Malawi, here we come!!!

So I am currently in Toronto, sitting in a nice comfy hotel bed,soaking up all the squishy-ness,cozy-ness and pillows. It may be my last comfortable bed for the next two weeks. Especially tomorrow night as it will be spent on the plane. I must say, after all this traveling, planes are kinda loosing their appeal and I also seem to be loosing my ability to sleep well on planes. Oh well!

Yet again, it wasn't too fun saying goodbye to hubbs, but as our good friend Clark said, there is a certain peace and excitement that comes when you are leaving to do something that God is calling you too." so we're just excited to see what God has instore. we will definitely miss each other, but distance makes the heart grow fonder! :)

We have an awesome team! It was so great to finally meet everyone! We have girls from age 13-22! It's so diverse and really fun team. Two of the girls fundraiser all summer and raised an overwhelming amount of money to give to the village of hope for uniforms and a new water heater. Other girls had birthday parties and asked for donations for the kids in the village rather than birthday  presents for herself.  We have sooooooooooooooo many donations to bring to the missionaries, all really awesome, fantastic stuff. We're so excited to see their faces!

I'm excited to be  co-leading this team and learning from Kim. It's going to be a stretching experienceand I am so excited to learn from her. I'm hoping, if all goes well, that I'll be able to lead more teams in the future. That would be a dream come true!!

Please keep us in your thougts and prayers, especially for safe travel and health.

Again, I will not be able to post while I am in Malawi, but please check the tattered tiaras website for daily blogs and you'll be updated on our daily adventures and get to see pictures from our day. Www.tatteredtiaras.com

Talk to you soon!

Malawi

In case you have ever wondered if a life following God would be boring, take it from be, it's everything but boring. Rather, it's a wonderful, exciting adventure!!!

I am still in Thailand.  I came here 4 weeks ago with a Tattered Tiaras leadership team and remained here after the team left to stay with my husband  who is completing an internship with long term Bangkok missionary, Peter DeWit. It has been an incredible month learning God's heart for Bangkok,  doing life in community with their church NewSong, Teaching English at a local School, and following Peter and his wife, Pat, as they serve selflessly in their local community. I could go on forever about the lessons we have learned, and maybe one day i will, but right now i want to talk to you about the next adventure God has for me. 

In only two weeks i am scheduled to leave Toronto, ON, to make my way to Malawi, Africa. Tattered Tiaras will be taking another team of girls, this time ranging from 13-22  in age, to the Village of Hope. The Village of Hope is an orphanage for at risk children and is located in 5 countries throughout Africa, including Malawi. The VOH works to "bring lasting hope to children at risk so they can embrace adulthood as independent and contributing members of society"(VOH webpage). The VOH in Malawi provides proper nutrition, education, healthcare and shelter to over 70 children who would otherwise have little to no future.

We will be working with missionaries Connie and Dave Buzikievich who are the National Directors of the Village of Hope. The focus of the trip will working in the city of Lilongwe and surrounding villages with children and mothers. Malawi will give the team members an opportunity to see a part of the world they may have never had the opportunity to see.  However, this trip will not be sightseeing. We want the girls on the team to understand that each one of them, youngest to oldest, has the potential to make an difference in their own world, and the world around them. We want them to learn that it doesn't take much to change the life of one person, not only in a foreign country, but in their own as well. The girls will teach children’s programs, play with children and assist families with daily activities.  I will be the assistant leader on the team along side the founder and director of Tattered Tiaras, Kim Moran. I will be "in training" during this trip as I anticipate leading other teams (possibly by myself) in the following years.  (Learn more about Tattered Tiaras!)

Matt and I firmly believe that this is the next step in God's plan for my life and are so excited to see what he has in store. I am still quite short in funding for this trip however and my non-refundable plane ticket has already been purchased. :) I strongly believe that God does not call us to something that He will not make the provisions for, and I also know that He uses other people to provide. However He chooses to provide this money, I just ask that you would be open to hearing from Him if you are to support me in this. If you would like to donate, you will find a secure PayPal donation button just up a little bit and to your right where you can use any method of payment. Please be assured that 100% of all donations go directly into the Malawi fund. It is no small amount that we are believing in God for, but I know that nothing is too great for my God. 

If you are unable to support me financially, I equally need people praying for myself and the team that we would have safe travels, for health, good and effective teamwork, courage and boldness and of course, finances. 


If you would like to stay updated while I am in Malawi, please continue to check the Tattered Tiaras Blog for daily updates from the team.

If you have just stumbled across our blog for the first time, please join our e-mail list (to the right) to ensure you don't miss an update!  More reflections from Thailand coming soon! 

VOH Malawi

Dear Diary,

I never kept a diary.

I tried. Really, really hard.

But there was always that one day. That one day that was so eventful, so full of stories, that at the end of it, I was just too tired to re-live it all in my diary. 


I'll do it tomorrow I promised myself. 


Two weeks later... it all pilled up and there was simply to much to write. That was the end of my diary. 


