Interesting Facts...

I learned on the News last night, that compared to all the major cities in Canada, VICTORIA, BC has the most snow! I can't remember the last time that happened. And this may be the first year since 1971 that there will be a white Christmas across Canada.

Addictions

I work in a men's transitional housing shelter. Last night we were discussing how addictions mess up lives. Some of the clients are younger than me. But then I starting thinking more about it.

We all have addictions, but they may not be illegal. Spending money, accumulating 'stuff', being busy, etc. Addictions are a distraction from everyday life. What can I do to numb the reality that I may not want to deal with. These addictions may not land us in a shelter, but they still mess up our lives and other people's lives.

Stop running from reality.

Run to God. It may not get easier, but the burden will be lighter. Do you want peace?

Run to others. Live, learn, grow and share in a community so that others can see your reality, support and pray for you and help you see your reality differently.

Change isn't always easy. But it's easier with God and community.

Thankfulness

Stepping out of the boat can be scary, but God promises to ALWAYS take care of me.

On Thursday October 9th I had an interview with The Salvation Army, Centre of Hope. I thought I was interviewing for Client Service Worker. I was interviewed for Team Leader.

Back up a bit:

On Monday September 29th a friend told me that he loves his job at The Salvation Army. Somehow it came up that they were hiring and I started asking all the necessary questions. It sounded like something I would be interested in. Ministry with the homeless, etc. in Calgary's downtown.

On the weekend, an interview time was set up. I was nervous, but knew that even though I was stepping out of the boat, God would take care of me.

Long story short: I was interviewed, called back and accepted the job as Team Leader that same day. I am truly thankful of how God provided for me.

When we take the step out of the boat and trust God, He provides. It may not always be in the way He provides, but He will always take care of us.

Right now I'm praying for a car. An automatic Japanese car, under around $1500, that is safe and can get me from A to B.

God is the great provider. He is in control and will keep me safe.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hollywood

So, there's this customer at work that we all try to avoid as soon as we HEAR her. She's a senior (don't get me wrong, I like seniors), usually wears all one color and is loud - both spoken and what she wears.

She EXPECTS that she have one on one service, EVEN if it's busy. But, she rarely buys and if she does, she'll return it the next day. She's always at the Bay and most of the associates know her. When she puts items on hold, she gives her business card - fashion co-ordinator! If you saw her, you would know why this is funny. Recently, my friend nicknamed her Hollywood. Probably because she's so glitzy.

Tuesday was seniors day. While I was moving stock around in the back, I heard her. One of the associates came in the back and I asked her how it was going. She said that Hollywood doesn't want to be called a Senior...she wants to be called a Zoomer! What the heck is a Zoomer????

Should I now ask a customer when they are ready to pay, "Do you qualify for the zoomer's discount?"

It's always an adventure in Ladies Shoes!

A Little Bit of Winter in Brazil

Penguins wash up closer to equator in Brazil, wildlife experts say

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil - Brazilian wildlife authorities say penguins from frigid waters near the bottom of the world are washing up closer to the equator than ever before.

A spokesman for Brazil's federal environmental agency says about 300 penguins have been found dead or alive in recent days along the coast of Bahia state. The area, close to the equator, is better known for sunbathers in bikinis than for seabirds native to Antarctica and Patagonia.

Biologists believe stronger-than-usual ocean currents have pulled the birds north.

Others suggest the increase might be due to overfishing near Patagonia and Antarctica that has forced the penguins to swim further in search of food.

Temperatures in the current Southern Hemisphere winter are in the low 20s Celsius.

"This is unheard of. There have even been reports of penguins washing up as far as Aracaju," Adelson Cerqueira Silva said, referring to a beachside state capital even closer to the equator.

Silva said the environmental authority was receiving hundreds of phone calls reporting penguin sightings.

"We're telling people if the penguins don't appear to be injured or sick to leave them alone so they can swim back," Silva said in telephone interview from the Bahia state capital of Salvador.

Rescued penguins have swamped a triage centre for rescued birds, and Silva said about 90 of the birds found alive have since died.

Penguins have been sweeping up on Brazilian shores in ever greater numbers this year, for reasons that are not entirely clear.

While penguins commonly wash up as far north as Rio de Janeiro state in July and August - hundreds have done so this year. Bahia is roughly 1,200 kilometres northeast of Rio.

P. Dee Boersma, a conservation biologist at the University of Washington who works with penguins in Argentina, said that while she has heard of penguins occasionally washing up as far north as Bahia, the numbers washing up this year are extremely high.

"The last time that you got a lot of penguins was in 2000, mostly in Rio but some further north. That year the sea surface temperature was a degree lower than the 30-year average so the penguins just keep swimming in search of food without noticing where they're going," said Boersma in a telephone interview from Seattle.

She also said overfishing near Patagonia and Antarctica could be a factor. In the past decade, penguins have had to swim an average of 60 kilometres further north to find food, Boersma said.

The majority of penguins turning up are baby birds that have just left the nest and are least able to outswim the strong ocean currents.


Guess all I'll have to do is visit the beaches of Rio when I'm in Brazil if I ever get homesick!

