Question Number 2: A Name By Any Other... The Continuance of the Journey of Senses

So, if you have been following my posts recently, you will see that I am attempting to answer a few questions that were brought to my mind while I was travelling around the world (literally!). Forty two days away from my home in Connecticut, with my family, going to places I have never been. For me, it doesn't get much more adventurous!

Here is my second question;

How does God know the millions of people (by name, mind you!) who flood the great wall in Badaling, China? Or even the millions at Tiananmen Square or the Forbidden City? All these people are celebrating 90 years since the Communist Party of China was formed. They are making pilgrimages to these places. How does He know people by name?

I continue to marvel at the crowds in cities that dwarf any New England town. I am posting pictures on Facebook (little by little!) because I have so many and I am actually taking the time to provide descriptions of where I have been. Today, I am posting pictures of the things I saw in Beijing. You are wondering if I am stalling for time and if I really have an answer to my own query. I do have an answer.

Rewind to an Easter a few years ago where I was at a Sunrise Service. For those of you who are not acquainted with this "tradition" it's where you get up at 5am on Easter Sunday and go to a place outdoors to see the sun rise and remember the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is a moving time, a time to remember.

And one Easter Sunday, I was remembering this; when Jesus (who was already resurrected from the grave) meets up with Mary, she thinks He knows where the body of Jesus could have gone. She thinks that He is the gardner. She asks Him if He knows where Jesus' body is. She does not recognize Jesus by sight. (John 20:10-18)

She says; "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him."

Jesus' response; "Mary."

She then turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!"

Mary heard her name. Mary knows her name. And so does Jesus. And what does it take to know a name? A personal relationship. A recognition of a familiar voice. Jesus' knowing Mary's name is an intimate thing.

My conclusion? Because of God's great love for us, He knew He would have to get our attention somehow. In the midst of the noise and the chaos, the cacophny of life, or even the quiet screaming of say, perhaps, a hospital waiting room, the God of the Universe calls us BY NAME. And then, He has our attention.

God knows us by name because He takes a personal interest in us. He longs to be in a personal, meaningful, and real relationship with us. His outreach to us is an act of His kindness and mercy. And for all those people in China (or anywhere else for that matter!), God's great love is the driving force behind His quest to get our attention so we can know Him, too.

Amazing.

Picnic and Games at the Riddells'!

Pam and Ray Riddell would like to extend an open invitation to St. Paul's for an afternoon picnic at their home on Saturday, August 20th. After the outdoor festivities, they are also hosting a game night. 

This is an event where friends and family are invited to get to know our community better outside of the usual church setting. 

The picnic would be from 2 - 7 pm, and the game night would follow. For more information, please contact Pam through email, or talk to Ray or Pam on Sunday.

Loving Neighbors: Outreach Opportunity in Brimfield, MA.

On August 27th, from 7 am - 5 pm, our partners at Lutherans CARE will be helping the residents of Brimfield, MA with clean up after the June Tornados. We're hoping people from the St. Paul's community will be interested in joining with them. 

It will mostly involve brush, branch, and tree removal. Due to the physical nature of this work, we ask that volunteers be ages 15 and up. 

There is no cost involved, but you will need to provide your own transportation. 

If you are interested in helping out, please talk to Bob Jeram at church on Sunday!

Faith and the Senses: Question #1

I asked five questions as a result of my 42 days around the world trip a little while back.  Looking at these questions, I realize I am now asking myself how I could ever fully know the answers to all those questions!  Nevertheless, I wrote that I would have five installments and, by golly, I will.  You may not like what you read but that's okay.  Here was the first question;

How did God decide where I should be born? Why was it in Cudahy, WI. and not somewhere in another country where I would work in a field, bare-footed, fully clothed, and in the hot eqatorial sun picking tea leaves for a possible $2 a day?

This question is absolutely impossible to answer.  No doubt about it.  I would have to second guess God and I know I can't even come close to unpacking His plans for me (or you, for that matter!).  But I do know, based on the Bible (which I believe to be true) that He knew from the beginning of time that I would be born in Cudahy, Wisconsin to a household of Armenians, go to school, work in a psychiatric hospital, grieve pregnancies that never resulted in my arms being full of who I dreamed about, that I would marry Jon Victor (after I thought all men were pond scum), and that I would actually take a trip around the world.  He (God) chose my destiny from the beginning and offered me the opportunity to have a REAL relationship with Him.

In that way, I am no different than anyone else; the ladies picking tea leaves have just as much an opportunity to know the God of the Universe for REAL.  God offers that to all of us.  And for this, I am eternally grateful.

Faith and the Senses: A Great Marriage.

By Ruth Alumbaugh

During our family's recent world travels, I was struck by so many things in my thoughts.  As I have continued to consider and process what it means to be away from my home for 42 days, I have thoughts like these:
  • How did God decide where I should be born?  Why was it in Cudahy, WI. and not somewhere in another country where I would work in a field, bare-footed, fully clothed, and in the hot eqatorial sun picking tea leaves for a possible $2 a day?
  • How does God know the millions of people (by name, mind you!) who flood the great wall in Badaling, China?  Or even the millions at Tiananmen Square or the Forbidden City?  All these people are celebrating 90 years since the Communist Party of China was formed.  They are making pilgrimages to these places.  How does He know people by name?
  • How does God breathe His breath on our souls?  Is His breath hot, humid, and hazy like it was in Shanghai?  Is it tropical like it is in Kande, Sri Lanka?  Is it frigid like it is during the indoor ice festival in Harbin?  Is it cool, damp, and rainy like London?  Is it a warm breeze, like the one I felt blowing off of the Indian Ocean?  How does He make Himself known in so many places?  And in so many ways?
  • How amazing is it that God knows all the details of what concerns me?  I am truly a foreigner.  I don't know the language or customs of my hosts.  I am not the driver.  I am the receiver of much!
  • How much faith does it take to pray when I or a loved one are sick and far away from all things familiar?  How can and do I live when I am in a zone so foreign to me?  How can I eat what is so generously placed before me and be grateful even though I feel everything opposite?
In my next 5 installments here on SPCC's blog, I would like to unpack my insights, one point at a time.  Maybe they will be interesting to you.  They may not be "rocket science," but they showed me how faith is a very sensual experience by tasting, hearing, touching, smelling, and seeing the God of the Universe in places far from the comforts of Connecticut.