Complacency--A Wake Up Call to the Christian Believer

Pretty Little Liars. The Hollywood Reporter states that "season four averaged 2.7 million viewers." (click here to read the article) For those of you who may not be familiar with this show, it is basically about four teenage girls whose best friend was recently murdered. The girls take it upon themselves to unravel the mystery surrounding their friend's death, while trying desperately to keep their own deepest and darkest secrets from coming to light.

Glee. This show has come cute moments. And I mean, hey, it's completely about music and so it's right down my alley as a singer and song-writer. The show is about a high-school Glee club that participates in different competitions each year. They study and practice hard, learn dances and songs. What's not to like, right?

Game of Thrones. For the few of you who may not have any idea what this show is, let me fill you in. This show follows the lives of several different royal/noble families. They are fighting for control of some land. As any good story royal story has, there is political intrigue within and without the castle walls, and also among the family members.

These are but three of the shows that have my friends talking non-stop on social media, in the cafeteria, and in their dorm rooms at night. I get it. These shows are what's in and what is cool and what everyone around us is talking about. Each of these shows has some good moments, I know that. However, each of these also has a couple serious issues that we, as Christians, should be concerned about.

I watched a couple episodes of Pretty Little Liars with a friend of mine the other day, and decided it's not a show for me. I get it, the show is popular; it is full of mystery and who doesn't like solving a mystery story full of intrigue and romance? However, this show also pushes a very secular worldview and agenda: support of the gay and lesbian community. Now don't get me wrong--I don't hate homosexuals. I have a couple gay friends. But does that mean that I accept and support their lifestyle? No, it definitely doesn't. Yet, I hear both my non-believer and Christian friends going on about this show and whether or not this female character will end up the guy--or girl. Glee is very similar in this aspect. I have caught a couple episodes of this particular show on a few different occasions. I thought it was cute, but was bothered by two different things: 1) the constant theme of sex between the students being okay because "that's just what teenagers do", and 2) the support of the gay and lesbian community. My Christian friends who watch this show frown upon the kids wanting to have sex, but other than that, they simply turn a blind eye to it. In regards to the LGBT community support, there was recently an article put out with some sneak peeks into the next season of Glee. One such sneak peek is that two of the main characters (who happen to be gay and in a relationship) are going to break up, and one of them will enter into a relationship with another guy on the show (which you can see for yourself here). I first heard about this when one of my Christian friends shared the link on Facebook, saying very sorrowfully, "WHAT HAPPENED TO KURT."

Game of Thrones. {Note: I am beginning to tread on very thin ice, so to all of my friends out there who are basically in love with this show, please do not murder me in my sleep or ex-communicate me to a barren icy land.} I tried. I really did. I got about fifteen minutes into the first episode before I finally turned it off. I cannot tell you how many of my friends on Facebook are completely in love and obsessed with this TV show. I can understand my non-believer friends enjoying it, but my Christian friends? Maybe it's the historical and mythical aspects of the show, which I will admit I found interesting. Maybe it is the battle scenes and/or the music that has my friends so wrapped up in the show. Maybe it's the political intrigue. But, let me fill you in--this is not the only kind of intrigue found in Game of Thrones. Sex is a major theme, which is my number one problem with the show. It's not simply implied or even showing it nearly happening. It goes all out, with explicit sex scenes, both incest and otherwise, with nudity being an all too common sight.

Friends, what are we allowing to enter our minds? What are we showing support for, perhaps even unknowingly, on the internet and when we interact with people? Yes, I'm talking to you, Christians. Have we become so complacent that these things no longer bother us? So accepting of secular society, that we just go along with whatever is in style and is cool?

It is becoming increasingly more discouraging to go on Facebook, seeing more and more friends (most of whom have my great respect) show their love and devotion for these shows that promote a sinful lifestyle. What is that saying to non-believers?

You'll go to church on Sundays and raise your hands in praise and worship, or sing with such passion to the old hymns. You stand before God in His house in prayer, committing yourself to Him and promising to follow Him and let others see Him through you. And I am sure that you mean it! I am sure that you are truly believing what you are singing and meaning what you are praying. But let me ask you this: on the other days of the week, when you are rooting for two guys to get together romantically, do you really think that you're showing your friends Christ?

Matthew 5:16 (ESV) says, "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."

