opportunity awaits.

its frustrating when you work hard and you plan something just to see it not be appreciated. Tonight at AGAPE, we had careers night, and it was planned, the guests were there and the sessions were going about it, but it was a bit disappointing to see people just sitting and loafting. I tried to get them to move along, but why would they listen to me anyways. Eventually i gave up. I realized that i've done all I can. I've prepared and presented them with the opportunities to look, to learn, to experience, but its up to them to take and size the opportunity or not.

Its the same with our Lord. He presents us with opportunities and chances all the time, its up to us to firstly see it and acknowledge it, and second take it in and seize it. God has so much planned for us, so many blessings and gifts for us, but we have to learn to take it and accept it. Will you take it?

¹⁰ Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

Galatians 6:10 

:)

Reflecting on the past week, i think my week was a hundred times better than the week before, I could smile on the windy, rainy walks to school, i could laugh genuinely and be joyful. God is good. Im so happy that things picked up. Im in a very content place in my life right now. Although there are still struggles, and hardships i feel like so much has been lifted off. I know God will allow more challenges to come my way, but I'm ready to take them on knowing they will only make me stronger. There isn't much content to the post, but after such an amazing week, i really needed to be thankful for what God has given me, the people, the opportunities and the infinite blessings.

Praise God for an amazing week. He is Good.

¹¹ Light shines on the righteous     and joy on the upright in heart.  

¹² Rejoice in the Lord, you who are righteous,    and praise his holy name.

Psalm 97:11-12 

holy living.

 ¹ As for other matters, brothers and sisters, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more. ² For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.

 ³ It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; ⁴that each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable, ⁵ not in passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God; ⁶ and that in this matter no one should wrong or take advantage of a brother or sister. The Lord will punish all those who commit such sins, as we told you and warned you before. ⁷ For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. ⁸ Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit.

 ⁹ Now about your love for one another we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other. ¹⁰ And in fact, you do love all of God’s family throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more, ¹¹and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, ¹² so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.

1 Thessalonians 4:1-12

Now that we have hope, now that we know that our salvation is assured, our support group and accountability is there, and we know that all hardships are apart of a plan, we must continue to live. Again, as I was skimming through scripture, I came across this passage and I feel like it sums up how we should live in simple and understandable terms.

Our main purpose for all of us on this earth is to please Christ. (v.1) Recently, i've been thanking God for each day in prayer, but ironically at night before I go to bed. I finally was able to spend some time this morning to thank him for another breath, and another day to live. We have been blessed with such opportunity in this life to be able to be something bigger. It doesn't necessarily mean famous, but because we are so privileged with education, and wealth, we should use it please Christ. Every breath, every word, every action and thought should be honouring to our God and Saviour. I try my best to do that. I've felt that as long as we strive to live a holy life, we are doing well. But recently, i've questioned, am i really doing this? Or am i still living a doubled life? The fact that a few of my friends can still joke around about Christianity, thinking thats its okay with me, is that a problem? Is it bad that i laugh with them, but its just that our intentions behind aren't necessary the same? Am i not showing and representing my God well enough? Am i really pleasing and glorifying God in ALL i am doing?

Flee from sexual immorality. (v.3) Its interesting how thats the first thing that is brought up. Looking at our world today, sex is something that has been completely changed. Doing it casually is completely accepted in today's society, but God created it to be saved for marriage, to be shared with your spouse. We've spoiled it and ruined it. Sex has gotten more and more "popular" lately and i would say that its one of the bigger problems out there lately, when used for the wrong intentions, so many things can go wrong. Hearts broken, lives taken, the consequences are endless and painful. This really requires self control. Especially with the internet, so many things are so easily accessible, easy doors that lead to temptation and eventually sin. We have to learn to control ourselves, and use our bodies for honouring purposes. (v.4)

Holy life. Holy living. (v.7) No one can be perfect. We as humans are all flawed, but we can fight. That shows growth, it shows commitment, and as long as we have that drive to be holy and we are continuously working towards it, God will acknowledge and take note of that. But sometimes, there are the lukewarm followers, the double faced Christians. (v.8) We talked about this in the sermon yesterday, that there are "Christians" that know that sin is wrong, know what they should be doing, yet CHOOSES to do the opposite. What bothers me the most with this is that they are misrepresenting Christ, which affects everyone around them, easily hindering others from getting to know the true being of Christ.

