24.6.11

Week 4: Amazing Things -- May 24


10:24

So, today. Me and SVdM didn't really have very many things planned for the day, so, mainly I had a large sum of quiet time. We had class, BT (IBS), then we went to YUMMY food street and we had lunch while talking to a couple first year guys. They had heard a little bit about Jesus, the one guy's grandmother is Christian I infer, and they had a couple questions.

They asked what worship was. That is a very hard question to answer properly. I mean, when I hear the word I think of singing praise and worship songs that talk about the gospel or how great God is and how His love and stuff, but really worship is praising God for what he has done, for how good He is, for how much He gives us, for just who He is and who we are because of Him. A lot of things can fit into the category of worship [including living your life for Him, re:Romans 12:1-2].

Ya. I have like this package of like educational lessons on Christian topics or something that RN had. I've been using it as quiet time material. Today I read some stuff about prayer and 37 ways to ruin your family. I got distracted by phone calls and AL with 'tasty potato chips' and stuff. I felt like such a waste of time, but really no one was free...

At 4 me and TL did some exercises. It was interesting. Cardio boxing, a lot of stretching and push ups.

We got air conditioning. I need new pens. The international phone is out of minutes. Stan was really cool. Tomorrow I have five meetings planned. I hope it is awesome.

D.Fa

[PS. I was honestly like 'who is Stan again..? I didn't meet any Steve... It's not on my schedule... Oh!' Then I remembered who he was. He was this awesome guy who AL (AL's brother), DW and JW had all talked to before in East Asia when they went on Project or STINT. He has been through a lot and is now graduating, leaving his campus and all the ministry that is still working there to continue as God provides. He will be entering the work force where it is harder to share your faith. Pray for him and others in the work forces in East Asia that they too may shine the light into the dark and change the world.

I was actually assuming that all or at least some of the people I knew would have previously been to the city I'd end up in. I guess I'm really glad we got to be on a pioneering project to a new city and at the same time we got to see the impact that Canadians are having there.]

Week 4: Amazing Things -- May 23


11:31

So, it is now very late and I have basically just wasted the last many hours doing next to nothing, but ya, today was weird. Class, BT, phone time, quiet time, and some appointments with friends.

Ya. It's always great to have a conversation with someone and neither of you can understand the other person. Phone conversations are notoriously terrible. Also, when you say that you are Canadian and don't give a name all the Chinese people meeting Canadians apparently walk towards the white guy standing half a block from the meeting place instead of continuing to the actual place..?

In either case God used SVdM today to speak into a student's life and she prayed to receive Christ which is pretty awesome.

Ya.. probably the wrong couple to be meeting, but whatever. I really pray that God uses her to reach out to him [her boyfriend] and that their relationship is real, both Him and her and him and her. I pray that God really blesses her.

Also, I told AL that I had to prepare to be on different teams for EAP. Prepare mentally and emotionally.

Grr. I feel useless.

D.Fa

[While SVdM was talking to the girl that received Jesus, I was busy being a distraction with her boyfriend. They were going through the four spiritual laws booklet while we were having a very awkward conversation while I was eating dinner. A few of the things he said were pretty weird though. He said that he though the sky was god.

Skip forward a few weeks.

She is still going strong having been discipled by MC and PW and she's strong in her faith. Even though she broke up with her boyfriend she 'has God now' and that keeps her going. She was smiling and happy even with the breakup. She also got connected to a church the week we left.

I'm still praying for the both of them. That she is still strong in her faith and growing and that her faith has shown him how real God is and just pushed him a step closer to knowing God.

Yep. Keep praying in faith that God will do great things!]

Week 4: Amazing Things -- May 22


9:18

Hey. It was rest day and really I did a lot of nothing.

First I slept in.

Then we had a greasy breakfast.

Then we had an extended quiet time.

Then we went to a coffee shop to sit on couches while having quiet time [this was the start of going to Friend's Coffee shop, basically, everyday with our new friends]. I got a rose lemon tea. It was quite good. I read a few chapters of 'Fireseeds of Spiritual Awakening' about repentance and retribution as well as how Jesus' prayer life is an exemplary example for ours and the power of prayers. One thing [the book mentioned] was that Jesus' 40 days in the desert fasting was payment for the 40 years that the Jews tried in the desert but didn't obey God and ya, it made a lot of sense.


We then went for lunch together and went downtown to a big park. MC's first kite experience was hilarious and then we played a game for a while with music on a grassy hillside in the shade.

We then went for dinner. We found this newly opened hotpot place 9did I mention yesterday was my first hotpot?) and it was like 20X better than yesterday's and actually less expensive.

Ya. We are about to watch 2012 together as an awesome topic for conversations. Today has been pretty great, but I can't wait to get back to work.

Thank God for rest days.

D.Fa

Week 3: New Discoveries -- May 21


10:49

So, today was the day before our rest day. This is also the day of the week that we have separate guy + girl time. So today started with a jog, a lot of stair mastery, some weight training and a jog back, water, shower, breakfast then guy time.

We listened to a rap about 'Saving the Dying' and how God has placed us in a position to do so, but choose comfort over saving others. You cannot save drowning people from the lifeguard's tower. You cannot save burning people from the fire station. You cannot save sinners from heaven. You have to put yourself in a bit of danger.

Then I had quiet time and played ping pong with TL and some students [John and his friends]. After that we bussed back for family time. We heard a sermon about God's guidance and how all of our choices are within God's plans for the greater good. We have free will, but all our choices are determined. It's a tough thing to get your head around.

Ya. Then I shared what has been called my testimony. It is imperfect and sketchy, rambly and disjointed, but I actually had a revelation about parts of it seconds before presenting it. About the possible moment when I first accepted Jesus into my life with my heart.

Ya, but that will take a whole post so I will deal with an updated testimony after project.

Ya. I still haven't discussed all the reasoning behind my blog or it's title or a full testimony, but hopefully all will be done relatively soon.

Ya.

D.Fa

Week 3: New Discoveries -- May 20


7:03

Ya know, today was pretty great. First we had class. Then we had quiet time, but I had to leave early for an appointment. We got to the place where we were meeting a couple minutes early so me and JW just talked and prayed for a bit. Then, realizing he had a phone in his pocket, called the student we were meeting. He had stayed up late playing cards with his friends. He came running to us from his dorm [his hair was a mess. lol]. We were going to meet him expecting him to bring a couple friends, but he didn't have their numbers and he slept in, so it was just the three of us.

We went back to his dorm room. There were four bunk beds and it was a little messy. No one was there at first, but one of his roommates came shortly afterwards (he didn't speak English though). We just started talking about some stuff and we got to speaking about how there are problems in the world. We started going through the 'English/East Asian bilingual booklet that has verses from the Bible and also shows that Christianity is not just a 'western' thing' and I could really see that he was understanding. Before he had said that he didn't think God was, but he [now] saw the possibility. His mom had told him when he was a kid that God existed [I wonder what she told him exactly, but it sounded like she was Christian].

The only problem was that he didn't know how to explain in English what he was thinking. We gave him the websites and we left. He's going to the capital city next week sometime and then they will get work experience there [he was in school to become a tour guide]. I was just overcome with sadness; no, my, hmm... the only word I can use is heartbroken. Tears just kept coming to my eyes. I really want to speak with him again. He said he was going to study [English] very hard so that he could tell us what he was thinking.

I have been praying to see people as God does. I think that feeling of brokenheartedness is a part of what God feels. [There are thousands of millions of people in East Asia who don't even know of His name, let alone believe in Him. Yet each and every one of them is a unique and beloved creation in His eyes and He is reaching out to them everyday.] I need to have faith that God will use others to reach out to him. I'll be praying really hard for him.

D.Fa


[that is the racket I broke. lol]

23.6.11

Rainy Days.

Hey guys.

Today was rainy. lol. I woke up late at like 9:30 or something I think. I don't actually really remember. I know I had breakfast... lol...

I didn't do much again. Just blogging, anime, emails, facebook. I'm kinda sick of staring at this computer screen.

Awkward situations are hilarious. And because of the short form for awkward (awks. Example 'that was awks') I made up a bunch of hilarious phrases about overcoming the awkward situations. "Take the awks by the horns and overcome it!" "You can't ignore the awks in the room forever" (I actually didn't make up too many, but I thought it was hilarious.) One that I am rather proud of is: "I'm tawksick". Translation: "This is so totally awkward that it is making me sick." totally ==> totes, awkward ==> awks, totes + awks ==> tawks, tawks + sick ==> tawksick. LOL!!! Short forms are hilarious. Adorbs, g-ross, grotes, ridic, etc... lol But I don't fully support them. Not yet....... I'm losing ground though.

