刚刚看完《南京》，

眼泪几乎是从开始流到最后，

这段历史对于我们不应该只成为一组数字或是一段教科书上的文字，

而应该是永远铭记的真实，

凄冷、恐惧、无奈、绝望……

它是过程，而不只是结果。

记念与记录这段历史暂且抛开所谓的左翼右翼之分，

不是为了激起仇恨，也不是为了以其人之道还治其人之身，

是为了记念一段真实，记念那些无辜的生命。

30万是多是少，很多人争论，

但是30万也好，3万也好，哪怕只有一个，那也是生命。

记念的意义是让我们更深地体会和牢记：

每一个生命都值得尊重。

要感谢那些在战乱年代与中国人一同承受这些苦难的传教士、商人，

他们在生死存亡的关头选择了留下，

没有抛弃中国人， 

他们当中有人用胶片记录了这段真实，

他们的难民营保护了20几万中国人，

他们当中的很多人也因不堪战争与屠杀长期的摧残而倒下，

他们也成为了这段历史的见证，

今天看了A History of The London Missionary Society，

找到了Eric Liddell（1944年死于日军潍坊集中营），

找到了他的父亲、他的哥哥，

其他的几个传教士，都死在日军集中营里面。

现在他们都成为了文字，记录在书中，

短短的几行，

但是历史背后却隐藏着多少悲欢离合……

I have not updated my space for a long time since I cut my finger. Now it is totally recovered.

Many things happened in the first month of 2008, Hogmanay, cutting finger, my birthday, a trip to Loch Lomond, new course on Church History in School of Divinity…Where shall I start from?

Not the Hogmanay, not the firework, not the New Year party with a Mafia game gathering, the first thing in the New Year is thanksgiving, to God, to my friends whom God gave to me, to my life in China and Edinburgh which were full of God’s grace. When I looked back the last whole year, I was so grateful, and the greatest thing is that I can go back as far as I want into the ages past and still find God there, loving me, guiding me, forgiving me and protecting me.

I thought about how God has specifically helped me in the last year--What do I have now that I didn't have one year ago？How do I know God better than I did one year ago？What more do I know about Him？What more do I know about myself？What struggle has He helped me overcome？What has He helped me to accomplish？How many grace has He given to me? How many people in my life who wasn't there one year ago that I can honestly thank God for？My family, my friends in China and in Scotland, Churches in both countries, my study, my application to the University of Edinburgh, my IELTS examination, my works in Him, my part-time job in Edinburgh, my friends’ baptisms, my relationship with God, my knowledge of Him, my every experience in Him, my smiles, my tears, and even my mistakes.

It is written: “You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance.”(Psalms 65:11) God is our help in the time past and our hope in the days to come.

New Year, everything is new, everything can be new, new date, new calendar, new mood, new dream, new hope, new life. And this is what happens to us when Jesus Christ comes into our lives – “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come.” Jesus said we could be born again -- we would start out fresh like new born babies when we ask Jesus into our lives to be our Savior. “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are NEW every morning, great is your faithfulness!”

Thank God for the New Year because we hope in Him.

新年

“你以恩典为年岁的冠冕，

你的路径都滴下脂油。”

新的一年一切都是新的，新的日子，新的理想，新的希望，新的生命，

而这一切都是因着神的缘故而实现，

“若有人在基督里，

他就是新造的人，

旧事已过，

都变成新的了。”

新的生命在基督里，是真正的更新，有神的公义、仁爱、温柔、良善、忍耐、节制……

尤其喜欢耶利米哀歌中的一段经文3：22－24

“我们不至于消灭，

是出于耶和华诸般的慈爱，

是因为他的怜悯不至断绝。

每早晨这都是新的；

你的诚实极其广大！

我心里说，

耶和华是我的分，

因此，我要仰望他。”

生日

连续庆祝了三天……

同屋教我做的Banana Cake：）

教会弟兄姐妹们的鲜花：）

周六晚上超爽的火锅自助：）

偶弟的书法——以赛亚书40：31——我最喜欢的圣经经文之一：）

当然，这些都是次要的，生日之所以是生日，在于有人记念，

国内向我问候的弟兄姐妹，爱丁堡的每一个朋友，你们是神送给我的生日礼物：）

感动 

最近因为申请博士，看了很多关于苏格兰传教士的书，

因着神的缘故，很多人将生命留在了中国，

就如China Inland Mission的创建者Hudson Taylor写的那样：

“如果我还有一点爱，

我没有不拿出来给中国的。”

每一次看的时候，心都在颤抖……

在一本The Chinese Empire的书的前言，China Inland Mission的作者写了这样一段话：

“It has been my privilege, during a residence of nearly six years in China, to have been brought into close personal relations with many Protestant missionaries, and to have seen a good deal of the work carried on by them in evangelistic, hospital and medical work, and education. I can testify to the sincerity and ardour with which they pursue their noble and self-sacrificing task, often under great difficulties from fanatical opposition, sometimes in almost absolute solitude, and frequently even at the risk of their lives—undaunted witnesses for the faith.”

“And now, to Him who hath “made of one blood every nation of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed seasons, and the bounds of their habitation; that they should seek God, if haply they might feel after Him, and find Him,” – this record of a century’s efforts to make known to the most ancient of those nations the revelation of God in Christ Jesus is committed, with the earnest prayer that all the glory of past successes may be given to Him, that all the failures and shortcomings of His servants may be forgiven, and that all wisdom and grace for the right and full use of the wonderful opportunities now presenting themselves may be vouchsafed to those responsible for future action.”

前天在Old College终于见到了我的Eric Liddell ——

期待

苏帅现在在回格拉斯哥的飞机上，还有7小时20分到达，大家跟我一起傻笑吧……