Learn to Surrender

How does Jesus see me? How do I see myself? What is Jesus trying to say? What is he trying to change?

World shift changes are hard. It's painful and difficult to understand. There is so much unlearning that needs to be done and so much mental work put into reminding myself about what Jesus says about his kingdom. I'm tired. I want to rest and look back, even just for a second, to a place of comfort and familiarity, but the kingdom keeps on moving forward. The Son of Man has no place to rest his head...

But I'm won to the kingdom. I'm won to the love of this God whom I praise and worship. I'm won to the love in which I have no capacity to understand and hurts to embrace. I'm won to His grace, to the suffering and trials, to His hope and joy and promise.

I know the only direction to go is forward and the only place of rest is in Jesus. 

i am...

A sprained ankle is no fun. I really hope it is just minor because tomorrow is a packed day for me. Please pray for speedy healing! 

I felt the love though when my fellow housemates lent their shoulders as crutches and sang songs of climbing mountains for me on our slow walk home. I don't know why I've been getting sick so much here in Montreal, but I feel like time and time again, I'm placed in situations where I need to depend on others or ask for help. I do believe God is trying to change my worldview. 

Homemade Valentine's Day cake balls :) Too bad I gave up chocolate for lent!

Montreal Cafes

There are so many cafes here! All of them so unique and so different. Here are a few that I have recently discovered and really enjoyed!

Pekarna

This is a nice little place close to my campus. I usually come here before I need to meet my students to do some work. They have a large selection of pastries and cakes and their coffee is not bad but nothing special. I like the crowd here, usually older adults. Even though it's close to campus, it doesn't give off that vibe. Only thing is that the service here isn't the greatest. One girl is a bit rude and sharp, some act as if you're not there but there are the few who are really nice...only reason I'll go back. Also since it's close to campus I guess.

Cacao 70

This place reminds me a bit of the cafes in Korea. The owners are Korean so maybe that's why. It's a bit more fancy here, they specialize in chocolate. You could come here on your own to do work but it's more of a place you would come to with a friend. Their prices are pretty decent. I ordered a banana and chocolate crepe and my student a fondue for one. I would like to try the fondue next time. It looked really good and it's really big! You could probably share the single fondue with a friend :)

Cafe Neve

I had been meaning to try this place for awhile. I've heard good things about it. It was pretty full when I walked in but I found myself a spot by the couch. The place is really cute. All their seats and tables are wooden with wooden benches here and there. I liked the old phone booth cover they had as decoration on the wall and placed sugar and coffee lids in. The people were all really friendly and the prices decent. My latte was delicious and very well made. It's a good place to read or do work.

Le Petite CuillereThis cafe was such a pleasant surprise. I was walking along St. Denis when I decided to walk in. Immediately to my right was a corner with several couches and a large window ledge with pillows. I was super excited when I noticed all the windows had large ledges and pillows for you to sit on and read (I had wanted my own in my house ever since I was a kid!). The design of the place was very simple and homey. A good place to relax! I ordered an americano which was really good. All their coffee is fair trade. I'm glad I discovered this place. It's a hidden gem. Everyone there were french-speaking, even the baristas. They understood and spoke english but you could tell they much preferred french. It made me so happy to find a place where only 'Montreal-ers' go to :P

Cafe Expressions

I had read good reviews on this cafe and decided to check it out. It's nothing super special but it's one of the few that are open past 7. They offer free wifi as well which makes it a good place to do work. They have a wide variety of loose leaf teas and fair trade coffee. The atmosphere here is one that more geared towards doing work. You can see many people with their laptops studying or writing papers. I guess it's more motivating when you don't want to do anything :)

I'm excited to explore more! I feel like you could never get bored. There are so many different cafes to choose from depending on the type of ambience and atmosphere you want to be in!

montreal.

i like these.