Today is Wednesday... but what is new about this Wednesday?
1. Gary Jackson is having back surgery.
2. I am excited about Cross Fit (www.CrossFit.com) and p90x.
3. I am ready to seriously start my Chinese schedule.
1. Gary Jackson is having back surgery.
He should be out any time soon. So many people are praying for him. I pray that he will recovery quickly! He is an active guy, he needs to be active. :-)
We have all been praying for him since the beginning of his pain. We pray everyday, all day long for the Father's Spirit & strength to be with him.
2. I am excited about Cross Fit (www.CrossFit.com) and p90x.
I have begun getting ready for some intense workouts. Not that I am going to be doing any major competitions, but if I am going to the gym I want to see results. I am not one for playing sports lightly, I compete with myself to always improve. Naturally results will be needed in the gym. Eating habits are getting modified so that weight can be added (for the first time in my life). This weight will be muscle mass.
3. I am ready to seriously start my Chinese schedule.
I have established a serious schedule of 7-8 hours per weekday of studying Mandarin. I will be getting this into high gear really soon. I have had delays all this week - needing to add pages to my passport, getting my schedules all synced, visiting friends, etc. I will probably need to make a contingency plan, because schedules always get interrupted, changed, and mangled.
Hope you all are excellent! May He provide for all your needs!
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Working Out
This is our first week to go to the gym. It is a real gym, with a swimming pool, nautilus style machines, treadmills a plenty, and of course free weights. I have begun designing a regiment for a rotational full body workout and soon will be over that initial pain of starting physical conditioning. Then sometime later, I hope to do a p90x workout...
Language school is another kind of workout. My brain feels like it is going to pop in class - my teacher's liquid fast procession of Chinese gives me a serious workout. I am amazed at how much I understand, but I'm still translating everything. I want to push past that. The good thing about the linguistic workout - my brain won't actually pop. A physical workout can snap-crackle-pop muscles from their connective tissues... but I can keep cramming stuff into my brain for a long time. However, the more that goes in, the more tired it makes me. Language learning really takes a toll on the entire body.
Here is something fun - when I first start working out my body doesn't know how to handle it. I don't have much extra energy hanging around on my body, so I get really jittery and need to eat every couple of hours. I eat fruit when I wake, breakfast with Jaime, a mid-morning snack, lunch, then something mid-afternoon, and a nice simple dinner. I feel like a Hobit: They enjoy at least six meals a day, when they can get them - breakfast, elevenses (sometimes known as 'second breakfast'), luncheon, tea, dinner and, later in the evening, supper.
Language school is another kind of workout. My brain feels like it is going to pop in class - my teacher's liquid fast procession of Chinese gives me a serious workout. I am amazed at how much I understand, but I'm still translating everything. I want to push past that. The good thing about the linguistic workout - my brain won't actually pop. A physical workout can snap-crackle-pop muscles from their connective tissues... but I can keep cramming stuff into my brain for a long time. However, the more that goes in, the more tired it makes me. Language learning really takes a toll on the entire body.
Here is something fun - when I first start working out my body doesn't know how to handle it. I don't have much extra energy hanging around on my body, so I get really jittery and need to eat every couple of hours. I eat fruit when I wake, breakfast with Jaime, a mid-morning snack, lunch, then something mid-afternoon, and a nice simple dinner. I feel like a Hobit: They enjoy at least six meals a day, when they can get them - breakfast, elevenses (sometimes known as 'second breakfast'), luncheon, tea, dinner and, later in the evening, supper.
Friday, October 10, 2008
First Day of School
Monday was the beginning of New Bridge, our language school. Jaime and I are finding that being a student again is a lot of work. Jaime is in the beginning class and I am one level up from that. With all of our classmates being Korean, we are doubly challenged. Koreans are taught 1,000 Chinese characters as children and use them to some extent in daily life. They are ahead of us to put it mildly. Imagine a Korean taking Spanish classes with a bunch of Texans... that's about the equivalent.
