Holy Week 2013

It is weeks like this that I remember why I signed up for this gig. Life has been very busy but so fulfilling! On Wednesday TJC hosted it's second MERGE (event for Youth & Young Adults) but we wanted to do something special for Easter. So we made it highly evangelistic, rented Crystal Palace, and invite other Churches to join us. It was a very energetic night and we had 154 people at the Church, and more at CP. This is the largest event I have ever organized :) I had the opportunity to present the Gospel in a simple and clear way to these guys. It was amazing. I still get nervous when I preach in church, but throw me up in front of a few Youth and I got no problems. I hope the Message was heard and students are wrestling with all that Jesus means in the history of the world. We also had a killer band play, and I had a hoard of volunteer leaders around me who were all fantastic. We learned a lot of what to do and not do next time. But all in all it was a super night! And a great kickoff to Easter!


Good Friday was excellent at our church. Way more people can than we expected! Everyone from age 5 to 95 was in the service together and apparently it went swimmingly. I was not there as I was hanging with 14 preschoolers! We showed the above video, which admittedly is meant for older children, but they did understand and grasp much of it. They were asking questions and it was so exciting to see their little heads understand more of the Jesus Story for the first time! It was a joy to work with these little ones alongside some awesome High School students.

Last night I had 9 High School girls over to my house for the night. It was such a laugh and a great time for relationship building. We ate lots of food and watched 3 Hilary Duff movies. The best part was I got to sleep in my own bed :)

I'm about to leave Starbucks and head into the first Easter Service this weekend! I was pretty hands-off with the planning of this one so I'm excited to see it all come together. We celebrate the resurrection of Jesus every Sunday, but man, I'm glad there's this extra special emphasis once a year. So many will come to Church this weekend that don't go the whole rest of the year.... I'm praying for churches everywhere that we will present the Gospel in a way that is convicting and will draw more people back to Him!

Back to the Island (part 2)

We got up on Sunday with the morning before us :) After some breakfast we hit the beach and plunked there until 2pm. As I am writing this it is currently -39 C outside with windchill... oh how I miss the beach!!! This might have been the day we walked the beach.... Mom wanted to go the whole way but it was so far, so we went to where the resorts ended and it turned into some shops and stuff, then we came back. There was a nude beach right next to our resort so that was funny. Mom was all shocked "Are they NAKED?? I don't see any swimsuit lines!" hahaha.

We had a late lunch and were going to secure a good table for the afternoon sessions, but everyone else had the same idea except way before us. Ah well. So after lunch we went by the pool for a bit. It was good to go for a dip as it was super hot there without the wind off the ocean. Around 3:15 or so I heard drumming - what??? Turns out a fan got up to entertain everyone while they were waiting. She was really good! So I chatted with her a bit about drums and learning by listening to Hanson, etc. The Breezes staff did a great job keeping everyone entertained. Games and dances and the like. Around 3:30 Taylor showed up to do his cooking session.

This one wasn't as fun as Zac's because it was all of us sitting and watching him do stuff. I don't know the first thing about cooking so I learned some new information (that I have since forgot). Before it started Tay did a quick Q&A with a few fans, and as he made food he gave it out for fans to try. His session lasted about an hour and then he left, with hoards of people following to try and get a photo.

At 4:30 was Isaac's mixology session. Even though this one also was not interactive, it was fun to watch Isaac. It turned into a dance lesson as well as he was doing the YMCA, Soulja boy, "smooth and deadly", and cha cha slide. He had a great time mixing all the drinks and calling fans up to sample if his or the bartenders was better (The fans always said Isaac's was better - funny that). At the end he made a drink he called "Let's Get it On... or at least try" because seriously it was all strong liquor. He also drank some straight vodka at one point. haha. Isaac is a sweetheart and was fun to watch. His session was over around 5:30, and he also left with lots of fans trailing after him.

