Engaged!

God has been orchestrating another stanza in this divine symphony and as always, "in the key of g sus"! holla ;)

such a crazy journey and an amazing, MIRACULOUS, turn of events.
i can't believe i'm engaged to the woman of my dreams and God's best for me!

I give all glory to God and pray that our union would be a representation of Christ and the church and ultimately of the gospel!

i'm lookin forward to serving in ministry with this woman of God and sharing divine marital moments (& spanish food ;D) to advance His kingdom here on earth! it's guna b so fun ;)

i am going to try to stay a bit more consistent w blogging to record where & how God has been moving in our lives~ journaling is definitely a spiritual discipline but with such rewarding reminders, that God has not forsaken his children!
...to testify that God does work all things for the good of those who love him and called according to his purposes!

In this chapter of life, i pose the question, "What if God designed marriage to make us more holy than happy?"
think about it.

Philippines 2012

some videos from the missions trip to the Philippines in the summer of 2012, an unforgettable summer.

Matthew 5:13-16

English Standard Version (ESV)

Salt and Light

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet.
¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."

 

"God does not need us.
We could disappear and God could still make a great name for himself among the nations. God involves us in His mission not because he needs us - but because he loves us. And in his mercy he has invited us to be involved in his sovereign design for the spread of the gospel to the ends of the earth." 

                                  -David Platt (Together 4 the Gospel)

 

 

Identity

"For you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, 

through the living and enduring word of God."

1 Peter 1:23

This year's Challenge was themed around the basis of IDENTITY and Pastor Austine Cho did a great job expositing or exposing or shedding light on scripture and kept the gospel centered and rooted in his messages. I was so relieved that Challenge had finally found a pastor who was gospel centered and whom the kids were engaged to.
God knows that this generation needs more than fluff and comical preaching (altho pastor Austine did scream alot and thus trailing much saliva onto my mic, which was in need of some heavy lysol afterwards o_O)
 

it was probably one of the smaller Challenges i've been to since my first in '09, but i think it added to the intimacy w one another and w the Lord as well (not to mention it being 4 days 3 nights!)

it's always been a blessing to serve @ Challenge & it will always have a special place in my heart.

the difficult part is the "what now" aspect.... the "afterwards" effect..... what do we do now that Challenge is over.

The spiritual roller coaster of our lives is definitely full of make or break moments, and i only pray that itll only make us stronger and break the chains of bondage and not our relationship w God.

this is a picture of our staff meeting.
we prayed for souls by name and lifted up the concerns and issues @ Challenge.
listening to the testimonies of the campers and the prayers of the staff, we were able to see Aromi come to Christ! (after 3 challenges!) we were able to see people rededicate and commit and invest in this relationship w Christ. We saw students who harbored alot of pain and suffering from their past, able to relinquish the condemnation of inadequacy, insufficiency, inability, incapacity, etcc that the enemy would throw....Christ had lifted that burden and brought about new desires and a new heart to love God.

 as long as they continue to invite me back to Challenge, i will do what i can to be a part of this movement of believers, if anything, pray for them and hope for the best.
We're called to be light in a darkening world and salt to its bitterness.

As i'm preparing to goto the Philippines this month, i'm praying God would "grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference."

ahhhh...Redemption!

never thought this day would come!
if my life was on broadway, someone once described the title as, "From Prison To Praise"!!
God is truly uhmazingg! where would i be if it weren't for Him! better yet, where would i be heading???
the common glory would goto self-centered man whereas my glory is due to a God whose arm was, is, & never will be too short to save.... ty God!

i serve a God of purpose and of redemption! all my hard work is not of this world and for eternal glory & treasure....afterall, i came into this world naked and im going to leave naked.

it's sad when people spend their whole lives attempting to leave an imprint of themselves in history but are overshadowed by an endless cycle of like-minded folks.

i'm praying that my life would only leave an imprint in the book life.
that when i stand before my creator and judge in the end, he'd welcome me with open arms and say, "well done my good and faithful servant... i have prepared a place for you".... 
...awesome in every sense of the word.
 ___________________________________________________

Mama Simos!!                                                                     There's always one. (or 2)

 i will miss my 7th graders!
 (i'd post their pictures up, but due to some privacy safeguards, will have to          
 refrain, with the exception of one =X

 had an amazing week with "B Squared" @ Basileia 2012!

 

bout to begin worship!!

