The blog has been quiet lately, and that`s really made my heart so sad. I`m really wishing to write more and share more, but it has been a busy month and if I was not busy, I was going through something. But then again, maybe God is just making more stories to write about.

 

And now I got some stories to tell.

 

 

Last Friday God told me to take a big step of faith. I was invited to speak about Multimedia in a Christian arts café. I was so hesitant and really very afraid. lol You should have seen me! I really wasn`t confident speaking about Multimedia. Long story, but it was really one of my greatest fears. I actually got feverish the night before and thought about giving up.

 

So on Friday night, my fingernails all turned blue (they look a lot like freshly boiled peanuts! haha) and my knees were really wobbly. I would`ve fainted if not for His grace! The pastors who were with me, along with my sisters, were laughing so hard because I looked like close to having a heart attack!

 

Click here to read what I wrote in my journal that night!

 

And I`m so grateful, even if I looked so funny that night, because God taught me a lesson about courage, about taking that first fearful step out of your comfort zone no matter how afraid and unsure you are.  I feel so much humbled and even more dependent on Him for strength. Is there really anything we can do without Him?  

 

 

It`s so amazing how God desires for us and a makes ways for us to step out of fears and into His promises. We only need to believe Him and gather all the courage we`ve got to take a leap—even if all the courage you`ve got still equates with wobbly knees. Even if we looked funny or unsure, we`ve moved forward. We`ve walked past our fears. We believed when He said He will be with us and will never leave us alone. We obeyed. And that`s what`s important.

 

When God speaks,  oftentimes His voice will call for an act of courage on our part... and yieldedness is vital in listening to what He has to say.                                                                          

                                                           --Charles Stanley

Thank you Lord for:

 

184. For Courage, to stand up and move on even when we feel like giving up.

 

185. For calling us and holding out your hands when we are too fearful to take a step.

 

186. For people you use to encourage and strengthen us.

 

187. For always believing in us.

 

It`s pretty cool tonight and the rain`s thumping on the roof a little loudly. There`s a storm in our islands again and the winds are pretty strong, so it`s a little scary. The only thing I love about storms is staying indoors and yeah, I almost forgot, making some steamy soup and coffee.

I just left this post hanging and made myself a cup of coffee. lol ;) It`s really cozy tonight and perfect for sweet talk! I  just wish  the girls were here but they`re out for music practice (My sisters are so busy these days and you`ll always hear them talking about chords and parts, which I don`t understand at all!)


How have you been doing lately? Haven`t heard from you guys in a while and wondering how you`re all doing.

I haven`t been posting on the blog so much this month. I look at the archives and feel a little frustrated—just look how many posts I made in May!

I found these super cute and lovely colorful throw pillows on Etsy last week and I can`t help but write about them.

 

Rainbow colors are fun, so much more when it comes to flowers. With these pillows, it`s like you have your own rainbow flower garden right in your living room!

 

{I should be paid for making an advertisement like this, right? lol}

 

Anyway, you can check out That Funky Boutique on Etsy (No, I`m not describing the shop. It`s the name of the shop!).

 

You`ll actually find out that there are even more colors than these. There`s a red ombre ruffle that looks like a real life rose, and some are available in darker shades of blue and also in gray (which is my favorite--the gray ones would look good in a white sofa!).

 

Happy Thursday!

I was reading Warrior Chicks (by Holly Wagner) the other night and  these are a few of those words that spoke to my heart—about faith, taking a step and moving forward.

A warrior is one who is engaged aggressively in or experienced in battle. A warrior possesses the dedication that money can`t buy. A warrior is someone who fights, not because of what she is getting out of it, but because of what she can give. A warrior is a soldier with a “die for a cause” attitude. A warrior will do whatever it takes to ensure victory. A soldier signs up to join the fight; a warrior stays until it`s finished.

