Sunday Morning Scramble School - The Latest Summer Review Ever

Hey y'all!

I know, I'm the worst blogger in the world (I'm sorry), and this post is from the summer which has definitely passed (from the early mornings and darker evenings that I see everyday now), :( but it doesn't mean that you can't read it and enjoy it! Hopefully, haha. Like Josh said, tennis, academics, and life in general are getting to me. It's getting busy, which will only increase to my demise. WILL IT EVER STOP SO I CAN ACTUALLY WRITE A POST AND SCRIPTS ON TIME (yeahh... I have a verse though to share with you!)

"28 'Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.' " -Matthew 11:28-30 

This world is full of stress, non-stop work, and just overall busyness, but in the midst of it all, we can find comfort and rest in our Lord and Savior! Don't forget that as you go through your new week! :) 

Below in black is my summer post, and in this color will be extra comments of mine. Summer here we come! 

{HELLO MY LOVELY READERS. HOW I'VE MISSED THE INTERNET (NOT REALLY...)

I'm in trouble. And I haven't blogged since. Forever. I'm so sorry T_T. To make it up, I'm doing an extra long post. Telling you all about the summer (yay Odyssey Related to Reality). (This will be long. I promise. I should draw you some pictures so you can smile and think "Odyssey"! Or happy thoughts...ANYWAYS) 

Josh came back from Yale yesterday (Yay!) Hope you caught up with his adventures and work and stress on his ILC blog (the work and adventures and stress have not ended - college apps and seniorlyfe)!

I went to a camp called CBM (Chinese Bible Ministries) and it's totally awesome-a week away from the world in the great outdoors with a bunch of well... (majority wise) Asian kids from Chinese Christian churches! You get to meet new friends, have workshops and learn way more about God, and interact with everyone through a whole bunch of games and free time! (Kinda like Camp What-A-Nut - a lot of activities, competitions, the great outdoor experience.) This was my first time at the high school camp. The year before was my very first year at a CBM camp, but I had gone to the junior high camp!

My parents drove us on a lovely Monday afternoon with four of my friends two hours up to the camp! Many became homesick (even when they arrived at my house!) but I was excited. This was my second time at a CBM camp and my first time was totally awesome! I couldn't wait for another week of learning what God was trying to tell me and meeting a whole bunch of kids and seeing some old faces! Things were going to get interesting and God taught me so much - even in six days.

Confession time:
In the beginning and even now...
I admit that I felt like I couldn't hear God speaking to me. Sometimes I'd lie in bed waiting and trying to erase everything from my mind (impossible for me...) and hear Him trying to verbally say something. And I wouldn't be able to hear anything. It'd frustrate me because I thought God wasn't speaking to me. I felt lost, confused, and unsure about what God was calling me to do. I guess that's kinda like Camilla in Your Servant is Listening.

Going off topic a little...
HEY GUYS DID YOU HEAR THE NEW EPISODES HUH HUH HUH HUH :D YAY. I WAS EXCITED. AND I LIKED THE EPISODES. WE'LL TALK ABOUT IT LATER, BUT BACK TO CBM...

We arrived at camp. And like last year, many of the churches had and were arriving. Compared to us, THEY'RE HUGE. Like forty kids in buses or even more. In total I think CBM High School Camp had about...guessing over 200? Lots of Asian people. We only brought five kids from our church o.o in a van. Thankfully my two girl friends (both sisters) and I were in the same cabin so we'd be together and the other two guys (both brothers) would be together. The camp grounds were HUGE compared to the original site where CBM used to be! There was so much walking, but it was good, :D 'cuz we all need exercise right? The bad part about it being so big was that it was harder to make new friends since mostly everyone stuck with their church groups and were more spread out.

I was feeling good as I stepped out of the van, but I got kinda scared. I wondered if I'd fit in with these kids. I wondered if I'd be able to make friends and continue to be friends. I was getting anxious (AND IF YOU GUYS GET ANXIOUS, TELL YOURSELF PHILIPPIANS 4:6-7. :) It's a great verse). And as I tried, I felt it was harder to reach out to make friends because it seemed as if everyone already knew each other and had their own groups. Was I going to meet tons of new kids or just stick with my childhood friends? Man, it was only the first day of camp, and I was already stressing and doubting God's power.

