A man on the phone:
"Hello, Am I speaking with the Intelligence service?"
On the other end the answer:
"h'm?"
I was thinking how to begin this blog entry for the end of the year. I thought about writing a good story about the ministry, or tell you how many hours I worked in different areas of my life and ministry. Then I thought: well, It'd better be real.
You maybe thinking: "what about the joke?" I've been feeling lately that in many ways my answers to life issues have been pretty much "H'm?" I have felt many times this past year that I fell short to face life as it was coming to me.
So let me share with you some of the things I've learned. Some I've already wrote about, but others are a "premiere" So here it goes:
Learning "grace" involves loving someone you find difficult to love
I'm learning (3 steps forward, 2 backwards) this regarding my mom. Some of you know about it, some don't. It is a long story and I don't want to bore you with it. It is enough to say that God brought my mom into my life (in a manner that I can't run away) to learn how to practice grace. This and past years I've learned how to be kind, how to hug her, tell her that I love her (pure obedience at times) and care about her in many ways. I just called her to see how she is doing and tell her that I'm going to pick up her for Christmas. I've learned that many times I have room in my heart for the whole world, but not for her. What a contradiction! So God loves me so much in Christ that He is making me more coherent. It is not easy though, so if you feel like it pray for me and her. Thanks!
Doing much is not necessary the same as doing God's will
I've heard somewhere: "doing, many times is a mask for our anxiety" I realize that people around me crave for peace. They'd pay whatever the cost for quietness, tranquility and rest. However I was not a good example of this, in fact I have some non believers friends that look like more peaceful than I am. I've learned this past year that the reason of why I'm so driven is because of my anxieties. Anxieties of many things, but mainly they spring up from relaying on my own strengths and not God's. Doing a lot gives me a sense of being in control. Now I'm trying to focus on what's important from God's perspective. Some of these things do not carry a huge price as seen from the world's perspective, they are very little.
Things like helping a guy who is so confused about God and his own life that many overlooked him. Loving him as he is and praying that he would believe that Jesus likes him as he is, may be not a huge task and yet it was what Jesus and other people did for me. Teaching my son how to have his quiet time. Listen how he reads slowly the Bible and ponder about simple things that he comes up with. These things will not appear anywhere in the news or mission magazines, yet good in the world is done by ordinary people doing extraordinary things.
Sharing the Gospel with my friends at the university, always thinking that I should be doing more, speaking more, "defending God more" and realize that it is God's work through me that will make a difference in their lives and not only my words. I'm learning and it doesn't come easy.
"It is better to light a candle than to complain about darkness" Mother Theresa
This phrase impacted me some time ago. I realized that so many times I complain about darkness around me but I do not light any candle. So in practice what I'm trying to do is to see the other side of things and light a candle of hope, compassion, mercy, love, generosity, time, work, patience, kindness, purity, empathy, understanding, etc. In every work I have to turn in for classes always try to make readers think about God. It is a little thing and yet God always has given me opportunities to go deeper with professors and classmates.
Max is a guy who decided not continue to study due many issues in his life. I asked him to drink some coffee with me. He talked and talked for almost 2 hours. I tried to understand what he was saying. I did some but not 100%. When we were about to say good bye, I asked him: "can I pray for you" he said "yes please" When I opened my eyes he was crying like a baby. I can't relate 100% with what is going on in his life and yet God touched his heart in some special way in spite of me.
I'm learning that I do not need a 1.000.000 candle power to shine, a little candle shines in the darkness and creates light around it.
Learning to write a new book, not new chapter.
I know that for some of you this may sound very simple and it is for those who have learned these things from childhood. People with godly parents (I envy you, sorry) are blessed enormously. Once the only thing I could see was darkness in my life history. Now I see that I can write a new book with my family. I have the possibility to be a godly parent and husband. I can't say I've done a excellent job in this. I'm learning and in some things, life things I'm slow to learn.
I'm rich; my family is a blessing, I have friends that care about me and I have you there praying, supporting, writing, calling. I'm learning that when I expect too much of this world I tend to forget that I'm already rich.
Well I've told you what I'm learning, what about you? Would you share with me some of the thing that our Lord and only Saviour is helping you to learn? It would be a nice Christmas present if you drop a comment or email telling me what things you are learning. You do not need to write much.
If you want to see the family please watch to photo book you find in this page. Thanks!
Merry Christmas to all and a happy new year - May God's face shine upon you!
