Well, this week has kinda been a downer. I've been home all week with a sore throat and ear aches. I went to the walk-in clinic yesterday and He thinks I may have strep throat. He gave me some antibiotics but I'm still in a lot of pain- plus I really want to be at work! Please pray that I would heal quickly and that I would rest in God and see what he is trying to teach me during these long days and that I would be well enough to go back to work on Monday.
On a brighter note, the weather is beautiful out here...in between the random rain storms haha. This Sunday is Calgary's Lilac festival, so if I'm feeling better a bunch of us are planning a trip downtown to see what's happening there and hopefully get some lilacs for the kitchen table!!
Oh and more exciting news! Another girl on project got a job at the same daycare as me the other day...so now we'll have twice as much of an impact for Christ...exciting! Please keep our co-workers, especially Sharon and Natalie in your prayers.
God Bless,
Em
Friday, May 23, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
Week #2
So much has happened this week that this post may turn into a novel…so I apologize first off, I'll try my best to keep it short.
Work;
Work has been going great….I’m realizing how exhausting it is running after 6 toddlers all day…but have been sleeping like a rock at night. It’s so rewarding to see those children grow because of the effort you put into helping them learn. And the tiredness is so worth knowing I can love those kids the way God loves them, even if they have no idea yet that He loves them and wants them to grow up to know Him.
In terms of conversations, this week brought some good ones. One day Sharon asked me about how Christians can forgive people who hurt them, so I got the chance to explain that all people are sinful and hurt people at times and that it’s through the power of the Holy Spirit that I can forgive those who’ve hurt me, because I need to remember I’ve hurt people too and that I have no right to judge others for their actions- only God can do that. Though I still don’t know exactly where Sharon is at in terms of her faith, that was a very encouraging conversation and I know there will be –God willing- many more to come.
Another co-worker and I had an interesting conversation this week as well. Natalie is 30 years old and just moved to Calgary to work at our daycare 1 month ago. She seems very shut off from the rest of our co-workers and almost bitter about life in general. I was really scared to talk to her as I wasn’t sure she’d want to talk to me in return. However, one day we had lunch together and we just sat in silence for 20 minutes eating our lunch- I knew God wanted me to talk to her so I started some small talk about what her old daycare was like, where she was from etc. We got talking about why she moved to Calgary and she really opened up to me. She started telling me about how she moved here because she felt trapped and lost in Toronto and needed to find herself and discover what she was supposed to do with her life. WOW – all that from small talk! The conversation didn’t go too much further as our lunch was over, but the rest of the week she seemed much more open to me and talked with me more as we worked. Please pray for Natalie… we would have many more opportunities to talk and that Spiritual issues would surface in our conversations and that she would come to know Christ loves her and died for her.
We had a nice little outbreak of pinkeye at the daycare which led to some overtime to disinfect everything in the daycare, but which also led to some quality conversations with many of my other co-workers. All of them know now that I’m in Calgary with a Christian group-so hopefully that will open up some interesting doors – please continue to lift my co-workers up in prayer.
Weekly low-down;
The evenings were packed with our Monday night weekly meeting/ build time where we learnt about studying the Bible inductively.
Tuesday night we went to the Mustard seed (the street ministry I mentioned earlier) for a tour of their facilities- it is an amazing building with so much to offer those less fortunate. A very eye-opening experience for sure. Odd how the people God specifically tells us to care for are often kicked to the curb because though we want to be God’s hands- we don’t want to get them dirty. God definitely stirred in all of us a passion to reach the less fortunate with His love and message of salvation. After all the first shall be last and the last shall be first.
Wednesday night we have Bible study small groups- we’re studying the book of Daniel and learning how though he became part of the secular world by becoming one of the King’s trainees he still did not put “fitting in” above God or do anything that would negatively affect his relationship with God.
Thursday we have outreach training- learning how to be the most effective witness in our workplace as possible.
