Mark of the Lion

I just read the best books, man oh man. They were the first two in the Mark of the Lion Series by Francine Rivers. Now, I was a little apprehensive because they were (cough, cough) "Historical Christian Romance" novels. Hmmm. But everyone at church kept going on and on about them. Including Kari Way. Now, Kari isn't the super girlie mushie lovie dovie type, so I concluded that they must be decent and not super cheesy. Which they weren't.

They followed a young Jewish Christian girl named Hadassah as she is taken captive to Rome after Jerusalem and the temple are destroyed. She is then sold into the household of the Valerians, a very well to do family in the Roman Empire. I won't tell you much beyond that because: 1) I don't want to spoil ANYTHING, and 2) There's a lot to these stories and you'd probably be bored reading my recap.

What I do want to tell you is how interesting it was to read these books and understand what it meant to be a Christian in ancient Rome. It meant being sold as a slave because you were considered worthless. It meant being attacked and eaten by lions in the arena for the entertainment of the masses. It meant being crucified as your Lord was. It meant utter hatred and disdain from not only the Romans, but your fellow brothers and sisters, the Jews. As I read Acts, I see what risks were taken as people proclaimed Jesus the Son of God, and the consequences that than ensued. It encouraged me to see what boldness Paul and Peter had as they spoke of what would surely get them killed. And it encouraged me to read a fictional story of a girl with a belief in the Messiah that led her places I can never imagine being in my whole life. I know that I'll never be persecuted the way most Christians are as long as I live here in America. I may be mocked, or laughed at, maybe even one day spit upon, but never tortured to death while someone tells me to deny Christ. And there are hundreds of Christians around the world right now that are.

So, please read these books. It made me realize the extreme extent of how blessed I am and how easy it is for me to be a Christian. I hope you see the same thing!

While you're at it, go to www.persecution.com and sign up for the free monthly magazine, The Voice of the Martyrs. Also, click on the left on Prisoner List and read about Christians around the world that are in chains for the gospel, and then send them a letter of encouragment! We can all do our part!

80 Wonderful Years...

This weekend we joined the rest of the fam down south to celebrate Grandpa Bob's 80th Birthday! It was a very fun affair, and who doesn't love celebrating life? Grandpa Bob seemed to have a great time and celebrated in true UCLA fashion.

Grandpa says thanks for caring.

I also got to spend a little quality time with my favorite 3-year old...

And I hung out with the weight-lifting champion from Taiwain, junior league...

Beyond that, we got some good Hawaiian food with Kirst, checked out a cool modern cathedral in downtown LA, and ate some yummy snacks in Little Tokyo. Fun times were had by all.

Police, everybody down!

Well, yesterday was quite the day, let me tell you. It started with a bit of sleeping in (huzzah!) and the beginning of my CBS Bible Study. I joined CBS last year after Jenn Allen told me how wonderful it was, and she was right. I'm so excited to begin again. And what are we studying you ask? Acts! SO. EXCITED. ABOUT. ACTS. So, since CBS let out early, being the first one, I sat myself down at Starbucks and read a bit of Perelandra, one of my all time favorite books, and probably my fav. CS Lewis read. Then I tromped off to work where it was pretty quiet, so I got out early. After a stop off at Target for some beverages for dinner, I went home. It was a lovely afternoon of cooking, cleaning, knitting, and rockin' music. Around 5 I finally sat down for some good ole' God time. It was me, my journal, my Bible, and my coffee with Blueberry Cobbler Coffeemate (how you tempt me Blueberry Cobbler!). What could go wrong? Let me tell you....

All of a sudden I hear someone walking across my lawn. This is quite common living next to the High School, but out of habit I glanced up and to my surprise, didn't see a high school student. Instead, it was a women in street clothes with a bullet-proof vest on that read POLICE in bright yellow letters. She had a gun holster around her waist, with quite a few weapons.

Ooooookay, that's not super normal.

And then, following behind her were about 7 men, all in street clothes with their bullet-proof vests and guns (lots of guns), ready to scare the heck out of someone. And the last guy had one of those big tools that knocks down doors. Cool, right?

