so i'll do my reading for the day, check this blog, see what people have written, and then - i am ashamed to say - just leave. no excuses here really (actually i could probably come up with a ton but why waste the time?). just an apology to you all.
so here are some of my goals:
1. spiritually i've been kind of dwindling since the school year. before this group, when i would read the Bible everyday, it would be kind of aimless and i wouldn't really take in what i was reading. during the school year i would have this devotional that PG gave me that i would go by and it would tell me what to read, and then i would talk to my LCG (accountability partner/mentor sort of thing) and i would really grow. however now during the summer i don't really have anyone to talk to so the drive kind of died. i'm hoping that this blog and this group will kind of keep me going. i'm excited to finish the Bible in one year because i really want to get to know God's word better and so my goal is to read everyday (which i have been doing) and post at least once every two days (which i have not been doing >.<) and keep this up until we are done(at least)
2. pray bigger prayers. making them more meaningful and detailed. i mean if i don't know what i want, what can i ask from God? i want to be less selfish in my prayers and pray more for the bigger picture and those around me rather than always focusing on myself or situations/things that concern me.
3. schedule an appointment with the IPE office this summer so i can figure out the exact route that i want to minor in and fix my schedule for the fall accordingly
4. be more loving to my brother in that i stop trying to discipline him and acting all motherly and just act like a sister to him and have fun/play with him
5. ok this is kind of silly but i want to make another bag this summer. i mean i pretty much have all the materials i need and for a while i've had sort of a vision for my second bag. it's not extremely detailed but that's how my first bag started out. i just want to see this idea become real like my first one did. God gave me some skills in this area and i think it would be a waste if i didn't do something with them. also since something like this takes a lot of time i won't be wasting my time this summer sleeping (excessively) or on the computer.
6. work out at least 4 times a week every week. i was literally sick the whole school year last year and i want to get healthy and stay heatlhy. my mom bought my lifetime membership for me to lose weight haha, and while that would be nice i'm just aiming for toning and getting rid of any flabbiness hahaha XD
~day 3~
in Genesis 8:21 God states about men that "...every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood" but then we always say that children are innocent. so does He mean when you're old enough to know the difference between good and bad that you always have the tendency to do bad? or does He mean that if children were never taught the difference between good and evil they would do evil? because isn't that a completely different view of children that people portray now? "children are so innocent!" or "they don't know any better" is what you always hear. then again if you say that a child doing something bad is only because he/she doesn't know any better, then what God is saying is right (duh), so why do people always say that children are innocent? is it because of the fact that they don't know any better? is it due to that lack of knowledge that they can be called innocent? ok the word innocent is starting to sound funny now...(said it in my head one too many times...)
*edit* nvm i just looked up innocent (stupid i know i should've done so to begin with -_-) and one of the definitions is "uninformed or unaware; ignorant" so yea i guess that's it. makes sense now
also in Genesis 9:24 Noah cursed Canaan for what Ham did, but why Canaan? why not any of Ham's other sons? or why not just Ham himself?
then in Genesis 10:25, what does it mean that Peleg's time on earth was divided?
~day 4~
yea i have the same question as lulu. if God limited the number of years men could live to 120, how come in the genealogies some of them lived like 500 years? or was it more of a gradual process? like the lifespan of people couldn't just be suddenly cut to a tenth? because that sure seems to be the case when reading the list in Genesis 11
and again...same question as lulu: after Abram beat the other kings, he refused anything from the king of Sodom, but wasn't the stuff Abram's to begin with?
so nothing new from me for this day i guess...><
~day 5~
Genesis 15:11 seems kind of random and almost useless. if Abram drove those birds away in the end and all was well, why was that even mentioned? i think i need verse 16 explained to me. for some reason it's just not clicking. the last part especially, "...the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure."
also why does Hagar begin to despise Sarai when she conceives? i don't really get it. is she scared that Sarai is going to take her child and pretend like she's his mother instead of Hagar?
also, why is there a need for a physical representation of God's covenant with Abraham? was it like their end of the bargain to keep while God greatly increased Abraham's descendants and made them into a great nation?
~day 6~
in Genesis 18:22-33 i think that God shows so much patience with Abraham when Abraham was pleading for Sodom's case. i mean if it were me after the first two numbers i'd probably just be like, "ok hurry up and get to the point! bargain faster." or something like that. it kind of reminds me how when we talk to older people we have to repeat things over and over and over....and over again. and i lose patience fast, and sometimes this could be with my parents. i guess this is just a really good reminder to be patient with people.
okay so about the story of Abraham and Abilemech...why did Abraham do it again? actually no it says why, but i just thought it was kind of funny (?) that about the same thing happened here that did in Egypt. how come the Bible portrays the Abilemech and the Pharaoh as bad (sort of?) or that they were in the wrong? it doesn't make it seem like Abraham was equally at fault, which i feel like he was.
ok i think that should be all for now
hopefully next time i post will be within the next two days >.<
Saturday, July 5, 2008
mmm...i'm sorta behind on my reading and posting...
i haven't really read today's, but it sorta brings me back to the part where Abraham is named. I mean, Abram means "exalted father" and Abraham means "father of many"...um...big difference but i dont know what it is....a father that is held with high regard and a father that...has a bunch of children...but still!! -_- ah well, dont listen to me...
i also dont get why God changed Sarai's name...it's not much different and theres no footnotes either...? maybe it means mother of many...^^
plus (this is for yesterday) when God said, I will bless you and Sarah with a child, Abraham fell down on the floor laughing! (rotfl??) i mean, if i was the god of everything, i wouldn't stand for one of my creations to laugh at my words ><>
okay i havent finished the reading today and marks waiting for me to get off, so one last question: how do you upload pictures? ~^v^~
Day 6 Reading
Just a quick post:
I thought the part where Sarah was like "I did not laugh" and God says "Yes you did". hahaha just caught me funny
And the part where Abraham pleads for Sodom is pretty generous of God. For sure, even for the littlest thing, I would get pretty ticked off for someone asking me for such little things. But God here, wow he must be real homie g's with Abraham cuz he does whatever he says! Lucky Abe here he requests these things from God and God's like "sure Abraham, anything else?"
