HBC Unicorn Club

Moving

Wow, where has the summer gone? Just a week of packing left and I head out to Briercrest!

I'm moving!!!

Well, kinda.

Anyway, I wanted to let you know that I decided to start up my own blog. My sincerest thanks to a friend who chatted with me about it just last night :) So I'm not going to be posting on this blog any more. Or at least not as regularly. Yeah, I'm not sure if I'll be able to post much while I'm out at Briercrest because I don't know if computers will be available for more than student assignments. But if I can't post while I'm out there, I'll be sure to type a bit on my other blog when I come home :) My parents mentioned that they're expecting me to come back every few weeks or so (during the weekends, of course).

Okay, so I guess this is my goodbye. But before I go . . . how about I get you that link to my other blog? (You can click on the link and it'll take you there.) If you want to find me, I'll be at http://www.thirstinthevalley.blogspot.com/ . I'm excited about it! I already typed my first post!

Adios, all! Have a great night!

posted by Sharilyn @ 10:44 p.m. 1 comments

After the storm

Yesterday was a pretty rough day for myself. It felt like I was on an emotional roller coaster, encouraged one moment and feeling discouraged the next. Half of the day I was crying, and the other half of the day I was laughing. I learned a lot in that time. I had already heard about mountaintops and valleys, how we have to go through hard times to learn and grow. Yesterday I learned that the encouragement God brings is as refreshing as seeing a beautiful rainbow after the storm.

What's more, when He brings a rainbow - encouragement - it's so easy to want to chase after Him. To want to find that treasure at the end of the rainbow. But how much more precious is a relationship with our God than gold or silver. Do we sometimes take our relationship with Him for granted? Or when it rains hard, do we forget to pray that He helps calm our storm? When there is no storm, or when there is no rainbow or encouragement, do we lose our faith in God? These are some of the many questions I have been asking myself recently, as I desire to seek after God and His will.

posted by Sharilyn @ 12:14 a.m. 1 comments

Who Am I -Casting Crowns

Who am I that the Lord of all the Earth
would care to know my name, would care to feel my hurt?
Who am I that the brightened morning star
would choose to light the way for my ever-wandering heart?

Not because of who I am, but because of what you've done.
Not because of what I've done, but because of who you are.

I am a flower quickly fading, here today and gone tomorrow,
a wave tossed in the ocean, a vapor in the wind.
Still you hear me when I'm calling.
Lord, you catch me when I'm falling.
And you told me who I am.
I am yours.

I am yours.

Who am I that the eyes that see my sin
would look on me with love and watch me rise again?
Who am I that the voice that calmed the sea
would call out through the rain and calm the storm in me?

Not because of who I am, but because of what you've done.
Not because of what I've done, but because of who you are.

I am a flower quickly fading, here today and gone tomorrow,
a wave tossed in the ocean, a vapor in the wind.
Still you hear me when I'm calling.
Lord, you catch me when I'm falling.
And you told me who I am.
I am yours.

Not because of who I am, but because of what you've done.
Not because of what I've done, but because of who you are.

I am a flower quickly fading, here today and gone tomorrow,
a wave tossed in the ocean, a vapor in the wind.
Still you hear me when I'm calling.
Lord, you catch me when I'm falling.
You told me who I am.
I am yours.

I am yours.

I am yours.

Whom shall I fear? Whom shall I fear?
For I am yours.
I am yours.


When I heard this song, the words were so powerful that I simply had to share them. Also, I was looking in the CD cover booklet and thought that Mark Hall's words were very cool when he was explaining what the song was about.

"There are a lot of songs today about who we are in Christ. There aren't many songs that talk about who we are without Him. Before you can truly understand who you are in Christ, you have to understand who you're not first and see what He's made out of you, out of what He started with. I'm just a flower faded, just a vapor in the wind, and the only thing I am is who He made me."

posted by Sharilyn @ 1:33 p.m. 1 comments

Keeping things simple

Well, VBS week has finally rolled around. I started out helping with the snacks, and then I was recruited with one other person to be a Grades 3 & 4 Helper. There were 82 people in our group, yesterday. It is so exciting to see so much enthusiasm on the kids' faces, especially as they sing. During the Bible Story time yesterday, kids heard the gospel and were given a chance to respond. It was really cool to see so many kids at the front when asked if all those who prayed that Jesus come into their hearts for the first time would join one of the leaders at the front of the room.

I have heard the story thousands of times. I am a sinner and have fallen short of the glory of God, Christ died for my sins, and I am to have the same attitude of Christ as I show God's love to others. Sometimes I think that I get too complicated in my way of thinking . . . even to the point of not understanding it, myself. For example, just last Sunday, I caught myself thinking that I failed God. I'm so weak in my faith, and I doubt so often. And what's worse, my tongue can get out of control so easily. Knowing that God isn't just full of love and kindness but also jealousy and power, I struggled with the thought of God Himself turning His back on me. How could I be worthy of such mercy and grace that He offers? I don't deserve it. But God gave His son Jesus Christ to die for me, and I have accepted him as my saviour. I am one of His children. And am I ever grateful!

Obviously as a Christian, I desire to keep getting closer and closer to God. There have been hard times that have helped me to do so. There have also been times when I can totally feel His presence as the Holy Spirit tugs on my heart even as life is "good." But sometimes I get so wrapped up in questions; I forget that sometimes it helps to keep things simple first, and then you can go deeper. I have come to know my saviour, and my God knows me better than I know myself. And is it not through my weaknesses that His true power can be shown? My prayer is that my heart be softened so that He may use and shine through my weaknesses for His glory.

