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

Bald Spot

Nat in her shop
Originally uploaded by SierraSunrise

You can't tell by looking, but I do have some hair on the top of my head.  There are not very many and I think they are more annoying than cute, so I keep them shaved off.  But even if I didn't, you would hardly notice them.  One glance at the top of my head and you can make a quick judgment: "Oh, he's bald all right."

Last week we visited the southern tier of provinces in Isaan (Northeast Thailand)--Buriram, Surin, Sisaket and Ubon Ratchathani.  We are looking for a place where God might be having us plant churches.  Our focus is on those areas that do not have them.

And so our travels brought us to a district (Amphoe) in Sisaket Province called Uthumphon Phisai (อุทุมพรพิสัย--and no, it is not as easy to pronounce as it looks).  According to some statistics we had there were no churches and no Christians in this district of about 110,000 people.

But the statistics were wrong.

Just like there are actually a few hairs on my bald head, so in fact we now know there is at least one Christian in Uthumphon Phisai.  Nat is a hairdresser who had moved away to Bangkok for a while, during which time she decided to become a Jesus-follower.  Now she has returned to Uthumphon Phisai where, as far as she knows, there are no other Christians in her province.  We found out about her when Judy, one of our team members, went to inquire about getting massages.

We were glad we were able to meet Nat and encourage her in her faith.  To help bless her, we each got a haircut, whether we needed it or not.

Nat faithfully reads her Bible, but still she gets discouraged sometimes.  Perhaps there are other believers in Uthumphon Phisai that Nat does not know about. 

Maybe the reason God led us to Nat was not only to encourage her, but also to make us consider Uthumphon Phisai as a place to move to in the future.  In any case, we will try to continue to encourage Nat by sending her Christian literature and music.

Pray for us as we continue to seek God's will as to where to locate to in the fall.  Pray also for Nat and others like her in Isaan who can easily get discouraged by their circumstances.

(Our) purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, ³ in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Colossians 2:2,3 (NIV)