Aspirations of the Mind

I feel slightly guilty that I don't really care about philosophy and I really don't want to be in class. So here I am. Updating...why not?

Currently there is a Tornado Warning in effect and we are required to take shelter immediately. There is severe weather in effect till tomorrow night! Crazy. It's fun though, because it's exciting. Very rarely do we have severe weather..unless it's a blizzard!

Anyways, it's exciting, although I have no food so hopefully it doesn't last too long.

I'm not really sure what to write today. It seems like I repeat myself over and over and over.

This weekend was fantastic! I have really gotten into taking the bus recently. Mainly because I love meeting interesting people. Last Saturday I decided to take the bus into the city and head to Madcap to have some coffee and get work done. I spent a couple hours there and headed back to the transit station. I found my bus and realized quickly that I missed my bus by two minutes. On the weekends the buses come in one hour increments. Basically I had a whole hour to sit there.

There was an elderly woman sitting there and so I decided to get to know her. She is the sweetest old lady! Her name is Elaine and she lives in the North West side of GR. She is on disability and comes from a low income family.

I began asking about her life. I asked her about her children and she took great pride in telling me about them. Somewhere in there she mentioned she went to church. I asked her what church and she told me. I asked how she became a Christian. She quickly got really excited and told me that she had to start from the beginning.

When she was 14 she became a Christian. A few years later she got married, but much to her dismay her husband was abusive. It wasn't clear if they got divorced or not. She had six kids and I she realized she was cycling weird and spotting. She went to the doctor and found out she had cervical cancer. During her recovery her husband made her do too much and she had to go in for more surgeries because she ruptured her ovaries.

Today she has many health issues and back problems which result in constant pain. Yet she still had a smile on her face. She told me, "Lauren, I have been through hard times, but God has been in it all. He has walked through this every step of the way. He is good."

She was quite inspiring. I got on the bus and we rode together and before she got off she told me she would be praying for me. And I have been praying for her.

Just to note...I met and elderly man. She gave me a big smile and when we got on the bus he sat down next to me. Before he got off he looked at me and told me to be home by midnight :). That made me smile.

I was really encouraged and inspired. And, I went to Bridgestreet and it was so beautiful. The focus was freedom and of course, that's been something I have had on my heart lately.

Sunday morning church was beautiful. Pastor Joe preached on being a multicultural church. One of the things that stuck out to me the most was when he mentioned that the Bible makes no reference to one's color, but to their ethnicity. Who they are. Where they are from.

And Evensong! Oh my lands! It was powerful! That's all I'm going to say. God was at work and He continues to be at work. It's great.

This week my Inter-Cultural Mandate class is heading to Toronto, Canada! I'm not completely sure what we are going to be doing. But I'm really excited to see what God is going to do in each of our hearts.

That's my week basically. School, homework, school. And God at the center. There's that conviction. I should have listened in Philosophy.

Anyways, God is good all the time. And all the time He is good.

Psalm 34

I will extol the LORD at all times;
his praise will always be on my lips.

² My soul will boast in the LORD;
let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

³ Glorify the LORD with me;
let us exalt his name together.

⁴ I sought the LORD, and he answered me;
he delivered me from all my fears.

⁵ Those who look to him are radiant;
their faces are never covered with shame.

⁶ This poor man called, and the LORD heard him;
he saved him out of all his troubles.

⁷ The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him,
and he delivers them.

⁸ Taste and see that the LORD is good;
blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

⁹ Fear the LORD, you his saints,
for those who fear him lack nothing.

¹⁰ The lions may grow weak and hungry,
but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

¹¹ Come, my children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

¹² Whoever of you loves life
and desires to see many good days,

¹³ keep your tongue from evil
and your lips from speaking lies.

¹⁴ Turn from evil and do good;
seek peace and pursue it.

¹⁵ The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their cry;

¹⁶ the face of the LORD is against those who do evil,
to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

¹⁷ The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them;
he delivers them from all their troubles.

¹⁸ The LORD is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

¹⁹ A righteous man may have many troubles,
but the LORD delivers him from them all;

²⁰ he protects all his bones,
not one of them will be broken.

²¹ Evil will slay the wicked;
the foes of the righteous will be condemned.

²² The LORD redeems his servants;
no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.