Happy Birthday and Merry Christmas!

Its been a while since I've posted, but we've been quite busy.  Brian and Liz (Alison's brother and his wife) came and visited for two weeks over Christmas.  We had a fantastic time with them, and were even able to to go Dubai with them for a couple of days.  Here are some things I learned. 

• You can apparently book private parties at indoor ski resorts in the desert.  We had intended to go sledding and skiing to experience snow on Christmas day, but the indoor ski resort was closed for a private party.  Really!?!  Is it not crazy enough that you can do indoor skiing in the middle of the desert?  Apparently not.  We still had a good time that day.  We explored the mall, went to the book store (not that we're starving for one in Bahrain - we just like books) and took Eva to the area with the kiddie rides and arcade games.  She was freaked out by the 
• Chasing Eva saying, "Oh no!  Sharks!" is hilarious.  For both of us.  In another mall, there is a "water-zoo" (aka aquarium), and it was everything I had hoped and dreamed.  Eva laughed and giggled and squealed her way through the whole thing looking at otters, bright and colorful fish, and most of all - penguins.  There is also a tunnel that goes under the massive two-story aquarium and there are 15-20 large sharks with jagged teeth.  Lots of fun. 
• Camel Burgers are tasty.  They're a little tougher than beef burgers, and I probably wouldn't order one again.  But its kind of cool to say I've had a camel burger. 
• The Apocalypse does NOT come if we don't put our kids down for naps at 1pm.  Usually the kids are on a pretty rigid schedule, and, although we intended to keep them on the schedule, we grossly underestimated travel times going to and from the hotel.  But it ended up all right.  Its a little freeing to think that, if we choose for a day, we can do something that requires a little more time. 

Of course, this last week was Eva's 2nd birthday!  Happy Birthday Eva!  We didn't do a whole lot, just went out for ice cream at Dairy Queen and let her have a vanilla sundae.  We didn't plan any events this year, and maybe that makes us bad parents.  I'm not sure. 

I remember when I was a kid my dad (or mom, maybe) telling me that it was nice that my birthday was in April.  That way they had time to save up for presents in between Christmas and my birthday.  I remember being a bit confused as to why that mattered.  Well, now I know.  Not that its a problem now.  But someday when she wants a laptop for Christmas and an iPad for her birthday, there's going to be some tears shed.  

Google's Shout out to Bahrain National Day

Today (or possibly tomorrow - I'm not quite sure) is the 40th anniversary of Bahrain's break from the UK as a "protectorate".   But I was surprised to see that Google had a "Google Doodle" on its home page marking National Day.  Even more surprisingly, its visible on the main Google homepage (as opposed to just the Google Bahrain homepage).

I really like the picture.  Pearl diving is, historically, what Bahrain was known for.  Here are a couple of tidbits about diving:

• Divers would often stay out for days, even weeks at a time, searching for pearls.  They could stay out so long because they had access to fresh water. 
• Fresh water streams ran through the salt-water at the floor of the ocean, and divers could dive down and refill their water casks with fresh water without docking. (those fresh water streams no longer exist due to land reclamation). 
• Pearls were able to be bought and sold in Bahrain as traders went from modern day Kuwait, down through the gulf and on to India. 

When in Rome....

The longer I live here, the more Bahraini I become.  I've decided that the eating schedule my Bahraini friends follow is fantastic: 

• Breakfast:  10am-11am
• Lunch: 3pm-4pm 
• Dinner:  8pm-9pm

On Tuesday, we experienced this eating schedule.  We had breakfast with friends at Fudruckers at 10, and by the time we got home it was time to put the kids down for the afternoon nap.  We then went to someone else's house for lunch (we weren't actually expecting lunch, but a great spread was brought out after we arrived!)  So we munched on lunch while chatting.  I was content for the day, and had a light snack in the evening. 

Not only that, but it is traditional to give kids money during Eid.  so as we left, our friends (at both breakfast and lunch!) stuck a couple of dinars in Eva and Gabe's pockets!  They are still too little to understand what money is (thank goodness), but we've got a few ideas for things that they would both enjoy.   

Gabe Laughs, Eva Grows Up

I've not been writing a lot recently as we've been very busy.  Now that I've started school, I'm full on with teaching 7th grade math, 8th grade math, 12th grade advanced economics, advising the Model United Nations students, acting as math department coordinator, and working on various other projects.  But all work and no play makes for a very boring blog.