That's my excuse for not blogging in the past week. How do you re-cap two weeks of awesome-ness into a blog that doesn't tire you to read and me to write? I didn't know, ( and still don't) so, naturally, I put it off. 


But it wont be the end of my blog!  


To and a half weeks ago I embarked on a Journey to Bangkok with 5 other girls. To out pleasant surprise, our flight was not nearly as unfortunate as Matt's was. While there were no TV's, we had great  air conditioning, and most of us either happily read or slept the whole way. There was no circling of Bangkok before landing, no lost luggage and we actually arrived a little early. 


We stayed in a nice, little and very Thai hotel. We were primarily thankful for the air conditioning and the free breakfast!! 


Pat DeWit, our contact and leader for the next 10 days, had our days all planned out. Upon arrival we were given our schedule which included everything from early morning prayer walks through the city, lunches and dinners with many local business owners, walks through the very rich and very poor parts of the city to late nights experiencing Thai  night life. 


Pat's passion is that we would leave with a heart for Bangkok. Mission accomplished! Everything we did was driven with a purpose that we would experience a different aspect of Bangkok. Not as tourists, but as the locals would. 


I'd like to introduce you to 4 people I met along the way that have changed my life. 


On our first day we went into China Town with a lady named Dao (Daow). She is a very small lady, but WOW! she is such a power house! She has an amazing ministry with the girls who are working on the streets as prostitutes. To be honest, when we first started walking around, I didn't notice any girls that I thought would be working the streets. My eyes drifted only to corners and searching out women with no clothes on. There were none. Then Dao told us that most of the prostitutes will look like very normal girls sitting or standing around holding a purse. It's often easy to mistake them because they look like they are just waiting for a friend. Then suddenly my eyes started noticing a lot more girls. I was a little shocked. But what stuck me more than the number of girls, was how Dao interacted with them. She knew them. She cared for them. She looked deep into their eyes and spoke truth into their hearts. It was chilling to see her boldness and love with these girls. We asked one girl why she is working on the street even though she didn't want to be there. "I have a child to feed", she replied. It dawned on me that while some women choose it because they love it, others don't have a choice. Desperate. 

The team and Dao

Dao and a lady we met who makes pillowcases

Another day, we ate lunch with a man named Alex who owns his own Vietnamese restaurant. We went to one of the two locations he owns located in the food court of a university. Most of us were just happy to be there for the great food, but then he shared his heart with us. As it turns out, Alex used to own a huge hotel along the coast of Thailand. Not long before opening day in 2004, he was called inland to a meeting. While he was was away from his hotel, the Tsunami hit the coast of Thailand and took with it everything he had, except his life. He ended up marrying the woman that called him for a meeting. He believes she saved his life. Together they opened the restaurant and are doing very well with it. The beautiful thing about this couple is that, they choose to only hire employees who cannot find work anywhere else. Sometimes even at a risk to himself. He'll even hire refugees and former prostitutes wanting a new start at life. It is very important to Alex and his wife that their employees are paid well. So much so that they take less profit for themselves so they have more to give. Selfless.

First Time trying Vietnamese Food!

Alex and his Wife

  One day after church we went to an event called Big Bite. It was an event put on by a man name Dwight where many different local food vendors (including Alex) came and set up their booths and sold their food! However, they gave all the proceeds to help support the refugees who have fled to Thailand from Vietnam, Cambodia, Burma ect. In the previous blog, Matt talked about our experience meeting with one of these families. Dwight works tirelessly with the refugees in Thailand to ensure they have a safe place to live, food to eat and clothes to wear. Compassionate.

Tim owns an organic produce store. Handed down for generations, Adam's Organics has been in his family for years. They work to provide healthy, fresh, organic produce and supply it to many of the local grocery stores and markets. He does very well for himself. But he is not simply concerned with selling a good, quality product. They have worked very hard to own the farms where the produce is grown and ensure the workers are paid more than fair. He also opens up the space in front of his store and gives it to a Christian coffee stand that gives it's proceeds to the refugees. Adam's Organic's is located in a bit of a sketchier part of town with little Christian influence; Tim hopes their presence will be a light in a dark world. We left with bags full of free produce for the refugee family. Loving.

The Team and Tim and one of his employees.

Coffee Shop outside Adam's Organic. 

I could tell you about many other experiences, both fun and hard, and many other people, but these 4 have really taught me something special and life changing. 


Dao, Alex, Dwight, Tim are all changing lives, doing the Lord's work, furthering His Kingdom. Neither one is in full time ministry. Neither one is a missionary who moved here with a purpose to start a ministry. In fact, they all have full time jobs and a locals in Bangkok. They taught me that we dont have to be in "full time ministry"  to serve God. Somehow, somewhere along the way, I got that idea in my head. In order for me to serve God with all my life, I need to be working in a church or move away as a missionary. Serving God is not a vocation, or a trade. You can't go to school to learn how. It's a life style. Its how you choose to do business. It's the relationships you choose to form. It's the poor and the broken that you give food and shelter to. 


