擦肩而过

我不是个好男人，

也不是个好情人，

更不是个好丈夫。

我不懂怎样慰问，
不懂怎样安慰，
不懂怎样体贴，
不懂怎样关心，
不懂怎样开导，
不懂怎样陪伴，
不懂怎样保护。

不知是孤单作祟，
还是寂寞难耐。

但是你对我而言，
可能只是擦肩而过。

因为鱼选择回去它的深海，
不敢再游回那片海域，
害怕将会重蹈覆辙，
害怕将会重复飞鸟与鱼的故事。

鱼，
喜欢独处，
喜欢深海的宁静，
喜欢在海中慢慢的游。

 

___________________

  

For thus says the LORD: "To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,

who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant,

I will give in my house and within my walls,

a monument and a name better than sons and daughters,

I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off."

Isaiah 56:4-5 ESV 

 

Two Worlds Collide at the River

Just watched a movie about a true story End of the Spear. Five missionaries tried to contact a violent native tribe in Ecuador called Waodani, a.k.a. the people of spear. All the missionaries were killed by the Waodani, yet their family forgave them, and still tried to contact them, to reach out the gospel of Jesus Christ to them. They explained “Waegongi (God) has a son who came to earth. He was speared, but did not spear back, so that one day, those who speared him could live well.”

The Waodani tried to be strong by attacking the foreigners and even their own tribe, whom they perceive as enemies. They attacked with their spears. By spearing they took revenge for their own groups.The ultimate reason for them to be strong by spearing, is that when they died, they are strong enough to jump across the Great Boa, which lies between them and afterlife, where Waegongi is there. If they cannot jump across the Great Boa, their spirits will become termites on earth.

Their own belief didn't assure salvation and eternal life for them. They need to jump across the Great Boa by their own strength. But the Good News is that Jesus Christ had died for our sins on the cross at Calvary, so that whoever believe in Him might enter the kingdom of heaven, because Jesus Christ has "jumped cross the Great Boa" for us.

The Waodani are revengeful people. They seek vengeance for the death of their family. Yet the family of the missionaries, and Steve Saint, forgave the Waodani. Forgiveness, which is the core of Christianity, has ended the cycle of vengeance and violence, because Jesus Christ has bring peace and love to us, by His atonement on the cross.
  

___________________
  

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep 

to gain that which he cannot lose.

- Jim Elliot, 28th October 1949 -

  

You’ll Find Your Way

When I look at you, boy
I can see the road that lies ahead
I can see the love and the sorrow

Bright fields of joy
Dark nights awake in a stormy bed
I want to go with you, but I can’t follow

So keep to the old roads
Keep to the old roads
And you’ll find your way

Your first kiss, your first crush
The first time you know you’re not enough
The first time there’s no one there to hold you

The first time you pack it all up
And drive alone across America
Please remember the words that I told you

Keep to the old roads
Keep to the old roads
And you’ll find your way
You’ll find your way

If love is what you’re looking for
The old roads lead to an open door
And you’ll find your way
You’ll find your way
Back home

And I know you'll be scared when you take up that cross
And I know it'll hurt, 'cause I know what it costs
And I love you so much and it's so hard to watch
But you're gonna grow up and you're gonna get lost
Just go back, go back

Go back, go back to the ancient paths
Lash your heart to the ancient mast
And hold on, boy, whatever you do
To the hope that's taken hold of you
And you'll find your way
You'll find your way
If love is what you’re looking for
The old roads lead to an open door
And you’ll find your way
You’ll find your way
Back home

- Andrew Peterson -

Living Water

Source: The Gospel Coalition

 

We're drinking from a mirage if we only quench our thirst on what we hope to see 

and not what is real and lasting and may not be seen for a long, long, long time.

 
We're drinking from a stagnant pond if we keep returning to the same story 

over and over and over again hoping to find resolution (Prov. 26:11).
 

We're drinking from a rusty tap if we don't purify our words with fire (James 4:8), 

season them with salt (Col. 4:6), and sweeten them with honey (Ps. 119:103).
 

We're drinking from contaminated water 

if we believe that we're the water others long for.
 

We're drinking from water that will never satisfy 

if we're not drinking from the Living Water (John 4:7-30). 

 

- Lore Ferguson - 

 

___________________ 

Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,

but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.

Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water 

welling up to eternal life."

John 4:13-14

 

Preaching that Cuts to the Heart

Source: The Gospel Coalition

I think it may be possible to say that every sermon 

should have three aspects or purposes.
 

First, you need to preach the text in its scriptural context;
second, you need to preach Christ and the gospel every time;
and finally, you need to preach to the heart.
 

