The issue of ancestor worship is complex. It would be impossible to express exactly what it is and what it means to the Taiwanese. Each year I’m here I understand a little more. And, now that I’ve married into a Taiwanese family–as a daughter-in-law to the first born son–I understand even more.
And, still words fail to truly express all that is embodied in ancestor worship. It is more than simply worship.
Worship of the ancestors and showing filial piety is of utmost importance to the Taiwanese.
The worship of ancestors is probably the most difficult aspect of conversion to Christianity for new Taiwanese Christ-followers. Giving up idol worship and temple worship is much easier than giving up ancestor worship.
Why?
Here are my thoughts on the matter:
(1) When a young believer (18-35 yrs old) tells his parents he is Christian, his parents hear “I don’t love you, and I am ungrateful for the fact that you have given me life and provided for me all these years. I don’t care what happens to you after you die–rot in hell for all I care!”
(2) Ancestor worship is corporate worship. It is almost never done alone. The family gathers, two or three pass out incense and the worship commences. If you refuse to participate, it appears that you are ungrateful, disrespectful and have no manners. It’s almost as if you are spitting in the face of those who gave you life. So, the pressure–not peer, but rather familial–is STRONG, VERY STRONG.
(3) The social function of ancestor worship is more than just “worship.” The coming together to clean a family tomb and pay respects is a form of family reunion. To be expelled from participating in qing ming jie is perhaps the most severe punishment that could be given in traditional society–it means that you are no longer seen as part of this family.
Dr. George MacKay, the first presbyratian missionary to Taiwan, had this to say:
This venerable cultus, the worship of ancestors, in indeed the most stubborn obstacle Christianity has to face. It is so ingrained in the nature, and appeals touchingly to the heart, that it requires the strongest conviction and the finest moral courage to beak its thralldom and brave the scorn of friends and relatives, to whom neglect of one’s ancestors in the spirit world is the most inhuman and cruelest of crimes. (Far from Formosa, emphasis mine)
In 1925, the author of an article entitled “Chinese Ancestor Worship: A Study of Its Meaning and Its Relations with Christianity” concluded that “the problem [of ancestor worship] will ultimately be solved by the Chinese themselves. Only those who have grown up within a system in which ancestor worship is central can wisely make provision for its future evolution and sublimation. Ancestor worship still awaits treatment at the hands of those who are both truly Chinese and truly Christian. In their hands we may safely leave its destiny.”
One Christian family I know, uses a scroll to maintain the family tree instead of using ancestral tablets. The names are still kept, family history still proudly displayed and the deceased still remembered. We know lineage and family history is important to God–why else would there be so many lists of who begot who in Scripture if it were not?
Another family held a graveside worship service the year after their mother/grandmother had passed away on qing ming jie. They read Scripture, prayed to the Most High God, sang praises to him, and told stories of remembrance.
I think these are great alternatives . . . the advantage these two families have is that they are not alone. They are families of believers. The first one was a first generation believer, but he is the oldest son and now the head of the household, and his wife and children are also believers. The second one is a several generation Christian family (what a blessing!).
So, for those that are first generation believers, the only one in their family, the challenge to show respect to those who have gone before them and yet also want to make a stand for their faith is huge. One alternative for first generation believers who are also the first believers in their families is to attend the ceremonies, but not participate.
This is what Lawrance and I did. We did not hold incense, we didn’t join the group in their prayers and bows, and we burned no paper money. After they had finished their corporate worship and had gone to line up to place incense before the gods who protected the tombs, Lawrance placed flowers inside the structure at the tomb area.
Lawrance has been a believer for 11 years now, so his parents have had time to grieve and accept the fact that he will not worship them after they’ve passed on. Even so, Lawrance still has to stand up to the pressure from aunts and uncles to join in the worship.
My point in this very long winded post is actually quite simple. Your Taiwanese brothers and sisters in Christ need your prayers. Would you please intercede on their behalf? Would you pray for them to have “the strongest conviction and the finest moral courage to beak its thralldom and brave the scorn of friends and relatives”? Ask the Most High God to give them wisdom and courage to say and do the things that are pleasing to Him.
My eyes are dry
My faith is old
My heart is hard
My prayers are cold
And I know how I ought to be
Alive to You and dead to me
But what can be done
For an old heart like mine
Soften it up
With oil and wine
The oil is You, Your Spirit of love
Please wash me anew
With the wine of Your Blood
"Great is the Lord, He is holy and just, by His power we trust in His love. Great is the Lord, He is faithful and true, by His mercy He proves He is love."
"For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; he is to be feared above all gods" (Psalm 96:4).
"Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable" (Psalm 145:3).
"But may all who seek yourejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation say continually, Great is the Lord! (Psalm 40:16).
We typically sent in the front, so when we sat in the back (yes, there are only five pews and three rows) I noticed something unusual for Taiwan–lots of men. More men than women in fact on this particular Sunday.
