Randall Friesen

It's gonna be alright

2012-02-10T17:19:00.002-07:00

Friday afternoon eh?
Friday afternoon after an amazing week.
Amazing more in how I desperately needed God to show up, and he has.
Again and again at the end, offering up my tiredness, my inability to get done all the things...
All the things.
And there at the end of myself, I find strength.
External force, outside grace.
There at the end of myself, the mood in the room changes.
And there is enough. More than enough.
And on this Friday afternoon, on the edge of a long, work filled weekend,
I pause to look back and see
How He has given
actual life to me.
And I feel pretty good about things.
It's gonna be alright.

Three generations picture of crazies.

2012-01-31T21:47:00.001-07:00

Posted via email

The biggest Marilyn I've ever seen.

2012-01-30T22:14:00.001-07:00

I was as tall as her ankles. And to be clear, I kept my camera in front of her. She was fun.

Posted via email

Chicago

2012-01-28T15:32:00.001-07:00

Right about this time most years I travel down to Chicago for a gathering of pastors who work in the context of Evangelical Covenant Church. And so tomorrow at 4 am I am leaving home for the 12 hour journey there. Field, Edmonton, Seattle, Chicago.

We will take workshops, worship together, share ideas, build relationships, and take pictures of Chicago. It is a beautiful, photogenic city. (See Here, or here, or here, or here.)

Hopefully this year they won't have the Blizzard of the Century, like they hosted for us last year. That was also the first time I ever experienced snow thunder.

Wildlife Society

2012-01-26T10:54:00.002-07:00

I think this morning started about 8 am when the doorbell rang. It was someone needing to get into the church and they were having difficulty. Eight am this morning felt like five am on normal days. It's my Thursday morning, Youth Wednesday night, hangover morning. You know, thick tongue from communicating with 12 junior high boys, eyes that won't focus from keeping track of everybody the night before, and a groggy mind from carrying maybe too many details. Its usually a rich trade off. I get to hang out with the wildlife society, and some of them speak into my life at deep levels.

But the new twist last night was that I got to do the study with 12 junior high guys. We talked about anger and so I gave them a demonstration of what it can look like when anger takes over. :) It seemed to position them nicely to listen.

So, it isn't clear yet, but I have hope that the fuzziness should clear up before long.
Today is an office catch up day, and Moms Of Preschoolers is happening here today too, so at least I'm not alone.

That's a good thing.

I miss my dentist.

2012-01-23T20:01:00.001-07:00

It is not lost in me that my dental care for the past ten years has been quality grade A, number One work done by a caring friend, Dr. Linea Lanoie. I will forever be grateful for how she made dental work a regular part of life for me and took the fear out of most of it.

I grew up with terminally bad teeth no matter how hard I would try, and because we were not that well off, most of my dentists were little old men who couldn't speak or understand a word of English, and who didn't want to use more pain deadening freezing than was absolutely necessary. So dentists for me were always associated with a freak show, involving pain.

Until Linea came along.
I sure miss her these days.

I got in to see a dentist today because of the pain in my mouth. It's nagging and troublesome and I'd like to be free of it. But after pictures and an $120 exam, he couldn't find the problem.

He did find other things that need attention in the next three visits, to the tune of nearly $700. Which I don't doubt. But I left $120 poorer and the pain still there.

I have to decide if I will continue down this road. I nearly used up my $1000 a year dental plan in one day, and I understand that in Alberta the fees are not regulated so you are encouraged to shop around.

But thanks to Linea, I wasn't freaked out about going.

She made a difference.

A winter morning in The Field.

2012-01-22T09:33:00.001-07:00

Over three years ago we moved to this field as a part of my work. For me, it's resulted in a stronger sense of connection with the land. The rhythm of the seasons continues to shape our days.

A winter sunrise in the field.

Taking time to grow the soul

2012-01-20T16:50:00.000-07:00

There has been much work these days and keeping my spirit healthy has become a bit of a challenge.

I'm trying to keep my inner life growing and vital, because without that I quickly become ineffective. And there is nothing as lame as a shallow spiritual director.

Tired.

Fresh Strawberry Jam

2012-01-19T00:11:00.000-07:00

Lauralea made some strawberry jam today.
So I couldn't wait.
A bun, some butter, and her fresh strawberry jam.

Perfect on a frozen day.

This is getting really bad, really fast.

2012-01-16T18:14:00.001-07:00

And tomorrow at 6am I have a meeting in town. Serious pain I foresee.

Posted via email

Winter has come to the field.

2012-01-15T09:07:00.001-07:00

Like a slap in the face.

Posted via email

Teenagers are people too

2012-01-11T22:00:00.002-07:00

During the past year or two we've been down one staff member at church so I've stepped in to provide care and programming for our young people. That hasn't been a big ordeal for me, mainly because I love spending time with them and sharing life with them. They are amazing, passionate, easily distracted, loud, hungry for love, lonely, dealing with changing bodies, people. And I love them.

Sometimes God will show me their insides. Sometimes when I'm thinking of them or praying for them, or even watching them act out from across the room, God will show me their hearts. The truth is that in those moments of deep exposure, my breath is taken away. The deep personal rejection they deal with, the pain from parents who are in crisis, the struggle to be normal and to not stand out for the wrong reasons. The utter aloneness they feel sometimes, and the fear that those feelings have come to be a regular part of their lives is like looking into the abyss.

Sometimes God just peels back the thin veneer of one of these kids lives, and I am staggered. Then in my staggering response I bring them back to God for his attention and love. I carry what I've seen in my heart and I check up on them and I pray for them again and again. But I'm never quite the same, for what I've seen.

I know that this is a critical time in their lives. A part of growing from children into adults is the part where we learn to hide or disguise our pain. We find distractions that are unhealthy for us or we dull the pain, so we can live. Soon after those years we become experts at hiding our pain, or decorating the disfunction so it looks normal and we blend in.

Maybe that's one of the reasons why Jesus always loved the young ones best. I'd have to agree with him there. The younger ones are honest and forthright and if you have integrity, they will want to learn from you.

And that's the deal breaker for many of them. Integrity, or the lack of it, will send them running in the other direction. Lecture at them, tell them one thing and do another, be dishonest, and they start to shut you down. And honestly, that's refreshing.

Probably if you see them as another life form or you think that teens = trouble, or if you think you can change their lives with a good lecture, I'd encourage you to make friends with one, and just listen to them. Ask them questions and listen. Don't tell them things unless they ask you. Maybe, just maybe you will catch some of what they have, and they have a lot to offer.

There are so many good opportunities to be involved in young peoples lives these days. They don't require much expertise. They just need to be loved, and treated honestly, by people who can look at them and see real people.

Naught but dust

2012-01-08T09:35:00.002-07:00

At night as I lay in bed unable to find sleep, I was staring out the window and I saw streaks of light in the southern sky. I remembered that the Quadrantid Meteor Shower is just winding down.

I thought, there are these tiny pieces of dust and they hit the atmosphere and burn up in a flash of glory. From a distance they look big and spectacular, but really they are small and rather insignificant, until they hit that atmosphere. Then its a few seconds of glory.

And I thought how that's the human condition as well. We look to burn brighter than the rest, because somehow that gives us value and meaning. The truth is we are naught but dust.

But somehow, dust and spirit, hopes and dreams, when valued by the One that made us, take on a different tone than the depressing thought that we may be nothing but dirt.

And even old rocks become precious gems in the masters hands.

And His work can be beautiful.

It's official, I'm a Ham. (I now have proof)

2012-01-06T09:37:00.000-07:00

...and now I have the papers to prove it.

As I've written before in this space, I started on this project back in 1986 when we lived in Aylmer Ontario and I headed off to a local Amateur Radio club to see if I could find some new friends, and maybe even get my own license.

A local guy, older, crusty, smoked like a chimney, High School math teacher, took me under his wing and helped me get set up with at least a receiver and an 80 meter dipole antenna, so I could start listening. And listen I did. early in the morning before I left for work, and often in the late evenings, I would crank up the old radio and catch the ONTARS checkins on 3755.

I still have that old Heathkit HW-12 radio and I'm still using the dipole he got me started on. But life, work, family, all took up so much of my time that I just set it aside for a while.

"A while" turned into 25 years, and last year, spurred on my a few ham friends in this church here, I set aside vacation time to focus on the study and preparations for the exam. A 100 question test, drawn from 1000 possible questions, I set myself to learn electrical theory and practical radio practices.

On December 5th I wrote the exam and passed with a 97%, probably the highest I've ever scored on any exam in my life. I passed with Honours.

What with all the Christmas mail in the system, it took a while to receive my papers from Industry Canada, and every day I'd be the first to the mailbox to check if my license had arrived. Well, it finally did arrive, and is proudly posted in my room.

I have been awarded call sign VE6VOR, which is a good call sign because it's easy to say, and to repeat and has a nice mix of consonants and vowels. :)

Victor Echo Six, Victor Oscar Romeo is already on the air operating locally on 2 meters, but my next ambitious undertaking is to get on the HF bands, -Shortwave. So I am gathering supplies as time and mostly money allow. Antenna wire, transmission cables, and of course a radio. The local guys are helpful and willing to lend me a radio for the time being, once I get an antenna up in the air.

So maybe all that just to say that even after 25 years dreams still can come true. A bit of work and effort if you want it enough, and there you go, something new can happen.

What are your dreams?

73, (Amateur Radio code for Best Regards,)
From the field.

The power of music on memory

2012-01-05T11:24:00.001-07:00

Last night I was tossing and turning a bit the way you do when you know you need to be fast asleep already and you're nowhere near sleep. So I reached over and turned on the radio to Easy 101, an easy listening formatted station I like that broadcasts out of Tillsonburg Ontario.

