宜蘭行

渭水東行穿雪隧，

藍天綠野任悠閒。

蘭陽向海吞豪氣，

不許流雲度翠山。

神喜悅的「自由意志」

自閉兒 Jabez 真的是神給我們家的祝福，在他身上，我總能學習理解什麼是神的眼光。

昨天我們一家去I KE A吃晚餐，吃完後，照例去逛逛賣場幫助消化。以前，我們會用推車讓 Jabez 坐在裡頭逛賣場，以免他亂跑，讓我們在後面緊追；但昨天 Jabez 很棒，我們沒有使用推車，他也沒有放飛自我，讓我們追著跑。

並不是 Jabez 沒有亂跑（他依然會繞著貨架、家具移動、在樣品屋裡穿梭），但不同的是，他在離開我們一段距離時，會回頭看看我們在哪裡、離他有多遠。只要超過他心中的安全距離，他會自己跑回來，和我們在一起；有時候我們覺得他離得太遠，就會喊他一聲，他一聽見，就會自動奔向我們。（然後再笑嘻嘻的跑開） 

 Jabez 在賣場裡是自由的，想去哪就去哪，但因為對家人的在意，他並不會真的離群——也就是說， Jabez 是「在自由意志下『選擇』與家人在一起」。

神所喜悅的自由意志，不就是這樣嗎：不管外在世界如何，人把神看為心中最最在乎的對象，一如神對人的偏愛，為了罪人「恆久忍耐，又有恩慈」（林前13:4）。

求主將這樣「在意的心」賜給我，對神、對家人，我都能以這樣的心看著對方，不把目光偏離。

***

The Gift of Jabez（ChatGPT翻譯）

Our son Jabez, who is on the autism spectrum, is truly a blessing from God to our family. Through him, I’ve learned again and again what it means to see life through the eyes of God.

Yesterday, our family went to IKEA for dinner. After we finished eating, we followed our little family tradition—walking around the store to help our food settle. In the past, we would put Jabez in the shopping cart so he wouldn’t run off and make us chase after him. But yesterday was different. Jabez did so well. We didn’t need the cart, and he didn’t run wild or make us chase him through the aisles.

It’s not that he stayed perfectly still—he still wandered happily around the shelves and displays, exploring the model rooms. But this time, when he walked a little too far ahead, he would turn around to see where we were. When he noticed that the distance between us grew too wide, he would run back on his own. And when we called his name, he’d come running back with a smile—before darting off again, full of joy.

In that store, Jabez was free. He could go anywhere he wanted. Yet because he cared about us, he never truly strayed away. In his freedom, he chose to stay close to his family.

Isn’t that the kind of free will that delights God? No matter what the world around us looks like, when a person treasures God above all else—as God treasures us, showing “patience and kindness” toward sinners (1 Corinthians 13:4)—that is the freedom that pleases Him most.

So I pray: Lord, give me such a heart—a heart that cares deeply, that keeps its gaze on You and on those You’ve given me, and never turns away.

人需要的是「運氣」，還是「真神」？

 ★關於運氣與真神的對比思考：

1.共同點：都不是人所能控制

2.不同點：
  (1)運氣沒有理則可言，神有
  (2)運氣不是人敬拜的對象，神是

★進一步思考：

1.人希望運氣為己所用，但只能被動的「碰、遇、交」上好運，無法主宰它

2.神的意念高過人的意念，神的權柄高過一切。人抗拒神的權柄是無效的：不是順服神而活，就是抗拒神而死

3.「人渴望運氣」，與「人抗拒真神」的共同心態是：以自己為中心（這是很危險的）
按：《牧羊少年奇幻之旅》書中提出的「吸引力法則」，就是有華麗包裝的危險觀點：「當你真心渴望某樣東西時，整個宇宙都會聯合起來，幫助你完成」——個人的自以為義，憑什麼整個宇宙要聯合起來幫你完成呢？

4.運氣是人為了滿足慾望而虛構出來的東西，以簡化/合理化那些「己力無法掌控的外在因素」。
真神則不然，是昔在今在永在的神，「自從造天地以來，神的永能和神性是明明可知的，雖是眼不能見，但藉著所造之物就可以曉得，叫人無可推諉。」（羅1:20）

5.運氣既是出於人的虛構，自然缺乏信靠的實底。
神的話語必要應驗，真神的永活與信實，是人可信靠的真實，沒有虛妄。

結論
1.尋求神，認識神，信靠神。

2.不要陷溺在個人的慾望想像裡，空等運氣的到來。
經文：「虛空的虛空，虛空的虛空，凡事都是虛空。」（傳1:2）

***

★ Reflections on the Contrast Between Luck and the True God:

1. Similarity: Both are beyond human control.

2. Differences:

(1) Luck has no rationale or principles, but God does.

(2) Luck is not an object of human worship, but God is.

★ Further Reflection:

1. People hope to make luck work for them, but they can only passively “hit, encounter, or run into” good luck; they cannot rule over it.

2. God’s thoughts are higher than human thoughts, and His authority surpasses all. Human resistance to God’s authority is futile: one either lives in submission to God or dies in resistance to Him.

3. The shared mindset between “people desiring luck” and “people resisting the true God” is this: being self-centered (which is very dangerous).