The Bonandini Family
"Hello, Am I speaking with the Intelligence service?"
On the other end the answer:
"h'm?"
I was thinking how to begin this blog entry for the end of the year. I thought about writing a good story about the ministry, or tell you how many hours I worked in different areas of my life and ministry. Then I thought: well, It'd better be real.
You maybe thinking: "what about the joke?" I've been feeling lately that in many ways my answers to life issues have been pretty much "H'm?" I have felt many times this past year that I fell short to face life as it was coming to me.
So let me share with you some of the things I've learned. Some I've already wrote about, but others are a "premiere" So here it goes:
Learning "grace" involves loving someone you find difficult to love
I'm learning (3 steps forward, 2 backwards) this regarding my mom. Some of you know about it, some don't. It is a long story and I don't want to bore you with it. It is enough to say that God brought my mom into my life (in a manner that I can't run away) to learn how to practice grace. This and past years I've learned how to be kind, how to hug her, tell her that I love her (pure obedience at times) and care about her in many ways. I just called her to see how she is doing and tell her that I'm going to pick up her for Christmas. I've learned that many times I have room in my heart for the whole world, but not for her. What a contradiction! So God loves me so much in Christ that He is making me more coherent. It is not easy though, so if you feel like it pray for me and her. Thanks!
Doing much is not necessary the same as doing God's will
I've heard somewhere: "doing, many times is a mask for our anxiety" I realize that people around me crave for peace. They'd pay whatever the cost for quietness, tranquility and rest. However I was not a good example of this, in fact I have some non believers friends that look like more peaceful than I am. I've learned this past year that the reason of why I'm so driven is because of my anxieties. Anxieties of many things, but mainly they spring up from relaying on my own strengths and not God's. Doing a lot gives me a sense of being in control. Now I'm trying to focus on what's important from God's perspective. Some of these things do not carry a huge price as seen from the world's perspective, they are very little.
Things like helping a guy who is so confused about God and his own life that many overlooked him. Loving him as he is and praying that he would believe that Jesus likes him as he is, may be not a huge task and yet it was what Jesus and other people did for me. Teaching my son how to have his quiet time. Listen how he reads slowly the Bible and ponder about simple things that he comes up with. These things will not appear anywhere in the news or mission magazines, yet good in the world is done by ordinary people doing extraordinary things.
Sharing the Gospel with my friends at the university, always thinking that I should be doing more, speaking more, "defending God more" and realize that it is God's work through me that will make a difference in their lives and not only my words. I'm learning and it doesn't come easy.
"It is better to light a candle than to complain about darkness" Mother Theresa
This phrase impacted me some time ago. I realized that so many times I complain about darkness around me but I do not light any candle. So in practice what I'm trying to do is to see the other side of things and light a candle of hope, compassion, mercy, love, generosity, time, work, patience, kindness, purity, empathy, understanding, etc. In every work I have to turn in for classes always try to make readers think about God. It is a little thing and yet God always has given me opportunities to go deeper with professors and classmates.
Max is a guy who decided not continue to study due many issues in his life. I asked him to drink some coffee with me. He talked and talked for almost 2 hours. I tried to understand what he was saying. I did some but not 100%. When we were about to say good bye, I asked him: "can I pray for you" he said "yes please" When I opened my eyes he was crying like a baby. I can't relate 100% with what is going on in his life and yet God touched his heart in some special way in spite of me.
I'm learning that I do not need a 1.000.000 candle power to shine, a little candle shines in the darkness and creates light around it.
Learning to write a new book, not new chapter.
I know that for some of you this may sound very simple and it is for those who have learned these things from childhood. People with godly parents (I envy you, sorry) are blessed enormously. Once the only thing I could see was darkness in my life history. Now I see that I can write a new book with my family. I have the possibility to be a godly parent and husband. I can't say I've done a excellent job in this. I'm learning and in some things, life things I'm slow to learn.
I'm rich; my family is a blessing, I have friends that care about me and I have you there praying, supporting, writing, calling. I'm learning that when I expect too much of this world I tend to forget that I'm already rich.
Well I've told you what I'm learning, what about you? Would you share with me some of the thing that our Lord and only Saviour is helping you to learn? It would be a nice Christmas present if you drop a comment or email telling me what things you are learning. You do not need to write much.
If you want to see the family please watch to photo book you find in this page. Thanks!
Merry Christmas to all and a happy new year - May God's face shine upon you!
The Bonandini Family
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