Bye Bye Miss 2009

Three hundred and sixty five days. That's it. So much has happened in that handful of days that I cannot recognize the young woman in the picture from last year's December 31st. I have grown to love a man that surpasses my expectations. A man that is perfect, loving, caring, and never ignores me. He listens, he answers, and he happens to be of supreme royalty. Yep, quite a catch. But don't worry girls, I want to share Him with everyone! This past year, my relationship with God has been planted. Others may disagree and say, "you have grown sooo much." But I know this is just the tip of the iceberg. I have yet to grow, know, and be more like the woman He wants me to be.
Did I score the job of my dreams? No. Am I engaged? No. Do I have my own little place in midtown and driving a cute off-white mini cooper? No. Am I happy? Duh! These are some of the little plans that I had for 2009. But God was laughing pretty hard when I said, "Ok Lili, this is what's gonna happen..." No. God had other plans: I slammed in to a wall and got a huge wake up call. I realized that it's not what WE want, it's what HE wants and that is all there is to it. No arguing about it. He is in control... But only if you let Him.
You see, if I would have chosen to live my life making choices according to what I want, disregarding His will, I would probably be in a bad position. God took me out of a relationship so I could see that there is no way I could be happy with someone unless I am happy with Him and love Him first above all else. I was alone, heartbroken and hopeless. Then, God opened the door. But the best part is, He didn't pull me in, he invited me and I CHOSE to follow Him. My life went through a very tough filter and it is still being filtered because I am no where near perfect. So, thank you. To all those who God placed in my life this year and in some shape or form helped me be who I am today in God's eyes.
Thank you all so much. From everyone at Second Baptist Church who have given me the opportunity to serve my God in almost every ministry, I love you all so much. My many friends that I have made over the course of this year, I am so proud to call you my pals. To my amazing brother who enlisted in the Navy and is now grown to be such an incredible man serving this wonderful country that we call home. My friend Amanda Winter, who I had the pleasure of knowing, serving and laughing with at beach retreat, I miss her and love her so much. My students, who I have grown to love and care for each and every one so very much. My Collision girls, who I absolutely adore and look forward to seeing every week! My feet, for putting up with dancing for over 15 years and now moved on to running long distances! The Houston Dynamo, I have never enjoyed a season soooo much. You guys are awesome! Forever Orange! And last but not least, my parents, who don't mind having their 24 year old daughter at home while she gets settled. Estoy muy agradecida por todo lo que han hecho y continúan a hacer por mi. No se donde estaría sin ustedes. Los amo!

Happy New Year!! Celebrate responsibly! God bless!

Celebrate Christmas

Let us celebrate the birth of Jesus as the gospel teaches us!

~Luke 2:1-20~

May your heart be that humble and warm manger that carried Jesus at his birth.

Like Mary, may you wrapped Him in your shawl and embrace Him.

Like Joseph, may you be willing to do your part in the Kingdom of God with instant obedience, and humility,

Like the angels, may you declare to the world the good news of great joy: a Savior has been born to you: he is Christ, the Lord.

May you be part of the multitude of the heavenly host who praise the Lord saying “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests” .

Like the shepherds, may you go straight to see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to you.

Like all who heard the shepherds, may you be full of admiration and awe at what is said about Jesus

Like Mary, may you treasure all these things, pondering them in your heart.

Like the shepherds, may you always raise and glorify the Lord for all that you have heard and seen.

May the light that filled that day shine over your home, and the peace that came with the good news reign in your hearts.

Like the wise men, may you recognize the path that leads to the Lord, and follow it. May you be wise and seek Him.

- By Alejandra Bastardo Vargas

Merry Christmas to all... God bless you and your loved ones.

