day thirty-one

today, i was at the coffee house (of rez week), and i shared a table with two other people. when i was done with my food, i took a guy's trash and my friend's trash. not much, but it's an offering :)

i'm having my ups and downs with rez week! it is definitely a transforming week for me. i'm constantly being exposed by God in different ways, seeing myself the way God sees me, and being touched by God's love for His people.

all heaven and earth proclaim, Your name is above all names,

ann

31 down, 9 to go!

Today is prayer meeting Wednesday. It's about to begin. I pray to God that He will be with us tonight and that we will all feel His presence. For Lord, You are good.

As i was walking up the stairs to my office building, i saw a janitor worker as she was sweeping the stairs. She is usually always there once a week. Today i spoke to her and told her a word of thanks to encourage her.

Some times a word is more than enough to make a person's day.

I pray that in the last week of Ann & I's journey we will see God's amazing greatness work in our lives.

Jesus Culture conference coming up in Dallas. Ready for revival? :)
tina

30 down, 10 to go!

I truly see God's work in our youth group. He is changing the minds of this youth and the hearts of this youth. Prayer meetings have become amazing, Praise God! I pray to God that He can give me better time management. I complain about not having enough time to use my time wisely for God, but yet i waste my time on other things. I'm sorry..

My act of love was letting someone use my phone. He needed a phone to borrow and i offered mine for him to use. I'm embarrassed to say that this was my act of love because i feel like i put no effort in doing it, and i let it come to me. I didn't go and look for something to do.. I'm sorry again..

Let God do wonderful things in my life, as well as ann's in the next few days,
tina

day thirty

ten days left in this journey.

i'm broken before God.

i never realized what an awful christian i've been.

on the outside, i feel wonderful: i worship, i write songs, i love others, i pray, i read the bible and have a christ-like life. but i never really try to love Jesus. i missed the simplicity of loving who He is.

on the inside, sin fills me up. my walk with God has been crippled by my judgement of others, my lack of commitment, my hypocrisy, my selfishness, my doubt, my pride, and my stubbornness. i look at myself, and i am disgusted with the christian i claim to be. i find myself constantly comparing with others, seeking approval and praise from men. i use my gifts for the wrong reason, i pride my achievements, i gather success in my terms.

someone once said, "stop trying to be perfect, because it's stopping God's grace from coming to you." i realized i don't have control over my life. right now, i feel like i've lost everything i've once gained.

thank God that in the last ten days of this journey, God has broken my heart to see who i really am.

amazing grace,

ann

29 down, 11 to go!

I know that our journey is coming to an end soon, but i know for a fact that our acts of love will not end. I pray and hope that this will continue in our daily lives, as well as touch those who also want to start doing acts of love. This grows to become a habit and will grow on you, for sure!

As i was browsing through facebook, i was having a conversation with a friend of mine. We were both talking about whether or not to pursue teaching. She asked me to pray for her whenever i had the time. Then out of nowhere, God moved me to ask her to join me in prayer once a week to pray for our futures together. Because I know that she is seeking God's will, as am i :) This is my act of love. I really hope that through this, we can both find God's purpose in our lives.

Putting time and effort to Wednesday prayer meetings.
Nightly prayers and reading Streams in the Desert with Elain.
Weekly prayers with my friend.

Praise God for giving me so many opportunities to do work for God,
tina

day twenty-nine

rez week has begun!

got up at 6 in the morning because i had to go for prayer at 7!

went to class after that and went back to volunteer at the coffee house.

today, i gave a dollar to this guy who only had 9 dollars and wanted to get a rez week t-shirt ($10).

then, i also stayed an extra hour to help out at the coffee house, and i got two other volunteers lunches :)

today was my first time making coffee! and it's so nice to meet people at the coffee house and serve them! through this 40-day journey, i've learned that as i become more and more giving, i receive so much in return from others! a couple of days ago, i woke up and got a text from a friend who said that she sees me closer to God every day, and that i am truly God's daughter! that just made my day :)

give more, receive more,

ann

day twenty-eight

it's been four weeks of our 40-day spiritual journey! :)

four GOOD weeks!

my act of love today was inviting lee over for dinner. i cooked dinner for her, esther, and myself.

another act of love was getting jennifer something. on friday, i went to the supermarket and wanted to get a pomegranate tea drink. when i was about to get it, i was worried about whether it had caffeine, since i can't have them. then, i saw a pomegranate tea that "helped nourish the brain" because of some omega stuff in there. i immediate thought of jennifer and got it for her! :)

continue to pray for her complete healing!

excited for rez week,

ann

28 down, 12 to go!

Day 28 and i'm feeling more and more giving. Can you believe that starting from day 1, i was selfish and stingy, and now all i can think about is trying to help?! not to be self-righteous.. of course, i did this all through God's grace and love!

last night Elain told me that she had a huge canker sore and it was bothering her from eating.. i knew exactly how she felt because there is nothing like the pain of a canker sore! i remembered that i had gel medication to apply on it and it numbs it for a while so that i could eat and i thought i'd come home and find it for her. turns out, i didn't have one at home! this morning, sunday morning, before church i decided to make a trip to walgreens to buy her the medication. i figured she wouldn't be able to go out and get it herself because she doesn't drive yet. she was really thankful for it! I hope it really works for her :)

i'm considering to sponsor a child through world vision,
tina

day twenty-seven

today, i've spent about 10 hours at the library...it's crazy. but i stayed pretty productive most of the time and was able to get some work done! :)

after my roommates and i finished lunch in the afternoon, we went to lay on the lawn/hill behind the library. the weather, just like tina said, was so amazingly beautiful. i just laid down and soaked the warmth from the sun, listen to the wind blow and the leaves rattle. while i was resting there, i was just meditating on God's beauty and His "bigness." i'm falling more and more in love with God every day! i feel like it is when i'm out there in the big nature, i realize how small i am before God, when i'm in the openness, i find God so, so close to me.

also, thank God. i didn't get much internet service at the library, and i think it was God's way of telling me to concentrate. that's how i got so much done! but He has mercy, because once in a while, i would get enough internet to check my email and stuff :)

just want to pour my heart out to God,

ann

27 down, 13 to go!

