Hey guys, this one's going to be a little different from my normal posts.
This one won't be too long, as it is just a little update. There are some sad things, some happy things, some things to look forward to in the near future.
First things first, I am so sorry about the Freedom series, it was just hanging there, and unfortunately, it will remain hanging. My helper has either recycled the booklet or put it away somewhere, I've spent days trying to look for it but to no avail, it's gone. So I am deeply sorry if any of you wanted to continue to know more about how we can achieve freedom through Christ, or just curious to know what happened in camp. Yet I do hope that this 3 part series ended on a good note, if you have any other questions please comment on them and I will try my best to answer them.
Second things second(?), this blog will undoubtedly run slow again in the coming school year, how sporadic or spaced my posts are will not be in my control. I am turning 17, I am graduating, I am becoming a Gr.12 student, and most definitely I will be busy. Posts will be sparse to none, and for that, I will apologize in advance for the long hiatus (or short) that will come soon.
Last things last(?), finally, you made it! This is the happiest announcement that I have for you! My parents and I are going to collaborate on a new travel blog, there's nothing on it just yet, but it might just go live tonight! So please, please, support our new blog! The url will be published here tonight. :D
So, that's all guys, thanks for reading up till now.
Bye! ~
Monday, August 13, 2018
Thursday, July 5, 2018
Freedom pt.3
GUYS I'M BAAAAAAAACCCKKK!!!!!
Hi all, I am so sorry for not posting anything for so long! Exams were nearing and I just didn't have time to post something. Especially something so long and deep as the Freedom series.
This is the second session of day two. Ready? Let's go!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Session #3 - Free gift for a freed people
Passage: Romans 6:15-23
So our speaker opened up with a story of how he dropped off his four kids at two different camps. Not that he doesn't love his four children, but it's easy to imagine that his family takes up most of his time. He described the moment right when they dropped off their last kids at Camp Mini-Yo-We (we were at camp mini yo we lol), there was this sense of freedom that came over him and his wife.
It is freeing and relaxing to have their responsibilities away from us. In this case, to have the kids away from their parents.
The sermon was broken down into three parts, where we compared our own situation with the Israelites and Slaves in America.
The Israelites were trapped in Egypt for 400 years, they were made slaves and their children were killed because the Pharaoh was afraid the Israelites would overtake the Egyptians. But after 400 years, they were set free. Our speaker then came up with two key questions: Free to do what? Wander in the desert? (which they did for 40 years) Go to the promised land?
The slaves in America were set free after 200+ years in slavery by an emancipation proclamation. Yet what were they free to do? Where would they go? Who would they be now? 100 years later they were free at last, as Martin Luther King Jr. said, "Free at last, free at last."
Freedom is nothing if we are not securely free.
We were given freedom from sin through Jesus. But we are slaves to sin before knowing Him, and to be chained to sin only leads to death.
If we serve sin, our very spirits are enslaved. However, we have been set free, we are slaves to righteousness, servants of God.
The word Doulos has its roots in Greek, the word "deo", which means to bind or to tie up. Doulos is used in this session's passage, and it is used to describe how we are tied to sin vs untied and unbound to sin.
An example would be marriage, where two people are bound in unity by love and in God. Not that the two parties would be slaves to each other, but they are bound to each other.
It's the same thing with God, to be a "slave" to Him is to be bound to Him. And to be a "slave" of Godly righteousness is to be tied to it.
As a slave, you cannot serve two masters. You cannot serve both sin and righteousness, you must let go of one to be able to hold on tight to the other. You must let go completely to be free.
You and I have been set free by Jesus after a lifetime of slavery to sin. Galatians 5:1 it states explicitly this feat of freedom, yet we are free to do what? Are we free simply to be slaves to someone else?
The gift of eternal life is what we are all free to receive.
Our speaker quoted one of his favorite all-time quotes, and frankly, I quite like it as well. It says, "To be bound to (tied to) Jesus is to be bound (headed for) for Heaven." It's simply poetic and the wordplay is pretty good.
Our gift of freedom is a true gift because it is freely given; and our freedom always links back to the cost that Jesus paid, in His death.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Small group questions!!!!
1. Is there a difference between being free and being secure?
- We all agreed there was a difference. The most prominent example I remember is the difference between a mom who lets her child be free to do whatever, but doesn't love the child or protects the child, and a mom who gives her child less freedom yet loves the child and protects them over everything else. I don't really remember the other things but this is what we concluded at.
2. How can Paul call us free, but then call us slaves to righteousness?
We didn't get to this one, but feel free to reflect on this on your own!
Self-reflection:
What is your identity in this world? What are you bound to? Whom do you serve?
And that's all. Stay tuned and
BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
p.s. I'm not gonna have a break post because I've dragged long enough on this series. Once again I am so sorry for not posting anything.
~bye for now.
Hi all, I am so sorry for not posting anything for so long! Exams were nearing and I just didn't have time to post something. Especially something so long and deep as the Freedom series.
This is the second session of day two. Ready? Let's go!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Session #3 - Free gift for a freed people
Passage: Romans 6:15-23
So our speaker opened up with a story of how he dropped off his four kids at two different camps. Not that he doesn't love his four children, but it's easy to imagine that his family takes up most of his time. He described the moment right when they dropped off their last kids at Camp Mini-Yo-We (we were at camp mini yo we lol), there was this sense of freedom that came over him and his wife.
It is freeing and relaxing to have their responsibilities away from us. In this case, to have the kids away from their parents.
The sermon was broken down into three parts, where we compared our own situation with the Israelites and Slaves in America.
The Israelites were trapped in Egypt for 400 years, they were made slaves and their children were killed because the Pharaoh was afraid the Israelites would overtake the Egyptians. But after 400 years, they were set free. Our speaker then came up with two key questions: Free to do what? Wander in the desert? (which they did for 40 years) Go to the promised land?