Friday we have fun night bonding- We have really become a tight knit community living here in the dorms all together- I’ve made some amazing friends here and I can’t explain what a blessing it is to know and live with these brothers and sisters and learn from one another and grow in our relationships with God together- it’s truly amazing-and I know already that it’s going to be very hard to leave in August.
Saturday my roommates and I went to a little town called Canmore close to the Rocky Mountains to do some hiking and walk around the town. The mountains were beautiful! I'll upload a few for you to see. They're just like a postcard- it’s hard to believe how so any people can look out their backyards to see such majesty everyday and think the view as well as themselves exploded into being. It just spurs me on even more to make sure people have a chance to know the truth, and that God will get the glory He deserves.
I pray all is well with you, thank you for your continued prayers and support. Drop me an email anytime at emferrier@gmail.com if you would like anymore info etc. God bless you all for helping me serve here in Calgary.
Love in Christ
Emily
Work;
Work has been going great….I’m realizing how exhausting it is running after 6 toddlers all day…but have been sleeping like a rock at night. It’s so rewarding to see those children grow because of the effort you put into helping them learn. And the tiredness is so worth knowing I can love those kids the way God loves them, even if they have no idea yet that He loves them and wants them to grow up to know Him.
In terms of conversations, this week brought some good ones. One day Sharon asked me about how Christians can forgive people who hurt them, so I got the chance to explain that all people are sinful and hurt people at times and that it’s through the power of the Holy Spirit that I can forgive those who’ve hurt me, because I need to remember I’ve hurt people too and that I have no right to judge others for their actions- only God can do that. Though I still don’t know exactly where Sharon is at in terms of her faith, that was a very encouraging conversation and I know there will be –God willing- many more to come.
Another co-worker and I had an interesting conversation this week as well. Natalie is 30 years old and just moved to Calgary to work at our daycare 1 month ago. She seems very shut off from the rest of our co-workers and almost bitter about life in general. I was really scared to talk to her as I wasn’t sure she’d want to talk to me in return. However, one day we had lunch together and we just sat in silence for 20 minutes eating our lunch- I knew God wanted me to talk to her so I started some small talk about what her old daycare was like, where she was from etc. We got talking about why she moved to Calgary and she really opened up to me. She started telling me about how she moved here because she felt trapped and lost in Toronto and needed to find herself and discover what she was supposed to do with her life. WOW – all that from small talk! The conversation didn’t go too much further as our lunch was over, but the rest of the week she seemed much more open to me and talked with me more as we worked. Please pray for Natalie… we would have many more opportunities to talk and that Spiritual issues would surface in our conversations and that she would come to know Christ loves her and died for her.
We had a nice little outbreak of pinkeye at the daycare which led to some overtime to disinfect everything in the daycare, but which also led to some quality conversations with many of my other co-workers. All of them know now that I’m in Calgary with a Christian group-so hopefully that will open up some interesting doors – please continue to lift my co-workers up in prayer.
Weekly low-down;
The evenings were packed with our Monday night weekly meeting/ build time where we learnt about studying the Bible inductively.
Tuesday night we went to the Mustard seed (the street ministry I mentioned earlier) for a tour of their facilities- it is an amazing building with so much to offer those less fortunate. A very eye-opening experience for sure. Odd how the people God specifically tells us to care for are often kicked to the curb because though we want to be God’s hands- we don’t want to get them dirty. God definitely stirred in all of us a passion to reach the less fortunate with His love and message of salvation. After all the first shall be last and the last shall be first.
Wednesday night we have Bible study small groups- we’re studying the book of Daniel and learning how though he became part of the secular world by becoming one of the King’s trainees he still did not put “fitting in” above God or do anything that would negatively affect his relationship with God.
Thursday we have outreach training- learning how to be the most effective witness in our workplace as possible.
Friday we have fun night bonding- We have really become a tight knit community living here in the dorms all together- I’ve made some amazing friends here and I can’t explain what a blessing it is to know and live with these brothers and sisters and learn from one another and grow in our relationships with God together- it’s truly amazing-and I know already that it’s going to be very hard to leave in August.
