Ukraine 4 – Day 7 (October 5)

Just got back to the apartment from another day out and about, and will soon be hitting the showers before the water goes off at 9:00. Yesterday, Flo and company were busy buying as many winter jackets and boots as $1000 can buy; today we got rid of every one of them at a large orphanage of 120 kids. It was something to see. At first, the process went along smoothly enough. The neediest kids were brought in to a room and, one by one, they were fitted with boots and jackets. This was the calm before the storm, however, because soon, despite the best efforts of the staff and us, the kids were surrounding the supplies Jericho-like—minus the silence—and commotion reigned. We took lots of pictures of the kids who came away victorious. Unfortunately, it was impossible to have jackets for every kid who needed one, and one young boy took this particularly hard, but Flo has vowed to return with a jacket for him.

After the dust settled and the kids dispersed, we had a few minutes to ourselves, and then the administrator brought all the kids back into the auditorium, where we had the opportunity to say a few words to them before they did a performance in honour of Teacher’s Day. I did the rope trick for them I’ve been practicing, which went well, thankfully. Once Malcolm had spoken and sat down, we then got to watch their performance, which was fun. Picture a woman playing an accordion with a pile of kids around her singing their little hearts out.

By the time the program was over we were getting really hungry, so we went to the home of one of the staff for ham, borscht, potatoes, and beef. Then it was back in the van for the two-hour drive back with Rooslan at the wheel. As always, this was an event in itself. I have ridden in vans through Mexico City and El Salvador, but I have never witnessed anything like driving through Ukraine before!

Ukraine 3 – Days 4-6 (October 2 to 4)

Background information
We are staying in the apartment of Flo Kancir. Flo is a tremendously dedicated sister. Years ago, she lost her husband, and within two weeks, she heard and accepted for herself the good news about Jesus. She is now committed to spreading the same good news in Ukraine, where she spends six months of every year helping the poor, the sick, and anyone else who is in need. As a result, many have come to know and love the Lord Jesus as their personal Saviour.

The apartment is in the city of L’Viv, a large city of ca. 1 million, situated on the western side of Ukraine. The apartment is filled with boxes, which are in turn filled with all kinds of humanitarian aid for others.

Update on the last few days

Meals Out
In the last few days, we have twice had the privilege of going to dinner in Ukrainian homes. What hospitality! The first dinner was October 2 at Flo’s nephew’s house. We were served a six course meal that included (1) bread, ham, cheese, vegetables; (2) soup; (3) cabbage rolls; (4) shish kebabs, potatoes; (5) fruit; (6) and cake. Each course was a meal in itself and we were warned to go easy. I was excited to learn that one of the boys there was learning AutoCAD, and he showed me some of his drawings. I’m still trying to learn that program!
Then on the 3rd we had dinner at Ola’s home. Ola is the mother of our skilled driver Rooslan (I’m sure he will get a post of his own before this trip is over!). Once again, we ate till we dropped, and in a way that would make my Grandpa Knox proud, we sought refuge in reclining on the couch. I had my first bowl of borscht, and am now looking forward to my second. Also tried some sauerkraut. It too was excellent. The language barrier was not able to prevent either meal from being filled with loud conversation and lots of laughing.

These meals are often self-sacrificing as the hosts themselves are struggling to make ends meet. This woman’s pension is 500 hrivnia (approx. $100 CDN) per month and about ½ to 2/3 of it goes toward rent. The rest is to pay for heat, food, clothes and any other needs they may have. In a way we feel bad eating such a lot of food that they have bought and prepared, but they have done so in love, and the thing they want most is for us to enjoy it and their homes.

Visits
Of course, ahem, eating, (cough), only occupies a tiny portion of our time here (sneeze)! I’ll quickly tell you about a couple of visits we’ve made. On the 2nd we visited a family in the small village of Listivchy. The mom left the dad with five children when the youngest child was only three months old (he’s now getting close to five). We brought groceries, toys, clothes, shoes, and Malcolm brought them the good news of Life in Christ, which, like the other gifts, is always free, but, unlike the other gifts, lasts forever.

We visited a family today (4th) consisting of two grandparents, a dad, and one three year-old boy named Dema. This was another case of the mom leaving the dad and child when the boy was very young (six months old). The grandparents were so receptive to us and to the message. Helen and I played with Dema. Over and over we blew up a balloon for him and he’d let it fly out of his fingers.

