Coolp...

Did you know that you can link to your facebook from your blog? Yup, you sure can. I actually am doing this just to see if it works.... Facebook me!
Wow...it did the whole "facebook me" thing on its own. Crazy...

I was there...

Last night WSU went on to beat the Zags 77-67 in one very exciting, intense game. It was fun to be in Beasley with it almost sold out. The last five minutes of the game were amazing! Anyways, apart from the game itself my favorite part of the evening was when the guy sitting behind me and Jess McFaul said, "our cheerleaders aren't anywhere near naked enough." I can't discredit his personal opinion, however, I'm sure the half time show with the Crimson girls gained his approval.

Whoo-hoo!

My blog is working! For the past month it wasn't able to be viewed...and I have no idea why. But now, thankfully, it is up and running again. Not that I've been blogging a lot since my return to this side of the Pacific Ocean, but still, at least now it is an option.

This is what I've been doing...

So I haven't blogged in a really, really long time. Honestly, I don't have as much to say. Or, there are things to say, I just don't really want to blog about them. I mean, do you really want to hear about all my exams and lack of homework that I do??? So...here's a picture of what I really do in my free time. And you think I'm kidding. Ok, maybe I am weird...

Too funny...

How would you feel if you were a CNN anchor and forgot to turn off your wireless microphone after your broadcast? How about if you were in the bathroom with your microphone still on? During a Presidential speech?

Check this out for a Letterman Top Ten list of excuses...

Brainwashing

I decided that when I have kids I'm going to "Christianize" all the children's book I read them. This ephiphany came after reading some children's books to Shelley for her class on literature (she's going into elementary education). Some examples from stories (my additions in italics):

"Baby Sam is sick! We should pray for him!"

"I'm going next door to meet the new girl and invite her over for peanut-butter cookies and teach her about Jesus!"

"Hi! I'm Alice. I'm a Christian. What's your name?"

And last but not least...

One fish
Two fish
Red fish
JESUS fish!!!

Shower Conversations

Friday morning while rushing through my shower to make it to work on time, I overheard this conversation. Oh the joy of living in the dorms with 50 other girls! (mostly freshmen)
(Names have been changed)

A & B are roommates...

A: I don't remember anything from last night. I got so wasted!

B: Yeah, I know! It got crazy...

A: Yeah, this morning I woke up and rolled over in bed and was like, 'who the f*** is in B's bed?!'

B: Oh don't worry. Nothing happened.

I love WSU! :-)

Humility

This might get deep. The other day I was spending some quality time with God (which was very much needed) and I felt really convicted. Pride is an issue that I struggle with a lot. I think many of us could agree that it is definitely a tool used by the enemy in our lives to put a wedge between us and God. I was prompted to read in Jeremiah 29. Verses 11-14 really stuck out to me. As I read them I felt God calling to me from the Word. He has plans for me. He wants to give me a hope and a future. If only I will continue to seek Him with all of my heart then I will find Him. After digesting these verses I journaled, "Sometimes I shrink back from what God has called me to. I shrink back because I don't think He is really calling me...I don't feel capable. Well, if God is really calling me to something then I need to step up and do it. Because if I don't, He'll call someone else. The cry of my heart is to serve Him which means that I need to serve Him by doing what He says, what He calls me to...."
This doesn't stop here. Then I picked up the book Drawing Near by John Bevere. The chapter was on humility. It talked about the three aspects of humility: obedience, dependence and one's view of oneself. All three hit right at home, but the one that really hit me hard was dependence. In it, Bevere used the example of Joshua and Caleb entering the promised land and encouraging the Israelites that they can take the land after all the other elders were afraid. I felt like I tend to be one of the other elders. I'm a realist. Too much of one. Instead of doing what God has called me to (knowing full well that all things are possible through Him) I look at my own abilities and situation and say, "surely this is not what God is asking me to do." [see excerpt from journal above] I almost feel humble when I discredit myself. However, that is not true humility. True humility is recognizing God's directives as better than our own (obedience), following through even though we don't understand (dependence) and knowing full well that on our own, apart from Him, we could never accomplish it but through Him we are more than conquerers (view of oneself). That is true humility. When David went to the battlefield to meet his brothers they called him arrogant for calling them out for hiding from Goliath (2 Samuel 17:28). David was considered arrogant! What did he do? He went in the power of God and killed the giant. God lifts up the humble. He exalts those who are humble and brings down the prideful. I'll end with a quote from Drawing Near (pg 133):
Keep in mind, Scripture shows repeatedly the dwelling place of God is the high places, and the dwelling place of demonic forces is the lower parts. You will see over and over throughout Scripture pride and rebellion associated with the low, and humility and the fear of the Lord with the high. To be lifted up is to dwell with God in intimacy!

Where I've Been

Lately I haven't really been home. My sisters notice. Kelly reminds me every time I come back home how I'm never here. But it's hard to be home after being gone for a year. It's hard to try and put up with being a part of a family again. Not that I'm "putting up" with them in a bad way, it's just different. Hopefully some of you know how that is. The girls are at that age where everything turns into a fight, including with me. Most of the time it's fun when I'm with them, but then in a split second the tables turn and someone is mad at someone else. So, this summer I've wandered a lot. Fun wandering though, to visit friends and have fun elsewhere. There were weddings to go to and people to see. I can't believe how fast this summer has gone. I thought I would see more movies than I have. I've only been to two. Crazy, huh?
So now I'm getting ready to go back up to WSU. I've been cleaning out my old room so Kelly can move in completely. Going through all sorts of clothes and stuff I forgot I had and boxing it up so five to ten years from I can unpack it and wonder why I kept it. You know, the fun stuff. Kristen and Katie switched rooms too, so we've been moving them in and out and reorganizing. The upstairs is a mess. Mom keeps telling me to finish going through all my stuff, but it's so overwhelming. I get distracted easily and would much rather go and watch TV than sort through another box of clothes from High School. But it's getting done. I'm almost ready for school.
School. Yes, it's that time of year. August. I'll head up to WSU to join my freshman roommate next week. Yes, freshman roommate. I feel sorry for her, having to live with me. It'll work out. Hopefully soon I'll have a single. I'm excited to start school. A little nervous too. Not sure exactly what to expect. I know it will be a good year. My last year in college. Nine months from now I'll be graduating. Hopefully by then I'll have figured out what I want to do for my life (or at least the next 2-5 years). It's scary to think about really. I've been a student for so long I can't imagine life without school. I'll just continue to pray and trust God with that. Eventually I'll figure it out, and whatever it is I'm sure I'll be excited about it.

Emotional Endings

Leaving East Asia was hard. There were so many people to say goodbye to. The entire last week was emotional. Not to mention since Michelle left two weeks early it didn't make it any easier. Kelley and I had an emotional goodbye in San Francisco. She was the hardest one to leave. I can't imagine not seeing her everyday. Sometimes I still wake up thinking I'm going to see her or Michelle.
San Francisco was exciting. I have decided that all American boys are cute (for the most part) and that America's smell is the best in the world. I haven't really hit reverse culture shock as of yet. Only when I'm in large groups of "foreigners" do I feel a little uncomfortable. Other than that, I'm loving it! America's great...and in other ways, not so great. I especially love shopping in stores that carry my size! That's exciting.
Last weekend Steven and Michelle came down to visit and Patrick even tagged along. It was fun to hang out. They even helped me present at church that Saturday night. I love sharing what God has been doing over the past year. However, I feel like no matter how long I share it will never be long enough. I don't feel like I can adequately describe the way that God has worked in my life and the lives of others in East Asia. Even when I try, I can't do it. I have learned so many things and seen God work in so many ways, it would take a whole year to explain it all. I guess that's one of the limitations of the human race. We cannot describe eternal things the way we want. Right now I'm reading Gilead by Marianne Robinson. And there's a line in there that I think really applies to this thought process. To preface, the book is a journal of a 70 year old pastor written to his son. In it, Pastor John Ames says, "I think the attempt to defend belief can unsettle it, in fact, because there is always an inadequacy in argument about ultimate things." I am seeing this become more true in my life. Maybe not in the same way, but through explanations rather than arguments. As humans, we have so little to define the Ultimate. And that is where faith steps in, when you can no longer explain and argue. Before this gets too theological, I want to add that I do think my faith has grown so much this year. If not for any other reason than I have seen God deeply and intimately and experienced Him in unexplainable ways.

It's been awhile

Sorry I haven't been blogging. My life is in an uproar. I just got back two weeks ago and have been extremely busy. I will try and keep you posted. Maybe. It's just that now I'm back in the States, I feel like I don't have as much to blog about. Exciting things don't happen to me everyday. I could make stuff up, but that wouldn't be cool. Or maybe it would...hmmm. Ok, I'll post more in other entries. This is my "I'm sorry for not posting" post. More to follow.