MMM, today's weather was really nice! :) Thank God for such beautiful weather!

Today is my friend David's birthday! Last night i decided to "plan" his birthday dinner! so today i arranged a table at chilli's, i called in, and did all that ! That was my act of love! Although he never asked anyone to help him, i decided to lend him a helping hand. when you help someone, you naturally feel happy on the inside!

also, today i went to the dollar store to get school supplies for a family who has 5 kids and they are all in elementary! it's for student council, but i was willing to go out and buy new things rather than give them my old worn out items! i'm learning as the days go by that money isn't as important as i thought it was! i used to hold it so tightly and not let anyone have a penny of it! although it's essential to learn to save, it's also essential to be generous, just like Jesus :)

tina

26 down, 14 to go!

Bible study was really good today! Pastor Jerry told us the story of Abram! Some times we may think that God is not listening to us or just completely forgot about us, but that's definitely not the case! He has already answered our prayers, but is waiting until WE are ready to receive this answer! This applies to a big part of my life, such as waiting for God's reply on what i should do in the future! Amen!

Today's act of love was simply testifying God greatness in life! During bible study today, Jerry asked us if we had any life stories to tell of God's greatness. So i told everyone my story of the shower curtain! my mom and i went to walmart to buy a new shower curtain because ours kept on falling due to the hook! then when we got there, i realized that we could just buy the rings instead of spending $10 extra dollars on a whole new curtain! At the end of the day, we only spent $1 to buy the rings :) God helps us save money!

Extremely exhausted too,
tina

day twenty-six

thank God this morning! i was walking my bike to school because i wanted to walk with esther. when we parted, i decided to get on the bike, but i realized the chain fell off! but then, God brought tommy to help me! we were suppose to meet up before our first class because he found some employment newsletter of jobs related to economics for Lee! he fixed and taught me how to fix my bike! thank God for this angel! twice the blessing this morning :)

today's act of love is simple. esther, lee, and i went to walmart, and when i was checking out, esther decided to get a chocolate bar, and i decided to pay for her :)

very tired today...i'm going to do some hwk and sleep early.

restful (sedated) friday,

ann

day twenty-five

man...i wish this journey went on and on, because God is always at work, and i cannot stop blogging about His profound movement!

today was a spiritual awakening day. it felt like such a long day, and it reminded me of this verse: But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. (2 Peter 3:8)

i am going to list today's happenings...

1. was late to class and became very stressed about school
2. came home quite depressed, decided to play guitar, had a little worship session with God, felt completely at ease and comforted
3. met with Jenn to hear her testimony to start working on the songs. act of love: bought her a subway footlong sandwich (vegetarian style)
4. went with Jenn to Starbucks to get a drink. act of love: bought her a sugar-free, caffeine-free drink
5. Jenn and i each had half of a footlong sandwich left, and we walked on the drag to find someone give our sandwiches to! (act of love)
6. went with Jenn to Campus House of Prayer for a revival prayer meeting. some really amazing things happened: while i was praying, i couldn't concentrate sometimes, but at one moment, i felt, so strongly, the "being" (not just presence) of God right next to me on the left, where Jenn was sitting! at that moment, the presence was so strong and powerful, i could not turn to look. at that point, i knew that it was the fear of God! at first i thought it was Jenn's intimacy with God that made Him so close to us, but later i told her about it, and she said she also felt it on her left, haha!
7. Jenn received healing tonight, complete healing. we declare victory! she opened up to people and shared her story. a group of people prayed and prophesied over her, and lauren and i laid hands on her to pray for healing! (Jenn's prophecies included grasshopper, vegetables, the story of Moses...etc.)
8. when we were all praying as one group for Jenn, i asked myself whether i should go up and pray for her later, had some doubts...but lauren came up to me and asked if i would be willing to pray for Jenn! without any hesitation, i felt led by the Holy Spirit to go up and pray. i was a bit scared at first, but the moment i opened my mouth, i felt like God was leading the prayer. i didn't know what to pray for, but He provided the words! towards the middle, i started shaking, and i couldn't stop! and i knew that that was God shaking me :)

i feel so revived right now, i don't want to stop praying and sit in His presence completely soaked,

ann

p.s. jenn and i met the old lady i mentioned in my previous posts. her name is esperanza, she doesn't speak english. we tried talking to her and asking if she needed anything, like blankets. she wasn't very friendly...so we left. but we tried! the rest is in God's almighty hands :)

25 down, 15 to go!

although last night's prayer meeting consisted of 5 people, i did not doubt God's power and presence within us all. we had a powerful prayer and received so much from God. we started to practice prophesying, which was exciting :)

during computer class today, my teacher asked me to assist her in putting about 80 different books away. there were about 5 different books, and about 15 copies of each, all spread out throughout her classroom. a friend and i helped her, placed them accordingly, and didn't ask fr anything in return :) i'm proud of myself for stepping out to help her.

