Friday, December 30, 2005

Thank God For Blogs

I read a few blogs just now that were very encouraging to me. I just wanted to share with you my thoughts as they've been soaking in. The first one was Swarty's latest blog. Lately I've been having all these crazy doubts about becoming a youth pastor. Nothing serious, but just questioning whether or not I'm really up for the task. After reading Swarty's blog, I remember why the heck that's what I want to do. There's nothing like seeing teens on fire for God and doing His work. There's nothing more rewarding than being there for a teen going through rough times. Youth pastors (and their wives) have had a huge influence on my life. There's no doubt I wouldn't be where I'm at if it weren't for those faithful servants of God. God has set a passion in my heart to be that influence in other teens' lives. I'm stoked to go into full time ministry and I'm just as excited for the opportunities God is going to have for us working with teens while we're in college.

The second blog I read was Lynn Erskine's (go read his latest entry...there's a link on the side to his blog). This was really just what I've been needing. I've been trying to fight the battle, rather than surrendering. I've been trying to do it all on my own, and as I've tried, I've only been sinking further down and further away from Christ. Giving God control is key, and it's something I've been failing miserably at. I guess there's no better time to make new commitments and enjoy a refreshed spirit than the beginning of a new year. May God do a new work in your life as you enter into the new year. much love becky

Thursday, December 29, 2005

Boomer Sooner

Well it has a been a wonderful day. I didn't get to watch the game and I was sad. I even called one of our professors at the last minute and invited myself over to his house just in case the game was on. Of course, it wasn't. We went over anyway because the Carrutherses are super nice. We came home and it was about half time. At ten minutes left in the third I had the bright idea to listen on the radio. NO ONE was brodcasting on the net and we don't have a regular radio, so I went out and listened in the car. I had to drive up on the hill the school is on to hear the game. It was marvelous, in fact it was scrumtralecent.
Hats off to Clint Ingram for saving the game. We beat an awesome (at least for the most part) Oregon team 17-14. Other than saxet and USC I think Oregon is next on my list of teams I would have liked to beat (mostly cuz im a goof). So in the end Im glad I paid a thousand dollars today instead of tomorrow to get our car back. It was well worth it. Maybe.
jeff

Can't Wait For Classes

I never thought I'd say that, but it is oh so very true. This break has definitely been a little much. Besides all that's been going on, my sleep schedule is so screwy. I sleep from about 7am to 5pm or so. Then I'm up all night. There's not much to do from 5pm to 7am so it's not a fun time. The thought of classes and a schedule sounds absolutely wonderful right now. I do not have the discipline (or the money) to do anything with my days. I need classes and chapel to fill them up. Not to mention classes starting means everyone will be back on campus. I know I will have plenty of reading to do when classes start back up. We went to Carruthers' tonight and we saw the Old Testament textbook on his counter. Between that and having to read the whole Old Testament, that's more reading in one class than I think I had all last semester. It should be a good time. I really do enjoy learning about all this. That makes the reading and the work a lot better. Anywho, I should get going. I don't know why because my "day" is only like half over and it's 12:30am, but I'm out. much love becky

Wednesday, December 28, 2005

Head Gasket

Well that is the offical verdict, at least for now on our car. The mechanic said that its the head gasket and I think he is right. Not that I think I know more than he does, but by saying that I agree with him I am really saying that I don't think he is trying to scam me.
Anyway life is fun and this is just a special treat. I hope you all had a great Christmas mine was definantly memorable.
jeff

Saturday, December 24, 2005

Our First Christmas Eve

Let me tell you about our first Christmas Eve together...so far. Well, just after 5:00 we decided to go out and get some dinner and a few movies. We didn't know what time the Christmas Eve service was and couldn't get a hold of anyone to find out, so we decided not to go. So, we went to go get some Subway (we had our Christmas dinner last night), but they were closed. Who can blame them? I mean, it's Christmas Eve. We decided to have fajitas because we have most of the stuff we need here and well, we love fajitas. Of course everything in Sussex closed at 5:00 so we couldn't get the rest of what we needed. We were about to go home, but then decided to go to St. John since we really had nothing better to do. Before we got half way there, our car overheated. Luckily, we had just passed an exit. In fact we pulled over right next to the on ramp. We walked down through the snow to the gas station. We thought we were out of luck because the people working couldn't find a phone book and we don't know anyone's number around here. But luckily they found one for us. We called Carruthers' and they were about to leave for a Christmas Eve service at a church about 10 minutes from where we were at. While we were waiting for them Jeff drove the car down the on ramp and parked it. They picked us up and we went to church with the Carruthers'. It was a good time, but a little awkward with how we were dressed. Not a biggy though. After the Christmas Eve service, we went to Carruthers' and watched A Wonderful Life and had some left over turkey dinner. It was a good time. They let us borrow there mini van for the next couple of days.