 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,  I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Matthew 25:34-40

"Every time we complain we advertise our sin of entitlement."- Patricia Dewit

Every missions trip should include a slap in the face that brings you back down to earth and gives you a glimpse into how blessed you are, and how much God has provided for you.

On Monday July 16, the Tattered Tiaras team and myself experienced that sudden awakening to reality.  We visited a house full of North Vietnamese refugees, from the Mong hill tribe. We arrived at the house, and saw a small house tucked away at the end of a long driveway. There were little children outside playing. It seemed like a relatively normal place. But one could not know the stories of pain and unendurable suffering that lay inside the hearts of the people residing there.

(It's possible that I may have gotten my numbers wrong, and if so i will correct them upon learning more, but I believe there are 9 children in the house, and between 6-8 adults, mostly women.)

We had picked up some groceries for the people there, and proceeded inside to greet the people there. Immediately upon entering the house, I looked to my right and there was a man lying on the floor, eyes open, staring blankly at the ceiling. A little shaken, I proceeded upstairs to sit with the women of the house and share a little about each other. The members of the team handed over the groceries, and we shared our names and where we come from. All the while the little children are poking around curiously at the bags of groceries.

One mother began to share her story of how she came to be in Thailand.

This is her story.

Upon becoming a believer of Jesus Christ, the Vietnamese government, a communist government,  began cracking down hard on the followers of the Christian faith. They began threatening the people, and setting traps for them. they raided their church gathering with a pesticide that induced unconsciousness. They dug a pit outside the building where they gathered, and planted sharpened stakes at the bottom, in the hopes that when they exited the building, they would fall to their deaths. They attempted to force the believers to recant their faith by beating them, forcing them to drink animal blood, threatening imprisonment, and even threatening death. Her husband was arrested once, and released, told to never believe in Jesus again. He received warning that the police were coming to get him again, and so he fled into the jungle behind his house. when the coast was clear he came and collected his family, and fled Vietnam into the neighboring country of Laos. However, the Vietnamese police pursued them all the way into Laos and they were encountering trouble from the local police, due to the fact that Laos is also a communist country. Therefore, they were forced to flee into Thailand. it was here that her husband was arrested and thrown into immigration prison. He has no hope of getting out until the vietnamese government recognizes him as vietnamese, or the Thai government grants him access, both of which are extremely unlikely. it costs 25,000 baht, or around 850 dollars to bail him out. However, even if he is bailed out, he could be tossed back in the day after. These refugees live in constant fear, when their supposed crime is believing in the God of the bible.

(We heard two stories, and it is possible some of the details have been crossed over, but they were both from the Mong hill tribe, and so both endured similar persecution. However, if I receive more clarification, I shall make the corrections.)

There was a guitar sitting in the corner, and I tuned it up and worshipped in a circle of people made up of those who have seen little to no persecution, and those who have seen the depths of human depravity. Singing "Follow You" by Leeland in that group was something I will never forget. Although we speak different languages, God speaks through music in a unique way.

I discovered that the man lying on the floor downstairs was a pastor, who was similarly persecuted, and forced into a hard labor camp. the hard labor took an extreme toll on his body. His kidneys are failing, and so he lies in agony on a daily basis.

As we sat with him, I couldn't help but think hard and deep about my brother, who is a doctor, and what he could do for these people. to see this man suffering so much after all he has endured, is something that I am quite confident would stir you, my brother, to tears. You are often on my mind as I wander the streets of Bangkok, seeing medical need all around me, and feeling helpless to do anything. You, however, have pursued a narrow path that enables you to do something. You weigh heavily on my mind these days.

Upon talking to him, we discovered that his father was the first Christian in his village, a fact that this pastor is quite proud of. He asked us to pray for him, and so we all bent the knee and approached the throne of grace, asking for this mans deliverance. there was not a dry eye in the place as God's presence filled that room. I sang over him with no shame or trepidation. God has given me a boldness here in Thailand that I haven't experienced before.

The impact of this day is one that will not be forgotten. To meet such heroes of the faith, people who have fought the good fight and kept the faith, is not something one simply forgets. There are people here in Thailand who are fighting for the release of the man who sits in prison, appealing to U.S. senators. I will hopefully returning to visit these refugees before I leave, as they want me to teach them some guitar.

I am hard put to truly put into words all of the thoughts and feelings that raced through my heart as I sat with these people.

Looking at my wife, and realizing how much I take her for granted was a prevalent thought as I listened the her story of her husband.

Looking at my life, and realizing how pitiful my own "problems" are.

Hearing these women sing "great is thy faithfulness", and recognizing their sacrifice of worship to be so much sweeter in the ears of God than even the loudest band at the biggest conference with the biggest crowd.

but perhaps most of all, hearing Pat's thought from the first time she walked away from that refugee house.

