Creation

In the past few weeks, God has opened my eyes to the beauty of his creation like never before. Coming from the city, my eyes usually see the brokenness that people have caused by the destruction of nature for economic purposes. Seeing creation undisturbed by people has been an amazing experience, in which God has really revealed himself to me.
I remember the sunset the first evening on the shores of Shuswap Lake. The water was calm and reflected the pink, purple, yellow, and blue sky. As the vast mountains and rolling hills illustrated the very real power and might of God. It was as if God was looking down on us with a great smile embracing us as his children. Never had creation felt more real to me than at that moment. As children of God it is important that we respect what God has made and care for it. God made this world for us, and he sculpted it beautifully.
The next time you see the sheer beauty of creation, be still, embrace it, listen to it, and thank God for making it. As much as God wants us to take pictures, paint landscapes, and describe the awesome things we see, thank Him for it. Let it be an act of worship, but remember that God’s most beautiful creation is people, and he loves us more than anything else in this world.

By Ryan Braun

Houseboats

Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving the Deasley family graciously hosted all thirty of us in their home and served us a delicious thanksgiving supper complete with pumpkin pie. It was a welcome respite for us to hangout in a home again especially in one so welcoming.

 

So I thought that I would not like girls week very much. First of all we were in Calgary instead of Banff, and I missed the mountains. Also its like 60 girls and no guys. Talk about drama and emotions. But in spite of all that its been really good.
We had an awesome speaker and a great worship leader. But we also did alot of just fun stuff. We went go-karting and played lazer tag. I got the worst score at lazer tag. Guns just aren't my thing but it was alot of fun. Then another day we did a chill hike in Banff, and went to the hotsprings that night. Imagine 60 girls clumped in the middle of a pool with 4 teams of Norwegian volleyball players all lining the outside of the pool. And no mingling... hilarious.
Then we all went for dinner one night at East Side Marios and all got dressed up. Then we had spa night. My toenails are red :D. Friday was a free day. Two of my friends from Lethbridge came to visit me!! YAY!! and i did a little shopping. and then we had a hiphop class at night. Saturday we went back to banff and me and 7 of the girls in my site did a huge hike up sulfer mountain, where the gondolas are. Most people ride up and hike down. but no. We hiked up and rode down. Me and Tiffany laughed alot of the way, making it hard to breathe...
So yeah this must seem like a pretty easy week. but its been so good just to bond with the other girls in my site. There are 17 of us so its been hard to get to know everyone up until this week. We are missing the boys though and can't wait to see them all tomorrow. We will be in canmore for a few days with them and then we will head off to the houseboats on Shuswap Lake.
Anyways. I've also learned alot too. This week we've been talking about self image, boy/girl relationships, and sexuality. But we've also talked about singleness and all the cool stuff that God can do through that. And we talked about dreaming. Sharon asked us to write down our dreams for the future, even things that seem crazy and not possible. So yeah, I've been thinking lots about me and how God has changed me so much in the last few years. And about all the crazy things I would love to do. I still have absolutely no direction for what to do after this year. but thats okay.
By Chantel Lanoue

Climbing Sulphur Mountain