Black Eyed Peas

Just kidding. ... Got'cha!

This entry has nothing to do with Black Eyed Peas.

It has to do with a black eye.

I have a black eye.

I watched in the mirror as my eye began to swell up more and more (it was my first time and I was fascinated). Sure enough on Sunday morning it was still a little swollen and starting to turn black.

Some people at work don't buy my basketball story - they think I am G and got into a fight. This is hella awesome because in 1 day I managed to go from the good guy to the bad guy. I never thought I could pull the bad guy image before.

To answer the never-ending flood of same questions by 230582 people, here are my answers.
Are you wearing make up?!: No - it is a black eye
Did you get into a fight?!: No - it was a basketball incident
Elbowed in basketball?!: No - forehead/eyes collided
Does it hurt?: Only if you touch it. Stay away.
Do you feel cool?: A little bit. But it's more embarrassing than cool.

I eat lunch everyday from 12-1pm - almost all the time at Northern Lights.
Please come eat with me - let me know you're free by doodling here!

India, the Beggar Child, Dendrite, and the Gospel

(This is not the boy I speak of in this entry)

The dirty, homeless, orphaned or abandoned, scrawny beggar child looked into my eyes and smiled. And this time it wasn't the devious smile I had seen for the past hour as we waited for our train. I had just fended off his constant nagging, pulling, touching, and begging. He wanted food or rupees (India's currency) and this kid would not give up. For fun I had seen him chase after an injured pigeon and kick it as hard as he could into the train tracks. He laughed as hysterically as you could when you're a child who knows no better. But here he was, finally calm and having fun, loving the attention it seems he never received.

And there after the smile, he expressed to me using his hands to stay here and wait for him. He took off running freely as if the train station was his jungle. I watched as he started getting smaller and smaller. He was a professional at dodging the bigger adult bodies moving around in the train station.

I smiled and leaned back, resting and thinking about what had just happened. Finally after shutting myself off to the beggar children in fear that I could do nothing for them; after only bad experiences yelling at the kids to leave or getting my hand shook by a beggar child's left hand (you wipe your poo with your left hand in India) as revenge for not giving (you clever little rascal), I finally had a good experience. Moments before Brian Fury (Missions Leader) had said, "More than money or food, they just want to be loved. They are just like all the other children you know. They don't get to experience the love we got to."

Convicted, I dug in my bagpack, took out stationery I was going to write notes and thoughts on, and started making origami. I made origami balls, origami planes, and origami cranes. On each one I drew a comic strip of the gospel and talked to the kids with the little Hindi I knew (a man on a previous train taught me). "My name is Cho. What is your name? Hashee? Hi Hashee." I would point to the man on the cross and say, "This person's name is Jesus." Then I would act out the gospel as much as I could. I realized they were much more fascinated with the "toy" itself. And I soon realized that they probably never had toys in their life! That they have never even seen origami before. That the paper ball, or the paper plane, or paper crane was the only toy they've ever had and they treasured it deeply though it was just paper... it was just paper.... I wanted to bury the gospel into them as much as I possibly could. "What is this person's name?," I would ask as I pointed to the man on the cross. "Jesus" They would reply. But they didn't care as much as they cared about the paper plane. But that's okay - they were just kids and we had a heavy language barrier.



He came back with a small folded cloth and a tube of half-used dendrite. He gave a hearty smile and offered it to me. My heart stopped for a moment. Then it broke. I was in utter shock. Dendrite is a strong superglue. In India, beggar children get high off dendrite - it makes them feel full though they are actually starving. It is one of their most valued possessions because through it, for a few hours they escape the horrid pain and despair they are in. I couldn't believe he was offering it to me.


(I got this picture online, but this person has just sniffed Dendrite)

It threw me into prayer. And that's all I could do. Pray.

In that one moment I learned more theology than I ever had at one point in my life. More than any book by Spurgeon (my favorite), Thomas Watson, the Puritans, Piper, MacArthur, Mohler, DeYoung, Harris, Mahaney, or Grudem (and you all know I absolutely love their books). In that moment I learned what true theology was. Everything I had learned in the 4 months of KCM Missions training and my life's worth of Bible reading and book reading came to life.