Passion 2010 (Preview)

I stumbled across this video in Michael Head's awesome blog and had to re-post it to mine. I cannot explain how excited I am to attend Passion 2010. I really wish I could explain it, but as a friend told me a few months back when I registered, "you can't explain what it is until you have been there... You can read the description on the website and it will not make sense to you because you haven't been there. Just wait and see." And that is exactly what I will do. I am very eager to find out what God has in store for us at Passion 2010... He never ceases to amaze me.

http://www.268generation.com/passion2010/video/1/


Here is the main promo video to give you and "idea" of what Passion 2010 is:

http://www.268generation.com/passion2010/video/0/


And OF COURSE, I will blog about my days at Passion 2010... :) Coming Sooooon

Gossip Filth

I don't understand TV shows where all people do is gossip about other people. As a graduated journalist, I could never be a part of something like that. Think about it: what would my co-workers be saying about me behind my own back? Wow... I'm not perfect, nor any where near it, but I strive to avoid gossip. We are bombarded with it everywhere we go. From the nail salon, to the supermarket, TV, radio, etc. There will be a cover, story, comment about the latest and greatest meltdown, divorce, make-up, triple-X tape-up, you name it!
Personally, listening to someone gossip is like listening to someone blaring out a cuss word over and over again... Not pretty. There is a verse in Matthew that reminds of how we should open our eyes and instead of judging and criticizing others, we need to step in front of a spiritual mirror and examine ourselves. We are FILTHY! Honestly, we are... and I'm not judging, it's the Truth.

Matthew 7:3-5 state
3"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye."
(NIV)

Basically, we need to look at ourselves and see what is the matter with US before we can step out and pin point every little detail that bothers us about someone else. Specially when the tabloids decide to splatter other people's lives. Celebrities are human too and it makes me sick how people of this world live off other people's tragedies and mistakes. We are all guilty of making them. And even if we have never cheated on a spouse, or made a XXX tape, newsflash: we are still living! We could all easily fall under that any day!
So pray (for yourself AND others), be strong in the Lord, don't judge and examine yourself.

Cristiano Ronaldo & Kaka

Interview of my two favorite players from my favorite Football (soccer) Club: Real Madrid C.F.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iF4C0Hd6Omo&feature=player_embedded

Don't Crack!

The pressures of the world weigh down on all of us daily. There is the pressure to perform, the pressure to succeed, the pressure to look your best, the pressure to have the best of everything. Take a closer look at how these pressures present themselves in our lives. Do they come from work? From family? From the media? They all have one common theme: The pressure is exerted from the outside in.
How do you respond to external pressures? Do you give in and allow it to make you crack? Or do you remain strong?
Don't get so well-adjusted to the world that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what He wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the world around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, and develops well-formed maturity in you.


"Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect."
-Romans 12:2 (NLT)

Get Out!

As Christians, we often try to "stay away" from certain "places" or certain "people". Do we not see that we are NOT helping the cause? We are like a burnt match. We have been touched by the fire and it is beautiful. If we burn for God and show it, instead of being the odd one of the bunch, we can take this opportunity to reach out and maybe, just maybe God can use you and me to change the lives of many others.
Show the Lord you burn for Him... Like matches, we can quickly light up those that yurn to be touched by the fire of the Holy Spirit. Don't "avoid" situations and step out of your comfort zone. Wherever you feel the most "left out" and odd: this is where you should be shinning and reaching out the most. It is easy to reach out to those who come in to church and "look" for something. Get out there and reach to those who don't know what they're missing! In 2 Corinthians 4:4 it states, "Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God."
We are fortunate enough to live in a country where we can spread The Word and bring people closer to Christ. JUST DO IT!
Matthew 9:37 states, "He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few." Let's get out there and WORK!

Billy Carey

I had the H1N1 virus over the summer and was blessed with a smooth recovery. I have prayed for this kid for weeks and kept up with his journal entries. I don't personally know him, but wow... God does not EVER cease to amaze me. Watch this... (Found this in Michael Head's blog... which is AWESOME by the way...Check it out! www.michaelhead.org) :-)

Ultimate Triathlete

This is incredible... :)

"I can do everything through him who gives me strength."
- Philippians 4:13

Kaka - Incredible Testimony

I love this guy. His story is incredible. :-)

God's Rejection

Don't be alarmed. God would never reject you - He will never leave or forsake you. I am referring to the rejections we often face in life. Whether you feel like people are rejecting you, or your work, or even your church... This is God's way of protecting you. This is an important lesson that God wants us to learn: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own insight. (Proverbs 3:5) Difficult? Maybe. Have you ever praised God for an unanswered prayer? I finally did this morning and I felt incredibly relieved. A job that I wanted with all my heart and worked very hard for was given to someone else. I spent an entire day sulking and feeling terrible about myself. But not today. Seek His will in all you do and He will direct your paths. (Proverbs 3:6)
We should thank God for all of the doors that He has opened and thank Him even more for the doors that He has closed in our lives. We should trust that He knows what is the best job, place, and relationships for us. We may not understand the present and much less what the future holds for us, but if we trust in Him, we can move forward knowing that He has our best interests at heart. After all, He knows all and understands that there may be something far greater just around the next corner for us.
So, if you have been rejected in life (loss of job, divorce, etc...) avoid walking the bitter, painful path and walk in faith allowing God to comfort you and know that you will come out stronger on the other side. Remember that The Lord is on your side. Relax and trust Him.Give yourself to Him completely and realize that any rejection you go through is only temporary here on earth, and that God’s plan is perfect and will always prevail.

