Intercession~

你好！

I thought I'd just write a short post about what God led me to read this morning in my time with Him. I've read this so many times, but as I have come to know Jesus more, these words straight from His mouth become more and more sweet and fresh. Just read this, what Jesus prayed for us Christians who are here in this world.

"I have given them Your Word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one." PAUSE. One thing that I have become very aware of in the past few weeks is how real satan is. How he is literally out to get us. He is the enemy, and every temptation and sin is his. And sometimes I just feel so afraid of him, so helpless. Like I'm not strong enough to resist his temptations, and that I'll be taken over by him. But Jesus - He can protect us from the evil one. He asked His Father that we would be protected. I pray for this all the time, but my heart is so full of joy to see that Jesus prayed for us, and IS praying for us and our protection. Ok, let's continue. "They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself; that they also may be sanctified in truth."

This passage made the fact that Jesus prays for us so much more real to me. In Romans 8, it says "the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And He who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God." Jesus really strengthened me with this today, and I felt like He wanted me to share it, so I pray He'd use it to encourage you as well. :)

If God is for us, who can be against us?

God bless. :)
~Bethany
贝萨妮~

I'm Here!

Well, to those who are wondering... I arrived at Life Action yesterday!! It has been INCREDIBLE already. I cannot wait to see what God has in store this year. He has changed me so much this past year, and I can't even imagine what He will do this year. I am so excited to see the Spirit move in my heart and in the hearts of everyone I meet and work  in ways that cannot be explained by man. His ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts.

Prayer requests: please pray that I would be a humble servant of all. That I would be soft to the Spirit's working and be filled with His holy presence. That I would be beyond reproach.
Is there anything any of you would like me to pray for? I would love to pray for you in any way I can, for our Lord hears.

That's all for today, but I will keep you updated!! :)

God bless you all! May He fill you with His Spirit and show you His greatness continually!

~Bethany
贝萨妮~

The God We Adore~

How good is the God we adore,

Our faithful, unchangeable Friend;

Whose love is as great as His power,

And knows neither measure nor end.

'Tis Jesus, the First and the Last,

Whose Spirit shall guide us safe home;

We'll praise Him for all that is past,

And trust Him for all that's to come.

J.Hart

你好。

I just finished the first book of the two-volume series about Hudson Taylor, "The Growth of a Soul" (the poem above is a snippet from the book). My heart is full. It is so so amazing to see how God took him, who thought himself incapable but fully trusted in the Lord, and used him in such mighty ways to bring the Gospel to China and to start such a wonderful ministry that has sent literally thousands of missionaries to China over the years. I pray that one day I can participate in this ministry and be sent out to China through OMF. The only thing I can do right now is just thank the Lord from the bottom of my heart for all that He has done. I will never cease to be amazed at how awesome our God is.

With that in mind, those "Waiting" posts? I guess I could have entitled this post as "Waiting: Part 3", but the current title is more fitting, I think. :) Life Action called yesterday, and.........I've been accepted!!! I'll be leaving at the beginning of next month for training camp. This has all happened so fast, my head is still spinning, and I keep on pinching myself to see if it's all real. Yes, it is. (Cuz the pinches hurt. ;D) Seeing how God has worked over the past few weeks...I'm just blown away. He's taught me to wait, He's answered prayer, He's spoken His peace into my heart. This God that we adore is worthy of all praise and He CAN BE TRUSTED. All else may fail, but He remains. His love "is as great as His power", and it endures forever. Praise be to our awesome and powerful God!!

Keep pressing on in the faith, friends! Look to Jesus.

