Ramblings

HEY friends ... Well, I just got home from the gym and I am extremely exhausted! Of course I had to add the grocery shopping into my evening excursion - which is a minor workout in itself lugging big water jugs from my car to my apartment! ugh ... i don't drink the water from the tap unless it is boiled ...it tastes too wierd. I have been spoiled by fine Calgary water!

Let's see where to begin ... Well, I am now up to running 6 miles a day in a time of just under 56 minutes. I have no clue if that is good or not -but, let me tell yah when i stop I have sweat almost down to my belly button! not a pretty sight!! Feeling physically exhausted is actually a liberating thing! I don't think that I would ever say that cause I hate sweating but, there is something about those endorphines kicking in that feel really good! Why then is it so flippin' hard to get the butt off the couch?? Ohh well ... I am doing well at this and at the YMCA 5-6 days out of the week!! Hoorah ... Hurray ... I would say this is pretty close to a miracle;) haha... lol

I saw the movie today "End of the Spear". Oh my gosh -total tear jerker ...that is if you are a type of person (like myself) who just throws yourself right into the middle of the story. It is a beautiful "true story" of 5 missionaries in the 50's who were killed as they were reaching out to a tribe in Ecuador who were on the brink of extinction. The story is told from the sons perspective of one of the men who were martyred (not Jim Elliot's son) and then the journey of the tribe from then on -the healing and salvation that has taken place. It is so incredible ... very inspiring. From a production perspective - (my personal opinion only) felt that the music was a throw back to cheesy christian music and I semi expected Kirk Cameron to come walking onto the set at some point. Most of you will understand that comment;) I found elements of it cheesy and if I was not so drawn to the actual content of the story and the meaning in it - I probably would not have liked it. So, there you have it -move over roger and ebert (oh wait one of them isn't around anymore-oops) sheri mcconnell is on the set! HA HAHAHA ....
**I do recommend you see it!

Tommorow is my California Drivers Road Test - 2PM - Pacific Time! Yikes... All my 16 year old fears are on the surface ...please pray!!!

Feb. 16th - I am going to a live taping of the Dr. Phil show with a couple friends! HA! Should be fun - looking forward to it!

Basileia is doing well. It is cool cause there definately is a core group that is emerging and forming. This past sunday we were at "The GIG" - the nightclub in the heart of Hollywood for our once a month gathering. It was absolutely amazing!! It never ceases to amaze me all the new people that end up showing up ... and hearing about it from who knows? our weekly gatherings are in homes and we have had a couple different ones in the last week and they have been really focused on prayer and seeking the Lord for our "Hub-Location". We are just finding it difficult doing everything out of our homes especially in the LA area where there are 3 counties, over 100 cities and approximately 17 million people that I live right in the middle of. It takes many people over an hour just to get to things and that is on a good freeway day! Appreciate your prayers as we seek Him as to where He really wants us to establish ourselves ... We are beginning Feb. 12th our first round of leadership development teaching and training over a 3 month period with a group of about 20. Really looking forward to this ... there is quite a bit of prep to pull together for it but, excited about the times that we will be able to spend building a deeper heart connect with our emerging core.

Well, I think that is it for now ... I am exhausted and need to get some zzzz...
I will be back in touch soon!

Heaps of love and fun stuff all over you ... Keep it real!

.:sheri:.

From my Journal ...

The feelings of my heart as of late.


I drink from the complexities of life and find it's flavour sweet and mysterious.

Sometimes burning my tongue yet filling me with shivers of delight.

Restlessly bubbling inside of me it is a myriad of tastes not one standing out alone.

Aromas of happiness, sadness, peace, doubt and faith.

Refresh me - Revive me - and urge me to try again.

Take another sip.

Tommorow.

Dance

Here taken by my good friend Scott Francis, a picture from Street Invaders this past summer. A youth discipleship program that I was directing. Alexandra -I love you- you so rock!

A huge shout out to all my Street Invaders posse - love you all and miss you!

Drivers Exam Update ...

Yeah ... I passed! The written exam anyway. I had 3 mistakes, which were quite humourous... a question on the blood alcohol limit, some bizarre question regarding a tanker truck at a railway crossing and the third being one on carrying livestock. hahhaaa! So, now my actual DRIVING EXAM is 2pm on February 1st. Yikes!

I guess I better make sure that I don't have a glass of wine before I take the test ... run into some truck carrying livestock or encounter a tanker truck on a railway crossing! HA! ok...perhaps a lame joke;)

Nevertheless, soon enough I will be displaying Cali-for-ni-a plates.

Drivers Test!

Yes, well ... it is THE DAY! All of my 16 year old "driving" fears are coming back to haunt me.

Unfortunately when one moves from Canada to the USofA, you cannot just transfer your licensing over but must take a written exam and then an actual driving exam!