Lord, bring more Taiwanese MEN unto Yourself!!! Raise them up as leaders of their families and of this nation. Lord, please let what was true for the jailer Acts 16:33-34 be true for men throughout Taiwan "he was baptized at once, he and all his family. . . . And he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God."
That's
interesting. Who ends up eating the food? In Peru we have something
very similar. They put tons of food on top of the graves of their
family members and leave it for several hours. But when midnight comes,
the family eats the food! I wonder about the logic… what is it like
there??
Something similar happens here. The food and drink offerings are made first before the paper money is burned. In order to offer the ghosts (at ghost month), ancestors (during ancestor worship), and idols (at temples and Chinese New Year), incense sticks are stuck into the foods or food packaging.
After a set amount of time–it varies from family to family and holiday to holiday and probably other factors too–the offering table is taken down and the food brought inside.
The family will then eat the food. Many college students have told me waiting for the tables to come down at Chinese New Year (after midnight) so that could eat the goodies was one of their favorite parts of the yearly holiday.
I have been told that the "spirit of the food" is eaten, they are after all feeding spirits. Some have told me that because the spirit of the food has been eaten the food tastes bland and stale. Others have told me that because the spirit of the food has been eaten the food tastes better, as if it has been blessed. And, then others admit to the food not being that much different at all.
The offering tables are set up differently from area to area and family to family, just like every American family decorates their Christmas tree differently. But there are also differences in setting up an offering table to idols, ancestors, or ghosts.
At Ghost Month, often a basin of water and a hand towel can be found on or near the offering table so that their "honorable guests" can wash their hands before partaking of the meal being given to them. These two flickr photos (here and here) show ghost month tables with the typical basins with hand towel out front.
Not to be confusing, but I don't have any Ghost Month photos easily accessible. What I do have is photos I took last November outside of my school. I noticed everyone was setting up tables with drinks as the main offering. (I have no idea who or what was being worshiped.) And, at many tables instead of the traditional little red wine cups, there were bottles of coke and tea boxes.
Many (if not most) Taiwanese believe that it is best to die at home. If someone does not die at home it is believed that their souls may roam the earth restlessly, haunting people.
It is also believed that each person has three spirits and seven souls. Every seven days a soul leaves. Thus, traditionally the mourning period used to be 49 days. This gives each soul a chance to escape from the earthly body. At the burial, when the body is cremated, loved ones will cry and scream and plead for the spirits and souls to please, please leave the body before it is burned.
Spirit money and clothing will be burned as a gift for the
deceased and food given as an offering so that the loved one will not starve or go without in the
after life.
But, if there is no body and/or the body is not at home, when the souls leave the body the souls will wander, becoming ghosts.
This weekend was the "first 7th day" since the big typhoon washed away homes and lives. Therefour, it is believed that souls are beginning to roam, and people who've lost loved ones are pleading with them to go home.
Here is a CNN video that explains:
This is only more troublesome because Ghost Month is upon us. Ghost month is the seventh lunar calender month when it is believed that the gates of hell open and all the lost souls have one month to roam the earth and be fed (since they did not die at home and were not able to be given a proper burial, there is no one to worship them, so it is believed that they go hungry in the afterlife).
All I can say is please pray.
Pray for the Lord's mercy on the Taiwanese. Oh, how they need to be set free by Truth Himself. Pray that as believers we never forget the reality of lostness and never lose a sense of urgency to proclaim truth every chance we have. Oh, Father, let us not become lazy and complacent.
If time allows me, I plan to discuss further Taiwanese funeral traditions and Ghost Month in the coming week or two. Anything specific you want to know?
PS: I feel for the child in the video who is being lied to by the others about the whereabouts of his parents. I know they believe they are doing what is best for him, but in my mind it can only be making matters worse for him.
Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus. (ESV)
When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. (NIV)
Acts 4:13 is one of my all time favorite versus of scripture. Over and over again throughout scripture, God calls the uneducated, the common, and the ordinary; in fact, many times he calls the small and the weak–using them to do great things.
One of my favorite OT stories is the story of Gideon. Once again God chose to use the least of family from the weakest tribe. Later, God reduced the number of men who were going to fight with Gideon, making the odds impossible for a victory. He wanted there to be no way for Israel to boast. He wanted there to be no doubt as to what he had done.
For Peter and John . . . these unschooled men with no formal training . . . These ordinary, blue collar workers with thick, tanned skin from the their hard work in the hot sun . . . what gave them the boldness they had, the authority with which they spoke? Why were they able to have so much courage?
Ah, yes, they had spent time with Jesus. They had been with Him.
Our wedding was at 6:30 pm in another town about 45 minutes away from my parents' home.
Since we didn't have a rehearsal the night before, we did a walk though around noon with the family members in the wedding and then met for a lite lunch. Then the girls left to go get hair and make up done.