Put another way, you should preach the truth, 

not just your opinion;
you should preach the good news, 

not just good advice;
and you should preach to make the truth real to the heart, 

not just clear to the mind.
 

The first is often discussed under the heading of expository preaching,
the second is often called Christ-centered preaching,
and the third is usually named "application"

(though I think each aspect contains more than these traditional categories might imply).
 

- Tim Keller -

 

___________________ 

 

When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart

and said to Peter and the other apostles,

"Brothers, what shall we do?"

Acts 2:37

 

Who is Apollos?

Apollos... was a learned man, 

with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures... 

he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately, 

though he knew only the baptism of John... 

When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home 

and explained to him the way of God more adequately... 

When Apollos wanted to go to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him... 

he was proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ. 

Acts 18: 24-28 

What can we learn from Apollos?

1. Everyone, especially a teacher, needs to know the Scriptures well.
2. A teacher need to be taught before he can teach. One must be a student who is teachable before he can become a teacher.
3. Though he didn't know everything, yet he taught fervently with what he knew. We are humans, hence we are not omniscient. A teacher doesn't know everything, he only knows what he knows. This fact should keep us always humble before God, who is omniscient.
4. A teacher need to teach accurately, because those who 'teach will be judged more strictly' (James 3:1).
5. We should teach boldly and should 'not [be] ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile' (Romans 1:16).
6. As a teacher he continued to learn from other by humbling himself. A teacher need to continue to be teachable.
7. As servant of Christ, he wanted to 'go and make disciples of all nations' (Mattthew 28:19). We should light up the candle in the dark.
8. He teaches others by faithful exposition of the Scripture.

盐和光

很多时候，觉得很无能为力。

知道很多，但是什么也没做。

难道就抱着这样的态度做医生吗？

难道就这样置之不理吗？

我们被招呼为这世上的盐和世上的光，

但我却让自己失了味，把自己放在斗底下，

没放在灯台上来照亮这世界。

主啊，塑造我成为你器皿，

让我成为你的灯台，让你的光照亮这世界。

___________________ 

你们是世上的盐…… 你们是世上的光……

马太福音 5:13-14

 

 

The LORD will be my Light

After studying and teaching ECG for few years, 

a teacher said I am weak in ECG.

In some sense it is true, 

but it is still sounds offensive for me.

This ever changing medicine with time,
really frustrates me.
O Lord, sometime I just want to give up on medicine 
and pour in all my life and soul in Thy Word, 
which stands forever,
even if heaven and earth pass away.

___________________

But as for me, I watch in hope for the LORD, 

I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me. 

Do not gloat over me, my enemy! 

Though I have fallen, I will rise. 

Though I sit in darkness, the LORD will be my light. 

Because I have sinned against him, 

I will bear the LORD'S wrath, 

until he pleads my case and establishes my right. 

He will bring me out into the light; 

I will see his righteousness. 

Micah 7:7-9

沿海地帶

作詞：木蘭號 （陳韋伶）
作曲：馬奕強

空蕩蕩的月台　入秋微涼的海  
微風把腳下的樹葉都吹開   火車就要出發催促我快離開
       

我的心已超載　你不瞭解的愛    
當失望逐漸將一切都掩埋　沒想到害怕更真實存在       

在沿海地帶放逐我的愛　孤單也很精彩

我相信我們都有該去的未來　不該在原地徘徊    

我其實很明白　夢醒了就不在
只是還掙扎著不讓他離開　緊緊抓著的也都是空白    

在沿海地帶放逐我的愛　孤單也很精彩

我相信我們都有該去的未來　不該在原地徘徊    

       
在沿海地帶我遠遠離開　要更自由自在

不要我的心隨著大廳的鐘擺　停留在原地感慨     

___________________


在耶路撒冷放逐我的愛　忧愁也很快乐

我相信上帝给我生命的方向　不該在原地徘徊    
  

What is 'disease'?

I still remember the first internal medicine lecture delivered by Dmitry Nikolaevich Emelyanov.

Lecturer: It is not easy to define the word 'disease'. What is 'disease'?
Student : Deviation from normal.

Lecturer: Yes correct, so what is normal? *Taking down his glasses* 

                  If I need to wear glasses, am I considered as abnormal or having disease? 

                  *Putting back his glasses* So it is rather hard to define what is 'disease'.

The Value of a Tired Soul

Source: The Gospel Coalition

A tired soul knows the difference.
 

A tired soul allows us to sympathize with one another,

cry with one another.
 

A tired soul understands another person's hurt and pain,
and doesn't question the enduring sorrow.
 

