AUTHENTIC love.
HOLISTIC faith.
MISSIONAL hope.

but how? in our day and age it would be absurd, downright unacceptable to not question everything, from the school lunch ingredients, to your future, and even your beliefs. do you ever feel like you are on shaky grounds? been stumped by a question about your faith, whether from your friends, or even from yourself?

we live with some sort of picture, some sort of plan of what our lives should look like and what we think it ought to be. but how do our plans compare to God’s plan? does it look different? somewhat incomplete? when you look at the blueprints for your life, are you inspired to build it? God’s plan for our life was created to save us, complete us, and to inspire us to not only build a house of faith, but a masterpiece.

come join us for BLUEPRINTS, a look at GOD’S MASTER PLAN.

sunday. 09.03.06. 11 am.

to view bloopers from the past sunday’s breakout promo, click here.

to view the actual edited video, click here.

Grabbed from calebobo’s xanga:

THE WAR FOR CHINA’S SOUL

–The Christians surely knew they were testing the patience of local government officials, who insisted the building was illegal and had to be torn down. But few were prepared for what happened next. Witnesses told TIME that at about 2:30 p.m., thousands of uniformed police and plainclothes security officers appeared at the construction site. The police cleared a way through the crowds for a few drill-equipped backhoes, and the authorities then demolished the church. Witnesses say police bludgeoned people indiscriminately with nightsticks. “They were picking up women–some of them old ladies–by their hair and swinging them around like dolls, then letting them crash to the ground,” says a man who watched the clash from across the street. A statement faxed to TIME by the information office of the Xiaoshan district government describes the scene differently, claiming that about 100 Christians “attacked and injured government officials” and that although the police detained a few protesters, none were injured. But the volunteer interviewed by TIME produced receipts from the local hospital attesting to his treatment for broken ribs, which he says many others suffered as well. “They treated us like dead dogs,” he says. “Some of them scoffed at us as we lay there, saying, ‘Where is your God now? Why can’t he help you? If you want to go to heaven, we’ll help you get there right now.’”

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

Here’s an update just for those who were a bit worried about me. I have had heart palpitations that would come on and off randomly and instantly. Having my heart beat ridiculously hard and fast doesn’t exactly mean blood goes to my head, so I generally feel very dizzy and about to pass out.

I am fine as of now. My family saw a cardiologist on Monday and there’s going to be a small operation on Wed. next week. Basically they’re sending tubes up my legs to burn off an extra nerve in my
heart that’s been circulating electrical signals repeatedly. Sounds nasty eh?

Thanks a lot for your prayers, you don’t know how much I love you all.

Please pray that the operation will go well and smoothly and that my condition will be cured. My body is actually under a very anxious state. A tiny bit of nervousness/fear makes me short of breath, so please pray for that too. (Watching the finale of “Hell’s Kitchen” didn’t help any…)

Thanks,
kevinwang

hope everyone had a great time at youth retreat making new friends, deepening old friendships, hanging out with cool counselors and meeting up with God. praying that what you experienced will remain with you forever.

for some awesome photos, check out katherine fan’s flickr site. click here.

We yearn for Your love, that spiritual high,
Hoping to be accepted at the gates when we die.

But often at times, when we feel so lost,
We forget about Your sacrifice, and how much it cost.

You see us struggling, stuck down in the dirt.
And we keep on failing, as You continue to hurt.

Our focus constantly shifted, to the things we want to do.
Not doing the things which we should be doing for You.

But we deserve nothing, and You deserve all.
Yet we ignore this, and continue to fall.

How far is the drop? Only You can tell.
But if not for You, it still might be Hell.

And yet You forgive us, by giving your own blood.
Lending us a hand, as we’re dragged out of the mud.

So thank You father, for Your love and Your grace.
And maybe, someday, we can realize our own rightful place.