the national anthem

In honor of ANZAC day, a national holiday to honor the Australia and NZ Army Corps, we sang the national anthem of NZ at church today. As I fumbled along, out of tune, I felt a sense of love for this nation and a strong desire to, as the last verse says: "preach love and truth to man, working out God's glorious plan. Striking that such a secular country had such faithful roots!

God of Nations at thy feet

In the bonds of love we meet;

Hear our voices we entreat;

God defend our free land;

Guard Pacific’s triple star;

From the shafts of strife and war;

Make her praises heard afar

God defend New Zealand.

E Ihoā Atua,

O ngā iwi mātou rā;

Āta whakarongona,

Me aroha noa;

Kia hua ko te pai

Kia tau to ata whai;

Manaakitia mai

Aotearoa

May our mountains ever be

Freedom's ramparts on the sea

Make us faithful unto Thee

God defend our free land

Guide her in the nations' van

Preaching love and truth to man

Working out Thy Glorious plan

God defend New Zealand

(I've omitted a few verses for the sake of space, but do look it up and listen to it!)

Australia

I recently returned from a brief trip to Australia with one of our students, Adele. We were welcomed to Melbourne with open arms by the Student Life Staff Team and stayed in a student flat for free. It was an amazing display of biblical hospitality, and for that I am so grateful!

Some highlights of the trip: seeing how the students in Melbourne take so much ownership of the ministry, spending quality time with Adele, seeing all of the cool buildings and alleyways in the city, but especially driving along the Great Ocean Road.

In my journal I wrote:

" I feel God here, under the lush canopy of the eucalyptus leaves, their scent magnified by the freshly fallen rain, the golden rays of sunlight peering through, and then round the corner the ocean roars as it rolls and breaks at the shore. There is a peace and a joy here that I only feel on such rare occasions, and it wouldn't be enough for me to look at the ocean and cry out 'what a great ocean you are!'. No, my reverence is deeper because that ocean was created by a personal God who knows me and loves me. That mighty, terrible ocean is at the will of an even mightier and lovelier God. My God, who cares for me.

Psalm 93:3-4
The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
the floods have lifted up their voice;
the floods lift up their roaring.
Mightier than the thunders of many waters,
mightier than the waves of the sea,
the Lord on high is mighty!

Delusions.

This evening a group of us watched a debate between Richard Dawkins, a contemporary Darwinist who is recently well-known for his book "The God Delusion" and a Christian mathematics and scientific philosophy scholar John Lennox. It was put on by a ministry known as "Fixed Point Foundation", (you can watch the debate and learn more about the ministry here http://bit.ly/RA1Fh).

Obviously this debate is not set up for Dawkins to look favorable, but even putting the structure of the debate aside, both Dawkins and Lennox brought up great points about faith, God, science, and evidence. If I didn't know the God of the universe in an intimate and profound way, I could see where Dawkins' arguments have some standing. But his strong atheism has brought him to a point where he actually is forced to believe very improbable things about the origin of the universe in order to remain in opposition to the idea of Intelligent Design.

Some funny points: When discussing whether or not we need God to have morals, Dawkins refers to "something in the air" that helps us to understand what is right and what is wrong. This implies that there is more to morals than just following social conventions that were put in place by humans who were simply seeking to preserve their group. In fact, if morals are relative, as Dawkins claims, then why haven't we eradicated those that benefit society and not ourselves as individuals, since we now have no need for them? For more eloquent thoughts on morals and how they point to God, read Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.

I'm not a scholar, and my thoughts probably wouldn't hold up in a debate against Dawkins, but Lennox is and did make amazing claims, both for the logic of faith in God, and also against the logic of Darwinism. The most compelling part of the debate was the end when Lennox touches the core of his beliefs and the disparities among the two debators' worldviews.

