Wednesday, March 11, 2009

I've been slacking!

Hey there my friends and family!
I must apologize for my laziness in keeping up on this blog - I've been a slacker...
And now I would love to catch you up just a little on how things are going and what's new...

First of all - classes are going well. They're more challenging and also more focused in the New Testament than my classes were last semester, but they're still fun and I'm learning a LOT.
My new classes include: the gospel of Mark, 1st & 2nd Peter, Missions, Genesis, and Church History. I have several other classes, but they're just the required classes that I have to take each semester - like Lectures, and morning Devotions.

The students this semester are again very fun, and the Lord has blessed us with great unity and friendship. They're a very different group of people... and it's turning out to be very fun and I wouldn't change a thing! :)

In other news!
There is a Jewish lady, about 31 or 32 years old, living with us... and it's quite the adventure. Her name is Yafeet (Pronounced: yahFEET).
Some friends of the school met her about 3 weeks ago at the Coffee Bean Cafe across the street. After talking with her for a little while they found out she was in some kind of bad living situation and practically homeless. So she was brought over to the school, introduced to Pastor Mike, and it was decided she could stay with us for a few days (yes - that was THREE weeks ago... lol). She's a VERY interesting character, and it's giving us all a first hand experience to the Jewish/Israeli mindset and beliefs about the Bible (Old and New Testament), the prophets, Jesus, salvation, etc... Everything she say's is SO mixed up. Part of that is just her personality, but a lot of it is just bizarre ideas that she's been taught all her life.

By now it's turned into much more than just us being gracious hosts to a person in need. It looks like she'll be staying with us at least until the end of March, and it's required a lot of personal adjustments - especially for the girls at the dorm, but also for everyone in the school. She has funny cleaning habits, and inconsistent kosher eating rules, and a mysterious job that no one seems to understand (except it deals somehow with a charity).
She joins us for most of the classes and is presented with truth over and over and over. She asks questions and talks about what she thinks things mean... often taking classes off topic, but always bringing up interesting topics concerning facts and meanings/interpretations in the Bible.
I've lost track of the times we've sat down and told her why Jesus was the only sacrifice that covers our sin, and why we need a sacrifice... and by now we are all in a place torn between pleading with God that the veil would be lifted from her eyes, and being tired of presenting the gospel message to someone who doesn't actually want to listen. And no, she doesn't listen. She hears, but doesn't understand... and it's such a painful, yet prime example of the blindness of the Jews - and how Jesus truly is their stone of stumbling.

In America there is a completely different way of witnessing to people - there generally isn't 5000+ years of cultural history to deal with, or 2000 years of Rabbinical teachings to combat. It seems like there should be easy ways to simply explain that we are living in the new covenant - unlike the old one - that God promised in Jeremiah, or talk about how even Moses (their favorite prophet) said the prophet was coming who Israel should, but wouldn't want to, listen to, or to talk about Isaiah 53...
But since Jesus walked here there's been 2000 years of Rabbi's and Jewish leaders covering simple truth with layers and layers of optional interpretations and distractions that lead the people away from truth and toward uncertainty. There are many who don't even study the Tanach (Old Testament) but only ever study the Talmud ("Oral Law" viewed as equal, if not more important than the actual scriptures). You know what they say: "If there are 2 Jews there will be 3 opinions" but reality is more like "Where there are 2 Jews there will be 5 opinions."
And this is what Jewish people grow up learning - backward and forward - just as we study the Bible, they study the commentaries and are even encouraged to make their own interpretations.
And she has arrived at many of her own conclusions that add extra difficulties to our discussion. For example - she doesn't believe that people sin - sin is some abstract force that makes bad things happen to us, Moses was completely perfect and never sinned, and the sacrificial system wasn't significant/wanted/needed...

With all that said - be praying for us! That we continue to show her the unconditional love of Christ, and that her eyes/ears/heart would be open to understand and recieve the covering she needs of Jesus blood!




And now - the other exciting news is that I'll be spending about 6 days in Greece! Leaving March 19th and getting back March 25th. A few weeks after that I expect to be spending 4-5 days in Jordan helping with the same church in Karak as last semester.

This week is Purim! It is a celebration that stems from the story of Esther... but any more it resembles Halloween + New Years' Eve + Birthday party. There are concert stages set up all over the place, and everyone is invited to the mass party. Plus, it's the one day a year that Jews are "commanded" to get drunk.

Yes - life is exciting! Things are busy and time is flying! I'm back in the states in almost exactly 2 months now...
As always - I love you all VERY much, and am very thankful for all of you who are praying for me and thinking of me! :)
Shalom!