Category Archives: Troy

Deconstructionism

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I’ve been teaching Ellie about deconstructionism.

Or maybe it is better called destructionism. I needed to dispose of a very old laptop from work, but before taking it to the recycling place, I wanted to get the hard drive out, and… got carried away. I asked Ellie if she wanted to help take it apart and we just kept going.  Before I got the tools out to destroy it, I found Ellie jumping on the screen while Adelaine was banging on the keyboard. Pent up computer angst already?

She was so impressed with this stuff she wanted to take a bunch of it to show-and-tell at kindergarten the next day. So I sent her along with a bag full of parts, including the computer’s fans that could be connected to a 9v battery, the keyboard, ram chips, the spinning motor from the DVD, and a bunch of other parts.

Where do we stop?

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This should be interesting to watch. The government of British Columbia and Canada has finally taken action against some polygamists in BC (www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Canada/20101122/bc-court-polygamy-law-hearings-101122/).

A few years ago, then Prime Minister Paul Martin toured the world telling everyone who would listen (and even those who wouldn’t) that same-sex marriage was a “fundamental human right”, and shortly thereafter, it became legally allowed in Canada. I’m curious as to how the governments will now justify a law criminalizing one type of marriage but not another. What is the moral standard to say one is right and the other wrong? This was an argument used to oppose same-sex marriage, with some warning that polygamy and group marriages (multiple men and women in one big relationship) was the eventual outcome. Without some basis for morality, where do we stop?

As I said, this will be interesting to watch.

Gardening

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Posted by Naomi

I always thought of myself as having a black thumb, since house plants experience a steady decline from the moment they enter our home.

In other words, I kill plants.

So I figured any vegetable garden I planted would face a similar doom under my care. Instead, I discovered that I really enjoyed gardening. The excitement of planting a tiny seed and actually see the thing sprout, then the satisfaction of harvesting tasty organic vegetables in the end was definitely worth the minimal effort on my part (read: I get lazy about weeding). I’ve learned a lot about what not to do and a few things that I found worked well. The kids enjoyed helping me plant and harvest, especially Adelaine.

Ellie’s imagination would take off soon after work commenced and she’d forget that she was supposed to be helping.

And Ethan, well, Ethan was better at stomping on my plants than helping them to grow – at least the plants had to develop strong roots to withstand his trampling!

Adelaine, on the other hand, is a very hard worker when she sets her mind to it and she was a great help with planting my onions, shallots and garlic, and then later harvesting my potatoes. I have no clue how well my garden did – I have nothing to compare it to – but I would say we were at least successful at growing some lovely food and I look forward to another garden next year!

Ministry Update :: March 22, 2010

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I’ve been looking for a way to do a Bible overview so that I have a foundation I understand and can explain to others. This is solid material to help me do that. I hope to go through it time and time again so that the links between the puzzle pieces are secure. Thank you!
– testimony from the evangelism seminar

This past weekend we hosted an evangelism seminar with 31 people in attendance. I had the privilege of helping again with the teaching. Over three days we taught through the material in the book “By this Name” and additional material about how to teach it to others. In all, I think there were about 22 hours of instruction.

There was quite a mix of backgrounds and vocations among the students at the seminar. I had the chance to share a meal with one fellow who first heard the Gospel explained while in prison and now witnesses to people on the native reserve where he used to sell drugs. He was very encouraged by the Bible study and couldn’t wait to get back home to start using these new tools to help share the Gospel in that very needy community. We had a small group of people who were from Northern Canada Evangelical Mission (NCEM), a few pastors, and other laypeople who were looking for a better understanding of the Gospel and how to share it.

Other testimonies from the seminar:

… simple step-by-step walk through of the Bible. WOW. … Funny, I came so I could help others, God had me come to help me. Thank you.

The message of the good news has been made clear to me. I now fully understand why Jesus had to shed his blood by dying on the cross.

It has clarified the message of salvation by showing me how that message is throughout the whole Bible. Through the illustrations, the reality of what Jesus Christ has done is ever more real to me. It has also showed me the need for the person of Jesus Christ to be introduced to those I am talking to in a more substantial way in order for those to make a qualified decision to accept Him. Thank you!

I feel confident in being used by God to go through this study with some lost sheep in my life, and I can’t wait to get started with them!

It has made the entire story of the Gospel so clear to me… It has affirmed my faith made made me excited and more confident to share this good news.