The slaves in America were set free after 200+ years in slavery by an emancipation proclamation. Yet what were they free to do? Where would they go? Who would they be now? 100 years later they were free at last, as Martin Luther King Jr. said, "Free at last, free at last."
Freedom is nothing if we are not securely free.
We were given freedom from sin through Jesus. But we are slaves to sin before knowing Him, and to be chained to sin only leads to death.
If we serve sin, our very spirits are enslaved. However, we have been set free, we are slaves to righteousness, servants of God.
The word Doulos has its roots in Greek, the word "deo", which means to bind or to tie up. Doulos is used in this session's passage, and it is used to describe how we are tied to sin vs untied and unbound to sin.
An example would be marriage, where two people are bound in unity by love and in God. Not that the two parties would be slaves to each other, but they are bound to each other.
It's the same thing with God, to be a "slave" to Him is to be bound to Him. And to be a "slave" of Godly righteousness is to be tied to it.
As a slave, you cannot serve two masters. You cannot serve both sin and righteousness, you must let go of one to be able to hold on tight to the other. You must let go completely to be free.
You and I have been set free by Jesus after a lifetime of slavery to sin. Galatians 5:1 it states explicitly this feat of freedom, yet we are free to do what? Are we free simply to be slaves to someone else?
The gift of eternal life is what we are all free to receive.
Our speaker quoted one of his favorite all-time quotes, and frankly, I quite like it as well. It says, "To be bound to (tied to) Jesus is to be bound (headed for) for Heaven." It's simply poetic and the wordplay is pretty good.
Our gift of freedom is a true gift because it is freely given; and our freedom always links back to the cost that Jesus paid, in His death.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Small group questions!!!!
1. Is there a difference between being free and being secure?
- We all agreed there was a difference. The most prominent example I remember is the difference between a mom who lets her child be free to do whatever, but doesn't love the child or protects the child, and a mom who gives her child less freedom yet loves the child and protects them over everything else. I don't really remember the other things but this is what we concluded at.
2. How can Paul call us free, but then call us slaves to righteousness?
We didn't get to this one, but feel free to reflect on this on your own!
Self-reflection:
What is your identity in this world? What are you bound to? Whom do you serve?
And that's all. Stay tuned and
BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
p.s. I'm not gonna have a break post because I've dragged long enough on this series. Once again I am so sorry for not posting anything.
~bye for now.
Sunday, May 27, 2018
Freedom pt.2
WELCOME BACK TO FREEDOM!
Hey everyone, sorry this took so long, time to dive into another day at the retreat! You ready? Let's go!!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We rose early, it was going to be a warm day, albeit the rather windy and chilly morning. We had waffles with homemade whipped cream, blueberry compote, and mixed berry compote. It was great. We also had a scoop of oatmeal for starters.
Then we had an activity. We wanted to go canoeing again, but the windy morning discouraged me and my friend, so we went for another round of archery instead.
There was a rabbit basking in the sun and nibbling dew sweetened grass, I almost killed it, it was so used to humans that it didn't even budge. We had to physically chase it off the range. Fantastic.
Lunch was a Make it yourself wrap thingy, we had a lot of wraps on the retreat. Once again, there was a veggie platter with dip waiting for us. Dessert was brownies baked in the form of cupcakes. No icing though. The top part of the brownie was really good, as it should be.
Then we went canoeing, well, we tried to at least, there were so many people that they had to cut out those who had done canoeing once in the past days. That included me. So we went to their new triple zipline. It was fun, not very fast, but it did feel like I was flying. I was one of the few that wasn't scared of heights.
We also took some pictures during free time, here they are:
Dinner was chicken burgers and cupcakes for dessert. I wasn't a big fan of the cupcakes, I was too full to eat one anyway.
Today is the day where there were two sessions, the first of which is going to be in this post, the second will be in another.
The session here is one after lunch...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Session #2 Freedom from what?
(Luke 18:13-30) - The conversation with a young rich ruler
Our speaker opened us up with a story of how some Asian countries trap monkeys. The contraption consists of a hole that is wide enough for the monkey's hand to go in, but there are some food items inside the trap that monkeys love very much. Once the monkey grabs the food, its hand is locked in a fisted position, which is too big to fit through the hole again. All the monkey has to do to be free again is to let go of the food it's holding on to.
Is this comparable to our lives? Being constricted or trapped because we can't let go of some things?
Then we dove into the scripture. The passage tells of a rich young ruler confronting Jesus about how he should live a holy and right life. Jesus asks him what he is doing righteously right now, and the rich ruler answers with a few of the commandments from the old testament.
Jesus does not say anything to oppose that, instead, he agrees with the young ruler, only to add one more commandment on top - give your riches to the poor and needy.
The young ruler immediately became very sorrowful, because he is still holding onto his wealth and possessions. Even though the ruler is a good person, he still cannot do what Jesus asks him to.
Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
With the promise of eternal life and salvation, will you still hold on to something more than you would hold on to Jesus?
Obviously, it is easier said than done, even now, I still hold on to earthly things more than I would like to hold on to Jesus. It is definitely challenging to let go of things that we love.
But Jesus did say, "What is impossible with man is possible with God."
Jesus is always offering us help, and sometimes we need to rely on that steady hand, hang on to that help. Don't just let go of the worldly things, let go so you can hold on to Jesus instead.
Doesn't that sound like freedom? Freedom is letting go and holding onto God's waiting, loving hand, His great hand is an anchor so that we can safely be free of our bondage and let go without fear.
God's love is never forcing, in fact, in the passage, Jesus was inviting the young ruler to join him in the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus never forced the rich person to do anything. God's love never forces, His invitation is love.
Are you ready to let go of your earthly possessions and go hold onto Jesus?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Small group question!!!
1. Where do I see myself in the rich young ruler, but don't want to see myself in him anymore?
We went through a couple of things, including a life of comfort, materialism, and spiritual pride. I personally said spiritual pride.