We have already met with fellow teachers & new friends from Shiyan! We went to Pete's Tex-Mex near the Lido Hotel - a Holiday Inn that is famous, very famous, yet many people have never heard of it - go figure. Then we met up with Yulin, a friend and LST Reader from the University at Buffalo work. And a few of our Chinese friends/students from Shiyan are here in Beijing studying or doing internships. We hope to get a group going from these friends - one of them is a faithful brother.
We are working on preparing our home for all of you to come visit us! We will have an open house policy something like this: 1. Tell us when you are coming to visit, 2. Consider working with www.LST.org (a separate apartment is provided!), 3. We will arrange for your arrival with a special reception and tour.
We are still needing to spend a good couple of days buying small appliances and most everything for the kitchen. The kitchen came with a fridge and a cooktop with two gas burners - that tells you how much we need to shop! However, we like to eat cheaply in the local hole in the wall restaurants, so the kitchen isn't super important - until you realize our next endeavour.
We are wanting to establish ourselves in our building and community. The building has 30 floors with 10 (?) apartments each. Let's say that 75% of those apartments are rented. 300 x .75 = 225 families in this building. If we made a dozen cookies for each family, that would be 225 x 12 = 2750 cookies... I don't know that we'll be able to do that. 12 is a good number in the states when making cookies, but 8 is a good number here! What if we only made 8 cookies for each family? 1800 cookies? That is still a lot of cookies!
Our friend and family member told of his cookie conversion. "When I ate the cookies that Marcus & Julia made, my mouth opened and my heart opened, and I began learning about true Love from the Creator. I kept eating cookies, the cookies changed me, but the Creator's Love changed me more." (This is a very poor translation of a great story!) This is why we want to make cookies... we'll start with the families on our floor, that'll only be 72 cookies.
Many of our friends in the States are asking how they can get involved in the work here. Some are wanting to come to China as teachers, others with Let's Start Talking, and still others just to visit. We want you to know questions are welcome, we would love to share more with you, and to share China with you! So bring it!
We have already met with fellow teachers & new friends from Shiyan! We went to Pete's Tex-Mex near the Lido Hotel - a Holiday Inn that is famous, very famous, yet many people have never heard of it - go figure. Then we met up with Yulin, a friend and LST Reader from the University at Buffalo work. And a few of our Chinese friends/students from Shiyan are here in Beijing studying or doing internships. We hope to get a group going from these friends - one of them is a faithful brother.
We are working on preparing our home for all of you to come visit us! We will have an open house policy something like this: 1. Tell us when you are coming to visit, 2. Consider working with www.LST.org (a separate apartment is provided!), 3. We will arrange for your arrival with a special reception and tour.
We are still needing to spend a good couple of days buying small appliances and most everything for the kitchen. The kitchen came with a fridge and a cooktop with two gas burners - that tells you how much we need to shop! However, we like to eat cheaply in the local hole in the wall restaurants, so the kitchen isn't super important - until you realize our next endeavour.
We are wanting to establish ourselves in our building and community. The building has 30 floors with 10 (?) apartments each. Let's say that 75% of those apartments are rented. 300 x .75 = 225 families in this building. If we made a dozen cookies for each family, that would be 225 x 12 = 2750 cookies... I don't know that we'll be able to do that. 12 is a good number in the states when making cookies, but 8 is a good number here! What if we only made 8 cookies for each family? 1800 cookies? That is still a lot of cookies!
Our friend and family member told of his cookie conversion. "When I ate the cookies that Marcus & Julia made, my mouth opened and my heart opened, and I began learning about true Love from the Creator. I kept eating cookies, the cookies changed me, but the Creator's Love changed me more." (This is a very poor translation of a great story!) This is why we want to make cookies... we'll start with the families on our floor, that'll only be 72 cookies.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
IKEA
We went to Ikea... it was great, it was horrible, it was too much, yet not enough.
We have been going through a lot of discussions about all the things we need, want, and have differing opinions about. If you have ever done a lot of purchasing all at once, you know that it is a great opportunity to learn about preferences, ways of making decisions, and build a deeper relationship, if you are willing to work through all the underlying issues.