It is so crazy here ...the licensing process. Everything is independant which means the insurance to the registration to the licensing are all like 50 steps to get them done. Seriously, another one of those lets wait in line for 5 hours kinda thing.

So, today is my written exam and then when I pass, my appointment for the driving exam will happen. All this to say PLEASE PRAY! The miles thing really has not sit with me yet. HA! Needless, to say that is what I will be doing all morning reading through this blinkin' drivers manual!

On another note: I just have to give a shout out to the fact that I have passed a small and yet at the same time huge milestone!

5 MILES baby! That is right ... I am back on track and yesterday accomplished a 5 miles run in 50 minutes. I have no clue if that is a good time or not? But, feeling really good physically and each day my endurance is increasing! Yeah ...

The first couple months were really difficult to get into any sort of routines health wise because half of it was spent travelling in Canada and just with the transitions and not knowing this area well, I didn't know what that was going to look like however, now I am on track and feeling great that way!

This week has been a mixture for me with some good in it. I will speak to the good. Tuesday night met a friend from England at the airport. Took him out for dinner ...it was really cool to catch up -tho' very brief as he was on his way to Calgary the next day and a special treat he did bring! 2 massive bars of Galaxy Chocolate! Excitement! Perhaps I can eat them while I am running ... HA!! Bad joke;)

Monday night and last night (wednesday) we had 2 important prayer meetings focusing towards really "hearing" the Lord together and seeking him on behalh of "a hub" for Basileia. Great prayer times together and really seeing a core develop. Also, looking forward to Tim/Diane Larose from the Loops who are coming down this week and I think coming to the GIG this Sunday. Can hardly wait to see them!!

Last week a bunch of us went to Life Pacific College in San Dimas, CA. (a four square school) David and band did a blow out night of worship - it was flippin' amazing! The Lord came powerfully!!! It made me miss all my FGBC friends ... you guys would seriously love the look of this campus - really sweet!

February we start our Leadership Development track that David and I will be leading the teaching in for a group here of about 25. Really looking forward to it and have been working on pulling all this stuff together.

Well, I know that this post has been somewhat random. Just alot of stuff that has been swirling around in my mind this morning.

For those that read this today - if you could send up a prayer ... 3:20pm is my appointment for the drivers test! ACK!

I will keep you posted:)

Peaceout!
.:sheri:.

I was thinkin' this morning ...

about some very random 'sheri' things...

My Favorite Color - RED
My Favorite Band - U2 past-present and pretty much most 80's music
One of my favorite smells - clean bedding fresh out of the hot dryer
My favorite parfume - Angel and Dolce Gabanna
My favorite season - Fall
My favorite sounds - The Ocean and the sound of rain
My favorite food(s) - Good Coffee/Ice Cream/Red Wine
One of my dreams - To grow old with someone
My favorite flowers - White Roses/Calla Lilies and White Daisies
Favorite Movie - Immortal Beloved (watch it:)
Historical Characters that I admire (in no particular order) - Joan of Arc/Martin Luther King Jr./Dietrich Bonhoeffer/Mother Theresa/Evita/St. Francis of Assisi/Jesus Christ and His Disciples/Bono
One of my favorite authors - Henri Nouwen
Pop culture Icons - Wonder Woman/Bionic Woman
Favorite Animal - Dolphin
Favorite Animal I love - Bailey (of course;)
Favorite Place I have traveled - Nepal/UK/French Riveria
Favorite Childhood literature - The Chronicles of Narnia/Nancy Drew Mystery Series
Favorite Childhood Music - ABBA
Favorite Childhood Memory - Travelling Europe with my family when I was 16 (2 months - 7 countries)
Favorite Chocolate - Galaxy/Purdy's Peanut Butter bars
My favorite past times - afternoon movies/shopping/art
galleries/museums/theatre/mosaic art work/reading/listening to live music/going out for dinner with friends/exploring new places ...
My favorite Painting -'The Lady of Shalot'
Favorite Worship Song - 'Faithful' (David Ruis)
Favorite Scripture - all of it!
Favorite Instrument - Violin
My favorite people - my family and ALL my precious close friends (you know who you are:o)

Thanks

for all your prayers friends! Bailey is back up to his spunky speed...yeah!!
The fight goes on

sheri

Prayer ...

HI Everyone ... OK, this perhaps might sound like a wierd post for some of you but, I am calling out to all of you who believe in and are standing with me in prayer whether far away or near. It has to do with Bailey - my little Bichon Frise "baby". He is almost like a child to me as most of you who know me well -would understand;)

Anyway, in the last 3 weeks I have had to take him into the vet on 2 separate occasions for 2 completely different situations that were totally random out of the blue costing me a lot of money, stress, lack of sleep, etc... I could go into all the sorted details but, that would take too long and for many of you probably bore you.