Needless to say, we will probably not be going to Boston now. Because of Boxing Day here in Canada, we won't be able to get our car checked out until Tuesday. If it's something small and we can get it done in time, we will still go. But the chance of those two things happening is very small. So now it looks like we will be spending a few more days here in good ol' Sussex. That's it for now. Becky

Merry Christmas to Me

Okay so any of you who ever go to Darin and Rebecca'a blog have seen this. But I know some of you never take advantage of the link we have to their site, so I thought I would bring this to you. This is one of their 8410's with duals on the front. I guess it was just a little to sticky out pumpin so they thought they would try this. The major problem with it according to Darin was that he had to be going way to fast to steer all those tires. So i guess they took them off after a day. Luckily they got a picture before they did that, so we could share it with the world and preserve it for ages to come. (Okay thats alittle much). I hope you all enjoy looking at it as much as I do. The things you miss cuz you go to school in Canada. My lovely wife is here though and that beats any tractor any day. And I say this for Chris's sake that we all truly miss the Voigts. Have a Merry Christmas everybody.
jeff

Friday, December 23, 2005

Up All Night

Hello everyone. Well, our computer decided to work tonight (or this morning-its 6:20 am) so I figured I'd post while we have it up and running. We thought it might be the video card so we took it in to Staples, but it was fine. It's something with our monitor which is older and not under warranty. My parents are sending us their old (yet fairly new) monitor soon, but we figured we'd be without a computer until then. We have been up all night (I will get to thet in a minute) and about an hour ago we thought we'd plug it in and see if it works. And here we are, using a functioning monitor. I still don't trust it so our backup is still on the way.

Ok, so tonight was somewhat of a rough night. We got home from watching a movie at some friends' house around 12:30 and then laid in bed and Jeff read while I played GameCube. No more than an hour later our phone rang. It was my mom. My Grandma (her mom) passed away last night. It was very unexpected. Times like these are when it really sucks being in another country, away from family. It was going to be rough enough not being home for Christmas, but with this, now it really sucks. Well, Jeff and I have been up playing video games, talking, and figuring out a way for me to go back to Minnesota. Thanks to "saving" for Boston, we do have enough money for me to go back. But that would be hard too...spending our first married Christmas apart. So yeah. We still don't know for sure what's going to happen. It's now 6:30 am and I still don't feel sleep coming on, but that's all I got for now. much love becky

ps-We broke another glass. Only one more to go. O, and getting mail (especially packages) here can really suck. It takes just a few days sometimes and other times it takes a couple weeks. It's really frustrating.

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

No Computer

You won't be hearing from us for a little while because our computer is getting fixed. It could be up to 2 weeks and the computer lab closes on Friday. Sorry to all you faithful readers. I know there' s so many of you :) Like 3, maybe. Anywho, I don't have and BMW quote with me so sorry for no update. Our computer left us Sunday before I had a chance to get one up. Go see The Chronicles of Narnia. It's a great movie. Merry Christmas and all that jive in case we don't get on before then. much love the poes

Monday, December 05, 2005

Broken Glass


Probably only a few of you know this, but a few months ago we bought some really cool sqaure glasses at Walmart in Saint John. (Drinking glasses not eye glasses). Well, the are pretty neat and they match our square plates. There are two sizes: a short glass that is ok, and some tall, slender glasses that I really like. Well the tall ones are CRAP.

We started off with eight of each kind. Oh, and by the way, they were really cheap. Like 13.50 for all 16 of them. But anyway, the tall ones keep breaking, and for no apparent reason. Like they will get tipped over and as they tip they touch something and just shatter. So I just broke the fifth one. A little quick math and you know that means that we only have three left. It is really stupid.

The fifth one committed suicide. I grab something off the counter and right as I was doing that this glass jumped off. I must have bumped it, but I seriously don't think I did. I looked at where I grabbed the plate from and it was a foot from the glass. I have no idea how it happened but it is the fifth one and we have less than half of them left. So I am ticked and that is why I ranted on for half a page about glasses. Hope you all have better luck with yours.
jeff

Sunday, December 04, 2005

Boy Meets World Quote-Week 4


"See, we're men. We like to rush rush rush rush rush. You know, we just like to just do it! But women, they don't like to just do it. You gotta buy 'em a car first. Just kidding. Really, I never said that." ~Alan Matthews

Tuesday, November 29, 2005

Snowy Sussex

Jeff and I went on a walk at like 12:30am on Saturday night when it was snowing. It was so beautiful. I took some pictures, but due to the quality of my camera, they didn't turn out so hot. I messed with them some, but they are still not the greatest. These pictures definitely do not even come close to doing the beauty of that night justice.


Railroad Crossing

Light Post.

Railroad into Sussex.