If you are looking to show the LGBT community that you are non-judgmental and accepting and loving of them by watching Glee and shows like it, you're doing it wrong. I am probably one of the least judgmental people you will ever meet, but that does not mean I am accepting of the sin. I'll accept the person. I will hang out with gay people and get to know them and love them like Jesus loves them, but that does not mean I have to accept the sin. I am willing to bet that most of the Christian people that want Kurt and Blaine to end up together in Glee do not see themselves as promoting homosexuality. I am sure they still see the act as wrong in real life. Perhaps they really disliked the whole theme at the beginning, but the more they watched it, the more normal it became until they actually started cheering when they had their first kiss and went on their first date. It is a slippery slope.

Game of Thrones is nothing more than pornography with a storyline thrown in. Sure, the actual storyline might be interesting (I believe it probably is), but is it worth putting all that garbage in front of your eyes and inside your mind in the meantime? I have talked about this show with several people, mostly guys, who say that this sort of thing doesn't really bother them or affect them. Well I am here to tell you that they couldn't be more wrong. You may not even see the effect it as, but I can promise you it has one, if not several. Those types of images and sounds that are burned into your brain are not pleasing to the Lord. There is no redeemable value, the scenes are not needed to make the story more interesting. It is simply making the beautiful thing God created to be shared between husband and wife something to mock and laugh at and from which to receive physical and lustful pleasure. Do you think that pleases Him?

When a non-believer looks at you, do they see Christ in your cheering for a gay person to get the love of his life (who just so happens to be of the same gender)? Or when they see you gushing about a pornographic TV show? Because if not, all those friends are seeing is a hypocritical Christian, who only cares about being God's light on Sunday mornings when they're on the welcome committee and/or passing out tracks. I am by no means saying that my Christian friends who watch these shows are this way, but just imagine what the world is thinking when they see people who claim to be Christ followers...acting like and/or enjoying things only unbelievers should enjoy.

Now I know that some of you will probably reply with comments about how this is all good and well, but it doesn't work to simply pick and choose. "But you watch NCIS and the Mentalist, both of have parts that come dangerously close to being a sex scene. People cuss in The Blacklist, Agents of Shield, and Once Upon a Time." Yes, I do watch them. But, those are also some of the reasons I have stopped watching certain shows as often. I feel uncomfortable when a scene comes up in a movie or TV show. I cringe whenever I hear bad language in something I enjoy watching or listening to--though much to my shame those cringes are becoming less and less common. See? It's a slippery slope for me, too. And yeah, I may skip the scenes/look away during the scenes and cringe at the Lord's name taken in vain, but I still pay the money to go see the movies. I still own the movies and shows, gushing about them all over Facebook. And while these things "aren't as bad" culturally as those mentioned above, they are still sinful deeds and words I am letting my mind focus on.

So what do we do in this entertainment-oriented society? What is safe to watch, read, listen to? Do we keep watching these shows that are bluntly promoting a sinful lifestyle, such as Glee, Pretty Little Liars, and Game of Thrones? I would say no--we simply start watching Andy Griffith and The Little House on the Prairie series. But no, in all seriousness, contrary to what many people may think, this is not just me picking and choosing (though I know it probably looks that way). I don't know what I am going to do about the shows I watch that have even minimal language and only implied scenes. I'll be honest with you: I don't know. I pray about it, but I already know what God doesn't want me having in my mind.

I will say this though. That which we allow to enter our minds will eventually influence our actions. Is the show you are watching consistently promoting a sinful lifestyle and a secular perspective on life? If so, I would advise you to toss it out. You don't need that eating away at you until you've become so accepting of the actions in a TV show, that you begin to accept those same things in your own life. Just toss it. Another question to ask yourself: Does this show have a redeemable quality? Some would say Les Miserables would be a bad choice in movie due to the prostitution. And while I would not recommend watching the scene where Fantine becomes a prostitute, there is an overlying theme of justice, forgiveness, and redemption. She is redeemed from that lifestyle. So the questions to ask: Is the show promoting a sinful lifestyle? And, is there a redeemable quality?

I will leave you with one more phrase, a phrase that meant a lot to me growing up due to living in a spiritually closed country. Mind how you live and what you display to others--because sometimes you are the only Bible they will ever read.