There is always a wonderful anticipation in going to Ikea, then the prices get in the way. Then the choices get in the way. Then the reality of needing to get it all into a taxi, out of the taxi, and into the house in one trip gets in the way. We would like to have a lot of stuff from there, however we are not made of money.
We got a few things for the apartment: rolling end tables that will triple as storage, coffee table (together), and computer work station (did that somehow quadruple?). Let's add some excitement and talk about the food! We got some lingonberry jam, huge round crackers, and a small assortment of cookies.
Dinner was nice - hotdogs, sadly without relish. Oh, how I relish my relish! Hotdogs seem to be best when they have a good mustard and relish combo. We shared the soda fountain cola.
Oh, back to the stuff - a set of dishes, silverware (which we only use when eating non-Chinese foods), cute smallish coffee mugs with little saucers... let me just say we got some good deals and will have some nice things.
So this blog is named "Inspire" - but what is inspiring about all of this? Maybe you can help me out, provide me with some answers, comments, questions, something. I am trying to revive this mostly dead blog, maybe qouting from The Princess Bride will help!
Miracle Max: He probably owes you money huh? I'll ask him.
Inigo Montoya: He's dead. He can't talk.
Miracle Max: Whoo-hoo-hoo, look who knows so much. It just so happens that your friend here is only MOSTLY dead. There's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is slightly alive. With all dead, well, with all dead there's usually only one thing you can do.
Inigo Montoya: What's that?
Miracle Max: Go through his clothes and look for loose change.
We have been going through a lot of discussions about all the things we need, want, and have differing opinions about. If you have ever done a lot of purchasing all at once, you know that it is a great opportunity to learn about preferences, ways of making decisions, and build a deeper relationship, if you are willing to work through all the underlying issues.
There is always a wonderful anticipation in going to Ikea, then the prices get in the way. Then the choices get in the way. Then the reality of needing to get it all into a taxi, out of the taxi, and into the house in one trip gets in the way. We would like to have a lot of stuff from there, however we are not made of money.
We got a few things for the apartment: rolling end tables that will triple as storage, coffee table (together), and computer work station (did that somehow quadruple?). Let's add some excitement and talk about the food! We got some lingonberry jam, huge round crackers, and a small assortment of cookies.
Dinner was nice - hotdogs, sadly without relish. Oh, how I relish my relish! Hotdogs seem to be best when they have a good mustard and relish combo. We shared the soda fountain cola.
Oh, back to the stuff - a set of dishes, silverware (which we only use when eating non-Chinese foods), cute smallish coffee mugs with little saucers... let me just say we got some good deals and will have some nice things.
So this blog is named "Inspire" - but what is inspiring about all of this? Maybe you can help me out, provide me with some answers, comments, questions, something. I am trying to revive this mostly dead blog, maybe qouting from The Princess Bride will help!
Miracle Max: He probably owes you money huh? I'll ask him.
Inigo Montoya: He's dead. He can't talk.
Miracle Max: Whoo-hoo-hoo, look who knows so much. It just so happens that your friend here is only MOSTLY dead. There's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is slightly alive. With all dead, well, with all dead there's usually only one thing you can do.
Inigo Montoya: What's that?
Miracle Max: Go through his clothes and look for loose change.
Starting School
Jaime and I started school on Monday. Mandarin classes in Mandarin with very little English. We are at different levels, but the same style of teaching is employed. First we listen to the teacher read all the new words twice as we recite them. She adds more words for us to know and use, while she tells stories using an almost pantomiming body language to illustrate and explain everything. They constantly ask, "Ming bai ma?" which means, "Do you understand?" If you don't get it... they do it again a little differently.
These teachers have great attitudes! Jaime and I are the only Americans in our classes, the others are all Korean. We live in Little Korea or Korea Town or whatever the Chinese would call it.
We signed up for a year of language classes, so tomorrow we'll go get our physicals for the visa in the Haidian area - about an hour from us. The exams will take about 2 hours, starting maybe at 8:30am, we'll get done around 10:30 and need to hurry back for our 11am class.