Snowy Fence

Tree

Monday, November 28, 2005

Toilet Paper In My Eye


No that is not a metaphor for some deep thought I had. I actually got toilet paper (which for the rest of this blog will be known as TP) in my eye. Here is what happened.
I am cheap so i always use TP to blow my nose in. Except when I have a really bad cold or something and then I get kleenex with lotion it, but that is beside the point. The night of the incident I was using TP. Anyway, I ripped off a rather large piece and as I brought it up to my nose the end of it hit my eye. Naturally i blinked. What happened next still boggles my mind. My eyelid cut the TP when I blinked. Crazy right? Thats what I thought, but nonetheless I then had a piece of TP in my eye. It hurt. I tried to get Becky to pull it out, but she was afraid she would scratch my eye. I appreciated her concern. So I had to do the job myself. My first thought was to leave it. It took about 2 seconds to realize that wouldn't work because it felt like i had a piece of fiberglass in my eye. It itched. So I held my eyelid down and after half-a-dozen tries i got it out.
So that is my dumb exciting story for the week.
jeff

Underground Church

I know it's been over a week since Underground Church, but I was waiting until I got the pictures to do another post. The night went real well. We scared some kids real bad and they were all miserable. That was the point though. Being persecuted isn't supposed to be fun. In the end, two kids got saved and the kids enjoyed lookin' at our guns and what not. It was a successful night. Here's some pics of us and our airsoft guns.

While we're at it, let's rob a bank.

What?! The KGB aren't suppose to smile.


That's more like it.


Our sweet airsoft guns. Top: M-4 Bottom: MP5

Becky's baby up close.

Sunday, November 27, 2005

Boy Meets World Quote--Week 3

"Awkward?! Mom, this wasn't awkward. Losing your gym shorts while climbing the rope--that's awkward. And BURNS! This was beyond humiliation--way beyond! This was, this was agubua." -Cory Matthews

In With the New

I'm 19 so why is it I think I can't pick up new hobbies? Let me explain. There have been so many hobbies that have fascinated me since I was in Jr. High. I've always wanted to learn how to snowboard. Learning to play guitar would be sweet. And my most recent obsession...I would love to get into photography. For some odd reason I have it in my head that it is too late to learn these things. The worst part? I've had this crazy thought stuck in my head since I was in Jr. High. I don't really know why. It's never really been a conscious thought, but it's always kept me from pursuing new interests. Maybe it's because the one thing I was always good at and wanted to pursue (softball) was something I started at a very young age. Whatever the reason, I'm done thinking that way.

Not only have I thought like this about pursuing hobbies, but I've thought like this in evangelism. Once again, let me explain. I feel like people (friends, family, strangers) in there late teens and early twenties who have fallen away from Christ will not come back. It's like their too old or something. I know, this is a crazy thought. But my thoughts in this area are so much like the ones above. It's not a conscious thought, but it makes me lose hope in reaching these people. I think I think this way because I decided to become serious about Christ at a younger age. But this by no means is any reason why people can't at a later age. I have no idea if I am making any sense. It is difficult to explain a concept I do not fully comprehend. It's the way my brain has been wired, but, with the help of God, we are rewiring it.

Back to the former. As I mentioned, photography is something I have recently become very interested in. I'm starting to see everything in pictures. I use to take a lot of pictures of me and friends, but now I'm more interested in objects and nature. I downloaded some free editing software (photoplus 6) and have been messing around with it today. I'm still trying to figure everything out, but below are a few things I've done. I'm hoping to get a photo blog started, but I'm probably going to wait for a digital camera before I take on that task. Anywho, here they are.

Wedding

Waterfall

Beach Sunset

Friday, November 25, 2005

The Church of Anything Goes

Daily Devotional from 11/25/05

The Church of Anything Goes. I had an epiphany a while back. I am tired of having to pray every day for the finances of this ministry. I am tired ofpeople sending me nasty and hateful emails. I am tired of warning people of God's coming judgment. So I decided to start a new church. It will be THE best church man has ever known. You will be able to come every Sunday and never have to worry about feeling convicted because of the choices you are making. You will never have to hear about things like sin, service, or sacrifice. No, you just come each Sunday knowing that nobody will ever judge you or tell you how to live because you will be at...THE CHURCH OF ANYTHING GOES!

I'm going to start this new church in Tampa, Florida where I live. I wasthinking about a good place to meet and realized The Church of Anything Goes is going to be so popular we won't be able to hold services in a normal building. So I'm going to call the Glazers who own the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and rent Raymond James Stadium on Sunday mornings. RJ holds about 70,000 people and that may not even be large enough, since I have no doubt people will be running to attend services at The Church of Anything Goes. Within a year we will have branches of this new church in every city, town, and village in the U.S., and within two years, all over the world.

In planning some outreaches for The Church of Anything Goes, I came up with three right away. The first is an Adultery Pride Parade. I am so tired of seeing people who are only being themselves and have to have sex outside of their marriage being told they are wrong. After all, everyone knows 99% of the people who are married commit adultery. Everyone knows that people are born to have sex with multiple partners. I can't understand why people are so intolerant, so judgmental of others who aren't bothering them. Didn't God say, "be fruitful and multiply?" God created people to have sex so why are people so upset with people who are married having sex with people who aren't their spouse?

Those who have sex outside of their marriage have been made to feel shame long enough. It is time for them to "come out" and be proud of who they are. Why should anyone be ashamed of being an adulterer? A parade is the perfect answer. Marching up and down the streets of America, proudly proclaiming that, "I'm an adulterer!" Floats, balloons, marching bands, a real time to celebrate the joy of committing adultery. I can see this parade being broadcast on TV just like the Rose Parade on New Years or the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City.