Great News
Last night we had another meeting in Flo’s apartment. Malcolm gave the main talk, speaking on heaven. I closed by sharing thoughts on the telltale evidence that someone is a student of Jesus: love for others (John 14:22). After most of the group had left, a young woman, Nadia (22 years-old), wanted to talk with Flo. A few minutes later, we were all thrilled to bits upon hearing that she had received Jesus as her Saviour! It was funny to see how surprised she was by our excitement as she received hugs from her new brothers and sisters. It was as if she was saying, “Why would you people from Canada be happy for me?” Kinda because this is the whole point of our coming here!

In other great news, Malcolm finally received all his luggage!

Prayer Requests
- for Nadia, that she will grow in her faith and knowledge of Jesus Christ; that she will share her story with others; that her husband Lupshik (sp?) will also be saved.
- for God to lead us each day. There are a number of things up in the air right now, but we’re hoping to go to Ivano on Sunday or Monday.
- for us, that we will have wisdom in distributing the money and supplies other Christians have entrusted to us.

Ukraine 2: Quick Shout out to friends and family

I may make a distinction between posting on what we’re doing and posting on how we’re doing. This is a quickie on how we’re doing.

We’re catching up on sleep. Last night we did not wake up at 4:30 AM, so I think our body clocks have adjusted to this time zone (which is eight hours ahead). The weather is beautiful here—low 20s (Centigrade), making for comfortable sleeps in the apartment, even though the city hasn’t turned the heat on yet. Running water is only available from 6:00 to 9:00 mornings and evening, but with some minor planning this is no big deal.

The biggest impression Ukraine has made on us so far is how well her people dress. The people here really take pride in their dress and looks. Clothes come first it seems, house and food come second, if that. By their dress, you’d think some of these people lived in beautiful homes. In fact, a couple of times Helen and I have felt under-dressed. Reality is completely otherwise for most of them, however, as they emerge in these clothes from run-down apartment areas that some of us wouldn’t be willing to drive through, never mind live in.

Then there are the really poor people, who cannot hide their poverty in their home or in the market. Such were the doctor and his family. With people like these, one could wear pajamas and not feel under-dressed. One can feel many other things, however. Like re-evaluating all the things I need to buy at home.

Ukraine 1: Days 1-3 (September 29 to October 1)

Everyone: breathe easy. Mike and Helen’s voices are finally crackling in the air shortly after re-entry into the blogosphere.

We’ve reached Ukraine, and we’re settling down well here. Our flights out were largely uneventful (which is always a good thing), but long (ca. 27 hour duration, including wait times). Helen managed to catch a couple hours sleep somewhere over the Atlantic, but woke up to the sleep-deprived, bloodshot eyes of her husband.

The only drama we experienced in our travels was almost taking off without Malcolm. We had landed in Vienna (from Toronto) a good three hours before the final leg to L’Viv. Malcolm was to catch the same flight with us, but was coming from London England instead. We waited in the boarding area as long as possible (Brainwave: begin new acronym, ALAP), but still no sight of Malcolm. Reluctantly, we went though the gate, and boarded the bus, which whisked us off to the tarmac. We boarded the plane, where we resumed watching for Malcolm. We were sure all was OK when we saw another bus pull up, but of the handful of people that filed out, no Malcolm. Our hopes were dashed, and we grimaced over the prospect of facing Ukrainian customs on our own. Our prayers were answered, though, when out of nowhere a familiar face appeared in business class. Another bus had apparently come. We were relieved.

Malcolm’s catching the flight meant his luggage missing theirs. He still doesn’t have all his clothes back, but so far, thankfully, our noses know no different!

Won’t go into too much more detail in this post. That night we had a wonderful supper of cabbage rolls, potatoes, and pork, and a long overdue sleep.

Day two was Sunday. We took it easy, but had a meeting in Flo’s apartment at 7:00 PM. I spoke (through a 15-year-old translator) first, telling my testimony, emphasizing that “my story” is more Jesus’ story, because he’s the one who is the hero of it. Malcolm then spoke on 1 Timothy 4:12 on the things that should accompany Christian profession. It was a nice time with the twenty or so present. A young married couple came out. They were our age, and they understood and spoke some English. Always a treat.

Today, day three, was our first real day doing what we’re supposed to be doing out here. We (the group) bought two fridges and gave one to an orphanage and the other to a poor family. Believe it or not, the father (Misha) is a doctor who has traded in the medical practice for woodcarving because the former doesn’t put enough food on the table for his family of six kids and one wife (Tkash). Yes, salary scales are a little different here; he’d likely be better off working in McDonald’s. One of these days, I’ll introduce you to a wonderful young woman here who is a nurse. She puts in 24-hour shifts (no, that’s not a typo) and for her labours takes home $100 CAD a month.

