Being Anchored

  I never expected to find this three foot long anchor in the midst of a tree filled park. It was from a small, paddlewheel boat used in early logging operations in Algonquin. The boat would ferry huge log booms across the lakes. In those days, logging was done by clear cutting everything.
 The Logging Museum in the park was time well spent learning about this aspect of the conservation area. Logging still happens but with an environmental focus. Only selected trees are removed from an area allowing smaller ones to mature. It is now a sustainable industry, not a ravaging of the land, that is important to the well being of the forest.
  Fire is also used. Although with this terribly dry summer, I doubt there will be any controlled burning. Not if campfires are banned.
  Another conservation and camping area, Grundy Lake, had to be evacuated due to raging forest fires in the area. There are close to forty of them across Northern Ontario.
  Anchors and fire...what an odd combination. Yet both have touched my heart with understanding as I have journeyed with the Lord at my side through fire and storm.
  I give thanks for both because in the midst of trials, the profound simplicity of an anchor has reminded me that a storm will never cast me adrift alone.
  Never will the fires consume me but rather sear away the unwanted, the dead things that hamper new growth. Amen!
  " When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior." Isaiah 43:2-3

Canisbay Lake, Algonquin Park

  It is early. While away I got a message from Hydro for a planned, two hour power outage this morning. So, up, generator running and enough battery power to write while I wait for the lights to come back on. I missed my morning writing although we were in the cell phone accessible area along the highway running through the park.
  Ah, Algonquin Provincial Park...wild enough that a young black bear perused the campground searching for tidbits left out by careless campers yet civilized enough for hot showers. He was a new addition to my life list.
  A few highlights...It rained the day we arrived. I think the skies had held onto all of this terribly dry summer's moisture and let it fall in the course of one night. Conversation was impossible as the rain hammered the canopy and the tarps spread to protect our gear.

It eventually eased off. As I lay half awake, the wind would shake the tops of the towering maple trees. The leaves shook off their glistening drops in a crescendo of random beats.
  Forest fires were raging far north of us and despite the heavy rain, a fire ban was in place. My friend and I filled the evenings playing cards or perusing our nature books to identify some of the plants and wildflowers photographed on our hikes. Between her books and my old Reader's Digest North American Wildlife, we managed to identify quite a few. Whether or not I will remember the names remains to be seen.

  Canisbay Lake was the ideal spot for my kayak's maiden voyage. Shallow, no deeper than my waist for the most part, small enough to reach shore easily and plied by a multitude of other boaters. Even so, I stayed safe wearing a life jacket, having a whistle handy as well as packing the emergency boat kit every time I went out.     
  Kayaking added a whole other dimension to the outdoors. Sitting eye level with a loon, watching him preen and set his feathers straight...A Black duck and a Great Blue Heron shared his territory...The quiet rush of water past the bow...Sitting in the midst of a Water Lily garden as the leaves bounced in the wind driven ripples. I fell in love with the sport.
  Three voyages enabled me to grasp some of the basics like getting in and out. Out is trickier than getting in. I was pleased I didn't end up falling flat on my back with legs in the air. (Wouldn't that have got me laughing!) The first couple times getting out, there was a strong hand to assist. The last time, I figured out how to beach my bright red craft sideways so it was more stable. That, and I wasn't trying to rise against the gravity of an uphill slope. No hands were needed.
  I am a long way from attempting to kayak on anything more turbulent than small waves. That is more than okay. There is still much to learn. I will give thanks for the joy brought into my life through floating on the living waters.
  "Jesus replied, "Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem." John 4:21

A Doctor

  I am grateful for the Canadian health system, regardless that it is overburdened, under staffed, has long wait times and all the other woes. For decades I went to one family doctor. Initially, the trio at the practice was the only doctor's office in town. Praise God they are infrequent visits. A couple years ago, he retired. A new doc took over his practice.
  I've got a chest cold thingy going on. With going away, it seemed prudent to get it checked out. I called the old number to find out that the new doctor had left last November!
  This caused a momentary burst of panic. Getting a family doctor is difficult, with overworked practioners reluctant to take on new patients. Thankfully, he had only moved up the road so I was able to find him and make an appointment.
  So here's the thing: the old office had a case load of thousands of patients. Often it would be several days before a time was avaliable. Appointments were ten minutes if you were lucky. Waiting for an hour was nothing. The harried and overworked receptionists were abrupt to the point of rudeness all the time. If memory serves, they have always been that way. It always felt as though I was begging a favour to see my doctor.

  Yes, Lord, we are blessed in this country.  I know that. This is about more than our health care system.

  When I called the new office, the receptionist was pleasant and friendly. Oh, what a pleasure to speak to her! Thankfully, she got me in the next afternoon.
  I went early because they were treating me like a new patient even though I had seen the doc once while he was still at the old office. It meant there was some paperwork. Letting her know how nice it had been dealing with her on the phone brought a smile to her face. A few words of blessing.
  I left his office feeling like a person, not a hunk of meat. I left his office feeling as though my small health issue was the most important case he had ever taken on. Armed with a bunch of blood work, mammogram and x-ray requisitions, I left knowing that this new doctor placed a great deal of importance on pro-active care.
  Now, he had already done this for me at the old office but they were never followed up on. That was just before having to be there for my uncle during his last days on earth, dealing with his house, and funeral. Time got away from me.
  I also really struggle with the intimate invasion that is part of a full physical. I shared this with him. He told me there is a lady, nurse practitioner at the hospital who could do that part of the vetting. Something to think about.