Mom went back to the room to rest during Isaac's session, so I went back to find her at 5:30 and to get ready for supper. We made late reservations at La Piacere, the French Restaurant. My friend was right - this was the best restaurant in the resort! It was quiet and there was a classical piano player there while we ate. After supper we spent some time online in the lobby, and wandered to the stage around 9:30 to check out Charlie Mars & Robert Schwartzman in concert. The crowd, of course, was a lot more chill, but this made for some fun! Charlie Mars was not as bad as I remembered in Portland. During his set I went around the stage getting pictures of what it all looked like. His set was about 30min long and then Robert Schwartzman came on. I really liked his music! He's the lead singer of the band "Rooney" and also has some solo stuff. Even though it was one guy and a guitar, he had some real energy on stage. He called up some girls who were dancing to join him on the final song, and for the encore Isaac Hanson joined him to sing "Aint no Sunshine" and a Beatles tune (which Mom loved). So it was a great show!

The show ended a lot earlier than the Hanson nights (partially cause it actually started on time!) so Mom & I went to the lobby for some internet time to end the night. While we were sitting there, Isaac walked by with his wife. We said hello and I thanked Isaac for publishing my comment in this year's Hanson calendar. Then we went to bed, and that was the end of day 3!

Monday was a basically free day until 4pm. BEACH PARTY. This is the day we really got most of our sun. Our new friend Martina spent the day with us, which meant I had someone to go on a sailboat with and bob around in the water :) We were on the beach until 1, had lunch, and sat by the pool for the afternoon. Around 3:45 I opened my eyes to see all of Hanson walking by (Zac dancing to the sound system music) as they were heading to the autograph signing (or at least that's what we thought it was). People had already started lining up, but the green pass people (that's me) were supposed to be second, and everyone was guaranteed an autograph anyway, so Mom & I decided to bake in the sun as long as possible.

Around 4:30 we got too hot so we went inside to the bar and to see how big the line was getting. At this point it had started, but when I looked up to the front of the line I saw fans getting pictures with the band. I guess it changed! Of course here are Mom & I in our swimsuits and coverups. Some fans took off back to their rooms to get cleaned up and prettied. But I was like you know what? We're in Jamaica on a resort vacation. Let's look the part! So once the line got small Mom & I got in, and had our pictures taken with Hanson in our swimsuits. We got to chat with them briefly as well. Zac said he appreciated my comment that's in the Calendar and that it "deserved to be published" :) Taylor thought it was neat that we were on a mother/daughter trip. They are all just so sweet. I am glad they changed their mind and did group photos. For some fans this was their first time meeting them all, and it was a HUGE deal (confirmed by tears afterwards!). It was a happy time :)

After our up-close-and-personal with the Band, we got cleaned up for supper and headed to the beach banquet! This was a finale thing for the BTTI event, all the restaurants had their food there in a giant buffet, there were tables out on the lawn for everybody, and a steel drum band played while we ate. It was a great chance to connect with more fans (10 to a table), and a good way to end off the trip. After supper we had a little while to get changed and relax, and then it was time for the final show!

Although part of me enjoyed night 2 of being a little closer, I think I had more fun night 1 when I was back a bit, so that's what I did on the final night. During the 2nd song I went around the stage and got some interesting angles I can't usually get at normal shows, and then I spent the night dancing like an idiot and singing along. At first myself (and others) were a little miffed that so many songs were a repeat from the first shows... but then I told myself "I'm on a beach watching Hanson perform, who cares what they play!" That thought left quickly though when they kicked in to 2 brand new songs: the new upcoming single "Get the Girl Back" and a Zac lead called "You Can't Stop Us Now." They were so good I basically had tears. I love it when your fave band hits it on the MONEY in terms of what you hope the new album will sound like!!! So good!!!!

After the show Mom & I went back to the lobby to check the internets, and possibly to get to say another hello to one of the guys. I did see Isaac head "upstairs" (I have no idea where it goes) and thought perhaps he'd leave the same way as the night before. But after sitting there for about 30min we decided there must have been a back way, so we went on for bed. What we didn't know is a couple minutes later, the guys came out, walked by right where we were sitting, and went into the Piano Bar for an impromptu set with whatever lucky fans happened to be sitting in there!!! DANG. But you know... you can't win em all. Not everyone could have fit, and it would have been an incredible experience for whoever was in there.