~Bethany

贝萨妮~

Waiting, Part 2. :)

你好。

So. That post I did a few days ago about waiting on the Lord. Well, it was a very specific thing which I will now disclose. ^^ A few weeks ago, I sent in my audition tape to Life Action Ministries (https://www.lifeaction.org/) because they were in need of musicians. However, each day kept on rolling by and I still hadn't heard back from them. Several times, I composed an email to them to ask if they had even received my audition tape yet, but I never sent it because Jesus kept on telling me, "Wait. Wait on me." Yesterday was a hard day. I verbally staked my trust in Jesus, saying that He had told me to wait, and that that is what I was going to do. For an hour after that, I poured my heart and tears out to the Lord, pleading that Life Action would call today (meaning yesterday) or tomorrow (today). I wanted to see Him work in a way that would testify to everyone that He indeed is Lord, and that my trust in Him is not in vain. Well. You can guess what happened. Cellphone rings today. GUESS WHO? Yep. Life Action. That's my Jesus for you. :D He is worthy of all praise!!!!!

As to the outcome of the call, they have said that I meet the requirements, but because of the irregularity of this year, it's not sure yet if I will be put on one of the teams. They will let me know within the next few weeks. So, this is another waiting process that will begin, but I KNOW I can trust Jesus because HE NEVER FAILS. I know that this is merely one of the first of MANY specific prayers that He will answer in my life, and I'm looking forward to seeing all of the ways that He will be glorified and lifted up above all else!!

Stake your life on Jesus, because He will not let you down. :D

Hashtag : #happyinJesus.:D

For You, O Lord, are good and forgiving,

abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon You.

For You are great and do wondrous things;

You alone are God.

Psalm 86:5,10.

God bless, my friends!!

~Bethany
贝萨妮~

Waiting on the Lord~

你好！好久不见！

There has been a matter greatly weighing on my heart lately, and that is one of patience. There is a huge, very likely life-changing decision that I have been waiting for for a while now. In the process of waiting, what's the easy thing to do? To forget the big picture and to lose patience. Such it has been for me. While waiting for this decision, at first I started out strong. I relied on the Lord for strength and patience, and He held me up. Annnddd then, what often happens, happened. I began to drift away from the Lord. The waiting became laborious, and decisions that went against what the Lord told me to do, though supposedly "small" and "insignificant", were made and caused discontentment and weariness. I lost sight of God, my ear started the terrifying process of becoming deaf to His voice, and I let other things into my heart that do not satisfy what I really crave. What's amazing is how fast this can happen. One day without praying and I feel like I haven't been in the Lord's presence for thousands of years. Anyway, now I realize how essential it is to wait patiently for the Lord, for HE is the one who satisfies and who gives strength to the weary. I've had many opportunities to take this aforementioned matter into my own hands, but each time, Jesus' still voice has said "Wait a little bit longer for me" into my heart. So I will wait. I trust Him. Oh that His name might not be shamed because of my disobedience to Him.

So, with all that said, I encourage you, my friends, if you are struggling with waiting for something or someone, and you feel like giving up and taking everything into your own hands, be strong. Wait on the Lord. He will not let your trust in Him be in vain, for He is faithful.

Be still before the Lord,

and wait patiently for Him.

Psalm 37:7.

But as for me, my prayer is to You, O Lord. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of Your steadfast love answer me in Your saving faithfulness. Psalm 69:13.

God bless you all,fellow Christ followers!^^

~Bethany

贝萨妮~

Psalms~

你好! How are you all?

This isn't gonna be a long blog post today; I just thought I'd share some verses I read last night. I've been reading through the Psalms and it's amazing how, no matter how many times I've read them, there is always new stuff popping out at me. I used to sometimes feel that I couldn't relate to some of them because they are always mentioning "the wicked", and I would always think, "Well, I don't really have any wicked enemies, so does this really apply to me?" Thus, I would skim over them. Well, not anymore. I have recently realized, (though I have known it since childhood, it has become more real as I draw closer to God), that I have a humungticulous (yes, it's a word in my dictionary) wicked enemy, and his name is satan, who "prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" (1 Peter 5:8). I have begun to read the Psalms with this in mind, and oh the treasures that God is showing me!! When I am being tempted and I can't see Christ through the fog in my soul, I read these verses and am encouraged. I hope you are as well.

"The wicked watches for the righteous 

and seeks to put him to death. 

The Lord will not abandon him to his power

or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial.

