When Love sees you...

"Tell me your story, show me your wounds...
and I'll show you what Love sees, when Love sees you.   

I see your story, I see My name,
Written on every beautiful page;
You see the struggle, you see the shame,
I see the reason I came.

I came for your story, I came for your wounds...
To show you what Love sees when I see you." 

(Mac Powell, "When Love Sees You")

a Love that laughs at limits

Lord God, "give me a Love that laughs at limits -- rather, does not see them, and would not heed them if it did." (Amy Carmichael). Amen.

Old Testament trivia - just for fun :)

Answers should include the Bible passage they were found in:

(1) Where did the LORD grant Solomon unsurpassed wisdom and why?

(2) Who did Caleb's daughter Acsah marry and what were the conditions of their marriage?

(3) What did Jephthat vow to sacrifice to God if the LORD delivered the Ammonites into his hands? Did he keep his vow?

(4) Where is the prophecy of the valley of dry bones being raised to life

(5) Trace the lineage of Haman the Agagite back to Esau.

(6) What Israelite gave his daughter in marriage to his Egyptian slave to bear an heir because he had no sons?

(7) Which prophet did God command to go about naked and barefoot for 3 years?

(8) How were the tribes of Israel commanded to camp around the tabernacle? Which tribes were to camp on which sides (North, South, East, West)?

finishing

There's just something about that feeling of accomplishment in finishing something you started. At 9am this morning, I successfully completed GIAL's Multicultural Teamwork Graduate Certificate. And, I'm the first ever to do so. Done. True? Rather, I think this was only the beginning... just one more piece in an unfinished puzzle. But, actually, I'm ok with that...  even though that feeling of finishing seems more and more elusive these years. :-p

one week...

Our central heating is fixed. Thursday was the glorious day. We celebrated with a meal out at Chili's as roommates. :-) I've happily shed all the layers of long sleeves, multiple socks, and carrying a blanket around the house.

Friday was also a celebratory day, as my classmate and I submitted a paper we co-authored for publication. It won't come out until next spring, but this was a big step... and a first time for both of us. :-)

One week left. One week from now, I'll be on an airplane heading towards home, my family, and rest. But! In the meantime, I've two term projects to finish up -- one in a group, and one on my own. Ahhhhhhh!!! The Lord is my strength... it is in Him I live, and breathe, and move. Pray I finish well.

I'll end with some fun. Because sometimes things are just that simple... ;-)

C'est la vie!

So... it's 36 degrees outside (2C). And our heater has been sputtering off from time to time. Ironic because we had the same problem with our air conditioner when it was 108 degrees back in August (42C). So back then, they put in a different window A/C unit which also has a heater option. When our central heating went out, we were using the backup A/C unit heater option. Well... tonight, we're about to get a cold snap and have been told to let our faucets drip overnight. Aaaaaaaaand... our central heating went out again, and our backup unit as well. :-) This even after we had maintenance guys in here this afternoon tweaking and fixing. Ah well.... I guess that's Murphy's law. So! Since I'm here in 3 layers & a blanket, walking around, and shivering... We're going to have another roommate adventure and trek over to the guesthouse for a "sleepover" tonight. :-p But first, homeade cookies... which I went ahead and baked while I was warming myself by the last remaining heat source in the house: our oven. Hah! At least my life is never boring... ;-)

when "us vs. them" becomes "we"

"Only as we love people in another culture can we begin to identify with them and see the truth they understand. As we make their truth our own, we become new people, formed from the synthesis of two cultures."

Adeney, Bernard T. 1995. Strange Virtues: Ethics in a Multicultural World. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, p 73.

literate vs. __________

The other side of the coin...

"Increasingly it is understood that the opposite of literate is not illiterate but oral. The considerable skills, amazing abilities and cultural richness of oral cultures are inevitably lost when the people become literate."

Adeney, Bernard T. 1995. Strange Virtues: Ethics in a Multicultural World. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, p 23.