haha, finally decided to post!
i still check this blog every once in a while...
you know, i still think about local every day.
nostalgia nostalgia nostalgia nostalgia~
aw i want to cry right now, i miss those days,
those two and a half weeks, i actually felt like
i belonged somewhere, its crazy haha :).
wow that sentence just sounded so emo...
but really, truly, local. can never forget about it..
all those crazy experiences...
john , i was mad scared of that guy during missions!
i miss you, john!
lillian, i was mad scared of her too, she woke
me up shivering cause i was so scared of her.
i still see her every week, makes my day very
often, her snoopy face.
dan dan dan funny bald guy who has a crazy byunt
smile and who is now serving in i dont even know,
russia?!
jeanam, harry potter muhahahha, im sorry, we
called you that mercilessly, you probably wanted
to strangle me, i give you permission! i miss you beating
me up, literally -_-; college for you next year, good
luck!
jun kwon, my best buddy! haha we talked so nonsensically
at local, i dont even remember what we talked about,
usually making fun of each other -_-; college for you too,
hip hip hooray!
suyoung! my vegetable loving friend, i still have that
food pyramid you drew me =). i miss you, i never get to
see you, hope you are doing well in SCARSDALE HIGH
SCHOOL, go on facebook more often!
kristie kim, my ride buddy. thanks for abandoning me in
georgia, i had to be a train nomad cause of you -_-
"PRINCESS DONT TOUCH ME, MY TURBAN FELL OFF"
thats all im gonna say.
janet kim! i almost forgot you, my non important friend!
haha i remember my hair during local was epic fail and yours
was epic great! you and kristie, you cult! >:O.
sang-A! riley! hahah the Floridian girls loveeeed you, and so
do i :) heather, i miss that cutie. you were the best mentor
ever, ever.
sarah, you funny funny girl. the only sensical thing i remember
you saying in local was, "i need to do some soul searching.."
you truly truly showed me what it was like to love others uncon
ditionally. I LOVE U.
am i missing anyone, i think not?
i really really miss you guys :(
we all barely talk anymore...
(guess what the font name is.)

memories

i wonder if anyone would still check this.
hi all. we don't really see some of you anymore.
i guess we never really saw su-young much to begin with, too x]
and now that dan is in college...
:] jae-nam and jun are going off soon too.
i guess this is kinda like my last words about local '08.

hi guys. it was awesome working with you.
and learning, too. today i just had a sudden want to see a homeless guy
so i could buy him some MickeyD's and talk...
missions like sticks with your heart or something.
i'm also really sorry to sang-a and lillian for making you worry or burdened or w/e
=P i hope you're doing alright john.
dan :) i kinda miss the annoyingly deep dude with the crazy hair
and the whole team, it was so funny xD
bye guys. this is my end to local '08.

but i think it's my start to something new. whether or not i may be able to go to missions again during yg, i think i'm seeing a greater mission. so with that, i'll end it here. bye local 08 :]
*cranberries ;D i gotta keep my randomness

haagen-dazs ice cream in philly

SO. hello again my dear diary. :D i love rainbows. i was making a video but ah its not that great :] so all will be my beautiful and random rant. my rant shall be about pillows. pillows are nice & fluffy and magical. hmmm new rant. steven chun and the cupcake. oh the cupcake. xD okay i might turn into gina any second now so yeah.

Day 2

hmmm. so we woke up at like 6? and we had delicious breakfast yummm. then it was JAMA day 1: Repentance (thats todays theme)
we started off with this biblical exposition thing. the speaker talked about Habbakauk.or however you spell that.....
Then we had a general session. Danny Oertli led worship.. And he loves the song GOD OF THIS CITY.. actually he did it 3 times! Then John Kim (mr.JAMA) spoke. It was really good. He talked about why you shouldnt put materialistic things before God. Then Jae Park spoke, and HE IS SO FUNNY!!! It was about how much God loves you and you shouldnt be insecure cuz God loves you and God is good. =) then we sang God of this City. AGAIN! then we met people from youth group that came only for today. It was cool. There was a track session today. We were in the youth track session. We couldnt hear anything so it wasnt that great, We just left and shared testimonies with each other (that was Bryant's idea). Then we had dinner with everyone, including JAMA KIDS people. Then it was the evening general session. Danny Oertli was there again.. guess what? God of This City. =O
Then Stephen Chong talked. He is amazing. He was so funny. It was that you shouldnt love the gifts you receive more than the one that gives the gift. It was one good sermon. Then!!! BROOKLYN TABERNACLE CHURCH CAME!! WHOOT!
they ARE SOO GOOD! oh my gosh. it was an amazing worship time. Jim Cymbala came too and his wife came with some singers from brooklyn tabernacle. THEY WERE ALL AMAZING!! JIRANI also performed today. I love them. They are so good too. so pretty!!
all the speakers and worship leaders and people were amazing. JAMA is amazing. then we had time after to pray. that was good too.
Today was good. I cant believe its only day 2. wow. this is only the beginning. COOL COOL!!!
it was nice seeing church people. hahaa

