As many of you have heard, we have a new blog that is quickly becoming a great resource for any small group gathering here at Gracepoint, Berkeley. Not to be confused with Dis-Gracepoint, Dish-Gracepoint is a site that Tom Kim of A2F created in order to help anyone preparing food for groups of 2 to 50 (give or take a hundred)! He reveals many of his recipies, where to buy meats, useful tips, and secrets of cooking.
When I first heard about this site, I asked Tom what his plan was for it. He said, and I quote, “Well, I want people with little to no cooking experience, the Abe Yang’s of the world, to be able to make a great small group dinner!”
Each recipe comes with "Tom's Tips and Tricks"
Well, if that’s true, then how could I hide this incredible site! So if you want to learn how to cook, increase in your competence in the kitchen, or simply cook a meal for the staff (haha), check out this site!
Here’s to some great Kairos dinners and awesome small group meals. Boy, I’m getting hungry just writing this post!!
Can anything beat camping in the breath-taking Sierra Nevadas in sunny July, kayaking and rafting on pristine lakes, and star-gazing on the rocky beach at night? Well, we did all that with all the lovely folks of Kairos 2 and 4 from Gracepoint Berkeley! Alright, don’t be jealous, for those of you who couldn’t make it — at least you can see 1/100^100 of the beauty from the pictures.
Kairos 2 on the rocks
To start off my best summer weekend, I started from Berkeley on Friday with the three Kairos 4 staff: Jully, Rich and Rich (Yen and Dongses). It was a great time for inter-Kairos bonding as they told me difficult riddles for the three-hour drive. When we finally met up with the rest of the group who arrived the day before, we immediately loaded kayaks from Sierra Lodge and headed for Lake Spaulding for some quality fellowship time. After a short time of peaceful kayaking on the glittering lake, a raging water war broke out between anyone and everyone. And as Amy proclaimed loudly her innocence, Andy, sitting behind her, was attacking with full force at every kayak and boat that came near. Although I saw many pretty rainbows as water was flung towards me at the intensity of 3 quarts/second, I learned a very important lesson: never sit in the front of the kayak because that seat is reserved for human water shields.
Thanks, Pastor Ed and Kelly, for letting us use these awesome Kayaks!!
Even though I wished I could float on the water forever, we had to move quickly to our campsite so we can set up before night fall. But before leaving, the brothers struggled to take their “strong men” picture with the kayaks. As an afterthought, the sisters decided to show them what strength was made of.
Posers -- I mean, brothers -- with kayak on Lake Spaulding
Sisters with superhuman strength
Our good and faithful trucks caravanned us to our campsite at Donner Lake via some very rocky roads, and the brothers, being experienced and skilled, set up four tents while the sisters prepared a devastating dinner way too luxurious for a camping trip. But you know, this is the Kairos way. After dinner, we did not lose time but trekked in the moonlight to the nearby lake. It was honestly the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. The mountain peaks stood majestically on the opposite shore, and the moonlight was crisp. I couldn’t help but marvel at Our Creator God who made all this. Do humans really belong here? Yet there we were, sitting on the rocks, listening to the rushing water and lost in the stars of the velvety sky. After some quiet time of lying on the beach and staring into the canopy of stars overhead, we gathered to sing praise to God, accompanied by guitar music from two talented brothers, Andy and Robert. Although the guitarists suffered from lack of practice, we enjoyed the time of worship. Sometimes it is so easy to get lost in the daily busy-ness and forget to treasure and appreciate the gifts in life. But I will remember the wonder of knowing my Creator and His love for me that night.
Lauren and Zoe cooking at night with a trendy "headlight"
Andy leading the praise (with the trendy headlight)
Lake Bowman the next day
Jully excited by "waterfall"
I woke to the chirping of birds on Saturday morning. After breakfast we set off in the search for a legendary waterfall, which was supposed to be “devastating” according to Andy. We got some good hiking training as we made a couple of wrong turns, and then we came across a waterfall! The only thing is the water fit in the palm of Jully’s hand. So we trusted our leader and navigator once more to search for the REAL waterfall. Just before I was about to give up, the sound of crashing water filled our ears. We found it! The water was clear to the bottom but very cold. The brothers again decided to take a “strong men” picture in the freezing water. I think they’d look stronger if their legs weren’t shaking.
