Difficult Project

Isaiah 2 (NLT)

11The day is coming when your pride will be brought low and the LORD alone will be exalted. 12In that day the LORD Almighty will punish the proud, bringing them down to the dust. 13He will cut down the tall cedars of Lebanon and the mighty oaks of Bashan. 14He will level the high mountains and hills. 15He will break down every high tower and wall. 16He will destroy the great trading ships and all the small boats in the harbor. 17The arrogance of all people will be brought low. Their pride will lie in the dust. The LORD alone will be exalted! 18Idols will be utterly abolished and destroyed.

Work has been hard these few weeks. I have so many problems with my project: the data are messy; I made many mistakes; the person who helped me also made many mistakes. It's been a difficult project all along. But nothing is worse than the final 10% which is so hard to finish. Everytime I think I made a step closer to the finish line, I discovered more problems that would push it 3 steps farther away. In the past month, I almost have given up hope on finishing it.

Yesterday I had another desparate encounter with this project. It really brought me to my knees and asked Jesus for help. And He did! Within an afternoon I could slowly put the pieces together. And I left my work quite happily afterwards.

When I read the passage this morning relating to the arrogance of human in their endeavor and projects, I realized that I didn't give thanks to Jesus after He helped me. When I searched deep into my heart for the reason of not giving thanks, I was quite shocked to find that I basically believe I can do it myself: God is just a shortcut to my solution but if I endure I will find the solution myself. I subtly ignored God's providence and credited myself indeed. That's arrogance and haughtiness of men, which will be brought low along with their projects on the day of judgment.

Sometimes I really don't know why I work. What are the purposes? I guess learning these lessons is part of them. But after a while it's hard to maintain the focus of doing it undo the Lord, especially when we become good at work. Instead, we inject pride and selfishness into the core of our work. I am thankful that God brought it to my attention once again.

-RL-

Process

I think this is the journey that God wants me to go through:

My will be done => Thy will be done => Thy will be done and be glad in it.

Phillippians 4:11-13

-RL-

My prayer

Psalm 143

7 Answer me quickly, O LORD;
my spirit fails.
Do not hide your face from me
or I will be like those who go down to the pit.

8 Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,
for I have put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should go,
for to you I lift up my soul.

9 Rescue me from my enemies, O LORD,
for I hide myself in you.

10 Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God;
may your good Spirit
lead me on level ground.

Feed this child

Poor Evan. Is somebody willing to give $10/month to feed this little child?

Father-Son Camp

Ethan and I went to the Father-Son camp over the weekend organized by our church. We had a lot of fun. We played ga ga, water balloons, pools; we sat around a bonfire and made s'mores. We also tried to spend sometime walking and talking. But kids are kids. They just want to have fun.

Looking at the picture, do you think they grow up too fast?

Smart Breakfast

I wonder what I would have become if I was a smarter student by eating better breakfast....

A Better Breakfast Can Boost A Child's Brain Power

More waiting

I think half of my life is spent on waiting.

Yesterday I got in touched with the VP/GM of the international division. He explained to me why the recruiting process is being delayed. Basically his division is likely to change the reporting structure, reporting to a new boss. If that happens, the president has to explain his vision and plan to his new boss. And if that goes ok, my position could continue. Looks like it will be another 2-3 months before I know whether my job will be ok'd.

Coincidentally, it was almost one year ago (9/15) that I got an email from the then VP Asia of Exel that DHL was going to buy us and the whole hiring process (which lasted for 6 weeks) were delayed. And I never heard anything back since then. I really don't understand what God is doing among all this. I just know he allows it to happen. It's hard to swallow another x weeks of waiting. But at least this is a lot more positive than any job applications I tried before. I just have to keep on waiting, and place my faith in God.

-RL-

Democracy in the Rough

I am always intrigued by little known facts/happenings around the world. Here is something about Congo in Africa.

Wide Angle . Democracy in the Rough | PBS

Still Waiting

It's been almost 4 months since I was approached with a potential job in Hong Kong. And it's been a month since my interviews. Things just go so slowly. Tasks that are done normally in weeks were done in months. Sometimes I wonder if the job is still there. May be you will say "forget it. The job is gone." But my gut tells me that it is still waiting for me.

Good that I am extremely busy at work...followed by a very busy summer with lots of visitors - my aunt, Joe/Yumi's family and Jeanie's sister and her husband. All these activities help shift my attention away from this job wait. Poor Jeanie, she has a lot harder time waiting for some news. She has been asking me status updates everyday. May be I should give her the direct line number to the president of the division. That should speed things up.

Anyway, this funny Ethan...he never fails to crack me up. (Phoebe took that pic with my cell phone and special effects.)