On Tuesday we got up and went to breakfast, the whole day before us. Most fans were leaving so it felt it a little strange. We spent the entirety of that day on the beach just soaking it in. At one point Mom was like "is it normal to feel depressed after an event is over? Because I'm sad all the Hanson stuff is done." Mom had PHCD hehehehe. I managed to get Mom on the glass-bottom boat ride which was a miracle! We met 2 girls who told us about the Piano Bar the night before. And yeah... we were lazy and sat on the beach all day! :D

That night we went to La Pasta for supper since it was the only restaurant we hadn't been to. Was also probably my least favorite. That evening we took in some resort entertainment, which changed dramatically after all the Hanson fans pulled out. I guess it went more traditional Jamaican culture compared to the 90s/00s stuff they did for us. We spent some time at the Piano Bar (I totally rocked this game some Hanson fans were playing with the bartenders haha) and spent some time in the lobby online. We went to bed early and that was that!

Wednesday we got up, packed up, and moved out of our room. We didn't have to leave the Resort until 4 though, so we sat by the pool and enjoyed the last few precious minutes of sun and warmth. At 4 we shuttled back to the airport with 2 friends from Ontario, and at 8:15pm we left :( It was a FANTASTIC vacation. While we were there they announced BTTI 2014 and gave those of us there first dibs on a spot for next year. So my room is already reserved :) Until next time!
Photos

Back to the Island (part 1)

Before I went on this trip a friend asked if this was the best vacation I could ever dream up. Short of getting to play on stage with Hanson or sharing a meal with them or something.... yes, this is the best vacation I could dream up. Which is why I have plans to go again in 2014 :)

Mom & I flew from Toronto down to Montego Bay on Jan 11. Immigration and Customs went smoothly and we were in the Breezes waiting area in no time, along with a bunch of fans, Hanson's North American booking agent, and Charlie Mars. The drive down was quite interesting. Jamaica has no need for highway systems so we went through many communities and saw a fair amount of poverty. It made me sad. We also saw lots of school children in uniforms. On the drive we made friends with a few fans who we ended up spending time with throughout the trip. In a little over 90min we were at Breezes Grand in Negril.

The checkin process was a bit strange. I think the resort was overwhelmed by the number of people arriving all at once. It was very cool to hear Hanson doing soundcheck as we offloaded from the bus and walked into the lobby :) We were to told to basically wait around and then a staff member came, called our name, and led us to our room. There was no mention of a bag service which apparently WAS available. So we dragged our bags around and broke wheels and I thought Mom wasn't going to make it. But we eventually made it to our room.

Going in I knew this was only a 3.5/4 star resort so I wasn't expecting the room to compare with what I experienced in Mexico (which was a 5+ star place). It was clean and everything worked. Lovely. Now off to the stage!! By the time we got there just Isaac was left, fiddling with some guitar settings. The stage was right on the beach next to the ocean. So cool! We went to the Island Gigs desk but by this time it was after 5 so they were gone already. We ate at the Grand Cafe that night with Rachel (a new friend whose roommate missed her flight). The food was delicious!! As a friend had advised, desserts were not great. After supper we got ready for show #1!

There were only 400 fans at this thing so there really was not a bad spot for the show. I got Mom a chair in the back and went down to the crowd about 9:10. Of course Hanson were about an hour late getting on. I sat in the sand and waited, and said hello to Taylor as he grabbed a drink at the bar before going on stage. The energy of the show was amazing!! This first night they played "all the classics" as Taylor said. I couldn't complain about the setlist at all. Zac treated us to a new song called "Save Me From Myself" (I think) and Isaac played River!! There was jumping and dancing and all around a good time. All of us (including the band) had moments of thinking "I can't believe we are on a beach and doing this".

