Hello everyone!!  I landed safe and sound at 9pm on Friday night.  I was welcomed by my wonderful family.  We then drive to my grandparents house and I attempted to sleep.  After a rough night's sleep I spent the day with my family, giving out gifts and being properly reunited.  Sunday I went up to camp for a couple hours to visit Lydia (who has been working there since June 26th).  After such visit, we all came home to a house that was in a bit of disarray due to our floors being refinished ...
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I can't believe that today is already my last full day here in Manila.  The time has really flown by and God has really shown me many amazing things here.  The following is the last update as to my movements, including what the rest of today and tomorrow will look like.

Tuesday (Aug 19)
Karin had school, and took me to the center early.  I helped Cecille with the SLC pre-school program again.  These kids are uncontrollably cute and are eager to learn.  It has been such a blessing to meet them a...
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I can't believe that I have less than 4 days left here in the Philippines.  This has certainly been a journey and an adventure.  

Friday (Aug 15)
We went on a community visit to the families who live along the rail road tracks near Karin's place.  It was an eye opener that there was such living conditions so near to the nice apartment where we were staying.  It was a very hot morning and I was feeling quite exhausted, so after the visit we went to a corner store to get a bit of air conditioning...
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As many of you know, I came here with the expectation that God would show me if ministries like this are what He has prepared for me.  In January when John came to Bethany to share, I was struck by the practicality of their ministries and the devotion of all their workers to their dream.  Since coming here, those initial reactions have been reinforced as I have gotten to know each of the staff better.

I am still praying for God's direction as to my future, but I am also enjoying each moment of...
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So sorry for being so delayed in this next post.  The internet has been pretty spotty everywhere we go, so I finally gave in and went to an internet cafe, which is where I am sending this to you from.  Here is the low down of the last few days.

Wednesday (Aug 6)
Last time I just told you about the morning of Wednesday.  That afternoon I helped Ate Lorna prepare the food for the feeding program.  My help consisted on peeling many eggs that had been boiled and dividing up the food between 49 cont...
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Yesterday's post was a very short one just to let you know about my activities here in Manila with IT Tender.  Now I want to give you more.

Sunday:
The first day I arrived, I was feeling a mixture of nervousness and excitement.  I was nervous for how I would find Karin, my wonderful host who was picking me up, and how I would fit in here with the Filipino culture.  As it turned out, these worries have been for nothing.  Once I stepped out of the airport, Karin started jumping and waving.  I wen...
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I made it!! I arrived safe and sound at 7:30 Sunday morning. After getting my bag, I met Karin (my gracious and very British host) and she took me back to her place to freshen up. After a bit of unpacking and a shower, she took me across the city to see the Witts (a very lovely and close family from church). It was really nice to see them here in Manila. They helped me adjust and gave me a few tips for my time here. We stayed together for the rest of the day. Then Karin took m back to her pla...
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In less than 9 hours, I will be boarding a plane that will take me on a crazy and wonderful adventure to the Philippines.  As the hours count down, I am both nervous and excited.  I am nervous simply for the loneliness of the 20+ hours of travelling and the faint uncertainty of what I am doing during my entire time there.  Yes I have a couple ideas of what I will be doing, but those will just be a few days of the 3 weeks of my trip.  I am excited to see what God has planned for me and how He ...
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I can't believe that I am leaving in 7 days.  I am very excited for the adventure I am about to embark on and the lessons I am about to learn about God, myself, the global body of Christ and another culture.  

As I begin to prepare for this journey spiritually, mentally and physically, I have had a small epiphany about my personal journey thus far in my life.  I have been working on preparing what I will share as my story and testimony while in the Philippines and this time of reflection showe...
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I know it has been a while since I last posted and today marks just two weeks before I board a plane for this exciting adventure.  As the day approaches, the reality of this trip is beginning to sink in, and I am getting both nervous and excited for it.  I am excited to see what God will do in my life and what He will show me as to my career in Social Work.  I am fully aware that He may make this experience so enticing that I may go back once I have finished school for an internship with IT T...
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Happy Canada Day everyone!!  Today is a special day when we celebrate the day our country became recognized as such under the British Empire in 1867.  I am proud to be a Canadian today of all days!  As I get closer and closer to the time of my departure, I am becoming increasingly aware of the blessings I have received in prayers and donations.  I am getting so close to my fundraising goal it is mind boggling, and there is still a month left.  I want to say thank you, from the bottom of my he...
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As the time for my trip draws closer I am continually reminded of the grace of God through His people.  I have been at the receiving end of so much generosity these past few weeks I think my heart will burst.  It just affirms that this is where God has called me for a short time this summer.

I have received some more information as to what exactly I will be doing while in Manila with IT Tender.  I will be working a lot with their Night Life ministry to at risk street youth.  With that I will b...
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So today marks two years since I have graduated from my DTS and tomorrow will be two years since we last said our goodbyes.  The six months I spent in Maui and Bangladesh with my DTS family were life changing in many ways and I miss everyone dearly.  It was during my DTS that I realized my passion for Social Work, realized my passions for prayer and intercession, for social justice, for showing everyone the unconditional love of Christ to the best of my ability.  It was there that I began to ...
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So today I was able to present to my church a bit about why I am going to the Philippines this summer to work it IT Tender.  I said much that is already included in my blog posts and descriptions on this site.  Afterwards everyone was very encouraging and kept saying it was a job well done.  I want to say a huge thank you to them all.  They have watched me grow up from an infant and have always been supporting me in prayer, whether I knew it or not.  They have supported me in my YWAM adventur...
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A few weeks ago, around the same time as the last post, I booked my flights to the Philippines!  It's pretty exciting to have something that has just been a theory and idea come to life with the purchase of plane tickets.  I leave August 1st and return late August 22nd.  Now stuff gets real.

As this is the largest portion of my budget and the biggest expense of my trip, I am beginning to become more intentional in gathering support.  This Sunday (May 25th), I will be given a short time to shar...
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This January, John Coffey, the leader of IT Tender ministries, a branch of International Teams Philippines, was speaking at our church as to the activities of their ministries.  As I sat and listened, I became more and more interested and intrigued by what he was reporting.  He shared stories of children who's lives had been changed through their ministries and how they in turn changed his life.  As he explained the ways their ministries functioned, I became increasingly inspired and ideas in...
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