Author: Suzanne

You hear the news. Your heart pounds. Your chest feels tight. You clench your teeth. You hunch your shoulders. Your mind races in a million directions.

You’re watching the TV news. 

A sign was taped to the TV at the aged care home I visited today. “In the interest of mental health, please do not watch the TV news in common areas. Residents may watch the news in their own rooms. Programs viewed in common areas are restricted to those with positive content.”

“Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
 I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10) 

Six degrees of separation

You know someone who knows someone who might have the virus. You saw ‘your’ someone just days ago and that someone saw ‘their’ someone a few days before that.

Your mind manically goes through the list of everyone you have seen over the last couple of days. You swallow hard, trying to sense if your throat is at all sore. Is that the start of a tickle? Is your chest a little tight? Is your forehead a touch warm? 

“Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
 I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10) 

Sitting

Today I walked by the river. I stopped and sat on a fallen log. The sun warmed my back. I admired the delicacy of a sprig of ‘Patterson’s Curse’, even though I know it’s officially a weed. A lizard darted in front of me.

I just sat, trying to still my busy mind. 

I remembered sitting along this same stretch of river almost five years ago, trying as best I could ‘to be still and know’ that Yahweh is God. That was just before a six-week patch when I would have radiation five days a week and chemo once a week. Back then, the odds of being able to be there again today weren’t even. 

“Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
 I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10) 

Still

When we stop, be still and focus on the God who is exalted, our jaws relax, our breathing slows and our galloping hearts settle into gentle rhythms.

Nothing has changed.

Yet everything has changed. 

I am over-the-moon grateful to be strong and healthy today. But even if I weren’t … even if things hadn’t turned out the way I had hoped and prayed for … God would still be God. 

“Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
 I will be exalted in the earth.”

Help us, exalted Lord, to be still. 

What does COVID-19 have to do with ‘pure joy’? 

Not much, I admit, except that it comes under the umbrella of what ‘Old Camel Knees’ calls ‘trials of many kinds’.  

James 1:2 says, “Consider it pure joy … whenever you face trials of many kinds….” (James 1:2 NIV).  Pure joy? Consider the tense times in which we live ‘pure joy’? The financial turmoil that many individuals and small businesses are facing as a result of the pandemic cannot be considered ‘pure joy’. The pain and suffering that some patients are enduring and the worry and even grief of their loved ones cannot be considered ‘pure joy’. Even the temporary inconvenience of supermarket shelves being empty and staples unavailable cannot be considered ‘pure joy’.

No. That was never the writer’s intent. It is not the trials that Christians are to consider ‘pure joy’. It is the opportunity to face such trials – we are instructed to consider that opportunity ‘pure joy’. 

That doesn’t sound much better. 

‘Old Camel Knees’

What out-of-touch-with-reality person would write such a thing?

‘Old Camel Knees’ was his nickname. We know him better as ‘James’, the author of the Biblical letter that bears his name. It is generally thought that he was the brother or cousin of our Lord Jesus during his days on earth.  Only after witnessing Jesus’ death and resurrection did he become a follower of Christ. He quickly rose to a senior position in the church. 

History suggests that James was a man of prayer. It was his custom to kneel to pray, hence the calloused knees and the nickname. And he knew a thing or two about trials. 

James was a senior leader in the early church which had been decimated by persecution. He had witnessed a lot and likely endured plenty too. Indeed, it would only be a matter of time before James would be martyred. Tradition suggests that he was thrown from a pinnacle of the temple and finished off by stoning. I wonder if he considered the opportunity to face THAT ‘pure joy’?

Scattered Christians

As for the original readers, they also knew a thing or two about trials. James addressed his readers as ‘the twelve tribes scattered among the nations’ (James 1:1). We know from history that the early Christian Jews scattered because of intense persecution (Acts 8:1). 

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds….” (James 1:2). I wonder what kinds of trials they had faced? Did they know something of the trauma, the financial hardships and the ignominy of refugees today? Did they continue to face discrimination and poverty because of their faith, even in other parts of the empire? 

The plight of refugees is a major theme in Scripture. It’s easy to lose sight of that. But I shall hold that thought for another time. Right now, I’m writing from a perspective of our community facing another kind of trial … plague.

A promise and a warning

Having established that both the writer and the original recipients of this letter understood trials, let us now turn our attention to why on earth ‘Old Camel Knees’ would instruct Christians to consider facing trials of many kinds as ‘pure joy’.

In what I am about to share, I am indebted to John Piper’s excellent pair of short meditations on the passage and recommend them to you. They can be found here:  https://www.desiringgod.org/scripture/james/1/labs

The reason Old Camel Knees exhorts his readers to consider facing trials as pure joy is that standing firm under trials brings life. That’s how he put it in James 1, anyhow. His argument goes like this: 

Standing steadfast under trial —> perseverance —> maturity and wholeness —> the crown of life (James 1:2-4, 12)

In contrast, James then describes the slippery slope of temptation. He actually used a slightly different Greek word for ‘temptation’ than ‘trial’ in this next section, though he clearly links the two. That argument goes like this:

Temptation —> dragged and enticed by evil desires within —> sin —> death

Ancient angst

Was James suggesting that we are saved because we stand firm under trial?  After all, he wrote, “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” (James 1:12 NIV)

The second scenario (temptation —> enticement —> sin —> death) is sobering, but it is helpful to remember that there is always the opportunity of repentance this side of death. It is also helpful to notice that temptation itself is not sin. It only leads to sin if we allow ourselves to be dragged and enticed by evil desires. 

Perhaps a better question to ask, though still sobering, is this: Does my perseverance under trial prove my love for God? 

(Actually, I am not alone in my discomfort about James’ emphasis on ‘works’. The issue of ‘grace’ versus ‘works’ has been hotly debated for at least as long as the church has been in existence. Both grace and works are taught in the Bible. We’re saved BY grace FOR good works. It isn’t an either-or option.)

COVID-19

So what does all this have to do with COVID-19? 

It’s all about our attitude. ‘Managing our minds’ has been a theme in my writing for a while, and this week’s blog post is no different. 

Will I approach this time of crisis in my community with an attitude that comes from being rooted and centred in Christ?

Will my church be a centre of stability and hope during these days of chaos?

Will we even go so far as to ‘consider it pure joy’ that we get to stand firm as Christ’s followers during this trial, confident in Christ come what may? 

I’m not saying that we should ignore our feelings and pretend that we’re okay. That would be akin to lying … lying to ourselves, to others and even to God. I am just saying that we must choose to think wisely, as mature Christians. We can go through this particular trial as Christians with a strength that comes from the Holy Spirit.

It’s all very well for me to write these words from the comfort of my home in a comparatively calm corner of the globe. I haven’t been quarantined for weeks on end, physically isolated from my community, with no meaningful work to fill my days. I haven’t watched family or friends struggle to breathe because of the infection, let alone been infected myself. And I don’t want to, either. 

All I have experienced personally so far has been the loss of my regular Sunday morning worship service (but our small group time is ever so more meaningful) and the concern of being almost out of the cat’s preferred litter.

A challenge

I sense that God’s challenge for me this week is this: Will I consider it ‘pure joy’ when I face trials of many kinds? 

Specifically, will I stay centred in Christ as the threat to my community becomes every greater over the coming weeks? Will WE stay centred in Christ as his community in this place? How will I manage my mind?

