lingering thoughts and memories
hey guys. well my earlier attempts at posting a blog failed miserably so i am back to try again.well it's about a week since i've seen my teammates but it feels much longer. i miss them all so much already! my friends at church have been asking me about this trip and it got me thinking about the past few months.
for those of you who didn't know, this was my first missions trip. during winter retreat, i attended the music ministry (mm) workshop and had an opportunity to learn more about it. i remember that last summer, i wanted to do some type of mission work but ended up working instead. when i got the chance to serve this summer, i was excited. practices started in april and during one of the first practices, we found out our roles and what we would be doing this summer. at first, i was hoping that i would be able to be on the worship team or in the drama. then when i found out that i wasn't, i was bummed for a bit but then realized there were still many things i could do. besides, this isn't suppose to be about me getting "stage time" or anything but all for God's glory.
when the trip started, i felt unprepared for everything even though i didn't have much to memorize or practice. it took a while for our group to really start to bond. the time spent at efc nasa was a blessing. starting off the tour at such a hospitable church taught me to appreciate them more. after time spent in texas, we headed toward phoenix. there we experienced one of the better performances and also one of the more difficult ones. i think this was probably our biggest trial during the entire trip that we faced as a team. we had some struggles with spiritual warfare but through lots of prayer and faith in Jesus, we were able to overcome it and build up our team unity.
in that one weekend, i think i was able to really experience God and the power of prayer. you know, sometimes when i pray, i don't see results as soon as i want to. that weekend though, i learned that He has His own timing for everything. i know that God was watching over us and that He really provided a way for us. from then on, i felt our team really grow together through prayer, especially during our performances. somehow, whenever we had a performance, we would always pull through even if the week had been frustrating or if barely anything was accomplished. looking back, i know that this could've only happened by God's grace.
while in arizona, we made a stop at the navajo indian reservations. the first night we stayed at a small local bible college. that night was probably one of the coolest experiences on the trip that we had. we were able to worship with different cultures and ethnicities. how often do you get an opportunity like that? it was awesome just singing and hearing different languages but knowing that we were all giving praise to the same God. we were able to hear a little about the other mission teams and what they were doing also. for the next two days or so, we got to spend some time with the group, new life, from long beach.
then while still in the reservations, we were able to witness the slaughtering of a lamb. this really gave me the ability to see Jesus as the Lamb of God, sacrificing His own life for us. now everytime someone mentions "Lamb of God", those imagines fly through my mind and i see the whole thing again. but it is a great reminder for me. i know that i take my salvation for granted sometimes. it's so easy to forget to thank God for saving me especially when i sin and totally don't deserve His grace. because of my human nature, i fall into sin so easily and tend to not remember that i am covered by His blood already. luckily, God loved me so much that He allowed me to be forgiven just by truly believing that Jesus died and rose again for me.
the remainder of the trip had its ups and downs. we had awesome bonding at canaan and super cool new friends at church of his kingdom. there were moments at cibc where we needed a kick in the face to last one more week. frustrations and struggles were brought up and spent some time listening and really trying to solve them. i think that afternoon, i was able to learn how to really understand people and what they were going through, especially since i wasn't having any big problems. i learned to listen and pray for my friends. God really used this time to open up our hearts and to be transparent with one another.
this trip has become one of my best experiences in life so far, just because i had the opportunity to serve God with so many different personalities but people who had the same goal as me. i know that God will continue to work in the lives that have been changed, for the people who re-committed themselves and of course the people who accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior. the things that i have learned on this trip will help me to continue to mature as a Christian and stay with me for the rest of my life.
thanks to all the people who came out and supported this ministry either by coming out or praying for us. and for my friends who were able to make it to one or more shows, i love you guys!
08/18/2006
coming soon
blog on the overall trip coming very soon! hopefully =)08/03/2006
counting down the days
hey guys. sorry i haven't kept up with the updating but there have been many very exciting experiences and memorable events.let's see, last time i updated, we were still in houston, tx, burning our bodies. we've performed another four times or so. all these performances have been very touching and moving in different ways. while in arizona, i was able to learn a lot about prayer and having faith in God. as a team, we experienced a lot of spiritual warfare and just learned how to depend on His strength and really lift one another up in prayer. since then, we have been more prayerful and supporting of one another.
also, in arizona, we had an opportunity to chill with the navajos. we did a good amount of hiking and sight-seeing but i think the craziest thing was that we were able to watch a lamb be slaughtered. that was a reminder and portrayal of Jesus, being the Lamb of God. His sacrifice for us. now everytime i look back to that event, i will be reminded of Him.
we had a few days back in LA and then headed up to northern cali. i know that God was there with us and continually blessing us. i think the performance at canaan was our best and God just brought so many people out. through this time, we were able to really learn how to bond and fellowship with people.