Complete Surrender: Part 1

The secret of life is letting go

The secret of love is letting it show

In all that I do, in all that I say

Right here in this moment

The power of prayer is in a humble cry

The power of change is giving my life

And laying it down, down at Your feet

Right here in this moment

Take my heart, take my soul

I surrender everything to Your control

And let all that is within me lift up to You and say

I am yours and Yours alone

Completely

This journey of life if a search for truth

This journey of faith is following You

Every step of the way, through the joy and the pain

Right here in this moment

-- "Completely" by Ana Laura

Recently, I've been struggling a lot with surrender. I talk the talk really well, telling other people to just surrender to God and let Him lead and guide you. After all, wouldn't it be easier to just surrender to Him and let God take care of everything for us?

Ha. It should be, but it is not as easy as I often make it out to be to other people and even to myself. In most things, I'm pretty flexible, surrendering what I want in order to make someone else happy. That's what comes with being a people pleaser. However, that is not the kind of surrender I am talking about -- I'm talking about surrendering the harder things in life. Along with being fairly flexible, I can also be pretty stubborn in lots of things, wanting to have things my own way rather than God's way.

This past semester at Liberty University, my Evangelism professor challenged all of us to say "yes" to God. At first, I kind of felt like I had already done that. After all, I had already "surrendered my life to God" and become a Christian. But then I got to thinking more -- I had become a Christian, but that didn't necessarily mean that I had surrendered my life to my Creator.

I made a list of the different areas in my life that I was still withholding from God, areas I was unwilling to surrender. I am sure there are probably more that I simply did not think of, but the number of areas that I was not willing to give up shocked me. Some of them are things and people that mean a lot to me -- things and people that if God were ever to tell me to give up, I would struggle in obeying.

Well a couple weeks after my professor gave us that challenge, I finally said yes to God. Thus began a long journey (that will probably not come to an end until my death) in surrendering my life to Him. All was great for a while, until God started showing me things He wanted me to surrender to Him that I did not want to give up. I wrestled within myself, thinking that surely there was some way to compromise -- to keep doing what I was doing and still honor my promise to God that I would say yes to Him. But deep down I knew... I couldn't have it both ways.

I have decided to follow Jesus. And I don't know what He will have me do, what he will have me give up. Maybe he will have me let go of a loved one, a dream, perhaps my own life. I want to be like Esther in the Bible, who followed God's instructions saying, "If I perish, I perish." My own happiness is not what I should use as the deciding factor. Other people's happiness is not even the deciding factor as to whether or not I follow God's instructions. There should be nothing to decide between; my answer should always be "Yes, God." I might feel hurt, those I care for might feel hurt... But it in the longrun, it will be better for me and for them if I do what God tells me -- whether it's moving away from loved ones, or letting go of someone and letting them move on.

This is my New Year's resolution: to say "yes" to God in the hard things.

Liberty Life :)

Well, my first semester at college is half-way done. It’s kinda hard to imagine I’ve already been here for almost two months. I’ve really been enjoying my time here – my classes are great, and my professors are amazing, genuinely caring for all of us and wanting to see us succeed.

My favorite class by far has definitely been Evangelism with Dr. Wheeler. It’s not a tough class, but it is probably the one that has challenged me the most in terms of faith and going out and ministering to other people. People often assume that since I lived on the mission field and have missionary parents and a preacher grandfather that I’m well accustomed to sharing my faith with people. The fact of the matter is that I haven’t had much experience with just going out and talking to people I come into contact with throughout the day about my faith. I think a lot of this may have to do with the fact that in China, we couldn’t just go out and do ministry like we can here in the USA – not if we wanted to continue living in the country. I’ve had one-on-one conversations with people about my faith, once we’ve gotten to a certain level of friendship or they’ve specifically asked me about it, but I haven’t had the type of experience of evangelizing in the way most people in the USA think of evangelizing. So, Dr. Wheeler has been challenging me in ways I did not think I’d be challenged, both in evangelizing and also just in my personal life and how I treat others.

My second favorite class is probably either Psychology of Relationships with Dr. Logan or Biblical Worldviews with Dr. Matthews (who does the main session) and Dr. McPherson (who does the breakout session… I don’t like that class so much, just the professor!). All three professors have a great sense of humor and make their classes very interesting. And hey… Dr. Matthews and Dr. McPherson both have accents (Australian and Scottish) which makes it all better!!