Christian people the world over are praying earnestly for an end to this epidemic. I see prayerful claims of ‘victory over the virus’ (nice alliteration … surely God will be impressed). I have been moved by a calls for prayers that God would preserve the lives of particular loved ones. I am not saying we should not ask for what we need. Of course we should.

But am I also praying that Christians will stand firm in the face of these trials? Am I praying that those affected will think and interact and live in such a way that reflects our grounded-ness in God and brings him glory? Am I praying that my brothers and sisters in Christ will be radiate peace in the midst of panic? And am I living it myself? 

To be honest, I don’t really know to pray. Or how to act. Thankfully, Old Camel Knees reminds us that God is the source of wisdom and we need but ask for it. He also reassures us that “God … gives generously to all without finding fault” (James 1:5). I don’t have to ‘have it all together’. I don’t need to know the answers. 

An ancient Israelite king led the people in a powerful prayer during a time of crisis. They prayed, “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” (2 Chronicles 20:12b). Perhaps that prayer is enough for us too.

Another chocolate muffin?

Today’s blog post has been heavy. Let me finish on a lighter note. Chocolate muffins. 

I currently have several delicious chocolate muffins in my freezer.  They were a gift. I had thought that freezing them would prevent me from overindulging, but I have since discovered that frozen chocolate muffins are even better than fresh ones. Not helpful. 

It’s fine to have an occasional treat. I’m currently tracking what I eat on an app and my FitBit keeps track of how much I exercise. A treat is just fine so long as energy input doesn’t regularly exceed energy expenditure.

I sat on my porch yesterday afternoon. It was a glorious autumn day. As I meditated on James 1,  I enjoyed a chocolate muffin. But they are rather small. A second would be nice. And it is Sunday … a day of rest … a day when the rules don’t apply … right? 

The desire for another chocolate muffin is surely not a trial. But it is a temptation. Almost two thousand years ago, the man of prayer known as ‘Old Camel Knees’ also wrote that, “… each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed….” 

Hmmm … the desire for a second muffin isn’t sin, but my evil desires are indeed dragging me away and enticing me. Sin is getting closer.  

Wisdom is needed. And acknowledgement that this is a temptation. I guess that being ‘real’ about where I am at is wisdom.

Right. It’s clearly time for a walk. Not for a second muffin. 

The unchanging Father of heavenly lights

Treats are not bad. James went on to write, “Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows….” (James 1:16-17).  Surely chocolate is a gift of God … in moderation. 

And as we face much MUCH bigger issues than chocolate muffins, we can also face them confident that we belong to the one who does not change like shifting shadows.

It took quite some mental gymnastics to consider the opportunity to resist a second muffin ‘pure joy’. My initial response to the desire was not, “Oh goodie, I get to persevere.” And I certainly wouldn’t have even attempted to consider that opportunity ’pure joy’ had I not been in James 1 right there and then. 

Let me add that only one muffin was consumed in the production of this week’s blog post.

Managing my mind in ‘real trials’ is going to take a bit more mental discipline.

It was the 24th February 2020 according to my calendar. It was also the first day of the Tibetan Year of the Rat in the year 2147 in the Tibetan calendar. And it was my first day back at the desk after a long time away with travel and then a little annual leave.

It was time to implement my New Year’s Resolution. 

Let me copy what I penned in my journal that day as I devoutly started the semester with a mini-retreat.

“An eagle soars high above, its beady eyes scanning the landscape beneath. It takes in everything yet is distracted by nothing. Its purpose is clear. Food.

“Once it spots its prey, it zooms in, feet down, claws outstretched, and grabs it. 

“Violent, that picture is, but helpful as I think about my attitude to life. This year, with God’s help, I will be more like a soaring eagle and less like a playful puppy.” 

Actually, my ‘official’ New Year’s Resolution is less vivid but it’s along the same lines. My resolution is to put in solid blocks of time at my desk each day. 

Today’s Priority

Today is Saturday. It’s my chance to catch up with domesticity. I jot a list of tasks I would like to achieve before the day is out. My top priority today, however, is to write. To write this blog post, in particular. I write because it sharpens my focus. I write because I sense that God has asked that of me. And if you find it helpful to read along, that’s nice. 

First, though, I put on a load of laundry. Then I sit on the bed and read a chapter of my ‘Qualitative Analysis’ book for college, because the cat doesn’t like the washing machine and I like to think that she appreciates my presence as she quakes at the spin cycle. Then I hang out the washing and think about cutting the grass. No … I don’t want the clean clothes to get grassy … the grass can wait until this evening. I clean out one shelf of the pantry, as planned, but then go on to a second because it was there. I’m almost out of eggs and coconut oil. And toilet paper. Perhaps I will walk to the shops and get some exercise … later. Right now, I must FOCUS. 

I switch on the computer. Oh look – new emails. In response to one, I rework a rather important document … several times over, actually. In response to another, I message a friend, and then we chat for a while. By now, the day is slipping by. If I am going to walk to the shops, I had best go now.

After a lovely walk, I come home with eggs, coconut oil, a locally grown zucchini and pesto. There is still no toilet paper to be bought for love or money because panic has made some people in Australia act strangely. 

And now … FOCUS.  

Though my freshly washed clothes are dry now. And then I could cut the grass.

Biblical Insights?

I move away from the computer and any other distracting gadget in order to brainstorm the outline for this blog post. Is it ridiculous, I wonder, to ask if the Bible has any advice about how to focus? After all, to separate secular and spiritual is just a modern idea (post-Enlightenment) and not particularly Biblical. 

A line of Scripture from a song springs to mind: “Give me a totally undivided heart….”  What is that song? What Psalm is it from? I dare not switch on a gadget to use the Bible concordance or to find the song, because I just KNOW that I will get distracted.

(PS The verse about having ‘an undivided heart’ comes from Psalm 86:11, and the prayer is that God will ‘unite our hearts’ so that we may fear his name. I had been meditating on that the day that I wrote the opening section of this post about a soaring eagle. The song I am humming is called ‘Purify my heart,’ by Eugene Greco.) 

I think it is okay to ask God to help me focus not only on him, but also on the work to which he has called me. It doesn’t mean that other necessary and valuable tasks don’t get done. But it does mean that I focus … with his help.

Strategies

There are a few strategies that help me as I struggle to focus. They are (1) mind management, (2) the pomodoro technique and (3) temptation identification. 

Managing our minds is something that the Bible exhorts us to do over and over, though it’s normally in the context of meditating on God and his word. I have written on this before. Surely the discipline of mind management plays into my current dilemma of being distracted by good and necessary but lower priority tasks and opportunities.

The pomodoro technique is something that I picked up through an online writing class I took a couple of years ago. In short, you take a timer, set it for 25 minutes, and then start writing, ready or not. The Italian man who copyrighted the concept, a university student struggling to focus, had an oven timer shaped like a tomato. ‘Pomodoro’ is Italian for ‘tomato’. Yes, it’s that simple. 

Temptation come in many forms. Had I had my computer, phone or iPad at hand when I started to draft this article, I would have used it to look up the lyrics to that song or the Psalm I referred to earlier. However, the chances are that I once I got online, I would have also checked the news headlines, glanced at social media, checked emails and seen then paid my gas bill. These things are not temptations in and of themselves. The temptation is simply that I do not focus on what needs to be priority right then and there. That’s why I chose to move away from my gadgets and use good old-fashioned paper for a first draft. 

