Double rainbow

To be honest, I wrote this post (see below) on Sunday night, and I was just going to leave it as a draft. But clearly God had other plans because my dear friend, Livie, sent me this picture last night. 

It is 7:25 pm. The girls have been in bed for over 30 minutes. I thought it was surely 10:30 pm.  

Matt always kind of dreaded the newborn phase because of the lack of sleep and exhaustion that inevitably accompany the first week or year with baby. Yet, the exhaustion of grief reaches even further into your soul. There is no surge of adrenaline or joy to lift you momentarily from the fog of sleepy sleeplessness. No tiny smiles or cuddles or smells of newborn freshness. It is empty and hollow and physically painful. But it is NOT hopeless. And then it is the other little things that you hold on to -- your 5 year old willingly holding your hand; your 6 year old, petrified of new things, choosing to try hot lunch; your friends and family unable to stay home because they love you so much. 

And yet, it doesn't stop the tears when your daughters are writing notes to their deceased sister -- it is just so wrong.  But there is so, so, so much wrong with the world. Why are there 230,000 parents whose hearts were broken this week by violence, destruction, tragedy, and death? I can give a theologically correct answer. I can recall the story of Job and think about how much worse off he was, and while that might help my head, it doesn't heal my heart. 

I clearly need a God who is bigger and greater and stronger and more powerful than death to come busting in with some healing power. That's it. I can see it faintly through the tears. I can see power and strength and greatness faintly, like the colors of a double rainbow, visible but faint. The brightness of that first rainbow is striking and powerful but the lines of the second - they take your breath away. That's the God that will make himself known no matter how bad things get here. So I'm looking for the double rainbow. 

Let me walk upon the waters

My week of Bible Study culminated in tears during our morning church service as my husband led the congregation in an acapella singing.

Children of the heav’nly Father
Safely in His bosom gather;
Nestling bird nor star in Heaven
Such a refuge e’er was given. 

God His own doth tend and nourish;
In His holy courts they flourish;
From all evil things He spares them;
In His mighty arms He bears them.

But it wasn't the singing or even the words of this hymn that struck me.  It was God's presence in every part of my life.  As I read, "Who among the gods is like you, Lord? Who is like you -- majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders?" (Exodus 15:11) in Wonderstruck, which was also the Bible memory verse that I led in worship this summer.   Margaret Feinberg, author of Wonderstruck, continuously challenges me to think about why I don't see the wonder of God or take bigger risks.  We often focus on the fact that when Peter got out of the boat and was walking toward Jesus ON THE WATER, he began to sink and had to cry out for help.  I am struck by two parts of the story that we often miss.  Peter got OUT of the boat.  None of the other disciples took that risk.  I'm pretty sure I would have been clinging to the mast in the middle of the boat.  And second, when he did start to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me!" (Matthew 14:23-33)  How many times have I been sinking and I don't ask our wonderful, awesome Lord to save me?
About a month ago my daughter broke her arm falling from the monkey bars at the school ice cream social just days before she was to start kindergarten.  This is the daughter who seeks no attention, preferring to blend in by being completely independent.  Now, not only did she have a huge cast on her arm, she couldn't even go to the bathroom by herself.  As you can imagine, the first few weeks of school were filled with tears and my heart wrung in agony she struggled through each day dreading the next.  She struggled to ask for help with everything.  We had to intercede asking her teacher to help with the restroom, shoes and coat - all thing she could easily do herself before she broker her arm.  And then I realized, she doesn't know how to ask for help because I have been a poor model of this myself.  My pride prevents me from seeking help.  How many blessings, how many wonders do we miss each day because of this.
Help can come in many forms as I was reminded by a story in Love Does, by Bob Goff.  When Bob was in high school he decided he was going to drop out and move to the mountains.  He stopped by the house of his Young Life leader on his way out of town.  After running inside, his leader came back with a sleeping bag and back pack and said, "Bob, I'm going with you."  Sometimes that's all we need, sometimes that's all we can do.  That is one of God's promises to us - I will go with you wherever you go - and so isn't that a powerful way to show God to someone.
Which brought me full circle as we closed our service with Oceans (Where Feet May Fail).   My prayer today,

