Our intentions are good, our gas is not!

Well blog #2 and it's still first day! Airport went fine and we are about an hour out from Montreal. That's at least what it looks like on the little airplane moving on the map on the screen in front of me. We've met the fella from Edmonton who will be joining us for the trip.  Robert seems like a very nice financial advisor (not that financial advisors are usually mean), he has been on a couple work trips with Art in the past and we are glad to have him along. 

Sorry about the title, upon reflecting on the purpose of this trip; helping a church with a building, setting up meetings to create development, build relationships with other believers and hopefully advance the kingdom of Christ. I've also been reflecting on the discomforts of the trip; leaving our families behind (most of us anyway, Kelly decided to cheat and bring part of his with him), taking vacation time for the trip (which if you look at it is more time away from family), long flights, interesting driving conditions (with people screaming from the passenger seat "watch-out", and that was in the High River church parking lot), headrest TV's that don't work and of course the smells of someone else's bodily emissions.  Our intentions are still good, we are not dismayed by our newfound problems, although I was forced to move rows because my TV didn't work. This was rewarded however by the fact that the smells of my new row are also much  better...Dan?  

Regardless of what lies ahead I know that God has a purpose for all things. We have very large ambitions for our trip, but even if we don't succeed in any of them I'm sure God can use this to bring honour to his name. Yes our failures can bring honour to our Lord, because he may use it to humble us.  Even my failures in packing can bring honour to God. How?  Well my incompetent attempt to pack made my wife laugh so hard that I thought she might need Depends (no that is not a supposition I meant the brand Depends).  Her laughing at me is a good memory that I take with me now and will hold onto for many years to come. It was good to see her laugh like that, when we're so busy with the busyness of life we don't always take the time to reflect on the quiet moments that make up our life (or not so quiet the way she was laughing).

So as we perceiver on the road ahead we hope to keep in mind that the events (and even the smells) that await us can be used for God's purpose. To shape our lives by those around us and to serve others as Christ served. And yes we may face setbacks and even failures (like maybe I did by trying to use the word supposition in a sentence, when I'm not sure if that's the correct meaning (silly airplane mode, I have no Google (oh no I'm using brackets inside of brackets (I must be tired and should wrap it up)))).   If God can use my failures to bring him glory, then I excitedly await how I'm going to mess up next.