North Team 2010

Notice the name "North TEAM" given to our group this year- our kids insisted that this year's group could not call us mom and dad and could only be a team not a family. =] (Even though Grace is actually Daniel's sister...I'm not sure how that works out). Please pray for these 5 teens as they'll be teaching over the next 6 weeks. R & G will be together for 4 weeks, then R & R will teach for the last 2 weeks. We are delighted by the team we have.

This week the girls are in Whitefish and the boys in Port Sydney and Orillia. I'm driving kids from our Good News Club to the Port Sydney club so it's nice to be able to focus on discipline issues without having to teach. Please pray for these kids to come to be convicted of their sin and to come to know God personally and be changed by Him!

Please pray for the teaching teams as they're discovering "real" kids present many more challenges than the chairs and trees they practiced teaching at training.

North Family Reunion

It was SO amazing to be at the Summer Training Institute and to have 3 of our 4 "kids" there with us (our team from last summer). Since last year, Belle moved from Thunder Bay to southern Ontario and been adopted (in all ways except legal) by Ariel's family and finally for the first time in 17 years has a family! The neat thing is that Belle was sent back to Thunder Bay for the summer to teach clubs, so has gone full circle in a way since last year! She is so changed from last year- her incredible joy-filled spirit and love just bounces out from her now...it's amazing what love can do!

 The girls still call us "mom" and "dad" and even came to say Good-night and get a hug every night at training.

Daniel was so changed spiritually after last summer that his sister decided to come out with CEF this year!

 We were just missing Greg for a full reunion.

Building Updates

Here Karen, I've finally remembered to post a picture of David's latest project - a wood shed. I'm amazed by this crazy husband of mine, he made the posts of trees he cut down and he used his chainsaw to make the boards for the sides out of other logs. He also did this whole thing (it's 10 ft x 8 ft and 10 ft tall) all without a ladder!
** We can apply for our building permit tomorrow!!!

This is my project- I finally have a garden again! I really missed it the last 4-5 years! It was sort of a test this year to see if anything would actually grow in dirt that use to be a forest floor.  Yay for fresh, healthy vegetables soon!

We have grass growing!

New Tents!

CEF Ontario bought two 10 x10 tents for the Orillia area to use for the Fairs to replace the well used Good News Storyhouse trailer. I can't wait to see what the new banner looks like debuting the new name "Discovery Zone". Please pray for the volunteers that will run it for Canada Day, July 1 and Woodville Festival, July 10 and share the Gospel with kids through puppets, face painting and stories.

Time with God

I've been enjoying the beautiful mornings and the "pre-tourist" season with the chance to spend time with the Lord in the mornings in the most beautiful spot...Mary Lake! It's amazing how many times God does things so that the people might know "that I am the LORD" in Ezekiel. How do we live differently because He is the Lord?

Building

Who needs a house when you can have a swimming pool?

 

Thankfully most of the water has since been pumped out. When the hole for the foundation was dug, bedrock was discovered much higher than expected in parts. So...the last few weeks have been spent trying to figure out solutions and pursuing many different options. We are now hoping to do a walk-out basement, which means we can stick to our original house plans and still minorly adjust a few things to make the walk-out possible. The downside is that everything has been pushed back by about a month because of the delay. We are still seeking the Lord for His wisdom as we continue.

I love this spot now! It actually looks like a real house will look out onto it someday! This is part of our driveway and looking out to the septic bed. They filled it all in and placed the rocks there and seeded it...so grass has since started to grow! There was a little hill there before, but not any more! We'll actually have part of a yard!

A few more of the rocks that were uncovered during the excavating process. We may be able to use the top flat one for a step somewhere! The others will be useful for landscaping...whenever that happens.

Traveling

Yes, the train is really called "The Polar Bear Express" that goes from Cochrane to Moosonee!
I am so thankful for the Lord's trustworthiness throughout my trip. I was so blessed by the people I met and stayed with in Cochrane, Moosonee and Moose Factory! Most exciting is that we are able to send a team of Summer Missionaries to Moosonee this year too! We are also looking into a trip for January to do some training for parents, grandparents and children's ministry workers and maybe even do some children's outreaches further up the coast.

This is the street by the docks. Some interesting things I discovered:

• All the roads are dirt roads, except for a paved sidewalk in a few areas
• Everyone deals with dirt everywhere b/c of the roads, so you have indoor and outdoor shoes, even for church
• Nobody wears their seatbelt "there's no point and no laws about it" they say 

This is from Moosonee looking across to the island of Moose Factory. The only way across is by water taxi (or helicopter if you're trying to get to the hospital)

This is a water taxi! Nothing too fancy, but it worked. The ride is only about 7 min.

 This is the closest I've ever been to Polar Bears (in Cochrane)!

This was my big string of tickets to get from Cochrane to Port Sydney by bus. I left at 7:45 pm and got home at 4 am!!!

I don't want to leave!!!

David knew that I was terrified of going to Moosonee alone and we really didn't want to be apart for 6 days, so he was SO SWEET and made this incredibly amazing breakfast for me the day I had to leave.

On top of that, when we went out to the car I saw the other surprise he had made- a royal carriage ride in our grand pontiac...it felt grand with all the roses at least! =]

Arrival in Moosonee & Moose Factory

After staying overnight with the Gauchers (a French family) in Cochrane and getting acquainted with more of their family, I boarded the Polar Bear Express headed north to Moosonee. The ride was a little over 5 hours and quite bumpy as the frost is coming out of the ground now.

I was SO scared going into this trip- terrified to go alone, to find my way around, try to meet up with the right people, to know what to share in the Bible study I was asked to lead...the one good thing out of my fear is that I finally took it to the Lord and realized I couldn't do this on my own, it would only be in His strength! I am so amazed that He gave me peace before speaking last night. I had to laugh when I was introduced to the all Native church as "the little white lady".

It has been eye opening and heart breaking to see and hear about the problems that these communities face, especially the extremely high suicide rate. There are many young moms around too. I spent the day in Moose Factory with a pastor's family yesterday. Moose Factory is an island that you take a water taxi to and most everyone on the island is Native. I got to hear "How Great Thou Art" song in Cree yesterday! Very Cool!

Keep praying that God will open doors and the children will be eternally changed by Him!

Trillium Takeover

My friend Heather invited me over to see all the Trilliums behind their apartment. It was amazing!!! It was as far as you could see, almost like snow, all the beautiful Trilliums! Yay for the Ontario provincial flower! We were good and legal and didn't pick any either.