Day 361: The 50's Here

Today could have been more eventful, but.... it just wasn't. What is it with Hispanics and their tendency of being lazy sometimes? Man, I thought I was doing alright breaking that stereotype, but now I'm back at it full speed. I can say that it was a good day thanks to my latest addition to my camera's eye collection, the Canon 50 mm f/1.8. I know that sounds super complicated, but it's just a simple lens with loads of awesomeness inside. Plus, I get the perfect opportunity to practice at the "happiest place on earth"", so you know it's going to be good! This was a family day; despite my laziness and lack of effort to do something more productive, it was still a blessed day. This last week of 2010 is going to be good; sometimes you just know, even if it involves Disneyland =)

God bless,
Steven

Day 360: The Feed

So Christmas was yesterday. Just like that it's over, and there's six days of the year left. Today was the last Sunday of 2010; wow, has time flown. Today we visited a church that our cousins Jorge and Rosie go to, and I enjoyed it a lot. It's cool to get a different perspective every now and then. After that, the family (Derek included; you know what, let's just go with him always being included in the family.) went to have lunch at this place called Everett & Jones. Apparently, it was so good the last time they went that they HAD to take me there. All I can say about Everett & Jones is that it just may be some of the best barbecue I've had in my whole life. My WHOLE LIFE. I tried their chicken, beef brisket, and ribs, and sweet mother of Jehosaphat are they good; I made sure to save some to have tomorrow. Coming home was nice and simple; all I really did was hang out with my dad, watching movies and video editing. Not to mention the dogs, who are great company when you dismiss their tendencies of being absolute lunatics sometimes. You'd think that after a massive lunch I'd be done with eating for the day; well..... it wasn't the end just yet. I ended up having an evening run to Taco Bell, where I used a bunch of coupons to get a bunch of food to sustain me for the next couple days. I'm pretty sure I'll be running on a full tank of fuel this week; I just need to try and regain my composure so the American eater within me doesn't transfer over to Australia. I say that mainly because I ate differently over there; it actually benefitted me too! I don't really ever keep track of my height, weight, etc.; but I certainly felt better throughout this year. There's just something about Australia.... guess I won't be finding out the secret to it's success anytime soon.

God bless,
Steven

Day 359: CHRISTmas

Christmas day. Everyone looks forward to it. I mean, why wouldn't you? It's Christmas!! We're celebrating the birth of our Lord JC! This time of year has always been one that I enjoy; I'm pretty sure there hasn't been a Christmas I didn't enjoy. Today was a family day; I literally spent the entire day with family and relatives. In the morning, my family went to Pittsburg to see grandma; as tradition, we took her for breakfast at IHOP (I'm really taking a liking to IHOP now; who knew ten months away from here could make their food taste SO amazing?) After that, we took a trip to Mi Pueblo, which is basically a massive Mexican supermarket where you can find lots of food for super cheap prices. It's cool to be in a place like that, because it's full of Latin American culture and the kind of food my parents are familiar with from their childhoods. After spending a couple hours with our relatives, we dropped off grandma and came home. Throughout the day I kept practicing with my new camera, and so far it's going well. I spent a good 20 minutes just going through the manual, and I had to stop due to an overflow of info to my brain. I could have picked just about anything to do once I got home, but I found myself in front of my TV reliving one of my favorite pastimes: Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus on the Playstation 2. What was originally going to be a small play-through of the first and second levels ended up being me playing for about 4 hours and eventually beating the game; frankly, I'm surprised I beat it so quickly. Looks like I'll be playing through the second one pretty soon =)

Okay, so maybe this Christmas wasn't like the ones you see in the movies or television, but the fact that I got to spend it with the most special people in my life was well worth it. One thing I would complain about is that today's society is moving away from Christmas's purpose and inspiration. I guess I don't really see what's so controversial about saying "Merry Christmas"; obviously me being a Christ follower can make me feel uneasy when I hear modern America saying "Happy Holidays" as if they're trying to take away the deeper meanings and spiritual connections of Christmas out of the picture. All I can really say in the end is I'm going to stick with the way it was meant to be from the beginning. Think about it; 'tis all.

God bless,
Steven

Day 358: New Toys!!

"It came!!! It finally came!!! The Big One. [cue dramatic strings] Extremely dangerous, keep out of reach of children.... cool!"

