Come, All Ye Faithless

I took ENGL101 a year and a half ago, and today I found the journal where, at the beginning of each class, we wrote on a topic assigned to us. I read through it and was caught by what I wrote for this particular assignment. That particular day, the instructor read to us a rather dismal, slightly depressing poem, and we were told to pick a line that stood out to us and record our individual contemplations on that line. I picked this line "Come, all ye faithless" both because of its mockery of the Christmas hymn and because of its hopelessness. I ran out of time before I said everything I wanted to say, but this is what I wrote:

"Come all ye faithless." What is it to be faithless, to be without faith? What is faith? It is the belief in something, or someone, without proof, only trust. It is hope - but more than hope. Hope dreams, faith knows. Those who are without faith are of all people most to be pitied. Without faith, one cannot believe anything unless one has the evidence. What is a life that is based solely on fact? It is a life that has lost the joy of youth. The innocence of childhood has passed away from that life leaving it like the brown, wrinkled petals of a rose long dead. The one who lives without faith is doomed to live not at all. 

 "...faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen..." Hebrews 11:1

FYI

This is very true. And it reminds me of one of my pet peeves - when people say you need to prove something as true.

Actually,  scientifically,  one cannot prove that something is,  only that something is not.  A famous example is that of spontaneous generation. The theory was thought to be "proven" correct, but in 1859 or so, Louis Pasteur proved that spontaneous generation cannot and does not occur. Because of our ever-expanding knowledge, no matter how much supporting evidence one may show for a theory, one cannot know if our understanding is complete and accurate unless the theory is absolutely proven as false. Thus, the burden of proof lies with those who argue the nonexistence or inaccuracy of an object or theory.

(Of course, we Christians know infallibly that God does exist. I am speaking in general terms.)

This is similar to the idea of "innocent until proven guilty." An individual who is on trial must be viewed as innocent (positive/true) unless proven beyond a doubt as guilty (negative/false).

Anyway, let it be known that it frustrates me when people say they have "proven" something. Um, no, you have found supporting evidence.

Kind of similar to when people say that something causes something else, like eating beets makes you turn pink. But that's a story for another day...

O the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus...

This is one of my favorite hymns (along with Rock of Ages and Be Thou My Vision). I love the music. Its rolling tones remind me of the waves of the ocean - appropriately, since that is a theme of the hymn.

O the deep, deep love of Jesus, vast, unmeasured, boundless, free!
Rolling as a mighty ocean in its fullness over me!
Underneath me, all around me, is the current of Thy love
Leading onward, leading homeward to Thy glorious rest above!

O the deep, deep love of Jesus, spread His praise from shore to shore!
How He loveth, ever loveth, changeth never, nevermore!
How He watches o’er His loved ones, died to call them all His own;
How for them He intercedeth, watcheth o’er them from the throne!

O the deep, deep love of Jesus, love of every love the best!
’Tis an ocean vast of blessing, ’tis a haven sweet of rest!
O the deep, deep love of Jesus, ’tis a heaven of heavens to me;
And it lifts me up to glory, for it lifts me up to Thee!

The Family Tree Explained

I've been trying to express this exact thing to people for years! Thankfully, someone has created a video illustrating the various complicated family relationships and what they are actually called. I found it very helpful - maybe you will too!

And Now My Lifesong Sings...

And Now My Lifesong Sings, by Casting Crowns

Ramblings Three

I start nursing school in three weeks. Part of me thinks, "Hallelujah! An end to the everlasting boredom!' and another part groans in anticipation of the heavy workload and packed schedule. I'm very excited. I've been sure that I want to be a nurse for over two years, and I've been working steadily toward that goal ever since. Now that I'm finally at the point where I can begin my actual nursing training, I'm nervous and full of anticipation.

I pray I'll do well, but I've heard a lot of doom and gloom from current nursing students about how EVERYONE will fail a test at some point (::gulp:: I don't think I've ever failed a test in my life) and how sometimes you'll just sit in your car and cry (not cool). This has resulted in somewhat less self-confidence than I had a few months ago.

I really do think that I'll thrive in this career though. I love helping people. I don't mind doing the dirty jobs if someone needs me to. I do what's necessary, but I manage to be extremely empathetic in the meantime. Not to mention this field is very versatile. My long-term goal is to be a stay-at-home wife and mother, but nursing is something I can do if God doesn't have that for me. I could also use it to supplement my husband's income if necessary, or even take it on the foreign mission field, if I feel called to do so. (I would love to spend a short time working on the Mercy ships, or something similar. We'll see.)

Anyway, that's what has been consuming most of my time, thoughts, and effort lately. Who knew beginner nursing students needed so many textbooks and supplies? This is getting expensive. Some of the rest of my time is spent babysitting (lots of fun), tutoring (Algebra One), and spending time with friends who are like siblings (you know who you are).

Also, my grandfather has not been doing well lately, so my mother has been staying with him for the last few weeks, and will probably be there for a couple more weeks. He doesn't know our Jesus, so we would appreciate any prayers.

Something else I've been up to lately is volunteering at Fort Vancouver National Historic Site. I don't think I've mentioned it on here before, which a surprise considering how much I enjoy it! It's taken a small step in bravery to get used to talking to strangers (specifically in front of other volunteers who know more about the Fort than I do), but I love telling children about the history of the Fort and what our ancestors used to do. That's not a surprise, considering how much I love children in general.