yup
I thought the part where Sarah was like "I did not laugh" and God says "Yes you did". hahaha just caught me funny
And the part where Abraham pleads for Sodom is pretty generous of God. For sure, even for the littlest thing, I would get pretty ticked off for someone asking me for such little things. But God here, wow he must be real homie g's with Abraham cuz he does whatever he says! Lucky Abe here he requests these things from God and God's like "sure Abraham, anything else?"
yup
Friday, July 4, 2008
old testiment terrorism
we all read about abram and consider him to be a Biblical superstar. he's pretty much the guy who started it all. God makes more covenants with abram than any other person in the Bible. he's like the michael jordan of the old testament. but here in chapter 16, we see his lack of faith and impatience in allowing God to fulfill his promises. just before this, God promises abram that his offspring will be more than the stars of the sky and more than the sand on the beach. that's a LOT of babies. but at the start of chapter 16, abram is thinking to himself, "man... i'm getting kind of old... and my wife is barren..." then with his wife, they decide that maybe God actually meant i'd have my offspring through hagar. so, they decide to go ahead with it.
result: ishmael is born.
God promises that he will also make ishmael into a great nation. Bible scholars believe that the arabic people are descendants of ishmael because of location and geneologies. these people would war with the israelites time and time again in history (and even to the present). consider the far-reaching consequences of abram's impatience. now consider our own instances of impatience.
ps. starcraft II just got an official release date. 12/03/08
result: ishmael is born.
God promises that he will also make ishmael into a great nation. Bible scholars believe that the arabic people are descendants of ishmael because of location and geneologies. these people would war with the israelites time and time again in history (and even to the present). consider the far-reaching consequences of abram's impatience. now consider our own instances of impatience.
ps. starcraft II just got an official release date. 12/03/08
I'll post about day 4 in a min, I won't post about 5 till probably tomorrow because I like reading at night...in bed...so I can pray quietly bout it and suches. Now I have to write some goals.
1. Set my priorities straight...so I can actually achieve some goals.
2. Eat better...no more snacking in between my meals and snacks...heh. No more of those Sweet and Salty peanut bars.
3. Improve my flexibility...honestly...I suck.
4. Practice more violin...
5. Do some math homework.
6. Get some Chinese in, I'm a drop-out, I have to keep up-ish (BIG ISH) somehow...
I've got some other smallish ones here and there...meh.
^-^ Happy face~
OH DANG~You can change colors!!
1. Set my priorities straight...so I can actually achieve some goals.
2. Eat better...no more snacking in between my meals and snacks...heh. No more of those Sweet and Salty peanut bars.
3. Improve my flexibility...honestly...I suck.
4. Practice more violin...
5. Do some math homework.
6. Get some Chinese in, I'm a drop-out, I have to keep up-ish (BIG ISH) somehow...
I've got some other smallish ones here and there...meh.
^-^ Happy face~
OH DANG~You can change colors!!
Day 5 Reading
So I have a couple of quick, short questions on Day 5
The part where Abram is talking to God and God says "I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it." Abram says, "O Sovereign lord, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?"
Now in Matthew, where Jesus calms the storm, he yells at his disciples, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" God in Genesis, doesn't say that, but instead, he creates a covenant to Abram promising him all this land. There are several more examples in the New Testament where Jesus uses faith to teach his people. Was faith not an issue back then because God is like right in front of your eyes? Even so, he is God, why ask him if you really are going to be king of all this land? And even after that, God creates a covenant to promise him. The example from Matthew might not be the same situation, but faith applies to both.
Another question. I know the 10 Commandmants weren't written down back then, so was it ok to commit adultery? Sarai is just like, I'm not having babies, so go ahead and have a baby with our maid. And God doesn't intervene. Oh yeah, he blesses the child king of a few other nations. I noticed a few other times in our previous days of reading that several people had more than one wife like Lamech. The bible doesn't say anything about it and it sounds like it was ok. I mean guess that's how people multiplied in the beginning. They had more than one wife. But just cuz the 10 Commandmants weren't written down yet, it was ok?
Oh and one last short question. The description of Ishmael is a pretty insulting one: "A wild donkey of a man", but God later as he is talking to Abraham says that Ishamel will be blessed as "a father of 12 rulers and a great nation". Yup...
Donkeymannnn hahaha
The part where Abram is talking to God and God says "I am the Lord, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to take possession of it." Abram says, "O Sovereign lord, how can I know that I will gain possession of it?"
Now in Matthew, where Jesus calms the storm, he yells at his disciples, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" God in Genesis, doesn't say that, but instead, he creates a covenant to Abram promising him all this land. There are several more examples in the New Testament where Jesus uses faith to teach his people. Was faith not an issue back then because God is like right in front of your eyes? Even so, he is God, why ask him if you really are going to be king of all this land? And even after that, God creates a covenant to promise him. The example from Matthew might not be the same situation, but faith applies to both.
Another question. I know the 10 Commandmants weren't written down back then, so was it ok to commit adultery? Sarai is just like, I'm not having babies, so go ahead and have a baby with our maid. And God doesn't intervene. Oh yeah, he blesses the child king of a few other nations. I noticed a few other times in our previous days of reading that several people had more than one wife like Lamech. The bible doesn't say anything about it and it sounds like it was ok. I mean guess that's how people multiplied in the beginning. They had more than one wife. But just cuz the 10 Commandmants weren't written down yet, it was ok?
Oh and one last short question. The description of Ishmael is a pretty insulting one: "A wild donkey of a man", but God later as he is talking to Abraham says that Ishamel will be blessed as "a father of 12 rulers and a great nation". Yup...
