overcoming unbelief

i love the statement in Mark 9:24, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!". i love how it helps me not feel like a complete loser about my own duplicity.

when i know i should trust, i worry. when i know i should wait, i need to make things happen. i always manage to say too much when i shouldn't say anything at all. even though i can read what God thinks about me, too often i give in to feelings of insignificance and forgotteness.

help me overcome my unbelief.

To me, one of the proofs that God's hand is behind and all throughout this marvelous Book we know as the Bible is the way it continually touches upon this very fear in us--the fear that we are so insignificant as to be forgotten. That we are nothing. Unconsciously, His Word meets this fear, and answers it. (Amy Carmichael)

what i'm reading (august 2005)

i love books. summer is a great time to partake (since i'm probably somewhere hiding from the sun anyway!) so many people are asking me what i'm reading, so i figured i'd put them all out there!

Les Miserables (Victor Hugo)
i've wanted to see the musical forever, and it looks like this fall i'll actually have a chance! of course, i can not have the book experience marred in any way, so i'll be finishing this puppy before October 6!

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (JK Rowling)
i've seen the movie, and yes, i realize i'm doing it contrary to how i like to do things, but at least i've held off on seeing the other movies until i can get the books under my belt. there's nothing like being transported to a place that can never exist. i hope i never outgrow my love of children's books!

Searching for God Knows What (Donald Miller)
Donald Miller is a superb writer. in the Laundromat this morning i read a chapter of this book, and simultaneously was tranported back to my grade school days and convicted in my present day life. if you haven't read any of his work, i would be remiss to not mention that before you start working on this puppy, you need to read 'Blue Like Jazz'. you won't be sorry.

The Barbarian Way (Erwin McManus)
i've never been a fan of neatly packaged, pretty Christianity. it would appear that Erwin is not either. it's a small book, but packed with greatness.

Rumors (Philip Yancey)
i don't think i've ever actually finished one of Philip Yancey's books, for one reason or another. but that fact notwithstanding, i'm beginning another one. something about "grappling honestly with major life questions" has me intrigued. i'll keep you posted! :-)

The Tipping Point (Malcolm Gladwell)
this book has been as enjoyable as i had hoped it would. the real-life examples of how little things, little changes can make a world of a difference are stellar. social epidemics have never been so fascinating!

The Lonely Planet Guide to Experimental Travel
on my last trip to calgary to visit the family, mom bought me this book when they dropped me off at the airport. the cover appealed to me initially (i'm such a sucker for a good marketing idea!), but the book is a gem. it's loaded with idea for travel of many different kinds. i can't even get started here, i won't stop.

The Power of Full Engagement (Jim Loehr & Tony Schwartz)
earlier this month i attended the willow creek leadership summit, and one of the speakers (Jim Groppel) talked about the concept of managing energy rather than time in an effort to gain control of "life". this book is a more in-depth look at what he spoke of. now if only i can put some of this great stuff in action!

cruel, cruel summer

50 days until labor day. as far as i'm concerned it's 50 too many.

i hate heat. i truly dislike summer. actually, the only good thing about summer is the fact that it precedes fall. ah, fall. that glorious season of stunning colors, good coffee and cooler weather all wrapped up in the excitement that always preceeds the holiday season.

but again, i'm getting ahead of myself. sometimes it's so difficult to live in the moment; to embrace even the little moments. i'm sure that i've missed some during one of my "i hate summer" tirades over the past few days.

this is my challenge for this week: to live, regardless of temperature.

"Men talk of killing time, while time quietly kills them." ~Dion Boucicault

about me

in her timeless book, gift from the sea, anne morrow lindbergh wrote,

i began these pages for myself, in order to think out my own particular pattern of living, my own individual balance of life, work and human relationships. and since i think best with a pencil in my hand, i started naturally to write...

and here, in my blog, i cannot hope for more.

i am a girl with a mission to live, write, laugh, read, create, travel, inspire and be mistaken for a native parisienne, all while loving God to the distraction of her life.

taken by my friend nour aziz, at the auschwitz museum
poland, july 2009

contact me

should you want to email me, you can do so at misunderstood {at} sympatico {dot} ca.

or you can find me on twitter.

or, if i'm really, really lucky, you can find me in paris.

good luck.

time flies

this weekend i was one of the chaperones for the student ministries grade 8 trip to niagara falls, and it was a blast. being my family's favorite vacation destination, i've spend a good amount of time there over the years, and going back is always a pleasant assault of memories. some things have changed so much (the huge hershey's chocolate store is a definite plus!) and some things haven't changed at all, and that just makes me so happy. the flying saucer restaurant is still there...gosh, how much did john, doug & i love eating there? dad & his meatball subs...

what a fun life it's been so far.

"We could never have loved the earth so well if we had had no childhood in it." George Eliot

ill-matched threads

since the moment i first read rainier maria rilkes' 'the man watching', i knew i had found my favorite poet. it's been confirmed again with the reading of "the book of hours: love poems to God". i have not yet finished the book, it has a way of decimating me when i least expect it.

here is a highlight.

she who reconciles the ill-matched threads
of her life, and weaves them gratefully
into a single cloth--
it's she who drives the loudmouths from the hall
and clears it for a different celebration.

where the one guest is you.
in the softness of the evening
it's you she receives.

you are the partner of her loneliness,
the unspeaking center of her monologues
with each disclosure you encompass more
as she stretches beyond what limits her,
to hold you.

this is my prayer for today: to stretch beyond what limits me...