new name, new blog, same stuff

My blog is moving to www.moorecheryl.blogspot.com and continuing to turn out nuggets of brilliance! (read: nuggets of Cheryl's crazy randomness)

Some Thoughts on Election 2008

i haven't posted in a long while, and i'll try and update soon (says the girl who says "i'll try to update soon" and never does), but i thought i'd share some links to some blog entries with some good thoughts about the way Christ followers should view this election.

http://theologica.blogspot.com/2008/11/president-obama.html
On submitting to the leadership God has ordained over us

http://theologica.blogspot.com/2008/11/eric-redmond-living-soli-deo-gloria.html
From an African American perspective

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. (1Timothy 2:1-4)

i'm in the mood to write...

It finally registered yesterday that God willing i am getting married in less than three weeks. i think i had shut the thought out of my mind until yesterday when everything just seemed to bear down on me. i mean, i knew it was coming soon, but not that soon...

Relationships and marriage are interesting things. It's such a blessing to be able to share life with someone, to encourage and sharpen each other, to spur each other on to know and savor Christ more and more, to enjoy each other's company...

But there are also the difficult times. i have never walked with another human being so closely, to see another person's flaws so clearly and to have them see mine so clearly. i think i always knew on an intellectual level that love was much more than just fuzzy feelings, but know i know experientially how difficult selfless and unconditional love is without Christ. i feel like i'm going in circles sometimes. i'm angry and disappointed and frustrated with his flaws, and yet in these instances i am made painfully aware of my own imperfections and selfishness.

In the end it all draws me back to a brokenness and humility that i crave but don't enjoy experiencing. i am continually reminded through this process that the only thing i can cling to is Christ, and it is only because of Him that i can live and love how i ought.

i am emotionally spent right now, and God's sustaining grace is the only thing pushing me onward and forward. It's a hard but good place to be...

sorry for the lack in posting...

Hm i haven't really updated this thing in forever and SOOOOOOOO much has happened. i'm getting married in less than a month (shocking, i know) and my new niece is coming! Here she is...

www.karisjoychau.blogspot.com
www.chaukids.blogspot.com (for some recent pictures of the other kiddies)

Hm here's a short un-expounded on list of what i've been up to the past few months
-early June: started new executive assistant position at CHF
-mid June: went on a thoroughly enjoyable trip to Texas with Michael and met his whole fam, immediate and extended.
-end of June: got engaged
-end of June through now: wedding planning, marriage planning, new life course evaluating, conflict and growth in my relationship with Michael, excited, terrified, unsure, sure, more thankful than ever that the Lord is my rock and the one sure thing i can cling to in the midst of life's insanity.

i'll try and blog about all the massive change sometime soon...hm, maybe after the wedding when my life will be less insane.

i really AM Korean!

i get home, my mind still spinning a bit from the events of a busy day. i need something, something food-y. Yes, i need comfort food in this moment. So many options...chips, fruit, candy...wait! There it is! A jar of kimchi sitting 3/4 full in the fridge! i grab it and and a fork and hastily devour it like a bear eating crackers. The spicy salty sourness calms me. Then it hits me...of all the food options in my house i grabbed the kimchi??? (by the way kimchi is something we rarely have around the house) What's more, it really did have a soothing effect on me.

i guess despite being adopted and growing up in a white bread town, there are just some things that run in the blood...


Lots of different things going on. i promise i'll try to write a real update sometime soon.

Not as bad as Jericho, but still blazin'

Was anyone outside for a prolonged period of time today?

No? Well, i was.
Yes? Good for you, read on...

And whilst outside, were you ready to sacrifice just about anything if it meant you could run through some sprinklers and stand in a freezer for a bit to escape baking like a french-fried potato?

No? Well, i was.
Yes? Too bad for us. No sprinklers or freezer showed up and i had to just bear it. You probably did too...

Why couldn't they get anyone this cool while i was there?

So for about the first time ever, i wished i still a student at UCI. Why, you ask?? Because BILL NYE THE SCIENCE GUY is going to be speaking there!!!

Seriously...i'm so sad to be missing out on this.

Just when you think you have things figured out...