So, ya. Also yesterday I got to tell my brother a Bible quote because he apparently wrote an essay for Anthro, partly about the nature or nurture debate thing and he used the 'clay analogy'. By nature it is clay, but depending on the potter it can be in any different shape. Isaiah 64:8!!! "But now oh lord you are our father. We are the clay you are our potter. We are all the work of your hands." God created us and he has a plan for our lives, a plan to mold us into the role he purposed for our lives and a plan for how we can be used. But many different things in the world or other things that we build up as idols that end up controlling our lives.

Anyways, Ttyl.

=D.Fa

Week 3: New Discoveries -- May 19


9:06

Hey. Did I ever tell you that my roommate is awesome? Well, ya... He is. This morning I was being lazy and apathetic towards the idea of breakfast. He went out and got breakfast for both of us.

Ya, I kinda sinned last night. I wasn't feeling all that bad about it this morning. I mean I confessed and repented of it. I never really wanted to... but... ya... Where was I going with this is that I was having a feeling that was keeping me from praying and I didn't feel good.

This morning 8-10 we had a prayer walk and more prayer afterwards, so it was kinda depressing... [because of my prayerlessness] I later read that prayerlessness is sinful. Ya. It is. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 "pray continuously". God commands constant prayer. There were a lot of other verses, but that one is the most direct. [God wants us to be in a close and open relationship with Him.] Ya. If we aren't praying, we are on our own, disconnected and lost in a losing battle. Prayer is essential.

I did a lot of phone calling today and made plans for tomorrow. I then had quiet time. Then we went to meet John. He brought a couple friends and we had a conversation. His friend likes Titanic especially the sacrificial love of Jack(?). Jonathn (in the Bible) had a selfsacrificing brotherly love for David. From the the conversation went spiritual and I started praying. There was this old guy listening to our every word and another guy showed up. We gave John and his friends the websites and will hopefully meet up again on Saturday.

I always feel funny using materials I haven't seen before. I mean, I don't actually know what is on that website. xP.

Me and DP had some meetings afterward, but it was a no show [which led to us meeting 'New' who I will later talk about] and six extra girls [which was really annoying... lol], so kinda unplanned changes, but ya, it's all for Jesus.

Tonight was fun night and after a family dinner with a few guests [a stinter and a couple project directors] we went on a photo scavenger hunt. I really like animals. I will call home tomorrow morning. Phase II is interesting.

=D.Fa

Week 3: New Discoveries -- May 18


9:36

So. I keep getting really big, greasy breakfasts. This seems to make me not hungry at lunch. Anyways, ya, crummy attitudes again... It really keeps me from doing anything. It also made me feel really sorry for my ministry work partner. We did nothing for a couple hours, barely talked to one guy then we were late for BT... I blamed myself.

I apologized after and we had a little chat about what quiet time is. He figures that God is our friend, right? Quiet time is the time when you can just talk openly and just hang out with Him, or something like that. A time with no distractions, no worries, just you and God.

Ya. Phase II. We called a couple people and actually ran into the guy DP was meeting, didn't meet the first guy we were meeting and got to talk to five students when we only called one of them, so, ya, God works in crazy ways sometimes.

Ya. After that we went to an 'English Talk show' which turned out to be more of a speech competition... lol.

Um... I was just asked to share my testimony on Saturday. Ya... I'm still working on it...

The international calling plan has just been bought and I guess I can call home. I don't know what I'd say. xP...

The school we were going to study at is such a nice campus. God can use us, but every speck of sin must be eliminated.

D.Fa

"Joshua 7-8"

Week 3: New Discoveries -- May 17


9:27 [all pm from now on unless otherwise stated.]

Hull-o! I'm a little sick... I have a runny nose and I've just been sweating all day... That's not important though. What is important is how great and awesome God is.

In the last three days or so, I really only ended up meeting like two or three people, but today in our last couple hours officially only in Phase I I met eight more students that all had pretty good English! It was pretty sweet. TL had decided to back off so much that he wasn't even in a couple of conversations. He wanted me to do it. [It was totally the Holy Spirit that was doing it though. I wasn't.]

You know what's even more sweet? We had class this morning and I was in a crummy mood again. Just really to do nothing again, even though I knew I was way behind in Phase I. Then we had quiet time at McDonalds, but I don't carry around my Bible or books, so I thought I had nothing to do. Instead I just looked over John 14 of the IBS (my last resort). You know what? I was just looking through it and I was seeing so much more than I ever do. I was asking questions and stringing together gathered info and understanding to an extent. I was getting excited about God's word. I just felt so pumped about going out and doing work for God and then we met so many people (with English) in such a short ammount of time. =D

Then Phase II hit.

I had just got to being comfortable with Phase I and now we are in Phase II. We really need to get good phone plans so that we can actually call our new friends instead of walking around looking for a phone to use...

Ya... The crummy attitude came back. But then we went for dinner with a student and we had a good conversation. I'm excited again. xP...

I guess I'm fickle, or there's an internal war going on.

D.Fa

Week 3: New Discoveries -- May 16

9:37pm

Yo. Today was the day of rest. I was having a bad attitude towards it, I mean, I only have 14/25 contacts and we only have four weeks left, we've got to start moving onto Phase II and start getting into the spiritual conversations, right? Why should I take a 'day off' when I haven't really been applying myself because of scummy attitudes, but today I was pumped and ready to go... but wasn't allowed to.

But ya. I slept in. I read a cool Christian book. I'm actually ahead of my daily Bible reading schedule. This morning after breakfast (we went to a bakery) when I was in my room I heard the song 'Relax' by Mika. "Relax (echo, echo) Take it ea-----ea----say." I kinda took that as a sign and just asked God to be with me today too, although I wouldn't be doing any ministry work and swore I'd work five times as hard this week.


Ya. Today we went downtown to Walmart. We (five of us) took a taxi and it cost like 4.40$ Canadian for like a 10-15 minute drive. We went to KFC for lunch, went to RBT for tea (very expensive) we checked out the malls, Walmart and a couple parks. It was pretty sweet. There were a million kites flying above the park. We had PizzaHut for dinner. Western restaurants are classy here. It was 55.9$ Canadian for the 13 of us. I got to hold the baby for most of the meal, so I only had two slices of pizza, but ya. I'm glad I finally got to hold him. My camera broke... I hope I can fix it soon. [It is still not fixed. lol... whatever. What's another thousand photos on facebook and my computer?]

Oh. Then we went to play frisbee at the circle [best place ever. old broken fountain surrounded by student dorms and the laundry lady's place. It would be refered to as the square, but it was circular]. It was a lot of fun. Two frisbees. Six people. Twilight. People walking by constantly. xP We also had some students play with us and I got to meet one and get their number. Even on the rest day, with no effort, God got me a contact.

Praise the Lord.

D.Fa

Week 3: New Discoveries -- May 15


--

Hey! Today was interesting as usual. First we went for a short jog and crazy workout at the park. (The other day I saw a real elliptical machine in another park, so they do exist, as opposed to the pendulums.) I could barely lift my arms afterwards...

We then had an awesome man time. It was kinda really funny. The pastor that was speaking (we listened to it from JW's ipod) about the differences between men vs women and how men are built to build bigger, better, faster, awesome things [it's biblical. lol. but the way he phrased it was funny].

We then went to do ministry work. Sundays there are no people... We did however meet three first year airport security majors (one of which who was 14 years old). We had lunch with them [The only time I actually had something from McDonalds].

We then had a couple free hours, which we used to do laundry, buy towels and buy bread/juice for communion.

We then had a 'family time'. This is equivalent to church while we are here in East Asia. TL, SVdM and MC shared their testimonies. We prayed. We had communion. Then because of our IBS on John 13 we washed each others feet. Litterally.

It was pretty funny. All the guys couldn't contain their laughter at their roommates tickling their toes. But seriously, Jesus came down from Heaven and humbled Himself to our level, He came down, felt all the temptaions we do, He even came down and washed His disciples feet the day before the ultimate sacrifice. From being in Heaven, with all things under His authourity down to scrubing dirty feet.

