happy new year errebody

Wow...time FLIES when you're having fun! I can't believe we only have one more week left until school. I hope all of you are had a jolly time w/ fam and friends on this wonderful new years eve.

This break, I've just been swamped with things to do...planning bbq for gma, x'mas party w/ friends...trips and reunions! I dont know about you guys, but spiritual discipline is so much easier said than done! I hope that we can all push through this week and continue to be productive and focused on God :)

It's been a blessing to take my gma and cousin to church these past 3 sundays. But I was talking to my gma...and she admitted that after all these years of litsening to sermons and going to church, it hasn't really affected her much (i can't really put it well b/c she said it in chinese)...and that she basically hopes that her going to church w/ jason will help him be a good christian (whatever she means by that). So............after hearing that I just feel really confused and scared for her salvation (and also responsible some or all of that). But obviously, it's God's will, not mine! So I hope you guys can pray for her heart...that she will receive God's gift of grace (and realize how awesome it is not to have to work for anything or feel guilty that she hasn't applied stuff that she heard from sermons)

I want to share one of my favorite verses w/ you guys! It's said over and over again I know, but it puts perspective on all the things we stress out with during this holiday season.

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?...But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well..." Matthew 6:25-34


Prayer requests: being a good granddaughter at home and being a good friend (and testimony) to my unbelieving friends.

Miss y'all :)
-Lucy

Hey! One more week and we get to go back to school. Sorry if thats a damper on your mood, but Im actually kind of looking forward to going back to school because I like my own little space in my apartment routines and goc and everything else. Sounds kind of weird I guess, but what I realized is I kind of thrive on this routine and the organization and clarity it brings to my head. But I will confess sin to you and say that it has been hard this week doing my devotions, even in fact reading my Bible. I read this morning, but I cant really remember before that when I did my devos in the morning before today. I wish I could tell you that Im dealing with it and that I have completely repented and moved on, but I cant. All I can tell you is my sin is getting in the way of reading my Bible. I am enjoying my rest and sleep to the glory of God so much so that I wake up only in time to do what I need to do for the day. And its only those days where I find that I dont have anything planned that I sit down and study the Word of God.

How can the Lord of Lord and King of Kings be subjected to such a relationship with me? Why would He want such a sinner who doesnt keep up her relationship with Him the moment she finds more freedom in her schedule and doesnt delight in the Word because it is the Word and abounding with the characteristics of our Savior? I want to be honest with you guys and say that I am struggling with things that it sounds like you are struggling with too.

I read something the other day about our knowledge. It was by a seminary professor who said that some of his students got annoyed at him because he frankly didnt care about how much facts and history and greek and hebrew they knew about the Bible. But he wanted them to show him how that affected their lives. What good is it if I know the missions routes that Paul went on and the dates that he stayed and ministered to those people if I dont understand Pauls heart for the Lord and how He genuinely desired to bring the gospel to the nations and to see people love Christ? And all I can say is that I want to go back to school so that I can get back on the right track again. Thats a poor excuse for the bigger heart issue of me shoving God into some corner of my life thinking that I need certain circumstances and settings to really serve and study for Him and about Him. Oh God would you be magnified even in my sin.

hello!

this past week was filled with lots of family time .. on sunday, my dad's side of the family came over to our house for Christmas and then the day after, my family went to sacramento for a few days to have Christmas with my grandparents and other cousins. it was nice to see all of them and spend time with them, but at the same time sad because i know that they don't know God. a question i get a lot when i talk to family/friends about college for the first time is what do i even DO in college if not party, and it's hard to see how they think that partying is basically what college is for, and how worldly their perspectives are in general. i don't know, being around them makes me feel kind of helpless (i don't know if that's the right word) but i know that i need to trust in God and pray for them and let Him work.

the past couple days, i've been going to watch my old basketball team play ... and i can honestly say it's the one thing that i really really miss from high school. while it's sometimes hard to watch, knowing that i'm not part of that anymore, i'm so thankful for all that God has blessed me with. today it hit me that there are only 3 days left of 2007, and looking back, it's amazing to see how much has happened! i'm thankful for all the good memories, as well as the not-so-good times, and all that He has taught me. and i especially praise God for bringing me to UCLA, for this past quarter, for you guys! :)

i'm realizing how hard it is for me to be disciplined. it's one thing to say that i want to be disciplined, and another thing completely for me to actually do it. i'm also struggling with being home and spending my time in a way that's glorifying God .. so you can continue to pray for me for that. thanks!

