What to do with a “Sabbath Blog” when the Sabbath is over?

The tag-line on my blog says; “A Narrative of my Sabbath Wanderings and Wonderings”. On Thursday I will need to change this tag-line……. because this Sabbath will be over.

But I don’t want this to be the end of my blog. I think blogging is a very powerful digital tool and I want to continue to blog what is going on around me, and what is going on in my head and heart. I also want to learn more about using this wordpress blogging programme, I am sure there is heaps more I can learn that will make this blog more interesting, and cool!

To all of you who have been following along on our Sabbath through this blog, and for many who have left a comment….. Becky and I are very humbled that you would be interested in what we are doing, and who we are meeting, and what we are thinking. So thanks for your support…….. REALLY!!! Check in again after Thursday to see what future direction my blog will be taking and what the new “Tag-line” will be….. I don’t know yet! I have a 10 hour flight on Singapore Airlines to give this some serious thought. (Tomorrow afternoon we fly to Singapore, then overnight to Chch, God willing!)

About a week befor we started our Sabbath Break I had a dream, actually it was more like a nightmare. (I don’t usually remember my dreams, but I remember this one!) I dreamt that our Sabbath was over, and we had done nothing of any significance, and frittered away our time doing nothing, and I was horrified and fell down on my back with my hands outstretched and uttered these awful words; “It is over!” I suddenly woke up, with these awful words ringing in my ears; “It is over”….. and we wasted it!

Well…….. 3 months later, I am happy to report “It is indeed over, but we have had a wonderful, rich, meaningful, blessed Sabbath!”

See you in Christchurch!

 

Sabbath Reflection #9 God.

Along with such significant pieces of literature as “The House at Pooh Corner” I have also been reading a bit of theology on this Sabbath Break. One of the books I am reading is called; “Satan and the Problem of Evil; Constructing a Trinitarian Warfare Theodicy” by Gregory A. Boyd. (I actually prefer reading about Pooh and Piglet and all their crazy friends, but now that I have turned 50 I thought something a bit deeper would also be appropriate.)

Greg Boyd is a Pastor, Author, and Theology Professor from USA. Over the past 10 years a lot of controversy has swirled around Greg Boyd and a number of other writers and pastors. The Baptist Denomination that he belongs to almost formally accused him of ‘heresy’ (false teaching). But 200 years ago the Calvinists also accused John Wesley of heresy, and 400 years ago the Calvinists succeeded in condemning Jacob Arminius as a heretic, so it is not really a big deal to be accused of being a heretic by Calvinists! The real issue is; ‘in the eyes of God are they really teaching false doctrine, or are they just teaching something that other Christians don’t agree with and don’t like very much?

(I hope I don’t get called a heretic for reading this book!!!!)

It is a pretty impressive and intimidating title for a book. A “Theodicy” is a theological/philosophical explanation for why there is evil in this world. So the question the book is trying to answer is; if God is all powerful and all loving, how come there is so much evil in this world? Although Satan is the first word in the book’s title, this book is really all about God; the ‘Trinitarian God’ who is revealed to us in Jesus and in the pages of the Bible.

It is a funny thing that Theologians like Boyd need 452 pages to tell us something that most of us intuitively know in our hearts. That; God is a God of Love. And Love is the reason God created this world. And Love is the reason God created people, for God desires to Love and be Loved. But Love is not something that God can ‘force’ or ‘programme’ into humans. Love can only be something that is freely chosen. And with the freedom to love and obey, come the freedom to hate and disobey; thus we have evil in this world. God has given to people the most precious gift; the freedom to Choose Love and with that comes the freedom to Reject Love. And so we now live in this world where large numbers of angles and humans have chosen to reject God and live in selfish, destructive, and evil ways… at War with God!

(But my Calvinist brothers and sisters disagree, claiming instead that God’s Word teaches that God controls everything that happens in this world, the good and the bad, for God is Sovereign!. Everything that happens is part of “God’s Beautiful Will”, they say. People may think they are free to choose, but in reality everything in this life is fixed, our fate is settled, for God has elected and predestined some to salvation and others to damnation according to His Mysterious Hidden Will and for His Great Glory.)

I don’t agree with my Calvinist brothers and sisters. I would never call them heretics, but I don’t agree with their understanding of the Bible, and of who God is. When I read the Bible, and from my personal experience of walking with God, I think the main message about God is that God is Love, not God is Sovereign. He is of course both, Loving and Sovereign, but I believe that God is not so concerned with impressing us with his Sovereign Control as He is with impressing us with His Loving Heart.

