today 2 sophomores and 2 freshmen went out for ice-cream.  while they were at the ice-cream shop, it started raining like cats and dogs.  the 2 freshmen were well-prepared with hoodies to shelter them from the storm.  the 2 sophomores however, weren't smart enough to bring an umbrella of sorts.  thus the sophomores ended up being drenched from head to toe, while the freshmen were nice and dry.

and you would think sophomores would be better prepared than freshmen eh :)

anyway today's rehearsal was pretty disappointing at first, but i guess it was a good wake-up call for everyone.  we missed quite a few cues (some were extremely crucial), and in general it was not at performance standard.  i think we can learn lots from this experience though.  we're learning how to work under stress, and we're identifying the trouble spots and ironing out the kinks.  it's going to be a great show :D

today was a much happier day for me too.  after coming back from florida i felt quite out of the whole sch thing, and the past wk was just rather confusing/tiring/no idea what's going on in my life.  today that cleared up somewhat, and i think that the Bible/verse reading in the morning definitely had something to do with that.  anyway do continue to pray for me :)

All who are thirsty
All who are weak
Come to the fountain
Dip your heart in the stream of life
Let the pain and the sorrow
Be washed away
In the waves of His mercy
As deep cries out to deep

We sing come Lord Jesus come
Come Lord Jesus come
Holy Spirit come
Holy Spirit come

for the uninitiated, one of my friends wrote a musical, and i'm playing the bass guitar in the pit band for him.  the show will be performing next thursday, friday and saturday.  as such, my whole wk next wk is full of rehearsals.  today i had a "2-hour" rehearsal go from 8pm to 1.20am.

thus hell week begins.

some of the thoughts (actually just 2) from today's Bible reading:

I just finished going through the Psalms yesterday.  It's interesting to note how even though we jump from one extreme emotion to another as we move from psalm to psalm (or even just within the psalm itself), towards the end of the book there appears to be a triumphant air about the psalmist.  Psalms 148-150, in particular, are just FULL of "Praise the Lord!", over and over again.  Maybe as we get closer to the end, the trappings of life begin to fall away (in our perspective, at least), and we see that life is really just about praising the Lord.

The second thought concerns the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15.  The son doesn't say anything after v21.  I always wondered what the son might have said/felt after he saw the lavish grace poured on him by His Father.  how did he react?  how did he feel?  if you were the prodigal son, what would YOU have done?  You came back from the far country after spending all your dad's money, and not because you missed him but because you needed to fill your belly.  yet upon your arrival you are drowned in an ocean of grace that completely overlooks your grevious sin.  what would you say, what would you do?

I can only imagine
I can only imagine what it will be like
When I walk by your side
I can only imagine what my eyes will see
When your face is before me
I can only imagine
I can only imagine

Surrounded by your glory
What will my hear feel?
Will I dance for you Jesus,
Or in awe of you be still?
Will I stand in your presence,
Or to my knees will I fall?
Will I sing Hallelujah,
Will I be able to speak at all?
I can only imagine
I can only imagine

I can only imagine when that day come
And I find myself standing in the Son
I can only imagine when all I will do
Is forever, forever worship You
I can only imagine
I can only imagine

hi guys, i would like some prayer in regards to sch.  mmm i feel like i'm burning out a little bit in regards to math.  i guess it's just cos i spend so much time on it.... now when i look at my problem set for complex analysis my brain just shuts up and refuses to think.  i haven't reconsidered my major (yet) cos i think i still wanna do math (and it's quite the late to change anyways), but it's definitely wearing away a little at my mind.  so do pray for my mental state of health :)

i need to stop thinking and analyzing so much too.  it's not making me depressed, but it's making me tired.

here are some of the many, many, MANY photos that we took :)



boys acting cute


fireworks at the end of disney parade


sophomores!


i stole her glasses :)


all going underwater


obviously i haven't taken classes...


jon the shark!


boys in the pool :D

wow it's been awhile.  many things have happened since, and i would like to go through them chronologically.... let's see how things go.