Hi everyone!

I am now back in Beijing again, after spending a week in Hong Kong. I spent a lot of time mostly with my family and I visited a few of my relatives. My sister surprised my mom because she told my mom that she wasn’t going to be back this holiday. My mom was so shocked and it was such an unforgettable memory. It was nice to visit my old church in Hong Kong on Sunday as well as on Christmas day, although I am still a bit unsure about their teachings on some of the doctrines.

I completely agree with Jenny Kan, so many people in Hong Kong are very materialistic and think that money can buy happiness. Gifts cannot fill their souls and they will simply be left empty if they store up their treasures on this earth. Christmas is a joyous time to celebrate the birth of our Savior. God has given us everything we need, and that is Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

Ephesians 5:15-18 says “¹⁵Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, ¹⁶making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. ¹⁷Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is. ¹⁸Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” Today I met up with a friend, who claims that he is a Christian and yet started to enjoy drinking alcohol. I shared with him after reading this passage that this sort of behavior dishonors God and so Paul says there is a better way to cope with the evil days—whatever alcohol can bring you, God the Holy Spirit can bring you more. Please pray that he will draw closer to God and know that he can be filled with joy that comes from God alone. No one is always full of the Spirit and joyful, but it should be our goal, that through our faith that the Spirit may fill us with his hope and thus his joy and peace.

Also, I have only a few more days in Beijing, please pray for me that I will use my time productively. I want to be a good testimony to my non-Christian friends and also that I will be loving towards them! Thank you all so much.. I really miss you all and I hope you will enjoy the last week of your break!

In Christ,
Jenny

Hi Hi

Hi all!!
sorry for the late post..
It's been a busy week for me with Christmas and all that.
For Christmas, I baked cookies with my sister for my church members and wrote cards to them thanking God giving his son for us. During the second sermon, my pastor preached about how Jesus Christ came down to earth for even those who are weak and low and this reminded me of how I was soley saved by grace.
and.. today......
My aunt visited us from Korea. Even though she had a surgery almost right before she visits us because of her cancer, I thank God that she's fine.
Since she and her son, my cousing who lives with my family, are non-believer, please pray for their salvation, my family to be good testimony and have chance to share the gospel.
As I shared last time, I fear awkwardness and some unexpected questions that I may not be able to answer.
Also, please pray for my aunt's recovery and health. It seems like she cares too much about being healthy after she got surgery.

I have been fine even though my little plan to get driver's license did not work out since my mom is so busy to help me practicing driving. However, I have been reading and trying to serve my mom doing some chores. But I don't think I'm not spending much time with God.

please pray for me to be spiritually disciplined for the rest of my break!!
and also for my dad because it seems like he is lonely alone in Korea at this time of the year.

Thank you so much and talk to you next week~

hello for the last time from hk this break!! hope you guys had a wonderful christmas! i'd have to say that mine was pretty low key and almost like an ordinary day but it was still a glorious day in celebrating the birth of our savior :]

since i last wrote, nothing much has really changed from the usual routine... my brother and my dad joined us in hong kong a couple days ago and since then it's been nonstop family time craziness. i think i had some unrealistic expectations of this time spent in hong kong as i barely got to spend time with the friends i had visiting (pearl [my cousin], michelle, jesslyn, and jennyw). i didn't actually get to see michelle, but i was able to spend an afternoon with my cousin, though we didn't talk much at all, and i got to see our very own jenny wong for a quick bite and brief stint of shopping. i guess with not being able to see and spend time with these people i was a little disappointed but i realized that i needed to examine the ways i spend/t my time and the ways in which i was (not) glorifying the Lord. 