yielding myself before God,
tina

day twenty-four

i didn't get a chance to give my blanket to someone, but i did see a "homeless" type of guy at a bus stop, so i offered him a breakfast. i actually walked past him the first time because he was talking to a girl, who was crying a little. it was an awkward timing, but i decided to walk back and give him the bread. i will be bringing the blanket tomorrow also, so pray that God will let me find someone who has a need for it :)

today, i had the most wonderful, spirit-filled prayer time ever at the chop. i spent the whole hour worshipping God, and in the midst of worship, i would be led to start writing some songs! at one point, i had a strong urge to write a song for rez week! the theme of this rez week is called breaking grounds from hosea 10:12 "...break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord..." i'm not sure whether it was a revelation from God or not, but i wanted to write a song that captured the focus of rez week. i started writing it towards the end of my prayer time, came home, and had a strong urge to finish writing it. a part of me wants to share this song with many people, but i think i will lay low and walk humbly with God on this one. i will play this song at the prayer tent during my hours for rez week, and it is God's plan for this song to be shared and heard, He will certainly have His ways :)

feeling very happy today and every day because God loves me,

ann

24 down, 16 to go!

my 'act of goodness' came early today! :) in business co-op class today we got cookie coupons for doing our work and such. but anyways, i got 2 cookie coupons! i didn't think much about giving away my cookies cause i wanted them both, honestly haha. but towards the end of class i realized 2 of my friends didn't get a cookie coupon, so i ended up giving half of each cookie to those 2 people :)

i also hope that ann got a chance to give her blanket/breakfast away :)

prayer meeting is tonight,
tina

23 down, 17 to go!

Yesss ann is right, an act of love is when you are the one initiating it!

My act of love didn't play out as i expected but i still did part of it! Kevin and i had plans today to attend ben & jerry's free cone day at town center but Kevin got extremely sick all of a sudden! honestly, i was extremely bummed out that we couldn't go =/ i decided to let him sleep a little. my mom needed my car to go to a bible study so i asked her to drop me off at his house because i decided to go and take care of him! (no this is not an act of ROMANCE) haha. i really felt like he was in a really bad shape so i wanted to do whatever i could to help him! Turns out he decided to come over to my house instead, but i was still able to take care of him! It was probably better for him to come over because i know where everything is in my house, such as the hot water boiler and medicine and whatnot!

when going through trials and tribulations, rejoice louder!
tina

day twenty-three

today, my friend mark was absent from a math class we had together, so i briefed him on what he missed in class before he even asked me to! reminder to self, act of love is taking the first step before someone asks for your help.

also, walking to class this morning, i saw a homeless old woman on the drag. she was actually a homeless person, unlike other "homeless" people that hang around but have a place to stay. she was sleeping on the floor in front of a store with a thin blanket covering her. it was quite chilly in the morning too...so i've decided to bring my blanket (throw) tomorrow on the way to class. if i see her sleeping on the floor again, i'm going to give it to her. if not, i'm bringing an extra breakfast for her, if i see her. i don't know what they need more...food or clothing? please pray for boldness!

also, tina really encouraged me yesterday with her comment on my last post. it's been a rough week for me, but i am learning every minute to embrace what God has given me and letting go of what i do not have. i want to be thankful for every single thing and grasp the art of grace. i was listening to my ipod on the way to school, and God really spoke to me in this song, "In Your Freedom" by Hillsong...

I search for You God of strength
I bow to You in my brokenness
And no other King could have so humbly come
To save my soul and heal my heart
I have nothing more than all You offer me
There is nothing else that’s of worth to me
And I love You Lord
You rescued me
You are all that I want
You’re all that I need
I pray to You God of peace
I rest in You my cares released
I have nothing more than all You offer me
There is nothing else that’s of worth to me
And I love You Lord
You rescued me
You are all that I want
You’re all that I need
In Your freedom I will live
In Your freedom I will live
I offer devotion, I offer devotion

walking in His freedom,

ann

22 down, 18 to go!

This act of love thing has become much more natural since the first day of this journey! I feel like an act of love isn't a once a day thing but it's a continuous one. We have so many chances throughout our day to show Jesus' love to others, yet we often overlook them!

My good deed was offering CLEAN water to my friend at work today. Ever since our water tank at work has been taken away, we are all forced to drink fountain water. Although "water is water", it really does not taste all that pleasant. Today i brought a full bottle of water to work today remembering that i could not get a refill. I saw Aaron he said that he wish that water tank was back and i asked him if he brought water. He said that he brought an empty bottle. I figured since i probably wasn't going to be able to finish my water bottle all alone, i offered him some. I took a Styrofoam cup and poured the majority of my water out to give to him. Often i find that offering more than what is necessary is better than the bare minimum. I finished what was left of my water and felt that my thirst was more than perfectly quenched :)

thank you God for showing me how to be generous,
tina

day twenty-two

today's the first day of school after spring break, and i actually dreaded going to school.

i'm so tired of constant studying. i just want to spend time with God and do my own stuff.

i also haven't slept well since coming back from houston. but every time i pray, i just feel the peace of God in me! i complain to God about going to school, and He soothes me and tells me that i am learning to live a disciplined life. i complain that it's not fair that i study twice as hard but cannot get the same grades as my friends, and He tells me to trust in His unfailing love, His goodness and be grateful at all times.

i love how God is so responsive,

ann

21 down, 19 to go!

