hi you guys,

so I don't really have a topic in mind, so I'm going to just let my streams of consciousness flow out, and hopefully something good comes out of it. =)

well, this week has been pretty overwhelming. lots of work to do and too little sleep. it seemed like every day I would desperately want to go to sleep, but be unable to, because I had work due the next day on top of all these other commitments throughout the day. And yet, somehow I made it through the week alive. So that's reassuring. But I guess what I'm trying to say is that God really provides. Even though I felt physically exhausted and almost to the point of burn out, God gave me the strength to get my work done on time and still follow through with all my commitments. He provided in my weakness and even though I, myself, couldn't handle it, God could. And He made everything work out in the end.

So recently, I've been going through the daily bread, and the passage that I picked out for Thursday really stuck out to me. "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." [Galatians 5:22] And this made me think a lot, because throughout this week I've been very consumed with my problems. I would think, why do I have so much on my plate? Everyone else seems to have so much time in comparison and I can't even think straight because I'm so tired.

But then, at Bible study on Wednesday night, we all shared how our highs/lows for the week. And hearing all of them share their experiences in life right now was really humbling, because it made me realize I'm not alone; that everyone is going through their own struggles and God will not give us more than we can handle. And though I know this in the back of my brain, I forgot it because I was so wrapped up in all the things I needed to get done. And so going back to the scripture, the message focused on having patience. And I definitely think that is true. Too often we get so absorbed in the busyness of our lives, that we forget that others have a lot of stuff going on, which we can't see because we don't open our eyes to it. But we need to realize that in spite of what we are going through, we should still rejoice and be patient with others, because their lives could be going so much worse. And even if that is not the case, we need to be there for them (be the encouraging sister/brother to build them up and support when they need it) and put others first. And through this, not only will we be living a more God-centered life, but we will also be glorifying Him by showing others a virtue of God.

By the ways, another thing to mention is that we should not compare our struggles with others, because everyone is on their own walk with God, and so it does not matter whether someone seems to be going through something harder or easier. Because in reality, some test that is very hard for one person could be really easy for another. And so there is no point in comparing, because the effects of such can be very damaging. Instead, we should remember that God has everything under control and just because someone appears to be having the better life, that does not necessarily mean it's true; plus it should not affect one's relationship with God anyways. What we should do though, is trust in God to have the best plans for us and turn to Him especially during our vulnerable times, because those are times in which we need God most, and God is the only one who can answer our problems.

Alright, well take care you guys!

Vickie

Why Do You Do The Things You Do?

have you ever been asked that question? "why do you do the things you do?" i'm sure it's a question we as Christians would welcome so that we could share the Gospel with our non-Christian friends, right? well, could you answer it? could you really say, the reason for all this is God?

when you wake up in the morning, do you thank God that you're still alive? when you eat your breakfast or put on your clothes, do you worship Him for being Your Great Provider? is everything you do reflective of a God-centered life?

that's the problem with this world. independence and self-reliance are synonymous. if you are truly independent, then do you need God?

this week, i'm going through Titus 3:1-2~ "Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men". after sunday, when i chose this passage to reflect on throughout the week, i couldn't remember my reason for choosing it. the passage no longer seemed to apply. i could feel my prideful spirit stepping up and saying, like the rich man, "all these i have kept" (Matthew 19:20).

only after talking to a friend just a few minutes ago about what God has been teaching us, did God remind me of the real reason for all these works:

bskballangel123 right now i'm in Titus and i'm just going through a chapter a week. this week's was Titus 3:1-2~ Paul telling Titus how to build up the body of Christ, how to remind people to be subject to rulers and authorities...and whatnot. but i guess more than that. because sometimes i get so action-oriented that i forget the reason for what i do. that in all things i was created for the glory of God, to honor Him when i submit to my elders, when i'm obedient to my parents, when i do good in my community, when i love my brothers and sisters and humble myself before them.

i'm constantly reminded, day-to-day, that it's the grace of God that saved me. in high school, i was self-disciplined to the point of legalism and i thought i could pay back God for what He did, or that He didn't love me because i continued to sin. but God freed us from that bondage. even though we are all sinners, He loves us and it is only through His Son's perfect sacrifice that we are saved.