Life of comfort: It's easy to live a life of comfort, especially in Canda where resources are plenty. But sometimes it makes us too comfortable, and we are unwilling to step out of this comfort zone to help serve others.
Materialism: Similar stuff, we are able to get many things, especially things that we want. We often become selfish and neglect the needs of others because of this.
Spiritual Pride: Something that I sometimes struggle with, it is a kind of sin that really affects how you serve, we always think that we can rely on ourselves and forget that we should rely on God when we serve. The result by man alone often isn't the greatest, I can say that this is true because I lead worship. God is so important in how you serve.
2. What is one thing that I want to let go of and hold onto God instead of during the retreat?
We didn't get to this one, but answer in the comments, or add this to your devotion journals or something. It's a nice question to reflect on.
Self-reflection!!
What do I want freedom from today?
Personally, I want to be free from my social anxiety disorder, which is mild but I still get panic attacks sometimes. What are your shackles?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So that does it for this day of retreat, next post will be pure session, no diary entry. So yeah.
Stay tuned and
BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hey everyone, sorry this took so long, time to dive into another day at the retreat! You ready? Let's go!!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We rose early, it was going to be a warm day, albeit the rather windy and chilly morning. We had waffles with homemade whipped cream, blueberry compote, and mixed berry compote. It was great. We also had a scoop of oatmeal for starters.
Then we had an activity. We wanted to go canoeing again, but the windy morning discouraged me and my friend, so we went for another round of archery instead.
There was a rabbit basking in the sun and nibbling dew sweetened grass, I almost killed it, it was so used to humans that it didn't even budge. We had to physically chase it off the range. Fantastic.
Lunch was a Make it yourself wrap thingy, we had a lot of wraps on the retreat. Once again, there was a veggie platter with dip waiting for us. Dessert was brownies baked in the form of cupcakes. No icing though. The top part of the brownie was really good, as it should be.
Then we went canoeing, well, we tried to at least, there were so many people that they had to cut out those who had done canoeing once in the past days. That included me. So we went to their new triple zipline. It was fun, not very fast, but it did feel like I was flying. I was one of the few that wasn't scared of heights.
We also took some pictures during free time, here they are:
Dinner was chicken burgers and cupcakes for dessert. I wasn't a big fan of the cupcakes, I was too full to eat one anyway.
Today is the day where there were two sessions, the first of which is going to be in this post, the second will be in another.
The session here is one after lunch...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Session #2 Freedom from what?
(Luke 18:13-30) - The conversation with a young rich ruler
Our speaker opened us up with a story of how some Asian countries trap monkeys. The contraption consists of a hole that is wide enough for the monkey's hand to go in, but there are some food items inside the trap that monkeys love very much. Once the monkey grabs the food, its hand is locked in a fisted position, which is too big to fit through the hole again. All the monkey has to do to be free again is to let go of the food it's holding on to.
Is this comparable to our lives? Being constricted or trapped because we can't let go of some things?
Then we dove into the scripture. The passage tells of a rich young ruler confronting Jesus about how he should live a holy and right life. Jesus asks him what he is doing righteously right now, and the rich ruler answers with a few of the commandments from the old testament.
Jesus does not say anything to oppose that, instead, he agrees with the young ruler, only to add one more commandment on top - give your riches to the poor and needy.
The young ruler immediately became very sorrowful, because he is still holding onto his wealth and possessions. Even though the ruler is a good person, he still cannot do what Jesus asks him to.
Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
With the promise of eternal life and salvation, will you still hold on to something more than you would hold on to Jesus?
Obviously, it is easier said than done, even now, I still hold on to earthly things more than I would like to hold on to Jesus. It is definitely challenging to let go of things that we love.
But Jesus did say, "What is impossible with man is possible with God."
Jesus is always offering us help, and sometimes we need to rely on that steady hand, hang on to that help. Don't just let go of the worldly things, let go so you can hold on to Jesus instead.
Doesn't that sound like freedom? Freedom is letting go and holding onto God's waiting, loving hand, His great hand is an anchor so that we can safely be free of our bondage and let go without fear.
God's love is never forcing, in fact, in the passage, Jesus was inviting the young ruler to join him in the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus never forced the rich person to do anything. God's love never forces, His invitation is love.
Are you ready to let go of your earthly possessions and go hold onto Jesus?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Small group question!!!
1. Where do I see myself in the rich young ruler, but don't want to see myself in him anymore?
We went through a couple of things, including a life of comfort, materialism, and spiritual pride. I personally said spiritual pride.
Life of comfort: It's easy to live a life of comfort, especially in Canda where resources are plenty. But sometimes it makes us too comfortable, and we are unwilling to step out of this comfort zone to help serve others.
Materialism: Similar stuff, we are able to get many things, especially things that we want. We often become selfish and neglect the needs of others because of this.
Spiritual Pride: Something that I sometimes struggle with, it is a kind of sin that really affects how you serve, we always think that we can rely on ourselves and forget that we should rely on God when we serve. The result by man alone often isn't the greatest, I can say that this is true because I lead worship. God is so important in how you serve.
2. What is one thing that I want to let go of and hold onto God instead of during the retreat?
We didn't get to this one, but answer in the comments, or add this to your devotion journals or something. It's a nice question to reflect on.
Self-reflection!!
What do I want freedom from today?
Personally, I want to be free from my social anxiety disorder, which is mild but I still get panic attacks sometimes. What are your shackles?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So that does it for this day of retreat, next post will be pure session, no diary entry. So yeah.
Stay tuned and
BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Monday, May 21, 2018
A break post
Hi guys, this is a break post, I will have one between each retreat post so it's more defined and a little less crowded. Have a look at some of my dragons, cos why not?
Sunday, May 20, 2018
Freedom pt.1
DEAR ALL HI I AM BACK!!
