Signs, Signs, Everywhere a Sign

I often hum the song that the title of my blog is from even though it's before my time, but I'm thinking of different kind of sign now.

A common theme that has been occurring lately is that of signs not being the reality but pointing to the reality. This message has been utilized to drive home many points such as interpretations from the Scriptures all the way to ceremonies and rituals performed in the church. The overall message is that none of these ceremonies, rituals, symbols are necessary for salvation. However, it is important to acknowledge that they can be a means of grace for individuals.

It seems that the point we always seem to hit is where we no longer view the rituals as simply a means of grace and start viewing them as necessary for our faith. Then of course there is also the danger of doing them out of routine; the dreaded "that's how we've always done it" response. Now, don't get me wrong I'm not advocating tossing it all out the window. In fact I'm one of those annoying people that you have to work hard to convince to change anything....should I admit that in writing? I think there's enough evidence out there regardless. What I do advocate is the remembrance that these ceremonies, rituals, symbols are signs, pointing to the reality of God's grace, love and forgiveness in our lives. The knowledge that they themselves are not anywhere close to the reality because nothing we can do could ever possibly come close to showing the reality of God.

Well, that's me out on a limb for today. Hope everyone has a good one!

Big Days

Well the past couple of days have been a bit hard to believe. Yesterday I celebrated my birthday and what a great day. I was happy to spend it with some people who have become incredibly close to me over the past number of months and it was great to simply sit and have some great laughs. I received many messages on facebook and I realize for many these are a matter of rote but I had some that were very meaningful and touching written amongst those as well and I loved seeing them on my wall.

Today was another big day as I found out that I was elected the president of the cadet council here at college for next year's council. THEN on top of all of this was my road test. I have had my learner's license for awhile and was very slack about practicing and learning to drive but once I got here that was no longer possible. So, through some help from friends and lessons I began working more assiduously on my license and then - Ta Da! I actually passed it.

It was quite a bit to cram into two short days and by the time I went to bed last night I was ready to fall over from fatigue. It wasn't a physical labour but a mental and emotional one and in this case a very happy labour. So, a big shout out to all those who helped me learn how to drive - except my peanut gallery of a younger cousin if she ever reads this ;). THANKS

Appointments and Summer Assignments

Well, it's a big time of year within The Salvation Army in Canada as moves are announced across the country. Many individuals receive phone calls telling them that in June they will be moving themselves and their families to a new location. It is a big deal at the college too because it isn't a few cadets receiving that notification but ALL cadets receiving one appointment or another.

The second year cadets were given the location of their first appointment after two years of intense training. On a personal note I was thrilled to see 7 cadets on their way to Alberta after they are commissioned as Lieutenants. I am very excited for the rest of the second years as well as they head out across Canada to their new ministries.

The first year cadets were given their Summer Assignments. This is several weeks working in a corps/family services unit within Canada. This year there are 6 of the 13 headed to Newfoundland including myself who is heading to Robert's Arm. I am very excited to be heading off to that beautiful province. I've been to Newfoundland 3 times before and every time I've been there it's been fantastic. I'm sure this time will be no different and I look forward to the opportunities presented to me.

2nd Semester - Almost Done!!!

I have said it 100 times and I will say it at least 100 more but I cannot believe how fast the time has gone since I've arrived at CFOT. I have now been in Winnipeg 7.5 months which seems at this point both forever and a blink of time. I have been pulled in a dozen different directions, faced a whole new set of stresses than I'm used to and had some of the best experiences of my life.

This semester included the travel portion of my year so far with a trip to Vancouver and Grand Forks under my belt and the trip to Newfoundland for commissioning yet to come. I cannot deny that it has been an opportunity filled time while I've been here. It can be hard to juggle those opportunities with the demands of school, field and other activities however it's been worth all the fatigue and time crunching to fit them in.

I have learned huge amounts this semester through my course work. The courses all have practical aspects to them and it's exciting to see how they all mesh together and mesh with courses from last semester. Now, here's hoping I can remember a chunk of this information...good reason to keep my textbooks for now :).