This is one of those scenes from Toy Story that I remember because of how many times I've seen it. Today, I could have easily quoted this over and over again. Today was one for the history books, as my present to myself from myself arrived this afternoon. What was it, you may ask. A Canon Rebel T2i camera kit, I may answer. I GOT MY CAMERA!!!!!!!!!! It's about time, man!! I basically got to show it off to the family after months of researching and getting input from all the camera experts in my world. It's more beautiful than I dreamed; I seriously can't wait to start reading the instruction manual to figure out how to use the darn thing!!

My Christmas Eve was definitely one of the best ever; lots of time with the family, lots of great food, lots of camera testing, and even Lotso' Huggin' Bear making me detest evil toys that hide behind cuteness (Never... ever.... trust a bunny. Or a pink bear that smells of strawberries..) My family is really the best gift of my life; I thank God so much for them and everything they do for me. God, thanks for an amazing year; and Jesus... HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

God bless,
Steven

Day 357: Christmas Eve Eve?

Let's just say that God is good all the time, and all the time God is good. Sounds like a pretty good summary of today to me!

God bless,
Steven

Day 356: Alone, Not Alone, and Never Alone

In the morning I found myself in a place where I was determined to really getting this SFC Christmas Program DVD finished. I published each video with around 20 minutes between each just waiting for the video to finish. Eventually they were all done, and I went right to work on the DVD menu. It took a while, but after all the imports it was done. I then decided to check the videos, only to find that the audio quality wasn't as good as it was on iMovie. So, I had to pretty much scrap everything I did, and I have to re-publish the videos with better audio so it can be heard well on the DVD. I consider that a video editing FAIL, but let's just move on before I get sensitive.
Later in the afternoon, I had a dentist appointment; it's cool to see the people you trust with your teeth, especially when they already know so much about Australia. My mom and I both got some extra strength cleaning done, so I feel pretty clean at the moment. After that, I was deployed downtown to meet up with some of my SFC peeps. I was there very early, so I went to Borders and got lost in a few comic books; it was a very reminiscent hour, since I had a knack for collecting them. What really surprised me was how far the comics have gone since I last got one; take the New Avengers for example. I think the last volume I have is 6 or 7, but they're already on 12; it's amazing how much happened in the Marvel universe in one year. Once I decided I shouldn't jump ahead to other big stories, I went downstairs to find someone I knew; this mission came with little success; but after a while, I eventually found them. We pretty much spent the night walking around the city, sharing laugh after laugh, story after story, and more laughs; I love my friends. All of them. Even those of you that join me on this life adventure by reading this right now. You're awesome =) As Tobuscus would say it, "Bless your face. If you sneezed during this video (or in my case, this blog), bless you. Peace off."

God bless,
Steven

Day 355: The Friends You Know and Love

So today was interesting indeed. I didn't really have plans (I tend to not have plans to begin with), but a plan came my way around 10-something this morning. I woke up to the ringing of my dad's phone because my mom was calling to check on us. I went through some unread messages and found a message from Kazemi (I gave him my dad's phone number for when we were planning on filming my project for the Exchange, but that didn't go to plan at all) letting me know about plans to hang out with some peeps in Daly City. So without hesitation, I got ready and went over to reunite with one of my best friends; we were the only ones on time (naturally), so we spent about an hour just catching up on life and what was happening. Eventually the rest of our group came and we watched Tangled in 3D (absolutely love this movie; much better than Narnia hands down). It was loads of fun watching it again, and even better seeing Katherine tear up during the emotional scenes haha. After that, the group (minus the Garcias) went to the V's house to say hello to our ol' advisor/friend and his wife. We spent a couple hours there, telling what's going on in all our worlds (apparently, I've missed out on a lot, because so much has happened this year that I only just heard about today!). Eventually, the entire Valenzuela family came, and it turned into somewhat of a family reunion. Once I got home, it was chilling with the family until bedtime... which is now...

God bless,
Steven

Day 354: Kong Lives

Today was the first day that my dad had off for the next couple weeks. I can't say how great it is that I can spend pretty much the rest of my break with him, and I'm looking forward to it. All we did today was chill, taking care of the dogs and other random things around the house. At one point I decided to try out Derek's Wii, since I wouldn't want it to sit here and not go to waste (In case you don't know who Derek is, he's my sister's new fiancee.) I tried out the new version of Donkey Kong Country, and I have to admit this game is awesome; it totally brought me back to the days when I played Donkey Kong 64 every day for like 6 months straight (and I never even beat it...). In the evening, the whole family was in the living room talking over some family business things, and now that the hour is late, everyone is asleep except me. Now that I think about, I always found myself to be the one that stayed up last; I'm sure I'll find a good reason to stay up this time.