I have been learning so much this past week, and I hope to type to you more in the future about what God has placed on my heart.

May God Himself bless and encourage you,
Sharilyn C.

posted by Sharilyn @ 6:27 a.m. 0 comments

Going deeper

I wasn't surrounded by family all day yesterday, so I had some extra time for myself. It was really refreshing, actually. I started reading a booklet called "How Can I Feel Good About Myself?" while there was that awesome thunderstorm. I don't think it actually rained until later on (if it did at all or not I don't know), but the house shook with the sound of every thunder rumble. And I didn't even get wet while I was walking home.

Anyway, about the booklet. Usually I "feel good about myself," but I learned so much through reading. And I didn't even finish it yet :) But I still thought I'd share what I've been learning.

I've been a Christian ever since I invited Jesus into my heart at the age of five, and I have loving family and friends who have helped guide me closer in my walk with Him. There have been good times, and there have been rough times. But overall, I feel I have been blessed by my Creator. Who am I to think that I am worthy of this abundant amount of grace that my one and only Savior poured out to me? But still His love continues to amaze me. I have always struggled with certain things . . . such as totally humbling myself so God may use me for His good and perfect will. Yes, I must admit I have had difficulty with the issue of "pride." Ever since I was younger, I have been meticulous with what others thought of me. But in this booklet, I have been learning that the perspective we have on ourselves is different than God's. I have also been learning that God sometimes has to break me down before He can build me stronger (in character, spiritual strength, etc). It's like taking out an old building before you can build a new one on the same land. Often I hear about how we're supposed to die to ourselves, but I never understood what that really meant. In the same way, when I read in this booklet that we should love ourselves but also hate ourselves, I was confuzzled. I had always learned that we were to love our enemies as ourselves. But now I learn to . . . hate myself??? I'm still trying to figure out exactly what this means, whether it's the sin we should hate or if there's something more. One thing I found very interesting was that the book also boldly states that man can make himself into his own god (if he or she places themself higher than God Himself). It's so easy to hold something as an idol in our hearts, especially in this world that seems to focus on materialistic posessions. And sometimes we don't even realize it's an idol until someone points it out.

Indeed, I have been learning a lot about various things . . . especially through different experiences. Well, that's about it for me. I really should head out and get ready, now. Today's looking kind of busy. Have a great day!

posted by Sharilyn @ 9:45 p.m. 1 comments

Never alone

Wow, my last day or two have been pretty amazing. I've been learning so much about serving others. Today I attended church, deciding to sit by myself for the second service. But I wasn't by myself. I felt God's presence. I opened up my Bible before the service, reading from the book of Proverbs about how He will be found by those who seek Him. Going into the service, that was my prayer. That I would search for Him with an honest heart and that He would reveal Himself to me. Sometimes it's so easy to sing the words to worship songs without thinking about what we're actually saying. But when I was singing today, it was more than that: I was singing with joy from my heart. Almost to the point of tears. In fact, I came pretty close to crying, a few times. Especially when singing the song called "Always." One part in particular always hits me. "Hold me close in your arms. Oh God, I want to be with you." Powerful words.

Well, this afternoon I'm going out with some of my family to Caronport. My brother is going for a week of hockey camp there, so we're dropping him off. I thoroughly enjoy spending time with family and friends. And for some reason I've been liking car rides quite a bit recently, too. Have never really understood why :) Ok then, that's about it for me. Better go get ready. Ciao!

posted by Sharilyn @ 2:19 p.m. 1 comments

An update of what's going on with me

Hello!!!

Wow, I have not typed on here for quite a while. My life has been kinda busy. I've been able to hang out with others, as well as get a fair amount of work done. One Sunday within this last month, I was presented with the opportunity of going out to help with Kenosee Lake Bible Camp. I seriously considered it. But I knew it would be tough. The only position that was really available was senior cabin leader, which means quite a bit of responsibility. However, I felt that if this was what I was meant to do for the summer, God would lead me through it. After praying and making a phone call out to the camp, I received and started filling out an application form that was sent to me through e-mail. As I was in the middle of filling out the forms, then a phone call came for me. Apparently one of the places I dropped my resume off at was looking for workers. Then I had to make my choice. Sobeys . . . or camp? That was a difficult choice to make. Eventually I went with Sobeys mainly because I have no camp experience whatsoever. Meaning I've never gone to a Summer Bible Camp before. So I had my interview, which seemed to go great, and I never heard from Sobeys again. I tried calling once or twice to see if the position had been filled, but the manager wasn't in. One thing that I'm thinking is that some day we should get an answering machine, because I'm pretty sure that if you call while it's busy, we have no way of knowing . . . so I'm wondering if Sobeys phoned one day when my brothers' friends kept tying up the line. For the past week or so, I've been cleaning my room, we went to the beach once, I hung out with my friends one day and my grandparents another, and I've been getting some reading done. The book that I was lent is so good, Melinda! Thank you! For any of you who may be checking out this blog, it's called A Voice in the Wind. It's a long read, but it's really sweet. So yeah, my summer has been pretty good. I have gotten a smaller job or two every now and then, as well. Like scrubbing huge trucks. Yeah, that was kinda fun. And I got a bit of money that way too, which is probably good, seeing as though I'm now graduated from High School. Yep. That's about all that's new with me. The end.

posted by Sharilyn @ 9:56 a.m. 3 comments