As the one smooth song from the late seventies was ending, the beginning rhythm of another song was starting and even before I was sure what song it was, I felt myself being transported back in time and space to the late spring in 1987 in SouthWestern Ontario. Like a time machine those musical notes took me out of my bed and dropped me in a car heading to London Ontario with Lauralea and a back seat full of friends heading out on a hot humid pre-summer day.

The sun was bright, the windows were wide open, the radio was on, and then people began to sing the Chris de Burgh song, Lady In Red.

I kid you not.

After that I just got up and made some toast.
It's easier than all the time travel.

Crankin it at the office

2012-01-04T09:03:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was to be my day off, but by 10 am it was clear that it wasn't going to be a day off, so the day was spent working.

This morning I woke up at 6, all by myself, (That is meant to read, without my alarm) and couldn't find sleep so I got up and headed off to the office.

And so here I am, gettin it done. My easterly window is facing a beautiful sunrise and I walked to work without a coat because it's +1 out there, and it's beautiful.

Oh and did I mention, the music is cranked in here.
Right now, listening to this:

So if you got called in to work on your holidays, hey, I feel your pain.
And if you are already gettin it done, well you're in good company.

Have a good day.

Happy New Year!!!

2012-01-01T00:04:00.001-07:00

From my living room to yours.

Posted via email

New Years in my Dreams

2011-12-31T13:58:00.000-07:00

It was, well, a different Christmas. That I can say with honesty.

With the girls and Johanna's family in different parts of the world and the boys here with us for two and a half days, it was certainly less work.

And we did end up changing the oil on Thomas' car on Christmas afternoon which is something I've never done, at least on that day.

So it was low key and fairly restful, which was good.

It's been a crazy lead up to christmas around here, and other volunteers have been away or been unavailable because of other commitments, so I've been picking up some of that extra work that needs to be done.

Usually after Christmas I'm raring to go again because the craziness of the Christmas season is behind me. But not so much this year.

I've been working hard to find motivation to get going and balance that with the realization that I'm recuperating a bit too. Trying to take it easier, trying to rest a bit more, trying to get my mojo back.

And the old mojo just doesn't bounce back as quickly as it has in the past.

Tomorrow is a work day so tonight is a non party night here in the field.

But in other news, I have another daughter who is living out some of my dreams tonight at midnight. Hillary is in London for a few days and has connected with some new friends there and is heading to a flat near St. Paul's from where they will be walking down to the Thames for the fireworks at midnight. That is cool.

How is it that my children are living out my dreams?

A Most Blessed Christmas to you.

2011-12-24T20:49:00.000-07:00

Well, here we are.

We’ve made it through the baking and shoppinglists. Through the signing and receiving of endless cards, shoppingmalls, parties, get-togethers and so many people to wish MerryChristmas or seasons greeting to.
The kids have made it through learning their songs and concerts andpiano pieces. And the gifts, all purchased by now, lay silentlybeneath the tree, awaiting their excited new owners.

Perhaps its at moments like these that we are wise to stop andremember what Christmas really is about.

George Matthew Adams said:
“Let us remember that the Christmas heart is a giving heart, a wideopen heart that thinks of others first. The birth of the baby Jesusstands as the most significant event in all history, because it hasmeant the pouring into a sick world of the healing medicine of lovewhich has transformed all manner of hearts for almost two thousandyears... Underneath all the bulging bundles is this beating Christmasheart.”

Maybe thats one reason that the Christmas season is so busy, becausewe are trying to love so many at once.

While for others Christmas can be so lonely. Nothing reminds us thatwe are utterly alone in the universe like not getting any cards or notbeing invited to parties.

Taylor Caldwell (1900-1985), English novelist wrote:
“I am not alone at all, I thought. I was never alone at all. And that,of course, is the message of Christmas. We are never alone. Not whenthe night is darkest, the wind coldest, the world seemingly mostindifferent. For this is still the time God chooses.”

If you’ve been overly busy or perhaps find yourself a bit too lonelythis evening, I welcome you to focus on the Story of Christ’sbirth.

Focus on the light of the world, born as a babe.
This is still the time that God chooses to beknown.

Read with me...

Luke 1:26-56

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!” Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she’s now in her sixth month. For nothing isimpossible with God.”
Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.

A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”

Mary responded,
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!  For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and from now on all generations will call me blessed.
For the Mighty One is holy, and he has done great things for me.  He shows mercy from generation to generation to all who fear him.  His mighty arm has done tremendous things! He has scattered the proud and haughty ones.  He has brought down princes from their thrones and exalted the humble.  He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with empty hands.  He has helped his servant Israel and remembered to be merciful.  For he made this promise to our ancestors, to Abraham and his children forever.”
Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home.

Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 2:1-15

This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly.
As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”
All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet:
“Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’”
When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.

At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem inJudea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant.
And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.
That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”
Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying, “Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”
When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

Luke 2:16-39

They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.

Eight days later, when the baby was circumcised, he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel even before he was conceived.
Then it was time for their purification offering, as required by the law of Moses after the birth of a child; so his parents took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. The law of the Lord says, “If a woman’s first child is a boy, he must be dedicated to the Lord.” Sothey offered the sacrifice required in the law of the Lord—“either a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”

At that time there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon. He was righteous and devout and was eagerly waiting for the Messiah to come and rescue Israel. The Holy Spirit was upon him and had revealed to him that he would not die until he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. That day the Spirit led him to the Temple. So when Mary and Joseph came to present the baby Jesus to the Lord as the law required, Simeon was there. He took the child in his arms and praised God, saying, “Sovereign Lord, now let your servant die in peace, as you have promised. I have seen your salvation, which you have prepared for all people. He is a light to reveal God to the nations, and he is theglory of your people Israel!”
Jesus’ parents were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them, and he said to Mary, the baby’s mother, “This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, but he will be a joy to many others. He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him. As a result, the deepest thoughts of many hearts will berevealed. And a sword will pierce your very soul.”

Anna, a prophet, was also there in the Temple. She was the daughter of Phanuel from the tribe of Asher, and she was very old. Her husband died when they had been married only seven years. Then she lived as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the Temple but stayed there day and night, worshiping God with fasting and prayer. She came along just as Simeon was talking with Mary and Joseph, and she began praising God. She talked about the child to everyone who had been waiting expectantly for God to rescue Jerusalem. When Jesus’ parents had fulfilled all the requirements of the law of the Lord, they returned home to Nazareth in Galilee.

Matthew 2:1-12, Luke 2:40

Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.”
King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?” “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote: ‘And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are not least among the ruling cities of Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’”
Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared. Then he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!”
After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were filled with joy! They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him.Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.
There the child grew up healthy and strong. He was filled with wisdom, and God’s favor was on him.

Last details

2011-12-23T18:38:00.000-07:00

Today on the day before the day before Christmas I went to town to spend some time with those who find themselves hospital bound for the celebration this weekend and those who are happily expecting this Christmas to be their last, here on earth at least.

What an odd situation in your mind. To have a lifetime of history and memories in your mind and spirit, yet to be fairly well aware that this will be your last one. Then to know that it is not only ok, but because of your faith in God and your experience with him, you can look death in the eye with confidence that He who holds your life in his hand, also has a firm grip by the scruff of the neck of Death. It is not foolish ignorance but a confidence that comes from a lifetime of give and take, love and hate, in relationship with another. Or should I say, Thee Other.

Then there are those who face the doorway to death with utter fear and loathing. A lostness that I can't find words for in this human experience. Yes, I've seen both. I suppose that's another reason I do the work that I do.

This post didn't turn out the way I had intended, but maybe it's just a good reminder to sort out your life and choices and faith before you near the finish line. I know that's how I feel most every time I leave the hospital or care home.

Only two more sleeps.
Guys, tomorrow is your christmas shopping day so you better get your sleep tonight.

Shortest day of the year

2011-12-21T11:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday the meetings ran from 6 am till 10 pm, so today is much easier. This afternoon and evening is about the youth party we are running here at the church, so before that I have time to work on Saturday evenings service, and get to town to pick up some supplies for tonight.

I think though, that after this day things should settle down a bit. Quiet should reign in the field and I will have time to draw from the silence, rather than drain the silence away with busyness.

This Christmas will be simpler for us in many ways. There will be less people in the house, less meals to prepare and gifts to sort. Less snow (for Micah) to shovel, less time to celebrate together, less granddaughters crawling around your feet. You know, all those less thans that could make for a lean Christmas but we will try not to let rule the day.

Thomas is coming home for a couple of days and we will have turkey and hopefully the internet will be proper and we will skype with the girls in Oxford and Wisconsin. That will be good.

And then the weekend will be over. Just like that.

But it is what you make it, right?

There will be little treats along the way. The boys will be home so we'll play a few COD or Halo games. Turkey will be served and I love turkey. Christmas Eve in the morning here we'll turn on the old BBC Radio 4 and listen to the service of Nine Lessons and Carols. We'll work on Christmas Eve but we are cancelling the service for Sunday morning so that will be appreciated. Maybe I'll get some play time in with the radio, or crank open one of the new books I've just purchased, a Nouwen or a Muller.

Lots of things to look forward to.

Mostly I think I'm looking forward to a bit of rest, and that will be good. A change of the rhythms of a busy life that can be detrimental to a good life.

So on this shortest day of the year when, before we had lights we had to quit work at dark and go to bed, I wish for you some playtime, some rest, some fun. But mostly I wish for you peace of heart whatever your week is going to hold, and the realization that peace is an internal gift of the Spirit. When the Spirit of God is welcomed into the human heart, he brings peace.

Happy shortest day of the year,
from the field.