Today, our landlord had the painter come to fix a set of cabinets in the kitchen. He mixed up something very foul smelling to smooth out the cracks, then painted a base coat. That foul smelling compound was rank, I really wish I could share it with you, like a glass of sour milk - "Hey taste this, isn't it awful?"
We are truly thankful here - so many opportunities. We met up with our friend Yulin from Buffalo - she lives here in Wangjing, just a few bus stops away. We invited her to our Sunday meeting and she accepted.
We are working on connecting with our other friends from Buffalo, Shiyan, and everywhere to see about getting a group together for learning more about our Wonderful King.
Let us here from you! We are so thankful for your petitions on our behalf, support, and general relational encouragement.
Of course I am going to plug our favorite way to visit us: www.LST.org - Let's Start Talking uses conversational English to share the Good News with people all over the world. Are you interested in visiting us and sharing the Good News? Check out www.LST.org!
These teachers have great attitudes! Jaime and I are the only Americans in our classes, the others are all Korean. We live in Little Korea or Korea Town or whatever the Chinese would call it.
We signed up for a year of language classes, so tomorrow we'll go get our physicals for the visa in the Haidian area - about an hour from us. The exams will take about 2 hours, starting maybe at 8:30am, we'll get done around 10:30 and need to hurry back for our 11am class.
Today, our landlord had the painter come to fix a set of cabinets in the kitchen. He mixed up something very foul smelling to smooth out the cracks, then painted a base coat. That foul smelling compound was rank, I really wish I could share it with you, like a glass of sour milk - "Hey taste this, isn't it awful?"
We are truly thankful here - so many opportunities. We met up with our friend Yulin from Buffalo - she lives here in Wangjing, just a few bus stops away. We invited her to our Sunday meeting and she accepted.
We are working on connecting with our other friends from Buffalo, Shiyan, and everywhere to see about getting a group together for learning more about our Wonderful King.
Let us here from you! We are so thankful for your petitions on our behalf, support, and general relational encouragement.
Of course I am going to plug our favorite way to visit us: www.LST.org - Let's Start Talking uses conversational English to share the Good News with people all over the world. Are you interested in visiting us and sharing the Good News? Check out www.LST.org!
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Finding Health
I struggle, yes, I sin
In my travels I have been made more self-aware. I recognize my own struggles more easily and openly these days. I want to be transparent, but I also want to have nothing for you to find when I am transparent. We all want others to be honest, but are fearful of being too open ourselves.
In worship last week I thought deeply about these ideas as the preacher talked about the heartache he brought to God throughout his life and how he really loves God and doesn't want to hurt Him. I realized we usually don't say too much about our personal struggles, other than that we have struggles. When do we admit we aren't perfect? Many times we wear masks and attempt to look like we have it all together.
So there is a message I want to share: "Saints are Sinners Saved by Grace"
The message goes something like this...
Please note to yourself where you have failed this past week, let's start with "The 7 Deadly Sins":
Romans 1: 28-32
"And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them." (ESV)
Galatians 5:19-21
"Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." (ESV)
Revelations 21:8
"But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death." (ESV)
There are other lists... but I think you get the point. We all struggle, we all need forgiveness and grace. God knows this, individually we know this, and collectively we know this, however we struggle to admit it for fear of ______ (fill in the blank). Are we afraid others will know our secret - that we are not perfect? Or is it that we are afraid we'll have to admit what that struggle is to another person? What are we afraid of really? Being judged by others? I think there are many more fears and concerns I haven't addressed, and all of these are why we prefer to simply talk with God and only God about our struggles.
We need to purify our hearts and minds. We need to find a friend that can be our confidant - someone that isn't just keeping a secret (that would be far to simple), but someone who can encourage us to grow in God's grace and love. Someone who will bless us with God's blessings of forgiveness, grace, mercy, and accountability.
Talking with a new friend she said it like this, "What is the most popular isle in the store? The discount isle - the ones with all the stuff that has been used, nicked, dented, scratched, broken, worn and returned, all these things are really desirable. The same goes for people." The ones that are broken in, well worn, aware of their flaws and accepting of others - these people are also desirable, not just to other people, but to God.
