another week come and gone

"for this is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it"!!!

hmm, wow, what a glorious day! seriously, guys, next time you wake up to sun shining through your window, know that God loves you and he has made a very special day! wake up with a smile on your face, know that you are loved! honestly i dont think there is a better way to begin your day then to get up, go for a wonderful run along a beach with the great canadian rockies looming on the horizon, birds singing, sun blazing, and yet still cool enough that the run is not torture...then to get back home and have a nice relaxing shower, mmmm, what a great way to start a new day!

so last monday we had our OT LIT. exam, i feel as though it went pretty well, until there was a section which required knowledge of the Old Testament prophets (you know, who did what, who was who...all that stuff) well, that was about the only part i really struggled with, thats not to say i did perfectly on the rest, its just that i really noticed my lack of knowledge in that area...which was very unfortunate. but...we move on.

on tuesday, Lech Bekesza came back to give us another full day of Theology class...let me tell you, as great as that class is, it never fails to put your brain into information overload by the end of the day (about 6-7 hours) but it has all been such good wisdom passed on to us. the way he teaches is very much connected to his views about things, not just a simple overview of all the different ways which people think. i have very much enjoyed this style of teaching because i find that it challenges me much more to think through his reasons for thinking things, and in so doing, has made me think about what it is that i believe and why. this class was really fun, Lech was in a great mood and was just making jokes left right and center, (whether he had planned to or not) it was especially great when the whole class burst out laughing after he made a rather memorable comment about needing to swing by the store on the way home and picking up a jar of nutella so that he could get his wife to smear it all over him...well you can imagine where the minds of 27 students age 18-22 would go with that one...after a short awkward silence the entire room burst out in laughter, including Lech once he realized where our minds had gone....it made for a memorable part of the day. what great fun can be had in a class dedicated to the study of divine things, and religious truth!

on thursday night we had another girls/ guys overnight hang out. the ladies went over to the camo guesthouse where we had a slumber party, full of hide and seek in the dark, truth or dare, chips and chocolate, telling secrets, and having fun, (unfortunately, we are sworn to secrecy of what went on between those walls so that is the most i can let you know) the oaths which were made, will stay to the end.

one thing that i can tell you however, is that four of us (Jayme, Erin, Deborah and myself) snuck back to the lodge late at night to prank the guys rooms, well lets just say we took our sweet time about it far too much! after pranking only two rooms we heard footsteps in the hall coming towards us!! immediately the four of us scattered throughout the room, Jayme darted into the shower, Erin and Deborah, ducked under a couple of desks (only after running around the room a couple of times like madly confused chickens lol) and i took position behind the bathroom door. all i can say for myself is that my heart was pounding the whole time until finaly (after going from room to room in other rooms) a couple of the guys came into the room where we were hiding. it didnt take long to realize that Deb and Erin had been spotted (on a count of an escaped giggle from the Wagner) and we had been compromised! Jayme and I had not yet been seen yet we chose to get out of there as well, rather than be caught and once again trapped in the boys laundry room! (a good choice i think) on our way out, we were all spotted darting down the hallway and out the front door into the darkness of the night. we stayed around for a little while to see what the reaction would be, it was minimal so eventually we went back to the guesthouse at about 4 in the morning and headed to bed. the next morning we all went to breakfast at whitespot, and suprise suprise, the guys were there too! we had been dreading what they would say to us the next day, and here it came. judgement time. luckily they were in good spirits about it for the most part. will the prank wars continue...we shall see.

then came the day of love, valentines day! it started out with an amazing brunch set up by my lovely roomate Leila and some of the kitchen staff. there was a backdrop for some pictures and full on waiter service and fill-out menus! what a great beginning, later in the day team India went to get our vacinations, it was great! needles have never bothered me and i dont usually feel any pain in my arm after receiving them either, that was a bonus when the next day came along and every one was talking about how their arms were so sore. in the evening some of us went over to JimBad's house and watched the Italian Job while others were out on room dates and such, it was great, but the best part came just over half way through the movie when Shannon and Jon came in after having been spending the whole day together in a maze of clues and suprises from Jon to Shannon (brilliantly planned by the way) and a Limo ride, and announced the coolest thing ever...THEY ARE ENGAGED!!!! congratulations to you both!!

youth on friday, had been a lot of fun as well. it was a night dedicated to our small groups, Jordana and I put on a chocolate fondu night for our girls, unfotunately besides the two of us there were only two who showed up, but thinking back on that...more fruit and chocolate for us! haha we had good fun and played some phase ten as well. it has been great to get to know the youth of New Life in a small group setting, i only wish that we got to spend more than 15 minutes each friday with them, thats what was so great about this friday, unfortunately not many could make it.

sunday (yesterday) was great as well, after church we got to go to the home of another family for lunch, we had pizza, mmm it was gooood! the chance to get to know people from the church in their own homes has been a blessing over the past months, how sad that people dont do that more often even with people they already know, its such a great way to grow together. when that was over the four of us who went (Phil, Erin, Jordana and myself) got to walk back to camp as their house was not far away.

Daneille and Jon, happy birthday (s) to you over the past week!

well, this brings us to today, i will close with some requests for prayer,

- finances to be raised to our missions trips

- continued health for all

- continued spiritual growth for all, and for growth in our relationships with each other

- patience in getting homework done, and dedication to do it the best we can

- safety for those who will be traveling for reading break next week

- good health for our families back home

- God's will to be done in our lives and in planning for out futures as the end of Kaleo continues to draw near.

God bless you all!

Love!