Update on my life in Bible College

Wow, time goes by so fast. Next week is already spring break, and I'm going to Poland with 11 other people! We are leaving on Thursday night and will be back on Sunday. The main purpose or goal for the trip is to visit Auschwitz, the most famous concentration camp that was the nightmare of so many people in World War II. I have read many books on that subject and have always wanted to see a concentration camp with my own eyes.

                      Everything started before I even left Finland in February, when my dad kept telling me that I should go to Auschwitz this spring, now that I'm so close to it geographically. I told him that the idea is wonderful, but I couldn't afford it. However, he wanted me to go so bad that he offered to pay for the trip if I just went. Of course I got very excited, and next week at this time I'm already going to be on my way back to Hungary. My dad is such a blessing to me.

                      10-day outreaches were also announced a couple of weeks ago, during speakers' week. God laid it on my heart to go to Slovenia, which I am super excited about. The leader of our team is one of the most amazing people in the world, who I look up to. She was my dorm mama last semester and the greatest support for me when I was going through a hard time. I feel so honored to have her as a friend and a big sister.

                      This past week I have been feeling quite weird, it seems like there has been a lot of spiritual warfare going on. In the same day I can be feeling over the top and after a while totally crushed by something and cry my eyes out. I have been frustrated and annoyed by things that normally don't bother me at all, and I have been spending a lot of time by myself, because I just haven't felt like socializing with people. On the bright side, it has resulted in getting a lot of homework done.

                      Today I took some time off from studying and spent it with my beautiful friend Sarah. I love talking with her, and felt very blessed after our time together. She has the most beautiful voice I've ever heard, and when she plays her harp I can't help but wander if that's what angels sound like. If my kids somehow miraculously happen to be talented in music (which I certainly am not), I'm going to make them learn how to play a harp!

                      Anyways, I was planning on going to bed early today, so I'd better stop writing and turn off my computer. You can be sure that I tell you all about Poland once we get back from there next weekend! Adios.

Atheism

Here is a piece of my homework for apologetics. Feel free to comment here or email me if you have a different view, and let me know what you think.

Atheists claim to know that there is no God. However, the statement cannot hold it's place dogmatically. To be able to make that kind of an argument, one would have to know the universe in its entirety and to possess all knowledge. Yet the one with such characteristics could only be God Himself. Therefore, one can only state that he is uncertain whether or not there is a God, which is not atheism but agnosticism.

            The first aspect in which atheism fails intellectually, is the origin of life. Atheists blindly and stubbornly cling to evolution as a proved, scientific fact, although it's nothing but a theory. Believing that everything in this universe came out of nothing, is absurd. The results of studying microevolution are being used to prove macroevolution, which is scientifically unjust.

            Modern evolution is based on natural selection, the survival of the fittest. Profitable gene mutations are necessary. "[John C. Kendrew] calls development through mutations a "random process", and the only basis he gives for using it as a source for evolution is that it has operated for 'more than five hundred million years'. Some would quadruple that to two billion, or even three billion. In this connection, we might note that chance would require forty-six trillion times that long to select just once the phrase: The Theory of Evolution, working at the speed of light, a billion tries per second." (Coppedge, 84)

            Evolution in itself is another topic, but all that to say that it does not disprove the existence of God, but rather reinforces it. If you only carefully observed nature, you would have to come to a conclusion that there is a creator God, a mere chance cannot be behind everything we can see and experience today.

            If the existence of the universe was nothing but a cosmic accident, man would be nothing but an accident himself; a freak of nature. We would all be chunks of matter that somehow, by chance, began to have emotions, feelings, and thoughts. If life ended at death, there would be no ultimate meaning in life, hence there would be no meaning in anything we say or do.

            William Lane Craig pointed out that most atheists subconsciously borrow the concept of immortality, trying to create a meaning for life and moral rules for the society. But if there is no God to tell us objectively the standards for right and wrong, everything is merely relative. Especially when the meaning of life becomes nothing but enjoying yourself, it is impossible to come up with a universal law of morals.

            Hitler saw it as a purpose of his life to destroy the Jews, the gypsies, the disabled etc. He saw it as a right thing to do, and so did his followers. If we don't have God's objective moral law, in what basis can we say that what he did was absolutely wrong? Of course our conscience tells us, but if we believe in our consciousness being nothing but chemicals reacting with other chemicals in our brain, how could we possibly use that to define anything? "Without a higher standard of authority to go to, which is God, all of life is based on the values of the majority or a dictator in power. They have no sure truth to turn to; it is all a matter of opinion." (McDowell and Stewart, 107)

            I agree with William Lane Craig who said that "without God, life is ultimately absurd". No meaning in life, no hope, no peace, and no real joy. All that people have in the world is self-delusive. Furthermore, even if there was no God and Christians were wrong, we, by the time we die, would've lived a meaningful, happy life, and there would be nothing to lose after death. But if we are right, like I firmly believe, those who are on the outside are living a meaningless life, and will suffer for eternity after death in the flames of Hell. It is a win-and-wine or lose-and-lose situation. Why would one ever want to pick the latter one?

Kevät!

