Journey, an update 7-16-07

“I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2

It is a wonderful thing that we live in a time where we can come to God and receive salvation through Christ. The prophets spoke of the cross looking forward, longing for Messiah, but we look back and see the reality of God’s salvation made known in the person of Christ. What a privilege we have to know and to share about this grace!

Tomorrow I leave for English Camp for 11 days. I will not have internet or e-mail access until after the 28th. This ministry is a time where God does wonderful things but we already have been feeling the attack as we have prepared and I have no doubt that the enemy will be active trying to prevent the message of salvation from really reaching these campers. We covet your prayers!

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The banner pictured above is one I designed and painted for camp. It was a fun project. The quote at the bottom that you can't read from the picture says, "A different language is a different view of life."

New Drug Deletes Bad Memories

I read an article with the above title that can be found at:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20070703/sc_livescience/newdrug
deletesbadmemories by Bill Christensen Mon Jul 2, 11:55 PM ET

"Do you have a really bad memory, or past heartache, that you would prefer to forget?

Researchers at Harvard and McGill University (in Montreal) are working on an amnesia drug that blocks or deletes bad memories. The technique seems to allow psychiatrists to disrupt the biochemical pathways that allow a memory to be recalled."

Now I know that there are horrible things that happen in life and that trauma victims struggle with debilitating memories. But is deleting such memories really the best thing?

2 Corinthians 1: 3-7 says: "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves received from God. For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer."

God brings things into our lives for a reason and beyond what He brings he also allows things to happen that He did not initiate but could have prevented. Why? Paul speaks of growth, the production of endurance in our lives. He also speaks of ministry. "It is for your comfort and salvation." Sometimes the only way we can reach the hurting and dying is because we can speak into their lives because we have been where they are. Our sufferings allow us to grow closer to Christ and relate to others.

Is remembering difficult and destructive things easy? No. But there is a purpose in having that memory if for no other reason than to turn our eyes to Christ who has conquered evil and to cause us to long for the Kingdom where all will be good and just and pure. And maybe it will help someone else find hope.

It is a product of human nature, and I believe a product of the fall, that we as humans so often seek the "easy way." We so often seek our comfort and our pleasure at the expense of becoming better people, growing in relationship with God and others. I know that my greatest struggle in serving overseas is that it isn't comfortable. There are days when I would like to throw in the towel and seek a more comfortable life without these struggles but God's way involves taking up our cross and using the struggles that He brings into our lives to propel us forward to know Him more and serve Him better.

I'm not a medical person so I can't say there is never a use for such a drug and treatment, but it seems to me that the temptation for misuse would be strong and that God can use any past tragedy to bring someone to himself or to help them to represent His hope to the world.

What do you think?

Journey, an update 7-9-07

I’ve been reading in 2 Corinthians 1- 5. There is a great deal about suffering and hardships and persecutions in these verses. But one of the things that stood out to me was Paul’s “therefore” comments.

“Therefore, since we have such a hope we are very bold.” 3:12
“Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart.” 4:1
“Therefore, we do not lose heart.” 4:16
“Therefore, we are always confident.” 5:6

These verses are a positive reminder that though we may be “under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure*” and though we are hard-pressed,** perplexed,** persecuted,** and struck down** and even though we may be “given over to death for Jesus’ sake***” we have reason to be bold, to be confident and to not lose heart.

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 4:18

I am encouraged to remember that God is working out His plan far beyond what I can see and comprehend and that I can trust Him, be confident in faith and not lose heart when things get tough. It is always encouraging to me to be reminded again that there is an eternal perspective beyond what I can see and that all of the things that I encounter on a day to day basis fit into God’s plan.

* 2 Corinthians 1:8
** 2 Corinthians 4:8
*** 2 Corinthians 4:11