God bless,
Steven

Day 353: Learning to Worship

This morning while I was getting ready for church, my mom was watching a message from Dr. Charles Stanley, one of the big time teachers in the Bay Area. I started listening about halfway through his message, and he started talking about how he had spent years teaching and preaching, but at one point he got a revelation that he never really learned how to worship. Sure, he believed in Jesus as his savior, he studied the Bible, and he was an anointed speaker; but he was never really shown how to worship. I've accepted for years now that worship shouldn't be limited to the music we play in church; instead, it should be the way we live every day. I've been trying to apply this into my life for years, but I feel like I still haven't quite "got it". Hearing Charles Stanley say that made me really think about what I've chosen to believe. Sure, I believe that worship should be our lifestyle, but have I lived that out? In all honestly, I can say I haven't enough. Yes, I've had those small periods where everything goes well, but then I get one small lazy break, and I find myself in the laid back setting where I just don't follow up to it. Today I set out to work on that; it went well, but I know it could have gone better. I find myself getting renewed energy when I pray; like really sitting down and talking with God. Those moments really show the potential of how my relationship with God can be, and those are the moments that keep me pressing on. My ultimate desire for the last couple weeks of this year is that I can start to be much more consistent with that; I can go well for at most a week, but then it starts to decline thanks to my lazy and procrastinating nature. Now that I think about it, it's amazing that even with 12 days of the year left, I'm still trying to accomplish things in my life. I guess I thought I would have life figured out a bit more by now, hey? But that's life; you can never really have it all figured out, can you? That's why I find myself constantly grateful that I have a God that's got me covered for the long haul. And to think that Christmas is coming up.... time sure does fly....

God bless,
Steven

Day 352: If I Had An Identity Disc...

Today was a movie day, pretty much. I watched 4 today, which is potentially a record, but I'd rather not try and calculate that. In the morning I woke up to the sound of Iron Will, one of my dad's all time favorite movies. This movie has been dear to us because of the connection we have to it; I grew up watching it, but I still enjoy it every time I see it. Then I watched the Taking of Pelham 123, which I actually thought was a good movie; it was done well, and I still think Denzel Washington is one of the best actors I've seen. After that one, my dad asked if I wanted to see a movie called Upside, so I did. It's about this kid that gets a concussion that damages his brain in a way that causes his eyesight to flip everything upside down. It's one of those Christian movies that people could easily put off, but it was actually really well done (not to mention there was a Family Force 5 song in the background of one of the scenes!). By the time that movie was done, we were getting ready for the main event of the day, which of course was watching Tron: Legacy (finally). All I have to say about this move is that it was exactly what I expected. It was by far one of the best movies I've seen all year, and I'm looking forward to seeing it again. Sunday marks the 4 week period I have left here at home; how amazing to think that a week from today is Christmas, and the day after is the halfway period of my break..

God bless,
Steven

P.S. Tron is still my favorite program; the dude is an absolute legend!

Day 351: Family Ties

Today was pretty great. It was a different spin on the week thanks to my sister, who stayed with me and the dogs. We had a good time just chilling and watching random TV shows that have no real purpose in my terms. I got to finally use a couple Taco Bell coupons and save some moolah, which was sweet; It was most satisfying. My afternoon wasn't very different from the morning, but that doesn't mean it wasn't as good. In the evening, my family (new addition Derek included) went to a church dinner, where we had a great time with the Garcias and the rest of the church family. Every time I see these people, I tend to appreciate them more, because I get to see what amazing people are part of this church. I can only pray that the same amount of blessing they have been to me will return to them soon; I know God has a plan for this church, and I hope that those plans will work out to the best. Also, Tron: Legacy is in theaters now; excited is one of the biggest understated adjectives I've ever used to describe how I feel now..