My workshops were "Sexuality in the Bible" and "The Problem of Evil". Total wise, there were six workshops, three on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the other three on Thursday and Friday. Each workshop was lead by a pastor from a different church, and each held a number of kids and counselors who wanted to take them.

In the "Sexuality in the Bible" taught about what God's purpose was for marital sex, and the corruption of sexuality (lusts...) It sounds like an awkward subject right? It totally is, but now I know whenever the lusts or things are shown around me, I shall pursue Christ! That's what we're supposed to do! We're surrounded by a world who makes immorality seem normal- in the internet, dramas, TV, movies, songs, all entertainment. It's like "Soaplessly Devoted" where Erica's favorite show was trashy and immoral (wording from AIO Wikipedia page). 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 tells us to flee this, and we should pursue sanctification instead (1 Thessalonians 4 and 1 Timothy 5:1-2). God gives us to strength to get rid of these thoughts and feelings. He gives you and me the strength to say no to temptation and lusts.

"No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it"-1 Corinthians 10:13

Ever want a great book to read about the idols of our lives, check out Gods At War by Kyle Idleman.

"The Problem of Evil" workshop was very good. The question asked was "If God is good, then why does He let bad things happen?" I had always wondered how to respond to people who asked that.
We learned about four elements:
1. God is all good
2. God is all powerful
3. God exists
4. Evil exists
We proved that they existed from a biblical standpoint.
The fifth element that makes the first four work together is that God has a GLORIOUS purpose for evil. What is that purpose? Romans 3:3-5, Romans 5:8, and Romans 9:17, 20-21, 22 tells us that it's because it's to glorify God. We always think our lives is about us right? To our surprise, it's not. It's all about God. We all suffer, in different ways, in some ways more than others. But we have our Father to call upon.

SPOILER DON'T READ THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T LISTENED TO THE RECENT ALBUM 57 EPISODES I REPEAT IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE SPOILED DON'T READ THE BLUE BELOW

Like Connie, when her mother passed, she wondered why did God take her mother home now, at this time. At the time, Connie didn't know why this would even happen, but despite the tragedy, Connie learned the lessons of comfort in God, and is going to help out Jeff Lewis in his missionary work. The only way she found out about his work was because of her mother's funeral. I'm not saying that it was a good thing June died, I'm saying God has a purpose for everything that happens in your life, good or bad, whether you know it or not. It's a matter of if you trust Him in the midst of the situation you're in, or you go flying in solo. Uncertainty needs trust, so if you're ever concerned about what God has in store for you, learn to lean on His sovereignty. 

This reminds me of the bible story about Job, and the Odyssey episode of "Bernard and Job". Lisa learned that when life treats you unfairly, the blame should not go to God and that God is in control of all things.
So, in a world of evil in the dark, what are your responses to evil, things that are unfair to you, or suffering? How can you give it all to God when everything seems to be caving in?

One of my highlights of CBM was campfire, where everyone in the whole camp all gather in the amphitheater and we all sing and some people share about their highlights. It's a blessing and an encouragement to hear how the camp has impacted them or helped them in their walk with God, and how excited they are to share about Christ! The sharing definitely involves tears, hearing tragic events that have occurred, but it always ends with God coming through (what can we learn from that? :) He'll come through!) It was definitely cold, but the body heat and testimonies warmed me up.

As the week went by, I met so many people, but I only became close friends with a few. I learned that it doesn't matter how many friends you make, but who you're friends with. These people that I befriended have absolutely been God's blessings to me by checking in on me, praying for me, and being always there to talk about Him. It's awesome to see how God places people in our lives during different stages, and how they affect you during that time. I miss them all so much: my friends, the counselors, the camp environment. But with a week of knowledge, encouragement, and our bibles, we're ready to be God's messengers, to go bold, go strong and go FISH!}

In the summer, my family and I had an awesome trip to Canada! Puppy really wants to post about that trip (and show off his "model" pictures of the house), so I'll let him take care of that :) 

