Wednesday, February 23, 2005 4:14 PM

1st ever PANAMA youth camp this weekend! Please pray :).

VIVA Jovenes Para Cristo!

VIVA NW7!

Monday, February 21, 2005 9:08 AM

i love you Latinamerica, but you're killing me! i've put on some weight since i've been on mission. not very characteristic of a missionary i know. but guess that's the way it is if you serve Latin America. Peruvians especially eat so much. no joke. the thing about the culture here is that they don't have it potluck style like filipinos or americans. all the dishes aren't set out on the table for you to choose from. no...instead they pre-pile each plate. so you just sit down and are given a plate, heaped with food. and you are expected to eat everything on that plate. if not, they will genuinely be hurt/insulted. it is a major culture thing. and so, this has been a trial of mine as a missionary. i know it sounds ridiculous, but it honestly is a big trial i face everyday. example. above was my plate one regular sunday afternoon in Lima, Peru. meat, rice, beans, vegetables. sure! everything's good. but check out the size of it. here's a closer look. enough to feed a family! it's the size of a serving dish i'm not kidding! and look the depth of the dish and height of the pile.

i find myself having to coach myself in my head...souping myself up to eat. Like, "Alright grace…you're really really hungry right now…you're starving…ya...you can do it. And the mountain of food comes. I look at it…take a deep breath…and go..

then there's like skinny little 14 year old sitting next to me and she just keeps putting it down easy breezy…I'm like how the heck does she do it! Foreal…where is it going? i'm not joking. putting it down! like nothing.

I feel like I'm on Fear Factor and it's a competition. Whatever it is in front of me...just gotta swallow…just do it...I look to the plates to the left and the right of me to see how far they've gone...and to my disappointment, with no problem a third of their plate is gone and I've hardly yet put a dent in mine. even though it feels like I've already eaten so much.

i learned some new tricks though. i've found that taking sips of my drink in between bites helps. and also salad, esp tomato and lettuce, in btwn helps me go on to the next bite. and i make sure to take in deep breaths every now and then. Sigh...who am i kidding...

I know I shouldn't be complaining…but I don't know what's worse. not having any food at all…or Being forced to eat when ur not hungry. i know obviously starving would be worse. but honestly being forced to eat til i explode hurts and is kind of torturous for me. i almost want to cry to myself sometimes, dreading each meal that comes. again, not because the food is bad, but because of the amount. and the pressure finishing it, seeing the disappointment on the host's face. last year i was in the philippines during lent and i gave up meat. being here, i cannot do the same cuz of the culture. [you better eat what ur served] and so it has become one of my lenten fasts, to finish as much food as i can without complaining. yup it's extremely backwards. but i think it honestly may be harder for me to do than abstaining from something. God knows me all too well.

the one thing that i can never complain about here in latinamerica though...their drinks. they are amazing. every meal comes with a fruit drink cuz fruit here is so cheap. and they are so freshly made. all different kinds of fruit. smoothies or juices, whatever it is...it's the norm to have a great fruit drink with your meal. and they are sooo yummy! did i say that? mmm....every fruit you can think of. yummm..

anyway, let's give it up for a really random entry. gbye.

i miss you.

Friday, February 18, 2005 11:45 AM

it's so real my friends...so real you can see it with ur own eyes. um it's video time!:

• Peru worship [click].
• I'm a fool [click].

Thursday, February 10, 2005 10:55 PM

Jovenes Para Cristo Campamento (Youth for Christ Camp) this weekend! Lima, Peru. We ask for the strength of your prayers please! Thank you my friends...

Friday, February 4, 2005 5:49 PM

so here i am in peru again. i gotta admit, it has been harder to be away this time than before. but God has spoke to me. and it's always good to share whenever you hear Him talking. Homesickness comes, and i have to remind myself that all of this is a sacrifice. all of this is for love of God. at this time in my life, He wants me at this specific place at this specific time. my life is not my own. and although i have a desire for where i want to be, i know that time will come. my future is bright. and i can't wait for it. but before i get there, i know God has things He still wants to show me on my own. and so i give Him this time, and i give Him my life. to cleanse me of my very self. flush the things out of me that i don't need. and i know His rewards will be much more than i ever deserve. after this (what i think to be my last year of international mission), i know what is to come is only going to be even greater, and will only ask more of me.

