One of the great things about Quispamsis, NB!

These are some of the great lights in a park close to our daughter's home in Quispamsis!

Nothing like a hot chocolate after a cold walk in a beautiful Christmas lit park!!

Who doesn't know this verse!

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life

I think every child who spent anytime in Sunday school must have learned this verse. And as I read on in John chapter 3 it tells of Jesus baptizing. I thought, "Oh, wouldn't it have been wonderful to have been baptized by Jesus", but then I thought, "OH! wait a minute I have. I have been baptized by the Holy Spirit" A true blessing indeed!

Reassurance when we seek!

As I read in the Book of John today, one line jumps out at me as if I had never read it before. It is in John Chapter 1 when Jesus is calling his disciples. John 1:45 states 'Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have fond the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote -- Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."' Then in Verse 46 (and this is what I never noticed before) Nathanael states "Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?"

We have a tendency to judge people by the way they look or where they are from or any other number of things. It amazes me that Jesus called Nathanael, I'm sure knowing, what his first response would be. But Christ gave him to opportunity to become one of his disciples and Nathanael made the right choice. Nathanael initially judged Christ, because of where he came from, Nazareth, but when he was willing to at least, go and see who Jesus was it provided the opportunity for Nathanael to experience who Jesus really was.

Have you questioned who Jesus is? Have you given Jesus a chance to show you who he is? I pray you have. I am sure he is trying to talk to you! Are you listening? Will you respond? Will you like Nathanael, make the right choice? He will do more for you, and give you more than you could ever imagine! I pray if you, like Nathanael, question who Jesus is, that you give him the opportunity to come into your life and show you who he is! He is our only true, constant friend!

Romans 15

My prayer for all who read this is verse 13. "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

And if you do not know him my further prayer for you is a paraphrase of verse 21: "That someone will tell you about Him so that you will see and know and understand", (end of paraphrase) so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

And this makes me think of one more of my favorite verses:
Ephesians 1:18  I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people.

Romans 13

Today as I read Romans 13 it reminds me of mum's teaching. The verse that reminds me of this is the end of verse 9; "Love your neighbor as yourself." This in turn reminds me of the golden rule, do unto others as you would have them do unto you. This is the rule I tried to bring my kids up by but I was not pursuing a relationship with Christ at the time. AND, I did not realize it was from the Bible until I started pursuing that relationship! I know Mum must be smiling down from heaven as her children come to Christ and seek his guidance in their lives! Thank you Mum for your persistence and  prayers!

This Morning's reading made me think of my son, Charles Romans 14

Recently Charles has posted things on facebook about bullying and not judging others. This Chapter in Romans made me think about what he has been saying. It is about the weak and the strong. A couple of verses 'jump out at me'; vs. 1 Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgement on disputable matters. Also vs.5-6 One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.  He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. vs 10-11 You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God's judgement seat.  It is written:"As surely as I live," says the Lord, "Every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God." So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God. There fore let us stop passing judgment on one another.  Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way. vs 19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. And I like the way the Message states vs22 & 23 Cultivate your own relationship with God, but don't impose it on others. You're fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent. But if you're not sure, if you notice that you are acting in ways inconsistent with what you believe--some days trying to impose your opinions on others, other days just trying to please them--then you know that you're out of line.  If the way you live isn't consistent with what you believe, then it's wrong.(NIV states:"and everything that does not come from faith is sin)


WOW!! This convicts me, especially the part about not imposing my faith on others. As Christians, we are called to be witnesses for Christ and sometimes it is so hard not to say things we shouldn't. We need to be just that, WITNESSES. And we need to live a life dedicated to Christ and wait and anticipate those moments that Gods will provide to talk to others about Christ. And we are NOT to judge others; that is God's job.

Romans13:9b Remembering my Mother!

As I read in Romasn 13 today this portion of a verse reminds me of my mother; Romans 13:9b "Love your neighbor as yourself." I brought my kids up with the 'golden rule'; Do onto others as you would have them do unto you. This is something my mother instilled in me but the thing is, that while I was binging up my children, in the early years, I did not know that it was from the bible! Matthew 7:12b 'do to others what you would have them do to you.'

God has such an awesome way of working. We do not always understand the way he works, but what we have to focus on is the He IS at work in our lives and wants nothing but the best for us. Jeremiah 29:11
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

What we have to do is accept Him as our personal Saviour and persue a relationship with him.

Reading November 2, 2011 - Romans Chapter 12

Romans 12:9-12 "Love mush be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in afflection, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. 

Comments: This just seems to go so well with what Howard and I are doing right now. We are working with Boaz Ministries http://www.boazministries.com/  and are going to be doing some mentoring. We are quite excited about it and are looking forward to what the Lord is doing in this ministry!

Reading November 1, 2011 - Romans Chapter 11

Romans 11:12 "But if their transgressions means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their fullness bring."

Thoughts: What this seems to be saying to me is; just like in our walk with Christ, people accept Christ and then never pursue a relationship with him.  But if they were to pursue that relationship, just think how much more  (greater riches) they would be blessed and encouraged, etc., by Christ in their life.

Reading October 31, 2011 - Romans Chapter 10

Romans 10:3 "Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own they did not submit to Gods righteousness"

Thoughts: It is like so many are still doing this today; not submitting to Gods righteousness; they are just going through the motions but following their own leading, not Gods. Or they accept Christ as their Saviour and then do not pursue a relationship with him. There is so much that they are missing out on.

Another day of geocaching!

Another geocaching Sunday!

We think this is called a wild cucumber.

A moose! A wooden moose at least! Too funny!

Currie Mountain 

http://www.unb.ca/fredericton/forestry/about/unbforests/currie.html

And no, there was no geocache here!

This would be a great tree to have in your yard for Halloween!

Becoming Stronger!

Whenever we go through a trial we can allow it to weaken us or make us stronger. I pray that the storms that I go through make me stronger. This applies, not only to me as an individual but also to the church as a whole. If a church goes through a storm, the people need to be united and of one mind; focused on Jesus Christ. The bible tells us in Romans 5, that since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God; that we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand and that we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. And then it goes on to say in Romans 5:3-5 Not only so, but we rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope and hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

We need to stay focused on Jesus Christ so that we will be yet, even stronger, as we emerge from our storms.

Geocaching in Fredericton in conjunction with the City of Fredericton Part 2

Saint John River Valley at Springhill

The perfect ending of a great day geocaching

Geocaching Event in conjunction with the City of Fredericton Part 1

Nashwaak Creek

Boardwalk on the Nashwaak Creek Trail

Christ Church Cathedral

Nashwaak River

Killarney Lake