Today's act of love was for a young friend of mine, alan wang :)

After we watched a movie at home today, alan decided to wash the dishes for our family! he said that he really likes washing dishes, so i let him! I wasn't thinking about giving him any incentive for doing this, but i thought again.. I decided to pay him! If i gave him this 'prize' i thought he'd be more willing to do good things for others. it's a good "training" :) i looked inside my wallet and was contemplating whether to give him $1, $2 or even $3. i took out $2 and was about to leave but i thought again and decided to take out my last one dollar bill and give him a total of $3. Being greedy will not get me anywhere, but if i'm willing to be generous, i'm sure God will see this :)

Also, today during church, the newly baptized tony came! I always feel convicted to talking to him and just having a genuine conversation with him. today i asked him how he was doing spiritually and he opened up to me and completely told me how he was feeling. I had a short 5 minute conversation but i felt like the act of just talking to him and asking and listening was enough :) Praise God for letting me have this heart to care for others. & Also praise God for letting others feel like they can trust me & open up to me. Ah! Feeling so great!

Amen?
tina

day twenty-one

simple act of love today: lee came to houston and bought the wrong kind of cooking ingredient, so when my mom and i went to the supermarket on saturday, i got her the right kind. i'm also lending her my magazine bible today! i really really pray that as she reads through it, she will come to know and understand God!

summer is like a big field before me. what should i do with it, God? it belongs to you.

-ann

day twenty

i think this day is the turning point/climax of my 40-day journey!

i am very very excited right now, because i think God hit me with a revelation while i was showering tonight!

on the drive up to austin, my friend jennifer and i had a really good talk about a lot of stuff. i felt something when jennifer was sharing her testimony with me about her brain problem. while i was listening to her story, i had an urge to write a song inspired by what God has done in her life. when i got home, i kept thinking about it over and over again. then, i went to shower, and God gave me a vision! that i should start writing songs that are inspired by testimonies. that i should go out and meet different people, interview them in a way, listening to their testimonies and what God has done in their lives, and write songs based on those individual testimonies! in the end, i would put together people's stories with my songs in an album-type of thing.

the first one is going to be a song about healing, inspired by jennifer's testimony!

it's a really big dream for me, and i doubt whether i am capable of doing this.

but i really want to do this for God and for His people! i want people's testimonies to be heard and for those stories to change people's lives! and i believe, more than anything, that if it is something God has called me to, He will definitely strengthen me! may God be glorified in whatever ways!

very excited, thankful, and in need of prayers,

ann

20 down, 20 to go!

It's kind of weird seeing my title and have the numbers match up isn't it? Now we are officially half way through with this journey, and I really feel God's grace. I don't have a specific act of love today, but i do have a few things to share.

Just about half an hour ago i received an email from our previous landlord stating what he used our deposit for.. Basically before we rented the house, we made deposit of $1500 that is technically what is supposed to be used on anything needing fixing when we move out. Since our move, which was more than a month ago, he's been fixing things. Although it is our fault for having our dogs indoor and they did damage part of the house due to their urine and stuff but what we got back was only $2.. When i saw that email, i suddenly was extremely angry. I complained to my dad, vented to him about how i felt... I'm disappointed in myself for reacting so horribly, but this is what the human flesh was created & we react to things like this.. Therefore, I ask for God's grace to greatly fall down onto our family, like it has been before, and to give us a kind heart, much like Jesus', to be willing to deal with people like this in the world. God loves each and every one of us equally. And I know that God has the best judgment, so I'm putting this into God's hands..

I need to have more self-confidence. I know that God created me and anything in His image is perfect, but I feel like I need to be reminded of this constantly.

"I want to be a person that always gets peace and joy from God, and nothing can worry or anger me because I already konw God is with me and helping me. I don't want to feel like I need to buy more clothes to look good because God provides everything I need. I want respect from others not because of the expensive clothes I wear, but the heart that God gave me." -Anonymous

^ That quote above is EXACTLY how I need to be, and how everyone else should see the world too.

Today I feel like Satan has been trying to get through to me, since ann & i are almost halfway done with this journey. so many things are trying to get me mad and do horrible things, but, by the grace of God, i will not let these things bring me down.

Apologies for the immense entry,
tina

19 down, 21 to go!

Amen to ann's post that she said "today's going to be a great day". :)

today's act was helping someone at the movie's when i was on my date :) we were paying for our credit card line at the movies, it's a self help kind of machine & as we were concluding our pay, a lady came up to me and asked if these lines were only for members. i replied that it's for credit card users and i followed her to her machine since she looked so confused and took her step by step through the process :)

also, this morning i think God really woke me up about 30 minutes ahead of my schedule, not letting me go back to sleep, to really just sit there and listen to His worship songs. i love sitting there, listening to the lyrics of songs, & really just picturing God in my life.. i absolutely love it.

ending spring break strong in this journey,
tina

p.s. i'm sad because ann and jennifer leaving tomorrow back to austin, but i know for a fact that they'll experience God greatly during Rez Week :)

day nineteen

this morning, i picked up the phone and answered a promotional call from citi bank. usually i would just hang up or tell her right away that i wasn't interested, but today, i attended her call all the way. i didn't want to be rude and cut her off because she's just doing her job :)

it's going to be a great day,

ann

day eighteen

emm, there wasn't really a specific act of love today...unless you consider this: esther and i took our friend, Lee, out to see houston, since she's visiting from austin.

