reminder.

Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow,
for tomorrow will be anxious for itself.
Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
[Matthew 6:34]

it's the first of the month.

september has finally crept up on us and it ain't coming quietly. im already feeling the weight of many things, but im really hoping that i cling to my faith and not my feelings. He will sustain my energy, my focus and my relationships according to His will. i need to be patient and trusting in His plan for me. i need to remember that God is faithful and with me through the ups and downs.

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"We live in stressful times. If unchecked, worry, anxiety, and stress
can cause our hearts to also become troubled.
The problem is that worrying does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow.
It only empties today of its strength.


If your heart is troubled today,
then remember these three things:

1. His Word is true.
2. We are going to heaven.
3. He is coming back for us."

- Pastor Greg Laurie
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And we know that God causes
everything to work together for the good
of those who love God
and are called according to his purpose for them
(Romans 8:28)

our God is an awesome God indeed.

love song.

You are God in heaven

And here am I on earth
So I'll let my words be few
Jesus, I am so in love with You

And I'll stand in awe of You, Jesus
Yes, I'll stand in awe of You
And I'll let my words be few
Jesus, I am so in love with You

The simplest of all love songs
I want to bring to You
So I'll let my words be few
Jesus, I am so in love with You.

- Let My Words Be Few (by Matt Redman)

just one of them days.

"do you think you're distracted?"

in the span of a day, i lost focus. my priorities got all twisted. my eyes were not on the prize. instead, i was transfixed on my own desires. inside, i was kicking & screaming because i was disappointed in others. (little did i know that later i would be even more disappointed in myself for putting too much emphasis on me). i tried to take matters into my own hands and thought that i could be the solution to all problems. my body was exhausted, my mind was tired, my heart was heavy.

once again, i was hit with the recurring reality that i cannot do this on my own. i always need God and with so many changes going on, i need Him more than ever. and i have faith that He is actively working out the kinks in my life. i need to constantly remind myself of the rewards He graciously offers us, the gift of eternal life to those who believe. i need to remember that Jesus is real and so is his death AND resurrection, the same death and resurrection that saved me. He wants the best for me, He wants me to turn away from sin, to place my focus on a life centered on Christ. if he gave up his life for me, an undeserving sinner, then i should be able to devote my life to Him, a pure, forgiving, holy, loving, faithful, righteous, perfect God.

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Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
[Philippians 4:8-9]

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i praise God for the people in my life who hold me accountable for my actions and rebuke my wrongdoing. i pray that God cleanses my heart from the lingering sin and selfish desires that prevent me from seeing the full scope of how wonderful and powerful He is. i am thankful that God is forgiving and patient despite my flaws. He drew me back to Him a year ago and on that rough day, He pulled me even closer. regardless of the twists and turns i face, i don't want to lose grasp of the abundant joy i have in Christ. God is so good, friends.

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a timely email from the little sister:

Isaiah 40:31 But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.

Psalms 118:8-9 "[it is] better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. [it is] better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes."

Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."

i love you and am praying for you. remember to rely on God no matter what because true happiness is found in Him and the good news of the gospel! i know it's hard, but God is definitely working in every situation and ALWAYS teaching us something. because nothing happens on accident. and God is definitely growing you. just continue to trust in Him and be patient even when patience seems to be in short supply. love ya m-lo. :)

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So take me as you find me,
All my fears and failures,
Fill my life again.

I give my life to follow,
Everything I believe in,
Now I surrender.

- Mighty To Save (by Hillsong)

overjoyed.

there have been an overwhelming amount of blessings in this past year, let alone just this past month! God really IS a faithful and loving God and im so thankful for the blessings and trials that He's been sending my way.
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oc fizzle.
fried food + friendsies

198 family reunion.
$10 all-you-can-eat korean bbq + sweet apartment deposit.
date nights.
late night dessert + photo shoot.
harvest crusade 2009.
worshiping our wonderful God with thousands of people!
greg laurie's message was a great reminder of how things of this world do not satisfy, but Christ can provide the ultimate joy that everyone searches for.
cfbc youth beach trip.
PTL for this group of crazy kids! intense games, frolicking in the water, praise & worshiping on the sand, harcore carwheel battle and jurr's message about preventing distractions to our walk with God. fun in the sun, enjoying God's creation among bros and sisters in Christ.

celebrating one year with the bfriend.
God has most definitely taught the two of us soooo much during this past year. i praise God for bringing this guy into my life (i must say he's pretty cool). God has really grown us on our individual walks with Him and i pray that He continues to sustain our relationship
regardless of which coast we're on.
playtime with a.phu and r.j
this silly duo visited the OC for some galavanting, picture-taking, jam-packing into one sleeping bag at the park and a lovely devotional over some yummy shaved ice.

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and though some moments aren't always so dandy as these pictorals, i know that all these temporary troubles are not worth stressing over compared to the glory that is yet to come. God is so super good and sometimes i find myself just in awe of where God has brought me over this year of change. i cannot imagine a life without this faith, without the grace that God generously pours out, without His patience with me. while im overjoyed with all these blessings, i pray that i do not forget the blesser, the One who gave us Christ, the greatest blessing of all.

anything to stop clock watching

yup, the bfriend is moving...
across the US...
to new york...
for a year (maybe shorter, maybe even longer).

what's gonna happen to you guys? are you gonna break up? what if you guys meet other people? why don't you ask him to stay? will you be sad? are you scared?
aren't you gonna miss him?

the situation's not as complicated as it seems. yes, he is moving. yes, it will be kinda hard sometimes. yes, i will miss him. i admit that anxiety really weighed my heart down and spurts of reality got the best of me. i didn't know how we would approach our relationship, if we'd have time for each other, if staying together and enduring those dreaded long-distance-relationships was the best idea. nonetheless, we're going to do everything we can to keep goin' strong and to maintain Christ at the center of our lives and our relationship. from the beginning, we agreed that we would always put God at the top of our priorities, which means letting Him do as He wills for the two of us. we need to trust that God will lead our individual lives as well. we have faith in each other, faith in the relationship God has blessed us with, faith in our good & loving God's will and we're praying that God allows us to grow together even way after his stay in the big apple. this will undoubtedly be a challenging learning experience, so we appreciate your prayers! it may be tough, but PTL for technology, for prayer and for God's faithfulness through all these changes.