At this point, I'm a little baffled, wondering what the heck I should do. But before I can think too much I hear, right next door mind you, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. "Police, everybody down!" Then a lot of yelling and screaming. So at this point, I grab my keys and phone and haul butt out of the house. I meet up with my neighbor from behind, who's also just as confused as I am. I guess the police not only surrounded the front, but the back as well. Sweet.

So, that's it. I don't know if anyone was home. I don't know if anyone got arrested. I don't know why 15+ armed personnel stormed my neighbors house. But it happened. (On a side note, I'd like to say that I like my neighbor and have never had any problems with him. He's very entertaining, and always chats with us.) Maybe they weren't even after Jack*, but maybe someone else that comes in and out of there. I just hope it won't be happening again anytime soon. :)

After that we had a lovely dinner party with Mike, Britt and Hannah where we feasted on Huli Huli Chicken (thanks, Kelli!) and played Mario Party into the wee night. I got dead-last place. What a great day.

*Names have been changed for their protection.

A good laugh.

Hey everyone. Jon and I were just looking at pictures, and these all made me laugh. I hope that wherever you are, and whatever you're doing, you're having fun. Enjoy!

It's About Time!

So, I haven't blogged in quite some time and began to get some sass for it. I had plenty of things to write about, but I felt it was my duty to blog first and foremost about Haiti. After I did the Haiti blog, everything else would come.

So last night, after a bit of Mario Kart with the Shaws I sat down and started my Haiti blog. Boof. I don't know if it was my comp, or blogger, or simply me, but it wasn't happening. Pictures wouldn't download, then they would sideways, but then only 1 picture would load verses the many I wanted to load...finally, I threw in the towel. "I'll do it tomorrow!" I told myself. I then decided it would be good to download some of my Haiti pics onto myspace, because I've also been meaning to do that.

Boof. 5 out of the 8 pics I downloaded turned sideways on me. Why?!?!?! So I finally gave up and declared defeat.

So, here is my blog. It's not about Haiti. It's not about anything really. But it's getting me blogging again. And I promise there will be a Haiti blog (someday) and that my blogs may be more frequent now.

And while I have your attention, I'm reading this amazing book right now called "The Places in Between". I'm so in love with this book and am naming my first child after this guy. He rocks.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

So Jon, Britt, Hannah, Mike, Dave and I went to go see the latest installment of Harry Potter this last Wednesday...and boy oh boy did it rock! I really enjoyed it, particularly:

-Sirius. I don't care what you say Michael Shaw, Sirius is wonderful!
-Snape. He's such a pleasure to watch on screen. I can't help but smile. I particularly loved when he's entering Harry's mind and sees him and Sirius hugging. It shows Snape in the background saying, "I think I may vomit..."
-Bellatrix. Psychotic Death Eater at it's best.
-Luna. Can I hug her?
-Harry as teacher of Dumbledore's Army. He should be DADA teacher next year. That would almost certainly means that he would die...maybe that's how Jo chooses to kill him!
-"I must not tell lies." Umbridge was crazy, and she was perfect.

The story moved quicly, and I liked that. It kept a brisk pace, but was never overwhelming. They did a fabulous job of squeezing a HUGE book into 2+ hours, and keeping all the important storylines, and changing small things just for the sake of time. So hats off to the best Harry Potter film yet!

Cheers to the happy couple!

Where has the time gone? It seems that so much has happened, and I haven't blogged on any of it, so you're in for a long haul. Welp, here goes!

Two weekends ago Jon and I headed up north for Drana and Brandon's wedding. Drana was my roomie after college and is a really dear friend. The wedding was wonderful! It was in Benitia, in this old clock tower overlooking the bay and it was absolutely gorgeous. Considering the fact I was wearing lilac and was okay with it, it had to be a good day! It was also a fun wedding because one of my best friends, Ashley, was the matron of honor so I got to hang with her, and the bridal party rocked! All the girls were wonderful and it was so fun to get our nails done, and hang in the hotel, laugh, and drink the best soy latte I've ever had from Sabino's. And, I must say it was very organized because the day of the wedding us girls had like 5 hours to chill and get ready. Go organized Drana! So, here's to the happy couple who is in China on their honeymoon. Aren't they cute? And here's all us (hottie) bridesmaids. By the by, when did my hair become red???