Monday, June 25, 2007

Busy Weekend

I had a very busy weekend, and didn't get much knitting done. On Saturday we had a "birdhouse building day" event at our church. A volunteer from Kortright Conservation Centre came over and gave us a little presentation on birds in our area. Then we built some birdhouses following the blueprint that Kortright gave us. The weather couldn't have been better, and afterwards we had a great BBQ.

By the time I finished hammering in the first nail, my kids were already bored and ran off to play with their friends. Later when I pulled out my camera, Grace said, "Mommy, and you take a picture of me with the house I built?".



Our church moved to this incredible piece of property in Woodbridge about 8 years ago. It's about 2 acres, and has a bit of forest, lots of open space and a big pond full of frogs and turtles. We have been holding our services in an old house that was gutted out. Last year we began building a new church, and it will be done next month.

I love how it's panelled in cedar. It fits perfectly in a nature setting. When you walk near it, you can smell the cedar wood. Reminds me of a sauna! Our birdhouses are made from the scraps of cedar, so they smell great too!
On Sunday, we celebrated my grandfather's 80th birthday. We had an amazing Chinese banquet, and the food was awesome!
Long ago, my grandparents were wealthy land-owners in China. When the communists came, they took everything away from my grandparents, and they were left with nothing. My grandfather came to Canada by himself, and worked very hard to earn enough money to send for my grandmother, my father and aunt. One of his first jobs was as a janitor in a social club. One of the members of that club invited him to church, and soon after gave his life to Christ. My grandmother was saved later through my grandfather. When I visit their home, and I see them studying the Word, I just want to cry with joy. I'm so thankful that they know Him. They are the only ones in my family that are Christians. My grandfather has had a tough time with his health lately; knee replacements, aneurysms and he just beat colon cancer this past spring. But I don't worry for him, because of the infallible promise of John 3:16.
I'm off to do a little knitting now, so hopefully I'll have something to show you this week!

7 comments:

km said...

Wow! You, and generations to come, can all thank God that your Grandpa came to Canada from China. Your new church reminds me of the camp I attended as a youth. Those were wonderful "mountaintop" experiences. I live in a way to urban environment for my taste...but this is where M's job is.

Tammy said...

What an amazing journey! Thank you for sharing!

Susan Pandorf said...

What an uplifting post.

And the kids are adorable!!!

Praise God from whom all blessings flow! (today you get the long version.)

Kathy... said...

What beautiful photos, and inspiring story. Beautiful family you have! I wish your grandfather a happy birthday, and may he celebrate many more!!

BethAnn said...

Thank you for that post! Your grandparents story is very touching. and im glad you shared it. Beautiful family, and a beautiful God! How blessed you are to have such a nice place of fellowship. Ive been enjoying your blog for some and have only recently ventured out on starting my own, Its so nice to know theres something in common, the only commonality that really matters.. Christ!

Anonymous said...

I'm glad you shared the story about Grandfather. A lot of good things happened because he lost his land and everything he owned in China, don't you think? I love the pictures of the kids and you!

marit said...

Thanks for sharing, and God bless.