3 days and 3 nights

It was probably 10 years ago when I was plagued with a question that I asked everyone I saw (including pastors and theologians). The questions was this, "If Jesus died on a Friday how can you reconcile the fact that Jesus said 'Just as Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights, so must the Son of Man be in the heart of the Earth.'" No one that I asked at that time had a satisfactory answer for me. The responses were either that Jesus was speaking figuratively, or else you had to do some fancy way of counting partial days and forget about the nights.

A year or so after I first had the question, someone pointed out to me that in John it is noted that Jesus died the day before a "Special Sabbath" and not on the 6th day of the week. Now, there was some hope for me to be able to reconcile this seeming inconsistency. Naturally, my next question was, "Why does the church so dogmatically say that He died on a Friday then?"

It wasn't until I started attending a Messianic congregation that I was finally able to see how the Christendom has made a lot of things fit the stories that it wants to tell. Well-meaning believers swallow the stories without checking out the facts. The Scriptures never say that "Palm Sunday" happened on the first day of the week. The "Last Supper" was not eaten as depicted in the paintings and did not happen on a Thursday. Jesus death could not have been on a Friday if we take His words literally. The time of the resurrection was during Passover, not set according to the vernal equinox (as is the case with Easter). Yet, if someone who is just reading the Bible points out these inconsistencies, he/she is labeled as a trouble-maker or as someone who is trying to stomp on tradition. I think tradition is fine if it does not contradict with Scripture.

It seems to me that remembering Jesus death and resurrection at the time of Passover is a logical thing to do. Why not actually be reminded that Jesus is the Passover Lamb? Why not eat the Passover meal? Why not use the Biblical calendar rather than a pagan calendar to remember His death and resurrection? Instead, the church has decided to remember a day based on the cycle of the sun rather than the moon , serve up an Easter ham rather than lamb, and promote a fictitious bunny who brings children candy in eggs that represent the goddess of fertility...I am confused.

Bumper Sticker Inspiration

My neighbor's car has a bumper sticker that says, "The meaning of life is to live it." This has made me think. Usually bumper sticker messages are read and then forgotten, but this is a simplistically profound statement. Sometimes we over-think our existence. Don't get me wrong, I believe God has designed us with purpose and each person has tremendous value. I just think that we are sometimes putting too much focus on doing something grand or accomplishing the "one thing" you have been placed on the Earth to do. We forget that our value is not in "doing," rather our value is intrinsic to who we are as human beings. A flower is not any more beautiful because it was in the White House. It is beautiful because it is beautiful. We are not made more valuable by what we do. The Scriptures say that those who have been redeemed by Messiah Yeshua (Jesus Christ) are children of God. By faith we can know that by living our lives to the glory of God, even in the little things, our purpose is being fulfilled.

Experience or Watch

Here is the question of the day: "Do you live life or observe life?" I must admit that my tendency is to observe rather than to be "living in the moment." The funny thing is that I have now observed myself observing. It seems safer. If we watch, we don't have to take as many risks. The problem is that observing is not as rewarding as engaging. Sometimes we can "seemingly engage," but just be going through the motions. I want to live life to the fullest and experience full joy. What about you?

Daylight Saving Time

For some reason I have been especially impacted by the change to DST this year. It could have something to do with the fact that I stayed up way too late on Saturday night/Sunday morning, but nevertheless, I feel the loss of that hour. I still don't understand why we change our time. Does it have something to do with the fact that we wish we could be like God and make time stand still? Probably not. The true reason is probably as ridiculous. People taut it as energy savings, but in today's world our schedules do not hinge that much upon daylight hours (well, maybe a little bit). Manufacturing and shopping happens around the clock. People work and play 24 hours a day. Back before working to a clock, people adjusted their day according to the position of the sun. Ok, maybe it is a silly thing to get worked up about, but the whole concept seems rather silly to me.
If we don't like the fact that it is dark at 10pm, then maybe we should just move our clocks 5 hours ahead and it would be light at 10 pm all year long.

I just saw that a new study shows that implementing DST can actually affect health. Check it out

Back at home

So now I am back to the northwest United States after being in Finland for a couple weeks, and it feels like spring here. After being in the cold and snow, coming back to 50 degrees feels very nice. It has even been a little sunny. The worst part about traveling is readjusting. A 10-hr time change can have a dramatic impact on a persons physiological responses. I am now very tired early in the evening and fully awake at 6 am. Is that what it's like to be a morning person? I am not quite sure what to do with myself so wide awake at that time in the morning. The other part of readjusting is catching up with things at work. So much to do...I even tried to keep up a little while I was away.

Such is life--full of adjustments. We like to be in a routine and tend to be creatures of habit. It is really amazing how God created us to have bodies that are programmed according to the sunrise and sunset. Physiologically we adjust to the world around us. At the same time, we have been created to be able to adjust to changes as well. There are always changes (seasons, weather, etc.) around us, which provide interesting variety. However, it nice to know that we have a God who is constant.

