As the baby is soon coming, our friends threw Bryan and I a baby shower a couple of weeks ago. It was a very memorable night. I was personally struck with so much thankfulness for the people who not only prepared everything but also took a night out to celebrate with us. I was especially grateful that all of our new friends could also come and be with us.

Our friends back at Berkeley had also sent us gifts and cards, and it reminded me that we’re being supported by a whole community of believers back at our home church. Also, as all of us packed in together that night at Pastor Manny and Sunny’s house it reminded me of the ways I had experienced community and witnessed people’s expressions of love for others through events like these when I was an undergrad.

I feel grateful that our child will grow up in a community like this where she will have many “aunties and uncles” to look after her and older sisters and a brother who’ll teach her to play games and put her in her place if she starts acting bratty. They say that it takes a village to raise a child, and more and more I realize how true this really is.

Koinonia wanted to try something fun, exciting, and new for Halloween night, so what did we decide to do? SCAVENGER HUNT! The goal was to answer each clue that described a particular landmark on UT campus. After answering the clue, the team was to take a picture or video that would be the most creative or unique. And how creative were they? Here’s one group that tried to exemplify “freedom” through an interpretive, “West Side Story” kind of dance.

This past weekend, Koinonia had its first official overnight getaway to beautiful Pedernales State Park!! It was perfect weather, and the day couldn’t have turned out any better as we enjoyed awesome views of nature, and even caught a gigantic fish (courtesy of David and Andrew). For me, the best part was standing there in the middle of the river, my fishing line cast into the water, and just taking in the wonderful beauty of God’s creation. The trees along the river were bursting with fall colors, which made it all the more beautiful.

After a packed day at Pedernales, we went to our sleepover houses, where we did our Daily Devotions in the book of Psalm 73. After some good reflection and sharing time, we ate an incredible dinner, including pork ribs courtesy of Isaac and Jacob. Thanks guys! With our stomachs full, we played some group games and then some board games. And then to cap it off, Pastor Manny showed the freshmen what’s up by pretty much dominating them in this tug of war game..When I get the video, I’ll post it online to share for everyone’s enjoyment..

It was a memorable outing to say the least. Hopefully those of you who weren’t able to make it out on this trip will be able to join us for our next outing…

This past weekend was one of the most fun and memorable times I’ve had here at Austin. Before school and work got a lot busier and hectic, we decided to go on a getaway to Pedernales Falls, which is a state park about an hour and a half away from Austin. After our TFN (The Friday Night) we all went over to Pastor Manny and Sunny’s house and played this peculiar game called “Ming Mang Mong” (it’s harder than it sounds) & ate a late night snack of kimchee bowl ramen. Then, we all watched Evan Almighty together, and afterwards the girls slept over at Sunny’s house and the guys at Kelly’s house. Early the next morning we left to go to Pedernales Falls, and in order to pass the time we told some relatively bad to pretty bad jokes over the talkabouts where the responses were either groans or stunned silence.

When we arrived at our destination, and it was as if we had stepped into a picture that you’d only see on calendars or magazines. Along the crystal clear river were banks of trees with red, deep orange, and brown leaves which contrasted beautifully against the tranquil, blue skies. It was an unreal sight to see.

Some people had spotted some fish that were 1.5 to 2 feet long, and different attempts were made to catch them. Finally, David caught one–an ugly, huge carp. It’s something you don’t want to look at before eating it. Finally, we got back into the cars and headed towards the houses. That night, we enjoyed a feast (like we always do) with Jacob and Isaac’s ribs, homemade potato salad, and a lot more. One of my favorite moments was when the sisters were all in the kitchen cooking food and crying over cut onions together, sharing our stories and lives. After dinner we played some fun games, and one of them was where we each had to finish this sentence, “I’m probably the only person who has ______.” For example, one person shared she’s probably the one person who has slept 24 hours straight. Another person said she had fallen down two flights of stairs, and another person said he’s probably the one who has ever kicked a baracuda in the face.

