Oh my gosh. This past month has been absolutely insane! Right after Reading Week, I had 2 midterms, another midterm the week after, a paper and group presentation last week, a 14-page paper this week, and then another big group project in a week and a half. It was such a huge relief handing in that paper today. 2 nights in a row of less than 4 hours of sleep isn't very good for my body. I'm also sick again and this is the 3rd time in the past 2 months! I guess my body is feeling the stress. Surprisingly, I don't feel as stressed as I thought I would feel so I guess that's a good thing.
During Reading Week, I realized why I was so exhausted; I hadn't taken a Sabbath in over a month and a half. It was really hard to "fit it in" because for school, I'm required to go into the hospital on Sunday afternoons to do research on the patients we would have for clinical that week.
Despite wanting to revert to my regular ways of just work work work, I promised God I would take a Sabbath each week even if I did have a ton of work to do. I decided my Sabbath would be from Friday at 3PM (that's when class ends) until Saturday at 3PM. So far, I've missed only 1 Sabbath and that was due to a retreat with C4C. All in all, taking a weekly Sabbath has been really good for me. It's probably one of the reasons why I don't feel as stressed right now because I'm learning to trust in God and rest in Him regularly. Yay for surrendering control to the One who is in control.
Now if only I can spend my time more efficiently during the week, my life would be amazing...
March 20, 2009
March 12, 2009
World of Affliction
Son of sorrow
Staring down forever
With an aching view
~"The Fatal Wound" by Switchfoot
One of my nursing classes is very sociological/philosophical and we're learning a lot about the sociocultural construction of health and wellness (ie. how is health influenced by society, by people's different backgrounds, by power, money, etc etc). I do find the material itself somewhat interesting, but I can't say it's my favorite class because I'm more science-minded and the way my prof explains things I find quite frustrating. The points could be presented in about an hour rather than in three... Sorry, I digress.
Today we had a couple guest lecturers who talked about their work with Aboriginals. One shared an experience of an Aboriginal man who lived in the downtown East side of Vancouver. His history was so incredibly sad my heart broke. What really made me sick to my stomach was the ill-treatment he received as a 5-year old from so-called followers of God.
History is chock-full of the many injustices enacted by the church (in general). It's still happening today. How is it that people who are commanded to love God and others act with so little love? It's no wonder the secular society doesn't want to follow God. Christians have done such a horrible job of showing what it's really supposed to be like.
I felt so angry at these injustices and at the people who committed them. Then I realized, "I'm no different."
John, the pastor at the church I'm currently attending, put it really well: we're all poisoned with sin and we're destined to die. There is only one antidote and that antidote is Jesus.
I can't live my life "better" than anyone else in this world; I'm infected too. The only hope I have is in Jesus. Only He can cleanse me of my sin. It is only through walking in the Spirit that I can love others the way they ought to be loved. I can't do this on my own.
The question that's presented to me now is how do I practically and truly love people? Love in the way that I'm not condoning sin but not being condemning and judgmental as well? What does that look like in this day and age?
*****
Another thought I had during class is how utterly hopeless this world is. Everyone and everything is twisted and mangled, broken and bruised whether we're Christian or non-Christian. We're so frickin' screwed up. The world is a dark dark place.
Son of sorrow staring down forever with an aching view.
God, I feel so much pain when I think of all the hurt in this world. How much more heartache You must feel. How is it that You love us so much that You would put all of this onto Yourself on the cross?
(Can you tell that I'm feeling a bit emo right now? :p)
Staring down forever
With an aching view
~"The Fatal Wound" by Switchfoot
One of my nursing classes is very sociological/philosophical and we're learning a lot about the sociocultural construction of health and wellness (ie. how is health influenced by society, by people's different backgrounds, by power, money, etc etc). I do find the material itself somewhat interesting, but I can't say it's my favorite class because I'm more science-minded and the way my prof explains things I find quite frustrating. The points could be presented in about an hour rather than in three... Sorry, I digress.
Today we had a couple guest lecturers who talked about their work with Aboriginals. One shared an experience of an Aboriginal man who lived in the downtown East side of Vancouver. His history was so incredibly sad my heart broke. What really made me sick to my stomach was the ill-treatment he received as a 5-year old from so-called followers of God.
History is chock-full of the many injustices enacted by the church (in general). It's still happening today. How is it that people who are commanded to love God and others act with so little love? It's no wonder the secular society doesn't want to follow God. Christians have done such a horrible job of showing what it's really supposed to be like.
I felt so angry at these injustices and at the people who committed them. Then I realized, "I'm no different."
John, the pastor at the church I'm currently attending, put it really well: we're all poisoned with sin and we're destined to die. There is only one antidote and that antidote is Jesus.
I can't live my life "better" than anyone else in this world; I'm infected too. The only hope I have is in Jesus. Only He can cleanse me of my sin. It is only through walking in the Spirit that I can love others the way they ought to be loved. I can't do this on my own.
The question that's presented to me now is how do I practically and truly love people? Love in the way that I'm not condoning sin but not being condemning and judgmental as well? What does that look like in this day and age?
*****
Another thought I had during class is how utterly hopeless this world is. Everyone and everything is twisted and mangled, broken and bruised whether we're Christian or non-Christian. We're so frickin' screwed up. The world is a dark dark place.
Son of sorrow staring down forever with an aching view.
God, I feel so much pain when I think of all the hurt in this world. How much more heartache You must feel. How is it that You love us so much that You would put all of this onto Yourself on the cross?
(Can you tell that I'm feeling a bit emo right now? :p)
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