But . . . before I get ahead of myself . . .let's talk about the morning of.
Lawrance decided to include a tradition from Taiwanese weddings into our wedding day in America. In Taiwan the bride and groom give a gift of appreciation to their parents. Since we were not going to do this at the wedding, he decided to invite my parents over to our neighbors' home (where he was staying; they are more than neighbors since we've worshiped together for over ten years).
Lawrance desired not only to thank my parents for how they raised me and for allowing him to become a part of the family, but he also desired to start off the day focused and centered on Christ. He wanted to calm his own nerves by worshiping the Lord, reading Scripture, and spending time in prayer. He wanted to remember the whole purpose of this day was to glorify God.
We met at the neighbors' home at about 9:30 for a great southern breakfast and then a time of worship and prayer. During this time, Lawrance presented my parents with a gift of appreciation. And, I also presented the neighbor couple a gift of appreciation.
Lawrance led this very special time . . . which left all the girls in tears. :)
It was a WONDERFUL way to start off one the most special days in our lives!
It is good for our days to remind us that we are a small dot on the
landscape of time, and that eternity holds the sweeping brush strokes
of a masterwork of which we, at present, are only catching glimpses.
. . . God is real and wondrous, the Spirit instructs us in all knowledge and
wisdom, and Christ is both present and coming, calling us further up
and farther in to his kingdom. The thoughts of God are well beyond our
own. All of creation declares the glory and power of its creator. And
we are at present only sampling infinity.
Yesterday morning I had to fight for joy. I had to seek to continually remind myself that it's not about me.
When the CD player didn't work for my listening class . . . when the room was sticky hot with humidity and an AC that didn't work . . . when a student accidently stepped on my foot bending the nail on my big toe backwards spilling blood everywhere . . . when I left my whimpering dog alone at home . . . when my office was in an upheaval of rearranging all the funiture while I needed to prepare for class . . . when I thought of home . . . when I wanted to have a pity party. Oh, how I wanted to feel sorry for myself!
But . . . reality is: it is not about me. I am but a "small dot on the landscape of time." All day long I was faced with the same choice over and over again . . . to wallow in self-pity or choose joy.
It is so easy to become envious of others . . . it is so easy to see
what I think I lack . . . it is so easy to be selfish . . . it is so
easy to sin. Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.
Praise God that he is merciful and gracious! Unlike my 16th birthday where I did choose to wallow in self-pity throwing an emotional hissy-fit when I thought that the world should be revolving around me and it wasn't . . . yesterday I fought to choose joy. I still look at the pictures of that 16 year old with her purple braces and purple silk shirt similng at the camera holding up her purple birthday gifts and all I remember from that day is my own depravity and self-centeredness. Oh, how selfcentered and selfish I was on my 16th birthday!
The morning of my 30th birthday wasn't easy. Tears were spilled . . . more than once. I had to heavily rely upon the grace and goodness of our Lord to empower me to be able to keep a positive attitude. I depended greatly on the Spirit bringing to mind scripture in order to keep my heart pure. Cuz, oh, it sure didn't want to be on it's own.
Praise God for His unfailing love and tender mercies!! He is so kind.
Things got a little better in the afternoon and ended on a very sweet note . . . more about that later. :)
Although, in recent days, I've felt old for the first time in my life (is that because my students are no longer in the same generation as me??), I am thankful for the reminder yesterday that I am but only "sampling infinity."
In the summer of 1999, I moved to Taiwan to be an exchange student for a year. It was a very difficult summer. I recently came across my journal from that year as an exchange student. Reading the pages brings tears to my eyes–what a life changing experience.
Tucked inside the front cover was this:
This summer I struggled with the conflict between the God I know and the situations I found myself in. It was this last month in my time alone with Him that God both convicted me and comforted me with "I am your Father, what child would I forsake? When you are in my will, all is well."
Our feelings and experiences provide inaccurate pictures of God. Accuracy should be left to history and Scripture. God showed me that I need to remember that revelation has priority over experience!
When we base our decisions and faith solely on experiences and emotions, we might miss Truth. What an important, but difficult, lesson to learn.
Reading through the biblical account of the Creation and the Fall get me excited. They are my second favorite part of the Bible "to story" to people who have never heard it before. There is some really great stuff in there that as people who’ve grown up with the story just totally miss. (Note to self: this is a post topic for another day.)
But, the other day, in the midst of being excited about reading the opening chapters of Genesis, I saw something I’d never noticed before: it was during Seth’s lifetime that men began to worship (call upon the name of the Lord or be called by the name of the Lord).
I read my Bible with colored pencils near by so I can mark themes (kinda my own version of Kay Arthur’s inductive study). One of the things I love marking is worship. So, perhaps that is why this time I actually saw this verse. This verse left me pondering much and asking lots of questions. I did look it up in a commentary, so I could get some of my questions answered.