i was playing piano today, and i just felt revived by the power of the worship songs. the words of the worshippers are so intimate and desperate for God. i love spending time with God, looking into His beauty, and dwelling in His presence :)

none can fathom the beauty of the Lord,

ann

18 down, 22 to go!

wowww it's already thursday through spring break.. this week has gone by WAY too fast! every day has been busy and productive... don't really want to go back to school but in order to GRADUATE, i must go back to finish off this year :) :)

hmmm i felt like my good deed today was doing something for my doggies. they are always so bored at home and in the garage.. it's so lonely and dark in there.. my sister and i decided to take them out for a walk to the park :) so we took them for a long, long walk and they were SO excited to get out! i've been wanting to take them out but never got to it. they were so tired that right when we were done bathing them, they knocked out and fell asleep :)

enjoying the great weather outside,
tina

17 down, 23 to go!

i thank God that He was here tonight with us. i thank Him that He led this prayer meeting tonight, and that it was not me. usually on wednesdays i tell others what to start praying for, and it happens. but today i asked God to lead the meeting, not me. so indeed, He did. His presence amongst us was amazing. i asked for more discipline. i admire jennifer and ann when they said that they were guilty of not praying to God daily since they've come back from break, but i dont have that feeling. i want to say that i set out 30 minutes of my day just for God.. i'm always so caught up with the world and not giving enough time for God to work in my life...

my act of love today was taking my best friend, ann, out. she hasn't had a car since her mom's car got totaled. we wanted to hang out today and she asked me to take her to the mall and christian store to run errands. of course, i went with her! how can i reject her ?? :) i love you ann!

asking for God's mercy upon me,
tina

day seventeen

today i'm not going to talk about an act of love.

i just wanted to share some things i felt during prayer meeting tonight.

i really enjoy being back at houston, praying with the youth. i enjoy setting aside an hour of the day, solely seeking God. during my personal prayer time, i realized how much i had missed spending time with God and how much i loved Him and how much even more He loved me. in my prayer, God also spoke to me that i need to be responsible for my prayers; in other words, put the words into action. if i say that i'm going to seek Him more in my daily life, i better spend more time praying and reading His words.

the most important point i want to share today was the lack of confidence in each of the youth. it broke my heart to hear, one after another, that they are not confident about speaking English, about how others viewed them, and about their future. i think often times, we forget that we worship the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, and that He is our Father, we are His beloved children. we inherit every good attributes God possesses. we should not feel inadequate about anything! i pray that the youth will rise up and see that God has promised us so many things in life! perfect love casts out fear!

amen,

ann

day sixteen

time went by so fast today...i'm not even so sure what i did...i hope spring break isn't like this all the way through!

today, i originally had plans to go to my friend's house for a high school reunion type of thing, but i decided to spend more time with my mom. therefore, i went for two hours and came back home to play piano for my mom and eat her cooking :)

this was my act of love for today, to sacrifice the time with my friends in order to spend more time with my mom, who is alone!

sacrificial love comes from Jesus,

ann

p.s. lee's job interview today turned out to be something unrelated to her field; therefore, more praying to follow! :)

16 down, 24 to go!

the weather today wasn't all that great, & i'm cramping..

today we went with our family to run errands around houston! but anyways, we went to the city of houston building and i went to the bathroom. as i was waiting for the bathroom, i saw a little girl, her little brother, and her mother in one stall. the only other stall was very very disgustingly dirty, so therefore i had to wait for the stall the little girl was in. she was an EXTREMELY cute hispanic little girl :) she had a cute voice, a cute little face, and just so funny! as she was done and i was done using the bathroom i saw her washing her hands and asking her mother for a paper towel. at that time her mom was busy so i decided to give her a hand and give her a few paper towels to wipe her little hands in :)

she was so cute! kids have such a pure heart. they do not care what race you are, what reputation you have, etc. i think people in this world today can learn from so much from kids. just like what the Bible says, to have a "child-like heart".

tina

day fifteen

today i went out with the church to the museum and the park, it was so amazing to spend an entire day with my church family. i had so much fun, and i thank God for the love that binds this church together as a family!

i have two act of love that i want to share today :)

one: during dinner (while i was fasting), kathryn came and sat on my lap. she played with my cell phone and looked through my purse. she saw the a hello kitty mirror that i had and told me she really liked it. i told her she can have it if she wants, and she told me that her mom wouldn't let her take it. i told her that i really wanted her to have it and that she should go ask her mom if she can. she comes back later, telling me that her mom said she can only have it if i don't want it. and i told her that i really want her to have it! and she gladly smiled at me and told me thank you and that she really really liked it! kids are so easily satisfied :) so should our longing for God be!

two: right now, i'm video-conferencing with lee, because she has her interview tomorrow and she is really nervous. i'm pretty tired from all the fun today, but i want her to be successful on her interview tomorrow, so i'm staying up and helping her prepare! i pray that God will put the right words through her mouth and allow her to feel at peace during this interview! :)

serving God with the little that i have,

ann

15 down, 25 to go!

Woo! almost halfway there till i reach the end of this journeyyyy and seeing God's glory :) :)

Today's wonderful deed was printing extra coupons for our dinner at Buca Di Beppo :) I was asked to print extra coupons although my computer was already turned off, so i decided to do that! Also, i helped my sister set up the speaker and laptop and projector even though i'm not going to be watching the movie with her. Therefore, i did a good deed not benefiting myself :)

I'm very proud of me being able to do good things for people without thinking selfishly.