God bless,
Steven

Day 350: White Christmas Fever

For the sake of my head not overheating, I'll keep today's brief. I visited my high school today and got to see Louie Giglio's "The 12 Words of Christmas" message with the high school/middle school kids, and it was awesome. I come home to find the house colder than ever, so the dogs and I made a penguin huddle in the living room while watching Pan's Labyrinth. Surprisingly, the winter sure is coming, and it's colder than i remember (you know it's interesting when even your house is almost colder than the outside). I ended up randomly getting a fever that was really annoying; I'm still feeling some after effects right now. But God is good, and this whole thing helped me get some good quality time with Him while my family was out of the house. It's amazing how God can use the most unusual circumstances to get your attention; you really gotta love the guy for looking out for us at all times. I will say that I'm feeling much better than I did a few hours ago, thanks to prayer and a little help from Tylenol. Now I just gotta start praying I'll wake up feeling much better.

God bless,
Steven

Day 349: Hot Chocolate!

So today was good, blessed like every other day this year. It didn't do much, other than hang out with the dogs, reorganize my music library, and approve a couple new artists (I am now a fan of Dave Barnes and Jadon Lavik; you should check them out). The best part of today was revisiting SFC to help film the Christmas program; this program has always been dear to my heart, so it was super cool to see it again. You can never underestimate the power of a Flip camera; this little guy's got guts, and it did a fantastic job of capturing the event. Seeing some old friends was great too; it just makes me realize how long it's been since I was in the place of these kids. Now the guys I got to know in my senior year are the big guns, and their voices dropped a lot (they almost sounds manlier than I do haha). But it was a pleasure to help Mr. Mateyka make this whole program something to remember (literally, because I recorded it). Yup, it was a good day; tomorrow should be just as good, if not more.

God bless,
Steven

Day 348: She's not a Christian AAAAAH!!!!!!!

First off, let me explain the title. My sister was watching this show called Trading Spouses, and she asked if I had seen an episode of this Christian woman who apparently went crazy. Seriously, seriously, out of her mind crazy. So I watched it, and I am pretty much speechless. The one clip they kept repeating in the "coming up" part was where she shouts "SHE'S NOT A CHRISTIAN AAAAAH!!!!!!!!" I got scared the first time I saw it, but by the time it actually happened I was laughing about it (still scared, but laughing).

Anyways, it was a good day. My grandma celebrated her 90th birthday today; she never ceases to amaze me. This whole year she's been praying for me while I was away, and I really appreciate her for that. I'm grateful for both of my grandmas, because they're the ones I got to know most; I love them very much, and I look forward to seeing them more during my break.

God bless,
Steven

Day 347: Am I a Fruitcake?

I've personally never been in a situation where I could lead someone to Christ based on who I was and how I lived. It's always been my dream to do something like that, where my actions, words, and thoughts could make someone interested in learning about God. If there's one thing that's kept me from doing that, it's my flesh; my personal ambitions, desires, and selfish nature. How many times do we end up doing things based on our personal choice? I find it really easy to not do something God-centered, you know? I'll have an intention to spend some time with him, but then I could find an excuse to do something else. That bugs me a lot, yet I still find myself in that situation almost all the time. It makes me wonder to what level of a relationship with God I would need to be able to not only overcome that nature, but also to develop the God nature I know I have. I know deep down inside I have that potential (I've seen it many times before), but I don't want it to be an occasional outbreak. I want this God nature to be my default setting. This morning I watched Louie Giglio's message called Fruitcake and Ice Cream (if you haven't, I highly recommend checking that out.), and the Christian in this story was referred to by the main girl as a "fruitcake". Basically, this meant that she was unusual (at least that's how it translated to me, because I find fruitcake unusual..). After hearing parts of her journal entries that Louie was reading to the congregation, I couldn't help but understand why this girl called her Christian roommate a fruitcake. Sometimes, Christians can come off as unusual, socially awkward, and/or just plain rude, especially the ones with a judgmental attitude. It's people like this that give the rest of us a bad rep; if we could find it in ourselves to be more like Christ in the way we live, I believe that could change the way others see Christianity. Simply calling Christianity a religion to me is incorrect; I've heard it said many times before that "Jesus didn't come to give us religion; He came to show us love." What many people don't understand is that it's not mainly about living up to commandments, meeting a certain quota, or trying to convert as many people as possible by any means necessary; God connects with us through a relationship. He wants us to connect with Him on a more personal level, not one with statistics and regulations. I don't want to be a fruitcake. You know what I want to be? A cheesecake. Yup, I said it. If you know me, then you're probably not just laughing but also getting what I'm trying to say. I find cheesecake to be one of the best things created on this planet. In my humble opinion, I wouldn't mind believing that after God rested on the seventh day of Creation, He treated Himself to some cheesecake and kept it a secret from the people of the first generations for the sake of not causing them to worship a false (but delicious) idol. Just saying...
Let's not be fruitcakes, people; let's be legitimate people that have the potential to reach out to people by living. Good pastors are doing it. Faithful leaders of God's church are doing it. Bands like Anberlin, Relient K, Family Force 5, and Switchfoot are doing it. Ordinary peoples around the world with a God nature are doing it. So why can't we? I challenge you (and myself especially): let's live our lives with purpose, so that we can show others what real relationships with God can look like.