Love. (v.9-10) God is love. Therefore by following him and committing to him, we should also love others. Love is the foundation of all of this. Because of God's love, Christ was sacrificed for you and me. Without this unconditional love, there would be no faith, and no hope. Love can be hard sometimes, whether if its loving your enemy or confronting someone else, but with love as your intention, God will continue to guide us through. You are loving God by loving others.

These last two verses (v.11-12) seem to somewhat sum up everything. Leading a quiet life. From what I understand this time reading it, pride is addressed. Don't be boasting about yourself, and don't be cocky about yourself. "So that you will not be dependant on anybody." Lately i've started to realize this about myself. That i am extremely reliant on others. I always need someone there, and as some may say "clingy". Yes, friends and a support group are essential, but you cannot fully rely on them all the time. The truth is that they will fail you one day, and they may not even be there one day. If you invest yourself too much into others, you will fail to be independent. Im trying to learn to be less of that "clingy" character, to build confidence and to stop relying on others so strongly.

 ¹ Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

Romans 12:1 

Choice?

Yesterday, something hit me. A simple statement, a simple question. I needed to go out early, so i was lazy and asked my mom to buy take out for dinner. And she asked me, "what do you want to eat?"

"What do you want to eat?"

Simple statement eh? We probably get that asked all the time. But for some reason, last night when i was asked that, mind. blown.

This question has greater meaning/underlying message in it. The fact that we can be asked this shows that we have choice. The fact that when that question is asked, i can say almost everything. From sushi, to curry, from the typical chinese food, to Italian, choice is a blessing. It really shows how amazingly and overly blessed we are.

Thinking about it, i feel like these first world countries are completely spoiled. The fact we can get food from all over the world in one building, or have parts of the world shipping onto one plate in one sitting. Its a blessing.

We take these things granted daily. Its something we should constantly be thinking about and be thankful for. I think being thankful really develops humilty as well. When you're thankful you know that God gave you these things, that it wasnt you who brought the food to the table, it was God, and that nothing belongs to you, you learn to be humble in that way.

How blessed are you?

Im sure if you tried to make a list of your blessings, it wouldnt end.

Numbers 6:24-26

²⁴

The Lord bless you and keep you;
²⁵ the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
²⁶ the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

break my heart for what breaks yours.

Today was Today's Teens Conference for the AGAPE/BASIC leaders, and during our first breakout session, we went to Running With Fire: Passion for the Broken. Although it wasnt a session I wanted to attend, and reading the blurb about it, it didnt really appeal to me, but crazy things happen. I truly believe that if you willingly open your heart/mind/eyes to receive God's word, and whatever he wants to say to you, you'll get something out of it.

So during this session, our speaker talked about the broken. He talked about the brokenness, personal brokenness, the things we deal with, from cutting, to drugs, to sexual immorality, loneliness, depression, and pain. We are all broken, and im sure there are broken people around us. Its really important to really try to see that and be of support. One of the videos they showed today talked about seeing how God sees the world. At first, everyone seemed normal, playing games, socializing, but then when we were "given God's eyes", it revealed the baggage that everyone was going through, from teen pregnancies, to being self absorbed. God truly knows what everyone is going through, but we should be sensitive and see that in others as well.

He also talked about brokenness outside, internationally, in the world, from the poverty, famine and hunger, and how we can help. From sponsoring a child, to working with World Vision or doing the 30 hr famine and raising awareness. There were some crazy statistics they gave,

- The US Defense Bill for ONE DAY could eliminate world hunger

- The average amount spent on ice cream by Canadians could eliminate world hunger

But the end, he challenged us with this. He dared us pray this prayer, and mean it. "Break my heart for what breaks yours." I dont think i fully took it in, but its really a prayer to see with God's eyes, to build that passion for the broken. And if we can see the world from God's perspective, we can truly follow in his footsteps, and be his representatives and help those in need. If you can read this, it means you've been blessed to live in such a wealthy environment/country. God placed you in this position to be the leaders to help the broken, those who do not have that luxury. Challenge yourself, to pray that prayer, and take the first step forward.

greater things are yet to come.

