信不足焉，有不信焉

路加福音的一段对话与道德经23章

道德经第二十三章
希言自然。故飘风不终朝，骤雨不终日。孰为此者﹖天地。
天地尚不能久，而况于人乎﹖
故从事于道者，道者同于道，德者同于德，失者同于失。
同于道者，道亦乐得之；同于德者，德亦乐得之；同于失者，失亦乐得之。
信不足焉，有不信焉。

17:1	耶稣又对门徒说，要使绊跌人的事不发生是不可能的，但那绊跌人的有祸了。
17:2	就是把磨石套在这人的脖子上，丢在海里，还强如他把这小子里的一个绊跌了。
17:3	你们要小心，若是你的弟兄犯了罪，就责备他；他若悔改，就赦免他。
17:4	若是他一天七次得罪你，又七次回转，对你说，我悔改了，你总要赦免他。
17:5	使徒对主说，求主增加我们的信心。
17:6	主说，你们若有信心像一粒芥菜种，就是对这棵桑树说，你得连根拔起，栽在海里，它也必听从你们。

路加福音的一段对话，清楚地说明了我们的问题是不能坚持“从事于道” （因为我们遵守祂的诫命，也行祂看为可喜悦的事。约一3：22）以至于“同于道” （“所以你们该效法神，好象蒙慈爱的儿女一样。”以弗所5：1；“因为祂如何，我们在这世上也如何” 约翰一书4：17 “祂要按着祂那甚至能叫万有归服自己的动力，将我们这卑贱的身体改变形状，使之同形于祂荣耀的身体”腓力比3：21）只有与道（神）相同，才能做到持久。而“道亦乐得之” （你是我的爱子，我喜悦你。路3：22 这样服事基督的，就为神所喜悦。罗14：18 “人非有信，就不能得神的喜悦；因为到神面前来的人，必须信有神，且信祂赏赐那寻求祂的人。”来11：6）

在这里，信心是联与“能久”的。因为赦免一次不难，难的是坚持，是“能久”。而“天地尚不能久，而况于人乎”，所以人凭借自己“要使绊跌人的事不发生是不可能的”，使徒们既然自知不能做到一天七次赦免，只好要主增强他们的信心。但主耶稣指出：不是信心不足，乃是根本没有信心（“信不足焉，有不信焉”）。使徒所要的信心，必须经历三个阶段：1. 从事于道； 2. 同于道；3. 道亦乐得之。这也是使徒保罗和约翰所描绘的基督徒所要行的道路和人生。只有这样凭信心来做神的儿女，才能蒙神的喜悦，才能恒久忍耐，直到基督耶稣的日子。

All you need is LOVE

今天读约翰一书的时候听到电视里熟悉的旋律：一个乐队在翻唱Beatles的All You Need is Love. 老约翰的书信立刻有了生命。

4:7	亲爱的，我们应当彼此相爱，因为爱是出于神的；凡爱弟兄的，都是从神生的，并且认识神。
4:8	不爱弟兄的，未曾认识神，因为神就是爱。
4:9	神差祂的独生子到世上来，使我们借着祂得生并活着，在此神的爱就向我们显明了。
4:10	不是我们爱神，乃是神爱我们，差祂的儿子，为我们的罪作了平息的祭物，在此就是爱了。
4:11	亲爱的，神既是这样爱我们，我们也当彼此相爱。
4:12	从来没有人见过神；我们若彼此相爱，神就住在我们里面，祂的爱也在我们里面得了成全

4:16	神在我们身上的爱，我们也知道也信。神就是爱，住在爱里面的，就住在神里面，神也住在他里面。
4:17	在此，爱在我们便得了成全，使我们在审判的日子，可以坦然无惧；因为祂如何，我们在这世上也如何。
4:18	爱里没有惧怕，完全的爱把惧怕驱除，因为惧怕含有刑罚，惧怕的人在爱里未得成全。
4:19	我们爱，因为神先爱我们。

A Living Prayer

A beautiful song by Alison Krauss:

In this world, I walk alone,
with no place, to call my home.
But there is one, who holds my hand,
the rugged road, through barren lands.
The way is dark, the road is steep,
but he's become my eyes to see
the strength to climb, my grief to bear
the Savior lives inside me there.

In your love, I find release
a haven from my unbelief
take my life and let me be
a living prayer, my God to thee.

