Since the Voice now has it’s own domain, it is capable of many more new and creative things.  The Creative Corner is meant to be a spot for any sort of creativity.  This includes: drawings, artwork, comics, painting, lyrics you’ve written, songs you’ve recorded or movies you’ve made.  If you have anything that falls under one of these categories (or even something different!) please submit it to voiceofebc@gmail.com or Rachel Neumeister in Box 139.  We’ll look forward to seeing what sorts of creativity the EBC community holds!

by: Wesley Hague

New day brings new hope.
New light brings new joy.

A new turn, to which we have been lend;
A new chance to make things a mend.
We may try, and we may fall.
In this walk, all seems to stall

Yet as we may want to stop
To let it fall, and see it all flop
To give in, to life’s current strain
To surrender to all the pain

Yet I know that:
New day brings new hope
New light brings new joy.
The Gift from Above

Dear Queen B:
What is your opinion of female preachers?
From the Curious Voice Committee

Dear Committee:
I think that as Christians we are each called to preach the gospel and that
comes in different forms.  As for a woman preaching, I see nothing wrong
with it under a couple of conditions.  One: that she can affirm that she
truly was called to be a preacher and is not just trying to work her way up.
You can tell this by what the woman preaches, meaning a believer can tell if
someone was called to be in that position or not.  God speaks through
that person to you and you can affirm whether or not that is their calling.  Second:
that she remains true to her womanhood.  Meaning if she is to be a leader
and preacher that she does that from her woman-ness and not from a competitive
drive or trying to be like a man.  Being a woman in leadership does not mean
that you are above men, there is still a call to have respect and honor the
men you work with, not undermine them.
I have to admit this has been a touchy subject for me over the last couple of
years, and I could go into greater detail; however I don’t think it’s worth
fighting over.  If you care to discuss this further I would be open to do
so.
Sincerely,
Queen B

by: Jordan Vetro 

A little while ago my sister told me that she found a bunch of my elementary school friends on Facebook, so I went to the site to see if I could look at any of their internet profiles. Much to my misfortune, I discovered that, as I was not a facebook user, I was not allowed to view any information (a sensible security function). So in hopes of viewing the information I signed up for an account, using a different name so I might not be located and sucked into the social network. However, I had to give my email address to activate the account, and wouldn’t you know it, in less than a day, I had been found and added to multiple friends lists, quickly sucked into the social network. What is a person to do?

This week’s interview asks people for their opinion on social networking systems, such as Facebook, the infamous Myspace, MSN Messenger and the like.

John Hamill
My life revolves around Myspace and Facebook. My mood usually depends on if I have recieved a comment about my crazy pictures or not. Matter of fact, I will probably add this profile picture to my Myspace becuase I believe this is the real me. Myspace is my only means of making friends.

Laurie Winfield
There are currently 149, 737, 872 people on myspace. I am friends with only 54 of them. I have no reason to live. Except John Boy.

Andrew Wallin
I am not on an internet social networking system because I never felt that I needed another way of expressing myself other than just being me. I’ve also never felt the need to spend hours obsessing over the way I present myself which includes the time it would take to make a personal blog. But this is only one man’s opinion.

Matt Eckhart
I’m definately not a big fan of MSN. I find that whenever I go on, I become extremely distracted and unable to communicate since so many people are talking to me at once. MSN is only surface chit-chat because I find myself unable to have meaningful conversations with those I talk to. Many of the conversations evolve around questions like “how was your day?” and “what are you up to?” but they rarely evolve into the kinds of conversations which I truly find meaningful.

I also believe that many people who use MSN on a regular basis are losing their ability to articulate their words and feelings in a meaningful way.  Thus instead of talking to a person face to face they talk to them through a machine/medium.

Because of this we are creating an epidemic, where in future years you will begin to see many people devoid of the ability to have meaningful interactions with one another.

Although the communication age is meant to unite us and make it easier to communicate and interact, it is in fact doing the exact opposite by isolating and cutting off the interactions that society claims it values.

Curtis Healy
Mostly I find “Myspace” to be in some way just an internet fling.  It is something to do while you wait for the substance to come home from war. So that at the end of the day, it secured the purpose of being a way to say “That thing you like? Myspace taught me!”

Melanie Vaillancourt
I use some social networking systems. I use Facebook and Messenger, but that’s about it. I find that when I start one of those, I forget about it. It’s far too much work to keep it up.