spending christmas in hong kong has shown me how materialistic and worldly the majority of people are and especially my family as well. it's really hard for me to sit back and watch how they place the hopes in things that are so temporal and how much they want me to do the same. people here are so consumed in themselves and the pressures to have the latest, trendiest techie things exist all around. it saddens me to see a kid crying over a psp or to see how peoples eyes light up at the fanciest new gadget and how willingly they are willing to constantly replace phones or gadgets for the latest new "in" thing. just another reminder to always know where my heart is....

in about 9 hours, i'm leaving hong kong to go to shanghai with my family. please pray for safety as well as for my relationship with my mother as we often go head-to-head. pray that i will be able to honor her as one of my parents and then instead of being short tempered, that i would be christ-like in my imitation. [sorry for the rather short entries, being on vacation with my family entails long days out but once i get back to ca on the first, the longer entries will come :)]

I can't believe a whole week has passed by already! I spent most of my time with my family doing a lot of Christmas shopping with my mom or other errands. Overall its been a pretty relaxing time at home catching up on sleep and quality family time. I got into a good, but kind of short, conversation with my mom a couple days ago. Since my parents dont really ask about my faith or anything I usually ask about what they think about me and my brother going to church. She noted how consumed I am with church and about how she doesnt understand why i dont care about money and other things like that.

While trying to explain my values and hope in God's sovereignty only I realized that my mom is very comfortable with where she is right now. She thinks that her life is purposed to raise kids and to see her kids raise kids, and in that it never ends because family doesnt end. She listened to what I had to say, she doesnt really argue, but she doesnt agree. I think through that God is teaching me to rely on Him more for everything. I have these kind of obligations that I think I need to fill, like evangelizing to my parents and sister, because if I dont, then who will? But with that kind of thinking I completely leave out the HUGE part that God plays in changing peoples hearts and bringing them to saving knowledge of Christ. Trusting more on God and less on me is something my pride doesnt really want to give up.

I just got back from my fellowship's Christmas party. We did a white elephant exchange and played some improv games. My friend and I talked about a couple people in our lives that are really on our hearts. They are people who call themselves Christian but dont live the way the Bible instructs them. It reminded me of the verse that Lucy shared, All things are lawful but not all things are profitable. And about how God will do away with all these things in the end. Its hard to see brothers and sisters choose to not love or pursue the Lord as hard as they can and should. Not that I have it all figured out, but what convicted me is that by me not confronting them or even asking them how they are doing, I am condoning their sin! I know it can be a touchy subject, but sometimes the truth is at stake, and by defending the Bible and truth that God has revealed to us by sharing with our struggling friends, we can point them towards Christ. I honestly dont know how or what Im going to say to my friend, but something has to be said, for the truth and integrity of Christ, and for her soul.

I hope you girls are having a wonderful break! I cant tell you how much I enjoy reading your posts. Keep striving hard after God!

Yikes! I think it's my turn! :)

Sorry for the late post...to be truthful, I forgot who I was supposed to contribute after...BUT ANYHOW!

I've been out of town (for a mini vacation) to the nearby county of San Diego with my grandma and my cousin, Jason. We had a really cool time there visiting scenic spots such as Point Loma, touring the battleship carrier, having fun at the Birch aquarium...etc. It was especially a blessing because not only did I get to spend exclusive time w/ the fam, I also got to see Jeremiah for all of Saturday (he was our tour guide around SD) and today at his church (he led worship at big church for the first time). Today's message was on Luke 12:32-46 and the topic was "The 'not yet' of the kingdom." It was about the promise of eternality with God in heaven, and how although the 2nd coming has "not yet" come, God gives us a "now" solution with Jesus Christ's death and resurrection. It was an awesome message, and the worship was awesome too....EVERYTHING WAS AWESOME! hehe

Ummmmm....let's see. Over break, I realized that spiritual discipline is easier said than done. It really takes a lot of discipline and accountability! As for my devos, I wanted to share with you guys 1 Corinthians 6:12-15. Even though this passage is specifically about sexual immorality, I think it's reasonable to apply to a lot of other things too! The passage says:

"Everything is permissible for me"- but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible for me - but I will not be mastered by anything. Food for the stomach and the stomach for food - but God will destroy them both. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself?

