The end or the beginning

Last week we were visiting Chao Lao Beach in Chanthaburi Province, about a 3 hour drive south of where we live. I got up early in the morning per my usual style and walked down the beach, hoping to catch a glimpse of the sunrise from the pier that I could see in the distance.

It took me about half an hour to get to the pier and as I was walking out to the end, I thought, “this is it, I can’t go any further, I’ve come to the end of my journey.” But then, I thought, it’s all a manner of perspective. To some people a pier not the end of the journey but only just the beginning of it.

Ingrid and family by the boat
that took them to Canada

Several years ago, such a boat ride marked the beginning of a new life for Ingrid’s family in Canada. To them, when they got on the boat, the journey was barely beginning.

But even as one begins such a trip, one has to keep in mind that such a segment of a journey is not necessarily easy. It could be dangerous (depending on the type of boat one is in) and there will likely be bouts of seasickness. But often we can’t get to our destination without boarding either a boat or a plane.

Our lives are often have piers in them as well. We get to points in our life and say, “well that was fun, but we’ve run into this obstacle, and we can’t go any further.” But maybe it might be the time to say something like, “Wow, looks like our journey is finally about to begin. Looks like it might be rough sailing for a while, but I can’t wait to get to the other side.”

After the nation of Israel had been wandering in the wilderness, they too, came upon an obstacle. They knew they were supposed to go to the land on the other side of the Jordan River, but the River was running at flood stage. Trying to get two million people across a flooding river would seem to be quite the challenge. But God had a plan. It did not involve a boat, but it did involve an ark.

So when the people set out from their tents to pass over the Jordan with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, and as soon as those bearing the ark had come as far as the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water (now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest), the waters coming down from above stood and rose up in a heap very far away, at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan, and those flowing down toward the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, were completely cut off. And the people passed over opposite Jericho. Joshua 3:14-16 (ESV)

Right now, we feel like we are about to get on a boat at the end of the pier. We’ve been on a journey to bring the good news of Jesus to the people of Isaan. We did not expect that our journey would take us the way it did and we finally got to the end of a road where it looked like the journey was over. But there is a boat at the end of the pier with Ban Phruksa-Chachoengsao written on its bow. It seems that if we ride this boat for a while we will eventually get to our destination. We don’t know what the ride will be like, and we may get a little seasick at times. But the end of the pier we are on is not the end of our journey, but only the beginning.

Entrance sign to Ban Phruksa

Weapon or Toy

A flambouyant tree similar to the one
we saw in Haiti

It was about 32 years ago when I first saw it. We had recently moved to Saint Marc, Haiti, and we were visiting Amani-y Beach just south of the city.  As we were driving over the white limestone soil on the way to the beach we passed this bare skeleton of a tree—except that it was covered with magnificent red blooms.
 
The flambouyant tree is probably the first tropical tree/flower that I learned the name of. And as beautiful as the blooms were, the later transformation was just as amazing. The big red blossoms gave way to enormous bean pods filled with hard, elongated beans. The pods dried almost black in color and when dry, the pods could be used as musical shakers. The dark skin could also be etched away revealing the paler woody pod beneath in order to make handicrafts.

Bloom of the flambouyant tree

The seeds themselves are quite hard. In the past, when I wanted to plant some seeds, I would file a notch in the side of the seed and then pour boiling water over them to hasten germination.

Pod and seeds of flambouyant tree
If you know how big my feet are, you can really appreciate this

 
It was in search of such pods that I set out a few weeks ago. I needed to pick them off the tree before they finished drying completely because otherwise they would split open while still on the tree. I had noticed a relatively short tree not far from our apartment on one of my walks so I headed to that tree.


When I arrived to the tree, there were the usual dozen or so feral dogs hanging around. (The undeveloped areas around here are home to probably a couple hundred feral dogs which are fed by well meaning folk trying to earn merit.) I had been around long enough where the dogs were more afraid of me than I of them. But that day they were even more afraid because now, in addition to the usual weapon I use to chase them away (my eyes), I also had this large, stick-like seed pod in my hand.