Hi Everyone,

Thank you so much for your prayers.

I have officially been accepted with Latin America Mission and appointed a missionary with them.  I am awaiting a letter with further details.

Many Blessings,

Julie

D Day turned God's Day

I survived the dentist today. After two anti-anxiety pills, nitrous oxide and 6 freezing needles later I have two fewer wisdom teeth, four more fillings and a lighter wallet.

Please, please, PLEASE don't wait to go to the dentist (even if you HATE it), it's not worth it!

I don't like the dentist, but it's always easier with drugs...oh and Tylenol 3 with codeine for the after effects. Am I in pain...not yet, but I'm a little 'happy'.

God did stretch my faith through it all. I know it's something simple. I even lost sleep over it...though it was an oven in my room the night before!

I keep panicking over the littlest things and God ALWAYS pulls through.

So thank you God, for using something I was terrified about to strengthen my faith and trust in You!

I actually will look forward to going to the dentist now...I never would've seen that coming!

Sorry!

Sorry about the formatting on my previous post! I'm not all that great with computers and it did show up differently in the draft!

May 2008 support letter

I'm sorry for the length. I want to be committed to you to keep my letters shorter from now on.

But, please enjoy!

(With some children at City for Children, Aracariguama, Brazil (Lucas in front))

I'm Thankful For...

*You!
*Thank you for supporting me through prayer and donations over these last five and a half months.

*My orientation with Latin America MIssion in Miami, January 20 to February 1
*Although it was a jammed packed 10 days of orientation, I felt like I was coming home.

*I made some lasting friendships with the LAM staff and the other candidates.

*Through prayer and interviews, I've decdided to go to Brazil. I will be working with an organization called Valley of Blessing, City for Children. I never through I would be going to Brazil...NEVER say never!!

*The reslults of my MRI for my left knee
*I don't need surgery! Since my physiotherapy and exercises, I've had minimal pain.

*My exploration trip to Brazil, March 31 to April 8
*After letting worry consume me as I prepared to travel to Brazil, I learned that even though it doesn't look like it, God is fully in control and I MUST leave the worrying up to Him. Even though I wasn't sleeping, God sustained me and took care of me through work and commitments, flights and customs, airport navigation and finding lost luggage until I was safely in Aracariguama (an hour and a half from Sao Paulo).

*I spent a few days at Valley of Blessing, City for Children meeting the staff and hanging out with the kids. The ministry is about 20 yeears old and was started by two pastors. There are home for children 0-18 yrs, a church, a school, cafeteria, Bible college, dorms, prayer center and beautiful gardens. The kids are usualy sent to live there by the courts since they are lacking basic needs at home.

*I will be workiing primarily with City for Children filling inthe gaps in the Christian education system to meet public education standards. Through this, I'm hoping I'll be able to disciple some of the kids as well as learn about at risk kids. In the future LAM and I will disscuss the possibilities of using horses to reach at risk kids.

*Even though I didn't speak Portuguese, I figured out how to say "What is this?". Although I was saying it wrong, Lucas (see picture) clued in and taught me colors, parts of the body and how to count.

*I then visited the language school in Vianopolis. It's not set in stone that I'll be attending the school; it all depends when I leave. The first semester begins each August. If I leave earlier, then the plan is to receive tutoring in Anapolis. Both of these cities are in the state of Goias which is about an hour flight north of Sao Paulo.

*I spent the rest of my time visiting LAM missionaries who work with Christian Camping International Brazil. There three couples train Brazilians in every related to camp ministry.

*I loved Brazil! Even though it does have Latin influence, the country also has European influences since it was colonized by Portugal. It was normal to see fair skinned and dark skinned people. I'm excited for my return.

*My continued application process with Latin America Mission
*I'm learning more about myself and God as I am being stretched through the application process. God is in control. As much as I would like to leave by January, that may or may not happen. I can't focus on the how, but only on God. He will take care of the details.

Please pray that I won't get down thinking baout the length of time the process is taking (it's normal!), but that I'll use this as a chance to get to know myself and God better. My ministry can't be strong if my relationship with God is weak.

If you would like to contact me, please send me a message. Since this is a public board, I don't want to leave my contact information. Thanks for reading!

"For I know the plan I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

Blessings,

Julie Clausen

Evangelism Never Stands Alone...

"I think Mother's life tells us something more-that evangelism never stands alone."

"Alone, evangelism is vulnerable to distortion or suffocation--it often becomes either an unworthy kind of proselytism, or is easily snuffed out in favor of other priorities. But when evangelism is a part of the the total mission of the church, surrounded by compassion and service and training for life, then it is vital and enduring."

"It is meant to be a part--not the total--of the Christian task. Look at the imperatives that always accompany the Great Commission: baptizing, teaching, discipling, healing. Look at the example of Jesus and his disciples. I agree. Evangelism is the priority mission of the Body of Christ. But it cannot, must, should not stand alone."