Once again I find myself looking back and wondering how I could have made it through and the only answer is - by the grace of God. I am thankful for some great instructors who have been so willing to invest the time and some great laughs in the classroom which made the time speed by all the fast.

Grand Forks, ND

Well, I went on my first actual specialling weekend. This is a weekend where cadets from the training college head out to a corps and help out with ministry over the weekend and participate or do the Sunday morning service. I've done something similar in my two Sunday's in Vancouver but that was part of a mission trip so I guess technically this was my first official specialling weekend.

We headed out to Grand Forks, ND on Friday afternoon and had a beautiful day for driving. We started off the weekend with a teen night at the hotel once we arrived, and having now done a devotional around the pool I can tell you that it is hard on the throat. Saturday morning we went and helped out with Scouting for Food. This is where a food drive happens and The Salvation Army splits the food gathered with another organization. With the cadets there were a few extra people so we sorted the food on the spot and wow did that food come in fast. We were swarmed under by bags of food, but we got it all squared away and ready. The group of us then had a wonderful afternoon at the nursing home handing out little bags with a gift and War Cry in them for Easter. Saturday evening we joined up with their worship team and rehearsed for Sunday morning. I learned a couple of new songs which were very nice and now added to my repertoire for service planning. Sunday morning was a great time for Sunday school class to celebrate Palm Sunday and then we were off to the church service. It was hard to believe it by this point but after church we were ready to head home.

Now I don't want you to think this weekend was all work, work, work because we did get some time in to go shopping for an hour or so, and the mall may not have been big but it had my favourite stores so I was happy. We were also busy during the weekend but never rushed and believe me there is a huge difference. I had plenty of opportunities to chat with people along the way and enjoy their company. I had a great time in Grand Forks and would certainly go back anytime.

Driving

This may come as somewhat as a surprise given my age but I do not yet have my full drivers license. For a variety of reasons I have never gotten around to having it, however, that time has passed and now for a variety of reasons I need to get it. So, while I try and contemplate things to blog about this came to my mind.

I have held a learners permit twice now and have actually transferred it into another province at this stage of the game. My motivation to get out and drive has always been a little sketchy and I tend to need some prodding along the way. So I had my first driving experiences on the farm driving a tractor, and then along some of Alberta's back roads driving this huge old car. The second time I got my learners I have been more successful and went with my uncle and one of my cousins (personal peanut gallery) and did the whole parking lot driving and then slowly some more street driving.

Since arriving here I have been out more and more and my aim is to have my full license by early May so that I can be fully mobile on my own which is necessary for where I'm headed in life - and that's going to be a literal heading not a metaphorical one. I went out driving today and had a great time. My instructor was very encouraging and pointed out some great areas for me to focus on for now. I was able to practice things that I haven't done yet in a safe environment and overall made me feel as though this isn't a lost cause.

Look for an update in May to see whether or not I make it through.

Olympics

I was pretty excited to be heading out to Vancouver last week even with the remnants of the flu hanging around me with great persistence.

I was excited for a number of reasons:

• it's always great to be out doing ministry,
• I was looking forward to seeing family,
• I was looking forward to the weather.

Living in Calgary and growing up in The Salvation Army Vancouver was somewhat of a common place for me to travel. My grandfather's family is there as well as several family members that I've picked up along the way. I also know several of the officers stationed in Vancouver and the surrounding area and it's always nice to see them. I had lunch with family, got to see some more family at both church services I was at, saw officers I've met in Vancouver and got to see a city I'm somewhat familiar with all decked out in celebration.

I was on teams that were serving coffee and hot chocolate at 4am and that was certainly an interesting experience. For all that Vancouver was incredibly warm during the day it was quite cold at that hour of the morning. The opportunities to chat and greet people was a lot of fun and man did they appreciate the warm drink before heading up the mountain.

I had the opportunity to wander around downtown Vancouver with some friends and had a blast. The energy down there was fantastic and people were clearly having a blast. I of course managed to fit in some quality shopping time and even in the mall the spirit of the Olympics was everywhere.