Well, I'm almost fully moved into my new studio apartment in Evanston, IL. I'll try to post photos later on.
Last night I was given the privilege of eating some
Lou Malnati's pizza. It was delicious. (Maybe better than Giordano's.)
However,
during the early part of the dinner, I noticed a woman sitting by
herself at a table near ours. I was burdened by that scene, because I
wanted so badly for her not to be stood up by someone. So, for a good
20 minutes I made sure to monitor her situation in the corner of my
left eye, and for a good 20 minutes my fear that she would be stood up
grew bigger and bigger. With it, my pity towards her ballooned.
To
my relief and, strangely, happiness, her party eventually came (late,
it seemed). Two men and a woman, with one man walking over to her side
of the table and kissing her gently on the lips.
Disaster avoided, burden lifted, pity put to shame.
I was glad.
The
one thing I noticed was her unwavering self-assurance. The woman never
looked worried as she sat alone at the table. She seemed sure that her
table would soon be filled, no matter how delayed.
It seems to
me that this is an accurate depiction of what Christians appear to be
to some non-believers. We spend so all our lives waiting for our friend
to show up and rescue us from our loneliness. We (should) wait with
confidence because of the pattern of faithfulness that he has already
shown, and has promised to show.
"Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God." - 2 Corinthians 3:4 (ESV)
"For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end." - Hebrews 3:14 (ESV)
Non-believers
doubt that he will ever join us (or that he's even real), and some
point and mock, while others just shake their heads and pity us.
I
hope that we will be able to wait as confidently as that woman. The
reactions we get from those around us do not matter one smidgen. We are
only meant to wait with full assurance, patience, and joy.
However,
this isn't where our part stops. We are even charged to eagerly and
urgently invite others to join our table. It is our responsibility to
tell them that our friend is worth more than their patronization, and
that he renders their sympathy unnecessary.
We'll see many join
the ranks of the empty tables, while others will lose faith and leave.
But a steady course must be maintained. Our good friend will surely
join us soon.
And in the end, a gentle kiss will be found.
Comments (8)
good entry though. did you attend church today?
@jeehye -
good point...didn't think of that one.yes i did. lakeview church. it was good =) gonna try to visit a small group on friday. i'll send my update to you guys soon.
it's cool being an introvert...b/c you can take the most mundane of circumstances/instances and connect it to the deepest of insights.
how goes life there? i hear it's the place to be.
@jycxi -
life is busy! the first week of classes was pretty intense, but i thankfully had some time to regroup today. also found a church i will attend, i think. =)place to be? possibly, haha.
sorry about your mets... =\
it's okay. My "oh my mets" line works either way. i know enough to plan it like so. next year!!!
what church will you be attending? and what kinds of courses do they make you take? i'm so interested. let me know! (: we miss you. be safe. eat well, and rest well. and have some fun! *high five*
@jycxi -
i'll be attending Lakeview (elakeview.org). it's pretty similar to gcc in a lot of ways.i'm taking ethics & law of journalism, journalism by the numbers (stats, basically), editing, and newswriting. newswriting is the bulk of the load this quarter. i'm realizing how much i didn't know about writing...it's pretty sad, haha.
thanks for the well wishes! i hope you're having fun too. =) go cubs/sox! haha, just kidding...but i am trying to be a fake chi-town sports fan this year.