Hey guys, it's been way too long! I'm sorry for going on such a long hiatus, school has been busy, but hey guess what, I'm back from spring retreat!
This year, being a grade 11, I have had the amazing opportunity to be on the trip's week committee. I was part of the design team and was mainly responsible for designing the shirt for the retreat. I was also partly involved with deciding and checking over some other stuff (everyone on the committee had to).
This year, only one of my friends came to the retreat, it was originally going to be three (instead of four last year) but because of some personal reasons, my friend number was shrunken to two. I didn't really mind, I was just glad that I had a close friend with me.
I was surprised that I felt more comfortable this year during the retreat. My social anxiety was not as crippling as I thought it would be, maybe because I was in the older grade this time, or I knew the grade 10's better through the after-school orchestra. I don't know, but the comfortable feeling was nice.
This year's weather and black fly/mosquito situation were much better. No storms, no rain, not much bug bites. The weather was so nice that a lot of us got sunburns.
I brought my own bow and archery equipment to the camp this year, and I thoroughly enjoyed archery, I felt like I was shaking off the rust (I haven't done archery in a year) to my full potential. More on the activities later.
Like last year, there will be one post for each day of the retreat, with divided sections in between(the format will be very similar). There will also be pictures in the posts this year!
So, the first day - 15th May 2018...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We arrived safely at Camp Mini-Yo-We, no burst tires this time. Although we were promised one big coach bus for both trips (going and returning), they failed to provide that and gave us a medium coach bus and a school bus instead.
It was raining rather heavily at the beginning of Tuesday, thankfully, the weather cleared up after lunch. We unloaded the bus, got to our cabins, set down our things and began the retreat.
Speaking of lunch, we had a veggie dip platter, tacos, and apples with caramel dip. The caramel dip wasn't the greatest, but they had some good apples. The planning committee had loosened up the schedule this year, allowing lots of free time to do things and relax.
There were trampolines (three!) in the camp this year, I was also shaking off two years worth of rust in Olympic Trampoline. I had lost some of my skills, but I had fun, and I think that was sufficient. No flips were allowed anyways.
We had two consecutive activity periods, and I did canoeing for the first and archery the second.
Supper was one I would never forget, warm, sticky orange chicken breasts with rice. It was great! Our dessert was ice cream sandwiches which we all devoured with glee. That sounds a little weird but I haven't had an ice cream sandwich in so long!
We had two team games - 收賣佬 (so people find and bring up certain items that the host calls out) and team charades. They were fun, but it was also getting colder come sunset.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Session #1: What is Freedom?
(John 8:31-32) This is our theme verse.
Our speaker opened up the session with his chronicle of living in other people's basements, which included his friend's house. His friend had four kids, and living with them made our speaker realize something, that even though the kids were annoying it wouldn't make him or their parents love them less.
There is nothing that your children could ever do that will make you love them less, because they are your children. We won't love our children less because of what they do, we'll love them more for who they are.
Notice the word "love". Without love, there is no freedom, because you will always be trying to impress and live up to the expectations of the world. No one will love you for who you are, instead, they will always look at what you are.
Then, we moved on to the passage, which was also our theme verse. The context of the passage was Jesus vs Radical Jews, both parties were in a short conflict because of a woman who had committed adultery.
The way Jesus tackled the situation was appealing to the radical Jews, and they began to follow him. But the Jews thought they needed to follow Jesus, and also their laws (there were 613 of them!). Would you think that that would mean freedom? I don't think so.
The way Jews viewed salvation and getting themselves into God's sights was to "win God points". But the fact is, you can't win God points (I had something else scribbled but I can't read it lol).
Jesus was the gospel, the new covenant, the new way to ensure salvation and a connection between us and God. The gospel, quite simply put, is love - God's love.
The gospel is the love story between us and God, laws(in terms of the old testament) make us all trapped because we're always trying to follow them but always end up failing. The gospel is the truth (explained below), and it sets us free because God loves us not for what we do (well, partly, but not completely) but who we are (like the parenthood example above).
God looks at us like a parent, we are His children! Once we accept this unconditional love, we've found the beginning of freedom.
The truth that God loves you and me, it sets us free because this is the love story between God and mankind. The fact that God loved us so much, and will not love us any less, is why His love is so great.
This love will only increase.
At school (PCA), every morning we are told through the PA by our loving and kind vice principal we are loved. The exact words through the PA are "You are loved".
It's true, every one of us is loved, and that love is freeing.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This year we managed to discuss and fill in all of the small group questions, which is great! So there will be a section for this every post, unlike last year. I will also have the self-reflection up every post. Alright, lezz go!
1. What do you think of when you hear the word 'freedom'? What does freedom look like for you?
Some of our answers were Jailbreak, slavery, doing what you want, not doing what you don't want, having a choice. I personally said holiday.
Jailbreak: our group leader shared with us about a coworker(in a restaurant) who was going to jail the next day for doing what they thought was best. The fact that our freedoms are fragile really made us think and reflect.
Slavery: Again with the thought of what freedom was not, there was another variation to the answer, but I don't remember what it was.
The rest are rather self-explanatory.
2. How do you know that you are loved? How do you feel loved?
"You are loved", verbal confessions, the services of others, actions speaking louder than words, quality time. My sharing was related to the services of others.
"You are loved": pretty self-explanatory, we always feel like there's something missing if the message isn't spoken through the PA every morning. We all agreed that it just didn't feel the same.
Verbal confessions: Do you tell your friends that you love them? Do you tell your family that you love them? Do you tell God that you love Him? What about vice versa? Pretty self-explanatory.
The services of others: One of the 5 great love languages. In fact, if you would like, take a love language test here: http://www.5lovelanguages.com/profile/
A lot of us shared stories of how people expressed love towards us by acts of service, no matter how great or small. I personally shared my parents love for me when they'd stay up real late just for me to make sure that all the visa stuff is okay.