It's amazing to know that our bodies are temples of God! So whether we eat or drink or whatever we do, do all to the glory of God. And how our choices should reflect our love for God, because we're changed creations! Whoohoo.

Another cool thing that I listened to last week was a sermon by CJ Mahaney recommended by girltalk.blogs.com. You can find the link at the 12/11/2007 post. It's seriously really good..it gave me a great (and sad) reality of how we want to hold on to the world, when it's so miserable and poor compared to the riches of God!

Prayer requests... Being a light to my best friends: Annie, Karen, Tiffo (nickname) and Twong (nickname). None of them are believers, and it's easy to get back to the worldly things of hanging out. Continue taking my gma and cousin to church (it's a lot harder getting plugged in than I thought). Mm...also sticking to my plan of reading Love to Eat, Hate to Eat, and 1 Corinthians for this break. And finding good fellowship and accountability at home!

I miss you gals :). I definitely take you for granted knowing how easy I have it (accountability-wise) at UCLA.

-Lucy

hey guys!

so my first week at home has been good! i didn't have any big plans for my break, so it has just been a good time of resting, spending time at home with family, and catching up with friends.

one of the things that really stuck out to me during my devos was 2 Thessalonians 1:7b-9 which is about judgment day when Christ returns: "... when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels 8 in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might". first, it reminded me of what we've been learning on Sundays, and i always think it's really cool when that happens! even more, though, it made me think of all my unsaved family members and friends who will receive this "punishment of eternal destruction" if they don't realize their need for Christ in their lives. it's sad to think about them not having the amazing gift of heaven after they die like we do. i was reminded of the urgency of the Gospel message and how my family and friends may not even get the chance to hear it if i don't tell them, so my prayer request is for boldness in sharing with them. as Christmas is coming up and i will probably see most of my extended family who i don't see every often, pray that i can be a good testimony to them, and that even in answering questions about my first quarter in college, i could share about GOC and start from there. and pray that God would soften their hearts. pretty much all of my extended family are unbelievers.

please pray also that i would be disciplined throughout this break. there are just as many (or more) distractions here as in college, and sometimes i find myself not being very productive with my time. pray that i would seek to glorify God with everything that i do. and then my close group of friends and i are kind of dealing with something right now, so pray that we would rely on God for wisdom about what to do about it. thank you!

i hope all your breaks are going well, Merry early Christmas! :)

hello from hong kong!

as you all know, i've been in hong kong since the 13th (well, technically i arrived here on the night of the 14th) and so far it has been a relaxing time with the family. the pace of life here is a change from the college life; my days are more filled with more relaxing activities such as accompanying my grandparents to their elderly activity center, playing mahjong with my grandparents, and going shopping and eating. things have changed here in hk since the last time i came (over a year ago) and its a lot harder seeing how my grandparents have gotten older. they forget alot of things now and repeat things to me often. please pray for them as well as the rest of my family as they are all non believers. i think my grandparents believe in the worship of ancestors.

one big thing also to pray for is that my mom was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes while i was away at college. the doctors aren't sure as to the cause (genetic or diet/lifestyle) so this means that i should probably be more careful as well since my dad also had a diabetes scare previously.

devos are definitely harder for me to do here in hong kong. usually i do them after everyone has gone to sleep and i've been trying to read through the old testament because i feel like i'm not as familiar with it. i've also been reading through psalms at the same time and its amazing to see how the authors of the psalms are so worshipful and i pray i can be just like them in that respect.

hope you guys are all doing well!