Now, back to The House at Pooh Corner!

 

Sabbath Reflection #8 Laude! Laude! Laude! (But this Manglish is driving me crazy!)

“Laude” is a Latin word that means “Praise”. Praise! Praise! Praise! Becky and I have so much to praise God for, but there are a few things that still drive us crazy…. one being; “Manglish“! Manglish is similar to Singlish but is worse!

Manglish is quite different to the way Honkies insert English into their Cantonese. (Eg. “Hap-m-happy?” “Beaut-m-beautiful?” “Goh gaan buil-ding!” “Yao mo anythingelselah?” I was in a HK shop and the shop assistant asked me this. She wasn’t trying to be clever or funny. This is actually how she communicates with the customers; “Yao mo anythingelselah?”)

No, Manglish (Malaysian English) is more like inserting Chinese into English, or inserting Malay, Hokkien, Fu-zhou wha, Cantonese, Hakka, or anything you like into English, and then placing the stresses on all the wrong syllables and then ,presenting it as English! Well, it is English… sort of… or perhaps we’ll just call it Manglish. (Mangled English! This is a wonderful word; Manglish, it perfectly expresses how the Malaysians have mangled the English language.) The problem is, if you listen to it for too long I think it will drive you crazy! Haha! (If you speak Manglish, please don’t be offended, some people think my Kiwi accent is awful too.. but I stil love Kiwi-English “Kinglish“!)      Well….. let me get on with what I really what to say.

Laude! Laude! Laude! Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow! All Your Creatures will Praise Your Name!

The other day, Becky and I spent some time thinking about all that has happened to us over the past 3 months. We made a list of some of God’s Blessings, for which we Praise Him;

Safe travel. No lost baggage. No accidents. No sickness. Financial provision. Smooth trip. God’s guidance each day. The love of so many brothers and sisters. (Particularly those who helped organise things for us in each place where we were; Becky’s Brother’s family. In Taipei; Esther and Jasmine. In Kaohsiung; Wendy Chang wen-siu. In KL; Mary Wong and Eunice. In Kuching; Laura Chiew. In Miri; Jackon and also Doris Tu. In KK; Yew-ping.) Spiritual, emotional, and physical renewal. Our First Sabbatical break!

And we are also very grateful to the Deacon’s Board and Brothers and Sisters at CCC who released us and allowed us this opportunity.

 

Sabbath Reflection #7 Friends.

What a wonderful thing! Friends I had not seen for years, many years, for one it was over 13 years that we had seen each other or had much contact with each other, and yet when we met it was, like…. we had never been apart. This is something very special! And it is something that Becky and I experienced again and again and again on this Sabbath Break. We never planned to meet so many old friends on this trip. We never expected it. But during these past 3 months we have spent time with 117 ex-members and friends of CCC. What a wonderful blessing. Meeting up with so many friends, brothers and sisters, has made this Sabbath break so very, very special. (To all of you who we met on this trip and who showed us such love, you will never know how much we appreciate what you did for us, and how healing, and renewing your kindness and love has been for us!!!)

Sometimes making friends is hard work. That is how I feel anyway. Loving others is sometimes hard work. It takes time and effort. Sometimes when I am tired, I would prefer to stay at home and not see any friends. But I have been reminded that you reap what you sow. Relationships are worth the effort!! Having close, loving friends is a tremendous blessing. The Bible is very clear, we reap what we sow! So we need to sow love, and time and effort into our relationships!

Today there is so much fragmentation in human relationships, and so much loneliness. The love of good friends is God’s gift to us. To be part of a gentle, loving Christian family like CCC is such a blessing.

On this Sabbath I have been reading a few books. One of those books is; The House at Pooh Corner. (If you have not read this book, read it, it is great!) It is the story of a group of friends (Pooh, Piglet, Tiger, Kanga and Roo, Owl, Rabbit, Christopher Robin, and Eeyore.) who live in the forest. Each one has a particular character and personality, a bit like all of us. Eeyore is the negative, critical one. He always seems to see the worst in every situation. He feels very unloved and unappreciated. He feels like people don’t care about him. Well one day Rabbit, who is very wise, but not quite as wise as Owl, said these words to Eeyore, and I thought this was really wise advice, and perhaps you might too;

“It’s your fault Eeyore! You’ve never been to see any of us. You just stay here in this one corner of the forest waiting for others to come to you. Why don’t you go to them sometimes!” Eeyore was silent for a little while, thinking. “There may be something in what you say, Rabbit,” he said at last. “I have been neglecting you. I must move about more. I must come and go.”