Glee is my inspiration for this post. Today's episode talked a lot about life, death, and suicide. For many people, young, old, tall, small, no matter what sexual orientation, what lifestyle, gender or race, everyone goes through life, and its tough, its rough and it frustrating. It will have its ups and downs, and there may be days where you think to yourself, life sucks. But that is no reason to even think about taking your life. Things WILL get better, but what's even greater is that there's hope, and greater things are yet to come, beyond this earth.

¹⁸ For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. ¹⁹ For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope ²¹ that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. ²² For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. ²³ And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly aswe wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.²⁴ For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

romans 8:18-25

I've learnt that life is like a circle, there will be its ups, and its downs, but even though you may be at the lowest point, it will pick up and get better. Learn to have faith and trust in the Lord, he has greater plans for you.

In heaven, God has a place ready for you, but you have to pass his test on earth. If you can sustain and pull through all the challenges and storms he may send your way. Will you be able to hold on and stand firm in your faith, knowing God is almighty and good and will pull you through any depressing, frustrating or painful time in your life? There are MANY greater things yet to come that you have no idea of, if you give up on yourself and on life, you'll never get the opportunity to experience the blessings God has instore for you. Dont lose faith.

Sharpening Skates

Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.

proverbs 27:17

Tonight at AGAPE we went skating, and i really thought it went better than expected. But i think tonight i really realized and saw friendship again. True acceptance, love, and support. Although i didnt do much skating, i really started to observe others. And seeing them help each other out, seeing them take a step out of their comfort zone and talk to others and mesh with others. I guess you could say i was really proud, surprised, and impressed.

First, i know myself, i still tend to restrict myself from opening up to others, being selfish, but seeing others do that is an inspiration and it pushes me to be like them to follow their footsteps. Just as Jesus did as well. I was proud because I remember when we started out, in our cliques and our groups. Its great to see the growth and how far we've gotten. Praise God.

Like the verse says. Iron sharpens iron, and man sharpens another. Its through this fellowship, this community, we continue to support each other, continue to grow and thrive. We build each other up and i honestly dont know what i'd do without AGAPE or where i'd be now without them. They've sharpened me for sure and im more than blessed to have God place them in my life.

Amen. PTL.

each day.

Getting a notification in the morning knowing that a friend was hit by a car is never a great way to start the morning. Especially when its a friend you love, care for, and look up to.

This really put into perspective life. Life. It is like a vapour as the bible describes it (James 4:14). Its short. It seems long, oh 60-80 years of life, of suffering and of pain, but compared to ETERNITY, its so infinitely short.

• --------------------------------------------------------------------

This line i guess you can say represents time. that tiny, microscopic dot, is your life on earth, and that line is eternity. Can you not see the immense difference between life on earth and on heaven? Its so short. And it comes and goes.

With this notification i got this morning, everything just put into context and i realized how fragile life exactly is. I may see him one week, give him a hug, have a typical chat, and the thought of not know if he'll even be there or if i'll see him the week after, thats a scary thought. We often take life for granted, and we just think, "oh we have another day", but do we really. God has the power to end your life with a blink of an eye. Really live each day like its your last, but for the right reasons.

each day is a gift.

each day is a blessing.

Rejoice.

²⁴ The LORD has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad.

Rejoice. Its important that we rejoice, firstly, happiness is always better than sadness, its just a better feeling. It promotes optimism and joy in one's life.

I remember reading a verse that states "to rejoice in all circumstances". Whether it may be sad, something horrid, anything that happens try to learn to rejoice because our God is good.

Rejoice can also mean thanksgiving. Look around you and realize how blessed we are. Yesterday someone came in and talked about clean water, how much we use it and it really opened my eyes and reminded me how blessed i truly am. Its so unfair to others and we're just absorbing all these resources, the gap between the rich and the poor is so wide. Be thankful and count your blessings.

Reflect on how powerful God is. He has the power to destroy you in an instant, you may not wake up tomorrow. Who knows. Im not trying to scare you, but really live each moment and make it count. Sometimes i wake up and i think God for just giving me another day to live. We complain about school, about work, but think about the people that dont even have the chance to know how it feels to learn. We're SO blessed and we all take it for granted.

I remember thinking back to my kids, overnight camp, day camp, and just seeing the joy in them, and how carefree they are and how happy they are, its... so freeing i guess you can say. At an age like mine, we stress over school, over friends, but these guys, they're just... free as birds, enjoying life and enjoying what they have. I think we need a bit of that in our lives regularly. To just rejoice, and enjoy what we've been given.