Lintujen lauluun on aivan ihana herätä. Kuljeskelin tänään ulkona auringonpaisteessa valokuvaamassa ja kuuntelemassa opetusta 2. Kuninkaiden kirjasta. Lauantait on ehdottomasti mun lempipäiviä. Aamulla voi nukkua pidempään, lounaaksi on amerikkalaisia pannukakkuja, pekonia, munia, yms, ja koko päivä on vapaa tehdä mitä huvittaa. Usein se sisältää läksyjä ja kahvilassa rupattelua muiden kanssa. Ja nyt kun ilmat on näin kauniita, ulkona on aivan ihana kuljeskella ja ihailla paikallisia maisemia.

                      Tällä viikolla oli Speakers' week, eli joka päivä kuultiin vierailevien pastoreiden opetuksia. Opin todella paljon ja tutustuin uusiin ihmisiin. 10-päivän outreachit julkistettiin myös tällä viikolla. Mä oon menossa Sloveniaan. Joka lukukausi opiskelijoilla on mahdollisuus osallistua vastaavanlaiselle 10-päivän matkalle, jossa mennään aina johonkin Calvary Chapelin seurakuntaan auttamaan heidän käytännön tarpeissa, ja evankelioimaan alueella asuville. Viime lukukaudella olin Kroatiassa, jossa me autettiin lastenhoidossa, kahvilanpidossa, yms. ja esitettiin kaduilla lyhyitä draamoja ja juteltiin ohikulkijoiden kanssa evankeliumista.

                      Ostin eilen lentolipun takaisin Suomeen. Tuun kotiin tiistaina 17.5. just sopivasti ennen isin syntymäpäivää. Sitten alkaakin kesätyöt. Sain töitä samasta paikasta kuin viime kesänä, mistä oon toooosi iloinen! :)

Hezekiah

A part of my homework for Evangelism & Discipleship.

Hezekiah was the greatest king in Judah outside of king David. He strengthened his kingdom in the Lord after his father Ahaz "had encouraged moral decline in Judah and had been continually unfaithful to the LORD" (2 Chronicles 28:19). Hezekiah "held fast to the LORD; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD had commanded Moses" (2 Kings 18:6).

                      It is easy to look at the heroes of faith in the Bible and be carried away. We tend to look at them and think that it was easy and simple for them to do great things; after all, they were men of God and were born to accomplish a lot for Him. We do not have the expectancy that God could work the same way in our lives. However, all the men in the Bible were humans just like you and me. They had struggles and emotions, fears and insecurities. None of them were perfect and all of them made mistakes. Yet they all do have one thing in common: they held fast to the Lord.

                      Hezekiah wasn't perfect either. In 2 Chronicles 32:25 we can read that after God spoke to him and gave him a sign, "Hezekiah did not repay according to the favor shown him, for his heart was lifted up; therefore wrath was looming over him and over Judah and Jerusalem." He struggled with pride, just like all of us. What makes him great though, is that already in the next verse it says that "Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart". We all sin, but the question is, are you humble enough to admit it and repent? It is always easier to humble ourselves than have God humble us.

                      After watching his dad not doing what was right in the sight of the Lord for 25 years, Hezekiah was serious about making some changes the first day of his reign. First he made sure the Levites "gathered their brethren, sanctified themselves, and went according to the commandment of the king, at the words of the LORD, to cleanse the house of the LORD" (2 Chronicles 29:15). The same way we need to make sure that our hearts are first sanctified before we begin to do anything else. 2 Corinthians 6:16 and 7:1 says, "And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: 'I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.' Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."

                      Our bodies are the temple of the Lord. If we call ourselves Christians, let's act that way. Not everything belongs in our hearts, and if we want our lives to change, we have to start from the inside. It's one thing to see that change needs to happen, but another to say that I'm going to make a decision to change that. Now, even a decision doesn't guarantee change either. You can't be casual about change happening; monumental changes in our lives don't happen while we are sleeping. Hezekiah actually go to make sure that it happened. Change is possible only when we desire to be close to God.

Weekend outreach in Baja, Hungary

This semester's first weekend outreach is now behind. It was pretty amazing, and God taught me a bunch of new things, and reminded me of things I needed to be reminded of. Our team consisted of three guys and six girls, which makes nine in total. We left on Friday around 5pm and took a train from Vajta to Baja, which only took two hours or so. As soon as we got to the church we participated in their youth group. We worshiped the Lord together, and  our team leader Ryan taught a 30-minute Bible study on Exodus. Afterwards the teenager boys there loved to wrestle with Maks, our Ukrainian team member! He seemed to be like a big brother to them. The only girl in the youth group was this very sweet girl, Anna. She came to spend some time with us on Saturday also, which was super nice.

On Saturday morning we had breakfast and devotions together, and went street witnessing. A team of Hungarians from Budapest joined us to help with translating. The people there were quite open to the gospel and I heard that two people even got saved, which is amazing. In the evening we had dinner and worship together and cleaned to church for Sunday morning.

On Sunday we had church at 9.30am, and we were blessed to be able to partake communion and be present at a baby dedication. After the service everyone stayed for agape feast, for which people had brought different kinds of food and dessert. Everything I ate was amazing, I don't think I had been that full from eating ever since I came to Hungary!

All in all the weekend was a huge blessing and we I though our team worked great together. I'm happy that next week is Speakers' week and we won't have normal classes, because I'm tired and not exactly in the mood of doing homework right now. :D I won't even be working in the library till Thursday, thanks to Jemma!

More pictures on facebook.