I tried imagining Jesus washing my feet, but it was too funny when DP was washing my feet. I tried again afterwards, I just can't think about it. How would I react?

Another thing that is awesome is that because Jesus died on the cross, TL, SVdM and MC are all alive right now. I'm so glad they are my brothers and sister and that I got to meet them [and spend seven weeks together with them]. I love them.

We also went to dinner, bubble tea, and we are just hanging out now. Tomorrow is the day of rest and we are probably going downtown for shopping and fun time.

D.Fa

Week 2: I'm in East Asia!?! -- May 14

--

I was feeling really awesome this morning. In BT we had a talk about who God is and our possible misconceptions or imaginations of God based on parental figures or mentors, or our feelings [which was apparently part of our OCBC church family retreat a week later back in Canada. What!? Crazy!]. Then we looked at a number of verses that give a real picture of who God is and who we are because of who God is. It was really awesome.

[I'm actually still using the card we made from this BT. Thanks MC!!! Here are some points:
God is:
-my strength + my rock + my deliverer (Psalm 18:1-2)
-the true vine (John 15:5)
-the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6)
-rich in mercy (Ephesians 2:4)
-my armour (Ephesians 6:10-11)
-love (1 John 4:16)
-good (Romans 8:28, Psalm 106:1)
-My redeemer (Romans 6:23)
-resurrection and the life (John 11:25-26)
-my Shepard (John 10:27-29)
-creator of all (Prov 22:2)
-consuming fire (Hebrews 12:39)
compassionate (Matthew 14:14)
-great and awesome (Deuteronomy 7:21)
-eternal (Matthew 24:35)
-with us always (Matthew 28:20)
-giver of good gifts (John 15:7)
-unrelenting in his pursuit of the lost (Luke 19:10)

In Light of who God is, ____(insert your name here) is:
-adopted as his son/daughter through Jesus (Ephesians 1:5)
-marked in Him with a seal the promised Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13)
-a citizen of heaven (Philippians 3:20-21)
-raised with Jesus (Collosions 3:1)
-called (Collosians 5:24)
-masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10)
-Child of God (2 Corinthians 6:18)
-new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17)
-victorious (1 Corinthians 15:37)
-loved (Galatians 3:20)

We ran out of time though, but I am still adding to this list and looking back on it. 'It was really awesome']

Before BT, me and TL had a badminton man-date. It was pretty fun for a while. The problem is that I tend to play to[o] hard. xP I swung at the birdie and the racket went flying. Well, just the neck and head, not the handle. So, ya, we stopped playing.


In quiet time I read Joshua 3-4 and Psalm 58-60. I also kinda zoned out. Me and TL then went out to explore and meet people again. We bussed to the PT University and it was pretty quiet, so we walked. We ended up at the river. It looked like it was dry. [It looked like it was dry!] I found out the hard way. I was the first to get a mud bath. We walked through 'the ghetto' to get home, I changed shoes and we went out again.

We really didn't meet too many people, but this one guy, who we named David was really nice. I really felt that we should make friends with him. I'm glad we did. [He was misunderstanding our question of 'how many years have you studied' as 'how many will you', so he kept saying he was in 5th year. I didn't believe it, but TL did. In the end he had been in university 2.5 years. We had lunch with him.]

I'm so sunburned. lol. If sunsickness exists, I probably have it. Kinda a depression and a rash and some headaches.

MC is so nice. heart. SVdM is kinda a combatative person.

D.Fa

"Col 3:12-14 'Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues, put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.'"

Week 2: Im in East Asia!?! -- May 13


--

It's funny how God works. Up until like the last half hour, today was, like, the darkest, worse day. Not that the sky was cloudy, not that anything big and bad happened, I just was burying myself in unrepented sinful ideas and attitudes. My attitude towards my fam member SVdM was growing worse and worse, I was feeling apathetic towards ministry work, I was closing myself off from others, I slept in, I was getting fed up with 'East Asian Language' class, I was just being sinful. Quiet time was a fail, BT was a fail, I wasn't really praying, I was just on a downwards, internal spiral of apathy, self-centered attitudes and a sinful outlook. Just because you haven't physically sinned in a couple weeks does not make you able to personally, on your own, keep yourself in the right. It's all this self-centrality that is undermining everything I am doing here. Satan is stupid and lame, but against you he has power. Against God in you he is weak.

I'm so thankful for how God was speaking to me to confess these attitudes and actions to someone although Satan kept telling me to bottle it all. I'm thankful that God uses others to speak into our lives, I'm super thankful that God humbles us. If it wasn't for JW. Scrap that. Even with him there prodding, if it weren't for the Holy Spirit convicting me to be honest always and to be open about some things I would be so much further down right now, probably taking the scum into the physical realm, but instead I've seen how wrong I was, how incorrect my thoughts were, how much God unconditionally loves us, how many and endless are the possibilities for those who rely on God, the value of confession and rebuking brothers,

God, thank you.

D.Fa

"Every second I am here"

[PS. That is a picture I took from the 14th when we were going through a broken part of the city. It was pretty sad, but really, there used to be more people in the town, so some parts just aren't used anymore.]

22.6.11

Losing things.

Life in East Asia was so much simpler.

No need for cell phones or keys or laptops.

The third day back and I lose my cellphone. I havn't found my house key yet, well I have found my old house key and my new one, but not my parents' house's key...

Also, with the cluter of boxes and furniture I almost lost my notebook... The one that had all my Asian friend's email addresses! I was freaking out about this. Luckily I found it today. I was so relieved. I just added all my friends and I just started having a conversation with one of my and DP's friends! I miss him. xP

Anyways, today I blogged, watched anime, went to BF's to get my phone and I ended up feeding RM's bird and signing up to lead YA next week..., I had a really long quiet time and prayer time, played softball with a bunch of friends in the rain. So great.

About all my problems with the summer camp: They have all melted away! lol. We will have internet in Quebec. I'll be in a community near James Bay. We fly back on the 12th.

Oh. I don't have to work in produce at all these next two weeks. Bonus! But actually, BJ is leaving. TT.TT

I think I should start trying to get my G1..?

D.Fa

Week 2: I'm in East Asia!?! -- May 12


10:52 am

'Proverbs'
-Prayer walks are pretty awesome, but sinful attitudes are not.
-Fluffy seeds can make things look magical, but when they get in your eyes it is not magical.
-Having a family in another country is like the best thing ever.
-Make sure you call him back the next day. (lol.)
-God speaks in many ways, but you have to be listening for Him.
-Comparing yourself to others is never a good thing. You either get prideful (sinful) or jealous/depressed (sinful). God will use you in a unique way.
-Threatening to destroy an alarm clock that ticks very loudly may result in the sudden disappearance of said clock.
-Side hugs are a safe and culturally acceptable way of showing affection for one another.
-If you want something [in specific] to drink and you have water, there is definitely a powdered form out there for you.
-You don't have to pretend to be foreign if you are.
-Look both ways before ya cross. Even then, be prepared to book it.
-Make sure you wash or 'hanitize'[our way of saying 'sanitize your hands with purell or other hand sanitizers] before eating. You don't want to get on the 'D-train' [euphemism for 'getting diahrea'].
-Never walk barefoot in your bathroom, or anywhere. Both floor and bathroom start with the same syllable.

D.Fa

Week 2: I'm in East Asia!?! -- May 11


8:26pm

Yo. Today was pretty awesome. Instead of a run, we went for a prayer walk to the big cafeteria near the South Gate of the city. There were so many students. We ate some 'delIcious breakfast food' and soy milk. (So proud that I ordered the 'delIcious breakfast food' by myself. "Two" (in East Asian) =D) It was so good and only like '35 cents Canadian'.

We bussed back to McDonalds for class again. The same song was playing. We did some more 'East Asian spelt with English characters' and pronouncing stuff work. After we had business time (BT) and quiet time and Inductive Bible Study (IBS). IBS was pretty cool.

We went to the caf again for lunch and to meet some people. We prayed for an awesome person who could speak English. We approached one guy in line to ask him what to order and he ordered a 'delIcious chicken meal' for us. It was spicy. He likes to play Devil May Cry 4. He was pretty cool. I then accidentally approached a girl and awkwardly left, but then a guy approached us asking if he could help us. He was really good at English and he definitly has an interesting story. A fortune teller told him that if he didn't change his name from 'Grass Cutter' he would have a disaster occur to him. He changed his name to 'Family Protector'. He had to leave quickly so we didn't get to talk for long, but I'm excited for him. We also talked to a graduate by accident. He was great to talk to too.

