Wednesday, May 30, 2007


Packing up the dreams God planted….

I’m packing…well actually I’m writing, but I SHOULD be packing! We are on the move again. Not exactly what I expected when we moved here 4 ½ years ago. I really thought this house would eventually be ours and that we would put down deep roots and never leave or move again. I thought this was an open door from God and that He was planting us in this neighbourhood and this house to be a beacon of light for Him. We prayed that we would be a lighthouse in the midst of this street, pointing each of our neighbours to the Cross. I was sure He planted us here … to stay.

But we are moving…two doors down. I have shared how I think God must not just get a chuckle over me, but a full belly laugh! I realized that I truly believed that “I” could direct God through my prayers. I told Him, that we have been praying for our neighbours and that we need to stay and continue the work. That Gracie considers this her mission field. Thinking all the while that He would keep us here in this house…He planted the dream, and I couldn’t even recognize it. It’s not about the house or my comfort level but about my obedience to Him…to give Him that “thing” I am holding back from Him. And the realization that it is not about me, but about how and when and where He chooses to use me. I wanted to make an impact in this neighbourhood and wherever I go, but without obedience to Him He cannot use me.

But it is not we who will remain, but HIM. We may be remembered by some people on this earth, but our calling and our obedience to that calling will be what lasts forever, to the Glory of God. 1 Peter 2:9-10 says: “But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.”

He plants the dreams…and sometimes we live out the plan in one place…and then sometimes we pack up the dreams God has planted and move on to the next gig. As long as the spot light remains on Him and I can look forward hearing “well done thou faithful servant”. The great thing is the dream isn’t dead…it’s just being relocated.

I surrender all! Whatever I hold onto is YOURS OH GOD.

“Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we'd better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we're in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he's there, in the place of honour, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he ploughed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!” ~Hebrews 12:1-3

Back to my packing now ...just remember which side is up! - - cb

Monday, May 21, 2007

Do Puppies come in PAISLEY?

We recently added a new member to our family...and it's not what you think!
About a year ago we started discussions on getting a puppy for our family. We mulled it over and talked about what kind we might like and what colour.
In February we finally decided on getting a dog and that we would like a Cock-a-poo but Terry's stipulations were that it had to be black and in a certain price range. That same morning a friend sent us a link to an add for a black Cock-a-poo named Annie.
She was 5 months old and this sweet lady and her two boys had decided that, due to their busy life style and long days that it would be better for their puppy to be in a home where there was somebody home more.

We contacted her to learn more about Annie, she told us she was great with kids, paper trained and a cuddly puppy. Her asking price was out of range for us so we wished her well with her search for a new family for her puppy.
I was really sad, because I really loved this dog right from her picture, but knew that there would be other expenses along with her. However, after about 3 weeks of wondering I emailed her again, just to see how it went with placing the pup in a new home. While I was out, my husband received this lady's response only to find out she had been uncomfortable with the other family and still had Annie and she had dropped her price! Terry made arrangements to adopt her and when I got home there was a framed photo of Annie in the front hall with a sign that read: "welcome home Annie". What he didn't know was that I was planning to take him away for the weekend as a surprise. After much juggling and many secret calls, I arranged to have this wonderful woman to hold on to Annie for the weekend and she would deliver her on the Sunday.
When Sunday finally came, she arrived with her two, very sweet boys, her oldest boy's girlfriend and "ANNIE"!




I felt so bad for them, they clearly loved their pup, but they knew they were making the best decision for her, even though it was hard.



She suggested that she was probably young enough for us to change her name if we wanted to.
After a tearful goodbye, we started showing Annie around and immediately started training her to "go" outside. She did really well. We decided that we would call her "Holly" and off we went to the pet store to pick up a few things and a new collar, because her's was not clasping properly. I settled on a brown collar with green paisley and a matching leashe. I also had her new name tag made with the name "Holly" engraved on it.

Upon arriving at home, I showed Terry her new fashionable collar...one look and he said, "PAISLEY, that's her name!"
And that's how we learned that even Black Puppies can be PAISLEY!