Donkeymannnn hahaha
Lots and lots of days...two actually
Okies. SO. I posted this late...again. Yea I know we kind of talked about this at our little meeting thing but obviously I haven't looked at the blog in awhile...hehe. Okies.
Day 2-MAKE A DIFFERENCE
I am always reveiwing what I read when writing my posts, after reading what Evan said, when looking at the story of Cain and Abel I realized something. Adam and Eve MUST have had other children. Why weren't they mentioned? Do you know them name by name? Well, no.
If I was writing a biography of myself and I name a bunch of people and YOU happened not to be on the list, but you know I even talked about point blank and all my buddies that were in it, our disscusions...EVERYONE else in pb was mentioned...except you.
Why? Most likely because you weren't significant enough to be remembered (Or I just don't like you...jk).
I don't know if I'm making sense here so I'm just going to make a point. I want to be a person where when God is telling Moses to write about the history he'll be like, "...Adam and Eve had some kids...Cain killed Abel...and then...and Rachel! You can't forget RACHEL! She was so cool and she just...."
I wouldn't want to be the son or daughter of Adam and Eve...that God never really mentioned. I was reading my amazing Brio magazine yesterday (April issue, because I couldn't find my more recent ones...), and I skimmed across this article on how we so be a scar on God that he'll never forget how it happened. God will point to the scar and be like..."Yup, that was when I sent him/her down to Earth and did amazing things..."
You also have to think, do you want to be remembered for the first murder or killing your brother...?
Okies, that's what really stuck out to me on the second day...
Nothing much on the Noah stuff 'cept that...
CHAPTER 6 VERSE 2<<<<<<<<<
Hehehe...still trying to defend my gender...okies.
Day 3-More questions than comments...
Is there any part of the bible that says we can eat meat with lifeblood? Because if not...should we start eating kosher?
About God's covenant...does that mean he can send a huge fire to wipe everyone off? Or like a tornado...? Or blow up the sun...? You know? Instead of flooding the earth.
How did Noah know that when the bird didn't come back...it wasn't dead?
8:21
What did God mean when he said curse the ground?
Actually...no comments...all questions.
Day 2-MAKE A DIFFERENCE
I am always reveiwing what I read when writing my posts, after reading what Evan said, when looking at the story of Cain and Abel I realized something. Adam and Eve MUST have had other children. Why weren't they mentioned? Do you know them name by name? Well, no.
If I was writing a biography of myself and I name a bunch of people and YOU happened not to be on the list, but you know I even talked about point blank and all my buddies that were in it, our disscusions...EVERYONE else in pb was mentioned...except you.
Why? Most likely because you weren't significant enough to be remembered (Or I just don't like you...jk).
I don't know if I'm making sense here so I'm just going to make a point. I want to be a person where when God is telling Moses to write about the history he'll be like, "...Adam and Eve had some kids...Cain killed Abel...and then...and Rachel! You can't forget RACHEL! She was so cool and she just...."
I wouldn't want to be the son or daughter of Adam and Eve...that God never really mentioned. I was reading my amazing Brio magazine yesterday (April issue, because I couldn't find my more recent ones...), and I skimmed across this article on how we so be a scar on God that he'll never forget how it happened. God will point to the scar and be like..."Yup, that was when I sent him/her down to Earth and did amazing things..."
You also have to think, do you want to be remembered for the first murder or killing your brother...?
Okies, that's what really stuck out to me on the second day...
Nothing much on the Noah stuff 'cept that...
CHAPTER 6 VERSE 2<<<<<<<<<
Hehehe...still trying to defend my gender...okies.
Day 3-More questions than comments...
Is there any part of the bible that says we can eat meat with lifeblood? Because if not...should we start eating kosher?
About God's covenant...does that mean he can send a huge fire to wipe everyone off? Or like a tornado...? Or blow up the sun...? You know? Instead of flooding the earth.
How did Noah know that when the bird didn't come back...it wasn't dead?
8:21
What did God mean when he said curse the ground?
Actually...no comments...all questions.
The Journey of Desire: Searching for the Life We've Only Dreamed Of
So when I first picked up this book, I did what I usually do when I start a book. I turn to the back.
Now, I know this book was going to tell me about desire, but that's a pretty broad term so I really didn't know what direction it was going in.
The back of the book, however, changed that and already has given me a quote: "Christianity is not an invitation to become a moral person. It is not a program for getting us in line or for reforming society... At its core, Christianity begins with an invitation to desire."
So I thought about this quote and I used it as a checkpoint in my life to see if this is something I do. To elaborate, in the first chapter, Eldredge says, " Desire...is the map we have been given to find the only life worth living" (13). What I think he's trying to say is that we are to harness desire to obtain the life we want. Connecting it to the back cover, it starts with the beginning of Christianity; A person's life changed from non-believing to believing. And it's true, a person becomes a believer because they desire to find something in their life.
I'm only on the first chapter so I don't know much, but the first chapter is a pretty solid foundation for the rest.
Now, I know this book was going to tell me about desire, but that's a pretty broad term so I really didn't know what direction it was going in.
The back of the book, however, changed that and already has given me a quote: "Christianity is not an invitation to become a moral person. It is not a program for getting us in line or for reforming society... At its core, Christianity begins with an invitation to desire."
So I thought about this quote and I used it as a checkpoint in my life to see if this is something I do. To elaborate, in the first chapter, Eldredge says, " Desire...is the map we have been given to find the only life worth living" (13). What I think he's trying to say is that we are to harness desire to obtain the life we want. Connecting it to the back cover, it starts with the beginning of Christianity; A person's life changed from non-believing to believing. And it's true, a person becomes a believer because they desire to find something in their life.
I'm only on the first chapter so I don't know much, but the first chapter is a pretty solid foundation for the rest.
Visioneering...