God bless,
Steven

P.S. I recently got a revelation that I'm probably going to come back to Australia fatter than the first time I went; this chocolate cake I'm chowing down may or may not play a big part of this revelation...

Day 346: Dawn of Reunion

Today was special, and not just because it was Sunday. I got to see one of my very good friends, Brian, and it was a fun time hanging out with him in Spanish church (I attempted to translate, but fortunately for us they got Abraham to do the translating for me). After a good afternoon in church, my family (Derek and Brian included) went to Taqueria Guadelajara to chow down on some burritos (which were awesome; it made me think of how much I truly appreciated Mad Mex for giving me a small piece of home.) After that, I went with Mandy, Derek, and Brian to watch Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, which I will say was alright. The only complaint I had was the voice of the cousin; this kid probably could have been more annoying, but man it was a test of my patience for sure haha. However, Liam Neeson delivered a fantastic role as Aslan (as he always does), so that for me was a worthy redeeming factor. It's days like these, where everything is just good, that I appreciate life the most. We even have a tree now!!! Our place is looking very Christmas-y; this I can get used to.

God bless,
Steven

Day 345: All Tangled Up

Today was an outside day pretty much; it's nice to get mass amounts of fresh air in comparison to not as much in your house. M family went to Pittsburg to see my grandma; she's been struggling with a mental illness, so my mom has been helping her all year (she's one of my heroes for that). We had breakfast at IHOP with my cousins Sandy and Sarah, and after that we went to Target and Graceland, a Christian bookstore. As custom to this trip which happens regularly over weekends, we went to a Spanish market to get some food for my grandma; I like it there, it's nice! When we got back, it was a sort of down time until I went with my sister to see puppies that belong to our neighbors down the street. They are extremely adorable; right now, they fit into the palm of my hand! AGH, CUTE!! The evening was my favorite, because my parents and I went to see Tangled. All I have to say about this movie is that it's definitely one of my top favorite Disney movies now; it was excellent, and I would love to see it again. Even when we got home, it got better by watching Tron in preparation for the sequel coming out this Friday!!

God bless,
Steven

Day 344: Christmas Pageant

Today, I took my dad to a Family Force 5 Christmas concert.

God bless,
Steven

Day 343: Shadow of the Cross

Today was one of the best, I think. This morning, I went to SFC to say hello to all my teachers; it felt great to be there again, because from what I've been hearing, the school is doing fantastic. Pastor Mike was telling me all about how the students have been heading up worship for chapels, and I was so happy to hear that; I was hoping that worship could continue, so I'm very proud of those students and what they're accomplishing.
After that little trip, I went on a small mission that ended up being one of the most powerful moments of my year. I was going to Mt. Davidson, the highest peak in San Francisco, to do some pre-visualization for my next video project (just the word pre-visualization makes me feel like I'm taking this a little too serious haha). I got directions before I left home, but when I got there, it was blocked off by a house's backyard; I was honestly super confused at that point. I decided to drive around the mountain to find another way in; eventually I found a small staircase that went up into the woods and started the climb. It was a tough 25 minutes, but when I got near the top and looked out to the city, it made me think back to the last time I was on that mountain with my ministries class and P. Shawn (good times, good times). I finally made it to the cross and started to get my pre-vis. shots, but when I began to look at the cross, I felt a warmth in my heart. Right then and there, I felt God speaking to me. This is a summary of what I received: In the same way I went through a lot to get to the top of this mountain and to the cross, God's been leading me along a path day by day that will eventually lead to the "top". As long as I don't give up, but keep pressing onward, I will get to the top, and I will see His face. It put me to tears inside, and I spent the rest of my time there just talking to God and praying over my family and personal battles. I felt loved up there; there's just something about the cross and what it represents that really hits me. It's not just a symbol or monument; it's the reason we're even here, right now. It's the reason we have the opportunity to connect with God on a personal level. It's the reason I celebrate life and all that's come with it. Selah.