Wait for the Lord and keep His way,

and He will exalt you to inherit the land;

you will look on when the wicked are cut off."

Psalm 37:32-24.

Praying for you, my friends!

To infinity and beyond!

~Bethany

贝萨妮~

Hudson Taylor~

你好！
Hello all. How are you?? What has God been doing in your lives lately? Can I just say, He is so good, isn't He?? He has been working wonders in my life as of late; drawing me ever closer to Himself and revealing more and more of His truth to me. The more I know Him, the more the pleasures of this earthly life lose their luster. To live is Christ!

Regarding China, He has been giving me more direction in that matter, yet, a lot still remains in the dark. How do I get there? What college should I attend? What should I major in, that will get me into China? Where should I get missionary training? How will I ever be bold enough? Well, whaddaya know. Hudson Taylor had the same type questions as I do. Currently, I am reading "The Growth of a Soul" by Taylor's son and daughter-in-law. When I started reading it, I was like, "Wow, this is good!" But as I got farther along, it  brought me to tears many times seeing how similar Hudson Taylor's and my situations are. Yes, we are from different eras and different backgrounds, but we have two things in common: a love for God and we both have been sent by God to China. God has been encouraging me so much as I read through this book, seeing Hudson Taylor's sincerity, faith, and love for God, and my heart is so full when I read about his love for China. Over and over, I keep on seeing things that correspond with my heart - loving China so much that my heart almost bursts, knowing I am called to China but perplexed as of how to get there, being faced with doubt and temptation but seeing God reign through it all and strengthen me through it, God answering prayers, and having this same feeling - "I feel as if I could not live, if something is not done for China" (pg 130).  What means so much to me is that Hudson Taylor was my age when he received the call from God, "Go for me to China", the same call that I have heard from my Lord. This is why I do not doubt for a second that God has called me, for I have heard it from my God Himself.

China, though people consider it to be a "closed country", is now much more open than it was in the days of Hudson Taylor. I thank the Lord that there are literally thousands of more opportunities to get into the country than when Hudson Taylor was called. Please pray for me, friends. Please pray that God would give me direction towards the path I must take to get there. I quote Hudson Taylor, his words perfectly describing the desire of my heart to you all,

"Pray for me that I may live more and more to His praise,

be more devoted to Him, 

incessant in labours in His cause,

fitted for China,

ripened for glory."

(The Growth of a Soul, pg. 127).

Is there anything that I can pray about for any of you? What a joyous thing to have Jesus interceding for us in the presence of God, and that He hears!

"In my distress I called upon the Lord;

to my God I cried for help. 

From His temple He heard my voice, 

and my cry to Him reached His ears." 

Psalm 18:6. 

God bless you all!

~Bethany

贝萨妮~

Children from Sichuan province.

random post~

你好!

Hǎo jiǔ bú jiàn!

好久不见!

Or, in other words, 

Long time no see. 

Life has been cracking the whip lately. Oh boy, are we busy. Practices and lessons everywhere, classes here and classes there, and school on top of it. Though honestly, keeping up with school is hard, because when we are busy going places, I don't have time for it, and when we can sit back and relax, I don't like to go do the school stuff because I just want to turn off my brain. :P I request prayer for more diligence on my part. :) I only have a little ways to go till I'm graduated!! If I can just get there. :P

Chinese has been going well. Our class today was fun - we had tea (chá-茶), traditional Chinese style. :) 

You set everything out on the miniature table for making tea (chá pán - 茶盘). You boil the water, put the tea leaves in the teapot (chá hú-茶壶), and pour the hot water through once to get out some of the bitterness. You then dump that water out, and pour through again. This time, you pour the tea into little cups to sniff :D (wén xiāng bēi - 闻香杯) and then pour the tea from those little cups into a bit bigger cups to drink out of...I didn't get close-up pictures of these, but you can see that the taller ones in the picture above are for pouring the tea into first, and then you pour from those into the shorter ones. Very fun indeed. :D

(Btw, I totally just explained that in a way that is easy to understand. JUST KIDDING.)