The second outreach for the new Church of Anything Goes is going to bepolitical. I don't know about you, but I think it is a shame that in thisgreat country of such diversity, people who enjoy having sex with animalsare treated like second class citizens, denied their basic human rights,discriminated against. If you happen to love a pig and people at your jobfind out about it, you are most likely going to be terminated. If you tryto buy a new home for you and your chicken that are in a committedrelationship, chances are good that you will be denied. If your significantother happens to be a goat, they aren't going to be eligible for the samebenefits married couples receive. A man and his sheep should be able toadopt children! How dare states limit marriage to a man and a woman when a woman and her horse have every right to enjoy the happiness and fulfillment and full legal benefits of marriage.

No doubt one of the first outreaches of The Church of Anything Goes will be to help insure the legal rights of those men and women who by no fault of their own, were born to have sex with animals. In addition, we will start public awareness campaigns to help society be more tolerant. A good place to start will be in the schools, educating children through clubs andcurriculum that there is nothing wrong with people who choose to have sexwith animals. That is simply who they are, and just because you have a mother and father, some children have a dad and a goat.

The third big outreach we will have each year is Swap Days at Disney. The Church of Anything Goes will be a very popular church among those who like to trade wives and husbands. Swingers from all over the country can come to Disney one weekend a year and literally take over the facilities. They will book all the hotels and of course no need to close any room doors during Swap Days. They can go to the Magic Kingdom with their wife one day, visit the Animal Kingdom with their friend's wife the next, go to Epcot the next day with someone else's wife, the possibilities are endless. After all, even though Disney promotes itself as a "family friendly" theme park, we all know that as long as a group can bring them millions of dollars they welcome them with open arms.

OK, I better stop before too many of you start heading to St. Petersburg tohave me committed. Because I have been doing this for so long and know some of you may have taken me seriously, let me state for the record that I was being facetious. Let me now be very serious. As much as I wish The Church of Anything Goes was a fictional church, I am sad to say that it really does exist. Of course they don't have the guts to use that name, but in essence that is exactly how they operate. You will never hear about sin, how God expects us to live according to His Word, or about surrendering our lives to Him. You will only hear about how "God is love," and all you have to do it try, and that we all sin so don't worry about it, and most of all, do whatever makes you happy.

These are the churches that treat God's Word like a "nice book with somegood thoughts," but not something you should take seriously. These are thechurches where you will find gross sins like homosexuality, murdering babies, fornication, people living together without being married, and many others accepted and tolerated because they don't want to "offend" anyone.In these churches, Truth is not found in the Bible but is whatever you wantit to be. These churches tell people there really is no place called Hell and there are many roads leading to God. Such churches are an abominationto God and a stench in His nostrils!!!

I love you and care about you so much. Sadly, too many churches have turned into The Church of Anything Goes. Once we compromise the Absolute Truth of God's Word, once that Book stops being our final authority in all matters, it literally does become a church that anything goes because you are now left solely to the imaginations of men to decide what is right and wrong. There is only ONE TRUTH my friend, and that is found in the Bible. There is only ONE WAY to God, and that is through faith in His Son Jesus Christ.

You may have found the first 7 paragraphs somewhat humorous, but if you go back and read them again they are actually very chilling. All I really didwas take the prevailing mindset of this world and how it actually operates.People who have chosen to live in gross sin DO have parades to express their "pride" in the sin they have chosen. People who sin DO make excuses for their sin to try and justify how they choose to live, even using God's Word out of context despite the fact they live in rebellion to that very Word. There really ARE tremendous political efforts underway and programs that exist to indoctrinate children in an effort to force society to accept as normal the sinful choices certain men and women make.

May we pray that in these last days the CHURCH, the Bride of Christ andGod's number one instrument of change in our world will not be like those 7 churches in the Book of Revelation, but remain true to His Word and the work of equipping the saints and reaching the lost. Now more than ever the church must rise up to be all God calls it to be as we share the Truth of His Word and the hope and love of Christ with this lost and hurting world.