Another bonus is that I get to wear amazing costumes. Sure they're not the most comfortable at times (hot in summer and difficult to move in all year round), but they look fantastic. Well, I do have to admit they had strange ideas about which hairstyles were attractive back then, but I can deal with it.

Then, one of my bestest friends in the whole world also volunteers there. She started a year before me, and so we get to volunteer together all the time. Our little sisters are both taking the youth-interpretive training (teaching ages 9-18 how to interpret to the public at the Fort) this year, and we are both helping to teach it. I'm not very experienced, but the 16 or 17 girls who are taking the class are very sweet and loads of fun.

As I was saying, this girl is one of my bestest friends. She has several sisters and a few brothers. My younger sister and I are practically adopted at their house. In fact, just last week her older sister referred to me as "the only one of the siblings who..." My point being that she referred to me as being one of the siblings. That made me laugh, especially since people think I belong to their family all the time. Some of the kids and I actually do look somewhat alike, except for the fact that I'm a couple inches under average height and they tend to be a few inches above average height...at least the fully-grown ones...ahem.

So that's a wee update on my life in the past year. Maybe I'll come back with some more information in a few days. Maybe. ;)

The Way of Mercy

I'm sorry for the way you've taken it. I'm not sorry for saying it. What you're doing is wrong and that's unchangeable. How do I know? The Bible says it. Read it for yourself.

You say that the law of the Old Testament is strict. It holds us to standards which are impossible for anyone to achieve and it's ridiculous for anyone to ever think that they could.

You're right. And that's how it's supposed to be. The law is the instrument of justice. Harsh, immoveable, absolute, perfect justice. Punish the evildoer and reward those who do well. The purpose of the law is to strip every inch, every single little speck of unrighteousness from us and make us to be wholly without blemish. And if we fail, well, too bad. Wickedness is not to be tolerated in any form, in any amount.

That's justice. That's the law. The Israelites failed time and time again and the results were drastic.

But then we get into the New Testament. Suddenly, there's a shift towards love and mercy, compassion and kindness. The story of salvation, of the way made for us to heaven through Jesus' supreme sacrifice. It's beautiful.

So one might then suppose that the Old Testament is unnecessary. We have the new covenant between us and God. Why do we need this old one hanging around? What was the point of it in the first place anyway?

The answer is this. To be a reminder. A reminder that no one can fulfill justice. Only one Man did that and His name is Jesus. He's the one you have to look to. Imagine if Jesus had come directly after the Fall of Adam and Eve. No Old Testament law, no failure of the Hebrews, nothing. Straight to the path of mercy. What would the result have been?

Without the law to show them how impossible it is to reach perfection, think of all the people who would say that they don't need Jesus. Much like how today people argue, "I'm a good person. Of course I'll go to heaven." Everyone would say that. They wouldn't know how sinful they are without the law. That's why the law was given. The law was not given to show us how we can be perfect; the law was given to show us how we can't possibly be perfect. 

That's what Paul is referring to in Romans chapter seven. He says "What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, 'You shall not covet.'" (NKJV)

Let me translate this in my own words: "Is the law sinful? Of course not! I wouldn't have known what sin was except by the law. For I would not have known covetousness as being what it really is - wrong - unless the law had said it was wrong." 

 Paul is saying what I am trying to say. The law provides the standard for perfection and when we compare ourselves to it we see how far we have fallen short. When we see this, when we see our filthy, disgusting selves - that's when mercy has the opening to come and do its work. After all, how can someone receive mercy unless they know they need mercy? That's where the Gospel comes in. We recognize that there is no way we could ever attain perfection on our own, and as such we are condemned as we deserve, as all unrighteousness ought to be. We realize that we need a Savior. That Savior frees us from the chains of guilt that the impossibly high standard of the law has given us. We are free from the law because it has served its ultimate purpose.

You see, the Gospel isn't just the New Testament. It's the Old Testament too. The Gospel first shows us the reality of justice to make a way for mercy. Christians are supposed to be the same way. We have a responsibility to live the Gospel  - to be the Gospel. That's why we can't just ignore the sin that we see. We point out how the sin in the world contradicts the Bible so that the world can see how much they need mercy. We're not judging - we're only pointing out the judgement which has already been made by the only One who is worthy to judge. Yes, you are an evil sinner. So am I. So is everyone else. We deserve to be eradicated. That's what justice says. Mercy says "I can help you. I can save you." But you won't grab the rope until you know you're falling.

Love isn't blind. Love sees clearly and loves anyway. We don't know how much we are loved until we know the truth about ourselves and how much we don't deserve to be loved. Justice doesn't contradict mercy. In the same way, mercy doesn't oppose justice. Mercy can only be beheld through the eyes of justice and justice can only be fulfilled through mercy's way.

So please forgive us if we seem harsh. Forgive us if we are blunt or rude or careless with our words. Our wish is not to be better than you.  We've extended the hand of love and mercy to you time after time, but you refuse. You say you don't need it. Sometimes it makes us want to groan and weep. Sometimes that makes us want to scream in your faces about what a horrible person you are and how you need to repent. Sometimes we don't know what to do because we offend you if we say something and we betray you if we don't. We just want to show you that you're falling and you need to grab the rope. We want to show you the infinite depths of God's great love and mercy. But you won't, you can't, until you see the infinite heights of his justice and purity. And that's all we're trying to do.