Lauralea's Pottery Skills

2011-12-16T15:54:00.003-07:00

She is getting better and better.
Here is some of her recent work, plus a few candles. Also her creative work.

Upon a Snowy Day in the Field.

2011-12-15T12:24:00.001-07:00

Well the snow is gently falling from overcast skies as I look out my office window.
It's quiet and things look mostly like they are going to be under control for this Christmas season. Although we are new to the international mailing of gifts thing and we will have to learn the timing of those things, the girls are patient. Thankfully.

I'm working on some plans for Sunday and in an hour or two the doors of the manse will swing wide for the Open House we have each year about this time. Lauralea's been baking and making cider, and cleaning and decorating up a storm. This year she also made the dishes she's serving on, with her mad clay skills. I'll get pictures of them up as I am able. They look awesome.

But we choose to try to keep things simpler this year and so it is.

As I was working at my desk, the radio started playing one of my favourite christmas carols, Once in Royal Davids City. So on this snowy day in the field, I'll leave you with the words Mrs. Alexander wrote to tell the story, many years ago.

Once in Royal Davids city,

Stood a lowly cattle shed,

Where a mother laid her Baby,

In a manger for His bed:

Mary was that mother mild,

Jesus Christ, her little Child.

He came down to earth from heaven,

Who is God and Lord of all,

And His shelter was a stable,

And His cradle was a stall:

With the poor, and mean, and lowly,

Lived on earth our Saviour holy.

For He is our childhood's pattern;

Day by day, like us, He grew;

He was little, weak, and helpless,

Tears and smiles, like us He knew;

And He cares when we are sad,

And he shares when we are glad.

And our eyes at last shall see Him,

Through His own redeeming love;

For that Child so dear and gentle,

Is our Lord in heaven above:

And He leads His children on,

To the place where He is gone.

Mrs. C.F. Alexander (1818 - 1895)

Micah's High School Choir singing "Breath of Heaven"

2011-12-11T22:09:00.001-07:00

One of my favourite pieces.

(Here's a link to the whole song, now that it's stuck in your heads.)

Finding peace on bad days

2011-12-11T08:39:00.001-07:00

"Let my soul take refuge, beneath the shadow of Your wings: let my heart, this sea of restless waves, find peace in you O God!" - Augustine

Yes indeed. Augustines words find a home within me as I struggle to focus and prepare my heart and mind and body for the work asked of me this Sunday.

My eyes are tired and not focusing properly as they will need to when I read things in public. My psoriasis is acting up and giving me trouble which means either I'm stressed or I'm not getting enough sun or I'm drinking too much. My heart is heavy with some news that will make life difficult for a friend for a season. Some Christmas deadlines are creeping up on me that I will need to really work towards this week that will take away any day off, so there will be not much for a turn around time here this week.

Today is a full day of teaching and leading worship and preaching, you know, the usual Sunday work of a pastor. Then we need to get to town in time for the High School Christmas Concert this afternoon, then supper with field people, then home to crash.

This morning Augustines words hit home just a bit closer than usual. On mornings like this I would like to simply take refuge and hide the day away.

May my heart, on days like this when cast about on seas of restless waves, find peace in you O God.

Coldplay - Christmas Lights

2011-12-08T09:57:00.001-07:00

Coldplay - Christmas Lights by EMI_Music

It is the season for wonder.

Looks like the sun is just up here and just setting on Hillary.

2011-12-08T08:41:00.001-07:00

Hope you all in the UK didn't blow away today.

Posted via email

Time for my pastoral review tonight.

2011-12-07T21:47:00.001-07:00

Tonight amongst the youth activities and assisting Lauralea to make supper for the whole gang of them, and cleaning up, it was also time for my annual pastoral review to be completed. You need to know that the leaders in charge of it were willing to put it off a few weeks but I teased that I would prefer to know my fate before heading into the hard work of Christmas and all. So they met first and processed the data from the congregation and then I met with them so that they could go over the results with me.

Nearly every year I steel myself for surprises in those reviews, perhaps something I never saw coming sort of things. So this year was the same in that way.

It's kind of unnerving as they report that there was a higher than normal participation level from the congregation. Was it more people ticked off? More frustrated people? More people wanted to get heard about something?

Turns out it was just more people wanting to affirm me.

The list of affirmations was long and nicely repetitive. They were well thought through responses too, not shallow like some forms can produce, like "I judge a man by the shoes he wears" (yes I had that once) sort of surface answers.

No, these were very humbling observations to hear. I do work hard and I do try to work smart but sometimes in the cracks of my heart, I feel insecure and occasionally over my head in this stuff. And I wonder when they will tell me yup the game is up, you're done here so go sell vacuum cleaners.

I remember in my first year in pastoral work, my daily prayer was just "Please Lord, just don't let me screw this up." Over the years it shifted to more of a "Please don't let me screw them up," sort of prayer.

But these later years it's been more of a "Lord, keep me from temptation," sort of a prayer. There is lots to temp someone who's been involved in ministry stuff for 30 years. Temptation to check out spiritually and run on momentum only. Temptation to get angry and bitter about the petty stuff and walk away, or worse, stay in a church. Temptation to settle, to loose the fire in the heart. Yeah, all kinds of temptations.

For me it's just humbling to hear what they think about what I am doing and who I am.

This bunch have come a long long way in a very few short years, but that's more about what God's been doing in them than what I've been doing here. I just get to be here with them for now, and to point them to The One who knows what they need, deep inside.

Oh and the growth areas they saw needing attention in my life?

Well one thought I needed to stop cheering for the Riders, so I reported back to the others that I hadn't made much noise about the Riders this failing year, had I?

:)

The others were concerned for my health and that I take time for myself and my spirit to be in good places. They saw and appreciated the need for more staff here, so that I could get on with the things I'm good at. Even in my growth areas they were affirming.

See, like I said gracious field people here.

So for now I will take that as an indication from the body of Christ that meets here in a field in Malmo that I am to continue in this work to which I have been called, until He chooses to move me on, up or over.

Tomorrow is another full day so I'm heading home and to bed.

Night from the field.

When I need a little Norah

2011-12-07T13:07:00.001-07:00

This little video has a permanent place on my desktop and when I need a little bit of Norah, I just click Play.It always makes me smile.

Ham I am

2011-12-05T23:10:00.001-07:00

In 1987 we were about to have a baby, and I was working full time at Canadian Tire, and I was or we were, lay ministers in the local Mennonite church of 400. Each and every one of these was a full time job, sort of activity, but I wanted to add to that the dream I'd held for many years, of getting my Amateur Radio license.

I started to study, but a lack of funds and a real lack of time encouraged me to lay aside that dream for a while.

Fast forward to last year when we found ourselves living in a field and most of our kids had moved on, and I needed a way to connect with a community beyond the blessed field people. It turned out that there were some Ham radio people in the congregation here and so I began to wonder and think and dust off an old dream of mine.

Yes, that old dream.

So last year I began to study when I had free time, so you know that those available moments ended up being too few and far between.

This year Andy, VE6KP and Randy, VE6RND from the church here encouraged me and checked on me just enough to keep me studying and that was a big help for me.

Then during my autumn holiday it was one of my goals to focus on studying the material so that I could maybe, perhaps, take the exam sometime this winter.

Andy got me the name of a Examiner down in Red Deer and today I met up with him at his home and I took the test. It was 100 multiple choice questions, and I was as nervous as I've been in a long time. After 45 minutes he came in and started through my answers.

No bad circles on the first ten questions, then there was one in the second ten, and so the tension inside me grew. He circled three more wrong answers and looked up at me and declared that I had passed, with honours. 96%.

Passing with honours allows me access to all the Ham bands, which was what I was after, but 96% was above and beyond my hopes and maybe even my dreams of 24 years.

So he filled in the paperwork and emailed it off and now I will wait for Industry Canada to send me my license and my call sign, hot off the press.

Another goal reached in my life and it makes me smile.

Why do we look for a saviour with the eyes of the world?

2011-12-04T09:27:00.001-07:00

"A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom. The spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him . . ." (Isa.11:1-2).

...Our salvation comes from something small, tender, and vulnerable, something hardly noticeable. God, who is the Creator of the Universe, comes to us in smallness, weakness, and hiddenness.

I find this a hopeful message. Somehow, I keep expecting loud and impressive events to convince me and others of God's saving power; but over and over again I am reminded that spectacles, power plays, and big events are the ways of the world. Our temptation is to be distracted by them and made blind to the "shoot that shall sprout from the stump."

The small child of Bethlehem, the unknown young man of Nazareth, the rejected preacher, the naked man on the cross, he asks for my full attention. The work of our salvation takes place in the midst of a world that continues to shout, scream, and overwhelm us with its claims and promises. But the promise is hidden in the shoot that sprouts from the stump, a shoot that hardly anyone notices.

Henri J.M. Nouwen. - iGracias! - A Latin American Journal

Seasons Change

2011-12-01T10:36:00.001-07:00

Seasons Change

As I sit here in my office early on this Tuesday morning my window looks out towards the house and behind it the eastern sky is starting to lighten up. It’s quite beautiful and amazing.

I notice some dark moving shadows near the house and I look up to get a better view. It looks like there are about eight Mule deer having a munch on grass and mingling around.

Beautiful, graceful animals. Mostly small and maybe not even a year old. They are preparing for winter, searching for the choice foods they will need to build up their strength I imagine. Then just as suddenly as they arrived, they leave. The smallest one lagging behind.

The rhythms of life are intricately connected here on this earth, and they feel even more tied together here in this field. Winter is coming, so preparations are being made. Equipment is being placed into storage, poultry are being sent to market, cattle are being shipped or moved to winter homes. And the land is allowed to rest.

