Rediscovering Eden
Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth
Would care to know my name
Would care to feel my hurt
Who am I, that the bright and morning Star
Would choose to light the way
For my ever wandering heart
Not because of who I am
But because of what You've done
Not because of what I've done
But because of who You are
I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
A vapor in the wind
Still You hear me when I'm calling
Lord, You catch me when I'm falling
And You've told me who I am
I am Yours, I am Yours
Who Am I, that the eyes that see my sin
Would look on me with love
and watch me rise again
Who Am I, that the voice that calmed the sea
Would call out through the rain
And calm the storm in me
Whom shall I fear
Whom shall I fear
I am Yours
dailies
Friday, July 17, 2009
Koinonia in the Outskirts of Beijing.
-11:35 PM
Koinonia is a Greek word that occurs 20 times in the Bible. Koinonia’s primary meaning is “fellowship, sharing in common, communion.” The first occurrence of koinonia is Acts 2:42, “They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” Christian fellowship is a key aspect of the Christian life. Believers in Christ are to come together in love, faith, and encouragement. That is the essence of koinonia.
Last Sat,11/07/09,some of us went to 延庆,a county in the outskirts of Beijing. It was supposed to be a rest and relax camp for us to quieten our hearts before God. So the housemate and I woke up at 445am,met the others at 515pm and headed for the bus stop. We took a couple of buses,met the other church peeps at 德胜门西before taking a long distance bus and then a mini van to the 农家 in 延庆.ALong the way we had ice-breakers!I got to know a chinese lawyer(there were A LOT of lawyers in this camp!)who is also from Fujian and she said that she could tell that Im from FJ too from my speech and my looks.Shes not the first to say that though.
My room which had 6gals.We slept on this long bed which can be electrically heated during winter!
I love the interesting deco around the 农家.
A cute dog with a hair clip like mine.
Cute stools/chairs at our friend's house.
Amazing Creation.
While waiting for lunch,some of us starting singing christian songs and it caught the attention of some Chinese aunties. They asked us to sing them some songs and quickly we decided which to sing,some with actions some without. We brought out our song sheets and shared them with the aunties while D strummed his guitar. We told them that Jesus loves them and they love our songs and understood that we were a Christian group. We got them to perform some songs for us too. The first of the many impromptus which made this 2 days so memorable.
After 农家乐午饭,we went to 大峡谷,a valley with streams!
We had to pay to 2RMB each to cross this!
Reminds me of Ubin,the quarry.
The free-but-go-at-your-own-risk path of crossing.
It really took a lot of effort climbing up and down, stepping along streams, having my whole feet into the water,getting wet, having frogs jumping around your feet,getting on all fours,getting your bum dirty to avoid falling while climbing up and down the steep contours and slippery rocks WITH MY HAVANAS SLIPPERS! While climbing down a steep er..i dunno wad to call it..its like a small cliff,this guy took his SLR and took pictures of me climbing down while exclaiming ‘她穿着拖鞋爬'! My friends and I wanted to retort and say that there was another on of us with slippers and a dress!Yea but along the way,the ppl wearing slippers were gaining much attention and the locals advised us to climb bare-footed if necessary.
After the whole climb,im more than ever convinced that yes Harvanas are expensive but its worth every single cent! 1.Its Pretty.2.Its hardy-I climbed trees and pluck cherries with my harvanas;I go hiking with my harvanas and though it got caught or was stepped on my friends,it NEVER once broke.3.It doesnt cut my skin regardless of what ordeal I put it through.4.It is not that slippery.I dont think I'll go for another brand of slippers anymore.
LIttle kids catching shrimps and fish along the streams with their fishing nets!I love the joy on their faces while they play.Its what my parents use to play when they are young!
Chickens!
I risked being stung for these pictures cos I was less than half a metre from the bees.I decided to move away when the bees came flying and landing on us and its painful okay.
Its name is Lion.A really really pretty doggie that apparently only likes female.I forgot to check its gender.It bites however.
