Happy New Year everyone!

Notes on my first day of 2004:
Today was my first day of my "3 day get-away" high a top an apartment building of skyscraper proportions (at least compared to what I'm used to). I'm staying in Ro's apartment on the 18th floor while she's gone. I'm loving it!! It's my safe lighthouse a top a craggy hill keeping me safe even though the oceans of stress rise and thrash against it. Where do I go to get away? Hawaii? Costa Rica? Now way! Why would I go there when I could be in Heng-hay with its streets that drive like old school Pac-man video games, fish markets and drunk old people walking in the street with no fear. No, give me a dsl connection, total isolation and Ro's apartment high aloft a Sam-do apartment building and I'm close to heaven. It's my warm womb, my sacred tomb.... hehe... ah-hem...

Anyway, I'm having a good time. But on the more serious side, so far this has been a much-needed time of random internet surfing, thought and prayer. The verse that I'm kind of using as my theme verse for this time is...
"...because so many people were coming and going that Joyce didn't even have a chance to relax, Jesus said to Joyce, "Come away with me by yourself to a quiet place and get some rest." Mark 6:31 (italicized words were embellished by yours truly)
That’s great isn't it though?

An appropriate, peaceful song by Watermark that I've been listening to today...
still
the more I get alone the more I see I need to get alone more
cuz just when I think that I'm alone your spirit calls out to me
even silence has a song
cuz that 's when you come and sing over me
still
let me be still
let me be ok with the quiet in my heart
still
I want to be still
I'm so quick to move instead of listening to you
shut my mouth
crush my pride
give me the gift of a broken life
still
hush this world that flutters around me
...even stillness makes me move cuz that's when my heart learns to dance with you

Well, I wanted to share some cool sites and interesting articles I found today. I ran across an article in Christianity Today about what they think are the top 12 events in 2003 that will influence evangelical culture in the coming year. Interesting, very interesting.

I also found the website of Sojourners magazine which I was really excited about. Someone in a church in Oregon told me about this Christian magazine that was really into social action and gave a bit of a different political angle than typical Christian magazines. However, I could never find it and here all these years later I stumble over it. The website's title is Sojourner: Faith, Politics, Culture Sounds cool...eh?

Ravi Zacharis rocks! I knew he was cool but I didn't know he was this cool. I listened to a couple of his sermons today. He's so insightful, relevant and articulate. You can listen to tons of his sermons online and even download them as a Mp3 file for free. I recommend "Understanding the Spirit of the Age" addressing the topic of logic and the secular mind.

Ok, I have a special announcement. My Israel/Palestine and Egypt pictures are now in my photo albums!!! (Well, maybe 1/4 of the pics are up but I do have a Holy Land album up) This is really amazing and exciting for me. I've had the negatives of this trip forever but it never occurred to me before to scan the negatives onto disk until now. So my Israel pics have gone digital! Not all of them are up but they will probably all be up in the next two weeks.