I would ask that you please pray!

I actually really believe that it is connected to elements of warfare that is stepping up here for me personally and my household (which includes Bailey). I don't mean that in any sort of demon chasing behind every tree thing but, I do see that the enemy loves to go for the weakest links, the helpless, people in our lives and over the last couple days as we have been walking through some "relational swirl" in the midst of life here, the warfare definately feels like it is ramping up. I am currently nursing him (Bailey) back to health from a superficial ulcer on his right eye due to an accident from a groomer yesterday. (a small piece of the "sorted details" from one of the random accounts)

Please pray for protection over myself and Bailey. Physical strength over myself along with Spiritual sight and discernment as we push into the life of the Basileia community here in Los Angeles.

You are valued, loved and missed!

sheri

The Spiritual Work of Gratitude

Kinda neat inlight of my last post - this daily meditation from the Henri Nouwen Society (see below) was in my inbox this morning...


To be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all of our lives-the good as well as the bad, the moments of joy as well as the moments of sorrow, the successes as well as the failures, the rewards as well as the rejections-that requires hard spiritual work. Still, we are only truly grateful people when we can say thank you to all that has brought us to the present moment. As long as we keep dividing our lives between events and people we would like to remember and those we would rather forget, we cannot claim the fullness of our beings as a gift of God to be grateful for.

Let's not be afraid to look at everything that has brought us to where we are now and trust that we will soon see in it the guiding hand of a loving God.

It's a Good Day

It's a good day ... the sun is brightly shining into my office at 8:30am it is bright, peaceful and looks like a warm day to follow.

It's a good day ... I woke up without the use of an alarm clock and the feeling of a truck rolling over my head. Perhaps that is a miracle ... lol

It's a good day ... I am about to partake on my last eggnog latte' of the season ... mmm... make it extra hot with no foam.

It's a good day ... to hit the YMCA and beat up my body ... I mean make it better with the use of the cross trainer and all sorts of gym (torturing devices) i mean toys.

It's a good day ... cause I have stayed true so far to one of my new year resolves, to do something "active" every day.

It's a good day ... cause I made it through my very first and very last cycle class the other day, and I wear it like a trophy on my behind because that is seriously what took the most beating! Oh my gosh ...it's a miracle that I didn't get hemmroids out of the 30 minutes.

It's a good day ... cause I have 2 Calgary buddies coming down here to vist me any day. A shout out to James and Stu!

It's a good day ... because the peace of the presence of the Lord is very near to me these past few days.

It's a good day ... cause I had fun yesterday with a new friend combing through the LA fashion district.

It's a good day ... cause I had a really great "tea" conversation with a good friend last night.

It's a good day ... cause I had a great phone convo with Joyska last night all the way in Kansas City!

It's a good day ... cause I just found yesterday that 2 good friends got engaged over Christmas! YEAH to Mark and Laurel!!!

It's a good day ... cause I have GALAXY chocolate dawning my house in a couple weeks! YEAH ... Andy!

It's a good day ... cause my little baby Bailey is back to his normal spunky self!

It's a good day ... cause I was able to pay my rent, telephone bill and going to pay my cable bill today.

It's a good day ... cause a long lost very dear friend contacted me this past week!

It's a good day ... cause I have a mysterious encounter tonight which will prove to be interesting -I'm sure.

It's a good day ... cause I am heading to San Marcos, CA. tommorow for a wknd. wtih friends, blowout worship and of course meeting God!

It's a good day ... cause I am healthy, loved and all my needs are taken care of!

It is the small things that make up fantastic days!!


Hope your day is great!

Rain

There is something so beautiful and mysterious about the rain to me. Here I am in southern california with cold, stormy weather. Shoot I should'nt have sold that umbrella in the garage sale ... Other than what it does to my hair, I love the rain!

So often I have heard people talk about how rain makes them depressed. I never understood that really cause I love the rain! I am a very reflective individual and when I hear the rain outside my window payne it quickly takes me to those places of reflection and muse. I remember as a kid some of the best times we had as a family was camping. That's right folks despite popular opinion perhaps - I am a camper! shock and awe ... I can forgo showers, blowdryers and the sort!

Anyway, one of my favorite times in our trailer was listening to the rain as it pitter pattered across the roof of the trailer. Only but a few inches from my face (trailer bunks are small, tight spaces) and there I would lie all cozy in my sleeping bag falling asleep to the sound of rain which was always so beautiful and comforting.

...Peaceful, cleansing, washing, refreshing ...
...Moments where all the cares of my heart are silenced by the lull and rhythm of the rain.

Tonight in some strange way it is as if the Lord knew how much I have needed a rainy night. The only thing better, would be the ability to share it with someone.
One day perhaps.

The solace of melancholy is my constant companion

goodnight