September 2008

The opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics were absolutely stunning! It had been a long time since China was able to put on such a fantastic “show” for the world to see how far this country have advanced. Of course, its willingness to finance this event with forty billion dollars helps. China is now a Powerhouse in the International arena. Since the Olympics, I have heard Chinese people say, “It makes me proud to be Chinese!” No doubt that this Olympics tops the previous years, and it’s doubtful that London, England, the next city to host the Olympics, will be able to match China’s spectacular show. Sorry, maybe I’m a little bias, but I’m sure you won’t blame me for a little hype up about my Chinese root.

These couple of weeks brought us Olympics euphoria. Other than a few unfortunate incidences and minor unsportsmanlike conducts, this Olympics brought an excitement from the high level of competitions. I can’t remember watching so many exciting “down to the wire” games. Those games were riveting. In spite of my busyness, I found myself staying up almost every night watching the games. I even stayed up Saturday night until two in the morning (something I never done—it helps that I didn’t have to preach the next day) watching the “Redeem Team” win the Gold Medal over Spain. In the end, China won the most Gold Medals, while the United States gained the most over-all Medals. Not bad for some of us who have dual citizenship!

Most important of all, the Olympics brought the whole world together. As I watched the athletes walking (some running) to the Bird Nest Stadium for the closing ceremony, I saw a glimpse of hope that this world can live in harmony with one another. During these two weeks, there were no Tibet Riot reported; there were no suicide bombing in Afghanistan and Iraq. There was no casualty reported (Maybe I just didn’t pay attention)! The whole world focused on something healthy—sports. Yes, there were competitions, but what I saw was that the individual athletes’ primary goal wasn’t to “beat” his competitor, but rather to perform his best. Many athletes knew they had no chance for a medal, yet that didn’t stop them from going forward with the competition. They were equally proud to represent their countries to compete as those who have high hope of winning medals. I believe this is what Life is all about. It is futile to compare ourselves with others, yet it’s vital to always try to improve. If we have this mentality, we will be successful. In case you don’t know, this is not a “secular” concept. This principle comes from the Bible.

Before I sign off, I like to bring to your awareness that as Christians, like the athletes who represent their country, we represent the Heavenly Kingdom, the Nation of God to compete in this world. We are declared as Salt and Light of the world, equipped with the never changing Word of God to defend the Truths, and charged with one demand—love one another.

Pastor Larry

北京奧林匹克運動會的開 幕及閉幕儀式實在是不同凡響。中國很久沒有作出這樣的驚人表現讓世界知道這個國家是如何的進步。當然，她願意投資四百億元在這事情上是很有幫助的。現在中 國在國際舞台上佔有一席非常重要的位置。自奧林匹克運動會後，我常聽見中國人說：「我以自己是一個中國人為榮！」無疑這一次的奧林匹克運動會實在是冠於歷 屆的奧運會，而下一屆要主辦奧林匹克運動會的英國倫敦是否能夠與北京奧運會相比實在是一個疑問。很抱歉，我可能有一點偏見，但我可以肯定你不會指責我以自 己的中國根為傲。

這幾個星期為我們帶來奧 運會的快感。除了一些不幸的事件和輕微違反體育精神的表現外，這次奧運會高水準的比賽實在帶給我們不少興奮。我已忘記自己觀看了多少場爭持不下的比賽，那 些比賽實在是很吸引。雖然我已經很忙碌，我仍然每天晚上都觀看這些比賽。我甚至在星期六晚上留至凌晨兩點﹝一些我從來不會做的事情 – 可能因為我不用在翌日講道﹞來欣賞〝重來奪冠隊〞打敗西班牙取得金牌。最後中國贏得最多金牌，而美國則贏得最多獎牌。對於我們當中有雙重國藉的人來說是非 常不錯的獎牌結果。

最重要的是奧運會將整個 世界連在一起。當我看見運動員步入﹝有些是跑進﹞〝鳥巣〞體育館參加閉幕禮的時候，我看見這世界可以和諧共處的一線曙光。在這兩星期中，沒有西藏暴亂的報 告；在阿富汗和伊拉克沒有自殺式的轟炸事件；沒有傷亡報告﹝或許我沒有留意﹞！整個世界的焦點都集中在一些健康的事情上 - 運動。不 錯，是有競爭，但我認為個別的運動員的最終目的不是要打敗對手，相反地是要作最佳的表現。很多運動員明知是沒有機會得獎牌的，但這並沒有阻止他們參與比 賽；好像那些很有機會奪標的運動員一樣，他們同樣地為到能夠代表自己的國家來比賽而驕傲。我相信這就是生命的意義。我們與別人相比可能是失敗者，但最重要 的是不斷嘗試去改進。如果我們有這樣的精神，我們就能夠成功。或許你不知道，這並不是〝世俗〞的觀念，這原則是來自聖經的。

在我收筆之前，我希望提醒你 - 好像運動員代表他們的國家一樣，作為一個基督徒，我們是代表神的國度﹝天國﹞來到這個世界作競賽的。我們宣稱是世上的塩和光，以神永不改變的話語來為捍衛真理，並委于一項要求 – 彼此相愛。

唐若愚牧師