Week 6 as a CMI08

Monday
What was supposed to be our day off didn’t really turn out that way. We ended up having class with Dr. Pipim to conclude our studies on Nehemiah. After class, everyone started to feel the intensity of the past week catch up with them. I was exhausted and decided to take a nap for about an hour but ended up sleeping for three. Everyone was passed out all over the house. I couldn’t help but wonder, “Is this what it will be like all year?” I had heard horror stories about the missionaries from last year. They lacked a lot of sleep and were constantly sick. Hopefully that won’t be us this year.

Tuesday
Today, we character development class which was led by Justin. It was really interesting. We learned that the glory of God is his character and how the 10 commandments are a reflection of his character. To give God glory is to reflect his character through your life. I was definitely rebuked during that class. This class is supposed to teach us more about ourselves- good and bad. I can tell that it is going to be a humbling experience. We were also given the book Education to read. After class and lunch with Justin, we had our weekly family meeting. We planned our menu for the upcoming week and reflected on the previous week. We talked about the areas that we could improve on and the areas that we did well in.
After our meeting, we started massage which was pretty slow in the beginning but got busier as time went by. We met a lot of cool people today. We met a group of three girls who were terrified to come in at first. After they all got massages, they were so happy they came. They loved it and they said that they would come more often. We also had a student come in who said that she had been thinking about us all day because she was really stressed. It encouraged us to see the word getting out about massage.
After massage was Tuesdays with Jesus. Dr. Pipim talked about forgiveness which is something we all need to hear every once in a while. Although we had a good turnout, I was a little worried to hear that some of our students are stressed out. It’s only the third week of school, students are getting sick and really stressed. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such diligence in students before, including freshman. I’m just hoping they get better soon. Most of the students who are sick are the ones who are working, leading out in a bible study group or is a student leader. They’re so on fire so I know the Lord will take care of them.

Wednesday
Today was Amy’s birthday and of course we had fun. We got her a cake and later attacked her with water balloons before taking her to a favorite hangout place. After eating, a few of us went to Wednesdays with Jesus where Pastor Conway talked about submission. When I don’t submit, I’m expressing a lack of trust in God and pride issues on my behalf. It was a very relaxed day but still very productive. I think days like these are going to be rare occasions so I made sure I enjoyed it.

Thursday
Today, I was able to go to my small group bible study for the first time. I couldn’t go last week because I was at MSU so I was very excited to go. Only one person showed up but it was fine. She was so open. She decided to do bible studies with us because she wants to get a better understanding of the bible. She was struggling with her trust in God and the bible. She wanted to find a way to really know that God was real. I told her to try God out and she said that she would. I’m already looking at her as a baptismal candidate. There’s an indescribable feeling about meeting someone who is sincerely searching for something more knowing that you can lead them to what they’re looking for. Though it is definitely out of my control, I can only pray and believe that she will get to know Christ for herself.

Sabbath
Today, I taught adult Sabbath school for the first time. We talked about taking God for granted, rebelling against him and then asking him for his forgiveness after we made the mistake. Because of human nature, we want to try things out on our own even if they’re known to be bad for us. So when God tells us not to do something, we want to do it anyway but then after rebelling, we ask for God’s forgiveness. We shared stories about times that we intentionally rebelled and what we learned from it. For my first class, it went pretty well.
For church, I sang special music. I was rebuked and blessed at the same time while singing. Before singing, I was nervous and worried about my voice. I was worried about messing up and making a fool out of myself. I went up to sing with the wrong intentions. I was focused on myself. About halfway into the song, I looked out at the congregation. Some people had their eyes closed, some were looking down and some were looking at me. I saw a girl in the very back who had her eyes closed and was clearly enjoying the song. That’s when I realized that my special music was an offering to God. It is only by his grace that I can sing. It wasn’t about me. It was about being a blessing to others. The very moment I saw that girl in the back row, all nervousness left me and I was able to sing with a joyful heart.
After potluck, a group of us went to the hospital to visit the uncle of one of our student’s roommates. While singing to them, the wife started to cry and they all expressed their gratitude. After singing to them, we went to another room. While singing, a woman and her two kids were passing by and her kids were so in awe that they requested us to go to their room afterwards. What turned into one more room turned into about five or six more rooms. It was definitely a blessing to see so many people encouraged because of our singing. Today was my favorite Sabbath so far.