Anyways, back to this family. Very sad story. House is a mess, and all of them are confined to sleeping in its two small rooms. One boy is handicapped (similar to Down’s Syndrome). One young boy (10 – 12 I’m guessing) particularly sticks out. Every time I glanced at him, I caught him watching me with adoring eyes. I just wanted to talk to him and tell him to live his life with Jesus as his hero. He gave me a woodcarving of a rabbit he had done. He’s learning the art from his dad. Misha gave us a beautiful clock he had carved. Later, the boy came out with a leaf plate Misha had carved as well. We are learning that it is hard to out-give the Ukrainians, no matter how little they have.

The orphanage was in Yassapowich (sp?), where we were overcome by the cuteness of the kids, and the sadness of their situation. Couple of times felt some lumps in the throat today; this was one of them. They already had a fridge, but it didn’t work. They didn’t dare throw the thing out, though, because it’s illegal for an orphanage to not have fridge somewhere on its premises. Of course, it doesn’t matter if it works—it just has to be there!

The kids were so cute, a welcome relief from their surroundings and circumstances. They were so excited to see us, and it wasn’t long before we had switched roles; their little fingers shooting pictures with our camera of us hugging their little friends. The workers get little salary; they obviously love the children. This place needs a lot of work. Windows that can’t be cleaned or they’d fall apart, no bathtubs or washing machines, and the toilets leave a lot to be desired. The government provides food, heat, staff salaries (small), and an inconsequential amount for R&M.

In the evening we had a delicious supper of perogies (veronica). It wasn’t hard to be thankful.

Zero More Sleeps!

This post's title refers to the fact that today we leave to Ukraine, but it could also refer to how little sleep we got last night! Hopefully we can catch some Zs on one of the three flights to Ukraine.

Thanks so much to everyone who has wished us well. We'll talk to you soon.

On Our Blog Title

I like Dave Black's comment from September 26:

“Truth without love is legalism; love without truth is libertarianism.” This has been my hope and prayer for me and my students – that we might speak the truth with a tear in our eyes, with a lump in our throat, but without a hole in our heads.

After reading it I thought a word about our blog title is in order. We seek the truth, and when we find it, we discover that it is a truth that loves. There are two traps the religious fall into. One is not liking or pursuing truth. Perhaps one refuses to think through what one believes and challenge it. The other trap, though, is to go crazy about truth and be proud about it. Real Christianity cuts a middle (narrow) path between these two ditches. It loves truth, and it loves to be questioned, researched, probed, debated, pursued. And the truth that it holds to is a truth that loves. It is a truth that moves us to help people, put others first and sacrifice for others in this world of six billion Me-Firsts (me too). I am too much aware of my shortcomings and selfishness in this regard, but incidentally, it is the truth of Jesus that motivates us to Ukraine.

KFC

We had our first KFC (Kids For Christ) of the year this past Monday night. I don't know if the kids had fun, but I sure did! We had a nice group of kids come in for stories, games, singing, treats, and a Bible lesson. I tried to show them how that Jesus is the Master Builder, his handiwork in Joseph's carpenter shop being merely an echo of what he built at the beginning of time, and what he will build in the future (and what he's building right now, John 14:2).

Speaking of building, Helen and I built this castle--if you can call it that--for this year's KFC. As you can see, my Dad's skill in building didn't transfer to me, but the kids loved it. Thanks to everyone who saved milk cartons for "bricks"! Unfortunately, the picture doesn't bring out all three dimensions of this impressive, redefining-Austin's-skyline structure!

We'll be praying for the rest of the KFC team as they look after two sessions while we're gone.

John Lennox vs. Richard Dawkins

Great news! Jabe Nicholson passes this on:

Would you make the upcoming event a matter for serious prayer? On October 3,there will be a debate on the existence of God at the Alys Stephens Center in Birmingham, Alabama. Richard Dawkins, called by the BBC "Darwin's Rottweiler" and author of The New York Times bestseller The God Delusion will face Christian apologist John Lennox. This will also be one of the few debates in which Dawkins has participated. The event is sold out.

