Sunday, January 30, 2011

China and Sweet & Sour Chicken

Suilaid!

Shi (yes), I am back with more China trip news! A girl on the GE Facebook page posted a prayer card her sister had designed for her, and made it known that her sister was willing to do the same for other needy missionaries! The best part- she would do it completely free! And she did! And it looks pretty! And I'm excited about it! We're going to get them printed up this week, and I can't wait. See, here it is (with my last name removed for the purposes of privacy):

On to the sweet-and-sour chicken. I made some in our crockpot today. And despite the fact that I put too much red pepper on the chicken, it was delicious...if I do say so myself. And I do! :P It was excellently good, even in leftover form, which is how I'm eating it right now. Mmmm, scrumptious goodness!

So yeah. Envy me my sweet-and-sour chicken. But not too much. Because covetousness is a sin. And maybe spread the word of my trip, and of my needs! Because I need a lot! :D

爱於耶穌,
~Liberty

Monday, January 17, 2011

Zambia

Suilaid!



An updated version of my old video...I don't know if I had already posted it...but here it is, a video of my trip to Zambia. :))

爱於耶穌,
~Liberty

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Got Jesus?

Suilaid!

This is just a quick reflection that popped into my mind today as I was looking through sets on Polyvore. One of the ladies who I follow had made a set that featured a quote- "Got Jesus?" While I find it is an interesting cultural phenomenon to study, the 'got ___' advertising gimmick first inspired by the 'got milk' campaign, I don't think that that phrase fully conveys the unique relationship between Savior and saved.

We don't "got Jesus," or to put it in the grammatically correct way, we don't "have Jesus." Jesus is not a possession to be had. A possession can be put on a shelf, it can be forgotten now and then, shoved into a corner so we don't have to pay any attention to it. But we shouldn't do that to Jesus.

I think a more apt way to put this would be- "Does Jesus have you?" You do not possess Jesus; Jesus possesses you. He bought you with the dearest price imaginable, that of His precious, pure blood. You choose to acknowledge His ownership of your heart, soul, and mind, and to listen to His direction in your life.

So no, I do not "got Jesus." Jesus has me. I am His possession, I am not my own.

爱於耶穌,
~Liberty

Monday, January 10, 2011

Claiming My Birthright

Suilaid!

I've been reading (and am almost finished with) "The Naked Gospel" by Andrew Farley. It's a seriously amazing book, and I strongly suggest each and every one of you get it and read it as soon as possible, because it will totally change your outlook on what salvation means, and what your birthright as a believer is. And that's what this post is about!

I'm going to point out some particularly outstanding things I noticed, so I don't give you a summary of the whole book. (Actually, right now, before you read this, you might want to go out and buy the book, read it, then come and see what I'm talking about. There can be spoilers about nonfiction books, too. :P)

One of the things he talks about in there is just how we identify ourselves as believers. If you look at Acts (which I'm reading at the moment, by the way), saved believers are always referred to as "saints." But Farley talks about how modern Christians are basically afraid to be identified as "saints," mostly (in my opinion) because of the Catholic Church's qualifications that have to be met before one can be labeled a "saint." But that's just my opinion. :P The point is, in any case, that from the get-go, we refuse to be identified as what we are- saints of God, marked to stand next to his Son, to rule over the world! We are "more than conquerors" but we refuse to be labeled as such!

Farley also talks about the belief that Christians (saved believers) still have a mysterious "old man" hanging around them after they get saved. Even though Paul specifically states in Romans that the "old man" is dead, died on the cross with Jesus, and we were resurrected as new creatures in Christ, some circles still insist upon believing we have some of that old nature left in us. Farley challenges his readers to realize that we have been set free from the nature of sin that once enslaved us. Now, the only thing that makes us sin is our physical body's selfish and excessive wants and desires.

I have to say that, seeing all this conveyed so eloquently has really changed my thoughts on some things. While I was already heading in this direction, knowing that Christ took care of it all, it was difficult for me to know how to claim it, to look to Biblical evidence and say "Yes, here is how I know such-and-such." And now I know. :))

I'm claiming my birthright as a child of God. I have been set free from my bondage. I am a saint of God, ordained to be His for eternity. Jesus Christ's work on the cross paid the penalty for my sin and made it so I could go to heaven. His resurrection prepared the way for me to have a new life in Him, right now, here on earth.

