Don't Fear Anything

I've been listening to Rachel Chan (Francis Chan's daughter) sing "Even Here"...she was only 16 when she wrote this song and really spoke to me. Hope the lyrics encourage you too:

I know your pain, I hear your cry,
And I have been there too.
And I promise not to leave you.
Soon you will see what I can see.
Child, keep your eyes on me.
You're right where you should be.

But don't fear anything,
Cuz I'm here and I can bring you joy,
Even here I'll bring you joy.
There's a reason for everything,
In each season I can bring you joy,
Even here I'll bring you joy.

This narrow road will lead you home
Follow the faithful few
who have finished strong before you.
I can't promise you'll be free from pain,
Until you see my face,
But I'll help you run the race.

But don't fear anything,
Cuz I'm here and I can bring you joy,
Even here I'll bring you joy.
There's a reason for everything,
In each season I can bring you joy,
Even here I'll bring you joy.

There is no power strong enough to separate you from my love.
There is no power to keep me from You.

Recipe of the Week: Pineapple upside-down cake

We had our Hawaiian Luau Party this week! So much fun. It's a bit tricky making something Hawaiian in the UK...haven't found too many Hawaiian/Asian grocery stores. So I decided to make Pineapple upside-down cake and coconut chocolate cookies which turned out great! :) Here's the recipe:

• 50g softened butter
• 50g light soft brown sugar
• 7 pineapple rings in syrup, drained and syrup

• 100g softened butter
• 100g golden caster sugar
• 100g self-raising flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs

Method

1. Heat oven to 180C. For the topping, beat the butter and sugar together until creamy. Spread over the base and a quarter of the way up the sides of a 20-21cm round cake tin. Arrange pineapple rings on top.
   
2. Place the cake ingredients in a bowl along with 2 tbsp of the pineapple syrup and, using an electric whisk, beat to a soft consistency. Spoon into the tin on top of the pineapple and smooth it out so it's level. Bake for 35 mins. Leave to stand for 5 mins, then turn out onto a plate.
   

Italy

Ciao! Amo l'Italia! Thank you Lord for providing opportunities to travel the world! I think I have the travel bug...I just want to go EVERYWHERE! :) That's the nice thing about living in Europe...only a 2 hour plane ride from London to Rome.

On Tuesday, my Welsh/British friend Sian and I embarked on an adventure to Roma. The most historical and beautiful city I've been to! As the famous saying goes, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do." We certainly did...eating gelato everyday, delicious spaghetti, fresh pizza out of the oven, and walking the streets (or getting lost). We stayed in a nice female hostel right in the center of the city...it's so nice walking everywhere. We met other girls visiting from Argentina, America, Korea, and China.

Wednesday-woke up early at 8am to miss the queues for the Vatican Museum...so worth the wait! We saw the famous Sistine chapel by Michelangelo (I couldn't believe my eyes after reading all about it in textbooks), Pieta in St. Peter's Basilica, and beautiful ceilings all around. The Vatican City is amazing...we spent 4 hours, but that wasn't even long enough. Everywhere you look, you see something new and historical. St Peter's Basilica was definitely the highlight of my day...you'll understand once you immerse yourself in the huge dome and look up at the ceiling. After the rain stopped, we walked to the Trevi Fountain and threw 3 coins in...1 for returning to Rome, 2 for finding an Italian guy, and 3 for marrying him. Too bad the last wishes didn't come true...yet. We also went to the Spanish steps, ate gelato, and enjoyed spaghetti near the Pantheon at a romantic ristorante.


Thursday-can't miss the Colosseum...amazing to see where the gladiators fought! I finally saw the movie, Gladiator and was quite impressed. We walked through the Palatino, Roman Forum, and ate gelato (yet again!) at Giolitti...the most famous and best gelato in Rome since 1900. We ended the day with pizza at the Fontana di Trevi!

I will miss Roma...the warmer weather, friendly Italian people, and good food (Italians know how to cook!) Thank you Jesus for protecting us and pouring out your blessings everyday!

Easter Egg Hunt

Praise the LORD for His goodness with the Easter Egg Hunt! It was a bit stressful planning the event at times, but so worth it to see it all come together. From painting the huge eggs to buying 150 chocolate Cadbury eggs at the grocery store, God provided for us. I am so thankful for the 30 volunteers who helped me put the event on...youth, church staff, and elders who donated their time. We gave out 120 chocolate eggs with a Gospel tract to children and over 100 families attended the event! Several of the children were from primary schools in the area and haven't heard about Jesus. I pray that the Easter Hunt would be a turning point where they felt His love for them. I was praying for sunny weather, but even with the rain, we had a great turn out. We continued with the event in the atrium and everyone enjoyed exploring our new church building. All praise to God!

Church Retreat

Awesome worship. Inspiring messages. Rappin' to the beats. Bonfires. Testimonies. Lives being changed. Good laughs and conversations. Being crazy. Late nights. Thank you Jesus for an amazing weekend! Let me just say...I love the youth at our church. They are so much fun and bring joy to my life :)

One of the most memorable times was during worship...I saw one of the youth with her hands covering her face and asked if I could pray with her. She's had a rough time with forgiveness and accepting God's love, but praise the LORD she re-committed her life to Christ. Reminds me of the parable of the lost son..."For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. So they began to celebrate." -Luke 17:24. I bet they were throwing a party in Heaven!

We performed at the All Saint's Got Talent show too...singing "Light of the World" in different languages (Japanese, Welsh, German, French, Mandarin) and our Girls 4 God Band performing "Your Love Never Fails" with guitar, drums, and keyboard. So proud of them! Paul and Simon (Pastors of our church), Jonny, Jonatan, and Tom were brilliant serenading us...reminded me of Backstreet Boys.

Kev, our speaker was so encouraging and inspiring! He's a Northern Ireland rapper from 29th chapter...Christian rap! Reflections/questions to think about...

1. There is a power in STORYTELLING.

• Jesus told stories and parables.
• It's not our own life...we are apart of God's BIG story.
• As the moon reflects the sun's light, we need to reflect Jesus' light and love to the world.
• When I'm 60 years old, what do I want my life to look like? I want to live a life of love, pour into youth, have a family, and travel the world.
• Do I care too much what people think of me? GOD>people

2. Agent of Peace

• Let's be peace makers.
• Jesus looks people in the eye, carries people, and touches people. He lives a life of LOVE.
• We are called to be His hands, feet, and walk where He walked.
  
• We need to give him the keys to our cars...let Him drive and take you places. Even when we don't want to go somewhere, He knows what's best for us.
  

3. You are LOVED.

• Psalm 139...the hairs on our head are counted by Him.
• Seek SHALOM: wholeness, peace, hope
• Church is not something we go to...I AM THE CHURCH.
• We need to love people God puts in our life...we should not feel pressured to convert them.
• Jesus makes BEAUTY in brokenness.

Countdown: 18 days!

Can't wait to see my family in less than 3 weeks!!! I miss them.