 

it was good to b back home with the MSC fam ;D

Happy 2nd birthday Alethia!! and congrats on your baby brother! ;D

traditional "Fun Night" video by the worship team ;)



just for fun ;)

*Mustard Seed Church*

school's almost out & it's time to make a come back w these BLOGS!!
HOLLLLLAAAAAAA :D

11 AM Service 

150-47B 14th Avenue, Upper Level, 

Whitestone, NY 11357 

Parking lot entrance 14th ave. 

Free parking Sunday (street parking as well) 

check out this BLOG for the heart behind it!

"The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed...It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” 

 faith like a grain of mustard seed can move mountains. 

 les do this! ;D

historic indeed! thank u God!

It's that season!

whas good yall,

dang, where to begin...

since my last post, it's been a crazy season thus far~ thanksgiving was awesome as we started the morning preparing some care-packages for those in need as just a token of how we were able to serve the community!

brother Elliot doin his thang in the subway

thought this was an interesting take...

caption would run something like

"two worlds collide"

question is.. which worlds???? hmmmm ;P

Turkey Bowl 2011!

(Yugun & his championship belt, lol wow

Turkey Bowl Champs!!

HOORAHH! :D

went to my aunts place as usual afterwards... ain't a thanksgiving w/o some kimchi~

nam sayinnnn :D 

this was round 3 for thanksgiving dinners!!

thx Jina for hosting after Turkey bowl!! :D 

no joke....

round 4....

finished my student-teaching @ Newcomers HS this week!!

Christopher Gill is an amazing Social Studies teacher and
as much of pain i probably was to him, 

i learned alot from the dude~ thanx for everything Chris! :D 

Some of the students

(will miss yall!) 

man, i probably say this every year but this year has already come & gone so quickly...

it's December already & i'm ready for 2012~ even if Christ actually does come in 2012!! o_O
i'm excited about all the new chapters God is writing and seeing His hand work so magnificently in my life and the people/communities around me!
les do this fam

it's that time of the season yall~ i'm excited :)

JPeaceout*

Discipleship: Extreme or Expected?

This past weekend was great~ !

had an awesome time with Agape Mission Church @ Keswick (one of the best retreat centers yet)
& i'm blessed to have shared those moments with the fam, suchas this:

(during our morning devotionals... :D)

as u can probably tell, my sleep schedule has been altered and Monday started @ 11 AM for me... -__-;;

the guest speaker Pastor Isaac spoke on discipleship, which has been an ongoing theme for AMC these past couple of months.

every Christian asks themselves, "Is discipleship an extreme or expected aspect of Christianity?",

 what this means to me.... is the question,  "does being a follower of Christ require deep sacrifices/decisions or not?"

and i would say, "of course!"

to me, it's both extreme and expected~

as C.S. Lewis states:

"Christianity, if false, is of no importance, 

and if true, of infinite importance. 

The only thing it cannot be is moderately important"

as followers of Christ, we are called to make the hard decisions for God and make sacrifices and even suffer for Him,

                                     "However, if you suffer as a Christian, 

do not be ashamed, 

but praise God that you bear that name."

1 Peter 4:16

what an awesome truth.

being a disciple of Christ goes beyond checking off the title "Christian" on a census religion question,

but actively being fed the world-changing word of God and applying it into a world that needs change... whether it's your own world or someone else's.

discipleship is both extreme & expected, do something about it.

Tribute to Sam Balmores

this past weekend, i found out my friend and brother in Christ drowned @ Lingayen beach, Philippines, trying to save another friend, Ate Weng, who also drowned from massive waves.

when my sister in Christ Mel called me @ 1 in the morning, to tell me the news, i was pretty much stricken with disbelief...or shock, grief...just super sad.

 once i heard the news i really didn't know what else to do but pray.

i've lost loved ones such as my grandma this past year, but never really a friend....

i served w Sam during the Philippines mission in 2010, planting EMC Dagupan... and this unique dude, served and dedicated his life to the Lord which transcended to his ministries and his communities... definitely loved. and both Ate Weng & Sam will be sincerely missed.

he was a seminary student & Pastor Ferdinand's eldest son, the head pastor for EMC Dagupan.

28 years old. man... had so much in store for him...so gifted.

i know that whether he lived or died, he'd want God to b glorified

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, 

who have been called according to his purpose."

Romans 8:28

we are already planning for our 2012 Philippines mission & it's still so surreal to know that they are not gunna b there with us.
nonetheless, there's peace & joy to know they are with God and one day, we'll see them again :)

God bless u Kapatid, u da man. ty for everything ....

