July 4th, 2010
Dear Family and Friends,
Blessing to all at Bethlehem, we’re doing BBQ on campus this Independence Day! In the eating and drinking,
welcoming new friends and making merry, a beautiful verse from the Psalms come to my mind: “This is the day that
the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.” Indeed, we’re rejoicing, lots of rejoicing, as we celebrate our
independence on the Lord’s day this year.
This is a joyful season. I had another BBQ the other day as I joined some friends in welcoming a seminary president
from China. A dear colleague from many years ago, this wonderful lady is now president of the seminary in Beijing.
As we were catching up and enjoying the BBQ, someone brought up the topic of differences between the two
countries. Of course, there’re many. “The most striking for me,” I said, “is freedom.”
The freedom of speech, religious freedom, political freedom, economic freedom, and even academic freedom in the
seminary are all concerns to my colleague, and many from my home country. She did not hide her admiration for the
freedom that I now enjoy in this land. Freedom is such a significant part of the American dream. Even in the parish
ministry, I come across many in the immigrant community who would share their stories with you often beginning with
“For the sake of freedom…”
“Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of
bondage” (Galatians 5:1). These few weeks, as I carry on in the Pauline teaching, I have become ever more grateful
for the new creation that God has made me in Christ. And I am ever more grateful for the new beginning that I have in
the land of the free. In the celebration of this Independence Day, I recall the words of President Ronald Reagan, the
40th President of the Unites States:
“I received a letter just before I left office from a man. I don’t know why he chose to write it, but I’m glad that he did.
He wrote that you can go to live in France, but you can’t become a Frenchman. You can go to live in Germany or
Italy, but you can’t become a German, an Italian. He went through Turkey, Greece, Japan and other countries. But
he said anyone, from any corner of the world, can come to live in the United States and become an American.”
America is the land of the free, the hope, and the promise; the land God shed his grace on thee; beautiful for pilgrim
feet; a thoroughfare of freedom beat. And my beloved, now, we, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. We are
the children of the free. Happy the 4th of July, the day that the Lord has made! Let us rejoice and be glad in it!
In God’s grace,
Pastor Frank
Dear Family and Friends,
Blessing to all at Bethlehem, we’re doing BBQ on campus this Independence Day! In the eating and drinking,
welcoming new friends and making merry, a beautiful verse from the Psalms come to my mind: “This is the day that
the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.” Indeed, we’re rejoicing, lots of rejoicing, as we celebrate our
independence on the Lord’s day this year.
This is a joyful season. I had another BBQ the other day as I joined some friends in welcoming a seminary president
from China. A dear colleague from many years ago, this wonderful lady is now president of the seminary in Beijing.
As we were catching up and enjoying the BBQ, someone brought up the topic of differences between the two
countries. Of course, there’re many. “The most striking for me,” I said, “is freedom.”
The freedom of speech, religious freedom, political freedom, economic freedom, and even academic freedom in the
seminary are all concerns to my colleague, and many from my home country. She did not hide her admiration for the
freedom that I now enjoy in this land. Freedom is such a significant part of the American dream. Even in the parish
ministry, I come across many in the immigrant community who would share their stories with you often beginning with
“For the sake of freedom…”
“Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of
bondage” (Galatians 5:1). These few weeks, as I carry on in the Pauline teaching, I have become ever more grateful
for the new creation that God has made me in Christ. And I am ever more grateful for the new beginning that I have in
the land of the free. In the celebration of this Independence Day, I recall the words of President Ronald Reagan, the
40th President of the Unites States:
“I received a letter just before I left office from a man. I don’t know why he chose to write it, but I’m glad that he did.
He wrote that you can go to live in France, but you can’t become a Frenchman. You can go to live in Germany or
Italy, but you can’t become a German, an Italian. He went through Turkey, Greece, Japan and other countries. But
he said anyone, from any corner of the world, can come to live in the United States and become an American.”
America is the land of the free, the hope, and the promise; the land God shed his grace on thee; beautiful for pilgrim
feet; a thoroughfare of freedom beat. And my beloved, now, we, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. We are
the children of the free. Happy the 4th of July, the day that the Lord has made! Let us rejoice and be glad in it!
In God’s grace,
Pastor Frank
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| Columns Section: 世紀網站專欄區 世纪网站专栏区: 008-022 王浩 專欄 王浩 专栏 Pastor Frank Wang Column 作者：王浩 王浩 Pastor Frank Wang Frank's Monthly Pastoral: 2010 July 4th |