I am asking you to begin the journey toward becoming a warrior. It is the only way we can win the battles that life throws our way. And you not becoming just any warrior—but a beautiful one. It`s in your DNA.
                                                            –Warrior Chicks, Holly Wagner


Sometimes, we go on our lives living just like any other soldier and missing out on who really are.  We forget that we are warriors. Brave warriors who are not afraid of making big leaps of faith when the need arises…and taking little steps every day.

But sometimes, isn`t it the little steps that`s harder to take?
Maybe because we think they`re so little and there might not be any fruit. Maybe because our human minds naturally do a lot of rationalizing. Maybe because little steps don`t seem as important as big ones.

Little Steps Waiting For Us To Take

For me, today, taking little steps of faith means answering emails, responding to an invitation to speak, exchanging my comfort to work by faith… forgiving mistakes and giving a hug.

For you it could be making a cup of coffee or writing a letter to cheer a lonely heart. It could be praying for someone, smiling to the fastfood crew who`s serving your lunch, randomly showing kindness, or simply holding a hand. They seem small but they work as big as those which require greater courage…because they are done in faith.

Faith…in big or small acts…is something God honors. Something that makes Him smile. Something that makes an ordinary soldier a warrior.
Because warriors know that there is someone watching over them. Because warriors know that the Lord walks before and stands behind them in battle.

Our commander is greater than anything in the world. Greater than the universe. Greater than our fears. Greater than our enemy. Greater than the ground we set our foot on.

So take that step. Do that little act of faith. 

I was about to sleep when I heard my sister Ava listening to Cinderella—Steven Curtis Chapman`s lovely song, remember?

 
I don`t know what happened tonight. I felt like it was God singing me that song. Not that I would be gone from His arms someday—it was a bit like a wedding song---but it just reflected the love of my Father in heaven! And everything suddenly turned into a fairytale. Right in my little room at midnight, there are butterflies fluttering and my heart is smiling. `Cause I`m dancing with my Father… and He holds me in His arms. And He`s looking at me and singing over my heart…

So I will dance with Cinderella…
`Cause I know something the prince never knew

Oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don't want to miss even one song

And it`s better even than a million fairytales altogether.

What Cinderella Never Told Daddy

I always wondered what runs in His mind when He looks at me. And I had imagined all sorts of things.

I was the little girl who thought I need to be good in order to be loved. For many years, I feared that if I disappoint Him, His love would fade away, that He wouldn`t like me anymore. Because people like good girls. And I`m not a good girl all the time. And there were times that I doubted His love for me so badly that I gave up on myself and thought I wasn`t worthy to be loved. I called myself unlovable and not worthy to be His Cinderella.

I never told Him those fears. I kept that in my heart for a long, long time.

Daddy Loves To Dance
And then Daddy came and told me one thing He always loved and will always love to do: He loves to dance--with me, His little girl, Cinderella. And He told me that what`s running all this time. He  loves me and cherishes me deep in His heart. No matter what I do or what I become, I will always be the daughter He loves, the child He that makes His heart feel big, the apple of His eye. The little girl who jumps on His back and cling on His neck. The one He loves to tuck in bed at night and call by a sweet, funny nickname.

And He doesn`t want to miss even a moment. Not another moment.
And He doesn`t want to miss even one song.
So I should not run away.

`Cause I am His Cinderella.
And He knew something the prince never knew.

He knows my heart and everything about me… and He loves me just as I am.

I am His daughter and I am His treasured possession.

I was reading on my old blog this afternoon—the one I kept back in college—and I found this post I wrote when I was 20, in my desperation. *wink*

 

 

And it is heartwarming to remember that God cares for me and promises to hold on to me during life`s most desperate moments. It comforted my heart now, as I`ve been struggling lately about my dreams and laying it down before His altar, like how Abraham laid down Isaac.

 

Reading this, I remembered that the Lord cares about hearts. He cares even for even the tiniest things that concern us. And when we think surrender is hard and painful, what we need to do is look unto God and remember His love and goodness. He wouldn`t do anything---or ask us to do anything—that would harm us. He knows what`s best and we must ask Him for a trusting heart that always believes and never doubts His character.

