Happy 5th Birthday, Maya!

Our granddaughter Maya Theresa just turned 5 years old! Happy Birthday, Maya! One of the most difficult challenges for Grandma and Grandpa here in Korea comes from our being half-way around the world on these special days when we would love to be together with our little ones. I don't think we could survive such a separation if we did not have the wonders of the internet and especially the opportunity to enjoy video calls through Skype. 

Sandy was delighted by a long talk with our daughter and the grand kids this morning. (It was early Thursday evening there in St. Louis). Maya was able to show and tell her grandma about the birthday bear she was built at the "Build-A-Bear" workshop. So, even though we can't be there in person, face-to-face, we can at least be present with one another face-to-face and voice-to-voice through the blessings of internet technology.

We wish and pray for you, our little princess Maya, all the happiness and blessings of God on this your fifth birthday!

The Gift of Mercy

My wife never ceases to amaze me.  She's been here on this new continent, in this new country, among a completely new and different culture for only one week, and yet she still has such a sensitivity to the needs of others as well as the personal initiative to get done what needs to get done, especially when it comes to helping another person -- whose name she doesn't even know -- obtain some measure of relief from physical pain.  Sandy demonstrated yet again --even here in this totally new environment -- that she has the gift of mercy.

It all took place Sunday morning.  We had been picked-up by Prof. Rhee who not only teaches in the Graduate School of Education at Handong but also serves as a teacher and leader for the Kids English Bible Study (KEBS) at Joyful Church in downtown Pohang.  I had been invited last semester to present the English Bible Story lessons at KEBS, and this semester the church leaders have asked both Sandy and me to serve as helpers and teachers for the kids on a regular basis.

Sunday was the KEBS orientation.  Over 75 children, ages 8 to 12, have been enrolled by their parents in the class.  The class is aimed at providing a double benefit -- instruction in God's Word, first and foremost, and also English language instruction.  Each of the teachers introduced himself or herself to the other members of the KEBS leadership team. 

There will be 16 teachers who will handle small groups of the children.  Sandy introduced herself briefly, but I followed-up and informed the leadership team that Sandy was not only an experienced Sunday School teacher, she was also a Physical Therapist Assistant and a nursing student as well as a former administrative assistant to the Provost of a university in the States.

One of the other Korean teachers introduced herself but apologized for not standing-up due to back pain that she was experiencing.  Following the introductions, Sandy went to this young lady and began to assess her pain and offer some help.  As Sandy was assisting her in walking up a flight of stairs, she realized that the young lady was in severe pain and needed to get home and lie down to rest.  The young lady, however, had driven herself to church.  She was now in no condition to drive due to the pain in her back.

Sandy came back down to the Sunday School room and asked Mr. Kim, one of the Korean men on the leadership team who spoke English quite well, to drive along with us while we took the young lady back to her apartment.  He drove his car so that Sandy and I would have a ride back to the church.  And who might you suspect was going to drive the young lady's car through the busy traffic of downtown Pohang on an early Sunday afternoon?  That would be me.  Sandy was in the back seat attending to the young lady in pain. 

Well, I managed to find my way to her apartment without running any red lights or missing any turns. (Actually, it was a pretty straight shot down one major street after I successfully navigated my way through the packed church parking lot).  The young lady lived with her parents in one of the typical high-rise Korean apartments.  I was even able to find an open parking place near the young lady's building.  Sandy walked her in and took her up to the apartment assuring that she was safely entrusted to the care of her parents.

Mr. Kim and I waited in the parking lot for Sandy's return and then he drove us back to Joyful Church where Sandy and I were treated to a lunch (continental European-style) of toast and cappuccino’s.  As I observed Sandy caring for this young lady in pain, I once again realized how naturally grace and mercy flow through her to serve the needs of others.  One with the gift of mercy serves whenever and wherever she senses the needs of others -- whether in St. Louis, Missouri among her children, grand children, friends and church family or in Pohang, Korea among people whose names she does not yet even know.

Commencement @ the Commencement of the New Year

This past Saturday, Handong Global University convened its 12th Commencement Exercises.  Throughout my teaching experience in the States, university commencement ceremonies were  traditionally held at the end of the academic year.  You would often hear speakers making the comment that though the ceremony occurred at the end of the academic year, it is called "Commencement" because it marks the beginning of a new stage in the life of each graduate.

