I feel really good today! I enjoyed our life group lesson. We watched a video of Joseph Prince’s preaching at the Hillsong Conference last year and we learned more about the law and grace. The message was a good reminder for me because I feel that ever since I arrived here in Auckland, I've been pushing myself too hard into accomplishing the goals that I have. I forgot that it’s not by my strength that it’s going to be accomplished, but by the strength, leading and grace of God.

I also had a great bonding time with the group (which is the purpose of this entry). We divided into small groups and shared what we’ve learned from the message. I missed having this kind of conversations so I feel really refreshed and inspired. And we prayed for one another. It’s been a long time since someone last prayed for me (face-to-face) specifically about my concerns. I’ve been really stressed out with school the past few weeks, with my tons of readings and demanding assignments. Since the semester started, I’ve been doing all-nighters that I feel like I’m sleepwalking around the campus everyday. But after being prayed for, I felt the burdens of school work slightly lifted off my shoulders. It was such a relief!

After the Bible study, we ate fooooood! Kristy, one of the girls, baked some tasty brownies (which I think is mixed with healthy ingredients because she’s an aspiring dietician). Linley, another girl, brought feijoa fruits. I had no idea that such a fruit existed (apparently, it’s a fruit that grows here in New Zealand) but it tastes really good! It’s sweet and it looks like something you would mix in vodka. And another guy (his name is difficult to remember but he’s Indian) brought a couple of pizzas.

While eating, I played the piano! Jin Wei (our leader) got this new organ and Linley kinda pushed me to play. My playing has gone really rusty now but I’m glad my fingers were reunited with the white and black keys again. I played As the Deer and One Desire, while Jin Wei played the guitar. I have never played the piano with another instrument before so it was a new experience. My musical world has been left in a standstill for a long time now that everything has become rusty. Even my voice is not faring very well, LOL.

Since we are an Asian group (majority are Malaysians but there’s also a Korean, an Indian, a Chinese, and of course, Filipinos), we ended the night learning some Korean, Malay, Indian and Filipino words.
Even though there were only 7 of us out of the 15 who were supposed to arrive, I  had a really great time. Living in a city far away from home without my family and friends around gets kinda lonely and boring. But God has answered my prayer and brought me to this group that I’m starting to get comfortable with. (They’re pretty active too, which I’m glad to know.) I hope (and pray) that we'll be good friends (like the borther-sister relationships I have back home) and that I’ll learn more about the Lord with them. I thank God for their lives and I hope I’ll have more friends here in New Zealand.