Note: In The Alchemist, the “Law of Attraction” is a dangerously packaged idea: “When you truly desire something, the entire universe conspires to help you achieve it.” — Yet this is human self-righteousness. On what basis should the entire universe conspire to help you?

4. Luck is something humans fabricate to satisfy their desires, in order to simplify or rationalize the “external factors beyond their control.”

The true God, however, is not like this. He is the One who was, who is, and who is to come:

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20)

5. Since luck originates from human imagination, it naturally lacks a foundation for trust.

God’s Word will certainly be fulfilled. The living and faithful true God is a reality in whom people can trust—without falsehood.

Conclusion

1. Seek God, know God, and trust in God.

2. Do not drown in personal desires and fantasies, passively waiting for luck to arrive.

Scripture: “Vanity of vanities, vanity of vanities, all is vanity.” (Ecclesiastes 1:2)

GT20250731主題：追求聖潔，分別為聖（Theme: Pursuing Holiness, Being Set Apart）

詩篇1:1-6

1不從惡人的計謀，
不站罪人的道路，
不坐褻慢人的座位，
2惟喜愛耶和華的律法，
晝夜思想，
這人便為有福！
3他要像一棵樹栽在溪水旁，
按時候結果子，
葉子也不枯乾。
凡他所做的盡都順利。
4惡人並不是這樣，
乃像糠粃被風吹散。
5因此，當審判的時候，惡人必站立不住；
罪人在義人的會中也是如此。
6因為耶和華知道義人的道路；
惡人的道路卻必滅亡。

主題：追求聖潔，分別為聖

神是聖潔、公義的神。亞當夏娃的犯罪，在於「違背了神的命令」、而不在「吃禁果」這件事上。當人的自由意志「決定」用來滿足自己而非順從神，罪性就生了胎，成了人類無法勝過的永恆問題。

神的聖潔與罪的濁惡無法並存，所以在跟隨主的過程中，要有清楚明確的分辨，堅決站在神的這一邊：站對邊了，什麼都對了。所以大衛說：「不從......不站......不坐......」，「惟喜愛......晝夜思想......」，在這些動詞的對比中，我們看到大衛堅決信靠神的立場，也因為這樣的立場，讓他得以蒙受神的賜福與保護，「凡他所做的盡都順利」。

「像一棵樹栽在溪水旁」是極為生動的比喻，這個比喻也讓我們看見，結果、葉不枯乾並不是樹自身的能力所致，是溪水（永流的活水）賦予樹生命，才有這樣美好的生命。神的律法就是我們靈裡的「溪水」，這是基督徒的蒙福之本。

「審判」則是每一個生命最終面臨的考驗。神是全知的神，「 就是你們的頭髮，也都被數過了」（路12:7），所以人一生的罪孽，都逃不出神的鑒察。因此基督徒要擺正態度，要堅定站在神的這一邊，明白神公義、慈愛的本質，追求神的聖潔，過分別為聖的生活，以遠離罪惡。

感恩：曾經我是異教徒，對信仰之事有和稀泥的心態，覺得宗教只要勸人為善都好，不管信什麼神。感謝主在我信仰歷程中慢慢調整我的眼光，讓我在認識神的過程中明白了神的保守、看顧、管教，都是為了讓我不犯罪，看似是限制，其實是保護。感謝神對我的保守。

***

Psalm 1:1–6

1 Blessed is the one

who does not follow the counsel of the wicked,

or stand in the path of sinners,

or sit in the seat of mockers;

2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,

and who meditates on His law day and night.

3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,

which yields its fruit in season

and whose leaf does not wither—

whatever they do prospers.

4 Not so the wicked!

They are like chaff that the wind blows away.

5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,

nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,

but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.

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Theme: Pursuing Holiness, Being Set Apart

God is a holy and righteous God. Adam and Eve’s sin lay in violating God’s command, not merely in the act of eating the forbidden fruit. When human free will is used to satisfy oneself rather than to obey God, sin is conceived—becoming an eternal problem that humankind cannot overcome.

God’s holiness cannot coexist with the filthiness of sin. Therefore, in following the Lord, we must have clear and firm discernment, standing decisively on God’s side. When we stand on the right side, everything else lines up correctly. This is why David said: “does not walk… does not stand… does not sit…,” and “but delights… meditates….” Through these contrasting verbs, we see David’s unwavering trust in God. Because of this firm stance, he received God’s blessing and protection—“whatever he does prospers.”

The image of being “like a tree planted by streams of water” is vivid and powerful. It shows that fruit-bearing and unwithered leaves are not the result of the tree’s own strength. It is the water—the ever-flowing living water—that gives the tree life. God’s law is the “stream” for our spirit; this is the foundation of blessing for Christians.

“Judgment” is the final test every life must face. God is all-knowing: “Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered” (Luke 12:7). Therefore, the sins of one’s life cannot escape God’s examination. Christians must maintain the right attitude—standing firmly on God’s side, understanding His just and loving nature, pursuing His holiness, and living a life set apart, so as to stay far from sin.

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Thanksgiving

I was once an idol worshiper, holding a compromising view of faith—believing that as long as a religion teaches people to do good, it doesn’t matter which god one believes in. I thank the Lord for gradually correcting my perspective throughout my faith journey. As I came to know Him, I learned that His protection, care, and discipline are all meant to keep me from sin. What appears to be restriction is actually His protection. I thank God for His preservation over my life.