As Josh Hamilton said in his song "The Anthem" (which is, by the way, not a song I would ordinarily like, but Chelsea made me listen to it, and I love the message of the words):

I am royalty
I have destiny
I have been set free
I'm gonna' change the world!


I am a child of God, a royal of the highest order. I have a destiny through Him, because of Him. I have been set free of every bond and chain that was on me as a child of this world. And now, there's nothing to keep me from going and changing the world.

So, to close: go read The Naked Gospel. It'll rock your world. And then come tell me about it. If you've already read it, give me thoughts. I like thoughts. :))

Let's go change the world.

爱於耶穌,
~Liberty

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Whatever ye have...

Suilaid!

Yesterday I was reading in 1 Timothy. In the sixth chapter, Paul is talking to Timothy about being content with whatever he has, no matter how much or how little it is.


"But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us therewith be content."
(1 Timothy 6:6-8)

God has really been speaking to me about this lately: to just be content with what I have, and let it be enough for me, no matter what my other circumstances are. These verses brought to mind these from Matthew, which first came to my attention a few weeks ago when I was reading a book about Hudson Taylor.


"Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."
(Matthew 6:25-34)

In these verses, Jesus is basically saying: "What in the world are you doing worrying about it? Doesn't my father take care of every creature in the world? Don't you think he can take care of you? If so, then why worry?"

I can't say I've completely hammered this one down. I always want something- a new gadget, a book, a treat. But I'm working on it.

"Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content."
(Philippians 4:11)

爱於耶穌,
~Liberty

Going to Change the World...

Suilaid!

So my best friend and missions partner, Chelsea Hughes, departed from Tulsa International Airport this morning to head to Los Angeles. From there, she will be flying with a team of other World Race missionaries to Bangkok, where she will embark on a bus and drive to Phu Ket, where she will be by Friday, Lord willing.

For those of you haven't heard of the World Race, it is an 11-month long missions adventure wherein the participants travel to 11 different countries, minister all over the world, make epic friendships, and have their hearts broken as they discover the needs of an equally broken world. Or so I've been told. You have to 21 to embark upon this journey, and as I'm only 16 (grr), understandably, I'm not going to be on it yet...yet.

*deep breath* I'm seriously trying to keep from crying right now, because I miss my Chels, but I'm just as jealous of her because I want to go too!!

But ah well. Pray for Chels this year as she travels over the world, and does her part to change it for Christ! :))

爱於耶穌,
~Liberty

Saturday, January 1, 2011

2011

Suilaid!

Well, it's 2011. My mom and I saw in the New Year with Pringles and Lord of the Rings (Two Towers, if you care to know). It was pretty awesome.

So, what I'm looking forward to in 2010:
  • My missions trip to China
  • Getting all the money I need for said missions trip to China
  • Who knows what else?

I'm excited! :D Now, for last year's New Year Resolutions.

I didn't beat my 250-quality-books, but I did beat it in total number of books read! :D I read 52 series and quality books this year, and am currently reading like five more. Yes, I take too much on, what made you think that?

I finished Ravaged Time, and won NaNoWriMo. Again. The one I probably didn't quite get was reading my Bible daily. I did manage to read it most days, but there were some where I flaked out because...well, you know the excuses.

So, this year's resolutions:

  • Read at least one non-fiction book a week. Because I'm ambitious like that. That means 52 nonfiction books. That also means I'll have to take four nonfiction books with me to China. Better and better.
  • Make a sincere attempt to read my Bible daily. I know, this one's old-hat, but it's awesome anyway. XD
  • Write in my journal daily. My Aunt sent me a nice leather-bound journal that's absolutely beautiful. It's my new 2011 journal.
  • Finish at least a couple stories before the year is out, ones I have begun but never finished.
  • Win NaNoWriMo '11! This one goes without saying. Do I know which plot I'm going to do? No idea yet, but I do have a couple inklings. Let me finish Andromtiel.

So yes. What are your New Year's resolutions?

爱於耶穌,
~Liberty