What Faith Can Do - Kutless

Listen to the song "What Faith Can Do" by Kutless. This song will be featured in their new up-coming worship album It Is Well.

The lyrics are uplifting and powerful. It revolves around the fact that faith is incredibly powerful, but so can lack of it. The part that sticks out the most to me is: Everybody’s scared to death//When they decide to take that step//Out on the water//It’ll be alright. This automatically brought to mind that very popular scene in the book of Matthews when Jesus asks Peter to step out of the boat on the water, but begins to drown because of his fear. He is is then pulled out of the water by Jesus and tells him "You of little faith,"..."why did you doubt?" (Mat. 14:31). Fear cancels out faith. Having faith in God is knowing that all will be fine. Because it is His will, His plan, and he only wants the best for us. STEP out of the boat! Don't worry, if you happen to sink. Reach out to Him and He will pull you out.
Chorus:
I’ve seen dreams that move the mountains
Hope that doesn’t ever end
Even when the sky is falling
And I’ve seen miracles just happen
Silent prayers get answered
Broken hearts become brand new
That’s what faith can do

My Walk

As an assignment for our Awakening class, Chad asked us to write "our story" of what God has done and is doing in our lives. So, here it goes:
Hi! I'm Liliana, a.k.a Lili. In the last year, my relationship with God has gotten stronger and stronger. During this time, I lost friends due to the changes God had been leading me to make in my life. In April, I was heart-broken, dumped and felt alone. On Easter Sunday I heard the Bible verse that forever changed me: "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." (Romans 8:18) The next day, I got on my knees and surrendered everything I had to Christ.
Mid-late April I get an email from "Chad Herold" about this thing called "Underground" (I had been to church, but never been involved in any "extra-curricular activities"). I read that this so-called "Michael Head" was going to be starting a series called "Life Interrupted: Real Answers to Real Problems". Wow! So, I have problems (check ✓), I need answers (check ✓), it's at my church (check ✓), and I got nothing better to do besides cry (check ✓). I'm in!
Thursday comes around and I walk in, knowing NO ONE and see that dude with the long hair (Chad) and he says hi, introduces me to several very friendly and inviting people. The music, the message, everything synced to be perfectly what I needed. I was hooked! From then on, I built a relationship not only with the people in church (who currently are my best friends), but also with my loving God. I absolutely love my church family!
I am thankful every day for the suffering I needed to go through to get to where I am and will be through my Lord, Jesus Christ. Since then, I have gone to beach retreat, participated in several church-wide events such as Vacation Bible School, missions, outreach, etc. I am currently teaching Bible study for the Awakening class (singles 20s-30s) on Sunday mornings (which I never in my life thought I would be able to do), I lead a Collision group (Bible study) for Taylor High School girls (which I absolutely LOVE), I am part of the leadership team for Underground, and co-lead a women small group Monday nights. How do I do it? "I can do everything through him who gives me strength." (Phil. 4:13)
I had to be alone, to realize that I am not alone. I had to get on my knees and surrender it all, to receive it all. God is great!

"...Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you."
Hebrews 13:5

By the River

"He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." -Psalm 1:3

Think about a tree growing beside a river. Would it be a dry, ugly tree with brown cracking leaves? No, that tree would always be alive and full with lush, green leaves. Even in the middle of a drought, that the tree would thrive because the river would give it all the water it needed.
"He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water." The word he refers to godly men (and women). This individual doesn't listen to friends or other people who tell him to go against what God wants. He doesn't make fun of God, even if it seems like everyone else does. This man is delighted when he thinks about what God says, so the man does what pleases Him.
If you've made up your mind to follow Jesus, ask yourself if you fit that description. You are like that tree growing beside a river. God's Spirit is the river that flows by you and offers you all the life and strength you need. When you get your life from His Spirit, you're always able to succeed in God's eyes, even if everything around you seems out of control.