Rest. Hibernation. Winter brings that to us in different ways, at least here on the Canadian prairies. We are forced by the coming rhythm of winter, to change gears, downshift, conserve energy, rest. And that is a good thing.

I don’t know who we would be if we didn’t have winter. I suspect choosing to rest if it wasn’t forced upon us might be difficult. Rest might even be seen as a weakness, and if our neighbours didn’t rest, then probably neither would we.

So we are forced, by the plans of God and the grace of the land, to rest. If we decide not to slow down, then that’s our choice. Sometimes the land and the rhythms of life God has given us, are smarter than we are, and if we are teachable we will learn a thing or two about seasons of rest.

Learning to live well in that balance is a secret to life that not all people understand. Whether you are a high stakes banker living in the glass towers of the big city, or a farmer working the land. There are things about the balanced life that we need to learn, so that our lives too will be blessed in ways that give us life.

The season of Advent does that for us too. Its a season in the Christian church when we pause to consider and remember the coming of Christ so many years ago, and to remind one another that he is coming again, triumphantly.

It's all too easy to get caught up in the rush and madness of trying to meet this worlds Christmas expectations. Then, just as the Christmas rush begins, Advent comes and reminds us of the true meaning of Christmas. We are reminded that Christ came into this world, not to visit, but to become one of us. To put on skin and show us what love really means.

That's what Advent and Christmas is all about.

Its a time to shift gears and slow down, to remember what is important in this Christmas season.

So take some time this Advent to consider what Christ has done for you, and how you need to respond and live.

Blessings.

Many have said this, in many different ways,

2011-11-30T14:30:00.001-07:00

Everything we run away from has power over us; everything we go through, we conquer.

J. Meyer

Tired

2011-11-29T22:00:00.001-07:00

Tired

The body aches
The mind is numb
Bed. To the shower and then to bed.
Tired.
The spirit, scattered
The calendar, full
A prayer for strength
For tomorrow
For the souls who will need grace and love from me.
And for me who will need grace and love from their souls.
Bed.
Sleep.
Mercy.

Sledge Hockey

2011-11-28T13:00:00.001-07:00

So Micah joined the church sledge hockey team and is off and sliding with number 94.
Last week was their first game which they lost by only one point.

Last year they won the title, so there is reason to hope this year will be fun.

First day back and trust.

2011-11-27T22:48:00.001-07:00

It was a good morning back at church today.
It's always good to have a break from that up front work and preaching and teaching and leading stuff, to sit and ponder and worship and think of new or different, (read: better) ways to share worship together.

There are so many different aspects of worship that one can explore with a trusting congregation.

Perhaps that is the delight about who we are becoming. We are becoming a trusting group. That indicates health, and communication. Owning when you fail and no bait and switch tricks.

The youth are always the first to pick up on that stuff. If they smell dishonesty or a lack of integrity, they will push against it. If they sense that the pastor or leaders are a bit manipulative in the course of accomplishing their own agenda, the kids will often know that. They have good discernment skills without yet having grown the skills to squelch that knowledge.

Yeah, it was good to be back.
Good to reconnect with the local body.

Now, into week one of Advent.

Saturday evening prayers

2011-11-26T22:43:00.001-07:00

The words were appropriate tonight as Lauralea and I prayed together.
Maybe there are some words here to offer you comfort this night.
Join us in prayer...

I will wait for the Lord.
My soul waits,
and in His worddo I hope.

Lord, You have always givenbread for the coming day;
and though I am poor,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always givenstrength for the coming day;
and though I am weak,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always givenpeace for the coming day;
and though of anxious heart,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always keptme safe in trials;
and now, tried as I am,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always markedthe road for the coming day;
and though it may be hidden,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always lightenedthis darkness of mine;
and though the night is here,
today I believe.

Lord, You have always spokenwhen time was ripe;
and though you be silent now,
today I believe.

(Northumbria Community)

"I am a simple preacher"

2011-11-25T21:57:00.001-07:00

I wrote that today while I was in a used bookshop looking for a good poetry book and that thought just descended on me. It was like an epiphany almost, I am a simple preacher. Or perhaps it was more like, I'm simply a preacher. That's all, that's it.

I'm not sure if it's a Randall thing or a guy thing or a human thing that sometimes drives me to be more than I am or to do more than I'm doing with my life. You know? I sometimes make myself crazy when I get to thinking that I need to be more or do more or get more accomplished with my life.

Then a sign drops while I'm standing in a bookstore that declares that I am nothing but a simple preacher and quit trying to be more because it's not gonna work anyway.

I gotta say, it's humbling. But its not disheartening or overwhelming.

There is some level of peace and rest in that simple truth, that this is what it is I am and was always called to be. If I can have internal peace with it.

I think the epiphany about it is that my attitude has always been "I'm just doing this pastoring thing till something better comes along." I've used that language with people as a way of saying I'll do this until God, who led me into it, leads me out of it.

But it's also maybe created in me a beneath the surface activity of looking for the other thing or the more thing that I could do, instead of or along with being a pastor.

Always striving, always trying, always looking to spin who I am, to create more value or meaning. Then a sign comes to remind me that I am simply a preacher, that's enough.

That's enough indeed.
Now to learn to live into that, and to live well.

A Poem, sent by Hillary...

2011-11-23T19:08:00.001-07:00

I Am! yet what I am who cares, or knows?
My friends forsake me like a memory lost,
I am the self-consumer of my woes;
They rise and vanish, an oblivious host,
Shadows of life, whose very soul is lost.
And yet I am- I live -though I am toss'd
Into the nothingness of scorn and noise,
Into the living sea of waking dream,
Where there is neither sense of life, nor joys,
But the huge shipwreck of my own esteem
And all that's dear. Even those I loved the best
Are strange - nay, they are stranger than the rest.
I long for scenes where man has never trod-
For scenes where woman never smiled or wept-
There to abide with my Creator, God,
And sleep as I in childhood sweetly slept,
Full of high thoughts, unborn. So let me lie,-
The grass below; above, the vaulted sky.

John Clare (1793-1864)

I think she's lonely.

And we're back

2011-11-22T14:51:00.001-07:00

With my head on a bit straighter and for the most part my soul caught up with my body, ready to remind myself when I need rest, ready to work hard and work wisely, ready for what comes up in the next phone call...

Snap. First hours back in the saddle and we are into a couple of gut wrenching situations a few different families are going through.

It was a good break, and it's really good to be back at work, and it's really, really good that I can say that with honesty. I'm going to need that as we head into Advent here this weekend. It always seems like Advent and Christmas take the life right out of me, and I have come to brace myself for the season, rather than to embrace the season, and I wish that were different.

However, maybe with this rest recently behind me, I can enter into Advent with a little more, um, Hope.

We shall see.

Anyway, we are back at it.
Many reply emails shall be forthcoming.

Peace to your souls too.

looking for the good

2011-11-18T16:52:00.001-07:00

The temperature is dropping as I am sitting in the sun room and the sun has never really materialized this afternoon here in the field. So my fingers are cooling off at a good pace. It seems, dear reader, that winter may indeed be here for solid.

Its days like this when I think of friends or family who live in warmer climates and I wonder what life may have been like "If only." If only we'd been born or raised or educated in a warmer climate, without mosquitoes too.

It takes a few mental games to get yourself ready for the onslaught of Winter. Mental processes needed to get you safely from one location to another. Warm clothing to rescue from the front closet where they have rested since last spring. Extra gear to put in the car so you are ready for any emergency because as a Canadian wouldn't it be embarrassing to die of a wrong decision when your car hit the ditch in a winter storm.

But rather than whine today, let us search for the positive. It's been a good vacation these past 10 days, most of which have been snow free. Smooth classics is playing on Classic FM and that is a fine comforting friend for any day, especially cold, snow filled ones. We have a warm house to live in, and someone came and pushed the snow aside so hopefully I'll be able to get the car out tomorrow morning when it's minus 25C. Thomas is on the way home for the weekend and Lauralea is making meatloaf. And my averages for my practice tests for my Amateur Radio test have been in the 85 percent range and I need at least 80.

So you see there are many reasons to celebrate the day, as opposed to complaining about and fighting the rhythms of the earth moving around the Sun.

Even if the low temps by tomorrow are suppose to be at -29C...

Winter comes to the field.

2011-11-17T14:43:00.001-07:00

Nasty day out there.

Posted via email

It's coming.

2011-11-12T10:18:00.001-07:00

Posted via email

Tonight it feels like winter is moving in

2011-11-10T23:56:00.001-07:00

Tonight it feels like winter is moving in, lock stock, and barrel.

Today was a beautiful day in Edmonton, certainly warm enough for just my sweater. And there were an abnormal amount of motorcyclists out there for November 10th.

But alas tonight there is a freezing rain warning out, and a threat of 5-10 cm of snow falling tomorrow. So, that's a nice foundation of ice, and then it's going to dump snow on top of all that lovely ice. You know what that makes? Me very cranky.

I know it has to come, but it's that initial shock to the system that for me is tough to handle. Especially with a week of vacation left.

I also know that many of you have already faced the grim grip of winters icy hold on you and so you have little pity for me. But remember, tomorrow I have a son driving to town to sing in a concert with a car with rear wheel drive, who hasn't done much winter driving at all. Connect the dots and you'll see that tomorrow has the potential to be a stressful day.

But today was good. A little bit of hospital visitation, a great Vietnamese lunch, some bookstore snooping, a seasonal spiced latte from Starbucks, and tonight a bit more studying. All in all a very good day, which is great because tomorrow is going to be a mess.

Old man winter is moving in.

Today I doubt

2011-11-05T13:40:00.002-06:00

Today I doubt.

Just one of those days, you know?

