Saturday, January 24, 2009
EXTRA! EXTRA!
Megan...our incredible 15-year-old daughter finished up her participation this evening in MUNterrey 2009--Model United Nations. She represented Saudi Arabia on the Human Rights Committee, and their topic of discussion was the Israeli/Palestinian issue. We are so proud of her participation in this event, with 300+ secondary school student participants from 20+ schools. And, in addition to her joyful participation, she came home with Best Speaker Award and the Gandhi Award!!! JOY!!!!! So, Megan and the rest of us are floating joyfully into Sunday....
Good to be Forty-Three...
Well, no...it's not my birthday, but I have been thinking lately that it is good to be 43-years-old. It seems that a lot of the clutter of my first 40+ years of life is finally falling away, that I am arriving at some clarity that I had not had before. While some of this may be a direct result of life in missions (probably is!), some of this must just be coming-of-age changes. I heard someone claim to quote Churchill once: "He who is not a liberal at 20 has no heart; he who is not a conservative at 40 has no mind." Well, that may reveal more about Churchill than the truth of humankind, but I do think it captures the truth that who we are at 20 and who are at 40 can be very different people.
I think that I am finding now that the 20-year-old Jon is passed away...and a new Jon is emerging. Oh, nothing terribly radical, mind you, but certainly a different way of viewing life. I was SO certain of all I knew back when...so set in my understanding, in my politics, in my theology, in my practice of faith--in HOW I KNEW we should ALL practice and experience the life of faith. Now, I lack certainty in many areas. The worlds of philosophy, theology and politics have become more grey, more shadowed and elusive. This is not a bad thing in my mind...in fact, it has broadened my world to accept that we who are on this pilgrimage of faith may have differing experiences of God, of the risen Jesus--and that's okay! My experience with my neighbor, Jaime, will be different from those who work with him, from his family's, from those in his church--yet, we all know and love the same fellow. I can't expect everyone to have the same experience with Jesus that I have, to talk with Him in the same way, to enjoy His presence in the same way. Yet, we who walk with Jesus are certain that we know Him...and we would not want to live without Him in our lives, indeed, at the center of our lives.
While we change, while our view of the world may change and how we order reality in our minds may change, there is One Who does not change. We give thanks for our God who is the same yesterday, today and forever...a God Whose grace is extended to all in their various places along the path, in their various levels of relationship with Him. God is good.
Simply wanted to write today about changes in my life...in case you, too, wrestle with change and think you are alone. Pray for me...for us...and know that we pray for you as you walk this pilgrimage of life. Dios te bendiga.... Jon
I think that I am finding now that the 20-year-old Jon is passed away...and a new Jon is emerging. Oh, nothing terribly radical, mind you, but certainly a different way of viewing life. I was SO certain of all I knew back when...so set in my understanding, in my politics, in my theology, in my practice of faith--in HOW I KNEW we should ALL practice and experience the life of faith. Now, I lack certainty in many areas. The worlds of philosophy, theology and politics have become more grey, more shadowed and elusive. This is not a bad thing in my mind...in fact, it has broadened my world to accept that we who are on this pilgrimage of faith may have differing experiences of God, of the risen Jesus--and that's okay! My experience with my neighbor, Jaime, will be different from those who work with him, from his family's, from those in his church--yet, we all know and love the same fellow. I can't expect everyone to have the same experience with Jesus that I have, to talk with Him in the same way, to enjoy His presence in the same way. Yet, we who walk with Jesus are certain that we know Him...and we would not want to live without Him in our lives, indeed, at the center of our lives.
While we change, while our view of the world may change and how we order reality in our minds may change, there is One Who does not change. We give thanks for our God who is the same yesterday, today and forever...a God Whose grace is extended to all in their various places along the path, in their various levels of relationship with Him. God is good.
Simply wanted to write today about changes in my life...in case you, too, wrestle with change and think you are alone. Pray for me...for us...and know that we pray for you as you walk this pilgrimage of life. Dios te bendiga.... Jon
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