A True Christian

"A true Christian is one who has not only peace of conscience, but war within."

~J.C. Ryle, Holiness

I'm a wee bit frustrated because I was *this* close to being finished with my blog post for Five Things Friday when somehow it all disappeared.  Sigh.  It's after 2am here, so I'm going to call it a night.  I am leaving for your reading pleasure a quote that I read recently and liked.  If you're unclear on what is means, drop me an email and I'll share my take on it.

In the meanwhile, I'm thankful that I have a computer (even if it doesn't always cooperate). I'm thankful for electricity.  I thankful for the can of peanuts by my bed.  I'm thankful for A/C in this hot climate.  I'm thankful for a very good day filled with friends.  I'm thankful for Pastor Dave's teaching on the 46th Psalm.  I'm thankful that my Lord is my refuge and my strength.  I'm thankful for Martin Luther's hymn.  I'm thankful for Carmen's presence in the body of Christ.  I'm thankful for old friends and for new friends.  I'm thankful that you take the time to read my blog.  I'm thankful for all of the amazing thinkers out there whose words have shaped my life thus far.  I am thankful for those who love me in spirit and truth.  I'm thankful for the conviction I feel in my heart.  I'm thankful that I am already forgiven for everything I have done and will do.  I'm thankful that there is nothing I can do that will make God love me more or love me less.  I'm thankful for Jesus Christ who lived the life I should have lived and died the death I should have died so that I might have fellowship with Him.  I am thankful for the Bible-- the most beautiful and spellbinding book I know.

Five Things I'm Thankful For Friday

I am not the man I ought to be, I am not the man I wish to be, and I am not the man I hope to be, but by the grace of God, I am not the man I used to be.

~paraphrase of quote from former slave trader and lyricist of Amazing Grace, John Newton

Here are five things I'm thankful for this week:

1. Sanctification.  Philippians 1:6 says, "I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you wil bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ."  At this very moment, God is at work sanctifying me-- he making me over in His image, transforming me from the inside out.  It's often a painful process as I come face to face with my sin and how it manifests itself in my life, but I'm encouraged too, because God promises that He will change me, and that the end result will be so much better than anything I could possibly imagine.  I can trust that He will do as He's promised, which gives me the strength to persevere.

2. God's Providence.  Theologian and professor D.A. Carson writes, "I do think, though, that it is one of the common features of those who become intimate with Jesus that they think of themselves not as those who love him particularly well those who are particularly well loved by him.  Thus, John, the writer of this Gospel, refers to himself as 'the disciple whom Jesus loved.'"  I wouldn't say that I'm near as confident as John was when he called himself that, but I do feel loved by Jesus.  Ultimately, his love for me is demonstrated by his dying to save me, but I also feel loved by the food he places in my hands, the clothes he places on my back, the shelter he builds over my head, and the friends he blesses me with.  Specifically, I'm thankful that I'm working and making money; I'm thankful to live with the Parks family; I'm thankful for my friends at United Christian Church of Dubai and Redeemer Church of Dubai.  I'm thankful to be sandwiched between two households of people who love God and strive to honor him.  I'm thankful that God has me here at this moment in time for his purposes.

3. People who Speak Truth into my Life.  I'm thankful for the friends I have who love me enough to call me on my sin when they see it.  They see my pride and my unrepentant heart and they lovingly confront me about it.  They also correct the lies that I preach to myself by injecting the truth into my life.  When I am tempted to despair, they remind me of God's faithfulness.  This week, those people were Brinton, Mack and Leeann, Romana, and Krishan.  I'm thankful that they challenge me and help me along the path of sanctification (see #1).

4. The Service of Men in the Church.  Today at church we took communion (which I'm also thankful for-- what a blessing it is to receive that sacrament).  The elders and deacons of the church (all men) gathered at the front of the church to collect the bread and grape juice so that they could distribute it to our sizable congregation.  It just so worked out that on the aisle where I was sitting that the trays were passed by Brian Parks and Mack Stiles.  I've had the honor of staying with both the Parks and Stiles families during my times in Dubai, and I've been blessed beyond measure by these Godly men.  They've housed me, fed me, discipled me, and loved me.  I've seen them love their wives and their children and it has been a powerful experience.  Watching them serve the church by distributing the elements that represent Jesus's body and blood brought tears to my eyes.  Brian and Mack represent many godly men both at this church and at other churches worldwide-- men who strive to follow Paul's injunction, "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself of for her."  Their example, as well as the other godly men that God has placed in my life, is an inspiration.  I thank God for them and pray that He continues to bless and sustain them.