We had bbq after dinner!
After a while,some kids from a local kindergarden came along and we said hi and started giving them some bbq food!They loved it and while interacting with them,we decided to sing a song for them, with actions!We sang 以基督的心为心 and they followed us with the actions!Later on,the teachers invited us to join them for campfire and said we could perform an item for them. Quickly we decided which songs to do,practice a few actions and off we went so excited with this No.2 Impromtu.
My fav kid.
We danced with the kids and their parents,making 3 concentric circles around the campfire.Out of all the songs used by the kids, I know one while my friends knew none and they came to the conclusion that I must be born in China!-.-
Our turn came and we did our 2songs with the actions and when the teachers did the closing song for the camp fire,we went around shaking hands and hugging the kids while telling them '耶稣爱你'.It suddenly reminded me of older people telling me that the way they got to know about Christ was when they were kids,some one told them'耶稣爱你'..I was touched and am glad that I can tell a kid God loves him/her.
At night,we taught some local girls english while teaching them a song 'All in all'.They had heard us sing in the day and wanted to learn it.:D Impromptu No.3.
In the middle of it all,we received smses and phonecalls that a fellow classmate who went with some of the other classmates to mongolia had gone into shock because of an allergic reaction to alcohol. Apparently, the guide forced them to drink and after they had done so,he forced them to drink more cups till they were all giddy and lying down in the yurt.They were using the contacts from my travel group the other time we went. When we went the other time,the guides did try to get us to drink but we were quite firm and whether we drank or not was our own decision..we weren sure why they were so pushy this time. Anyhow,our classmate went into shock and was sent to a small hospital which didn know quite well what to do. Over in Yanqing,all of us gathered and prayed out loud for our classmate cos it sounded as if she may not make it..the hospital in the capital was a distance from the grasslands,all we had was God. In the end, everything turned out fine,the puking ended,the cold sweat ended,the contractions ended,the shakes ended,she was breathing normally.:)
THe next morning,we woke up early at 5plus,did our own QT before walking out to an open grassland to spend 1 hr with GOd alone. Each of us found our own spot and started.I was looking at the creation and talking to GOd about certain uncertainties I felt etc.Suddenly I was pouring question after question to God.Not that they were all answered but certain important ones were,or at least I felt with certainty that God will be there for me.It brought tears to my eyes.:)
We went back for breakfast before heading to a local friend's house for the sunday service.It was a different feel for a service. No more pews and nice buildings. We sat in her little yard,got all the stools we could find and formed a circle. Some local aunties joined us with their daughters. Yes there were mosquitos and bugs but we were not bothered by those. I love the clean air in the forest-ty area..have not breathe such clean air in a long time. We sat on our stools while singing and while listening to our friend,M.H,an ABC from the States share God's word. Simple stools and nature and God and Christian company,Koinonia, I love it.
After lunch, we went for a walk up the mountain/hill/village towards 莲花山.We carried our guitar and were singing songs one after another along the way while the ocassional cars honked at us. When we reached another village,we stood around to sing and pray before walking back.
We got our things,got into our mini van and off we were for Beijing.For dinner,the 8 of us from class with our fren frm the States and another local friend went to this place that reminded me of MINDS cafe,near 后海.Its really cosy and had a couch,chairs,games and DVD player put together which reminded me of a cottage!We watched Lord of the Rings III while eating pizza and had to fast forward while M.H explained the movie.I only watched LOTR I and II. THe shows are all so nice,we plan to have a movie marathon at the end of this week! I really love the place,mayb i'll go back one day for a drink and soup,with my camera and a book.
A store selling books in my estate at night! Why? cos they sell pirated books.Its all photocopied.I bought a travel guide showing villages or 古镇 in china for 14 RMB.Shouldnt have though..the quality is alright but i can get an orginal with better quality for an inexpensive price too. Shall not do it again!
<em>"But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander." - 1 Peter 3:15-16</em>