Hi Hi

I'm sorry to post my update late..
I went to snowboarding yesterday to Bigbear and I was so tired so that I just went to bed after
came back to home =) sorry..

So...... snowboarding was fun! even though I could not learn how to snowboard because of my back problem, I read books, got to know some of my church members better and saw snow!!
Before I went to snowboarding, we all attended my church's early morning prayer meeting
at 5:30am. it was really nice to start a day with a short sermon and prayer. Since my paster preaches the passage that I go over during my devo (because I use the book that my church uses) it was also helpful. Honestly, I did not have time to go through the passage on my own yesterday so I looked at it today morning. And.. here is the key verse for me from the passage:

"27whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whethter I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel 28without being frieghtened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved--and that by God. (Phillipians 1:27-28)

Honestly, I would have to spend more time to understand this passage but the point that I focused on is conducting myself "in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ". I think this is definitely a thing to work on for me because when I think about sharing gospel to someone, I worry that the person will oppose it and this is not conducting myself in a manner worthy of the gospel. Also, I tend to not have joy all the time. I get angry at other people, and easily get anxious because of my grades and test and this is not the life of the person who believe in the gospel. So I pray that I will be bold in sharing gospel and be always joyful because of Christ.

And there is another concern regarding my church members. Yesterday when we went to snowboarding together, I realized how some people still don't know the gospel. I thank God that they keep coming out to church but their lives do not testify that they believe in Jesus and they love Jesus. For example, they sometimes drink heavily and smoke. I am not really accusing them for doing these but it seems really not right for me that people from church gather together and drink. I think this is an issue that my church members and leaderships should work on. And also this made me realized how, so many times, I am not a good testimony to non-christians; even though I don't drink and smoke, I am still impatient to other people and do not honor my parents, etc.

So please pray for those who haven't met Jesus Christ in my church and pray for church members and leaderships to have wisdom to admonish and minister them biblically. I feel like some of us, including myself, have fear of man when we have to admonish them about smoking an drinking because we don't want things to be awkward. so pray that we will pray for them more, minister them with love, and be a good testimony.

Also, please pray for me to be disciplined and apply Justin's sermon. I want to go out to that prayer meeting in the morning everyday because in that way I can get up early and start the day with the bible passage and prayer.

Thank you guys and I am dilligently praying for you =)

Hi everyone!

I hope you all are having a productive and God-pleasing break! :) I have been back in Beijing for a couple of days already. I am so happy to be home!!! :D I went to church on Sunday and I got to see a few of my friends. We shared with each other what we learned during these past few months and it was really awesome to see how much we have grown in the Lord.

Devotionals have been great! I read Romans 9 a few days ago and it was about the Absolute Sovereignty of God. Romans 9:11-12 said, "Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad– in order that God’s purpose in election might stand: not by works but by him who calls - she was told, 'The older will serve the younger.'" It is the ultimate sovereignty of God in choosing who the beneficiaries of the promise will be. It is not because of works, but because of Him who calls; not even faith is a condition. I felt a passion to just see and bask in God's supremacy in absolutely everything. God's sovereignty brings us assurance because He is in control over everything.

I also spent some time with a few of my non-Christian friends. When my friends asked me how college was, I would take the chance to tell them about GOC and how much it has influenced me. But they don't seem too interested in knowing anything more. Please pray that God will soften their hearts and also for me to have boldness and confidence in sharing the gospel. Thanks so much. I pray that you will all continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord! Merry Christmas!

Sup Everybody!

How's everyone's first few days of break going?

Well, as most of you know, I got home on Wednesday; and I've been hanging out with friends and family for the past few days. It was kind of cool to see how I've changed in college after interacting with my old high school friends.