Rainy Season

It is the rainy season. You know how I know? Because it rains almost everyday! The best part is that every morning it is beautiful out...and extremely hot and humid to the point that you want to live in an air conditioner, but then come around 12 or 1 a huge black cloud all of sudden blows in from nowhere and it starts to downpour. This rain is usually accompanied by thunder and lightning and wind. It lasts anywhere from 1 to 2 hours and then it moves on. I have been caught in more than a few downpours this semester. Now, I always take my poncho with me. Lesson learned. However, riding your bike in a poncho is almost worse because it has the sauna effect. Humidity with rain does not mix with bikes and ponchos. I'm ready to come home now.

The beginning of the end

This year is fast coming to an end. In 8 days I will be on a plane bound for America. Crazy...I look back over this year and there is so much to remember. So much has happened this year. I think of all our crazy and amazing stories and I have so much to tell. Some of my friends have already made their way home. They talk about how normal and convenient everything is. One of these friends is Michelle. We took her to the airport last Wednesday. It has been so hard without her here, but she had to go home early for various reasons (I would tell you to check her blog, but she never posts...haha). Without her here Kelley and I are ready to go home. Her leaving signified the end of the year in every aspect. She started the process of leaving. It will never again be the five of us here in EA. Gosh, I miss her tons! And I'm going to see her when I get off the plane.
With Michelle gone I've realized how much I crave attention. She would always pay attention to me. I would just wander into her room and jump on the bed or sit next to her at her desk. Now I wander around the apartment, usually find my way into Kelley's room. It's funny. I guess I really do need attention. I also have this weird need to tell Michelle everything that has gone on since she's been gone. When I email her or talk to her online I want to tell her all the details and in return I want to hear all the details of her life. I guess that's what happens when you share a year together. I think I will feel the same way about Kelley. I will want to call her up everyday and hear all about her life in Wisconsin. Crazy, it's like we're all married to each other!
On this note, I'm a little scared to go back to WSU. Right now I'm having a roommate fiasco. I was supposed to get a single but somehow things got messed up. Right now I'm playing the waiting game to see what happens. The other night I had a long conversation with Steven about going back home that triggered my fear of going back to school. The more I think about it, the more I am nervous to live in a freshman dorm and go back to taking classes. I have no idea what it will look like. I don't want to be that "strange" upperclassman who lived overseas for a year and now can't relate to others. I've been praying about it a lot and I know that God wants me back at WSU next year, so I know if He wants me there then He will give me the peace and the joy that comes with following Him. I am excited to go back and live on the same floor as Michelle and Shelley and I am excited to reach out to freshmen girls. I just have to keep trusting God and believing that His plans for me are better than anything I could ever imagine!

Dropping Michelle off at the airport...Before we all started crying. I actually started at the airport and continued to cry almost all the way home. Kelley put up a front and then broke down an hour later in the van. Leaving is never easy...

Wow...we are happy!

Pagodas make us happy...

Mountains make us happy...

And Steven, well, he's always happy!

Olny srmat poelpe can raed tihs

I got tihs tuhorgh an eimal from Kelley:

cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!

Happy Birthday to Me!!

Censorship *edited*

I heard about this the other day from some friends of mine and didn't believe them. I found this article on USA Today about the Chinese government pulling the film "The Da Vinci Code" from theaters. A more recent article is here on Entertainment Online. News sources are saying that Chinese Catholics were protesting and causing political unrest. I'm surprised they even released this movie in the first place, but I think I'm more surprised that they pulled it.

*added later*
So, I posted the above and then thought about it and now I have more to say on this topic. "The Da Vinci Code" has lots of deceiving information in it. I do not approve of the content of the book or movie and certainly do not agree with it. I have heard it is a good read and I have seen the movie and it was compelling. With that said, I'm glad that China pulled this movie from theaters but I'm also a bit mad about it. I'm glad because in many countries there are people who do not know the Truth of God or His Word. When people who have never known Truth watch, or read, "The Da Vinci Code" they get a skewed view of Christianity. Recently I have been listening to Josh McDowell's podcast on his response to "The Da Vinci Code" and I have come to the realization that most of Dan Brown's "facts" are actually fiction. I am amazed at how much he fabricated to make the plot work. In light of that, people who see this movie also have a right to know the Truth and decide for themselves about who Jesus really is. This is why I'm glad China pulled it from theaters because so many people in China don't know the Truth. I'm upset because of the motivation behind China pulling the film. The reasoning is not moral or even religious. It's not because the movie is deceiving or causes people to leave the Church. The Chinese government pulled the film because it was causing political unrest among their people. It was because they were trying to please the protesters, the fact that those protesters were Catholic has nothing to do with it. This is what frustrates me. The same government that pulled "The Da Vinci Code" also censors religious information and gatherings. They censor the very people they are trying to please by pulling the movie from theaters. It is a reminder that in the world today there are still countries that proclaim freedom for their people, but keep them in check through censored media and news.

However, I admire these Christians that have stepped up to the plate and took a stand against their government. Even though the government's ban wasn't a "noble" cause, the protesters' actions were. In other countries, such as Fiji (see link below), Christian protesters also were able to persuade their government to ban the movie. These are efforts that change countries and make an impact. I highlighted some more articles below about the movie being banned. In Pakistan, the government banned the film "out of respect for the country's minority Christians" (see article below). Where's America in all of this? If Christians in America make a big enough deal about it would it ever be banned? Can Christians in America stand up for something they believe in and make a change like these others have? Is it our society that makes it so hard to be heard? Or is it our hearts...

Some other countries that banned "The Da Vinci Code" from being played in their theaters are: India, Fiji, and Pakistan. Egypt is still deciding.

Learning to RAFT

This weekend we debriefed. It was an amazing time of starting the goodbye process and yet making more awesome memories. During this time we talked a lot about leaving well. How to build a good RAFT (reconcile, affirmation, farewells and think destination). I'm the type that doesn't really like goodbyes. I would much rather write a card and wave as I drive away. Goodbyes seem so final, so definite. However, it was good to start thinking about what it will be like to say goodbye, and how I really need to do it (even though it will be hard). I have to say goodbye to my town, to my girls, to my friends and neighbors. I have to say goodbye to the local Starbucks and all the wonderful baristas that work there and have become my friends. I should probably call up the Yumways guy too and say goodbye to him and let him know why we won't be ordering sandwiches 5 times a week next month. Yeah, there are so many goodbyes to say.
We also thought a lot about this year and what it means to us. We made a list of all the fabulous things that happened and we want to remember. We practiced our 15 second recap of the year for people back home who ask. Looking back over this year made me realize how blessed I have been. I have had the opportunity to see some amazing places and make some amazing friends. God has done amazing things in my heart and I've realized more and more of what it truly means to pursue Him and surrender all.
This is a just a glimpse of what my mind is constantly thinking through. I need a whole day to process everything and just remember and prepare myself for the journey home. Less than one month and I'll be back in a plane to America...leaving East Asia behind me.

Rain equals crazy days

I should be packing right now. But I'm not. Instead I'm going to share about my crazy day in EA in the rain...
5:15am: woke up on my own to a very loud motorboat going past our apartment on the canal.
5:45am: got up and showered
6:40am: Michelle and I left our apartment to go and catch a train into the city for another doctor's appt for her
6:55am: arrive at train station and board train
8:20am: train arrives at destination
8:30am: buy tickets for return ride home. tickets are for 2:50pm
8:35am: get on metro line to go to doctor's appt. during ride I play a leaning game with a guy behind me on the metro who insists on using my back for support. everytime I moved, he searched me out with his backside.
8:55am: rendezvous at Starbucks (by now it's pouring buckets of rain)
9:05am: buy Louis Vuitton umbrella for $1.25 while getting a cab to hospital for a doctor's appt that was supposed to be at 9am
9:20am: get to hospital. because we're late we have to wait over an hour for next available time
9:45am: see mercedes-benz taxi cab
10:15am: watch a very pregnant lady have an emotional breakdown on the front steps of the hospital
10:30am: go in for Michelle's appt
11:45am: finally see the doctor
12:23pm: Michelle gets hit on by strange Australian man wanting to share a cab...
12:25pm: leave the hospital, head for the coffee shop/office to turn in forms for insurance
12:45pm: arrive at coffee shop
1:30pm: leave coffee shop and get a cab (miraculously) right outside (note: it's still raining...very hard)
1:40pm: arrive at Burger King for lunch; at this point both Michelle and I are starving
2:05pm: leave Burger King
2:15pm: get on subway
2:25pm: go to change lines for subway (remember our train leaves at 2:50)
2:32pm: get on other subway line
2:45pm: arrive at train station and hit the ground running
2:46pm: duck under the exit gate b/c our cards didn't have the right amount of money on them
2:48pm: arrive at soft seat waiting area where the little lady tells us it's too late (after we've run through the rain)
2:55pm: exchange tickets for 3:45pm train
3:10pm: go to waiting lounge and laugh about how incredibly wet we are and how nothing is going right today
3:40pm: board train
4:40pm: arrive at destination
4:55pm: get home :-) the first good thing to happen all day
5:10pm: order in sandwiches
5:15pm: start watching Emperor's New Groove
6:00pm: dinner arrives
6:50pm: leave for team meeting
7:00pm: start team meeting (prayer meeting)
9:00pm: meeting ends
9:20pm: get home (soaking wet from riding my bike in the rain)
9:30pm: Kelley and I have a very long, very good conversation with Michelle (who we woke up). This conversation lasted a long time. Now it's almost midnight and I still have to pack. Today was one of my most challenging EA days...ever. The rain always complicates everything. And now, I can no longer say that I haven't missed a train. However, Michelle and I were able to laugh about it. In fact, I don't remember being irritated until later on when I thought back on it. Now I'm wondering how I made it through it. I'm glad I got to share it with Michelle, she's amazing! Ok, I'm going to pack for our trip now.