last friday marked the end of the first half of fall semester i.e. 6 weeks of sheer hard work.  princeton was oh-so-kind to give us a week off from sch (while giving us hw and tests to do over the break zzzz).  friday to sunday was manna's fall retreat, which was held at new jersey christian academy.  i have to say that this retreat was quite different compared to previous retreats for me, mostly because i'm on the praise team this year.  as a member of the band, most of my time was spent practising with the praise team while the rest of the pple were mingling abt.  i guess it was partly cos of that that i didn't get to talk to as many pple as i would have liked.  upon much reflection i feel like i need to have more talks with more pple, conversations that are deeper than the superficial recounting of everyday life.  there is much that can be learnt from many pple, and there is much that can be gained for both parties.

the retreat's theme was on calling.  rev charlie drew came to speak (i bought his book, halfway through it right now).  i think i knew most of the things that he was talking about already, but it was definitely a good refresher, making the concepts really clear.  through his messages i was forced to reevaluate my life here at princeton.  why do i do the things i do?  i feel that there are some changes in my life that i need to make.  academics cannot be the sole goal of my princeton life.  important as they are, they are not life.  neither are they just tickets to a luxurious life.  i cannot make academics/math my god.

monday to saturday was spent in orlando, florida!  jon's (the manna intern) parents had timeshare in orlando, so he graciously invited some of us to join him.  there were 9 of us altogether- jon, ellen, andrew, angela, yoonju, angela, karen, dan and me.  even though most of us had some form of work to do over the break, we all managed to chill a lot too.

monday night was spent at universal walk, just walking around, not much i guess.  on tuesday we went outlet shopping!  i bought quite a few things.... well i haven't bought any new clothing for quite some time, my wardrobe really needs some sprucing up.  i actually managed to survive shopping with the girls :)  dan and andrew couldn't stand it though they ended up playing games in a toy shop :)

wed was chill day in the hotel, thu was disneyland!  disneyland was really coooool.  the rides weren't thrilling like six-flags-thrilling, but i guess many of the rides reminded me of parts of my childhood.  winnie the pooh, it's a small world, mickey goofy donald duck.... good times, good times...

i think we spent lots of time chilling in the resort grounds.  we went to the swimming pool and the hot tub a couple of times (maybe too many times), sat on the dock, played bball, volleyball, lying on the grass, swings and playgrounds..... so fun! :D  watched movies too.  and a sad basketball game.  lots of good conversations, i feel like i got to know the rest of them better.

now that im back on campus, it's so easy to slip back into the depressive mood.  but i wont.  God don't let me slip back into that mode.  life is so much more :D

to post some pictures soon.

hi all!  i'm in florida right now, enjoying my break :)  lots of things have happened and there's lots that i want to reflect on, but there's not much time here, partly cos we only have one internet cable for 9 of us.  anyway i'll probably blog next on saturday :)

i'm currently in the midst of midterm wk.  2 down, 2 more to go, plus 1 take-home midterm to be done over the break.  do pray for me, for strength, wisdom... and sleep :)  so looking forward to fall break! :D

"You sum up the whole of New Testament teaching in a single phrase, if you speak of it as a revelation of the Fatherhood of the holy Creator.  In the same way you sum up the whole of New Testament religion if you describe it as the knowledge of God as one's holy Father.  If you want to judge how well a person understands Christianity, find out how much he makes of the thought of being God's child, and having God as his Father.  If this is not the thought that prompts and controls his worship and prayers and his whole outlook on life, it means he does not understand Christianity very well at all.  For everything that Christ taught, everything that makes the New Testament new, and better than the Old, everything distinctively Christian as opposed to merely Jewish, is summed up in the knowledge of the Fatherhood of God.  "Father" is the Christian name for God."
- Theologian and author J. I. Packer (b.1926): Vancouver

How deep the father's love for us
How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure
How great the pain of searing loss
The Father turns His face away
As wounds which mar the Chosen One
Bring many sons to glory

Behold the man upon a cross
My sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice
Call out among the scoffers
It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying death has brought me life-
I know that it is finished

I will not boast in anything
No gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ
His death and resurrection
Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer
But this I know with all my heart:
His wounds have paid my ransom