RACE

A race to remember.

After yesterday trials, Alonso was 15th on the grid. Now, lets face it, who the hell can win?

But He did.

He was 15th on the grid, near the end, and Alonso won!

Massa on pole, got in 13th. Raikkonen DNF. Hamilton was third.

Somehow, the amazing things happen. Alonso was brilliant. But even brilliance needs luck, and that is what Alonso got. It was lucky He pit well before safety car came out, he was lucky that Massa made a fatal mistake, causing him a pit lane drive through as well as a torn out fuel hose. Alonso was lucky that Hamilton was held up behind him.

I think as i watched F1, i feel that this really tells one thing.

We can plan all we want, prepare for everything. But God directs our path.

In life, God directs our path. He alone knows the events and He alone controls it all. He alone has amazing grace and mercy, to do what is best.

But back to F1, it was GREAT. F1, come back soon!

Sad

Massa is on pole =(. Why... I want Hamilton to win.

But what i really want (and this is really bad) is for one of the cars (Not the top few) to come to an abrupt stop becaure they meet the water barrier. Preferably the barrier which i can see.

It will be nice if some red coloured car had a gearbox issue or engine failure. And it will be nice if a silver car moved really really fast.

See you at F1. Be there, and be deaf.

The Land

A man comes to view a plot of land. War had visited the area. Rubble lie scattered on the ground. Dust covers the grassland, cakes the rocks, saturates the air. The air is stale and dead. Life struggles to find purchase on the barren land. Spots of weeds grow up in random corners. Death and desolation is victorious. Deep craters graced the ground, sharp steep walls hovering over deep chasms.

In the background there are hills, rolling hills of green grass. Bird fly around, and villages nearby have vivid signs of life. Yet on this area, there is a sense of desperation. To many, this land is useless. Life cannot thrive, death reigns and destruction rules. What is purpose of such a land?

To that man, he sees a hope for the future. He sees the land as having potential. He sees a chance for the land to be a blessing. He SEES the land.

The man slowly clears the land of the rubble. He sweeps the land clean. He wipes what he sees clean of dust. He carts the rubble away. He marks out an area for a home. He zones an area for a garden. He plants. He gardens.

Slowly, life returns. Trees sprout up and grass grows. The air clears. Animals run wild across the new plains. The sounds of birds fill the air, chasing out the dust. Death and destruction slowly loses grip over the land.

But the craters remain. The man looks at the craters and wants to fill it up. Inspired, He decides to do something. He fills up the crater with water. Animals look at the water, suspicious. But soon they take sips of water, and find it refreshing. Life giving. The animals come slowly and drink deep of the water.

Eventually, people travel and they see the change in the land. They see the change. They see the life that is growing up. They drink of the water. Their lives are refreshed by the water.


That is my life. The rubble shows the broken dreams. The dust shows the lack of care of my life. The craters show the hurts I have. God takes care of my life. Out of a life that appears useless, he clears it up.

God clears the broken dreams. Out of ruins, He builds a home. Out of shatter dreams, he gives new hope. Instead of just clearing the land, He builds.

God uses the wounds to bring life to others. The crater He fills with living water, that I might quench others. Instead of covering the wound, He fills it with His love and life.

God does not heal me the way I want Him to. Many times, I want Him to take away the pain. But God opts to let me bear the pain. Not only that will I learn, but that I might be able to share the burden. When another goes through that path, I can stand with that person and say, I know.

In some sense, I can see how God is leading me. First through showing me what loving God means, then loving people when rejected and then loving a person despite rejection. It hurts, but I guess I really see God’s feelings now. His pain when we reject Him. God does not see us as a people. He sees us as a person. The depth of rejection we show to Him, is really really deep.

Tired

There is this sense of weariness in everyone.

On Sunday, I was speaking to a friend, and he mentioned that nearly everyone on msn says “Tired” in response to the question, “How are you”

Have we forgotten to rest. Have we forgotten what rest is. Have we been so caught up with work, we forgot we need to rest?

I think there is more than that. For myself, there has been a chasm between me and God. God is my refuge, strong tower, most of all, my Sabbath. God is my restedness. He is my rest. I am not with Him, which makes me unrested.

But as I probe deeper, in me there is a big issue. A sense of restlessness. A sense of rebellion within. Struggling to break free. There is anger inside.

The other day, I raced someone in the rain. When someone cuts my lane, I issue the most colourful language. When someone is slow in front of me, they get the light, the horn and the glare. I will also cut back into the person’s lane.

But there is an anger within. This angry outcry against something I know not. An angry heart that breeds resentment. This anger I have within that lashes out at anything I can find. This is not me.

I don’t know why I have this anger. It breeds inside like an algae growth in disused wells. Mould on wet bread. Rust on exposed metals. Grime on damp pipes. A house in disrepair, angry yet broken.

I am like that. A house in disrepair, angry and broken. I need to be rebuild. I need God to rebuild me. I need God to repair my heart.

Controlling your temper is different from dealing with your temper. Controlling merely puts a cap on your anger. It is merely you fighting to put anger back into the box. It is simply control.

Dealing with it is different. It is finding the source of the anger, the source of the restlessness. The rage. And dealing with it.

For me, it is unforgiveness. There is someone whom I have difficulty forgiving because of what has happened between us. Ok so, there may be more than one someone. But that unforgiveness is destroying me, because of the anger I feel against that person. Because in me, there is this self-righteous spirit that says, you cannot do this to me. But the truth is, that is just pride. The unwillingness to forgive and say, ok, I am sorry.

Sometimes restlessness for me is because I forget to rest. Sometimes it is because of unforgiveness. Sometimes, it is because I am away from God. Other times, it is because I am disobedient. Restlessness or weariness are but signs for me, that life is not in order.

Teaching.

We spoke about the failings of economics in class today.

An opinion that was voiced was that economics is too positive. We do not have very much normative views on economics.

Positive views of economics concerns itself with what is. It is usually empirically verifiable and generally regarded as economic knowledge or truths. Concerning itself with what is, it is easier to deal with. What is unemployment? What is inflation? What is the absolute poverty line?

Normative views of economics concerns itself with what ought to be. It is value laden, judgment based on what is right or what should be right and wrong. It makes a decision or a stand, it is about people. Do you understand that an unemployed person is not a statistic? Should we not only resort to unemployment under dire circumstances?

Economics succeeded so well because we focused on the positive branch of economics. We do not manage normative values. One reason for that is that positive economics is far easier to deal with than normative. There is less room for discussion, no values to be discussed.

Yet is that what economics is about? Is it all about the numbers? The rationality of people, the desire to do better? Is it all about what that we want, the best for ourselves without regard to other things in life like values, desires and well being? Do we consider relationships as the fundamental building block of life?

I think there is a deeper struggle at hand. Underlying all these is the struggle, what can we teach? Can we teach values? Is there a right and wrong? Are values lost in today's world? Are there values? Is everything in life about knowledge?

Teachers teach students not to pass exams, or even to have an education, but we teach the students to become adults. Teaching is not just in the classroom; teaching is about life impartation. It begins when we are old and we start to think. It continues when we speak our thoughts. It is shown by the lives we live. It ends when we say, it is finished. Teaching is about life impartation. We need to teach our kids to live lives worth living.

Everyone is a teacher. The difference is, teaching can also be a profession. Ask yourself, what do you want to teach? How to make the right decision? Or mere head knowledge.