Wednesday, May 27, 2009

National Treasure

I was just telling someone about visiting the National Museum of Taiwan yesterday, and seeing that their National Treasure is a cabbage carved from jadite, followed by a stone that looks like a piece of pork. (See my other blog for evidence!)

We laughed about it, then she said, "I wonder what God's National Treasure is?"

What? Or who?
What do you think?

Monday, May 11, 2009

Perspective

If you look on my other blog, you'll see pictures of a short holiday I just came back from, here in Taiwan.

Very close to where we stayed was a Buddhist temple, complete with what I heard was the world's largest bronze Buddha.

Standing underneath it, I could believe that. It's huge. Imposing.


But all you have to do is walk for five minutes to a tower, and this Buddha loses its wow-factor and is swallowed by the mountains.


Go even further, and the mountains fill your vision. All you see of the Buddha is this dull glint.

What can seem massive and imposing in our lives may not be as big as we think it is. How can we discipline ourselves more to step back a bit and see these issues surrounded by God, as they are?

Depending on where you stand and how you look, you will get a totally different perspective on what is dominating your view.

Do you know the song where the one line goes:

'And in His presence, our problems disappear'?

I don't like singing that because I don't think it's true.

However, in His presence, our problems do gain perspective, and I guarantee they're nothing as big as He is!

Saturday, May 02, 2009

Another Bible Gem

This is similar to two posts back. It's amazing to read the Old Testament with the knowledge of the hope of Christ.
I found these verses in Job this morning. I want to yell into history, to people who felt this - 'There is a way! His Name is Jesus!' I want to shout this into broken and hopeless lives today - 'There is hope - there is LIFE in Christ!'

Read these verses and praise God that He has brought them to fulfillment in the Lord Jesus Christ:

Job 9:29-35

29 Since I am already found guilty,

why should I struggle in vain?
30 Even if I washed myself with soap
and my hands with washing soda,
31 you would plunge me into a slime pit
so that even my clothes would detest me.
32 "He is not a man like me that I might answer him,
that we might confront each other in court.
33 If only there were someone to arbitrate between us,
to lay his hand upon us both,
34 someone to remove God's rod from me,
so that his terror would frighten me no more.
35 Then I would speak up without fear of him,
but as it now stands with me, I cannot.

Praise God, now we CAN!