sarah's xanga

i am back :) lol
i haven't checked this for like.... O_o; a very long time lol
dan was saying he's still young and i feel like i'm getting too old.
odd. the homeless ministry day was its own miracle to me.
everything i forgot, or tried to forget, God reminded me of it that day. sunday too...
i'm learning in a very special way right now. i guess that's why these days i'm out of it so much.
randomly i'm so excited and passionate. literally 3 hours or so later i'm confused and all headach-y.
i want to so much get down on my knees before this guy and tell him i'm so sorry.
for being such an idiot, for being distracted with things im purposely bringing up.
right now the lesson i'm learning is: don't ever forget the past. use the past.
ahh so weird. i'm in deep thinking one sec and high off of air another second.
ROFL okay :):) be blessed, all.

One week left. wow time goes by fast. 

Anyway, I haven't written on this for a while. I haven't had much to say but after the homeless outreach there are alot of things on my mind. so here goes...

 I think the homeless outreach was a good experience. I mean I will admit, I think that it could've been better, but hey it was only our first time, and I'm glad that it was done in a testing field rather than our actual missions. It's just that there wasn't THAT many homeless people. I thought there'd be more lol. If only there was more...lol no wait I take that back haha. 

Anyway I just wanted to also tell you guys about something weird that happened just before I took the train home. Well, I was walking past this group of like 10 black people preaching right? They had these like weird robes on and were holding signs and reading the bible, so I was like wow nice to see fellow christians telling people about God, until I actually started to listen to what I was saying. These guys were blaspheming. Their main theme was that God would destroy America. That he would punish and destroy every race except for blacks because they are the chosen people. They claimed that they were a part of the 12 tribes of Israel or something like that? The guy preaching pointed at me and called me a chink in front of the WHOLE crowd. And then he went on to say that I'm from a wicked race of heathen and incest and whatnot. I'm like wtfreak. I got so mad, they were twisting God's words to match it to their liking. The WORST thing was most of the passerby that actually stopped for more than ten minutes to listen, who were primarily black, were totally agreeing with them. They were like seriously mezmerized and their eyes were full of hatred it was scary. Nobody defended me too. Instead, most of them laughed at me. Not just as like a joke either. Not because they thought it was actually funny but because they were full of hatred. And when I looked at them their eyes were like demonic. Like they wanted to stab me right there or something. Some of them were high too I could tell, but thats no excuse for being like that. Man, Satan was filling them up with evil. I can honestly say that I have never seen with my own eyes greater wickedness. I mean, they were completely filled with lies too. You would think that you'd have to be crazy to believe in the outrageous message they were preaching, but the preachers AND the listeners actually believed it with all their hearts. That scared me the most. Nothing was holding them back. As far as I could tell, they had no conscience. 

Yeah, well now that I've vented I feel much better, but God made me realize alot. This kind of bursted my bubble you know? I realized I'm still so young. I haven't seen most of the world yet, and that there are many many things in this world that I've been protected from and not aware of. It really renewed my desperation for God and made me realize how desperate this world needs God. 

devotional

i took this from the pre-camp devotionals that the Group Workcamps provided us. i changed up some parts because they were a little too specific to their program, but i believe the message is clear and applicable to many aspects of our trip.

do share your thoughts, reflections, prayer requests!

===

Jesus loved out loud with time

The word and idea of "time" is part of our everyday language. Take two minutes and write down as many as you can that have to do with "time."

Hopefully you came up with a great list. No matter how we talk about time, there's one universal way that people look at time. It's mine! No one minds wasting time. But all of us bristle when someone wastes our time. That's because we only have so much of it. Every day, you make a choice - or a series of many choices - about how you will use your time. You can use it for yourself in any number of ways - have some downtime, hangout with friends, go to school or work, travel, and the list goes on and on. Or, you can give some of your time away, by loving and serving others, helping someone in need, and spending time in a relationship with God.

Jesus had choices as well. His home - the place where Jesus spent His eternal time - was in Heaven. Can you even image that? What was that like, and how amazing is it that Jesus gave that up - for us. Jesus Christ loved us with the gift of His time. About 33 years of time, by our clocks. During that time, Jesus didn't sit on the sidelines watching people go by. He hung out with them, helped them, healed them, taught them, fed them, and prayed for them. Jesus loved people and showed it by giving time away - for us.