 THIS IS ME. HELLO WORLD. Do you subscribe to Clubhouse? Does your little siblings or cousins or neighbors? Well then you can see my art that I submitted and all the other cool creative games and ideas in the Clubhouse Members Magazine 2013! Second year in a row! (I was in the 2012 version as well!) Both Odyssey related :) I did the theme of the Fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) and tried to incorporate all of them into something the Odyssians could all do together-hence the theater and a Fruits of the Spirit play, which totally go together! Penny and her talent are at work making a poster for Connie who's trying to direct everyone, but of course everyone is going crazy and not paying attention to a surprisingly calm Ms. Kendall. If you see the girl in the background with the black hair and orange tee, I based it off myself hahaha. I know, so original, but it felt so empty there. The whole Odyssey gang is there (except Whit :( maybe he was taking a picture of this chaotic scene). Jay, Priscilla, the Jones, Nelson, Ryan Cummings, the Jones, and the Parkers are all in it to help out! Check it out! It was a lot of fun to draw! :)

So for most of the Internet people I know, I make pictures for their birthdays (and they're always late haha). This one is for Kevin McCreary, The Ceiling Fan Podcast creator, writer, and actor! As you can see, Josh and I are in there, with Garrett Vandenberg and his guitar playing a HBD tune. Kevin's character, Ethan, is with Connie, who he really likes haha. And what do you know-Jimmy Barclay is there too! All old and grown up... with a soul patch! The markers that I used for this picture were COPICS, alcoholic markers that you can find at specialty art stores (super worth it :3)!

Now my life is just: school. School consists of music, homework, and tennis (which is ending soon!), as well as other stuff, like art, letters, and blogging, now and then. It's getting busy, but God has been helping me get through it and He'll continue to help! I just wish I had more sleep... Yay, a long satisfying post :3 (well, I'm satisfied! I hope the same goes for all of you :P) I hope you all have awesome weeks, I shall be back soon! 

CHALLENGE:
HEY - GO COMPLIMENT SOMEONE RANDOMLY AND MAKE THEIR DAY. :) It's so fun to do that, just randomly messaging someone and checking up on them. It's fun for me because I LIKE FELLOWSHIP. IT'S NOT THAT HARD SO IT SHOULDN'T BE A CHALLENGE... JUST GO DO IT!!!! 


  

727-728: Your Servant is Listening, Parts 1 And 2

Hello Album 57!

THE ODYSSEY TIMES (Facts, notes, and quotes about Odyssey from this ep):
- Matthew is headed for the skater look.
- The age-old "how lenient is too lenient" question between older generation and younger generation.
- Jesse Fliscergold got a pencil eraser stuck up his nose? Oh, Jesse. Jesse, Jesse, Jesse.
- Oh snapple, the second Parker has changed voices. Stay on, Zach Callison, stay on!
- Camilla got a lot younger-sounding with a more pure and less raspy voice. She was originally Joy in Child's Play.
- Camilla, let's not resort to logic leaps to get what you want. You're smarter than that!
- The Imagination Station is just "big and empty," as Lucia describes. 
- "Don't we have to buckle in first?" - Lucia and a clever nod to earlier IS incarnations
- Three generations of Ortega women - out on the town, as in Shiloh!
- "He could stand to cut down on the tamales though; he's a large one." - Lucia on Eli
- The return of the Sunshine Girl references!
- "I think he has my nose!" "I still think he's cute." - Elkanah and Camilla
- "Prayer changes us. It shows our dependence on God and our desire to invite Him into our lives. It also allows us to express our heart to Him, and then He does the same with us!" - Hannah
- What's a time when you've seen God in your life?
- Eli needs help with child control.
- Cinderella, Cinderella, night and day, it's Cinderella. Phinehas, also known as the Evil Goddefiler.
- "That's where the Ark is." "Oh, so that's where Noah parked it!" - Samuel and Camilla
- "The Ark contains the power and glory of God!" "What would happen if you went there?" "I'd be struck dead." "Yeeee, you're right, we'd better take another way out." - Samuel and Camilla
- Indiana Jones knows the lesson from the above quote very well.
- Way to bring French toast to Israel, Camilla!
- "We're all His children. He has something to say to each of us - if we only listen. And of course, we have to talk to Him too." - Samuel
- Welcome to God's family, Camilla!