All this thinking about worship reminded me of a post I wrote last January . . . I share it with you again:
Do you wanna know what verse my kid-brother (13 yo) counts as his favorite verse in the Bible?
Sam’s favorite Bible verse (if memory serves me right) is Job 1:21: "And he said, ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.’"
(And this is coming from a kid who had all of his birthday presents and
all of his Christmas presents from 2005 stolen during multiple break-ins in the
course of just a few months.)
I, however, tend to favor the verse right before Sam’s favorite:
"Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the
ground and worshiped" (Job 1:20).
In a matter of seconds–in the time it takes to utter a few
sentences–the greatest man of all the people in the east tragically
lost each and everyone of his ten children, 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels,
500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and all but four of his very many
servants.
And what does the grief-stricken guy do? He worships.
I love that word: w o r s h i p.
It has become so much more meaningful to me living here in Taiwan.
I have seen people worshiping great, big, HUGE idols, people worshiping
tiny 12-inch tall idols, people worshiping old trees, people worshiping
even the stumps of old dead trees, people worshiping stones and
tablets, people worshiping ancestors (both those from generations long
ago and those recently deceased).
My idea of what is worship has changed so much since living here.
Before it was only something I did with others. It was something I did
in Church–it was singing songs and listening to sermons. What I did
alone was "quite time" or "devotions." When I was a new believer, I
did not know I could or should bow before God of All and worship.
Don’t get me wrong. I knew and could teach others and wax eloquent
about the fact that our daily act of worship was how we lived our
lives. And, I knew that worship is a coperate act we do together when
we gather as believers.
Don’t get me wrong. I know that people in the western world
"worship idols"–TV, football, blogging, movie stars and so on. I know
that.
But that is not what I am talking about. This is different. It is markedly different.
We, in the West, do not kneel before our TVs and computers clasping
our hands in front of us and make a choice to actually, physicaly bow
before a graven image of the "god of entertainment." But, I have
friends, coworkers, students, neighbors who do make the choice to
kneel before an idol, clasp their hands around sticks of incense and
worship.
Watching them worship has changed the way I myself worship the
Almighty. I cling to that word "worship" in the Bible more so now than
ever.
Job, upon hearing that all he owned was destroyed, did what? He worshiped.
The scholars from the East followed a star and traveled miles and miles, why? They wanted to worship.
What did one of my favorite characters in the Bible, Gideon, do
after hearing the interpretation of his dream? That’s right, he
worshiped.
Moses, Joshua, David, Samuel . . . they all "worshiped."
Often the Bible simply tells us "he worshiped." Sometimes it says "they bowed their heads and worshiped," but, many, many times it is written as "and he fell down and worshiped."
When
was the last time you "fell down worshiped"? When was the last time
you stopped activity, put aside the reading plan, the prayer request
list, and memorization cards, and worshiped?
Don’t
get me wrong. I am not saying don’t do those things. I am not even
saying those can’t be "acts of worship." But, I am wondering, when was the last time you (and I) fell down, face to the earth, and worshiped the Most High God?
I wanna be like Job, and Gideon, and Moses, and David, and Samuel,
and . . . . . I want my first response to the proclamation of good
news to be that I worship. I want my first desire after hearing bad
news to be that I worship.
And so, after she clicked save, she knelt before the Most High God and worshiped.
When the sun shines–the ice melts. When the Sun of
righteousness once shines with beams of grace upon
the soul–then it melts in mercy and tenderness.
Mercifulness is a melting disposition whereby we lay
to heart the miseries of others, and are instrumental
for their good. We must chiefly be merciful to the
SOULS of others. Indeed soul-mercy is the chief of
mercies. That is a cruel mercy–when we see men go on in
sin, and we let them alone. And that is a merciful
cruelty–when we are sharp against men’s sins and
will not let them go to hell quietly.
Fond sentimentality is no better than cruelty.
The surgeon cuts and lances the flesh—but it is in
order to a cure. They are healing wounds. So when
we lance men’s consciences and let out the blood of
sin, we exercise spiritual surgery. This is showing
mercy.
"Rescue others by snatching them from the fire!"
(Jude 23). If a man had fallen into the fire, though
you hurt him a little in pulling him out–he would be
thankful and take it as a kindness. Some men, when
we tell them of sin say, ‘O, you are unloving!’ No! it
is showing mercy.
If a man’s house were on fire, and
another should see it and not tell him of it, for fear of
waking him–would not this be cruelty? When we see
others sleeping in their sin, and the fire of God’s wrath
ready to burn them up–and we are silent–is not this
cruelty?
(Thomas Watson, 1660, "The Beatitudes." Public Domain as seen on Grace Gems.)
