2010 回顧

2010 has 3 hours left. I am very content this year. I usually look back to my journal written in the first day of the year, then look through my journal, and reflect what the year means to me.

My biggest accomplishment this year was the completion of two seminary courses: the New Testament and the Old Testament. I have been longing to study God's words deeper. These courses pushed me to learn the historical background and environment. I found that the Holy Bible is very interesting and intriguing. However.....I did not learn all what I should, because I did not have enough time and energy. These past six months have been very challenging to my body, mind and soul. I wanted to learn more, read more, yet my body told me to rest more.....
So much for that. Two things (at least) that I learned from these courses:

1. The New Testament: I was amazed by how Jesus Christ, who lived just 33 years on earth, affected His followers. Decades after he died, people were still talking about him, and his words are life-changing. Many even died for him under the pressure of the Roman government. Can you think of anyone who died decades ago, whose words are still affecting your life?
   
2. The Old Testament: I am very much reminded by the life of King Solomon. God bless people with wealth. Yet, as a king, Deuteronomy 17:17 reminded me that he should not possess a lot of silver and gold. Too much possession will lead a king away from God. Think simplicity and minimalism.

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Two earthquakes took place this year. The minor one was at HCCMGC. The only staff left for school. God prepared an excellent temporary director for us. The past four months were reverted from frustrations to blessings.

The major earthquake was at work. My office moved, and only 3 people survived the earthquake. It was pretty miserable. I took much more responsibilities and it took me a while to handle the new tasks along with my normal tasks. God gave me enough to survive each day. Thanks also to the 3 to 4 cups of coffee a day, and 4.5 miles of run per week.

(Sometimes, I don't know why people trust me in handling something. I think this is not a question of trust. It is a question of whether there is a choice. )

Highlight of this year was my trip to DC. I fell in love with those paintings at the National Gallery! Will show later.....just wait. Happy New Year!

Emails

I used to like to check e-mail. In the old days, or when I first started using e-mails. The messages were usually greetings and news from friends.

Today, I receive e-mails and they are mostly about communications for work, including volunteer work and job. A new message means new work or instructions. The lines are full of cold words, but nothing personal and warmth. Those facial expressions in text help, but not much. They are still about work.

It makes me think: do we treat others as tools or persons?

We communicate because we need to get works done. "Others" become our tools.

Or, do we communicate because we care about others and care about others knowing what happens on our side? In this case, "others" has relationship with us.

Personal communications have shifted to Facebook, but it seems to be a platform that is too open to public, even with privacy settings. I like to have my personal zone, with my own friends and family. I received two e-mails recently from "others" who have relationship with me as "friends". I feel that I am special by reading the stories of others.

In my opinion, single line texts and photos in Facebook still cannot replace "letters" in electronic format. E-mails still cannot replace the power of physical letters.

Journal of Cookie Making

I want to make the best cookies, but I did not have all the ingredients that I "needed".

• I needed milk, but I only had sweetened milk and water.
• I needed 3 bars of butter, but I only had 2 bars.
• I needed vanilla extract, but I only had almond.

Does it matter? Who knows? I was willing to take this risk of eating all the unimaginable cookies by myself.

What else do I have? It has to be the best cookie. Mila! Yes, I have to believe that it will be the best cookie.

Surprise! My dream came true, even I did not have everything that I thought I needed. I used what I have, and they were actually what I really needed. The outcome was better than expected!

Circle Prayers

(by Pastor Todd Clark)

1. We speak 2. God listens 3. God speak 4. We listen --> back to 1. We respond

God's answers to prayers:

1. If the request is wrong, God says 'no'.

2. If the timing is wrong, God says 'slow'.

3. If you are wrong, God says 'grow'. (usually my case)

4. If the request is right, timing is right and you are right, God says 'go'.

Isiah 55:3 "Give ear and come to me; hear me, that your soul may live."

Motivation

Somebody did a research on a group of monkeys. The researcher found that the two ways to motivate monkeys are reward and punishment. Then, he applies the theories to human beings, and concludes that the two (major) ways to movitivate people are $ and fear.

I thought about it....really?

Apostel Paul forgoes his old way of practice after he met the resurrected Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus. The change, as he descirbes it in his letters to churches and individuals, comes from Jesus, who died on the cross and rose for all of us. It is love that changed him, but not money nor fear. As a matter of face, he was sent to prison and suffered much for his mission.

Does Paul do all the work for reward in heaven? Reward is a result, but not a motivation or purpose of work. Many missionaries even today are called to missions because they love God. Such love becomes a motivation. Chang of heart and mind from God is the cause of action, that produce long-lasting and life-changing effects.