@ a worship service with Sam & i :)

the church does not have much funds to prepare a proper burial and we are taking up donations & offerings for anyone who{d like to contribute, otherwise please keep the families & friends in prayer! ty

(there is a paypal setup on this page if u would like to send donations to the church!)

here is a link to a blog dedicated to EMC Philippines,
http://emcphilny.blogspot.com/

October is ober

Kathryn Scott is the artist of the week y'all,

powerful irish female vineyard worship leader, das wsup.

ne how,

October has been a pretty eventful month~ actually blogged once every week atleast ;)
hope to regularly do so~

went to Max Brenner the other night w a "special friend"
Happy Birthday Mandy! ;D
they decided to stick a candle in a piece of chocolate for her... how sweet & stingy of them......

place was dumb expensive, but good experience overall~ their fondue's are a must have :)

this past week actually has been a blessed one...

although there is still so much ahead of me, i feel as if today has so many things i can walk away with by itself....

recently ive been tremendously blessed and stressed with my church.... but its a good kinda stress...

the kinda burden u wana carry not only for your family in Christ, but for God. 

not carry God's burden kinda burden, but a holy type burden, whereas instead of feeling overwhelmed by the journey, ur overwhelmed by the blessing of the journey... even with all that baggage.

As a Christian there's so much to learn...

so many times we try to meet God by our own means.... but u come to realize its end sooner than we'd hope.

& the truth that God comes to meet u... or the bigger truth of how God already came to meet us, on the cross, through Christ.... smacks u like a brick wall.

the song rings truth....

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
save in the death of Christ, my God;
all the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to His blood."

as a korean pastor who sounds jamaican when saying this likes to say,

"be killin sin or sin be killin u (mon)"

werd.

JPeaceOut

"Good Company"

"How good & pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity!"

 Psalm 133:1

my brothers Bruce & Alex, have been staying over for the past couple of weeks, 

moreso the weekends than weekdays,

but Bruce attends QC w me and Alex lives in Brooklyn and sleeps over during the weekends cuz he attends EMC which is located in Oakland Gardens, Bayside. (http://ebenezermc.com/)

we've all played shows together or worship sets, conferences, revivals, etc...

i'm blessed to be in good company :)

& of course i don't mind them staying over, as long as they keep the steak comin & house clean! lol

they've been awesome in cooking for me & my roommates and stocking up our frig @ times, can't complain ;)

our korean brother from Uzbekistan 

cooking us some Russian omeletes~holla! :D

(btw, yall ever try Russian ketchup? offdahook! :)

there company has definitely blessed me in ways i wouldn't have expected...

we've been able to hold each other accountable in terms of studying & being good stewards of our studies and also our health!

Bruce & Alex are really fit & healthy people and they & Enrique encourage healthier eating habits & exercise.... but nonetheless my laziness gets in the way more than i'd like... T__T (u could preach witdat huh)

one thing id hope we be able to do is hold ea other more accountable spiritually.

will b praying that God uses our time together in a redemptive & sanctified manner~ afterall, we won't have too many moments like this left so i will do what i can to cherish it =)

ne how, das it for now, till next time fam ;)

stay blessed and stay fresh!

JPeaceout! ;)

_________________________________________

Chris Tomlin new single:
"How Great is Our God (World Edition)"
 Hindi, Indonesian, Russian, Spanish, Portuguese, Zulu, Africans, Mandarin

epic...

I am Second...

so i stumbled upon this site called, "I Am Second" cause ma man Lecrae was on it and was instantly hooked~
with its aesthetic & sleek designs and films, not to mention its Christ centeredness and mission to encourage those who struggle ~ i've become a fan of this movement !

athletes such as Sam Bradford & Tony Dungy,
actors such as Stephen Baldwin & Alex Kendrick,
musicians such as Jason Castro & Lecrae,
politicians such as Mike Huckabee,
and everyday ppl like u & me sharing their stories of how Christ became first, pretty awesome.

lotta things have happened this past week and it feels like this semester is in full cycle now...

with papers and midterms rolling in, planning and meetings for church, and soon my work....sigh*

easily overwhelmed but staying confident and pray'd up cause i kno God got ma back~

either way, here r some photos of my week :)

__________________________________________________

My roommate Curtis' BDAY

(we surprised him w some ice cream cake and Rosa's pizza after a hard days work, yall knoooo)

here's my silly sister on her birthday this past week~ o_O

Amanda & I on her birthday :)
(finally got her that pillow pet she literally dreamsss abouttt)

__________________________________________________________________

just for laughs :D

a video made on my spare time...