This is for you mission trainees going out this summer -
All this KCM training, all this theology - this is what it's about.
It's about holding the orphaned children in India telling them that though no one seems to love them, Jesus does. It's about drawing them a cross saying, "Jesus saves!!" and desperately praying that one day they'll come across a church with a familiar cross on top, enter, and hear the gospel in their own language. It's about befriending college students in Japan, teaching them English, and praying and hoping that they'll truly believe the very book you're teaching them English through - the Bible! It's about doing physical labor in Nicaragua while exclaiming you do this joyfully because of Christ. It's about comforting the frightened man in Uganda who is afraid the witch doctors are going to send evil spirits to him, saying to him that Jesus the one true Lord and Savior of the world can protect him. That's what it's about.

We're going to feel limited in these countries, but let us say with Peter in Acts 3:6 - "I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you."

And what we have is much greater than any monetary thing you can give. They'll never remember your $$ and donations - that's how they survive. You just become another passerby who gave them food or money. Give them something they've never experienced and cannot explain - something that captivates them and makes them wonder what we have - give them the love of God. Now that's something they will remember.

Back when I xangaed (old times) I wrote about it more with more pictures below.

http://chochacho.xanga.com/614933240/the-language-of-love---gods-love-entry-of-the-century/

Aborting the WRONG Baby

Today's topic is a controversial one that creates tension amongst many people in society, including amongst Christians themselves. Yes - this topic is Abortion - the murder of babies.

That's my stance - abortion is the murder of babies.

I'm not writing this entry to spite people for having had one or believing it is perfectly okay. I'm writing this because a very interesting newsworthy thing happened in Sarasota, Florida.



A woman with twins had decided on a "selective termination" of one of her babies who was identified as having down syndrome. However, the doctor made a mistake and aborted the wrong baby. He had killed a perfectly healthy female baby rather than the 'defected' male baby carrying the markers of down syndrome. He lost his license for this and was involuntarily hospitalized because he said he planned suicide.

Any way you look at this - this abortion of the healthy baby was murder. The mother knows it, the hospital staff knows it, the doctor knows it, and above all God knows it. I guarantee that the mother in all aspects regrets her decision. I guarantee that the doctor is filled with guilt (thus wanting suicide). And I guarantee people reading this are angered that this doctor could make such a mistake. For goodness sakes it made me furious. It made the whole city furious - one can only be filled with anger and sadness when they hear and read this story about a healthy baby whose life was wrongly taken in the womb. It was supposed to be the other baby! BUT hold your thought. If a healthy baby's abortion is murder, then every abortion is murder! Are people today with down syndrome any less human than all of us? No. They are amazing people with personalities and gifts special and unique to them like all of us.

Many healthy babies are being aborted today along with babies with even slight signs of defects. The twin baby with signs of down syndrome was NOT the right baby. The healthy twin baby that was aborted was not alone the wrong baby. ALL babies are the wrong baby.

**If you read this and have had an abortion - Please know that there is forgiveness and grace in God through Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior who takes away the sins of the world, including abortion. May Christ minister to your soul and may the church provide love and care for you. If I may point to a past entry (a reminder for Christians who agree with me and words of hopeful comfort to those who need forgiveness).

*First read about this in Al Mohler's Blog

In the Big Inning, God

note: I'm back. Blogging starts again. I have much to write and to share and I am excited. So here we go.



This past weekend, the college campus ministry with which I serve, KCM, held an all-campus KCM softball tournament. Now, KCM stands for Korean-American Campus Missions. You put a bunch of Koreans together for a competition and what you get is a handful of passion. I mean hard raw passion where everyone goes all out. This meant multiple times a week practices, softball gear purchases, and batting cages.

I didn't go to this year's tournament due to various reasons, but I remember last year I went all out. I bought NEW softball gloves - and I mean expensive ones. I bought NEW softball cleats. I bought NEW softballs. I bought NEW socks. We as a ministry bought NEW softball shirts and hats. I went to almost every practice and even went to batting cages on days practices were not scheduled. I gathered people to play catch and practice throwing. My schedule depended on when softball practices were.

At the tournament itself - every team is set on winning. They want to win - who doesn't?! Moments get filled with intense passion as games get close. People cheer and their entire hearts and facilities get involved in the game - GO BRUINS GO BRUINS! LA KCM! (cause we really are the best). And at the end of the last inning one team stands tall as the victor, the champion of the multi-campus KCM Softball Tournament. Done. Trophy in one hand, Glory in the other.