I implemented these three strategies, despite the grass still being long, the clothes ready to bring inside and the desire to cook banana muffins titillating the edge of my consciousness. And what do you know? It’s still Saturday and this post is written! 

A Day at a Time

It’s been 13 days since I implemented my New Year’s Resolution. So far, it’s actually gone quite well, delightful distractions notwithstanding. But it’s not easy. It’s a day-by-day, sometimes moment-by-moment, effort. 

I want to be like that eagle, keeping everything in view but with my focus clear. Unlike that eagle, however, I don’t want to swoop down and catch a poor little defenceless creature in my claws. That’s where the analogy breaks down. I want to stand tall, my head held high, knowing that I have used well the resources of time, energy, gifts and abilities that the Good Lord has allocated to me. May his name be glorified as a result. 

Three years ago, I bought a FitBit. I diligently recorded every mouthful I ate on the FitBit app, and tracked steps and weight. I knew that I needed to get in shape. Doctors had told me in no uncertain terms that getting down to a healthy weight was the best thing I could do to reduce the chances of a recurrence of the cancer I had in 2015. 

My good intentions lasted a year. 

From time to time, I have picked up where I left off. My FitBit app shows me that over the past three years, despite some impressive ups and downs, my net weight loss amounts to 700 grams. 

Yes, this is yet another blog post about a middle-aged woman’s efforts to live a healthy lifestyle. If you choose to read it, please be assured that I am NOT sitting in judgement of anybody who, like me, struggles with weight. I am well aware that there are a myriad of reasons for why we find ourselves in these predicaments. I am preaching to one woman and one woman only … myself.

An inspiring book

I’m currently reading an inspiring book. I’m not quite ready to recommend it, having only read six of the 19 chapters, but it has got me thinking. This blog post isn’t a book review. Nor am I regurgitating the contents of the book. I’m simply giving credit where credit is due. The book that has stimulated my thinking is ‘Made to Crave’ by Lysa TerKeurst, published by Zondervan in 2010. 

The Bible, of course, is even more inspiring when it comes spurring us on to live well. It does not talk about dieting in the sense that we think of ‘diets’ today. Mind you, there were some pretty strict dietary laws given to ancient Jews, and there are plenty of instructions and examples given concerning both fasting and feasting. To my surprise, I realise now that there is also quite a bit written about people’s healthy … or unhealthy … relationships with food in the Bible. Chewing over this idea in a metaphorical sense could well be the missing ingredient in my ‘battle with the bulge’. 

A shocking verse

“They willfully put God to the test by demanding the food they craved” Psalm 78:18 NIV.

What? I couldn’t believe that the author of ‘Made to Crave’ would take a random verse and apply it to weight loss efforts! 

Like a good Bible student, I went to the Good Book to examine the context. It turns out that the ancient Israelites did indeed put God to the test by demanding the food they craved. The context was an account of the Jewish desert wanderings. Yes, there was more to it than just the food issue. But the fact that they tested God by demanding the food they craved is indeed significant. 

So then, like an educated Bible student, I checked out the Hebrew word translated in that verse as ‘crave’. What I learnt literally made me gasp in astonishment. The Hebrew word translated ‘to crave’ is actually ‘nephesh’ –  the same word that is often translated as ‘soul’ or ‘living being’. When the word ‘nephesh’ is attached to the word for ‘food’, it has the sense of drawing life from that food, or ‘craving’ food. No wonder God was upset at the ancient Israelites’ demands for the food they craved and interpreted it as a willful test of his Lordship. Instead of drawing their identity and life from their God, they longed for tasty tucker.

Enemy tactics

The writer of the book ‘Made to Crave’ also makes a big deal of 1 John 2:15-16 – “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – comes not from the Father but from the world” (NIV).

Again, I thought, “Pfft – over-spiritualising food choices, she is.”  And again, I dug into the Scriptures.  And yes, there is a lot more in 1 John than just deciding what we eat. And I very much doubt that the aged apostle John had dieting in mind when he penned those words. 

So why did John write this way? We actually know why with 100% clarity. Immediately before giving those early Christians these instructions, John set out his reasons for writing to them. He aimed to assure his readers that they belonged to God and had overcome the evil one (1 John 2:12-14).

That was then. This is now. The enemy’s tactics are the same. How does the Evil One try to lure us to himself and keep us from us ‘overcoming the world’? According to this passage, his tactics are three-pronged: (1) the lust of the flesh, (2) the lust of eyes and (3) the pride of life. 

An ancient strategy

Lysa TerKeurst, the writer of the book I’m reading, points out that this three-pronged approach is as ancient as the Garden of Eden. When Eve was considering whether or not to succumb to temptation, she  “… saw that the fruit of the tree was (1) good for food and (2) pleasing to the eye, and also (3) desirable for gaining wisdom….” (Genesis 3:6).   (I added in the numbers to correlate with the three tactics of the evil one, listed above, as outlined above and in 1 John 2:15-16.)  

Millenia later, Jesus, who was referred to as ‘the last Adam’ (1 Corinthians 15:45-48), would face the same three-pronged temptation. Would he (1) turn stones into bread (succumb to the lust of the flesh), (2) accept from Satan the kingdoms in all their splendour (succumb to the lust of the eyes), or (3) command angels to save him after throwing himself off the temple (succumb to the pride of life)?  

‘Lust of the flesh,’ the first tactic of the enemy, surely covers a lot more territory than just an unhealthy relationship with food. And yet food is clearly an issue, as exemplified by the temptations of both Eve and Jesus. And, let’s be honest here, craving unhealthy food is my temptation as well, rather than other more exotic forms of ‘lust of the flesh’. 

Clearly, the bottom line is that I need to crave a life-giving relationship with my Lord rather than with anything else … unhealthy food choices, in particular. But that is easier said than done. 

Reasons and excuses

I’m the first to recognise that weight issues can be physical.  For years, I blamed a ‘sluggish thyroid’ for being sleepy, slow and chubby.  (As an aside, my thyroid has picked up the pace now that gluten is out of my diet.) And then there are nutritional deficits that cause us to crave certain foods.  I once heard that chocolate contains magnesium, which is why we sometimes just HAVE to have chocolate. I see nothing wrong with a square of dark chocolate now and then. It’s consuming the whole bar that is the issue. 

Emotional factors are also an obvious culprit for us craving certain foods. I have always equated chocolate with reward, comfort and love. In fact, I was once a little girl who was small enough to climb through a ‘doggy door’ to help an elderly neighbour who had walked out without her keys. (I thought the neighbour was elderly at the time … she was probably not ancient at all, actually.) The kind lady rewarded me with a whole block of chocolate … I felt like a millionaire!

And then there is the frantic pace of life that many of us embrace these days. Who has time to shop and chop and cook and clean? Surely a successful modern woman has better things to do?  Yes, yes, I know … there are plenty of healthy options that are quick and easy, and yes, we don’t have to be quite so busy……

So how do we overcome the ‘lust of the flesh’ when it comes to making good food choices?

Overcoming

Managing our minds is surely a big part of the answer. Scripture is full of instructions and exhortations to meditate on God, his work and his Word. We are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. We are urged to think about what is good and noble and right. We are told to take every thought captive to Christ. So why don’t we just DO it? 

I don’t want to make excuses for my own failure to get in shape, but I honestly don’t think it is all our fault. We are not alone … we live in an age where obesity is more of a problem than ever in some parts of the world, including Australia. Supermarkets are full of artificial foods that have been engineered to last a long time and maximise profits. Our health hasn’t been the highest priority for those who make this stuff. Highly paid professionals design packaging and advertising which hooks us into buying products that we know full well aren’t good for us. Certain foods are said to be somewhat addictive, meaning that we keep buying more. I could go on and on, but I think you get my drift. 

