Lovin Summer

To the tune of Grease's "Summer Lovin"

Sunny weather, had me a blast...
Sunny weather, happened so fast...

I went out, just to see
Got a tan, cute as can be

Rainy days driftin' away, to uh-oh those sunny days
Uh Well-a well-a well-a huh

Do you want me to tell you more? The weather here in Brussels has been in the 80s, it has been so great! But since I've gotten used to our overcast rainy days, it feels so much hotter, but regardless, it'll be great summer weather for my parents to see the Belgian sun, since it rarely shows it's head. I am so excited, they come this Saturday at 7:30am, and I have so much in mind to show them! Hopefully the weather will continue to stay sunny.

Quick Update & Prayer Request

Hey y'all, I'd like to ask for you to pray for me. I found out yesterday that my Grandma has died. She has been sick for a long time now, so I am glad that she is no longer suffering, yet that doesn't always mean life is joyful for all she left behind. I am clinging on to God as my refuge right now. One thing I've realized, is that when we seek refuge, that doesn't mean that the storm goes away, it is still there, yet that I have refuge from the storm. Thank you for your prayers (for myself and for my family).

Raising a Society without Jesus

Sometimes I wonder how a so-called catholic nation like Belgium can have a population with virtually no concept of Jesus. But my search stops short when I read my French literature text book in preparation for my exam...

1. "The Bible is a work of men, and not of God. It needs to be regarded as a simple historic document..."
2. "In Genesis we find a compilation of different beliefs that we find in neighboring people and cultures... The Old Testament is a tissue of lies, situations of incest, and immorality..."
3. "The philosopher asks how a loving God could reject an entire part of his creation and reserve his favor for only a part of creations... a chosen people is an exclusive myth used to justify barbarian's."
4. "The church feeds the division of faithful followers, it commits the worst crimes in the name of God..."
5. "[Jesus'] disciples considered him a prophet, only later after he had died. St. Paul, the real founder of Christianity never talked about his divinity."
6. The author Voltaire "doesn't put into question the existence of Jesus Christ but according to [Voltaire], Jesus is not distinguished by any exceptional action." (The fact that they mention that Voltaire doesn't question Jesus' existence means that there are others who do!)
7. "The Christian martyrs were not slaughtered, they were repressed but not persecuted."

Look at that! These are real quotes from my text book. Yes l'Universite Libre de Bruxelles is technically an atheistic campus, but the security guard who ushered me off campus (see "Glory through the Da Vinci Code" for more info) said that it is a neutral campus. Reading between the lines, they are neutral to everything except Jesus. Wow! I was a little hesitant what the test would be like with information like that in the text book, but I think it went well, I'll let y'all know. In the mean time, I am still stunned about the lies that are taught and believed here. And I am excited at how God will break through!

Run the Race

Recently in Brussels, we had a 20K (about 12 miles) run with 25,000 participants. I did not participate, but I know of many who did. As people were running I had one of the best spots--I was situated in the middle of the road that they were running down. I fully got teh taste of teh race. I smelled their sweat, I saw their anguish and exhaustion, someone even decided to dump their bottle of water on me.

One thing that this race reminded me of was the verse in the Bible which states: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." (Hebrews 12: 1-3) The Christian lifestyle is described as a race, it is not a 50 yard dash, nor is it a competition to see who can gain the most favor from the Lord by doing good things, instead it is a life-long marathon. In this marathon, we start off with the favor of the Lord, we never lose it nor gain more because we start off with abundant love. Along the way, Christ strengthens and encourages us, He gives us rest when we need it and endurance to finish the race.

Last night, I tried my hand (my feet?) at running a little around two lakes that are near my house. I did a figure eight around them in a run-walk-jog-walk-rest-run pace. I do not claim to be a runner, I enjoy walking, but I do want to be dependant on God for my strength to finish the life-long marathon well. And so... I am debating about putting those verses into personal application, and next year I might possibly run (walk, jog, and walk some more) the 20K race here in Brussels.