The volcano erupts...

Alas, Rabaul has reopened its mouth - the PNG volcano erupted for the first time in just twelve years. I am always amazed at the power of volcanoes, the unpredictable forces of nature hurling forth voluminous gushes of red-hot lava into the stratosphere from the bowels of the earth. It is a rare event, thankfully - God has enabled us to coexist with these awesome displays of His creative power.

As one volcano comes out of its dormancy, so also (as it would seem) does my blog - rather forlorn without a single entry for months! I guess work takes its toll, currently I'm doing general medicine at Sunshine hospital, a step back in pace from the relentlessness of my previous surgical rotation. Hopefully this means more blogging!

One other thing that has held me back from blogs was the loss of my laptop. Gone. Stolen. Without a trace. Along with my flatmate's. That was a few weeks ago now, but it still strikes me how low some people will go for a bit of money! It's been quite a setback, losing one of my main resources (information, communication etc), but thanks to God, nothing else was taken, and now I have my computer from home brought here, I can blog again, read and send emails etc. It's much bigger and heavier, far less portable, and far less stealable!

It's tempting, in times like this, to pray for those who have victimised us to get a taste of punishment, here, now. But Jesus teaches us something quite different. Yes, we live under a fair and just God, but He also is a God of mercy and infinite forgiveness - His grace is sufficient for all of us, who are sinners. By His grace, by the blood of Christ, we are made righteous. And we are to extend forgiveness likewise, to those who have done us wrong.

I'll finish now with the following parable that illustrates this kind of hypocrisy we are to avoid. God bless!

The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?"

Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

"Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

"The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

"But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded.

"His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'

"But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.

"Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart." - Matthew 18:21-35