Humanity Wrapped in Humility
An older preacher friend told me about his ministry before failure - it was nonexistent. He didn't really connect with people. They thought he was too perfect. Then he went to Africa and failed. The team he was on didn't get along and they all came back early... and he immediately was able to connect to the people around him.
Why? Because he was more aware of his own failure and so were they. They could see he had experience as a human being that was real, not something he learned in a book. They could see it on his face, they could hear it as he preached, they could watch him live in God's grace daily. His life was meaningful because he could embrace his humanity with humility.
Focus
What I propose is this... don't focus on your sin, focus on God's grace! Recognize your sin, accept that you are a person and therefore sinful. Seek God's grace and mercy through forgiveness and if needed baptism into Christ. Then keep your focus on Jesus. Think more about your goals than the gutter. When we focus on the gutter that is where we will end up. If we focus on our fears - they will arrive. However if we focus on our goals of godliness then they will be our destination.
I write all of this because I have been afraid of becoming like so many others - sick, sinfully sick to the point of utter life failure. I am reminded again and again that I need to focus on health, not my fears. I need to find healthy spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical goals that represent a balanced approach to life.
So, I ask for your prayers, encouragement, and blessings as I journey towards Jesus focusing on a healthy hearing of His word and obedience to His Spirit.
Find the Vice, then find the Virtue to focus on:
Lust vs. Purity = Embracing of moral wholesomeness and achieving purity of body and thought through education and betterment.
Gluttony vs. Self-control = Practicing restraint, self-control, abstention, moderation.
Greed vs. Generosity = Willingness to give. A nobility of thought or actions.
Sloth vs. Diligence = A zealous and careful nature in one's actions and work. Decisive work ethic. Budgeting one's time; monitoring one's own activities to guard against laziness. Putting forth full concentration in one's work
Wrath vs. Patience = Forbearance and endurance through moderation. Resolving conflicts peacefully, as opposed to resorting to violence. The ability to forgive; to show mercy to sinners.
Envy vs. Kindness = Love, compassion, friendship, and sympathy without prejudice and for its own sake.
Pride vs. Humility = Modest behavior and the giving of respect. Giving credit where credit is due; not unfairly glorifying one's own self.
Injustice vs. Justice = Honesty, and the giving of righteousness. Being fair or telling the truth. Doing what is right and not what is wrong. It is the light of truth that conquers the dark of the wrong. Equity, impartiality.
Accepting God's Grace
John 3:16
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." (ESV)
Romans 3:21-28
"Now we see how God does make us acceptable to him. The Law and the Prophets tell how we become acceptable, and it isn't by obeying the Law of Moses. God treats everyone alike. He accepts people only because they have faith in Jesus Christ. All of us have sinned and fallen short of God's glory. But God treats us much better than we deserve, and because of Christ Jesus, he freely accepts us and sets us free from our sins. God sent Christ to be our sacrifice. Christ offered his life's blood, so that by faith in him we could come to God. And God did this to show that in the past he was right to be patient and forgive sinners. This also shows that God is right when he accepts people who have faith in Jesus. What is left for us to brag about? Not a thing! Is it because we obeyed some law? No! It is because of faith. We see that people are acceptable to God because they have faith, and not because they obey the Law." (CEV)
Matthew 28:18-20
"And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'" (CEV)
In my travels I have been made more self-aware. I recognize my own struggles more easily and openly these days. I want to be transparent, but I also want to have nothing for you to find when I am transparent. We all want others to be honest, but are fearful of being too open ourselves.
In worship last week I thought deeply about these ideas as the preacher talked about the heartache he brought to God throughout his life and how he really loves God and doesn't want to hurt Him. I realized we usually don't say too much about our personal struggles, other than that we have struggles. When do we admit we aren't perfect? Many times we wear masks and attempt to look like we have it all together.
So there is a message I want to share: "Saints are Sinners Saved by Grace"
The message goes something like this...