God bless,
Steven

Day 342: Pursuit

I'm thinking of calling my next film project Pursuit, since that's pretty much what the video is about. I spent a lot of time thinking about what this film is going to take from me, and I want to make sure I'll be ready for it. I've got two days to make it happen, because I've enlisted the help of my good friend Josh Kazemi to help me out; he can only help for two days, so I need those days to count. I've got a lot of traveling in mind, and I just hope I can be fuel efficient about it. Today in general was good; I got to relax and spend time with the dogs again. My sister's away for a few days, and I'm looking forward to her return.

God bless,
Steven

Day 341: Next To Me

So today was the beginning of what will be the majority of my time here: just chilling in the house with the little Narnians that don't talk. It was very peaceful; all I really did was surf the web, practiced bass for next year, and worked on the first draft of the finale of 223: The Series. There were many points during the editing part of my day that I realized exactly how much the past 10 months impacted me. Honestly, I love being home; I love seeing my family instead of just hearing their voices because of a dodgy camera (which I need to fix so I can see them on Skype next year!), and it feels great to see my home city in all it's glory (despite staying true to it's standard fogginess). But something inside me kinda wishes I was in the land down under... I assume this is natural since I got so used to it having been there a whole 10 months, but I don't really know what I prefer. There were a few moments in my day where I just wanted to go back, but when it comes down to it, this IS home. San Francisco is where I've been born and raised almost my entire life; I couldn't possibly love any other place more. I'm just.... in a very high thinking mode, 'tis all.

God bless,
Steven

Day 340: An Advent Distraction For Distractions

"A teenage girl and her soon to be
A simple trip far as they could see
The sky was clear and the hour serene
But did they know what the night would bring
Lonely hearts strewn across the land
They'd been waiting long for a healing hand
My heart was there and it felt the chill
When Love came down and the earth stood still

Shepherds stood under starry skies
Tasting grace that would change their lives
Angels trembled and the demons did too
For they knew very well what pure grace would do
The hope of the world in a baby boy
Remember him well like I was there that night
My heart was there and it felt the chill
When Love came down and the earth stood still"

When I first heard these lyrics to the song The Earth Stood Still by Future of Forestry, I was captivated by what Eric Owyoung was trying to express. For centuries, people have celebrated Christmas, but it seems like people have forgotten why this momentous holiday is even celebrated. Today, we live in a world where society is trying to remove the CHRIST from Christmas, and as much as I dislike that, there isn't much I could do about it. Tonight, I had the sincere privilege of being part of something that this world needs (but in a symbolic sense): the Future of Forestry Light Up the City Christmas concert. What this tour represents is to re-establish what Christmas is truly about, and to turn it into a form of worship; a "distraction from modern day holiday distractions". Eric spoke on how we stress over all the regular things from the holiday season: gifts, decorations, vacations, etc. It's so easy for us to get caught up in the material things that we can forget the reason this holiday exists. That's why I loved this concert so much; not only was it one of my all time favorite and most influential bands of my life, it was also a sort of wake up call. I felt God tugging at my heart saying, "Son, remember what I did for you. Remember the One who came to seek and save that which was lost. Remember the day Love himself came to earth to be the Savior of the world. Remember..." Well, I sure ain't gonna forget now! I got to take my dad along for this experience, and there's no one else I would have wanted to share it with (other than my mom and sister, who didn't want to go. Mom and Mandy, I forgive you). Plus, I got to meet the genius man of God himself, Eric Owyoung; just to be around him, you could sense God's anointing. I don't know if you listen to Future of Forestry, but these guys got it. The message of hope to the world? They got it. The passion to see people get saved? They got it. The skill to draw attention and tell others about Love? They got it. This is why I look up to them so much; they don't need spotlights or mass attention. All they need is a small, intimate setting where they can lead the audience to a place of worship. That's the kind of legacy I want to leave behind. That's the kind of fire I want to burn. That's the kind of servanthood I'm working towards. This is Love.

God bless,
Steven

P.S. do me a favor and check out Kye Kye; they were the opening band for Future of Forestry, and they impressed me heaps. They've got the same passion, so I'll be spreading the word; if you like them, you should too.

Day 339: Culture Shock?!

