20 Thanksgiving Topics

The other day, I told my sister we should come up with twenty Thanksgiving topics and put it on our blogs. She already wrote hers so you can read her Thanksgiving topics here.

Here are my Thanksgiving topics: I am thankful for...

1. Jesus dying on the cross for my sins that I may live before God. He is the zealous lover who pursues us no matter what. This is so assuring. It was God who initiated this relationship and is in control.
2. Our church family. Over and over again, I am amazed by how people love one another in our church. Despite their extremely busy schedule and lives, they make themselves available. If you ever need help in anything - tutoring, a ride, etc., there is always someone who is willing to help you.
3. The opportunity to go to attend college. I realized this year that it is such a privilege to go to college. Since most of my peers end up going to college, it seems like the norm, but compared to the rest of the world, it's not. I'm so thankful for the great opportunities to be found in and through the University of Maryland!
4. Related to the previous one, I am thankful for my parents for supporting me through college. More than this, I'm thankful that they have supported my interests throughout my life. They have sacrificed their time and money so that I could have piano and violin lessons for years. They also bought me DSLR almost two years ago. (:
5. For my best friend Hannah. I'm thankful for this friendship God has given me. We used to be so different ten years ago that no one would have guessed that we would become friends. 
6. Tea & hot chocolate on cold, rainy or snowy days.
7. YDJ. Through the discussions and lectures each Friday, I've been learning more and more of what it means to be a Christian and in aspects I have never thought about before.
8. The Holy Spirit who guided me throughout high school and still continues to guide me. Most of this semester, my prayer request was that the Holy Spirit would just guide me because I didn't know where He would lead me. I can't believe the semester is almost over! I thank God for providing such a great schedule with great professors this semester because I had no idea what I was doing when I was making my schedule at orientation. God also provided a pretty early day to schedule my classes so that when I scheduled, I had a lot of options (so thankful for AP classes).
9. My two months spent in Korea. I think my trip to Korea has opened my eyes to the cultural differences between Koreans and Americans. Then the question of - where do I fit in between by being Korean American? I believe the trip had a great impact on my life much more than I give it credit.
10. My Asian American studies class, which has taught me more about the difficulties and struggles early Asian immigrants faced. I never knew that Asians suffered so much! I knew there was racism back then, but I didn't know the extent of the hatred they faced. Now I'm really interested in the futures of first, second, and third generation of Asian Americans. 
11. My biology study group! God knew that I needed a study group and he provided me one.
12. Rides to school. I'm thankful that I get a ride to school half of the week from my dad when he's not working, which means I can sleep a little bit more (or stay up a little bit more). I've also had rides from various people (my Korean neighbor, James, msy. Abraham), which I am grateful for! 
13. The libraries at Maryland - Hornbake and Chemistry are my two favorite right now. I also really like CSPAC but it's just so far away from everything.
14. For my Bible study teacher, msy. Susanna Bae, who is always faithful and flexible with her time. I've been studying the Bible with her since freshman year of high school. Even though she had Josephine and Joanna (and now Jeremiah) and was busy as a mother, she continued to study the Bible with me! We haven't had Bible study for the past month or so after she gave birth to Jeremiah, and I realized how important the Bible studies were in my life. As Christians, we must be rooted in God's word and really study his word. The other day I was trying to explain certain parts of the Bible to my friend and I realized how difficult it must be to teach the Bible. It really revealed to me that receiving and teaching the Bible can only be done by the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
15. Quality times spent with others! This morning a group of us went to Georgetown for Black Friday shopping and although there weren't major sales in Georgetown, I really enjoyed just spending time with them. 
16. Mothers & their prayers. They're so genuine & sincere.
17. All of you bloggers. I enjoy reading your posts and they encourage me to look towards God and praise him for all of His good works!
18. My lovely sister who never fails to entertain me. She's so artistic and talented that I'm excited for how God's going to lead her through all of her talents.
19. Now. I'm thankful for this time God has given me in this season of life. So many things can change in a year. People I see now might be on the other side of the world in another year. Therefore I am so thankful for the relationships God has placed in my life now.
20. My license! I'm thankful that I was able to drive during my senior to school when I needed to stay after school. (:

Wait, one more. I'm thankful that I was able to volunteer at the School of Public Health this past semester on Saturday mornings! It was really fun just playing with Delia and here is a video I made for the clinic. You can see pictures of the kids and some of the things they did.

What are you thankful for?