So this is a truly inspiring book. The thing I find most reassuring in what I've read so far is that we as people don't need to worry about how God will accomplish our...His visions, He is capable of all things. but other than inspiring this book has not done much for me in the first couple chapters. It makes the assumption that we started out reading with a vision, which I don't have. I have no idea what God is calling me to do in my life, until then i can only prepare my own heart and pray that God will slowly reveal His plan for me. It's like i'm stuck in chapter 1 even though i've read past it. Perhaps this will be a better read when my calling is a little more clear.
hmm. so ham moved toward the south.
ham's people were cursed to be slaves.
and many africans were put into slavery.
i dont know if there really is a connection or not.
i like the part where abram lets lot pick his land first.
and he says if you go to the left, ill go to the right. and vice versa.
but yea. if all people were like this. think of how nice the world would be.
and of course. god blesses abram.
question. what would have happend if adam and eve ate from the tree of life?
would they live forever??
ham's people were cursed to be slaves.
and many africans were put into slavery.
i dont know if there really is a connection or not.
i like the part where abram lets lot pick his land first.
and he says if you go to the left, ill go to the right. and vice versa.
but yea. if all people were like this. think of how nice the world would be.
and of course. god blesses abram.
question. what would have happend if adam and eve ate from the tree of life?
would they live forever??
Thursday, July 3, 2008
God the burning bush...?
why was God a burning bush when he was talking to Moses? Why can't he be some type of "heavenly presence" instead of a bush?
my summer goals
1) I definitely need to be more productive this summer. Last year, i was SOOOOO bored and i just sat around and play games and watched movies. This year, I'm going to try and stay busy. I have a volunteer job at the library, so that helps.
2) I need to eat more healthy stuff. I mean, i eat fruit as a nighttime snack, but i have to try and eat more veggies, and disgusting stuff like that, which my loving parents claim are good for me.
3) I'm going to try and pick up on tennis, because last year i had a tennis coach, but he was really snotty, so I quit, and i tried playing tennis with my friend and i couldn't even serve the dang ball.
4) I'm going to be more serious about my piano practice, because before, i would play sopme scales, skim through a song really fast, and that was my practice.
5) i'm going to try and keep my room clean, because my parents always get really annoyed when they open the door and cant even get in. Like, right now, you can't even see the floor. Seriously.
That's pretty much it. yay me lolz :)
2) I need to eat more healthy stuff. I mean, i eat fruit as a nighttime snack, but i have to try and eat more veggies, and disgusting stuff like that, which my loving parents claim are good for me.
3) I'm going to try and pick up on tennis, because last year i had a tennis coach, but he was really snotty, so I quit, and i tried playing tennis with my friend and i couldn't even serve the dang ball.
4) I'm going to be more serious about my piano practice, because before, i would play sopme scales, skim through a song really fast, and that was my practice.
5) i'm going to try and keep my room clean, because my parents always get really annoyed when they open the door and cant even get in. Like, right now, you can't even see the floor. Seriously.
That's pretty much it. yay me lolz :)
2008 summmmmmer goalz(:
1. do something productive this summer. i was hoping to get a job, but that probably wont happen. so i want to figure out what i want to do when i grow up. my mommy sat me down after dinner a few nights ago, looked straight at me and literally asked what i wanted to be when i grow up. and i dont know. because the truth is that im scared. i dont want to grow up. but i know im going to. so i want to figure out what i want to do when i get old and get a head start on it.
2. pray for more people that need it. people in/out of my family that are not christian, for my friends who need support when i know i am incapable of helping them, and myself-that i can receive more strenth from God and just grow as a christian, friend and sister this summer.
3. my health. i dont think i eat very healthy foods. and id like to run more.
4. start and finish THE CASE FOR CHRIST
and fully understand it.
mmmm, lets get a-cracking.
2. pray for more people that need it. people in/out of my family that are not christian, for my friends who need support when i know i am incapable of helping them, and myself-that i can receive more strenth from God and just grow as a christian, friend and sister this summer.
3. my health. i dont think i eat very healthy foods. and id like to run more.
4. start and finish THE CASE FOR CHRIST
and fully understand it.
mmmm, lets get a-cracking.
More wondering...
in Genesis 6:3, it says that...God says that men are mortal (in the footnotes it says corrupt) so He will limit their days to 100 and 20 years. That was either yesterday or the day before that's reading. Today, in Genesis 11:11, it says that Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters. I asked Solomon and he's like, "Well, Noah's family wasn't corrupt as much as the rest of mankind. 120 years is probably what everyone can expect to live up to, but not necessarily the exact number of years that they will live up to"...is that right? Oh well...
and then, in Genesis 11:1,about the Tower of Babel, when the LORD(i cant do small caps) says "come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other." does that refer to the Trinity? and the LORD says that a lot in the Bible in many situations...?
also, Genesis 11:29 says that Abram's wife is named Sarai. But i always thought that Abram's wife was named Sarah?? i dunno...
and in Genesis 14:14-16, it talks about Abram rescuing Lot from these kings that allied together...but werent those kings that were allied together like...unstoppable or something? and then Abram goes to rescue Lot and he takes them down with 318 people...the power of God...~^_^~
and finally, in Genesis 14:18-24, it says that Abram gives him a tenth of everything and then the king of Sodom saying like, give me the people and keep the goods to yourself and then Abram saying that he wouldnt accept anything so that the king couldnt say that he made Abram rich...but wasnt it Abram's stuff in the beginning? or maybe i just didnt read the scriptures right...? ;_;
the world, noah & abram.
first of all, ima sorry this is a bit late,
but lets get blogging.
day 1:
so many people know (or at least i hope they know) about God creating the world in 6 days. SIX DAYS. that is nuts. but we read that God can just make things on demand-if he wants light, he gets it. if he wants water, stars, livestock, he gets all of it. i think its pretty amazing how powerful he is and pretty darn cool that we get to appreciate his works. i also notice it repeatedly says that a) God saw it was good and b) and there was evening and there was morning. i want to know if anyone of you guys have any thoughts to put in on that.
what are we going to do with adam & eve? God makes eve out of adam, and eve takes the fruit. and she just has to bite it and give it to adam. so now we are all guity of sin.