REVIEW:
After having the last Bible story season premiere become one of my favorite episodes of all time, I tried to have low expectations for this season premiere. I was curious to see how an adventure with "three generations of Ortega women" written by Nathan Hoobler and Kathy Buchanan would turn out, and how Samuel would work as a story. Suffice it to say, it worked. 

However, it didn't work right away. The first half and second half were pretty much disconnected from each other (for the sake of argument) in terms of...well, for me, almost everything. On the surface, part 1 was about Hannah and how God listened to her, while part 2 was about Samuel and how he and the nation of Israel (and us) had to learn to listen to God. I thought the acting in the first half, in terms of the Biblical characters, was weak. I didn't really connect to any of the characters because of what I heard as a stale delivery. As didactic storytelling, Odyssey has mostly managed to get a lesson across without being "preachy." While the act of preaching is not a bad thing (hello, Sunday!), it's more difficult to make a lesson really sink in when you stick it into entertainment. I felt that a lot of things had to be explained, and more things were told to us than shown (comment if you're interested in some of these cases) in the first half. One of the things that needed to be told, Hannah's conversation with Camilla, wasn't as strong as it could be because of Terrianne Steinhower's performance, although I felt her performance improved as the episode went on.


Speaking of performance, let's talk about Michaela Dean! I thought something was amiss when I heard a less raspy, younger voice for Camilla. After listening to the latest podcast and finding out she had previously voiced Joy, I recognized that the writers either needed Camilla to be younger or Sydney Shiotani had lost interest. I was SUPER disappointed and bummed by the loss of Sydney, since I LOVED her voice and thought it was incredibly possibly iconic and unique to Odyssey, Michaela did a fine job. I still miss Sydney, though!

My favorite part of part 1 was towards the beginning, when Lucia and Eva explained to Camilla about animal sacrifice - and connected it back to the Gospel! Applications and how the Bible still relates to us today is something Odyssey can do really well, as best shown in The Perfect Church and The Imagination Station, to name a few. The second half picked up on this with Samuel and Camilla. Samuel's message of learning to listen to God was timely and important. I always like to say how God is such an amazing storyteller, and it's interesting to see the story of Phinehas and Hophni, who didn't listen to their father, juxtaposed against Samuel, who listened to his Father. Camilla's conversion after learning to listen to God was a very natural step for her, and it was exciting and interesting to see an example of how someone came to faith growing up in a Christian family (I'm not sure when was the last time we heard that on Odyssey). 

I've always loved the chemistry between Lucia and Eva, but I felt it was even stronger in this two-parter as they spent most of their time with each other. Their relationship feels so real, thanks to their superb performances. Lucia brought a lot of great levity to the episode, and I appreciated her warmth, humor, and wisdom. It reminded me of better Mr. Whittaker days! Eva's job as a nurse was perfect for this episode, and I'm so glad Mr. Hoobler and Ms. Buchanan incorporated that for continuity. 

For me personally, this episode was very eye-opening, as I learned that I need to take the time to try and listen to God. I think we often treat prayer like a one-way conversation (at least I can), and we need to remember that there's always Someone listening (and speaking) on the other side of the phone!

While starting slow (in terms of telling over showing and acting), Your Servant is Listening is a well, thought-out, thought-provoking two-parter that asks us to check ourselves on how we listen to God and not just talk. Sound design and score is on point, as is the writing, performances, and attention to detail. I give this episode a 93/100, or an 

A

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Catch up on Josh's summer by reading his blog from the past several months here

Buy this episode and 11 others on Album 57: A Call to Something More via CBD
Read our review of The Perfect Church
Talk about this episode and a bunch of other Odyssey stuff over at Campbell County

AVERY WATCH:
Best Episode - Nathan Hoobler, Kathy Buchanan, Bob Hoose
Best Sound Design - Chris Diehl
Best Actress - Lucki Wheating 
Best Score - John Campbell