The Evil One is alive and well, and is messing with God’s good creation. He tries to lure us away from God through ‘the ‘lust of the flesh’ (as well as ‘the lust of the eyes’ and ‘the pride of life’ … topics beyond the scope of this post). The temptation of ‘living to eat’ rather than ‘eating to live’ is only one of his tactics, but it is one I know well. 

Lent

I don’t usually do anything special for Lent.  The forty day period preceding Resurrection Sunday in the Christian calendar reminds us of the forty day period of Jesus’ fasting in the wilderness before overcoming Satan. It also harks back to the forty years of the ancient Jews’ wandering in the desert … those same people who had demanded food they craved and so tested the Lord. 

This year, however, I have a resolution. I do not plan to give up chocolate … after all, chocolate contains magnesium. I don’t plan to rule out festive foods either … even though Lent is the season for fasting rather than feasting. But I do plan to be a lot more mindful about what I eat and when. I’m talking about ‘managing my mind’. 

Throughout Lent, with God’s help, whenever I find myself craving an unhealthy food, I plan to consciously stop that train of thought and turn my attention to the one who is the giver of all good things. I want to draw my source of life from the origin of life itself. 

And then, after using the craving as a prompt for worship, I shall make a sensible choice about whether or not to enjoy a treat. 

I would say, ‘Watch this space’ to see whether or not I stick to my good intention, but it would be more apt to say, ‘Watch this waist’. 

Days 1 and 2 of Lent are over as I write these words. There are 38 more days to go. 

I hope that’s long enough to establish a healthy habit for life. 

“Guilty until proven innocent” … that is how we all felt on a short flight I took recently. We were guilty of nothing more than possibly … just maybe … incubating a virus. The likelihood that we were contagious was small given that this was just an ordinary flight from Thailand. We were far from the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak 😷 . As we disembarked in Malaysia, we were met by fear-inspiring figures in white hazmat suits, aiming their ‘guns’ (some sort of thermometer) at each of us in turn before allowing us to proceed. Several middle-aged women sat forlornly in a roped off section nearby. 

Disclaimers

1.  What this blog post is NOT is an update on or explanation of the coronavirus situation. That I can’t do, first because the situation changes every day, and second, I am just an ordinary teacher / translator / writer and not qualified to comment. However, I can recommend a website which I often check these days:  

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

2.  I’m not exactly an impartial writer. Everything I hear about the fear and panic in China at the moment, I filter through the experiences I had in 2003. Back then, I lived in a SARS hotspot and developed a cough and low-grade fever. After ‘doing the right thing’ in terms of instructions given by authorities to the public, I went to be checked. The next thing I knew, I was quarantined in a SARS-dedicated hospital for observation and further investigations. It turned out that I didn’t have SARS, but a different type of atypical pneumonia. I’m very grateful that I never did develop SARS despite my proximity to so many who had it. I was in hospital for five l-o-n-g days.

3.  This time, however, I am writing from the comfort of my home in Melbourne.  I do not write as an ‘insider’ anymore. Last week, I returned home from Asia (NOT China). I confess that I have since taken my temperature on the odd occasion just to be reassured that I’m not harbouring any nasty germs. And I still sanitise my hands before mingling with other people for their sakes JUST in case.

Fear

People were fearful back in the time of SARS. Some said that the atmosphere then was like that of the days of the much earlier Japanese-Chinese war. The atmosphere in China these days sounds similar.

Fear and suspicion abound even down here in Melbourne. It is appropriate that people who have recently returned from China should be quarantined for a period, whatever their nationality, but it is not right that every person of Chinese heritage be treated with suspicion. And yes, that has happened in my neighbourhood. That story is not mine to tell. 

Fear of God, however, is something that Christians should embrace. Having a proper perspective of God during times like this puts scary situations into perspective. That is what gave Christians through the millennia courage to step into the streets at times when most people were fleeing to the countryside in attempts to evade illness.

The early church was known for its loving care of plague victims in the days of the Roman empire. Medieval monks served their communities in such times too. Christians today in Wuhan are showing this same confidence as they face this difficult situation. A pastor in Wuhan writes, “Christians are not only to suffer with the people of this city, but we have a responsibility to pray for those in this city who are fearful, and to bring to them the peace of Christ.*” 

Restrictions 

Christians can face whatever life throws at us with confidence in our identity as part of the eternal bride of Christ. Nothing can keep us from our true identity – not disease, not persecution and certainly not temporary restrictions on our liberties.

As Christians, we submit to authorities over us (Romans 13). China is uniquely placed to buy time for scientists to work out how to manage this virus before it spreads too far. Individual rights are readily relegated to the background when the community is threatened. Imagine trying to effectively impose home quarantine on the residents of Melbourne or Sydney for weeks on end – no sports, no outdoor play, and only one member of each household allowed out every few days to pick up groceries. That is what is happening in many parts of China.

Whether you agree with the restrictions on movement and requirements of masks or not, many cities in China are enforcing them. Individuals who have recently travelled anywhere at all are required to remain isolated from others. Authorities use drones with cameras and loudspeakers to identify and break up mahjong games and people doing morning exercises in groups, as well as to identify and warn people who are outside without masks.

Let me tell you about a few video clips I have seen online. A puzzled older lady looks up at a drone, which is hovering overhead and talking! (There is a ‘real person’ monitoring the cameras and speaking through the drone’s loud speakers from a control centre.) “Yes, Auntie, this is the drone talking to you. Go home now and wash your hands.” An older man, enjoying the sun on his flat roof, leaps to his feet when the drone zooms close and he suddenly hears, “Grandpa, go inside. Yes, you, the old man in pyjamas cracking seeds on the rooftop, go inside. You can crack seeds inside.” A small child is playing in a deserted village lane way. Again, a drone swoops low and announces, “Little friend, this is no time to be playing outside. Go home now. This is important. It is no joke. Run, little friend, run!”

A different attitude

Christians should have different attitudes to this crisis than the average atheist. We should be salt and light in our communities … communities that are often struck by fear. Social media and other forms of communications mean that community is alive and strong despite the lack of face-to-face interaction.

Yet social media can also whip up squalls of fear and panic. One example of this, sadly, was when rumours of the virus being carried by household pets led to the tragic and senseless dispatch of cats and dogs out the windows of tall buildings. I am NOT cutting and pasting footage I have seen online of that……

Churches are not meeting in many places in China these days and numbers are down even amongst members of some Chinese churches in Australia. While I am not criticising the precaution people are taking in not meeting together, I do hope and pray that Christians will support one another in standing firm and without fear during these crazy days. This is one instance when online support networks are especially helpful.

Fear and facts

Fear doesn’t always take notice of facts. Statistics suggest that coronavirus is not as deadly as the media make it out to be. Although a small percentage of sufferers will die from the virus, most will get over it and many only ever have a very mild case of it. There is a lot of uncertainty though because it’s so new still. They’re the facts.

It’s quite another matter, however, to live day in and day out in an atmosphere of fear and suspicion. In this environment, Christians can live fearlessly in (online) communities, confident that there is a God who offers hope for eternity. 