God puts something in your life to make you again realize you don't have a clue what the next day will bring. At least that's how it's worked for me throughout my life.

i thought i had formulated a pretty good plan and picture of what the next step for me was, and who knows, maybe it still is. But a pretty major change has recently come into my life that's muddled things a bit, in a good way though. About a week ago after a couple weeks of hanging out, a friend and i decided to go ahead and move from just friends to something more. So yes, it's true, Cheryl has a boyfriend. i won't go into all the details, but basically his name is Michael, and i guess i'll just describe him by saying he's a very easy going, down to earth, hard working southern guy who lives simply and loves and knows God well. We've been acquainted with each other for years but never got to really know each other until now. Any of you that know me even a little know how unexpected this is and how i wasn't planning on getting into a relationship any time soon. But sometimes God puts things in your life that you weren't planning on, and all you can do is abide in and trust Him. While the past few weeks have been very personally challenging as i've been navigating through this very new territory, it's also been really good and Mike and i have really been enjoying getting to know each other. Of course i don't know where all this will end up, but when do i ever know how things will turn out?

In other news, it's the Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday mashup weekend! Something cool Josh Walker mentioned at church yesterday that i've never thought about was this. For people in that time, the cross and the horrific death it brought was a symbol of Rome's ultimate authority and power. It was a major deterrent to anyone who would defy the empire. Yet Jesus, by willingly giving up his life so that the world might be reconciled back to God, turned that picture inside out and in a sense said, This cross was a symbol of man's power to terrorize and put to death, but now it will forever be a symbol of God's unfathomable humility and grace. Pretty cool.

Okay this post is getting long. So lastly, i just have to say that Michael Clayton is the best movie i've seen since Bourne Ultimatum, and the best movie i've seen in general. It was very well-written, well-acted, it moved at a good pace, and was a great thinking movie. GO WATCH IT.

So this is what my brother does all day...

i can't believe this qualifies as a job...i'm bitter because i'm jealous.

Now is one of those times where i wish i had something interesting to blog about. But i don't, so i start wondering...why do i keep this thing?

"We measure the size of the statue by the size of the hearts of the Korean people..."

This humorous article would be even funnier if the situation in North Korea wasn't so sad.

"In North Korea, Eccentricity Well Off the Scale"

i wish i was this cool...

i just became secretly (or i guess not so secretly) obsessed with a guy named Remy Munasifi (yes, i'm blazing past that line between amused interest and stalking). i randomly stumbled across his youtube videos and he is HILARIOUS. All his videos are so well-written and random, i could watch them forever. I've posted one of them, but seriously, watch all of them because they're all great. My other favorites are "A-R-A-B: The Rap", "Macaca Blues" (for any of you that remember the Macaca! Senator Allen debacle from awhile back), "Hey There Khalilah" (a better version of the Plain White Ts song) and "Opposites Attract" ("I can't dance, she can't vote"). If you just search "goremy" on youtube, you can get to his page and all his videos.

Seriously, go check him out and be inspired like i am. Plus his video made it onto one of the youtube debates. If that's not reason enough, i don't know what is.

The first one is "Eggs Over Easy." I'll give you half a guess as to what that one's about, and the second one is his musical recap of his trip to Charleston for the youtube debate.

It's been nearly a month since my last post?

Time is flying by. Things have been busy, and both work and my weekends have been pretty full. It's felt good to be busy, but in contrast, i've realized that i get really lazy and kinda depressed when life slows down. Unfortunately, that's a major indication that the ups and downs of my circumstances still dominate too much of the way i live. By God's grace i want to be steadfast and content whatever the situation.
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So here's something crazy. This past week i received two job offers for full-time positions at two very different places. While i'm not even remotely close to taking either of them, it was a reminder that God can change the course of my life at any point He chooses, regardless of how hard i try to plan things out. Then i felt all old and adult-ish because i realized that a lot of the life choices God presents from here on out are going to be (or at least seem to be) bigger than choosing a class schedule or what to do on the weekend. Weird.
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I had a fruit punch Jolly Rancher today, and it tasted exactly like that Hawaiian Punch drink, only in candy form. It was intense. Oh and i am currently obsessed with Death Cab for Cutie's Plans album. It's strange, I bought the album on a whim, and while the music and lyrics are good, neither are anything mind-blowing. It's just one of those solid albums that seeps deeper into you each time you listen to it.