 

--July 19, 2008--

It`s 4:22 in the morning. The commercial that I am trying to come up with will be due in less than four hours. Tired and all the more tempted to sleep. I must admit that I am tempted to SMS my leader in this time of the night and tell him that I cannot do this anymore. All I have is a background music, a draft of text from my pastor, some rather uncrisp photographs, and a blank movie editing screen. No idea. No bulb light moment. Hopeless.

 

 

"I am  the Lord Your God.  I am holding your hand,

so don`t be afraid. I am here to help you."

Isaiah 41:13 (NLT)

 

Before I started staring at my monitor hours ago, I read a chapter in Isaiah about God`s promise to Israel. He affirms that He is with them and will fight for them. When I read verse 13, I thought God is only speaking to me about a big heart issue I have been holding on to for so long. I was relieved and strengthened. And I thought that was all. But a few moments ago, when I really felt like crying because I could not do anything with what I was doing, God reminded me of His Word.

 

I am HOLDING your hand. I AM here to help you.

 

What sweet words to hear when all you`re left to do is to give up. I may not be seeing it but He is holding my hand. Imagine that! He is here with me now, grabbing my hand in my most desperate moment. What a sweet and loving God!

 

Lord, oh I just adore You. Thank You so much for being kind, and loving, and thoughful. You are really the sweetest of all I have ever seen. ;)

 

You know that I cannot do this. My strength is gone. The only thing that is left of me now is Your promise.. that You are the God who picks us up, You are the God who reaches us with Your hand and upholds us. All I am able to do now is trust.

 

I need Your power within me, my God. I just love You, Lord!

 

Photo Credits: Click photo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spring Chevron Salad Plates,  Aedriel Originals

Bicycle Flap Canvass Messenger Bag, IkaBags

Vintage-inspired Pleated Skirt, MaelleMadeByHand

Buttercream cookies, Tookies

I wrote on my 100 Before 100 List that I want to be a florist even for a day. I love flowers and I love fixing freshly cut flowers on a vase. But I didn`t tell you that I`m really so bad in making arrangements! The table arrangement I did back in high school homemaking class was so terrible! The roses looked lousy, they looked like hanging plants! haha

 

But now, I think I`m good in throwing `em all together randomly. Shake it a little and it`s done (Although, that wouldn`t pass as a floral arrangement technique). Seriously, I wish I can make even just a simple bouquet. I want to become a florist, if given a chance. Work on a flower farm and fix pretty arrangements.  Isn`t it cool to make flower arrangements for weddings? That`s one of my dream jobs!

Anyway, here are some of the videos I`ve been watching lately, hoping to pick up something.

 

If you`re a girl and you love flowers, I think you will enjoy these!

Good morning!

 

 

Tonight I saw a very tearful, but very inspiring video about 5-year old Elena, who was diagnosed with cancer. She loved writing love notes and drawing hearts for her mom, dad and sister. Her family found those notes tucked inside her Daddy`s pants, slipped between books, in her sister`s backpack, just everywhere around the house!  And it`s so amazing how can a little girl be so thoughtful and would think about leaving something behind the people who love her.

 

She knew that even if she goes away, love never goes away. Love remains. Such wisdom for a pretty, little lady!

 

A Pad of Colorful Sticky Notes

Last night, I was talking with a friend and we were talking about blogging and sharing love through the internet. The internet and blogosphere is a huge, beautiful and powerful platform to share God`s love. And a blog is like a pad of colorful sticky notes where we can write about Jesus, about God`s love for many people to see. When we write about the Lord, blogs are like little notes  with heart doodles that you find inside lunch boxes and hidden between the dishes. They bring sunshine to people`s hearts. They rekindle hope and brings smiles to lonely places.

 

And like Elena`s notes, blogs can become a legacy. They stay behind even when our time is up--for many people to see. And  if we would raise the name of the Lord in this platform today, that itself is already a legacy. When we tell His story.