Martyrdom

Dr Li, a 34-year-old ophthalmologist, is being hailed as a martyr for the people. He was the whistleblower of Wuhan who first drew attention to what he initially called another outbreak of SARS. That was back in December. He was reprimanded by authorities for unsettling the public at the time, though of course he has since been proved right. 

Dr Li didn’t have to care for fellow citizens of China who succumbed to this disease. He was an ophthalmologist, one of the safer medical professions, it would seem. He was one of the first to recognise the danger, giving him plenty of time to flee. A strong young man, statistically he should have stood a good chance of surviving even had he developed it. Perhaps he was exposed to a high concentration of the virus? Dr Li passed away from the disease last Friday, leaving a wife and two children, one as yet unborn. 

Was Dr Li a Christian? Some reports suggest that he was, though the popular media hasn’t picked up on that. I very much hope so. Regardless, he exemplified everything that Christians should be in a crisis like this – focused on others and fearless despite understanding the danger of caring for these patients better than most. He worked to bring health and wholeness to a system and community that was sick.

Our response

What is our response to this intense situation? 

First, let us “be transformed by the renewing of our minds” (Romans 12:2). It takes real discipline to manage our minds when everyone around us is panicking. We need one another to stand firm. As in ages past, this attitude is what will set Christians apart.

Second, let us pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ in affected areas. Let’s pray not only for their physical well-being, but also their emotional health during the tense atmosphere in which they live. May they focus on Jesus and be salt and light in their communities. I referred earlier to a letter from a pastor in Wuhan. It is worth a prayerful read. The link is at the end of this blog post.

And finally, let us remind ourselves that our citizenship is not in this world but in God’s heavenly kingdom. As such, let us prayerfully work with him to see his kingdom come, his will done on this afflicted earth during these stressful days even as it is in heaven. 

Just the same, I am SO looking forward to this madness being over, and the sooner the better!

(PS: I am penning these thoughts half a world away from the epicentre of the virus. When difficulties next come my way, please interrupt my grumbling to remind me of these sentiments.)

* The translated letter from the pastor in Wuhan quoted above can be read in full here: https://www.chinasource.org/resource-library/chinese-church-voices/wuhan-pastor-pray-with-us

Before I knew how much I don’t know, I had opinions.

Such opinions led me a while ago to commit to the monthly educational sponsorship of a child in a remote area in the country in which I write this update. She lives at home and goes to school in her home community. Her school fees and a nutritious meal most days are provided through a local organisation with ties to a network I trust. Ask me privately for more details if you’re interested. I haven’t pursued meeting that child or seeing that programme while in her country. She lives in a very remote area and it isn’t practical.

I am pleased that ‘my’ sponsor child gets to stay at home while she gets an education. (Not that she is ‘mine’ in any sense except an organisational one.) Many other children in her position end up moving far from all that is familiar to them and living in a children’s home.

I used to think that removing a child from his or her community was bad – very bad. Now I have an inkling of how ignorant I am. There are many factors to consider. Some families want their children to have opportunities they can’t provide. Others aren’t in a position to care for their children. And yes, perhaps some people have been tricked or manipulated. It’s complex.

I have met a number of adults these past weeks who spent at least part of their childhood in children’s homes or boarding schools far from their families. Some of these homes are run by Buddhists. Some are non-religious. And some are run by Christians.

The country

Scattered around the city in which I write this blog post are lots of children’s homes, as well as boarding schools. A driver I met lives as simply as possible so that his two children can attend a Montessori boarding school. His story is not unique. Not everyone can do that but far-flung families with connections with well-meaning people in major centres sometimes send at least one of their kids to a children’s home.

What is actually best for the child? Is it better to keep a child in his or her community and only give him or her access to a very basic education, if that? Or is it better to remove a child from their community and give him or her a good education? And what should be done when a community can’t provide materially or emotionally for a child?

Before I continue, let me add that this country has done amazingly well in improving the state of education in recent years. (Christians have played a role in that too.) Literacy has shot from 5% in 1952 to 66% in 2015, according to UNESCO (see https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000247317 p15). That’s no small achievement!

Jena’s story

(Jena’s story is a mixture of stories from people I have met or heard about. Her story is not exactly fictional but neither is it biographical.)

“I still remember the night our mother passed away. I was nine years old. My life was turned upside down after that … and it wasn’t just because I was now motherless. 

“’Home’ back then was high up in the mountains. The air was fresh and our food organic. Yet there were were nights our stomachs grumbled with hunger and we shivered with cold. Our parents were tenant farmers who worked on terraced fields. Regardless of whether the crop was good or bad, they had to pay the landlord every year. To make the payments, Dad picked up itinerant labouring work here and there whenever he could.

“When Mother was sick, kind neighbours helped care for us. But no sooner had her fragile frame been cremated on an open fire, as is our custom, my sister and I were put on a bus with a distant relative. Down, down, down the mountains we went, one hairpin bend after another. We spent most of the journey hunched over plastic bags, retching. 

“We were delivered to a children’s home in a noisy colourless city. That was the last we saw of our relative. He had accomplished what was needed. We were just girls, too young to care for ourselves let alone anyone else. Foreign women with white skin and yellow-brown hair ushered us into the home, washed us, clothed us, fed us and put us into clean beds. 

“Days led to months and months led to years. We learned the national language, as well as English. We went to school from Sunday to Friday every week. When we finished high school, we were able to find traineeships which provided room and board. The Christian ladies who ran the home never forced us to deny the religion of our home area but neither did we practise it anymore.  What we did experience was love.

“Years later, when I worked in a Christian hospital, I decided to get baptised. Nobody forced me to do that. It just made sense.”

A trekking guide’s advice

(The following paragraph is accurate – it is not a conglomeration of stories.)

“If you want to give money to a children’s home, come to my village. I won’t pass on the money – you can do that yourselves. I just want low caste kids like I once was to get a good education.”

We were sipping masala tea in a tea house, halfway down a 1000 metre descent, trudging one weary step after another. The tea had a kick to it. It was the spiciest tea that I have ever drunk … not that I have drunk much spicy tea in my time.

Our guide pulled out his book of traveller’s photos and hand written testimonials, a book carefully wrapped in a padded envelope. At my suggestion, because of the storm we walked through, it was now also encased in a ziplock bag. Opening it with pride, he showed us pictures of fresh-faced foreigners with strings of orange marigolds around their necks sitting at a ceremonial table with leaders from the children’s home in his village. 

“Don’t give money to children’s homes unless you know the people concerned,” he cautioned us. “There are greedy, corrupt people out there who will show you pictures that tug at your heart strings, but they’re frauds. Maybe they do have a children’s home. Maybe not. Either way, they live very comfortably themselves by convincing donors to give money,”

“Foreigners sometimes run children’s homes and they usually do a good job. They are less likely to be in it for their own gain,” he added. Was that to make us feel better about being foreign? Was it true? I sure hope it is true of faith-based homes.

“Come to my village,” he urged us again. We did not, but I was more glad than ever that I sponsor that little girl’s education in a mountain school perhaps not dissimilar to the one we had passed on this mountainside just an hour earlier.

Considerations

Dreadful things have happened world over where there are power imbalances. This is particularly rampant in institutionalised care. The media in my home country frequently covers injustices of years past that happened in faith-based institutions. And yet, just because power imbalances can be abused, does that mean that ALL children’s homes are bad? Are there situations in which the benefits outweigh the risks?

Jesus repeatedly taught that powerless children are very important in God’s eyes. But how do we care well for these little ones he values so dearly?