Kairos 2 and 4 join forces
Brothers standing in the freezing water
Sisters sitting on a log (above said freezing water)
We had spent half a day hiking but there was one more thing to do before we left—we were going to have lunch on an island in the middle of Lake Faucherie. It was truly an amazing sight, and all of us hiked around the island after lunch, which was a great work-out. Before I knew it we had to start heading home. I really wish time could stop so we could stay there longer but reality is, school and work awaits us in civilization. Even though I am physically away from the mountains and lakes, my heart keeps wandering back to this memorable weekend. I can’t wait till we go camping again!
Rafting to and from an island on Faucherie Lake. A Gracepoint Berkeley first!
Sisters taking a break on the island
Editor’s Addendum
Ron relaxing as other bros struggle
Since Lin arrived with the later crew on Friday, I’ll take the liberty of filling in what we did on Thursday. The highlight of that day was going to Island Lake and journeying up some rocks. Although that doesn’t sound terribly exciting, the view from up there was breathtaking. From those rocks, we fed ourselves both physically and spiritually.
Memorizing parts of Isaiah 40
Cheng and Ron blessing the rest of us with their (somewhat) impeccable memory
Before we left Island Lake that day, we had to do our annual rock skipping challenge
NOTE: Deadline to order is Wednesday Night (July 23).
Due to popular demand, we will continue to provide DT (Devotional Time) journals with all of the text, commentaries, and questions, in two month segments, for the rest of the year. There will be two versions from which you can choose:
a 5.5″ x 8.5″ bound journal with text, commentaries, questions, AND writing space (much like what is already available online)
a 5.5″ x 8.5″ bound journal with text, commentaries, questions, and NO writing space (this is for those who are keeping their own separate journal)
We are going to provide higher-quality covers and binding, so please note that the cost will be greater than what the summer journal was. The price is TBD.
Please note: Before we actually print the journals, we will need for you to pre-pay for your reserved copy.
Alright, so we’ve been looking for a campsite, a tent/cabin, a cabin, a house, a shack, even a box (ok not really) at Yosemite, but apparently, everything within 1.5 hours of Yosemite is booked. So, there’s been a change of plans… Drum roll please……………
That’s right, we’ll be camping in the Sierras this weekend!! After doing some research, we found the most amazing camp site: nature, the wild, mano a mano with the elements! I don’t know if you guys remember the Island Lake hike we took last summer, but we found out that we can actually camp anywhere along that trail. This means, we put our tents on our backs, hike onto that massive rock right next to the awesome lake, and BAM, set up tent and start cooking dinner! This may be A FIRST at Gracepoint Fellowship Church, Berkeley!!
Hanging out next to Island Lake in 2007
We’ll also be going boating, going to one of the most beautiful yet untouch lakes that requires trucks to reach, and engage in some of awesome hikes. We’ll bring a guitar, games, our camp fire (though no open fires are allowed due to the recent fires) stories, and of course some great food.
Kairos 2 guys after a bumpy truck ride to pristine Lake Bowman in 2007
Hey! How come Ron's not wearing a life vest?
At any rate, see you guys this weekend!!
We’ll be putting up more updates this week so be sure to check back. Also, check the comments for packing lists, weather info, and other important info!
So if you missed our Fourth of July outing you should be crying yourself to sleep. The rest of us cried ourselves to sleep the subsequent nights because we were so sore. It was however a whole lot of fun as all of our outings are — amazing fellowship, food, and fun.
The day began bright and early at Lake Chabot with a 14 mile bike/hike. The Kairos ladies enjoyed the scenic tour around the lake while the manly, dashing Kairos men struggled for survival in the backhills of Chabot lake. The truth of the matter is that us Kairos brothers felt the need to enjoy the scenery so we took it upon ourselves to would walk 40 yards for every 20 yards we biked. Thus we ensured that nature was fully appreciated. Our walking actually had nothing to do with the fact that the hills were cliffs and none of us bike on a frequent basis — so now you know the truth of the matter.
Shortly following we grubbed on some great sandwiches, chatted for a bit, and played catch on the field. We packed up and headed back to Andy and Amy’s place for some incredible ribs. Before dinner, the old Kairos fogies (Abe, Andy, Richard Yen, and Chang) felt the need to crush the spirits of the trash-talking, overzealous underclassmen one more time in a game of 2 hand touch football. The youth of us underclassmen was clearly displayed as we spent most the time talking trash to each other and botching up plays due to gross miscommunications. After getting our spirits crushed, we were consoled with incredible ribs, corn, and veggies. (Prepared by the incredible Kairos Staff!)
The night ended with a spectacular fire work show at Jack London Square. Everyone was exhausted, but really enjoyed the show.. except poor Timmy (aka Studmuffin) – he was toast after his first Kairos Outing. The day was a blast and I must say for myself at least, I am so very grateful for such an amazing community here at Berkeley. My family was several hundred miles away on that holiday, but it sure didn’t feel that way. Thank you all for making it such a Memorable 4th of July!
