Midweek Meditation: "Answering the Challenge of AIDS" (Hot Potato #1)

(Word Publishing, 1998)

Two thousand years ago, when Jesus was physically present among us, He reached out to lepers. He touched the untouchables. He showed special compassion toward those who had been treated in such a cruel manner by the people around them. His willingness to lovingly lay hands on those who society deemed unclean should set an example for all of us who sing, "I Would Be Like Jesus."

There are some notable examples of Christians who have heeded the challenge which the victims of AIDS have posed for us all. In San Diego, there is a lovely Christian woman who has organized her church friends to start a hospice for those who are dying of AIDS. Realizing that AIDS victims need special love and care which may not readily be available, she has gotten together both the material and the human resources to provide a place where AIDS patients can live out their last days in the context of Christian love. What better way to witness for Christ than to touch the untouchables and to care for those whom the world rejects? What better opportunity to tell the story of God's salvation through Jesus Christ than as good Samaritans?

I believe the AIDS epidemic has provided Christians with a unique opportunity. We have always claimed to "hate the sin and love the sinner" - here is our chance to show them that we love them. By setting up hospices and serving the thousands who are expected to die as a consequence of this disease, we can demonstrate that we are people who love not only in word, but also in deed - which is what true love always does. (Tony Campolo, "How Do We Answer the Challenge of AIDS?" p17)

BookPastor >> "Create vs Copy" (Kem Wytsma)

This review was first published at Panorama of a Book Saint on Nov 18th, 2016.

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TITLE: Create vs. Copy: Embrace Change. Ignite Creativity. Break Through with Imagination.
AUTHOR: Ken Wytsma
PUBLISHER: Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2016, (192 pages).

Be willing to change. Be excited about creativity. Exercise our imaginations. Let innovation and passion for new ideas lead the way. Leadership is essentially learning to lead in creative ways. This is the key message in this book, that to create is far better than to copy. Moreover, a creative new idea excites while an imitation tends to bore. Wytsma is not just passionate about intentional creativity, he longs to share this with many and this book is one way he is doing just that. He helps us go back to the basics.

In thinking about creativity, we are reminded that creating is very much a part of our relationship with creation. It is also a direct result of our relationship with God our creator. We learn more about God through our acts of creativity. This includes simple ideas in the head, various products on the shelves, memories of the past, recipes in the kitchen, sculptures in the art studio, sports and strategies, prayer meetings, campaigning, and many more. As long as we are kept creative, there is always something new to begin with. That is why as far as creativity is concerned, there is no end point. For God is constantly creating. It is also redemptive in the sense that creativity expands horizons and presents opportunities for growth. Moreover, the world we live in are constantly changing. If we fail to adapt and to change, we would be left behind. Wystma shares a powerful story of what it means to reach out to poorer countries like Africa. Some African countries have leapfrogged the communications technology moving directly from no-communications to wireless communications. Unlike many places in the US that are still dependent on fixed line infrastructures, such wireless advancements have accelerated the pace of progress in these African countries. No longer is it about white people sending white resources to Africa. Instead, it is about empowering African communities with new infrastructure that excites and motivates them to help themselves! Looking back to the culture state-side, Wytsma notes how modern sustained stress can negatively impact creativity. He then supplies four ways in which we can practice and facilitate creativity.

Midweek Meditation: "Ask Me" (William Stafford)

Photo Credit: Poetry Foundation

Some time when the river is ice ask me
mistakes I have made. Ask me whether
what I have done is my life. Others
have come in their slow way into
my thought, and some have tried to help
or to hurt: ask me what difference
their strongest love or hate has made.

I will listen to what you say.
You and I can turn and look
at the silent river and wait. We know
the current is there, hidden; and there
are comings and goings from miles away
that hold the stillness exactly before us.
What the river says, that is what I say.

(William Stafford, 1914-1993, American Poet)                        

BookPastor >> "Pursuing Health in an Anxious Age" (Bob Cutillo)

This review was first published at Panorama of a Book Saint on Nov 25th, 2016.