You will be giving away your time this summer. In fact, you are giving away your time right now through these devotions as you prepare for your trip! Realizing that you are giving away your time can help you make the most of your upcoming mission experience. Since it's a gift to others - to the people you'll be serving and through that, to God - make it the best, most Christ-like gift of your time you've ever given away.

Read John 1:1-4; 14

What would life have been like for Jesus before He came to earth?
Would you ever give up that kind of life like Jesus did? If so, under what circumstances?
Based on what you know about the life of Jesus, how do you think He felt about the time He spent on earth?

Read Philippians 2:5-7

What is God saying about Himself in this passage?
What is God saying to you?

holaa

hi guys!
how was your weeks?! hhahah i just noticed that most of our group has
kim for their last name T_T; . yeah so anyways, can you guys believe that
we're leaving in only a few days?! we need to pray pray pray~
and also our lifehouse looks something like crap so i think we need to work
harder on it! im so sorry, im really bad at it, ahh i suck at this stuff.
oh yeah by the way how come NOBODY WRITES ON THIS ANYMORE?!

Hey guyss!!
Hope your week is going by well.

I just want to remind you guys to keep praying. The day is almost near and we need to be prepared.

I also have a prayer request: If you can, please pray for Jeffrey. I know he hasn't been the most helpful to this team but I still pray that he will decide to go. I want him to see what God can do and I know this mission will help change his heart and help him come to know God.

He has till fri to give a final answer.

Have a blessed week. See you guys on Sat. :o)

i know it seems like i talk so much on this, but we never talk to each other during the weeks xD so that why i try to go on this a lot. hmph. but the only reason why it looks like i write so much is bc barely NE1 writes on this. umm ^_^ i realized something very scary today but it doesn't seem that sudden. sort of like how i was grasping this fact as days went by. i found out that im closing up even more these days. =D but it doesn't seem safe or good or anything. ;P strawberry milk!! ah, delicious. i know i should be doing daily QT's or at least trying to, but truthfully, i do miss out some days. i guess im in a questioning state right now, but not really, because i want to question God but dont want to bother him with such stuff. you know, b/c he's done so much 4 me & how ingrateful to say why? or when? or what do you want? but im also realizing that even though im pretty far away from people and God right now i've never been so close with Him before. whiicchh is kinda weird. But his presence feels so much nearer.

anyway, hope your weeks or months or days are NOT like mine x] and be blessed. every time i count my blessings someone else points out others that never occurred to me b4. BIG blessings. don't be discouraged, b/c life was meant to be defeated, not us. we're going to live with the Heavenly Abba :) :) oh the joy. like PD said. isaiah 41:10 so do not fear for i am with you, do not be dismayed for i am your God. i will strengthen you and help you, i will uphold you with my righteous right hand. goodbye, oh people! ;]

prayer request

hmm it doesnt seem like much of us go on this, but :T ah well
prayer request for all the missionaries out there
we're only going 2 weeks but people are still out there, out here, suffering for Christ
for encouragement for these people bc this is the path they chose
and the strength to never fail/forget
prayer request for all the sr.s going off to college and such
ive never been to college yet obviously but it seems tough the way ppl talk about it
for them to always see the hope in God
for not only endurance but even in tough times to at least try to reach out a hand to God
and hope he touches them
prayer request for this team
while we were arguing about the skit i guess it got pretty serious
and um, well, last year Bryant told us that sometimes the things that our mission team did couldve gotten out of hand & that was why he told us "stop" all the time
i think we need that kind of person around in our meetings sometimes bc we dont realize what we do... until we look back :T
crazy long, but byeas!

w00t

As corny as it sounds, I wrote a poem. aw. haha
Well, honestly, I write a lot of them to express my feelings and I just thought that it'd be nice to share one of them since I really like this one. So here it goes.

. . . . . .

I am…

Teeming with indescribable emotion

My spirit is

Overflowing with passion

My soul is

Questioning this feeling

My will is

Longing for more

My being is

Doubting clear reality

My self is

Finding a path

My inner self is

On a journey

My spirit is

Lost along the way

My immature self is

Finding purpose within passion

My life is

Flowering by Your grace

My all is

Finally and undoubtedly Yours.

. . . . . .