but i guess more than that...it's that when i do things, when i speak or act or think, i do it all for Him because my very life was God-given, my identity is in Christ. i don't do things anymore to please others or to make sure i am seen/viewed a certain way but i do things because i want to please God my Father, because i love Him, and because i am so grateful that He has blessed me and chosen me to be His daughter.

bskballangel123 it's easy to get caught up in the works or the ministry and forget why we're doing everything in the first place. it's important to prepare your heart for anything and everything, thanking God for opportunities, for gifts, for passion, and giving Him ALL the glory.

so, why do you do the things you do? are you serving in church out of obligation or because you love Christ? brothers and sisters, God doesn't need us to serve our church. He doesn't need us to do anything. we are His creation. He could use any one of us to fulfill His purpose.

but the things is, we should want to serve our God. we should want to please Him and use the opportunities we have to glorify Him.

God blessed us mightily. may we praise the Father who gives and takes away.

in Christ alone,
Andrea

Email: Time For God

> Read only if you have time for God
> Let me tell you, make sure you read all the way to the
> bottom. I almost deleted this email but I was blessed when I
> got to the end
>
>
>
> God, when I received this e-mail, I thought...
>
>
> I don't have time for this.... And, this is really
> inappropriate during work.
>
>
> Then, I realized that this kind of thinking is.... Exactly,
> what has caused a lot of the problems in our world today.
>
>
>
> We try to keep God in church on Sunday morning...
>
>
> Maybe, Sunday night...
>
>
> And, the unlikely event of a midweek service.
>
>
> We do like to have Him around during sickness....
>
>
> And, of course, at funerals.
>
>
> However, we don't have time, or room, for Him during
> work or play...
>
>
> Because.. That's the part of our lives we think... We
> can, and should, handle on our own.
>
>
> May God forgive me for ever thinking...
>
>
> That... There is a time or place where..
>
>
> HE is not to be FIRST in my life.
>
>
> We should always have time to remember all HE has done for
> us.
>
>
>
> If, You aren't ashamed to do this...
>
>
> Please follow the directions.
>
> Jesus said, 'If you are ashamed of me, I will be
> ashamed of you before my Father.'
>
>
> Not ashamed?????
>
>
> Pass this on ONLY IF YOU MEAN IT!!
>
>
> Yes, I do Love God.
>
>
> HE is my source of existence and Savior.
>
>
> He keeps me functioning each and every day. Without Him, I
> will be nothing. But, with Christ, HE strengthens me. (Phil
> 4:13)
>
>
>
>
> This is the simplest test.
>
> If You Love God... And, are not ashamed of all the
> marvelous things HE has done for you...
>
> Send this to ten people and the person who sent it to you!
>
>
> Now do you have the time to pass it on?
>
> Make sure that you scroll through to the end.
>
>
>
> Easy vs. Hard
>
> Why is it so hard to tell the truth but Yet so easy to tell
> a lie?
>
> Why are we so sleepy in church but Right when the sermon is
> over we suddenly wake up?
>
> Why is it so easy to delete a Godly e-mail, but yet we
> forward all of the nasty ones?
>
> Of all the free gifts we may receive, Prayer is the very
> best one....
>
> There are no costs, but wonderful rewards... GOD BLESS!
>
>
>
> Notes: Isn't it funny how simple it is for people to
> trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell.
>
>
>
> Isn't it funny how someone can say 'I believe in
> God' but still follow Satan (who, by the way, also
> 'believes' in God).
>
>
> Isn't it funny how you can send a thousand jokes
> through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you
> start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think
> twice about sharing?
>
>
> Isn't it funny how when you go to forward this message,
> you will not send it to many on your address list because
> you're not sure what they believe, or what they will
> think of you for sending it to them
>
>
> Isn't it funny how I can be more worried about what
> other people think of me than what God thinks of me.
>
>
> I pray, for everyone who sends this to their entire address
> book, they will be blessed by God in a way special for them.

