semylee

re.write magazine

Fri, 07 Jun 2013 21:54:18 +0900

a little bit of my story. check it out :)

holy spirit what do ya think?

Sun, 02 Jun 2013 01:00:25 +0900

if anything, what i’ve been realizing as of late is that holy spirit is someone i need to start talking to. i’m not gonna lie, i love talking to god the father cause he’s my dad and when i need things or just wanna lounge around i go to him all the time. and jesus, he’s my go-to when i’m feeling all emotional, good for bad. so where does the holy spirit come in … well in my daily life i realized i don’t talk to him much at all. the only time i ever really acknowledge the holy spirit is during a retreat or when fire falls, you know. and acknowledge was pretty much all i did. but this past retreat, i felt daddy and jesus telling me to talk to holy spirit. so, these past two weeks, i’ve been making an effort to get to know the holy spirit by simply asking him a question: “what do ya think?” we’ve been talking about music these days. so i’ll put my iphone on shuffle and as each song comes out, i’ll ask holy spirit, “what do ya think about this one?” i found that some of the stuff i listen to he really digs, and some not so much, which i’ll skip for his sake :) so, just want to say that holy spirit’s pretty cool and i’m kinda really excited to get to know him better.

Boyce Avenue’s cover of JT’s “mirrors”...

Fri, 31 May 2013 00:09:47 +0900

Boyce Avenue’s cover of JT’s “mirrors” is ridiculous. On repeat for sure.

that vacancy that sat in my heart is a space you now hold
show me how to fight for now and i’ll tell you baby it was easy
comin’ back into you once i figured it out you were right here all along.
it’s like you’re my mirror.

fathers being restored.

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 21:04:00 +0900

I’ve been really blessed the past two weeks by what my students have been sharing with me. They’ve been sharing with me stories of their dad. For the most of last year, my students rarely talked about their fathers, so I decided to make that a prayer topic. Ever since the beginning of March, I’ve been contending for the marriages of my students’ parents to be strengthened and grow in love. A strong marriage creates a strong family.

One story. One of my student’s father is super busy and never has time to spend with the family. I remember my student telling me that his parents fight a lot because dad’s never home. Just last week, my student came up to me and said that he wasn’t coming to school the next day because he was going on a family trip to everland. i was glad to see him absent the next day because that means his dad kept his promise. when i saw him the day after, he told me how much fun he had with his family and i couldn’t help but to smile.

Story number two. I asked my students around November of last year if their parents kiss them goodnight. Many of my students said no. One in particular said that her parents used to when she was younger but stopped when she turned 5. However, just today, she told me that her dad now comes into her room at night when he’s back late from work and give her a kiss while he thinks she’s sleeping :) (my heart melted a bit)

One more story. Yesterday, one of my students came into school clearly upset. By now, I know that it’s one of two things. One, she came from her grandparent’s home. Two, her parents were upset at her. This morning it was number two. I asked what happened. She replied that she didn’t know what she did but her dad just yelled at her right before she got on the bus in front of all her friends. One of my other students confirmed this story to be true. So, I looked at her and said that sometimes when mommy and daddy have bad days they make mistakes and yell at the wrong person. I asked her if she could forgive her daddy for what he did, and she said yes. Kid you not, about 30 minutes after our conversation, her dad shows up to class and asks if he could speak with his daughter. In my heart, somehow I knew what was happening. She returns to class skipping with a smile on her face and that confirmed it. Later I asked her if her dad apologized, and she told me that he did.

It’s so beautiful to hear these stories from my kids with broken English. Fathers are being restored to this nation. And truly, prayer is the only way. Thank you Daddy, for being so good to these families :)

Congratulations to Akdong Musician :) I knew you’d make it...

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 23:36:00 +0900

Congratulations to Akdong Musician :) I knew you’d make it all the way! Loved their rendition of Mmm Bop and medley of 예담’s songs. So creative and talented.

What an incredible idea. I find this absolutely beautiful. We...

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 19:21:04 +0900

What an incredible idea. I find this absolutely beautiful. We need something like this in Seoul :)

Akdong Musician’s rendition of 10cm’s 사랑은 은하수...

Sun, 31 Mar 2013 23:58:16 +0900

Akdong Musician’s rendition of 10cm’s 사랑은 은하수 다방에서 !! I want their newest song. Seriously talented siblings :)

today. my sweet little christina came into class super excited....

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 22:15:39 +0900

today. my sweet little christina came into class super excited. she wanted to show me something. it happened to be some model shots of her and her friends doing ballet in a magazine. my excitement bubbled over and this strange feeling of pride came in. i was so proud of her .. yes .. for taking a picture. but more than that she was simply and absolutely beautiful. she outshined all the other girls in my eyes. they didn’t even enter my motherly peripherals. my eyes were fixed on her because i knew her. more than the other beautiful children surrounding her, christina shined because i knew her. i’m sure this is how her mom feels. and i’m sure this is how any parent would feel. our kids stand out to us not because the world says so, but because we know them inside and out. no matter how achieved, attractive, cute, successful, or favored other children may be .. next to your own, they don’t matter much. the one we know will always stand out & be a whole lot brighter.

though i’m not a mom yet, i’m sure this is how i would feel for my own child. like 110% positive :)

i’m saying yes to you and no to my desiresi’ll leave...