He offers us the wisdom and insights to see through the complexities. We have his indwelling Spirit who gives us wisdom. We have local partners with whom to work. And yet it’s still very complicated.

A conclusion of sorts

I am glad that individuals like Jena are provided for in the name of Jesus. I am delighted to play a small role in enabling one particular child high up in the mountains to receive an education.

Yet I remain concerned as I hear about people who grow up in children’s homes and end up confused and unsure of who they are or what they believe. And of course, stories abound of young people who are unwittingly placed into slavery or positions of abuse or worse, though I have not met anybody during this trip who has suffered like that. 

I have more questions about the ethics of aid and development than ever before as a result of this trip. One thing I have observed, though, is this: When run well, a children’s home can change a child’s life trajectory. When run badly, of course, it can be awful. Checks and balances, accountability and very great wisdom is needed.

As Australian Christians, let’s support people seeking to show Jesus’ love and respect to ‘the least of these’. Let’s continue to provide finances so that those who have wrestled with these questions can get on with the job at hand. And let’s offer prayer for them too. May God give hem wisdom, day by day, and situation by situation. (And may the school girl whose education I support, high up there in the mountains, do well in life.)

Today, I studied two lessons. One involved a Tibetan script that I have seen but not learnt. It is the equivalent of cursive script in English. (I have previously learnt the printed version, the equivalent of ‘Romans New Times’ in Tibetan.) The second lesson was the promise that “… those who fear the LORD lack no good thing” (Psalm 34:9). 

The two lessons are intertwined and involve a brass cat. 

Fear God and God alone

Today I have spent time in Psalm 34. The psalmist writes about the importance of having a holy fear of God and therefore no fear of anything else. Living without fear is possible when we are we centred in God.  I have confessed (again) my fear of not being perfect (and therefore reluctant to get into different projects, including this one). 

I am writing from the amazing land of Nepal. I had hoped to find a Tibetan teacher here who could help me practise what I have learnt in my home country. But where does one start? I went to a Tibetan settlement near where I’m staying. People were friendly. I had read that there would be advertisements for language exchange or lessons … but there weren’t. 

Buff Fried Rice and Knick-Knacks

Lunch was at a lovely little cafe. The staff were friendly and helpful. I thoroughly enjoyed my plate of buff fried rice (with plenty of diced buffalo, hence the ‘buff’) and a lime soda. It might not have been quite locally appropriate but it was pretty close and gluten-free (they kindly avoided sauces for me). Then I meandered my way through the handcraft stalls, each manned by an older woman whose face was full of character and who pitched her wares at tourists like me. 

“Are you Australian? Come in – my things are cheap and cheerful,” called one lady. She later told me that ‘cheap and cheerful’ is a phrase she reserves for Australians. Another dear lady, Aunty Sonam, my mother’s age, has been living here in the mountains of Nepal since 1959. She has a daughter in Melbourne, and grasped my hand in delight upon learning that I live there too. She forced a couple of key rings on me and promised to put her daughter in touch. (We’ll see if anything comes of that – it would be great if it did.) 

A Brass Cat

It was the lady with the brass cat who turned out to be the answer to my prayers. I showed her a picture of the cat who lives with me (and who would be cross that her photo hasn’t made it into this blog post if she realised). I said, in halting Tibetan, ‘This is my cat.’ Half an hour later, her daughter had agreed to teach me. Her daughter, it turned out, runs the cafe in which I had enjoyed buff fried rice. We had already met.

The first lesson was today. I had planned lots of practice using common phrases for daily life but my teacher had other ideas. She is just like my teacher at home, overflowing with of opinions, insisting that I need to learn the script first. Only it is the handwritten cursive script that she wants me to learn and different to what I already know, even though the spoken language is the same. Sigh. She is my teacher, and therefore to be respected even though I hold a master’s degree in education and had a perfectly adequate lesson prepared. Besides, I also want to learn about her culture. And that includes her opinions about how I should learn. So I studied the cursive script. 

Vocabulary 

It was a good lesson, nonetheless, and along the way,  I learnt vocabulary for ‘salt’, ‘sugar’, ‘tea’, ‘buffalo’, ‘fish’, ‘a yak with a white spot on its forehead’ and more. Culture and language are inseparable. As an English teacher, I would have started with phrases like ‘My name is…’, ‘How are you?’ and numbers. At the end of the lesson, we exchanged WhatsApp details and, in the process, she saw the photo of the brass cat that I had sent to a friend through that platform earlier today. 

The brass cat photo led to my final sentence for today’s lesson: “This thing, I bought from your mother’s shop.”  She called her brother in and told him that I had something to say. He listened intently before laughing … laughing in delight at his sister’s prowess as a teacher rather than my language skill, I choose to believe. 

Lessons Learnt

So what did I learn today? First, I learnt … and am still learning … a new-to-me Tibetan script. And second, I learnt afresh that I need not and cannot do God’s work for him … I can just be myself. Being myself means fearing God and living accordingly.  It does not mean being perfect as God is perfect. As I bumble along, enjoying some fabulous experiences, he provides for me and even uses me. Today’s lesson was just the beginning of what I hope will be a lovely relationship, both online and face-to-face 

Although frustrating times may be ahead (and Psalm 34 does not promise a trouble-free life), right now I am enjoying experiencing the promise of Psalm 34:9:  “Fear the Lord, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing.” (Psalm 34:9) 

Such affrontery.

I was leading a devotion on Isaiah 7. I had intended to emphasise the amazing promise of ‘Immanuel, God with us’ (Isaiah 7:14) but what niggled in my own heart that evening was the affrontery of audacious Ahaz. 

In Isaiah 7:10-12, we read, “Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, “Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.” But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.”

Who says, “I will not…” to God Almighty? Even if your words are padded with piety? 

 I finished the evening devotion with the challenge, “Is God offering you an invitation of any sort? What is your response?” 

Was it God? Was it me? Did I sense a divine whisper, “‘Ask me for a sign”? 

A sign of what?

A sign? A sign of what? My situation is quite different to Ahaz’ – he was in dire straits and had the prophet Isaiah standing in front of him. And I’m not about to take God’s words to Ahaz in a particular time and place and apply them willy-nilly to myself. Eisogesis, that is called, and I don’t approve of it.

But do I believe that God can and does communicate with us today? Yes indeed. It’s my interpretation of what is divine and what are just my own ideas that is in question. As a modern Western woman, I tend to see the two as quite distinct. People in some other cultures see the spiritual and the natural as integrated seamlessly. I am, however, a product of my culture.

It couldn’t hurt, could it? In God’s amazing kindness, he has already fulfilled the sign promised so many millennia ago to Ahaz of ‘Immanuel, God with us,” showing that deliverance was at hand. It was at hand for Ahaz (though in the context of judgement) and salvation is at hand for us too. That’s the ‘big’ sign. But perhaps he has a ‘little’ sign for me in this day and age as well?

What could be ‘the sign’?

This past year, ‘flight feathers’ have been a repeated theme, and one which I interpret as a sign from God. I have blogged about that before.

Over the past 4 1/2 years, since returning to Australia and dealing with health crises, shells have been a repeated theme. Yes, there are blog posts on that too.

And since first committing to long-term cross-cultural work as an impressionable young woman 30+ years ago, roses have been a repeated theme. How blessed am I to have God continually remind me of his presence and involvement in my life?! 