Laminin - Louie Giglio

For those that have not seen this!

flagpole

See You At The Flagpole Day

it's a national thing. held at schools all across america.
christians from all over meet at the flagpole before school.
the last wednesday of september (this coming wednesday)

my school's doing. see if your schools want to.
it's a one time thing. so turnout is usually pretty huge.

get the word out and bring all the christians at your schools together
in the morning at the flagpole. to worship. pray. chill. and just stand together as one.

or. ditch school and come to mine.
--FHS Flagpole. 7-9 am. wednesday.--

miss you guys.be good.
-chin

prayer! :]

HELLLO :]
soo this is just something short and not deep like andrea.. but its something :D
okay so i was reading screwtape letters and then in chapter 4 (or letter four) i saw that the demons were talking about prayer
so the nephew person.. i forget his name was.. his person he's supposed to be mean to became a "christian" and then so then he was talking about prayer and then he said that we shouldnt (meaning that WE should) pray with bended knees and moving lips and not with just a spirit of love and a sense of supplication.. which i thought was supersuper coolios and then he keeps on going on... and then he says that people who do jusat the second part are lazy "patients" and then this part REALLLY gets me its like a devil's trap ritee??.. :D anyawys here's wut he says
"at the very least, they canbe persuaded that the bodily position make no difference to their prayers; for they cconstantly forget what you always must remember, that they are animals and whatever their bodies do affect their souls. It is always funny how mortals always picture us as putting things into their minds: in reality our best work is done by keeping things out."
YEAH so that totally made me think about that.. so yup :] hope you enjoyed my postss :]

OH WE SHOULD UPDATE
okay so joliet and vicky (did i spell that rite?)
new ppl... get to know them! :]

hm this friday 9/19-- bible study time
next friday 9/26--- pool time.. for fun nite
cool huh
it'll be cold tho BUT THATS OKAYY!
and uhh t-shirts coming up soon.. idk where rob's going with that
and. ANDREA AND KEVIN the last college ppl left :(
andrea's leaving tommorow friday and kevin's leaving on saturday
so say bye to them sumhow :D ! okay cuz we'll mmiiisss you and also dan and carson
and all you college people! AWESOME so cyah guys tmr!
sry there's alot of typos.. but i was writing this in a big rush

Bad Company [And Habitual Sins] Corrupt Good Character

hay capstone! it's me again. don't you guys/gals get tired of me posting? post something so that the blog isn't just andrea ramblings :P!

anyway, recently God has been teaching me about relationships. 1 Corinthians 15:33-34 says, "Do not be misled: 'Bad company corrupts good character.' Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God—I say this to your shame."

this verse applies to me more personally than in the context of the passage. here, Paul is talking about the resurrection of the dead and how if we don't believe that people can be resurrected from the dead, then we don't believe that Christ has been resurrected from the dead, and the Gospel is useless. Paul then says "bad company corrupts good character" because some followers of Christ have been tricked into believing that the dead are not raised (v.33).

i, however, take this in the context of friendships or relationships. oftentimes the people we surround ourselves with have a lot to do with what we believe or how we live our lives. most of our friends share our similar interests. thus it is necessary for us to be wary of the people we spend our time with, because we know that we are influenced by them.

similarly, we have influence over others. our sins affect the people around us. Paul says, "Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God, I say this to your shame" (v.34). do your actions or speech or thoughts make the people around you "ignorant of God"? do your habitual sins stumble your brothers and sisters in Christ? [do your actions or speech or thoughts cause your brothers and sisters to sin as well? do they look at what you do/say/think and follow suit?]

and not only your Christian friends, but your non-Christian ones as well...do you uphold the name of Your Lord with them? then, do they help your relationship with God? or do they hinder it?

i've been convicted of this many times during my first year of college. i was guilty of both. in the beginning of the school year, i hung out with people who hindered my relationship with God. when i stopped hanging out with them, however, positive growth didn't automatically occur. in fact, i think i was on a steady decline for awhile. my own sins (ie. pride in my talents, idolizing relationships, etc.) stumbled my brothers and sisters to gossip. and soon, i earned a bad reputation of hanging out with certain people.

this coming year, i made the commitment of cutting off relationships and cleansing myself from certain habitual sins. but i know i cannot do it on my own.
Titus 2:11-14 says,
11For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. 12It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.

