So I've been taking Intensive Hebrew this quarter. They say that Hebrew can be either easier or harder than Greek, depending on who you are. Well, I can confidently say that after 3 weeks, I am the type of person that finds Hebrew amazingly DIFFICULT!!!! I'm not sure how anyone can find squiggly lines and dots (compared to the squiggly lines and dots of the American language haha...) deciphered into sounds and gutterals, to be an EASY learning experience.

I've also started my internship (unofficially) with the Edge (Newsong Irvine's college ministry). I had the opportunity to be one of the counselors at their winter retreat this past weekend and was both encouraged and invigorated! What an amazing group of students and staff! The Edge is comprised of about 200 students that primarily attend UC Irvine. Here are some observations I had from the retreat, as well as things I learned during the retreat:

a) Never place the limitation of time while worshipping God. The retreat was LONG (4 days) and the schedule often fluctuated and worship rarely started exactly on time. Because of this, I actually stopped worrying about start and end times and I decided to simply worship without the limitation of how long or short something was supposed to be. The result? A freedom in worship that I most oftentimes miss out on because of how worried I am about things that need to be accomplished...

b) prayer is both powerful and necessary in the Christian walk/life.

c) the students and pastor's at Newsong Edge are amazing! I was so invigorated and encouraged by their passionate love for God and the humble manifestations of their love in serving the ministry. I can't wait to immerse myself in this ministry and learn the numerous things that I'm sure God has for me to experience.

d) Humble Worship. The worship team was incredibly talented. But the thing that really impacted me was their humility in leading worship. Simply put, the worship leaders truly enjoy and are passionate for worshipping God. It's not something you can put into words or actions. It is just something you can see resonating from their hearts/souls. BEAUTIFUL!

godspeed