5. Nature.  Again this week I was blown away by the rugged beauty of this region.  On Monday, I flew to Amman, Jordan for a shoot, and on Tuesday, I did another dhow cruise in Musandam, Oman.  I saw mountains and goats and blue skies and fish and various gulfs and rolling fields.  It is a delight unto my eyes and I am thankful for my creator God who delights in such beauty. 

Five Things I'm Thankful For Friday

"I pray because I can't help myself.  I pray because I'm helpless.  I pray because the need flows out of me all the time-- waking and sleeping.  It doesn't change God... it changes me."

~C.S. Lewis

This week I'm thankful for:

1. Reminders of What's Important.  A friend from back home chided me about my own inward-focused self, or less flatteringly, my selfishness.  At a class in church this morning, we discussed a book called When People are Big and God is Small which focuses on this very thing.  Specifically, we talked about how we can grow to "Need other people less and love other people more.  Out of obedience to Christ, and as a response to his love toward you, pursue others in love."  Sometimes I think I'm the most selfish person I know.  I'm thankful that there are people in my life who love me enough to tell me the truth about myself, and I'm thankful that I have God who is ceaselessly refining me in order to make me more like Himself.  I'm also thankful that he continues to open my eyes to my sin so that I can confess it and repent.

2. Prayer.  Of late, God has increasingly been showing me the power of prayer in changing my own heart and attitudes.  I am often malcontent and my heart is envious and angry and lustful.  I struggle with all these sins.  And yet, I am learning that when I go before God with my hard heart and confess to Him, he changes me.  I can't explain the transformation, but a gentleness and softness appears in that place where its very opposite stood before.  I'm thankful for the power of prayer to change the attitudes of my heart.

3. My Brothers in Christ.  Tonight I got to spend the evening in the company of three fellows who all love God.  We had a picnic by the sea as the sun set, and our conversation was entirely edifying.  I'm thankful for the example they set in their servitude to the Lord and their desire to honor Him.  I'm thankful for their love towards others and their humility.  I pray that He will sustain them, go before them, and lead them in the paths of righteousness.

4. Birds.  I don't why but I've been noticing the birds lately-- they keep crossing my path.  This afternoon I noticed beautiful green tropical-looking birds adorning my neighbor's home and then tonight at the beach I watched a trio scamper across the wet sand.  All week long they've popped up in my field of view as little gifts of nature.

5. God's Provision in My Life. I sometimes sight of this fact, but at this very moment, God has me exactly where He wants me.  I am blessed beyond measure to have a roof over my head, food in my belly, the promise of future paychecks, a church that preaches the Gospel, a Christian family to live with who model the Gospel, and people who love me and pray for me.  Selfish sinner that I am, I often lose sight of these facts, but God continues to lead home on the path the leads to Him; he clothes me and feeds me.  I am blessed beyond measure. 

Five Things I'm Thankful For Friday

This week I'm thankful for the simple things:

1. I'm thankful that my parents thought learning to swim was an important skill.  I say this because 1. Swimming is one of the chief joys of my life and 2. I think the ability to swim is something that most people who can do it take for granted.  True story: There are lots of nationalities that don't place much importance on learning to swim.  One Indian friend went to the US and ended up at a summer camp where kids were confidently jumping off a pier and swimming in the mountain lake.  Said friend, seeing how easy swimming appeared to be, dived into the frigid waters, and immediately plunged like a rock to the bottom.  Luckily, a lifeguard was on duty to drag him to safety.  Swimming is not something one just knows how to do.  Thank you M & D for taking me to weekly lessons at the YWCA.  I never made it above guppy level, but that's good enough for me.

2.  I'm thankful for my sense of smell.  Dubai is a panoply of smells.  Some are not so pleasant (the dumpsters that seemingly grace every street) while others are quite heavenly (the occasional scent of jasmine that wafts through the air.). Life is meant to be smelled (and touched and seen and tasted).

3.  I'm thankful for being busy.  Work has really been good lately which is great because I generally really enjoy working, presumably it means I'm making money (can't say for sure until I actually get paid), and because it keeps me occupied so that I stay in the moment and don't dwell on things that make me sad (as I am wont to do).

4.  I'm thankful for technology.  My iPad is just about my favorite-ist thing ever.  I use it to message people back home, navigate my way around Dubai, read my Bible, listen to NPR, learn German, memorize poetry... the list goes on and on.  I also love watching movies on my laptop, and using gmail chat to talk to loved ones back home.  I'm thankful for my camera which helps me capture my memories... I'm thankful for it all.  It's made traveling (and keeping in touch) much easier since the days when I first set off by myself for foreign climes in 2003.