Sunday
This morning, we had a ladies brunch. It was so nice to have girl time. We were able to talk about any and everything. It did get pretty silly but I think it was needed because the stress of work, school and ministry was starting to catch up with everyone. We’ve decided to start a women’s ministry on campus because we’ve realized that there are so many women on campus struggling with difficult issues. After brunch, we played tennis to work off some of the calorie intake from the morning. After tennis, we went canvassing. I’ve come to the conclusion that canvassing is not really on the list of my favorite things to do. Today was interesting though because I actually enjoyed it and I’ve figured out why. In character building class, we were talking about how when we are in a bad mood, we should serve others to get the focus off of ourselves. After tennis, my mood drop and I was so discouraged. While canvassing, my mood got better and better and I realized it was because I was serving others. God also blessed that day with books. Now whenever I’m in a bad mood, I’m going to make it a priority to serve others to get the focus off of myself.

This was the first week back in Ann Arbor after Thanksgiving break.

Sunday
I was one of the first people to get back home from Thanksgiving break. After being home for about 20 minutes, Amy, JB, and I went to the airport to pick up Roy and one of our students from the airport. Today was such a happy day. The whole day consisted of reunions. A huge group of us, consisting of missionaries and students went out to eat to celebrate our reunion. It felt refreshing to be back in what is now considered my normal environment. Although my break at home was great, it felt nice to be back. I was very encouraged and pleased to hear that everyone’s breaks went well. It seems that everyone was able to have some kind of godly influence on their family and friends over break.

Monday
Today was the first day of our Christology class with Dr. Pipim. I’ve been looking forward to this class for quite some time because I’ve heard that in the past, it has always been the missionaries’ favorite. At the beginning of every class Dr. Pipim gives us, he always asks us what we expect from that particular class. I’m hoping this class will give me a closer look at Jesus and his character.

Tuesday
This morning I woke up very early. I’ve decided it’s something I need to do along with going to bed early. I woke up long before the sun came out. The house was so quiet. I was the only one awake and I was able to have a very long devotional time this morning. It was so nice to wake up so early in the morning to spend time with God. I feel like I my experience was probably like Jesus’ every morning because he always got up very early to commune with God.
Today in class, we talked about Jesus’ divinity and humanity. We searched the bible and learned how to show others that Jesus really is fully divine and human. I’m sure that bible study will come in handy some day.
This morning, we all gathered together to pray and dedicate our service and ministry to God. We decided that we needed to pray for specific people that we wanted to see at massage and/or Tuesdays. God answered those specific prayers today. Some things God will only give us if we ask. He just wants to remind us that he loves doing things for us, no matter how little. I often forget that God considers it a pleasure and a privilege to give things to his children.
Tonight’s message at Tuesdays with Jesus was a blessing. Something that really spoke to me was about accountability. There are times that I do things that are not acceptable and I need to be held accountable. I need my friends and family to love me enough to correct me. As family in Christ and as having the same morals and values and ultimate goal in life (to make it to Heaven), we know what flies and what doesn’t. It’s our job, out of love to correct each other when we see someone falling by the wayside. I realized that when I do something wrong and I’m corrected out of love, I need to set my pride aside and correct my wrong. At the same time, when I see someone stumbling, I need to help them up but also let them know that what they did wasn’t exactly Christ like. I also realized that there are so many people out there who wish they had godly counsel. There are people who wish they had godly friends to hold them accountable and here I am surrounded by them. Godly relationships are such a blessing.

Wednesday
Today for class, we talked about the lineage of Jesus. It was so powerful! We learned about how God appointed the people who Jesus would come through. He planned on sending Jesus through certain people. The bible says that Jesus would come through David’s seed but unfortunately, the people God had in mind kept messing up. All the mighty and godly men he planned to use messed up and God had to use Mary and Joseph to bring the promised one into the world. It was so crazy to see that godly men like Adam, Noah, and David messed up. God ended up using two godly, humble people who were willing to be servants for him. It made me think that God can and does use ordinary people who are just like me.
After class, the director of literature ministries at the conference office took us out for lunch. After lunch, some of us went to EMU to help the studetns with their Veggie taste fest. I met some very interesting people tonight. I just hope that our witness would be enough to bring them back again.