God revealed to me through my weekly devotions that i can rely on Him, that the Gospel brings me hope that i am no longer a slave to sin but a slave to righteousness. because i know God is gracious in forgiveness and, especially, that Jesus died once for all of my sins, i have power from Him to continue to do what is holy in His sight, to say "'No' to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live (a) self-controlled, upright and godly (life) in this present age, while" i eagerly anticipate for Christ's return, for my restoration to perfection in godliness (v.12). surely, i want to be a member of Christ's body, to be "(redeemed)...from all wickedness and to (be purified)..., eager to do what is good" (v.14). don't you?

i challenge you to a duel! wahaha... (okay, that didn't sound as corny in my head):
1) judge your relationships~ are you pleasing God in them? are you words glorifying to Him, your actions representing Him, your thoughts centered on Him?
2) judge yourself~ is there habitual sin in your life? does this sin affect not only your relationship with God but your relationships with your non-Christian and/or Christian friends? remember you are accountable to God first, and to your other relationships second. pray to Him to help you rid yourself if this sin.

in Christ alone,
Andrea

Do Your Actions Represent What You Believe?‏

hay capstone :)

i just wanted to share something i have been learning while going out for campus evangelism, during my first year at ucsd. or, rather, something i have realized.

a lot of nonbelievers have misconceptions of "christians". the people i have talked to mostly have the same consensus--that "christians" are hypocrites. whether from their personal experiences of attending a church or from their judgment of "christians" that they know, nonbelievers do sometimes have basis for their assumptions. there are some people that proclaim they believe, but, by their actions, don't represent God.

this week i've been going over Titus 1:16-- "They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient and unfit for doing anything good" which clearly spoke about this subject of hypocrisy among "christians".

here Paul warns Titus of people "of the circumcision group," that is, the Jewish people (v.10). He tells Titus that these people try to proclaim false messages and deceive new believers "for the sake of dishonest gain" (v.11). Even though some of their testimony could be true, their own lives do not uphold the Gospel that is supposed to be the center of their walk with God. "They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him" (v.16).

As I said before, this sort of hypocrisy is common among some believers. They attend church every Sunday and Friday and, in a sense, wear a Christian label, calling themselves followers of the Living God. But unlike their stronger brothers and sisters, their worldly lives are no different, if not worse, than those who do not believe. They do not represent God correctly. With their sinful actions, they tarnish the name of the LORD.

i am not saying this for you to judge others, but only to judge yourselves, your own actions. i'm sure your friends and family know that you are Christian because you have told them so. but do your actions reflect what you believe? do you love as Christ loves, forgive as Christ forgives, and live as He lives? or do you live by the standards of the world and look no different than the nonbelievers around you?

i had to ask myself this. am i one of those people who claims to know God but deny Him by what i do? do my actions portray and uphold my beliefs? or do i stumble others, nonbelievers and believers alike?

the Scripture clearly says that we are set apart from this world, as believers. in this way, we shouldn't "conform to the pattern of the world but be transformed by the renewing of (our minds)" (Romans 12:1). and how do we renew our minds? through our daily studies of the Bible, of God's Word that is "sharper than any double-edged sword" in defeating the temptations the world offers us (Hebrews 4:12).

i have a challenge for you, brothers and sisters:
- question the jokes you laugh about~ are these jokes pleasing to God, unoffensive to others?
- examine your speech~ do you need to tame your tongue (James 3)? do you say "only what is helpful for building others up" (Ephesians 4)?
- look at your clothing~ why do you wear what you wear? are you dressing for others, for yourself, or for God?
- judge your heart~ are your intentions pure and holy?

let's make God look good !

in Christ alone,
Andrea

Welcome to the New Capstone Blog

What this blog intends to accomplish:

- place where the youth group can gather during the week and post: problems, prayer request, what they learned in devos, cool song they heard, etc.

- better feature, a safer environment, and neater layout than the 1st blog

Site Construction Plan:

- New banner
- New music player
- New contact list with member info
- Church Information
- Each member's contact information
- New photo sharing feature

Please be patient while I experiment with BlogSpot's fancy features and what-not.

-- Alex