Captivated...

You belong among the wildflowers
You belong in a boat out at sea
You belong with your love on your arm
You belong somewhere you feel free
-Tom Petty

Even to see her walk across the room is a liberal education.
-C.S. Lewis

Every experience of beauty points to [eternity]
-Hans Urs Von Balthasar

Beauty overwhelms us, enchants us, fascinates us, and calls us.
-Fr. Andrew Greeley

Diet Coke? You better believe it....

Today Michelle and I found the smallest can of Diet Coke ever. Seriously. It was at a CityShopper...and I was in shock. Michelle and I figured it would be good for a swig. It's a shot of Diet Coke. I guess they weren't kidding about the Diet...I mean, with a can that small you don't really have to worry about it. Who buys this anyways? It was $1 for a can! Highway robbery!
I think my favorite line was when Michelle held a regular sized Diet Coke can up next to it (not imported) and asked, "$1 for the small one, or $0.35 for the larger can?"
My question is, who invented this smaller can? And for what purpose (if any)? The can said it was bottled in the UK...hmmm, who are these people?

The Evidence

So, I posted about being caught in a downpour yesterday. Here is the proof. Me and my 15 cent poncho....very chic. (photos courtesy of Michelle)Taken right as I walked through the door...notice the difference in the color of my jeans...the front was soaking wet and the back completely dry!
I'm showing off the high-tech garbage bag ties that were supposed to keep my hood on. Notice the top of the hood...yes, the point in the back. From the side I looked like the old witch in Snow White! So high quality. I might have to bring this bag back to the states.

Switch-a-roo

So tonight Kelley, Michelle and I were watching the last disc of Oprah's 20th anniversary DVD collection (compliments of Rose) and there was a segment of pranks on it. Steven had left his DVD's at our place last night and had just called to see if he could come and pick them up. Being the "helpful" girls that we are (and being in prank mode after watching fake makeovers), we decided to "loan" him some of our girly/romantic/weird cartoon movies in exchange for his high action packed ones. We are so devious. He finally called about a half hour after he came over and picked them up. I suggested he could watch "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" and we settled down for "Sahara." At least he laughed about it. But hey, if you're ever in need of a new movie (or 21 new movies), that's a great way to do it! And for the record, Oprah made us do it.

Jessica's Rainy Day Movie List

Here is a list of movies I recommend for rainy days (I am only including those movies that I currently have access to so not to disappoint myself):

Gone with the Wind
This is one of my all-time favorites. It's actually a really good "sick day" movie too. Totally worth the four hours! I love how you end up hating and loving Scarlett at the same time. It's so emotional.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
Just watched this last night. I love Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe! The songs are fun (and not annoying like some musicals) and there are some very witty remarks.

Must Love Dogs
One of my new favorites. It's about online dating and stars Diane Lane and John Cusack. Very cute romantic comedy. And it hits kind of close to home...Diane Lane's character, Sara, has a sister that puts her on an online dating service. Hmmm...now who would do that? Ok...Maybe this shouldn't be on this list. I just think you should watch it.

Under the Tuscan Sun
Again, Diane Lane does an amazing job as a divorced middle aged woman trying to find life in a Villa in Tuscany. The scenery is gorgeous! This is a good fall back movie.

The Emperor's New Groove
Who doesn't love an emperor turned llama and a village leader trying to escape evil plots and find friendship? Complete with evil advisor/mad scientist, talking squirrel and dumb sidekick.

When Harry Met Sally
A great movie that has fun dialogues and interesting conversations.

These are just a few of my all time favorite movies. They're good for a rainy day because you can watch them over and over (at least I can) and not tire of them. Yay for rainy days and yay for movies!
I've been watching a lot of movies lately. At least one a day, somedays more than one. We were warned in Colorado about movies becoming a form of "escapism" to get away from the culture. I'm embracing the thought of escapism.

15 cent poncho in a downpour....

So, earlier this year I caught in a downpour. It was mid-October (I think) and Michelle and I were riding back from Starbucks when it started to rain. We got soaking wet, but it was fun and we laughed about it. Recently it has been raining...a lot! In fact, last week I guess there was some sort of typhoon that blew in from the coast. Today, I got caught in another downpour.
This morning Kelley and I went to class not thinking that it would rain. I didn't bring my poncho and I didn't even have a jacket. Bad start. I had lunch with Rose at our on campus restaurant and then met with Jason and Rose to talk about some logistical stuff for some friends we have coming in on a project. At the end of our meeting Michelle messaged me with, "I hope you brought your jacket because it's raining hard." I panicked a little, but Rose thought that we could just buy ponchos at the supermarket on campus. So, we get downstairs (and it's raining really hard) and find ponchos for about $0.15 a piece. It was a glorified garbage bag. The ties for the hood were like the built in plastic drawstrings on garbage bags. It was funny. I didn't even get 20 feet before the hood blew off my poncho and left my face exposed. The whole way home (about 5 minutes) I got soaked from the neck up and from the waist down. The poncho was horrible (but at least kept my shirt dry). People kept staring at me and pointing. I just laughed and thought how crazy I must look in a blue plastic bag that only covers half of me.
I'm glad I could laugh about it. I think that's the only way I can keep my sanity these days.

One for the trash can...

This weekend I also saw Breathless with Richard Gere. It's an early 80's movie and was horrible...it should be called speechless because that's where it left me. It was that bad. Never see it, just don't do it. It's not worth your time.

The Da Vinci Code

This weekend I went to see the Da Vinci Code with some friends. Having never read the book (but hearing plenty about it) I had no idea what to expect. I'm not going to review it or offer my extensive Christian opinion of the content. But I will offer a few of my insights, ideas, what-have-yous about the film:

1. Do not watch it in an Asian movie theater. Yes, it was in English, but was with Asian subtitles and some of the movie was in French and was not translated into English. For part of the movie I was lost due to this small fact...
2. It is a high adrenaline movie and actually hooks you for the first half. However, when all the "Mary" stuff comes out it is shocking. I believe the thought that went through my head was, "And it was going so well!"
3. Someone would have to know next to nothing to even start to buy into all the "claims" made by this movie.
4. Tom Hanks is a brilliant actor. Ian McKellan also put on a good show.
5. It's compelling how many historical facts get mixed with fiction. In fact, it's hard to distinguish at points (besides the obvious) and really makes me want to learn more about the Knights Templar and all that jazz.
6. There were parts of the movie where I wanted to jump and yell, "heresy" or "that's blasphemous!"

Overall, it was a good movie. The content was hard to swallow and was really upsetting at points, but anything with conspiracy always makes for a good plot line. I think it's comparable (at some level) to National Treasure: some fact, mostly fiction and a lot of conspiracy and secrets. Walking away I was trying to decipher the message of the movie (all those foreign film classes wearing off) and I came up with, "religion is important because it gives hope to people." Not Jesus, or belief in God gives hope...just religion. Any religion is fine as long as it gives hope. Hmmm...
I just downloaded Josh McDowell's podcast on his rebuttal of sorts to the Da Vinci Code. I'm excited to listen to it. I'm also glad that I finally saw the story first hand and now can base my opinion on what I have seen and not on what I have just heard from others.