 

Sabbath Reflection #6 Church.

During this 3 month Sabbath Break I have not been to Church that many times. Which may seem a really bad thing for a Pastor to say on his Sabbath! But traveling around it did not always work out that we were able to get to a Church every Sunday. So I may have had a bit of a holiday from Church, but I have not had a holiday from God! (At least I can now more understand those who leave Chch for 2-3 months holiday in Asia over Christmas, and who find it difficult to attend Church regularly during their holiday.)

But during this 3 month Sabbath break I have been thinking a lot about Church, and particularly; the Christchurch Chinese Church;

CCC is a lovely Church! Not a perfect Church…. but a very good Church!

Now, I know, that as the Pastor of this church, I am completely biased in my opinion about our Church! But over the past 3 months my opinion has been verified by almost all of the 117 ex-members and friends of our Church that we spent time with on this Sabbath. One of the reasons that all these friends were so warm and friendly to Becky and I during our sabbath is because they have such good memories of their time in CCC. Many said they miss our Church. Many also said they love our Church.

Just before we left at the end of August our Church hosted a team from the Bible College of Victoria, Chinese Branch. Many on that team expressed to me their appreciation for how we hosted them and for what we did for them during that week. Here is just one of the emails I got;

Hi Pastor Jack and Becky,
>
> It has being a pleasure knowing you and the beautiful brothers and sisters in Christchurch. I am one of the members of the Melbourne Short Mission team. I am not sure if you remember me but I am the Esther who translated into English at Sunday Worship.
> Just want to thank you and those in Christchurch for hosting us. I had one of the most enjoyable weeks of my life. The people in Christchurch are really friendly and I have learnt a lot from your church. I think we have received more than we have given. I really enjoyed the praise and worship in your church. I think it’s wonderful that people from different culture and background can worship together. I must say, I really miss Christchurch.
>
> Hope you are enjoying your Sabbath break and may God bless you and your ministry!
>
> Esther Shen, Melbourne

I share this with you all so that you don’t think it is just me; the Pastor, saying nice things about our Church. Here is another email I received during this Sabbath break. This one is from Pastor Steve Graham; the Dean of “Laidlaw College”, the Bible College that Mike Wong and Esther Liu attend. He spoke at our Church on Sept. 20th;

Hi Jack. I just finished speaking at the three services at your church today. What a delightful church! You should be very proud. It is a special place with a lovely spirit. Thanks for the opportunity. Steve Graham.

“A special place with a lovely spirit!” I agree!!

So for everyone at home reading this…… like you I can see lots of things in our Church that need improving, but there are also lots of good things that we should be grateful for. It is a sad thing that it is often not till we go away that we really begin to appreciate what we had.

I am almost ready to come home. By this time next week, I think I will be 100% ready to be back in CCC. Looking back on the first part of this year, I think I was almost burned out emotionally and spiritually. For those of you who are close to me, you know that the last few months before I left on this Sabbath I was wound up like a spring, and I know I ‘snapped’ at a few of you, and I REALLY regret that!! Please forgive me!! You will be glad to know I have unwound… these 3 months have been wonderful for me. I am not a completely new me, but I think I will be much easier to live with and work with!! haha…

I am looking forward to coming back, working with you all to make our Church an even more special place, with an even more lovely spirit.

 

Sabbath Reflection #5 Health!

I hardly ever think about ‘health’ but three things happened while I was on this Sabbath Break that caused me to think quite a lot about ‘health’.

1) Was catching the bus every day for a month, from Lin Kou to Taipei City and passing the gi-normous Chang Gung Hospital. Have you ever seen a hospital like this in your life? They even run their own bus company to bus in sick people from all over Taipei!

One day I walked through this place, inside it was like a train-station! There were people everywhere! Sick people on beds with saline drips lined up in the corridors…. they even have MacDonalds inside the hospital! Two of them!