I can't really think of anything else to add to this post right now, I just felt like posting. ;D All else I can say is that the Lord has been so good to me, and will continue to be forever!! These words have been my strength and have made me so happy these days:

I may fail Christ,

but He will never fail me.

Give God the glory!!

To infinity and beyond!

再见!

~Bethany

贝萨妮~

~Life~

Sometimes, when life is hard and you can't see around the next bend,

do you ever cry out to God, 

"Why did you even create me? Why am I alive??"

This morning, I was wallowing in self-pity, feeling overwhelmed

by all the evil I have done, and feeling like I'll never 

get anywhere. And I asked that question.

Then the still small voice of the Lord spoke to my restless heart.

"So you could know me."

What if you had never been born? What if your life never existed? You would never have had the opportunity to know Christ. He has created us so we can know Him, live for Him, glorify Him, and one day, live with Him forever. We must treasure this unfathomable gift. This is how much He loves us.

So, keep heart, dear fellow Christian. It won't be long now till we all see Him. Let us press on with faith and strength towards that day.

   "Forget what lies behind and strain forward to what lies ahead, 

pressing on toward the goal for the prize 

of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."

Philippians 3:13b-14.

To infinity and beyond!~

~Bethany

贝萨妮

(The verse is paraphrased into imperative form.)

Do I hear.....Auntie???

你好!

Wow, it has been almost a month since I have posted. Well, I kinda have an excuse, because we were on vacation in Indiana for...12 days, I believe. :D It was a blast spending time with some great friends, going to the Fort Wayne Library with my aunt and my mama, driving around the countryside, just resting. My "spring break". :) Which...that situation has changed since we got back, ya know. Stinks.

But, on to VERY GOOD NEWS. Like, awesome news that I thought I wasn't gonna hear for several more years.

MY SISTER IS GOING TO HAVE A BABY

AND I'M GONNA BE AN AUNTIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:D :D :D :D :D :D

This is gonna be my first niece or nephew EVER and I am BEYOND EXCITED!!!!!!!!!! I'm gonna be Ayi Bethy!! :D (啊姨= auntie in Chinese ;D) I get to buy toys and clothes from him/her, I get to learn how to change diapers (ha ha ha. That's what you get for being a youngest child...no younger siblings to learn on.:P), I get to see a new whole life grow up, and I get to be the aunt who all of the sudden realizes her niece or nephew is graduating from high school, wondering where time went. It's just all too awesome for me right now. :D Anyways, CONGRATULATIONS to my sister and brother-in-law!!! I love them both. <3 And the new little one. AGHHH!!! <3 <3 :D

Anyways, I will hopefully be posting more this month, so stay tuned!! :D Life is amazing and full of adventure and stuff worth posting about! :D

To infinity and beyond~

~啊姨 贝萨妮 <--- sorry, couldn't resist. ;D

fellow workers~

你好! (Ni hao. You should remember this now. ;))

I'm sorry for my lack of posts recently. I have been SO busy. And I'm not joking. Last week, I didn't have a single free day (which this is weird for a homeschooler...). It was really tiring but I got to go on a retreat with my new youth group for the weekend, and it was amazing!!! But, all of that is for another post. Or no post. Whatever I feel like doing.

Anyway. This morning, I was provoked by this verse in 1 Corinthians 3.

"We are God's fellow workers. 

You are God's field, God's building."

We are His fellow workers. How cool is that?? Working alongside the Creator of the universe. What are we doing? We are planting seeds of the Gospel in people's hearts, and He grows those seeds and makes them flourish. So if you have an opportunity to plant a seed, don't shy away from it. Don't be afraid. God says in Isaiah 55:10-11,  "For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it." So touch a heart and plant a seed this week. Just recently, God has given me the opportunity to help someone in need, someone who is lonely. It is not the kind of situation where I can simply plop a Bible verse in a message to them; sometimes, this seed can only be planted through actions in reaching out a hand and helping someone by being there for them, and being a friend. When the Spirit is within you, those people will see that you are different, and they will start asking questions. So, whatever kind of seed you plant for the Lord, alongside the Lord, He will grow it. Don't be afraid that you will not be able to grow the seed, because that isn't your job. Your job is to plant it, and God will take it from there. 

