Week 21

When the humane enters the divine. Rob Bell makes an excellent and true point that “Everything is Spiritual.” He points out that behind everything big and small science has discovered the finger of God. Science has discovered the complexity of a Big Mind. Science is starting to think outside the box. It’s a very good movie/lecture to watch. In my readings of the Book of Daniel I have somehow noticed the opposite—the material and mundane can’t meet the spiritual and divine. Every time Daniel had a spiritual contact he collapsed and fell sick. For example: “The vision of the evenings and the mornings that has been told is true, but seal up the vision, for it refers to many days from now." And I, Daniel, was overcome and lay sick for some days. Then I rose and went about the king's business, but I was appalled by the vision and did not understand it” (8:26-27; see also Dn 8.17-18, 27; 9.21; 10.7-11, 15-18). It seems to be the opposite of Rob Bell’s point, as if the divine and the humane are two realities that can’t meet. Human beings can’t see the Holy and survive the OT states: Is 6.5; Ex 33.20; Jd 6.22; 13.22; Job 42.5. I think then it is no surprise that we can’t see the spirituality behind the material and mundane. We have to learn to transcend the body to be able to “see” the spiritual world. For some of us it will only be possible when we put on the new body. For some others will faint, like Daniel. And for a few others, they will be able to see and live. Very few ones.

Week 20

A week ago, my mother fell in her apartment. Hours later the neighbors noticed she didn’t open the door that morning and called me. I ran there expecting the worst. She is 80 years old. She was alive but had been on the floor for almost 10 hours—there were angels guarding her along those hours. She was fine, no broken bones and no internal traumas. We had to find a new home for her, an elderly home, where people would take care of her 24/7. That was a hard decision to take; Dayse was taking such a good care of her. The good Lord led me to very good elderly home. Today her blood pressure is stable, she walks better and her emotional attitude is positive. Throughout this week I couldn’t help to stop thinking about the meaning and implications of “Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God commanded you, that your days may be long, and that it may go well with you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.” Thank you ever so much to all those who prayed for us. And, may the Lord bless our parents.

Still in the same week, I had the opportunity to speak to a group of local servant-leaders about the many different translations we have in Portuguese. Our “João Ferreira de Almeida” translation (1654) is as old and traditional as the English KJV. Yet, I explained about the different philosophies behind translations we have now and the advantages of using these new Portuguese translations.