Day 24 #abide #居住 Wednesday December 21 ‘God’s invitation for us to abide in God as God abides in us is not an invitation to settle down and get comfortable. It is a call to mission, a summons to fruitfulness. We are meant to share the fruits of the divine life with others’. 上帝邀我們住在祂裡面，一如祂住在我們裡面；這邀約，並非要我們安頓自己，坐享清福，而是一種對外傳教，成果可期的召喚。我們蒙呼召，是要去與他人分享聖潔生活的豐碩果實。 Photo taken at the Juming Museum Continue reading Advent Word, Day 24 ‘abide’
Day 23 #prune #修剪 Tuesday December 20 ‘We prune to let go of growth, letting die what is alive but not growing in the best direction. We prune to let go of death, letting go what is dead but still taking up space. Pruning is a form of dying in order for the tree to more fully live and bear more fruit’. 為了樹木長得好，我們修枝剪葉，將那生長茂密，卻四處亂竄的枝椏砍下，拋棄。為了拋開死亡，我們進行修剪，將那已枯萎，卻還佔據空間的枝葉砍下，丟開。原來「修剪」本身也是一種死亡形式，目的是，教植物長得更美好，開花結果，越發豐盛。 Yes it’s a tree! At 華山1914文化創意產業園區 Huashan 1914 Creative Park in Taipei Continue reading Advent Word, Day 23 ‘prune’
Day 22 #simplify #簡單化 Monday December 19 ‘A simpler lifestyle can be a way to share with those who have less and a way of returning to them what is usurped by unjust social and economic structures. Assuming a stance of under-consumption can be a provocative invitation to others into a conversation about affluence, poverty and social justice’. 簡單的生活模式，可做為一種「分享」，與那些收入低、財產少的人分享；也可以當作「歸還」的方式，把不公平的社經結構所造成的「侵佔所得」歸還遭到剝削的族群。採取低消費的姿態，會是一種有力的邀約，激發他人談論攸關貧富以及社會正義的問題。 Beautiful Advent flowers at St. James’ Church, Taichung (台灣聖公會聖雅各堂) Continue reading Advent Word, Day 22 ‘simplify’
Day 21 #open #敞開 Sunday December 18, Fourth Sunday of Advent ‘When we open our hearts enough to truly love, our enemies can open up the possibility for our healing. It’s not just about treating our enemies a certain way; it’s about the fruits of relating to each other, to everyone, in the fullness of Christ’s love. When we practice loving fully, our great reward is being free from holding onto feelings like anger and hatred’. 當我們敞開心胸，懷抱真愛的時候，我們的敵人自然也會更加開放，使雙方關係的修復變為可能。這不僅表示該採取什麼方法對待敵人，更表明在基督全然的愛中，彼此若能真心相繫，會產生怎樣的結果。在操練「全然的愛」時，我們最大的獲益就是：從此免於憤怒或仇恨之類的有害情緒。 Meet Advent Church’s newest arrival, the gorgeous 6-week-old grandson of our rector, Rev. Lennon Y. R. Chang 張員榮牧師. Baby attended his first Sunday service … Continue reading Advent Word, Day 21 ‘open’
Day 20 #embrace #擁抱 Saturday December 17 ‘We are a manifestation of Christ in the world. Our mission is not to bring Christ to people, but to help people come to know and embrace Christ already present’. 在這世界上，我們是一群彰顯基督的人。我們的使命，並非把基督帶到世人面前，而是幫助世人來認識和擁抱這位早已降臨人間的基督。 Embrace Christmas Taiwan-Style! Kudos to the post office ‘台北航南郵居’ (address 臺北市中正區杭州南路1段23號之3) in central Taipei, very near the diocesan office, for the wonderful decorations on their 2 post boxes. This is the other side, all so beautiful! Continue reading Advent Word, Day 20 ’embrace’
Day 19 #awaken #醒悟 Friday December 16 ‘Jesus calls us to live into the fullness of our humanity, to embrace what we, in our brokenness, experience as physical, psychic, or spiritual limitations. Jesus urges that, rather than seeking to be cured of our limitations, we ask God to heal us in them, and waken us to the spiritual gifts hidden in them’. 耶穌呼召我們活出人性的光輝，即使在破碎之中，也要珍惜經驗，領悟身、心、靈的極限。耶穌囑咐我們，與其力求擺脫各樣的限制，不如在遭受束縛時，祈求上主垂憐醫治，並喚醒我們，好讓我們看見那隱藏於困境中的「屬靈的恩賜」。 Winter 冬天 wall-art, part of the Four Seasons Artwork at Daan Forest Park MRT Station, Taipei Continue reading Advent Word, Day 19 ‘awaken’
Day 18 #trust #信任 Thursday December 15 ‘God’s love, like any love, involves real trust. And in relationships, trust requires mutuality. Sometimes it may require a part of myself that I don’t necessarily want others to see. This same vulnerability, intimacy, and mutuality should characterize our love for and trust in God’. 上帝的愛，如同一切的愛，是真實的信任。在人際關係中，信任需要雙方彼此依存。有時，卻也需要一些自己並不希望別人看見的部分。我們愛主（信任上帝），就常具有如此一般的脆弱性、親密性、相互性。 Big thank you to my good friend, ‘Superbaby’ at Advent Church for letting me take his photo! Continue reading Advent Word, Day 18 ‘trust’
Day 17 #surprise #驚訝 Wednesday December 14 ‘God comes to us as a vulnerable human baby to an unlikely couple in an obscure place. And in doing so turns the world upside down. Jesus says: Stick with me even if I am different, confusing, or surprising. I have come, and I am coming to you today with love! Look for me. Listen. I am coming in an unexpected way’. 神降臨世間，以柔弱之身生於幽暗角落，做卑微人家的嬰孩。這世界因此得以全然翻轉。耶穌說：緊跟著我吧！即使我和他人不同，即使我令人困惑、又讓人驚訝。我已降臨；懷著滿滿的愛，我來到你這裡。注意，我來的方式完全出人意外。 A big surprise in Taichung at Stock20 台中20號倉庫! Continue reading Advent Word, Day 17 ‘surprise’
Day 16 #mend #修補 Tuesday December 13 ‘Christianity is really all about mending. That is what redemption means: mending something which is broken. Every Christian is called to share with God in mending that which is broken: mending our relationship with God, with one another, and mending the torn canvas of God’s broken world’. 基督教其實是攸關「修補」的信仰；贖罪的意義，正是將那「已破損的」加以修復。每位基督徒都蒙上帝呼召來分擔「補缺成全」的聖工：我們要修復與神、與人的關係，並補救這幅「理應完美歸主，卻遭世人撕裂」的世界圖像。 The Parable of the Lost Sheep at the St. James’ Preschool, Taichung, Christmas Show 2016! Continue reading Advent Word, Day 16 ‘mend’
Catherine Lee 