As I continued on my walk that morning, I turned around a corner when I saw this petite woman sitting on a curb almost dwarfed by the two golden retrievers that were with her. I had not seen those two dogs before, nor they me, but upon seeing me, the two came running up to me. One of them saw the bean pod in my hand—the same one that had been a potential weapon in the eyes of the feral dogs—and tried to pull it out of my hand to play fetch. (I had gone to great effort to get this pod, however, and I was not about to let it go.) The lady was apologetic about her dogs, but I was more than happy to hang out with the friendly duo for a few minutes. One of them wanted to follow me home, and I was tempted to let him.

We will soon (hopefully) be moving to the community of Ban Phruksa in Chachoengsao Province. This move to me is kind of like the seed pod of the flambouyant tree—I can look at it two different ways. The feral dog part of me wants to move to Isaan right now and resents the interim move we will soon be making to Ban Phruksa. The golden retriever in me sees how well suited we are for the ministry opportunity in Ban Phruksa. So I have to constantly choose between the two—will I be a feral dog or a golden retriever?

It’s kind of like when Moses sent out 12 spies into the Promised Land.  All twelve saw the same things, but ten of them, even though they had seen all the good things that the land had to offer, did not think that Israel was able to conquer the land or that it was worth the effort.  Only two of the spies, Joshua and Caleb, thought that Israel was able to conquer the land.  Caleb reported: "Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it." Numbers 13:30 (ESV) They believed that it was possible not because the nation of Israel was capable, but because God had promised them the land and that God would assure victory.

God, help me to see things with your eyes and to trust you to give victory.

Being Grateful

It’s not a good sign when you have aquatic plants as your front lawn.  But such is the case for many poor people living on this back road in Ang Sila.

The rainy season is supposed to end by Loy Krathong (a festival which fell on November 28 this year), an old fellow told me.  And it couldn’t be soon enough for some of these people.

I took the picture above several days before Loy Krathong.  Several days before some of the heaviest rains we’ve had.

This was the neighborhood where we held VBS a couple of weeks ago.  The VBS program was held at the home pictured below.  The gray-haired lady was our host.  An MB Mission team had helped fix up her flood prone home.  They raised it a little bit and gave it a concrete floor—although I don’t think they raised it enough to be above the current water level.  The woman and several others have since come to Christ, though they don’t get to church much because they have no transportation to get them there.



Ingrid and I had come back to the neighbor hood to inquire about a girl we met during VBS. This girl had a chronic leg infection and Ingrid had treated it some and we wanted to see how it was doing.  We did not know exactly where she lived and so we were traveling with Upa—another woman from the church who lives close by.  But when we came to the flooded area Upa said we shouldn’t go into the neighborhood.  She told us we’ll get a rash on our leg—and she should know—she lives on the back side of the same swamp in a house that is also prone to flooding.



It is hard to know what to do with situations like this.  One wants to help, but how?  This neighborhood is built on a depression—a low spot where all the rainwater collects.  Upa said it would be a least a week until it dried up—and that was before several more days of rain.  The original houses in the area were built on the few high spots in the area.  If it were in America, no one would be allowed to put up a community in a swamp without doing something to get rid of the water (However frail it might be as we learned in the case of New Orleans).  But here in Thailand, the poor have to live somewhere and the options are few.  So they settle where they can, even if it is a swamp.

On the night of Loy Krathong, we watched the fireworks and flying lanterns that mark the holiday from the dry safety of our 6th floor apartment.  (The orange star-like things in the photo are actually balloon-like lanterns the are set afloat in the sky.)  We are grateful for such housing.



But we and the Thai believers from Ang Sila church still think about the plight of those living in the swampland neighborhood.  Not only are they physically poor, they are also spiritually poor as well.  During VBS, many children indicated a desire to follow Jesus.  The Ang Sila church now grapples with how to follow up on this VBS.  How do we bring the gospel of Jesus to this neighborhood?  How do we not just tell them about the love of God but also show them the love of God?

The bigger question is, how do we not grow calloused after seeing this kind of situation again and again throughout Thailand?  It is too easy to just throw our hands in the hair and say, “well, this is too big for me to deal with,” and so do absolutely nothing.  We pray that we might find ways to show our gratefulness to God by doing things that others can be grateful to Him for.

As James writes:
¹⁴ What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone?
¹⁵ Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing,
¹⁶ and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?
James 2:14-16 (NLT)

You’re never too young

For the past couple of weeks, we have had new helpers in the children’s program we are helping to run at Sila Church.  Some of those who were helping before we’re too tired from working long hours at their job to commit to the 2 hour a day, 4 day per week program that had been going on since before we came to Chonburi.

