It's Not About You

There are two uses of the word: "lowliness" in Scripture, and both have to do with putting others first.

"Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others." Philippians 2:3&4

"Walk worthy of the vocation in which ye are called, with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." Ephesians 4:1b-3

So, put this all together and you have a prescription for Godly living. Priorities suddenly take shape and your purpose becomes more clear.

IT'S NOT ABOUT YOU!

In our staff Bible study last night we were reminded of the definition of "ego" - Edging God Out. When our first priority is service or self, everything we do is in our own strength. When our first priority is God, things begin to fall into place.

In a nutshell, "Love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind; and love your neighbour as yourself." (Luke 10:27)

Bye Bye Becca!

We bid a sad farewell to Rebecca Cochrane, who has been with us for one full year as an Intern in Rescue College. She blogged her farewell:

What I'm Gonna Miss... about RRM
* staff and residents
* laughing throughout the halls of the Mission
* Watching Residents graduate
* Melanie's snoopy dancing
* my "after work" chats with Michelle
* Ken's humour
* "Staff Nap Time"
* staff and residents
* staff morning devotional time
* hearing Jack pray "Dear Lord thank you for today"
* Michelle's emails when she is on vacation/at convention
* staff Bible study/potlucks
* the excitement of holiday dinners
* praying with staff and residents whenever a need arises.
* being a part of a ministry that is constantly growing and improving
* staff and residents
* hearing Grant pray " and thank you Jesus for dying on the cross"
* playing dice on family nights
* Larry - his sense of style, sense of humour, and sense of being.
* the girls camping trip
* free groceries!
* Mesfin's somosa's and those really yummy crispy things... mmmmm...
* hearing residents tell how Jesus has changed their lives
* watching Jon read Dilbert in the Office
* Len's bright smile and encouraging words
* impromptu "counselling" sessions in the interns office
* Ken and Michelle's servant leadership
* telling people about what I'm doing and why (especially as a Mission rep)
* George's "finds" from dumpter diving
* female staff I can both laugh and cry with
* Vicki's character building
* staff and residents

I'm sure there's many more things I am forgetting, but this is the list I know now.

Leaving RRM is like leaving a way of life. This year has been hard, I think most of you all know that by now, but being at RRM has given me purpose and vision for making it through the year. I know that it is time to move on, even if I don't always know why, but I will miss this place, this environment, and these people. The staff truly is like a family and they have loved me and cared for me through the last 12 months. I have needed their love and care, their safety and their friendship.

Tonight they are throwing me a good-bye party. So I will head off soon for some good food and good company and some reminders of what all I am gonna miss.

-Becca

She's been an integral part of our rescue team and family and we have enjoyed her company, her enthusiasm, her diligence, her ability to step in and do what is needed despite obstacles, her spiritual maturity, and so much more. Bye, Becca! We'll miss you, too!

Love Your Enemies

Good Morning! It's Tim and I coming to you from the living room again.

There's a commercial that's starts off with a sentence I laugh at every time. It's a grey haired lady walking through the big city, who says, "Lately, I can't stop thinking about my bones."

Well, as for me, "Lately, I can't stop thinking about my enemies." If there is one thing I did NOT expect as a director of a Mission, is that I would have enemies. I'm a nice person!!

Gradually it dawns on me what the Psalmist is anguishing over nearly 100 times as he pleads with God to shame his enemies, or to save, deliver and defend him from his enemies. Or this last one: to preserve him from fear of his enemy.

So, what do we do with this? The co-worker who suddenly stops talking to you. The disgruntled employee who spreads his cynicism then walks off the job. The friend who cut you off because you said something that offended her. The family member who makes your life miserable.

Let's face it people, we have enemies! How do we handle this??

If it be possible, as much as lie in you, live peaceably with all men. That's a direct quote from Romans 12:18. It means different things in different situations. It means you have to try, but not to the point where you are obsessed. It's about bringing people closer to God... and not worrying what they may think about you.

And, as I was telling my friend Lisa today, it's "love" that is to constrain us to draw people to Christ. Not revenge. Not reputation.

"Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way in which I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee. Deliver me, O LORD, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me. Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness."

-Psalm 143:8-10

Miss Me?

Good Morning! I'm drinking Tim Horton's coffee from my living room. It's the end of a 3 week vacation for Ken and I this morning. Since he's still sleeping we'll say he's enjoying the very end of his vacation!

We went close to home: Rowan's Ravine Provincial Park on Last Mountain Lake. It's only an hour away. Good thing, too, since I apparently brought the rain home from Seattle. We came home and did a few home projects in between because it was POURING!

But, it was the perfect weekend at the lake. Friday we went to the beach for the afternoon and were the only ones on it! That night we watched a gorgeous sunset from a couple of craggy rocks down a little bank on the shore of the lake. Again, all alone. It was like we reserved the entire park, never mind just a campsite.

Of course the rest of our camping neighbourhood finally came rolling in on Saturday. For the past three weeks we had been wondering if the Rapture happened while we were on vacation!

And the weather this weekend was gorgeous. Not too hot, not too cold. It was like LA only with breathable air.

We finally had a campfire, were able to BBQ, and we enjoyed the summer solstace. I mean, the sun was up at 4 and I could still read outside at 11:00 p.m. What a perfect day--it just kept going and going and going...

A big thank you to Donovan and Bonnie Carroll of Soul's Harbour for generously offering their fifth wheel to us so we could have a vacation. We were having lunch with them one day and Donovan asked, "What do you guys do for holidays?" I replied, "Donovan, did you take vacation with your family last year?" Well, it turned out neither of us had so the Directors of both Missions are having some much needed rest and fun this summer at Rowan's Ravine Provincial Park!

On one of our trips home I called our very awesome accountant and she said, "Let me get this straight. You need the 9-month financial reports because you're budgeting at the beach? You know something? The beach even made budgeting fun!

Please don't forget the Mission this summer when YOU go on vacation. The poor do not get a holiday and our team works 365 days a year to provide life changing programs and services to needy men, women and children. And I tip my hat to them for the amazing job they did while we were away!

A note from Vicki

Hello to everyone who loves to read Michelle's blog! You may be wondering where she disappeared to for the last two weeks. Has she fallen off the face of the earth?

No, she's just headed out to Rowan's Ravine for a vacation with Ken... and came back because it rained... and headed out again... and came back because it rained.

They may be back to work on Monday, or they may take another week of vacation. Please pray that they will have sunshine and relaxation for the rest of their vacation!