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior

YOGA, NOGA

My first practical application of a Biblical insight gleaned from our lessons in Greece came this weekend. A thoughtful young lady approached me about a situation involving yoga. I'll be honest, I did kid's yoga with the girls for several months, always turning off the video before they got to the "Namaste" portion, until my husband cited his uneasiness with the practice. "It's just stretching and strengthening," I thought, but, I complied.
So, I suggested that my friend look for a short article that would address Christians practicing yoga. And since I suggested it, I thought I would do the same for myself. What is really out there? I checked the CRC's website, but only found that Synod 2013 did not think this topic relevant to form a study committee. I have to say after some research on the subject, I think Synod got it wrong.  I think an honest reformed response to Eastern mind/body practices is completely appropriate and needed. In researching this a bit I was convicted myself as I did not understand the extent of religious meaning that yoga involves.
One of the first articles I read was from the BBC World Service, Does doing yoga make you a Hindu? by William Kremer. It was helpful to approach it from a non-Christian worldview first to help me understand what the world is seeing when a Christian participates in yoga. Then, I muddied the waters with an October 25, 2010 article in Relevant Magazine by Doireann Fristoe, Is it Okay for Christians to do Yoga? Finally, I read, Christian Yoga? It's a Stretch, by Pastor Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Washington, an extensive article about yoga. Here is the summary though:

So, in conclusion, Christians must reject yoga, as defined here. I’d also go so far as to say you should reject the term “yoga,” as it is impossible to divorce it from its historical and spiritual context without much explanation and linguistic gymnastics. Instead, feel free in Christian liberty to stretch however you’d like, participate in exercise, calm your nerves through breathing, and even contemplate the Scriptures in silence. But do so in a way that does not identify with yoga and non-Christian mysticism. Do not seek to negate your mind, but rather renew your mind with the Word of God. Do not seek to empty yourself, but rather be filled with the Holy Spirit. Do not seek to turn into yourself for enlightenment, but rather look out to the God of the Bible. Do not seek to become one with the universe, but rather be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ.
Exercise is a gift of God for us to take care of the bodies that he created for his glory. It’s good and important to exercise. But we should never, in our desire to be in shape and be healthy, adopt systems antithetical to Christianity because they make us feel good or have bodily value. Rather, let’s first stay true to God and his Word and work out our bodies to his glory by his values handed down to us through Scripture.

And this is where Greece comes in. The yoga debate reminded me of a passage that we studied with Professor. Weima. First Corinthians 8-10 speaks about Christians eating food sacrificed to idols. In Weima's presentation, he cites David E Garland from his book on I Corinthians,

Occasions for eating in connection with an idol or on the premises of an idol's temple were numerous. The celebrations of many cults were closely bound up with civic and social life because religion and politics were indivisible in ancient Hellenistic city life. If Christians took part in civic life, they would have been expected to participate in a festival's sacrificial meals in some form or another.

Basically, Paul says to the Corinthian Christians, "No can do." A major bummer for Christians in this polytheist, secular society. This was a main form of socializing. We laugh about the number of churches in Holland, but the Greeks put us to shame. So you have to say to your boss, "Sorry, can't go to your kid's first birthday party because of my religion." Ouch. So maybe saying, "Sorry, I can't participate in yoga because of my faith," isn't so bad. And based on this passage, I would agree with Mark Driscoll; yoga can't be redeemed.

Almost home

We saw the sunrise in Athens...d.v. We will see the sunset in Michigan. We're on our last leg - the drive from Chicago to Allendale to Holland. Thanks for the prayers!

And the sunset in Michigan...

Pretty flowers; Pretty food

Prizes for those who can correctly identify  all of the above ;-)

Cape of Sournio

Poseidon's Temple

How I would love to swim in that water!  

Crete & Santorini

It is impossible to capture the amazing blue of the water of the Aegean Sea. 

Fishermen on Crete. 

A lovely, albeit stinky hike up to Santorini on the donkey path. 

From the top.