I regularly entertain myself in Berlin by observing the people around me. This city has some characters, so it's not hard to do. I'm just fascinated by the variety of people who populate my metropolis. The other day, I spotted this guy enjoying an evening picnic in the Monbijoupark (one of my favorites of Berlin's parks). What caught my eye first was the German flag that he seemed to be using as a picnic blanket. He sat perched on a tiny chair in a light blue Bayern München jersey and yellow Crocs, his dinner cooking on the grill, and just watching the world go by. People watching himself, perhaps. Strangest of all in this picture, I think, was a stuffed cow hanging from a noose off the back of the chair. This place just gets curiouser and curiouser.
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Reposted from Pete Kelly's blog: christ-centered leaders
10 Things Your Support of Cru Has Accomplished This Year by Pete Kelly For those of you who support the ministry of Cru (Campus Crusade for Christ), God has done some pretty amazing things this year. It is really quite staggering. Thanks to your help, students and faculty all over the world are hearing the gospel and are experiencing life-change. Here are some of my favorite highlights of what God has done:
Every day this week as a way to meditate on Holy Week, I've been writing a poem about something God is showing me about who He is and what He has done for me. This is my favorite so far. The initial inspiration came from the first chapter of Tim Keller's book King's Cross.
"Do this and live," their Father said. "Your food's my Word, not only bread. There's life, I promise, here with me, Obey me about the tree." But Eve's temptation dangled--bait She took the fruit forbidden, ate. Her husband snatched it up as well And they, together, fell. "Do this and die," His Father said, "They cannot win, you must instead. My children will, at last, be free, Obey me about the tree." So Jesus let Himself be bound, Punished, beaten, bloodied, crowned And setting Heaven's power aside The King of Glory died. And when He rose, death crumbled, beat The world laid down at Jesus' feet. Now I myself to Him can give. Because He died, I live. Several times during my various trainings to prepare for moving overseas to work with Cru, we worked through an analogy of transition that involves replanting a flower. Moving it from one home to another, so to speak. I found the analogy quite helpful, and refer to it often when people ask me how my transition to life in Germany is going.
One day this past fall shortly after I had moved into my new apartment, I was strolling down my quiet street and discovered a green succulent with pretty pink flowers that had once been potted (on someone's balcony, I assume) lying on its side on the sidewalk. The pot had broken and was completely gone, but the flower seemed to be hanging on. It's roots had even kept the shape of the old pot it had been living it. It seemed like it might have a chance if it made it into a new home soon, so I decided to rescue it, re-pot it, and see what would become of the pretty little thing. The first few weeks in its new home on my kitchen windowsill, my transition flower stayed alive but was visibly struggling. The tiny pink blossoms dried up and fell off, but the leaves stayed green. I kept watering it, watched patiently and went about the business of settling slowly into my new surroundings myself. The roots must have been deepening and taking hold, because one day I noticed my transition flower was seeming a little more lively than it had been. Then one by one, I began to notice tiny, waxy leaves where there hadn't been any before. Then a bud or two. Now, this week, the first few of the new blossoms have unfurled in a sweet baby pink. I think my transition flower still has a ways to go before it will be completely settled and thriving again in its new home, but it seems to be on its way. I think I am, too. |