A tired soul never expects someone to just "get over" loss.
It never assumes that someone's theology is bad because he grieves and aches.
 

A tired soul is tired for a reason:

because it has been through heartbreak, too.

It understands.

- Dave Dunham - 

___________________

Rejoice with those who rejoice,

mourn with those who mourn.

Romans 12:15

Discipline of Grace

Only until the last day of my winter holiday I consider to write something here. This is my last winter holiday in this city. It is not as fruitful as I planned. Nothing much is worked out.

I used to like to do origami, and once again this interest is stirred up when I saw origami of Saint George and the Dragon. Kind of addicted to it. A hobby or an interest can be unhealthy, when it starts to take away the sweet time of prayer and daily Scripture reading. This reminds me what Robert Murray McCheyne said.

Brethren, if you are ever so much taken up with any enjoyment 

that it takes away your love for prayer or for your Bible...... 

then you are abusing this world. 

Oh! Sit loose to this world’s joy: 
‘the time is short.’ 

- Robert Murray McCheyne - 

So I ended up putting all the colour papers, scarp papers, and the origami that I made into a box (a random box was lying around in the hall of my floor, maybe it is for this reason the box is there), and put it away. I was not easy. The temptation is always there, but by the grace of God I manage to put this old enjoyment aside. However I am glad that I learned how to make an origami book.

I also managed to learn some making-pizza skills from Frank, who used to open a pizza store in the States before he was called as missionary. He used Nehemiah 8:10 for his store "...the joy of the LORD is your strength." Next time if I also open a store, this verse will be used also. The only think I didn't learn is how to make a pizza dough.

Managed to read some books. Finished reading Legacy of Sovereign Joy by John Piper. It is impressing to see how Augustine, Luther, and Calvin had walked with the Lord faithfully. Start with a new book The Discipline of Grace by Jerry Bridges. It is a regret to not able to finish Josephus: Throne of Blood, and not able to really resume my Greek study. I also didn't manage to really prepare for the Advance ECG CME.

Last but not least, I also managed to watch some films or documentary. First one is How Should We Then Live: The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture by Francis August Schaeffer. It is impressive that none of the extra-biblical worldviews can stand firm with the flow of time. Only Christ and his church will persevere through the generations. Second is Seventh-Day Adventism: The Mind Behind the Church. When someone adds his/her own writings into the canonical Scriptures and elevates its authority above Scriptures, or takes Christ away from the Trinity, the result is a man-made religion, or a cult. The sad thing is that many people are buying into it, even though it is straying away from the truth of God. 

I watched an interview of Rosaria Champagne Butterfield, the author of The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert. It is surprising that a homosexual university professor came to believe in Jesus Christ. It was not without struggles. She said, "Conversion put me in a complicated and comprehensive chaos." A pressing question that she many christians is this: "I need to give up my girlfriend to come here [church], what did you gave up to come here?" And I asked myself this question too, what did I gave up to come to church? What did I gave up to follow Christ? Answer: time, priorities, verbal persecutions, challenges, lust, sexual sins, and most unthinkable one — a chance for a romantic relationship. I don't know what else I need to give up, but what is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ. (Philippians 3:8)

Lastly and the most exciting one is Candle in the Dark: The Life and Ministry of William Carey, the father of modern missionary, who wrote this powerful words:

Expect great things from God, 

attempt great things for God.

- William Carey, 31 May 1792 -

I really wonder how he survive for six years at India, without a single convert, without any harvest, but most adversities including poverty, death of his son, and the insanity of his wife. How can he struggle with the doubt that whether he has misread God's will or not. The director of the film answered it: God doesn't demand us to be successful, He only demand us to be faithful. Faithfulness is the answer. Because of his faithfulness God used him to change India. Vishual Mangalwadi said, "Buddha has more followers and Gandhi more admirers than William Carey, even though Carey has done more for the regeneration of the India subcontinent than any other individual in our entire history." Even after some harvests, he still met with trials. A fire at the press burnt up all his hard work of translation. Instead of giving up, he chose to start all over again. The director commented with a line from a song: 

From the ashes of disaster grow the roses of success. 

The astonishing part is that William Carey (and I) realised that it is not men that bring salvation to people. None of his preaching in the first six years bring any conversion. It is the Word of God, which Carey has translated into Bengali, that save people. Paul said it well: "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile." (Romans 1:16)  

I guess I will close with a verse that Jerry Bridges used as the epigraph of Chapter 5: Disciplined by Grace in his book The Discipline of Grace.

___________________

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men.

It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions,

and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.

Titus 2:11-12