As a freshmen to now, a graduated senior, I often wondered ... what if... what if we trained that hard, not for softball... but for God. I mean, if I can get so passionately fired up for 1 day of softball games, I have to be able to get passionately fired up for an eternity with God. If I can train hours upon hours with discipline for softball, making time for it in the midst of my busy schedule and my studies and work, then why don't I do the same for God?! Am I REALLY too busy for God? Imagine - all of us reading the Bible together, memorizing scripture, and evangelizing, regularly! Yes I care about winning softball games and tournaments, but in light of winning souls - I'd much rather be a soul winner for Christ.

In that perspective I give UCLA KCM Softball a HUGE Congrats for taking 2nd place. A small congrats to our arch-nemesis USC for being the champions (take the small one cause I'm humbling my Bruin pride to say that). <~~obviously a joke - don't take it personally. And here's to all of us "practicing" for God. Let's do this. There was no "Big-Inning" in softball. In the "Big-Inning," GOD. He is before "Big Inning." And with him there will be no last inning.

*Stevo - i jacked your "Big Inning" = Beginning pun from the jubo for this entry.

Today a Great Savior Died

You really didn't think I was going to write about a great teacher dying and then not talk about a great savior dying did ya?

Blog post to come after Good Friday Service today =]

Get ready for this one.

Today a Great Teacher Died

Some of the most under-appreciated under-paid people are our teachers - our teachers throughout our adolescence - through middle school and especially high school. Today I just wanted to honor a man who was an amazing teacher - but one whom I have never had or met.

Jaime Escalante - an ordinary man who had a passion for teaching yes, but even more of a passion for his students, "turned the failing calculus program at Garfield High School in east Los Angeles into one of the top in the nation."
The story goes that he taught long consistent years at Garfield High fighting for change and wanting the students to learn math. He passionately taught and delved into the lives of his students, who he believed could be taught and could succeed in life even though everything in the world was telling them they could not. Through his amazing persistence and love - by being someone who actually cared - his teaching kicked off and soon Garfield High - the lowest of lowly high schools had an AP Calculus program though no one still thought much could be done. Pretty soon students were passing the Calculus AP tests and every year the number went up. In 1982, 18 of his students passed the AP Tests but the Education Testing Service found it fishy and so 12 of the students had to retake the test in individual rooms to show they can pass it again. They did. This man would tutor his students late into the night and drop them off to their parents in his mini-van - he was committed. He turned this no name school into one of the top in the nation for Calculus. He turned students who had no care or thought of succeeding in life into students who felt there could be a future for them other than the streets.
There was a GREAT movie about this 1982 class called - STAND AND DELIVER. It is a must watch.

We need more teachers like this. And for all the teachers in my life that have so brilliantly spurred me on and taught me - thank you.

CNN Article about his death here
Another article here

Thoughts of a Post Grad... on being Grounded

After a 2 month+ hiatus, I am back! Thanks for the encouragements from all my blog readers. So here's a shout out to Ashley Chin - thanks for peeling my tangerine when I was prideful saying I could do it... and for some reason had difficulty doing so.... And here's a shout out to Leo - here's to getting started in blogging again! Alright - straight to the important stuff.

My short Post-Grad life has taught me a very important thing - that is - the Importance of being Grounded.
It is so easy to be swayed by the people who influence you - by leaders, pastors, and peers who claim and seem to know it all. It's easy to jump into a movement or belief that has momentum to it. It's easy to follow pastors, then a new pastor, then a new pastor - whatever they teach. So here's my plead - DON'T - at least not blindly. Don't be grounded in PEOPLE. People are flawed, they will leave, and they will not be a solid rock on which you stand. For goodness sakes I plead with all my readers to be grounded in the Word - on Christ the solid rock. And do that now - not after post-grad.

I love John Piper. I love his teaching. My profile picture is a picture I took with him. However - my trust is NOT in him. I do NOT agree with everything he says (although I do agree with the heavy majority of it). What I'm trying to say is this - Have your own beliefs! Not based on what people say, but on the Word. Have your own beliefs and stick to it - own what you know and defend the truth. When a new leader comes with new beliefs don't be swayed left and right - stand on some solid ground. Be grounded.