Road to Tibet

I have been fascinated with Tibet since the late 80’s.


With Tibet in the news these days I have been reminded of the first time I heard about it. When I lived in Southern California I met a man who had lived in Lhasa, Tibet for four years, teaching English in a Chinese factory as a mission assignment. He has stopping off at his mission organization's headquarters in Southern California on his way home to Georgia.


His name was Saint Paul. That is his given name. I asked to see his driver’s license to be sure. He was a black man with a Southern accent from the state of Georgia in the United States, and he stood out in the country of Tibet. I had the opportunity to spend several days with him and heard of an incredible, nearly treeless land, of high mountains, cold winds, and lost people. This was the first time I had ever heard about Tibet. He told how, at that time, there was only one stop light in the entire country, which wasn’t a problem because in Lhasa most people rode bicycles.


Saint Paul also had heard first-hand reports of what had happened in the 50’s. Thousands of men, women and children were massacred in the streets and many more imprisoned, deported, and left the country in fear for their lives. Monks and nuns were a prime target. Monasteries and temples were shelled and destroyed.


One day we met for lunch and Saint Paul brought photos with him of Tibet. I couldn’t believe what I was looking at. It was like nothing I had ever seen. One photo stood out more than any of the others. It was a group of seven people huddled sitting on the floor of a small room around a low table, all dressed in heavy clothing because of the cold. When I asked Saint Paul what this was a shot of, he told me it was a photo of all the known Christians in the entire country of Tibet. I was speechless, and to this day that photo is burned into my memory. It showed seven people counting Saint Paul, two of whom were from other countries; only four were Tibetans. Four!


The photo of this group of four has come to my mind so many times over the years. I often wonder what happened to those brothers and sisters in Christ.


In light of the current focus on Tibet, I encourage you to consider the following:
• Learn for yourself what happened in the 50’s and what has taken place in Tibet since that time. The internet is a marvelous tool. Form your own opinion.
• Pray for the Christians that are living in Tibet now.
• Pray also for the safety of all Tibetans in Tibet and around the word.

A Call For Stories

A call for stories about local women or girls in foreign countries

I have been given the go ahead to write a devotional with an international flair for women 20-35 years of age entitled, “Passport Into Today.” Each day will feature a story about a local woman or girl living in a foreign country. There will also be country facts included with each day and a scripture to encourage and bless the reader.

Would you be interested in submitting a story? Your story needs to be 250-350 words in length. This page has 249 words. So the stories do not need to be long or take a lot of time to put together. In fact do you have a story you have used in a newsletter already that you could pass along? Is there a story about a local woman on your website or in print somewhere you can send? You would receive the credit for the story and your organization's web site can be listed. I also want to list the mission organizations in the back of the book with contact information. My hope is to promote a missions worldview with this book. For restricted access countries it is understood that names and perhaps locations will need to be changed.

If you are interested, please contact me at: blessingmeadow@sbcglobal.net and send your submission as a Word document. Also, if you know of someone you think might be interested in participating, please send this email on to them. Thank you.

Forest Dance

Mount Hermon writing assignment:

The arms of the trees reach out to effortlessly draw me to dance, while the constant reverbration of a waterfall hums the background music. But my way is impeded by the dead leaves, the broken branches.

I’m reminded how decay is all around us and in us. The beauty of today’s forest is built on the decay of fallen friends -- some cut down by circumstances too early in their prime, and others lying down after years of faithful endurance.

We only have this moment to perform our dance and we need to avoid stumbling or being hindered by our broken parts. Our beauty, like this forest, is made up of all its parts dancing together.

Path to Love

“You can’t play with us!” Sally* stated emphatically and included a very angry look. Sally is a four-year-old barking at another four-year-old girl on the playground at preschool. This interchange had been brewing all morning. Sally wanted to be the new girl’s only friend and had been verbally working the group to make sure they understood her position. Sally’s angry outburst had caught the attention of her teacher and discussions ensued in which the teacher was now doing the talking and Sally was listening.

Why did I start a February Valentine message with this story? Well, the verse the children are learning for the month of February is, “Love one another.” (John 13:34 ) and each week the Bible stories, songs, and workbooks have focused on ways to share love with others in word and deed. The scene seemed strange positioned alongside what the children, including Sally, had been learning.

As I witnessed the morning’s drama I was amazed at how easy it is, not only for Sally but for all of us, to fall into one of the roles in this kind of act. My thoughts went to the other players in the scene. Maybe the following passages might clear up what came to my mind.
Matthew 5:43, 44, 46
You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
And Luke 6:27, 32, 35
But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.

While Sally is an important character in this drama there are others; the new girl, Jordan*, the girl at which the finally verbal attack was addressed, Heather*, and the teacher. My attention was drawn to Heather, who took the main blast from Sally. What would be her reaction to being attacked for just wanting to play with Jordan and Sally? Heather first stopped in her tracks with a look of disbelief and then turned silently to walk away. But within minutes she was playing with someone else and when I caught up with her in another ten minutes or so she was happily playing with Sally and Jordan.

I’m not calling Sally evil, but in light of these passages she is the enemy, the one who curses and was spitefully. The Word is clear that Heather’s reaction was a favorable one in light of being attacked. For as Luke 6: 27 says, “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? . . . even sinners love those who love them.”

Here is my assignment for you on this Valentine’s Day: do you have a Sally in your life? God wants you to express love to them. Luke 6:35 says “do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.”

Starting on this 2008 Valentine’s Day let’s strive to live out the second greatest commandment, “To love our neighbor as our self.” That means all our neighbors, even the ones that have been unkind to us. Did someone come to mind? That’s the one you need to love.

*Not their real name