I remember this sermon about life statements that PD preached to us and kept that in mind as I wrote this. I hope that the last two lines can my my life statement, if not for everyone too. :)

Have a great week guys. :)

PS: You guys forgot Jeffrey on the roll call thingy.... :/

no topic

blah. okay i was going to do this yesterday but i was way too tired.
i also wanta apologize for what happened sunday. yeah.... all blah
um :) keep strong, guys! ^-^ i REALLY don't want to draw attention onto me so pls dont care about everythng that happend that time...
im still really tired but hopefully something amazing will happen today too =D bye now

What To Do...

I shall not drink coffee ever again. I think I became mad sensitive to caffeine lately. It feels like I'm on speed -_-;;

ANYWAY, I was just thinking about the conversation i was having with someone last week, I think it was Jun (omgsh, such a bad memory lmao) last week and thought it'd be cool if we could have worship as a small group while we wait for John or soemthing. Like we can do praise with Jun playing guitar...pray for a bit...talk about God, share verses that we've read, w.e as long as its God related. I feel like it would help us grow spiritually as a group and as a body of Christ. Besides I feel like Sunday worship is too short...after it finishes, I'm like...that's it? lol it should be fun, as well as constructive.

Once again I apologize and also apologize in advance. I'm going through withdrawal, and my temper is short, and I get down for no real reason, so if I seem angry or down or w.e, its not cos of you guys, its just me. And I also realized coffee aggravates the problem right now. If I say some stupid things or make some stupid comment just pretend you didn't hear. Being mad, sad, and on speed makes you do and say some stupid things. It's hard to think clearly, and I find it hard to calm down. I'm really not being myself lately. Please pray for me.

Anyway please let me know what you guys think about group worship and what you guys want to do.

Prayer Request

hey guys...
how was your week? :).
i hope it was good... fna is soon!
ah i cant wait till missions :D.
okay so i have a prayer request.

a fellow brother in our honduras
o7 team passed away on monday.
he was 14 years old and collapsed
on the way to school. this tragedy
has affected our team so much, and
we all plan to go to his wake tomorrow,
and just think about it. we all know that
he's in heaven right now, enjoying his
new everlasting life with God, but his
parents are still getting over the shock
from the death of their youngest son.
Boaz min was such a sweet kid, and
we're all gonna miss him so much.
this kid was so unbelievable, i bet God's
so proud to have him with him by his
throne right now :). i just ask that you
guys would pray for his family, ahh i dont
know what to write, just pray please.

-ginachun♡

hi people :] how are your weeks?
can't wait 'til jesus day & can't wait 'til fna & can't wait 4 missions!! :D
I was thinking about how many people are on earth O_o i've never thought there was just so much people!! lol
i'm very tired right now but i still have energy to praise God ^_^ and i'm really thankful that he's here with me. i can't be sure if the fast has been changing me or if, despite the fast, God is simply choosing now to make me think x] but i'm thankful.
S M I L E! i cant wait to c u guys fridayyy
xD i've noticed. jun never comes on this thing :) i've also noticed that our team members are all like ultra nice. haha

upcoming events!

hello, everyone. hope you're still checking this time to time. what happened to the daily devotionals? i actually do check this everyday, but i guess it's not really used much.

sunday, we will be holding our first group fundraiser! i believe there will be iced coffee, iced tea, and iced lemonade, along with baked goodies. your mission (harhar), if you choose to accept, is to bring some form of baked goodie to sell! cookies, cupcakes, brownies, cheesecake, anything!

also, on monday, we will be in charge of selling stuff at the volleyball tournament. we'll meet at church sometime in the morning. i'll let you know more about that soon.

comment with what you'll be bringing! :D

don't forget your prayer letters, journal entries, and chapter readings!

coolness

i think you guys are so cool =D God bless.
kristie status x] here's a verse:
"But will God really dwell on earth with men? The heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!"
i'm thankful he decided to come into me. i guess i symbolized the temple as my body.
"though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again raise me up."
"but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."
"you are my witnesses," declares the Lord, "that i am God."


"AND EVEYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED; FOR ON MOUNT ZION AND IN JERUSALEM THERE WILL BE DELIVERANCE, AS THE LORD HAS SAID, AMONG THE SURVIVORS WHOM THE LORD CALLS."

rainy days :)

rainy days are pretty awesome. the only bad thing is that my mom would kill me if she found out what i do out there :)
i'm sorry guys for not being so open and all. ;D you're kinda gonna have to train me in that.
i noticed recently that our team is mad chill x] excuse the language. anyway, like kristie, it DOES seem like i'm holding back & not really loving.
>.<>
^_^ God's giving me joy though. and smiles =D and cool stuff like such.
oh yeah john i kinda need that weekly chapter reading thing...
dan i wish you much luck for your life verse and john i hope school isnt that hard
gina you're so cute xD and kristie, you love God so much its so pretty :) ah lovely.
and sang-a thank you for being in local with me :D
later, guys!