Ohhhhhhhhh snap!!!

I'm such a sucker for flashy trailers...

http://www.apple.com/trailers/universal/wanted/wanted_large.html

What? No rumble at the Anselm??

The setting: New Hampshire debates on Saturday night. It's intermission, and both the Republican and Democratic hopefuls meet up on stage between debates

I haven't actually gotten to this part yet (yes, I TiVo'd the whole thing and yes, i'm a nerd), but I've seen clips of it in a segment ABC World News did. Said segment is the topic of this post. The segment was basically a discussion of how wonderful it was to see all the Democrats and Republicans smiling and talking, and how we all wish we could know just what was being said to prompt the smiles and friendly exchanges.

I'm confused...

What in the world did everyone (or at least ABC News) think would happen? A knife fight?? I mean come on, it's a minutes long meet and greet on national television. I don't think the fact that a few smiles were cracked amongst acquaintances while network TV cameras were rolling is anything to write home about.

I guess they had to give that smugly dashing David Muir something to report on to appease all those female viewers...

Hm. Redo.

Hmmmmmm... I'm not pleased with the entry I posted yesterday. I was in a sort of dramatic mood. I guess all the stuff I wrote is true, it just reads more dramatic than it should.

I guess what I want to say is last year was a very rich year. It seems like each year life just gets better and better as I grow in my walk with God. As Brian Regan says, "Can life get any better?? I submit that it can NOT!!" Last year was definitely not easy, not hardship free, but just...richer. In many ways I'm a completely different person than I was last year, and the year before that, and the year before that. That's one thing I love about being a Christian. As I learn to trust and know God better, He is constantly moving and shaping me, helping rid myself of old flaws, showing me new ones, maturing me, disciplining me. The fact that life and the future is so uncertain used to be such a huge source of anxiety. Now I find that reality exhilarating. Who knows what the next step is for me. It could be here it could be there. How long will the "next step" last before the "next step" after that begins? Who knows if I'll even make it to the next step?! Not even the next 30 seconds of my life are guaranteed to me, or to anyone for that matter. How awesome is it that God is faithful and in control whether the circumstances in my life are great, exciting, and fun, or difficult, slow, and painful.

"And that's all I have to say about that."

That "end-of-the-year" post...

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven..."

Ecclesiastes 3.1

Well, 2007 has come and gone. Time is so strange. I can think back to an event from mid January of last year and the images and memories are so fresh it feels like yesterday. Yet when I think back to my last quarter of quarter of college that ended just 6 months ago, there seems to be an enormous gulf of lapsed time from then to now.

I don't really believe in new year's resolutions. If I need to change something, I should change it immediately and not drag my feet waiting for some "magical" time of the year. And anyway, a new year passes every single day; we just don't stop to celebrate it until our birthday or January 1st. Still, I must admit there is something unique about this time of year. For me, it's a refreshing, painful, and hopeful time all rolled into one.

Refreshing because it's typically been time away from school and work. Time to spend with family and friends relaxing, celebrating, sleeping, eating. The enjoyable things of life.

However (at least with me), time to relax means time to think and reflect, giving rise to a remembrance of some of the painful events of the year. I can't and don't live life plagued with regrets, but it's impossible not to consider the hardships from the past year that have molded me to be the person I am right now. There is the sadness over my flaws and the consequences they carried, a sadness over missed opportunities with people and pursuits, a sadness over the time wasted on meaningless pursuits, and sadness over the pains that came into the lives of the people I love.

Yet these trials in life give me an opportunity to better know and trust God, whose grace is ever sufficient. Thus this time of year is also hopeful, as I look back and see His faithfulness in my weakness, and look forward to the great adventure that is living this short life for Him. Who knows where I'll be in a year. If you told me on January 1st of last year that I'd be living at home again and working full-time for a Christian non-profit, I would've thrown a brick at you then kindly requested you get out of my presence. So who knows? God is loving and faithful. He always has been, He is now, and He will continue to be. And in my uncertainty over the future, that's all I can cling to. And that's more than enough.