In His love and service,
Your friend and brother in Christ,
Bill Keller

Tuesday, November 22, 2005

Motivation

You guessed it. I am going to be discussing my motivation as of late--or better yet, my lack thereof. I have been one of the laziest, least motivated people lately. There is no excuse. No punches thrown by life which have plunged me to this state. I just have no motivation. My life consists of going to class in the morning and coming home around noon each day. I have my weekly events scattered throughout the evenings which include computer applications on Mondays, House at Carruthers' on Tuesdays, D-Groups on Wednesdays, and Encounter on Sundays. But those days, from noon to whenever I leave for the evening, I sit around drooling in pathetic (to steal a quote from Cory on Boy Meets World). Yes, we have been getting more involved, and yes we are spending more and more time with people, but this has not helped. If anything, I feel as if I have been plummeting the last few weeks. This lack of motivation is not good. Even my school work has been getting pushed aside to play Mah Jong Solitaire or scatter airsoft BBs all over our apartment. No, I'm not anywhere near falling behind, but I'm far enough ahead to where picking up a book does not appeal to me. School work is not really my biggest issue; that would be left to my walk with Christ. That is the area that has been suffering the most due to my lack of motivation. Where is my walk? It has been growing faint and is barely visible at this point. The only Bible I read is what is assigned for class. The only prayer done is that in class and chapel along with a few of my own throughout the day. I have this passion for Christ inside, but it seems to have gotten lost in the shuffles of everyday life. I do want to know Christ more and have a deeper relationship with Him, but something's been missing. I don't know what it is. I feel like I'm rambling. Maybe I am. God is good. I love Him with all my heart. I am excited for the opportunities He is going to provide for Jeff and me in ministry. I am excited for what He is going to do in my own life. So why am I so reluctant to move forward? I'm just as stumped as you are. much love becky

Monday, November 21, 2005

Boy Meet World Quote--Week 2

It's only week two and I'm already running a day late on this. I will try to do better in the future. My most sincere apologies.

"Yeah I'm sqealing! That's the sound you make when your best friend takes a gun and stabs you in the back right in front of your eyes!" ~Shawn Hunter

Thursday, November 17, 2005

Underground Church

I just realized we haven't posted about this, and it's one of the most exciting things going on right now. We've been gearing up for a huge game of Underground Church with Sussex Wesleyan youth group. We went to Frenchies today and got the finishing touches for out KGB outfits. Matt and Ryan went to Maine to pick up the airsoft guns todays and, from what I hear, that made it across the border with them. I'll tell you more about everything on Saturday, after we play, but I will discuss the basic premis for the game. Pretty much, us leaders are the KGB and the student and a few other leaders represent the underground church. Our goal is to instill as much fear into them as possible (hence the black uniform, airsoft guns, etc) without actually harming them. As much fun as the game can be, it's just as much a ministry. It's just a small touch of what the persecuted church actually goes through. Hopefully, through this, students and leaders alike will gain a better understanding of what it's like to not be so comfortable in our faith. Like I said, I'll give you more detials and let you all know how everything turns out on Saturday morning or Friday night. And I'll hopefully get some pictures of it up soon after. Hope you all have a marvelous day. much love becky

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

I'm Pretty Much Psyched Out Of My Mind About This SNOW!

Yes, the flakes are getting bigger! I am so friggin' excited! Seriously, I think there's something in the snow because I am in the craziest mood tonight! I LOVE SNOW! And I feel like I'm in junior high writing notes because all of these darn exlamation points. But, hey, what can I say? Snow is GRRRRREEEAAAT!

Snow, Snow, Snow

I see snow on the ground and it's still snowing! I know I'm going to wake up to nothing, but it's real exciting for now. WOO HOO!

IT'S SNOWING

YAY! I love snow. I thought after spending last year in Warroad with that crazy amount of snow, that I wouldn't be such a fan. But I am. It's not much snow...yet. And it probably won't be for a few weeks yet, but the first flakes of winter in Sussex are falling. That makes me so excited! I got me some snow boots last weekend and it looks like I might be able to wear them soon. WOO HOO! I love snow. Poor Jeff...he has to walk to school in the snow right now because he locked his keys in the car earlier. But he likes the snow too. I'm just so giddy right now. I think there's something in the snow. much love becky

Sunday, November 13, 2005

Boy Meets World Quote of the Week--Week One

Ok, so we watch a lot of Boy Meets World. The first 2 seasons (hopefully more after Christmas) are a large part of our life. Because Boy Meets World is such a sweet show and we watch it a lot, we've decided to post a Boy Meets World quote of the week. Now you have something to look forward to every week on our blog besides reading about our ever so interesting life. We'll try to post a new one every Sunday. Enjoy.

"So, you went behind your best friend's back and stole the girl he was lyin' to." -Eric Matthews

Thursday, November 10, 2005

Logos5: Boston

We get to go to the area Wesleyan youth convention, Logos5. We were asekd if we wanted to help out with security and so we jumped on it. The convention and hotel is all paid for so that's a pretty sweet deal. I think the thing I'm most excited about is going to Boston. I've never been to the east coast (US that is). Now we have something to do over Christmas break rather than sitting on our butts in Sussex for 3 weeks. We're like pretty much psyched out of our minds about this. I've been sick all week and can't think so I'm gonna go now. Hope you all have a great day. much love becky

Tuesday, November 08, 2005

4450

I love this picture so I thought I would share it with all of you.
Sure there are bigger tractors, and I would rather front wheel assist.
But just ask Dustin Voigt and he will tell you this is a beautiful thing.
This is for you man.