day 2:
we find out adam and eve give birth to cain and abel. i doooooooooooo remember a sermon about this(:
cain is selfish, and only gives the Lord his fruits from his soil, but abel offers the fat portions of the firstborn of his flock. mmmmm, sounds yummy, aiight? and so the Lord is favoring abel over cain (who wouldnt?) and cain is jealous. that jerk. in fact, cain is so immensely jealous, he kills abel. that jerk. that wont do any good for him. well the Lord punishes him and cain cannot take it. waitttttttt up, tiffany has a question. the bible says that cain believes someone will kill him as soon as they find him but the Lord tells cain that whoever kills him will be punished seven times harsher. i thought the Lord wanted to punish cain? or is this just an expression once again? anywayz, eve is given the blessing of having another child, seth, to replace abel's death.
who built the ark? noah, noah. who build the ark?! noah did........
i didnt know adam was noahs ancestor. pretty groovy.
so first, the Lord limits everones living days to hundred and twenty years, which can definitely be seen these days i believe. and THENNNNNNN the Lord sees what a horrible, disgusting, sinful, repulsive world all the men have made it into, and decides to punish us by sending hoards of floods. yea, God would do that(: lucky for a guy named noah. the Lord tells him to build an ark and warns him about the flood and tells him to gather his wife, sons, sons' wives, and dem animals-two by two.
day 3:
so way, way, way, way, wayyyyyy long ago-it rains for 40 days and 40 nights. and it rained, and rained, and rained. all the living things in the ark lived-HOOORAY. too bad for those living things that were left behind, because they were wiped off the surface of the earth): finally, after 150 days, God rememberes noah and stops the waters from those waterheavensC: what i liked about this ending was that after noah sends out a raven to check out the water, he sends a dove to see if the water receded from the ground. the first time, the dove came back. the second time, it came back with an olive branch-good news, buddy! the water has receded. you know what they say: third times a charm. so the third time, the dove never returned-which is actually happy in this case because it means the water has finally dried up. and so noah and his family and his animal friends come out and noah builds an altar to thank the Lord. and thanks to noah, the Lord promises that all life will never be cut off by means of a flood ever again. and a rainbow appears, signifying the newly established covenant.
day 4:
in the beginning of genesis 11, people that speak the same language are building a tower. as i read this, i was confused why the Lord would want to confuse the people. he put them all over the world and left an uncomplete tower, which i guess is the tower of babel. in the geneology from shem to abram, it also tells you how long each person lives. but i thought the Lord limited humans to live only to 120 years, so why do they live so much incredibly longer? and now abram. the Lord obviously sees potential in abram, what a lucky duck. as i read about his adventures in egypt, i realize that abram is one clever cookie, tricking the egyptians about his wife and such. i was afraid that the pharaohs men were going to slaughter him after finding out he lied about his wife, because, earlier, abram said that they might have taken him if they knew they were married. did the pharaoh marry abram's wife, while they were still married then? well, when they left egypt safely, abram and lot split up the land. when abram got to his portion, the Lord gave him more advice and abram built an altar. and war breaks out. the bad guys take lot-abrams nephew. he saves him and others, defeats the bad guys, and just dominates. the king of salem, melchizedek, blesses abram and was given a tenth of everything. and then the king of sodom asks for abram's people. but i told you-abram is a smart cookie. he tells him that he will not take anything because he will take advantage and will only share with those who were on his side.
but lets get blogging.
day 1:
so many people know (or at least i hope they know) about God creating the world in 6 days. SIX DAYS. that is nuts. but we read that God can just make things on demand-if he wants light, he gets it. if he wants water, stars, livestock, he gets all of it. i think its pretty amazing how powerful he is and pretty darn cool that we get to appreciate his works. i also notice it repeatedly says that a) God saw it was good and b) and there was evening and there was morning. i want to know if anyone of you guys have any thoughts to put in on that.
what are we going to do with adam & eve? God makes eve out of adam, and eve takes the fruit. and she just has to bite it and give it to adam. so now we are all guity of sin.
day 2:
we find out adam and eve give birth to cain and abel. i doooooooooooo remember a sermon about this(:
cain is selfish, and only gives the Lord his fruits from his soil, but abel offers the fat portions of the firstborn of his flock. mmmmm, sounds yummy, aiight? and so the Lord is favoring abel over cain (who wouldnt?) and cain is jealous. that jerk. in fact, cain is so immensely jealous, he kills abel. that jerk. that wont do any good for him. well the Lord punishes him and cain cannot take it. waitttttttt up, tiffany has a question. the bible says that cain believes someone will kill him as soon as they find him but the Lord tells cain that whoever kills him will be punished seven times harsher. i thought the Lord wanted to punish cain? or is this just an expression once again? anywayz, eve is given the blessing of having another child, seth, to replace abel's death.
who built the ark? noah, noah. who build the ark?! noah did........
i didnt know adam was noahs ancestor. pretty groovy.
so first, the Lord limits everones living days to hundred and twenty years, which can definitely be seen these days i believe. and THENNNNNNN the Lord sees what a horrible, disgusting, sinful, repulsive world all the men have made it into, and decides to punish us by sending hoards of floods. yea, God would do that(: lucky for a guy named noah. the Lord tells him to build an ark and warns him about the flood and tells him to gather his wife, sons, sons' wives, and dem animals-two by two.
day 3:
so way, way, way, way, wayyyyyy long ago-it rains for 40 days and 40 nights. and it rained, and rained, and rained. all the living things in the ark lived-HOOORAY. too bad for those living things that were left behind, because they were wiped off the surface of the earth): finally, after 150 days, God rememberes noah and stops the waters from those waterheavensC: what i liked about this ending was that after noah sends out a raven to check out the water, he sends a dove to see if the water receded from the ground. the first time, the dove came back. the second time, it came back with an olive branch-good news, buddy! the water has receded. you know what they say: third times a charm. so the third time, the dove never returned-which is actually happy in this case because it means the water has finally dried up. and so noah and his family and his animal friends come out and noah builds an altar to thank the Lord. and thanks to noah, the Lord promises that all life will never be cut off by means of a flood ever again. and a rainbow appears, signifying the newly established covenant.
