Vlogging Taiwan: July 6th: Marketplace, Skit Practice, and the Mall

July 6th, 2013.

All music tracks are from the Motion Picture Soundtrack "Horton Hears a Who" composed by John Powell.
"Horton Suite"
"Into Whoville/Breakfast with the Mayor"
"The Quest (Retrieved from the composer's 8-track Archives)"
"Jungle of Nool"

God's Funny Like That

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know, I know.....Ask and you shall receive. But whatever, right?

Growing up in a Christian home and having gone to church my entire life, I was already pretty familiar with the notion of "God will give you what you ask for (so long as you are faithful in Him)."

"If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." Matthew 21:22

I am fairly certain that I have experienced this phenomena before, but on smaller scales and I did not ever really recognize that the granted wish came from God (much less from anywhere - just happened). If I did, it probably was not me who asked and/or received; it was most likely someone else - someone more "faithful/spiritual" than I.

But today I experienced His generosity. As many of you know, I am abroad right now working at a vacation Bible school in Kaohsiung, Taiwan helping teach English in the camp. As of yesterday (the day before the camp was to start), we did not have enough helpers to help manage all 50 kids that we were expecting to attend. It was a real stress for more than one reason. But anyways, we prayed over it and asked God to send us helpers. And I'll be honest, I was not super faithful. It's not that I didn't think that God could do it, but I just didn't think it would happen. I guess subconsciously I felt like this was just going to be one of those situations that everyone goes through that you just have to muscle through and hope it does not crash and burn. But nonetheless, we prayed. And what do ya know?? We came to the VBS today prepared for the worst and we were met with 3 or 4 wonderful ladies who stayed to help look after the children so that we could lead effectively and make things fun for the kids! This truly was a God thing; it had to have been. We later found out that one lady who helped us was basically a stranger (not in a creepy way; she was probably a mom of one of the kids). But she was a serious life-saver. The fact that she stayed to help without feeling obligated or asked to by us was outstanding. God must have laid it on her heart to help us.

This was a nice reminder that God does look out for His children, even when we may not believe He will pull through. I forget this often, but God doesn't. I think he has fun with us like this. I can laugh about it, too. God's funny like that.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding; think about Him in all your ways, and He will guide you on the right paths." Proverbs 3:5 HCSB

Kaohsiung City, Taiwan

Vlogging Taiwan: July 3-5th: Traveling Part I and Kaohsiung Harbor

After almost 24 hours of traveling, we arrived in Kaohsiung where we will be staying with our grandparents and working at a vacation Bible school helping to teach English in a local church!

Music: "Jerk It Out" by Caesars
"Junebug" by Robert Francis

Divorce is Becoming Disposable

Today I saw an advertisement for a "Do It Yourself Divorce" agency with the tag line "It's inexpensive!"  To me, this is just sad. For one, this sells divorce like its easy, simple, and disposable. Do It Yourself tags make it sound like it's a recycled, trinkety, project for just for kicks and giggles. That's the last thing divorce should be compared with.

And secondly, this ad compares divorce to the sale rack at Macy's. It labels the destruction of a contract between two people and God with a monetary value. It just breaks my heart that something like Do-It-Yourself divorce makes its business off of the destruction of families and the appeal of a cheaper monetary price. 

I understand that sometimes divorce is necessary, but still. It breaks my heart and it aches for everyone I've ever known (and may not have known) who has had to either go through the process of divorce or be a victim of it. 

Shout Out, Shout Out, Shout Out!!! : The New AMC Theater at The Village at Flatirons Crossing

Going to college...Need a Student ID!

Dearest Denver-metro and Boulder area readers,


I write to tell you of a magical place where you can visit new worlds and experience fantastically comfortable accommodations at the same time. No, I am not talking about Narnia, a giant beanbag, a magic carpet ("I can shoooowww you the wooorrrldd..."), or even a combination of the above three. I am talking about the new AMC movie theater at The Village at Flatirons Crossing Mall in Broomfield. 

***WARNING! THIS THEATER WILL RUIN EVERY THEATER EXPERIENCE AT ANY OTHER THEATER AFTERWARDS FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!****

It's just that good. 