Ah. the return of a traditional Hispanic Sunday. I surprised myself today by waking up at 10 a.m. (which if you know me, is a bit unusual..) My family's been going to the Garcia family's church, and from what I've heard so far it's going well there. To be completely honest, being in a Spanish church environment took a little while for me to get used to again; Hillsong culture is so different that when I got to a place I've known for years, it was actually a bit weird. Then again, I don't worry about rosters or fieldwork or assessments here at home, so I guess it balances out by not being as overwhelming. It was great to see more of my spiritual family, and it'll be a great time to catch up on what's happening. The highlight of my day was finally watching Iron Man 2; if you remember, I said I would wait until I could see it with my family to watch it. I'll admit it's been a tough time since it came out, but now I can be at peace. Home cooked meals are also a blessing; just throwing that out there.

God bless,
Steven

Day 338: Paths

Tonight, I opened up my Bible to read about wisdom, 'cause wisdom is something I've been asking God for more of. I don't necessarily want it to the degree King Solomon did, but anything close to that would be great; just saying. Yesterday, I randomly opened my Bible to Proverbs 2, which talks on the benefits of wisdom. It's a profound passage, and it had all kinds of words I needed to hear; it's amazing that this book can be read over and over again, and you can get something different every time you read it. Only a one, true God could come up with a book this intricately designed, right? Well today I decided to read the very next chapter, where it talks about how wisdom results in general well being. Even from the first couple verses, I was drawn in: "My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commandments in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity." I stopped right there and just reflected on that. My son is a personal note for me; I like that He addresses me in this book that's addressed so many others for centuries, yet I can still make it personal. The next part was great too; I mean, how could I forget the past ten months of teaching I received with amazing impact?? I've never heard God's voice and direction so clear before this year, and now it's up to me to keep it all in my heart. I'm sure it will be difficult, but the best part is I don't have to remember it by myself, thanks to a big spiritual family beside me and around the world.
"Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and humankind." I liked these too, mainly because of what I got from it. I've received a lot of love my entire life, from many people, different places, and under many different circumstances. And faithfulness? Well, there's only One that's been consistent with that (Selah). I always wondered why it said specifically to bind it around my neck; but I think I got it just now. Is it just me, or is the neck one of those things that you just don't put away? If I put it in my hand, I could let it go at some point. If I placed it over my head, in my pocket, etc... there's a possibility that it could get lost there as well. But the neck? That's a strategic spot. The only time I think you could lose something around your neck would be if you removed it yourself. Then I think about favor. That's something I figure we all seek. We want to be recognized and respected. We want our names to be familiar in the world. I've dreamed of being known for something, but this year showed me that my life isn't about my name being made known. In reality, it's His name that should be known because of mine. When you hear names like Billy Graham, C.S. Lewis, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, D.L. Moody, and many others, people think of them as influential people of the faith. I know I'm not called to be known for the kind of work they did, but whatever I'm called to will be my platform to proclaim His name.
Then there's the most familiar verses in this chapter: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight." When I read it this time, I got it. After years of reading and quoting these verses, I got it. This is God's desire: that we would rely on Him to live, and not try and live on our own. I'm sure you're thinking "well yeah Steven, that's the point!" and I agree; but I just never really took it to heart until now.

Lord, I choose to trust You. I know I spent many years trying to figure things out on my own, even when I knew You were available to me at every moment; but now, I stop that and I look to You. This is a new surrender. This is a turnaround. This is change, and I pray that my heart holds true to everything You bring along the path. Amen.

God bless,
Steven

Day 337: Home

So today was the big day that I returned to my home of homes, San Francisco. It was around a day's length of travel, but I'm currently typing on my family's giant Mac CPU in my living room. I had an interesting morning, because of the fact that even up to the minute of my departure from flat 223 I was cleaning/moving. Some of my really great friends came by to wish me safe travels. and I'm really happy they did; so Celeste, Valerie, and Megan, if you read this just know that I appreciate you for doing that! The last friends I got to see before I left were Alison, Becca, and Donny; I'm so grateful for them too.