I sit in my living room contemplating advent, thinking about hope and grateful for grace while candle light dances on the wall beside me and Christmas tree lights twinkle in front of me.
But, my home is not a quite place on this first Sunday of Advent. No. A Taiwanese god is having a birthday, and the temples of Tainan and making sure that he is well celebrated.
From my back window I can hear worship instruments playing their song. From my living room window I hear the sounds of an opera being acted out for the god to enjoy. I hear worship drums being beat in a rhythm unfamiliar to me.
That is I hear these things only when the fireworks and firecrackers have subsided. Since six this morning they have been worshiping all across town. All day long firecrackers have boomed and fireworks whizzed and popped. And, since they echo off the nearby high rise buildings the sound can be overwhelming.
And, from 10-11 this morning and then from about 9-10 tonight they shot fireworks and firecrackers for an hour straight each time–A FULL HOUR OF NON-STOP FIRECRACKERS! I begin to think they might never stop. They are still going strong as I go to bed at 11:30–however, now it is more random. Like every five minutes one temple decides to pop something rather than all the temples all shooting off fireworks at the exact same time for an hour.
ALL DAY LONG these people have worshiped their idol with loud songs and amazing firework shows. I didn’t go investigate, but I assume their worship has also included sacrifices, burning of spirit money, colorful costumes, dancing, spirit possession, dragon dances, and there has probably been some blood shed as shamans pierce parts of their bodies with swords and daggers. They probably have, are right now, or probably will go on a "god parade" dancing their idols through the streets so he or she in his or her different forms (one for each temple) has the opportunity to bless those nearby as the idols are returning from another more powerful temple where they went to get "recharged."
Less than two out of every one hundred Taiwanese are Christian. Sunday as I sit in my living room, preparing my heart to celebrate the first Sunday of Advent, I am fully aware of this fact. Lostness surrounds me, literally deafening me, making me sad . . . very sad. When will the Taiwanese be able to share with us the hope we have in Christ?
My little neighbors and their mom join me in my candle-and-Christmas-tree lit living room to worship our Savior (I’m new to Tainan, but I’ve known this family for eight years). We light a candle, read Scripture, thank Jesus for coming and for being our hope. . . . We worship the King of kings with very little display while the temples all around us worship an idol with great display.
I will never forget the odd juxtaposition of this day . . . the first Sunday of my first Advent celebration.
Awhile back, Blair’s post on letting God do the talking reminded me of one of my favorite songs growing up.
It was a 1980’s song, probably by the Maranatha! Singers (but not sure) called "Come Away."
The chorus was the most powerful part to me:
Can you hear the Spirit calling "come away? Come and spend some time with Me, come away. Let your heart and mind be stilled, Let your empty cup be filled. Come and spend some time with Me, come away."
This simple song gave "having a quite time" new meaning. It transformed it from a spiritual disciple filled with things I should do and check off simply because they are spiritual disciplines into a time of relationship building with the Most High God.
Can you hear the Spirit calling . . . . "come away?"
"You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:32).
I know . . . I’ve experienced this truth–that the truth sets us free–several times.
As a kid, lying was probably the sin I struggled with most. I didn’t lie straight out, I stretched the truth or made up my own "stretched facts." I blurred the lines between reality and my imagination. But, still it was lying. I distinctly remember one day–maybe in third or fourth grade–sitting in the cafeteria and telling one of my stretched stories. I remember being so convicted. I realized that I couldn’t keep all the details of all my stretched stories straight. It was liberating to discover that if I told the truth and only the truth, I didn’t have to worry about keeping anything straight.
In college, I sinned and then was convicted by the Holy Spirit; I struggled for an entire summer with the guilt of not confessing it. The moment I went to the person I had sinned against and confessed, the moment I told her the truth, I was able to breathe freely again.
A few years ago, I suffered from depression. Part of it was hormonal, and while hormonally imbalanced, it was easy for me to believe "warpy thoughts." So, part of getting out of the deep dark pit of depression was washing away the lies I had been believing with Scripture. I remember one of my friends telling me: "no wonder your depressed, anyone who believes that would be depressed." Her speaking truth to me and encouraging me to feed on Scripture again, helped set me free from the chains of depression.
Satan is the father of lies, and shoots flaming darts at us. "He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing
to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies,
he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of
lies" (John 8:44). He loves to keep us bound and imprisoned.
Oh, but our Heavenly Father delights in truth in his inward being (Psalm 51:6). And it is Him who sets us free. His truth sets us free. What a glorious thing to delight in!
The lens of my camera loves to focus on flowers. Maybe that is because the amateur photographer behind the lens loves to gaze upon flowers. :)
Each flower is unique and special and beautiful. How creative God is!!
And, if he takes time to dress the flowers in splendor, how much more does he care for us?