Actions speaking louder than words: Just a pattern that we noticed since so many of us shared about actions rather than verbal confessions
Quality time: Our group leader shared this, this is also another one of the 5 love languages. Take the test through the link above. But our group leader shared how she had quality time, no matter when or where, when she needed it the most with friends. It really made us think about our own experiences with how we interact and spend time with our friends and family.
Self-reflection: Do I know that I am loved by God and others?
Sometimes I really don't see it, but most of the time I do.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So what do you guys think? Feel free to answer the questions, share your reflections, or even ask questions (I'll try my best to answer).
Stay tuned and
BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!
Hey guys, it's been way too long! I'm sorry for going on such a long hiatus, school has been busy, but hey guess what, I'm back from spring retreat!
This year, being a grade 11, I have had the amazing opportunity to be on the trip's week committee. I was part of the design team and was mainly responsible for designing the shirt for the retreat. I was also partly involved with deciding and checking over some other stuff (everyone on the committee had to).
This year, only one of my friends came to the retreat, it was originally going to be three (instead of four last year) but because of some personal reasons, my friend number was shrunken to two. I didn't really mind, I was just glad that I had a close friend with me.
I was surprised that I felt more comfortable this year during the retreat. My social anxiety was not as crippling as I thought it would be, maybe because I was in the older grade this time, or I knew the grade 10's better through the after-school orchestra. I don't know, but the comfortable feeling was nice.
This year's weather and black fly/mosquito situation were much better. No storms, no rain, not much bug bites. The weather was so nice that a lot of us got sunburns.
I brought my own bow and archery equipment to the camp this year, and I thoroughly enjoyed archery, I felt like I was shaking off the rust (I haven't done archery in a year) to my full potential. More on the activities later.
Like last year, there will be one post for each day of the retreat, with divided sections in between(the format will be very similar). There will also be pictures in the posts this year!
So, the first day - 15th May 2018...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We arrived safely at Camp Mini-Yo-We, no burst tires this time. Although we were promised one big coach bus for both trips (going and returning), they failed to provide that and gave us a medium coach bus and a school bus instead.
It was raining rather heavily at the beginning of Tuesday, thankfully, the weather cleared up after lunch. We unloaded the bus, got to our cabins, set down our things and began the retreat.
Speaking of lunch, we had a veggie dip platter, tacos, and apples with caramel dip. The caramel dip wasn't the greatest, but they had some good apples. The planning committee had loosened up the schedule this year, allowing lots of free time to do things and relax.
There were trampolines (three!) in the camp this year, I was also shaking off two years worth of rust in Olympic Trampoline. I had lost some of my skills, but I had fun, and I think that was sufficient. No flips were allowed anyways.
We had two consecutive activity periods, and I did canoeing for the first and archery the second.
Supper was one I would never forget, warm, sticky orange chicken breasts with rice. It was great! Our dessert was ice cream sandwiches which we all devoured with glee. That sounds a little weird but I haven't had an ice cream sandwich in so long!
We had two team games - 收賣佬 (so people find and bring up certain items that the host calls out) and team charades. They were fun, but it was also getting colder come sunset.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Session #1: What is Freedom?
(John 8:31-32) This is our theme verse.
Our speaker opened up the session with his chronicle of living in other people's basements, which included his friend's house. His friend had four kids, and living with them made our speaker realize something, that even though the kids were annoying it wouldn't make him or their parents love them less.
There is nothing that your children could ever do that will make you love them less, because they are your children. We won't love our children less because of what they do, we'll love them more for who they are.
Notice the word "love". Without love, there is no freedom, because you will always be trying to impress and live up to the expectations of the world. No one will love you for who you are, instead, they will always look at what you are.
Then, we moved on to the passage, which was also our theme verse. The context of the passage was Jesus vs Radical Jews, both parties were in a short conflict because of a woman who had committed adultery.
The way Jesus tackled the situation was appealing to the radical Jews, and they began to follow him. But the Jews thought they needed to follow Jesus, and also their laws (there were 613 of them!). Would you think that that would mean freedom? I don't think so.
The way Jews viewed salvation and getting themselves into God's sights was to "win God points". But the fact is, you can't win God points (I had something else scribbled but I can't read it lol).
Jesus was the gospel, the new covenant, the new way to ensure salvation and a connection between us and God. The gospel, quite simply put, is love - God's love.
The gospel is the love story between us and God, laws(in terms of the old testament) make us all trapped because we're always trying to follow them but always end up failing. The gospel is the truth (explained below), and it sets us free because God loves us not for what we do (well, partly, but not completely) but who we are (like the parenthood example above).
God looks at us like a parent, we are His children! Once we accept this unconditional love, we've found the beginning of freedom.
The truth that God loves you and me, it sets us free because this is the love story between God and mankind. The fact that God loved us so much, and will not love us any less, is why His love is so great.
This love will only increase.
At school (PCA), every morning we are told through the PA by our loving and kind vice principal we are loved. The exact words through the PA are "You are loved".
It's true, every one of us is loved, and that love is freeing.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This year we managed to discuss and fill in all of the small group questions, which is great! So there will be a section for this every post, unlike last year. I will also have the self-reflection up every post. Alright, lezz go!
1. What do you think of when you hear the word 'freedom'? What does freedom look like for you?
Some of our answers were Jailbreak, slavery, doing what you want, not doing what you don't want, having a choice. I personally said holiday.
Jailbreak: our group leader shared with us about a coworker(in a restaurant) who was going to jail the next day for doing what they thought was best. The fact that our freedoms are fragile really made us think and reflect.
Slavery: Again with the thought of what freedom was not, there was another variation to the answer, but I don't remember what it was.
The rest are rather self-explanatory.
2. How do you know that you are loved? How do you feel loved?
"You are loved", verbal confessions, the services of others, actions speaking louder than words, quality time. My sharing was related to the services of others.