It is actually really hard to make sense of it. Let me tell you some of the things I was told and perhaps you can piece it together. Taiwan has a very cheap and comprehensive medical insurance, so it is very cheap for people to see the Dr. Taiwanese people seem to go to see the Dr. for every minor health issue, forgetting that there are lots of sick people in hospitals. The cancer rate in Taiwan is very high, for breast cancer the current rate is 1 in every 3 women, which is expected to rise to 1 in every 2 women. Taiwanese Dr.s work very long hours and are paid quite low. (Now I found this hard to believe, but a young Dr. who used to be in our Church told me that he only earns about NZ$3,000.00 per month as a Dr. in the Public health System.) Dr.s outside the Public System, who run their own clinics, make a LOT more than that!!!!! Understand??? I am not sure I do!

2) The second thing that happened was the awful Milk Contamination in China. People putting a chemical in the milk before it was processed to make it appear that the protein level of the milk was higher…. so they could make more money! An industrial, toxic, chemical that is used in the production of plastic kitchen bench tops and stuff like that…. in baby food! It is almost beyond belief! How could human beings do this to other human beings?? It appears that this is just the ‘tip of the iceberg’ and there are all kinds of toxic substances in all manner of food from China, and probably other places as well.  What kind of junk have we been putting into our bodies? Over 10 years ago a Chinese Dr. now living in USA, visited our Church and stayed with Becky and I in our home. She said to us one night; “Never, never, never, eat anything processed in China! Never!” At the time I thought she was exaggerating! Now I am beginning to believe her. I don’t really want to say bad things about China…….. but…… from now on I am going to be specially careful about what I put in my body, and what I put on my body.

3) The third thing… I had my 50th birthday. Statistically speaking, the years ahead of me are fewer than the years behind me. So it appears that those care-free days of being a young man are now behind me. It is time to think carefully about my stress levels, about my diet, about what I eat and drink, about regular exercise, about good quality sleep and keeping a healthy Spirit and Soul.

So, here is the main point I want to make; God’s Word tells us; “A cheerful heart is good medicine”. (Proverbs 17:22)

How important it is to have a cheerful, joyful heart. But joy does not occur automatically, we have to choose to be joyful, and keep choosing it every day. Joy is not the same as happiness. Happiness is conditional on what “happens”. If we “happen” to have a good day we are happy, but if we “happen’ to have a bad day we are unhappy. Joy is much deeper than this. Happiness is based on the circumstances of our life, but joy is based on how we chose to respond to those circumstances. It is important to remember that at every moment of our day we have an opportunity to choose to be joyful!

Joy and hope go together. You will never see a hopeful person who is depressed, or a joyful person who feels hopeless. Hope and joy come from an intimate relationship with God, the One who loves us with an everlasting love, and who will always remain faithful to us. He will remain faithful even through the difficult and painful times. It is often when we go through those lonely, tough times that we are ‘forced’ to cry out to God; “You are my only hope, you are the source of my joy!”

 

Sabbath Reflection #4 Politics.

During this 3 month Sabbatical Break we have been in a number of Countries which seem to be obsessed with Politics! At the same time our own Country, NZ, has gone through a change of Govt. and leader, and of course the USA has been through an election, and we now have the resulting; Obama-mania! (It seems that everyone thinks this guy can be the savior of the world!)

Three of the places we have been in were not particularly focused on Politics; 1) H.K., as usual, seemed to be obsessed with making money! 2) Macau, as usual, seemed to be obsessed with gambling. 3) China seemed to be obsessed with the Olympic Games and looking good! But then along came contaminated milk, and that ruined everything! (More about that in my next reflection.)

I have been thinking about why everyone is so obsessed with politics and political leaders;

Thailand. We almost didn’t go to Thailand because of the political unrest. The opposition had lost the election and accused the new Prime Minister of being a puppet for the former,  disgraced leader; Thaskin. (He is accused of stealing millions and was, until last week when he got kicked out, living in England. Now he is looking for another hiding place. He was in Beijing, then H.K. and now is in Dubai.) So the opposition decided they needed to take action. They took over the Govt. building and have been occupying it since early Sept. Can you imagine an opposition party in NZ upset about loosing the election, so they take over the Govt. Building in Wellington, and several thousand armed men and women, camp out in the Beehive and Parliament grounds… barricading roads… wrecking the place….. demanding a new election!!!!???