Loving Eachother

hey guys.
i was just checking through my emails and i got this email from Dan Ryu about loving one another and he also sent this QT with it and as I was just reading it, i realized how i, personally wasnt really showing much love for you guys. I LOVE YOU GUYS!!! but i guess im pretty bad at showing that. i guess i was just thinking back to times when i could have shown more love and kindness toward you all, and me being the semi-sarcastic person i am, makes it harder to show you all how much i love you guys. So im trying to cut down on all that sarcastic stuff because even if its just joking around, i dont want anyone to take it the wrong way. You guys all show so much love through your emails and all that. The amount of love you all have for eachother is CRAZY!! Im starting to see this family in christ growing and our relationships getting stronger. That strong relationship in the team shows me how much everyone loves eachother within the group and thats so nice to see. =) And your love for the church is CRAZY too! Like the planting and carnations and all that shows how much you love serving the church. I can feel God pulling our team together and building our fellowship with eachother through all these things.
Heres the QT:
http://www.rbc.org/devotionals/my-utmost-for-his-highest/05/11/devotion.aspx?year=2008
I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!!!! LOCAL MISSIONS '08 WHOOT!

Prayer Request

I just wanted to make two prayer requests.

Last night I got a call from an old friend of mine. I met him three years ago at this college program and we dormed together for a month. He's a really nice guy, one of those really deep minded individuals who listens to reason. Anyway, before the summer college program, I prayed to God that I would be able to talk to at least one person about Christ and bring him/her to salvation. He turned out to be the one person that I talked to.

You know, I find so many people with their hearts so hardened against God because of the emotional pains and scarring that they went through. He was one of them. Someone sensitive who develops a shell to protect himself from pain. He turned out to be one of the people that I related to the most, because I went through very similar struggles.

First his heart was really hard you know? But as time went by I could tell that perhaps I planted a seed. No I didn't yet bring Christ into his life yet, but I believe that God will start to make that seed spring into life. Until yesterday I was afraid that the seed was snatched away by Satan, but now I have so much hope because we decided to hang out for the first time since then, for a day in the city next week. He's a great listener so if God speaks through my lips, I know that he'll be brought to Christ. Please pray for him guys and that God may use me to save him if it is His will.



My second prayer request is for my life verse next Sunday. I've never preached before, but I really think God gave me an opportunity to do His works. Really no joke. Almost everything in the last few months I could tell that God has had a huge hand in it. From my friend's phone call to this life verse to so many wonders to mention, He has lined up for me. He has really guided my life to unprecedented levels in my whole life in recent months. None exaggeration whatsoever.

Anyway the theme is going to be about Jesus' salvation. How things of this world hardly matters, but how the next is extraordinary and eternal. How if I saved someone's life here and right now (which is amazing no doubt), it would only be for the rest of this life. But if I brought Jesus's eternal salvation to someone's life here and right now, he'd be saved for eternity. Kind of what I'm hoping for my friend you know? Our life here is so short. I really want to make it count for God. Even if I don't get any rest in this life doing his will, how great will my peace and rest be in heaven once I'm done? How worthy would be the price of the tears that I've cried in this world so that I may cry many more tears of joy in the next? I can't wait till I go to heaven...-_-

Anyway pleaseeee pray for my friend and I. I'd really appreciate it. :D

hey guys!
its gina, i finally found the blog T__T.
a lot lot lot of backtracking of emails involved!
so sorry sarah for not posting this before!
here it goes;

people live a thousand lives in one body.
how many of those reveal our true identity?

(i love this color so much)

ive been thinking about it ever since
i got the email, and i think i sort of get what
it means.. still thinking though.

really, all i ever look foward to is fna, meetings and
church. i really have no life. like john said, i love the
weekend cause friday is fna, saturday is meetings and
sunday is church once again!
how lovely.

anyhow, im so excited for the summer and i hope
everyone else is too!
people i know in other groups are constantely saying
how our group is such a "perfect" group, and it made me
feel so happy, i love our group too :)

whooo fna tomorrow!

i have a question. are we still meeting on sat. at 1:30?

oh yeah! lets try REALLY hard for the skit guys :)

"and i simply come"

awesome QT kristie :) and i think you're totally right dan. :) hi guys!!
well i ride the stupid cheese bus and i was thinking about something i haven't been thinking about lately. God's grace hit me and i was pretty vulnerable too =P
anyway, God is just so GOOD, you KNOW? :D
i got home and randomly singing a song, and i stopped to think about what i was singing ;D
"when the music fades, all is stripped away, and i simply come."