5.  I'm thankful for my parents and their commitment to another.  This week my parents celebrated 42 years of marriage together!  I'm proud of them and thankful to have been able to grow up in a stable home with parents who stuck it out for the long haul.  Happy Anniversary, M & D!  Here's to many more!

Now and Then: My Parents

5 Things I'm Thankful For Friday

This week I'm thankful for:

1. Easter Sunday service on the week. I'm far from home, but still got to spend Easter with family (my Church family). We gathered at sunrise, sang worship songs, and listened to a sermon about Jesus's resurrection. We also heard a couple of people give their testimony, and afterwards they were baptized in the Arabian Gulf. It was pretty powerful. After the service, we broke bread together and had a picnic on the beach.

2. Generous friends. I am always humbled by the generosity of others, and this week I've been on the receiving end of several acts of generosity. Multiple friends have treated me to meals, I've been given rides, people have texted me to check in on me... It's been great and I hope that someday soon I'm in the position to repay such generosity.

3. Work. I managed to snag a couple of jobs this week- one I posted pictures from- and the other was for a website. I am firmly convinced that God brought me here for other purposes than work, but, I do still need to make a living.

4. Lingering and languorous Fridays. Friday might just be my favorite day of the week here. Weekends in the Middle East are Fridays and Saturdays and Fridays are the holy days so we have church on Friday mornings. It's a great way to kick off the weekend. After church (and 'Friday' school where I'm learning about church history), a group of us go out for lunch, which gives way to late afternoons in coffee shops. It's not uncommon for me to get home from 'church' after midnight on Friday, having spent the whole day in fellowship with my Christian friends. I truly treasure these days.

5. The right to gather as Christians and have services and Bible studies. I don't take it for granted that here in the Middle East I'm allowed to own a Bible, pray in public, and attend religious services. It's a privilege that is not afforded to all Christians throughout he world, and many continue to meet even when it's not safe to do so. I'm thankful that it's not a daily reality here, although that might change one day.

Five Things I'm Thankful For Friday

Yea, once Immanuel’s orphaned cry His universe hath shaken--
It went up single, echoless: ‘My God, I am forsaken!’ 

It went up from the Holy’s lips, amid His lost creation,
That of the lost, no son should use those words of desolation!”

~ excerpt, Elizabeth Barret Browning, Cowper's Grave

This week I'm thankful for:

1. Jesus dying on the cross.  Today Christians around the world are celebrating Good Friday.  We call it Good Friday because it is the day we celebrate Jesus dying on the cross.  Ironic isn't it?  That we celebrate the dying of a man we call our Savior and we call it good.  "Why is it good?" you ask.  It's because on the first Good Friday the holy God died to rescue people whose hearts were and are wicked.  Without his atoning death, I could not be reconciled to a holy God, whose very holiness demands justice.  "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

2. Two worship services this week.  In the Middle East, Friday is the holy day, and so church meets on Friday rather Sunday (which is the first day of the work week).  (P.S. It's really hard for me not to call Friday School Sunday School.)  So, we had our usual Friday gathering today- yay! and on Sunday morning at 5:30am (before the work day starts) we will gather on the beach for an Easter sunrise service.  This week I seem to be doubly blessed.

3. Christian community.  After church today, about 20 of us went out to lunch after church, and some of us lingered until 9pm.  After leaving that group, I joined other Christian friends.  And encouragingly, our conversation was peppered with what the Lord has done in our lives and how good He is.  I find it ironic that I come from a so-called Christian nation, and I have to travel to the Middle East to find the most vibrant Christian community I have ever known.  I love them, and I feel loved by them.

4. The conviction that God has plans for me.  Being in Dubai has been a bit of struggle financially because I'm finding that the work environment has changed a lot since last I was here.  So far, this venture in my coming here has lost me money.  And yet, I do not despair, because I am convinced that He has me here for other purposes than my job.  God has brought me here to bring me back to Him and to bring me into Christian fellowship.  (This makes sense, as well, when I think how my prayers over the last months have always been, "Lord, draw me closer to You.")  For this, I thank Him.