Taiwan. Then we went to Taiwan. Taiwan is a nice place, and it’s people are nice people, but Taiwanese Politics are crazy! Former leader Chen Sui-bian is accused of stealing US$500,000.00 from the people and thought to have taken up to US$20 million. A few days ago he was questioned by police and arrested. He held up his handcuffed hands for the cameras so that all the world could see. Were these handcuffs his shame or his glory? (He claims it is all ‘political crucifixion’, and he is innocent, a bit like Jesus.) Then he went on a hunger strike, and is now in hospital, dehydrated. He is the most loved and the most hated man in Taiwan. While this circus is going on, the new President; Ma ying-jiu has to try and lead Taiwan through the financial storms. (His political honeymoon didn’t last very long, and now they are saying he is a good man, but not a good President.) Many people I spoke to in Taiwan told me that the Political nonsense in Taiwan, has caused Taiwan a great loss of face in the world.

Malaysia. Now we are in Malaysia. The first 8-10 pages of every newspaper I have read in this country talk about Malaysian Politics. I cannot believe it! 1-2 pages…. fair enough! Now and then a big coverage of politicians and what they do and what they say…. fair enough! But this reporting of; who said what, and who did what, and who gave what speech, and who is planning what policy and who visited this association and who visited that association………every day!!!!??? What is wrong with this country and it’s media? It seems that the political relationship of Malay-Malaysians, Indigenous-Malaysians, Chinese-Malaysians, and Indian-Malaysians is very complex. Many of the Chinese-Malaysians I have spoken to in this country are quite pessimistic about the future of their country. They hope for change, but do not expect much. In Kuching Laura Chiew drove us past Sarawak’s Chief Minister’s residence Palace. They say this politician is the richest man in Malaysia! He has held his “elected” position for about 20 years, and no one has the power to remove him. How does that happen????? (I guess if you are a Malaysian you understand how that happens!)

Why all this obsession with Politics? Well, I think one of the reasons is because people long for good leadership! We long to be led by men and women of integrity. We long to be led by people who say what they mean, and mean what they say. Leaders who are not corrupted by power. Leaders who do not love money. Leaders who care more about their country than themselves. Leaders who are not in it for what they can get out of it. Leaders who can truly serve their people. The sad thing is that, over time, most leaders seem to give-in to the temptations of political power, military power, and economic power.

For those of us who are in positions of leadership, any kind of leadership, we can look at leaders and politics in this world and see what not to do. Then we can look at Jesus, the greatest leader of all time, and learn from Him. Learn of His humility, His love, His wisdom and truth, His gentle strength, His way, that leads to the cross, and through the cross to resurrection.

 

Sabbath Reflection #3 Money!

When we left NZ 3 months ago, the NZ$ was worth almost US80c, today it is worth just 55.45c. When we left NZ 3 months ago, a barrel of oil cost about US$150.00 today it is about US$50.00. When we left NZ 3 months ago, the people of Iceland had one of the highest living standards in the world, today the whole country is bankrupt! Bankrupt! When we left NZ 3 months ago, I didn’t know what a “Credit Crunch” was. When we left NZ 3 months ago, no one ever dreamed that their money was not safe in the BNZ. (Of course it is now…. Helen and John have guaranted it!!)

Over these 3 months we have witnessed things in the finance markets that we could never have imagined. Stock markets gone nuts. Down 5% one day, up 5% the next, then back down 5% the next. In one day the Russian stock market lost 20% of its value! Job security has gone out the window! Citi Bank announces it is going to lay-off 20% of its workforce; 50,000 people! It feels like the whole world has gone mad! I have been thinking about what has been going on. It is not easy to make sense of it all, or to know how to respond in a Christian way.

One day in October, in Taiwan, Becky and I were having dinner with a group of ex-CCC members, mostly dentists. They were joking around, talking about falls in the stock market, uncertainties concerning their investments, and who had lost the most money. Becky and I looked at each other, smiled, and joked; “we don’t have much money so we don’t have any worries!” It seems like the more money you have the more worries you have. But on the other hand, not having enough money is far worse! On this trip we have seen many people who have very little, and those of us in NZ are very wealthy by comparison!

What is an appropriate response to all this financial madness? Buy Gold? Buy comoddities? Real estate? Stocks? Cash? Well, not being an expert in economics, I have to be very careful what I say. But if you are looking for a “Christian” response, well, I do know quite a lot about the Bible, and in the Bible God says a great deal about money. So the best piece of advice I can offer is; study what the bible says about money and follow it. Get a Bible concordance, and look up the words; ‘wealth’, ‘money’, ‘riches’, ‘treasure’, and see what God says about these things. Then follow God’s way.