"You are loved": pretty self-explanatory, we always feel like there's something missing if the message isn't spoken through the PA every morning. We all agreed that it just didn't feel the same.
Verbal confessions: Do you tell your friends that you love them? Do you tell your family that you love them? Do you tell God that you love Him? What about vice versa? Pretty self-explanatory.
The services of others: One of the 5 great love languages. In fact, if you would like, take a love language test here: http://www.5lovelanguages.com/profile/
A lot of us shared stories of how people expressed love towards us by acts of service, no matter how great or small. I personally shared my parents love for me when they'd stay up real late just for me to make sure that all the visa stuff is okay.
Actions speaking louder than words: Just a pattern that we noticed since so many of us shared about actions rather than verbal confessions
Quality time: Our group leader shared this, this is also another one of the 5 love languages. Take the test through the link above. But our group leader shared how she had quality time, no matter when or where, when she needed it the most with friends. It really made us think about our own experiences with how we interact and spend time with our friends and family.
Self-reflection: Do I know that I am loved by God and others?
Sometimes I really don't see it, but most of the time I do.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So what do you guys think? Feel free to answer the questions, share your reflections, or even ask questions (I'll try my best to answer).
Stay tuned and
BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!
Monday, April 2, 2018
He is not here, for He has risen.
HELLOOOO!! HAPPY EASTERRR!!!
Hope y'all had a fantastic weekend, was so glad that six brothers and sisters of my church had decided to get baptized into Christ and his body.
Easter for baptism is a very special time, because it lands right in the niche of dying and being buried with Jesus and being resurrected with him again.
So yeah, I actually wanted to share the sermon today, but, I just couldn't seem to be able to put it together. Sorry about that.
Stay tuned,
and bye!
p.s. yeah, I know I said a more serious post yesterday, but I just... couldn't... sorry, also um, it's short... sorry about that too.
Bye!
Sunday, April 1, 2018
Wednesday, February 28, 2018
Take nothing for granted, like... ever!
HEYYYY Y'ALLL BEAUUTIIFULL PEOPLELELELELEL!!!!!!
Now there's a reason why I'm screaming online. It's because I can't do it in real life. Why? Cos a pretty bad case of strep throat left me mute, dehydrated and emaciated (it's easier to swallow now, but not quite so for talking).
What's strep throat?A horrible monstrosity, it is a viral infection of the throat that can affect the lymph nodes in your neck and under your chin, your ears, and your sinuses. It is typically found out as an excruciating sore throat, and when the doctor checks up on you, it is usually determined when the doctor can see little white specks lining the throat, pretty bad stuff.
But enough with the biology dilly-dally, let's just say I found it so tough not being able to talk, sing in the shower, or even eat or drink properly (in the first few days, I'm alright with those things now of course).
Today, I went back to school because my fever was gone, my bag wasn't really that heavy, but there was something extra in it - scrap paper.
I had to write out everything I would have otherwise spoken aloud, I had to combine facial expressions while writing to convey the true meaning behind the message, and it was really tough to catch up with conversations or to get other people to stick around long enough for me to finish my opinion (which, thankfully, didn't happen too much, in fact, it only happened once!).
It felt really awkward to write out a small note at the top of my chemistry quiz to book a re-quiz for the one I missed on Monday (I believe it is good that I didn't go to school and instead went to the doctor, because neglected strep throat could cause scarlet fever and I do NOT want to get into opening that can of worms).
I realized that I should never have taken my voice for granted, your voice is the most precious thing in the world. It is the most effective, efficient, God-given way to communicate. And don't let anyone tell you otherwise! It doesn't matter if you have a croaky voice or a wheezy one, cherish it! No matter what, it is still yours, it is your instrument for expressing your opinions and your emotions or just small social acts in general.
In the end, while thinking up how to write this post, a bible verse came to mind:
1 Corinthians 6:19-20, "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies."
Yes! Take care of yourself, do not take anything that is a part of you for granted, heck, don't take anything that is God-given for granted! Because you were bought at a price - the precious blood of Jesus Christ. Don't take this immeasurably precious (how many times has Vanassa used precious in this post already?) gift for granted either!
So take care of yourself, honor God with your bodies! Your voices are made to honor Him, and to also get you about your daily life.
No hate pleze,
PEACE!!
Now there's a reason why I'm screaming online. It's because I can't do it in real life. Why? Cos a pretty bad case of strep throat left me mute, dehydrated and emaciated (it's easier to swallow now, but not quite so for talking).
What's strep throat?
But enough with the biology dilly-dally, let's just say I found it so tough not being able to talk, sing in the shower, or even eat or drink properly (in the first few days, I'm alright with those things now of course).
Today, I went back to school because my fever was gone, my bag wasn't really that heavy, but there was something extra in it - scrap paper.
I had to write out everything I would have otherwise spoken aloud, I had to combine facial expressions while writing to convey the true meaning behind the message, and it was really tough to catch up with conversations or to get other people to stick around long enough for me to finish my opinion (which, thankfully, didn't happen too much, in fact, it only happened once!).
It felt really awkward to write out a small note at the top of my chemistry quiz to book a re-quiz for the one I missed on Monday (I believe it is good that I didn't go to school and instead went to the doctor, because neglected strep throat could cause scarlet fever and I do NOT want to get into opening that can of worms).
I realized that I should never have taken my voice for granted, your voice is the most precious thing in the world. It is the most effective, efficient, God-given way to communicate. And don't let anyone tell you otherwise! It doesn't matter if you have a croaky voice or a wheezy one, cherish it! No matter what, it is still yours, it is your instrument for expressing your opinions and your emotions or just small social acts in general.
In the end, while thinking up how to write this post, a bible verse came to mind:
1 Corinthians 6:19-20, "Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies."
Yes! Take care of yourself, do not take anything that is a part of you for granted, heck, don't take anything that is God-given for granted! Because you were bought at a price - the precious blood of Jesus Christ. Don't take this immeasurably precious (how many times has Vanassa used precious in this post already?) gift for granted either!