Just a thought. You know how we sing that line of a praise song "I would run for a thousand years if I knew every step would be getting me closer to you"? I was like hmm I sing that line so passionately but then I realize that often times my life doesn't reflect what I sing or say what I would do.

I tried changing that line from a metaphor to a fact. "I would read the bible, pray and worship all of my days if I knew that every second of it was bringing me closer to you." It kind of got me thinking how I don't spend enough time with Him you know? This fasting has gotten me to realize this.

Anyway I hope you guys are enjoying school. I know I'm enjoying not going to school but hey...thats life haha Ill see you guys xD

hey guys. here's the link to the lifehouse skit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyheJ480LYA

God’s Grace Was in the Beginning

Grace has been defined as the second chance we did not expect.

Picture this: We hang our heads in shame because we know we blew it. We missed our opportunity to be the best. So, here we are, stuck with being second best, a far cry from what God intended for us. Yet it is with uncontrolled delight that we see God coming down the street to dry our tears and to encourage us to get back out there. He still believes in us.
What a feeling that must have been for Adam and Eve, the first people to experience the inexplicable grace God has for mankind! There they were, planted in the middle of paradise with the most perfect communion with God. They only had one rule—yet they found a way to break it.

But God is not interested in excommunicating us. Instead of getting upset and declaring the end of the world and starting over, He pursued the hearts of Adam and Eve. In the midst of their sin, God sought their hearts. And He has continued His pursuit ever since.

Many times when we sin, we wonder how God could ever love us again. However, it is the grace of God that gives us a chance to repent and to find new life. God’s grace is not a pardon; rather, it is a measure of forgiveness that gives life to the broken.

As we grow in our relationship with God, oftentimes we are surprised by His love for us. But even more surprising is the amount to which He pours out His grace in our lives. When we sin, God does not cast us aside. Instead, the compassionate heart of God meets us where we are and goes to great lengths to mend our hearts and to restore our relationships with Him.

Prayer: Lord, show me Your grace today in my life.

God raised us up with Christ... in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace (Ephesians 2:6-7).

hey guys. this is kristie again...
GOOD JOB RUNNING THE 5K!!!!
im posting up a random verse again... so here i go..

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." -Joshua 1:9

This verse just came into my head too because for me, i think i back out on street evangualizing to quickly. Like at the FUSE Outreach, it was hard for me to approach people and if they didnt accept the water bottles or whatever we were giving out, i kinda gave up. But then i just remembered this verse and i guess it sorta inspired me to take a step foward and be strong and courageous because I knew God was there with me through it all. And since we're going to be doing a lot of outreach during our missions trip, lets not lose strength and lets not get discouraged, but lets just step up and keep trying without giving up.
yea.. see you all tomorrow.. or since its like 2:57 am.. i guess ill see you guys later today. haha. ok bye for now!

lol seriously I'll stop calling you dongsengs...-_- i was joking around but I guess I pushed it too far haha.



Well it's really good to hear that God's presence is really strong in our group. :D I really think God blessed our group and brought the right people together. Really no joke. I completely agree with you that God's presence is really strong in our group. That's really encouraging. :) Don't get discouraged by ANYTHING guys. God is on our side. :D

Well I guess we will all see each other tommorow. bibi lol

I'm loving the white btw...so pure...

peaceful

wow. i feel so peaceful right now. :) my, i love walking home. T_T but i moved a bit closer so the walk is shorter.
it feels so calm. im very excited about doing this ^_^ even though the run was kinda killing my legs. rofl
let's just pray that we won't be discouraged if we don't see anything happen, because in the Bible, lots of people made crazy changes, but most of the changes didn't happen while they were alive. i feel like God's using us to shake the ground of these people. shake their beliefs of what life is and who God is :)
and let's not call each other dongsengs >.> and then the other side will stop call them unnies.
wanna know something really weird? not like the average weird ^_^
i can kinda feel that God's presence is so strong in our groups :D i love it!!

weekend!

ah, my favorite day of the week has arrived... friday! for many reasons. i don't have to make the long commute to work, it's right before the weekend, and i get to start off my weekend with FNA! heck yeah.

so, it looks likes a few of us don't ever check emails. when we meet up for the 5k run, please be sure to encourage the remaining few to keep checking. they've missed out on so much already!

i am so encouraged with this team already. you guys are like a breath of fresh air after a week of staleness. i thank God everyday, and ask for perseverance just for the opportunity to fellowship with you all in preparation of this summer. i hope you've been able to raise some funds for this upcoming run. if not, it's ok. as kristie's QT post said, God will provide at the proper time. let's not be discouraged at how seemingly little we may have raised, but instead remain encouraged that there are still people out there who are willing to give up a little of what they have!

on a more personal note, if you guys could pray for me. not just as a leader, but as a student. for those of you who don't know, i started going to seminary a couple of months ago, but i fell way behind due to all this new work and stuff. but before it gets too late, i scheduled my first exam tomorrow. that means i'm left with today to do a review. it's been too easy lately to fall asleep because i get tired, but just for this one last push, pray that i can find strength.

alright, back to work.

man, did i mention how EXCITED I AM FOR THIS SUMMER? you guys have no idea, really. expect GREAT things.

