What makes a person valuable?

What is it that makes person valuable?  What gives them dignity?

In our society it seems like a person's value is "measured according to their revenue-earning capacity." (Refer to 'When disability discrimination is legal')

So what then of those whose revenue-earning capacity is diminished in some way for example, through disease or disability?  They simply become a "financial burden" on society.

If we hold a view like this, then whole raft of other decisions and actions may follow.  Here is an example of people being excluded from entering Australia, but what next?  Abortion of embryos that may have a disability?  Involuntary euthanasia of those who are 'burden' on limited resources?  These consequences are alarming, but they are the natural end point of the way that our society is thinking at the moment.

In contrast, the Christian narrative offers an alternative (and I think compelling) source of human value.  We have been created by God in his image. This gives us tremendous value and dignity.  Furthermore, God loves us so much that He sent Jesus to rescue us from our wayward lives, restore us to relationship with God and make us part of his new community.  That is amazing value.  That is amazing dignity, given to us by the supreme creator of the universe.  We aren't precious because of what we can do for God.  We simply are precious to Him.  Fullstop.

How to make awesome Turkish Delight

This past week I decided to make Turkish Delight.  I was making it for Muslim people, so it needed to be halal.  This ruled out a lot of recipes I saw on the internet, because they contain gelatine, and all the gelatine commonly available in supermarkets here is not halal.  But then I stumbled on this recipe at Titli’s Kitchen that doesn’t use gelatine.  And even better, she said this is a more traditional method of making it!

It turned out so awesomely that I want to share it with you.  So here we go…

Ingredients

800 g (4 cups) sugar

120 g (1 cup) cornflour

375mL (1½ cups) + 500mL (2 cups) water

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp rosewater (I added an extra ½ tbsp.)

1 tsp cream of tartar (don’t leave this out as it prevents the sugar from crystallising)

Few drops of food colouring

For dusting

160 g (1 cup) icing sugar

30 g (¼ cup) cornflour

Extra icing sugar

[Note: This recipe is great for those with allergies and intolerances.  There is no dairy, no wheat, no gluten, no egg, and no nuts. Just make sure you use 100% corn cornflour, not one with wheat added in.]

Instructions

1.              Place 375 ml (1½ cups) water in a pan. Add in the lemon juice and sugar. Bring to the boil while stirring.

2.              Once the mixture comes to the boil keep stirring until the temperature reaches 115°C on a candy thermometer. This is also known as the soft-ball stage.

I reckon it’s definitely worth the investment of a candy thermometer for this.  It takes the worry and the guesswork out of it.  I got one for only $10.  Do be patient when you’re doing this step.  It takes a long time for the syrup to go up the last 5-10^oC.

3.              Once it has reached 115°C, turn off the heat.

4.              In a separate pan add 500 ml (2 cups) of water. Add in the cream of tartar and the cornflour. Whisk to remove lumps.

In order to save time, you can start this mixture when the sugar syrup gets to about 105-110 ^oC.  Make sure you focus on stirring this one, though.  The other one doesn’t need as much attention.

5.              Continue whisking while you bring the cornflour water to the boil. Once it becomes a gluey paste remove from the heat.

6.              Add a small amount of the sugar syrup to the gluey paste and whisk to incorporate. Continue adding the syrup a bit at a time, whisking between each addition.

Make sure you follow this instruction.  If you add the cornflour mix to the sugar mix, then it will get really lumpy!  Trust me, I tried it (and was unsuccessful in removing the lumps by whisking).

For the second batch I made sure to follow the instruction of adding the sugar mixture slowly to the cornflour mixture.  However, some lumps still formed. 

If you do get lumps, strain them out before you do step 7, otherwise it’s too thick to strain later (I tried this with my first batch!).  It’s definitely worth straining, otherwise you’ll get lumps in the final product.

For the third batch I took Titli’s advice and used an electric mixer.  This worked fantastically well, and the mixture became beautifully smooth.  But if you decide to use the beaters, be careful what saucepan you decide to use.

7.              Bring the mixture to the boil. Then turn the heat down, and allow to simmer very gently for about an hour. Stir frequently.

8.              By now the mixture should be an amber colour. Add in the rosewater and a few drops of food colouring. Mix well.

9.              Take a 20cmx20cm (8″x8″) baking tin, oil lightly, line with baking paper and lightly oil the baking paper. Pour in the Turkish Delight, cover and leave for several hours to cool completely.

Even though it seems strange, I do recommend following this instruction of putting oil on the top of the baking paper.  The Turkish Delight is so sticky, but the oil (I used spray oil) made it come off so easily.

10.           Dust the Turkish Delight with icing sugar and turn it out onto a surface dusted liberally with icing sugar. Remove the baking paper.