  Simple kindness goes a long way. It doesn't take any more time. It doesn't cost anything. Simple kindness is placing inestimable worth on another living, breathing, feeling human being. Simple kindness is Jesus living through us. Amen!
  "God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God." Mathew 5:9

The way things are

  We had some rain earlier this week. Only the second time in all of June and July that amounted to anything. The weeds are about all that's left of green in the lawn. The grass is crispy, tinder dry straw. There are fire bans throughout Ontario which means no camp fires or bonfires. It means the pile of brush waiting in my own burn pile will have to sit until the ban is lifted.
  I feel for the farmers who don't have irrigation systems. It will have a dire impact on the local potato harvest and everything else. Low wheat, corn and canola yields mean prices will go up at the grocery store. That doesn't need any more help. The much needed increase in the minimum wage, and all this nonsense with the U.S. and their trade sanctions, tariffs and taxes isn't helping either. Some products haven't gone up in price but the package size has been drastically reduced to compensate. (My rant for the day.)
  The drought has made me more conscientious about selectively watering the gardens, especially the plants and flowers bees like. The grass can die. Without water, these flowering plants won't produce nectar. Without that, the already at risk bee population will suffer.
  There are four milkweed plants in the front garden. A present from God. They are the foundation of the Monarch butterfly life cycle. The eggs laid in Canada are the Super Monarchs who migrate to Mexico. It takes three generations to migrate back. These black and orange beauties are another species at risk. Due to the drought, and despite watering, most of the milkweed flowers up and withered but thankfully two have produced seed pods. It had been in the plan to plant more next year. Hopefully these seeds will be viable.
  Lord, forgive us for how we abuse this beautiful world You created. Forgive us for our lack of care, of ignoring the global butterfly effect. Forgive us for not living as a global family. In Jesus's name I pray.
  "Here is another illustration Jesus used: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed planted in a field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of garden plants; it grows into a tree, and birds come and make nests in its branches."" Mathew 13:31

No Rush

  I have decided to sit back and wait for a clearer direction for the blog. There are several options in the background. Continue using it as a forum to share of my life with Jesus. Tackle the Bible study list even though an entire Scripture verse is a lot to explore in this limited space and time. After having done one, there is a great deal of reluctance to do more. The thoughts, impressions and ideas stirred up became muddled and overwhelming.
   I've thought about doing a word study as an alternative path of discovery. That is done by looking up every verse containing a particular word. I could write about each one. It is something I did as a new believer because it was an easier way to learn.
  There is the apron, too. It's unfinished, with butterfly words waiting to be inspired and written on it.
  In the mean time, I will plod along. Next week I am taking a sabbatical, a rest from writing. My hope is by taking some time to pray about the choices, there will be answers.
  This is part of life with Jesus, this practice of waiting, this exercise of patience. Most of the time I rush headlong into things, taking the briefest of looks before jumping. But, when I end up over my head, I have a Saviour who reaches down to pull me out.
  "So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus." Mathew 14:29

Measuring

  Life went and got busy. It's a good busy. Vacation planning, church, and this half day was spent taking interior and exterior measurements for the designer to draw up blueprints for my addition. It has gotten rather complicated.
  There is a conservation authority for the area I have to get permission from to build. That is the first step. Without their approval, it will be a no go.
  When (when, not if ) the approval happens, there is an HVAC report. That is an assessment of the heating and cooling requirements for the entire house. Windows, doors, room sizes are all factored in as well as the requirements for the new space.  Both are needed before the town will even consider issuing a building permit.
  It took me 5 hours to measure everything inside and out and to draw up rough sketches. Tape measures are tricky rascals for one person.
  Whenever I draw a floor plan I am reminded of my dad. Designing houses was the only hobby he had. Not that they were ever built, he just enjoyed doing them. That's where I learned how. Using the templates with outline of tiny toilets, sinks and stoves was always fun. I have no idea where they went.
  But I have learned something. The house is bigger than 600 square feet. The footprint is a whopping 768 square feet based on exterior measurements. Mind you, some of that area is swallowed by exterior and interior walls. It makes sense now I think about it. Building sizes are usually divisible by 4 feet or 8 feet, the standard length of a 2x4.  Funny, that, how the metric system never reached building materials.
  Lord, thank You for providing yet another skill that has come in so handy over the years. I pray that there will be no objections to the addition and that permissions, permits and contractors arrive exactly when they need to. Amen!

  " Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven and blessed them." Mathew 14:18 JCB

July 13 Deuteronomy 5

  It had been my thought to copy the day's Bible passage but the study is entire chapters. Perhaps a brief summary will serve instead. Deuteronomy 5 contains one of the most important events in human history. God gave His chosen people the Ten Commandments to live by.
  Something I learned recently is (v23-25) God had spoken to everyone, not just Moses. The people were so terrified, they appointed Moses to be the only one to speak with God on their behalf.
  The question for today...what does this reveal about Jesus? About God?
  The significance of God eagerly trying to connect with everyone on a personal level is mind blowing to me....

...folks, this isn't working. Trying to explore an entire Bible chapter is rather overwhelming. Repeating lessons that have been taught by others misses the personal connection with the Lord I hunger for every time I blog.
  Maybe that's the lesson for the day. I don't need to rely on modern day "Moseses" to hear God's voice because the Lord loves us enough to have provided a piece of Himself to guide, teach and encourage: the Holy Spirit.
  The Ten Commandments were written in stone and on papyrus for the Hebrew people to memorize and live by. In Christ, through His love, inanimate, lifeless words become a living, breathing promise.

  It would appear I was inspired after all. Thank You Lord for reminding me the best things happen the moment I surrender my personal agenda.