Jenny: When Bek was young, she once told me she thought Christianity was too hard to follow and that she couldn't do it. I told her, well, you don't have to follow it if you don't want to. I told her, if you don't feel like it's the right thing then don't follow it. No one is forcing you to be Christian.
*Kim's jaw drops and Jenny doesn't seem to notice*
Jenny: What is there to be afraid about? Afterall, Jesus is Lord and there is no other way to a satisfying life other than Him. So they can go try out other ways of satisfying themselves if they want to. God loves us so much, He gave us free will and He wants us to come to Him by our own choice.
Kim: But sometimes, don't you just want to protect the ppl you love from the pain or searching for other ways of satisfaction?
Jenny: Yea. But thats the mistake so many parents make. My parents used to force me and my sisters to go to church and we couldn't wait to get out of the house. My sisters are no longer in church. It's very sad. But my parents were just really scared we would go to hell.
Kim: Do you think there will be ppl who you pray for all the time and who knew Jesus but would still reject Him and go to hell?
Jenny: Yea. But it's their choice. And we have to let them make their choice. it is very sad.
When i first heard Jenny say all this, i was like thinking... "WHAT! are u sure??????" But it was then that i realized that not only did she make sense (albeit from a vastly different perspective from ours) but that her strongest evidence was in her lifestyle.
And, Jenny is just absolutely stunning (i'm picking up aussie language!!!) she really is. She's a very kind and warm lady.
Very interested in talking with me and finding out more about me and accepting me as family in such a short amount of time.
She would spend at least 45mins with Bek and I every night even though she's had a full day.
She told me to help myself to whatever i wanted.
She would make jokes and laugh at silly things along with her daughters, getting involved in their interests.
She held a full time job and cooked for us.
Her main career goal was to share the gospel with her clients/patients (and she was very sad that this would undergo a change soon).
She had strong stands on the familial unit and marriage.
She had so many thoughts on world events and happenings and other general topics. But even so, she always asked my opinion.
I really see Christ in her and in this family. All 3 daughters are so different but so beautiful, both inside and outside. Bek's dad is really quiet and i haven't talked to him much but i see how much he loves his daughters and how Bek talks about him... i know he is a very good man.
and so, my world was really shaken by what she said. Her philosophy was exactly what we phrase as "Let go, Let God". that takes incredible faith. And it has made her who she is. And made her family what they are.
And for one, i know that Jenny did not have an easy time as a mom "letting her kids choose" Bek shared with me about a particular period when Jenny cried alot over a particular daughter's choices. i'm 100% sure that she struggled very much with "letting go, letting God"
I actually have a short second story to tell.
I was having a conversation with a yfc staff here who was telling me about the programs. Remember the discipleship team i was semi-complaining about yesterday? There's one further thing i was contending with which i think i didn't blog. The class actually teaches morals and values without mentioning Christ.
So i asked the staff how Christ could be shared this way. And i immediately thought to myself, "oh i know how he's gonna answer this question. he's gonna say, through spending time with them."
But shivers, he did not say that answer. Instead, he said this.
"Values can be a stepping stone to knowing Christ. For example, we always tell ppl to trust Jesus, but what if they don't know what trust is? So we teach it. We plant a seed."
hm, just such a fresh perspective don't you think?
I'm really loving it here. But to be honest, i'm not having such a swell time all the time. Their accent is killing me and i'm really self-conscious about my lack of it. I think they have a hard time understanding me too. I feel like i'm in my own little asian world. I'm praying to be able to love these angmos very rpactically and be a blessing to them and not be self-centred, but i've not been very successful so far.=(
pray for me.
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