Another example, Thomas Edison: he worked very hard in his invention, because he loves his work. He is curiouse to nature, and he dedicates his life in invention. Do you think he was motivated by money or fear? Do you think he was working for a big corporation and he had to meet deadlines in order to get paid for his first light bulb?

The researcher may conclude the reward as spiritual satisfaction, rather than money, as a reward. Then, I would accept it easier. However, it is hard to conclude it this way, because he/she was researching on monkeys, that do not have spirits but somachs.

The Lost Letters of Pergamum

The story starts with a proud Roman noble, who wrote to Calpurnius to borrow a prestigious book to study. Letter exchange between Antipas and Calpurnius’s household started. When Calpurius was away from home, Luke, a scholar who wrote the gospel of Luke, took over then pen to reply to Antipas. Antipas and Luke became good pen-pal.

From the letters, I learned that in the first century, the Romans worshiped many gods. The government was very accommodating in a way, that tolerates many different cultures. However, sometimes, the local government set guilds and forced the commoners to worship the Roman gods. If they refuse, they will be treated as criminals and be executed in gladiator games.

Antipas was a worshiper of Jupiter, and loved gladiator games. He thought that the amphitheater was a place for both justice and entertainment. He organized one of the biggest games in his newly reported city called Pergamum. His full time job was an overseer for renovation of a temple for a Roman god, which was an honorable job.

Since Antipas started communication with Luke, Luke lent him a copy of his monograph, that you and I can read freely today. In the beginning, Antipas focused on the writing style of Luke, though the teaching of Jesus was too naive. He did not understand why Christians hated the Romans, he thought that the Christians brought about only social unrest...and many questions that you and I have today.

Changes happen with touch of lives, not by study of theories.

Antipas started to attend Christian gatherings, and discovered the difference that Jesus had brought about. Everybody was equal. Even a noble man serves an artisan during the gathering. Antipas attended the gathering a number of times, yet he was not a believer.

After a year, Antipas returned to his home town Caesarea, and he found himself changed. He found the high official parties empty and lack of substance. He even considered resigning from his prestigious job in Pergamum. He became a “seeker of truth”.

The story ended in a gladiator game, where Antipas was executed. Why? You have to read!

http://www.amazon.com/Lost-Letters-Pergamum-Story-Testament/dp/0801026075/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1275206324&sr=8-1

The Intellect

Translation (by Fabrizio Medosi)

The Intellect

The Eagle said to the Cat: “I’m a celebrity

already. With the name and fame I’ve got, I

don’t give a hoot for the world. All men

are admirers of my intellect!”

The Cat answered: “I’ve no doubt.

But I, a kitchen connoisseur,

Can assure you that Man admires the Eagle,

still in the end prefers the Chicken”

L’ingegno

L'Aquila disse ar Gatto: - Ormai sò celebre.
Cór nome e cò la fama che ciò io
me ne frego der monno: tutti l'ommini
sò ammiratori de l'ingegno mio! -

Er Gatto je rispose: - Nù ne dubbito.
Io, però, che frequento la cucina,
te posso dì che l'Omo ammira l'Aquila,
ma in fonno preferisce la Gallina...

Trilussa (ca 1900)

Goodbye!

What is Goodbye?
Chinese says "再見", which means see you again.

English says "Goodbye", originated from "God be with ye".

Jews says "שלום ", means Peace.
Hawaiian says "Aloha", means love and peace.

Parting with blessings to others,

like a flower shower at the end of wedding,joyful, romantic and full of hope;

like an ever after ending of a fairy tale, happy, complete and lively;

like a new beginning charged up support, powerful and graceful....

Rod and Staff

"Even though I walk thorough the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me." (Psalm 23: 4)

I never thought of the difference between a rod and a staff, but now I have learned. A rod is a weapon that the shepherd uses to defend and protect the sheep.

(this funny looking weapon is a shepherd's rod)

A staff is like a cane, used for guiding the sheep to the correct path.

With God's protection and guidance, how could we not be comforted? Praise the Lord!

Nummeri

A 1944 poem by Trilussa, a poet who wrote in Roman dialect (the rhymless translation won’t do him justice):

Numbers

I may count little, it’s true
-said the One to the Zero-
But what’s your worth? Nothing: just nothing.
Both in action and in thought
You remain an empty and inconclusive thing.
I, instead, if I put myself in front of a line
of five zero exactly like you,
do you know what I become? One hundred thousand.
It’s a question of numbers. Just like
What happens to the tyrant
Whose power and value grow
The more the zeros who follow him.