Praise God!
tina

p.s. Spring Break has been PACKED with events! Feeling very productive but so exhausted..

day fourteen

we're going into the third week of our 40-day journey!

every time i blog, i still feel very excited about this journey.

i'm becoming stagnant in my walk with God, so i've been struggling with that.

i really hope that through prayer and fasting, i will, once again, place God above all in my life.

and evermore so, hear His calling for me.

today's act of love was kind of out of convenience, once again...i printed out five copies of directions for our church outing tomorrow, and tina printed out the other five copies.

from tomorrow on, i'm going to pray in the morning that God will lead me to an act of love every day. it is not just something nice that i do, but it is God-loving!

so tired, thankful, and blessed,

ann

14 down, 26 to go!

TODAY IS ANN'S BIRTHDAY! :)

What a wonderful day to celebrate her birthday!! It was SO much fun surprising her :)

My first act of love was praying for her tonight. although i was the designated prayer, it felt good to lay hands and pray for her :) another act of love is simply putting this event on for her. She, if anyone, is most fit for a party! She didn't ask for it, all she wanted was to pray on her birthday. it was great putting such an amazing night on for my best friend :) I know that God will work in her life in the future, even if she doesn't know how yet.

May God truly bless her and work in her life daily,
tina

13 down, 27 to go!

I honestly agree with ann. I live my life the same, and through the end of the day if there's nothing i can do, i just do a little act to get it over with. although no act of love is 'little' i need to put more effort into this!

My act of love was massaging my sister who's been sick for the past week. I usually reject her whenever she asks me to because I strongly dislike giving other people massages, but yesterday i decided since she's sick and not feeling well that i should give her a massage :)

hoping to see improvement in myself,
tina

day thirteen

hmm, this "act of love" thing has been getting harder each day. sometimes i feel like i'm just looking for something to do, so i can get this "act of love" over with and blog about it. which should not be the case!

there's not much of a specific act of love today, but i've got a couple of mini-testimonies!

if you recall, a few posts ago, i prayed for my friend, Lee because she's desperately searching for a job. she went to turn in an application a few days ago, and the company emailed her back the next day for some information so they could do a background check on her! and then today, another company called for an interview next week! i really pray that somewhere in here is a door that God has opened, because what God has opened, no man can shut!

haven't been doing much devotions lately, so really need to spend some time with God,

ann

12 down, 28 to go!

Today was the last day of school until spring break as well as last day of work! Wasn't really wanting to go to school nor work, but as mommy says "this is how life is. responsibilities." :)

On Sunday a friend of mine, ann's brother, is leaving to China for 2 years. Today we had a get together for him! We all ate dinner together, grabbed a drink, and went over to one of our houses to play charades :) I'm guessing my act of love today was trying to talk to him at dinner and make sure he felt comfortable and make sure that tonight was everything that he wanted/liked rather than my own decisions :) Constantly making sure that our next step was what he wanted! Talking to him when it seemed like others were having conversation too! This is how we spread God's love, showing love and care to others!

It's hard for me not to be selfish, because I do honestly believe that I'm a selfish person. But I believe God can change anyone's bad habits as long as we're willing to change :)

We'll all miss his silly, goofy attitude,
tina

p.s. Good luck in China & hope you find comfort out there in the big scary world.

day twelve

today...

- both of my classes were canceled (thank God!)

- had the worst menstrual pain ever (oh God...)

- went to round rock outlet :)

act of love: i really wanted to take my friend out to dinner because she hasn't eaten out lately. so i decided to treat her to dinners at Chili's today :)

in pain,

ann

day eleven

my act of love today didn't go as well as i wanted.
sometimes we hear the word but refuse to follow it.
like how tina mentioned yesterday, that an act of love was something we do intentionally. we go out of our ways to help others, instead of giving and loving others out of our own conveniences.

today i kept debating whether i should go out of my way to walk with my friend to take our chem test. her place was in the opposite direction from where i was, and i prayed about whether God wants me to walk with her anyways.
i think He did, but i ignored Him out of my selfishness.
i told her i wasn't able to walk with her to and from the testing room tonight.

i still feel bad about it, and i just want to ask God for forgiveness over my selfishness.

anyways, my mini-act of love today was picking up trash. there was a trash in the testing room and another similar trash item by the computer i'm sitting at right now.

sorry God,
ann

11 down, 29 to go!

I'm in an AMAZING mood because SPRING BREAK is arriving! Slowly but surely :)

I just feel so stress-free right now! praise God!!

My act of love today was for my oldest sister! I asked her if i could drive her car to work today because my mom had my car picking up my DADDY! She said yess but asked me to buy her medicine since she's sick so of course, I said i'd get it for her. She was reaching for her purse but i told her i would pay for it :) If it was before, I'd be stingy and accept her money, but today i told her that i wanted to pay for it! Giving feels amazing, doesn't it?

I also just heard about InterVarsity Christian Fellowship which is on a lot of campuses! It's an organization that spreads the word of God! I want to join this at UH :)

Thanking God for every single thing,
tina

10 down, 30 to go!

Amen to Ann's post where it says "He is also a God that heals".