as i was in my prayer time, i prayed that God comfort me in that security. that He holds my life, present and future, in His hands. I randomly opened the book...And then He revealed to me exactly the way i should be acting...like His mother would:

Mama Mary says,

"My child, why do you complain about your state and situation? You say that in them you cannot serve the Lord as you ought? But heaven is filled with saints who became saints in circumstances like yours. I found God in Egypt, to which I had to move, just as I had found Him in Judea, and I managed to serve Him as before. If we can preserve the grace and friendship of God in a situation, then we ought to be content with it. I found it very hard to leave Israel, as did my husband Joseph, but we felt no regret...For it is not the place nor the occupation that sanctifies the man; it is the man who must sanctify the place and the occupation. ..One who has withdrawn into solitude should not be saddened at having left the world behind, and one whose duty places him in the world should not say he cannot be saved there. The safest state for each is the one in which God has placed him...

What gain would you have in changing? Would you be a better person? No: in changing your situation or condition, you might change your mood, but not your character....Sanctify what you do in your present state by referring it all to God, and you will not have cause to complain that your duties are a source of distraction." The Imitation of Mary. Chapter 12. Pg 133.

after reading this...i was left speechless. made me feel this small (um i'm holding my pointy finger and thumb close together), and put me in my place. Mama Mary you are so right! God has placed me here, i have no right...i mean zero right to complain or demand anything else. my life is not my own. and i yearn to live out what He wants for me. His ways surpass what i see. And He reveals a life much greater than i can ever plan for myself.

Sunday, January 23, 2005 10:35 PM

tried to spend as much time with friends before i left...but got sick. :( sorry to my SSS girls yvette and melis...we were supossed to have a date friday. :( pray for me!! my head is spinning. gino and i are about to leave sigh. geri! i wanna put the link up of your school project. haha jk! KANE/SHAYNE whatever!! hahha i love u. lost my voice. can't talk really. i'm kinda groggy right now from the medicine. i feel really drugged. feel funny actually kinda weird. sorry if this doesn't make sense. can't wait to sleep on plane. jho, junie, zante, lenes, rita you called me i'm sorry i didn't get to talk before i left :(. email email! donna i'm wearing your abercrombie sweatpants on the plane. michael and luke thanks for dinner! i love you. miko thanks for giving me "The Imitation of Christ" and Rita thanks for giving me "The Imitation of Mary" and Ray thanks for "God's Inspirational Promises" by Max Lucado. these are the books i will be bringing and reading this mission trip. track #3 ray! blessed sacrament.

Monday, January 17, 2005 12:35 PM

"We will miss each other... but in front of the blessed sacrament, we are together...there is no distance."

that was taken from a phone conversation i had with my lola mang the other night. it's amazing... even without her knowing or trying, God always uses her to speak to my heart. :)
and at the very times i need to hear it the most.

Wednesday, January 12, 2005 10:47 PM

so...i'm thinking about cutting allota my hair off before i leave for mission in a week. those who know me i guess it's kinda a big deal cuz i haven't really had short short hair since grade school. don't really think i look good with it, but...i was thinking if i do it - i might as well go all the way. 10 inches or more can be given to locks of love. and i don't really care if i look like a boy haha i'm down! i need the opinion of my friends tho. i've asked a few people so far. i've gotten, "ya, gracie! do it!" while another straight up said,"don't do it grace...i think you'll look ugly and Jesus told me you need to look good to impress the kids in south america to come to camps." (haha i love u audrey)

well...what do you think? long or short or just a trim?

your opinion counts haha.. thanks homies

Monday, January 10, 2005 1:11 AM

Thank you, 2004. Thank you, God.