5. The two families I am surrounded by.  I said this last week, but it bears repeating.  I.Am.So.Thankful that in God's infinite mercy he has placed me exactly where I am.  Years ago, when I was alone in Dubai, an American man said to me, "We are your family in the Middle East.  Rely on us shamelessly."  Surprisingly, because I come from a world where people don't mean what they say and don't say what they mean, he meant it.  I can't for the life of me understand why complete strangers love me, but I am deeply touched and moved beyond words.  It is this love that points to a God that I also can't understand why He loves me, but I humbled and am thankful.  "The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples.  But it was because the Lord loved you."   Deuteronomy 7:7-8

Do you know what He has done for you?  Do you know how much God loves you and desires for you to be close to Him?  I pray that you would turn away from the things which take you away from Him, and turn to the living God.  He is so beautiful, and He desires for you to know Him.  Turn away from your sin and be reconciled to God.  He is incredible, full of majesty and beauty.

Soli Deo Gloria

Clemson versus Carolina-- Birthday Wishes

It has been a wonderful couple of days-- my aunt and two cousins from Charleston drove up to Delaware on Wednesday; international friends An'aam, Ahmed, and Mengdi joined us for Thanksgiving; my niece, aunt, and cousin and I woke up at 3:30am to go shopping on Black Friday; and today is my dad's birthday.

It is my dad's particular birthday wish that Clemson University beat University of South Carolina in the football game tonight.  For those of you not from South Carolina, there is a HUGE rivalry between the Clemson Tigers and the Carolina Gamecocks.  Families tend to be for one side or the other; my family falls squarely on the Clemson side.  (Dad graduated from Clemson in 1972.  We grew up with tiger-themed decor, and as a child, I even painted my dollhouse orange with purple shutters).

My mom decided to throw a Football-Birthday party.  She decorated in orange, and made a bunch of food.  We've been sitting around the television set since 7pm, and since I'm not the biggest football fan, I decided to document everything via the blog.  It's always fun to look back and see what you were doing on a particular day-- don't ya think?

The cousins: me, Cody, my brother Ryan, and Alex

I would like to say that Dad is going to get his birthday wish.  Alas, things are not going too swell :( We've got one quarter left, and Clemson is far, far behind.  Still, it's a memorable day, and my mom's party was a great idea.

Happy Birthday, Dad!!! We love you!

Happy Thanksgiving and Who Was Squanto?

John and Priscilla Alden

I think as a child I learned of the Native American, Squanto, who helped rescue the settlers in Massachusetts, which is why we celebrate Thanksgiving today.  It's the amazing story of how a single Native American happened to walk into a settlement and was able to communicate in perfect English.  How did this come to be?


The back story is an interesting one, and it tells of God's provision for the colonists in Plymouth. Below, watch the incredible story of Squanto on CNN.

I love that Americans have this holiday-- it is such a wonderful day of family, and a time to remember what we are thankful for.  My aunt and two cousins are in town from Charleston, South Carolina and we've invited three international students to share this day with us.  They are a brother and sister from Saudi Arabia and a Chinese girl; I am thankful to be surrounded by family and friends on this special day!

Happy Thanksgiving to you, dear reader!

Happy Thanksgiving

Photo via Mens Rag

Text via {Bits of Beauty}

You say grace before meals.  All right.

But I say grace before the concert

and the opera,

and grace before the play

and pantomime,

and grace before I open a book,

and grace before sketching,

painting,

swimming,

fencing,

boxing,

walking,

playing,

dancing,

and grace before I dip the pen in the ink.

~ G.K. Chesterton

Let us say grace!  Happy Thanksgiving to you all and may God bless you!

XOXO,

Happy Father's Day

Today is Father's Day. The first Father's Day was celebrated on July 5, 1908, and was created as a complement to Mother's Day.

Today I am thankful to have a father who loves me (and my siblings) very much. He worked for many years as the sole income earner so that my mom could stay at home and raise us kids. He has endeavored to teach his children right from wrong as well as God's truth. He is a faithful husband, a father who wants the best for his children, an upstanding member of the community, and a devoted and diligent member of his church. He loves the Lord, and loves his family. He continues to work hard, and to support me even now as I enter into my thirtieth year.

Thank you, Father, for all that you have done and everything you have sacrificed for your family. I am so thankful to have you.

XOXO,

Happy Thanksgiving

Please enjoy these vintage postcards that I found and have a safe and lovely Thanksgiving Day. May your heart be blessed on this day that we pause and take time to remember.

Baz Luhrmann's Australia

I'm obsessed with epic costume dramas which is why I know what I'll be doing this Thanksgiving-- why, going to see the new Baz Luhrmann film, Australia, of course. Here is the trailer for the movie, set in the 1930s.



Here are some movie stills courtesy of AceShowBiz





This is the spread that appeared in the July 2008 issue of American Vogue. I love these costumes!