“Therefore
I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or
what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not
life more than food, and the body more than clothing?Look
at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into
barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more
value than they?And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.But
if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and
tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O
you of little faith?Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." (Matthew 6:25-34, emphasis mine)
I recently heard God called the "Uncreated One" in a song. How neat is that!?! . . . I had never thought of that before. I’d always thought of him only as the "Creator-God" without acknowledging that means He is also the "Uncreated One."
The bibical creation account ends with our uncreated God saying, “Let us make manin our image, after our likeness" (Genesis 1:26).
The beauty of being made in God’s image is that mankind is different from all other creatures and in that it reveals our family resemblance to our
heavenly Father.
All over the world and throughout time humans have several characteristics which seperate us from all other creatures. For example: We are moral. We are able to value beauty. We long to know and be known; relaionships are central to who we are. We are spiritual and are souls. We have understanding and intellegence. And, perhaps my favorite, we are creative.
God’s creativity never ceases to amaze me. I am taken aback by how unique each of his creations are–how intricate and complex, how beautiful. Travelling to other countries has given me the opportunity to see flowers I’d never seen before, eat crazy looking, great tasting fruits I’d never seen before, gaze upon colorful, unique tropical fish, and admire beautiful diverse landscapes that cannot be caputured on film or with an artist’s paintbrush. I love watching the sun set and rise because each time is different from all the times before. The Uncreated One’s creativity streches beyond anything we can grasp with human minds.
But, the Uncreated One has made us in His image, and He made each of us creative. We each find different–unique–ways to express our creativity. Some are excellent cooks. Some are amazing architects. Some are playwrites, authors, songwriters, coreographers, inventors, artists.
We see humanity’s creative charasteristic even in children. They are perhaps some of the most creative among us. I love talking to and playing with children because their imaginations are so active–they think of things I never would have.
Each one of the distinct characteristcs I mentioned above could be an entire blog post all on their own. The depth with which this week’s topic–the Beauty of Being Made in
God’s Image–could go made me not want to post on it at all
since I don’t have time to really dig into all that this means this
morning.
So, please go visit Keziah on Wednesday at A Woman who Fears the Lord to see how creatively other women discussed the beauty of being made in God’s image! And, next week, just in time for Easter our theme is The Beauty of the Resurrection and will be hosted by Lindsey at Just Enjoy the Journey. Consider joining us! We’d love to have you be a part!
The clock in my living room held its two thick hands at 12 and 10 for about a week.
But, the battery was–not dead–it was dying. So, the second hand was–not ticking–it was twitching.
With great effort but little success, the long, skinny second hand continued to try to reach for the that big nine on the left. Twitch, twitch, twitch.
It still hung on the wall. It still looked like a clock. It still told time, even if incorrectly. It still was moving, even if unsuccessfully. Twitch, twich, twitch.
Sometimes, I feel like my living room clock.
If my clock had feelings, I bet it was grateful when its battery was changed so it could tick like it was supposed to. No longer just stuck on the wall lying to anyone who bothered to glance at it, it is now ticking. It is now blessing those who look to him for help. Tick, tick, tick.
I know it is that way for me. I am, always, oh, so grateful for a charged battery so I can tick like I am supposed.
So . . . how about you? Are you ticking or twiching these days?
If like my clock, you’re struggling to reach that nine on the left, submit to your Maker so He can charge your battery and empower you to tick like you are supposed to.
One of the things that many visitors first notice about Taiwan is the scent of incense that fills temples and homes. It lingers in the air and can be quite overwhelming to someone not accumstomed to being around inscense.
For a long time, I detested inscense. I hated the smell. It was anything but fragrant.
But, then one day, as I was reading scripture I saw this verse: "Let my prayer be counted as incense before you" (Psalm 141:2a).
This caught me off guard.
My eyes stopped moving across the text so I could contemplate what I was seeing for the first time.
I didn’t even realize on a conscience level that fragrant incense was used throughout the old testament to worship God. Incense is also mentioned in the Book of Revelation:
And another angel came
and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much
incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar
before the throne,and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel. (Revelation 8:3-4)
Our prayers rise before God like the smoke of burning incense wafts towards the sky. The sweet aroma of burning incense symbolizes something pleasing and acceptable being offered to God.
The smoke from incense is different than smoke from burning candles, cooking, or camp fires. The smoke visably lingers in the air as it twists and swirls its way upwards. Its distinctive aroma completely fills the air. It is not quick and fleeting. It is slow and heavy, deliberate and continous.
Oh, how I want my prayerlife to be like that!
Lord, may our worship, may our prayers, continually rise before You, God of heaven and earth. May their fragrance be pleasant and pleasing to You.
[By the way, I still detest the worship of false gods, but my opinion of incense has changed.]
Sam’s favorite Bible verse (if memory serves me right) is Job 1:21: "And he said, ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.’" (And this is coming from a kid who had all of his birthday presents and Christmas presents from 2005 stolen during multiple break-ins in the course of just a few months.)