The Masterpiece

Remember when you were in Kindergarten and you made plaster imprints of your hands or some sort of weird sculpture with toilet paper tubes? Remember how excited you were? When you made something you were proud of, you couldn't wait to show it off. You were so careful until you got home and put it in a safe place. And every once in a while you would take a look at it and crack a smile. You loved it.
God made you and that's why He loves you. You were His idea. You have His eyes, His hands, because you were made in His likeness. Even though you may not always act like your Father, the truth is that you are His child and His love for you will never end. Just as careful as you created your Kindergarten masterpiece, God crafted each part of your being just exactly the way He wanted it. He made you a certain way so that you could be everything wonderful that He wants you to be. You're a part of His heart because He thought of you and then gave those thoughts life and created you. He's in love with YOU. He thinks you're awesome. And you are, because you are HIS.

"See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him." 1 John 3:1

Tough Questions

Here is a little Q&A session I had with God:

1) I asked the Lord for patience. He said, “No. Patience is the product of hardship. It’s not something that I can give you, it is for you to CONQUER.”

2) I asked the Lord to take away my pride. He said, “No. I can’t take it. You have to GIVE it to me. ”

3) I asked the Lord for riches. He said, “No. Learn to DEPEND on ME.”

4) I asked the Lord to heal my friend. He said, “No. It is a process you have to go through. I will make it work in MY TIME. Understand that, child. Because I am God”

5) I asked the Lord to mend my people (my country, my world). He said, “No. First you have to humble yourself. Where ever all people humble themselves and in my name I AM PRAYED TO, I will restore, and I will forgive.”

6) I asked the Lord if He loves me. He said, “YES! You finally understand that sometimes I will say Yes and sometimes, you’re just going to have to wait.”

I learned that even when He says NO… He still pleases me.

It is His will. He is my keeper, my guide, that whatever the Spirit says, it will be. Because in you and in me, God reigns. He is the ruler of our lives.

Ride of your Life

Roller coasters have a lot of different traits and characteristics: fun, scary, surprising, boring, slow, fast, nauseous, risky, etc. To me, I get on a different roller coaster everyday. This week, I got on, strapped myself in (with prayer) and swoosh, it starts. At first, it was fun and exciting. I found out I passed my Texas Teacher Certification Exam and opened up a lot of doors for my career. Suddenly it became pitch black and I was scared. I received a blank college transcript, my certification prep class became a hassle, and at the end of the day found out a close friend tragically passed away. I began to panic, cry, and lose self-control. I was sitting on this ride that seemed perfectly fine, fun, and adventurous from a distance, but was now stuck with no where to turn to. I was going to just get off and see if I could make it on my own but I couldn't. I had forgotten for a second that I had "strapped myself" to God in prayer. Suddenly, I saw the light, and the ride continued steadily.
How often is it that we forget He's there any time we need Him? How often do we act on emotion and not faith? The Bible says in Colossians 3:15 to be led by peace in making decisions. God wants us to put Him first.
One of my favorite books by Joyce Meyer is Managing Your Emotions, where she states the following: "Jesus is referred to as 'The Rock.' You can depend on Him to be stable—the same Jesus all the time, always faithful, loyal, true to His Word and mature. He’s not one way one time and another way the next time."
Remember the ground you stand on when you feel like falling. Remember to strap on that seat belt of wisdom in prayer everyday. This roller coaster called life can one day turn you upside down. Are you ready?

Play Nice

Gotta love 'em.
The REAL Football. :-)

Don't Shrink!

Faith is being confident in God and His Word. You probably have a good relationship with God and have no problem trusting Him, but when it comes to trusting yourself to do the right thing, you shrink. At this point, you allow fear to control you and pull you back.
God once showed me that if I wasn't able to trust myself, then I am not able to trust Him. Ouch! But, as much as it hurt to realize that, He showed me the most beautiful lesson of all: He is living in me, and directing, guiding, and controlling me because I asked Him to do so. I needed to believe God's promise, not my emotions or thoughts. Of course, any one of us can walk right by God, miss Him and make mistakes. We think we are going in the right direction and then discover we are wrong but it's not the end of the world, nor is it anything to become terribly stressed about. If our hearts are genuine and we are sincerely seeking God's will, even if we do mess up from time to time, He will intervene and get us back on our path. Quite often, He does it without us even knowing. (I love it!)
I highly encourage you to believe that you are being led by God unless He shows you otherwise, instead of always thinking you are wrong and living in the anguish of self-doubt. Just as God has promised in His Word (John 16:13), trust Him to lead you by His Holy Spirit into all truth. If we are on the wrong path, God will help us get back on the right one.