GLORIA DIOS!

hey guys! first post. haha. this isnt gonna be long though like everyone elses, because im not really the writer type..maybe i am.. haha. but this verse was kinda in my head all week. i added this verse to my first prayer letter and bryant shared this with my small group, so here it is:

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers." (Galatians 6:9)

yea. this verse is pretty straight foward and i like this verse, so i decided to share this...haha. But basically, during missions training and all that, let us all not get fustrated or tired, but put in all our effort because amazing things will happen if we dont give up. And let's be nice to everyone, especially to those in our church. haha. im kinda literally putting this verse into my own words, but this verse really just hit me. like BAM.

so yea. this isnt crazy deep like everyone's posts, but this was really something in my heart this week. =) have a good rest of the week guys! FRIDAYS TOMORROW!!! and then the 5k run. good luck getting sponsors. i really need it. haha.

hope and faith

hope without faith is hopeless, faith without hope is helpless.
...... i hope that makes sense.

QT - May 1st, 2008

Do you guys even do these QTs that I send out? hahahaha

anyways, here's tomorrow's QT:

Wednesday, April 30^th, 2008

Compassion and Judgement

Isaiah 14:1~17

1 The LORD will have compassion on Jacob;

once again he will choose Israel

and will settle them in their own land.

Aliens will join them

and unite with the house of Jacob.

2 Nations will take them

and bring them to their own place.

And the house of Israel will possess the nations

as menservants and maidservants in the LORD's land.

They will make captives of their captors

and rule over their oppressors.

3 On the day the LORD gives you relief from suffering and turmoil and cruel bondage,

4 you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon:

How the oppressor has come to an end!

How his fury has ended!

5 The LORD has broken the rod of the wicked,

the scepter of the rulers,

6 which in anger struck down peoples

with unceasing blows,

and in fury subdued nations

with relentless aggression.

7 All the lands are at rest and at peace;

they break into singing.

8 Even the pine trees and the cedars of Lebanon

exult over you and say,

"Now that you have been laid low,

no woodsman comes to cut us down."

9 The grave below is all astir

to meet you at your coming;

it rouses the spirits of the departed to greet you—

all those who were leaders in the world;

it makes them rise from their thrones—

all those who were kings over the nations.

10 They will all respond,

they will say to you,

"You also have become weak, as we are;

you have become like us."

11 All your pomp has been brought down to the grave,

along with the noise of your harps;

maggots are spread out beneath you

and worms cover you.

12 How you have fallen from heaven,

O morning star, son of the dawn!

You have been cast down to the earth,

you who once laid low the nations!

13 You said in your heart,

"I will ascend to heaven;

I will raise my throne

above the stars of God;

I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,

on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain.

14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds;

I will make myself like the Most High."

15 But you are brought down to the grave,

to the depths of the pit.

16 Those who see you stare at you,

they ponder your fate:

"Is this the man who shook the earth

and made kingdoms tremble,

17 the man who made the world a desert,

who overthrew its cities

and would not let his captives go home?"

Think:

Is it okay to be proud of your gifts that God has given you? Can you go too far in being proud of the gifts that God has given you? How?

Pray:

Father, open our eyes and hearts to see and be thankful that all our gifts and abilities come from You. Help us to use them wisely for the good of the people around us and for Your glory.

vv. 1~7

The chapter before this one focuses on Babylon, a major enemy of the tribe of Judah – a part of Israel that remained after the nation split up under Solomon’s son; the rest of Israel was conquered by the Assyrians, who were people from an empire nearby. God eventually uses Babylon to punish Judah – however, in chapter 13, it is revealed tat Babylon will eventually be punished as well. Chapter 14, which we’re stating today, begins with comfort for Judah (in verse 1, the name Jacob is another name for Israel, of which Judah is all that’s left). Their punishment, exile in Babylon, will end. They will get to go home, and the tables will turn. Babylon, which has many sins of its own to answer for, will be punished instead. After the short section of comfort, the focus is back on Babylon and its king.