2oo4
JAN - Chicago
FEB - Philippines: Iloilo, Ormoc, Manila, Tagaytay, Baseco
MAR - Philippines: Manila, Cebu, Bacolod, Naga
APR - Philippines: Iloilo, Ormoc, Manila
MAY - Guayaquil, Ecuador and Lima, Peru
JUNE - LA, CA and Seattle, Pasco, WA
JULY - Chicago and Omaha, NE and Downey, LA, Riverside, California
AUG - LA, CA and Ecuador
SEP - D.F., Cholula, Rosario, Mexico and Houston, Rio Grande Valley, TX
OCT - Pasco, Yakima, Seattle, WA and Nebraska
NOV - Nebraska, Chicago
DEC - Chicago, Lappor, Michigan City, Indiana, Loraine, Ohio

Thank you for the places you have brought me, but more importantly thank you for the people you have blessed my life with this past year. i give you my 2005, Lord. Thank you!

Friday, December 31, 2004 2:13 AM

if you would just allow yourself to be affected. if it is one thing i learned this whole amazing year of 2004, it would be that. in an instant, the tsunami happened. i cannot even fathom more than 100,000 people dead. and all the pain and despair going on at this very moment bc of it...unbelievable. meanwhile we, myself included, are here just so... comfortable. it disturbs me and it is that very feeling that i can honestly say has changed me this year. the same feeling i felt in the Philippines sleeping at GK sites, and the same feeling i get everytime i have a one-on-one talk with a girl in Latin America. if i do not take their hurts, struggles, suffering to my own heart... if i do not allow myself to be affected by it... if my life does not stop even just a second to sincerely care and love them...i am at a loss.

we are called to make it personal. to let ourselves be affected. to open up even if that means the possibility of getting hurt, or disappointed. to truly see with they eyes of our hearts. everyone else in this world is not just another face. it is another person who longs to feel the love of God...and amazingly, can feel that love through us. it is a decision, and once you open yourself to it...it will move you...and it will break you...but all in all, it will show you the real meaning of living...what is really important...what is really worth living and dying for.

"Be the change you wish to see in this world." 2005.

Tuesday, December 21, 2004 12:37 PM

Have you ever imagined how cute baby Jesus was? i bet he was real FAT and CHUBBY! and always laughing. :)

...4 days til we celebrate the miracle!

Thursday, December 16, 2004 5:57 PM

my friend butch's recent entry got me thinking. got me thinking that it'd be nice to hear a women's side too. my sistas help me out and say your piece please. like i said butcheee, it's on! haha

The Little Things Men Do/Posses that Really Impress Women

6. Having the ability to write a well thought out, heart felt and genuine...love letter. With no corny cliches or pick up lines in it but just saying what's on his heart. A guy baring his heart, puts him in a vulnerable position that is attractive...because it shows trust, and the risk he takes shows a confidence that impresses the girl. root that love in God...whew.. it's over! :)

5. Walking on the side of traffic so as to shield us from danger. This little thing gets me everytime. Maybe it's just me, but i notice it every time it happens. I think it all goes back to that notion of chivalry. Girls like to feel protected. But it only counts when he does it out of true care, not out of a false sense of heroism. if it's the latter, it comes off egotistic and is not attractive anymore.

4. Musically inclined. Whether he is creating that music with an instrument, singing to it, or dancing to that music, it catches the attention of most girls. ie., a guy softly singing a ballad, rocking out in a band, or just having fun on the dance floor. Versatility in any of these are nice.

3. When he can cook. There's just something about a man who can cook. And when he enjoys doing it. Shows a part of the man that makes a girl smile, because you not only see his creative side brought out, but also have that sense that he will take care of you. plus... girls just like to eat good food!

2. Mama's Boy. When a guy loves his mother and it shows, he gets major points. And of course psychologically...How he treats his mommy is a reflection on how he will treat you.

1. When he truly worships. There's nothing like seeing a brother truly praying, worshipping, in love with God. knowing that he will bring you to HIM. that is the hottest thing. it will make a girl melt...anytime. yep. :) haha sorry

*Everything with a humble heart. my biggest turn off is conceit/self centeredness/vanity. mix it in any of the above, none of them apply. when you think you're all that, you just become ..ugly. uggghh. sorry.

This may be an extremely biased list on my part...but at least i didn't compare men to cars. haha! let the comments begin! and guys fyi, the only one you really need to worry about is #1.

