Thoughts from class

These are assignments that I wrote for my cross-cultural nursing class.

Given the amount of human suffering in the world how do you hold to the Idea of a loving and personal God?

I believe that God is a loving and personal God only to his own people. I also think that God gives his people struggles and trials to strengthen our faith in him. And that he will never give us more than what we can handle. When I think of all the troubles in this life, I think of Hebrews 11. Looking at verses 33-38 one can see all the terrible things that have happen to followers of God. The people of God in the past have hid in desserts, mountains, dens, and caves. But in Hebrews 12:1-2 a reader can see that the people of God are never alone "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith." Jesus is always right beside his people. Is that not a personal God? Once again in Romans 8 we are given a list of things that could separate us from our God. The list includes many things that we see today: tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril or sword. the end of the Romans 8 passage say that nothing "shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." The Bible never promises us an easy life as a Christian. In the book of Revelation we are given this promise that at the end of the world he will completely take away all the pain and suffering in our life. "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, no crying, neither shall there be any more pain for the former things are passed away." Revelation 21:4

Mother Teresa Reflections

Of the selected reading from Mother Teresa the one that affected me the most was the story about the little girl who ate her bread so slowly because she was afraid she would still be hungry when it was gone. I have no clue what it means to be that hungry. I have access to food all the time even when I am not hungry. I have no clue how to live that way. A few months ago I volunteered at the Banquet, the people that I served there came to receive at least one healthy meal that day. I got the opportunity to eat with them. I did not really like the food so it was hard to eat. Afterwards I thought how wrong of me to judge my food that way. I was provided with a healthy meal; I should eat it and not complain. This is an important lesson for me to remember, to be content with what I can get.