"To me, Kenneth, Mother's life says that for the Body [of Christ] to be able to evangelize, it needs supporting ministries, like the Bible institute, the radio station and publications. And wherever human need appears, the Body's automatic function is to respond. It is the very nature of the gospel to respond to the demands that a sin-sick world makes upon its resources. Such a response gives it credibility. This is what we are also discovering in the 'Caravans' (rural assistance) ministry in which I am currently involved. People give themselves to Jesus naturally in that kind of an environment."

-taken from, "One Step Ahead", The Innovative Strachans and the Birth of the Latin America Mission by W. Dayton Roberts (pgs. 183-184)

I like how Susan Strachans' daughter Grace, describes evangelism as a whole.

more to follow...

Foooood!!!

Brazilian BBQ!!!

Since the meat isn't processed and doesn't have added chemicals, it tastes amazing.

One of the restaurants I went to had a buffet layed out in front when I walked in. I chose all sorts of food (minus meat) and then sat down.

There's a small round dial on each table - one side red, the other green.

So, move it to the green side and wait.

We didn't wait long, and waiters started coming with different types of meat. They slice off what you want and will keep coming until you move the dial to red or stop.

Wow! Did I get my fill there!!

Definitely worth it.

There were places like that restaurant in Goias too. Except that I went to the BBQ itself and chose what meat I wanted and then my plate was weighed.

My mouth is watering just describing it!

Brazil

The top left picture is of Camp Victoria. It's the christian camp that Dihno and Ginny (picture in the right) started. The LAM missionaries that work with Christian Camping International Brazil train Brazilians with how to run camps. From everything on what to do with snakes to buying food, to training camp staff, etc.

We stayed at the camp for one night. It was beautiful and peaceful. I loved listening to the birds, and there are even night birds!

The property is huge and was bought for $10,000 USD from a spiritist who liked Dihno's vision for the camp. God works in mysterious ways!

Dihno and Ginny (left) and Ariana live in Tres Ranchos. Ariana rents from Dihno and Ginny and works as a missionary at the camp. She spoke some English so I had fun getting to know her. The last night we were in Tres Ranchos, she invited me to a birthday party for someone at her church. Though only a few others spoke English, I still had fun. I love the Latino culture...even though I am a stranger, it doesn't matter.

The bottom picture is of the landscape in Goias. It reminded me of BC. I guess that's why it felt so much like home. Rolling hills, cows and horses and agriculture all over the place!

Traffic and Pollution

A typical day in Sao Paulo...yes, it's cloudy, but not foggy, just polluted. My eyes hurt a lot and I had to take Claritain. It looks like I'll only be in Sao Paulo if I'm flying into the airport.

I love big cities, but it's not safe. There are a lot of problems with gangs and robberies. It sounds like my first car will be in Brazil! Since most of the cars there are standards, I decided I should learn how to drive one on Deerfoot, in rush hour, while it's raining! Anyone want to teach me???!!!!

Me and the boys. I didn't know the word for smile, so they don't look very happy!






Alan is a LAM missionary in Anapolis with Christian Camping Internatioal Brazil. Eni Dell is his daughter (right). Miguel Angel (left) is VP of Ministries for LAM and I was traveling with him. Anapolis is in Goias, another State in Brazil. Just north of Sao Paulo. I loved listening to the birds. And the fruit is wonderful, such a variety. I'll be learning Portuguese in Anapolis. Alan, his wife Ezia and daughter are looking into tutors for me. Eni Dell offered to be one of my tutors. Ezia is Brazilian and so Eni Dell is fluent. They were such an amazing family. I felt like I was coming home!

This is the Valley of Blessing. It was beautiful and peaceful. It's about an hour and a half outside of Sao Paulo. The people were so friendly and wanted to help me learn the language.

I can't wait to return.

Brazil

Here is me with some of the boys. They were so cute and even though we couldn't communicate, we had fun.

I'm trying to post more pics, but it won't let me right now. So, more to come!

Brazil

Welcome to Valley of Blesssing. Careful with our Children.

Aracariguama, SP, Brazil

This is the ministry where I'll be working - specifically City for Children.

There are children here from birth to 18 years. There's a school, church, cafeteria, Bible college, houses for the kids/teens, parks, prayer center.

It's beautiful and protected by the government.

I hung out with some of the kids for a few hours. It was hard because I don't speak Portuguese, but I figured out how to ask "what is it" in Portuguese, except I found out later that I was saying it as I would in Spanish, not Portuguese. But one boy, Lucas understood me and taught me parts of the body, and how to count. And they had me playing ring aroud the rosie.

It's May darn it!

What do I see on the weather this morning?

Snowfall warning!

It's May 8th...I'll never get used to Calgary weather!

10-15 cm from today to Friday morning. Funny part, I'm going to a retreat with Axis from Friday to Sunday with horseback riding Saturday. Maybe I'll be sledding instead!

It's supposed to warm up for Friday and the weekend, but this IS Calgary.

Anything can happen!

Can I go back to Brazil now?

What season is it?

So, it's April 24th (I think) and it looks like December outside! AND it's supposed to snow overnight and into the morning. Apparently it's supposed to warm up Friday afternoon and into the weekend, but that's what 'they' said at the beginning of the week!

I can't wait until I can return to Brazil! January won't come soon enough:)

Snow, snow go away, come again when I don't live in Canada!