They had some seats on display in the hall.

This theater has it all. Let's begin with the seats - the most fantastic part about this newly renovated cinaplex. These seats are nicer than first-class airplane seats. Each seat in this theater is about 10 inches wider (gu-estimation) than the average movie seat, plus each one comes with its own built in cup holder and padded arm rests - two of them!!! The entire thing is upholstered with what seems to be red vinyl leather. But get this, the best part???? THEY RECLINE!!!!!! These seats are pretty much like sitting in your own personal loveseat, but instead of watching the movie on a your TV screen at home, you're watching it on the big screen, complete with surround sound.

New seats at AMC Flatirons

Aren't those just the most gorgeous things you've ever seen? Why haven't we been lounging in these things for years? I know what you're thinking, (for the sake of humor, please read the following quote in a high pitched whining voice), "Wooowww, I bet those movie tickets cost a fortune because those seats are just so faaaannnnccccyyyyyyyyy!" Girl, I'll be straight with ya, yes, they do cost more, but that's because a.) you're getting nicer amenities and b.) since these seats are bigger, they can't fit as many seats in each room that a standard seating theater can, so they have to make up that lost revenue somehow. But honestly, it's not much; not like the upcharge they have for 3D movies - that's ridiculous. 

The spiffy coke machines

On top of all this, the theater has been outfitted with those coolio Coke Machines that allow you to create just about any flavor of soda you want! You know, the ones they have at Noodles & Company. And, for you readers that are over 21, they have a full bar inside for movie goers who may like to enjoy a beer or a margarita with their movie. Mind blowing, right? Check it. 

And in case you are wondering, we went to see White House Down. This movie just recently came out and I'll level with ya, I honestly thought that this movie was going to be just your typical action movie full of politics and guns. But it surprised me! I found it to be a very well done with good, clean comedy, and the essential emotional element that I feel many straight up action movies lack. This is the very brief synopsis from IMDB: "While on a tour of the White House with his young daughter, a Capitol policeman springs into action to save his child and protect the president from a heavily armed group of paramilitary invaders."
Straight forward enough, right? Well I personally found the movie to be very engaging and different from the typical, let's-shoot-up-the-government-and-blame-it-on-terrorists scenario. In this movie, it focuses on a terrorist attack on the White House which adds to the emotional impact of the story as it is our home soil and an attack on an icon infrastructure in the heart of our nation's capital. It stars Channing Tatum as the main character who has to save not only his daughter, but also the President of the United States (there's your action). And then, sprinkled throughout are little bits of humor and one-liners that I enjoyed (the tour guide is my favorite).

But overall, one thing that I really appreciated about White House Down was that it wasn't your typical terrorist attack movie and it addressed a staple in history that we have come to accept as a norm going forward. What I mean is in the movie, they depicted President Sawyer as an African American man (played by Jamie Foxx). Note that they created a fictional president instead of making him Obama. What I like about this is that it sets a precedence and an acceptance in our country that the president (other than Obama) can be someone who is of a color other than white - this is not a one time thing. Additionally, I appreciated that in the movie, they created also a fictional - yet believable - terrorist group other than Al Qaeda. I just feel like with all that's been going on in our world the past few years, it was nice to live in a fictional, yet exciting scenario without creating more stereotypes around current events. Overall, I give the movie two thumbs up! Hope you enjoy it, too! 

Taking On the Day Before the Day Takes On Me

There is something about the world before the sun comes up. It's peaceful, cool, and sweetly dark. If you happen to catch me awake before the dawn, I am sometimes most awake. It's a world all its own; a world seen by so few that it's almost a secret. Those late night partiers do not witness or better yet, experience, its serene bliss; and those long, heavy sleepers wouldn't dare awake. Even the average Joe doesn't get up and leave his house at this hour.

It's almost a secret, I say. Almost a secret. 

As we cruise down the interstate towards the Denver skyline, it shimmers, yet settles with a different vibe than the luminous night life. It looks content and beautiful. Colors of orange, white, and purple blend together in the city lights, contrasting against the dark morning sky. 

