Campus life

Lotus at the Sun Yat Sen pond

I think this describes how I experienced the past twelve months:

Luke 12

29-32 “What I’m trying to do here is get you to relax, not be so preoccupied with getting so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep yourself in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Don’t be afraid of missing out. You’re my dearest friends! The Father wants to give you the very kingdom itself.

Grandmother stories

Aunt: Need to call for uber to go shopping because I don't have a car here.

Grandma: Taiping no uber.

Aunt: How you know?

Grandma: I know lah.

Folks, my 86-year old grandma.

~~~

Last uncle: Who bought that beanbag?

Grandma: Your third brother. When it was in fashion, he didn't want to buy. When not in fashion then only he buy.

*micdrop

~~~

Me: I thought you were driving back tonight? So late already still not yet leave ah?

Last uncle: Relaxxxxxx...... what's the rush? Chinese New Year is about relaxing and taking your time. And spending time with Ah Mah. What lah you.

..... a few seconds later....

Grandma to last uncle: Why are you still here? Aren't you supposed to leave?? It's so late already.

Me and fifth uncle laughed so hard, last uncle's daughter asked for a translation.

~~~

Grandma: Do you want Milo?

Me: No, it's okay.

Grandma: There's no sugar.

She's so perceptive it's amazing. I don't know the hokkien translation for "lactose pills" which I forgot to pack so I didn't explain why I don't drink Milo. (But, yes, mainly because of the high sugar content.)

What cats do when we're not looking

First viewing of a bendi plant. Cool.

#apw

From Tim Keller’s sermon, “Promise of Hope”:

God designed life, i.e. what we think of as our relationship to God (spiritual), to ourselves (psychological), to others (social), and to nature. When we sin, God doesn’t “punish” us by heaping curses on us, but by allowing us to live as our own masters, that is, in ways that contravenes God’s designs. We experience frustration because our souls long for something better, but we can’t get at it unless we acknowledge that God is God.

The consequence of sin is alienation in all the realms of our lives: spiritual, self/psychological, social, and from nature.

Living in sin means living with the frustrations of wanting a perfect life, but not being able to get it. 

The remedy?

Genesis 3:14-15

Even as God pronounced--pronounced as a statement of fact--curses as the result of sin, he couldn’t help himself but to also announce even then the coming of redemption. He couldn't wait because he is the God who can’t wait to bless even when to bless means the greatest sacrifice.

Do students prefer to be expected to repeat their teacher's opinions? A carefully reasoned argument for one's own opinion is more difficult and riskier. How can we encourage students to take the riskier and more difficult path?

"What do I try to do for my students? Well, teach them, of course—which does not mean simply feeding them with facts, much less indoctrinating them. Naturally, to some extent I can feed them with facts. For example, I can tell them that a certain Greek form is the aorist infinitive passive of such and such a verb. But most of my teaching deals with matters which call for the exercise of personal judgment. If we are discussing (say) the date, authorship and purpose of a particular biblical document, I can put all the evidence before them and tell them in which direction I think the evidence points, but I cannot force my conclusions on them; they must make their minds up for themselves. This means that they must be taught how to evaluate the kind of evidence on which conclusions of this character are based. The same is true when we are studying the exegesis of a passage on which editors, translators and interpreters differ. I can tell them my own view, and why I hold it, but I cannot impose it on them.

"What I do impose is the duty of knowing clearly, and stating clearly, their reasons for holding their own preferred view, whether it coincides with mine or not. If pupils turn out to be carbon copies of their teacher, it says little for his qualities as a teacher."

-- In Retrospect, FF Bruce

because

God's nature

Too easy to forget, sometimes.

We only glimpse a tiny, unfinished corner of the grand work of art that the Creator is shaping. But no matter how messy or dark or unfinished that corner may seem, this truth remains: God is a blessing God, and he can be trusted.

“For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.” (Psalm 100:5)

“Surely goodness and mercy shall [pursue with the intent of overtaking] me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD my whole life long. (Psalm 23:6)

So, friends, we can enter this day, this week, confident that, whatever we may see or not see at the moment, our good and kind Father, fully intent on blessing us, is shaping our days.

‘Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32)

“What then shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:31-32)

Cold temps

My body does not want to move when it's too cold. I hope the weather warms up soon because I want to want to go to the gym.

Until then, I'm either under the covers with my heating pad turned up high, in the kitchen making something to eat (chickpea flatbread which actually comes pretty close to the real deal), or in the bathroom where there's a heat lamp.

Not happy.

more on conversations with friends

A friend wrote the following:

What does it mean for action to cease and simply to be in his presence? That night, I realized I barely know what that looks like. Can we engage with God in complete stillness of body and mind? That seems inimical to how I have conceptualized the Christian walk for all these years--i.e., one of action, initiated primarily by me...heretical, that?

And I'm so glad because this is something I've been working on the last week too. It's an encouragement and confirmation that I'm on the right track.