I can tell you that while on this trip, we could have freaked out about money, thinking this was the very worst time to come on a 3 month Sabbath break. But we didn’t. Before we left Chch we gave a tithe of these 3 months income to the Lord in the offering at CCC. Then we trusted Him to lead and guide and provide over these 3 months. We prayed, and reminded the Lord of our financial needs, and asked Him to provide, and He has! In ways we did not expect, or imagine! All I can say is that God will not let His people go hungry, or homeless, and that God loves to give His children treats.

Perhaps in these troubled financial times I can offer no better advice than what John Wesley gave 200 years ago. Wesley had three points to his sermon on money; 1) Earn as much money as you can! 2) Save as much money as you can! 3) Give as much money as you can! You may know that during his life John Wesley earned a fortune writing Christian booklets and selling them. But, although over the years, his income skyrocketed, he still lived on basically they same budget each year. And when he died, he only had a few pennies in his pocket, all that fortune had been used to extend the Kingdom of God. It had been invested in a place where thieves can not break in and steal, nor rust or moths destroy.

 

Sabbath Reflection #2 Rhythms

Ever feel like your life is like being on a roller coaster? You are on this thing, with its ups and downs and upside down parts, and it is getting faster and faster and you can’t get off?

This is not what our life is supposed to be like. But over the past 3 months I saw lots of people riding the roller coaster of life.

A very odd thing happened while we were in Taiwan. One Sunday our dear friend Chang Wen-siu (Wendy) took us to her Church; the largest Church in Kaohsiung; The Bread of Life Church. That day the preacher was a sister, from their Taipei Church who also lectures in their Bible College. She preached in Mandarin, but I understood about 80% of what she was saying. She was speaking from the Book of Leviticus on the Jewish Festivals which God commanded the Jews to observe in the Old Testament. She preached a very good sermon. She encouraged us all to pay attention to the rhythms of our life; work, rest, study, relationships and exercise. She encouraged us to take time out to relax, and celebrate the blessings of God. She encouraged us to follow the Old Testament example of ceasing from our work for times of rest, renewal and celebration. I felt that her sermon was very biblical and very wise, and it spoke to my heart.

A couple of days later we had dinner with Yi-pei. She is a young woman who used to be in our Church, who just finished 2 years of Study in the Taipei Bread of Life Church, Bible College. (the same school where the preacher lady in Kaohsiung teaches) After graduating, Yi-pei is now working as a Campus Missionary in their large Youth Ministry. I asked Yi-pei about her work, and one of the questions I asked was; “Yi-pei, working in the Bread of Life Church, how many weeks holiday do you get?” Her reply; “None!”

I thought this was very odd, and I was really surprised and said; “You are joking aren’t you?” She claimed to be serious. Now I am not trying to be critical of the Bread of Life Church, or the Lady Preacher in Kaohsiung. Perhaps Yi-pei got it wrong, or perhaps I heard it wrong. But I use this little story to illustrate my point…. life in Asia, and probably much of the world is too compulsive, too ‘helter-skelter’, too busy! And perhaps we know about healthy rhythms for life, we understand God’s Word on this topic, and we can even teach them to others, but are we able to live them, and allow those under us to live them.

The rhythm of City life; getting up late, hurried breakfast, rushing to work, working till late with only a quick lunch, often eaten at our desk, commuting home, late dinner, then TV/internet/computer/more work, then late to bed, and this for 5 1/2 – 6 days a week, then sleeping late on Sunday (possibly getting to Church) and trying to get a bit of family time, or housework time, this kind of rhythm is very unhealthy!

Such a ‘helter-skelter’ life, (don’t you love that word!) full of busyness and distractions will cause our hard disk to become very, very fragmented! This compulsive City living can make it extremely difficult for us to stop, listen, pay attention and hear God’s gentle voice speaking to us, or to receive God’s love and blessings.

I saw this. I saw it most clearly in H.K. and in Taipei. You can also find it in Miri and Kaohsiung, but these smaller Cities are not so neurotic. Why is it that people love big Cities? Specially when big Cities can cause such isolation, loneliness, and compulsive behavior? Why do people love being so busy? Is it to make themselves feel important and useful? Is it because they hate being still and silent, they hate the emptiness of their lives?