2 Corinthians 9:10

"He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food 

will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and 

increase the harvest of your righteousness."

Imagine how much faster the kingdom of God would grow if we could just get out of our comfort zones and plant the seeds.

I hope you all have a great rest of the week! 再见！

To infinity and beyond!

~贝萨妮 

chinese class~

Soo, I didn't tell you guys. (I don't think, anyways.)

Shortly after my first post about China, after much praying, a homeschooling friend sent me a Facebook message, telling me that there was a Mandarin Chinese class that was going to be taught in the area, at a very reasonable price. I mean, like, "HIP HIP HURRAY", everybody!! This was such an answer to prayer!!! God always provides, and I'm so excited to see what more He has in store in the future. He is so good. :D

Anyways, yesterday was the first class! I already knew some of the phrases, like:

"Nǐ hǎo." Of course, everyone knows this one. :) "你好.”
"Zài jiàn." (Good-bye.) “再见.”
"Nǐ jiào shén me míng zi?" (What is your name?) “你叫什么名字？”
"Wǒ jiào..." (I am/My name is...) "我叫..."
"Xìexie." (Thank you.) “谢谢。”
"Bú yòng xìe." (You're welcome.) 不用谢。”
"Duì bù qǐ." (I'm sorry.) “对不起。”
"Méi guān xi." (That's ok.)“没关系。”

 See those little lines over some of the vowels? Those are called "tones" - basically, your voice does as they look. Like for "Nǐ hǎo", on the "Nǐ", your voice starts midway, then drops down, and comes back up. Then with, say, "Zài", (you say "ai" like "i"), your voice starts high and then drops low. Yeah. Chinese is definitely a tonal language. A word's meaning can change by the way you say it. Yeah...that's kinda scary...:P

Then we went over the numbers.
 yī 一，èr 二，sān 三，sì 四，wǔ 五，lìu 六，qī 七，bā 八，jǐu 九，shí 十。
I have yet to say all of them under 10 seconds, with all the correct tones. He he he. The tones are hard to get used to, but practice makes perfect!! At the classes, lao shi (teacher :)) says that anything we know how to say in Chinese, say it. NO ENGLISH ALLOWED. Ok, not quite. ;D But, she is encouraging us to use it as much as possible.

All of the phrases yesterday were the only ones I know, so next week, I'm excited to see the new stuff. I absolutely can't wait!! :)

So yeah. OH. Happy new year!! ("What, what? New year was like a month ago.") Noo, I mean, CHINESE new year. ;) Wanna learn a Chinese phrase?

Xīn nián kuài lè!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! :)

新年快乐!

February 10th marks the beginning of the Year of the Snake (shé nían 蛇年). I so wish that I could go to a Chinese new year festival, like that would be the coolest thing ever, but that's not happening this year...hopefully next year!! And hopefully I'll know a little bit more Chinese than...now. :P

So, xin nian kuai le, everybody!! May your year be prosperous. ;)

To infinity and beyond!~

Bethany~

贝萨妮

Gong xi fa cai = Congratulations, get rich. ;) Be happy and prosperous.

ready to sacrifice~

This was a post I wrote for www.livesharp.org (go check it out! :)) a while ago, but I thought I'd re-share it on here.

 ---------------------

Recently, as I have been reading through “Tortured for Christ” by Richard Wurmbrand (founder of Voice of the Martyrs), I have become greatly convicted about how I live my life. All around the world, there are people giving their very lives to spread the Gospel, like Jesus commanded, and then here we are.
Because persecution (physical, at least) is “dormant” here in America, we usually give little thought to what is going on in other parts of the world.