SICK, SICK, SICK

Ya, you guessed it, we are sick. Both of us at the same time. Who would have thought?
Well I am not so bad off, but Becky hasn't been awake for like 24 hrs and I think it will be at least tomorrow before she is.
Oh well at least we can get out of class legitametly this way. Other than that God is good, and life is going great.
Hope you all are feeling better and having a great week.
jeff

Friday, November 04, 2005

Time to Vent

Ok, so we use to have these great nighbors that we both really enjoyed. As we would walk out the door leading outside, we could usually look down to our right and see James sticking his head out the window and smoking a cigarette. This was a great chance to talk for a few minutes and get to know each other. We only met his wife once, but she also seemed like a very nice lady. They had two kids, but we wouldn't know it except we saw them, but we never heard them.

Right now, it seems like everyone is moving out of the apartments here...all three buildings. I don't blame them. We would too if we could. Our nighbors above us who we occasionly heard being loud (but not bad at all) moved out. We thought this could be a very good thing. No neighbors above us would mean not even the occasional bit of noise. But, no, we were wrong.

Our neighbors across the hall from us (James and his family) moved above us. As great of across-the-hall neighbors as they were, they are horrible living-above-us neighbors. They're kids are consatantly running around, screaming, and crying. We can hear everything that goes on. I have a constant headache and I don't think I've ever complained about anything as much in my entire life. Even as I type this I hear a constant pounding coming from above. It's difficult to study and to sleep. This is a real small apartment, so it's not even like we can go into the other room to get away from it. It is a constant annoyance that is really getting to me. I've about pounded on the ceiling, yelled at the top of my lungs for them to shut up, and gone upstairs to tell them off. But, none of those are like me. And none of this is important to any of you, but I had to vent. I'm sure Jeff is sick and tired of hearing me complain, so I chose another avenue this time. Please pray for my sanity as I have very little left. Hope you all have a great day. much love becky

Friday, October 28, 2005

Hallelujah

We went to St. John after classes today to equip my wardrobe with dress shoes now that I can't get by with wearing flip flops and sandals to church. It's gettin' a little too cold for that. Like every other time we go to St. John, we ended up buying more than we anticipated, although we did bargain shop and only got stuff we "needed". So where's the hallelujah in that? Well, that comes with dinner. WE FOUND TACO BELL! This is the best thing that's happened to us since we've been in Canada. Ok, so that's an exageration, but it's o so very exciting. Jeff got a crunchwrap supreme meal (it came with french fries and a small drink, but more on that later), a spicy chicken soft taco, and a burrito supreme. I got two spicy chicken soft tacos and a chili cheese burrito. Oh, how I missed the sweet sweet taste of the spicy chicken soft taco. Back to fries and a small drink? What's up with that? Taco Bell isn't suppose to have fries. And who gets a small drink at TB? I mean, come on, I can easily gulp down two large drinks with my meal. Besides, the weird meal, another difference at a Canadian TB (at least this one) is there was no Mt. Dew and I always have MD with my TB, but Diet Pepsi had to do tonight. Also, there was only hot and mild sauce, no fire. What's up with that? And do you want to know the worst of it all? Brace yourself for this one...there were no comments on the sauce packets. There was no humor to go along with my meal! Ok, so none of these things are really all that important. I'm just stoked we found Taco Bell. Life in Canada is complete. much love becky

Wednesday, October 26, 2005

Stain Glass Masquerade and Vulnerability

I love it when God speaks to me. One way God can always seem to get through to me is music. Although it's not a talent, it is a passion. I'm not saying this is how God always speaks to me because prayer and reading the Bible is huge. But, those times when I'm in a rut, not seeming to get anwhere, being lazy with my walk (times like now)--God always seems to speak to me through music. It's like He knows when I'm slackin' off in everything else, I'll still be listening to my music. And, He's right. Anywho, today was one of those moments. I was looking through songs to put on MySpace and I came across this Casting Crowns song. I always seem to get a lot out of their lyrics. They're so upfront, dealing with issues that many in the church are afraid to deal with. It's just passionate music with real lyrics. The lyrics below are the ones God used to really speak to me today. The lyrics don't do this song justice, so if you haven't heard it, you should listen to it. You can check it out on my MySpace. Anywho, here they are.

Is there anyone that fails
Is there anyone that falls
Am I the only one in church today feelin’ so small
Cause when I take a look around
Everybody seems so strong
I know they’ll soon discover
That I don’t belong
So I tuck it all away, like everything’s okay
If I make them all believe it, maybe I’ll believe it too
So with a painted grin, I play the heart again
So everyone will see me the way that I see them
Are we happy plastic people
Under shiny plastic steeples
With walls around our weakness
And smiles to hide our pain
But if the invitation’s open
To every heart that has been broken
Maybe then we close the curtain
On our stained glass masquerade
Is there anyone who’s been there
Are there any hands to raise
Am I the only one who’s traded
In the altar for a stage
The performance is convincing
And we know every line by heart
Only when no one is watching
Can we really fall apart
But would it set me free
If I dared to let you see
The truth behind the person
That you imagine me to be
Would your arms be open
Or would you walk away
Would the love of Jesus
Be enough to make you stay