Thursday
Today we talked about Christmas and that Jesus wasn’t really born on December 25. We were assigned to write a paper about the true meaning of Christmas and if we as Adventists should be celebrating it at all. I grew up celebrating Christmas but when I think about it, I never really celebrated it as Christ’s birth. It’s just a time for fun, gifts and good food. For so many people, Christmas isn’t about Jesus anymore. If you think about it, Atheists celebrate Christmas. Jesus as the main focus of Christmas has almost been forgotten. I know that writing this paper is going to cause me to think about my motives and it’s going to make me question the things I do. Do I do things because everyone else does it or do I have a legitimate reason to do them? I should ask myself that question more often.

Friday
Tonight, we had communion for vesper. I’ve partaken in so many communions in my life but this one was different. I was actually greatly humbled tonight. Communion is supposed to be a humbling act of service and even though I’ve partaken in communion so many times, I didn’t get it until today. If Jesus, the savior of the world would humble himself to serve his disciples in such a manner, I should never have the feeling that I’m too good for that kind of act. It was such a rebuke. I’m always trying to figure out how to humble myself and I think tonight, I definitely experienced it. God knew I needed that tonight.

Sabbath
Today for church, Dr. Pipim preached his sermon on the lineage of Christ and how he really was the son of David. It was a blessing to hear that message again and to see different points that I had missed the first time.
After sunset, I went to visit a friend and had a much needed conversation. After getting home, Jo, Amy and I reflected on the year so far. We were reminded that we really don’t deserve to be missionaries. We reflected on the mistakes we made and the things that we need to improve on. It’s sad because a semester has passed by so fast and we can’t undo those mistakes. At the same time, it motivated us for the next semester. I’m only here for one year. I have to do as much as I can in one year. I have to let God use me as much as he can in this one year. There’s no time for what I want to do. I dedicated this year specifically to God so that he could use me for his purpose.

Week 21 as a CMI08

This is week 21. This week was probably the most life changing week for me. I learned so many lessons and a revival definitely took place in my life this week. I tried my best to put this experience in words. I hope this will be a blessing to you and that you will get a glimpse of how much of a blessing this week was to me. Enjoy! :)

Monday
It is such a blessing to be here among the leaders of our church. It is definitely an honor to meet these men and the families who stand behind them. It’s amazing how much wisdom they have yet how much they still have to learn. It’s also been great to see the different sides to them. It’s been cool to see the pastors laid back and having fun, wrestling and having water fights. We get to see what the Pastors are like on the other side of the pulpit. I think a lot of times people forget that pastors are still real people. This retreat helped me realize that. They definitely deserve this retreat. I’m gaining a new respect for pastors.
Today, we ended our first meeting early so Elder Gallimore decided to use the extra time we had to have a testimony session. It was a time for anyone to share a testimony or a verse that had encouraged them. It was also a time to sing songs. It was such a blessing to hear the different testimonies and bible promises and to sing the songs that portrayed the way God had been leading us thus far. There was one testimony that stuck out to me. I don’t think I’ll forget it for a long time. One of the pastors stood up to share a testimony. I am pretty familiar with this pastor. I went to school with his daughter and I am very familiar with his preaching. I was surprised to hear him stand up and pour out his heart telling us that he was struggling with God and that he’s been tempted to quit the ministry. It was so touching to see him so vulnerable. I know for a fact that he was speaking on behalf of at least half or even more of those pastors in that room. He had lost hope and even his spirituality. Instead of spending time on his knees pleading for his spirituality, he spent it watching TV and not giving his family the proper attention. He is still in the ministry by God’s grace and spiritually recuperating. Hearing his testimony reminded me that I need to keep our pastors in prayer because the devil is probably after them more than anyone being they are the leaders of our church.