"Every time we complain we advertise our sin of entitlement."- Patricia Dewit

 HI everyone!
I am heading off to Udorn this weekend to help Peter preach and to lead worship for a couple of days! some women from Laos are coming across the border and into Thailand to have a bit of a retreat. Laos is a communist country, so it is quite the opportunity for them to come to a retreat and be able to express their faith. I will be preaching about servanthood, and I will be leading some worship! I have to do a song in Thai, and I am really excited! That's something I've never done! But singing in Thai really rolls off my tongue easily, so I enjoy it! So look forward to some pictures from that!

But before I left, i figured some people would be interested to know a little bit about where I am staying! I am staying with full time missionaries, Peter and Patricia Dewit, who have been here for quite a number of years! this is home for them now! And they have opened up their home very graciously to me, and have just been so great to be around! I am staying in their attic, which is air conditioned! yay! makes sleeping no problem!!

I have been trying to post some pictures but the internet is so slow right now for some reason that i can't! But I will as soon as I can!

See you soon,
Matt

So, I'm going to Thailand tomorrow. It still hasn't sunk in, as far as I'm concerned... I'm just hangin out with some girls in a hotel room. I am currently in Vancouver in a hotel right next to the airport. We are here for team training, tonight we are just going to spend some time getting to know each other and do a little bit of team training. I'm really excited for all the girls to get here and have the whole team together, it's been a long time coming. To tomorrow afternoon we fly out. I must say, after hearing about Matt's eerience, my excitement for traveling has kind of been deflated. I am, however, prepared! I got my books, a sudoku game book, a full iPod of music, my neck pillow and a whole lot of gravol. We will be arriving in Thailand at 12:20 am Wednesday morning, which will be around 10:30 am on Tuesday in BC. So I'm totally gonna miss out on Tuesday. Let's hope it wasn't supposed to be an awesome day for me. For the next two weeks while I am on the tattered tiara program, I will not be online. I want to make sure that I am focused on what it ahead of me rather then " when can I get to my computer". But, you won't be left out in the cold. Visit the tattered tiaras website and Kim, the team leader, will be doing her best to update the tattered tiaras blog as often as possible. That will fill you in on all out adventures. Visit www.tatteredtiars.com. Please keep the team in your thoughts and prayers. And few blogs down I posted a little flyer of our team with the schedule so you have an idea of what we're doing each day. Talk To you soon!!!! Much love, Nicole!

I never thought I would be so relieved to see my own name.

Leaving Nikki at the airport was harder than I let on.  I hate goodbyes, and saying goodbye to my wife was not something I relished remotely. Watching her disappear into the crowd, back into normal life, wasn’t easy. But, as lines do, I moved forward.

I remember thinking, about 15 minutes before boarding my first plane to Shanghai, that I should go and release my bladder. But, I didn’t want to miss my first flight either, and who knows what kind of nasty surprises could happen in the bathroom? So I held it. Which resulted in gut-wrenching agony for the first 45 minutes of the flight. The first 6 hours dragged on at a never-ending pace. There were no outlets, no TV’s, and a ton of Asian people, of which I am quite confident none of them spoke English. I didn’t want to use my laptop, because I wanted to save those precious few hours for when I really needed something to distract me. I tried reading, but to avail, as there was no air conditioning in the cabin, which meant I was sweating from head to toe, and couldn’t concentrate on anything other than keeping mu body temperature as low as humanly possible. The second 6 hours passed a little more smoothly. I’d like to be able to credit it to something other than drugs, but, sadly, I cannot. Two gravol’s in my stomach, and I passed out for three hours. Blissful sleep. But then, I awoke, as we often do, but not always, and wasted away the next three hours in anxious worrying. For you see, this is my first time overseas, my first time on an airplane for a trip longer than 4 hours. I knew that the arrival was coming up, and I had no idea what I was going to do. Apparently it is cheaper to book two different flights, with two different carriers, in two different terminals. So I had to get off my plane, go through Chinese customs, get my luggage, check in again, and then board. But once I had miraculously found my way through all that, they told me I had to switch terminals. Sooooo, I hoofed it to the other terminal, 15 long minutes away. Once there, I checked in, gave them my stuff, and went to find my gate. Two hour lay-over’s are a joke.

The second flight was slightly more enjoyable, as I dozed for half of it. The second half was spent wondering if the next leg would go smoothly. It did not. First off, my plane circled Bangkok for an hour, and so we arrived an hour late. Go figure. It’s a weird thing that circling your destination will make you late. Regardless, I got off, and then proceeded to exchange all my money, and go through Thai customs. There were about 20 arrival desks, where you could fill out your arrival and departure card, and not one of them had any cards to fill out. However, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a little woman peeking out at me from underneath a blanket, behind what looked remarkably like a desk. I practically pounced on the woman, and discovered there was another one underneath with her. These were the customs guards, sleeping on the job, not passing out arrival cards. I tried my best to get arrival cards into the hands of the people on my plane. They should have given me a name tag. Anywho, the line up was long, and I was already an hour late, so I feared my driver wouldn’t be there anymore. When I got up to the desk for customs, the guard wanted to know where I was staying while I was here. I didn’t know Peter’s address, so I said I didn’t know. So he rejected me, and sent me back the way I came. My phone, up to this point hasn’t been working in this part of the world, and I couldn’t find a payphone. So, naturally, I saw a discarded arrival card that said “Princeton hotel” on it, and I figured if someone else can stay there, so can I. So, I put that down, and the same guard let me through. I grabbed my bag, and took off. I needed to now find my driver.