day 4:
in the beginning of genesis 11, people that speak the same language are building a tower. as i read this, i was confused why the Lord would want to confuse the people. he put them all over the world and left an uncomplete tower, which i guess is the tower of babel. in the geneology from shem to abram, it also tells you how long each person lives. but i thought the Lord limited humans to live only to 120 years, so why do they live so much incredibly longer? and now abram. the Lord obviously sees potential in abram, what a lucky duck. as i read about his adventures in egypt, i realize that abram is one clever cookie, tricking the egyptians about his wife and such. i was afraid that the pharaohs men were going to slaughter him after finding out he lied about his wife, because, earlier, abram said that they might have taken him if they knew they were married. did the pharaoh marry abram's wife, while they were still married then? well, when they left egypt safely, abram and lot split up the land. when abram got to his portion, the Lord gave him more advice and abram built an altar. and war breaks out. the bad guys take lot-abrams nephew. he saves him and others, defeats the bad guys, and just dominates. the king of salem, melchizedek, blesses abram and was given a tenth of everything. and then the king of sodom asks for abram's people. but i told you-abram is a smart cookie. he tells him that he will not take anything because he will take advantage and will only share with those who were on his side.
les accountability groups
here are the groups for accountability within the discipleship group. we recently read in Genesis where cain asks, "am i my brother's keeper?" the answer to this question within our group is "yes." if your partner(s) isn't reading his or her Bible or praying, i will come to you first. watch over each other, pray for each other, pray WITH each other, and keep each other informed. this is what church is all about.
Mark and David
Richard and Evan and John
Tiffany and Rachel and Mengmeng
Lulu and Hedy
Mark and David
Richard and Evan and John
Tiffany and Rachel and Mengmeng
Lulu and Hedy
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
hmm. goals.
1. read lots of christan books.
2. figure out college stuff.
3. back handspring.
4. some marathon stuff so i don't get too badly injured.
5. find out what it really means to be a christian.
6. enjoy summer.
7. lots more prayer.
8. build deeper friendships
i didnt really explain my goals.
if you really want me to i can.
mmm yea.
1. read lots of christan books.
2. figure out college stuff.
3. back handspring.
4. some marathon stuff so i don't get too badly injured.
5. find out what it really means to be a christian.
6. enjoy summer.
7. lots more prayer.
8. build deeper friendships
i didnt really explain my goals.
if you really want me to i can.
mmm yea.
Goals for the Summer
1) going into the summer i really didn't want it to be like last year's where i didnt really do anything, or just played smash all the time. So far its been going great, only one or two days have gone by where i didnt do anything.
2) to be honest i've kinda been in the same spot spiritually for a while. I tend to fluctuate, i know this past year there were nights where i totally blew off youth group to hang out with friends. and then there's times where i actually read my bible everyday and pray every night. I'm kind of in the middle right now, slowly starting to pick up on the reading and praying and such.
3) Physical fitness, yeah i'm not big on sports but i do like to stay relatively in shape, minus any type of running. My diet's been wacky as of late. I eat a lot of junk food, skip meals sometimes. Other than the occasional basketball game at the middle school i'm not really physically active.
4) I gotta work on my dime stops, my robot aint looking clean anymore. And i'd like to learn some more popping in general.
5) I really need to find some sort of direction in life. Part of me wants to go against the mainstream and pursue the more risky careers like the performing arts, but at the same time I fear those risks and want to be secure and sheltered
2) to be honest i've kinda been in the same spot spiritually for a while. I tend to fluctuate, i know this past year there were nights where i totally blew off youth group to hang out with friends. and then there's times where i actually read my bible everyday and pray every night. I'm kind of in the middle right now, slowly starting to pick up on the reading and praying and such.
3) Physical fitness, yeah i'm not big on sports but i do like to stay relatively in shape, minus any type of running. My diet's been wacky as of late. I eat a lot of junk food, skip meals sometimes. Other than the occasional basketball game at the middle school i'm not really physically active.
4) I gotta work on my dime stops, my robot aint looking clean anymore. And i'd like to learn some more popping in general.
5) I really need to find some sort of direction in life. Part of me wants to go against the mainstream and pursue the more risky careers like the performing arts, but at the same time I fear those risks and want to be secure and sheltered
Goals
yay goals
Summer goals
Summer goals
- finish "The Journey of Desire". I read the first chapter today. This might take awhile. Nuff said.
- you know what. i can't think of a spiritual goal. nothing specific at least. so my goal is to get back on track because obviously i'm wandering around. or even get on a track cuz i might have never even been on one
- i'd really like to make varsity soccer. that'd be nice. just a bit ya know?
- no more pop. cuz pop kills ppl. start running, working out, practicing soccer, less computer, not spending so much money, sleeping right, eating right cuz because we hang out so much, i skip a lot of meals or i don't eat a proper meal. yup. thank goodness mcdonald's got rid of trans fat
Wondering/ Goals
The Bible says in chapter 4 (Genesis) that Cain had a wife..I was just wondering about that. Before, I had always thought that Cain and Abel and Seth were Adam and Eve's only children...but then I went up a grade and then I started wondering "who did they marry?" -_- I got a crazy thought that they "married" Eve U_U yeah...
I asked Solomon and he's like, "oh, they probably had a ton of children besides those three"
Don't ask where my imagination has gone ><
Anyway, something i didnt get was that the Bible was talking about Lamech getting avenged 77 times if Cain was avenged 7 times and then it suddenly went back to Adam. Was that going to come back somewhere farther in or was it just...what he said??
And the Nephilim? I read that paragraph like, 5 times and I didnt get what the Bible meant...