Tuesday
I think I’m going to be so bold as to say that tonight probably played a huge part in my spirituality. Tonight, Louis Torres shared a presentation about Orion and different galaxies in the Universe. In the presentation, I learned of a planet called Arcturus. It is thousands of times bigger than the sun. The crazy thing is that Arcturus travels about 925,000 miles an hour through space. It’s been traveling at that speed since creation and the crazy thing is that it hasn’t collided with any stars or other planets. The thing is huge! It’s amazing to see how God keeps the universe in perfect motion. The presentation changed my perspective on things, including my own spirituality. God takes care of bigger things like keeping these planets from colliding and keeping them in harmony w/the rest of the galaxy. If he can keep the planets from colliding, surely he can keep my life under control. If only I would realize how big and powerful he really is. I really don’t have to bear my burdens alone but I do anyway because I don’t have faith believing that God really can relieve my loads. The thing is God can take care of them. He delights in doing so. The thing I still can’t grasp is the fact that after creating the whole universe and the wonderful things in it, he creates the earth and calls it, “very good.” Of the smallest of his creations, he’s so pleased with us. We are the apple of his eye. It is so humbling. I feel so small.

Wednesday
Today was the last day of the retreat and we were given a charge. To me, the charge challenged me to apply everything that I’d learned these past few days to my life from now on. After the Orion presentation I can’t live the same. How can people not believe that there is a God? It’s my job, my duty, my calling to tell people about the God of the Universe. Not of just the many galaxies and the things that we can see only through a telescope, but he’s the God of this world too. The crazy part is being the God of everything is not too much for him. The wonderful thing is that he delights in it. He takes pleasure in caring for his creation, especially us. Learning these things are going to change the way I live my life. I’ve been taking God for granted. Being at this retreat was like meeting God for the first time and realizing that I can’t live without him. Growing up Adventist can be tough because you take for granted the things that you’ve been learning since your childhood. I’ve always hated the fact that I thought this way. I know the Lord understood what I felt because he showed me what it’s like for unbelievers to believe for the first time. It’s a wonderful feeling. I want other people to experience these things for themselves.

Thursday
Today I was on facebook, and I was looking at the profile of one of my childhood friends. I went to elementary school with her and I thought she was going to school in Lansing. To my surprise, I discovered that she’s attending U of M. The Holy Spirit was telling me that I need to reach out to this girl. I have to admit that I hesitated for a few seconds trying to reason with myself. As I was trying to reason, I remembered all of the things I learned at the ministerial retreat and I sent her a comment. I told her that I was in Ann Arbor and what I’m doing here. I suggested that we get together and do lunch sometime. I’m anxious and a little nervous as to what her response will be.
Today was my first small group study since Christmas break. It was nice to see my group again. Tonight, the study was on the Sabbath. To my horror, the study was not going well at all. The girls weren’t understanding anything and for some reason my partner wasn’t able to explain anything clearly. All I could do was pray. We ended up going way over the time we usually do. At the end, my partner asked if anyone had any questions or comments. Both girls spoke up, asking questions about the parts they didn’t understand. My partner asked me if I could try to explain it to them. I sent up a quick prayer before I opened my mouth. I started to answer their questions and now I don’t remember half of what I said. One of the girls asked a question wondering why it mattered that we worship on Saturday or Sunday. She didn’t think it was that important. I started telling her about how God blessed the Sabbath and how the 24 hour period of the Sabbath is holy. I told her more of which I can’t remember now but after I explained it to them, one of the girls said, “Oh that makes sense. I guess I do believe in the Sabbath.” I almost died! I couldn’t believe it. Both girls finally understood and I could tell that they were thinking about it. Now they are in the stage where they think it’s inconvenient to switch from Sunday to Sabbath. I know for a fact that they were both convicted and I pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to work on their hearts.

Friday
Today I received a response from my elementary school friend at U of M. She told me that she’d love to get together and that she really wants to hear more about my ministry. I was not expecting that but I’m so glad the Holy Spirit told me to contact her. She gave me her phone number and we will be getting together soon. I hope she’ll be able to come to the evangelistic series and I hope to rekindle an old friendship. God is good!

Sabbath
I was reflecting on this past week and I would have to say that this has been the best week of my experience at CAMPUS so far. This week has been so transforming for me. God has been working on my heart and my perspective on evangelism and ministry has truly changed. Now I have a sense of urgency and a passion which is an answer to prayer because I’ve been praying for a change of attitude towards ministry for a long time. I’m glad he answered that prayer.