My third week in college

A very brief entry this week - as I'm doing the devotions tomorrow and really need to prepare and practise (just a lot nervous )

Well this has been the heavy teaching week exegesis and hermeneutics!  Exegesis is working out what the text meant then, whereas hermeneutics is working out how the original meaning applies to us now.

So what exactly have we been doing?  Well we've been having to learn the Greek alphabet and Dave (our lecturer) helpfully gave us the following Greek Alphabet Song.  Here it is performed by last year's students (I'll replace this with this year's version as soon as I get the video - it'll be worth it if only to see why it was called "Toga Tuesday"):



Who said that Christians are boring?  Strange is the word they're really looking for.

So the exegesis is all about looking at the greek words and the grecco-roman background and all that so we can understand what the author was saying (as it's all too easy to take verses out of context - and even sell millions of books on it...).  I have to say though it's been pretty cool.  I've now got my first hand-in for these exercises this coming Friday - and there's so many more books to read.  Not enough time and it's all greek to me (hoho had to get that one in somewhere ).

Carrying on from my reflections last week...  I was really struck by Jesus' response to the disciples question about why a guy was blind shortly before Jesus healed him:

This happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.
John 9:3

And Joseph's (the technicolour dreamcoat fella) response to his brothers (remember they sold him into slavery):

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
Gen 50:20

Not only have the bad things that happened in my life now become part of my story of how great God is, but also they're not wasted as they have been used to achieve His good purposes.  I wouldn't be the same person I am now had Jen not been hospitalised - certainly we would've been divorced yet now I love her so much.  Had I not been bullied I wouldn't have worked as half as hard as I did at school and so it goes on.  By the grace of God I am indeed who I am.