Don’t want to be at work. Don’t want to chase down these flies that make my office sound like an outhouse. Don’t want to cough up phlegm any more. Don’t want to be sick any more. Don’t want winter to come before I get the windows cleaned. Don’t want to complain.

Sometimes, like today, I doubt. I doubt that what I have prepared this week to talk with the people about tomorrow will be of any lasting value. I doubt that my class I’m teaching in the morning will be of any help to a gang of Jr. Highs. I doubt that the love I have won’t be enough.

Today is just a doubting day.

If I’m not careful, that can lead to despair. Why am I here. What do I think I’m doing. I miss my family. I’ve got old peoples diseases. What was God thinking.

Yeah, if I’m not careful it can go there.

I have to believe that this takes place occasionally to those of us in this line of work. I mean, this happens to thousands of people anywhere on any given day, heck it used to happen to me when I worked making pizzas for a living too. It’s just that with this it’s not just pizzas that suffer, it’s real people with real spirits and souls and relationships. I feel a great deal of responsibility for those I have been given to watch over and care for, spiritually speaking.

So maybe it’s ok to acknowledge that today I doubt, and maybe it’s alright to not let it move into despair. Maybe even in naming it there is a measure of deliverance and help.

Even as I continue to plod through a hard day there is comfort in prayer and a sliver of hope that tomorrow may be better. After all, haven’t I found it to be true that God has more room to move and act through me, when I am weak and doubtful?

Yes it is true. But today I doubt.

Of health and trousers that fall down.

2011-11-04T11:04:00.001-06:00

I am in my office today, the first full day this week that dosen't have me travelling elsewhere to meet different people and committees, and it just happens to be snowing outside. November 4th and it's the first snow of the 2011 season. So it feels cosy in here and the work I need to complete today is manageable, especially as I have tomorrow to finish it as well.

I think that four posts in a month is a new low for me, but there have been circumstances trust me, extenuating circumstances.

Getting the Autumn activities up and running for the church, and being in meetings and projects to hire new staff for here, working on a preaching series, and keeping up with people, my Jr. High confirmation/Discipleship class, and killing stupid flies, lots of stupid flies, well that's all been very busy.

But the theme of this month for me has been my sickness. Flu and cold like symptoms, with an evolving cough. Ongoing aches and pains in the muscles and joints, sleeplessness, loss of appetite, yeah it's felt like the flu for a whole month.

Last week I went to the Doctor finally, and since I was a walk-in, my regular doctor wasn't there. The doctor I saw was on top of his game, really sharp. Checking me over, asking me questions, before he came up with his pronouncement. No flu, no cold.

No, it seems that at my tender age of 48 that I now have Asthma, and that this infection I now have in my lungs was brought on by an allergic reaction of some sort, which kicked in, or is a result of the asthma.

Then he diagnosed a autoimmune disease I've struggled with for a few years, but in the past year has been much more of a problem for me. While these sorts of things are not rare, they are made worse by infections and allergic reactions and in many people, the symptoms can be tiredness, muscle aches and low fever. If it continues to progress it could lead to some serious health problems down the road.

It all makes some good sense in terms of how I've been feeling and fighting and dragging my butt around for the past month. And it's really good to have identified some ongoing problems I've been having yet wondering what those things could be about.

So now, like many ten year old boys, I am equipped with a puffer which I am to use twice, morning and night. And I am taking some horse sized pills to deal with the infection. I am instructed to get more sun on my skin and I am instructed to cut down on the stressful stuff. Right.

As with many men I tend to ignore health issues and declare that they will go away in time and just give it some more time and see I'm pretty much indestructible. But as with every man who ever said that, I am not. I do think it's pretty great that I don't have worse health problems and that except for a few hiccups in my younger years, it's been pretty smooth sailing.

I don't want to be defined by my health issues, so I often won't talk about them, which could be seen as denial I suppose. But even as I creak and groan around the place I am open to talking about these things. That's also a reason I've included it here on my blog. They are a part of life, and death, and beneath it all they remind me that we are all going to die, even me. While I am on this side of death I am going to make intentional choices about my existence as I grow in relationship with creator God, and his rescuer son, Jesus.

There is some good news with this all too. For the past few days it's felt like my pants are always having to be yanked up because they feel like they are falling down so this morning I got out the scale and it turnes out I am 10 pounds lighter in the weight department. Sweet.

See, a silver lining...

hanging on for the ride

2011-10-27T12:02:00.001-06:00

Disease in the form of cough, flu, fever, chills, loss of voice, etc etc, continue to haunt the friesen household. I am nearing the completion of week two with this thing inflicting itself on my person. And now it seems as though Lauralea has joined the ranks of the sick here.

It's been here just at the same time that work is so incredibly busy and there is so much to do. That has been reflected in my absence here, that is very true.

So between meetings and appointments and work things, I run home and grab a nap or cough meds or some such things to help me get through the day. Then I reach a day where I feel great and get up and going and then the next day, thwap on the back of the head, it's back.

Today is a very full day, and then get my mom from the big city who is coming to visit, and parent/teacher meetings tonight, then tomorrow, and on it goes.

We are starting to book our last two weeks of holidays for November and hopefully that can help us settle down a bit. This isn't great for the body or the soul.

Off to the Senior Bible Study.

Take care, from the field.

A spa night for the soul?

2011-10-22T16:11:00.000-06:00

Somehow, I'm not sure how I managed to do it, but somehow last night I slept for ten hours straight. Ten hours without a turn or a wake. Without bathroom break or phone waking me or Lauralea getting up and down multiple times. Ten hours. I can't recall the last time...

Mind you I have been fighting the flu and cold and aches all week, but I thought I had begun to win that battle. I guess I just needed ten hours of sleep.

Classic FM is playing it's Smooth Classics programme while I work here in the office, getting things ready for tomorrow, for Sunday. And since I'm talking on Rest tomorrow, I'm mellowing out nicely here, between the soft music, the dark room, and the clouds and thunder rolling in from the north.

Maybe my body just needed ten hours of uninterrupted sleep.
Maybe my soul does too.

Tonight Lauralea is off to a birthday party for a friend, and Micah is off to a hockey practice, so it's a very rare home alone night for me. I threatened them that I would indulge in a spa night with a long bath and candles and large glass of wine. That image is still stuck in their heads.

But it is rare quiet evening around the field, so I expect to take some time for my soul.

What does that look like? Probably write some letters, with the radio playing some quiet music that makes my heart sing. Open a bottle of some nice christmas gift, and as led I'll be praying for a few of the people who are on my heart today and this week.

A quiet night, with room for my soul to catch up after a difficult week.

You have to take care of your soul just like you take care of your body.
So maybe tonight it's my souls turn to catch up with my body.

You take care of yours too.

Photos from our Banff retreat last week and no I don't beat my wife

2011-10-13T17:05:00.001-06:00

Thursdays are like Youth Night Hangover Days

2011-10-13T11:08:00.000-06:00

I am here today, here as in my office. Seems like I have three days of work to do and one day to fit it all in, so today I am here.

Wednesdays with the youth is a lot of fun and life, and the thirty plus kids we've been having for supper and games and study, well that's a bit of alright. Of course Thursday mornings the eyes take a while to focus and clear and sort out life. It's good to be with them.

Tomorrow is to be at a funeral in another city and tomorrow night is date night with Lauralea. Saturday is about meeting with a young man sorting out his life, and final work for Sunday.

So there you have it then. The week is sorted out.

Of course I didn't mention the most difficult work scheduled for this week, saying good bye to little Norah and her mom and dad.

But for now, on to three days of work.

Someone Like You

2011-10-11T19:29:00.001-06:00

I think that one of life's most gracing gifts is a relationship with another soul who knows you well.

and I think that one of life's deepest pains is rejection.

It's all about others then I suspect.

Stopping for a picnic

2011-10-05T14:35:00.001-06:00

Banff Alberta.

Posted via email

Changes and a scattered family

2011-10-03T22:46:00.001-06:00

Tonight at supper Lauralea and I were talking and remembering the years she stayed home with our young children, while I would head off to meetings in distant places. It was a decision we made together, and it was a part of our reality.

These days it's more often that she comes along because the kids are well on their way to being adults with lives of their own. In fact, we noted that tonight our kids are in The Field, Vancouver, Montreal, the USA, and Oxford England. I don't think they've ever been so scattered.

Their travel is about meetings and education, and moving. It seems that they are not held back by borders or small things like countries. Amazing.

Yup, we've come a long way in the past twenty years.

Location:Banff Ave,Banff,Canada

Retreating

2011-10-03T09:17:00.002-06:00

And so with family now scattered temporarily across Canada, the USA, and now England, the house sitters are in place and Lauralea and I are off to Banff for the Pastors and Spouse Retreat.

Feels as always, a bit rushed for a retreat, but we will go and look for Christ in Banff.

I'm sure he is there. Hopefully he has some time for me.
Or shall I write that hopefully I have time for Him.

Peace/
for you and for me.

Well she's over halfway there.

2011-10-01T19:40:00.001-06:00

We got Hillary to the airport in Calgary today and really everything went smoothly. Now I see she's over Greenland and over halfway to Gatwick.

Hope it continues to go well.

Posted via email

Strange Autumn

2011-09-30T15:59:00.001-06:00

It is a beautiful day here in the field, or at least near by the field where Lauralea and I were this morning. We took a few moments to walk and clear the air, and the air was clear and smelled of decomposing leaves, a most beautiful smell reminding me of Halloween oddly.