I followed Peter’s instruction as best I could, and I couldn’t find my driver. I came to a fork in the road, and decided I should probably just try and use a payphone. So I finally found one that took visa, and as I was dialing the number of my driver, my cell died, taking with it the only access I had to those numbers. So I grabbed my carry-on bag, and sprinted up the stairs where the city was. Then I realized I had left my luggage downstairs next to the phone. Sooooo I sprinted back down to the pay phone where God must have stood guard over it, because it was still there.  Then I decided to go that way. And lo and behold, my driver was there.

And hence, you now understand why I have never been so relieved to see my own name.

God, you are stretching me in ways I don’t want to be stretched. But you are my strength, my fortress. I will reside in you. Give me the patience to walk through the streets of Bangkok and see what you see, and feel what you feel. Please keep my heart receptive to what you want to teach me, and what this city has to teach me.

Love you,

Matt

I miss him already...

Well... he's off!

You know, I think you really realize how much you love a person when you have to say good bye at an airport...

lets just say...I really love him.

Fine.. yes! I cried! I know I know, I'll see him like, next week. But to be fair, this is the longest we've been apart from each other and there's just something about watching a person disappear through those guard protected frosted pane glass doors that keep the 'unqualified' out at all cost.

It just seems so... final.

But thankfully, I know it's not. I should see him sometime towards the end of next week. however, my schedule is really full, so it is possible, though unlikely, that I wont see him until July 20th. But I don't want to talk about that.

Anyways, the time difference to Thailand is 14 hours from BC, 11 hours from Ontario and  8 1/2 hours from Newfoundland.

After a stop over in Shanghai, he will be landing in Thailand at 12:20am on Friday, July 6th (Thailand time). Needless to say he'll be pretty messed up. He'll be arriving at 12:20 am on Friday, but it'll feel like 10:20 am on Thursday!

Best part is... I get to do it all on Monday! woo!

I actually am excited, I love flying and I get to go with an awesome group of girls. But it's a long haul.

Please pray that jet-lag doesn't mess us up too bad and that we adjust smoothly.

Please also pray for us financially as it looks like we still need about another $250 for my Thailand trip, There are always unforeseen costs, not to mention my whole Malawi trip. But the Lord is my strength and my provision and I am learning to rely and trust in Him!

If you would like to be receiving our updates, join our page or subscribe using your e-mail!

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, 

by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, 

present your requests to God."Phil 4:6

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and 

lean not on your own understanding; 

in all your ways acknowledge him, 

and he will make your paths straight." Prov. 3:5-6

Thanks for your continued prayer and support!

Ps.

Check out the Tattered Tiaras Thailand Team (that's a lot of T's!)

Click Here!

Our First Anniversary

Well, yesterday marked one year of Marriage!! It was such a wonderful year, full of laughter, challenge, love and many many memories.

We thought we'd share with you some of our most memorable moments in the last year:

1. We must start out with the wedding day. if you were able to share in the day with us, you know it was a beautiful day ( not talking about the weather of course!). I'm pretty sure it was the best day of our lives thus far!

2. One thing we will never forget is the wedding night. WAIT! i'm not talking about that!  I (Nicole), in the efforts of being funny, kicked my shoes off and one flew across the room and hit Matt... exactly where you don't want to hit a guy. Oops!

3. Honeymoon. Have you heard about that yet? If not, to make a long story short, Matt got severely sun burnt and was laid up in bed for 4 days. Once he was finally able to move, I got an infection. Then, right before we were about to leave, we ate some bad beef and Matt became really stomach sick... that was not  a fun trip home! To top it all off, when leaving the Vancouver airport for the hour long drive home, Matt took the wrong suitcase. Not to be discovered, of course, until we got home. I, being the more healthy one of the two of us, got the privilege of driving back to Vancouver to exchange the bags. It was truly a memorable honeymoon.

4. The look on Matt's face when I came home with all my hair cut off. He tried so hard to be happy!

5. It was an amazing year of growth for the both of us. I had the honor of standing by Matt's side as he pursued his dreams and grew as a musician. He is going to start recording soon and I couldn't be more proud.

6. Christmas. along with many other firsts this year, we stayed in BC and celebrated our first Christmas together. We put up our first little tree, I burnt my first ham, and we went skiing for the first time!

7. Watching during the many times Nikki would lay things such as plastic lids and baking pans down on the stove while the burner was on will always be some of my (Matt) favorite memories.