After the first show we headed to the Far Bar late night bonfire/BBQ on the other end of the beach. On the way I spied Zac chatting with 2 girls behind some of the resort rooms. So I went to say hi and got a picture :) Was not expecting that kind of luck. The bonfire was a bit chaotic, but we tried some jerk chicken, listened to a reggae band and then called it a night.

The first morning we could not get to that beach fast enough! I think Mom & I were at breakfast by 8:30am (which is impressive since we weren't in bed until almost 1:30). I think I ate french toast, cereal, and hard boiled eggs almost every morning. We only had about an hour or so on the beach before it was time for Zac's tie-dye session. I really had no idea what to expect for this but I was impressed with how well it went, and how well the fans controlled themselves (I did find out though that my group was the hyper one, and the red group was far more chill). Zac arrived and plot himself down next to some of my friends, and then everyone else gathered around as the resort staff explained how to make our shirts.  I somehow managed to have somewhat of a conversation with Zac about music and tie-dying and first Hanson concerts (haha). I also officially met their booking agent and thanked him for helping get Hanson to Halifax next August (he told me they're definitely coming back and are already working on it. Woo!). Once all of our shirts were tied together the dye came out and we went around dipping our shirts and getting our fingers dyed too (oops). A few fans followed Zac around but the majority of the 200 people were fine :) Then we undid our shirts, Zac carried on on stage a bit, and proceeded to try to leave. It was then that he was really bombarded with people trying to get a picture with him. I assumed him trying to leave meant it was over so Mom and I went back to our room to get ready for lunch. We found out after he came back for a tie-dye fashion show. Ah well.

After lunch we had all afternoon free for the beach!! Too bad it got cloudy halfway through :( But it was some good sunnage, good reading, good napping. Around 4:15 we thought we'd go back to shower for supper since we had reservations for 6. I of course walked through the grand terrazera to see if I could see how Taylor's session was going but I guess it was already over. We then proceeded to walk right to Isaac, who was waiting in the lobby to start his own session. We said hello and I got a picture with him as well :) Meeting 2 of them within the first 24 hours is pretty great luck imo!

For supper we went to the Munasan which was a Japanese sushi/tepyanaki grill place. We met some more great fans and had a real loud, fun time. The food was excellent but the show doesn't compare to what I had on my birthday back in Moncton :) After the show we went back to our room for a bit before the concert. Mom wasn't feeling that well I think from all the travel/lack of sleep over the last 48 hours. So she missed the acoustic show and stayed in bed :( I am sad for her, cause it would have been her favorite show, but if she went it might have ruined the rest of her trip.

I had never been to an acoustic Hanson show before so I knew I wanted to be a little closer for this one.  I went to the crowd around 8:30 and met some great people. I ended up 4th row center by the time it started. They didn't repeat a single song from the night before and we got some really nice stuff. Another new song from Zac, More Than Anything from Isaac, Be My Own from Taylor, I finally heard Sunny Day/Cecilia for the first time. Go acoustic is like the best thing ever. Oh man. Oh and Runaway Run!!! And Penny & Me. Just so much good :) I am amazed at the energy they carry even without the bottom instruments. I would love love to see them in this setup again sometime.

After the show I went to the Reggae Cafe for some fries before going home. Mom had a great sleep and was feeling much better. After watching some CSI we went to sleep and finished day 2!

Photos

Happy New Year!

Well, it's past Dec 21 and we're all still here! I wonder how many times something like this has to happen before people start believing that maybe, just maybe, the Bible could be true, and Jesus could be who He said He was. Anyway, I digress.

New Years is one of my favorite times of year. I love taking some time each year to reflect on the past 12 months, and look forward to what's to come. I can honestly say that 2012 has been pretty fantastic. There's been some stability established which is always nice. I'm now into year 2 at TJC (still loving life), and I bought a condo! I've learned a lot and experienced a lot. Such as...