The Origin of "Dollar"

Today class was so riveting that I was daydreaming about words. I actually started out translating my East Asian book into Spanish, but that didn't last long. Anyways, I began thinking about different languages and how the word money translates. And then, I thought about the specific word "dollar" and how it is not only qualitative (describing money) but also quantitative. My mind then wandered into the origin of the word "dollar." Was the US the first to use this word? Where did it come from? I asked Steven (because he's awesome) and he said his great great great grandfather came up with the term during the United States' fight for independence. Not taking him at his word tonight I googled the origin of the word "dollar" and came up with this article. It's really interesting. It goes from the origin of the actual word to where it was first used (as a silver coin in early colonial America by Spaniards) to different countries who also used the term and how it finally was officially used for US money. If you're into that sort of thing, I recommend reading the article. It's worth a hundred thalers.

There is also this entry from Fact Buffet that is actually one condensed sentence of the article above and this one too that hits more on the dollar sign.

EV in the Classroom...

This happened a few weeks ago and I thought since I have nothing else to blog about I'll share it with you now. So, five days a week I go to class for 3.5 hours. In my class is mostly other Asian students from many different places but there are also a few other Americans, a Frenchman, a German and a Canadian. This scenario took place during a party (that I had no previous knowledge of or I wouldn't have been there) between me, David, Patrick the Canadian and Thomas the German.
First, to preface this story, Patrick is a very good looking, cigarette smoking, not afraid to say the F-word in front of a lady sort of guy. Thomas is a little socially awkward, has bad teeth, laughs obnoxiously but has a good heart. Ok, the story...
So, the four of us were talking about this and that and somehow the topic of movies came up. Patrick (trying to be the cultural bridge) asked Thomas if he had ever seen Titanic. Titanic is known by all over here (Asian and Westerner alike) so it wasn't surprising when Thomas answered with an enthusiastic "yes"! David then started asking questions about the movie. The conversation progressed and then Patrick was asked if he'd ever seen it. He answered, "There are two movies I will never see: Titanic and Passion of the Christ." Stunned, I didn't know what to say. I knew he was pretty anti-Christian from other comments he has made all year, but I was surprised he answered the way he did. I think I replied with, "Really? Why's that?" But never got my question answered because immediately Thomas started talking about Passion of the Christ. He asked me if I'd seen it and then started talking about all the medical reasons the film was correct (or something like that, I couldn't really understand him). Patrick started to lose interest, but I think he was staying in the conversation to see my response. Luckily, David distracted Patrick and Thomas continued to tell me about the filmography. Then, out of nowhere, Thomas started sharing the Gospel with me. Not the storyline of the film, but why Jesus had to die and how we can become Christians if we put our faith in Him. I let him share for about two minutes and added little comments of "oh, really?" and "interesting" here and there. It was hard because I wasn't sure how I was to proceed in this conversation. Do I tell him I'm a Christian and risk my "undercover identity"? Do I change the subject? Do I tell him I don't want to talk about it? Do I pretend I have never heard the Gospel before and let him continue to share with me?
My mind was racing. It's so hard over here, especially with foreigners, because your lifestyle is so different. My first impulse is to say, "I'm a Christian too!" But you can't always do that in EA. In some places foreigners are the ones who turn you in. And even though just saying "I'm a Christian" isn't bad, it can lead to other questions you don't want to answer. As I'm thinking over all the possible responses in my head, Thomas pauses and nods. As if to say, "Well, what do you think?" Obviously, Thomas is a Christian however Patrick has now started listening in again and is watching me waiting for my answer. I quickly decide that Patrick is not worth the risk, and I change the subject by replying, "Oh, that's interesting. Do you like other American movies?"
Lord, bless Thomas for sharing with me...help me to show him Your love so that he might encouraged through me as I was through him.

Hoops & Yoyo

If you have never heard of these guys than you are missing out. They are so funny! You can also send some of coolest e-cards from Hoops & Yoyo. Check them out at Hallmark.com (or just follow the link to their website).

PS. They have an awesome Mother's Day Card...it's amazing!

I Miss...

This is a list of the women I miss and why I miss them:

Anne...I miss her silliness and craziness and incredible dance moves!
Michelle...I miss her mini van and sharing a single bed with her and staying up all night doing crazy stuff!
Shelley...I miss her taking out my garbage and her beautiful face and imitations of Michelle!
Mary...I miss her laugh and computer karoke and sharing a Mike's Hard Lemonade!
Natessa...I miss her smile and singing and playing pranks on her!
Jenny...I miss her wrestling and blonde to black to blonde hair and crazy ideas!

There are lots of other people I miss...but these women are so amazing! I wish I could list everyone else out, but I wouldn't be able to stop. I can't wait to come back and hopefully see you all. Just thinking of spending time with you girls laughing and being crazy makes me want to cry. I love you!

*notice how all girls but Shelley are Steven's girls...yeah, that was an amazing year!

Handicapped Bloggers

The other day I was looking at the comments section of my blog and I noticed that in the word verification there is a little handicap symbol that is an audio clip. I pondered the audio clip and then I clicked on it. You should do it, it was fun! It started rattling off numbers to me. I then discovered that if you type these numbers in instead of the letters it works! Glorious. But I still couldn't figure out who needed an audio clip. I thought it would be for blind people, but I didn't know how blind people used the internet. So I asked Ken. This is Ken's answer. Thank you Ken for answering my question and putting my mind at ease...you should click on his answer and read it. You just might learn something new. I sure did!

Bad Taters...

This is the Potato Salad we made a few weeks ago. I guess this is what happens when you leave for a week. Yuck! What's up with me and mold?

It's Not a Retreat Without the Element of Adventure

Here is a recap of our weekend. It was crazy, but fun. Definitely something that you would find in a book...well, maybe. Anyways, if you want to hear about our retreat read below (it's long...):

We arrived Sunday night at the place we were going. The bus dropped our students off a few blocks away and then drove the Americans and our “translator” (a national friend of ours who works on that campus) to the hotel. It was nice. A lot of little restaurants and places to hang out. Probably because the campus is the only thing out there! So we got to our hotel and weren’t there five seconds before the manager/owner started pushing and pulling us upstairs as fast as he could. A little bewildered we go upstairs without checking in or anything and are immediately separated into our respected groups (married couple, boys, and then girls) and thrown into our rooms. Finally, our ‘translator” came back to tell us that the hotel is not allowed to have foreigners stay there. Our friends had made reservations ahead of time and supposedly the owner said it was ok then, but now it’s not ok. In East Asia, hotel managers have to register all foreigner activity with the local police. However, because this hotel is not allowed to have foreigners, he did not take our information or anything. He did give our translator specific instructions for us to be careful leaving and entering the hotel. If the police were to see us, then he could get in trouble and fined. So, he asked us to only leave and return when necessary. Uh, ok. He also asked us not to wander around his hotel because he didn’t want the other guests knowing foreigners were staying there. Hmmm… so finally, Jason and Rose and the boys made it over to our room and we had a good laugh about being under “house arrest” for the next two days. Later, the students arrived, but to keep our cover we weren’t allowed to communicate with the students in the hotel. So we’d see them in the hallway and pretend they weren’t there. At one point, the manager came to our door and was trying to ask us questions, but we couldn’t understand him. One of our students almost stopped to help but then remembered and left us to hand gesture with the owner. The rooms were nice, much better than our last retreat so I was happy.

The next morning the manager brought us water and breakfast (because he didn’t want us leaving…) and then after the students had their morning meeting (which we couldn’t go to), we left to go and eat lunch together at 11. After lunch we went and visited a Catholic Church/Monastery that has been there for a really long time (or something like that J). It took us awhile to figure out how to go up the mountain to the Church, but we finally figured it all out. It was really hot that day so many of us were in tank tops and flip flops. Upon arrival at the Church we learned that we couldn’t wear flip flops or tank tops inside, except that foreigners were allowed to wear flip flops, just nationals couldn’t. So after much trading of shoes and jackets we got inside. They were in the middle of mass. It was interesting. Most of our students had never been to a church before and it sparked great discussion afterwards about church history and what true fellowship looks like. What it means to follow Christ versus religion and sacraments. I was surprised that you had to pay about $5 to get to it and go inside, which made me think that all the attendees of the church paid that amount to go there.

After the church we went back and ate dinner and then headed over to our “translator’s” house for a talk on evangelism and games. Michelle, Kelley and I led the games. We had them play Mafia. For those of you who don’t know it’s a game with different personas: Doctor, Detective and Mafia, who are trying to eliminate each other. The Mafia are killing people off, the doctor’s trying to save those being killed and the detective is trying to figure out who the mafia is. It was really fun and the students loved it. We were worried about playing cross culturally, but it turned out great.