"And my righteous ones will live by faith.
But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.”
-Hebrews 10:38-

The Choice is Yours

I have been looking forward to our leadership meeting for The Awakening class for a while. Planning events, class topics, setting leadership roles was just the beginning. As soon as the meeting started everyone began throwing ideas around and it was like vinegar and baking soda... It just BLEW (In a good way)! We ended up changing the entire class model and I can't wait to see it in action.
Not everyone agrees with all of these changes. Many take the side of "if it's working fine now, then why change it?" and I respect that but, take a few steps back and look at the BIG picture and the facts and figures. It's like when you work out and you see you're losing weight and all the sudden you're stuck; you're not losing nor gaining. You've reached your plateau. What do you do? You change it! Either kick it up and start a boot camp class, or add more weights, run a little more... just change it!
If what you are doing with your time is not bearing good fruit, then change it. If you're not getting enough rest, make a change. If you are not disciplining your students and their behavior is causing you a lot of stress, then make a change. If you're not taking care of yourself, make a change. If your friends are taking advantage of you, then make a change! Are you getting the point? Stress can be relieved if you're not afraid to make changes.
You may be afraid of change but it is also possible that even if you find the courage to make the necessary changes that other people in your life won't like the changes you make. Don't be afraid of them either. You will get used to the changes and so will they. If you don't take action now you will be complaining about the same thing a year from now, and a year after that, and ten years after that, and there will be no end to your misery. The time is NOW!

"Boldness takes action, but fear breeds inactivity and procrastination. The choice is yours."
- Joyce Meyer

First Blog Ever - Hey, Why Not ? ?

I love writing. I decided to go to school and get my degree in journalism, write a bunch of editorial columns, sell millions of books and be on Oprah. Well, I haven't quite really gotten there yet, but I realized that I had not even taken the first step... Start writing! Ever since I graduated last year, I have not written a single article, or published work. So, I decided to start a blog. I created this blog about a month ago and never "got around to it". Typical, right? To be honest, I was scared. I had no idea how to start. I was not passionate about anything really... Or at least I didn't think I was. Until now.
A lot of people may know this, but I'm a bit of a "hot head". I like to state my opinion whether you agree with me or not. There is a lot of room for improvement, but I've noticed that when I write, I tend to "be careful" of exactly what I say and how I say it. I really wish we had a "backspace" or "delete" button for what we say sometimes. But, like my mom has always told me (and I think my mom is the smartest person in the world because she always seems to be right), "the world needs people like you, but remember to listen." We do that a lot don't we? It's that famous light bulb we have over our heads that all of the sudden decides to light up whenever we have an idea. So, what do we do? We interrupt the other person's passionate view of the situation and say, "wait, I got it..." What we don't realize is we just stopped them in their tracks and completely disregarded what they were trying to say.
You may not be this person who likes to put their foot in the door and say what they need to say regardless of the situation, but you may know someone like that. If you do, say something. I want to be told if I ever do that. I HAVE been told when I do that and it feels great! It's a smack on the back of the head, I'll admit it, but that's how we learn sometimes.
Now, if you know you're a little bit like a "hot head", take the time to re-evaluate yourself and maybe write things down, put it away for a day, and go over it. You'll realize how much your perception of something can change and you'll see all the little things that can be edited in or out. Also, ask a close friend or relative to be honest with you and tell you if you are a "hot head" and to help you avoid it as much as possible.
God gave us all different personalities, and like a good dish, some spices are needed to kick it up a notch and make things interesting, but like my pal and chef Emeril Lagasse would say, "juuust enooough pepper and BAM! There you have it folks, a great dish". Spices should be used to accent the OTHER flavors, not eliminate them. Because if you use too much, all that hard work you put in to the other veggies, the meats, etc... will be taken over by this ONE spice.

"Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry."
James 1:19