Rejoice. Rejoice. Rejoice.

Jason

#Believe

Do you believe?

Today in service, something hit me. hard. Pastor Irene, one of our youth pastors constantly kept referring to the songs we sang for worship. And this one thing she said really hit me. We sang Mighty To Save and the line was,

"Savior He can move the mountains"

Faith was a overarching theme throughout the service, and i reflected and realized that... i dont really have much faith in my God. We sing these words, but i realized, how much do i ACTUALLY believe these words that im singing out of my mouth, leading the congregation? :S not much.

I think this is a big downfall to my faith, because i clearly, dont have much faith so its harder to face struggles if i dont allow myself to give up my life and trust God completely. We have to learn to have faith in our God. Push it further, push it more, just imagine the copious amounts of blessings he will give you if you just had more faith in Him with his plan for you and his love.

Our God is great. He CAN move mountains. Fear Him, and have faith in Him that he'll pull you through whatever you're struggling with.

Day one. Thankfulness.

It's just another start to a new year. I thought it would feel like another day at Church. Another night spent with friends. but I was wrong.

I realized that spending the last moments of 2011 and the first of 2012 with my friends it hit me hard: What was I praying for all these years? Having friends by my side is something I took for granted. I only prayed for their requests and only thanked God for them once in a while. Who knows what's going to happen this year. From starting off the year with an earthquake in Japan. It could happen anytime in Canada and friends can go just like that. From tickle wars to first and last hugs. I realized that my friends have been by my side since the beginning. I never really thought of what my life would be like if I didn’t have them. No one there to support, encourage, make me smile, and just about everything.

Sitting at church on the first day of the year I prepared myself for the sermon. I wasn't expecting anything to come out of it till I turned and realized that Jason was missing. I thought to myself where could he be. 15 minutes ago we were texting each other and all of a sudden it stopped. I quickly asked him where he was and a few minutes later he replied. It was such a relief for him to show up. I realized that anything could have happen within those few minutes. We need to be thankful for what we’re given and not take things for granted. From simple friends to accountability partners. We all have our separate friends but, knowing that they’ll be there for you is such an amazing opportunity to have. Knowing that you’re loved, blessed, and trusted. A simple hug can’t hurt someone but not thanking them for something can. Take the time to reflect and thank those who you love the most.

As I sit here listening to Justis Kao's worship CD I came across this song called: "Everyday/Trading My Sorrows"
Here are the lyrics to "Everyday":

What to say, Lord? It's
You who gave me life and I
Can't explain just how
Much You mean to me now
That You have saved me, Lord
I give all that I am to You
That everyday I could
Be a light that shines Your name

Everyday, Lord, I'll
Learn to stand upon Your word
And I pray that I
I might come to know You more
That You would guide me in every single step I take, that
Everyday I can
Be Your light unto the world

Everyday, it's You I live for
Everyday, I'll follow after You
Everyday, I'll walk with You, my Lord

Everyday, Lord, I'll
Learn to stand upon Your word
And I pray that I
I might come to know You more
That You would guide me in every single step I take, that
Everyday I can
Be Your light unto the world

Everyday, it's You I live for
Everyday, I'll follow after You
Everyday, I'll walk with You, my Lord

It's You I live for, everyday

Everyday, it's You I live for
Everyday, I'll follow after You
Everyday, I'll walk with You, my Lord


These lyrics hit me hard. Like a slap in the face. Why am I on this earth? To please others? To help people? None of those. I had to give my all up to God. God created you and I to serve Him, for Him alone.

He made each and every one of us perfectly and for a reason. Some of us may still be seeking while others know for sure.

In 2011, to be honest, I wasn't a very humble leader. Some may say I am but personally, I don't think I was. Some things I did were for pride and acknowledgement. In 2012, I want to live like Christ. He gave us HIS all and it's time for us give Him our best.

Be thankful for what you’re given. Friends. Family. Food. Shelter. Schools. Church. And everything in between. You never know when your last day is. Christ gave us all a purpose. Yes, you’ll be given many challenges but He gives us these challenges because He knows that we can conquer them. It may take hours, days, months, sometimes years. But we strive to be like Him. He’s given us so much. It wouldn’t hurt to say thanks.


"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy"
-Philippians 1:3-4