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TITLE: Pursuing Health in an Anxious Age (Gospel Coalition (Faith and Work))
AUTHOR: Bob Cutillo, MD
PUBLISHER: Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2016, (208 pages)


What is health for? With more advanced medical technology and world-class healthcare, should we not be happier people? Not really. In fact, there are some disturbing trends that are happening in our era. There are many top quality tests but there is a lack of accuracy in diagnosis. There are many different branches of healthcare but they are more fragmented than ever. There are also that disturbing lopsided orientation toward cure rather than care. With the experience of hindsight and the genuine concern for holistic healthcare, author Bob Cutillo summarizes his concerns and gives insights on what good healthcare looks like as follows:

It must be scientifically competent and comes with well-informed choices

It needs a measurable and efficient system

It must include genuine care

There are lots of areas that health insurance often leaves out, which means we need to taper our expectations accordingly.

Politics play a big part in healthcare policies

Healthcare must involve not only the curative but also the preventative aspect

Healthcare also requires vulnerability and trust; and acceptance.

Midweek Meditation: "On the Psalms II" (Athanasius of Alexandria)

"For just as one can find the themes of all the other books in the Book of the Psalms, so, too, what is special to this book is found often in the rest of the Scriptures; that Moses writes a song, that Isaiah sings, that Habakkuk prays with song and in the same way in every book we see the prophecies, lawmaking, and histories. The same Spirit is over all, and each book ministers and fulfills the grace given to it according to what is apportioned to each by the Spirit, to whom all these diverse gifts belong, and yet who is indivisible by nature. So that while the disclosures accord with the variety of gifts of the Spirit in relation to the ministry which each enjoys, yet the whole Spirit is in each book. Frequently, then, each one, in dependence on the Spirit, ministers the word as the need arises; thus, as I said before, Moses at one time or another makes laws, prophecies, or sings, and the prophets while engaged in prophetic utterance at times give commands: 'Wash, make yourselves clean' (Isa 1:16); 'Wash away the evil from your hearts, Jerusalem.' (Jer 4:14). At other times, they record history, as in the Book of Daniel, we read about Suzanna (Dan 12), while in the Book of Isaiah, we read of Rab-shekeh and Senacherib. (Isa 36:22, 37:21 LXX)" (St Athanasius in a letter to Marcellinus on the Interpretation of the Psalms)

BookPastor >> "Reading Your Life's Story" (Keith R. Anderson)

This review was first published at Panorama of a Book Saint on Oct 27th, 2016.

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TITLE: Reading Your Life's Story: An Invitation to Spiritual Mentoring
AUTHOR: Keith R. Anderson
PUBLISHER: Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2016, (224 pages).

We are relational people. We grow best in a nourishing environment of friendship and honesty. Friendly and open with others; honest and bold about ourselves. We cannot grow on our own. We need others to guide us. We need spiritual direction. We need to be mentored in our own journey of life. Learning to read our life story remains one of the most crucial things we need to do. Unfortunately, this is also one of the most neglected. Some of the most important questions are often either not asked or ignored. This book attempts to boldly ask and to gently illuminate. It is an introductory book on the art of spiritual direction. It tells us about the importance of mentoring, what it is, what it looks like, and how we can go about establishing a mentor-mentee relationship. It shows us ways to:

• start and sustain a dialogue
• cultivate an honest and healthy curiosity about life stories
• appreciating human relationships
• desiring to deepen intimacy with God and others
• learning to tell one another’s stories
• being authentic through honest discovery

Midweek Meditation: "On the Psalms I" (Athanasius of Alexandria)

"My child, as it is written, 'all of our Scriptures,' both old and new, 'are divinely inspired and useful for instruction' (2 Tim 3:16). But to those who devote themselves to it with special care, the Book of Psalms merits very close attention. It is true that every book of the Scriptures enjoys the ministry of its own particular message. The Pentateuch speaks of the beginning of the world, of the deeds of the Patriarchs, of the exodus of Israel from Egypt, and of the giving of the Law. The Triteuch (Joshua, Judges, Ruth) describe the allotment to the tribes of Israel, the acts of the Judges and the genealogy of David, the books of Kings and Paralipomenon (Chronicles) record the deeds of the kings, and the book of Esdras (Ezra), the deliverance from the captivity, the return of the people, and the building of the temple and the city. The prophets foretell the coming of the Savior, to call to mind the commandments, rebuke sinners, and deliver prophecies to the Gentiles.

However, the Book of Psalms, like a blessed garden bearing many different fruits, contains the themes of the other books in its songs, while at the same time its own particular ministry is clearly demonstrated alongside of what it sings of the others." (St Athanasius in a letter to Marcellinus on the Interpretation of the Psalms)