Steph Vincent
I use Messenger to keep in contact with the friends I don’t see very often.  Things like Facebook, Myspace and blogs are just something I would have to keep updated.  This takes time that in my opinion, could be better spent doing other things.

All the relevant photos have been included with their respective articles for this issue (Aloha, Banquet).  We cannot supply all the pictures; we need YOU to contribute any interesting pictures you may happen to have of the goings-on at EBC.  You can do this by emailing voiceofebc@gmail.com or putting them in Box 139.

Caption Contest
The same goes for the Caption Contest.  Please submit any funny pictures you would like featured in the Caption Contest!

Photo Contest 
If you hadn’t seen it yet, check back in the archives to see the Photo Contest winners from last semester.  Congratulations to first place winners Rob McDonald (Nature), Stephanie Whalley (People), and Brandon Meyers (Humour), as well as the runners up.  Thank you to everyone who submitted; it was a great success!

FULL NAME: Johanna Marie Snieder

POSITION: Resident Advisor Upper Warder Girls

HOMETOWN: Kincardine, Ontario (technically I live 20 minutes outside of it)

CURRENTLY RESIDES: Upper Warder, Room 17

HOME CHURCH: Kincardine Pentecostal

FAMILY: parents, brother, sister and brother-in-law with three children

PETS: Andrea (my fish)

EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND: Home schooled until grade 8, then 5 years of high school

FAVORITE MOVIE AND WHY:  Cinderella because she gets her prince!

FAVORITE FOOD: fruit, pasta

FAVORITE BIBLE VERSE: Hosea 6:3 – “Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him.  As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.”

MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSON AND WHY: Friends

FAVORITE CARTOON CHARACTER AND WHY: a funny one

DREAM VACATION: Europe or Caribbean beaches

COURSE YOU WOULD LOVE TO TEACH OR TAKE AT EBC AND WHY: Parables (because I already took Miracles and loved it) – counter balance

IF YOU COULD CHANGE PLACES WITH ANYONE FOR A DAY AT WEBC, WHO WOULD IT BE AND WHY? Tabitha (because she’s my roomie)

A QUOTE FOR THE MASSES:
They’re songs (I like the general idea of them):
Tim McGraw – Live Like You Were Dying
Carolyn Dawn Johnson – Dress Rehearsal
Leanne Womack – I Hope You Dance

NAME YOU WISH YOU WERE GIVEN: I like mine, but if I have to: Alexa with nickname being Alex
BLOOD TYPE: A+

FAVORITE TV SHOW (S): CSI, House; channels: CMT and TLC

WHAT ARE YOU WEARING RIGHT NOW? Brown shoes, pink striped socks, jeans, pink tank top, grey long sleeve shirt, brown sweater, brown vest
HOW DO YOU WANT TO DIE? In bed with my husband beside me, together ie: The Notebook
MOST MEMORABLE PUBERTY EXPERIENCE: I was really tall in grade 8 and 9 (taller than most guys) but one of the shortest of my friends in grade 10

WHEN DID YOU START SHAVING? Grade 9 – I got lucky that way and didn’t have to before!
IF YOU COULD GO ON A DATE WITH ANYONE AT EBC, WHO WOULD IT BE AND WHY? Obviously Andrew Hayes, because he’s here in spirit, in pictures, and in my heart!
BIGGEST LIBRARY/VIDEO STORE LATE FEE: $10 in high school library, but it got waived
EMBARRASSING STORY (50-100 words): I am a typical gullible blond.  Andrew’s sister and mom picked me up on reading break and we went out to dinner.  I couldn’t finish all my food, so I was going to get it in a takeout box.  When I asked for this, the waiter said “no” and I believed him.  That’s when he, along with Andrew’s mom and sister started laughing and he asked, “Is she always this gullible?”  I looked like a fool.
 

by: Tim Grace
 
It began with Adam. He was created and given authority over the earth and all creatures on it. But God saw that it was not good for man to be alone, so He created Eve. This was the beginning of human relationships. They grew from there – husband and wife; parent and child; siblings; friendships; dating relationships; and the list goes on.

