心情动荡的一周。看到某种令人绝望的暗黑循环像脱轨的列车在身边无情上演, 令隧道尽头的光也忽然变得无比暗淡。这些年问过很多很多为什么,可是好像都没有收到让自己停止再问的答案。曾经以为快乐是在阳光下放声的笑,后来才发现,其实,真正的强大,是雨季里晴朗的心,是,你心中有那所有问题的答案,它成为你无论在任何境况下的满足和盼望,成为你不被任何困难打倒的无穷无尽的力量。
God’s Answer to Our Why Questions is ‘Who.’
神给我们所有的“为什么”的答案是他自己
By Allison Bown
It’s that moment on your journey with God where nothing makes sense, but Jesus looks at you and smiles.It’s staring at the gap between the logical and the inexplicable and knowing you’re safer stepping into thin air than staying reasonably put. 我们每个人的生命中或许都经历过这样的时刻,就是似乎生命里每一件事都在无可理喻的脱轨运行。但你可知道也正是在这样的时刻,耶稣他在微笑着看着我们。在那些时刻,我们凝视着恒亘在我们理性的逻辑思维和无法解释的人生际遇之间的那个鸿沟,却深深的知道看似如履薄冰的勇敢冒险,其实远胜过中规中矩的踌躇不前。
Why should we move forward? Where does the wisdom and the courage come from to do so? It comes when we understand that…God’s only answer to our “why” question is “who.” 我们何以可以勇敢的冒险向前?促使我们这样做的智慧和勇气从何而来?我们的智慧和勇气来自,我们从心底明白,神给我们所有“为什么”的答案,是他自己。
Matthew 4 says of Peter and Andrew: “Then He said to them, ‘Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.’ They immediately left their nets and followed Him.” WHY would they do that? There’s no “how” or “where” in this! And being “fishers of men” isn’t exactly a logical answer to “what.”Those early disciples responded to who Jesus was, not the details of His plan. They responded to His true nature, though they had yet to begin to understand it. 马太福音4章提到耶稣呼召两个门徒彼得和安德烈的时候,描述说”耶稣对他们说:来跟从我,我要叫你们得人如得鱼一样。他们就立刻舍了网,跟从了他。“ 他们为什么会那么做呢?经文中完全没有提到说让他们如何以及在哪里得人如得鱼。而且,得人如得鱼,并不是一个可以回答“为什么”的逻辑上契合的答案。我们可以看到,早期教会的门徒们回应的是耶稣是谁这样一个事实,而不是他具体的某一个计划。他们回应的是耶稣的本性,虽然他们才刚刚开始有一些了解。
In the same way, our first question must always be “why.” Why are we doing this? The answer that never changes is: because of Who God has been to us and who He has always seen us to be in Christ. Why are we contemplating a risk, a ministry or new adventure? If it’s not for who God has been to us and our trust in His unchanging love towards us, the “how,” “what” and “where” won’t hold us when the unexpected comes. 相似的,我们在刚刚提到的情境中常常问的第一个问题,也是,“为什么”。为什么我们要这么做?这个问题从未改变的答案是,因为神一直以来和我们的关系以及他看到我们在基督里的样子。为何我们要承担一些风险,事工或是踏上一项新的旅程?若非因为神一直以来对我们信实的带领以及我们对他永不更改的爱的无条件相信,当意想不到的困难来临的时候,那些所谓的“怎么做”,“”做什么“。“在哪里做”是无法让我们坚持下去的。
Faith and trust are based in “who.” They are the natural outcomes of knowing in whom we have believed and confidence that He is able to keep us. Pressing situations are not necessarily adversity or attack, but often opportunities to place “who” above all else. 我们的信心和信靠来自于神。它们是知道我们所信的是怎样一位神以及有信心这位神能持守我们的自然而然的结果。让人感到受压迫的环境并不总是逆境或是纯粹的攻击,反而常常是帮助我们把神放在高过一切的位置的契机。
The God who has been endlessly merciful, outrageously kind, fiercely loving… that’s who we’re responding to when we step forward into the unknown.4 From that place, we value what God values. We love what He loves. We honor what He honors. We follow Him because of who He is to us and who we are to Him. 那位有着无尽怜悯,无穷的恩慈以及无比炽热的爱着我们的神,正是我们踏入未知时候所响应的那一位。当我们可以放手把自己放进神呼召我们进入的地方,我们就能看重神所看重的,爱他所爱的,尊荣他所尊荣的。我们跟从他是因为他是我们的神而我们是他的儿女。
And if the path becomes complex or the way unclear, and we wonder why we ever started this journey in the first place, we go back to the “who.” 这样,当道路变得复杂或是模糊不清,而我们怀疑我们为什么要开始这样的旅程的时候,我们就回到神是怎样一位神这个根本的问题。
Who does God want to be for me here that He couldn’t be at any other time?在当下这个特定的情境下,神想让我获得哪些方面的成长?是我无法在其他的环境下获得的?
Who am I becoming in Christ because of this experience? 因着这些成长,我身心在基督里又有了什么样的蜕变?
From that place, no matter what challenges or losses occur – we will always gain knowing more of who Jesus really, really is. 当我们扎根在这个前提上,无论遇到怎样的挑战和失败,我们都因而更多,更多认识耶稣,我们的救主真正的模样。
译自酷哥牧师http://brilliantperspectives.com/gods-answer-questions/
材料:
可丽饼:中筋面粉1杯(cup),玉米淀粉两杯,牛奶两杯,抹茶粉15g, 糖粉60g,细砂糖20g,黄油60g
乳酪夹层:重动物性淡奶油(heavy whipping cream)一盒 (473ml),酸奶一盒 (150g),奶油奶酪一盒 (227g),大草莓三只
做法: 1.粉类过筛,和牛奶混匀,倒入加热融化后的黄油,打入六个鸡蛋,用打蛋器稍微打匀,呈现流水态的糊糊
2. 糊糊过一遍筛去掉大颗粒,放入冰箱冷藏一小时
3. 平底锅刷一层油,倒入两大勺面糊,全程小火煎至表面凝固后翻面,继续煎2到三分钟。前面两个饼没把握好厚度,最后只煎了10层饼皮
4. 煎好的可丽饼冷却后,扣上一个碗,把多余的边边都裁剪掉
5. 动物性淡奶油用打蛋器打发,加入室温软化的奶油奶酪,酸奶和糖,打匀
6. 草莓洗净切丁,和打发好的奶酪糊混匀即可
7.一层可丽饼铺底,抹上一层奶酪糊,用抹刀涂匀,再摞上一层可丽饼,再一层奶酪,直到用完所有的饼
8. 最后一层可丽饼表面用筛子筛一层抹茶粉,就完工啦 (蛋糕有点点矮,想做高一点的可以把材料加倍,当然,时间也会加倍~)
9.切蛋糕小贴士:刀在开水里面烫热再切,可以利用热度把蛋糕切得没有毛边碎屑,切芝士蛋糕效果更显著!
这一阵子,我们好像在过雨季,每天都淅淅沥沥。不过我一直抱着自己晴朗的心。。。
祝你也夏日快乐!