Now, some of you may wonder how exactly God spoke to me through that. Well, I've always been real bad at making myself vulnerable. At showing the real side of me that has questions, fears, and pain. And, being on a Bible College campus, this might seem like it should be easier, but it's not. A lot of people, inclusing myself have this false perception that just becasue it's a college full of students pursuing ministry, that everyone has it all together. But when we all sit back and really think about it, that statement couldn't be anymore wrong. Anywho, being at a Bible College doesn't help me. I'm sure it will happen over time, but it's just always taken me a long time to open up to people and I don't have a whole lot of opportunities to do so here because I live off campus. Back to the song. This song hit it right on the nail for me. It's an issue that God really pointed out to me last year at camp, and that I thought a lot about then, but not recently. It's something I've done nothing about. It's something I still struggle with. I still don't know how exactly it's all going to get "fixed", but God's made me aware of it again. And I've been remembered that I need to be doing my part. My story, my struggles, my hurts, my fears could be exactly what someone else needs to hear to help them out--to let them know they're not alone. Not to mention, after so long even what seem to be the silliest of issues can build up and become too much for a person. God gave us other people. We, I need to use this valuble resource. I realize I'm sort of rambling on, but this is just something God's really been pressing on my heart so I thought I'd share. Please pray that I will learn to open up and become more vulnerable. much love becky

Monday, October 24, 2005

GAS UNDER A BUCK YEAH!!

Thats right gas is 98.9 cents


a liter(litre in canadian). That means that it is probably like three dollars and a quarter a gallon (thats in U.S. funds of course). Well it seems better anyway. It only costs like 45 bucks to fill up our little car now. We used to whine we it cost like 28 or 30 bucks back home. Well one thing i WILL have because of my experience here is an appreciation for where i came from.

Oh and Chris Stevens i left a post to say lunch would work fine on that friday. We don't have your email now so let me know. Mine is soonerjp@hotmail.com. Just had to get that in there too.

Sunday, October 23, 2005

Hoop Ds to Bible College

So the other night Jeff and I (ok, so mainly me) started singing these old school songs that brought me back to my junior high days (ok, so that's not THAT old school). Anywho, these songs reminded me of going to hoop dances and all that jive. Even as a junior higher, what a crazy life. The whole purpose of those things was to meet guys and find a boyfriend for the week--maybe longer if you were "lucky". It's crazy to me to look back and remember those days and where God has brought me. It's only been maybe 5 years since then and I'm married, living in Canada, and going to Bible college to be a youth pastor. I never would have guessed that this is where I would be 5 years from then, but I thank God for it. And I know I would never be here if it weren't for all the influential people in ministry that God brought into my life. He really knew what He was doing. Thanks to Swartys, Timmons, Cummings, VanSchaick's, and many more, I'm exactly where God wants me to be. All you have made a huge impact on my life and I'm thankful for that. As someone going into ministry, I pray that God will use me in a way to impact others as you have been used to impact my life and the lives of so many others. Thank you for being obedient to God's call. I hope you all have a great day. Love you tons. much love becky

Thursday, October 20, 2005

Good Student Me?

I have to say I am very proud of the way college has been going so far. The first two tests I have gotten back have been 102 and 100, and I have been scoring high "marks" on all my papers and other assignments. Now, I don't say all this to brag about myself. Ok, well maybe just a little. jk. But that's really not the point to all this. I've just been thinking about how much better I could have done in high school if I would have applied myself like I know I am capable. High school turned out fine. I got good anough grades. I'm here, in college so I must have done well enough in high school. But I never gave it my best effort, or I rarely did. Excelling in everything we do (or at least putting forth the effort to do so) is Biblical. Looking back on why I did not excel in high school, it all becomes quite clear. I tried applying myself to too many things and there were way more activities that got my priority over my school work. I think this is something a lot of people struggle with...too many committments. We need to be able to put forth our best effort in all that we do, but if we stretch ourselves too much, nothing will ever get our 100%. The other half of that is prioritizing. What is important to you? Or a better question, what should be imprtant to you? Are you, am I giving my best, glorifying God in all I do? Just something to think about. Have a great day everyone. much love becky

Wednesday, October 19, 2005

Oklahoma Reception

For all of you who don't know, the weekend after our wedding we had a reception down in Oklahoma. It was an awesome time. Aunt Nogie sent us some pictures (these are the first we've seen). Just thought we'd share them with ya'll.

Goofin' off for the camera
Aunt Nogie, us, Gma Poe
Us, Adrian, Trevor
Charles and us
MUAH!
The Poes
Pastor Joe gave a lil sermon and then they prayed over us.
MMM...FOOD!