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august 2008.

one year later.
august 2009.

happy one year bfriend.

i think you're pretty awesome & i really thank God for you.

we'll never be rejected.

We’ll never be rejected

via Of First Importance by joshetter on 8/11/09

“Why am I so blessed? I am blessed because, in the most painful moment in human history, Jesus willingly subjected himself to the rejection of his Father. He took on my sin and allowed himself to be rejected. In this unthinkable moment of substitution, the Trinity was torn apart as the Father turned away the Son. Here is what you and I have to understand: Jesus was willing to suffer the horrible rejection of his Father so that you and I would never, ever have to experience it ourselves.”

- Paul David Tripp, A Shelter in the Time of Storm (Wheaton, IL; Crossway Books, 2009), 92.

a ride that will change your life.

august 3-7 was cfbc's annual vacation bible school (VBS) entitled Boomerang Express, so we traveled to the land down under(kind of) in hopes to share the good news to all those who attended and their familias.
what a blessing to be a part of the VBS staff for the first time
as an assistant teacher for the AUSSIE PRE-K POSSE class! working alongside this quirky duo (also both of my accountability partners) made the week so much fun! i learned so much from these two. your passion to serve the Lord and dedication to our "joyful joeys" really kept me energized and focused on our primary goal to plant a seed for our kiddos to grow towards Christ. im so thankful for the time spent together in and out of the classroom, preparing lessons and growing our friendships.
it was a whole week, full of singing, playing, running around, crafting, teaching and most especially sharing the gospel with 100+ young kids and kid-at-heart-adults. it's amazing how much our little ones can comprehend at such a young age. this experience really shows that it's never too early to develop your faith... nor is it too late. i was reminded of the significance of raising children to know and love God (Lord-willing my future husband and i will successfully do so with our own kiddos, too).
"g'day mate, im glad you could make it"five days of excitement and spontaneity left us drained after each day, but the kids' curious minds and enthusiasm brought a fresh energy to each class. they asked surprisingly complex questions and responded eagerly to ours.
they listened to stories and showed off their creativity during craft time.

they made new buddies and learned about Jesus along the way.til graduation day where our little kangaroos were all decked out in their 'roo gear, ready to perform for a packed venue of proud friends and families
(and teachers!)And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
[Matthew 18:2-4]one of our faves, beatrice!
spending some quality time with this NY-bound guy wasn't too shabby either.
and praise God for such an enthusiastic youth group. im so proud of the work that was done by them at vbs, whether it was in the classroom or behind the scenes. i cannot begin to explain how encouraging this group of crazy kids is. i hope our fire to know and grow in Christ extends beyond that single hectic week.after all the fun and games of the week, i hope that through God's doing, we helped open some eyes and spiritually-feed some hungry people. thank you God for this experience and for this church family that i absolutely adore. you are soooo good and i pray that those who attended were blessed throughout the week and that their enthusiasm & interest spreads to those around them as well.

it really does all come back to Jesus.

ah, finally some blog time.

it's been quite an eventful couple of weeks, full of fantabulous memories, lots of pictures, plenty of grubbing and an abundance of blessings all over! God is so super good, im so in awe of how He works in people's lives and im so unworthy of such great things, but im constantly reminded of His grace through such joyous occasions and opportunities to build each other up and grow friendships.

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the cfbc ladies gathered for a weekend getaway in the great outdoors (aka the navales backyard) for some late-night-munching, testimony-sharing, advice-giving and constant conversing until the sun came up...all this under one impressive makeshift tent!

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up,
just as you are doing.
[1 Thessalonians 5:11]
(we even squeezed in some late night yoga action)and as a guest of the navales, there was bound to be plenty of good eats!
tita lolit led our morning devotional about being ourselves, rejecting the temptations of worldliness and fighting the common pressures of being a girl, striving to be godly women.
what an encouraging message to start the day!
then the ladies joined the boys to prep for our upcoming vbs.
i could feel the excitement as we all came together to
prepare, practice, paint and play!

afterwards, the ladies got all snazzified for a fancy little dinner.my date for the night
and ultimate week-long accountability session partner.
then a quick little stroll around downtown fullerton to wrap up a weekend of festivities. praise God for friends to share your joys and struggles with, who are ready and willing to comfort and encourage and re-direct your focus on Christ. it was especially great to share testimonies. to see how God has worked to transform our once-empty lives in so many different ways was a true testament of how much joy can now be found through faith in Christ. i pray that God will continue to grow this community of young women and grant us the wisdom & love to edify each other.
i love you lovely ladies!

PTL.

God is so good, so faithful, forgiving, gracious, patient and loving.

I am so overwhelmed with joy from too many things to mention right now
because my mind's all over the place and my body's calling for some sleep.

updates soon for sure..
but here's a preview from our VBS:


PTL PTL PTL!!!