After we played basketball with our teacher's English class. We gave some guys English names. xP. We also went towards the cafs for dinner, but ended up going through 'an area that resembles a more stereo-typical version of what I thought East Asia might be like' and getting a 'crepe'. It was so much more 'East Asian' than the rest of this city.

We went for Korean BBQ. I love my family. This city is awesome and there's so much going on. I'm ecited for this summer.

D.Fa

Week 2: I'm in East Asia!?! -- May 10


8:59pm

Today started off earlier than usual, but later than expected. I wanted to wake up at like 6 to do a work out or something, but I kept sleeping after I turned the alarm off. Ya. However, when I woke up again I couldn't get back to sleep easily (combination of opening my eyes too much, rolling around, the darn ticking clock, etc. so I went through Deut 29-30 and then started going through the Spirit-filled life booklet again. I got to the fourth point I think and then RN and JW knocked on the door and all the guys (except DP) went for a good run.

It was pretty sweet. Ya, problem. We 'did our laundry' last night. This involved giving the laundry lady and her Chihuahua all my clothes, so I had nothing else to wear. When I showered, I washed my shirt too... lol.

Then I had a peanut butter sandwich with taro and honey breads. We had another class at McDonald's, we had some 'business time' [the time of day when we either learn something with quotes from the Bible about a spiritual topic, do our inductive Bible studies, share things that God is doing in our lives, plan for the week ahead, etc.].

I ended up feeling pretty bad. I mean I had all these scummy feelings of apathy and uselessness. I prayed that they would be replaced by joy and peace.

We then went for lunch and afterwards ministry work finally began. We (RN, DP and I) went around meeting people. On the basketball courts we were celebrities with screaming girls, but that's not important. We met some guys and then we bought a basketball for later. We went to play ball across from our hotel with some of our teacher's students. By the end of all that ministry work and stuff I felt so much better and I am really excited for this summer. Praise the Lord for answered prayers, yo.

D.Fa

Week 2: I'm in East Asia!?! -- May 9


7:50pm

So. Today was interesting. We woke up at like 8, had breakfast at the same place again, and then we went to McDonalds!(sarc) I didn't want to go to McDonalds. xP, but it was so good! Why? Our first 'East Asian Language' class! Pretty exciting, except that the subject matter was not. We were just reading 'East Asian written in English characters' for the whole two hours... Kinda got boring.

Ya. Today was our day of rest, so we went for a bit of a prayer walk, had some quiet time, went for a tour on a bus trolley thing [Which we started calling either a 'buggy' or 'little bus'], did some laundry, went to this crazy park with ridiculous machines for working out and we explored a bookstore and a mall.

This was all great except that my stomach was hurting. It turns out I was hungry. At the time I thought it might have been 'constipation' or 'diahrea'[this is awkward, but it was way more fun writing thos words with manners. lol]. I feel better with some food in my stomach.

I'm actually getting bored of all this free time and rest and junk, but I guess it will all work out for the best. If I had been doing ministry work while my stomach hurt, it probably would not be very effective.

D.Fa

Week 2: I'm in East Asia?!? -- May 8


2:30pm

We had breakfast together this morning. To feed all fifteen or so of us cost like 10$ Canadian. That is ridiculous. There's no tax and no tip. Craziness. Breakfast is like 10$ per person [minimum in a restaurant] in Canada.

This morning when I woke up breifly at 5am I heard 'fireworks'. It turns out that they have 'rain cannons' that make it rain [very low percentage though] by firing chemicals and junk into the air.

At 8 we looked around the town and broke into groups for exploring. Me, MC and DP went together and found like a bank and some female dorms and finally the school where we'll be learning at [nope. more on that later]. We talked to some students and it was cool.


We then went for lunch (I have been taking pictures for CC. lol.) and afterwards it was raining. All the stores had umbrellas for sale. All of them. At competative prices. So we got new umbrellas for like three dollars Canadian. Ya. This is gonna be good.

D.Fa

Excuses.

So, today I slept.

I slept until 2:30. I went to bed at midnight though, so, really, 14.5 hours. Kinda terrible... BUT I was sick... AND I'm still lagging a bit... but really those are excuses. I could have woken up earlier.

I could have.

In anycase, I did very little today. I had lunch, played tennis (poorly), read emails and went to YA.

YA was cool though. 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 makes way more sense after having read a bunch of the Old Testament. Also, my friends are awesome. A friend confessed something tonight and I totally agreed with him. We had been talking about how it is hard to love some one you hate (because we were talking about this week's sermon on love being a sign of assurance of your salvation in Jesus) and generally it is only 'normal' (in the most basic sense) to love people who help you some way or people who love you is the idea that came up. That friend said that he really loves this guy who there really isn't much of a reason for him to and I totally understood that. I love that guy too. I want to pray for him every night. I'm gonna get a prayer journal to keep track of stuff. JW's influence.

Ya. More to come tomorrow maybe..?

D.Fa

20.6.11

Service Charge?!?

So.

Today was another somewhat long day.

Today I had to get a Police Record Check, so that I can work this summer and help orient the new kids at school in September, and exchange my Asian money so that it would be useful to me.

Service Charges are outrageous. lol. In Asia there's practically no price on any service. Again I need to remind myself that people aren't treated properly in Asia. Workers get absolute minimum pay and no tip or anything. Working hard all day for almost nothing. So, my paying a bit of tax or a small fee is helping a lot of people.

Anyways. I eventually went to the house I'll be living in come September and we had pasta and ice cream and played monopoly. We also talked about Asia. It was good.

You don't know yet, but you will see that I was really being tempted to do nothing and given bad attitudes and temptations to do 'that thing that guys sometimes do' and all that stuff while on project. The devil doesn't want us doing work. He definately slowed me down. I could have done way more, but God taught me a lot and sometimes the hard way is the better way to really learn things. Hebrews 12:11 "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." I hope I have really been trained and pray that the training sticks and doesn't wash away.

Ya. I'm sick.

Goodnight.

D.Fa

Week 2: I'm in Asia...?! -- May 7


9pm-ish

Hey! I'm in East Asia! What?!? So crazy, but I'm kinda beyond tired.

So, ya, after the four hours, I didn't sleep on the bus, I didn't sleep before the plane ride, and I only got a little sleep on the plane. I watched a movie and some TV including 'Being Erica' and 'Modern Family'.

So, one thing to remember, if you want to sleep on the plane, make sure you sleep during the simulated night time or else you won't be able to sleep during the simulated day time and the simulated sunrise will wake you up. I got to see some mountains (East Asian character for mountain)! So cool!



The hotel we are staying at is pretty nice. I can't complain. There is a toilet in our bathroom, but also it is a shower. The bathroom. Kinda funny.

Also, I think that it is odd that today was yesterday. In other words, I am blogging during the same day of being awake, but the time change was pretty severe. lol.

D.Fa

Week 1: Orientation -- May 6


Almost 8am

We have left the college and are going to the airport for our crazy 12 or 14 hour flight..? [more like 11..?] It's gonna be a bit long, but whatever. I hope my television screen works. Ya. xP [on the ride to Vancouver, it did not.]

Last night we played 'Catch Phrase' with some people. It was a lot of fun. [lol. balls on a stick. *hand gesture of balls on a stick*... *beep* "It was grapes." lol] Then we started watching 'Peter Pan'. I ended up accidentally falling asleep when I went back to my room to use the washroom. It was a bit cold again, but I don't want to complain about it 1) because biblically I shouldn't [Philipians 2:14 "Do everything without complaining or arguing"] and 2) I will soon desire to complain about the heat. xP

We played badminton. We learned some important stuff. We had an awesome praise and worship session and really prayed for a while. I really want to see God reward our faith and see all the stones connect. [The last day of Orientation we all took some stones and prayed in faith that we'd be able to give them to new Christians when they pray to recieve Christ, encouraging them that Jesus is the firm foundation and solid rock. Matt 7:24-27]

Ya. I can't wait. I'm gonna miss everyone I meet this summer. >.>

D.Fa

Week 1: Orientation -- May 5


Almost 8am

It's rainy again. It's been so nice and sunny most of the time though so I guess its ok. xP. God has really blessed us this week. Yesterday we had a bunch of sessions on sharing and the gospel including a session on apolegetics. We also got our family roles. I've been given the role of materials coordinator and I'm sharing the fun time coordinator position. This summer is gonna be awesome. I don't know how I feel about the day of rest, but I suppose it is a command, so I'll do it.