And so I asked for a sign. A sign of what, I’m not 100% sure, but it would be lovely to be reminded of God’s hand in and on my life, and he knows that my greatest wish is to be useful in his kingdom work. 

What would be the sign? Roses again? Shells? Flight feathers? Whatever God chooses to give, I would receive gratefully. It was the Monday morning of a two day ladies retreat. I asked, humbly, not in a demanding way … but I did ask for a sign … again.

A rose

Later that same day, I returned to my room for a half hour rest. I lay on the bed, eyes closed, thinking again about the request earlier that day for a sign. Opening my eyes, I looked at the single rose on the desk, silhouetted against the bright light outside. It was pretty. I picked up my iPad and snapped a photo. 

When I looked at the iPad screen, the photo was like none other. The sunlight seemed to have been refracted by the flyscreen on the windows, creating quite an amazing pattern of light around the beautiful bloom.

Was this my ‘sign’? 

A shell

After regrouping with the other ladies, a friend said, “Come and admire some beautiful blossoms on a gum tree outside.”  I picked up my iPad (for the camera) and followed her. The gum blossoms were pretty but what really astonished me in a place far from the ocean was a shell, mostly buried by my feet! 

The shell wasn’t perfect but it was pretty. It was very similar in shape and markings to that which God had first brought to my attention and which had encouraged me a lot 4 1/2 years ago. 

Was this my ‘sign’? 

A feather

On the Tuesday, our last day of retreat, I spotted a beautiful feather. It was another flight feather (obvious by its lopsided-ness). I pocketed it, wondering if this could be my sign.

The following day, back at home, sitting on the back porch pondering these things, a young magpie flew down and started strutting around in front of me.  I tried to shoo it away … I was worried about the cat pouncing on it. Its parents also swooped down and tried to move it along. It would not be dissuaded, however. It continued strutting for a good ten or fifteen minutes, the cat watching on with interest but inaction. 

It occurred to me that the feather in my hand probably came from a bird just like this. 

Was this my ‘sign’?

Flight feathers

Then yesterday, a couple of weeks after the retreat, as I started to draft this post, I spotted another young magpie in a tree practising its warbling. As I lifted my trusty iPad to take a photo, a noisy miner bird flew into the picture, its flight feathers beautifully displayed. Flight feathers again……

Was this my ‘sign’? 

If the prophet Isaiah were to sit on my porch and ‘have a cuppa’ with me, perhaps he could explain matters more succinctly. Nevertheless, I am pretty sure that our Heavenly Father has kindly given me sign upon sign over the past couple of weeks to remind me that he is intimately involved in my life. 

Participating in God’s work

I sense … I hope … that the ‘go slow’ season of the past few years is coming to an end and that I’m ready to fly again. I am a bit of a battered old shell these days. I think back to the idealistic young woman who was preparing to head to Asia 25 years ago (I left Australia indefinitely, so I thought, on April 1^st, 1995) and am grateful as I recognise the hand of God in my life throughout the years. My role in God’s work these days is different to what it was back then … but God still has a role for me to play, nonetheless.

So what is ahead? Only God knows. As I write this blog post, I am preparing for another short trip which I hope will be significant in a variety of ways, including with academic pursuits. I have just been invited to present a paper on a related topic at an academic conference next year – something which I find both surprising and an honour. I suspect that all this may be part of the work that God has in mind for me in this current season of life. Time will tell.

What I do know without a doubt is that God is with us. Yes, in a general sense he is with us always. And in a special sense, God is with those of us who are his through his indwelling Holy Spirit – something that ancient Ahaz could have hardly foreseen. 

But in his kindness, through roses, shells and flight feathers, he has reminded me afresh that he is intimately involved in the details of my life. He still has a role for me to play in his work. 

Immanuel – God with us – hallelujah. 

Sitting in the waiting room at the Monash Cancer Centre this morning, an older lady on my left wrung her hands and tapped her foot repeatedly. On my right sat a lady about my age but with olive skin and an aquiline nose. Her head was covered with a black scarf and she wore a loose black coat and trousers. She curled up in a big chair and closed her eyes, stirring only when her hacking cough kicked in.

I was there for my four-year post-cancer check. Upon being informed that I remain ‘boringly normal’, my heart did a happy dance. As I left, a grin on my face and a spring in my step, I spotted the coughing Muslim lady slouched outside the radiation clinic. My smile faded and my heart sank on her behalf.

Fear……

Shaking hearts

It was in the context of fear that the promise of ‘Immanuel’, which we sing about at Christmas, was first announced. The ancient King Ahaz of Judah (8th century BC) heard that his two biggest enemies had made an alliance. And so “… the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken, as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind” (Isaiah 7:2). 

The LORD told the prophet Isaiah to take his little boy, Shear-Jashub, whose name meant ‘A remnant will return’ (Isaiah 7:3), and pass on a message to the terrified king. (Take note of the name of the child … its significance will become clear later on.) 

“Be careful, keep calm and don’t be afraid,” was the first part of the message (Isaiah 7:4a).

“Do not lose heart because of these two smouldering stubs of firewood….” was the next line of the message (Isaiah 7:4b). From an earthly perspective, the enemy threat was ginormous, like a raging forest fire. But God’s perspective is far beyond ours, and they appeared as nothing but red embers to him.

As a sign that what God had promised would come to pass, King Ahaz was given a special sign, one which we sing about today.  “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel….” (Isaiah 7:14b). 

Immanuel … God with us. It’s a precious promise, and even more so in those times when our hearts shake like the leaves of the trees are shaken by wind. 

Prophecy 

Prophecy is like a mountain range. Just as one mountain comes after another in a mountain range, so there can be layers of fulfilment with prophecy. No doubt in King Ahaz’ day, there was a young woman who gave birth to a child who was named ‘Immanuel’. In the message brought by Isaiah and his son, the terrifying enemy would be obliterated by the time promised child was old enough to distinguish wrong from right. 

But as any biblically literate reader knows, there was another layer of fulfilment to this prophecy. Hundreds of years later, Matthew would write up the story of the miraculous conception of Jesus, adding, “All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” – which means “God with us” ” (Matthew 1:22-23). 

This child, Immanuel, is the one whose birth we celebrate at Christmas. One of my favourite carols, called ’Immanuel,’ by Michael Card (see the footnote for a link to listen online), contains the following lines: 

“Immanuel, our God is with us,
And if God is with us, who can stand against us?
Our God is with us, Immanuel.”

I would like to finish this devotion by pondering the wonderful truth of ‘Immanuel – God with us.’ But if I am to remain true to the text, I cannot. For that wasn’t the end of the story for King Ahaz and his people.

A Warning

“Ask the LORD your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights,” commanded the Lord (Isaiah 7:10). 

“I will not ask; I will not put the LORD to the test,” responded the king (Isaiah 7:12). 

On the surface, it sounded like King Ahaz was being pious. Israel had been in trouble in the past for putting God to the test. (See Exodus 17:1-7.) And yet I would suggest that the king’s piety and refusal to comply with God’s directive thinly disguised a sense of pride.

If only King Ahaz had seen the same vision of our awesome God in his holy temple which Isaiah saw and which is recorded just one chapter earlier in Isaiah 6. Surely he could not then have said, “I will not” to Almighty God. 

Do we ever say, “I will not” to God’s gracious invitation for this or that? 