We are content to live our comfortable lives going about our own business – sitting in our warm houses, spending time on our computers, texting friends, and going to church just because it’s routine. But what if suddenly, America turned Communist? What if soldiers suddenly ransacked our houses for Bibles, burned our churches to the ground, and threw us in prison? Would we be ready? Ready to sacrifice anything, even our lives for the sake of the Gospel?
We need to be ready now. We must study the Word. Memorize Scripture. Pray with all our soul and might. Witness. There are people across the world, giving their all for the sake of Christ. How much more, we Americans, who have freedom of speech, actions, and religion, should spread the Word! I’m preaching to myself, someone who has no boldness to go out of my way to give the Gospel to a lost soul. It very well may be that you readers are the same. This is all the more reason to read the Word of God and spend time with the Lord. The more we know Christ, the more we love Him, and will give anything to show others the way to Him, “in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in Him” (Eph. 3:12). He is our boldness.

“I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of a evangelist, fulfill your ministry” (2 Timothy 4:1-5).

To infinity and beyond~
~Bethany
贝萨妮

background~

Background, by Lecrae.
I could play the background. I could play the background. Cause I know sometimes I get in the way. So won't You take the lead, lead, lead, lead, lead. So won't You take the lead, lead, lead, lead, lead. And I can play the background, the background. And You can take the lead.  
It's evident You run the show, so let me back down. You take the leading role, and I'll play the background. I know I miss my cues, know I forget my lines; I'm sticking to Your script, and I'm reading all Your signs. I don't need my name in lights. I don't need a starring role. And why gain the whole wide world, if I'm just gonna lose my soul. And my ways ain't purified, I'll live according to Your Word. I can't endure this life without Your wisdom being heard. So word to every dancer for a pop star, Cause we all play the background, but mine's a Rock Star. Yeah. So if you need me I'll be stage right. Prayin' the whole world will start embracing stage fright. So let me fall back and stop giving my suggestions cause when I follow my obsessions I end up confessing. That I'm not that impressive, matter of fact I'm who I are. A trail of star dust leading to the Superstar.
I had a dream that I was captain of my soul. I was master of my fate, lost control, and then I sank. So I don't want to take the lead cause I'm prone to make mistakes. All these folks that follow me gonna end up in the wrong place. So, just let me shadow You, and just let me trace Your lines. Matter of fact just take my pen. Here, You create my rhymes. Cause if I do this by myself I'm scared that I'll succeed. And no longer trust in You, cause I only trust in me. And see, that's how you end up headed to destruction. Paving a road to nowhere. Pour your life out for nothing. You pulled my card, I'm bluffing You know what's in my hand. Me, I just roll to trust You, You cause the dice to land. I'm in control of nothing. Follow You at any cost. Some call it sovereign will, all I know is You the boss. And man I'm so at ease. I'm so content. I play the background like it's an instrument.
I know I'm safest when I'm in Your will and trust Your word. And I know I'm dangerous when I trust myself, my vision blurred. And I ain't got no time to play life's foolish games. Got plenty aims, but do they really glorify Your name? And it's a shame the way I want to do these things for You, yet, don't even cling to You. Take time to sit and glean from You. It seems that You were patient in my ignorance. If ignorance is bliss, its cause she never heard of this.

---------------------

What amazing and TRUE words. This song has spoken to me soo much, SO many times. It's so humbling. It makes me want to know God more. These words. They were all crammed into a rap song. Here's just a quick rant about rap music before I..."rap up". Haha. *PUN SIGHTING* No, I mean "wrap up". ;D Many people who I have talked to have said that they don't think "Christian" can be paired with rap music. "Why use the world's music?" I know. When someone first mentions rap, especially to conservative Christians, it strikes fear into the heart. First thing you think is probably Enimem or something. (By the way, I have never listened to Enimem and never will, thank you very much.) But after I found the Christian group, "Lecrae", my view has changed. I think that God can greatly use Christian rap music for His glory. He has spoken to me through many of these songs; they all make me want to know God more, and they draw me closer to Himself. They make me want to do radical things for Him and His glory. You know what's cool about these songs? A whole SERMON can be packed into one 5 minute song! There are so many good ones out there, and I think that a lot of Christians miss out because they throw the baby out with the bathwater. And, to answer the question, "Why use the world's music?" We are living in a new day in age. There are new styles of music, just as styles have changed over all of history. This generation listens to rap music, pop music, rock music, etc. How are we going to reach them with music if we use the kind of music that they never listen to? It all rotates around the nucleus : the words. And the words that I have heard in contemporary Christian's music are glorifying to God and advance His kingdom.