Tuesday morning we were again under house arrest until lunch. We didn’t eat lunch with our students because they went out to go and share with others on campus. Since foreigners aren’t exactly common on this campus, we just hung out and played Phase 10… By this time we got good at wasting time in the hotel. Between reading, cards and making fun of the East Asians with the British accents on the English Channel we were entertained. It’s amazing, on East Asian sports news they only ever report about when EA wins tournaments. It was weird. They kept reporting two “obscure” sporting events over and over just because they had won. We heard nothing of other sports. Interesting…

That afternoon we went to a park, which was fun. We played ultimate Frisbee, tossed around the football and bought a kite. We also ended up sending one kid to the ER for stitches. They were playing soccer and he ran over to get the ball on the concrete surrounding the field. He slipped in a puddle and smacked his chin on the pavement so hard it was a clean split. In fact, the doctor told our national friend Elle (who took him to the hospital) that he could see the bone! Our friend, you can call him LJ, got 6 stitches and a shot. It was awesome. The guys of course have it all documented on film. That night we returned to our translator’s house for sharing. It was all in East Asian, but I caught a few pieces and overheard a little of what was being translated. It was amazing how God used our students and showed them His love!

Wednesday morning the students had a rap time and then we ate lunch and left the hotel. It was a great weekend. Challenging with all the security stuff, but it made for an adventure nonetheless. There were a few times when the security guards were watching us and we had to double back to get to our hotel, or sit on the curb until they looked the other way and then make a mad dash for the door. It added an element of adventure, and actually turned out good because they didn’t take down our passport information. It was also an amazing time of building community. As Americans, we do community a little more naturally than Asians do. This time, however, we weren’t with them all the time, so they were forced to build community amongst themselves. It was great for them to learn to build relationships and become brothers and sisters in Christ.

Retreating...

Just to let you all know I will be unreachable for the next five or six days. Sunday through Wednesday we're going on a retreat with our students (which should be fun). And then I'm spending the rest of the week through Friday with some friends of mine in the big city *insert smiley face here*. So, no updates for awhile...I know, I'd cry too. While you're missing me you can be praying for our retreat. We're taking some of our students out to do EV and fellowship together. It's kind of a touchy situation, we're not sure how safe we'll be (safe as in not being noticed). Please pray for protection and that they would overlook us foreigners. The place we're going to has no foreigners and so we have to be really careful how much interaction we have with our students. Thank you for your prayers! Enjoy your week...

Recommendations...

If you would like to see some fun pictures from our time at the zoo yesterday, go here:
Kelley's Blog: East Asian Zoo...

If you would like to read a funny story found in a language book in East Asia, go here:
Cara's Blog: Lesson Fifteen, Please Promise Me Something...

That's all I have for today, just suggestions of other's blogs to read that are more entertaining than mine. Although, I do promise to update our MSN Space sometime soon with more pictures. We haven't updated it since Thailand. Maybe we'll throw a story up there too...

Christian, Cult Member or Government Spy?

Last Sunday I went to go and meet one of my girls on campus. Her name is Hannah and she is amazing! I met her a few weeks ago and learned she grew up in a Christian home (which is unusual). I was blessed to witness the rededication of her life to Christ and have been honored to teach her more about Jesus and what it means to live the Christian life.
I met her outside (the weather has been awesome lately) and we had just opened our Bibles and I took out the lesson for that day. Not two seconds after we pull out our materials, these two East Asian people walk up and sit down right next to us. In a moment of panic, I quickly (and attempt to gracefully) close my Bible and put the follow up material out of sight. I look up, surprised I'm sure, and wait for them to speak first. He does in English:
EA man: "We are also Christians."
Me: "Um...huh. Really?"
EA man: "Yes, we saw your friend sitting here earlier and so we came over and tried to evangelize to her. She told us she was already a Christian and that her teacher would come soon to teach her the Bible. Are you her teacher?"
Me: "Uh....yeah. I guess so." (I'm wondering how much more she told them)
EA man: "She was telling us about how she feels bad because last week she was sick and her phone was broken and she couldn't meet you, but she had no way of telling you. She said you waited for her for 30 minutes. She feels very bad about this."
Me: "Oh, well we've already talked about it. It's no big deal"
At this point he pauses and seems to be pondering something. It's a period of awkward silence before he continues.
EA man: "It's good to know there are other evangelists out here."
Me (trying to cover my tracks): "Well, I'm just a foreign student here studying language."
EA man: "Yes, but the work of an evangelist is hard. It's nice to know we are not alone."
Me (trying to change the subject): "Are you from *city name*?"
EA man: "No, I am from *other city name*, but I come here every weekend to tell *city name* students about Jesus. My friend here (points to the girl sitting next to him who has said nothing this entire time) is from *city name*."
Me: "Oh, that's interesting. Well, I hope you have a good day."
EA man (taking the hint): "You too, I hope to see you again soon. What is your name?"
Me: "Jessica. What is your name?"
EA man: "Well, my East Asian name is *something I can't remember*, but you can call me Joseph."
EA girl (in broken English): "My name is *some EA name I can't tell you*."
Me: "Well, if I ever see you again I will say hi. God bless you for what you are doing"
EA man: "You too. Goodbye."
After they left I watched them as they wandered around trying to talk to students and then walked off towards the other side of campus. So strange. I have never met other "evangelists" on campus before. And how random that they talked to Hannah and tried to tell her about Jesus. As unnerving as it was, it was encouraging also to know we are not alone out here. God has many laborers in this city, I just wish we could have more freedom to fellowship openly with others without putting ourselves at risk of getting caught. Later, I told my teammates about this encounter. They also thought it was strange. Jason told me, "Well, they're either Christians, cult members or spies for the government." Uh...let's hope they're in the first group.

The Name Game

David and I are in the same language class. We have been all year and have made various friends from the time we've spent trying to learn the language. Three of these friends are girls who sit in the front row with us, they were also in our class last semester and seem to like David and I (like in the sense of being willing to tell us what page we're suppose to be on and/or give us the answer to the question the teacher is directing our way). One of the girls is from Korea, the other from Thailand and the last girl is Japanese. We only know the Japanese girl's name, Napoleo, because it sounds like Napoleon. However, all three of them know our names.
So, last week we were sitting in class and David happens to see the Korean girl pull a notebook out of her bag with the name "Sophia" on it. He points to the name and asks "who is this?" She looks at him, puzzled, and answers, "I am Sophia. That is my English name." To which David explains he has never heard her English name before. At that point, David decided to be nice and ask what her Korean and East Asian names were. She looked at him for awhile and then said one name (apparently, Korean sounds a lot like East Asian so they have the same name, they just change the characters). All of sudden all eyes are on David and she bluntly asks, "Don't you know my East Asian name?" Uh...uh oh. David averts his eyes and simply says he has forgotten it, but that he will remember her English name from now on.
Fifteen minutes later....
Sophia has now informed the Thai girl and Napoleo that David did not know her name. The Thai girl leans over in class and asks, "David, what is my name?" David gives me the "oh crap" look and then gives a nervous laugh in response. Under his breath he mutters something about "the s**t hitting the fan" and shrugs his shoulders at the girl. She then directs her attention to me and asks me the same thing. Embarrassed, I put my head on the desk and keep saying over and over "I don't know. I don't know. I'm sorry." As if on cue, all three of the girls erupt in laughter (distracting the class). Finally, the Japanese girl asks, "What is my name." To which David and I both respond, "Napoleo." Confused, she laughs nervously and then turns a little red. I'm not sure why she was embarrassed that we knew her name and not the others. However, the other girls looked a little upset that we could remember one name but not all three.
You would think that after this embarrassing episode we would know the Thai girl's name, however, I still don't know it. And I call them my friends...

1 Peter 2:9-12

1 Peter 2:9 is one of my favorite verses. Today I was reading through it and was really caught up in the surrounding passage. Many times I memorize single verses and forget about where in the Bible it's from and the surrounding context. I think these verses really sum up the goal of our lives: to be examples of Christ's love and tell the story of how He has rescued us so others may come to know Him.

1Peter 2:9-12 [The Message]
But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you-- from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted. Friends, this world is not your home, so don't make yourselves cozy in it. Don't indulge your ego at the expense of your soul. Live an exemplary life among the natives so that your actions will refute their prejudices. Then they'll be won over to God's side and be there to join in the celebration when he arrives.