January: The month I worked on the road! The office renos happened and it was all very exciting. It is so good to have a place called "home" at work! We moved in in February, but January is a pretty dull month... the most I remember is working at coffee shops and hanging out with a lot of people. Also, I rang in the New Year at the Youth Group party!! And right before 2012 started, I co-preached with a grade 9 student. That was awesome.


February: Tony Campolo came to speak at our church! I did a sleepover for Middle Schoolers (still not sure if that was a good idea or not). I saw Deep Purple in concert with Jerry, and City & Colour with Michael. And I moved in to my new office!!! I also took a weekend away and visited my friends in Cape Breton. I inadvertently attended a Young Adult Retreat which was different than what I am used to, but enjoyable. And nice to be attending something not as a leader/Pastor.


March: my first March Break at TJC. Monday & Tuesday we had March Break Camp for kids with like 50 or so children! On Thursday the Youth & Young Adults went on a ski trip where I got to snowboard with a bunch of 11 year olds who were going for the first time. Twas fun :) And on Friday ROOTED had it's first Day of Impact. We did chapel at Spencer Home and helped out at the West End Food Bank, and did a flier drop for AdventureLand that started the next week. Good times all around!


April: EASTER! The #1 favorite time of year. High School Youth had an all-nigher called "Watch by the Cross" where we took turns praying by the cross all night long. The Youth also took charge of the Maundy Thursday service. The first ever NEXT Conference happened, Carey Neiuwhof was the guest. It was really great and I am glad I got to meet that guy. He is a great communicator. Also, Hanson's 5th album FINALLY got released in Canada! Hooray for a distributor in Canada, finally!!! OH! And in this month the Halifax Hanson show got announced, and I lost my mind.


May: Concert & Big Event month! I saw Michael W Smith on the 3rd, Mercy Me on the 5th, Leadercast on the 4th, and then Springforth happened May 10-11! This was my first High School Springforth event and I loved it. We brought like 37 people to SF this year. Sooooooo fun. I also had a weekend off and went to Caissie Cape with Ashley! It was so relaxing as all I did was sleep, sit on the beach, and take naps. And eat.


June: ELEVATE Dance came from England!!! They were sooooo fantastic... really refreshing to watch people worship through movement! School ended, our church's Annual General Meeting happened (yay for a new budget year! It was my first time making a budget!!!), I baptized my first 3 people ever (WOO!!!), and I had my first part of vacation in Newfoundland visiting family!


July: CALGARY!!! My good friends Jocelyn & Jason live there and I went to spend 10 days with them! I enjoyed my first Stampede, saw Garth Brooks in concert, visited Banff & hiked Johnston's Canyon, went to the West Edmonton Mall and spent way too much money, RODE A BOBSLED, and lots more. It was a fantastic trip :D Laura was my summer student and she did awesome holding down the fort, even through Youth AND Young Adult overnight events (somehow I think the YA one was more enjoyable...). I came back in time for the Children's Overnighter which was actually a lot of fun! At the tail end of July I took off for my final vacation adventure, with my family to Maine!


August: Vacation in Old Orchard! I've been to this place almost every summer since I've been born. I missed my brother but it was fun to see my cousins again, the first time since like.... late 90's? Maybe? We spent lots of time on the beach, went to the Pier, played mini golf, went to a water park... even rented bikes on the last day. It was super awesome. Even more awesome since Mom & Dad let me stay in their rented condo which was a block from the beach :D Three other major events happened in August (I like to keep busy!) Vacation Bible Camp happened and we had like, 90+ children. So crazy and awesome!!!!! A few days after that I went to Convention's Ordination Council and that all went well. It was great to be so well-supported by family, friends, and colleagues. And, on the 23rd, Hanson came to Halifax!!!! I never ever thought that would happen, but it did. It sold out, I was in front row, and everything was just awesome. LOVE EVERYTHING. Some of my here friends got to see how crazy I get, haha. Oh! And in August I got Liam, my kitty!!!! He is so awesome!!!!!!


