This past Sunday we went with Reachout to give lunches out to the homeless. It was a beautiful day!!! We could have seriously walked around in shorts. We met up at Terra Nova to make lunches first. When we got onto the street it looked as though we would never find someone in need. My group wandered for almost 10 blocks down St. Catherine's street until we found the first person. All of a sudden there were too many. We had brought 4 large bags of lunches but didn't have nearly enough for all the need we saw. We had great conversations with some of them. One guy had just a game-boy to keep him amused all day long. It was a game from the 80's. He had found it in a trash can. He was explaining each component of the game as if it was the newest hottest thing on the market. We went along with it and must have spoken to him about his game for about ten minutes. It sure made his day though, that someone would bother to stop and talk with him. Another man took the lunch and then pointed us towards another group of street people. He asked us twice before we left if we would go to them. He seemed to have great concern for two friends in particular. "It's a really different look on the world you know?" said one of the teens with us. Another said she only wished we had enough for all of them. I believe that God worked to soften these kid's hearts today and teach them that we should love everyone. Even those who are dirty, maybe addicted or drunk and alone.

Be blessed today, Laura

Girls group started this past week with 7 girls. We talked about trust, why
it is valuable and how much people lie in everyday life.
Did you know that a pretty recent study showed that only 70% of teenagers
value honesty? That is pretty disturbing to me. It was also disturbing to
the girls it turns out. They came to the conclusion that lying IS a part of
everyday life. The next day I got two phone calls saying how much our
discussion affected them the night before.
That at school they recognized the little lies or how they exaggerated the
truth probably regularly. The whole evening left them wishing next week-was
the next-day. I hope to be running Girls Group every week this Fall.

Until next time

Hey!
Well the weekend camping trip was amazing! Great weather and no
bugs! We arrived Friday, hung out and stargazed until it was very
late. The next day we went on a LONG hike around the lake, went
kayaking, swimming, had a campfire that lasted 2 hours and set up a
tent for the Saturday night. We were so cold! Everyone was awake by 7
am and needed to go inside. We did more kayaking and hiking the next
day. In between these times we had Bible studies and meaningful
discussions. For one, we needed to spend some time alone in the woods
and write about what you see, think and smell. They said some pretty
amazing things. We even had one of our discussions out in the middle
of the lake! We became very open and honest with each other. We
talked about listening to God, nature, and God's creation, and being
there for one another. Our relationships with each-other grew
stronger and new ideas and a greater understanding of who God is came out.
When it came time to leave, nobody wanted to. We
hung around until the last possible second. Oh and there were the
embarassing moments too, of course! We laughed the entire weekend!

Here's a look about what they said out in nature: (COMMING SOON)


God bless!

Food for thought:
I got to thinking this week of how fortunate we all are here in
comfortable Canada. I know, it sounds like a random thing to be
thinking about. I went to the doctor the other day. I needed
medication. Do I ever stop and think hey, not everyone in the world
has that luxury? That hey, someone could die because of what I had
and here in Canada I take a few pills and am fine three days later.
Take for granted that I come home to a warm bed to sleep in and a
family who in general are really healthy. I can even say that last
weekend I spent time at a camp ground. Hanging out with friends and
enjoying the view. For too many, children need to support their
younger siblings and never get to enjoy life. I say all this not to
make you feel guilty, but rather to cause you to think about what God
has blessed you with and our responsibility to others in need. At
Terra Nova later this month we are having the 30 Hour Famine, where
we will raise money to help many in need though World Vision. I think
this is an awesome way or recognizing that we are fortunate, but not
to take it for granted. There are so many ways to help if we tried. I
am taking some girls from Girls Group Camping next weekend as well
and hope to discuss some of this stuff with them and to remind them
of the beauty of God's creation.

Be blessed today.