Yesterday the elastic band battle continued and intensified. I now have 15. I'd been thinking, there's probably like 150-160 or so maybe, so I've got like 1/10 of the bands. xP. I followed one guy and made sure I got the two he owed me. lol. [Elastic band battle: there was a game to help us learn to speak 'politely'. We were each given 3 bands and whenever you 'swore', meaning to say a Christian word, you would lose a band to whoever caught you 'swearing'.]

I was also told that I am good at East Asian, so that is a positive thing. I really want to be a circle head when I get back. That would just be the funniest thing ever. [There was an analogy in a session. Canadians are 'block heads' and East Asians are 'circle heads'. We want to adapt and become 'stop-sign heads' (octagons. both round and with edges, so in between) being able to relate with them, yet not becoming them.]

Ya, spiritual warfare / temptation has definitely not been a very strong problem so far, but I'm sure that when it gets down to it, it will be... I really pray that I will be fully open with my family and that we can all support each other in this.

D.Fa

Week 1: Orientation -- May 4


Almost 8am

Yesterday was full on, hardcore. We had so much to learn and take in. Especially manners [which is the 'polite' way to use Christian words while we were in East Asia. My blog was written in manners and as such I will need to change a significant number of words.] It's a real challenge to pray politely, I mean, I usually say 'Lord' at the end or beggining of most of my sentences while praying, so I have to break that habit. I suppose it's a good thing. Sometimes we end up praying the same way for a long time and it just ends up being so much less meaningful, so much less powerful, sometimes you forget that you have to pray from the heart.

But either way, God doesn't care what you say. He hears what your heart says.

So, ya. Yesterday was awesome, finances have been dealt with and I can just relax with my family.

I didn't really realize that we wouldn't be going to a church in East Asia. That we have to be the pastor and the praise and worship team and the congregation. It'll be amazing to see how God and the Holy Spirit speaks through my family.

D.Fa

[PS. family was the 'polite' way of saying team, but I much prefer the word family. The 15 of us were a family, not a team. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ and so I will continue to use the term family. From here on out family (when used during an EAP blog post) means my team unless otherwise stated.]

Week 1: Orientation -- May 3


Almost 7am.

Yesterday was great once we got off the plane. We got to meet so many awesome people. We took a two hour bus ride to a Bible College and moved into a res building. Each room has two people and a shared bathroom with one other room.

The weather yesterday was kinda exactly tha same as Ottawa. Mild, cloudy, rainy. Ya. Kinda strange how you move from one side of the country to the other and it's the same. Well, the houses are all huge here. lol. There was a suburb I saw from the plane. It was like all monsions.

Ya. We got to know where we are going and who is on our team and by a small probability, AL is on my team. I was prepared to be on different teams. It's gonna be interesting.

We have a pretty packed schedule. 8am-9pm with an hour or so of freetime. We also have 9-11pm to do whatever. I went to bed at 11pm, ie 2am Ottawa time after playing Settlers of Catan with my roommate, his friend and two other guys who are not involved in EAP. I had 8 victory points, but we had to go at 11pm, so, we all won. lol.

D.Fa

Week 1: Orientation -- May 2


Almost 11am.

So. We are at the airport and we are waiting until we can board the plane. I am bag sitting. I don't have a watch. It's kinda a gross day in Ottawa, cloudy, rainy, ya. And I'm a bit confused, but whatever. It'll work out.

Time to start living every second, every breath, every step, every thought, every desire for God. JK and HK got me a camera! So awesome. Just need to make sure I get a converter for the outlets while I'm in Vancouver or wherever we are going.

This is where my blogging will be for the next month and a half. When I get back... guh... typing all of this, ya right... Ya.

So excited!

Ttyl.

D.Fa

Day 2 of the lag.

Yo. I slept 3:30-8:30 am. weird, eh?

It seems that I get so much done now. like 3 hours feels so much longer. I like it.

Anyways, I went to church today in all new clothes from Asia and gel in my Mohawk (yes I have a Mohawk again, but it's way better.) and a lot of people said that they didn't recognize me at first. Everyone did in the end. My church family is awesome. Singing with all of them is awesome. Just being surrounded by that love, the love of God manifested in each of them and them as a family, so good.

Father's day was today. I feel like it isn't really celebrated as a holiday. Like it's hallmark cards and a couple tacky presents. In church it was so much more. About how our father's are simply modeling our Heavenly Father and all that good stuff.

Ya. I talked briefly to a lot of people. RL was the very first person I saw and I was sooooo happy when I saw him. I thought "awesome! RL's going to church every week again!", but no... first time since I left... T.T I'm still praying for him. Apparently someone is disciple-ing him now. Sweet.

Anyways, we went for lunch in a huge group and ate Mexican food. Like 12 times more expensive... I could eat for 4 days in Asia for that one meal. Tax and tip... lol. There are unseen benefits to everyone with the higher cost.

Then I've been here working on the email and playing tennis with my brother. My forehand died with all the badminton, but my serve is way better. lol.

I need to email the summer camp people and see a couple things. 1. I can't register for classes until the day after I leave... And, there's a wedding the day before I return... We'll see what happens.

Yup. I need a quiet time.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

PS. I'll start blogging tomorrow. I promise.

19.6.11

I'm Home, Yo!

Hey!

I've missed you guys! These last six weeks have been an amazing time seeing what God has been doing in East Asia already, seeing how he can use us, and really learning more about our relationship with Him. It's been up and down, but so many great things have happened and I can't wait to share them with you guys and everyone else.

We had no internet acsess while in East Asia, so I apoligize for there being no updates, but thanks so much for all the prayers and support you guys gave for me, for the project, for East Asia, for everything. Thanks.

Anyways, I was keeping a blog journal which because it was not online AL corrected my calling it a blog because it was a log not a web log, but I still called it a blog and labelled the cover "Incomplete Compostion: Log B". I wrote in it everyday up until yesterday and I plan to type it all up. So, please be patient. xP

I'll still be sharing great things with you anyways. xP Today was messed up though. I slept from 6am-4pm after scanning through my emails while drinking chocolate milk and what I discovered to be two-month-old, stale Frootloops (in East Asia where I was, there was very little cow milk, only sold in small bags like a juice box, although there was a lot of soy milk, but that's different. Also, there was no cereal). Then I woke up and the first few hours seemed to drag on forever. I cleaned the kitchen, answered my new emails (mostly from facebook) and turned on my cell phone.

I've also been procrastinating writing an email to my supporters. That will be done soon. Ya. So, I have two weeks here then I'm off to Northern Quebec. This means the 45ish blog posts must be completed in about 14 days as well as all the other stuff I have to do.

Ya. Apparently while I was gone some people from Armenia, Barbados, and Kyrgyzstan saw my blog! w00t!

Okay. I gotta work on the email. I'll keep you posted.

=D.Fa

2.5.11

The End of Waiting.

So.

Can I say I already miss some people?

I miss the YF group that we had Pho with today.

I leave tomorrow morning.

I don't know what to say.

Goodbye is too much.

Ttyl is too little.

So, ya. This is anticlimactic.

D.Fa





Oh, right, there is one thing I've been thinking today that I needed to blog about.

Bruno Mars.

His song 'Grenade' is pretty catchy. It is also pretty heartfelt. He talks about giving all he has for his love. Only asking for their love in return. He would got through all this pain, even dying for his love, but they wouldn't do the same. Do they love him back? What if he did die for them? Should they love them back then? What if everything came from them and they still don't even recognize that. Rejection sucks, but unrequitted love stinks too. What is God going through? HE did die for us and yet so many don't recognize this and so many don't love Him back.

Ya, I'm kinda feeling this song as a challenge to love God more for all He did / does for us.

Ya. XP.

Relationships are weird sometimes. What started with a very long shallow chat about pokemon, may have turned into, like, my best friend? Don't read too much into that though. xP. I'm gonna miss everyone. >.>

Ttyl.

D.Fa

PS. Important things must be said one on one, but I'm really not good at that.