8. Laying in bed and falling asleep to him singing to me. Favorite!

9. Many games nights and late night chats with our neighbors and good friends Allie and Kyle.

10. My (Matt) parents coming to visit was a great two weeks for us! we did so much stuff together, and it was neat to be able to show my parents what life is like out here! they were awesome, and we cant wait to have them come out again!!

11. Going home. we knew that our missions trips this summer were going rock us, and change the way we think. we didn't expect that to happen when we visited home, but God really worked in our hearts while we were home. it wasn't easy trying to balance our two families, but in the end, we discovered that our love for family is something that really weighs upon us as we travel and do the things God has called us to do. While we were home, I (Matt) had the honor of being best man to my brother, and Nikki did a reading. the wedding was great, but they held a fundraiser for us at the wedding. it revealed to us how much our family and loved ones really believe in us.

So those are just some of the memories from this wonderful first year of marriage! we look forward to another great year, and many more after that!!

We spent our anniversary just being lazy with each other. We had a big breakfast, watched movies in our PJ's, went to the Keg for supper and finished off the evening with a good ol' game of scrabble!

Thank you to everyone for your support over this past year!

With Love,
Matt and Nicole

Thailand and Malawi

Well, that was the fastest two weeks of my life.

No matter how hard you try, it is impossible to catch up on a year away from family  in just two weeks.

Trust me, we tried.

But it was full of blessing. Thanks to family and friends we raised over $1100 for our trips! I need to make special mention of my brother-in-law and his new beautiful Bride, David and Anna for hosting a surprise fundraiser at their own wedding for us! It's the most amazing feeling when you discover just how much your family believes in you.

We also had the opportunity to speak at our home church in St. John's. It was great to connect with them again. If we have any new followers, please be sure to subscribe to our blog, and then you'll simply get an e-mail every time we post. We're going to do our best to update the blog as often as possible while we're away, so if you would like to keep updated, this is the best way! Also, if you know of anyone who would like our updates, please send them the this link http://guitarsandpearls.blogspot.com/

I wanted to take a moment ( or ten) to explain again just what we are doing this summer. I have a habit of speaking too much and too fast in public, so I thought you might like the opportunity to hear it at your own pace.

Matt, in just one week from today (July 4th) will be boarding a plane for a 16 hour flight to Thailand. As a part of his Intercultural Degree which he just finished, he is required to complete a cross cultural internship. We are thrilled that he was presented with this opportunity in Thailand as I will be in there as well and  we really value having these experiences together. It is very important that we are in ministry as a couple, so, we would also want to train as a couple. He will be working with Peter DeWit who has been a PAOC missionary in Thailand with his along wife Patricia and their 5 children for over 25 years.  Matt will be helping Peter in any way needed with their church ministry NewSong  and their women's ministry Rahab Ministries which helps women trapped in prostitution. He will be preaching, teaching English and, of course, leading worship. In addition to working with Peter, Matt will be working alongside another PAOC missionary, Scott Stewart who has a ministry to the men involved in the human trafficking industry which is rampant in Thailand. This is going to be a stretching experience as it is easier to hate those men then it is to love them, but we are called to love the unlovable, and that exactly what Scott and Matt will be doing.

A few days after Matt flies out for Thailand, I will be boarding the same plane, with the same destination (July 9th).  We are flying out separately because I will be traveling with a team of 5 other girls. If you don't already know, I have been working with an organization for the past year called Tattered Tiaras. If you'd like to lean more about us, Click Here.

With all that said, we're taking a team of 6 girls to Thailand.

We will be working with Patricia DeWit who has an enormous heart for the victims of human trafficking. We will be taking part in a program that will give us a look into the heart of the city of Bangkok and working with the Rahab Ministries. Due to the Nature of this trip, we have restricted it to leaders and girls over 19. We will be learning about the sex trade in Thailand and why it is as big as it is, and how we can make a change. We recognize that it is very unlikely that a team of girls could go to Bangkok for a couple weeks and completely abolish the whole industry, but we want to learn about it so that we know why it is the way it is. You can't make a change unless you understand the need. We will be escorted to areas of the city that no tourist would ever go, see the things that only locals see. We will shadow at-risk girls and experience what it is like to work in a sweat shop, or a noodle stand for little to no wage. Truth is, I have no idea what I'm getting myself into. An experience like this cannot be prepared for. I am going in trusting that God will give me the strength to see the things I will see, do the things I will do and come out changed and better for it.

Once our Tattered Tiaras program is over, the girls will leave, but I will remain in Thailand with hubs and Peter and Patricia to help out with their ministry. Both myself and Matt will return to BC on August 4th.

It's not over yet!