So take care of yourself, honor God with your bodies! Your voices are made to honor Him, and to also get you about your daily life.
No hate pleze,
PEACE!!
Monday, January 29, 2018
Dang, first post of 2018...
SECOND SEMESTER STARTS TOMORROW!
But first off, I just have two stories to share in one go, so get ready for a really, really really long post...
Story the 1st: Completing my G2 insurance ain't gon' stop me from going to church!
The title of this story is pretty self-explanatory, I got my G1 last November with one of my homies, and over the Christmas break, I attended the insurance course which would discount my future car insurance cost by 15%ish... and it would also shorten my lineup time for the G2 road test by four months.
So the after the first lesson, my uncle and I were talking about the course and all that, he was being very nitpicky about how this course was a time waster and didn't need to exist and in the old times this would never have been implemented or heard of.
I let that slide, he is almost 70, so I'll give him that.
And then he figured out that the four-day course would last from Thursday to Sunday.
He then went on saying, "So you have class on Sunday, are you not going to go to church then?"
My uncle is not Christian, and so he actually disliked me and my aunt going to church or attending other religious activities(even the walkathons our church would host, smh). He must've been a little smug at that, but I just simply said(it wasn't even a lie, this was my actual plan), "I'm just not going to be able to attend Sunday school, what's so bad about that? Even if it means my lunch is gonna be a little rushed, I'm still attending the main service."
He didn't talk again after that, I felt a glimmer of pride, for my faith, and for the fact that I had managed to defend what I believed and upheld in the face of the conformations of the world.
Okay, maybe it doesn't sound that fancy, but to me, it felt like a pretty big accomplishment.
So yeah, driving ain't gon' stop me from going to church, it's only going to help me get there.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Story the 2nd: Sobbing as I pet the cat
Ever heard of CO?
Maybe you've heard of its full name - carbon monoxide.
It's a scary killer, and I was feeling all the symptoms of it today.
I was home alone tonight, my aunt and uncle attending some extended relative's birthday party, before I was going to cook dinner for myself(yes, I am a functional human who can look after herself thanks) I felt real lightheaded. Like no kidding! I was so tired I could fall asleep standing up.
Then I still felt real tired after dinner, I only felt a little better when washing the dishes and listening to fingerstyle guitar covers. And then, it finally dawned on me, the cat(even after being fed) was constantly meowing and leading me to the door.
I opened it, and a gust of cold, but fresh, night air came whooshing towards my face. I was instantly awake, so I thought, there must be carbon monoxide in the house, or gas because Minion(the cat's name) can smell it even though I can't!
In fear of the cat's life, my life, and possibly my aunt and uncle's lives(since they would come home and inhale the gas or whatever), I opened three windows, two on the upper floor and one on the ground floor.
Still, not entirely better, but better than before.
(To be honest, there is nothing scarier than being home alone with a cat because you don't know whether the bumps in the night are the cat or a home invasion)
So when the windows were wafting fresh air through, I went back to my computer to watch Jacksepticeye's playthrough of the Shadow of the Colossus remastered, I felt tired again, almost instantly. So I went online and looked to see if it was the blue light getting to me after 3 hours of use.
The good ol' interwebs said: TAKE A BREAK!
And I did, practicing my band parts and playing other nice songs.
Better, but not quite still.
Then the cat kept coming into my room as if she was enjoying my music.
Then she got ambitious and tried to get onto my bed, after which I put down my violin and shooed her out, and sat with her in the corridor and petted her.
I got really scared all of a sudden like I was stressed and scared of an impending doom or something.
TL;DR I thought God was going to take me away.
And as a part of my human nature... I didn't want to die.
(the night wind is really nice, I've never realized that my room was this warm)
So, I was sitting in the hall, with a white cat rubbing itself all over me and I was petting it too and scared that I was going to die tonight.
And so this poor girl, with an attention-seeking white cat, started singing Whom shall I fear(by Chris Tomlin).
And then she started crying.
Because she was so scared.
Honestly, the feeling is almost indescribable.
I was seeking assurance, and comfort in God, saying that "Dear Lord, it's okay if I die tonight, but I'm scared, and I am most definitely not ready, but do what you must, but I'm also scared to bits."
And I kept crying in spurts as I did my laundry, and changing my bedsheets, and listening to more praise songs on Spotify because in my crying, fearful state I just couldn't sing anymore.
And then, I was full of anxiety that I would have to be alone a lot longer because my aunt and uncle left at 5:30 and still weren't back(they're back now).
The crying lasted for about half an hour, in and out of lapses.
(okay wow my room is really cold now, sigh, O Canada...)
And then it got all better, there was a supernatural peace that stole over me, and I stopped crying, and I started reading. I read blogs, devotions, testimonies, anything that I could find out this sudden "I feel like I'm going to die" emotion moved by singing a single praise song.
After a bit of digging, it's a gift from the Holy Spirit called the "gift of tears" or "gift of emotion".
Wow.
Perhaps I felt that I was straying, and God helped me get back on track with him.
This gave me some motivation to start reading the Bible, start to finish(yes, without skipping Numbers) for real, and think of the great plan that God has for me.
Today, certainly, my time is not yet up.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorry 'bout my inactivity!
First semester has been one of the most intense semesters ever, but don't worry, tomorrow hails the start of the second semester and it will be a lot chiller than ever.
Alright, as a bit of a reminiscing, uh, flash to the past, or whatever, I will post a single entry of my exam predictions for physics(cos that's basically the only one I've come to actually calculate). Yeah.