30.4.11

Penultimate Post

So,

it is Saturday, April 30th. I leave Monday at 11:30. My bus pass dies tonight... I'm gonna need tickets for one day! what!? ya... but only because we're going for pho after church Sunday, which is great. Other then that, I should be moving very soon and I have a bubble tea meeting downtown at 3pm. Nothing else has been planned. Which means there is a likely chance that I don't see any of my friends from highschool before I leave. >.>

So, ya. I will more then likely not be blogging during my trip to Asia, but I may end up writing in a notebook things that I will post afterwards, or just post some of the highlights? I havn't decided. In either case, there will be great stories. xP

Ttyl.

D.Fa

29.4.11

Today.

Today.

Not much happened today. (the wedding doesn't count. I slept in. =P) I'm tying up loose ends, doing a bit more work at my parents' house, cleaning and emptying the house for the incoming pile of furniture from my grandparents' house. In any case, my parents' house is getting a lot cleaner.

Today I went to 168 Sushi Japan Buffet with RL and AL. It was pretty great again, although the guy who seems like he owned the place kinda challenged us to eat everything we ordered, so we finished it really quickly... xP Also, RL only ate teriyaki and rice.

Just now I moved a lot of stuff from 'the boy house' to CW and JS's house (my new house!). I moved everything that would fit in my parents' car, so all that is left for tomorrow when JW helps me is the table top, my dresser, two mattresses, 2/4 of the bed frame, an office chair and my bike (flat tire...)

So, ya. I'm dying to leave already. Vancouver for a week, then off to Asia!

Ttyl.

D.Fa

28.4.11

Super Awesome Springtime Fun

Did I ever tell you about how awesome the weather in Ottawa is..? Well in the last few days it's been like between like -2 and +21'C, super humid, super windy, hailing, chance of tornado, thunder storm, pouring rain, sunny and happy, cloudy, mild, cool, dry, breezy, the flowers are blooming, the birds are chirping at 5:30am NONSTOP!, a bird sang the song of healing earlier, the universe's physical constants are all super precise for the existance of life... Ok, so, that's a bit more than just the weather, but it's all super awesome.

My friend in Toronto was complaining a bit about the chance for tornadoes. WHY? I wish I was near a tornado!!! =D (super creepy smily face)

Ya. Today is awesome. The windows are all open, the doors are all open, the sun is shining ... *looks outside* what is that mass of fur in that tree?!?! OMW! IT'S A SUNBATHING SQUIREL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (I am not kidding. I creeped a picture with a pair of binoculars. but when I got closer it jumped away. T.T)

Ya. Today is awesome. God is awesome.

I got my passport back!!!!!!! SO AWESOME! It's got my new visa and everything!!!! I'm super psyched now!

Gonna do a Bible study and then keep cleaning.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

PS. Dominica! w00t!

26.4.11

400 Shows I like.

So. This week I have spent my time mainly at my parents' house. Much of the 'free' time has been spent with the thing we call a television and I have come to like some programs. How I Met Your Mother, Big Bang Theory, The Office, Modern Family. These shows are quite funny.

It doesn't take too much to get highly involved in a show. Just a couple shows into a Easter marathon and Sheldon's quirks had already won me over. The Office took it's time, but gradually wore me down once I understood all the sub plots of the other characters below Micheal's racist and sexist and just overall rude commentary that fills up most of an episode. Modern Family always has a happy ending despite how crazy the plot becomes. How I Met Your Mother is quite funny. The clash between the characters, that although they are very different, they get along somehow and stick together no matter what.

I havn't really watched very much tv in a while. Just anime, but there are good comedies that are 'live action'. lol. I never said anime is better then everything. I never will. So, ya...

Ttyl.

D.Fa

PS. This post is not a list of 400 shows I like.

23.4.11

Temptation.

I feel like I should just give in.

It's our desire to sin. The devil can't make us, but he can tempt us as much as he would like to.

I feel like sometimes I should just go sinning while I'm young and just not care about any reprecussions, I mean, God can and will forgive us and purify us from all unrighteousness if we truly confess and repent, right?

God created us in His image. He wanted to have a relationship with us. Why did we ever turn away? Temptation, a desire for control.

But honestly, God doesn't want us to sin. Sin is 'missing the mark', not meeting expectations. Sin goes against who He is and who He calls us to be. In the Old Testament he calls us to live holy lives for He is holy. He even says that He will be the one to make us holy, knowing our sins and desire for sin. We have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

Not to be cliche or anything, but the Ten Commandments are an easy reality check for whether we hit the mark or not as far as God is concerned. He says 1. You are to worship God alone. 2. No Idolatry, I am God and nothing else you make should be. 3. Do not take His name in vain. 4. Keep the Sabbath. 5. Honour your parents. 6. No murder. 7. No adultery. 8. No stealing. 9. No lieing. 10. No coveting. I for one have failed pretty much all of them. We all miss the mark.

He did the only thing He could. He is just, a crime deserves a punishment. The wages of sin is death, so only death could pay for our sins. Israel used to make sacrifices, killing spotless animals in place of themselves for their misdeeds. God sent Jesus to die on the cross. He was spotless. After 40 days in a desert being tempted by the devil He still didn't give in to him. He lived His life and gave it for our sins. By His death on the cross, our sins are paid for.

Why should we sin? God tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:13 "No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it." There is always a way out. It's our decision.

Now the real problem is that. We have freewill. We can make our own choices. It's so much harder this way... Even knowing God never fails me, God is good, God has a perfect plan for me, God has a purpose for my life, God wants an intimate relationship with me, God knows all, God called me to Him... Why would I keep turning away?

Ttyl.

D.Fa

22.4.11

The Weight Continues

And so another day has passed and I am still in the Glen House (ie. The boy house) and am actually much more packed then yesterday. Today I packed up my closet and all my stuff in the rest of the house that I had yet to pack such as dryer sheets and pans.

What did I do today?
-Good Friday Service. Awesome.
-Walked home. Awesome. (I kinda have the desire to walk home from everywhere and I have now walked home from church. yuss. and actually the church is maybe going to move soon. Bonus, I have now walked home from our possible new church (because it was en route) I also learned that SC is more awesome then I had thought and that intermissions can be very awkward)
-ate a cucumber and cheese. Random.
-went home to pack. Random. I realized I only have two t-shirts that have no writing on them. They are both the same colour, but I only like one of them. Now I have to choose which of my other shirts I care the least about (because, where I am going, no clothes will return the same way they arrived.) Shirts with writing on them are, however, very sentimental because they are each an event or a club I've been in or a souvenir t-shirt or something of similar ideas.
-bussed another box to my new house and cleaned. lol... I get focused on small details. You know the borders around floors, the little white trimming thing..? Well, it had not been cleaned in a while. Also there were a number of cobwebs especially on the second floor.
-borrowed ankle weights from JS and am still wearing them.
-walked home (boy house) and returned a pair of keys on the way. Also walked by a couple day cares, old elementary school, a park, a couple of old friend's houses, work etc.
-bought McD's for my brother (without a coupon)
-watched How I Met Your Mother and The Office. Both are good shows, I admit. I kinda want to go to Scranton now. Just from all the hype. We also watched Wipe-Out. The puns are quite funny, but really there is no plot and the competition is just a joke.
-walked home (boy house) and b(r/l)ogged.

That is what I did today.

Also I was told that, because I have a certain way of over texting and a certain way of doing so, I should compile a guidebook 'How to Text: Texting Etiquette' or something like that. I would like to do just that, but I'll actually be text free for the next two months. T.T I will do this however, by using a blog draft and just adding tips. I feel 100 tips or rules is enough. When I hit 100 I will publish said blog post. Don't expect anything until mid September.

Ya.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

PS. Have you ever heard of 'cast notes'? At MHS for a drama production, each cast member would, the week of the performances (often closing night by procrastination), write and deliver a note to every other cast member. Commonly found in cast notes are fond memories that they have shared, a memorable funny thing someone else has done, a funny comment someone (including possibly the director) has made, future plans, encouraging words, 'break a leg', a doodle, something creative, etc.

SC made what I am calling 'Friend Notes' because he's moving back to Toronto for the summer. They are all really cute. xP We love you SC! 'Open up SC. *slap*'

19.4.11

Officially

I am done my first year of University

I am moving the rest of my junk to CW's room tomorrow

I am living in my parent's house for the next week and a half to 'babysit' my brother. Keep the house from burning down, you know?

I am probably not getting a tennis membership this summer, but that may still change, so I guess it's not official, especially because I have enough cash in my pocket right now and have been thinking a lot about doing it even if its only for a couple weeks here and there and Septemberish...

