Pops....

Well Ive waited a little to give an update on my dad but now I feel like the time is appropriate as I watch him sleep, I'm reminded of all of you who have prayed for him and our family during this time. I'm so completely humbled by your love for us and the support I know I have in you all. Praise god for the kingdom, and for the hope I have because of his grace and mercy.
Surgery went well yesterday, Dr. Cao said pops did great, didn't bleed a lot and he was breathing on his own after they finished. They removed a cancerous lesion from his pancreas that was compressing the common bile duct and had damaged some of his small intestine. Our concern now is that the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes surrounding the pancreas.so our next step after recovery from his surgery is chemo therapy and radiation. This was difficult news to grasp, initially I cried and felt extreme grief. But I have nothing to grieve for. I know my dad is strong like an ox, not only because of physical strength but mainly because of the strength he has from Christ. Today I have peace, god-given amazing peace that I can't explain. I'm so grateful my earthly father knows and loves our heavenly father. That is something to rejoice about, and brings me so much peace in itself. We are going to be taking this one step at a time together and leaning on christ along the way for he is our light in darkness... If anyone wants to visit my dad he is at fountain valley regional medical center room 109....I've been talking to many of u and if I haven't had the chance to text or call u back please know I'm forever grateful for ur love and prayers!! Our god is sooooo good thank you!!!
"let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant" psalms 119:76
"is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him song praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for elders of the church and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick and the Lord will raise him up" James 5:13-15

Love

So its been a few months, but I decided to write today. good day for writing, cloudy weather, lots of coffee and some free time! say what??! yea, free time! The last few months have been great. My birthday was amazing, my friends took me to dinner, and i had a great time at my parents house too. In june I camped at San Onofre for a week with my family, and my friends managed to come down on different days to hang, surf, fellowship. It was a much needed vacation I cant wait to go back next year :] I also got baptized in June as well. It was amazing, I'm so blessed by my church family and the encouragement i have from them. Fourth of July was the best one yet! It included, phil wickham, Victor Marx, bike parade, fire works, and street witnessing.
The end of July has been full of trials, but im still rejoicing. " And we know that for those who love God all things work together for the good, for those who are called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28 As many of you know, pops hasnt been feeling well. We found out that he has a mass blocking his intestines, and according to biopsy it could be cancerous. We are struggling to get him a surgery date because they wont do it unless he has insurance which is hard to find after you have a pre-existing condition. But we have faith that God will provide, and that through this God is glorified in all things. We have so much love and support and most of all prayer from our friends and family, it has been very humbling to me to hear from all of you.
On a brighter note, my nieces are incredible. I miss them all the time but they are amazing me how much they have grown. Emery riane is walking! and melia is getting more teeth every day it hilarious! I look forward to my time i get to spend with them, it pains me so much to be away but God has me where i am for His purpose. speaking of that, nursing school is going really well. I cant believe ill be an RN in 10 months. its going by so fast but i love it! I'm more than excited to start my career, nothing brings me joy more than to take care of people, to love the sick, and show Gods love through my work. My prayer is for God to use me as a nurse, and that my actions would represent Christ and His sacrificial love for us.
Speaking of Love... Im super excited for whatever God has in store for me. sometimes, its hard to be patient, or not anxious but I know that Gods timing is perfect. "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart" Psalms 37:4 This verse is so beautiful and such a great reminder of His love for us, and delighting in Him is more than sufficient for us. well thats all for now, thanks for reading :]
THINGS IM READING:
Trusting God- Jerry Bridges
Philippians
THINGS IM LISTENING TO:
Train- save me san francisco
Sanctus Real- pieces of a real heart
Phil Wickham- Cannons

crazy day!

Tuesdays are always fun and something to look forward to for me because i have the day off from work and school! so me and jess decided we would just drive around and go wherever our hearts desired! we started out going to the cutest coffee shop in the world called Milk and Honey. Its in costa mesa off bristol and baker, really close to The LAB. when i walked in i instantly thought of my sister jenny. I am positive she would love this place. Its so tiny and tranquil and everything is vintage. The coffee and tea is all organic. they even have frozen yogurt mmmmm :] Then we went to pita fresh grill which is part of my homework assignment for speech class. i had to go to a new place and try something new and give a review on it for my class. so I tried greek food! It was good until i started seeing a lambs face when i was eating my gyro. Then i decided to just grub on the hummus! mmmm so wonderful :] Then we went to the goodwill and i spent 30 dollars! i never spend 30 dollars at the goodwill. but i got the cutest pair of boots it was worth it!!! our next stop was everyones favorite place TARGET. since i spent all my money at the Goodwil i watched jess decide whether to buy a 2 pack of black v-neck tees or a pair of superman boxers. hahaaha she picked the v-necks :]Then we went to jessicas house and read Colossians and listened to Chuck tracks with britt and joey. THEN we went to pinkberry and it was confirmation of why i love frozen yogurt so much. and then i got to hear my mothers beautiful voice, her and my stepdad are in JAMAICA on vaca and i havent heard from her in a few days. I loved chatting even for a minute i miss her! Our random day ended with Glee and lots of laughs, maybe a few tears, and thats all!

a new season....

I wasnt supposed to move back to OC until april, But I was really struggling with certain idols in my life and I was praying that God would reveal His plans for me. So, my move actually happened in February. My first day here, I looked and researched for a church with a college group i could attend. I had a few places lined up for my first week, starting with Calvary chapel westgrove's college group on thursday nights. Im sitting in my car, debating on going in. I never knew how hard it would be to walk in ALONE to a completely new college group, im not shy by any means so this was just a completely new experience for me. when i finally walked in, this beautiful, energetic, extremely welcoming girl introduced herself. "HI!!!! Im JESSICA!!!!! WHATS YOUR NAME!?" haha i cant help but laugh now at how terrified i was! Little did I know this was only the beginning of such a beautiful new season in my life... Its opened so many doors for me to grow in Christ and serve the kingdom. I have no distractions now, Im not worried about pleasing others, im completely focused on pleasing my savior. This is the most heart change ive had as a christian, and all glory and praise goes to my father in heaven. this blog is to my friends and family who thought i dropped off the face of the earth. Im just letting you all know that Im alive and Ive never had so much Joy.
Things im reading: im everywhere in my bible, no specific book at the moment
When people are big and God is small.
starting The Bride wore white soon!
Things coming up this month:
Mexico Missions trip May 15th
and maybe a birthday towards the end if i feel like celebrating it.