The past few days i've been having a bump inside my left eyelid. It hurts whenever I blink.. I was actually really terrified it was something serious.. So my mom told me that I'd have to schedule and appt with the doctor. But today my teacher told me i should go see the school nurse because that's what she's there for ! I went to the nurse & miraculously it turns out it's only allergies! She said that similar to the taste buds on our tongue, we have those in our eyelids too! Thank GOD for seeing the nurse :)

Act of love number 10: I got kicked out of my cubicle today. But the guy who is taking my seat has been rushing me ever since last week! I just could not ever find the time to move since I'd be moving my computer and telephone too! Electronics don't like me.. He came to rush me today but I told him that I promise I'll try tomorrow. The last 30 minutes of work today i decided to move out so that he can move in earlier! Although I was busy and he was a little rude, I decided to help him out.

I'm learning how to be nice even to those that are not very nice to me :)
tina

day ten

it was a good prayer day at the Campus House of Prayer!

full of worship and awe of God's wondrous love!

my roommate texted me and told me that she did bad on her quiz, so i decided to write her a note of comfort, plus a chocolate, like what she did for me yesterday! i hope that people will learn to turn to God for comfort because He is faithful to His people! His promises stand true: yesterday, today, and forevermore!

He is also a God that heals! :)

yearning for more of Him,

ann

9 down, 31 to go!

Woo! i'm feeling more alive being caught up now :)

mini tesimony: i studied last night for my Eco test which was today. usually no one studies for this class because it's an easy-A-class. but last time i didn't study, God taught me a lesson by giving me a C on the test. So learning my lesson, i studied in advance. As i was taking my test, i was extremely tempted to cheat since we sit in groups FACING each other.. The first 2 or 3 questions, i cheated off of my friend.. But God reminded me, kind of slapping me in the face, telling me that i CANNOT cheat. So for the majority of the test, after question 3, i glued my eyes to MY OWN paper. at the end of the test, i was so confident of my grade!

act of love: today i started doing a day-by-day devotional/prayer/discussion time with a girl at my church. we all decided to pair up & focus our eyes on God. I have to say it went very well :) I know that God's presence was with us. Woot woot!

God gave us burdens so that we may give them to Him, they were not meant to crush us,
tina

day nine

just finished two exams today!

i feel pretty confident about those two, and i really really thank God for letting me feel at peace throughout the exam! :)

i came home, and my roommate left a chocolate and a sweet note for me that says: 2 down, 2 to go! you can do it! i thought that was really really sweet of her, so i decided to do her dishes!

so happy with everything God has created and put in my life, including today's weather,

ann

8 down, 32 to go!

Sorrryyy to be a day behind! i've just been really busy these days!

soooo yesterday's good deed! i had a student council meeting & my friend asked me to show up early because she needed to sign up for something. i usually dont really like showing up early because there's not much to do except stand and wait.. but yesterday, i agreed to show up early with her :) i know this may sound simple, but knowing that i'm a selfish person... i usually dont like to do things 'out of my way' but God's grace and love shows me to think about others and to love them because they are God's children, just like i am :)

tina

day eight

today, i went to teach at the middle school. i wasn't looking forward to it, because last time i had been there, the kids were horribly behaved. i kept praying about going there today, and God really pulled me through! i fell in love with the kids! even though they won't be quiet, they are really bright! they have their own sense of humor, too. on one of the feedbacks, a student wrote, "the lesson was frickin confusing!" and someone else yelled out, "miss, save me from my misery!" even though the lesson itself wasn't quite accomplished, i gained greater confidence in teaching! i think my act of love today was showing the kids my undivided attention and my endless patience! it sounds very ideal, but i feel like i gave my all to the students today. before going to teach, i prayed that God would be revealed in every way, and it did! God's character is also undividedly attentive and endlessly patient!

so tired and so hungry (from fasting),

ann

7 down, 33 to go!

Today is a day when the angels in Heaven rejoice :) A friend from my church got baptized today! Oh joy! I'm extremely happy for him because he's been doubting God, but I told him to take a step of faith! AMEN!

Honestly, today has been such a stressful day. I am worn out because of my sickness and other things that are stopping me from being happy.. But I told myself that I wouldn't let these things bother me. My mom has been sick also but so busy with work. She left directly after church to go straight to work without anything to eat! I decided to buy lunch for her :) She offered to pay but I firmly said "NO!" :) It feels so nice making my mommy happy! Thank you God for my family!

Asking for God's guidance in my every day life,
tina

day seven

it's been one week of our 40-day spiritual journey, and i'm enjoying every second of it!

i'm thankful for God's faithfulness, even if i doubt sometimes, even when i lose sight on the eternal matters, His love never fails.

today's act of love was finding jobs for a friend.

she has been searching for jobs for quite a while now, and being an international student, it has been difficult for her. she is often discouraged and even have thoughts about giving up. today, i just came home from church and started searching for jobs in austin for her! i hope that out of the 10+ job openings i found out there, that one will open up! if not, more! i pray that God's favor will be upon her, as i was previously assured that He will open up doors for her! :)

not my will, but Yours be done,

ann

6 down, 34 to go :)

Going volunteering today was more of a MUST than a WANT. "volunteer" is out of generosity, but honestly, i went because i needed to get the hours for NHS. I know how horrible it sounds, but that's what everyone is there for.. Anyways, i went feeling pretty mutual. I wasn't feeling too horrible about going to this Prograd Garage Sale! So i showed up with open arms willing to help. I was asked to help an older woman hold her box while she was choosing out stuffed animals. I was really open about talking to her & holding a conversation! She told me that she buys these old stuffed animals, clips the hair, sanitizes them, and gives them to the unfortunate kids around the city! I felt SO blessed to be helping her, even in such a little act! I really felt the love in her heart, God's love. There really ARE nice people in this world :)

