Anhui (安徽) again

Anhui again. Air tickets have been booked.

***

I reconnected with Lily Wong (now Lily Ma), a family friend. What a surprise. I still remember taking music theory lessons from her dad with her and my sister. Was I in elementary school then? Even though we're not close, we were roommates briefly while I returned to stay in Hong Kong.

She joined Friends of Anhui last year and will be going this year. She's the one who's assigned to help with my flight booking. That's how she got my number and called me.

I heard last year there were about 50 people in the team split into various cities. It may be about the same size this year. I don't know which city I'll be assigned or most of the people. Reconnecting with Lily made me think "not-knowing" could get really interesting. Nervous ....

***

... maybe I'm nervous not because of the Anhui trip but because of my lecture tomorrow. Someone is going to be there to give me peer evaluation.

Plan and Worry

One needs to plan ahead
  not worry ahead
    or not worry at all.

What season is now?

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:

a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build...

Ecclesiastes 3:1-3 (NIV)

Time to file the tax form:

- chatting with a friend and noted a curious fact. some mutual friends that we both know happen to lack social skills or have low EQ but are making good money and investing it well. Is there a link, like the character played by Dustin Hoffman in the movie Rainman.

Time to begin Week One of the Spring Quarter:

- While trying not to compromise (too badly) the quality of my teaching, I should also allocate time to explore future job prospect.

Time for several outreach and other ministries from now to July:

- Gospel team, outreach bus tour in May, fellowship retreat in June, and Anhui trip in July.
- Need a better balance between life, work, and church.
- Need a better balance between being idealistic and being practical.


 

Gospel in 1, 3, or 10 min.

Foon's summary is so helpful:

In the Sunday sermon, Rev. Chun Chi Paul Ng shared that,

If there's a 1-minute opportunity to share the gospel, read 1 Cor 15:3-4, "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."

If there's a 3-minute opportunity, read the two verses above, and explain the meaning of Jesus's crucifixion and resurrection for our sin.

If there's a 10-minute opportunity, read the two verses, explain the meaning of Jesus's crucifixion and resurrection for our sin, and share our own conversion testimony.

When I was a graduaute student in a dissertation writing class, I was asked to explain my dissertation in 1 minute, 2 minutes, and longer duration. Now as a professor, I would give my students similar drill to explain their term papers in 1 minute as well as in longer duration. It's an exercise to help them focus on the main point and attain a persuasive, well-shaped presentation.

I thought: why not apply it in evangelism? Thanks, Foon, for the summary of Rev. Ng's sermon.

Essay questions

Why did I give essay questions on the exam?

If I gave all multiple choice questions, I wouldn't be having such a hard time reading these illegible handwritings! I ask myself why everytime I correct exam papers ... But how can I not give essay question on a history exam?????

Argh...my eyes....

Winter 08 over

Final exam week: I'm giving the final exam today! The next several days will be grading exams, papers, submitting grades.

Next week: quarter break. Well, break for the students; I'll be preparing for next quarter's course curriculum!

The week after next: Spring quarter 08 begins.

How's your power line connecting?

剛通電話一位朋友的分享, 再加上讀ablogaday的一篇舊post「 兩種祈禱哲學」, 引發了我一些禱告看法:

究竟是「多祈禱，多力量；少祈禱，少力量」, 用不住禱告來打動的我們上帝的決定; 或是根據太6:7-8：「你們祈禱的時候，不可重複無意義的話，像教外人一樣...因為在你們祈求以先，你們的父已經知道你們的需要了。」我們還沒開口前天父已經瞭解我們的需要，所以不用多說呢?

How in detail does one pray? Does the length of prayers matter? How about frequency, duration? 與我通電話的朋友的想法來自本教會牧師的教導, 也接近我個人的學習體驗: 禱告的時間長短,密度, 往往繫於個人信心、接收神回應的敏感度, 交托事情的逼切性. Like conversing with a friend -- it all depends, and there's no formula.*

I'm practising to pray until I feel like I've completely unloaded my burden to God. It doesn't mean that He'll answer exactly the way I ask, but I need to believe that I have entrusted something important to Him, and He's taken it into His hands.

* I see the merit of spiritual discipline and I don't advocate praying and reading God's Word only when one feels like it. But it's important to involve the heart.

Faithfulness in small tasks

"Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness."

Matthew 25:11(NIV)

"And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others."

II Tim 2:2(NIV)

"...Here the word call becomes important. We are not called to save the world, solve all problems, and help all people. But we each have our own unique call, in our families, in our work, in our world. We have to keep asking God to help us see clearly what our call is and to give us the strength to live out that call with trust. Then we will discover that our faithfulness to a small task is the most healing response to the illnesses of our time."

Daily Meditation (Henri Nouwen), March 10, 2008

Being faithful has been ringing in my ears for the past week. What are my small tasks at hand? I know ....

 

豁出罵戰

最近練習被罵 或 被dud不還口, 有時候覺得真的好像可以豁出去, 漸漸覺得即使口舌戰中佔上峰, 亦未必是好事; 反而適當的忍讓、不亂發脾氣才是高招, 是一樁勝利。是年紀大了、看化了、火氣沒了, 還是學懂一點兒修養、溫柔?  

話口未完, 又大聲 jor, 又kum 電話jor.下次再o黎過.

Aurora

http://milton-wan.blogspot.com

"我始終相信, 妳是從上帝派來的天使...現在,妳的任務完成了,就被天父召回天庭.爸爸很幸福,竟然接待了天使!"

~溫偉耀

How could a severely mentally challenged girl have brought such blessed impact to people around her?   Read the comments or go to the memorial blog of 溫偉耀's daughter.