summer fun

Summer has arrive! and what does that mean my friends?
Time to PLAY! and Work of course. But I kicked off this summer post finals by being uber cultured. 2 trips in 2 days to 2 different garden-esque places.

Trip 1 to the Getty in LA, a nice 15 min drive from the apt, less if there was no traffic, but alas this is Los Angeles, when is there NOT any traffic?

Favorite Pictures:


























Los Angeles Skyline, somewhat smoggy



























Color pops right out!



And the waterfall



The Getty

Trip #2 UCLA Hannah Carter Japanese Garden
With roomies, Law and Alex
Journey to the garden was quite entertaining, we were unable to find it initially so we circled around Bellagio, in Bel Air for a good 20 mins. Not exactly 'wasted' time perse since we were able to unofficially tour the grand "houses", which were more Estates than anything, in the area.

History behind it: Originally a backyard, that was transformed into a Japanese garden, zen like because there is nothing like that ever in greater Los Angeles area. The house and the garden were both donated to UCLA later on, and now it is in this secluded area in Bel Air. many parts of the garden, the structures seen were imported from Kyoto Japan. The double door entrance has no nails in it and neither does the tea house. Quite pretty. Quite green. Quite serene.

Favorite Pictures:
The flower at the entrance





Cathy in nature, photoshoot




























Alex Ninja Photoshoot



































And ... the photographer in her natural element.


























The UCLA Japanese Garden

Challenge to Women.... from Desiring God

A Challenge to Women

Download:

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By John Piper January 1, 1995

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1. That all of your life—in whatever calling—be devoted to the glory of God.
2. That the promises of Christ be trusted so fully that peace and joy and strength fill your soul to overflowing.
3. That this fullness of God overflow in daily acts of love so that people might see your good deeds and give glory to your Father in heaven.
4. That you be women of the Book, who love and study and obey the Bible in every area of its teaching. That meditation on Biblical truth be the source of hope and faith. And that you continue to grow in understanding through all the chapters of your life, never thinking that study and growth are only for others.
5. That you be women of prayer, so that the Word of God would open to you; and the power of faith and holiness would descend upon you; and your spiritual influence would increase at home and at church and in the world.
6. That you be women who have a deep grasp of the sovereign grace of God undergirding all these spiritual processes, that you be deep thinkers about the doctrines of grace, and even deeper lovers and believers of these things.
7. That you be totally committed to ministry, whatever your specific role, that you not fritter your time away on soaps or ladies magazines or aimless hobbies, any more than men should fritter theirs away on excessive sports or aimless diddling in the garage. That you redeem the time for Christ and his Kingdom.
8. That, if you are single, you exploit your singleness to the full in devotion to Christ and not be paralyzed by the desire to be married.
9. That, if you are married, you creatively and intelligently and sincerely support the leadership of your husband as deeply as obedience to Christ will allow; that you encourage him in his God-appointed role as head; that you influence him spiritually primarily through your fearless tranquility and holiness and prayer.
10. That, if you have children, you accept responsibility with your husband (or alone if necessary) to raise up children who hope in the triumph of God, sharing with him the teaching and discipline of the children, and giving to the children that special nurturing touch and care that you are uniquely fitted to give.
11. That you not assume that secular employment is a greater challenge or a better use of your life than the countless opportunities of service and witness in the home the neighborhood, the community, the church, and the world. That you not only pose the question: Career vs. full time mom? But that you ask as seriously: Full time career vs. freedom for ministry? That you ask: Which would be greater for the Kingdom— to be in the employ of someone telling you what to do to make his business prosper, or to be God's free agent dreaming your own dream about how your time and your home and your creativity could make God's business prosper? And that in all this you make your choices not on the basis of secular trends or yuppie lifestyle expectations, but on the basis of what will strengthen the family and advance the cause of Christ.
12. That you step back and (with your husband, if you are married) plan the various forms of your life's ministry in chapters. Chapters are divided by various things—age, strength, singleness, marriage, employment choices, children at home, children in college, grandchildren, retirement, etc. No chapter has all the joys. Finite life is a series of tradeoffs. Finding God's will, and living for the glory of Christ to the full in every chapter is what makes it a success, not whether it reads like somebody else's chapter or whether it has in it what chapter five will have.
13. That you develop a wartime mentality and lifestyle; that you never forget that life is short, that billions of people hang in the balance of heaven and hell every day, that the love of money is spiritual suicide, that the goals of upward mobility (nicer clothes, cars, houses, vacations, food, hobbies) are a poor and dangerous substitute for the goals of living for Christ with all your might, and maximizing your joy in ministry to people's needs.
14. That in all your relationships with men you seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit in applying the Biblical vision of manhood and womanhood; that you develop a style and demeanor that does justice to the unique role God has given to man to feel responsible for gracious leadership in relation to women—a leadership which involves elements of protection and care and initiative. That you think creatively and with cultural sensitivity (just as he must do) in shaping the style and setting the tone of your interaction with men.
15. That you see Biblical guidelines for what is appropriate and inappropriate for men and women in relation to each other not as arbitrary constraints on freedom but as wise and gracious prescriptions for how to discover the true freedom of God's ideal of complementarity. That you not measure your potential by the few roles withheld but by the countless roles offered. That you turn off the TV and Radio and think about...

Discernment

Big skit this year at UCLA AACF was on the topic of "Discernment" ....

AACF UCLA BIG SKIT 2009 "Discernment"

Appendix... and more

Recently came across this article while browsing the lighthouse community church website for sermons...

http://www.lighthousesouthbay.org/illuminate-blog/a-doctors-thoughts-on-the-appendix-ephesians-41-3/

An excerpt from it: [BOLD and Italics mine]

"However you fit in, and God, in His grace, has given each of us a role, the body must work together; there needs to be unity. “Walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph 4:1-3). So how do we, with our diverse and unique set of spiritual gifts, work together in unity?

• We must be humble: every gift is important; maybe yours is more visible, but realize that it is a gift from God and that you are responsible to use it to edify the body, not flaunt it over others! The pastor can’t be heard without a sound person; the sound equipment can’t be bought without a finance team; the offering can’t be collected without ushers …
• We must be gentle: our spirit and attitude must be mild, we need to show self control; this results from a humble attitude. Sinful people working together will inevitability cause friction! How do you respond?
• We must be patient: when this friction happens, our humility and gentleness will result in patience – when that team member forgets to bring something or is late, how do you react?
• We must bear with one another in love: the first three attitudes all stem from and are seen in a forbearing love for each other. Love for God and one another underlies all that we do. Do we lovingly bear with one another, or do we complain, get bitter, gossip? "

Reflection upon my own life, and just this past year ... how do I respond. More and more I am aware that my responses are not loving, are not humble, are not gentler... nor is my attitude self controlled. A good reminder of this was during last nights SNL meeting, and reflecting upon the year as a whole, our small group interactions as a whole, and the function of SNL as well as our individual parts in it... very humbling experience.

Application:
Hide this verse in my heart.