But then we got a new volunteer.  Upa is the only person in church who is older than us.  She faithfully comes to the twice-a-week program—driving up on her little motorcycle with sidecar.  She helps gather children to come and to walk them home.  She helps communicate some things that I still struggle to communicate with my rudimentary Thai.

And even though she is not completely literate in Thai, she is right there with the children in trying to learn English and learning new songs in both English and Thai.

Upa helping to lead new songs

All this from a very humble woman of little means who struggles with many health issues.

As we continue in our challenge to learn Thai, we sometimes think, “this would have been a lot easier 30 years ago when our brains were a bit fresher.”  Yet Upa is an inspiration to us—she does not let her age keep her from trying to learn new things.  If Upa can do it, so can we.

God, I thank you for the wonderful people like Upa that you have placed in our lives.  Thank you for the inspiration they bring to us.  I pray that you give Upa strength and wisdom so that she can continue to be a bright light for you in Ang Sila.  I pray that you will use her faith to bring many others into your kingdom as she faithfully serves you.

Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble."--1 Peter 5:5 (NKJV)

A Different Perspective

Recently, we spent a few days across the Gulf of Thailand from our home in Chonburi in a province called Prachaub Kiri Khan.  While we were there we saw a lot of these cactus-like plants growing wild.  The plants are actually not cactus plants at all, but are in a group of succulent plants called Euphorbias.  The plant goes by a variety of names but Malayan spurge is one of the more common names for Euphorbia antiquorum.



We remember these plants from our days in Haiti where they were a popular plant for fences for a few reasons.  The first reason is that they are a tall and fairly sturdy plant that tolerates what are less than ideal growing conditions for many plants.  But another reason that the plants are popular as fences is that they are covered with lots of thorns and, when cut or broken, exude a milky sap than can be a skin irritant.  You can trim them to whatever height you want and they will just produce more thorny branches.  And the trimmings from the branches can be planted to make even more plants.  When one looks at aerial photographs of the area we used to live in, these ancient fence-lines stand out quite strongly.  We surrounded much of the property we lived on with these plants as well. 

In Thailand, we encountered Malayan spurge along trails where we had to be careful not to bang into them.  As I was avoiding one tree, I noticed that not all creatures have this aversion to close encounters with the plant.  For in one plant I noticed that spiders found the thorns perfectly suitable as anchor points for their webs.  The spines that are sharp-pointed to a large creature like myself are rather dull compared to creatures that are about the same size as they are.



In life, it is important to remember that we do not all have the same perspective.  It is a good thing to try to see things from another’s point of view.  But even then we need to remember that our human perspective is limited by our humanity.  We don’t know everything about everything.

This is good to remember when we encounter obstacles in our lives.  What may seem like a large or insurmountable problem to us is not to God.  And God’s perspective is the one that really matters.  Even our perspective about our prayers that we pray to God about our problems can be skewed.  I was reminded of this as I was reading in Revelation the other day.  I sometimes think that by praying I am putting a burden upon God. Sometimes I even think, “Why bother God with such a thing?”  But God’s perspective appears to be different.  In Revelation 5:8 (ESV) we read:

And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

Our prayers are compared to incense—something that has a pleasing aroma.  So what I think seems to me is more like a stench, to God it is like a pleasant fragrance.  The things which are a problem for me to deal with are a pleasure for God to deal with.

Two different perspectives.

And God’s is the one that really matters.

Into the Dark

Nature Trail at Chan Ta Then Waterfall
Originally uploaded by SierraSunrise

On this trail that we encountered recently, we noticed that it kind of disappeared around the corner. We weren't sure where it was going, but we were confident that it would at least be an "official" trail because the first part of it was so obviously intentional and maintained.

Typically on the trail of our life, we can't see very far ahead. Perhaps we only see a few feet. But when we look at trail that is in view--either just before or just behind us--and we know that it has been a good trail, then we will be less apt to be afraid of the part we can't see.