October October

Song of the Week!

Jamie Grace ft. TobyMac - Hold Me

AHHH IT'S ALREADY OCTOBER!! O_o

(Happy birthday Chunkit ;D)

it's been an eventful and victorious week thus far & i'm praying God would keep me in a positive and productive state-of-mind...

"Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward 

in Christ Jesus."

Philippians 3:13b-14

werd

"The Way" was awesome and it was really a blessing and encouraging to see random ppl fervently praying and worshipping God!

for our first prayer/praise night we were excited to see about 40-50 ppl in a sanctuary that fits 700+ because our usual Friday night discipleship classes avg 10 ppl! 

so we're sitting there like, "where'd all these ppl come from?"

it's not so surprising when we realize that prayer brings friends, family, & even strangers together~

it's a universal component that ppl from different walks of life understand, or do they?

we're only hoping, expecting, & praying for God to do His thang and for us to b faithful servants & we know God will continually fill those seats~

we were also excited to see 44 ppl in our first service/transition into the main sanctuary this past Sunday!! i thought the change would be too drastic or unnecessary due to the limited amt of ppl, but it was actually refreshing & very...spacious... hopefully all that space encourages hearts to worship bit more freely :)

either way, i have a long week ahead of me...

beginning my student-teaching @ Newcomers H.S. which is apparently #6 according to the U.S. News Report of 100 Top Gold Medal Schools, whereas Stuyvesant is #31 & Townsend Harris #33, go figure -_-;;

http://education.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-high-schools/rankings/gold-medal-list

hope everyone has a great week as well :)

till next time,

JPeaceOut

The Way

"Prayer does not change God, but it changes him who prays."

_________________________________

Last Friday of every month AMC/KCPCQ will be hosting a prayer/praise night @ 7pm!!!

dinner will be served @ 6:30 pm

please join us if ur around the neighborhood! :)

church website

http://agapemissionchapel.org/index.html

fb event pg
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=120698451366826

also starting from this coming Sunday, Oct 2nd, we will be having service in the main sanctuary which fits 700+ ppl (dream big! :D)

and it will also be the first Sunday i've become the official worship leader

it's definitely been a while since i've began leading worship on Sundays and only hope & pray that God would keep me humble and hungry for him.

i'm excited for these friday night prayer/praise nights that we're calling "the Way"modeled after the early Christians who were called "The Way" (Acts 9, 19, 22)

i'm expecting God to move at these prayer meetings and for peoples lives to be changed... it changed mine 6 years ago.

_________________________________

"if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." 

2 Chronicles 7:14

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." 

Matthew 11:28

"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective."

James 5:16

"pray without ceasing" 

1 The 5:17

____________________________________________________________________

Chris Tomlin - I Lift My Hands to Believe Again (2011)

September September

seems i've been only posting once a month =\

will do what i can to post more frequently

my friend, now brother in Christ, JACK in the above picture to the left accepted Christ not too long ago & the EMC family & friends have been psyched! ya gotta believe me when i say, that only an act of God  couldve changed this brothas heart!

 i roomed with him for a few months and he didnt really want nething to do with Christianity, by the time i moved out... he supported me on my missions trip that summer which i was very moved by....

someone who doesn't even believe in God would support someone who does~ i'd only encourage Christians out there to follow the exemplary heart of Christ for both jews & gentiles, & go beyond judging or condemnation.... but "love covers a multitude of sins"

i found some pictures that i thought id post,

 sega genesis on mac, epic.

these are pictures of my roommates @ Enrique's photoshoot @ Kissena park

has ne1 ever heard of this game? 

Settlers of Catan?

played for the first time not too long ago, pretty fun game, but gosh long.

 this is Pastor Stephen holdin down his table @ the college fair KCPCQ had, 

(don't be fooled by the treats and welch's)

 acclaimed golfer & Stanford student, Michelle Wie,

 came thru to the college fair as well, she is super tall (6'1)

had a great opportunity to c my cousin get married!

prayin that God would continually bless Stephen & Cara :)

Congrats Mr. & Mrs. Jo! :D

well nothing else much to write, been trying to keep busy & keep up w ma studies until i begin teaching @ Newcomers High School in October!

God has been putting alot of things on my heart that i can't quite yet share now or here.... but in time =)

stay blessed y'all

JPeaceout!

passion 2012 ne1?