11.           Cut the slab of Turkish Delight into squares using a pizza cutter or a lightly-oiled knife.

12.           Sift the icing sugar and cornflour into a large bowl and add the squares of Turkish Delight. Mix well.

13.           Storage: Store the Turkish Delight in a sealed box together with all the icing sugar/cornflour mixture. Do not store in the fridge.

This recipe is quite time consuming and involved, but the results are fantastic.  All 3 of my batched worked well.  They all set (even the first one when I had to strain lots and was worried there’d be no cornflour left!).

Even though it uses cornflour, it doesn’t have a floury taste.  The cornflour also gives it a much nicer texture.  It is beautiful and soft, not rubbery, but melt-in-your-mouth awesome.  It also doesn’t need to set or be stored in the fridge, which is another plus.

So if you have a couple of hours, give it a go.  You’ll be hard pressed to stop after just one piece! :-)

Yum!  The almost finished product.

My friend was a little excited :-)

What does it mean to 'live as not'? #amcl

Today in the Annual Moore College Lecture Series we thought about the nature of the world, in particular, the fact that it is passing away.

One of the texts we considered was this passage in 1 Corinthians:

And I say this, brothers: The time is limited,  so from now on those who have wives should be as though they had none, those who weep as though they did not weep, those who rejoice as though they did not rejoice, those who buy as though they did not possess, and those who use the world as though they did not make full use of it. For this world in its current form is passing away. (1 Corinthians 7:29-31)

It's an odd thing to say.  What does it mean to 'live as not'?  In terms of the marriage example, Paul is clearly not advocating spousal neglect or adultery (see everything else he writes on the topic!).  He is also surely not saying that we should be emotional suppressed (consider how he encourages us to weep with those who weep, and rejoice with those who rejoice - Rom 12:15).  His point is not that we should deny these things.  Rather, it is that we should, in some way, live as though we don't have these things.

I think Paul's teaching in 1 Timothy 6 helps to provide some further insight into what this means.

     For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these. But those who want to be rich fall into temptation, a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge people into ruin and destruction.  For the love of money is a root  of all kinds of evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains. (v7-10)

Instruct those who are rich in the present age not to be arrogant or to set their hope on the uncertainty of wealth, but on God, who richly provides us with all things to enjoy.  Instruct them to do what is good, to be rich in good works, to be generous, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good reserve for the age to come, so that they may take hold of life that is real. (v17-19)

This passage also reminds us that this present world is passing away.  We will leave it, and we will not be able to take anything with us.  Those things too will perish.  That is why we should not put our confidence in them.  Rather, we should be our confidence in God.  I think this is the sense of what he means by 'living as not'.  We not to deny marriage, possessions or emotions, just like we are not to deny wealth.  But we are to deny their attempts for power over us.  As we search for security and certainty, we are not to hold onto these fleeting things, but onto God.  And as we hold onto God, we are able to let go of those other things, being generous because we know that God is our provider in both this age and the next.  So we don't need to deny these things, but we do need to hold on very lightly to them.

However, there is also a sense in which we may choose to deny these things.  Jesus has changed everything.  Since him, we now live in the last days.  This changes our priorities.  As we see the future, we act differently.  For example, Jesus and Paul teach how marriage and singleness are shaped by the future.  Previously marriage was important as it was part of the way God made the world, and also to keep having kids so that the Saviour would be born one day.  But now the possibility of choosing singleness is more prominent.  The Kingdom of God has come, so now is the time to call people to repent.  Singleness is encouraged by both Jesus and Paul so that people can devote themselves more fully to this task (Mt 19, 1 Cor 7).  This is not denying the goodness of marriage (which is good because God made it, but is also good because it is a pointer the relationship between Jesus and the church), but is highlighting the possibility of making a new choice in light of the Kingdom.  Similarly, disciples of Jesus are able to throw themselves into Kingdom work without worries about their possessions here because God will provide for their current needs and will also give them treasure in heaven (Mt 6).

So we can see that God provides us with good things to enjoy, so we should enjoy them, but not put our confidence in them.  And secondly, we may choose to give up some of God's gifts for the sake of the Kingdom.  Taking either of these paths will not be lamented in the end, for things that are truly good, real and lasting will be given to us in the age to come.

Asylum seeker policy failure - some articles worth reading

I have no particular political party persuasion.  I confess (to my shame) that it has only been in these last couple of months that I have really cared about the plight of asylum seekers.  It has only been through meeting more people who have come from very troubled parts of the world that my heart has really been stirred.  That, and the lack of compassion shown by the Australian parliament and people, even in the face of tragic deaths at sea.

So here's a collection of articles about asylum seekers which I think are worth considering.