Go Fly a Kite

The weather today is almost perfect. I say almost perfect because I have never been to heaven and I'm sure that heaven's weather is always perfect. It probably doesn't compare. However, today was beautiful! I rode my bike out to Starbucks and had a really good QT with God. Then I decided to go to the lake. There were so many people out there just walking around and lying in the grass. Some were flying kites. I almost joined in, but instead I chose to watch. While watching the going ons of people around me, I had my trusty iPod in. I was listening to David Crowder and his song We Win! came on. Such a good song. It reminded me of how the battle is already won and the enemy has no chance against us. We already won! Praise the Victor for giving us the blessing of sharing in His victory!

We Win!
We're gonna shout loud, loud
Until the walls come down
Shout loud, loud until the walls come down
Loud, until the walls come down

Cause we've already won and you don'’t have a chance
Yeah we've already won and no, you don'’t have a chance
Yeah it'’s already done and you don't have a chance
Because we've already won
We have already won

We're gonna should loud, loud
Until the final sound
Shout loud, loud, until the final sound
Loud until the final sound
This is for glory, His glory
We have already won!

Another good one

Earlier today I told David that we should "put our best face forward." Pretty sure I meant foot, but hey, "we'll hit that wall when we get there."

Crash and Burn

I have a friend named Ruby. Which is a bit ironic because that's one of my nicknames (maybe if you're lucky I'll tell the story). Anyways, I met her through some other friends and was told that she was very "open" to the Gospel. This I came to agreement on after only talking to her on the phone. She was very excited to talk about God and wanted to learn about how to forgive her friends and love others. I was very encouraged when she received Christ.
However, I failed to notice that first day how much she took over the conversation. She is also a very loud talker (which I did notice) and very direct. Since meeting her she has said things such as, "Why aren't you eating? Do you want to be skinny and sexy?" and "Don't bite your nails! You are baby! Babies bite their fingers." There are other things she has said, but I just can't think of them right now. Every time after I meet up with her I'm exhausted by the end of it. I actually dread our meetings on occasion (until I get there, then I remember how sweet she is and how much she wants to know about God).
Today Ruby came and played baseball with us. It was fun. Afterwards we were leaving to go and eat dinner. Ruby has a motorized scooter and I was riding my bike. We had played baseball with some other students and rode past them as we were going to eat dinner. There were about 15 students that we knew (most by name). Well, we ride past them and Ruby and I are talking and our bikes keep getting closer and closer. Then, all of a sudden, our handlebars hit each other. We go swerving off in opposite directions. Luckily, I catch myself after about 5 seconds of preparing myself to hit the curb. Ruby was not so lucky. She swerved and over corrected her scooter, which made her turn in a full circle too fast and her and her scooter went flying into the pavement. As if it wasn't embarrassing enough, all the other students from baseball saw our crash and ran up to help Ruby. She was so embarrassed. Of course this whole time I'm being sympathetic and laughing at our situation. I thought it was hilarious. And for the record, I would've laughed even if I had fell.
After picking up herself and her dignity, we rode off to dinner. On the way I asked her if she was embarrassed. She admitted that she was a little embarrassed about it, but reassured me she was fine. I couldn't stop laughing about it. Finally, she very directly asked me to stop laughing at her. I had to reassure her that I wasn't laughing at her, but at our situation. Anyways, I felt bad. Here is the girl that I have a hard time connecting with and I just knocked her off her scooter in front of all our friends. And she had just said, "You know, I really like you. You're nice."

Jesus

A conversation between me and my Asian friend, Vincent.

Vincent: What was Jesus' family name?

Me: Um, I don't know. *long pause* I guess I never thought about it.

Vincent: Do you think it was Christ?

Me: I don't think so, but that's a good guess.

Potato Salad

So we made the potato salad. After one broken knife and an hour peeling and cutting potatoes, it was worth it. I don't know how we've managed to live here over 8 months and not have anything sharper than a butter knife. My mom would be so proud. Michelle broke one of our butter knives on a massive potato that was plotting to take over the world (well, at least our kitchen). It also turned out colorful. We used the eggs we dyed with the girls, so there are specks of blue, pink and green in our salad. Not to mention there is also glitter in it. The dye kit came with glitter for the eggs, I hope it's edible because some of it ended up in our salad. Anyways, it's good. I'm happy to have potato salad, it has a nostalgic taste of backyard summer days.

And the eggs...

Of course, we introduced the art of egg dying to our national friends. It was fun to show them how to dye eggs (I think they were a little perplexed as to the idea of it). My friend, Carla, sent over an egg dying kit. It was cool. You could put swirls on the eggs and glitter too! After dying eggs, we then watched VeggieTales An Easter Carol. It was good fellowship and fun times all around. Happy Easter!

Before the dying starts...it's picture time! Yes, we dyed three dozen eggs...

Kelley, Becky and Michelle stare wide-eyed at our beautifully decorated eggs. Notice the swirls? Pretty neat.

A party isn't over until the last group photo is taken! Now I think I'll go and look up a good recipe for potato salad so we can rid of all the eggs in our fridge!

Happy Easter!

I pray that you have an amazing Easter and are able to truly experience God's love today. May you be able to grasp the notion of sacrificial love and see our Savior for who He really is. Thank you Jesus for the amazing gift of redemption through Your blood. Help us to love You deeper and desire You more.

Hebrews 9:11-28 (NLT)
11So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that great, perfect sanctuary in heaven, not made by human hands and not part of this created world. 12Once for all time he took blood into that Most Holy Place, but not the blood of goats and calves. He took his own blood, and with it he secured our salvation forever.

13Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow could cleanse people's bodies from ritual defilement. 14Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our hearts from deeds that lead to death so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. 15That is why he is the one who mediates the new covenant between God and people, so that all who are invited can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.

16Now when someone dies and leaves a will, no one gets anything until it is proved that the person who wrote the will is dead. 17The will goes into effect only after the death of the person who wrote it. While the person is still alive, no one can use the will to get any of the things promised to them.

18That is why blood was required under the first covenant as a proof of death. 19For after Moses had given the people all of God's laws, he took the blood of calves and goats, along with water, and sprinkled both the book of God's laws and all the people, using branches of hyssop bushes and scarlet wool. 20Then he said, "This blood confirms the covenant God has made with you." 21And in the same way, he sprinkled blood on the sacred tent and on everything used for worship. 22In fact, we can say that according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified by sprinkling with blood. Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins.

23That is why the earthly tent and everything in it--which were copies of things in heaven--had to be purified by the blood of animals. But the real things in heaven had to be purified with far better sacrifices than the blood of animals.

24For Christ has entered into heaven itself to appear now before God as our Advocate. He did not go into the earthly place of worship, for that was merely a copy of the real Temple in heaven. 25Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, like the earthly high priest who enters the Most Holy Place year after year to offer the blood of an animal. 26If that had been necessary, he would have had to die again and again, ever since the world began. But no! He came once for all time, at the end of the age, to remove the power of sin forever by his sacrificial death for us.

27And just as it is destined that each person dies only once and after that comes judgment, 28so also Christ died only once as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again but not to deal with our sins again. This time he will bring salvation to all those who are eagerly waiting for him.

Things that make my day...

My little sisters are always emailing me. Especially Katie, she loves to email me about how I never email her back. For awhile I got one everyday from her. She's so cute! Even though I get a little frustrated with how she always emails me, I do read them outloud to my roommates (who probably get irritated that I read them outloud). Her emails tend to make my day, and she has some great one liners. The best part is she's only 9, so most of her funny lines are either misspelled words or confused language skills. Here are some of my favorites:

"Kelly has had the craps (all the way to Utah!) as Kelly would say..."
"We are going to see Grandma in Spokane and so we are going to talk up some eggs for her to eat there too."
"...I know you are super duper busy but I have not got any e-mails from you since Saturday 3-25-06 and I think for half of those days I have been e-mailing you anf you have never e-mailed back."
"Thank you so much for....your awesome love!"
"I have learned the New Testament it is Matthew, Mark, Luke...." (on down the line)
And the latest and greatest:
"I am going to tell you ten things I love about you!...
1. I think you are a very good Christian
2. I think you love everyone in our family
3. I think you are a very good missionary
4. I think you are very pretty
5. I think you never give up on something
6. I think you have a very good singing voice
7. I think you are very kind
8. I think you are a very good babysitter
9. I think you have lots of friends because you are caring
10. And last but not least I think you are an AWESOME SIS TO ME!"

Haha, she is classic! I have so many more famous Katie one liners. Kelly comes up with some good ones now and again. Kelly tends to be more silly. I remember earlier this year she called and left a message on our machine about an elephant flying through our backyard. Crazy.
Well, now that I've made a whole post dedicated to my sisters and how much I love their emails, I think I will retire for the night.