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. (Philippians 1:6 (ESV) )

ภาชนะดิน

ภาชนะดิน

(คำแบ่งปันในโอกาสลอยกระดูกของคุณแม่   ผมยืนในหนองน้ำต่อหน้าเครือญาติที่ยืนอยู่ที่ริมน้ำ)

(แปลจากภาษาอังกฤษ   สีน้ำตาลไหม้เป็นคำอธิบาย  สีเขียวมาจากพระคัมภีร์: Copyrights ℗ 2007 Hosanna and © 2002 Thailand Bible Society)

ร้องเพลง: พระเจ้ายิ่งใหญ่

ในพระคัมภีร์เปาโลเปรียบเทียบร่างกายของมนุษย์กับภาชนะดินว่า

⁷ แต่เรามีของล้ำค่านี้อยู่ในภาชนะดิน เพื่อให้เห็นว่า ฤทธิ์เดชอันเลิศนั้นเป็นของพระเจ้า ไม่ได้มาจากตัวเราเอง (2 โครินธ์ 4:7)

ร่างกายของเราเป็นภาชนะชั่วคราว   ภาชนะเหล่านั้นบรรจุจิตของเราแล้ว  ถ้าเราเป็นคริสเตียนมันก็บรรจุพระวิญญาณบริสุทธิ์ด้วยตามที่เปาโลเขียนไว้ว่า  ท่านทั้งหลายรู้แล้วไม่ใช่หรือว่าพวกท่านเป็นวิหารของพระเจ้า และพระวิญญาณของพระเจ้าสถิตอยู่ในพวกท่าน?  (1 โครินธ์ 3:16)

(ขณะที่ผมพูดต่อไปผมถือกระถางที่มีกระดูก  ผมค่อยๆ  ทำให้กระถางแตกจนเห็นกระดูกขึ้นมา  และผมก็ลอยกระดูกลงในหนองน้ำ   พูดเสร็จแล้ว  ผมก็ขว้างกระถางในหนองน้ำและร้องว่า   ท่านเป็นอิสระ)

ขณะที่เราดำเนินชีวิตภาชนะของเราถูกทำให้เป็นรอย  ถูกทำให้ร้าว  และถูกอ่อนแอลง   แต่ในระหว่างเวลานั้นจิตของเรามักจะเจริญเติบโตให้แข็งแรงมากขึ้นจมถึงความแข็งแรงของภาชนะไม่พอบรรจุจิตอีกต่อไป   ภาชนะจึงระเบิดออก   จิตก็เลยเป็นอิสระแต่จิตยังอยู่   เขารอคอยวันที่เขาจะได้รับร่างกายใหม่   ร่างกายใหม่นั้นจะมีความแช็งแรงมากร่างกายไหนๆ  ดังนั้นตัวนั้นคงจะอยู่ตลอดไป

เปาโลบรรยายร่างกายเหล่านั้นว่า (1 โครินธ์ 15:42-57)