Tomorrow our second child Hillary, is off to Oxford for the year. She will be living in community with a group of Church of England Sisters, learning the rhythms of life and helping out in the communities they serve there. I believe it's a hospice and elder care home. Anyway tomorrow she begins to achieve what she's been asking for since she was about 16. Travel, serve, care, grow, and though she may not realize it, community. We will miss her lots and Lauralea's game opponent will be far far away. It will also be a good year for her, probably life shaping I suppose, I hope. Yep, we will miss her lots.

Our eldest daughter, Johanna is with us for a few days, with The Best Granddaughter Ever, (hereby known as TBGE) Norah, with her. Her dad is on the road someplace in the hinterlands of Wisconsin where they all will be moving in too short a time.

So you can see, changes are afoot, which will require more walks to clear the air, and rediscover who herself and I are with our daughters so far away from us. To say nothing of TBGE.

Thomas is coming up for supper tonight and Micah should be home from school soon so we'll have one last meal together, at least as together as we can be with one family member missing and still on the road. Hopefully Nate reaches their new home soon.

I am excited for them all more than I am depressed that they are moving far away, but it will be interesting to see how it all goes. How they'll all go, and how we'll all go,

here in the field.

Guess who's here!!

2011-09-28T20:50:00.002-06:00

Visiting for a few days.

Getting some baby Norah love.

Endings or Beginnings?

2011-09-28T16:59:00.001-06:00

I've been walking lately with a friend who is going to die any day now. She knows that her time is nearly done and her health is such that the Doctors have said there is no more to be done but to get ready, so she is getting ready.

It's always kinda been my contention that as christians age we should actually be looking more and more like Jesus, God's son. Like works of art in progress. That's because we have more time on the earth, and God has more time to work in us, to conform us to the image of his son, if we are willing.

Sadly many elderly people I know are not getting better. It's because you're working against gravity and time and this little three letter word, sin, I suppose. Life can be really tough sometimes and the things that you experience can make you angry or bitter or unbelieving. And so you go on, a little bit worse.

Then there are those like my friend who, in the best sense of the word, is a work of art. With grace and humility and an utter dependance on the lord, she faces each new day as a gift of love.

Today we were talking about her going home home, and she said she wanted me to be there leading the day, which I am glad to have a part in. So I teased her that I had saved an extra special funeral just for her, and she laughed hard, then became quite serious as she said, "Oh make sure I don't get the glory in it ok?" Make sure I don't get glorified and honoured and put up on a pedestal. Ok?

I knew what she meant, what she wanted.

Life can be a most blessed thing when we are servants and followers of an expert craftsman. When we obey and follow and listen to the One who has our lives in his hands. Life can be a most blessed thing, if we are willing.

Being willing involves laying down our lives, inviting Jesus to be our leader, our head, and following him to the ends of the earth, and the ends of our days.

And I suppose that's exactly what she's doing there in that little room of hers. Letting God shape her and form her so that she more and more looks like the one she follows after, Jesus Christ.

The morning arrives a bit later each day

2011-09-27T08:30:00.001-06:00

Posted via email

Living with difficult people

2011-09-24T14:05:00.000-06:00

This is another part in our exploration of living life in community.

It's usually easy to live with people who are nice and quiet and helpful and loving and who don't eat loud or have smelly feet. Unfortunately that just describes two dimensional paper dolls.

Life and community can't be lived with just paper friends who don't ever offend or hurt you. If you are going to connect at deeper levels, you're going to have to learn what to do when sometimes they are difficult to live with.

Here we explore what it means to get the greater blessing, even when living with, pardon my french, "Stupid People" or people who are just going through a "stupid" phase.

Take a listen.

http://randallfriesen.com/sermons/Living%20with%20difficult%20people%2064.mp3

The fields are full unto harvest.

2011-09-22T17:35:00.001-06:00

Posted via email

Oh for a lump of sugar.

2011-09-20T19:26:00.001-06:00

Posted via email

Made for Community

2011-09-17T21:07:00.000-06:00

I think that if I were to recognize one sort of overarching theme of my life's work, I think it would have to be how passionate I am about community and especially the church as community.

It's amazingly driven into my whole being that we were not made to be alone, and until we can somehow become a part of a community that can know us, and whom we trust and respect and can be vulnerable and intimate with, I think we will just skim along the surfaces of life.

So it's talks like these that get me going.

Here is a talk I gave last Sunday, September 11, 2011 about how we were made to be a part of community.

Remember, the context here is unique and so the references and jokes may not fit where you are, but I hope it just gives you pause to think about the communities you are involved in.

Here is the link. (50 extra points to whomever gets the SNL reference.)

Made for Community

Groan

2011-09-15T23:12:00.001-06:00

Posted via email

How to make your Captain Crunch Cereal last longer

2011-09-14T13:16:00.001-06:00

So in Canada we only have one variety of Captain Crunch, and that's plain. When I get to the states I stock up on peanut butter flavor and berry flavor. Then I mix the two when it's time to eat. It's a Made in Canada solution.

Posted via email

Life is Movement

2011-09-08T23:55:00.001-06:00

Life is movement.
On any given day,
with any given decision
we are moving towards God
or we are moving away from God.

With our thoughts and our time
with our choices and our money
with our energy and our resources
we are moving towards God
or we are moving away from God.

And some days we might ask
where is the choice?
where is the decision
to move in either direction?

But it’s in the subtle small affairs of the heart
its in the choice to listen, or in the choice to drown out
it’s in the choice to serve the one close to you
or the choice to serve oneself
it’s in the willingness to call out for help
or the hearts desire to suffer alone

We all move closer to Christ
or we move away from him.
Towards the cross
or away from it, rejecting its hope

And in that daily movement
we either push away the life and grace and freedom and confidence
or we receive them all, as gifts we could not create ourselves
because in the humility of being needy
we are able to receive them all

As we move towards God
or
as we move away from God

Two milestones in one day

2011-09-06T17:00:00.000-06:00

Well today was one of those days when your kid seems to zoom ahead in a couple of different areas and you want to celebrate his successes, and you also want to celebrate your successes as parents.

Today was one of those days for us all here.

This was Micah's first day of grade 12, his last year of public school education. As we have done for many of the school years, we snapped a picture as he was ready to head out the door.

(Top picture taken today, bottom picture taken during his first day of school, Grade One, or Kindergarten. Front, left.)

It's kinda hard to believe that we are old enough for our last child to be into his last year of school. It's also just a really surprising thing to think that we are making it through life at an amazing rate of speed. I remember the long evenings sitting with the kids on the couch, reading their "Learning To Read" books. Good memories.

But as if that wasn't enough, Micah was booked to take his Drivers License road test this afternoon. He was nervous but when he returned to the driver testing centre he excitedly reported a passing grade. Good job and woo hoo and thanks be to God.

When I think of those times when I've sat in those waiting rooms, waiting and praying for the kids out on their tests, and how stressful those times were even for the parents, well I'm glad they are all accomplished drivers now.

Today was a resoundingly successful day for Micah, but Lauralea and I are wallowing in it a bit as well.

:)

Let Evening Come

2011-08-27T11:38:00.002-06:00

Let Evening Come

Let the light of late afternoon
shine through chinks in the barn, moving
up the bales as the sun moves down.

Let the cricket take up chafing
as a woman takes up her needles
and her yarn. Let evening come.

Let dew collect on the hoe abandoned
in long grass. Let the stars appear
and the moon disclose her silver horn.

Let the fox go back to its sandy den.
Let the wind die down. Let the shed
go black inside. Let evening come.

To the bottle in the ditch, to the scoop
in the oats, to air in the lung
let evening come.

Let it come, as it will, and don’t
be afraid. God does not leave us
comfortless, so let evening come.

BY JANE KENYON

A tricky summer

2011-08-25T21:19:00.001-06:00

I'm still here. When I wake in the early morning and the light from the windows is darker and darker, it feels like the summer is planing a hasty retreat. The night breezes from the window are cool too, so it is coming. Still it feels like not all summer things were accomplished.

Mostly it's been this cold/flu thing that Lauralea and I have been sharing. It tore a strip off our holidays, and we've just not been up to speed since then.

A large piece of my energy this week has been about the death of one of our elderly people. The family, the funeral, arrangements, words, language, visits. It's been a big effort, again I suppose because we are running on half full.

Evening meetings are starting to increase too, which is another sign of autumn coming. Getting the youth program up to speed, getting my Sunday School class of classy Junior Highs ready to go, and I'm working on a series for autumn that I want us to explore a bit on what whole life stewardship really means out here in the land of the big skies.

I'm kinda nervous too. That's a lot of things going on at a time when I have been discovering that I need to simplify things in life. To be able to do a few things well rather than 20 things so so. It is difficult to refuse opportunities especially when opportunities equals people. I am regularly overwhelmed by the needs presented by people and their hurting hearts. No I don't fix them, but I can walk alongside them and provide care, and love.

No I'm still here, struggling along towards eternity, hopefully in ways that encourage and challenge people.

Tomorrow is our big community VBS Fair where we welcome kids and then their parents for a day of bible lessons, crafts, snacks, bouncy castle, cotton candy, and BBQ supper. Then I've got to drive out to camp to get Micah. He's all done camp tomorrow.

So I should get a bit ready for that yet.

Night.

From the field.

26 years ago today, Lauralea and I were married

2011-08-17T23:04:00.001-06:00

For all my perfectionist tendencies, and all my eldest child efforts, she's taught me the most about grace.

And I am blessed to the core of my being.
Amazing indeed.

Amazing grace
How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I'm found
Was blind, but now I see
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed
My chains are gone
I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy rains
Unending love, Amazing grace
The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be
As long as life endures
My chains are gone
I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy rains
Unending love, Amazing grace
The earth shall soon dissolve like snow
The sun forbear to shine
But God, Who called me here below
Will be forever mine
Will be forever mine
You are forever mine

Neeeearrrrly back in the saddle.