Please note to yourself where you have failed this past week, let's start with "The 7 Deadly Sins":
- Lust
- Gluttony
- Greed
- Sloth
- Wrath
- Envy
- Pride
Romans 1: 28-32
"And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them." (ESV)
Galatians 5:19-21
"Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." (ESV)
Revelations 21:8
"But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death." (ESV)
There are other lists... but I think you get the point. We all struggle, we all need forgiveness and grace. God knows this, individually we know this, and collectively we know this, however we struggle to admit it for fear of ______ (fill in the blank). Are we afraid others will know our secret - that we are not perfect? Or is it that we are afraid we'll have to admit what that struggle is to another person? What are we afraid of really? Being judged by others? I think there are many more fears and concerns I haven't addressed, and all of these are why we prefer to simply talk with God and only God about our struggles.
We need to purify our hearts and minds. We need to find a friend that can be our confidant - someone that isn't just keeping a secret (that would be far to simple), but someone who can encourage us to grow in God's grace and love. Someone who will bless us with God's blessings of forgiveness, grace, mercy, and accountability.
Talking with a new friend she said it like this, "What is the most popular isle in the store? The discount isle - the ones with all the stuff that has been used, nicked, dented, scratched, broken, worn and returned, all these things are really desirable. The same goes for people." The ones that are broken in, well worn, aware of their flaws and accepting of others - these people are also desirable, not just to other people, but to God.
Humanity Wrapped in Humility
An older preacher friend told me about his ministry before failure - it was nonexistent. He didn't really connect with people. They thought he was too perfect. Then he went to Africa and failed. The team he was on didn't get along and they all came back early... and he immediately was able to connect to the people around him.
Why? Because he was more aware of his own failure and so were they. They could see he had experience as a human being that was real, not something he learned in a book. They could see it on his face, they could hear it as he preached, they could watch him live in God's grace daily. His life was meaningful because he could embrace his humanity with humility.
Focus
What I propose is this... don't focus on your sin, focus on God's grace! Recognize your sin, accept that you are a person and therefore sinful. Seek God's grace and mercy through forgiveness and if needed baptism into Christ. Then keep your focus on Jesus. Think more about your goals than the gutter. When we focus on the gutter that is where we will end up. If we focus on our fears - they will arrive. However if we focus on our goals of godliness then they will be our destination.
I write all of this because I have been afraid of becoming like so many others - sick, sinfully sick to the point of utter life failure. I am reminded again and again that I need to focus on health, not my fears. I need to find healthy spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical goals that represent a balanced approach to life.
So, I ask for your prayers, encouragement, and blessings as I journey towards Jesus focusing on a healthy hearing of His word and obedience to His Spirit.
Find the Vice, then find the Virtue to focus on:
Lust vs. Purity = Embracing of moral wholesomeness and achieving purity of body and thought through education and betterment.
Gluttony vs. Self-control = Practicing restraint, self-control, abstention, moderation.
Greed vs. Generosity = Willingness to give. A nobility of thought or actions.
Sloth vs. Diligence = A zealous and careful nature in one's actions and work. Decisive work ethic. Budgeting one's time; monitoring one's own activities to guard against laziness. Putting forth full concentration in one's work
Wrath vs. Patience = Forbearance and endurance through moderation. Resolving conflicts peacefully, as opposed to resorting to violence. The ability to forgive; to show mercy to sinners.
Envy vs. Kindness = Love, compassion, friendship, and sympathy without prejudice and for its own sake.
Pride vs. Humility = Modest behavior and the giving of respect. Giving credit where credit is due; not unfairly glorifying one's own self.
Injustice vs. Justice = Honesty, and the giving of righteousness. Being fair or telling the truth. Doing what is right and not what is wrong. It is the light of truth that conquers the dark of the wrong. Equity, impartiality.
Accepting God's Grace
John 3:16
Romans 3:21-28
Matthew 28:18-20
"And Jesus came and said to them,
Monday, May 12, 2008
Earthquake!
We are thankful to report that no one we know was injured during the earthquake. If you haven't heard, it was West of us (Shiyan, Hubei) in the Sichuan Province. Most of China felt the earthquake, even most of Asia. Here is the AP article: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gBr_dOzJ9Pnc_U9gSgtTgE-cR-KwD90K8VFG0
Please pray for those still trapped and the families of all the victims.