Saturday, December 11, 2004 1:34 AM

does anyone else think it's funny that my potato is wearing a santa hat? hahaha oh man! haha...ok sorry. whew! ...anyway. how is everyone, i feel like i haven't been on in awhile. umm..cuz i haven't. things are great over here. tuesday gino leaves. the first time he'll be home in a really long time. he's a soldier. we'll actually have personal time to spend the christmas season with our families. sigh i'm so thankful for that. it's been a lonng time. then starting january 15th we will be off on mission again back to latin america. the schedule is still tentative but all i know is the first 3 months are planned for costa rica, peru, panama, and nicaragua. who knows when we'll be back for mission in the states. please pray that it's not too long. but i guess i'm ready for anything. Lord, give me strength! CLF definitely gave me a new spirit and zeal...that was much needed for me to begin another year of mission. in all honesty, each time going back is harder than the last. and that rings true more than ever this time around. my heart will ache more than before...but to me, that just makes it all the more reason to go. i know God has a plan. and i've never been more excited for the future. 2005 - year of miracles...just wait and see!

in the meanwhile, i'm gonna cherish this time being home. i'm going to hug all my loved ones tightly. and carpe diem like el, lenes, franny & crisa always say. seize the day, my friends...
SEIZE THE DAY!

Tuesday, December 7, 2004 5:47 PM

hello

• make sure you go to mass tomorrow. Feast of the Immaculate Conception :).
• i love my dad. he inspires me.
• i'm sfc now! i'm very proud to be it and very grateful for fast tracks haha.
• ray leaves tomorrow for the philippines :( texting will be my comfort.
• i miss people... yep.
  

love more than life. have a blessed day!

Wednesday, December 1, 2004 12:03 AM

"I thank my God every time I remember you."

Phil 1:3

Sunday, November 28, 2004 4:53 PM

CLF Nov 19, 20, 21, 2004: a pivotal weekend of my life, of my future. Didn't have much opportunity to take pictures. or even to catch up with friends as much as i would have liked. but that's ok with me, i have the life-changing moments and faces imprinted in my mind. sigh, i surrender my life and future again, Lord. you weren't kidding when you told me 2004 would be amazing. now i know more than ever how beautiful the future will be. i'm excited and scared for it...but there is no other way i would rather live. make me prepared to receive what you have in store for me for 2005 and for the rest of my life. i thank you for every piece of heaven that you give me here on earth, and i give it back to You. my future is yours. You hold us all in your hands. and this world will know.

to all my family who attended CLF: never forget what God has placed in our hearts that weekend. i will be by your side in this to the end, in life and death. can't wait for what is to come!!!

Saturday, November 13, 2004 10:59 PM

CLF in 5 and a half days. it's crunch time in a way i've never quite felt before. bc i know this will be a weekend not like any we've ever lived before.

A NEW SPIRIT is upon us.

all for your glory, oh Lord. take control! we surrender. empty us and use us! your miracles will shower us all. i love you God!

ps. it's not too late to go to CLF if you're not already. please tell me if you want to go! :)

Tuesday, November 9, 2004 1:41 PM

back home in Chicago. no time to update site cuz i'm spending all my time updating myself on home life. :)

sigh. it's great to be home. man...too much to write...

but at least i'll update the music tracks...um..tomorrow. haha. Continental Leaders Forum [CLF] in 2 weeks. soon all the Fulltime homies reunited again to work...all for the glory of God. can't wait to see them all...especailly one of them. :) thank you, God

Chicago is the place to be right now. and for all time! haha but at least come for Nov 19, 20, and 21 if you're not already. come join your fellow brothers and sisters for a weekend like no other before. i believe in it's purpose and the miracles that will take place because of it. so excited i have butterflies. the type only Jesus could give me :)

Friday, October 29, 2004 4:31 PM

wuddup. hohum...so i guess i should quickly recap the past month. after mexico, gino and i were sent to houston & rio grande valley in Texas, and Seattle & Yakima/Cowiche in Washington for Hispanic camps. While in Texas, we met up with our fellow fighters NickyBoy and Sarah, and once we hit Washington, we met up with none other than Mr. John Yumul. [just goes to show we got back up wherever we go :) ] and now in a couple hours...we are off to Omaha, Nebraska for yup, another Hispanic Camp. after that, we'll be back to chicago for CLF preps. please pray for us. ok so that was your brief informational update, i'll write on other great :) stuff later. i got to go...but before i do i just wanted to give a shout out to my sisters in seattle. thanks for everything, and keep up the promise we made at the sisterhood mtg :)