Friday, October 14, 2005

No More Google Ads

Well this is for all of you who faithfully clicked on our ads. The opperation got shut down. Apparently in the agreement with Google we said we wouldn't tell people to go to our site just to click on are ads. Well we never really read the agreement that well, and as many of you know we definitely encouraged you all to click on our ads.
Well I guess you win some and lose some. The email they sent us was very polite. We don't get any of the money we made and we can't ever have Google ads again. It was an oversight on our part and I guess we should have paid a little more attention.
Talk to you all later.
jeff

Good Times

So last night we went to a youth rally with Matt and Sabrina. It was a good time. Three Season Ant kicked off the night. Couldn't really ask for a much better start (even though all the power cut out in the middle of their first song). They rocked hard, worshipped harder and made for a good time. Then they had this guy talk about sex. Very straight forward. More people need to talk like that to teens. Definitely worth it. He also talked in our chapel earlier in the day. Also good stuff. That was pretty much our night. O, I finally got TSA's CD. Rockin times. Ok I'm going to go eat some tasty fajitas. much love becky

Thursday, October 13, 2005

Please Respond

I have a quick question for all of you out there reading this. On a "yes" or "no" open-ended question which only asks for a response if the answer is yes, is it fair to recieve a "0" for answering "no" to the question? example: Identify whether or not you have... If you have explain. Like the title says, please respond. I would like to know your thoughts although it seems quite obvious to me, maybe I'm wrong. much love becky

Grades Smell

Hey everybody hows it going.
This is Jeff and I just thought that I would update you all on a couple of things. I have a lot I could write about but I narrowed it down to two things.
First off my grades have all been suprisingly good. (I should also note that in Canada grades are called marks, you pick that up really fast. Aren't marks German currency?) Well I have been pleasantly suprised, and I thought that I would share that with you all. I still have two big papers due and midterms and finals, so it all could blow up in my face. But im praying for the best and doing my best.
The other topic i would like to discuss is the smell in Sussex. I am almost positive it can only be smelt in the cooler months off the year. I love it, everywhere in town has the pleasant smell of wood burning. I don't know the percentage, but a lot of people here burn wood for heat and its great. I can't say enough about how much i like it. As you all know, or should know, I lived near Austin, MN and the smell of pigs dominated all other odors in town. It wasn't like I wanted to puke, and I don't hate pigs, well I do hate pigs but mostly just when im butchering and the way they kick after you shoot them, and you can't get a good stick cuz the demon thats coming out of them makes them flail all over. Anyway the point is the air in Sussex is about 100 times more pleasant than the air in Austin. I love you all in Minnesota but come you gotta admit that some days that plant flat stinks.
Hope you all are doing great Becky and I are for sure.
jeff

Sunday, October 09, 2005

Foreordination

"The saints are the primary object of the foreordination of God; or, in other words, God foreordains that men should be saints. It is only inference that one could say that He has also foreordained godlessness for some persons--an inference altogether unwarranted. The will of God seeks man for redemption, for sonship, for His glory; and nowhere in Scripture does it say that God's will is to drive men away from Him. He foreordains to inclusion, not exclusion. It is not His will that any shall be lost. He 'is longsuffering...not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance' (II Peter 3:9). Jesus himself expressed the reason for man's destruction in explaining the case of those killed by the fall of the Tower of Siloam: 'Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish' (Luke 13:5). Man, not God, wills his own destruction.

"The foreordination of God does not interfere with the will of man. The wisdom of God in this regard is seen in Christ (8-9), who was the revelation of God--God in man. In Him we see love, and pleading, and self-giving, and prayers--even for His murderers. But at the same time there is freedom of choice for all. 'He saved others [that is what He came to do]; himself He cannot save' (Matt. 27:42)--when men choose to kill Him. Men themselves choose for or against the will of God."

This is a quote from Exploring the New Testament discussing the beginning of Paul's teaching in the book of Ephesians. I have never quite understood the verses on foreordination; always thinking it contradictory to our freedom of choice. I've heard this topic discussed many times, but it has never been made so clear to me. It now makes perfect sense to me. What are some of your thoughts? On this passage? On foreordination? On freedom of choice? Let me know. This stuff really interests me and I'd love to hear what you have to say. much love becky

Friday, October 07, 2005

Fun Day at Fundy

Last weekend we went to Fundy National Park with Matt and Sabrina. It was gorgeous. We had an amazing time hiking around and enjoying all of God's creation. Yes, God even made Canada beautiful. Anywho, look for elves and moosies and enjoy our pictures.
And it keeps on goin'...
Lord of the Rings moment.
Rivendale, at last!
Yeah, we're cool.
Brrrr, it got real cold.
This is all underwater during high tide.
One of the beaches at low tide.
Despite the Duck's sweatshirt and the Sooner's hat, this really is a beaver pond.
Gorgeous beach sunset.
Twenty bucks to whoever spots the moose.
Beautiful hillside.
Oooo, rocks.
Pretty, eh?
Stay on the path or you might sink like the moosies.
Look, a thousand year's worth of moss.
It's Rivendale, Master Gamge!
Matt on a log on the bottom of the ocean floor.
What a view.
Jeff was very proud of his toy.
Uh, why am I standing here?
Jeff lookin' hot in front of the pretty blue pond.
A sunset driving home from Moncton.
An old horse and buggy path. Where exactly were they going?
We're on top of 25 feet of peet moss.
A dock at low tide. See the ocean way back there?
Looks squishy. There's the river bottom at low tide.
It's too bad they're not out gettin' me some lobster.
Becky with the ocean way in the background.
What is this?
Check out those Nike's and Wrangler's.

Matt, Sabrina, Becky, and Jeff