I would remind you that the world Richard Dawkins wishes to bring us to is no paradise except for the few. It denies the existence of good and evil. It even denies justice. But ladies and gentlemen, our hearts cry out for justice. And centuries ago, the apostle Paul spoke to the philosophers of Athens and pointed out that there would be a day on which God would judge the world by the man that he had appointed, Jesus Christ, and that he’d given assurance to all people by raising him from the dead. And the resurrection of Jesus Christ, a miracle, something supernatural, for me constitutes the central evidence upon which i base my faith, not only that atheism is a delusion,but that justice is real and our sense of morality does not mock us.

The resurrection, you know, the holiday we just celebrated, is at the center of our faith, and regardless of science or Darwin, the origin of the cosmos or postmodernism, we Christians believe that the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus are the points on which the rest of history are fixed; where God's justice and mercy meet. And we can argue all we want about the cosmos and never find an answer. The real question we must ask ourselves is do we think rightly about God or are we just delusional?

notes from the upper room

Last Friday we had a Christian Passover, where we looked at the symbolism of passover, how the traditions and rituals point to Jesus. 20 students came to our flat which we have appropriately named the "Upper Room" because that is essentially what it is. It was crowded, there was barely enough food for everyone, and it was our first time ever doing something like that. However, it was an evening of beautiful reflection, respectful meditation of Jesus' last supper, complete with lamb, pita, matzah (Sarah and I made both the breads from scratch), charoset, bitter herbs, parsley, candles, and scripture. Afterward we ordered pizzas and had deep theological debates and played worship music on guitars.

Some fun facts about Easter in New Zealand:
1. It's not common at all to dye eggs, in fact I couldn't find eggs with white shells anywhere
2. They looooove their chocolate eggs
3. Hot cross buns are a must for Easter morning, and the week after they go on sale like nobody's business
4. No Reese's Peanut Butter eggs!
5. Even though most of the country does not practice Christianity, both Good Friday and the day after Easter are national holidays, meaning nothing (YES nothing) is open for business. It is more just an excuse for people to take a holiday. One journalist said publicly that he cannot ethically take those days off because he is not a Christian, but the rest of the country doesn't mind

So as you are eating jelly beans and chocolate bunnies, I will enjoy a cadbury egg and think of you. Remember what this day is really about; God's mercy and justice meet at the cross, and we now have life.
I know that my Redeemer lives (Job 19:25)

Love crosses cultures

Last night, I saw my friend Adam get baptised. Ten months ago Adam prayed in faith to accept Christ as his Savior. A year ago, Adam arrived in New Zealand from China, having never heard of Jesus and barely speaking English. Although it wasn't particularly articulate or poetic, Adam gave his testimony that Sunday night in a church filled with his brothers and sisters in Christ and it was the most genuine expression of his love for God. After that, seeing him go under water and come back up, a symbol of his new life in Jesus and his commitment to walk in faith, I was brought to tears.

One girl I disciple, Wai Li, is from Malaysia. Her English is very good, but there is still a language barrier, and it can sometimes be difficult for us to understand each other. So, when we meet up together I read a verse out of my English Bible, and she reads that verse in chinese. Being a language lover, it is stunning for me to see how God can permeate cultures and language barriers. Whether we are American Christians or Kiwi Christians or Malaysian Christians, we all need to hear the same message of hope.

Stepping out

Now that the ministry is up in place things are really starting to flesh out. Here is an idea of what my week looks like:
Leading 4 bible studies
Discipling 4 student leaders out of those studies

Often we will find students who are sitting around on campus, reading the school magazine, usually just bored, wanting someone to talk to, so most of my time in between appointments and studies I spend just talking to random students. It's really evident, in talking to these students (mostly first years who are commuting) that so many people do not know anything about Christianity here. It's amazing how asking a few simple questions and listening to the answers can really mean to someone. I've already met two young women with whom I want to continue building into our relationships. Both of these were from using Soularium, a creative tool designed to help students articulate answers to tough questions by using pictures. Each time I use this tool, I ask questions about faith and spirituality, and then ask the student if I can share with them what I have found to be true in my walk as a Christian.

Some will reject the message, some will want to know more, and for some it will be exactly what they need to hear in that moment. I am simply called to step out in faith and initiate conversations, walking in the power of the Holy Spirit.