At the end of last month, as a whole Kairos group, we did 30 hour famine together. For those of you who don’t know what it is, it’s a program to raise money for the children who are dying of hunger everyday, as well as to raise awareness to those around us about the people who are in need. And on our part, we fast for 30 hours.
Most of us sent emails to friends and asked for support. Some of us went to Alameda where Andy and Amy lives and went from door to door to ask for money. Out of everyone, Andy seemed to have the most success. What’s his secret? It was Timmy! Andy would carry Timmy on his back while going door to door. How could anyone resist the charm of a 17-month-old? According to Andy, this one man was going to donate 20 dollars, but decided to donate 40 dollars because his wife thought Timmy was too cute. Way to go!
While we were fasting, we also went to an exhibit in Fremont. The exhibit told us the stories of 4 African children. The child that I heard about was diagnosed with HIV infection. Both of his parents died of AIDS. Life couldn’t have gotten much worse. It’s so heartbreaking to see that there are so many people who are in need everyday.
On Sunday, we all woke up at around 6 to break fast. 6 am that is. I have to say that was the best chicken soup and porridge I had in my life. This whole experience just made me appreciate life and all the blessings that much more. There are children who don’t know when their next meal will be, and there are also children who don’t have clean water, and would constantly have stomach problems. If there is any sort of hardships in my life next time, I will be sure to remember those who are in need, and that will put me in the right perspective.
Hope everyone had a great July 4th weekend — I know we sure did! From one packed week to another… here’s what’s coming up:
Austin Farewell
As most of you must have heard, our church in Berkeley and Davis is sending 11 members to plant Gracepoint Fellowship Church, Austin, with Pastor Manny and Sunny leading the team. Most of the team members will be leaving this Thursday, so we’ll be having a farewell program this Wednesday at First Pres in Berkeley (starting at 6pm with tapioca drinks in the courtyard). So please come, as this will give you better and bigger picture of what our church is really about (much more so than even G-Live).
For some of you older ones, Sarah Oh Song is among the few and the proud who will be leaving.
Sarah in the middle, next to Lin
Yosemite Trip
We’re planning to have our Yosemite trip next week, from Thursday (7/17) to Saturday (7/19)! Please let us know the earliest day/time you can take off by filling out this form by 3pm this Thursday (7/10):
Update (7/3): We’re now meeting at Crossroads at 9:30am. Also, please bring a water bottle and $12 for the trip. You know you love these last minute updates. =D Update (7/2): We won’t be doing anything tomorrow at Andy/Amy’s anymore. I’ve fleshed out our July 4th plans a bit more, so please read below:
Update (7/1): We’ll be having our weekly DT sharing this Thursday (7/3), right after the BBQ.
Howdy, folks! I can’t believe it’s already July. Where did all the time go? Welcome back to those who have been taking Session C, and for those who will be arriving back for Session D… my condolences. Haha, just kidding — can’t wait to see you guys again.
Since everyone still has class (and/or work) on July 3rd, we’ll be taking it easy and meet up at Andy & Amy’s later in the evening. If you’re guessing that we’ll be grilling and playing some games afterwards, then you have another thing coming. Wait, no… you’ll be right. But you can’t beat BBQ and games, right?
On July 4th, we’ll be heading out to Lake Chabot. We’ll bring the bikes, they’ll provide the boats, you just grab your shoes (and feet). Apart from biking, boating, and hiking, we’ll be charting out this area; since we’ve never been here as a Kairos group before, this will be a fun exploratory trip of sorts. As you can see from the photo above, it looks like it’s a beautiful place!
[Update] Here’s our (tentative) plan: We’ll leave Berkeley (Crossroads) at 9am (not 10am anymore) 9:30am, arrive at Lake Chabot and start off with DT/DT sharing. Afterwards, we’ll go biking/hiking and then grab lunch. Then, we’ll go boating, head back to Alameda for dinner (grill!), and head on out to watch the fireworks nearby. Please bring warm clothes!
Please let me know if you can make it out on July 4th! As usual, we need the head count for rides and food (not to mention bikes). Oh, and if you don’t need a bike for whatever reason, please let me know that as well. =D
Upcoming Events
Thurs, 5/21 All College Bible Study
7pm @ North Loop, starting with dinner
Sun, 5/24 10am Prayer Meeting Gracepoint Sunday Service
11:30am @ Willard Middle School
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