24/1
Subject: Physics
Feeling: Yup, I failed(asian failed) big time
Revision rate: I started doing notes after Christmas Break(cos Christmas break was devoted entirely to Biology) and I crammed the equations the day before
Predicted marks: Now I did calculate my minimum, it's a glorious 72.8%, ugh, I could have done better... why did I even choose Physics anyways... I should have dropped it, like seriously.... sigh...
But first off, I just have two stories to share in one go, so get ready for a really, really really long post...
Story the 1st: Completing my G2 insurance ain't gon' stop me from going to church!
The title of this story is pretty self-explanatory, I got my G1 last November with one of my homies, and over the Christmas break, I attended the insurance course which would discount my future car insurance cost by 15%ish... and it would also shorten my lineup time for the G2 road test by four months.
So the after the first lesson, my uncle and I were talking about the course and all that, he was being very nitpicky about how this course was a time waster and didn't need to exist and in the old times this would never have been implemented or heard of.
I let that slide, he is almost 70, so I'll give him that.
And then he figured out that the four-day course would last from Thursday to Sunday.
He then went on saying, "So you have class on Sunday, are you not going to go to church then?"
My uncle is not Christian, and so he actually disliked me and my aunt going to church or attending other religious activities(even the walkathons our church would host, smh). He must've been a little smug at that, but I just simply said(it wasn't even a lie, this was my actual plan), "I'm just not going to be able to attend Sunday school, what's so bad about that? Even if it means my lunch is gonna be a little rushed, I'm still attending the main service."
He didn't talk again after that, I felt a glimmer of pride, for my faith, and for the fact that I had managed to defend what I believed and upheld in the face of the conformations of the world.
Okay, maybe it doesn't sound that fancy, but to me, it felt like a pretty big accomplishment.
So yeah, driving ain't gon' stop me from going to church, it's only going to help me get there.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Story the 2nd: Sobbing as I pet the cat
Ever heard of CO?
Maybe you've heard of its full name - carbon monoxide.
It's a scary killer, and I was feeling all the symptoms of it today.
I was home alone tonight, my aunt and uncle attending some extended relative's birthday party, before I was going to cook dinner for myself(yes, I am a functional human who can look after herself thanks) I felt real lightheaded. Like no kidding! I was so tired I could fall asleep standing up.
Then I still felt real tired after dinner, I only felt a little better when washing the dishes and listening to fingerstyle guitar covers. And then, it finally dawned on me, the cat(even after being fed) was constantly meowing and leading me to the door.
I opened it, and a gust of cold, but fresh, night air came whooshing towards my face. I was instantly awake, so I thought, there must be carbon monoxide in the house, or gas because Minion(the cat's name) can smell it even though I can't!
In fear of the cat's life, my life, and possibly my aunt and uncle's lives(since they would come home and inhale the gas or whatever), I opened three windows, two on the upper floor and one on the ground floor.
Still, not entirely better, but better than before.
(To be honest, there is nothing scarier than being home alone with a cat because you don't know whether the bumps in the night are the cat or a home invasion)
So when the windows were wafting fresh air through, I went back to my computer to watch Jacksepticeye's playthrough of the Shadow of the Colossus remastered, I felt tired again, almost instantly. So I went online and looked to see if it was the blue light getting to me after 3 hours of use.
The good ol' interwebs said: TAKE A BREAK!
And I did, practicing my band parts and playing other nice songs.
Better, but not quite still.
Then the cat kept coming into my room as if she was enjoying my music.
Then she got ambitious and tried to get onto my bed, after which I put down my violin and shooed her out, and sat with her in the corridor and petted her.
I got really scared all of a sudden like I was stressed and scared of an impending doom or something.
TL;DR I thought God was going to take me away.
And as a part of my human nature... I didn't want to die.
(the night wind is really nice, I've never realized that my room was this warm)
So, I was sitting in the hall, with a white cat rubbing itself all over me and I was petting it too and scared that I was going to die tonight.
And so this poor girl, with an attention-seeking white cat, started singing Whom shall I fear(by Chris Tomlin).
And then she started crying.
Because she was so scared.
Honestly, the feeling is almost indescribable.
I was seeking assurance, and comfort in God, saying that "Dear Lord, it's okay if I die tonight, but I'm scared, and I am most definitely not ready, but do what you must, but I'm also scared to bits."
And I kept crying in spurts as I did my laundry, and changing my bedsheets, and listening to more praise songs on Spotify because in my crying, fearful state I just couldn't sing anymore.
And then, I was full of anxiety that I would have to be alone a lot longer because my aunt and uncle left at 5:30 and still weren't back(they're back now).
The crying lasted for about half an hour, in and out of lapses.
(okay wow my room is really cold now, sigh, O Canada...)
And then it got all better, there was a supernatural peace that stole over me, and I stopped crying, and I started reading. I read blogs, devotions, testimonies, anything that I could find out this sudden "I feel like I'm going to die" emotion moved by singing a single praise song.
After a bit of digging, it's a gift from the Holy Spirit called the "gift of tears" or "gift of emotion".
Wow.
Perhaps I felt that I was straying, and God helped me get back on track with him.
This gave me some motivation to start reading the Bible, start to finish(yes, without skipping Numbers) for real, and think of the great plan that God has for me.
Today, certainly, my time is not yet up.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorry 'bout my inactivity!
First semester has been one of the most intense semesters ever, but don't worry, tomorrow hails the start of the second semester and it will be a lot chiller than ever.
Alright, as a bit of a reminiscing, uh, flash to the past, or whatever, I will post a single entry of my exam predictions for physics(cos that's basically the only one I've come to actually calculate). Yeah.
24/1
Subject: Physics
Feeling: Yup, I failed(asian failed) big time
Revision rate: I started doing notes after Christmas Break(cos Christmas break was devoted entirely to Biology) and I crammed the equations the day before
Predicted marks: Now I did calculate my minimum, it's a glorious 72.8%, ugh, I could have done better... why did I even choose Physics anyways... I should have dropped it, like seriously.... sigh...
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