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 20:11:00 +0900

i’m saying yes to you and no to my desires
i’ll leave myself behind and follow you

i’ll walk the narrow road ‘cause it leads me to you
i’ll fall but grace will pick me up again

i’ve counted up the cost
oh, i’ve counted up the cost
yea, i’ve counted up the cost
and you are worth it

i do not need safety as much as i need you
you’re dangerous but Lord you’re beautiful

i’ll chase you through the pain, i’ll carry my cross
‘cause real love is not afraid to bleed

Jesus take my all, take my everything
I’ve counted up the cost and you’re worth everything

"commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans."

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 21:19:59 +0900

“commit to the Lord whatever you do,
and he will establish your plans.”

- proverbs 16.3

Prudence = Wisdom

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 21:02:53 +0900

Prudence = Wisdom

you make beautiful things. you make beautiful things out of...

Sat, 16 Mar 2013 12:11:00 +0900

you make beautiful things. you make beautiful things out of dust.
you make beautiful things. you make beautiful things out of us.

you make me new. you are making me new.

A video present i made for my kids. My favorite thing about...

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 23:18:03 +0900

A video present i made for my kids. My favorite thing about working on projects like this is to see the reactions of my students. When I showed it to them on the last day of school, they would smile and laugh and talk about the different memories in the video. At the end of it, they’ll always say, “Semy Teacher, one more time please!”

It’s been such an incredible year with these little ones. I never really understood teachers who would say, “I learned so much from you guys (students) this year.” I thought that was just something teachers said so we don’t feel like we did all the work in learning .. but it’s so true. In one year, I learned how to be a better teacher, a nurse, a counselor, a motivator, a photographer, a friend, a father, and a mother. You know how we all think korean moms are crazy for overseeing every part of their child’s life and wanting the best for them. Well, I think I can kinda understand. Now, I too want only what’s best for them. I want to give them all the best experiences life can bring, introduce them to new & exciting things, take them to places they’ve never gone before, have the best teachers Korean education can offer, and the works.

I’ve never loved children the way I love these 12 little rascals. They’ve captivated me and each of them have made a little nook inside my heart. Because of them, I’ve learned how to love wider, longer, and deeper. Jesus, thank you so much for sending these 12 into my life. My life wouldn’t be the same without them :)

flyer than angels: gettin my super beach bod -

Sun, 24 Feb 2013 01:49:29 +0900

flyer than angels: gettin my super beach bod - :

flyerthanangels:

In the book of Haggai there is an interesting scene where the people of God are looking at the temple that they’ve just built and they begin to weep - because the glory of that temple paled in comparison to that of Solomon’s temple before it.

For so many of us “inspiration” has come in the form…

"God’s love never contradicts his holiness, but God’s holiness will never interrupt his..."

Thu, 21 Feb 2013 08:11:54 +0900

“God’s love never contradicts his holiness, but God’s holiness will never interrupt his love. It’s time to widen our love and narrow our paths.”

- Pastor Benjamin

meet my beautiful baby niece emma. i’m so sad i...

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 23:38:12 +0900

meet my beautiful baby niece emma. i’m so sad i can’t be there to see her and hold her, but i know my brother and jess are amazing parents :) she’s got her mother’s eyes and her daddy’s nose! i’ve never wanted to be in the states so much! though i’ve never met you, auntie semy loves you!

repeat. drive. go.

Sat, 09 Feb 2013 11:54:37 +0900

repeat. drive. go.

The Glee’s rendition and portrayal of this song made the...

Sat, 02 Feb 2013 22:08:58 +0900

The Glee’s rendition and portrayal of this song made the lyrics much more believable than Ne-yo’s. The song drew me in not merely because I’m a hopeless romantic. It dug a little deeper than that. It reminded me of the days I found it hard to love myself. I didn’t love the terrible things I did, I couldn’t love my body, and I could never love who I was inside. Oftentimes looking at the other side imagining how my life would be better if I looked, acted, and became someone else. Then I met Christ and you would think it was an immediate remedy, but it wasn’t. It took time. And it took the words similar to this song to bring full healing in my mind and heart —

Much as you blame yourself, you can’t be blamed for the way you feel. Had no example of a love that was even remotely real.
How can you understand something that you never had.
Ooh if you let me, I can help you out with all of that.

Let me love you and I will love you until you learn to love yourself.
Let me love you, I know your trouble. Don’t be afraid, oh I can help.
Let me love you and I will love you until you learn to love yourself.
Let me love you, a heart of numbness gets to brought to life, I’ll take you there.

For the longest time, I couldn’t believe that someone would commit such love towards me, but Christ did. He loved me. He drove out the fear. He brought my heart back to life. Most importantly, he taught me how to love myself and in turn to love others. Thank you glee for this beautiful rendition and reminder. God you is so good.

Thank you david k. lee for introducing me to bastille. I’m...

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 00:23:57 +0900

Thank you david k. lee for introducing me to bastille. I’m loving his unique renditions of these old school songs.

No Angels - Bastille’s rendition of ‘No Scrubs’

Just discovered her. I don’t know why it took me so long....

Sun, 27 Jan 2013 00:24:00 +0900

Just discovered her. I don’t know why it took me so long. Love her voice, the melody, and the lyrics to this song. The artist states that this song is about her parents’ journey together. A beautiful song.

Yeah, we’ll climb mountains
Climb mountains together

Mountains by Emeli Sandé