Quiet Moments

When you are at that quiet moment,

when you need time to heal,

when you need time to understand

God,

yourself,

or situations around you,

I hope these songs can help you as they've helped me. ^_^

Enjoy!

I Took the Ring Off

"...I have loved you with an everlasting love..."

~Jeremiah 31:3

You may remember the Christian movie Courageous released nearly two years ago.  It was such an inspirational movie for the Christian community.  One of its most popular scenes was when Nathan Hayes takes his daughter's hand and makes her a promise to take care of her and offer her his full blessing when the right man comes to her life.

You can see it for yourself on this YouTube clip below.

When my single-hood began again in 2011, my older sister, being inspired by the movie, bought me a ring that I was supposed to wear until the one for me comes along.  So, yep, a promise ring- not the Asian definition of it, but the more American one, and not only for the chastity of my physical body, but for the chastity of my heart.  However, I wished for my dad to have given it to me rather than my sister because then it would have been more meaningful, like in the movie.

Then on November of last year, I took the ring off.


No, not because I broke my promise.  My reasons were...

1) A ring for $15 is not meant to last and be worn for a long time, so it had tarnished greatly in the short while that it was on my finger.

2) I became tired of people mistaking that I was married.  (I guess promise rings are quite foreign things to people around here.)

3) I felt that I needed to be free of all vows (good and bad) that reminded me of my past mistakes and hurts.  Whenever I looked at that ring, I did not see my future.  I saw my past and the reasons as to why I would be wearing it.  It also reminded me of my desire for a far-off someone to take away my loneliness.

During the first days after I took it off, I felt weird that for the first time in so many years, my finger was free.  There still remained a tan line on my skin- a lingering reminder of all the rings I've worn: rings from broken relationships and then, most recently, the promise to my family and myself.  "These tan lines," I thought, "along with their memories will fade away with time- yet, of course, much more quickly."

Four months later, during my last prayer ministry session, I felt as though God was asking me, "What are you waiting for?  Who are you waiting for?"  And I wept.  I know where I was mistaken.  All these years since childhood, vowing that I could provide for myself that "right" man and moping because I do not have him yet, have robbed me from loving God.  "Who are you waiting for when I have been with you all along?"

Who am I waiting for?  I do not need to wait for someone to love me dearly because He is already here!  And not that I want to become a nun- He knows that.  When I finally come to that moment and place where God will bring about the expression of His love into a flesh and blood spouse, we both will be ready for each other.  And until then, my life will not be in a stand-still: my heart will continue to heal, my life will continue to transform, and I will keep living and loving for Him.

Images:
Ring
Girl in flower field

hi·a·tus: (Noun) A pause or gap in a sequence, series, or process.

Well, I do think that it has been more than just a pause or gap ^____^  My last post was more than 2 months ago.

Why now?  Well... it is...

✿ S P R I N G  B R E A K !  ✿

As a warm-up to blogging again, let me enlighten you as to why I've been absent.  Fasten your seatbelts for my oh-so-exciting-it's-mind-blowing life...

February was the month of my back-to-back formal observations at work.  If you don't already know, I am a teacher, and as much as I like being the captain of my ship (or classroom), I have to be observed by my boss for clearances and protocols- wonderfully stuffy things like that.  Also, I now have a mentor who likes meeting and observing my practice twice a week when she said that she would only for twice a month. -__-  Oh well...  With the frequency of our meetings, we have become chummier with each other.

That's it for February!  February = romance?  Nah...  Not this time.  Hehehe ^^;;  Although, I did have this fantastic imaginary scenario of a certain dude I like finally confessing that he actually liked me back, in which he comes up with this elaborate plan of telling me by delivering a bouquet of roses to my work and all of my students "ooh-ing" and "ah-ing" and he, getting down on one knee, asks, "Will you.... eat pasta with me tonight?" and I, blubbering in surprise and gladness, finally squeaks out "yes!" in between sobs and hiccups.  

Alas, no such luck!  Grrr...  I blame this imagination to watching one too many dramas!  And believe me: watching one IS one too many!