He's been watching over us every part of this trip and i know that He'll be with us the remainder of the trip.
couple prayer requests:
-unity among the team for the rest of the trip
-understanding of each member on the team
-ability to reach out and touch hearts of the people we will be meeting
-continually seeking God
-safety on the road
signing out, ANNIE the COOL girl
07/15/2006
Long drive and sweaty pits
greetings my loyal readers! who have followed me to this site from my xanga. we have been traveling from california the past two days driving more than ten hours each day meaning i had to spend each day stuck with thirteen other people who smell bad and fart a lot. just kidding.. maybe. but it has been a blessing even though it has only been three days. it feels as if we have been out for a whole week already. after driving two days straight, stopping once in el paso, texas, we arrived at efc nasa. right now it is three am and the team is still pretty wide awake. we just had a very long day. started off with some practice and then p. eddie, joan, fernanda and i went to wal-mart supercenter to buy food for the next few days. we were good shoppers and saved a lot of money! after all that, we got to meet one of the fellow efc nasa people, grace. she took us out to eat at cici’s all-you-can-eat pizza. good time chatting with new friends.
at church was our first on-the-road performance. it was just awesome being able to interact with the people at the church and just getting to talk with them. i was very excited because this was the first church that we were able to meet new people. im anxious to go and hangout with them on monday at nasa space center! i hope that the time spent with them will be sweet and that our friendships will continue to grow. im getting even more excited for the next performance on sunday and meeting more new friends! yay. okay guys it’s getting pretty late so i think i will head to bed soon or at least rest my eyes and be social with my teammates. thanks for reading and continue to keep us in your prayers!
07/10/2006
counting down the time
wow. in about 30 hours we are hopping into a fifteen passenger van and driving all the way to texas. these past months have been full of driving and long practices but it all leads to this coming wednesday, where we head out and leave on our mission trip! can't really believe that the day is here and that we're gonna be out on the road for a month. it still hasn't hit me yet where i'm like: yeahhh! leaving soooon. haha. i think once i'm in the van with all the others we'll all be super hyped up. anyway i still have a lot of packing to do. actually i need to start on that so this is where i end this post! hopefully you guys will hear from me soon. until then, here are two prayer requests for now:
safe journey and alert drivers
unity within the team
thanks guys!
07/08/2006
hey guys. making my first blog entry here. anyway this past friday was our second performance, but since i wasn't at the first one in irvine, to me this felt like the first. praise God for giving all of us the opportunity to serve Him.
this past friday was a blessing, especially since i got to share my testimony. i got pretty nervous right before i went up but i remembered saying a quick prayer and then His peace came upon me. it was pretty cool! also it was awesome being able to pray for people who wanted to re-commit their lives to Him. it was so exciting!
much thanks to all those who have been supporting our team through prayer or financially. we have experienced so many blessings already even though we haven't even left yet! we're leaving this upcoming wednesday morning so continue to keep us in your prayers. it's gonna be one exciting month ahead and i can't wait! thanks again!
Annie Lin
at a glance
- Home church
- EFC Irvine
- Instruments
- piano and voice
- School
- 3rd year at UC Riverside, majoring in sociology and education
- Hometown
- Taipei, TW
- Hobbies
- movies, music, hanging out, eating, sleeping
- Bible verse
- I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. Galatians 2:20
- Movies
- Disney movies, LOTR trilogy, Pirates of the Caribbean
my story
I grew up in a Christian family and have attended church with my friends for as long as I can remember. At first, church was always about seeing friends and being disruptive kids but as time went on, a community of brothers and sisters was built. I accepted Christ in elementary school but I don’t think I fully understood the importance of this decision. After a few more years spent in Sunday School, learning about Jesus and his love for us, I was baptized in seventh grade. Usually after all this has happened, a change in lifestyle occurs; I don’t think it really showed in my life until I started to participate in youth group. Learning more about His character and love allowed me to really comprehend the need for a personal relationship with Him.
The time I am most in tune with God is when I continually seek Him and am trying to develop my relationship with Him through fellowship with brothers and sisters or serving His people.
The reason I am on this trip is because I feel called to serve and glorify God through the musical abilities He has given me. I hope that I will be able to learn even more from the people that we are going to minister to.
i confess...
- I've frozen up on stage.
- I'm afraid of the dark.
- I've cracked my voice when singing.
- I can't sleep in a room if the closet door is open.
- I don't use the radio anymore.
- I don't read my Bible everyday.
- There are times when I tune out from God.
- I can't sleep if there is a spider in my room.
- I've hugged a stranger.
- I believe in true love.
- I forget to pray before I eat.
- Sometimes I choose other things over quiet times.
- I peek during prayer sometimes.
- I shut others out when I'm sad.
- I fill out WAY too many surveys.