There’s nothing more beautiful than watching the sun rise above the horizon early in the morning. As
it slowly peeks above the horizon and seeps between the branches of the trees,
the warmth it sheds is enough to warm every passer by’s shivering hands.
This semester I’ve had the joy of watching the sun rise as I walk to work in
the library early in the morning . It’s been something that has brought joy and
warmth to my heart and my hands on cold wintry rainy mornings.
As I ponder the little joys in life, like the rising sun, I thought about our porcelain lives, so fragile and frail… only one crashing wave away from being shattered to peices. Yet with every day I wake and watch the sunrise, I somehow manage to take it for granted. With every breath, I fail to realize His grace in giving me yet another moment.
Another moment to breathe,
to see,
to dream,
to hope,
to grow in godliness,
to smile,
to be His,
to live a Holy life,
and to Love in obedience to His command.
It’s so easy to get distracted by the grandeur of this world and all it has to offer, and I am not immune. But I wonder…what would it look like, if every porcelain life lived wholly dedicated to His purposes? What would my life look like if in light of my hopes and dreams, I let His light shine the way and change the path where He sees fit?
Maybe a porcelain life isn’t that bad after all. If it’s shattered by a crashing wave of reality, all it’s pieces will rest in the hand of the one who molded it to be in the first place.
C.T Studd put it this way:
Two little lines I heard one day, Traveling along life’s busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart, And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Only one life, yes only one, Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet, And stand before His Judgment seat;
Only one life,’ twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Only one life, the still small voice, Gently pleads for a better choice
Bidding me selfish aims to leave, And to God’s holy will to cleave;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
…
Only one life, yes only one, Now let me say, “Thy will be done”;
And when at last I’ll hear the call, I know I’ll say ’twas worth it all”;
Only one life,’ twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
1 Thessalonians 4: 13: – 18
Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that , we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.
~Grace Suliman
Last
Friday, I was informed of the loss of Dr. Hsu and my friend Harry Mikula's
mother.
This
news was hard to swallow. I did not know what to do. I sat and let the words
sit on me, sway across the air.
It
still feels weird.
Because
I remembered the times he would greet me with an
"Ahn-nyung-ha-sae-yo" (Korean for 'hello'). I remembered how he had
played piano so beautifully for our school.
The
absences of these two people came so abruptly that I almost did not believe it.
I
once heard from a friend that she found out more about herself through the
death of a parent. She said it was like peeling a layer away. I wondered what
she meant by that.
The
loss of these two people would peel a layer away too. What could be learned
through this? What good did these things serve? In my limited human
perspective, I am quick to ask all these questions. Life is fleeting and so
fragile. Why does God make us in that way? Through Dr. Hsu's life and his
legacy, I found myself looking to him as an example, I want to live using the
gifts God has given me in bringing glory to Him. I want to live for Him... Dr.
Hsu did the same - he wasn't in it for the money or fame. He genuinely loved
God, PBU, and the students. Perhaps this was why he could be used in such a
high degree. He simply showed love, touched his audiences with the love of
Christ. He did not argue about the correctness of his theology. He
just...
~Hanah Bae
Wow! Where has the semester gone?! It feels like just
yesterday that I moved in and got ready for my first semester. Time seems to fly by pretty fast the older we get and as such we lose time to do the things we enjoy doing. I know
that for me I have found less time to do the one thing I like the most-
reading. I have always loved to sit down on a rainy day and delve into the
world of my current favorite author. I
could lose myself for hours in C.S. Lewis’ mythical lands and Jane Austen’s
romances. But now all my time is taken up with homework, studying, and hanging
out with friends. Don’t get me wrong I like being able to do productive things
but reading gives you chance to step out of your world and into someone else’s.
Reading provides an opportunity for you to expand your worldview and at the
same time, enjoy the expansion.
When I
first started working here at the library, I was amazed at all the books I saw.
I was in heaven! (Or something relatively close.) And when I found out that the
Juvenile section had books I had loved reading when I was homeschooled, I had a
hard time containing my excitement. One particular afternoon I remember
shelving some books in the Juvenile section and I came across a book that my
mom had read to my siblings and me when we were kids. I remember this book all
too well because it was a mind game book that I didn’t understand as a child.