Tuesday, October 26, 2004 1:41 AM

Advertising at it's best: thepowerofallofus.com. impressive ebay, but more importantly, it makes me happy inside :)

Skip the intro then click on 'TV Spots' >> 'Belief'

Friday, October 22, 2004 4:34 PM

"Go away to a secluded place and be alone with me."

i long for alone time a lot. and i ask myself why sometimes. is it bad? or selfish? many times, i just need to get away from the world and be alone with my thoughts. to feel His peace and to write out my feelings (or type out) in surrendering reflection. i've always been turned off by noise, or boister. whether it's from a person, or situation, i just never have felt drawn to it. my attraction has always been to humble, quiet people and places...whose beauty speaks even louder, simply in who/what they are.

but i think the reason mostly why is bc i believe it is through those very people and places, that i feel God speaks to me the most. i do feel God the most when i am alone with Him. the intimacy of Jesus is something profound. something that always keeps me longing to receive Him even more. and so i prayed to God about my fear of selfishness in all this. and i felt Him affirm me in this..."If in what you do, it is for the purpose of receiving me more in your life, you have nothing to feel selfish about. this is a desire that i want you to have. there is always more of Me to receive. i want you to long for Me, to be alone with me, to receive me more in your life. so then, go ahead and find that place that allows you to do so. and visit it everyday, and i will reveal my beauty to you so profoundly, that your heart will not even be able to contain it."

in my life everyday, i serve and want to give and give of myself. but God tells me, "Before you can do that, you need to receive ME first." and as i heard kuya francis once say, "You cannot give of what you yourself do not have." it is a necessity for me to spend my alone time with my God. and i never should feel bad about having "alone time," just as long as that time is sincerely used to receive Jesus more in my life.

Wednesday, October 20, 2004 5:35 PM

even though i still hate xanga, i admit the one advantage is that it allows me to keep up with what's up with my friends. which is great. and every now and then, i get those entries from my friends that inspire, entertain, intellectually stimulate, or randomly make me crack up. and so, if i had some 100% e-propped-fortified honorable mentions to give out, they would go to:

WIT

• treeti
• justcrisa
• butcheee.com
• christianpoet.net

SUBSTANCE

• elchic
• adventureaires
• pidong

RANDOMNESS

• pumalibu
• crayolarocks
• pitapancita
• Y_m_i_here

INSPIRATION

• friendofkuyajesus
• stlhome
• dex1

... i'll expand on this list later.

Friday, October 15, 2004 1:11 AM

new & simple layout. inspired by my baby cousin, jt. colors inspired by... autumn.

look at him winking. haha it's great. i love it man he's gonna be so guapo when he grows up. anyway so i'm now in eastern washington on a farm. a very cool farm in a very cool house thanks to tito morie, tita cocot and family! it's so peaceful here. gino and i have been getting a lot of work done, while awaiting a hispanic camp this weekend in the town of Yakima. expecting about 50 youth. possibly even more! there is no end of this earth that we can't cover through God! Hispanic missions forever!! and guess what. tito morie works for a potato factory! can you believe it! highlight of this week...definitely getting a personal tour of the factory by tito morie. but sadly...they didn't allow any picture taking. i wanted to take pictures so bad! we were surrounded by excessive amounts of potatos: fries, hashbrowns, mashed. it was crazy. my favorite part was the taste-test lab! i felt like giddy charlie in willy wonka and the chocolate factory. except it was...tito morie and the potato factory. anyway, it will be a day i will always remember. i'm sure most of you understand. God is hilarious and so good to me! heeheehee k bye.

ps. pray for the CLF!!!

1. Sunday Morning
- Maroon 5
2. Heaven
- Salvador
3. Right Here Waiting for You
- Richard Marx
4. Collide
- Howie Day

Side Note: sorry about the santa hat. new design in the works...just be patient, cuz i want flash this time. yay for movement! here's a sneak at what i'm picturing. [no pun intended] cluttered now, but movement there will be! i say!

Potatoh. © Copyright 2003.