We venture towards a distant destination in these meek hours of the day, and I appreciate the glowing headlights of the few on the road with us. The truckers with their travels of solitude and the early commuters alike. They are the secret holders and the citizens of the pre-dawn realm. A secret world held by them, the insomniacs, early risers, the graveyard shift workers, and the Alpha alike. And every now and then, I find the excuse to join them. 

The Great Mystery That is Life's Purpose

So today in my church flock (like a small group) which consists of young adults, we were discussing the "the Will of God." We came to the realization that it's not our job to "find the Will of God." His Will is always going to be there; it's not going to go away. If He has a Will for you, He's going to make sure you get there and He's never to leave you hanging. 

People often think that when they're making a decision you have to choose the "right" one, and if you don't choose the right one, you're going to end up not fulfilling your purpose in life or not following the Will of God.

For my generation, right now a lot of us are trying to decide where we want to go to college, or what we want to do with our lives post-high school. It's definitely a stressful process, but people find that they're having a hard time deciding between this school or that school and they're thinking, "If I go here I might miss out on God's Will!" Or, "Maybe I chose wrong! I'm not going to find my purpose in life!"

Whether people admit it or not, each person wants to find the most efficient way - or the most correct way - to get from point A to point B in their life. Detours, especially in American culture, are frowned upon in people's minds and they are not things people really want to have to deal with.

 It used to be that people made a big deal about finding one's "purpose in life." I'm here to say, that there's no need to search for it. 

 

God's Will has always been there and will always be there; there is no possible way for you to escape God's Will. Take for example Jonah in the Bible, he probably  went the furthest out of his way than anyone else in history, to try and avoid God's purpose for him. I mean, he got eaten by a whale for Pete's sake just so he could avoid going to Nineveh where God had called him!!  But did that stop God's plan for him?? No!! God made it so that he would return to what He had called Jonah to do. And even though the journey did have a lot of road bumps and it was probably very uncomfortable for Jonah, God's Will was for him to go to Nineveh, and eventually, he fulfilled that purpose that God had laid out, despite his efforts not to. 

I'm not saying that God is going to make our lives difficult if we happen to make a "wrong" decision or that it's going to be always painful to get back on track (though it may be). Really, my point is that no matter what you do or what decision you make, if God has a Will and purpose for you, He's going to get you there. 

Now, just as a disclaimer, I want to make it clear that this is not an excuse to do whatever the heck you want and think that God's going to fix it for you. You still have to seek wisdom in Him in order to A.) be happy (Proverbs 3:13) and B.) to easily fulfill his Will. Jonah didn't necessarily choose God's original plan, and obviously, it was a tough road back.

Also, don't think that this means that you have to have some grand, monumental purpose in your life; our societal perception of purpose is that it has to be something physically significant, but that's not true. God's Will is so beyond us, you may never even know what exactly you accomplished until you finally meet Him in Heaven! But that's okay! Take Enoch, for example, from Genesis. Enoch is only mentioned in the Bible truly only two times, once in Genesis where it talks about his genealogy and a second time in Hebrews 11:5 where it says that "By faith, Enoch was taken away so that he did not experience death, and he was not to be found because God took him away." What I am saying is since Enoch isn't mentioned in very many other places of the Bible, he must not have done anything significant enough to be mentioned elsewhere in the Bible! Yet, it was by his faith that he was taken into Heaven without dying. Enoch didn't do anything majorly significant to be pleasing to God. Enoch fulfilled his purpose - living as an example of faith- in his life (which happened to be 365 years long!) and  God was extremely pleased with him.  I doubt Enoch knew what his life's purpose was, but it didn't matter to him so long as he walked with God. 

...

Today was Father's Day, and for Father's Day we went down to the 16th St. Mall in Denver to see the new Michelangelo and Leonardo DiVinci museum exhibit. It was very interesting, but one thing that struck me was a quote written by Michelangelo, himself. It read as this: 

"Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it."

If we are the blocks of stone, God is our sculptor and the statue is His Will. According to Michelangelo, the block of marble already has the masterpiece within it, it's just his job to remove the excess stone and shape it so that the statue will come through. This is exactly the same as with us. God's Will is there and He will make it happen.