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posted by Donald on 02/26/10

To answer a question from the earlier post on this subject, yes we do have a straight-on photo of the painting teacher Tony did for me before I left Taiwan. Along with it came many more pieces of art from the churches and the school.

(By the way I have so much that the Taiwanese  students and teachers gave me that even now, months later, a new surprise is “unpacked” from time to time. This Tuesday I found an art pad  I had been given from another teacher at the King Car summer camps. It was just what I needed because I had used the last page on the previous pad last week.)

These pictures have all encouraged me to use my art skills to bring glory to the Creator and joy to others.

2 Comments » | posted in Art Work

posted by Donald on 02/24/10

First, define what a Christian nation is: Do you think of a Christian nation as a mere civilized culture? Do you think it might be where a majority of the people in that nation claim Christianity as their religion?

Second compare the present America to that definition. You might be surprised at what you find.

Visit http://www.wallbuilders.com/LIBissuesArticles.asp?id=23909

2 Comments » | posted in Family News

posted by Donald on 02/11/10

It’s clear that world history never really deviates from it’s focus on the Middle East.

“East”, as opposed to “the West”, refers to the Old World: Asia, Europe, Africa and Australia. China, Japan and the other countries of eastern Asia can be called the Orient or the Far East because they are the furthest east. Israel, Egypt and the Arab nations however form the middle of the eastern world and that is where we get the term Middle East. (As maybe you’ve guessed, there is no Western East!—except to say that Europe as a whole is generally referred to as western because of its culture and its languages.) Note also that the Middle East is not far from the middle of the Land Hemisphere, that half of the globe which encompasses the most land area.

While Britain, Canada and the United States have always displayed an interest in Israel it was news to me when I heard of the interest shown in the Orient. Here is an encouraging report on the interest in Israel that has been sparked in the Philippines. I’ve been blessed by many such reports from the Joshua Fund and I hope that you will enjoy it also. (By the way, it was this small but reputable nation, the cluster of islands called the Philippines, that cast the deciding vote for Israel’s statehood in 1948).

1 Comment » | posted in Historical Glimpses

posted by Donald on 02/4/10

No People can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible Hand, which conducts the Affairs of men more than the People of the United States. Every step, by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation, seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency. And in the important revolution just accomplished in the system of their United Government, the tranquil deliberations and voluntary consent of so many distinct communities, from which the event has resulted, cannot be compared with the means by which most Governments have been established …”

-George Washington, April 30, 1789

First Inaugural Address

for his Fellow Citizens of the Senate and the House of Representatives

(Second paragraph)

2 Comments » | posted in Historical Glimpses

posted by Donald on 01/28/10

Wall space is wonderful space. In Israel the Ten Commandments were placed on the doorposts, which, like walls, are conspicuous places that children and adults would both see often. I also remember the story of a widow whose husband and sons were all lost at sea. Even when her youngest son grew up, he too wanted to be a sailor. Trying to dissuade her resolute son she finally asked him what motivated him so strongly. He pointed to a picture on the wall that he and his brothers had beheld often: a picture of a beautiful ship at sea.

Here at home Dad and Mom have hung a lot of our pictures and this January picture-hanging was one of the first things we did when we had a free weekend. There was one picture however that was not of our own making.

On my next-to-last evening in Chaojhou, Taiwan, a Taiwanese teacher painted an original picture in the traditional Chinese style, titling it with his signature, stamp, the date, and my life verse, Matthew 6:26. From there I rolled it up and carried it on the train, through the rigor and heat of summer camps, and finally on the long trip home in August. Mom had been waiting to see it in it’s place on the wall ever since.

Using another scroll of tapestry material and an adhesive similar to Elmer’s glue, we found a way to hang it, completing the project last night. It is hanging up now. It is a tribute to the birds and plum tree blossoms in Taiwan and also to a friend who would not let me leave without a gift. Most importantly, it “pictures” the wondrous way God uses His Word, creation, and our common interests and skills as a daily reminder of His glory.

6 Comments » | posted in Family News