⁴² การเป็นขึ้นมาของคนตายก็เหมือนกัน ร่างกายที่ถูกหว่านลงนั้นเสื่อมสลายได้ ร่างกายที่เป็นขึ้นมานั้นไม่เสื่อมสลาย  ⁴³ สิ่งที่ถูกหว่านลงนั้นไร้เกียรติ สิ่งที่เป็นขึ้นมานั้นมีศักดิ์ศรี สิ่งที่ถูกหว่านลงนั้นอ่อนกำลัง สิ่งที่เป็นขึ้นมานั้นมีพลัง  ⁴⁴ สิ่งที่ถูกหว่านลงนั้นเป็นกายเนื้อหนัง สิ่งที่เป็นขึ้นมานั้นเป็นกายจิตวิญญาณ ถ้ามีกายเนื้อหนัง กายจิตวิญญาณก็มีด้วย  ⁴⁵ ดังที่เขียนไว้ว่า "มนุษย์~ คนแรกคืออาดัม จึงเป็นผู้มีชีวิต" แต่อาดัมสุดท้ายนั้นเป็นวิญญาณผู้ประทานชีวิต  ⁴⁶ ร่างกายแรกนั้นไม่ใช่เป็นกายจิตวิญญาณ แต่เป็นกายเนื้อหนัง ร่างกายต่อจากนั้นจึงเป็นกายจิตวิญญาณ  ⁴⁷ มนุษย์คนแรกนั้นมาจากดินและเป็นมนุษย์ดิน มนุษย์คนที่สองนั้นมาจากสวรรค์  ⁴⁸ มนุษย์ดินคนนั้นเป็นอย่างไร มนุษย์ดินทั้งหลายก็เป็นอย่างนั้น มนุษย์สวรรค์คนนั้นเป็นอย่างไร มนุษย์สวรรค์ทั้งหลายก็เป็นอย่างนั้น  ⁴⁹ และเช่นเดียวกับที่เรามีลักษณะของมนุษย์ดิน เราก็จะมีลักษณะของมนุษย์สวรรค์  ⁵⁰ พี่น้อง ทั้งหลาย ข้าพเจ้าหมายความว่า เนื้อและเลือดไม่สามารถมีส่วนในอาณาจักรของพระเจ้า และสิ่งที่เสื่อมสลายไม่มีส่วนในสิ่งที่ไม่เสื่อมสลาย  ⁵¹ นี่แน่ะ ข้าพเจ้ามีความล้ำลึกที่จะบอกกับพวกท่าน คือเราจะไม่ล่วงหลับหมดทุกคน แต่จะถูกเปลี่ยนใหม่ทุกคน  ⁵² ในชั่วขณะ เดียว ในพริบตาเดียว เมื่อเป่าแตรครั้งสุดท้าย เพราะว่าจะมีการเป่าแตร และพวกที่ตายแล้วจะถูกทำให้เป็นขึ้นโดยปราศจากความเสื่อมสลาย แล้วเราจะถูกเปลี่ยนใหม่  ⁵³ เพราะว่าสิ่งที่เสื่อมสลายได้นี้ต้องสวมด้วยสิ่งที่เสื่อมสลายไม่ได้ และสภาพที่ต้องตายนี้ต้องสวมด้วยสภาพที่ไม่ตาย  ⁵⁴ เมื่อสิ่ง ที่เสื่อมสลายได้นี้สวมด้วยสิ่งที่เสื่อมสลายไม่ได้และสภาพที่ต้องตายนี้สวม ด้วยสภาพที่ไม่ตาย เมื่อนั้นพระวจนะที่เขียนไว้จะสำเร็จว่า "ความตายก็ถูกกลืนเข้าในชัยชนะแล้ว  ⁵⁵ โอ ความตาย ชัยชนะของเจ้าอยู่ที่ไหน?~ โอ ความตาย เหล็กในของเจ้าอยู่ที่ไหน?"  ⁵⁶ เหล็กในของความตายนั้นคือบาป และอำนาจของบาปคือธรรมบัญญัติ  ⁵⁷ สาธุการแด่พระเจ้า ผู้ประทานชัยชนะแก่เรา โดยพระเยซูคริสต์องค์พระผู้เป็นเจ้าของเรา

ร้องเพลง: พระคุณพระเจ้า

66 ปีที่แล้วคุณพ่อซื้อที่ดินนี้   เขาอยากมีที่ดินแบบนี้เพื่อทุกคนจะได้มาเห็นความสวยของสรรพสิ่งของพระเจ้า   แต่ความสวยของที่ดินนี้สู้ความสวยของสวรรค์ไม่ได้   แม้แต่สรรพสิ่งรอคอยวันที่มันจะเป็นอิสระ

ข้าพเจ้าเห็นว่าความทุกข์ลำบากแห่งสมัยปัจจุบัน ไม่ควรจะเอาไปเปรียบกับศักดิ์ศรีซึ่งจะเผยให้แก่เราในอนาคต  ¹⁹ เพราะสรรพสิ่งที่ทรงสร้างแล้ว คอยด้วยความปรารถนาอย่างยิ่งให้บุตรทั้งหลายของพระเจ้าปรากฏ  ²⁰ เพราะว่าสรรพสิ่งเหล่านั้นต้องเข้าอยู่ในอำนาจของอนิจจัง ไม่ใช่ตามใจชอบของตนเอง แต่เป็นไปตามที่พระเจ้าได้ทรงให้เข้าอยู่นั้น  ²¹ ด้วยมีความหวังว่า สรรพสิ่งเหล่านั้นจะได้รอดจากอำนาจแห่งความเสื่อมสลาย และจะเข้าในเสรีภาพและศักดิ์ศรีแห่งลูกๆ ของพระเจ้า  ²² เรารู้อยู่ว่าสรรพสิ่งที่ทรงสร้างทั้งหมดนั้นกำลังคร่ำครวญด้วยกัน และเจ็บปวดแบบหญิงคลอดลูกมาจนทุกวันนี้  ²³ และไม่ใช่ เท่านั้น แต่เราเองด้วย ผู้ได้รับพระวิญญาณเป็นผลแรก ตัวเราเองก็ยังคร่ำครวญคอยการที่พระเจ้าจะทรงให้มีฐานะเป็นบุตร คือที่จะทรงไถ่กายของเรา  (โรม 8:18-23)