Just 10 days later, I will be boarding another plane to Malawi, Africa! Tattered Tiaras will be taking another team of girls, this time ranging from 13-22 in age, to the Village of Hope. The Village of Hope is an orphanage for children who have lost their parents due to AIDS, malaria, war or any other reason. We will be working with missionaries Connie and Dave Buzikievich who are the National Directors of the Village of Hope. The focus of the trip will working in the city of Lilongwe and surrounding villages with children and mothers. Malawi will give the team members an opportunity to see a part of the world they may have never had the opportunity to see.  However, this trip will not be sightseeing. We want the girls on the team to understand that the whole world is not like North America and give them the opportunity to see the struggles and the joys of other countries to hopefully change their perspective on themselves and the world. We want them to learn that it doesn't take much to change the life of one person, not only in a foreign country, but in their own as well. The girls will teach children’s programs, play with children and assist families with daily activities.  I will be the assistant leader on the team along side the founder and director of Tattered Tiaras, Kim Moran. I will be "in training" during this trip as I anticipate leading other teams (possibly by myself) in the following years.

Needless to say, we are beside ourselves with anticipation and excitement. We strongly believe that God has called us to these trips, not for vacation purposes, but in the position of a servant. Our goal for these trips are to serve the local missionaries and make a difference in the lives of the girls on the team. We are trusting in our Lord that He will provide for all our needs. He has been so faithful so far as we have raised over $4500!! This however only covers our Thailand trip. We still need to raise another $4000 for my Malawi trip. This is no small amount, but I like to look at how much we have raised so far and it reminds me that no amount it too big for God. With the kindness and generosity of our family and friends, we are over half way to our grand total. Thank you to everyone who has supported us so far! If you would still like to give, you'll find a fancy yellow Donate button at the top of the page. This is a safe and secure way to donate through PayPal using your credit or debit card. Otherwise, any donations can be sent to our home address. If you don’t have our address, just e-mail one of us or leave a message and we will get that to you. I figure it's not the wisest idea to post that online :)

More than money, we need your prayers! It means so much to us to know that we have a team of prayer warriors behind us. We cannot go in our own strength. Many of the things we will be doing are outside of our comfort zones and outside of our ability. We need God's strength to see us through.  Please pray for safe travels, patience, strength and wisdom to make wise choices, safety and health while we are away and that we will be effective in our mission. Also pray for Peter and Patricia in Thailand and Connie and Dave in Malawi and their ministries. 

Well, if you have made it to this point, you deserve a round of applause. I promise I will work at keeping my blogs shorter. There's just so much great information I want to share with you.

Again, be sure to subscribe to this blog so you know when we post and share it with your friends and family. To do so, look to the right and you'll find a link that says "Subscribe" and subscribe by facebook, email of any other of the many options we have these days.

One last thing, our dear brother David has started a blog as well called "Christian Physician". He writes about a wide variety of topics as he is on the journey of balancing the medical world with his Christian perspective. If you're cool, which I think you are, you'll love it! You can find his blog here: http://christianphysician.blogspot.ca

Check out the ministries we are working with!

Tattered Tiaras : www.tatteredtiaras.com

Rahab Ministries: http://www.rahabministriesthailand.com

Village of Hope: www.vohmalawi.org

Matt at History Maker!

Check it out!!!

This is an awesome video created by Summit Pacific College of Matt and the Summit Band 'Resonate' at History Maker this year!

I'm so proud! :)

Summer? Is it really you?

I think it's finally summer! Please don't get me wrong, when I say summer I am sad to say i'm not talking about the weather; it appears that the typical rain drizzle and fog of May 2-4 weekend is not exclusive to Newfoundland. When I think of summer, not only do I think of the beautiful sunshine, a hot day at the beach and terrifying encounters with wasps, I also think of relaxation...rest...a well needed, well deserved break.

What a crazy, busy, wonderful life we lead.

Obviously if you look over our blog history, it is very sporadic, inconsistent, and tiny. This is a result of little time we find to ourselves during each term. Please do not take offense, family and friends, but the time we do find to ourselves, I just can't bring myself to use for recapping the craziness from which we just emerged. However, I now find myself, still in my PJ's during mid-afternoon on Victoria Day Holiday, with nothing to do for the rest of the day but write this blog. I want to tell you about the awesome month we just had!

At the end of April, we finished the term well. Exams went smoothly and we both received really good grades. The day after our last exam, Matt's parents came for a visit! It was so wonderful to have them here with us. We realized, however, that it was the first time that we had any family out to visit us since we moved here 3 years ago. It's a sad reality that we live in the same country, yet it is cheaper and quicker to go to Europe than it is to get to BC. I'd probably choose Europe any day!


We cleared out our little office and Colleen and Joe settled in, unconcerned with their small living quarters and simply overjoyed to see us! How wonderful it was to have family with us! We had a full list of things we wanted to do while they were here, but first on the list was Matt's graduation!



Graduation took place over two nights. First, there was Grad Banquet. All the graduates, family, friends and students and staff of the college filed into the beautifully decorated gymnasium for great food, amazing music and a night of fun! Matt was asked to sing and consequently made me cry by singing the song he wrote for our wedding day- obviously my favorite song.              