 

 

But of course, love notes can also be many things other than blogs. They can be a hug to a friend. A kiss on your Mom`s cheek. Food you give to hungry. Or Sharing about Jesus to a stranger and to the bus driver. When we become the hands and feet of the Lord here on earth.

 

Everywhere and anywhere is a notepad where we can write about God`s love. Every single day is an opportunity to praise His name!

 

 

Leaving A Legacy

If there`s one story I would love to share with the world, it is the story how God saves and loves people continually. It`s His story of faithfulness—to me and to my family. And that if the Lord has been faithful to me and to those who had gone before me, that means He will always, always be faithful to those who will come after me.

 

How about you? What kind of love notes would you want to write and share with the people around you, with the people you love, with the people who don`t know about God yet?

 

Have you ever considered  writing your own blog and sharing your testimony—His love, faithfulness and mercy?  Or are there other ways God is calling you to write those love notes?

 

I pray that we would all grow in His love everyday!

Have a great week!

 

Photo source:

Tumblr and weheartit

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...

It`s dark and I couldn`t see anything out there. Really. ;) It rained late this afternoon and it`s cool now.

 

I am thinking...

of finding a job where I can practicing my writing. It had always been my dream. And I`m thinking of taking my first baby steps towards it.

 

I am thankful...

for everything I have in my life right now. Family. Friends. Ministry. My loving Savior.

 

In the kitchen...

We had tinola for dinner. It`s a soup made with chicken, ginger, and sayote and chili leaves. My dad is a tinola expert!

 

It`s on the menu every week and if this goes on for a year, I might not be so in love with tinola like how I used to! haha ;)

 

 

I am creating...

{oh, what am I creating?!} Ah, I`m working on another blogpost about what`s inside my purse.

 

I am going...

to meet with Onah on Friday. Excited! We`re having a private viewing of the 1040 movie with the youth group sometime in September. But I`m so excited to see Onah just to hang out. It`s almost a year since the last time we talked over ice cream. Uhm, was it ice cream?

I am wondering...

if I would fulfill my dreams—in a very hopeful tone.

 

I am reading...

Keep a Quiet Heart by Elisabeth Elliot.

 

I am hoping...

to work with Bart in a TV station someday. {Bart is our favorite “younger brother” in college, when Ava and I were still in Messiah.} We were chatting last night about our dreams and I was so touched. He was encouraging me so well and thank you again Bart, for believing in me!

I am looking forward to...

have a tea party with friends. And sleep over at Ynah`s. I`ve been terrible lately when it comes to spending time to friends I love. I was so consumed with my everyday life and God has been reminding me that I should balance every facet of my life. (I was playing Ciao Bella this morning, the time management game… and I got Game Over a lot of times. The message read: You have to balance every facet of your life. Ouch!} I know the Lord desires me to be “Ms. Friendship”!

 

Around the house...
Mom is cleaning. Ava is doing her homework—{and Facebook-ing, I know}haha. Dad is already asleep. He helped wash clothes the whole day and he`s so tired. I made coffee for him early this afternoon. ;)

 

One of my favorite things...

Olive oil. {Of all things, why olive oil?!!!} But I`ve been trying homemade beauty recipes and olive oil really works so well! I actually have an olive oil hair mask on right now!

A few plans for the rest of the week:

--Finish bible study lessons early

--Finish the kids church lessons about donuts. Yeah! Do you remember the donut man? We`re thinking of using the same illustration to teach kids. Life without Jesus is like a donut, `cause there`s a whole in the middle of your heart!

 

The precepts of the LORD are right,
   giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
   giving light to the eyes.

Psalm 19:8

Photo credits: Click photo

One of my favorite books of all of time is Elisabeth Elliot`s Keep A Quiet Heart. My sister got home with the book one day and since then, it`s been on our headboard, sitting prominently, in case I need something enlightening to read.

 

 

One thing that I really love about it is its theme. (Although, I admit, I wasn`t too attracted the first time I saw it. Quietness sometimes make me feel a little awkward and afraid. But that`s a different story I`ll tell you about next time.;) And if there`s really one great thing I learned from this book, it is about finding contentment in trusting God—in being still and quiet and in trusting that His will is good and perfect.