I, however, tend to favor the verse right before Sam’s favorite: "Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped" (Job 1:20).
In a matter of seconds–in the times it takes to utter a few sentences–the greatest man of all the people in the east tragically lost each and everyone of his ten children, 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and all but four of his very many servants.
And what does the grief-stricken guy do? He worships.
I love that word: w o r s h i p.
It has become so much more meaningful to me living here in Taiwan. I have seen people worshiping great, big, HUGE idols, people worshiping tiny 12-inch tall idols, people worshiping old trees, people worshiping even the stumps of old dead trees, people worshiping stones and tablets, people worshiping ancestors (both those from generations long ago and those recently deceased).
My idea of what is worship has changed so much since living here. Before it was only something I did with others. It was something I did in Church–it was singing songs and listening to sermons. What I did alone was "quite time" or "devotions." When I was a new believer, I did not know I could or should bow before God of All and worship.
Don’t get me wrong. I knew and could teach others and wax eloquent about the fact that our daily act of worship was how we lived our lives. And, I knew that worship is a coperate act we do together when we gather as believers.
Don’t get me wrong. I know that people in the western world "worship idols"–TV, football, blogging, movie stars and so on. I know that.
But that is not what I am talking about. This is different. It is markedly different.
We, in the West, do not kneel before our TVs and computers clasping our hands in front of us and make a choice to actually, physicaly bow before a graven image of the "god of entertainment." But, I have friends, coworkers, students, neighbors who do make the choice to kneel before an idol, clasp their hands around sticks of incense and worship.
Watching them worship has changed the way I myself worship the Almighty. I cling to that word "worship" in the Bible more so now than ever.
Job, upon hearing that all he owned was destroyed, did what? He worshiped.
The scholars from the East followed a star and traveled miles and miles, why? They wanted to worship.
What did one of my favorite characters in the Bible, Gideon, do after hearing the interpretation of his dream? That’s right, he worshiped.
Moses, Joshua, David, Samuel . . . they all "worshiped."
Often the Bible simply tells us "he worshiped." Sometimes it says "they bowed their heads and worshiped," but, many, many times it is written as "and he fell down and worshiped."
When was the last time you "fell down worshiped"? When was the last time you stopped activity, put aside the reading plan, the prayer request list, and memorization cards, and worshiped?
Don’t get me wrong. I am not saying don’t do those things. I am not even saying those can’t be "acts of worship." But, I am wondering, when was the last time you (and I) fell down, face to the earth, and worshiped the Most High God?
I wanna be like Job, and Gideon, and Moses, and David, and Samuel, and . . . . . I want my first response to the proclamation of good news to be that I worship. I want my first desire after hearing bad news to be that I worship.
And so, after she clicked save, she knelt before the Most High God and worshiped.
About this time every year, I begin to search for a "read thru the Bible in a year" plan. As I was searching this year, I found some cool stuff. So, I thought I’d share it with you.
As you probably well know, there are several options of "year-long reading plans" to choose from. If you haven’t seen it yet, the ESV Bible Blog displays them in a unique way. They are charted so that you can actualy visualize the path through scripture different plans guide you though.
(I think) I have choosen the chronological reading plan for 2007. When I clicked to look at today’s reading, I noticed a little "listen" link. I clicked. I listened. I like listening to scripture being read aloud–it’s historical, bibical (faith comes from hearing), and very modern all at the same time.
Some other neat tools I found are:
the podbible produces podcasts of the CEV translation of the Bible,
Today my guestblogger, my mom, finishes the story she started yesterday. (Just FYI, the pics are from 1979 and 1980–it’s the best I could do with what I have here with me in Taiwan.)
It was a warm Texas December night and a very special one for us (ok – very special to me, the sentimental one!).
It was our first time decorating a tree with a child old enough to participate. We purchased a small Christmas tree from the local grocery store and carted it home on top of our Pinto station wagon. Ken crafted a tree stand out of scrap wood and we placed the tree on top of our end table, hopefully out of the reach of our toddler’s (Sarah’s) grasp. We placed the lights on the tree and Amanda and I began hanging ornaments. She was so excited we were celebrating! I was so excited – I got to keep the traditions!
It came time to turn off the overhead lights and plug in the Christmas tree lights. As soon as the lights on the tree began shining, Amanda, overcome at the beauty of what she was seeing, spontaneously began to exclaim “Oh! Oh! Glory to God in the Highest! Glory to God in the Highest! Glory to God in the Highest!” She raised her arms and began dancing around that small glowing tree praising God, repeating that phrase over and over just as the angels must have done on the first Christmas night.
I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed worship as genuine as the worship I saw that night! Worship from one with such a pure heart and pure motives – a precious three-year-old, who knew only that we were celebrating the birth of Jesus and that our Christmas tree was shining just as the heavens were the night of His birth when angels praised God and proclaimed His glory. And, she wanted to celebrate and praise Him in the same way!
