Wednesday, March 19th, 2008
at the cross
this weekend,
isn’t just another long weekend.
as we near this friday,
let us remember the sacrifice that Jesus made.
let us look towards the cross
and be reminded of the great love
that redeemed us
Tuesday, March 18th, 2008
CC #5 – Compassion
Are you compassionate? Are the little things in life holding you back?
Let’s just start off with a case-study that I read from ‘The Tipping Point” by Gladwell. It was suggested that the slightest change in context of the things around us can affect us in profound ways. And thus, this scenario was created to prove his point.
This scenario consisted of a large group of seminary students, split into different classes. In one class the professor would be lenient on people interupting his lectures while coming in late. And in the other, the professor would address the late comers publically, expressing his dislike for people wasting his time. Then at the end of the term, they were all given an assignment to preach on the story of the Good Samaritan.
For those who are unfamiliar with the story, a man was beaten up and left at the side of the road. Both a priest, and a levite passing by ignored the need to help him, but a Samaritan (who nobody favored and was unlikely to help) showed campassion and nursed him back to health.
So, on the day of their presentation, a guy posed as a hurt and beaten up man by the side of the road infront of their University.
You would assume that being seminary students that just finished studying this story would stop to help this man; this man who so vividly portrays what they were going to preach about. But suprisingly everybody from the second class, with the prof who valued puncutality, didn’t even stop to help. They were all worried about what their professor would say when they came late. Of course some helped, but the numbers were drastically different between classes. Because in the ‘control’ class, with no penalities for late-comers, almost every single one of them stopped to help.
Something as slight as the opinion of the professor could cause them to forget the lesson of the very topic they were going to preach on. I mean can you imagine not acting out what you just learned? Well thats life. And we are busy people, and even though we may have compassion. We have to show it in order for others to feel the love of Jesus Christ.
Are there small things that prevent us from showing that compassion that we’ve learned and experienced? Are we too busy for compassion?
Without compassion, it is considerably harder to reach those around us. You hear all these new believers tell their story about how some kind fellow stopped to give them a hand, or how someone spent an afternoon with them that ended up pushing them to come to Christ. How carpool service, or an unspoken act of service has impacted someone’s life.
You’d be suprised how far a small act of compassion goes. So dont down play compassion, nor let the small things in life chip away at the need to show that to others. (Like the case-study above) Because without compassion, we’re not living in the image of Jesus Christ. And we’re definately not being contagious containers of the faith we live.
More…
Tuesday, March 18th, 2008
Violin Kyousou
Enjoy as I indulge myself in more classical music.
I wonder if my fingers can play the violin again.
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Monday, March 17th, 2008
pick it up
When you set goals, and you fail to meet them.
You just gotta pick yourself up, and try it again.
I’ll quote from my friend (and I have no idea where he got it from) but it has been encouraging to know that God is behind me everystep of the way.
Just as broken cliffs create magnificent falls,
So adversities carve out amazing lives.
And amazing lives are a testimony to His mighty hand at work in our lives.
Monday, March 17th, 2008
how to love
So, recently, I’ve noticed this thing the person at work beside me does and it annoys me SO MUCH. It’s like the most random pet peeve, but it’s just the way that she has to act out something she says three times.
It’s like Jacob Two-Two, but worse! And she’s definately in her mid to late twenties. (Jacob two-two is a made up character for kids)
I mean prime example..
Colleague A asks from across the room “Do you know who this belongs to?”
Person beside me replies, “I don’t know” [then proceeds to claps hands together and shrugs while continueing to flap hands outwards in an falling motion] x3
And this happens on a daily basis,
Once or twice and hour! Get a new move!!
But then again, I’m reminded that I shld also love her like Jesus intended me to. So I just smile and try to give her an answer, hoping that maybe I’ll get a chance to talk to her and when I ask her about whether or not she has recieved salvation – I won’t get a flapping hand motion (x3) back in my face.
Wish me luck.