ถึงแม้ว่ากล่องนี้บรรจุกระดูกของภาชนะดินของคุณแม่   มันก็บรรจุคุณแม่ไม่ได้   คุณแม่เป็นอิสระแล้ว   เธอไม่ได้ติดกับร่างกายเนื้อหนังอีกต่อไป

เราจึงเฉลิมฉลองความเป็นอิสระของคุณแม่และคาดหวังวันที่สรรพสิ่งจะเป็นอิสระ   ขณะที่เราลอยกระดูกร้องว่า  คุณแม่เป็นอิสระ

Jars of Clay

(Thoughts shared at the time of spreading the ashes of my mother.)

Sing: How Great Thou Art


In the Bible, Paul compares our bodies to jars of clay. He writes:

But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. 2 Corinthians 4:7 (ESV)


Our bodies are just temporary containers. They contain our spirit, and if we are believers, the Spirit of God.

Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? (1 Corinthians 3:16 (ESV))

(For this next part I have a clay pot with some cremains in it. As I talk, I chip away at the pot until the ashes start to spill. At the end, I throw the remaining portion in the water yelling, "you're free").

Throughout our lives, our clay jars get scratched and nicked and weak. Yet our spirit can get stronger and larger. After a while our jar may not be strong enough or good enough to contain the spirit inside, and it bursts. And as it bursts it sets free, the spirit inside.


And our Spirit still lives-waiting the day when a new body will be given it--one that is good enough and strong enough to last forever.


Paul write about this in 1 Corinthians 15:42-57 (ESV) ⁴² So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable.
⁴³ It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power.
⁴⁴ It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.
⁴⁵ Thus it is written, "The first man Adam became a living being"; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.
⁴⁶ But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual.
⁴⁷ The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven.
⁴⁸ As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven.
⁴⁹ Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.
⁵⁰ I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.
⁵¹ Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
⁵² in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.
⁵³ For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.
⁵⁴ When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."
⁵⁵ "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?"
⁵⁶ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
⁵⁷ But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.


Sing: Amazing Grace


66 years ago this month, Dad bought this property. He wanted this land so that people could enjoy the beauty of God's creation. Yet the beauty of this place is nothing compared to the beauty of heaven. Even creation itself awaits the day when it, too, shall be set free.


Romans 8:18-23 (ESV) ¹⁸ For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
¹⁹ For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.
²⁰ For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope
²¹ that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
²² For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.
²³ And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.



Though this box contains the remains of Mom's jar of clay, it does not contain Mom. She has been set free, no longer bound to this body of flesh.


So let us celebrate Mom's newfound freedom, even as we look forward to the day when creation itself will celebrate freedom.


Let us take these remains and as we scatter them upon the earth that God made, let us cry out: "freedom" or "Mom, you're free." And when you are done, break the earthy pot in anticiapton of that day when we, too, well be free.

Disguised in Beauty

Today I made what may be my last visit to Russell's Pond. This is the pond that was on the property that my Dad bought back in 1946. Several years ago, he gave it over to a local Conservation Trust to protect it.


Russell Pond 1973

But the pond is not the same as when I grew up. Then it was mostly open, with some grassy marsh on one end and scattered pond lilies floating, showing off their yellow booms each year. Indeed, if we and the neighbors did not build up the dam, the pond would have long since succumbed to eutrofication and would now be a red maple swamp like so many other hundreds of acres in the area, including one known as "Long Swamp" after which a nearby street is named.

But now, the pond is slowly filling in. First came the cattails--a native plant. But then came the purple loosestrife and exotic pond lilies--invaders that are not native to the area and which have a reputation for quickly changing the natural cycle of wetlands.



The surprising thing is that these exotic invaders can be quite pretty. In fact, the pond lilies that have come in are planted as ornamentals.

Quite beautiful.

Quite deadly to native ecosystems.

If caught early, these exotic plants can be controlled fairly easily. But once established, they are almost impossible to get rid of.