September: September is one of my favorite times of year, even though it's so incredibly busy with everything starting up again. At the very start we had Trevor Heyd come, a professional Christian skater! We took over the Moncton skate park and preached Jesus, it was awesome!! Children's ministry sucked a lot of my time as our teams weren't full, but all that began to pan out once the initial panic wore off. :) All our midweek stuff restarted and everything got crazy. It really is a bit of a blur. The energy of a new fall is awesome. I also got an admin assistant which is FANTASTIC and AMAZING. And at the end of the month 15 Young Adults went to Soulquest in Bangor! I was going anyway, but why not take a bunch of young people on a roadtrip to see Switchfoot and Needtobreathe and stay in a hotel and drink Starbucks and have some laughs? It was a great time!


October: In October I could breathe again :) I took these guys to Challenge at New Minas, it was a great time. I also started the process of buying the condo I am currently living in. :) I started Kid Belong with 5 children. It is really fun to talk about salvation, becoming a Christian, etc with children age 8-10 :) And, I baptized a student!


November: I got ordained!! So excited to be finished all the forms, meetings, etc and to be PASTOR, for real. My Youth Pastor from High School days came and spoke which was really special. Thank You to everyone who came to celebrate with me!!! Also in November the deal closed on the condo! I took possession on the 22nd. Yippee!


December: I moved, all the Christmas fun happened at Church (Family Christmas Morning, final events for Youth & YA), I got to baptize 3 children and 1 student (WOO!), and Christmas! Which was very strange this year with Jon & Seritha in Newfoundland, but it was relaxing for me and Liam to spend a few days with Mom & Dad.

It has been a fantastic year. I am ringing in 2013 with some friends in Halifax and then it's back to the races! First up? Hanson in Jamaica :) I am BEYOND blessed!!! Happy New Year!!!!

Just pray.

A couple weeks ago, PromiseLand (our preschool ministry) started Christmas Shop of Wonders Jr (a curriculum from http://www.elevateatchurch.com). At the moment we are short a PromiseLand Coordinator for our Allison Campus, so it has been in my lap for the fall. With this curriculum every lesson starts out the same... with a "make a match" game. Basically, as kids arrive, they are given a sheet with 4 pictures on it. They have to then search the room to find one of each picture, to make a match. This means that every Thursday I tape 44 squares of paper onto the wall.

Every.

Week.

It really doesn't take that long, but it does seem like a nuisance at times. But I know it creates a lot of fun for the kids (they do this same activity every week!). This week while I was sticking them up I decided to pray over each one. Every little square of paper is going to be grabbed by a little hand of a 3 or 4 year old from our church. And that little life has the potential to grow into so many different people. I started praying that God's blessing would be on that child and his/her family, and that what was being taught this weekend would sink deep into their minds and have a lasting influence.

So the next time you're doing something tedious/time-consuming for ministry prep, and you wonder why on earth you're spending time doing it... take time to pray over each person who will be affected by the ministry! Keep the bigger picture in mind... it definitely helps to keep perspective.

Homeowner

It's true - Jen owns a house! Well, a condo townhouse. Same thing except today a snowplow came and got me out :)

I've been in Moncton now for a little over a year. I knew I didn't want to buy something right away because rushing something that big is never good. Also, you never know... maybe I wouldn't have liked it here, or wouldn't have fit well, or something. Obviously that's not the case (still love my life and job and etc) so I thought it was about time I stop throwing away money in rent every month. I've been looking at places casually since the Spring. It's a nice place to be when you're open to buying but not in a rush. I really wanted to stay in Riverview since it's pretty close to church and just a nice little community! Most condos though are super old, and I wanted something just a little newer.

Where I ended up I was actually interested in earlier (the Unit next to mine was for sale in Spring). But I didn't move fast enough and by the time my Realtor looked into it, it was already sold! So when I saw this one go up I moved quicker. Of course, everything in life happens at the same time, and the weekend of my Ordination service was also the weekend the house stuff came together. Mom & Dad were here so they could size it all up and help me through some of the confusing stuff I don't understand. The offer was accepted, a house inspection was done and the 4 things were fixed, and on Nov 22 I owned a house!!