vv. 8~11

This isn’t just a humbling experience for the king of Babylon or for the nation of Babylon, but a prediction of defeat and of death. The forests will continue to grow, and the world will continue without Babylon or its king. It was believed often in ancient cultures that the king of a nation was a god, or at least, the son of a god, and would be glorified after death. The king of Babylon, however, will die like all other men. And all those other men, those other kings who were thought to be divine by their people, will say, “Aha! Now you know the truth! You’re just like us! You’re just like everyone else, and in no way divine!” The man who was king, and was thought to be a god now knows that there is only one God, and it isn’t him.

vv. 12~17

The king of Babylon had been shown that his ambition of being a god was wrong. He assumed that his power carried him to victory in battle, made him the king of a mighty nation, worthy to be considered a god. But now, the man who was God’s instrument, failed to recognize God as the Lord Almighty and is punished. One can be both comforted and warned by this. The comforting part is that God is in control; people in the world or in our own lives who try to use their power to dominate and hurt people instead of leading them and helping them don’t get to stay in power for too long. The warning is that if we forget about God and start to get prideful, we are plotting our own downfall in a way since God is watching, and God is just.

Sorry if some stuff sounds weird or awkward.... bad translating skills...x_x

prayer requests?

i put this up on the other one 2 but does NE1 have any specific prayer requests?
this is kinda 4 kristie: xD yeah... it got worse. lol.
hmm.. i wonder what it would be like without time... =P
my stomach hurts. oh boy. i cant eat NEthing in this school though O_o bc its deesgusting :) jp. ty sang-a for the QT thingy. ^_^

oh man i need to write the $$ letters >.<>
if i like random txt 1 of you outta nowhere, dont b too surprised, k? KK =D
my stomach... ? whats going onnn

oh yeah. this isnt really my thing to do this, but i have a prayer request.
i didnt see this kid since junior high, and we dont see each other at all, but its on my mind.
um so in jhs there was this guy named Alan and he's all atheist, but i cant be sure?
yeah. anyways, one day i was just praying & he came up in my mind
so i started praying for him, and stuff, but every time we'd talk religious stuff wed always argue xD
bc i dont think he cares about evolutionism but he uses w/e he can to say there is no God.
ever since like 8th grade ive been praying.. it doesnt seem long but it feels long. hmm interesting,
towards the middlish endish of 8th grade he was like "oh im emo" and all that stupid stuff
and i was like "no youre not" but the point is he would seriously hurt himself. not to the verge of trying to end his life or w.e but its not... idk. good? is that a word? its not healthY?
well my prayer request is for him. he comes up in my mind sometimes, and whenver i think of evangelism or all that kinda stuff he pops up. so yeah. uhoh g2g my free's almost over bye!!!!

Quiet Time

:) i like this one a lot

oh and ty sang-a! shes gonna post up QT's as often as she can ^_^ bc shes cool

>> and i am NOT a dongseng D'=

Anvil Time by Max Lucado

On God's anvil. Perhaps you've been there.

Melted down. Formless. Undone. Placed on the anvil for...reshaping? (A few rough edges too many.) Discipline? (A good father disciplines.) Testing? (But why so hard?)

I know. I've been on it. It's rough. It's a spiritual slump, a famine. The fire goes out. Although the fire may flame for a moment, it soon disappears. We drift downward. Downward into the foggy valley of question, the misty lowland of discouragement. Motivation wanes. Desire is distant. Responsibilities are depressing.

Passion? It slips out the door.

Enthusiasm? Are you kidding?

Anvil time.

It can be caused by a death, a breakup, going broke, going prayerless. The light switch is flipped off and the room darkens. "All the thoughtful words of help and hope have all been nicely said. But I'm still hurting, wondering....."

On the anvil.

Brought face to face with God out of the utter realization that we have nowhere else to go. Jesus in the garden. Peter with a tear-streaked face. David after Bathsheba. Elijah and the "still, small voice." Paul, blind in Damascus.

Pound, pound, pound.

I hope you're not on the anvil. (Unless you need to be, and if so, I hope you are.) Anvil time is not to be avoided; it's to be experienced. Although the tunnel is dark, it does go through the mountain. Anvil time reminds us of who we are and who God is. We shouldn't try to escape it. To escape it could be to escape God.

God sees our life from beginning to end. He may lead us through a storm at age thirty so we can endure a hurricane at age sixty. An instrument is useful only if it's in the right shape. A dull ax or bent screwdriver needs attention, and so do we. A good blacksmith keeps his tools in shape. So does God.

Should God place you on his anvil, be thankful. It means he thinks you're still worth reshaping.

am i posting this right? lol i thought i posted yesterday -_-;;