Happy Sunday

thank you Lord for today. because i am able to come before you to worship with all i have. thank you because i see that i am growing and maturing in you.

"O Praise the One who paid my debt and raised this life up from the dead"

hillsong conference part two

i'm glad that i took a few pictures yesterday because today they didn't really allow cameras.

but let me just say, i got to ask the entire Hillsong United team a question. yes, i was freaking out like a lame-o. but it was amazing haha.

this entire conference was a blessing for me. to be surrounded by other Christians searching for the meaning of worship challenged me. i want to be a better person, but not for myself, rather, i want to serve this world. God GAVE to this world, and He gave his Son. He is constantly giving, and so, i must give as well.

the purpose of this conference was to have an Encounter with our Lord, Jesus Christ, a collision with the unexpected and to experience our Savior's love like never before. and though there may be voices that try to undermine this connection, we must aim for a greater intimacy with our Lord. we are called to serve. we have a purpose. let's get to it!

to have faith is to have a passion, which is measured by how we live, the choices we make. i want to show others that i have a passion for God and His Word. faith believes and speaks by confessing the word! it goes beyond mere feeling and it should be backed by how i act and face the world. and because God loved me, i must love others, and share this saving faith. how can they not know? it is up to us to be the hands and feet and reach those forgotten by the rest of the world. if Jesus loved the last of those, so must we.

i left tonight, feeling renewed. i feel like i see my purpose. i was meant to love God and to show this, i must serve this world humbly, tear down the walls of self and only then will i be a true blessing. i can't even describe the emotions running through my mind right now. i am just so thankful.

Lord, i am not worthy of You and yet, You loved me first. paid for me with your Son's precious blood, i have been made new. how could i not live for you? what better way to show you that i am thankful. i don't have much that compares to you, nor the words to piece together how i feel, but know, that the little that i have is all for you. i give you my heart. take it and mold it as you please. obra en mi vida como quieras, mi Rey. that i may live for You and You alone. you are worthy of all praise.

hillsong conference part one

i am blessed beyond measure. with each day that passes i see more and more how it is by grace alone that i am saved. only a Holy and Righteous Father could love someone like me and for that, i am thankful.

this weekend i'm attending Hillsong's Miami Encounter, a conference centered on worship. my church generously offered to send me and the other leader of the worship team so we could learn and be instructed in worship. tonight was more of a worship rally, a call to worship but already i feel renewed. as i sang along with hundreds of believers, it made me wonder how some people don't know God's love. how can they not love Him? how can they not believe?

i am so thankful because in Christ i have my hope. i have hope of a better future, of MY future, of eternal life in Him. even in the toughest of times i have faith that i will be carried through. i know that it could only get better. i know that a mighty Lord loves me. how can others live without this peace?

i think a lot of it has to do with us "Christians" not playing our part in this world. we are flaky, fake, judging and like the speaker said today, we build walls that prevent us from really seeking a deep relationship with our Lord and Savior. if we were more like our Jesus, then people would really be able to see God's love through us. i want to be that change. i want to be the change that the world will see. my prayer is that i will shine in my tiny corner of the world. i want to be this ambassador of God's love to others who don't know what TRUE love is, and that is the most perfect love of all.

this summer has been a rollercoaster of emotions and happenings. it's hard to keep my head up and focus on what i need to do. i find that i get easily disappointed by others, but maybe it's because i care too much. i try not to hurt others but find that i always get hurt. i don't want to use others but others will try to use me. i want genuine friendships and they want something temporary. i keep my word and they easily break it. i hold no grudges yet the grudges face me. and because of this, i find that i am alone. and sometimes i want to stop trying. but today, at this conference session, i learned otherwise. i need to keep loving, keep trying and prevent these situations from leading me to build walls. i must love freely because my Savior did so, by giving His life for me.

in the meantime, here i am Lord. use me for your purpose. help me find that heart of worship. it's all for you and you alone. "these hands are Yours/teach them to serve as You please/and i'll reach out"

thankful

i am really thankful at where i am in life right now.

today, i have learned what it means to be a good friend. it means reaching out to people that you didn't think you'd reach out to. it means listening. it means truly caring from the heart. today, i've reached out. the rest is up to the Lord.

thank you Lord for granting me the spirit of forgiveness and love. let me honor you and be a good friend to others.

some things never change

but are they meant to be?

my thoughts, in spanish and in poetry

Abba Padre, digno eres

Maravilloso Rey y Escudo!

Veo tu belleza alrededor de mi

Tu amor infallible me consuela.

Vengo ante ti, agradecido,

Sacrificio tuyo quiero ser

Pon en mi un nuevo corazon

un nuevo espíritu, un nuevo ser.

Quiero ser como tú, Jesús!

Junto a ti, tomaré mi cruz

y viviré, viviré por ti

Sal y luz en este mundo

Brillaré en la verdad.

Mi mirada está puesta en ti,

En mi Padre Celestial y Dios.

Postrado delante de tu gloria

Sé que nada soy sin ti.

i serve a Mighty God :)

my cousin is visiting me from Ecuador and she has been wonderful company. a great reminder as to the importance of family and how irreplaceable familial bonds can be. we have been getting ourselves into many adventures, going out in Miami to new places (even for me!), meeting people, seeing new things.

on a whim, mostly because i'm crazy, we decided that today we'd drive to Key West for the day. i haven't been to KW in roughly 14 years (craaazy!) and obviously my cousin had never been so it seemed like a great idea. we hit the road at 5am. sometime around 7:15 when the sun was breaking through the clouds, we decided to stop. without planning it better, we had the most amazing view of the sun rising, right before the famous Seven Mile Bridge. with the rising of the sun, i saw all that was around me for the first time today...endless miles of open ocean. Up until that point, I had been kept in the dark, but finally i saw and was able to appreciate the beauty of what surrounded me.

thinking back to this experience, it reminds me of what God is in my life. He is the sun in my day, the one that brings me out of the darkness so that i may be in awe of his beauty and his greatness. He alone can do this for me.

what a spectacular day. God is so great. we couldn't have planned it better, because He allowed for everything to fall into place, for us to have a good time and to enjoy his natural beauty.

reflections...

i know that my Lord is trying to work in my life. slowly but surely, i will get there! one area of particular weakness is that i trust people way too much. now, that doesn't sound like a bad thing. but when you invest your feelings and think that those around you are your "be all, end all," then yes, it can be a hurtful thing. everywhere around me, i feel let down. and in the midst of it, i see my Lord, my God. He extends his kind hands and picks me up when i fall. constantly i am reminded of His love. with the rising of the sun, i know that He is in control and as the sun sets and the day winds down, i see Him there as well. estás ahí, Señor, estás ahí.

i may not feel it, and He may not physically be right next to me, but i know that He is working in my life, pushing me to my limit, to prove to me that HIS LOVE is all that i need.

instead of surrounding my life with noise, i need to be silent and listen for his guidance.

Lord, help me wait on you. you hold all the answers that i need and in you alone lies the peace i long for. i want to live for you, love for you, grow for you. test my faith, bring me pain, whatever it shall be so that i may increase in value before your eyes. i want to be more like you.