The debate will take place as Dr. Lennox releases his new book God's Undertaker: Has Science Buried God? published by Kregel. "A brilliantly argued reevaluation of the relation of science and religion, casting welcome new light on today's major debates," says author Alister McGrath of Lennox's book. "A must-read for all reflecting on the greatest questions of life." As another reviewer wrote: "Lennox employs impeccable logic, irrefutable documentation, and extraordinary Christian grace as he invites readers to reexamine claims that belief in God is incompatible with modern science."

The God Delusion Debate is sponsored by Fixed Point Foundation, a Christian think tank. Richard Dawkins is a fellow of the Royal Society and Charles Simonyi chair for the Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University and is an eloquent spokesman for what has been dubbed "the new atheism." John Lennox has doctorates from Oxford, Cambridge and the University of Wales. He is reader in mathematics in the University of Oxford, and fellow in mathematics and the philosophy of science at Green College.

The debate will also be broadcast via the Moody Broadcasting Network and its affiliates, but is being made available to any stations who are interested in carrying the broadcast. Please pray for a full measure of wisdom, grace and courage for brother Lennox, and that the format will be fair to both participants. Pray that the light of truth will shine into many hearts as a result.

This is sure to be a great debate. Dawkins, well, everybody knows him. Lennox is not so widely known amongst the general public, but mathematicians certainly know about him! He's that kind of genius whose eyes betray his brilliance, but whose graciousness and humility conceal it. John Lennox has teamed up with another hero of mine, David Gooding, to write some excellent apologetic books. It is great to see that serious Christian scholarship has not entirely disappeared from brethren assemblies.

Here's the new book by Lennox, and here's the older one he co-wrote with Gooding.

Back Home, Safe and Sound

Helen and I just got back from 4 days spent in Calgary. I was there for an airport conference for work. We had lots of fun and rest—just what we need before another busy stretch. Anyways, that's all for tonight. I hope to post more tomorrow.

Goodnight.

First the UK, now the Ukraine

A year ago tonight, Helen and I were staying with some great friends in London, debating taking the underground the next day on the anniversary of 9/11. [We ended up taking it, and was it ever worth it!] Tonight, like most nights these days, we're getting ready to go to Ukraine!

The Lord gave us the desire to go to Ukraine way back in the early spring. Now we're just 2.5 weeks from the departure gate, and getting more and more excited as we go.

Last night we had Malcolm and Jean Stanley over to discuss our trip. Malcolm has gone several times before so he knows all about it. It's a good thing too, because Helen and I certainly wouldn't know what to expect, and the two of us, along with Malcolm, bring the membership number of this missionary team up to a grand total of three! The highlight of our evening for me was turning to God together in prayer and committing every detail of the journey to Him. Christian fellowship brings so much joy.

Why are we going there? For the glory of God and the joy of people. What will we do there? Visit orphanages, villages, and possibly a jail or two; meet physical needs, speak at schools, and minister to Christians. Speaking of the Christians, don't think that we plan to show them all how it's done. I do hope that by the strength of the Holy Spirit we will be able to help them in some way, but I know I'll learn a lot from them too. Even the apostle Paul felt this way about visiting Christians he hadn't visited before. He writes to the Christians at Rome:

"11 For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— 12 that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine" (Romans 1:11-12, ESV, my emphasis).

If you have some extra room on your prayer list, mention us to the One who alone can accomplish eternal work through us.

A Fly is a Fly is a Fly

All of the evidence points to one conclusion: no matter what we do to a fruit fly embryo, there are only three possible outcomes—a normal fruit fly, a defective fruit fly, or a dead fruit fly. Not even a horsefly, much less a horse.

Jonathan Wells, The Politically Incorrect Guide to Darwinism and Intelligent Design, p.36.

Reverential and Relevant Textual Criticism

Dave Black shows that textual criticism can be relevant to the Christian life, and it can be done reverentially. By the way, my current position on the different text families is similar to his, just not as well-informed. Incidentally, Dave, it was just today that I ordered these two books of yours.

