11.17.07
Posted in Uncategorized at 7:57 pm by Bily Xiao
He is no fool who gives that which he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose - Jim ElliotIt is a quote and maxim of sorts that has been on the banner of my blog for years. It was the capstone of encouragement and inspiration in my reading of “Shadow of the Almighty”–a biography of Jim Elliot’s life by his wife Elizabeth Elliot.
Following upon my previous post I find now as appropriate a time as ever to update. The new banner quote follows from one of the thoughts in my previous post:”Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”
The verse is from the end of 1 Corinthians 13 — a famous chapter on Love. And it precedes another verse very special and deeply engrained in me by spiritual revelation and personal experience. I cannot help but to also share it with you: “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
But back to the main… I’ve updated not because the former is of less meaning to me now, but the new one has recently touched my heart. And hey, what better words are there to use as a quote than those from the Word of God.
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Posted in Life at 7:52 pm by Bily Xiao
What beauty there is in the world. The Lord gives me such joy, simply looking around me, sitting here at Central Park of Santa Clara. Such beauty there is in the delicate stance of the geese. They stand in a row, on one foot, cleaning themselves. It is a curious sight from where I am–kneeling and watching but a meter away–to see the occassional and so-human teetering and constant re-balancing through their knees. I thought only people were creatures of such struggle. But even the highly evolved and created animals of our world–put through the rigors of natural selection and despite all its adaptations: they are not perfect. And yet… it is so perfect… There is such an ease and wholesome perfection to the way things are.
I’ve sat at the park pond for a while and have been filled with so many thoughts I regret not having brought my long-untouched journal to write in. It would have felt so peaceful to capture all the precious thoughts God had given me in those moments in my personal life storybook. But I settle now this online blog (also long untouched). And this way there is the benefit of having it be accessible by virtually anyone. If anything I wish I could share the depth of this experience now with everyone. But though it is online, I will try now to write exactly as I think. Not to an audience. That has always felt rather forced. Calling upon unnatural effort.
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