Saturday my roommates and I went to a little town called Canmore close to the Rocky Mountains to do some hiking and walk around the town. The mountains were beautiful! I'll upload a few for you to see. They're just like a postcard- it’s hard to believe how so any people can look out their backyards to see such majesty everyday and think the view as well as themselves exploded into being. It just spurs me on even more to make sure people have a chance to know the truth, and that God will get the glory He deserves.
I pray all is well with you, thank you for your continued prayers and support. Drop me an email anytime at emferrier@gmail.com if you would like anymore info etc. God bless you all for helping me serve here in Calgary.
Love in Christ
Emily
Friday, May 9, 2008
First Week Happenings
Hard to believe it's been almost a week since arriving in Calgary! I arrived on Monday morning just before noon. From the airport me and another girl on the same flight took a cab to the Rocky Mountain Bible College dorms where we will be living for the next 3 months.
The first 3 days were filled with orientation, training, ice-breakers and of course an "amazing race" to orient us with the city of Calgary. I can't believe how big this city is! It took me an hour to get to work Thursday and an hour and a half to get home because of rush hour. I take the CTrain downtown and take a bus from there to work. That brings me to work. I'm working full time at a daycare in the South of Calgary. It's a small daycare with only about 25 children but it means I get to interact a lot more with my co-workers than I would at a larger daycare. It also means I get to work with every age group which is nice- I especially enjoy working with the toddlers- and I've made some new 3 year old best friends already :) In the afternoons I go to work at the after-school program in a public school just a few blocks away-which means me and my boss work alone, just us 2 and the kids- allowing for some good conversations.
My boss' name is Sharon-She claims to be Christian but is obviously far from God right now or at least pretty confused about having a real relationship with Christ. My first day at work she told me she thought God was calling her to go back to church (after not having gone for 25 years) She also mentioned she wanted to buy an English Bible so she could start reading it again-and asked me to recommend a good translation. Praise the Lord! After one day of work I have already mentioned to each co-worker that I am a Christian here with Power to Change for the summer and have had a spiritual conversation with my Boss about God-with the promise of many more conversations to come. Please pray for Sharon- that we would continue to have great conversations at work and that she would come to know Christ if she doesn't already.
I'm working with a lot of older ladies (all over 5o) which was a challenge at first especially since all of their favorite pastimes seem to be gossiping about our co-workers- it was really hard to love these women when all they seemed to do was talk poorly of others. At first I was really upset and wondered why God would have placed me somewhere with no one else my age and where everyone seems to be so bitter about life. But, today I realized how much God loves these women-and how I am no better or different than them-other than the fact that my sins have been forgiven through Christ's blood because of faith- and as an ambassador of Christ I need to love these women with Christ's love because I'm too sinful to be capable of loving them on my own- a very humbling realization.
And I've also realized that even after only 2 days of working with them, they all seem to be confiding in me and enjoy talking to me -which may not have been the case if they hadn't all been so much older than me. So God has been teaching me a lot these past couple days - How His plans are so much higher than mine (Isaiah 55:9), how incapable I am of being used by God unless I'm filled with the power of his Spirit (Ephesians 3:16-18), and how much God loves his people and desires for them to know him (John 3:16 and many others)
Tomorrow will be our first day of community outreach- which I'm very excited about- we will be partnering with a street ministry called "the mustard seed" downtown which seeks to help the homeless with job searches, meals etc. while sharing Christ's love with them. We will also go out to the city in pairs and ask people if they're interested in talking about Spiritual issues-and hopefully have the chance to share the Gospel with them if they're interested.
We will also have the chance to reach out in different ways that God has laid on our hearts - I believe God is laying families on my heart (oddly right in my field of study, haha). I would love to be able to reach families and children with Christ's love and be able to share the Gospel with parents so that children will be brought up knowing how much God loves them. So, please pray for that, that God would give me wisdom and creativity in how to reach families here most effectively for Him.