I'm probably going to get a lot of bad looks and flak for this. But I had to share what was on my heart. God is using these musicians for His glory. And I'm not saying you have to listen to Christian rap, like at all, I just wanted to say that God is with these artists.

Oh, and one last thing. I don't like listening to Christian rap too much because it bangs on my head after a while and gives me a headache, but the words in these songs are gems. :D

Here is the song that the lyrics above were from. :)

To infinity and beyond!

~Bethany 贝萨妮~

new year and stuff~

So, guys, how was your New Year's?? :)

I mean, who couldn't?

Well, mine was great!!

Both of my sisters and my brother-in-law were here for almost a week, and we had a blast, as usual!! (Family is Awe-sommme!) It was full of Just Dance Disney (wahoooo!!! :D), googaga-ing over 

our lovely and precious kittycat (hehehe :)) --->,

opening belated Christmas presents, eating amazzzing snacky foods, etc. All of that fun stuff.

Oh, and we looked up our names in Chinese, to see what they mean, depending on the symbols they consist of. Ok, so THAT was FUN and HILARIOUS!!!! 

We started out with Amanda's. The symbols of her name are:

ā = a surname, or a symbol used in transliterating foreign words.

阿

màn = graceful; soft and beautiful; prolonged.

曼

dá = eminent; distinguished.

达

So, Amanda (阿曼达）is a beautiful and distinguished woman. We laughed because, yup, that's her!! Ok, well maybe not quite "distinguished", but...close. She carries herself in a dignified and distinguished manner. ;D Now I feel British or something.

Next was Melanie's, which we had the funnest time ever with. :D

Méi = a surname; plum/plum flower/Japanese apricot. LOL. No, the "lol" was not part of the definition.

梅

lè = to rein in; to compel; to force; to carve; to engrave; (literary) to command; to lead; lux (unit of illumination); (literary) bridle. Even MORE LOL because.....she kinda forced me around when me was littles...maybe just a tiny bit...

勒

ní = girl; phonetic "ni" in girl's name. So that's boring.

妮

Anyways. So Melanie （梅勒妮） is a bossy Japanese apricot. Or plum. Or maybe she's a compelling plum flower...umm....or a carved plum! ....

And then mine's boring. 

Bèi = surname; shellfish; currency.

贝

sà = surname; Bodhisattva, which means a person motivated by pure compassion and love to achieve the highest level of being, and who will undergo any type of suffering to help another sentient being. In Buddhism, it is a person who strives to be like Buddha. For me, it's striving to be like Christ.  

萨

nī = girl; phonetic "ni" in girl's name.

妮

So, this is rather weird. When we sisters had been looking at these together, I thought mine was boring, or at least a tiny bit funny (a shellfish ^_^) because I saw that "sà" meant "Bodhisattva" and I had no idea what on earth that meant, and I didn't take time to look it up, thinking it would be just something boring because it had a long name. But just now, I decided to look it up finally, and I'm shocked. I want to live up to my name! You all know I'm DEFINITELY not Buddhist, but I think it can apply to Christians instead - going through anything to become more like Christ, and to help others. Wow, I'm very humbled now...

Well, that post turned out completely different than I thought it would. Honestly, I had no idea what my Chinese name meant until I wrote it down here just now. Wow.

Anyways, have a great rest of the evening everybody! God bless! Remember that every Christian's destiny is to be like Christ, so strive towards it.~

Destiny - Mìngyùn

To infinity and beyond!

~Bethany

贝萨妮 ：）