March was an even busier month because I started taking an introductory class to Christian counseling, called Prayer Ministry.  It started on the last week of February and only finished last weekend.  It was like a "heart surgery" because our hearts, along with its bitterness and intentions, are examined for all to see, within our small groups of 4 to 5 people.  So, the case studies of the class are each other.  Anyway, in all these things, what I came to understood is that God is life-changing.  He loves us the way we are, but too much to leave us that way.*

For the coming months, we can expect that I'll be blogging more infrequently.

Honestly, I don't think I can blog as enthusiastically anymore.  I do not have the time and drive, especially I do have a career that I really enjoy and would like to be awesome in it.  And hopefully this year, I will be starting on my Master's, and when that happens, I really would want to step down from this past-time.

Perhaps, I can squeeze in reviews and devotionals when I can but no pressure! :)  I am telling myself this, at least :)  

Until next time!     

Mew and the sister: so hot so we'll drink it off!

Bunnyteef  

Sometimes I draw...  Always I draw girls...

*Leighton Ford

Our Brothers' Keepers

I remember reading an argument by a blogger listing her reasons for not wanting to help charities and causes.  One point that she made was that she would rather help those who directly impact her life.  This article made me pause and ponder.  Her argument could be convincing for someone with weaker convictions because she was very adamant about her belief.  But it bothered me because it reminded me of what the Bible said that in the last days people will come up with their own righteousness- calling what is evil good and what is good evil (see 2 Timothy 3:1-9).

So, why do we have to take on the responsibility of inconveniencing ourselves in order to help others?  The answer seems so simple- we can lay down arguments that are logical, scientific, and moral.  Yet some have decided that the answer is not simple at all, and have chosen to remain unconvinced.

After the very first murder happened, the Lord asked Cain, "Where is your brother Abel?"  Cain retorted, "Am I my brother's keeper?" (Genesis 4:9).  The same questions are being asked of us now because although this event happened thousands of years ago, the same human heart beats in fallenness that would choose to deny and excuse evil and ignore what is good.

Are we our brothers' keeper?  Will we choose to stand between the gap?  The world will always have the poor, the sick, the orphan, and the widow, by choice or by circumstances.  We cannot save them all.  But it will matter to those whom we help.  It matters to God.

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’  “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me’"  (Matthew 25:37-40).

 God is so good that we were given Christ who became poor for us in order that He may save us!  And having Him as our example, our source of strength, and our provider so that our blessings will overflow to others, we are more than able to help those who are in need.

"My life of service to God is the way I say 'thank you' to Him for His inexpressibly wonderful salvation." Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest.

Image
Helping hands
Nailing hand
Text 
Scripture taken from the New International Version (NIV) from biblegateway.com.

G&G Blossom in Brown Review

I bought these along with EOS Ice in Green a couple of months ago from Honeycolor.com- which is actually having a FREE SHIPPING promo right now until the end of the month.  I was not paid to write this review nor was I sponsored.  Unpaid and un-famous bloggers like me are just nice for free! ^-^

Review
Modality: 1 year
Base Curve: 8.8 mm
Diameter: 14.5 mm
Water Content: 38%

Color
2/5  The brown is neither vibrant nor apparent against my already brown eyes.

Design
4/5  These lenses are designed for the dolly look, rather than for their color or naturalness.  I like how the design softens my look, although I am not usually keen on having buggy eyes.  But I must admit that with the right make-up, it looks really cute in photos.  I would give it a lower point if I wanted a more natural design but decided against it because I think it serves its purpose.

Enlargement
5/5  Although it is 14.5, I will just give it the full 5 points because of its thick limbal ring that really enlarges the eyes.

Comfort
4/5  Very comfortable but seems to blur my weird right eye a little.  This category will depend on the wearer.

Overall
3/5  I like these lenses (I only review what I like, btw).  They are great for cute dolly looks.  I fell in love with the design, which reminded me of my once beloved Geo Hurricanes.  Also, G&G/Dueba are very comfortable for my eyes.  What I didn't like was that they are not natural, which means I wouldn't want to sport them on a daily basis.

I've grown to like my Dolly Wink lashes a lot.
They are the most comfortable compared to the other brands that
I've tried so far.

Lat one because I'm wearing a cute headband I got from
Lotte World back in 2010.  And what can I say?  I like me.