2011-08-17T13:04:00.001-06:00

Returning to work after vacation always reminds me of the first new days of school in Autumn. I've got my new shoes and trousers, my pencils are sharp and ready to go, and I have a fresh stack of paper.

I usually take the fresh opportunity to promise herself that I will indeed start taking proper time for lunch, and that yes, I will start eating breakfast. These Academic New Years resolutions usually last about a week, then I tend to fall back into old ways, just like the January 1 resoluters do.

I take time to set the autumn calendar and chart the course for Sundays, and other things I feel we need to look at during the year. It all feels fresh and hopeful, like a new desk in grade 4, or new binders for foolscap in high school.

This year I'm nearly there. I want to be there and I can feel its just around the corner. But I am surrounded here in my office with new and used tissue, a resilient cough, runny nose, and some remaining muscle pain. This flu is not going gently into that good night.

I promised herself that I would work until it got to be too much, then I'd have a bit of a nap, then get back at it.

I am excited about autumn here though. Hopefully we can see the second staff member position filled sometime soon and that will allow me to return to the things I really can be better at. The thought of that does energize me. Although the thought of the process of getting that staff person in place, is a bit of a chore.

The break allows me to step back and review and take stock and refocus and remember what it is about this gig that I like. So that's what it feels like right now.

And some of the people here are going through tough patches and I want to be available to help and pray and be present for them.

So here we go, starting on a new year here in the field. Wonder what this one will hold.

Stay tuned.

Notes from the edge (of my sickbed)

2011-08-15T23:08:00.001-06:00

As I write this I am safely, warmly settled in bed with acetaminophen near by and kleenx, new and used, surrounding my head like a halo. Her own sick self is following behind me and we will settle in for a fifteen hour stretch of up and down, on and off sleep.

We drag ourselves out of bed around 1:30 pm because it's crazy to be in bed all day on your vacation. Then we check on each other, comparing symptoms, pains, meds used to date, etc. It seems like Lauralea is about a day ahead of me in this journey, symptomwise.

Which, by the way, is kinda fun having a sick buddy when you're sick.

Where was I, oh yes so we get up and schlep around, making some eggs and cereal to eat, and that's our big meal for the day.

We wash up and decide to watch a movie, whatever's on the TV because we fade in and out of conscious during it so you don't want something that needs a big commitment. Today it was Bruce Almighty, a very well written film, and that's not the cough medicine talking.

Then a nap is in order, and a sandwich, and before you know it, it's time to get ready for bed again. Shower, set out the meds for the night, you know the routine.

What a basket case we are, or should that be a set of basket cases...

Through the day we get txts from the kids who are all far away or they'd have to take care of us. :)

Micahs still at camp, Thomas is on his own in Calgary with a new job, Hillary is painting houses in Saskatoon, and Johanna & Nate are in BC mid move.

This is starting to ramble more than ever, probably due to the meds, so I should go to sleep. Tomorrow afternoon is gonna come early enough as it is.

Night.

A Day in the City

2011-08-11T22:52:00.000-06:00

Holidays Start Tomorrow

2011-08-02T22:40:00.001-06:00

Yes they do.

Holidays that is.
Start, I mean.

Tomorrow starts our holidays and I am in well need of them by now.
Really tired tonight, should be in bed but I'm just getting some things done for the day, then I'm off.

Right now I'm just trying to make the internet work a bit to get some info I need downloaded.

But tomorrow, yep, holidays.

I think I shall try to sleep in a bit. Just a bit. Not enough to make Herself jealous mind you.

Then, perhaps listen to some Proms coming live from BBC Radio 3 and a cool drink. That would be nice.

Herself has a Doctor appointment tomorrow morning, so I shall be left to my own devices, at least initially.

But yes, two weeks of, not this.

Night.

Just an update on a beautiful July friday afternoon.

2011-07-29T15:08:00.000-06:00

It's a glorious Friday afternoon in July and I am in my office doing paperwork, reports, and getting ready to give a workshop tomorrow out at Family Camp. I'm not complaining mind you. The temperature in my office, which is the hottest place in the building in summer, is probably a balmy 22 C, which is just right as far as I am concerned. The other reason I'm not complaining is that we start our holidays next week and boy let me tell you that we are in need of a holiday. It's only been during the last week and a half when things have finally stopped for us that I've realized how busy we had been. I tell you these past 10 days have been quite a pleasant shift and I find myself getting more human again.

The camp/bedbugs/Micah stress caused a bit of a jump in the crazy levels, but hopefully things are settled down now and returning to some sense of normal. I'm still hoping and praying that the little blighters didn't make any transfer moves to the house. That would really mess up the summer in so many ways. I don't even want to think about it. We did our best and thats all we can do really.

Now on to this workshop. We are giving some training on Spiritual Direction and showing people what it's like. The best way to do that is to do a real-play situation that shows what a meeting can be like. I have volunteered to be the person seeking direction, and so it could be a little vulnerable, but I think that can also mean it will be good, in a helpful sort of way. People can identify easier if they see someone else in the same place they are, and perhaps get some support or help.

Oh and it looks like the internet might be back on here, after a week of on and off and mostly off or very little speed. That's meant some delayed emails and meetings via skype etc. but as of this afternoon tower radios are being changed and access is returning nicely.

Now if only the stubbornheads in Washington would sort out their issues...

Then the storm came.

2011-07-26T17:47:00.002-06:00

The clouds were all wavy underneath this morning as I left for town around 6 am.

It was beautiful. Then the storm came.

Micah's Home

2011-07-24T21:24:00.001-06:00

Well at least for a week or so, from camp. He was doing the Senior Counsellor thing at camp this summer, and after one week it sounds like the bugs who live in beds made a showing. A number of the leaders have spots but his were the worst, and though I've seen those kinds of bites before, I've never seen them so abundant.

So camp this week has been postponed till we can get it cleared up. And here on the home front we are on the offensive, giving everything he had with him, the washing and heat treatment. Oh and prayer treatment, lots of that, so that things won't be transferred here.

So the boy is home for the week, and that after the first camp went so well. Mixed moods here, but we and he will make the most of it I suspect.

It is good to see him again, even under the circumstances.

:)

Amy Winehouse, dead

2011-07-23T14:04:00.000-06:00

That news has been running through my twitter feed the past few hours and though her death was sudden, it is not a big shock.

It may surprise to know that I was a fan of hers. Her sound, her way with a phrase, drew me back again and again. I knew of her public battles with love and drugs and alcohol, but I also hoped for her, that she might find redemption and help and a future.

But, in the end the 27 year old girl couldn't win at life. Or love.

She wrote:

Over futile odds,
And laughed at by the gods
And now the final frame,
Love is a losing game.

Granddaughter Norah at a BC Lions football game

2011-07-22T23:02:00.001-06:00

Lucky twerp.
She's gonna be fun tomorrow.

Tornado watch out tonight

2011-07-22T21:09:00.000-06:00

No kidding. It's serious out there.

A prayer for Norway on this terrible morning

2011-07-22T11:27:00.000-06:00

Woe to you, destroyer,
you who have not been destroyed!
Woe to you, betrayer,
you who have not been betrayed!
When you stop destroying,
you will be destroyed;
when you stop betraying,
you will be betrayed.

LORD, be gracious to us;
we long for you.
Be our strength every morning,
our salvation in time of distress.
At the uproar of your army, the peoples flee;
when you rise up, the nations scatter.
Your plunder, O nations, is harvested as by young locusts;
like a swarm of locusts people pounce on it.

The LORD is exalted, for he dwells on high;
he will fill Zion with his justice and righteousness.
He will be the sure foundation for your times,
a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge;
the fear of the LORD is the key to this treasure.

Look, their brave men cry aloud in the streets;
the envoys of peace weep bitterly.
The highways are deserted,
no travelers are on the roads.
The treaty is broken,
its witnesses are despised,
no one is respected.

Isaiah 33

Another rainy day in the field.

2011-07-22T10:48:00.000-06:00

This would be a beautiful day if the fields were not drowning.

Spend a minute?

2011-07-21T11:56:00.001-06:00

Last week saw five straight days where work started very early and didn't end till after 10:30 in the evening.

This week? My soul stands a chance of catching up with me.

What a difference it makes when there is time and focus to complete tasks, to spend time with people, to spend time praying for people, to SPEND time...

Time is this precious commodity that we spend the full amount of each day. We all have 24 hours to spend every day, however we wish.

Living life well is about deciding who or what we will spend it on.

So spend well.

Talkin with Norah

2011-07-20T20:05:00.002-06:00

This technology today has made me feel a part of my granddaughters life already. We chat by video regularly and it's really helped us feel like we are a part of her life. When weeks go by that we don't have the contact, it feels like we haven't seen her for a long time and, yep, we miss her.

I wasn't sure how it would be, but it sure is surprising how helpful it is. No we don't get to nuzzle her neck or pinch her cheeks, but we do get to see how she moves and makes noises, make fart noises with her mouth, and laughs out loud. I even got to see her roll over right when she figured that out.

I know we have to live far apart for now, but video calls sure make the distance bearable.

-Here we are using facetime, and sometimes it's just fun to see her Nana's faces in the screen too.

On being lonely

2011-07-20T15:38:00.001-06:00

Last evening Lauralea and I spent most of our time connecting with the kids. I think we used Facetime, Skype, and the old fashioned landline, but that's beside the point.

The point is that life is what it is and on any evening the kids can be up or down or anywhere in between. But the quality I notice more and more for them, and for us, and for many I meet with, is this thing of being lonely. Being alone is one of those things that you have to face in life, and learn through. But it's really hard when you are in the middle of it.