Its always a joy to come home and hear Alison say to Eva, "Who's a daddy?"  to which Eva replies:  "THERE'S A DADDY!!" Usually she runs to the door with something her hand, too excited to do anything but shake herself silly and start randomly doing a puzzle, lay on the floor or put kitty on Gabe's head.

Gabe has been endearing himself to us more and more lately.  He smiles a lot, and has taken to peak-a-boo.

He's also growing up - he's now eating solids and sitting in the high chair.

Which means Eva has gotten kicked out of her seat, but gets to sit at the table with the adults.

Gabe doesn't laugh or giggle (or at least very loudly), but he does like to be tickled on the ribs.  Enjoy!

And as a bonus:  Eva likes to wear empty yoghurt containers on her head.  Sadly, she is starting to get too big for them, so I grabbed this video before she passes out of this important developmental stage.

Jesus on Fasting, pt 3

(This is the third on a series of posts regarding Jesus and fasting.  It follows a series of posts on the Muslim month of Ramadhan).

The third of four times that Jesus encounters fasting in the New Testament is probably one of the most confusing.  I have a better sense of this story than the other three passages on fasting because I was privileged to preach on this passage at our church this last summer.  Here is the text:

Mark 2:18-22 (in Arabic)  ¹⁸ Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?”  ¹⁹ Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. ²⁰ But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.²¹ “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse.²² And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”

Typically, I've given a sentence or two about the context, but I'm actually going to do that later on.  This passage can be split into two parts.  First, the part that is about NOT fasting.  Second, the part that IS about fasting.  

The Part that is about NOT Fasting - Joy in Jesus

Its important to realize how many of Jesus' listeners (and Mark's readers) would have understood fasting.  They would have most likely understood it from an Old Testament context.  In the Old Testament, a majority of verses on fasting can be put into three categories:  fasting as mourning, fasting as seeking God's forgiveness, fasting as seeking God's mercy after sinning.  Generally, when people were fasting, they were not happy.  

In this particular passage, I think it might be helpful to replace "fast" with "be sad" to give us an idea of what was being discussed. 

" ' How is it that John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are sad, but yours are not?' Jesus Answered, 'How can the guests of the bridegroom be sad while he is with them?' "  

Jesus' analogy of a wedding (him being the groom) is poignant.  No one is sad at a wedding (unless you're the old boyfriend still in love with the bride). 

The point of this passage seems to be that, since Jesus is with his disciples, it is impossible for them to be sad.  But why is this true?  Why should people be so joyous by Jesus' presence that they simply can't be sad?  The answer comes from the preceding two stories.  I'm not going to go into these two stories in detail here, but here is the main point of each story: 

1. Jesus HIMSELF has the authority to forgive sins. (Mark 2:1-12)
2. Jesus has come to spend time with sinners! (Mark 2:13-17)

And then our current story - we have joy in the presence of Jesus!

The Part that IS About Fasting

However, Jesus was to leave at some point.  We know that he died on the cross, was raised and is now in heaven with our Father.  We have joy because our sins are forgiven.  We have joy because our shame is taken from us.  We have joy that someday we will be reunited with Jesus and God the Father.  However, right now, we still live in a sinful world.  There is sadness. 

And so we fast.  Here are three ways that I think Fasting helps illustrate this (these are not based on this passage, but my own experience and thoughts) 

1. When we fast, our hunger reminds us that we long for the presence of God - who satisfies our deepest desires.  
2. When we fast, our hunger reminds us that we don't live on bread alone

In reality, followers of Jesus live in an in-between state.  We have been saved from our sins by Jesus' death on the cross.  But we are in the process of becoming more and more like Jesus as the Holy Spirit changes our hearts. 

And What About That Last Part?

Ok - so this wasn't part of my original structure, but I'm going to be honest - I don't know what to make about this part of the story.  I read four different commentaries, all saying completely different (and sometimes opposite) things.  At the very least, it has to do with the place of fasting in the context of Old Testament traditions.  The Jews of the Old Testament times had lots of rules and ideas on fasting, and Jesus seems to be saying that its not important to follow all of those rules.  But I'll let you work that out for yourself. 

What we learn about Fasting

1. We fast because we want Jesus to come back.  We want to be in his presence, and in God's presence.  We are sad because we are not, and Fasting is a sign of that in our lives. 
2. All the rules and regulations of fasting (whatever those were) aren't required by those who follow Jesus now. 
3. When we join Jesus in heaven with God, there will be no more fasting.  We will be too happy.