In these trials of life I find,
another voice inside my mind.
He comforts me and
inside the love, the Father gives.

In your love, I find release
a haven from my unbelief
take my life and let me be
a living prayer, my God to thee.

Betrand Russell's Quotes

Many a man will have the courage to die gallantly, but will not have the courage to say, or even to think, that the cause for which he is asked to die is an unworthy one.
(To some of the veterans of Vietnam Wars, Iraq Wars, and the soldiers under Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan)

One of the symptoms of an approaching nervous breakdown is the belief that one's work is terribly important.

The point of philosophy is to start with something so simple as not to seem worth stating, and to end with something so paradoxical that no one will believe it.

To acquire immunity to eloquence is of the utmost importance to the citizens of a democracy.

To be able to concentrate for a considerable time is essential to difficult achievement.

Ted Kennedy's story told by his son

"When I was 12 years old I was diagnosed with bone cancer and a few months after I lost my leg, there was a heavy snowfall over my childhood home outside of Washington, D.C. My father went to the garage to get the old Flexible Flyer and asked me if I wanted to go sledding down the steep driveway. I was trying to get used to my new artificial leg and the hill was covered with ice and snow and it wasn't easy for me to walk ... As I struggled to walk, I slipped and I fell on the ice and I started to cry and I said, 'I can't do this.' I said, 'I'll never be able to climb that hill.' And he lifted me in his strong, gentle arms and said something I'll never forget. He said, 'I know you'll do it. There is nothing you can't do. We're going to climb that hill together, even if it takes us all day.'

"Sure enough, he held me around my waist and we slowly made it to the top, and, you know, at age 12, losing a leg pretty much seems like the end of the world, but as I climbed onto his back and we flew down the hill that day I knew he was right. I knew I was going to be OK. You see, my father taught me that even our most profound losses are survivable.''

道德经 英译1

第七十三章： 勇于敢则杀，勇于不敢则活。此两者，或利或害。天之所恶，孰知其故？是以圣人犹难之。天之道，不争而善胜，不言而善应，不召而自来，坦然而善谋。天网恢恢，疏而不失。

(There are two types of courage:)
One man's courage is to show his bravery and never retreat,
he will lose his life eventually.
Another man's courage comes from daring not to show bravery,
he will save his life and fight another day.【1】

Of these two, when is it good and when is it bad? and what is the truth?
If what is unfavorable to God is yet to be known,
even the Godly man has a hard time to choose.

The laws of God is as follows:
You don't have to confront others to win;
you don't have to say anything to be heard;
you don't have to call others (to join you) and they will follow nevertheless;
just relax and be comfortable with the facts
and you will have wisdom you need.

For the meshes of God's net are loose indeed,
yet no one ever escape
His judgment when time is up.

有两种勇气
一种人的勇气在于表现勇敢，绝不退缩
他最终因此丧命
一种人的勇气在于敢于不表现勇敢
他们得以保全生命，择日再来 【1】

这两种，有时有利，有时又不利。
如果上天所不喜悦的我们一无所知，
就是圣人也难以选择啊！

上天的道在于：
不与人相争就善于取胜
不多说却善于回应
不用征召人们自然来跟随
坦然面对现实就自有谋略出来

因为神的大网撒下
网眼纵然稀疏
却无人能躲过上天的审判

【1】参见苏轼《留侯论》：匹夫见辱，拔剑而起，挺身而斗，天下有大勇者，此不足为勇也。天下有大勇者，卒然临之而不惊，无故加之而不怒。

John Adams' best speech

The founding father's speech about "Liberty" (from HBO series "John Adams"):

Let it be known, that British liberties are not the grants of the princes and parliaments. That many of our rights are inherent and essential, agreed on as maxim and established as preliminaries, even before parliaments existed.

We have a right to them, derived from our Maker. Our forefathers have earned and bought liberties for us at the expense of their ease, their estates, their pleasures, and their blood.

Liberty is not built on the doctrines that a few nobles have a right to inherit the earth.

NO, NO!

It stands on this principle that the meanest and lowest of the people are, by the unalterable indefeasible laws of God and nature, as well entitled to the benefits of the air to breathe, the food to eat, and cloth to wear, as the nobles or the king.

That is liberty, and liberty will reign in America!

John Adams, Second President of the USA
"Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." [October 11, 1798]