*Maybe I should have emailed Katie back instead of putting together this post. I'll do it tomorrow...

Remember all those children's books?

Lately I've been reminiscent of my childhood book experience. My mom used to read to us every night before bed. She loved books and passed that love on to me and my sister. Some of my favorite books were Charlotte's Web, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, The Little House, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Frederick and the Mr Men and Little Miss books (Little Miss Neat was my favorite...Ironic since I'm actually really messy). Ah, the days of childhood books. I think part of my obsession with reading comes from my mom's love of reading to us. Thanks Mom!

Goodbye Dennys!

Our favorite restaurant has moved. Yes, I know, I cried too. The place we have eaten at 5 or 6 times every week for the entire year packed up and moved locations. We're not sure why this happened. A few weeks ago it changed management, and now it's gone. After our family time on Sunday morning, we went to Denny's to have lunch and found them hauling out tables and chairs and loading them into a truck. Without warning it disappeared right before our eyes. It was hard to pull ourselves away from the devastation of losing the best Asian food restaurant we know of and go next door to eat. I think I still might be in denial. Denny's had the best food! I loved it! And it will be missed. We brought them so much service. They knew what we liked to order and were always excited when we showed up. We brought our students there all the time. Every Wednesday after playing baseball we would take 10 or so students there to eat with us. It was the best $1.25 meal you can get. So, goodbye dear Dennys. You will be missed!

Stinky Tofu

Tonight I learned some startling information about a favorite food of some of my friends. This food is called stinky tofu and is justly named. I remember back in October we took a retreat with our students and the town we went to served this local snack on every corner. The smell was overpowering. I can't even describe it. Maybe it's a mix between dirty feet and rotting food. You think I'm kidding...even my Asian friends describe it this way. So, tonight, our friend was telling Michelle how to make stinky tofu.
Stinky tofu is made by first taking the tofu and smashing it with bare feet. This isn't a joke. She didn't mention anything about washing the feet first, but this would explain the horrible smell that comes from it afterwards. Then she explained that they take flies and let them lay eggs in it. At this point Michelle figured out that it was maggots. One of our other friends told Michelle that she doesn't eat it for this reason. She said, "I don't think it's very healthy to eat something that had those maggots in it." I think she may be right. After the maggots, the tofu goes through fermentation in rotting vegetables or something like that. Sometimes it ferments for three months! However, our friend reassured us that it was safe because it is fried. We're not sold on it. There were even parts of the process that she left out because she didn't want us to know. What can be worse than maggots? All in all, I know that our Nats love it and for that I will endure the smell as they enjoy their favorite food. However, I will not be partaking in this tradition of foot-stomped-maggot-infested-rotting veggies-fermented tofu. Can I get a Snickers bar please?

Sara Gerber!!!!

This weekend my dear friend, Sara Gerber came to visit me! It was so much fun! We did some indoor snowboarding, toured around town and went to the aquarium. Sara kept saying how it was "water to her soul" to get out of her city and come and visit me. I felt like it was water to my soul to have her here. I posted some pictures of our adventures at the aquarium. It was so awesome! The best aquarium I have ever been to by far. I'm so thankful for friends like Sara that God has blessed me with! Thanks for coming down, Sara. See you in June...

Sara and I taking a photo op while getting Starbucks. Ah, how I love those conversations and coffee!

Yes, while at the aquarium we took a detour to the ruins of South America. Take out the carpet and you might think I actually went there! Exciting!

This is an Australian Sawfish. I had never seen one of these before. It was so cool! If I was a fish I'd want to be this one, just think of all the fun you'd have sawing things apart. Whoo-hoo! I'm excited just thinking about it.

I don't remember what kind of turtle this is but I thought his snorkel nose was one of a kind.

And of course, what's an aquarium without Nemo...

I feel lied to

Diet Pepsi is one of my favorite foods. It should be it's own food group. Really, I'm being serious. Anyways, over here in the land of a thousand lanterns the diet Pepsi bottles have a picture of woman wearing boxing gloves. She is a very attractive Asian woman and I always assumed she was a world class boxer, or something like that. Well, a couple of weeks ago a friend of mine told me that she isn't in fact a boxer, but a racecar driver. I believed her, why shouldn't I? I mean, how do I know what kind of superstar she really is except that she must be indeed super? So, for about a month now I have been telling everyone that the boxing glove clad woman on the diet Pepsi bottle is a racecar driver. I even told our visitors from WSU who were here a few weeks ago. Yesterday I was at dinner with a group of students and some of my teammates. I was talking about the racecar driving, boxing glove wearing superstar and told the students I wanted to be just like her when I grew up (because, let's be honest, who doesn't want that?). My friend, Ruby, looked at me funny and said, "but she is a singer." "She is?" I asked and looked at her picture again on the diet Pepsi bottle. "Are you sure?" Everyone else at the table just looked at me like I was crazy. So, my friend (who was American by the way) lied to me. I don't think she really knew she was lying, there is a girl racecar driver who does do advertisements, just not for Pepsi. So, I'm sorry to all of you I told that the girl on the diet Pepsi bottle is a racecar driver. She is instead a singer. Either way, I still am confused about the boxing gloves.

Moldy Bread Awareness

Have you ever eaten moldy bread before and not realized it was moldy until after you had consumed the entire sandwich? Well, unfortunately I just made myself this wonderful peanut butter and jelly sandwich with bread from a bakery here in town. The sandwich tasted fine, I didn't really notice anything wrong with it. After I took the last bite Michelle, who watched me eat the sandwich, looked at the bag of bread and asked, "is that mold?" To my horror, I looked at the remaining loaf of bread and realized that the top piece was covered in mold. Um, dang. My mind is reeling. The first question I ask is, "was my bread moldy?" Well, I should be the only one who can answer that question. Now that I think about it, there was one bite I took that tasted really funky, but I didn't think anything of it. So, Michelle and I investigated the bag (which smelled horribly of mold) and tossed it out. I was still nervous about my mold consumption, but Michelle kept reassuring me that she had never known anyone to die of eating moldy bread. Not entirely confident of her answer, I googled "can you eat moldy bread?" and got this website. Here are a few things I learned:
"Mold can cause illness especially if the person is allergic to molds." Darn it. I am allergic to mold and mildew! This is not sounding good...
"Mold on grain products is the worst, e.g. moldy bread...." Strike number two.
"It depends on the bread mold some are harmless, some are indigestible and can make you throw up, some are poisonous and can make you very ill or kill you." Uh oh, I think this is it guys! I'm done for. The mold got me. It's all over.
So, I guess bread mold isn't what I would call "good for you." I could possibly die from this fiasco. Word to the wise, checking bread before eating it could save your life! That could be a slogan for a community awareness ad (like the smoking ads). I'm starting my own non-profit group based on mold awareness. It will save lives and put an end to moldy bread consumption. I have already thought of some others slogans that are a little catchier than the one previously mentioned. "Know about mold and you can grow old" or "Check your bread before your dead!" I think I'm on to something here. However I'd need a good name for my non-profit mold awareness group. If you have any suggestions you can submit them in the comments section of this blog. If you come up with a good one maybe I'll make you co-founder or something cool like that. I will get back to you shortly, if the mold doesn't kill me...

Speechless...

I have no words to say about this. I was wandering around BBC News and found this article. I'm speechless, really. Mike Tyson and Mao Zedong? Interesting... Tyson is quoted as saying he felt really "insignificant next to Mao's remains." I would insert a good closing sentence here but I'm unable to do so at the moment...

A little song I wrote...

So this is a little ditty I made up last week on my way to a meeting. It pretty much sums up how I feel some days.

I want to go back home and take a nap
And never wake back up... (repeat)

That's it. That's the whole song. Pretty catchy, huh? I wish you could hear me sing it, it sounds better in person. Oh yeah, also every time you repeat the song you have to sing "up" a note higher. It's fun! A friend of mine said "there's a word for that it's called, suicidal." I don't think of it as suicial so much as being realistic, or trying to avoid being realistic. Either way, somedays, an eternal nap sounds like a pretty good idea (plus while you're in bed sleeping you tend to forget about the world going on around you...which on occassion is exactly what you need).

