Resolutions

You know how some people invariably work better under tight deadlines? Yeah, I'm not one of those. Yet I find myself inexplicably stuck in said situation time and again. Just thought to post a written reminder to myself to not get into such fixes.

Have a very blessed 2007! :)

Materialism II

I have nothing against the material world. I have nothing against consumerism as a social structure. Certainly we are consumers with physical bodies, but if that's all we are we've lost what it means to be human. When success is equated with excess the ambition for excess wrecks us.

-- "Jon of Switchfoot Digs Deep into Oh! Gravity" by Jon Foreman, CMSpin

Thank You

And I thank You Lord
For the trials that come my way
In that way I can grow each day
As I let You lead
And I thank You Lord
For the patience those trials bring
In that process of growing
I can learn to care

But it goes against the way I am
To put my human nature down
And let the Spirit take control of all I do
For when those trials come
My human nature shouts the things to do
And God's soft prompting
Can be easily ignored

But I thank You Lord
With each trial I feel inside
That You're there to help lead and guide
Me away from wrong
For You promised, Lord
That with every testing
That Your way of escaping's
Easier to bear

Yes, I thank You Lord
For the victory that growing brings
In surrender of everything
Life is so worthwhile
And I thank You Lord
That when everything's put in place
Out in front I can see Your face
And it's there You belong

-- "Thank You Lord" by Dan Burgess

I haven't heard this song in ages, and I can't seem to find it anywhere. I can't even seem to find which album this is on. But it's a reminder that I need so much this Christmas.

Materialism

... [We] strive to participate in God's kingdom while also straining to play by the values of a fallen kingdom. I submit to you that many of us live a hybrid approach to discipleship and wealth. We desire to be successful in two kingdoms, and often the results are either disastrous, or a slow grinding death of our spiritual vitality...

[...]

Jesus never speaks of possessions per se as evil, nor does he glorify poverty. However, he does reveal the potential danger in material possessions - particularly how they lead us down the path of idolatry. Our material possessions seductively draw us away from total allegiance to Christ. Herein lies the crux of our dilemma; for one of the greatest threats to faithful discipleship are our own material belongings. Jesus fundamentally understands our fallen human nature and declares what we intuitively know, that where our treasure is, there our heart also resides (Lk 12:34).

[...]

... [It] is not my intention to single out, or demote Christians with financial means; but rather, I have challenged all Christians (myself included) to consider their discipleship and how their personal financial goals, integrate with their pursuit of Christ. To be sure, Christians of all income levels wrestle with how to negotiate their financial reality with their discipleship. I have witnessed missionaries, with very little income, caught in the same web of materialism as that of wealthier Christians owning multiple homes. The numbers may be different but the deceptions and tensions the same.

-- "Lord, Won't You Buy Me a Mercedes Benz" by Günther Mueller, Vantage Point (links mine)

Commitment

There are times where, even as I am constantly espousing the value of commitment, I can't help but wonder if I know anything about it at all. It scares me to think that I am vulnerable to turning my back on all the things that I hold most dear, but the more I dwell on it, the more my terrible track record comes back to haunt me.

I picked up the piano for a couple of years when I was younger, but gave that up. I used to sprint and play rugby competitively, but that didn't last long either. At different points in time, I went for Japanese, Russian, and Indonesian lessons; as a result, I know a smattering of each, but not enough of any one to have a real conversation.

Perhaps more worrying is the peaks and troughs that I go through in my relationship with God; if I can adopt such a lukewarm attitude to the Lover of my soul, how can I hope to have any kind of lasting relationship with anyone else? It's something that I will probably need time to sort out -- rather, let God sort it out in me. Because as tempting as romance is, I don't want anything that is based on a novelty that will wear itself out.

Work

Off to Amsterdam and Zurich on business for a bit. I'm just staring at the schedule and meeting/training agendas and feeling a bit woozy.

***

It's been crazy hectic at work. I think I took things to a whole different level last Friday when I held my pee in the entire afternoon from after lunch right up till the end of the work day simply because I had no time to go to the toilet. But it's been great. My head is about to explode, but it's been great, I don't know why.

It defies logic, but that's how God surprises us sometimes. :)

Kazakhstan #861

What will I tell people, post-Borat, when they ask me where my daughter is from? I will proudly say she is from Kazakhstan. It is niiiiice. Big country, people good. People big enough to laugh at themselves. I like. You like?

-- "The Real Kazakhstan" by Eric Weiner, Slate

Beauty tips

For attractive lips, speak words of kindness.
For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.
For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.
For beautiful hair, let a child run his or her fingers through it once a day.
For poise, walk with the knowledge you'll never walk alone.

-- Sam Levenson