It's a 2-story townhouse in a quiet newish neighbourhood. The basement is half developed (my drums are coming back to me!), 2 bedrooms and 1.5 baths. People ask me what my favorite part of owning a house is... I think just the fact that it's mine. I also love having laundry that's not coin operated! And my payments are not much more than what my rent was. I moved in exactly one week ago today, and by Saturday I was all unpacked! I have a friend renting my spare room now, and it's nice having her around :) Liam likes it too! December has got to be the stupidest time of year for a Pastor to move, but it's done. I have yet to clean my apartment... and the power went off there today... whoops. But I spoke with the super and I'm going to get that done on Wednesday. And then I'll be done with there, and just live here!

My next plan: Christmas decorations. I don't like that the Pastor's house is one of the only dark ones on this street!

Ordained.

I have a confession: I am not a blogger. It's been like 4 months since I've been on here... whoops! This past weekend was probably one of the most monumental in the whole of my life so I thought I would share a little bit about it.

This past weekend was the conclusion of a journey that began formally in March 2009, but God had been working for this day throughout my whole life. I have been working as a Pastor for a few years now... but I wasn't officially ordained by the Baptist Convention until Saturday. It is quite a process... first of all, there are education requirements for ordination. Cue 3 years of seminary at ADC. There's also a process in the local church that I was late into since I started out Salvation Army. I was baptized, then one year later received a church license to minister, then once I got to the Association I'm serving in, I got my association license to minister. I also met with the board of ministerial standards twice (entrance and exit interviews), had a one-year mentorship with an awesome Lead Pastor in Moncton, and prepared and then presented my statement of faith to the ordination examining council. No seriously. This has been my life for over 3 years! :) So it was a huge "ahhhhhhh" to finally have it all culminate in ordination at The Journey Church on Saturday.

I was so blessed to have Leanne come and speak. She was my Youth Pastor during grades 11 and 12 (around when this blog started... crazy!) and is now serving in a Baptist Church in Ontario. To have someone speak who knew me back from when I first became a Christian, was really fitting for the occasion. Thanks Leanne for coming! :)

The amount of love, encouragement, and support I felt from both my congregation and my family/friends who came was overwhelming. I am so so so so SO BLESSED!!! The room was pretty full, and everyone was just so happy and excited for me. I felt a little embarrassed that the whole night was about me... sometimes it felt like it was my wedding (which I don't know what that feels like but my theory is it's something like this). There was kids singing, youth speaking, young adults leading worship and running sound/tech, cake, food, and very generous gifts. There was even a little MMMBop thrown in there for good measure ;) What a party!!

I didn't think I would feel different after being ordained, but I do. It's strange. I mean, I have always taken my calling seriously, but now it's been officially placed on me. In the events of the weekend, and in talking about Pastoring with Leanne, Carolyn, and others, I am so sensitive to this unique calling on my life. God has chosen me to shepherd the NextGen in Moncton. REALLY??? ME????? Who am I??? Just a hyper Young Adult who loves school and coffee and Macs and Hanson, and you've chosen ME????

I know that God has given me everything I need, but I need to make sure I use what He's given me to the best of my abilities. What does Pastor mean, exactly? Is it talking to young adults at Starbucks about the journey their life is on? Is it hugging kids on Sunday? Is it creating a 5-year plan of where things need to grow? Is it preaching the Word of God on a Sunday morning? Is it spending time with leaders so they can minister more effectively in the call God has given them? Is it spending time walking alone, talking to God? I think the answer is yes, to all. And balancing everything is hard! I find myself going from one side of the scale to the other, to the other, to the other, trying to find the perfect balance of it all. I'll let you know if I ever get it figured out. All I do know is God knows where He needs me and when, doing what, so I need to make sure I'm always attuned to that.

Saying there is a fresh energy in my ministry is an understatement :) Onward!

(OK... totally didn't mean to use an Obama word. Although I do love Obama.)