When it comes to non-academics, I’ve been enjoying getting to know people (on and off campus) better! A couple of families had me over to their homes for a nice home-cooked meal a few times which I absolutely LOVED. I enjoyed connecting with them, especially as I have a feeling that they will become my families away from home while mine are absent. I’ve also been getting to know quite a few students on campus. The people I have connected with the most are in my dorm and my brother dorm, especially a girl right across the hall from me, Kim. My roomies are also quite amazing, if I do say so myself.

Some of the fun things I’ve done since being on campus include participating in Open Mic Night, going Moonlight Horseback Riding/Bonfire, hammocking (so far I’ve only used other people’s hammocks, but… I just got my own hammock from my dear family so I’ll have to try that out soon!) in our hammock tree, going cliff-jumping at Panther Falls, and tenting at Gillville (ironically without a tent… which meant a very cold Rachie). Each of these have been SO fun and I look forward to participating in a LOT more!

When it comes to church/Bible studies… Each Tuesday, we have prayer groups and/or prayer group activities. My prayer group is so awesome and I’m getting to know them all, slowly but steadily.  Each Sunday morning, I catch a ride down to Roanoke to go to church. I have started attending the college Sunday school class and afterwards leading the 3^rd graders’ small groups in children’s church. It’s a lot of fun… I’m really enjoying it; I’ve missed being around kiddos since being at LU.  Every Sunday evening, I attend an off-campus Bible study with several other Liberty students at a couple’s home.  I’m loving it – I think it’s one of my favorite times of week. We have great discussions about so many different things.

Anyway, that basically sums up my first couple of months at LU. It’s not always easy, don’t get me wrong. I still get really homesick at times, and often feel very lonely, despite being around so many awesome people. But, I’m working through it and this place is starting to feel like a home away from home. :)

Long Time No See!

Hey you guys,

I'm working on a blog post right now, but I've been so busy transitioning into campus life and my studies that I haven't been able to post anything on here for a while. Sorry about that! I promise that one is coming soon, and that I'll tell you about some of the things that's been up with me lately.

Until then, suffice it to say that, while there have been different struggles, I'm really enjoying my time here at Liberty! The professors are amazing, and so are my friends and spiritual life leaders/prayer leaders.

See y'all soon!

College Bound!

Well, the time I've been nervously and excitedly waiting for is finally here: I'm going to college!

I'm more nervous than I thought I would be, for sure. But my excitement faaaaaar outweighs my fear. Today, my family will be leaving my grandparents' house in South Carolina and start driving toward Lynchburg, Virginia. We'll be able to stop and see a few people along the way, including my best friend Young-Hyun who is currently studying at Duke University. I'm excited about that.

Tonight we'll be staying with some friends in the Lynchburg area, and then tomorrow -- after having lunch with another great, old friend -- I will be moving into my dorm on Liberty's campus! :O It's kind of weird to think that tomorrow night will be my first night of many that I'll be spending at Liberty.

Though I'm pretty nervous about everything -- okay I'll admit, I'm terrified! -- I know that even though my parents will be leaving me in a week's time, my heavenly Father will never leave me. And so in Him, I will place my trust. I'm not about to claim that will be easy... but if I can do that, I have nothing at all to fear. :)

I don't know when I'll be able to type up another blog post, as I'm pretty certain the next few weeks are going to be reaaaaally really busy for me. Can't wait to see what God has in store!

Adjusting . . . Sorta

My family has been in the States for about a month now. We spent a couple weeks with my dad's family in South Carolina and Tennessee (we had a WONDERFUL family vacation in TN with all of my aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents). Then we drove down to Mississippi, which is where we currently are staying, to be with my mom's family for a few weeks.

We've had a wonderful time with all of my family. I've loved getting to spend time with everyone and getting to know them better. I have also been able to practice a lot of driving since I've been back in country, though have only ventured out by myself twice (about a 3-minute drive each time). My dad has been threatening to send me out driving on my own more often though, so I should be getting lots of experience pretty soon.

Since arriving back in the States, I've also been busy getting ready for college. Classes start on August 19, and I move onto campus on the 15th, which gives me a month left to have everything ready. When I was in South Carolina, I began working on the final stages of my quilt for my bed in the dorm, with the help of Mimi. I still have a few things left to do with it, but it's turning out very well! Below are some pictures of my quilt from when I was working on it in China... I have yet to take pictures of it's current stage, so you'll have to excuse me. :)

Also, there were certain required immunizations I had to get before going to college. Kind of ridiculous if you ask me... I'm not a fan of vaccines anyway, but the fact that I have to get them or I can't go to Liberty (unless I have religious reasons for not getting them... which I don't) is a little sad. Anyway.