What is the answer? Well, big cities have their good points… but don’t be fooled by this, along with the good comes the bad! What is the point of being wealthy and successful if you are so unhealthy; body, soul and spirit? But if you have no choice, if you live in a big city and you have no way out, I think you have to pay very careful attention to the rhythms of your life. (You need to regularly defrag your hard disk! This will make you more productive and more healthy!)

You need to take time every day to stop and listen to God!! You must, must, must, have a weekly sabbath. Stop working, and go and worship God. Remind yourself of who God is, and who you are. The World will do all it can to stop you doing this… you must resist this pressure and obey God’s Word; it will keep you healthy! You need to pay attention to the rhythms of your life; work, rest, study, relationships and exercise. And then there are yearly holidays, and if possible every 7 years an extended break.

This 3 month Sabbath Break has been wonderful for my soul! (I deeply regret leaving it for 19 years to do this. I think that is a sin! God forgive me! Church forgive me! I repent!!)

 

Sabbath Reflection #1. Depression.

It is time for me to write down my reflections from this 3 month Sabbath break. I have a lot to say. So I plan to write 9-10 short ‘Sabbath reflections’ under the following headings; 1) Depression. 2) Rhythms. 3) Money. 4) Politics. 5) Health. 6) Church. 7) Friends. 8 Laude. Laude. Laude. 9) City. 10) ????

Becky and I have been in 5 Big Cities; H.K. Macao, Bangkok, Taipei, K.L.  We have been in 10 smaller cities; Pataya, Du-yuan, Gui-yang, Zhu-hai, Kaohsiung, Tai-naan, Malacca, Kuching, Miri, and K.K. We have been in the middle of some of the worlds major cities, and we have been in the middle of the jungle. We have been on 16 flights, and on numerous busses and trains. On this trip we have spent time with 117 ex-members and friends of CCC. (Unfortunately there were many old friends of CCC in China, Taiwan, H.K. Malaysia, Myanmar, and Macao that we were not able to see!!) So let me share with you what I have seen, and what I have heard, and what I have been thinking about.

Sabbath Reflection #1 Depression.

I have been told for many years that Chinese people do not talk openly about mental illness, depression, marriage problems and such things. You don’t ‘hang the families dirty washing out for all the world to see’. Family issues should remain in the family. Mental illness is a shame. And to work as a family counsellor, or marriage counsellor, or personal counsellor in an Asian context would not be a very busy job.

But I have discovered on this trip that this is no longer so. It seems that Depression is so widespread and such a serious issue that it has surfaced in the East as it has, for many years, in the West. In Hong Kong, suicide has always been an issue, but it seems to have become even more serious. (NZ also has a very serious suicide problem, but in NZ no one is allowed to talk about it for fear of making it more popular.) In the big cities we visited particularly H.K. and Taipei public advertising encouraging those with personal problems to seek out professional help was widespread.

Why so much depression? There are probably many answers to this question. But one of the things I saw in these large cities is the ‘de-humanising power of the city”. Just 1 example; Becky and I sat in “Dai-ga lok” in H.K. sharing our table with two people who completely ignored our presence for 30 minutes even though we were sitting just centimeters from them. Even though I did try to acknowledge them, they treated us as if we did not exist. It was very weird! How close, and yet how far apart!

How close and yet how far apart! If people are not careful, City living, with all its crowds, and compulsive, helter-skelter activity, can be very dehumanising. When a person is continually ignored, rejected and alone, it must lead to dehumanisation which in time will bear the fruit of depression and mental illness. (It seems that the answer to this “how close, and yet how far apart” syndrome for many city dwellers is the cell-phone. I have never seen so many cell-phone shops in ALL my life! I suppose with a cell phone in your pocket it is; “how far apart and yet how close”!)

What is the answer? We cannot all move to the middle of the jungle to avoid the stresses of city life. What are the answers to this urban dehumanisation. I think there are two. 1) is the gentle, accepting, loving, community that can be found in a truly Christian Church. If you live in a City it is imperative that you become an active part of a good Church! 2) is to remind yourself over and over and over of the truth of God’s Word; “that even if I may not be able to feel it right now, I am a loved and chosen child of God. I am precious in God’s eyes. I am His beloved. He knitted me together in my mother’s womb. He knows me, He even knows how many hairs are on my head, and yet He still loves me. He keeps watch over me where ever I go. He will supply all my needs. I belong to Him, and nothing, nothing, can ever separate me from His love. In this truth we find wonderful peace, and joy! Because Jesus loves us, this we know, for the bible tells us so!