Then came the massive journey back home. The first flight was easy; no problems whatsoever. and I arrived in Auckland in just a few hours (watched Avatar too). Then I spent the next two hours waiting for "the big one": my 12 hour flight from New Zealand to Los Angeles. It actually turned out to be a great time; I got to sleep on the plane for once, made a new friend out of the guy sitting next to me, and I got to see Despicable Me and the Expendables (first one was awesome, and the other was better than expected). When I landed on American ground, it hit me that I was coming home; like it wasn't really in my mind until I was in LAX. The transition between that flight and my last one was... well, one of the most nerve-wrecking moments of my life. I got off the plane around 2:40, and my next flight was boarding at 3:30. I figured I had enough time, so I wasn't in a rush. Then I got to Customs.. and this is where it all got scary. It took around 12 minutes to get to the front of the line, and when I did the guy checking my info said I had to re-do the customs form because I wrote it in pencil and not ink. So I had to go back, find a pen, and fill out the form again. That wouldn't have been that big of a deal... if there was a pen to use. I asked 3 different people that worked there, and they didn't help at all; fortunately, one lady was able to get me a pen, and I got through. The next step was finding where to drop off my checking bag for the last flight; this took a little while, but I quickly found the place. The really scary part was finding the gate. When I got out, it was to the streets; since I'm not used to LAX, I had no idea where to go or how to get there. It was pushing the limit, but with 5 minutes to spare. I got to my gate on time. Once the 55 minute flight to San Francisco ended, I arrived. The sky welcomed me with a beautiful mixture of blue, orange, red, and purple, and boy was that a sight to see! I found my family arriving to pick me up, and I snuck up behind them ninja style (like a legend, might I add); it was such a relief to see my biggest fans for the first time in 10 months (although my dog Albert has turned into a corn dog, all round and fluffy haha). I also had the best meal in ages, thanks to my mom, and now I'm ready to sleep in my ol' bed. I can honestly thank God for helping me sleep on the plane, because I don't feel jet lagged at all; I might start this break off just right.

God bless,
Steven

Day 336: The Last Night of 2010

Right now, I feel like reflecting on the past ten months instead of today. Don't get me wrong, today was great; but after realizing this is my last night here for the year, I want this one to be a bit different. Ten months ago, I didn't know what to expect of all this. I had an idea of what the college was like thanks to the GE trips, but to actually BE part of the college and church, it brought a whole different perspective to my mind. From the first week onward, I was blown away, broken apart, and convicted at the same time; it's been like nothing I've ever experienced. I can only thank God that all these years of my life dedicated to ministry and to the house were everything I needed to be prepared for this year and what it brought me. I've done a mass amount of assessments, served in hundreds of services, volunteered for two conferences and experienced one as an attendee, practiced 3 times as much on instruments compared to the last few years combined, and I've built friendships that could last a lifetime. I guess that's just what happens at college. Lately, I've been thinking about the next season, what lies ahead of me when I'm finished with college at Hillsong. It's full of uncertainty, but one thing I know is that I'm open to all options. Will I get called by God to do a third year? Will I be called to take my ministry experiences back home and sow it into places like SFC and City Impact? Will God send me into a whole other land and do ministry there? Will I end up staying down under permanently? I've asked all these questions, and at this point, they all have the same answer: I don't know. That's what kinda worries me about the mystery of God; He's the only one that knows what's next, and all we can do is live it out and trust that we're on the same page. Am I worried about what lies beyond? Oh yeah. Am I worried about God's plan? Not at all. Am I excited about coming home? Like you don't even know.. regardless, I have a massive extended family now, and I couldn't be in a better place in life. I still have a few weeks left of the year, but to leave Australia feels like the end already; I am super grateful that I can come home for six weeks and share with my family what's happened. Tomorrow's a big day; like literally, because I'm gonna have an extended Friday (since I'll time travel in an instant!) I don't know if I'll have a blog for tomorrow, but just in case I don't, I'm sure that in Jesus' name I'll make it safely home and get to rest.

God bless,
Steven

Day 335: Just a 5

Today, I said a farewell to my friend Melissa and a temporary farewell to my roommate, Lazaro. It was tough, I won't lie; this week has simply been an emotional one. Some of these people I will see again; some others.. I don't know other than eternity. Personally, I find the real hero to be Alison, because she has been dropping people off all week. I'm even going to be one of those people in a couple days! After having lunch with Alison and Donny, I got to Skype with my family again, and that just made me more excited about coming home. My evening was pretty much serving at Powerhouse for the last time; after tonight, I won't be going near Powerhouse again. I don't want to bash it or anything, but I had a hard time being there. I can live without it, so I'm looking forward to whatever else I can do instead. I have one more full day in Australia; getting ready is all I'll be doing now.

God bless,
Steven