The next morning after breakfast, we had some time to do our devotionals together. It was a sight to see everyone spread out reading God’s word intently and engaged in it. It really left a lasting impression on me and made me thank God for providing a time away from our busy agendas and stresses of life so that we could enjoy his creation and word together. I look forward to many more times like this.

What do rapping, line dancing, and Thanksgiving meal have in common? Nothing…except that’s what we’ll be experiencing at Thanksgiving Celebration (a.k.a. TC) this year! Thanksgiving Celebration is an annual tradition that our church back at Berkeley had where different ministry groups presented an act that described what they were thankful to God for this past year, and this event is often accompanied by a delicious Thanksgiving feast. Bringing the tradition to Austin, we’ll be having our own presentations and acts this Sunday along with the turkey and all the fixings.

In preparation this special event, we had our very first TC practice last week. Bryan and Joyce’s group practiced their hip hop moves to Canon in D while Lillian and Carlton’s group got western with line dancing. Needless to say Sunday will be a night of much laughs, joy, and giving thanks to God.

Well, the day finally came. Gracepoint-Austin had our very first Thanksgiving Celebration. It was truly a sight to see…the delicious food prepared by the staff and students, the cowboy costumes, the rappers, and the guest appearance by Pastor Manny who tried to do a breakdance move that didn’t quite work out. It was truly a memorable night.

However, more than the singing and dancing, the part of the day that I enjoyed most was the sisters’ sharing time in the morning. After we read Psalm 100 together aloud, each of us shared one thing we were thankful to God for this past year, and at the end of the sharing everyone said, “Praise the Lord, His love endures forever.” It was a moving time for me as I recalled God’s faithfulness in my life this past year and in the people who were gathered in that room.

I am thankful for what God has done in the four and a half short months we’ve been here. At the end of the Thanksgiving Celebration performances, we watched the Gracepoint church slideshow, and as we tracked back the history of our church along with the different ministries we were involved in, I was hit by the fact that God had started our church back in Berkeley all those years ago through the commitment and sacrifices of people committed to serving him. I was reminded that God calls us to this journey of faith with him and what a privilege it is that I get to be a part of his plans.

Thanksgiving is a special time to remember the many ways in which God has blessed us our lives. Many of us were able to do just that, and we were also given the opportunity to express our thanks and joy through our first ever Thanksgiving Celebration! Praise God!

After a wonderful Thanksgiving service, we all headed on over to the Rec Center, where we reserved a multipurpose room that was perfect for what we needed. More than 70 people in all enjoyed the incredible turkey feast that night. But for those of us who were there that night, we know that the highlight was the special performances that several of our Koinonia members prepared. There was everything from line dancing, a string and wind instrument trio, and rapping to name just a few things we got to enjoy…See the videos below! Be sure to look out for Pastor Manny’s freeze pose during the rap

Christmas is just around the corner! I can’t believe it. We’ve come to the end of another year. It’s just amazing how fast time flies. To cap off our first semester as Koinonia, we held our last major event of the semester.. our Christmas Gift Exchange. Everyone was told to bring a gift of about five dollars to participate in the game. Let me just say, some people chose to bring some unique gifts (i don’t want to mention any names, but someone brought a picture frame, but it wasn’t any old picture frame…it had a picture of himself in it).

So as you can see, people had the liberty to bring pretty much whatever gift they wanted. Now during the course of the gift exchange, we had these “challenge” cards where one person could challenge another person for that person’s gift. One of the challenges was arm wrestling, another was to see who could break dance better (where I totally dominated wayne…sorry, wayne), and another was to see who could do the best boxing impersonation. There were several other challenges as well, but for your viewing pleasure, I’ve posted the video where the two contestants were judged by how well they could impersonate a boxer. Judge for yourself who you think is more realistic. All in all, it was a very memorable gift exchange. Not a bad way to end our first semester as Koinonia! Two more weeks of the semester left. Good luck students with your finals! Study hard and hang in there!