Ryan's Ramblings

New!

Hi everybody.  This is a just a note to say thanks to all of you for your faithful readership of this blog and please let us be the first to wish you a Happy New Year!  At the time of this writing it is Dec. 31 here in South Korea and the new year of 2009 is just hours away.

Here are a couple of pictures of us at one of our favorite downtown spots here in Daejeon, South Korea.  The lights and the people are amazing during the Christmas season.  We are so thankful to be able to share this time together as a family.

As we move into the new year we all leave behind a 2008 of various experiences and memories.  Hold onto the good, as that is from God, and be done with all the rest.

In Christ all things are new...even 2009.

"...Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person.  The old life is gone; a new life has begun!"
2 Corinthians 5:17

Kicker

I came across a new candy bar here in South Korea that I thought was interesting.  It is called "Kicker."  It is a form of the famous candy bar called the "Kit Kat."  Notice that the by-line on the candy bar is, "Crispy Fingers In Chocolate" (yum...I think).

 

 

 

 

There are numerous candy sticks in the box but please don't call them Kicker Sticks.  If you will notice on the top of the box they are called Kicker "Ticks."

The real kicker about these Kickers is that they are on the "melamine laced chocolate from China" list.  Yipes.

Room?

“Just as our Lord came into human history from the outside, so He must come into us from the outside.  Have we allowed our personal human lives to become a “Bethlehem” for the Son of God?”      --Oswald Chambers

There was no room for Jesus.

There was no room in Herod’s kingdom.

There was no room in the religion of the Pharisees.

There was no room in the economic and political perspective of Judas.

There was no room in the rich young ruler’s portfolio.

There was no room in the inn.

Is there room for Jesus in your heart and life?

Throw Away the Key

Find a good spouse, you find a good life—
and even more: the favor of God!
Proverbs 18:22 (MSG)

Last October we took a sightseeing trip to the Seoul Tower in South Korea.  It is one of the highest and most famous points in the giant city of over 15 million people.  The view of the seemingly never ending city is amazing from the vantage point of the tower.  While we were there we noticed thousands of locks hanging on the fence that surrounds the base of the tower.  On many of the locks there was written something in the Korean script.  The locks were all shapes and sizes--some were key locks, some were padlocks, and they ranged in the various colors of metallic silver, gold, green, purple, orange, black and red.

I asked one of the ladies that worked in the gift shop near the fenced area about the locks and she told me, in broken English and charades like gestures, that the locks are placed there by couples that are in love.  They write their names and their anniversary date on their lock and then they attach their lock onto the fence and throw the key over the edge into the dense foliage and forest that lies below the tower site.  Obviously, it is a sign of true love and faithful commitment.

Today Dina and I are celebrating our 21st wedding anniversary.  I now have known Dina and have had her presence in my life longer than I haven't, and I am a better and blessed person because of it.  I am so thankful for the 21 years that I have had to share life with Dina.  She is a wonderful wife, a terrific mother and my best friend.  She has the key to my heart.

The next time we go to Seoul Tower I am going to take a lock that says,

Ryan and Dina Roberts
December 11, 1987
True Love

I am going to lock it onto the fence and...throw away the key.

You and Me

It just doesn't get much better than the Charlie Brown Christmas Special. Charlie and that tree of his will forever hold a special and formative place in my heart and life.  I love Linus's simple and heartfelt recitation of Luke 2 in response to Charlie Brown's exasperated cry, "Isn't there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?"  If you haven't watched this classic cartoon yet this year, you should.

I wonder...what would God say in response to the question: "What is Christmas all about?" 

Would God say... trees, Santa, Mary, a manger, a baby, a star, three wise men, angels, shepherds, the Grinch?  I don't think so.

I think that God would say that Christmas is all about His love for you and me.

Merry Christmas.

Hong Kong Sights

I just returned from Hong Kong a week or so ago.  It is an amazing place and a stunning city.  Here is a nice little car that I came upon in the front circle drive of our hotel.  A Maserati...nice.  I got some funny looks for just taking a picture of it (at least I didn't touch it).  You just don't see too many of these in South Korea or in Idaho, USA.  If you are interested in more on my Hong Kong jaunt, please see our family blog.