again how much God loves us and just wants us to spend time with Him! Help us Lord to keep our focus on you and to not be distracted by the things in life.
the freely given, unmerited favor and love of God.
b.
the influence or spirit of God operating in humans to regenerate or strengthen them.
c.
a virtue or excellence of divine origin: the Christian graces.
d.
Also called state of grace. the condition of being in God's favor or one of the elect.
It's pretty amazing......this one small word....with so much meaning. There is nothing we can ever do to earn grace and we certainly don't deserve it. It boggles my mind again and again how much God loves us and just wants us to spend time with Him! Help us Lord to keep our focus on you and to not be distracted by the things in life.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Today is a new day!:o)
Everyday is a new day really. Pretty amazing to think of that eh!?:o) I love that God gives us so much grace. I especially love that no matter what we are doing.....He is with us! So know that even if you have lots to get done today...or anyday.......you can get it done and still spend time with and focus on Him!:o) I am so thankful of this! (off to get a roast cooking in the crockpot!)
Friday, February 1, 2008
Crazy days!:o)
Sorry no pics of the event but I just had to share. So my friend Rebecca and I decided to run out of our sauna into the cold fresh snow that was still falling as we ran...and rolled in it as we screamed and then ran back into the house and back to the sauna!lol I sure hope that the neighbors were away!hehe:o)
Thursday, January 31, 2008
I love Jesus!:o)
Lately I have been praying for my hunger for God's word to increase and studying the Song of Solomon to deepen my intimacy with Him. I want to be distracted with thoughts of my Lord at every moment of each day. He is so good to me...and yet I can get so busy with everything that needs to be done and forget to just "be" with Him.Monday, January 28, 2008
I love my man!
Tom loves to do sound and if he could would be doing it year round. This time of year here in Belleville the sound industry is not too busy so he is off trucking accross our beautiful Canada to make ends meet. There have often been times in our marriage that we don't know where the money is coming from...but God makes it happen. And I am so thankful to have a husband that takes our needs to God in prayer. Thanks Tom for all that you do to make this hectic time of not seeing each other very much an easier time. I love you and I am proud of you!:o)
Friday, January 4, 2008
A call to prayer! Let's join with our big brother America!
Urgent - TheCall Ohio
From slavery to the civil rights movement, it was always the praying remnant that mobilized the future into being with intercession and activism. Today, the same God who ended these atrocities and injustices wants to use this generation to end abortion.
While reading a quote in a biography on William Wilberforce, the great parliamentary figure of the 1800s who almost single-handedly ended the slave trade in England, I was suddenly and forcibly apprehended by the presence of God. In that moment, I received an undeniable and irrevocable commission from the Lord: “Raise up a prayer movement to end abortion in America.” TheCall is a part of that prayer movement.
God is looking for intercessors. That’s not just a fancy word to replace “prayer.” It is a high calling—some say the supreme vocation. There is a small piece of real estate that exists in between God and His rebellious creation, and it’s called “the gap.” You are called to stand there. You were made to stand there. God said, “I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none.” (Ezekiel 22:30)
On January 12, TheCall is going to an historic piece of real estate that was the gap between God and slavery—Cincinnati, Ohio. A slave who made it across the Ohio River sent a message back to his family who lived in slavery in the South: “Tell them if they can only get to Cincinnati, they can get liberty.”
Cincinnati was where the Underground Railroad brought them to safety. Cincinnati was the place where a new breed of abolition preachers fanned through the nation shaking the ideologies of slavery. Cincinnati is where the slave trade of pornography was completely banned for 20 years just in recent history. Cincinnati is the place where the right-to-life movement began in America. And Cincinnati is where a profound adoption movement is being raised up to care for every unwanted child and every unborn child.
The true heir to the civil rights movement is not homosexual liberties, but freedom for the unborn and the pregnant mother, and the Underground Railroad for the great injustice of abortion is adoption.
We are releasing a sudden summons to everyone within a day’s drive, even to the whole nation, to TheCall Ohio on January 12: “If you can get to Cincinnati, the nation may find liberty. If you can get to Cincinnati, the pornography addict may find liberty. If you can get to Cincinnati, the unborn may find liberty.”
It’s Joel 2! When there is no hope for a nation, when there is no remedy, God still has a holy prescription: Blow the trumpet, gather the people, and call a fast. We must humble ourselves because we have offended heaven.
Isaiah 1 says that God hates our prayer gatherings, for our hands are filled with blood, and we don’t take care of the widow and the orphan. We have not demonstrated the compassionate heart of God to a desperate world. Let us gather and repent for the church of the nation in Cincinnati and become His hands of mercy to the poor and afflicted! We must ask God to raise up crisis pregnancy centers, pregnant mothers’ homes and a movement of adoption to explode across the nation.
Ohio will be ground zero once again for the elections in 2008. We will gather and cry out to God for mercy that we do not deserve. God, give us a humble man that will lead this nation in compassion and humility out of abortion and into the favor of heaven!
In Ohio, Finney’s bones lie buried, and written upon his tombstone are the words, “The Lord our God be with us as He was with our fathers. . . .” Can Finney’s bones live again? It is time to groan in prayer for the third great awakening in America!
On the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., we will gather and cry out that the voice of the African American will once again arise and lead this new movement of justice. We will pray the dream of King—that God will break racism and shatter poverty in inner cities. We will pray that a nation conceived in liberty will be able to see their children conceived in liberty, and we will cry out in the gap for mercy—that the effusion of innocent blood may end so that a nation may not have to face a day of reckoning for the shedding of the innocent blood of the unborn.
As Abraham Lincoln said in his second inaugural address:
Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue . . . until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said “the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.”
Oh, America, we are in a crisis! If 600,000 men died in the battlefields of the Civil War—both north and south, black and white—for the shed blood of the slaves, then what will it mean to America—black and white and north and south—if God brings a day of reckoning for the shed blood of 50 million babies? This is not a Democrat and Republican issue; this is a day of survival for a nation. Hear the trumpet alarm!
Let a cry for mercy arise in Ohio. Let us stand in this little piece of real estate and plead a better blood. Let us release a new abolition movement—a generation of new preachers, movie writers, and musicians—to assail this covenant with death. And may a new Underground Railroad spring up from the hearts of the church, crying, “Give us your babies!”
I believe TheCall Ohio could be a defining moment for America.
“I looked for a man to stand in the gap.”
www.LouEngle.com
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