Interpretation Learning - December 2015

NO	ENGLISH	CHINESE
1	I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people	我 报 给 你 们 大 喜 的 信 息 ， 是 关 乎 万 民 的
2	“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”	在 至 高 之 处 荣 耀 归 与 神 ！ 在 地 上 平 安 归 与 他 所 喜 悦 的 人 （ 有 古 卷 作 ： 喜 悦 归 与 人 ）
3	Unreliable	靠不住
4	Without mistake	没有差错
5	The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.	他 是 神 荣 耀 所 发 的 光 辉 ， 是 神 本 体 的 真 像 ， 常 用 他 权 能 的 命 令 托 住 万 有 。
6	For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.	因 为 凡 世 界 上 的 事 ， 就 像 肉 体 的 情 欲 ， 眼 目 的 情 欲 ， 并 今 生 的 骄 傲 ， 都 不 是 从 父 来 的 ， 乃 是 从 世 界 来 的 。
7	“Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.”	传 道 者 说 ： 虚 空 的 虚 空 ， 虚 空 的 虚 空 ， 凡 事 都 是 虚 空 。
8	He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?	神 既 不 爱 惜 自 己 的 儿 子 ， 为 我 们 众 人 舍 了 ， 岂 不 也 把 万 物 和 他 一 同 白 白 的 赐 给 我 们 麽 ？
9	It is not a set of principles	不是一套的道理
10	for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.	因 为 凡 求 告 主 名 的 ， 就 必 得 救 。
11	Humanity	人性
12	men and women, old and young	男女老幼
13	For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.	你 们 知 道 我 们 主 耶 稣 基 督 的 恩 典 ： 他 本 来 富 足 ， 却 为 你 们 成 了 贫 穷 ， 叫 你 们 因 他 的 贫 穷 ， 可 以 成 为 富 足
14	Frail Baby	软弱的婴孩
15	Insignificant, filthy	卑微
16	Horse/Cow dung粪便urine	马尿牛粪
17	Inn	客店
18	Cave/Grotto	山洞
19	When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.	我 一 看 见 ， 就 仆 倒 在 他 脚 前 ， 像 死 了 一 样 。 他 用 右 手 按 着 我 ， 说 ： 不 要 惧 怕 ！ 我 是 首 先 的 ， 我 是 末 後 的 ，又 是 那 存 活 的 ； 我 曾 死 过 ， 现 在 又 活 了 ， 直 活 到 永 永 远 远 ； 并 且 拿 着 死 亡 和 阴 间 的 钥 匙 。
20	Rested one’s earthly labour	安息
21	turned a blind eye to this (to ignore something and pretend you do not see it)	视而不见

Let Your Life Speak

Page 4
Vocation does not come from willfulness. It comes from listening. I must listen to my life and try to understand what it is truly about - quite apart from what I would like it to be about - or my life will never represent anything real in the work, no matter how earnest my intentions.

That insight is hidden in the word vocation itself, which is rooted in the Latin for "voice". Vocation does not mean a goal that I pursue. It means a calling that I hear. Before I can tell my life what I want to do with it, I must listen to my life telling me who I am. I must listen for the truths and values at the heart of my own identity, not the standards by which I must live - but the standards by which I cannot help but life if I am living my own life.

Page 10
Today I understand vocation quite differently - not as a goal to be achieved but as a gift to be received. Discovering vocation does not mean scrambling toward some prize just beyond my reach but accepting the treasure of true self I already possess. Vocation does not come from a voice "out there" calling me to become something I am not. It comes from a voice "in there" calling me to be the person I was born to be, to fulfil the original selfhood given me at birth by God.

Page 15
The deepest vocational question is not "What ought I to do with my life? It is the more elemental and demanding "Who am I? What is my nature?"

Page 16
Buechner's definition starts with the self and moves toward the needs of the world: it begins, wisely, where vocation begins - not in what the world needs (which is everything), but in the nature of the human self, in what brings the self joy, the deep joy of knowing that we are here on earth to be the gifts that God created.

Page 18
The experience of darkness has been essential to my coming into selfhood, and telling the truth about that fact helps me stay in the light. But I want to tell that truth for another reason as well: may young people today journey in the dark, as the young always have, and we elders do them a disservice when we withhold the shadowy parts of our lives. When I was young, there were very few elders willing to talk about the darkness; most of them pretended that success was all they had ever known. As the darkness began to descent on me in my early twenties, I thought I had developed a unique and terminal case of failure. I did not realize that i had merely embarked on a journey toward joining human race.

Page 22
Lacking insight into my own limits and potentials, I had allowed ego and ethics to lead me into a situation that my soul could not abide.

Page 29
Here, I think, is another clue to finding true self and vocation: we must withdraw the negative projections we make on people and situations - projections that serve mainly to mask our fears about ourselves - and acknowledge and embrace our own liabilities and limits.

Source: Let Your Life Speak (Listening for the voice of vocation) by Parker J. Palmer

Chest Pain 2015

05/12 - Felt chest pain when woke up at 6.40am. 1st opinion/treatment by Sri Kota Dr Lai. Did ECG, X-Ray & CT Scan. Dr confirmed not pneumothorax but muscle/bone pain. Felt pain especially when towards the end of breathing in. Dr advised to take more rest and gave pain-killer tablets.
06/12 - The pain was getting more intense. Increase in heartbeat/nervousness, sit down, kneel down, lie down, stand up, singing caused more severe pain.
07/12 - The level of pain was similar to 05/12 and can felt improvement (less pain) as the day passed. Sought 2nd opinion and confirmed not pneumothorax but muscle pain. Took 1 day MC.
08/12 - Back to work. The pain continued to improve and I felt pain only when taking deep breath.
09/12 - Felt mild pain only when taking deep breath.

Reflection & Moving Forward

a) Everything is under His control!
Started to see even minor things are out of my control
- Cancelled my high school friends dinner gathering on 05/12
- Not able to turn up for interpretation forum on 05/12
- Not able to attend choir practice and LCEC meeting on 06/12
- Had to let go of work in order to take MC on 07/12
- Impromptu arrangement to visit ZY's parents and sister on 07/12
- Wanted to give mandarin gospel track to Dr Lai but he told that he does not read mandarin & he is a Christian

b) Simplify my life moving forward
- Rebuild relationship with brother which has been pending for long
- Leave it or pretend nothing happen will cause more time and energy
- Go and do something about it
- Life will be simplified

c) Stop and Rest
- 30/11 to 04/12 was very busy at work. One day even worked till 11.30pm
- Took leave on 17/12 and 18/12 to clear leave.
- But I was "forced" to rest earlier on 05/12 to 07/12.
- Yet I treasure the moment of slowing down and reflection.
- Rest would also be part of my arrangement/priority regularly