Rabbi Spectacular

"When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, 'Push out into the deep water. Let down your nets for some fish.' Simon said to Him, 'Teacher, we have worked all night and we have caught nothing. But because You told me to, I will let the net down.'" Luke 5:4-5

It is common to analyze this scene as Jesus being rather pompous. He comes in with a color of inexperience and instructs a veteran of the sea. The common criticism would be that a carpenter is giving orders to an experienced fisherman. Simon Peter, having obeyed faithfully, comes off as a humble servant, ready to serve the Lord. 

Rabbis in these times were, however, looked highly upon with reverence. Rabbis represented intelligence, social status, stability and even courtesy. Jesus, having started preaching, has now become more so a rabbi than a carpenter. For a fisherman of the times, it would have been rather easy to obey, as Jesus was now "higher" within the social ladder. The subsequent miracle and the following of Jesus would have been an easier decision to make for Peter, as Jesus seemed more promising for success in the future come. 

Though this changes very little in the main message of the Bible, I like this analysis more so than the previous. It lowers the bar in coming towards Jesus for us. We neither have to be humble nor dedicated to follow Jesus. We can simply be following the social norm or we can even be following for the fame and the money. Nonetheless, Jesus shall prevail in the salvation of our souls. 

Two Languages

Though such a little time has been spent abroad, I have seen quiet a few different cultures and the people therein. We all, however, speak two of the same languages. 

We speak the language of pain: the dark sorrows, the seemingly unending challenges, and the unforgiving lock-down of what is called fate. We all desperately try to pull away from pain as much as possible; some succeed, while others don't.

We also speak the language of love: the bright hopefulness, the warm compassion and the overflowing patience towards a better day. 

Although the two seem like opposites, the root of the language is humanity. We speak the same language for we are all human. No matter how different we may seem, we already know how to communicate with everyone. We just need to know when to speak which :P. 

An Age of

This is the age of losses, of the losts and the forgottens. Hopelessness seems to loom over the edges of the world, while injustice overflows the streets.

This, however, is the age of redemption, of the revelations and the salvations. Hopefulness deems itself worthy to loom over the edges of the world, while justice shall overflow all the valleys to the seas. 

GLORY!

"But the whole assembly talked about stoning them. Then the glory of the LORD appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of Israel." Numbers 14: 10

I had, for some time now, wanted to see the glory of God, the shining light and the magnificence. I had learned that I would be sorely afraid if I do have an encounter with a messenger of the Lord and that I would die if I had seen the face of God. Still, curiosity and reverence for it has me longing for it yet.

Glory, however, seemed to come with its share of troubles and despairs. As Moses and Aaron, Joshua and Caleb had felt, the glory of the Lord shall come in time as I stand my ground in faith of God. 

Three Scenarios on Love

Scenarios for you to think about:

1

There was a boy who loved a girl.

The girl loved him back, but not for long.

They soon parted ways.

The boy could not forget about her

The girl went on and married someone else.

The boy never married in hopes of her return.

What is your opinion on the boy’s action? Is there any romance to it? Or is it a simply an obsession?

2

There was a boy who loved a girl.

The girl loved him back, but not for long.

They soon parted ways.

The boy could not forget about her

The girl went on and married someone else.

After some time, however, the girl separated with her husband and was left alone.

The girl looked back and remembered the one that truly loved her.

The girl sought the boy back.

What is your opinion on the girl’s action? Is there any romance to it? Or is it simply selfishness?

3

There was a boy who loved a girl.

The girl loved him back, but not for long.

They soon parted ways.

The boy could not forget about her

The girl went on and married someone else.

The boy, too, soon went on and married someone else.

After some time, however, the girl separated with her husband and was left alone.

The girl looked back and remembered the one that truly loved her.

The girl sought the boy back, and the boy left everything to be with her again.

What is your opinion on their action? Is there any romance to it? Or are is it simply irresponsible?

Love Narrative Part 1

It’s funny how relationships turn out. One day, everything is marvelous with her. The next day you grow scared to be together, soon abandoning the whole dating scene. All of a sudden, you start dreaming about her. I never thought everything would be so different. Life is much easier taught than experienced, but I guess that is an easy concept to grasp. 

Psalm 90

"Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations." Psalm 90:1

To gather, to eat, to live, to be happy, to flourish and to rest. Dwelling place is the Lord. Do not stray far from it, lest you be lost. 

Introduction to a Story

"This will be my first story, and I had the rough draft font be “Trebuchet MS,” but who knows what the editors will do in the end? I enjoy the font because it reminds me of college days. Back when I was an engineering student at Carnegie Mellon University, my friend would have the Powerpoint slide fonts be exactly that as it was the “best” font there was. I couldn’t say I agreed, but it seemed alright as I really didn’t want to look at other ones instead. Such lack of interest in details was a common theme in my life. I often found myself moving on with life without paying much attention as to where I was headed. Perhaps this was my vice that God had wanted to fix. After having graduated from CMU, I went to Korea to become a doctor. Now, medical school was all about the details. I want you to know that I worked hard to remember all the bits and parts of how the body worked, but I found more interest in the details of writing. I saw how each word had their own histories, their own stories to tell. A collection of such words would culminate into a message, one message written by the author to express. Each piece of writing was a call for an understanding.

As for the narrative form, I think it is the most sincere of the writing style, the most beautiful as well. No matter how hard you try, you will never fully understand the mind of another. No matter how long the hours are, conversation may be completely empty in meaning. Omniscience of the writer is yet limited to an individual, a human. The narrative, however, is just a telling of a story. All I want to do is tell you what I saw, what I felt, what I thought, and what I have done. Though my own mind may deceive me in my recounting of events, I give you my word in that I have done my best to remain truthful to you."

Searching for God

"Where now is the Lord, the God of Elijah?" 2 Kings 1:14b