It was a great night!



The next night was the Grad Ceremony!

Cameras were flashing, friends cheering and proud parents were crying.

Again, of course, Matt was asked to sing. He rocked his beautiful red Gretsch electric guitar with his square hat, tassel and gown. Now that's a rock star!

All his hard work paid off and he proudly walked across stage when they called his name, followed by the Latin words!!
(Latin words= cum laude  means "with honor")

Next thing on our list, a day trip to Seattle, WA. 

This was a very special day for myself and Matt. You see, every time we have gone to Seattle, the gas it takes us to get there soaks up our budget and so we eat our homemade sandwiches and dream about having money to make the adventure fun. We were quickly reminded that the best way to vacation, is with your parents! What a blessing they were to us! We had coffee from Pike Place Public Market (the first ever Starbucks!), we bought souvenirs, fudge from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and actually ate from a restaurant!!

 Pike Place Market, Starbucks

                                                       

 Apparently, the cool thing to do in Seattle is
to stick your gum to the wall.
Consequently, this is known as...the gum wall. 

   

Dinner at 'The Pike'

                                                                  

Mowing the lawn (Matt)

Unfortunately, throughout the week, Matt and I had to continue work. We both were blessed by jobs at the school. With the crazy summer we have ahead of us, it was unlikely that any other business would hire us for the summer when we are asking for 6-8 weeks off. But the school, knowing our situation, took us under their wing. Matt is working maintenance and I am doing any odd job they find for me, particularly cleaning. While it's not always easy, we are very thankful for the work. We made sure to take the evenings, however, and show them around town a little more. We visited the historic village of Fort Langley, introduced them to the Olive Garden, and invited friends over for a good ol' cooked dinner!

Fort Langley Town Hall

Olive Garden

Friends!

Exploring Campus

A stay in BC wouldn't be complete without a trip to Vancouver and the Island!

First on the list was to bring Joe to his heaven on earth, MEC (Mountain Equipment Co-op). This is a store that has everything outdoors! We were excited to go there as well because Matt was given quite a bit of money for his graduation from both sets of parents, other family and friends. While we put the majority of it towards our summer trips, it was important to us that we spend some of it furthering our camping gear, especially since all we had was the tent.

Thank- you!!!

Stanley Park- Vancouver

While the boys explored yet more outdoors stores, the gals went shopping downtown Vancouver! Unfortunately, we didn't find anything super exciting, but girl time is always welcomed! Since Abbotsford (our home) is a little over an hour away, and because we had plans in the morning to catch the ferry to the Island, we got a hotel room in Vancouver for the night and finished the evening off with a walk through Stanley Park and a relaxing dinner out.

A trip to the island is always a a beautiful adventure!

The ferry ride is one of the most beautiful experiences!

We explored China town and visited the Parliament building,

Spicy Peanut Chicken noodle box

And finally, no trip to the island is complete without dinner at The Noodle Box... one of our favorite restaurants!!

It was a fast two weeks, and we were very sad to see them go, but it makes it so much easier to say goodbye when you know you'll see each other again real soon. June 14!!!

After another busy weeks work, we piled all Matt's music gear in to the car early Friday morning and we and some of his band members headed East 8 hours to Castlegar for a weekend conference with their youth and the youth of the surrounding area. 

"It was one of the best trips of the year and Castlegar was one of those examples of God moving gradually throughout a weekend. Friday night was a little rough, the youth were very emotionless, but by Sunday morning, we not only witnessed the youth praising God with all their hearts, but they joined together with the entire congregation, literally. They had their arms stretched out to God, holding hands worshiping God. It was an incredible picture. "-Matt 

Castlegar was also one of the most beautiful places we have been in BC. Nestled in a valley, surrounded by mountains, lakes and waterfalls. 

Finally, to top off our month of non-stop adventure, this past weekend, May long weekend, we were at History Maker. This is a youth conference for the entire BC/ Yukon district of the PAOC (Pentecostal Assemblies Of Canada). Matt and his band from the college were asked to play Saturday morning and Sunday afternoon. 

"It was amazing to see so many of the youth my band has ministered to over the past 3 years all in one place. Out of the 2500 people, I was surprised how many of the youth I knew... and how many knew me!" -Matt

I volunteered all weekend as an extra hand where ever needed. Most of my weekend consisted of selling merchandise for the various bands at the conference and the rest was spent being proud of my hubby! They did such a great job and it was so fun to see his face on the big screen! God is using him in incredible ways!!!

It has been an incredible, yet insanely busy month! I realized this weekend that I hadn't had a day to sleep past 7:30am in over a month! This morning was my first sleep-in day, and of course I didn't discover it was a holiday until I was dressed and ready for work. 

But, I made the most of it! Look at this deliciousness:

Homemade, whole grain bread
The first batch to ever turn out good!

Alas! Summer break has arrived!! It's been crazy, but it's been fun!


Now, bring on the adventure!