Quick note at the end of a good day. I just got back from campus where I taught on that most “popular” of subjects, New Testament textual criticism. I even showed an ancient papyrus I acquired in Egypt. (Okay, so I bought it there in 1986.) How do you explain the importance of an obscure, pedantic-like subject to 120 young people (and some not-so-young people) that have never studied it and will probably never study it again in their entire lives? I don’t really know. For better or for worse my approach was to take a couple of examples that impact real life – what we believe and how we live. John 3:13 either says that Jesus was claiming to be in heaven while talking to Nicodemus or He wasn’t making that audacious assertion. That’s Christology, and that’s important. Matt. 5:22 either says that Jesus nixed all anger or only ungodly anger. That’s Practical Theology. We even got into the “King James Version Debate,” though I doubt there’s anyone in my classes who would die defending the 1611 edition. One of my most cherished possessions is an autographed book by my former professor and colleague Harry Sturz. It’s called The Byzantine Text Type and New Testament Textual Criticism, and it argues that the Byzantine/Majority text is not that evil, corrupt thing that most modern critical scholars make it out to be. No, I don’t slavish follow the MT (Majority Text), but I still think it has its place in textual criticism. In the end, I gave my opinion: the evidence points to Jesus saying to Nicodemus that He was actually on earth and in heaven at the same time, and that He condemned only unrighteous anger (“if anyone gets angry with his brother without a good reason he’s going to be judged”). I could go on and on. But the text that we teach or preach is important. It’s just that we’re not always sure whether the original text is reflected in the NKJV or the NASB tradition. And that’s why textual criticism is more than ancient history.

Want to Start a Barroom Fight?

In a 1999 article arguing that the rarity of transitional fossils does not count as evidence against Darwinism, Padian and Angielczyk wrote: "Want to start a barroom fight? Ask another patron if he can produce proof of his unbroken patrilineal ancestry for the last four hundred years. Failing your challenge, the legitimacy of his birth is to be brought into question. At this insinuation, tables are overturned, convivial beverages spilled, and bottles fly. Not fair, claims the gentle reader. This goes beyond illogic to impoliteness, because you are not only placing on the other patron an unreasonable burden of proof, you are questioning his integrity if he fails. But isn't that what creationists do when they claim that our picture of evolution in the fossil record must be fraudulent because we have so many gaps between forms?"

Yet Padian and Angielczyk have it exactly backwards.

Imagine this: A Berkeley professor walks into a bar and goes up to a guy who's peacefully sipping a beer. The professor looks down at the guy and declares with an air of authority: "You are the lineal descendant of a worm." The guy stands up, tempted to deck this bozo right then and there, but he's in a good mood and decides to play along. "Look," the guy says, "I've read about this Darwin stuff in the papers, but what makes you think you can tell me who I'm descended from? I don't even know anything about my great-great-grandparents, except that they were Irish. And here you are, claiming to know that one of their ancestors was a worm? Are you just trying to start a fight?"

"Look," says the professor, quoting comedian Lewis Black as his authority, "I'm right, and I don't have to argue this point any more. Fossils. Fossils. FOSSILS! I win."

Jonathan Wells, The Politically Incorrect Guide to Darwinism and Intelligent Design, pp. 23-4

Bedtime Stories

I just started an interesting book entitled The Politically Incorrect Guide to Darwinism and Intelligent Design. As you can tell from the title, this book is a lot of fun. The front cover settles all doubts.

Because I'm the quiet and sharing type:

According to Gee, we call new fossil discoveries missing links "as if the chain of ancestry and descent were a real object for our contemplation, and not what it really is: a completely human invention created after the fact, shaped to accord with human prejudices." He concluded: "To take a line of fossils and claim that they represent a lineage is not a scientific hypothesis that can be tested, but an assertion that carries the same validity as a bedtime story—amusing, perhaps even instructive, but not scientific."

Jonathan Wells, The Politically Incorrect Guide to Darwinism and Intelligent Design, pp. 22.

Selections from Robert Chapman

Am I ever glad I checked the Morning Meditations blog today. Steve has recently posted twice on Robert Chapman, collecting some his thoughts on Scripture and on the Church. If you missed it, read my book review of one of the biographies on Chapman.

Anabaptist Essays

Dave Black has written some excellent essays on the Anabaptists. Essay #5 is one of my favourites.

Birth of a Hummingbird

Check it out! Thanks to a friend for passing on this link.

"God is For Us in Christ Jesus" (Part 2)

"God is for us". This is too dangerous a statement to just throw out there with no nuancing. It could too easily set ourselves over God, as if, by successful campaigning, we have won God over to our side and now He supports our party platform. We know that this is not what the statement means by reading the context. For instance, verse 28 says

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

Notice, it's His purpose—God's. God being for us does not mean that He changed. It means that He changed us.

There is one thing God has always been for: Himself, which is to say His glory. There was one thing we were always against: God and His glory (Romans 3:23, 5:6-10). So if we were against God's glory, and God was for His glory, something had to change in order for God to be for us. God cannot be for His glory and at the same time be for those who challenge that glory. So what changed so that God can be for us?