Feel like I failed Linear Algebra even though I know I have around an 89...

Can't wait for East Asia!!!!!!!!!

My clove of garlic is not growing

JS is one of my favourite YF. He could easily be on a list of 'Cute Things' which I felt strongly to create when he sent me a facebook message containing the phrase I tweeted yesterday. "im sure u ll be ready to translate God's love by the summer no worries God tells u what to say"

16.4.11

Exerpt

So, yesterday I was feeling kinda funny. I was also having a gmail chat conversation. The following are lines that I typed that have been removed from context and not changed in anyway.

me: I'm all packed!
me: moving
me: probably wednesday. >.>
me: I feel like I've packed my room into a box and won't be opening it for 4 months. xP Like 'my life' has been put on hold.
me: lol............... It's weird.... I even rearranged my room so I could get at all the dust and now it's not my room anymore. Especially because its just a plain, empty white cube with a white bed.
not to mention the echo.
me: ... the echo only formed because I packed up my room. Same with the bareness of the walls after taking down my shelves and pictures and posters and calendar and stuff.
me: lol..... but your walls are gross. lol... I like the walls in everyone else's rooms. xP

I feel the need to add a couple of the person to whom I was 'speaking' with's lines. At this point he told me to "Get Out." and that "Fake hardwood paneling is the best wall option in the world."

me: false

We then went on about how "I'm not going to get out just because I, currently, don't appreciate fake hardwood paneling." and how "If you don't like it, get out. Because I love it."

me: Right now the kitchen is really bugging me. The cobweb above the table and the dead flies on the light. I must clean them... xP
me: I can understand why some short people may not notice them, but you're tall... lol

To which he replied "ya, but I don't really look up that much."

me: lol

I thought that convo was longer. Meh. In any case I hope you found it mildly amusing and informative as to how I am currently feeling about packing and moving and the whole thing.

Also, yesterday I watched 10 episodes of an anime named "Majou Shoujo Madoka Magica" because a friend recommended it. It is not a normal "mahou shoujo" (magic girls) anime (like sailor moon or mew mew power..?). It is a lot darker. The last two episodes have been delayed due to the earthquakes / tsunami in Japan. But they will be airing April 21st. Now that I've seen it, neither I nor my friend can wait for it. I'm actually praying for it. Praying for anime? Weird? kinda. But what I'm praying for is that the gospel would be either in the last two episodes, or that something very easy to start a spiritual conversation off of would be in the episodes. There's already been some stuff like trading your soul for one wish and self-sacrifice. I can see (in my head) how if the main 'evil magic girl' sacrifices herself for her friends it would be extremely easy to relate to the gospel. I don't want to spoil anything... so... unless you watch it I won't be able to talk to you about it. It's a really good show though. Most 12 episode anime are. (not that 1000 episode anime can't be good.) I digress. I am also praying for my friend. He's taking a whole 5 course summer semester. So, ya.

Also, I've felt again that a day spent on yourself for no other purpose is completely a waste of time. I mean, I studied like a couple hours that day, but mainly sin was taking up most of my time. That is too vague. After I studied, I watched anime for 5 hours before my exam and did absolutely nothing productive. I should be spending my 'extra time' growing closer to God as time is running out before EAP, not wasting whole days at a time... I have like 2 weeks left...

Ya.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

13.4.11

The palest ink lasts longer than the sharpest memory.

So, this week I have been really encouraged.

The thing though is that I have been encouraged by the past, more specifically by things that have been written down when God was really working in the lives of the authors.

So, I was thinking and I realized I still haven't posted about my Campus for Christ Sharing Testimony from the week after Summit. So here it is. lol.

"Random Evangelism":
"My name is Dylan. I have been going to OCBC for a couple years and I have heard some things about C4C. My general impression is that everyone went out alone and just talked to as many people as possible in a quick, random evangelism.

I am usually very shy when I meet people for the first time, so talking that much with, basically, strangers really scared me, on top of which I feel I don't know enough to properly share with others. So basically, I never really shared [my faith] with anyone until these last couple weeks.

Summit and C4C in general really encouraged me and pushed me to go outside my comfort zone. There was training and I got to meet a lot of other C4C members.

After Summit was 'the plunge' where everyone was encouraged to break a faith barrier and take their faith a step further. For many first years this meant sharing the gospel with someone on campus for the first time. That is what it meant for me.

The first time, me and [SS] went to the food court. We talked about the usual way [SS] shares with others and then we prayed that God would lead us to the right person.

After praying, we turned to the person sitting right beside us. His name was [J(?)]. He was an international student and had been taking philosophy. Recently they had been thinking about the meaning of life and he was interested in speaking with us. As we went through the 'Knowing God Personally' booklet he recognized Revelation 3:20 [Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.] He said that he had seen a movie and after [SS] had inquired, it had almost definitely been "the Jesus Film". [J(?)] didn't accept Christ that day, but seemed interested in follow up.

Afterwards [SS] told me more about "the Jesus film" and how in China to see the film you have to be in a private screening with headphones. The fact that [J(?)] had seen it is amazing. God had already been working in his life.

My second attempt at sharing was on Wednesday. I again asked to see if anyone could come with me and everyone who responded was too busy. So I was left alone and was pretty frightened. I wasted like 40 minutes reading my email and blogging before I made up my mind. In an hour if I hadn't already gone sharing, I would go. I prayed that God would calm my heart, give me courage, that He would guide me to the right person and that He would give me the right words to say.

Less than 3 minutes later BC walked over and sat down with me. BC was someone I knew from highschool. We had very similar schedules throughout highschool, but we don't really talk too much. However, I had felt before that I should share with him and I felt it again.

I'm not very good at explaining things usually, but we went through the booklet and there were a lot of questions to answer. I think I managed to get most of the point across. BC had heard most of it before when I invited him to a youth outreach event. If BC hadn't shown up when he had I probably wouldn't have shared that day.

These two sharing experiences I've had since Summit have shown me a number of errors in my image of C4C sharing.

1. You are never alone. Whether you go sharing with another C4C member or not, God is there too.

2. You don't need to know every point in the Bible to share the gospel. The Holy Spirit will give you the words and the booklet gives you focus.

3. There is nothing random about it. You make an effort to set aside an hour and a half, you ask God to guide you and God will provide you with someone. [Although this point can also be expanded past a strict 1.5 hour setting into a more daily walking with God with your whole life open waiting for the opportunities God gives you. (Don't compartmentalize God!)]

4. It isn't just about getting to as many people as fast as you can. It is about having an actual conversation with another person.

2 Timothy 1:7-8 For God has not given us a Spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord... but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God."

Yep. That is it. 3 pages of graph paper written in pencil on a bus ride from home to school on a friday afternoon. God really was showing me that He does great things. Whenever we take steps in faith, He helps us along and does great things.

Ya, I thought this might encourage someone. It's hitting me. lol. I read today that the first thing Jesus said to his disciples was that they would become fishers of men, ie bringing others to Jesus. The first thing He said. If you aren't fishing, you aren't a disciple. That line also hit me.

Ttyl.

D.Fa



PS. Re:title of blog post. The jot notes in pen are clearer by far then the full copy in pencil.

PPS. Two Door Cinema Club is a really cool band. xP

The song played on repeat all of Tuesday:

The song played on repeat all day Wednesday:

12.4.11

Thunder Storms and Pasta

So, yesterday.

Yesterday started off with me waking up at 5 am. Guess why? Thunderstorm! Yay! But the coolest thing was that the power was out and that the storm was practically directly above us (which I later realized isn't as cool as I thought, or maybe it is..?)!!!! So, it was just like nonstop flashes of light outside my window! You couldn't see the lightning, just the light, rain was pouring, all my housemates were awake (RL was at his parents) and JR ran outside... lol... After about half an hour the lights turned back on and I realized how silent and dark it was a moment earlier. I mean, now there were all these little things buzzing and a bunch of small flashing lights and ya... I went back to sleep, but kept my phone on to wake me up. I later read a facebook status "Somebody must have been playing Song of Storms over and over last night..." lol.

I woke up at like 9:30 and just lay in bed until 10. I just didn't want to do any work. I still don't, but yesterday was my last day before my week of exams started, so I should have started the cramming.

At 10 I talked with my EAP support coach. He doesn't like how I don't really answer questions.

I then had breakfast/lunch and watched anime.