So, for Wednesday, I was reading (obviously) and Genesis 7:11 says that the "springs of the great deep burst forth". Springs from..what? the oceans? Lakes? It kinda confused me...@_@
And Genesis 7:21-23...it really hit me. Everything that moved on the earth perished. Everything around you dying...what was it like to be on the ark, watching everything that you once knew (even if you knew it was all wrong) die? And i was also wondering: what about those who swam or flew? I mean, i get the birds and all, but the fish? The whales, the dolphins and all? Maybe it was paradise for them... =P
Oh yeah, so Larry said that we should type our goals here?? Umm yeah.. so I guess here they are
1. I want to finish the book "Case for Christ"
2. I want to try to understand what the Bible means (weighing what every word is trying to tell readers)
3. This is kinda random, but I really want to improve my temper...#_#
4. One more, I think I'm kinda...prideful...it makes me oversensitive...
summer loving
1.) spiritual
- read at least two christian books before school starts
- pray for at least one person in the yg every day
2.) school stuff
- finish geology and astronomy online courses
- get AP psych stuff ready for the fall
3.) family
- clean my study (because it is a mess)
- rearrange my room
4.) personal
- marathon training
- read at least two christian books before school starts
- pray for at least one person in the yg every day
2.) school stuff
- finish geology and astronomy online courses
- get AP psych stuff ready for the fall
3.) family
- clean my study (because it is a mess)
- rearrange my room
4.) personal
- marathon training
purposeful planning
ok ok so technically it's wednesday but i'm posting for monday and tuesday because my schedule is a bit messed up -_-
bear with me
the first thing that i noticed (never noticed before...) when reading the first day's passages was how detailed and purposeful God was when He was carrying out his plans. i mean not only did He state what would come into being but exactly what it was that they were to do and how. the sky was to separate the water below from the water above (which was what? clouds?) the sun and moon were to govern day and night. plants and animals were to increase according to their kind. (which is definitely an important detail because what if things didn't reproduce according to their kind? hahaha i don't even know what to think about that....>.<) this made me come to think when we/i plan or do something is it really purposeful? i mean i'm sure if we think about it, yea, there's a reason for each and every thing that we do, but do we really think it out? then again i think to myself, does everything need to be purposefully planned out? like eating? or breathing? would our lives be more efficient or feel more fruitful if we had a deliberate purpose behind every single action? would the results be good? (assuming the reason was good) just random thoughts.
~*~*~
as for the second day's reading i think the main thing that popped out to me was...what are nephilim? i looked it up and got uh....interesting results...but no general consensus really...*sigh* and so God made the flood come about because the world was becoming bad right? it seems like these nephilim were sort of the root of the bad? but if the flood got rid of them all then how come the Bible says that they were there before and after the flood? if the flood got rid of all the bad things why is there still so much evil today? i mean i know it's human nature but the humans on that boat were supposedly "good" right? or is it back to this whole nephilim thingy? i think that term just really threw me off -_-
i also don't fully understand why God wasn't please with Cain's offering. i mean didn't he put just as much heart into it as Abel did? or does the difference lie in the fact that the Bible specified that Able brought offerings from the firstborn of his flock while Cain just brought offerings from his soil? and it wasn't necessarily his first crop? or is it like Larry said, that it was because Cain thought his offering was so great? (but where does it say that? and where does it say that Abel didn't think his offering was great like Cain?)
this leads me to ask how do we know what do to do please God? i mean besides the obvious rights and wrongs. is it our attitude? will God always accept what we do as long as it's right and with a good attitude? (humbly, graciously, and the like)
bear with me
the first thing that i noticed (never noticed before...) when reading the first day's passages was how detailed and purposeful God was when He was carrying out his plans. i mean not only did He state what would come into being but exactly what it was that they were to do and how. the sky was to separate the water below from the water above (which was what? clouds?) the sun and moon were to govern day and night. plants and animals were to increase according to their kind. (which is definitely an important detail because what if things didn't reproduce according to their kind? hahaha i don't even know what to think about that....>.<) this made me come to think when we/i plan or do something is it really purposeful? i mean i'm sure if we think about it, yea, there's a reason for each and every thing that we do, but do we really think it out? then again i think to myself, does everything need to be purposefully planned out? like eating? or breathing? would our lives be more efficient or feel more fruitful if we had a deliberate purpose behind every single action? would the results be good? (assuming the reason was good) just random thoughts.
~*~*~
as for the second day's reading i think the main thing that popped out to me was...what are nephilim? i looked it up and got uh....interesting results...but no general consensus really...*sigh* and so God made the flood come about because the world was becoming bad right? it seems like these nephilim were sort of the root of the bad? but if the flood got rid of them all then how come the Bible says that they were there before and after the flood? if the flood got rid of all the bad things why is there still so much evil today? i mean i know it's human nature but the humans on that boat were supposedly "good" right? or is it back to this whole nephilim thingy? i think that term just really threw me off -_-
i also don't fully understand why God wasn't please with Cain's offering. i mean didn't he put just as much heart into it as Abel did? or does the difference lie in the fact that the Bible specified that Able brought offerings from the firstborn of his flock while Cain just brought offerings from his soil? and it wasn't necessarily his first crop? or is it like Larry said, that it was because Cain thought his offering was so great? (but where does it say that? and where does it say that Abel didn't think his offering was great like Cain?)
this leads me to ask how do we know what do to do please God? i mean besides the obvious rights and wrongs. is it our attitude? will God always accept what we do as long as it's right and with a good attitude? (humbly, graciously, and the like)
the offerer
every time i read the passage about cain and able, i think about myself and what i would do in that situation. what if one day pastor wu or elder bob lo came up to me and said, "thanks, but no thanks. we don't want your service anymore. even though we don't have anyone else lined up at this point, we have faith that God will provide." a few things would go through my head.
1.) my offering is really really good and you should be impressed, not turn it away.
2.) i'd like to see the next guy do any better.