Tap Dance

Tonight Kelley, Michelle and I watched Elizabethtown. Um, not what we expected. It really wasn't that great. I thought it should have ended way before it did, and although it had some redeeming qualities at the end the part in the middle was too hard to sit through. If it wasn't for Orlando Bloom, I wouldn't have stuck it out at all. So anyways, the gist of the story line is Drew (Orlando Bloom) is a failure at making shoes and is going to take his life when his father dies from a heart attack. His father, however, is visiting his family in Kentucky that doesn't get along with his wife (Susan Sarandon) so Drew is sent to "bring dad back" to Oregon. Well, Drew meets a girl (Kirsten Dunst) and finds life again (even though he ruined his company with his shoe idea). The story line twists and turns and has little side stories and montages along the way that don't make sense. He also has this inner dialogue the entire time that gets kind of annoying. Well, at what I thought the end should be, his mom and sister fly in for his father's funeral. His mom has not been grieving well and so has taken on a number of new hobbies in the past week since her husband's passing. Among them cooking, comedy school and tap dancing. So, at the end of her speech/eulogy she tap dances to her husband's favorite song. It was sweet, and very me. In fact, I turned to Kelley and Michelle and said "that's me, I would do something like that" to which I contemplated and commented on my own remark with, "in fact, I'm going to tap dance at your funerals!" So, there you have it. I'm going to tap dance at Kelley's funeral and at Michelle's funeral. And if I go first, they're tap dancing at mine. It's a pact, sealed on the pleather couch. So, even though Elizabethtown was hard to sit through, it was worth it for that one scene. Some days I'm more sentimental than others.

sometimes a song describes it best...

Drifting by Bebo Norman

Sometimes when I'm all alone
I don't know if I can
Take another breath
Some say home is where the heart is
Tell me where my home is
'Cause I am scared to death

Falling from the rooftop
Crashing like a raindrop
Can you make my heart stop
Shaking like a leaf
Standing at the floodgate
Steady as an earthquake
Can you hear my heart break
Tearing at the seams

I am drifting in the deep end
Holding on to Your hand
Is all that saves me now
Life can treat you like a beggar
You hold me together
But I don't know how
Some say home is where the heart is
And my heart is in Your hands
You are all I need

Rising from the ashes
Lifting from the madness
Now You see my heart is
Deep enough to dream
Heal me from the deathblow
Lead and I will follow
Now You feel my heart glow
Mending at the seams

Caring as Jesus did

Sunday night I gave my first talk at our weekly meeting. I wasn't really nervous, but I was a little intimidated. Never having talked there before I didn't know what to expect as feedback. It was part of project of sorts we're doing with our students called "prayer, care, share." They were challenged to pick three friends and then pray for them, care for them and eventually share with them. It has been exciting to see them respond to it so far. So, this week we were starting "care" and I was speaking on the topic.
I choose to focus on loving others and in turn caring for them. I hit on the Great Commandment to love the Lord your God and to love others as yourselves pointing out that if we don't love God and are an outpouring of His love in return it is hard to love others. Then I proceeded to use examples from the Perfect Example, Jesus. I used the famous passage of feeding the 5,000.
Matthew 14:13-21
I just want to share a few major points that God showed me from this passage.
1) First off, in verse 14 the very first Jesus does for the people is heal them. He had compassion on them (aka love for them) and healed them. Caring for people is fulfilling a need in their lives, Jesus saw their need for physical restoration and he filled it. He loved them because he put their need for physical healing above his need for rest. He didn't even have time to sit down...He got out of the boat and started caring for the people gathered there. Wow...
2) In verse 15 the disciples tell Jesus to send the people away so they can get food. They recognized that these people were getting hungry and had a need to eat. However, they assumed that the people needed to fulfill that need themselves. Instead, in the next verse Jesus tells them to feed them! He says, "they don't need to go away. You give them something to eat." Whoa, how many times have I tried to send others away to tend to their own needs? Jesus knows they are hungry, and He knows they are capable of going off and finding food themselves (they have afterall, been eating their whole lives, right?), however, He instead wants His disciples to care for and feed these people. To fulfill their needs. To demonstrate God's love for them by fulfilling a simple need for food.
3) Jesus provided the food but the disciples passed it out. Verse 19, Jesus blessed the food (it multiplied) and He gave it to His disciples for them to give to others. So, Jesus wants us to care for others, but He doesn't leave us high and dry. He provides for us a way to care for others, the means of caring for them. That is a true picture of us being vessels for Him! The people ate and were satisfied.
4) Never once does it talk about Jesus preaching to the people. Verse 22 says "immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat..." Jesus cared for these people but didn't preach. I'm not a Biblical scholar, but I felt God is showing us through this passage that actions speak just as loud as words. What we do effects how people will respond to God and see us as messengers of Him. It's just as important to care for people and show them God's love as it is to tell them of God's love.
As I was sharing this during my talk, I actually didn't prepare for 2 & 3...God brought those to my attention while I was talking. Talk about a revelation from God! As my eyes were opened, I was impacted my what God was using me to tell others. The picture of Christ asking us to care for those in need was so beautiful to me. Just thinking of how many times I've turned people away convicted me. Sometimes the simplest passage, even a popular passage we've heard hundreds of times, can impact you more in one moment than it you ever imagined.
Who have you cared for today?

Surrender

Do you ever think you really give something to God and then come to find out that it never left your hand? The past two weeks have been just like that. A back and forth rollercoaster of emotions and surrender. I keep asking myself the timeless question, "how do I really surrender?" At what point do you really let go and give it to God? Is it in one full swoop, you hand it over and all of sudden it's out of your grasp and in the hands of the Father, or is it a process? A slow turn over of giving the whole situation.
I'm beginning to see that it's daily. Daily surrendering all that I have and need to give to God. There are many things I need to daily surrender to Him. But with every day it gets a little easier, a little less painful. However, just as easily I can take it back and then it starts all over. Hmmm, I have so many thoughts running through my mind right now.
Ok, first off, surrendering to God is a desire. You have to want to give it to Him to really give it to Him. Otherwise, the whole time you're thinking about that thing you "gave to God" and wanting it back (when really you probably never gave it to Him in the first place). Think about a little kid with a toy. Let's say the toy is not a safe toy and his dad asks him to give him the toy. The kid really likes the toy, but he gives it reluctantly to the dad. Even though he gave it to his dad, he's constantly thinking about the toy, trying to figure out how he can get it back from his dad. He's thinking of all the fun he had with the toy and how unfair his father is being in asking for the toy. However, if he understands why the toy is not safe for him and why his father wants him to give it to him then the situation changes a little. Instead, the kid gives it to his dad, is sad for awhile but then continues on playing. His thoughts are no longer consumed by this toy and he has no bitter feelings towards his dad. Then there's the kid that realizes the toy is not safe on his own and he wants to give it away to his dad. This kid then never thinks twice. He's not bitter or even sad, but excited and happy that finally his dad has this toy that he could not use safely. And he understands that one day when he grows up and can maybe better handle the toy, his dad will give it back to him (in his timing, of course). Then, the kid will be able to use the toy and enjoy all it has to offer.
I find myself being the first kid all too often. I surrender things to God, but really I don't give them up fully, instead I hold onto them and think about them constantly. Such has been my life as of late. However, now that I've come to this shocking realization maybe I can ask God to teach me to desire to surrender. To open my eyes so I can see how much better things are in His hands. That His hands keep those "unsafe toys" from harming me until the time is right. And then, when His timing is perfect (which could be never), maybe I'll receive back what I gave to Him and find more joy in it than I could ever have hoped for.
Lord, give me the desire to surrender to You all that is Yours...

Happy!

Cute coffee shops make me happy! Kelley and I discovered a very fun, incredible cute coffee shop that serves good coffee and amazing fruit smoothies! I'm excited to go there tomorrow and have an extended QT. I miss American coffee shops, but this one definitely reminds me of a place where all my friends would go and study together (which never really ends up happening, I mean, c'mon...studying together...you never really study...well at least I didn't). So yeah, today we sat there for about a half hour and talked and I drank my berry smoothie, contemplated a mural on the wall of two nuns and dreamed of being in America. I was happy. Very, very happy. In fact, it totally made my day. Ahhh...

Picture time

I wanted to share some pictures with you all involved in my "blogger's paradise." I think allowing you to view the fun I have will help you feel more connected to me...however creepy that may sound I more or less have nothing else to blog about and this seemed like the best alternative.

We had some friends from WSU visit recently. This is me and the infamous Malisa Canto doing some sight seeing and such. It was a blast to have them here with us for a very short week.

Ok, these kids are super cute! Kelley and I witnessed their dance routine early one morning while out prayer walking on campus. They had routines to songs with dance moves and everything! So cute! The girl in the white jacket was our favorite.

This is me with my friend's rabbit, Hawaii. They've actually been through quite a few rabbits naming each one after a state. They started with "A" and have made their way to "H"...hmmm. And yes, that is a David Beckham bobble-head on their TV.

Ah, Kelley and I doing some sight seeing of our own. Which we never really get to do much of living here (weird). I love this picture. It's fast becoming one of my favorites!