Learning how to be less 'stingy' as the days go by,
tina

day six

my act of love today was buying milk, eggs, and sandwich bags for my roommates and me to share.

at first, i was kind of unwilling to pay for them because they were "mutual" items that we all used, but now i realized that i must do it if i want to learn to give unconditionally! so, praise God for the opportunity! and pray that i will learn to be more generous in the future :)

needing God's grace and mercy more and more each day,

ann

day five

my act of love for today was helping a friend out!

she is going through some difficult problems right now and really needs someone to listen to her.

i listened and tried to encourage her and to comfort her. although i'm really bad at this, i think being a good listener is enough sometimes. sometimes when you have a problem, you just want to tell someone, you want someone to share your pain. you may not want to hear what they have to say, good or bad.

i also helped her write a few emails to professors!

and made dinner for my roommates!

it's so nice to serve people!

i also received so many things in return. my friend, being a bit OCD, cleaned up my itunes!! it's incredible, no more symbols! and i had a great time talking and watching a movie with them!

thanks for a good friday, God,

ann

5 down, 35 to go!

For my act of love today i did something GREAT! I really wasn't doing it just so that i could have something to blog about, but i truly am always the person to help my friend and her bf with their problems! we were sitting in class and they looked unhappy so i walked over to them, sat right in between them, and listened to them argue and heard their arguments. I helped them talk through their problems and found a solution to solve them! Yay!! I love to see them smiling rather than fighting :)

Turn that frown upside down, folks!
tina

day four

today is kind of emotionally gloomy...but praise God nonetheless! :)

act of love for today came at night. i was securing my bike, and i was telling God how i haven't done an act of love yet, and he answered, "the day isn't over yet." i looked outside, and a guy was standing there. he didn't say anything, so i offered, "do you need to come in?" and he said, "yes, thank you!"

it seems so little, but God has His ways!

fasting while apartment smells like chicken,

ann

4 down, 36 to go!

What an interesting day! :) Praise God for this wonderful weather in Sugar Land!

My good deed today wasn't really an action. Well i guess you can say it's an action, but it was more spoken rather than done.. anyways, i found out that one of my boss's father in law passed away recently through cancer. She had told me that the past weekend he had troubles so he was sent to the hospital. and i guess he passed away... today she left some things on my desk to work on and when i finished i put it back on her desk with a sticky note saying "feel better -tina". Secondly, the lady who sits in the cubicle next to me doesn't really talk to me much but i know that she is christian/catholic because i can hear her on the phone talking to her daughter about God a lot. i know i'm eavesdropping, but it's kind of hard not to! anyways, today i told her that i really liked her butterflies/dragonflies on her cubicle :) :) she looked very happy to hear that!

Today i showed God's love through words, which are also very powerful!
tina

3 down, 37 to go!

I feel like my math is wearing down every time i write my blog title.. i.e. (3 down, 37 to go) :)

so i was feeling very very happy today because i had no school due to underclassmen taking the TAKS! although i am sick, i just felt happy!

Before i was taking my nap today, my friend called me. I picked up disturbed because i was almost asleep.. She asked me various questions about FAFSA and financial aid. Thankfully, God gave me the experience of going to UH today to get those things done! I knew exactly what to tell her and how to help! I felt so happy to help her because I receive help from my friends on lots of information also! At the end of the phone conversation, I told her to feel free to ask me whenever she needs help!

I need to stop pleasing others around me, including myself, and start pleasing God.

Fasting tonight,
tina

day three

coffee + prayer for a friend :)

last night, i was praying for a friend, who was desperately looking for a job, and i just felt God's confirmation that her job is coming real soon! i was so excited, so i went to her place and prayed for her today! i told her that i feel God is opening doors for her! i also got her some coffee to cheer her up :)

oh, happy day,

ann

2 down, 38 to go!

Hmmmm, how to explain this day. Well like yesterday, i was anticipating what my good deed would be! School ended and I had not done anything notable! okay so i was at work minding my own business and my co-worker who is also a student asks me to borrow 25 cents. What a great opportunity to be giving :) so thank God, i perfectly had 5 nickels to give him since vending machines don't take pennies!

God is LOVE<3
tina

day two

i was so frustrated with myself today, because i missed an act of love in my journalism class! the girl sitting behind me was asking around for a tissue, and i had a pack in my backpack, but i just didn't move myself to give it to her! ugh...

today's act of love: giving homemade cookies to a friend!

i bought a dozen of homemade cookies from a friend last week to support his mission trip during spring break to dominican republic! they're delicious, but i definitely can't finish them all by myself!

four exams next week,

ann

1 down, 39 to go :)

This was my first day, as well as Ann's, on this spiritual journey! at first i wasn't too sure what was going to be my act of love and was really anticipating it.

My friend was really really nervous about her speech she had to give for the next class so i was giving her words of encouragement. Then out of no where, she asked me to pray for her. This all happened in a time span of about 2 minutes because we were walking in the hallway. so i said a quick prayer for her out loud :)

Pray for Chile<3
-Tina

day one

it's the beginning of a beautiful journey!

my "act of love" for today was doing a favor for a friend.

she was sick, so she couldn't come to class.

i got her clicker and answered questions for her, so she would get participation points.

unconditional love is when we don't care about whether we get anything in return, where we don't seek our own benefits but for those of others, just like how God gave His son to die for people undeserving of His grace.

fasting,

ann