Henriet's Blog

Remember Well

Did I really spend time remembering on Memorial Day? I prayed briefly for the troops and their families but spent more of the day relaxing, caring for my mom's plants, visiting a friend and reading. We barbecued at night. I suspect most people spent time on leisure, friends, family and fun.

Who takes time to remember, really? Today's culture values the new, the now and the next. Even the most tragic news is old news in a few days. Young people seem to think that history is boring and of low value.

So, why remember? God tells His people "be careful that you do not forget the Lord" (Deut. 6:12); Jesus tells his disciples to practice celebrating a meal in remembrance of Him (1 Cor. 11:24). God tells us to remember so that we focus on that which brings us peace and joy. What's worth remembering?--God, His goodness, Jesus' life and teachings, and people. What's not worth remembering?--according to God, our sins (once they're forgiven).

Let's remember the Lord, remember to love, remember to live, remember to give, remember to serve.

What do you value remembering?

Why Memorial Day Matters To Me

Even though I was born in The Netherlands, Memorial Day is very important to me. I remember visiting the American cemetery in Normandy, France in 1978.

Over 9,000 American soldiers lie buried there. The sight of the rows and rows of crosses overwhelmed me. These young men died in a foreign land to free people they never met. In fact, I have the life I live today because of their sacrifice. If Germany had won, Dutch people would have been shipped to Poland. I might have never been born or I might not have had the opportunities I have now.

A few years ago, my family visited Punch Bowl cemetery on Oahu. When I see military graves I'm overcome by emotion. Because these men sacrificed their lives, I am free.

This Memorial Day, remember the military men who have died in our nation's service, on the day originally called Decoration Day.

"Memorial Day is about reconciliation; it is about coming together to honor those who gave their all."

Why Pray?

Have you wondered what the value add is for praying? Consider these words:

Are you hurting? Pray. Do you feel great? Sing. Are you sick? Call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the Master. Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet. And if you've sinned, you'll be forgiven--healed inside and out. Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with.

A quote from the book of James, chapter 5: 13-16 taken from The Message written by Eugene Peterson.

Pray and Believe

At the age of 10, I believed that God could fix my camera.  I prayed and believed; God responded. I think that God allowed the gimmickry of shake and tap two times because He was meeting me where I was. That's who God is, he meets us as we are, where we are.

Could it have been coincidence? Maybe...if coincidence exists. To me the word coincidence describes the God-moments and miracles I choose not to embrace. If it's coincidence then I don't have to deal with the fact that there may be a real God who wants to relate to me as a real person. Allowing for coincidence creates the abstract and indifference--it just happened. Without coincidence it becomes answered prayer--God fixed my camera.

According to the book of Hebrews in the Bible, "faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see" (Hebrews 11:1, New International Version-NIV).

Abraham believed. "He didn't tiptoe around God's promise asking cautiously skeptical questions. He plunged into the promise and came up strong, ready for God, sure that God  would make good on what he had said" (Romans 4:20, 21 from The Message). 

Count me with Abraham. I want to believe. I know God is big enough. I want to be like Abraham, "being fully persuaded that God has the power to do what he has promised" (Romans 4:21, NIV).

Tapping Faith

What did you do when you were 10 and something was broken?

I remember bicycling home from school one day when I was about 10 years old. (In Holland, kids bike to and from school;  there are no school buses.)

As I biked back home I had my camera with me. We lived along a windy river road. It was a sunny day in spring, the flowers were blooming and the farm animals and birds had babies. Mother ducks swam followed by a line of fuzzy ducklings. I stopped to take a picture of this Spring scene only to discover that my camera did not work.

Worried that I would be in trouble, I tried everything I could figure out to fix my camera to no avail. My mother probably told me not to bring it or at least not to break it. Now the camera appeared to be broken. My attempts to get it to work--both through legitimate investigation and irrational attempts such as hitting the camera--did not help.

My choices seemed few, either tell my mother that the camera was broken or pray. Easy choice. I prayed. I prayed very specifically, "Dear God, please fix my camera. After I shake it and hit it twice on the side let it work again. Amen." Then I shook it and hit it twice on the side. Guess what? The camera worked again. At 10-years old I had faith and God answered prayer. I was saved by a prayer...