Ideally, these relationships would be acted out on a personal basis, but we’ve become an impersonal society with the dawn of the technological revolution. The television means we find our entertainment from those in Hollywood rather than the person sitting on the couch next to us. The computer means we find our advice from those faceless typists from cyberspace rather than sucking it up and showing our best friends that we’re not perfect.

I saw a show this morning on the television that in conversation about the iPod mentioned that people aren’t talking while exercising anymore. They’re throwing on their headphones and cycling away, even though they never move any further away from the person next to them.

When did we become so impersonal? The phone’s taken to the wayside as we just send an instant message to see if the person’s willing to get together to go for coffee. It’s not uncommon to see 6 people in a room all on laptops chatting with each other or listening to their mp3 players. Where has conversation gone? Where has intimate knowledge of those closest to us disappeared to?

Instead, we’ve transformed ourselves into a digital society where the only way to communicate is through text and the only way to judge our self-worth is through how many people are a part of our social networks on Facebook or MySpace.

Could we be at a place where we’ve lost the true ideals of community, friendship, and relationships?

Just one question: If this is true, is it worth it?

by: Fred Butler

When I was in my last year of high school, I didn’t know what God wanted me to do with my life.  I didn’t feel any special “call” from God.  I didn’t have any natural draw for any particular type of field that I “should” pursue.  I was afraid that if I messed up by choosing the wrong job or going to the wrong school or choosing the wrong field of studies, I would find myself outside of God’s plan for me. 

Now, many years later, here I am in my first year of Bible College.  Some of us know what we are to do and have a plan.  That’s great.  It is my understanding, however, that there are those among us who have the same concerns that I had then.  Allow me to share what I have learned.

Matthew 2:13-23 is the story of Joseph, husband of Mary, and how God directed his life.  God called Joseph by having an angel appear to him in a dream.  I’ve never had an angel appear to me and I doubt if many of you will either.  The point is God was able to make His direction for Joseph and his family known to Joseph for His purposes.

Now when Joseph went to Egypt, did an angel tell him where to live when he got there?  Did God speak to him from a pillar of fire saying, “NOW, OH JOSEPH, THOU SHALT GO TO THE MOUTH OF THE NILE RIVER.  THOU AND THY WIFE AND THE BABE SHALT WITH THOU GO.  AND THOU SHALT MAKE THY HOME ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE RIVER IN THE GREEN HOUSE WITH THE BLACK ROOF.”?  No.  Why not?  Because He didn’t have to.  Sometimes we don’t hear anything special from God because He has us in a general place heading in a general direction and no course corrections are required just yet. 

Let’s back up a bit.  Why were they in Bethlehem?  Did an angel call them again?  No, they had to go there because Caesar was taking a census for taxation.  Under the rules of the census they had to go to Bethlehem.  God permitted the circumstances they were in to fulfill His will.  Because of God’s spoken promise of the Messiah being born in Bethlehem He could not have been born anywhere else.

When in Egypt, Joseph was told to go back to the country of Israel.  Joseph headed back to the region where he started out, Judea.  Was there a problem in doing that?  Yes, there was.  Herod’s son, Archelaus, was in charge of that region. History tells us that he was not very pleasant.  Joseph was doing something that could cause problems.  God sent another angel and sent them to another part of the country, Galilee, to fulfill God’s will.  Verse 23 says that prophecy was fulfilled again.  Does this mean that God can fix our mistakes?  Sometimes He will if He needs them fixed.  Sometimes He won’t, but that’s another lesson.

There is a very important question you need to ask yourself right now.  Is God incompetent?  Is He too incompetent to find a way to provide us with a clear opportunity to participate in His will for our lives?  If God’s plan for you requires Him to intervene in your life, He will.  If God needs to tell you to change the direction in your life, He will.

The best thing you can do it to prepare your heart to hear God’s call.  So how do you do that?  Tune your heart and life to be in alignment with the Word of God.

How do you know when the Holy Spirit is trying to get you to make a change of direction in your life?  How do you know what change He is trying to get you to make?  You will know.  I know that answer is not very satisfying, but it is true.  If you think the Sprit is speaking to you but you are not sure, ask a mature Christian whose opinion you trust such as a pastor or a church leader.

Here is another important question for you to answer.  Is God sovereign?  Can you trust Him to be in control of your life?  If you feel God is trying to lead you in a certain direction, obey.  Sometimes it is scary, but when you know it is from God then obey.  Joseph did and it worked for him.