3.) you guys freaking NEED me.
these may be a bit extreme, but i think our sinful natures revert to these states under stressful or foreign situations.
i guess at the heart of it, i think cain and i share a common thread. that is, we think very highly of our own offerings. but through this passage, we can see that God doesn't need any of us. God is God and He can use anybody. this is probably the part that i find most difficult: to approach serving as if i am dispensable because we all are. and also, probably more importantly, to not let pride or selfishness crowd into my offering of any kind. (time, energy, money, etc)
1.) my offering is really really good and you should be impressed, not turn it away.
2.) i'd like to see the next guy do any better.
3.) you guys freaking NEED me.
these may be a bit extreme, but i think our sinful natures revert to these states under stressful or foreign situations.
i guess at the heart of it, i think cain and i share a common thread. that is, we think very highly of our own offerings. but through this passage, we can see that God doesn't need any of us. God is God and He can use anybody. this is probably the part that i find most difficult: to approach serving as if i am dispensable because we all are. and also, probably more importantly, to not let pride or selfishness crowd into my offering of any kind. (time, energy, money, etc)
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
cain and abel
so God favored Abel over Cain...but aren't we not supposed to show favoritism? and then cain killed abel.....dang. that's hardcore. so this isnt really about the reading but my parents were watching some dvd of a sermon some japanese guy gave, and one thing he points out is that God oftentimes chooses between brothers and this was one of his examples...its a very interesting observation, but i dont really remember how the guy applied it to nowadays, so i guess that rant ends here. this was the only part of the reading that really sparked interest in me today, probably because i skimmed through all the "this guy was this many years old and had a son who grew to be X years old" and the noah part was ehh, cuz we all know what happens with him. oh and also the way that God talks to Cain in this chapter, well at least the way its phrased makes it seem like God was standing there, like they were homie g's, or when he walks with Enoch until he's no more. How come he doesn't play the more distant, appear-in-the-burning-bush type God like he does later on in the Bible? These are just thoughts, well...questions that occured to me while I was reading.
In command
A day late, I know...
Okay, I think the thing that stuck out to me most is that God is very in control of everything. (and that you can start sentences with "and")
Genesis 1:3
"And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light."
In the first Chapter God is always saying(commanding), seperating, gathering, naming, creating and such. He was just all like, "Let it be," and it was. So I guess it just made me think something like, "He's got this, it alright," God is in control...of everything.
Skipping on to day six. Why does God say, "Let us...in our..."? When I read this I wonder who he was talking to...the fish and birds? Okay, just kidding. But really, who? To me this was a little confusing, probably because I constantly think of God as one. I don't pray three prayers at a time specifically addressing God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. I don't know...why does it mention God as plural now, and not before? Is God plural in general?
Another thing, why didn't Adam and Eve eat from the tree of life? Or eat from the life tree first and then knowledge? Or a question I like to ask is that have you ever realized that we now don't know the difference between good and evil?
Randomness
Looking at my little notes, it says that deception cause the downfall of the human race and also leads people away from God nowadays.
Chapter 3:12 Who does Adam blame? Or is it really her fault? Hahaha. Just a random thing. LEFT!
I was thinking bout all the deception stuff...was sin existing at the beginning? No, because God made everything and saw that everything was good. Where did it come from then? Free will? Then when God saw everything with free will was it good? Even if it brought on sin?
The punishment stuff explains a lot...
Okay, I'm done for today...
Okay, I think the thing that stuck out to me most is that God is very in control of everything. (and that you can start sentences with "and")
Genesis 1:3
"And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light."
In the first Chapter God is always saying(commanding), seperating, gathering, naming, creating and such. He was just all like, "Let it be," and it was. So I guess it just made me think something like, "He's got this, it alright," God is in control...of everything.
Skipping on to day six. Why does God say, "Let us...in our..."? When I read this I wonder who he was talking to...the fish and birds? Okay, just kidding. But really, who? To me this was a little confusing, probably because I constantly think of God as one. I don't pray three prayers at a time specifically addressing God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. I don't know...why does it mention God as plural now, and not before? Is God plural in general?
Another thing, why didn't Adam and Eve eat from the tree of life? Or eat from the life tree first and then knowledge? Or a question I like to ask is that have you ever realized that we now don't know the difference between good and evil?
Randomness
Looking at my little notes, it says that deception cause the downfall of the human race and also leads people away from God nowadays.
Chapter 3:12 Who does Adam blame? Or is it really her fault? Hahaha. Just a random thing. LEFT!
I was thinking bout all the deception stuff...was sin existing at the beginning? No, because God made everything and saw that everything was good. Where did it come from then? Free will? Then when God saw everything with free will was it good? Even if it brought on sin?
The punishment stuff explains a lot...
Okay, I'm done for today...
Monday, June 30, 2008
Blowing Through It
Yeah... I was just skimming through it. I've tried reading the Bible a lot, but I always quit after going through, like, 5 chapters... if I slow down I'll probably understand it more. I dont get a lot of the vocab. that the Bible uses...or just the phrases...it can really get frustrating. ><
God of order
It occurred to me while reading chapter 1 of Genesis that God is extremely organized. This is the section that I typically blow through as fast as I can because I've already read it many many times. But this time I slowed down and considered just what he was doing. Everything has a place and a purpose. God is truly a God of order and structure. He didn't haphazardly arrange the world, and he didn't do it by accident either. After everything, he tested it and saw that it was good.
This really challenges me to keep things in order and planned. But additionally, to stop and reflect to consider whether it is good or not.
This really challenges me to keep things in order and planned. But additionally, to stop and reflect to consider whether it is good or not.
what's in a name
as Christians, we are constantly under attack and bombardment by our culture and by Satan. so many things surround us that are pointed towards derailing us and throwing us off-track. but in this struggle, we are called to be soldiers (2 Timothy 2:3) for Jesus. but we don't want to be just any kind of soldier, we want to be wherever the action is. we want to be at the beck and call of our commanding officer. we don't just want to be on the front lines, we want to be even closer. point blank describes not just our involvement, but also our passion, courage, and commitment.
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