So, a lot has been happening in my own heart and in the hearts of the people around me- and all of it only through God's mercy and grace on His creation. If you could, please pray for our outreach opportunities, my co-workers Sharon, Natalie, Irene, Fay and Ruth, and finally as Paul once said to those who supported him as you do me and as recorded in Ephesians 6:19
"Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel..."
Working to bring Christ the Glory,
Blessings,
Emily xoxo
The first 3 days were filled with orientation, training, ice-breakers and of course an "amazing race" to orient us with the city of Calgary. I can't believe how big this city is! It took me an hour to get to work Thursday and an hour and a half to get home because of rush hour. I take the CTrain downtown and take a bus from there to work. That brings me to work. I'm working full time at a daycare in the South of Calgary. It's a small daycare with only about 25 children but it means I get to interact a lot more with my co-workers than I would at a larger daycare. It also means I get to work with every age group which is nice- I especially enjoy working with the toddlers- and I've made some new 3 year old best friends already :) In the afternoons I go to work at the after-school program in a public school just a few blocks away-which means me and my boss work alone, just us 2 and the kids- allowing for some good conversations.
My boss' name is Sharon-She claims to be Christian but is obviously far from God right now or at least pretty confused about having a real relationship with Christ. My first day at work she told me she thought God was calling her to go back to church (after not having gone for 25 years) She also mentioned she wanted to buy an English Bible so she could start reading it again-and asked me to recommend a good translation. Praise the Lord! After one day of work I have already mentioned to each co-worker that I am a Christian here with Power to Change for the summer and have had a spiritual conversation with my Boss about God-with the promise of many more conversations to come. Please pray for Sharon- that we would continue to have great conversations at work and that she would come to know Christ if she doesn't already.
I'm working with a lot of older ladies (all over 5o) which was a challenge at first especially since all of their favorite pastimes seem to be gossiping about our co-workers- it was really hard to love these women when all they seemed to do was talk poorly of others. At first I was really upset and wondered why God would have placed me somewhere with no one else my age and where everyone seems to be so bitter about life. But, today I realized how much God loves these women-and how I am no better or different than them-other than the fact that my sins have been forgiven through Christ's blood because of faith- and as an ambassador of Christ I need to love these women with Christ's love because I'm too sinful to be capable of loving them on my own- a very humbling realization.
And I've also realized that even after only 2 days of working with them, they all seem to be confiding in me and enjoy talking to me -which may not have been the case if they hadn't all been so much older than me. So God has been teaching me a lot these past couple days - How His plans are so much higher than mine (Isaiah 55:9), how incapable I am of being used by God unless I'm filled with the power of his Spirit (Ephesians 3:16-18), and how much God loves his people and desires for them to know him (John 3:16 and many others)
Tomorrow will be our first day of community outreach- which I'm very excited about- we will be partnering with a street ministry called "the mustard seed" downtown which seeks to help the homeless with job searches, meals etc. while sharing Christ's love with them. We will also go out to the city in pairs and ask people if they're interested in talking about Spiritual issues-and hopefully have the chance to share the Gospel with them if they're interested.
We will also have the chance to reach out in different ways that God has laid on our hearts - I believe God is laying families on my heart (oddly right in my field of study, haha). I would love to be able to reach families and children with Christ's love and be able to share the Gospel with parents so that children will be brought up knowing how much God loves them. So, please pray for that, that God would give me wisdom and creativity in how to reach families here most effectively for Him.
So, a lot has been happening in my own heart and in the hearts of the people around me- and all of it only through God's mercy and grace on His creation. If you could, please pray for our outreach opportunities, my co-workers Sharon, Natalie, Irene, Fay and Ruth, and finally as Paul once said to those who supported him as you do me and as recorded in Ephesians 6:19
"Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel..."
Working to bring Christ the Glory,
Blessings,
Emily xoxo
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