Tim and Olive's Blog

it’s been over a week since i’ve updated… my apologies for anyone who’s been checking and finding no updates. :T

there’s too much on the brain! we started construction on the set this past week. the first read-through of the play is tomorrow. chrismas music has already started being played on the radio(!). there’s some serious lack of sleep going on. and for some odd reason, i haven’t been feeling like going to church (don’t worry, i’m still going every week). i’m feeling more and more like a recluse wanting to slip away into my little corner of the studio, immerse myself into my imaginary world and not resurface for a very long time. but thank God for brothers and sisters in Christ who check up on me. ‘cuz i feel like i’m in a dangerous place. like i’m trying to trace the footprints of God (Psalm 77:19)

anywho, no really inspiring thoughts today. but if you happen to have some, feel free to leave a comment. :>

*sigh* time for bed!

LIKE A CHILD

some of you may know that my pastor’s four-year-old son is currently undergoing treatment for cancer. this past week, he had a bone marrow transplant and the most recent prayer update i received from my pastor was quite inspiring. so i’ll share a little snippet of it with you:

Amidst all the discomfort he has felt over the last 2 weeks, we admire our son’s endurance and strength. When we told him how sorry we are for the way he feels, “that’s ok” he said. He has the simple faith to trust that despite all the pain we have put him through, we are trying to help him get better. He’s never doubted our love and he does not complain. Only if we can also learn to trust that God is love and He has been putting us through this painful experience to make us “better”!

NEW PRAYER

this morning’s passage was about Elijah when he faced the 850 prophets of Baal in a showdown on Mount Carmel. while i’d read this story before and always felt like cheering for God after seeing how He sent fire down from heaven to burn up a water soaked sacrifice, i’d never taken a close look at the prayer Elijah prayed to effect that response.

rereading Elijah’s story, i could identify with him in some senses. Elijah was one man of God in the face of hundreds of unbelieving skeptics. i do not stand against hundreds, but as a Christian, i am definitely a minority in the Theatre department (i know of one other person who claims to be a Christian). Elijah was high profile. i’m not as high profile, but as a fourth year who’s designing a set for a show, i do get looked to quite a lot, both by students and by faculty. and Elijah had the favour of the Lord on him that allowed his endeavours to succeed. in the same way, i have been sensing that God’s hand is definitely on me as i design this show (how else would you explain the mysterious way all my profs had no readings or assignments due the week my final design package was due? coincidence? i think not!). so my new prayer is now the one Elijah prayed for the people as he stood in the face of the unbelieving masses. i pray that they would see God’s work and turn back to Him.

IRONY

here’s the most ironic verse i’ve read recently considering my ample supply of stuff to do…

i love it! but it’s verse 1 that gives it context…

FAITHFUL ONE

Faithful One so unchanging
Ageless One You’re my rock of peace
Lord of All I depend on You
I call out to You again and again
I call out to You again and again.

~Brian Doerkson

INVITATION

in the 16th/17th century court of King Louis XIV, dances were a common occurance and all the refined members of society would know how to dance. if you were an especially good dancer, the king would invite you to sit closer to him.

since i’m taking a dance class this year, i’ve been rediscovering my love of movement. i’ve also been thinking about how i love to dance for my King – Jesus. and i realized that just like in the courts of Versailles, if our dances (ie, dancing to His music – living by the Spirit, dancing the steps of love, faith, etc) are pleasing, our King invites us to come and sit closer to Him. and we don’t even have to be expert dancers.

maybe it’s because i love dance, but to me, that’s a beautiful illustration. :>

WHERE HAS OLIVE BEEN HIDING?

i don’t usually do updates of this sort, but the past few days have been so crazy and such a testimony to the sustaining grace of God that i had to jot this down before i go to bed.

so as part of my fourth year theatre production program, i’ve been given the privilege of designing the set for York’s second play of the season. the preliminary deadline for the design was today. this past monday (thanksgiving), i met with my director to discuss the way the design was heading and he had an epiphany, which sent the whole visual concept in a different direction. what this meant was that what i was originally supposed to do in three weeks, i now had three days to finish. hearing about the situation, my teachers were all very understanding and they told me to get whatever i could done. so i worked away, steadily and surely. i also put a new motto up on my bulletin board to remind me of where my strength was from: By GOD’S GRACE, i will LIVE through this… not just survive.

7:00pm tonight, we had our meeting to present our preliminary designs. the director explained his new approach and my teacher reiterated that whatever i had was acceptable. my other teacher even suggested we set another due date if need be. but there was no need. by the grace of God, i’d managed to get every single thing completed! and on top of that, i’ve been able to sneak in classes, fellowship time and coffee with a friend. :> sure, i’ve only had about 9 hrs sleep over the past two days, but now i can take the weekend off and rest.

so i praise God for giving me strength and the clarity of thought to complete this segment of the project. three days of non-stop model building and drawing has been pretty harrowing. but now, i sleep. :D

EXTENDED FAMILY

growing up with the same group of people at church, the guys and gals have become like extended family to me. things are so comfortable, so easy, always there. while on one hand, that’s really nice, on the other, it’s terribly easy to take them for granted.

over the summer, the guys made a series of “appreciation cards” for the girls where they took a group picture from summer retreat and made up personalized poems for each of the girls. well, today, i finally got mine (only ‘cuz my attendance at fellowship is inconsistent at best). and can i just say, i’ll be keeping this for a long time to come! nine lines of poetry brought so much encouragement to my heart, just as i was getting tired and worn out…

SALT boys: thank you, thank you, thank you. if i could give each of you a hug, i would. so consider these words a verbal hug. :)

today, i was reminded of the wonderful gift of encouragement.

because their poem was just so good, i’m going to share it (hope y’all don’t mind!):
with your voice and a shaker
leading praises for our maker
your godliness inspires.

bible studies and mission trips
pointing to God’s gracious gift
your godliness inpires.
~ the SALT guys (RHCBC uni fellowship)

CHILDREN

ever notice that in any situation where there are mostly adults, the children will naturally gravitate toward one another? well, it occured to me that when Jesus tells us to welcome the children, it should come naturally to us, since we’re called children of God. and children will easily notice other children. :>

SO?

to celebrate my mom’s birthday today, our family went with some family friends to niagara-on-the-lake for a nice brunch. the waitress was very friendly and after my parents introduced me to her, we started conversing. it struck me as a little odd but one of her first questions to me was whether i had a boyfriend (!). of course, that’s not the first time i’ve been asked that question, but i guess it tests my patience every time i get asked. ‘cuz it reminds me that no, i don’t. and no, i haven’t yet. but i guess i’ve seen myself grow in this respect. ‘cuz even though i hope to get married, i’m satisfied knowing that God knows what’s best for me and that His timing is perfect. i can trust Him with all the details of my life. what an awesome thought.