For example, on Thursday when I went to hang out with three of my Non-Christian friends, we all decided to go to Hollywood Videos and rent three movies. One of the movies happened to be Super Bad, which two of them had already seen and had told the two of us who hadn't seen it that it was extremely funny. However, after watching the first five vulgar (I can barely handle watching kissing scenes in movies... so Super Bad was pretty much K.O. for me) minutes, I asked them if we could watch one of the other DVDs we had rented. Before college I might've just cringed through the entire movie, tolerating the inappropriate jokes silently, so I was pleasantly surprised when my mouth moved on its own and was all like, "Whoa guys. This is too much for me. Can we please watch the other movie?" My friends noticed this and asked me about it, joking, "Ariel, you're not supposed to get MORE prude in college, you're supposed to get more CRUDE." I explained to them why I got "MORE prude" by telling them about GOC. Although I didn't get a chance to share the gospel, my talk about GOC prompted one of my friends to tell me about a few of the Christian fellowships on her own campus, and I encouraged her to check them out.

So... that was pretty cool. Yeup!

Let's see... my devotionals have been going well. I get my devos from http://www.intouch.org/, and the topic of the past week has been praising God. Psalm 150 was one of the Bible verses that was looked into on the topic of praise:

1 Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty expanse. 2 Praise Him for His mighty deeds; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness. 3 Praise Him with trumpet sound; Praise Him with harp and lyre. 4 Praise Him with timbrel and dancing; Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe. 5Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with resounding cymbals. 6 Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!

And one of the interesting points that was mentioned in this particular devo was that praise is built on knowledge. The more we know about someone or something the more we CAN praise that person or thing. Therefore, the more we learn about God through his Word and personal experience, the more we can praise him. I just thought that was really cool.

As for prayer requests, I have two prayer requests that I feel will be constantly recycled through this winter break. First of all, my mother is still very frustrated with her health after the surgery. She is very upset, feeling that after the surgery she has become significantly dumber and incapable of taking care of the family. Although she tries to put up a happy front, I can tell that sometimes she wants to cry from frustration, but she covers it with a laugh. Secondly, I would like to pray for God's wisdom. I just really need His knowledge and His help right now to make a personal decision.

Thank you so much! I hope all of your breaks are starting off wonderfully! I miss you all and may God bless you whether it be in your pursuit after Him or whether it be when you're just chillaxing with friends and family. :-)

Hi Girls!

So day one of break has been alright. I did get sick Thursday of finals week, but I am feeling a lot better after getting more rest. I had to miss my Friday final though! I will make it up maybe this coming Friday just so I wont have it hanging over my head for all of break. My family is doing well here but as I was resting last night reading in my room I could hear the tv my mom and sister were watching in the living room. And I couldn't help but think that they were just empty souls watching that tv, numb to their own misunderstanding of what this life is supposed to offer.

I shared in my email that for all of my other breaks I struggled with the discipline that Justin preached about. I like vacation time, but I think I take it into indulgence times and seek to serve only my fleshly desires. For these posts I think it would be cool if we all shared a verse or two that impacted us in our devotions. The past week I read 1 Corinthians 6:1-11, verses 9-11 read

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolators, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

I think one of the sweeeeetest words in the Bible is but. Even better, my favorite phrase in the Bible is but God. Here Paul paints this picture of the sinner, us!, and right after are a bunch of phrases beginning with that beautiful word but! It is great to see how wretched we can be and how much we can sin, but how great a God ours can be in spite of and because of all that we sin against Him. The contrast of His goodness and our sin never ceases to amaze me. And He is ours to call our own girls!

As far as prayer requests can you please pray for my apartmentmate Jessica! She hasn't been consistently coming out to church and never goes to GOC. All of us in the apartment notice it, so I guess just pray for our hearts not to let us let her keep on sinning and not pointing her back to Christ. Pray also for my family members, my mom, dad, and sister arent saved, but praise the Lord that my brother is. And, pray that I will remain steadfast in the work of the Lord this break, whether it be relaxing or intensely researching for our small group lessons next quarter!