There is another kind of exotic invader that we also have to watch out for. One that is even more dangerous and more insidious: The Angel of Light.

Paul writes about this character in 2 Corinthians 11:14 (ESV)

And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.

Paul is writing in this chapter about false apostles--those who claim to be Christian but who come with a message that will actually undo the work that Jesus has started. The message of these false apostles will have a ring of truth to it--in fact they will use the Bible to support their claims. But they will twist and distort the scripture to accomplish their task of turning people away from true faith in Jesus. In this chapter, Paul is writing about those who would say that there is some kind of work we need to do, other than believe in Jesus, in order to obtain salvation. The implication of this is that what Jesus accomplished for us by His death and resurrection is not enough. It becomes a form of idolatry because it puts us on a par with Jesus in being able to secure our salvation.

The most difficult thing about all of this is that any one of us can easily become one of these "angels of light." Whenever we take scripture and twist it to meet our own ends and then try to get others to accept this as the true gospel, then we are guilty of the same thing. In fact, when we do this the gospel--which means "good news"---becomes no good news at all because we are adding requirements to salvation that are not necessary.


God, help me to walk in the simple truth of your good news--your gospel--as you revealed to us through the prophets, through Jesus and through the Spirit-filled apostles. May I not distort your gospel by adding things to it that you did not intend. May I not distort your gospel by living a life that is contrary to it. Help me to live my life so that my life and my words point others to the amazing grace of the Gospel message: that Jesus came to bring us salvation from the penalty for our sin by His death on the cross and to bring us new life by His resurrection.

Letter from Mom

 
Today I received a letter from home.  My Mom wrote me a card—it was the first one she had sent to us since we moved to Chonburi.


But the timing of this was especially poignant.  Only 10 minutes earlier, as we were driving to the post office, my sister had called from California to say that my Mom had just passed away.

It is fitting that my Mom used stationery with an image of a bird on it.  I have always had a huge interest in nature type things—in this I was more like my Mom and her dad than my siblings.

This love of nature expressed itself in my early years as my trying to make a pet of whatever creature we could find in our back yard and pond.  As an adolescent, I found myself following my Mom’s father’s footsteps and a joined a trail maintenance crew.  Later on, with my Mom’s brother, I joined a forest fire-fighting crew.

Physically, I was more like my Mom than were my siblings.  Only I had the brown eyes.  Only I had the hair that did not bleach blond in the summer like my siblings.  (When I was young, I was jealous of this, but now I am glad for the more sun-tolerant skin, being that I have lived in the tropics and worked outside for many years.)

We siblings have had a practice of having one of us call my mom each day to check on her.  She lived alone in the house she had lived in since she got married in 1946.  Today was my turn to call her, but just a couple of days ago she had e-mailed me not to call her because she was going to a party for one of her Chinese grandchildren.  It was they who had called the police when my Mom did not show up at the party.  (Several years ago my mom helped several Chinese people to learn English and she was adopted into their families.)

It was from my Mom that we all learned the value of service.  My Mom has been a volunteer for all kinds of organizations throughout her life.  For years she worked with the girl scouts.  Every year our garage would fill up with cookies as it became the regional distribution center.  And we would also go to help set up tents in the girl scout camp each year.  (I learned how to tie a clove hitch at a very early age.)

It was in her later years when Mom volunteered with literacy volunteers, through whom she met her Chinese family.

During my younger years we hosted exchange students from Norway and Barbados, so we also have family in those countries as well.  The exchange students came through a program called AFS, of which my oldest brother is now on the US Board.  Perhaps it was through these exchange students, as well as our cross-country road trips, that I got an interest in things exotic and foreign.  And so later I found myself living in Haiti and marrying the prettiest girl in the world, who just happened to be German-Canadian.  And now I’m in Thailand.

My Mom endured the idiosyncrasies of my youth (and there were many) and told me that they made me special.  And she was right—after I learned to control them, they have enabled me to adventure many places where others might not venture.

So thank you, Mom:
for loving me
for teaching me to love and serve others, no matter their race or nationality or religion
for putting up with me when most others thought me unendurable
for encouraging my curiosity and need to explore.


When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
"Death is swallowed up in victory."
"O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?"
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Corinthians 15:54-57 (ESV)





Sylvia Russell 1924-2012
Vernon Russell 1920-2006