In response to the refusal of King Ahaz to ask for a sign, God gave the sign of Immanuel. (See Isaiah 7:13-14.) And it wasn’t good news. For before the promised child was old enough to know right from wrong, not only would Judah’s enemies be vanquished, but Judah itself would be devastated by a bigger, stronger threat – Assyria. (See Isaiah 8:1-10.)

But in judgement lay mercy. This was foretold even right then by the name of the child standing by Isaiah. The child was named Shear-Jashub, meaning ‘A remnant will return’. 

From that remnant, hundreds of years later, a virgin would conceive. Her son would be called Immanuel, meaning ‘God with us’. The book of Isaiah is rich in prophecy about this promised one. 

Appropriate Fear

King Ahaz feared his nation’s enemies, and fair enough. The ladies in the cancer clinic today appeared nervous about their physical conditions, and fair enough. I don’t want to belittle their fears.

I do, however, want to turn my thoughts and perhaps yours to the God of Isaiah 6 who is frightening in his holiness. The prophet Isaiah wrote, “The LORD Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread, and he will be a sanctuary….” (Isaiah 8:13-14a).

It’s easy to write these words right now when life is going well for me. Feel free to remind me of this ancient wisdom when life is challenging. I so wish that I could have shared the hope of ‘Immanuel – God with us’ with the ladies sitting either side of me at the clinic this morning and extend God’s gracious invitation to them. 

For now, though, I shall finish with another stanza from that magnificent Christmas carol, Immanuel, written by Michael Card. I hope and pray that the ladies I sat by this morning hear this good news too, perhaps by caring Christians in their communities this Christmas … perhaps by you or by me.

“So what will be Your answer? Will You hear the call?
Of Him who did not spare His son but gave Him for us all.
On earth there is no power, there is no depth or height,
That could ever separate us from the love of God in Christ.
Immanuel, our God is with us,
And if God is with us who could stand against us?
Our God is with us,
Immanuel.” 

You can hear the carol ‘Immanuel’ by Michael Card here: https://www.worshiptogether.com/songs/immanuel-card/

Providence. The word comes from the same root as the verb ’to provide’. According to https://www.etymonline.com/word/providence, the word ‘providence’ is made up of a combination of two Latin words, ‘pro’ and ‘vider’ meaning ‘ahead’ and ‘to see’. 

I have many stories from the past few weeks of being provided for by the all-seeing, all-able, unlimited Divine Being. I would love to share a few with you. But let me also begin and conclude by thinking briefly about ‘providence’ in the Bible. 

‘Providence’ in the Bible

The word ‘providence’ only appears once in English translations of the Bible. It comes in a verse which sounds lovely out-of-context but was actually spoken in great anguish and bitterness. The ancient Job said, “You gave me life and showed me kindness, and in your providence watched over my spirit” (Job 10:12). He then went on to bemoan the fact that he’d ever been born. 

In Hebrew, the word translated ‘providence’ in Job 10:12 has the sense of ‘oversight’. 

And yet, despite the word ‘providence’ hardly being used in the Bible, the concept of providence is ALL through the Bible. Stories such Abraham’s servant finding a wife for the great patriarch Isaac, Joseph’s convoluted life experiences which ensured the survival of his family, Queen Esther’s crucial role in saving Israel and a fisherman catching a fish with a coin in its mouth all point to the overarching perspective and care of a God who sees. 

Story one – Wisdom

In our BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) study a few weeks ago, the question was asked, “What do you need wisdom for right now?” 

My response was this: “I have a crazy few weeks ahead. I don’t know how I’m going to fit everything in.” And there and then, I asked God for wisdom. 

The two big jobs on my desk at the time were (1) a paper for college on the Tibetan diaspora, and (2) a b-i-g translation project. Both were due at about the same time … or so I thought. After prayer, I prioritised the Tibetan diaspora research and writing. I resolved to just do what I could with the translation project but to make it lower priority. 

I learned SO much from the academic project. I was pleased with how it turned out. But I was disappointed to only get about 1/3 of the translation work done. 

“I’m so sorry. I will finish the rest as a volunteer next month.”  I drafted the letter to the college for which I was doing the translation. They had wanted it completed by mid-November, but I can’t burn the candle at both ends anymore. I didn’t send the email immediately because I wanted to look at the last piece I’d done with fresh eyes in the morning before sending it off.

In the meantime, the college contacted me.  The email said, “We are not in a rush for the translation work. We just need an estimated word count by the middle of the month so that we can get funds released for payment.” (The college makes a donation which is credited to my support. It is much appreciated.) 

What?! I was so pleased that I hadn’t cut corners with the study so as to make both deadlines. God sees and he had given wisdom when I’d asked. 

Story two – A Flight Delay

“Halleljuah, hallelujah, hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah!”  I literally sang a well-known segment of the Hallelujah Chorus when my phone beeped at 7am that Friday morning. The message informed me that my evening flight to Sydney that day had been cancelled. 

‘If only I had an extra half day to work on the computer,’ I had said, though, I confess, not prayed. My English language students had their last class that morning and I had yet to write the exam which they would sit the following week. A couple of students needed to sit the test early and so I had hoped to leave their exam paper with the office before heading north. 

And now, I had that extra half day. The airline rescheduled me onto an early morning flight the following day. It didn’t impact my commitments in NSW. I set the exam paper and sent it through to the office before I left. And then enjoyed a most spectacular sunrise over Sydney as I flew in too. Bonus!

Again, the One who sees all provided for me, and I’m grateful. 

Story Three: Children matter

Earlier in the year, I had expected to visit a supporting church. However, other things cropped up. The church asked if I could postpone the visit until November and I was very pleased because it suited me well too.

The rescheduled visit (and a number of other visits which I planned around it) happened two weeks ago. I had only intended to visit the ‘big people’ in the church – that’s what usually happens. However, the trip coincided perfectly with the curriculum that the ‘little people’ in the church were following.

The week before my visit, the children had learnt about Gladys Alyward, one of my personal ‘heroes of the faith’, a lady with family connections to my father and in whose footsteps I have more-or-less followed in Asia. I was asked, “Would I visit the children’s programme and answer a few questions?” Would I ever!

The children’s questions were delightful and creative. Their teacher … a dear man who was MY Sunday school teacher in that same church almost thirty years ago … eventually had to call the session to an end because of time. 

Jesus referred to children as being the most important in the kingdom of God (Matthew 18). When I see how he ordered their programme and mine so that my visit was perfectly timed to enhance their learning, I am not surprised. But I am grateful. I love being useful in kingdom matters. 

Job

Bad things happen to good people. I can’t assume that everything will always work out well for me because I follow God. After all, Jesus promised that ‘In this world you will have trouble.’ 

Centuries before Jesus said that, Job certainly experienced trouble. He complained bitterly … and understandably so. His comment that, “You gave me life and showed me kindness, and in your providence watched over my spirit” (Job 10:12) came in the context of confusion and complaint about what happened later. 

But then God showed up (Job 38-41). 

Job may not have understood why he had suffered so badly but, by the end of the book, he understood that God was much bigger than him. 

Job’s words about God’s providence, though spoken from a limited perspective, are true … God watches over us in kindness. And sometimes, that includes his providence in our lives even when bad things happen to us for reasons we cannot fathom. 

Encouragement

By recording these little stories of God’s kindness to me in the good times, may I be encouraged in the difficult times too.  Perhaps you can take encouragement from this blog post as well.

Our God sees. He is beyond the limitations of time. And so I rest assured, working as hard as I can but not stressing about trying to do the impossible. 

God sees. Hallelujah.