 

A spirit of calm contentment always accompanies true godliness. The deep peace that comes for deep trust in God`s loving kindness is not destroyed even by the worst circumstances, for those Everlasting arms are still cradling us, we are always under “the Mercy”.—Elisabeth Elliot

 

We rarely hear about contentment today. People don`t talk so much about being happy with what we have. Everywhere we are nagged by media to buy this and buy that. Get this and get that so we look good and we gain a our place in society.

 

But don`t you agree that the chase for all these things get tiring and wears us out in the end? The desire for more and more actually leaves our hearts with less and less. And we have to deal with all these emptiness we don`t know how to fill. That all these things we bought can never fill.

 

And the cycle repeats over and over. Desire more. Work more. Chase more. There`s an endless list of things to love and like in this world!

 

Dealing with Discontentment

I would be so dishonest if I would say that I`ve never battled with discontentment in my life. Truthfully, last week I made a long list of what I don`t have--not in paper, just in my heart—but it made me so weary, nonetheless.   

 

When we look at what we don`t have instead of God`s sweet and delightful blessings everyday, our souls become tired and heavy. Or sometimes, even worse. Our joy is stripped and we become ungrateful.

 

And the Lord has been teaching me so much how to keep a quiet heart. How to listen ONLY to Him. To shut down the noise of this world and find my value in who He says I am and not on what I have—or don`t.

 

And it`s really a joy to think about everything I do have in my life right now. Afterall, I really have so much. I do have the things I could ever ask for.

A Different Perspective

If God feeds you with manna today instead of cucumbers and olive oil and a salad of fresh greens, do you have the right to complain? Definitely not. Manna is manna. Straight from heaven. It`s like God is feeding you like how a Mom feeds her baby. It`s love from the heart of a sweet, caring God.

 

And just the same today. If we look for gourmet steak in the desert, of course, there`s we can find none. If we look for freshly baked seafood or pasta, our mouths would be watering and we would hate our journey. But if we would learn to be content and see the beauty of those little things that falls from the sky… if we would realize that they are God`s precious gift… we would be happy and peaceful and we would enjoy our lives knowing that having our God is enough.

 

He is enough.

 

Let your conduct be without covetousness; and be content with what you have: for He has said, I will never leave you, nor forsake you. –

                                                                                 Hebrews 13:5

 

So would I ever make a list on what I don`t have? I pray that I will never again. ;) But in case, I know that my God is the same God of beauty and love and patience. And I know He would always remind me…

 

To  find the beauty in everything. To find His hand. His love. To find Him in everything.

 

Lord, thank you for the beautiful things we have in our lives everyday. May we not ruin our joy by looking at what our neighbors have and which we don`t. We have enough. We may not have everything in the world, but You are enough. And we find joy in that.

We love you, Lord. Thank you!

 

 

Photo credits: click photo

I`m finally done with the list! Yey! It took me a month to think about what I really want to do with the rest of life! lol

 

 

Honestly, listing 100 things you want to do is quite a hard thing if you`re really serious about achieving them…and if they`re all at the same time somehow very hard to reach. But there are no better dreams than God-sized dreams, right? I`ve read a quote which says it`s better dream big and achieve 50% of it that dream little and achieve all of it.

 

What I love about God-sized dreams is that they`re so impossible to happen without God. And truly, a man could plan and dream, but it is the Lord who determines His steps. He knows what`s best. ;)

 

We can make our own plans,
      but the Lord gives the right answer.

 Proverbs 16:1

 

Click the photo for the close up.

 

God bless you!

 

 

 

 

Found this super cute and creative cookies on Manjar Sweets today! Mmmmm…

 

 

 

 

 

 

My dad would probably love these. But would guys love cookies for a gift? Depends, I guess. My dad eats anything you serve him! He loves food!

 

As for me, I`m enjoying the details! Cute!