I am disgusted by the statement made by Kevin Rudd today about asylum seeker policy:  "From now on, any asylum-seeker who arrives in Australia by boat will have no chance of being settled in Australia as a refugee"

'Australia to send asylum-seekers to PNG' http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-23358329

Rather than being processed and resettled here, they are going to be sent to PNG.  I object to sending them elsewhere, but I object even more to sending to a substandard place.

'Problems persist at Manus Island processing centre: UNHCR Australia report' http://www.unhcr.org/51dfd23d6.html

I am also upset that Kevin Rudd has now enacted a policy that he previously objected to.  In 2006 he wrote persuasively about being "a voice for the voiceless."

'Faith in Politics' http://www.themonthly.com.au/issue/2006/october/1330040298/kevin-rudd/faith-politics

Many Australians seem to have absorbed the 'protecting our borders' rhetoric, but have forgotten that seeking asylum is a legitimate, legal activity.  People do not take this route lightly.  They do it out of desperation.

'You've been misled on boat people: Here are the facts' http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/youve-been-misled-on-boat-people-here-are-the-facts-20130718-2q5rv.html

This current plan of action falls well short of our international duty to aid refugees.  We are shamed by other countries that are far less well off than we are, yet keep their borders and their arms open to help the vulnerable.  This shows a deep selfishness and saddening lack of compassion in our nation.

'What can Lebanon teach Australia about refugees?' http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-18/wakim---a-global-perspective-on-refugees/4828412

This is a complex and emotive issue.  But I do not think that this current policy is the best option.  Nathan Campbell offers an interesting solution, which I think is worth investigation.
http://st-eutychus.com/2013/australians-all-let-us-rejoice-for-we-have-strong-borders-and-none-shall-pass/

Lastly, this article challenges us to realise that helping asylum seekers will require much more than a 'like' or a 'retweet', but will require time, action and cost on our part.

http://christinemead.wordpress.com/2013/07/20/so-you-think-its-a-good-idea-to-welcome-refugees-excuse-me-while-i-burst-your-bubble/

[a new addition]
Feeling confused, helpless, powerless?  Here's some great practical suggestions from the former director of Nauru

http://citybibleforum.org/city/melbourne/blog/what-can-i-do-about-asylum-seekers

so-called 'spawn of Satan' returns to church

On College Mission I met a lady who, unbelievably, as a 10 year old in Sunday School, was told "you are the spawn of Satan".

We were horrified.  But we also prayed.  We prayed for God to bring healing to her heart.  We prayed for her to give church another go.  We prayed for her to come back to God.

On that second Sunday of Mission, which we'd been building up to all week, I looked and looked, but she wasn't there.  I was disappointed.

We went home from Mission.  But the regulars at St Marks were still on mission, and God was still on mission.

The senior minister put a birthday card, some chocolates and an Easter flyer in her letterbox.

God did the rest.

Shaking, she entered the church on Easter Sunday.  What a great act of courage!

This time she wasn't berated, but was welcomed.

And she even was brave enough to ask a question!

Praise God!

"Chocolate is central to what we do"

"Chocolate is central to a lot of what we do here at St Marks." - Craig Schaffer, Senior Minister

Craig's comment was made in best, but there's a bit of truth to it.  Chocolate has certainly featured highly in our mission this week.

As we greeted people on the way to the train station they generally didn't want to take the flyer.  But then a miraculous thing happened.  Their eyes registered the chocolate stapled to it, then they smiled and took the flyer.

Does it really work though?  Absolutely.  3 years ago a guy was given a flyer and a Freddo.  He decided to take his girlfriend and go to church.  A couple of months later they were both converted.  Today we joined them handing out flyers and Freddos.

Today Craig also shared some of the other things he's learnt about ministry over the years.

One of his key strategies is prayer.  He prays on his own.  He prays with the staff.  He prays with the congregation.  He is a great model of prayer.  And God has been answering his prayers.  It was a good lesson for us:  "Devote yourselves to prayer" (Col 4:2)

the day a tiger joined our mission team

Yesterday a tiger joined our mission team.  Or rather, one of our mission team became a tiger.

On Sunday St Marks Pennant Hills is 'open for inspection'.  Everyone's invited to come and connect or reconnect with church.

In addition to explaining stuff that goes on at church there's a whole bunch of activities going on before/after, including a jumping castle, aBBQ and face painting.

Most of us on the team said, "I don't know how to do face painting."  But Mark said, "My daughter is a professional face painter."  So he organised for her to give us some face painting training.  Fun times.

Step 1 (for Jimbo): Draw where hairline would be.

Step 2: Find your inner tiger.

Step 3: Unleash the tiger within.

Perhaps Jimbo needs to work on his fearsome look!