Well, I sure had an interesting Saturday! I took the group downtown to feed the homeless. We got together at Terra Nova to make bags filled with a sandwich, a juice and a granola bar. In total we made over 60 lunches. It was such a beautiful day! We couldn't have asked for better. I really was hoping and praying that we would be able to find enough people to give sandwiches to! We started by talking about loving and serving others and some ways to approach homeless people. Another YFC worker named Ron was a good help with that because of his years of experiance working with street people. Then we went into a small coffee shop that runs for street people on St. Catherines near Atwater. We talked a bit to those who run it and learned a bit about why they do the work they do. Then we started walking down St. Catherines. We nearly immediately came across a group of street people in a park nearby. One man was talking about his drug addiction, while another asked us what religon we were with. One man we ran across in the late afternoon talked to us for nearly an hour. He was just so, so happy that someone was going to listen to him. His wife had kicked him out due to his excessive drinking. It was an eye opener for these girls. They heard and experienced a bit of what these people had lived. One man, a young man, explained that he found out he has bone cancer. He wasn't drinking or high. Just happy to see a friendly face. He explained how when dealing with this disease, it is easier in the warmer weather. Then he thanked God for the sunshine. We walked away from him silently, feeling compassion for him. When we ended around 4:30, we had been walking for nearly 2.5 hours, but could have easily continued. As tired as they were the girls wanted to give out just a few more sandwiches. Ron took about 10 to give to the homeless in his neighbourhood, and the rest were gone. When walking back to the car we spotted two homeless teenagers. One of the girls stopped and nearly cried. "I wish we had more to give them!" They all agreed they would love to do it again. Besides helping out and learning a bundle, we had a great time together.

I was thinking last week about the different relationships I have with teens at Terra Nova. Each is unique and I learn different things from each of them. It makes me glad that we were created each with our own purpose in mind. Each with our own joys, weaknesses and failures. Each with dreams, gifts and abilities. How boring it would be if we always thought and acted in the same way! Or if we didn’t have free will and God was sitting up in heaven making all our choices for us like pieces on a chess board. We wouldn’t have as much of an opportunity to learn from each other. I learned this week that being alone scares one of my youth more than anything else in the world. That people won’t accept her. To some it may seem irrational. Like: come on, you have a family and lots of friends. How could you still fear being alone? But we all have a need to be accepted and to feel loved by others. We long for human relationships whether we vocalize it or not. Terra Nova helps to fulfill this need through the relationships we have with teens. A success story or a friendly smile from a teen will brighten my day no matter what. If they want to talk about something specific or just fill me in about their day, I love to listen. I want to be a support and an encourager through the work that I am able to do.

Enjoy the sunshine!

SMALL THINGS

The Small Things
By: Laura Wilson

Is questioning God wrong? Should we be ashamed?
Why don’t we lay our burden at HIS feet?
No, I think HE wants our questions.
I think he wants our concerns.
HIS word tells us to call on Him.
In times of pure joy.
In times of need.

Where can we see God? Is it possible?
I believe we can see God everyday.
In a smile from someone who cares.
In a helping hand.
In a helpful word or prayer.
In a calm lake.
In a sunset.

How can we be the hands and feet of God?
By realizing we need to encourage.
Realizing people need us.
Our neighbors and friends.
People without hope.
Helping the poor.
The oppressed.
Our enemies.

God is in everything we do.
HE is in everything we touch.
HE is everywhere.
In the small things.

Be blessed today.

Girls Group

I am leading a small group for girls every two weeks out of Terra Nova for girls between grades 7 and 9. They all really enjoy coming and are happy to be able to learn and to be able to express themselves. Two weeks ago we discussed gossip and how they may have been hurt or hurt someone by participating in gossip. It really made them think. They were all hurt at some point in this way and we could have talked for hours on end. An environment of trust is what I am trying to offer them and a freedom to ask whatever questions they may need to. These girls have insight and plenty of curiosity. One girl has recently been much more interested in knowing about what the Bible says and why. She said that I had given her a new way of looking at certain issues. She also said that before the group began she couldn’t have cared less if there was or was not a God. We have been speaking regularly and she has fit really well into the group. God is doing great things and I pray that HE would use me and the staff at Terra Nova more and more!