"for 'All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.' And this word is the good news that was preached to you." (1Pe 1:24-25 ESV)

Some Finnish Observations

I have been enjoying my trip to Finland. It has been interesting to see it now with new perspective. The last time I was here was in 1996. Below is a brief list of some of my current observations (although my window of observation has been only one week).

1. Finnish people are very punctual--much more so than Americans. We attended a conference this past weekend, and I couldn't believe how every session started and ended on time (to the minute). It seems that every conference or retreat I have attended in the US starts a little late and the sessions and breaks go overtime.

2. Finns are direct and to the point. They say what they mean without beating around the bush. They don't waste a lot of time with flowery speeches. This probably helps them to be punctual.

3. Finns take hospitality very seriously. People go out of their way to make their food look beautiful and taste wonderful. Coffee is served with home baked goods and served in a creative way. Last night I got to eat smoked reindeer baked with cheese and onions on a rye crust--it was excellent. Tea and coffee is always accompanied with nice breads, cheese, meat, and some vegetables (usually cucumbers, tomatoes, and red peppers). Coffee also usually includes multiple dessert options with perhaps some sort of tort, cake, ice cream, chocolates, fruit, etc. Of course they are served with the proper silverware and dishes. A guest feels quite special here.

4. Traffic seems to be remarkably light here. I have a hard time believing how such large cities could have such little traffic. Cars, parking fees, and gasoline are not cheap. In addition, public transportation is readily available. When I think about it, much of American life is spent in an automobile. I think about all of the time per week that I spend in my vehicle going from place to place and sitting in traffic. It seems that the radius of daily activity is much smaller here than in America.

5. Design is sleek, simple, efficient, of high quality, and practical. This makes me feel quite at home. I like the sensibility of being efficient, practical, with a streamlined pleasent appearance in households and clothing. Wood, glass, and brushed metal are common materials.

6. Finns appear to be as informed and maybe more informed about American politics than the majority of Americans. In nearly every conversation I have had, one of the first questions that comes up is related to the Presidential candidates. They all want to know what we think about Hillary and Obama. The general thought here is that Obama will win (probably because of the media hype in the US about him). I of course let them know that I support Mike Huckabee. Many say they like him, but have not heard much about him (that seems to be a consensus in the US as well). One man told me that he heard that Huckabee has some ancestors who were from Finland. I have not been able to confirm this, but that would be pretty cool. I had one man ask me to help him understand a caucus, a primary, and super delegates. Most Americans would probably have the same question. Finland currently has a female president, so they are of course interested to know if the US will vote one in as well.

Below are a few pictures from my trip thus far.

Above is a pen pal from when I was about 8 years old who I was able to visit. She is a 3rd cousin once removed who found me a few months ago on Facebook after over 20 years. It was a lot of fun to meet her husband and to stay at her home (the conversation and hospitality were delightful).

Above are photos of a newly installed sauna that uses fiber optic lights in the ceiling. The design was very nice.

Above is a photo of the coffee table at one home. This woman does some catering, so her spread was a bit more extravagant than at other homes, but here you can get the idea as to some ideas here regarding evening coffee.

A little family history

Today I had a chance to see the hotel that my great grandfather helped to construct in the late 1880s. I understand he was some type of foreman or construction manager for the Hotel Kämp in Helsinki. Now this is considered as one of the top hotels in Helsinki. They have restored it, and it is quite impressive. It was a lot of fun for me to see how he left his mark in this part of the world. As I looked at the columns, stairways, and exterior, I thought about how much effort he put into getting it all looking so beautiful. Above is a photo from inside the lobby.


Above is a view of the stairways upward from the lobby.
My parents sitting in the lobby. Below is a view of the exterior of the building.

Washington Republican Caucus Results

Again, people are projecting winners prematurely. The Washington State Republican party has declared McCain the winner with 87% of precincts reporting and only a 242 delegate difference between McCain and Huckabee. I sent the following email to Luke Esser (luke@wsrp.org) of the Washington State Republican party. See reported results.

See what Mike Huckabee's website says about this.


Mr Esser,

I am very disappointed that a winner of the Republican caucuses was projected to the press prematurely. According to the numbers reported, if 13% of the precincts have not reported, approximately 1750 delegates have not been counted. It is hardly possible to accurately predict the winner when the spread between McCain and Huckabee is only 242 delegates (less than 14% of the outstanding delegates), and the difference between McCain and Ron Paul is only 669 delegates.

The state of Washington does not have a good record for counting ballots, and we as the Republican party do not want to be accused of pulling similar tricks as what happened in the last governor's race. Please rescind your projected winner statement, and at least wait until all precincts have reported.

In addition there are a large number (1729) of "uncommitted" delegates who will be free to vote as they wish in the next round. As I understand it, we do not know a "winner" in Washington until the convention process has been completed.