Friday Quotes On Respect

Respect a man, he will do the more.
                          James Howell

Respect yourself and others will respect you.

                                 Confucius, Chinese philosopher (551-479 BC)

 

If you want to be respected, you must respect yourself.                Spanish Proverb

Add your own quote on respect...

Giving Respect

Students thrive--or at least are given the opportunity to do so--when a teacher, parent or mentor believes in them and respects them. Dr. Logothetti gave respect and brought out the potential in his students. I'm sure that I wasn't the only one who benefited from his teaching and his care, but he made me feel like I was special.

Respect for learners is a principle in adult education. It's a concept that I've experienced multiple times, including in Dr. Logothetti's classes (read more about Dave Logothetti) and currently as a student in the MAGL program through Fuller Seminary. I think that respect for learners benefits learners of all ages, not just adults. I was on a state field trip last week with ten 8th graders and they responded eagerly and positively to this concept as well. When given respect the students received it and blossomed. They also returned the respect. (I also saw the opposite on the trip--lack of respect--to which the five boys and five girls reacted with rebellion.)

Showing respect seems to be a character quality that gives life to another person and benefits the giver as well. How have you seen respect modeled in your life? Has it made a difference? Is it a character quality that you are nurturing?

A Character of Character

Dave Logothetti loved to teach and he loved his students. Don't get me wrong, he was no push over or softy and he definitely knew his stuff. Though these qualities were important but for me Dave Logothetti the person transformed my learning.

Thanks to Dr. Logothetti I graduated from Santa Clara University  with a bachelor's degree in marketing from the school of business.

This is the building that housed his office.

What did Logothetti teach? You might think he specialized in marketing or business, after all I credit him with my graduation with a B.S. in marketing. Not so. He taught Math!

I needed to take remedial math in college due to mishaps in secondary school in Holland. SCU required that I take Algebra and Logothetti taught it. He recognized in me the "different" person that I was and honored it. He made me feel understood, appreciated and capable. I think I got a B in Algebra. Then I took Calculus I from him and got another B. Next I needed to take Calc II to graduate. There was one problem: Logothetti never taught Calc II. I asked him how I was going to graduate if he did not teach this class. (I had tried another prof. and had to drop the class). He said, "take Trigonometry, it will meet the requirement and you can do it." If you teach it I will try. My grade in Trig was a C but I passed.

Dave and I became friends and had lunch about once a month. We exchanged Christmas cards--his were all hand drawn cartoons. Once he gave me a book he wrote. Sadly, in 1991 he died of cancer and I had not sees him the last few years of his life. I still greatly regret not making time to see him.

Dave would teach math using humor and his cartoons. For one concept he taught he drew a phlegmatic young pup on the black board. This was to illustrate a line, a slope up because he drew a "slow pup." I still remember and it's been 25 years.

Thanks Dave for believing in me!

More about Dr. Logothetti: Professor David Eugene Logothetti. Born 29^th December 1934. Mathematician, Lecturer at Santa Clara University. Santa Clara established a teaching award in his honor as did the California Mathematics Council. Dave Logothetti was also a published author. One of the books he co-wrote is still being used to teach kids math.

Friday Quote

In light of this week's posts on serving Tent City, this quote struck me:

"Only a life lived for others is worth living." - Albert Einstein

Was Einstein right?

How Does It Fit?

Monday's story of Tent City and my reluctance to go made me think about my motivations. Am I concerned about the homeless? Of course. Do I want to help? Absolutely. So, what holds me back?

For me there are several aspects. Part of my hesitancy comes from not knowing what to do, who to call or how to go about "it." I find that I can get stumped by the "how" quite quickly. Not knowing what to do is not sufficient explanation--I'm smart and could figure it out.

The other aspect relates to my natural bent or wiring. I love helping people but prefer to serve by listening to someone as they pour out their heart, or helping someone find a solution to a dilemma, or having teenage boys over and loving them with a home cooked meal.

Is that less valuable? Does everyone have to help in the same way? Is serving missionally limited to serving the homeless or feeding the poor?