We are currently finishing our semester here at the medical college. When the quake struck Jaime and I were both at the very beginning of class. Jaime was not sure what was happening, her classroom didn't move as much. I was in a different building and felt the earthquake a little more. The video projection unit mounted to the ceiling began swaying, then the ceiling fans, and finally everyone felt it and we all became a little quiet. The duration was about 2 minutes, then I began teaching.
There was no damage or injuries here. The students immediately began receiving text messages from friends and family from all over China. Everyone was reporting on their experience and warning that more earthquakes were scheduled to arrive later in the evening, probably 7:30pm (like you can schedule earthquakes).
Please pray for those still trapped and the families of all the victims.
We are currently finishing our semester here at the medical college. When the quake struck Jaime and I were both at the very beginning of class. Jaime was not sure what was happening, her classroom didn't move as much. I was in a different building and felt the earthquake a little more. The video projection unit mounted to the ceiling began swaying, then the ceiling fans, and finally everyone felt it and we all became a little quiet. The duration was about 2 minutes, then I began teaching.
There was no damage or injuries here. The students immediately began receiving text messages from friends and family from all over China. Everyone was reporting on their experience and warning that more earthquakes were scheduled to arrive later in the evening, probably 7:30pm (like you can schedule earthquakes).
Monday, April 21, 2008
Driving without lights
The Earnshaw Vault
Driving without lights
Posted by Jeremy Goldkorn, April 18, 2008 12:58 PM
Graham Earnshaw was the Daily Telegraph correspondent in Beijing from 1980 to 1984, and he's been looking through his clippings, which seem to prove both that China has changed completely and also that China has stayed exactly the same. This spring and summer, Danwei will be publishing a series of these reports from the past. This is today's resurrected item:
Legal hazards facing drivers in Peking
March 5, 1981
By Graham Earnshaw in Peking
A good way of causing a traffic accident in Peking is actually to drive according to the letter of the law.
Not only is it illegal to drive at night through the Chinese capital's dimly-lit streets with headlights on, but trying to respect the law on pedestrian crossings appears to only increase traffic chaos.
As a test, I drove down the length of Peking's busiest street, the Avenue of Everlasting Peace, trying to stay within the law. I failed, and probably avoided an accident as a result.
Zebra crossings were painted across some of the main roads last year and regulations enacted which state that drivers must give way to pedestrians on the crossings.
But no driver in Peking takes the slightest notice of the regulation despite the law's clear warning that any accident involving an injury in a zebra crossing is automatically assumed to be the fault of the driver.
My attempt at driving lawfully not only failed, but I also caused confusion amongst the pedestrians uncertain of why I was stopping, anger amongst drivers behind me convinced that I had the right of way, and impatience in the case of one policeman who testily waved me on as I stopped to let pedestrians cross.
One car almost ran into me as I slowed to remain within the law.
The utter confusion which reigns on Peking's streets appears to be getting worse despite attempts to deal with the problems.
For years the biggest hazards have been swarms of jay-walking pedestrians and the cyclists zig-zagging amongst the traffic in death-defying fashion. Few Peking citizens seem to realize that cars can kill.
But the twin nightmares of serving cyclists and darting pedestrians have been joined recently by another danger - a corps of novice taxi drivers conscripted on to the roads to help deal with a recent influx of foreign
tourists.
Driving at night down Peking's dark thoroughfares is particularly hair-raising because of the law banning headlights.
When asked the reason for the curious ban on headlights Chinese officials have said that it is to stop the cyclists being dazzled.
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Author's note: At the time, there were almost no cars on Beijing streets except for a few buses, army jeeps and the occasional Red Flag limo. It was all bicycles. It was possible to drive very fast, and I once did Jianguomen to Beida in 15 minutes. Madness. At night camel trains of several camels, as well as donkey carts, would pass along Jianguomenwai Dajie, so deathly quiet after 9pm that it was possible to clearly hear the Peking station clock playing the East is Red on the hour every hour. Another explanation given for the ban on headlights was to prevent giving the US imperialists or Soviet revisionists guidance on any possible bombing run.
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