I then wasted like an hour and a half drawing a diagram to represent my support raising for project. I drew block letters of EAP on graph paper with each block being 50$ I need to raise. It took me a long time to figure out how big to draw the letters and then to colour it in with the support I have so far, colour coded to each person, and then I accidentally did it wrong and I admit it was a huge waste of time.

I knew I should have been cramming for my CHEM exam today, but no... I kept wasting time.

I studied for a couple hours while playing songs by Two Door Cinema Club over and over and over again and then I ran off to my new house to have a meal with my new housemates. I saw CL and MC on the bus.

There was a lot of raised voices at my new house, mostly caused by me and the whole 'splitting a room in half' business and how that effects the rent. It seems that DK, CW and JS 'debate' quite a bit. In any case, CW prepared a pasta meal for us and we all had some with light dinner conversation. Following that we had a 'house meeting' to address issues with common areas and chores and just things in general. The last topic raised was really awkward. It was DK bringing up the fact that we don't tell each other that we love each other as much as we should. He argued that as Christians we should be more loving because we know a bit more about real love through Jesus among other reasons. The most awkward point (debatably) was when he said he could easily write more about what makes each of us special then he can for a school paper.

They tried wrapping up the meeting quickly so that I could go home and study, but the things I saw were that a) they do love each other, b) they pray with each other, c) they don't hold back anything from being discussed. These are all things I wish I saw more of at my house. I have yet to see a couple of my housemates pray.

Ya, when I got home I watched a couple episodes of Modern Family with everyone. It's a good show that always has a moral, warm and fuzzy ending.

Ya. So I wasted all of yesterday. Then this morning I woke up at 6:50 and did everything quickly so that I could go and then I decide to clean out my closet. >.> Ya. Wasted a half hour making a pile of clothes I don't want to / havn't been wearing that I can get rid of because I really have only been wearing like 8 shirts and there were like 25-30 in my closet. The first step in moving is to get rid of everything that is useless to you.

Ya. CHEM exam asian fail. Probably.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

PS. I started moving yesterday. Even though I only moved one thing and I never use them. lol.

9.4.11

When you get the same comment 30 times.

So, I know what my impression on Merivale drama is. My laugh lives on in the memory of all.

Tonight was the closing night for MHS' annual musical 'The Drowsy Chaperone'. It was like the best musical I have seen in a while, not only because I haven't actually seen one (at merivale) in like 3 years, but because it really was an amazing production. Absolutely everything was so good. I was laughing so much and I wish that the memory of it would last forever. Every person was excellent in their roles, the music was great, the lighting was simple, but great, in short, I loved it.

I gave so many people hugs today.

High school musicals are just like the best thing ever. You spend like 10 hours a week in rehearsals with the same 20-30 people and really build relationships that last. I miss them all again. lol. They are like a really widely extended crazy family, but I love them all.

I definitely don't tell people I love them enough. I guess one reason is that it's such a loaded word. In our society, 'love' has such a shallow limited meaning sometimes. 'love' isn't just 'romantic' or 'sexual'. The term 'brotherly love' is not equal to 'bromance'. Love is in it's true form unconditional and everlasting, greater than any problem and greater than any can imagine. Love is so deep, wide, long, high, so unfathomable and so real and yet people have given up on it. People have taken and accepted a shallow 'love', a 'love' that is sometimes even orchestrated and... I could keep going on and on.

Even I don't truly know what love is. If I tried to comprehend it on my own, I wouldn't be able to.

I don't say this enough, but I really mean it. I love you.

D.Fa

6.4.11

I get the urge...

... to dance really strangely when I hear this song. lol

By a series of somewhat random events I ended up watching this video on youtube.

TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB, WHAT YOU KNOW



It's kinda really catchy. The first thing I thought when I heard it was "Why are british people so good at singing?" Then I started thinking about what the video / song actually means. They are an indie band under kitsune records (a french company with a japanese name, what!? and they are british!?!?) At first I was thinking that all the girls were the same because maybe they are making a statement about how all girls look the same, which I later rethought into girl's try to look the same to fit in, which is kinda mentioned in the chorus. (I don't understand any of the verses or that random shot to the girl with the feather crown thing..? lol. it's indie. deal with it.)

The dancing is, I would actually say very regular, especially because they are not synchronized, but the visuals in the video are very interesting in general.

In any case, I really don't understand the video, but what I got is that everyone sees clearly that no one wants to be alone. Everyone wants to fit in, have friends, be in relationships with other people, not even 'romantic' relationships, just friends/family. We all crave this acceptance and community. Well, I don't think I can say that, but I know pretty much everyone craves it. I certainly do.

Ya. Ttyl.

D.Fa

5.4.11

Update!

So.

Today was interesting. My tires were both flat, so I decided my feet were less important than the bike and I walked an hour and a half to school. Some highlights: A bus full of kids laughing at me, walking through the puddle rather than the mud around it, having the song 'Enough' stuck in my head.



That is one of the many things I was thinking about on the way to school. God gives us so much. so much more than we need. We take for granted basic things that we think just go without saying. I have a renewed appreciation for shoes. There is so much we can't do without shoes, lol, for example, tennis. There is no way you would be as agile or willing to slide to get a shot while barefoot.

There are people who don't have the option to wear shoes because they just don't have them. I chose to not wear shoes all day to raise awareness for that. A lot of people saw me without shoes, but only a couple people asked. I definitely thought that more people would be barefoot. I actually didn't see anyone else.

Another thought I had while walking was about my convictions toward not wearing shoes for one day. I would do anything. I would walk miles barefoot, with numbingly cold, wet, feet on rough paths. I would walk by people's gazes and laughing children. I wouldn't care who saw me. It was just one day to raise awareness. So, why can't it be the same for Jesus? Why do I back away? Why are we scared to look weird in front of other people? If I can walk miles barefoot, can't I walk over to the guy across the room and talk with him about Jesus?

It also showed me how blessed we are that we have shoes, clothes, jackets, laptops, bikes, homes, food, water, everything we need and yet we crave more.

God gives us more than we need. He also is the only one who gives us the thing we desperately need that most.

Ttyl.

D.Fa

One Day Without Shoes #2!

Hey!

Today is one day without shoes! I did it last year and it was pretty much an amazing day. Sure, at the time I was freaking out and kinda annoyed, but I got to see how much shoes actually do.

Last year I didn't wear shoes all day. That included walking to school, school, band..? and a bunch of other things and then I had to go to all-star band rehearsal. The bus driver wouldn't let me on, so I walked / ran like a few kilometers through mud and pouring rain while carrying my trombone. I got soaked and when I got there everyone was like "what in the world?!?!?!" It's pretty funny looking back. I kinda hurt my foot running with no shoes.

In any case today is another day and Carleton is just a bit further than that other school was. I intend to bike, although that is also not too fun without shoes, but its better than walking in this weather. lol.

I'll ttyl after today.

D.Fa

3.4.11

Nothing to complain about

So.

I have complained/vented a lot recently and it has not gone well in any of the cases. Sure I was a bit less stressed by just talking about it or whatever, but the stress or annoyance is multiplied onto any/everyone that was listening. If you were one of those people, I apologize. I have done some research (basically none, and all the sites were bloggers or comments or a youtube video) and I've come to see that venting is used to constructively deal with stress while complaining is just complaining about things and not doing anything.

Either way I think it can still be annoying or stressful to the people being vented at and at the same time depending on who you are venting to, I can see it being very helpful. Maybe if I ask before I vent and also ask for their opinion or advice on the matters it becomes more of a constructive sympathetic conversation rather than just complaining or talking at someone.

In the part of Sunday school to which I was there Pastor DB talked briefly about habits that we form at work/school, specifically bad ones and what we can do about it. What are some habits you form at work..? At work I have a habit of being 15 minutes late, I don't talk very much, except to certain people, I am focused on getting my job done, but I often complain (sometimes to coworkers, but usually to everyone else) about work in general. At school I complain a lot about TAs... Sure, everyone does, but really, we should be grateful that we have TAs. The lab coordinators wouldn't have time to teach all of us. I should also be more grateful for the job I have, it has been a very flexible schedule that adapts to my varying involvement in school activities and ya, it has got me through so far without having my parents pay me more than they do already.

We really do have a lot more than a lot of people do. We should be very grateful for everything we have not just complain about the little things here and there that bug us.

In any case, I should stop uselessly complaining, or griping as it is also called.

Ttyl.

D.Fa