Nummeri

Contero’ poco, e’ vero
-diceva l’Uno ar Zero –
Ma tu che vali? Gnente: proprio gnente.
Sia ne l’azzione come ner penziero
rimani un coso voto e inconcrudente.
Io, invece, se me metto a capofila
de cinque zeri tale e quale a te,
lo sai quanto divento? Centomila.
E’ questione de nummeri. A un dipresso
E’ quello che succeede ar dittatore
Che cresce de potenza e di valore
Piu’ so’ li zeri che je vanno appresso.

A Couple of Delightful Americnas

The news usually brought "bad news", and I always hear people saying that America is going down the drain. In spite of the pessimistic atmosphere, a couple guys delighted my day yesterday.

I had a major deadline yesterday, and I had to delicate and rely on my co-workers to finish up the work. Daniel was exceptional. He stayed late the night before the deadline, and finished up the work with quality. The great part was not only the work, because many architects and drafts-persons do stay late to meet deadlines, which shouldn't be so special. When I know how the company compensate him, I think he has produced a lot. When I saw his work attitude, I thank God for America's future.

This same evening, I went to Awana. There is an 8-year-old boy, Mark, who made a great impression. First he knows the Bible, meaning had good memories of the Bible verses. Second, he is very humble and fun. In the group counseling time, the teacher asked what knowledge and wisdom was. He answered, "Knowledge was something that you can learn from a book, but wisdom is not something you can find in a book." Very wise. When I looked at him, I thank God for America's future.

The country is not going down the drain. There are still a lot of people who love the Lord, and a lot of people who contribute in great ways. There are challenging times, yet, I still believe that God bless America for those who love him in this country.

Why people suffer?

The real question is: why Jesus died?

Jesus is innocent and sinless. However, he suffered and die. Why? Because human is sinful, and Jesus has to die and save us from sin.

While an innocent man has already suffered without complaints, why do we ask "why sinful men suffer?" We age, ill and die because of our sin.

The good news is that Jesus has already died for us, and although we still suffer physically in the world, we won't eventually, and we shall have eternal lives, if we accept him as our personal savior.

How do we explain it to non-Christians? We can explain as how the Bible teaches us, but it is up to the Holy Spirit to open their heart to understand human being's sinful nature.

(class discussion with Dr. Robert Neff)

Zechariah class note

In Hebrew 7, the author is trying to describe how great Jesus is, so he uses anthropomorphic language*. At that time, people thought that the priest from the tribe of Levi had the highest authority over other tribes. When Jesus was described as the king and the priest, people rejected because Jesus was not from Levi.

The author explains that although Jesus is not from the tribe of Levi, he is a priest and higher that a priest from Levi. He refers back to Genesis 14, where Abram gave tithe to Melchizedek, who is not a priest. Levi is the great grandson of Abram. When Levi was not yet born, his ancestor Abram had already paid respect to higher authority, meaning that Levi was not the highest authority.

Jesus is the King and he is a High priest

(*language in the level of the receiver)

Zechariah chapter 2: the only place in the Bible that the term "holy land" is used to describe Israel.

Big Switch vs. Wild Swan 1

I started my reading habit again this new year. I am reading two books. One of them is a bibliography called Wild Swan, and the other one is called Big Switch. Both of them are interesting, especially when I read the contrast ideas at the same time. The later suggests that technology is a major force of changes to society and human behavior throughout history, while the former alludes that political ambition and human ideology brought revolutionary changes to the nation, and technology was not much mentioned.

I have just read chapter one of Big Switch. The author started talking about a big machine invented in the 19th century, that led to mass agricultural production. This machine has changed the economy and fed many. Then, when Thomas Edison discovered electricity, the machine powered by hydraulic energy was abandoned, and electricity became the sole of mass production and more lives were changed. Nowadays, information technology became the backbone of economy and even national security. Almost nobody can live without it. The author asserted that electricity and information technology has one thing in common: both of them relies on a central processing media to distributor services, that is also the key for inexpensive and widely available services. Therefore, they brought about dramatic changes to society. Then, so what? I am looking to find out more....

What will the author of Wild Swan think about technology? I wonder....For a woman growing up in the 1930s and 40s in China, I am very curious what she would think about the relationship between technology and human lives.

"Where is God?" --- A Jew's Confession

The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.

My confession:

I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are, Christmas trees.

It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a creche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.

In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her 'How could God let something like this happen?' (regarding Hurricane Katrina).... Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, 'I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives.. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?'

In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said okay.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves....

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with 'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit.

If not, then just discard it... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.

My Best Regards, Honestly and respectfully,

Ben Stein