That Christmas, God gave us just what we needed through the faith and actions of a three-year-old child. That experience changed our perspective on Christmas celebrations. We both realized that a Christmas tradition held its meaning only in the heart of the person participating in the tradition – you could focus on the warm and fuzzy feelings felt by reliving the tradition or you could focus on the original intent of the tradition or you could focus on the One for Whom you were celebrating as you participated in the tradition.
In our family, we choose to focus not on feelings or original intent, but on the Reason we were celebrating.
Each year, as we decorate our tree, it is a family tradition to tell the story of the night we worshipped with Amanda around our first family decorated Christmas tree. We seek to have the same worshipful heart as a three-year-old who, though only looking at the lights on a small Christmas tree, saw a sky filled with a host of heavenly angels proclaiming God’s glory at the birth of His Son and joyfully joined in the angels’ praises.
Now that is giving meaning to a Christmas tradition!
~Joi
Amanda: Isn’t that a great story!! I just LOVE it!! My mom is so right . . . when we look at our Christmas traditions–or any traditions for that matter–we can foucs on one of three things: (1) warm, fuzzy feelings, (2) original intent, or (3) Christ.
For me and my sister (I think she would agree with me), that now as adults, because our parents focused on Christ at Christmas, the "warm, fuzzy feelings" of the holiday didn’t dissappear but were intensified. It is not that our traditions became stoic–how can worship of the long-awaited Savior be emotionless? No, the "fuzzy feelings" didn’t dissappear, they just were not the reason we did the things we did.
As adults, my sister and I anticipate Christmas traditions becuase we are excited to worship the King of kings and Lord of lords; we look forward to being able to express our love for him in unique once-a-year Christmas ways. Through participating in Christmas traditions, we enjoy being able to proclaim "Oh! Oh! Glory to God in the highest!!" and "Jesus, we love you!!"
as a child it was so neat to me to tell Jesus happy birthday and it
was the beginning of me really realizing as such a young child that I
could speak to Him and sing to Him, and not just about Him.
I too though have the sweet, precious, innocent, warm-fuzzy feelings
and memories attached to this song, and thought that life was GREAT and that everyone
loved Christmas and Jesus just as much as we did.
As Christians, we are often told to quench our desires for more. We are warned against the “never can have enough” attitude of the lost.
. . . which in most cases is good advice. But, there is at least one thing we cannot have enough of. This morning as I was reading my new devotional book Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon, I couldn’t help but smile as I read today (Dec 13th)’s “Morning”:
We may be certain that when the King of kings distributes grace among His royal priesthood, the supply is not cut short by Him. In ourselves we are often in short supply, but never in the Lord. . . . Some things in the economy of grace are measured; for instance, our vinegar and gall are given us with such exactness that we never have a single drop too much; but the salt of grace is not restricted in its provision. . . . A man may have too much money or too much honor, but he cannot have too much grace. . . . A plethora of grace is impossible. More wealth brings more care, but more grace brings more joy. Increased wisdom is increased sorrow, but an abundance of the Spirit is fullness of joy. Believer, go to the throne. . . You need much; seek much and have much.
Isn’t that good news?!? We cannot have too much grace. An increase in the things of this world brings about responsibilities, cares, and sorrow . . . but an increase in grace brings MORE JOY!!
I needed this reminder this morning! (So, thanks, mom, for sticking a heavy book in with the package you mailed me.)
I’ve only read a few entries in my new book, but I am really enjoying what I have read. If you think you might be interested in the book Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon which has been revised and updated by Alistair Begg, you can download all of January’s entries here in pdf format from www.gnpcb.org to take a look-see.
We live in Taiwan--a little tea leaf shaped island in Asia.
Amanda is from Texas and Lawrance from Tainan. We met, fell in love and married in 2008.
We both teach English and both love to tell others about Jesus. We also both really enjoy laughing, and we both just happen to enjoy "ching cha," a type of fabulous green tea.
The issue of ancestor worship is complex. It would be impossible to express exactly what it is and what it means to the Taiwanese. Each year I’m here I understand a little more. And, now that I’ve married into a Taiwanese family–as a daughter-in-law to the first born son–I understand even more.
In 1925, the author of an article entitled “Chinese Ancestor Worship: A Study of Its Meaning and Its Relations with Christianity” concluded that “the problem [of ancestor worship] will ultimately be solved by the Chinese themselves. Only those who have grown up within a system in which ancestor worship is central can wisely make provision for its future evolution and sublimation. Ancestor worship still awaits treatment at the hands of those who are both truly Chinese and truly Christian. In their hands we may safely leave its destiny.”
by Charles Spurgeon, I couldn’t help but smile as I read today (Dec 13th)’s “Morning”:
