We can't cross that bridge until we come to it, but I always like to lay down a pontoon ahead of time. Bernard Baruch
Always do one thing less than you think you can do. Bernard Baruch
This is my first 360° video clip - showing a view from the pier in IJmuiden. This clip was filmed during a walk with my son Robin on Sunday April 20, 2008. I want to upload more 360° clips on this blog, so that I can share some of the landscapes, interiors, surroundings, panoramic views and my favorite spots with the rest of the world.
So here goes: welcome to my brand new blog posting series called Let's show you around!
I am using a Sony Ericsson cell phone to make these clips. If you think this is a fun idea, please make your own 360° video clips and leave a comment here because I do want to see the locations that you like to visit in the place where you live on this beautiful globe.
Pic left: Google earth pic pier IJmuiden (red dot is the place where I made the video clip). Find this location on Google maps here. By the way, the IJmuiden pier is not a walkway with piles or pillars, but a breakwater with a solid foundation. As you can see in the pic left (click to enlarge) there are two piers in IJmuiden - they give some protection against the sea when ships enter the North Sea Canal, but I think that they are also constructed to keep the sea sand away from the port. It's nice to walk on these piers, but when the weather is bad, it can be very dangerous and you are not allowed to go there during a storm, of course. These piers are favorite spots for anglers too. See some pics on my photo blog.
Read more about piers and please do leave a comment here to tell me what you think!
I haven't been blogging too much lately - there were just too many other things to do! Last Saturday we finished the alpha in prison course. This course started in January and although the work was time and energy consuming, it was also very rewarding to be involved in this. The Good News still has the power to change lives and in a prison setting words like sin, guilt, forgiveness and grace are not just church lingo. I trust that this course was only the start of this work and I believe that both prisoners and volunteers have learned a lot. God will continue the good work which he has begun!
Inevitably, of course, not only those of us who do science, but all of us, have to choose the presuppositions with which we start. There are not many options – essentially just two. Either human intelligence ultimately owes its origin to mindless matter; or there is a Creator. It is strange that some people claim that it is their intelligence that leads them to prefer the first to the second.
John Lennox, God’s Undertaker – Has Science Buried God? - Lion Hudson, Oxford 2008 - p. 179
I enjoyed reading this book, but it is not an easy read! John Lennox is a Reader (Professor) in Mathematics and Fellow of Green College, University of Oxford. He recently debated Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion - check this and listen to this debate here). If you want to find out more about the rationality of faith in a Creator God, this is a book that I can highly recommend.
Visit to the Community of Aidan and Hilda on Lindisfarne, December 2007, impressions of a new Way - I have done a retreate with CAH on Lindisdfarne in December 2007 and decided to become an Explorer with the Community. To be an Explorer means to write a Way of Life for oneself with guidance of a Soul Friend. This are two basic, elements of the Celtic spirituality as practised at CAH: pilgrimage and Soulfriendship. This brought a great challenge to my life, and which resulted already in a better balance, and that is bringing out the full richness of life much more. Basically it comes down to Contemplation-in-Action, which is all about living a contemplative life in the midst of our own sometimes turbulent daily lifes. We don't need monastries for doing just that, do we?
I am looking for like-minded people that are interested in this kind of spirituality. If you are interested don't hesitate to get in touch and contact me at my email (jcborger at cs dot com) or by leaving a comment here. Lets bring Lindisfarne just a bit closer to the continent! Johannes Borger in The Hague
Johannes, thanks for commenting and maybe you will find linkeminded travelers, seekers and soulmates here! Blessings!
We've traded in our good old red Mazda 626 for a newer Citroen Picasso. The Mazda looked so good after going through the car wash, I have to admit that I had some second thoughts... Until I saw how happy Pascalle was with our new car! Yeah - our new Citroen Picasso is so much cooler - now I totally agree.
We are celebrating Lydia's 29th birthday for the 14th time! Yes, she still looks young - must be because of our kids. Happy birthday Lydia - we all love you very, very much!
What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him, this Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we've been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven—and the future starts now! God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you'll have it all—life healed and whole.
(From 1 Peter 1 - The Message)
"You can have all kind of 'deep' discussions about God and the past and the future, but I think that it is amazing that we are able to think and discuss these things at all! Isn't it funny that we exist? Many people seem to take this for granted, but I am still amazed and excited about the fact that I am able to breath, walk, enjoy, think, sleep, dream, write, love and live!" (me @ Cori's blog)
Cori had some interesting questions for me about my country, my faith and about myself. She kindly permitted me to fill half her blog with my lengthy answers (sorry, Cori...) so that I have some space left here for this picture of me enjoying my existence. If you want to read this Q&A - have a look here. And please, do leave a comment!
Dutch soul singer Alain Clark and his dad Dane singing "Father and Friend". Turn your speakers on, watch, listen and enjoy!
Go over to John's blog if you want to see something that's really worth checking out. I am talking about his blog, but also about the old lady that ministered to a guy who tried to rob her of her cash... Go and watch the video! (And feel free to come back here - anytime).
Since they didn't bother to acknowledge God, God quit bothering them and let them run loose. And then all hell broke loose: rampant evil, grabbing and grasping, vicious backstabbing. They made life hell on earth with their envy, wanton killing, bickering, and cheating. Look at them: mean-spirited, venomous, fork-tongued God-bashers. Bullies, swaggerers, insufferable windbags! They keep inventing new ways of wrecking lives. They ditch their parents when they get in the way. Stupid, slimy, cruel, cold-blooded. And it's not as if they don't know better. They know perfectly well they're spitting in God's face. And they don't care—worse, they hand out prizes to those who do the worst things best! Source
Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. (1 Timothy 6:12 )
Dear player,
During the last competition I paid close attention to your activities on and off the playing field. As you know, I’m not the shouting and screaming kind of coach, but at the end of this season I want to give you my honest opinion about your participation in the games.
I just called you 'dear player', but that doesn't mean that I am happy with your performance. All other team members will also receive a personal letter from me, but these letters will be very different in tone.
I noticed that you always left the field without any injuries and with a clean football jersey. That came as no surprise, considering the fact that you barely participated in the game. You were happy just being out there on the pitch, but most of the time you were standing in an offside position or yelling at your fellow team members. But still, every time you left the field you had a confident smile on your face. Sometimes this happened after a victory, but - to my amazement - I noticed the same grin after undecided matches or losses. I don't understand or appreciate your attitude, since your self-absorption was totally misplaced. How many times did you step aside when a fierce battle was needed? How often did I have to call you from the field because you didn't play your part in the match? What have you done with all your talents? Why did you settle for a passive role in the field, and why weren’t you bothered when I substituted you during the game? Why did you ignore my directions? Why did you only play when it was for your own glory? Our team has successfully completed this competition, not because of you, but in spite of you. I am very unhappy with your performance.
The Coach
Dear player,
I have to tell you that you did a good job on the field last season. Of course I’m not the jumping and cheering kind of coach, but now that this season is finally over, I want to give you my opinion about you and your role on our team. I called you ‘dear player’ at the beginning of this letter; please take this very literally. Maybe you will be surprised by these words, but you really deserve my appreciation.
I noticed that you ended every game with bruises and a torn and muddy football jersey. Sometimes you had to miss a match due to injuries, but at the training sessions I noticed that you always want to give 100% to your task. Of course, you did make some faults every now and then, and I even remember you scoring a few own goals, but these mistakes are generously forgiven. Your faults are nothing compared to the attacks from our opponents that you helped to stop, the goals you scored and the useful assists for which you are so well known. Sometimes you came off the field with a face full of pain. But I also saw how you tried to ignore the hurt and how you smiled triumphantly each time we won a difficult game. If you only knew how much pleasure you brought me with these little smiles! And – it may sound a bit odd – I was also proud to watch you leave the pitch after an undecided match or, even, a lost game. I knew what you were thinking. It’s not about just one game; it’s about the whole competition. How often you fought courageously – even against bigger and stronger opponents! How often did I have to substitute or bench you to protect you from your own ambitions? Maybe you didn’t understand all my decisions, but I just wanted to be careful with a player of such quality and skill. Thanks to your willingness to accept leadership and to encourage your fellow team members, our common goal has been achieved. Thank you for your commitment - I am very proud of you!
The Coach
Dear Father,
It is nog because of our efforts, but only because of your son Jesus that the final victory is won. Still, you call us to fight the good fight of the faith and we want to do just that. Please help us to be disciplined and courageous members on your team. When this game is over, we want you to be very proud of us. In Jesus' name, amen!
(Thanks to Carol for editing this text!)
"Perhaps a simple illustration will help convince us that science is limited. Let us imagine that my Aunt Matilda had baked a beautiful cake and we take it along to be analyzed by a group of the world's top scientists. I, as master of ceremonies, ask them for an explanation of the cake and they go to work. The nutrition scientists will tell us about the number of calories in the cake an its nutritional effect; the biochemists will inform us about the structure of the proteins, fats etc. in the cake; the chemists, about the elements involved and their bonding; the physicists will be able to analyze the cake in terms of fundamental particles; and the mathematicians will no doubt offer us a set of elegant equations to describe the behaviour of those particles.
Now that these experts, each in terms of his or her scientific discipline have given us an exhaustive description of the cake, can we say that the cake is completely explained? We have certainly been given a description of how the cake was made and how its various constituent elements relate to each other, but suppose I now ask the assembled group of experts a final question: Why was the cake made? The grin on Aunt Matilda's face shows she knows the answer, for she made the cake, and she made it for a purpose. But all the nutrition scientists, biochemists, chemists, physicists and mathematicians in the world will not be able to answer the question - and it is no insult to their disciplines to state their incapacity to answer it. Their disciplines, which can cope with questions about the nature and structure of the cake, that is, anwering the 'how' questions, cannot answer the 'why' questions connected with the purpose for which the cake was made. In fact, the only way we shall ever get an answer is if Aunt Matilda reveals it to us. But if she does not disclose the answer to us, the plain fact is that no amount of scientific analysis will enlighten us." (From John Lennox, God's Undertaker - Has science burried God? - p. 40,41)
If you have 1 hour and 40 minutes to spare, use this time to watch this debate between Professor Richard Dawkins (best known for his book The God Delusion) and Dr. John C. Lennox (author of the before mentioned book, Reader in Mathematics at the University of Oxford and Fellow in Mathematics Philosophy of Science at Green College.)
John Lennox's book God's Undertaker is not an easy read, but I can highly recommend it to you if you are interested in science and religion.
"The only thing of my very own that I can contribute to my redemption is the sin from which I need to be redeemed."
Archbishop William Temple in Nature, Man, and God - p. 401
Last Monday our son Robin (15) broke his upper arm and dislocated his shoulder during a judo match. I took him to hospital for an x-ray and it turned out that he needed an operation the next day. I stayed with him during the night and he had to wait until Tuesday 20:30 PM for the operation (there were several emergencies in the hospital that needed attention first).
He is at home now, after three nights in hospital, and he is doing reasonably well - but still with a lot of pain in his arm and shoulder. Your prayers are appreciated.
One day the trees went out to anoint a king for themselves. They said to the olive tree, 'Be our king.'
"But the olive tree answered, 'Should I give up my oil, by which both gods and men are honored, to hold sway over the trees?'
"Next, the trees said to the fig tree, 'Come and be our king.'
"But the fig tree replied, 'Should I give up my fruit, so good and sweet, to hold sway over the trees?'
"Then the trees said to the vine, 'Come and be our king.'
"But the vine answered, 'Should I give up my wine, which cheers both gods and men, to hold sway over the trees?'
"Finally all the trees said to the thornbush, 'Come and be our king.'
"The thornbush said to the trees, 'If you really want to anoint me king over you, come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, then let fire come out of the thornbush and consume the cedars of Lebanon!' Judges 9:8-15
Can anyone explain this story to me? Are there some deeper layers of meaning that we need to unearth here? I sense that there is a lot to learn from this parable and I have left a little clue to give you a hint about what I am thinking right now... Feel free to share your thoughts with me and my valued blog readers!
Photograph taken this morning in Driebergen - in the garden of the Youth for Christ head quarters in the Netherlands. Maybe you think that this is 'just a tree' - but I was very impressed by it... The giant tree was just too beautiful to ignore! The same could be said about this intriguing parable from the book of Judges. Just wanted to share this with you. Please let me know what you think.
In the comments section of the recent guest blogger posting by Cori (which has generated an interesting discussion, by the way!), Traveller left this question for fellow blogger John:
This may seem a bit off topic but do you think that a person can be a follower of Jesus without actually articulating an answer to the questions you ask them? In other words, is being "saved" an event that occurs at a point in time just by agreeing to propositions of fact/truth? Or, is "salvation" more than that? Or, something different if not more?
Dear Traveller, I agree that this comment is a bit off topic, so let's start a new topic! Last Wednesday our pastor (Rev. Wigle Tamboer) talked about three kinds of salvation: past, present and future.
In the past Jesus Christ died for our sins - once and for all. This kind of salvation is called justification. But there is more salvation to come, because in the future our Lord will return and then our "lowly bodies" will be transformed into his likeness. This salvation can be called glorification:
But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. Philippians 3:20-21
In the meantime, we are still living in this fallen world, but we are undergoing a third kind of salvation, called sanctification. In this process we are growing into the likeness of Christ - the Holy Spirit is changing us from the inside out.
Christians agree that the first and last kind of salvation are worked out by grace alone. But it seems like we are playing an active role in our sanctification process. In reality, it is God's grace again, working in us through his Holy Spirit. If we have the power to grow spiritually and if we have the discipline to read the Bible, pray and actively participate in our faith communities (Hebr. 10:25), this is still a matter of pure grace. In other words: this is God's power at work in us!
Back to the point our friend Traveller raised: is there a connection between our salvation and our knowledge of a certain kind? My answer to that question is: if we know anything, it is - again - only because of God's grace. We are not in the position to earn salvation, not by the works of our hands, nor by the thoughts of our minds. God is only asking us to allow his grace into our lives, so that He can save, sanctify and change us into the likeness of his Son. The only thing that is required from us is FAITH.
In other words, I believe that it is all God's work. If this was not the case, we could still claim that we are saved because we came to the right conclusion. The Bible states that it is God who is saving us. His saving grace goes out to us, his Son died for us, his Spirit dwells in us and his Word enlightens us. All we are asked to do is: accept God's grace. It's undeserved, it's incomprehensible and the good news is: it's 100% free!
PS What a coincidence! ;-) This is the Verse of the Day:
Last Sunday our daughter Sosha (13) was baptised in our church. It was a great day for our family and we are all so proud of Sosha's personal decision and her public testimony of faith in Christ!
Just wanted to share this with you... I did try to upload a video clip here, but I'm afraid the file was too big. But believe me, it was great to watch the testimony of our daughter and the baptisms of 17 other brothers and sisters in Christ!
Cori, you live in South Africa, a country with many differences: socially, demographically, religiously.
Please comment: "Sometimes you must agree to disagree".
Someone once said to me that we always get excited when someone is the same as us (“Wow – we have the same favourite food/colour/etc!”) but that true richness comes from being different and learning to embrace that difference. I love the richness of my country, and rather than being threatened by that, try to gain from it and embrace it as much as I can. I also believe that in South Africa we have learnt a lot about how to handle diversity without conflict. A number of western countries have historically been homogenous and now have to deal with other cultural and religious groups and the conflict is intense (could we include the Netherlands and the UK here?). I don’t think it’s as much about agreeing and disagreeing about something as learning about, embracing and appreciating diversity.
The Good Shepherd went out to find the lost sheep, the sheep did nothing to be rescued. But the prodigal son came back home on his own initiative. Saul (before his name became Paul) wasn't looking to be saved by Jesus, on the contrary - he was actively persecuting Christians at that time. This is my question: what do you think, are we looking for God or is God looking for us?
Perhaps both is happening at the same time! I’m a little hesitant to speak of the cliché of the ‘God-shaped vacuum in all our hearts’ but on the other hand do believe that everyone is looking for meaning, beauty, truth, love, purpose, a more abundant life and all of these in a way are a searching for God. But more than that, I believe God is truly ’wooing’ every single person to him. Somewhere in Acts 17 it says that God is not far from any one of us.
In this post-modern time it is not acceptable to proclaim 'the truth'. But as Christians we are called to share the Gospel with all people from all backgrounds. How do you deal with this tension?
It depends what we mean by ‘truth’. If truth is a dogmatic statement of belief then I’m as happy to drop it as the postmoderns supposedly are. But if truth is relational and dynamic, and if truth is more about a person, and about love, then it is something I am sharing all the time, every time I interact with another human being meaningfully. If truth is limited to knowledge it is a very sorry thing. If it has more to do with experience, and with who we are and what we live out, it is very rich and deep.
You know more about the African continent than most people mentioned in my blog roll. Could you please tell us some things that we really need to know about Africa? (This is your chance to correct misconceptions and to enlighten us with your first hand knowledge and experience!)
It’s hard to talk about an entire continent. I know almost nothing about any country north of the DRC. But in general terms, Africa is an extremely resourceful continent. I love what a lot of celebrities are doing to bring attention to this continent. But it’s not a continent that needs handouts. It needs fair trade and it needs to be treated justly in its political and economic relations with the West. And it doesn’t need all the arms, and cheap medicine, and other dud stuff (like faulty condoms) the West is selling it to get rich at the cost of hundreds of thousands of lives. But this is an incredibly diverse, rich beautiful and resourceful continent. It is also a whole lot safer to travel here than people imagine. And very affordable. Anyone interested in visiting an African country? I’m part of several networks and can probably link you to a local in several places for a very authentic experience!
Feel free to ask yourself any question that needs to be answered here...
Hmmm…. How can we more effectively bridge the gap between people who have been churched all their lives and know little of life outside of their Christian church reality and those that are leaving the church (although not necessarily Christianity) and those that aren’t Christian at all? Because I have the most to do with the last two categories, I guess my question is mainly aimed at those in the first category – how can we open a dialogue between the very-churched and the not-so-churched?
Dear blog readers - feel free to share your thoughts with us in the comments section of this post. Maybe you have an answer to Cori's question about the dialogue between the very-churched and the not-so-churched....
Cori, thanks for being such a good blog friend and for sharing your thoughts with all of us! Cori gave me the name of the next Guest Blogger from my blog roll that I will invite: P3T3RK3Y5 (just try to pronounce that! I will ask him soon!)
Some of you know that I write weekly devotional texts (I call them Reflections). I used to write these texts in Dutch (my mother tongue) and translate them in English, but I only did the Dutch texts for the last couple of months due to a lack of time. I just have too many things to do and too little time to do them!
But you can use Google translate if you want to read my Dutch texts in funny English (yes, even funnier than my Dutch-English) because sometimes the Google translation is hilarious! But you will get the idea anyway and if not, please let me know. By the way: 'Superheld' is the Dutch word for Superhero. Have a look here!
Believers in the Messiah Y’shua (Jesus) have received atonement once and for all through the sacrificial death of Y’shua on the cross. The blood of God’s own son, Himself sinless in nature, was the only sacrifice sufficient to make final atonement for sin. Interestingly enough, we have confirmation of this from an extra-biblical Jewish source. The Talmud records that on the Day of Atonement a scarlet thread would be hung outside of the Holy of Holies. If the scapegoat, the sacrifice for sin, was accepted by the Lord the thread would turn from scarlet to white, making real the words that the prophet Isaiah had written 700 years before: “Though your sins are scarlet they shall be white as snow.” (Isaiah 1:18)
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