Salt and Light

The great tragedy of prosperity-preaching is that a person does not have to be spiritually awakened in order to embrace it; one needs only to be greedy. Getting rich in the name of Jesus is not the salt of the earth or the light of the world. In this, the world simply sees a reflection of itself. And if it works, they will buy it.

The context of Jesus' saying shows us what the salt and light are. They are the joyful willingness to suffering for Christ. Here is what Jesus said, "Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. You are the salt of the earth. . . . You are the light of the world" (Matthew 5:11-14).

What will make the world taste (the salt) and see (the light) of Christ in us is not that we love wealth the same way they do. Rather, it will be the willingness and the ability of Christians to love others through suffering, all the while rejoicing because their reward is in heaven with Jesus. This is inexplicable on human terms. This is supernatural. But to attract people with promises of prosperity is simply natural. It is not the message of Jesus. It is not what he died to achieve.

--John Piper

I've Been Dubbed...

..."My Shell"--yet another variation on my name. This particular one has something to do with a spunky New Zealander affectionately known as Sparkplug and a dream about a turtle--a turtle named "Michelle" or "My Shell" or something like that.

Other names from my past/things I've been called:

"Chelle"--obvious enough, I suppose
"Chel"--which I recently found out is also the Romanian word for "bald"...
"Cheeeaaarrr"--kinda hard to write out. The little kid version of "Chelle"
"Mikey"--let's not go there
"Michael"--I was less than inclined to respond to that one
"Mich"--it'll do in a pinch
"Mich the _ _ _ _ _" -- :) If you can fill in the blanks, you are very likely one of those who committed this heinous crime. I've forgiven you, by the way.
"Melissa"--my violin teacher knew my name wasn't Melissa, but she couldn't remember what it was....
"Little Miss Piggy"--those were the days! This was the battlecry of my older siblings (not to implicate anyone) as we raced to see who could answer the phone first. Now we have quite the opposite problem. :)
"Michellita"--no matter what country I seem to be in, the diminutive form of my name always becomes Michellita

Last, but not least, I've become one of a group of three to four girls (depending on the day) who are apparently quite interchangeable. I'm learning to respond to "Li-Marce-Lumi-Michelle!" or any other combination thereof. :)

Today I saw...

...an H3 with Delaware license plates. That may not seem like that big of a deal to you, but I live in Romania. It made me happy.

I was walking home from a friend's house. I chose the slightly more round-about route. Maybe because the direct way was slick with mud, maybe because I just wanted a little bit more time to think. I started up the steep street contemplatively, hands in my pockets.

I'd just passed the dirt pile that serves as a traffic barrier when I saw her. She was standing on the sidewalk, seemingly undecided as to whether to continue up the steepest part of the street or to turn back. She held a small bag and a cane in one hand, and with the other, she clutched at the little branches that poked through the fence on the side of the road. Once, she grabbed the fence, but quickly retracted her hand. It was barbed wire. She tottered a bit and took a few more shuffling steps forward. I wanted to help her, but would I even be able to communicate? What if--?
I was next to her now. I smiled at her and stopped. She smiled back. "Ai fost la colt, da? Ai cumparat doua paini?" (You were at the corner [store], weren't you? And you bought two loaves of bread?) I wasn't sure which store she was referring to, but I had gone out the night before and purchased some bread. "Poate ca da." (Maybe.) She smiled and repeated to herself, "Poate ca da." It was easier to communicate than I'd expected.

"Pot sa va ajut?" (Can I help you?) I asked her, but she said no and took a few more steps, as she chattered about the corner store, her husband, and whether or not she should just go back. She asked me where my husband was. I told her.

She reached for the fence again, so I repeated my question--"Pot sa va ajut?" This time, she agreed, and I took her arm. She was hungry and wanted to go to the cofetarie (cafe) at the top of the street. The cofetarie in question is a matter of meters from my house, so we walked together along the street until we reached it, her arm in mine. She pointed out the tulip leaves shooting up in the neighbors yard and talked of Sibiu, where she'd grown up. I tried to understand what she was saying. She asked why I was so quiet.

"De fapt, nu vorbesc asa de bine romaneste," I told her. (Actually, I don't speak Romanian very well.)

"Ah, nu-i nimic!" (It doesn't matter at all.) She kept on chattering, now something about the beautiful house, now about my family--where were they, anyway?

We reached the cofetarie, and I left her at the door. "Multumesc, domnisoara, din suflet." (Thank you from the bottom of my heart.)

Va multumesc si eu, bunica.

What To Expect...

...when you come to visit me. :)

It's for sale. Anybody looking for a new set of wheels?

You'll see these friendly creatures all over. For as many as there are, I can't believe they don't get hit more often. On account of the canine population, you'll want to watch the ground when walking outside.

It's an apartment building and a billboard for our mall. The caption is "Shopping for everyone"--even aliens.

Okay, I just like the fact that the guy is on his cell phone and the little store is called "Hello!"

You'll definitely see kids playing soccer/football everywhere. And asphalt soccer fields. Hope your balance is good!

Salubris keeps our streets clean. ish. With twig brooms, wheelbarrows, and scoop shovels. The guy on the far left is a wheelbarrow operator. Sorry about the fuzziness. I couldn't exactly go up and ask them to pose, so this is taken from a vehicle window.

Yeah, there's more trash on the ground than in the trash cans. You'll often see gypsies here, dumpster diving for food or anything useful.

One of my most frequent routes...

Painkiller? Chips? Window cleaner? A can of olives, maybe? Check your local magazin. Everything in the store is represented in the window. You poke your head into the little hole in the middle and tell them what you want, and they'll get it for you. Very handy, these places.

I'm thankful for...

15. The little ways the members of the body of Christ support and encourage each other. Luci and I were at the mall (yep, that's our mall!), in the food court, munching some good ol' McNuggets or something on that order, and preparing for discipleship later in the day. We had our Bibles and notebooks spread out on the table, and we were deep in discussion about communion when Luci looked up and said, "Hi! How are you?" I turned around and saw Stefan, one of the guys from Luci's church, with a bag of cookies. He set it on the table and said, "This is for you. From one of God's children to another."


16. Friendly McDonald's employees (not this guy, necessarily :P) who just keep speaking in Romanian until you figure out what they're asking without looking at you like you're from outer space when you just smile and nod.

February in Pictures

Lilian and I take the plunge off the side of the mountain on our discipleship retreat.

Luminitza opened an Ethiopian restaurant in her apartment (by invitation only) in her last months here before leaving for Ethiopia with Wycliffe.

A street girl who lives near the mall--one of many such children in Iasi.

After school girls' club! We made tissue paper flowers and scented them with body spray. :P Reminded me of the days of Spirit VBS...

February is a month to rejoice! Reason # 1:


Karl with Issa, who recently asked to be baptized. When Issa first came to church, he said he had "Christian" on his ID card, but he felt that he was not a Christian in his heart. No longer the discrepancy, by God's grace!

Reason #2:

Shamini, who also asked to be baptized after surrendering her life to Christ just two weeks ago.