Did God change? Did He become enamoured with our beauty (glory) and switched His support to our glory in place of His inferior glory? Certainly not! God did not take sides with us against Himself. He did not join us in our cause of hating and suppressing Him. God's being for us is not and will never be at the expense of being for Himself. Rather, God is for us by bringing us over to His side. He is for us by saving us for Himself. He is for us insofar as we are for Him. God works everything for good to those who love God (not hate Him). God is "for those who are called according to His purpose" (not our purpose). God did not change whose glory He was for. He changed us!

This is further made clear in verse 29:

29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

God is the one who is doing the predestinating. He's calling the shots. We are the ones being conformed, being changed. Thus, when we comfort our souls by saying "God is for us" we do not picture a God who saw our cause and heard our persuasive arguments and was won by our beauty and thus decided to come to our side. Instead, we see God being God unflinchingly and unchangingly as He spreads, supports, and sticks to his glory, carrying out His purposes. We are the ones who changed. We were the ones won by the Other's purposes, glory, and beauty. God has been for his glory longer than anyone can remember, and the only reason a group of sinners can say "God is for us" is because that group is also for His glory. They are conformed to that glory, for they are now conformed to the image of His Son. God has changed us from being rebels against His glory to being partakers of His glory. His glory has become our destiny. "God is for us" is merely shorthand for "God is for those who join Him in His passion for His glory." "God is for us" means that God is for Himself. It means He has changed us to be supporters of the same thing He has been supporting eternally.

In the context of counselling, is it worth taking the pains to nuance this hope-offering phrase, "God is for us", as we have done? Surely the troubled soul could use the self-esteem boost from someone as important as God being "for her." This post is already too long, so I'll give the short answer. In my (little) experience of emotional pain, in the hour of darkest darkness, I don't want to hear anything about myself. And I don't want anything to depend on me. After all, I'm usually the cause of all my own pain. For the troubled Christian soul, the truth that "God is for us" is made sweeter by all this nuancing. If God's being for us means that He was won by our beauty to pursue us, then there's always the nagging question, "What if my attractiveness runs out?" If God's being for us is dependant on His changing us to be for His beauty then God has never changed. And if God has never changed—and yet is still for us—then we can be sure, that God will always be for us. For now, were He to turn against us, He would be turning against Himself.

Brothers and sisters, no matter how ugly we sometimes get, no matter how insignificant, inferior, or insecure we feel, we will always be able to say "God is for us." After all, it is not the beauty of our holiness that this things resting on. It's God's.

***************
More to follow.

God is For Us in Christ Jesus (Part 1)

The brother who was supposed to speak last Wednesday night couldn't make it, so yours truly attempted to share some thoughts. Now I share them with you:

Romans 8:31
31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

[I began by making some comments similar to ones I expressed in my post Teach Us to Teach.]

Allowing, then, that biblical teaching will train us in not only what to believe, but also in how to live it out, I want to share with you how I have recently dealt with stress, distress, and restlessness in my life. My hope is that some will be able to imitate what has worked for me.

The other night, for the second or third night in a row, I was having difficulty getting to sleep due to poor health. For hours, it seemed, my mind was very confused, dark, and distorted. I may have been half-asleep, but if I was it was a kind of sleep more tiring than resting. Finally I recited slowly and meditatively the first 12 verses of Romans 1. I began praying with real deliberation to God, refusing to be distracted. Finally, God gave my mind peace. In the ensuing peaceful moments the words came into my head, "God is for us in Christ Jesus." I thought of how sometimes a Christian goes through such emotional turmoil that she needs to be led step by step. How helpful it would be for some Christians in some trying times of their lives to be told by one who has been there before, "Say these words out loud. Say 'God is for us in Christ Jesus.'"

I might not be there for you the next time your life is upside down, but I want to train you to say something, next time it is, that has helped me. Next time you feel such a heavy burden on your heart that you can hardly bear to face people, say "God is for us in Christ Jesus" and rest your very soul upon it.

Baptism in Pine Creek

I forgot to post on this earlier, but August 5th was a special day for us because two young sisters of ours were baptized! The baptism took place in the creek where it crosses Highway 34. Want to know what else made it special? One of the "sisters" was my sister—by birth. And, Paul Thiessen, who normally serves the Lord in Mexico, was with us to give a message on baptism to all of us on either bank.

I definitely think indoor baptistries should be reserved for January!