The Asian tradition, however, places the graduation ceremony at the beginning of the academic year, and I think they get it right.  Not only does Commencement mark a new start for the many students who are graduating, it also signals a new beginning for the entire university community.  It was a joy to see several of my students, who I had had the privilege of teaching in the past fall term, step up to the platform as their names were announced.

Another excellent tradition is practiced by the faculty at Commencement here at Handong.  The graduates are called up to the dais according to their schools. For example, all of the graduates from the School of Management and Economics are called forward and their names are read.  Next, all the graduates from the School of Life Sciences are called forward.  Later, the graduates from the School of Law, where I teach, are also called forward. 

As each school's graduates are announced, the faculty from that school lines up across the platform. Groups of graduates step up in a line stretching across the dais with a student standing in front of each faculty member.  The student bows to the professor and the professor then takes the tassel that hangs from the student's mortar board and moves it from the right side to the left side thus marking, by this symbolic gesture, the student's passing to the graduated status.  The professor then congratulates the graduate with a hardy hand-shake and often, in this culture, a hug.

As the New Year here in Asia has recently been celebrated, it was a genuine pleasure to participate in Handong's 12th Commencement Ceremony at this the commencement of the new academic term!

Staying Up Late and Rising Early

Our first week back at Handong has been filled with a variety of meetings and tasks aimed at orienting the faculty to a new academic year and instilling us with a renewed sense of vision and purpose in our callings to learn and teach others.  Each day has been filled with sessions where the speakers have found some interesting ways to extend their presentations well beyond the time allotted on the published schedule of events for the faculty retreat.

One speaker, in particular, announced at the beginning of his lecture that he would require three hours to make his speech even though he had been slated for only one.  As he neared the 90-minute mark, he was handed a note informing him of the need to conclude so that he would be able to catch his flight back to Seoul.  Instead of bringing his remarks to a prompt conclusion, he publicly requested the University's president to change his flight schedule so that he might have sufficient time to complete his presentation.

Needless to say, we are still experiencing some definite challenges adjusting to the local culture.  One of the most "stretching" is an expectation of our participation in dinners that begin at 8pm and are followed by more meetings that continue until midnight.  Now, I do recall that when Paul was about to depart from Troas, he prolonged his sermon until midnight (see Acts 20:7ff), but this does not appear to be a pattern in either the Apostle's life nor was it in Jesus'.  So, I don't think that you could readily cite Biblical precedent for such late night meetings, but it does, however, seem to be somewhat the norm in this culture.

What's even more challenging than late-night meetings, though, is an expectation that you should also be able to rise up early each morning for a time of personal devotion and community prayer.  Now, I'll acknowledge that early rising is both a good habit and one that is modeled by many throughout the Scriptures. Bonhoeffer makes a succinct case for this discipline in Life Together.

On the other hand, there is explicit guidance in the Word against attempting to combine the two -- staying up late and rising early.  So, while adjusting to a new culture is clearly a challenge, maintaining and cultivating a healthy and balanced pattern of life is paramount, wherever you may be living and whatever the expectations of others may be upon your life.

It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.  ~ Psalm 127:2

You Shall Live in Tents

About twelve years ago, when Sandy and I and the kids were moving from a 2,900 sq. ft., two-story colonial (that we had built when I thought I was on my way to becoming a partner at a large law firm) to a 950 sq. ft. ranch walkout in a much older section of Fenton, I began to say -- in a good humored-way -- that I was working my way toward living in a tent. I had left my law practice and had been involved in ministry with a young, small church while also beginning to teach part-time at Missouri Baptist (then) College. Down-sizing came with the territory.

I would joke with the family that "tent-living" was much more in keeping with the pattern of life described in the Bible, but only Caleb and Hannah thought that it sounded like I had a good plan.  Well, it seems that the Lord also has a sense of humor.  He's brought my "aspiration" to fruition in a way I did not anticipate.  It appears that we'll be staying here in what I had referred to last semester as my "hermitage" -- the very small but very adequately appointed studio apartment in the Mission House.  (That's our front door on the first level; I took this picture last August when I first moved-in; those rocks in the front are all covered with snow right now).  It is, however, no longer a hermitage.  Now, it has come to be called our "tent."