So yesterday, my family took me to the Health Center so that I could get my required shots. We got there at 1:00 PM and sat for about two hours while they tried to make sense of my immunization records. Turns out the only required immunization I'd had previously was the first dose of MMR (measles, mumps, rubella). Which meant I still had to get the second dose of MMR, as well as shots for Tetanus, Meningitis, Polio, and get blood drawn for TB. And they decided that it was a good idea to pump all of those vaccines into my system within 10 minutes of each other, which left me very very sore.

The blood-drawing probably took a good 20 minutes for the entire process. Apparently I do not have easy veins. The first nurse couldn't even find the veins on the inside of my elbow, so she had another nurse come in to try and draw my blood. She first tried drawing it from my left hand, and while a little bit of blood came out, it stopped very very quickly. So she tried a little bit further up my arm, in which case I didn't bleed at all. Both nurses then decided to go ahead and give me my shots, having me down two bottles of water while they did that. Apparently drinking water helps the blood flow and I didn't drink enough that morning. So once I began to resemble a water balloon, they decided they would go ahead and try a third location to draw blood -- my left hand. It worked!...kinda. It worked as long as they were working at it and moving the needle around the inside of my vein (ouch!). Finally, they got the blood they needed and I was done!

You know, my dad always said that I didn't have blood in my veins, but rather the thick red Korean pepper paste -- which would explain my love of spicy Korean food. After yesterday, I'm starting to believe that might be true, because my blood came out sooooo slowly, as if it was really thick. Well, at least I won't have to worry about any more immunization shots. :D

I'm really looking forward to starting college, moving into my dorm, and meeting my two awesome roomies. There are moments when I just wish time would hurry up and fast-forward to that day I move onto campus, as I can be quite restless whenever I don't have a good routine. But I'm also enjoying spending time with my family and making memories. I haven't fully adjusted to being in America, because I haven't been able to just settle down in one place as of yet. But that's okay... that'll come. Right now, I'm just gonna enjoy where God has me. :)

The Next Chapter

Goodbyes. They're not something I look forward to... In fact, I really dislike having to tell people I love goodbye. But they are something that each person has to go through.

Last week, some of my closest friends (the Chang family, Moon family, Stirling family, Yoon family, Phillips family) all came and helped take us and all of our bags to the airport in Yanji. Saying goodbye... wasn't easy. I'm not one of those people that does well with goodbyes in general, and saying goodbye to these people in specific was even more difficult.

Thankfully I was able to keep my tears from escaping while I hugged each of them and promised to keep in touch. Then we went through Security and that was the last time I saw their faces for what could be a very, very, very long time.

Sitting on the plane, watching my little hometown of Yanji grow smaller and smaller, I felt an ache in my heart. I was very thankful for the overly talkative lady across the aisle from me who kept me distracted for at least half of the flight to Beijing.

But, with every goodbye... comes a new hello. Around 7:00-7:30 PM on Tuesday evening, my family landed in North Carolina and were greeted by my grandparents. It's been sooooo good to reconnect with them. We've gone to the zoo, had water fights, played tennis, and just hung out. This weekend, we leave for a big family vacation in Tennessee with all of my dad's siblings, their spouses and kids, and my grandparents. I'm really looking forward to seeing everyone again.

On August 15th, I will move onto Liberty University's campus, and classes will begin on the 19th. I'm a little nervous, but... my excitement far outweighs what fear I have inside of me. I cannot WAIT to meet my roommate (who is AWESOME, by the way) and get to meet new people and make friends. I'm also looking forward to my classes, though maybe not quite so much as the actual social aspect of college life.

Though I am nervous and insecure and have absolutely NO idea of what is in store for me, I can have peace in knowing that God is with me. As my friend Young-Aeh reminded me and as Psalm 139 says, "You hem me in-- behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. [...] If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast."

Please be praying for me as I start this next chapter of my life. My parents and sisters will be living in Colorado while I'm at Liberty for my first year, which is a lot closer than China. So, I'm very thankful for that. But it will also be a big transition for my family as I won't be there and as they adjust to living in America, so please keep them in your prayers as well.

Time to turn the page and see what happens... :)