So I decided to re-read the book and see if I could figure it out. The book, The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin, is a
story about a rich business owner who is found dead in his estate. In his will
he invites a seemingly random collection of people to a game of whodunit. The
prize is his mass fortune. Each person is paired up with another “heir” and the
couple is given a set of clues that is supposed to help them figure out who
murdered the rich man. This book is filled with laughable drama and dialogue,
mind bending twists and turns, and even a few explosions! I invite all of you
to join in the madness to figure out who murdered Mr. Westing and why over
Christmas break. It is a short and enjoyable read that allows you to
expand your mind without hurting it too much! It can be found in the Juvenile section under PZ7.R375 Wes 1997.
Have a great break and Merry
Christmas!
~Jenny Dunning~
I have been at PBU for 10 years this semester. I started my undergraduate work in Fall 2001, I lived in Davis Dorm with a wonderful group of women who loved adventure and had huge goals for the future. It is has been a privilege seeing how their lives have changed and the paths they have taken in the last 10 years. I have remained at PBU to work in the library as my life has always revolved around books, my parents and grandparents fostered this love in me and my work as a librarian here at PBU is rewarding as I get to help students at PBU learn and exceed in their academic studies.
During my undergraduate years a large percentage of my friends consisted of music majors and through them and my cousin in the honors program I was introduced to Dr. Hsu. My first thoughts on Dr. Hsu was that he was brilliant on the keys, he played superbly and yet was one of the most approachable men I have ever met. I worked in the library and it was months before I realized Dr. Hsu and the Dr. Hui's were all related, I think it finally sunk in when I was invited to Ms. Stewart's house for one of the holidays I couldn't get home for that year.
In the last 10 years I have been blessed to know and to learn from Dr. Hsu, not piano (I am a hopeless cause there), but rather in his wisdom and love of the Lord. My roommate for many years was a music major and when several of my classmates and Dr. Hsu's personal assistants had left the area my roommate and I would on occasions take Dr. Hsu home. Those trips were always interesting and filled with grand conversations. I especially remember one trip out to a friend's wedding in Shoamokin, PA when my roommate and I took Dr. Hsu out there so they could play a duet together for the wedding. Dr. Hsu was internationally known and yet he was always so involved in his students and former students lives that he would frequently play at their weddings and events. He is a man who left a deep impact on the people in his church and here at PBU. Even when he wasn't feeling well he would always have a smile and a kind word.
We will miss Dr. Hsu, but we also know that he is with the Savior he loved so well. He spent almost 40 years with the students at PBU, investing and sending them out to the field. I am sure if you asked him how the time went he would say quickly, and yet what a wonderful investment.
~Laura Saloiye
From the PBU Facebook site:
Dr. Samuel Hsu Memorial Visitation Wednesday, December 7, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm at the Dunn-Givnish Funeral Home in Langhorne, PA, the family will receive visitors. Memorial Service Thursday, December 8, 10:00 am at Tenth Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, PA. There will be a prelude beginning at 9:30 am with former students of Dr. Hsu playing. The service will also be simulcast at Philadelphia Biblical University in the Chatlos Chapel.
Submission
Requirements:
Original submissions only. No previously published work. Artwork should be submitted in frames ready for display. All entries should be submitted to the Library.
Include with submission:
Artist/Writer profile with picture
Contact information (phone number and e-mail address)
Hometown
Anticipated year of graduation
I am also reminded of this fact every time I walk through
certain isle of our library. One of my favorite isles on the second floor
contains shelves of Puritan literature, Spurgeon sermons, books written by Dietrich
Bonheoffer and others, . Sometimes I wish I would walk by and see more spaces in
those shelves, but I fear many people get intimidated bored by reading the old
dead guys on theology. While their writing style may be vastly different than
our own, I would strongly encourage you to search out the library, and dig into
some of the great resources therefrom.
We often talk of the fact that we are the church, and that is most certainly true, but I think we often forget to think of ourselves in terms of the invisible Church. The invisible Church, as most theologians describe it, is the body of God’s people throughout all of human history (or Pentecost, if you don’t include Israel). Regardless, I think it’s important to remember that when we are adopted into the family of God we are not by any means the only ones; there are a lot of those old boring dead guys who were bought by the blood of Christ and filled with the Holy Spirit too. And, many of them had really helpful things to say.
~Zak Fixler
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