It's working-out pretty well, though.  We do have a wonderful scenic view of pine-covered rolling hills out the back through a window that stretches across nearly the entire length of the rear wall of our laundry and storage room with sliding glass floor to ceiling doors separting the laundry room from our studio.  Sandy loves the natural light and the fact that we don't have to climb three flights of stairs with groceries and laundry (the other apartment would have been on the 3d floor of another building).  We've also been promised a second wardrobe which, when it is delivered, will provide sufficient space for all our clothes. 

Other than that, and the fact that none of the apartments on campus have ovens (evidently the Koreans do not do any baking; instead, just steaming, boiling and frying on stove-tops), we pretty much have what is needed to live comfortably.  The studio is, to say the least, close quarters, but hey, aren't you supposed to grow closer and closer over 31 years of marriage!  We are in a land of sojourning here, and tent-living is beginning to suit us fine for the time.

You shall not build a house; you shall not sow seed; you shall not plant or have a vineyard; but you shall live in tents all your days, that you may live many days in the land where you sojourn.  ~ Jeremiah 35:7

Happy Lunar New Year!

Our first full day here at Handong is actually the first day of the New Year on the Chinese calendar. February 15 marks the beginning of The Year of the Tiger. It seems appropriate that this day mark a new beginning for us. As I look back now, I'm realizing that my first semester was a time of preparation. This semester will be a time of challenge, no doubt, but I trust that it will also be a time of formation and growth both for Sandy and me personally and for us together in our relationship now in our 31st year of marriage.

We'll need to take each day step-by-step -- at a walking pace. Today we walked over to view the new apartment that had been assigned to us only to find that it had several issues that will prevent us moving in. We're making the most of my old studio apartment here in the Mission House where I lived last term. It actually is quite adequate for us.

Sandy even referred to the old apartment as my "tent" since it is just a bit bigger in space than a large family tent we borrowed and used many years ago on one of our family vacations with the kids in Colorado. Sandy has made the most of the limited cooking facilities and has already prepared a wonderful spaghetti dinner and an evening meal of pork mandoo and vegetables. I definitely won't go hungry this semester and it’s very likely that I won't be losing any weight even though I could stand to.

Tomorrow, Sandy will be treated to her first Korean shopping experience by one of the seasoned American faculty member's spouse, Danika. Her husband Eric and their four children have been here for six years. Eric (for my regular readers, you may recall how this faithful brother came to my aid by taking me to the emergency room last August when I cut my finger) has been teaching law at Handong International Law School (the graduate law school here). They're great friends who have shown us warm hospitality.

All in all, it looks like this New Year has begun well. We'll be trusting the Lord for grace each day as it progresses in these coming months.

A Walking-Paced Life

Greetings once again from Pohang, Korea! My wife and I have just arrived back on Handong's campus after nearly 20 hours of traveling. The new spring term is shortly to begin and so we're embarking on the next stage of our sojourn here.  Over the past seven weeks of winter break, I enjoyed a wonderful time of refreshment visiting with family and friends in St. Louis and Portland (hence this blog's hiatus).

Something dawned upon me, though, within my first few days back in the States -- the pace of life in the U.S. is substantially faster than the pace I had been experiencing here at Handong over the fall term. This realization came during my second week back in St. Louis as I was driving along Interstate 44 (at the speed limit) from downtown, where I had attended the Urbana Missions Conference at the A.G. Edwards Dome, out to Fenton. I started to become quite aware that my days back home had been very stressful and tense. I thought that I would have been relieved to be in familiar surroundings, but I was experiencing quite the opposite -- greater tension, increased stressfulness.

Then, like the proverbial light bulb going off over my head, it came to me. For over four months while living in Korea, I had been leading a walking-paced life on the campus of Handong. I lived where I taught, where I worshipped, even where I shopped and occasionally went out to eat (at Mom's Kitchen -- a favorite little restaurant in the Student Union). As I was back in St. Louis, however, all I had been doing was driving every day. You had to drive to get anywhere you needed to go in nearly every case.

What a difference! -- A driving-paced life on the one hand and a walking-paced life on the other. It doesn't take a great deal of analysis to conclude which pattern of living is more favorable to a happy and healthy emotional, intellectual and spiritual life. So, now that we are back in Korea and back to living on Handong's campus, we are looking forward to getting back into a walking-pace of life.

I find it quite interesting that the life of one who lives by and through the gracious gift of God in Christ is described by the Apostle Paul as a "walk" and not a "run".  With this awareness, Rich Mullins wrote: "Step by step you lead me and I will follow you all of my days."

If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.  Galatians 5:25