It is my belief that we were not made to be alone and that we were created in community, to be a part of community and to find our deepest meaning in life through being with others.

So today I wanted to pull up my thoughts on being alone and what it looks like when we live in community.

You may want to read a piece or two, or save the bookmark for when you are feeling like you are missing something. There might be something helpful in all these words.

Here is Nouwen on The greatest void.

Here is a short piece I wrote when I was trying to help a very lonely abandoned girl.

Here is a poem called Not Understood, by Thomas Bracken.

Here is a piece I wrote on loneliness and what we were created for. Being human shouldn't mean being lonely.

Here is some research I did on community while I was preparing for a retreat. The value of community.

Here is a prayer for you that you can receive for yourself when it's been a tough day.

Forty five thousand, two hundred and eighteen kilometres in three hundred and sixty five days.

2011-07-20T12:34:00.000-06:00

In the past year all our travel for meetings or visiting, not including the local driving to the nearby towns and cities, amounts to 45,218 kms.

The circumference of the earth at the equator is 40,076 km.

No wonder I don't feel like going anywhere for holidays.

Violent Beauty

2011-07-18T21:40:00.002-06:00

Followed a storm home tonight.

Lots of wind and hail damage, lots more water on the ground too.

And some beauty in the skies.

A tired, sunny Sunday morning in the field

2011-07-17T09:19:00.001-06:00

It dawns on me as I prepare for the morning feeling like a truck met me head on in the night, that there will be those present for worship that will have no idea of the week gone by.

The long and good congregational meeting Tuesday night where we all passionately shared future direction ideas, Wednesday night and it's wedding rehearsal and supper, then Thursday morning when we came back to the church to find the basement flooded in places it hasn't flooded for years. Getting that back in shape in time for the Thursday evening wedding rehearsal. Friday's big wedding here, and evening reception and dance in Camrose. Lastly yesterdays second big wedding here and reception and dance in Wetaskiwin.

Some of these people have seen me every day for a week.

:)

So the day will unfold with that broad sense of experience. Some here many times and some not at all.

I'm looking for language that will respect both experiences, as well as those who we will be praying for who head off to camp tomorrow morning, and those who will be giving a brief update on their trip to Haiti. It's a full day today.

So I better be off, the band is starting their practice.

Blessings on your Sunday. May you be able to share it with others who are moving towards the Son.

Wedding Number Two

2011-07-16T17:00:00.002-06:00

In which all I had to do was manage to look good.

:)

Not like anyone would notice me, the bride was stunning.

The leaving of the church, from my view.

2011-07-15T15:03:00.000-06:00

Wedding day today

2011-07-15T10:29:00.000-06:00

Wedding day today.

The couple is ready, I think.
Family has travelled great distances.
The louder communicators in the families have received their own way.
Money has been spent. Flowers purchased, dress hunted down, banquet hall booked.
Choice of chicken or beef settled.
Numerous counseling sessions completed.
Vows chosen.
Service written.
Government paperwork done correctly, I hope.
Routine sense from the couple that maybe they should have eloped.

I will give them one more chance to call it all off, if they want.
Because that is what we do.

Sadly, sometimes I think that if they can make it through planning a wedding that they can do anything in life. But life has it's own way of twisting and turning, full of it's own surprises.

We wish them well and hope for the best. We make ourselves available and offer help when needed, but it is still just an offer that needs to be accepted.

And we enter the day with the memory that Jesus used to go to these things, and they were stressful in his day too, and he did all he could to ease the stress of the day. Even if it was something as dreadful as providing more wine for the party.

He was a good friend.

Now, on with the celebration.

Post Storm Cleanup

2011-07-14T14:32:00.000-06:00

Last night till nearly 2 am, Micah and I were managing all that the summer storm had to throw at us, like sopping up water from sealed, closed windows that still were letting water in by the cupful. But this morning there was still more to get in shape.

Getting the Internet back up and running here in the field, took a bit today, and in the process of doing that we discovered a broken, leaking small pipe that I was able to get back up and running like it should be.

But apparently the storm last night left more damage than previously thought. When I got to the church there was water leaking in at two different places. So I did a few small things to get the air moving, and once again the blessed trustees have been called. The gutters were all in place to take the water away from the church building, but this water was way over and above that. I recall standing with Micah at the window, looking at the church and seeing the water gushing off the roof, past the full gutters, and over onto the ground beneath at levels that might equal Niagara falls. It was inspiring.

So today has been about those things mostly.

Another wedding rehearsal here tonight, and I have some more work to do for the wedding tomorrow.

But first to town and back.

Remember two summers ago when we were so desperate for rain??

Prairie Summer Storms

2011-07-14T01:05:00.000-06:00

Today was a very long day that began with the phone ringing me out of my sleep and so I was up and out the door early, till late late tonight. It’s because we are having weddings here this weekend and there is much to be done.

As I showered and prepared to crawl into bed after getting home tonight, I noticed the wind picking up and some distant booming that came closer, quickly. Within minutes it was a full blown, heavy thunder, lighting, and lots of water coming out of the sky type of storm. It reminded me of the storms we used to have down in Southern Manitoba, after a hot, humid summer day.

I’d never experienced storms like we had there. Violent boom after boom after boom, and continuous lightning that would make night into day. The wind would blow radio towers to the ground and mow down whole fields of wheat, and the water would flood the low spots, of which there were many. And they always came at night, after everyone had somehow found sleep, in spite of the stifling heat. In shock and awe we would gather in the living room and ooh and awe with each new flash of light, then cringe and wait for the booming thunder to come. They are good memories now.

A storm in a field is a much more lonely thing than a storm in town or the city. In those places there is a sense that we are all in it together, us against the weather. That together we could overcome anything the weather could throw at us. You would be comforted by seeing the neighbours sitting in their front rooms, watching the same show you were watching out their large front windows.

But here in the field, there is a sense of just us, against the weather. You start a rotation past all the windows to check for leaks, cleaning up where it has blown in. The storm increases in its ferociousness, flashing and banging, and there is no one across the road looking into the sky to offer you a sense that we are in this together. I start to worry because with the new streams rushing through the front yard, the sump pump should have started by now, and it’s not.

Micah gets up, the noise had brought him up, and he provides the sense of camaraderie as Lauralea is blissfully dead to the world, hearing nothing in her sleep. We find windows that were closed tight that have somehow leaked water through, that’s how hard the water hit tonight. We watch and wipe and wait, still listening for the pump to kick in.

Then the weather moves on as quickly as it came, calm returns and the rain slows. The streams flowing through my front yard sound like little mountain streams and the booming grows distant as the storm moves towards Camrose.

Micah is tired, so he’s off to bed. We’ve done all we can do for now to push back the watery menace. As he’s heading down the stairs we suddenly hear the sump pump go on with its comforting hum.

We should be ok tonight.

iPad & Jam

2011-07-13T13:01:00.000-06:00

or shall I say, A jam?

iPad Garageband - Guitar Jam Improvisation

Haiti team arrives at Edmonton Airport

2011-07-12T17:21:00.003-06:00

Yup, they made it home, as you can see:

Sounds like a great week there.
More to follow, later.

It's a real stormy night out there tonight

2011-07-09T01:05:00.001-06:00

With the wind blowing so harshly out there tonight, and the trees moving in the wind and the rain hitting the glass, it reminds me of when we were on the Scottish Isle of Iona.

There the storms and wind and waves were so loud that if you found yourself in the midst of the great outdoors, you had to yell to be heard two feet away.

It's loud like that here tonight.

Yes, we're moving.

2011-07-06T14:39:00.000-06:00

Ah ha, hows that for a teaser?
(I should get work in that nasty television business where they say "The World Has Ended, Story at Eleven" stuff, and you're left wondering if you should bother going into work tomorrow, so you stay up late and find out that WORLD is just an acronym for Women Organized to Respond to Life-threatening Diseases, and they've closed up shop.)

No, we are not leaving The Field.

For a long time now I've experienced growing frustration with Flickr.com. Pictures not showing up, slow to load, site pages so busy because the thinking seems to be that the more words you put there, the more information you communicate. More and more the site seems to take away from the images presented. The social aspect of it is quite nice, friends and family follow one another with ease. But even that is getting more and more difficult to do, and it's users are mostly North American.

(If you are into worldwide social feedback, aminus3.com is a good daily picture site you should check out.)

But I wanted to do more with my pics, with less going on all around them, visually. So I am in the process of moving over to Smugmug.com. I have set up my own photo site with all my pictures on the web, at abigfield.com.

My intent is to make it more of a place to explore, at least for me, than a repository of images taken and stored.

You (Toni :)) should notice an increase in speed of the pages here that have images posted on them. And the images will be larger because that is very easy with smugmug.

So, yes I am moving, my pictures over to abigfield.com.

Check it out sometime.

Haiti team is off

2011-07-02T22:16:00.001-06:00

Early Friday morning we got Micah to the airport for the trip.

They arrived early this morning the team leaders sent out this message when they were able to:

"hi we made it safe and sound. It's hot and there are no words to describe this country… see you in a week…"

How to change your worldview in seven days.

Tomorrow morning at 4:30 am, we are off to the airport

2011-06-30T21:38:00.000-06:00

Because the youth team Micah is on, is heading to Haiti.

They will be helping build a medical clinic.

He's never flown before.

They are nervous.

I think it will be life changing. And really, when you're young, that's when it's good to have life changing events, because you still have much life to live.

If you think of them, maybe offer up a prayer, or good thought.

These next ten days could redirect the trajectory of their lives.

My Yellow Finch

2011-06-26T00:04:00.001-06:00

My Yellow Finch, originally uploaded by RandallFriesen.

Caught with my iPhone from a distance so the quality isn't great, but you can see him, and her.