Having parted with a not small sum of money for a ridiculously small pendant for Joyce, I’m beginning to wonder how Christmas had morphed into this grand (and costly) tradition of giving gifts. 

It is certainly not there in the Bible.  There is only a brief reference to the wise men giving gifts to Jesus (Matthew 2 : 11), nothing about people exchanging gifts the way that we do today.

In line with the spirit of giving, for some (if not many), the general sense is that Christmas is also about sharing with and loving one another.  Is Christmas about sharing and love ?  I suppose so if, like me, you believe in the birth of Jesus (during Christmas) as a sign and manifestation of God’s love for people.  But in the Bible account King Herod had ordered the indiscriminate killing of little boys in Bethlehem during Christmas, because he feared that the baby Jesus (whom he could not locate) would one day grow up and take over him as King.  So much for love.

So what is Christmas about ?

I think it is very much about hope.  At one of the darkest moments in Israel’s history, whether you look at it politically, economically or spiritually, Jesus came and offered hope.  Gift giving and short term feelings of affection help us feel good today, but hope gives us something to look forward to, tomorrow.

"The people living in darkness have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.
…
For to us a child (ie. Jesus) is born,
to us a son is given,
…
And He will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."
- Isaiah 9 : 2, 6

(At the entrance of the Aquarium of Western Australia)

(Looking at exhibits)

(Inside AQWA)

(Inside AQWA)

(Josh at the Touchpool)

(Ruth & Jonathan at the Touchpool)

(Underwater Exhibit)

(Underwater Exhibit)

(Underwater Exhibit)

(AQWA rooftop)

(AQWA Rooftop)

(AQWA Rooftop)

(AQWA Rooftop)

(Pottering around AQWA)

(Hillarys Boat Harbour)

(Breakfast at Changi Airport)

(Josh at Perth Airport Immigration)

(At the Caversham Wildlife Park Animal Show)

(Josh & (Uncle) Jonathan)

(L-R : Park Attendant, Owl, Josh & Joyce)

(Jed feeling the Summer Heat)

(Jed & Josh)

In Exodus 3 God appears to Moses through a burning bush in the desert.  This marks God’s first (formal) appearance to the Israelite people, since the time of Abraham, Issac and Jacob.  Moses asks for His name.

God’s answer : "I AM who I AM" (verse 14).

And to the Israelites whom God sent Moses to lead out of Israel, Moses is instructed to say "I AM has sent me to you" (also verse 14).

I think the answer is pretty cool, in a totally cryptic and obscure way.  Anyone who speaks like that today will need to be sent to the Institute of Mental Health for a review.  I wonder if Moses thought that God was nuts too.

The meaning of God’s answer in Exodus 3 has always eluded me, and while I won’t pretend to understand it all now, a sentence in a book I read on the plane back from Perth has — I think — helped me understand it a little better.  The sentence, very simply, was -

"God is His own frame of reference."

God could have introduced Himself as the God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob (which He does eventually), or as the Creator, or as a God of certain attributes (eg. Jehovah Jireh (the God who provides) or Jehovah Rapha (the God who Heals)).  However, if God had referred to something or someone else when introducing / describing Himself, God would have provided an incomplete description and limited our understanding of Him.

So God refers to Himself.  "I AM" who or that which "I AM".

What does this mean for Christians today ?

I think a lot of terms which Christians use for God today — such as "God", "Father", "Jesus" — are overlaid with meanings which we have drawn from our church leaders, the church culture, our society and our experiences.  Therefore, "God" means a stern, possibly boring divine overseer to a Christian from a traditional church, while the same "God" means a loving, forgiving, personal friend to a Christian from a non-traditional church.  Similarly, "Father" means a loving, personal parent to one, but a distant disciplinarian to another.

God is infinitely more than what we know or have experienced.  As finite humans we can never hope to know everything about an infinite God; our understanding of God will necessarily be finite.  Nonetheless, we must be careful not to allow ourselves to construct and worship an image of a one or even two-dimensional God, in place of the infinitely greater I AM.

We booked the extended family on Qantas to get to Perth.  The tickets were cheap.  Unfortunately, so was the service.

On a Monday morning before we left, I received a phone call from the Qantas customer service centre.  I was told that Qantas could not accommodate everyone on the original flight because several planes had to be reassigned arising from the recent problems with its A380s.  I (which includes the other 8 family members in the group) was "invited" to take the Saturday evening or Sunday evening flight in place of my original Sunday morning flight from Singapore.  The Qantas (Saturday and Sunday) evening flights arrive at midnight in Perth.  When I said I would check if I could reschedule my travel arrangements to accomodate any of these, I was unceremoniously told that I was now on the Sunday evening flight and given a number to call if I needed to change the flight.

It did not turn out to be so simple.  Joyce and I decided that it would be best to go to the Qantas travel centre in Singapore at lunchtime to sort out the arrangements, and there we discovered that because we had "agreed" (we did not!) to take the Sunday evening flight, and it was not possible to be placed back onto the Sunday morning flight.  When I asked if Qantas could at least help with arrangements for an overnight stay at a hotel close to the airport because we were landing a midnight and we had young kids to care for, the answer was repeatedly, no.  It was only after much wrangling with an senior manager over the phone in Australia that Qantas realised that we had been forcibly reassigned to the evening flight, and placed back on the Sunday morning flight.

On Sunday when we boarded the flight, we asked if our kids - 5 and 3 - could have kid’s meals, and were told that kid’s meals could not be served because we did not pre-order.  Now that is truly fascinating logic that I’ve yet to encounter on any other airline.  Airlines have passenger details including their age, and I would have thought that the natural thing to do is prepare a kids meal for a passenger below 6 or 8 years of age.  If there was anything which should need pre-ordering, it should be requesting an adult’s meal for a kid !

Nevermind that.  When Qantas started serving the food, they did not serve our kids together with the other passengers with special requirements.  So my kids were left to starve till the stewardess reached our row on the plane, which was pretty much towards the back of the plane and after almost everyone else had their food.

To add insult to injury, when we asked if a packet of chilled milk could be warmed up for the kids, we were again refused.

And the landings, both when we arrived in Perth and when we returned to Singapore, were truly truly awful.  It was so rough that I saw a few passengers throw up.  Thankfully my kids were amused instead of terrified of the roller coaster landing.

Thank you Qantas - you’re a great way to fly !  Our family has vowed to never take your planes again !

We did not have the luxury of drinking boiled water in national service, and I’ve generally not bothered to boil water (in Singapore) before drinking it, ever since national service.

Yesterday Jed caught me drinking water straight from the tap.  Curious - as no one in the family does the same - he asked why I was doing so.  I explained that I could drink water straight from the tap because I was old enough, but that he / young children could not.

The entire incident must have left quite an impression on his young mind.  Before bedtime, Jed asked Joyce - "Why do adults drink toilet water ?  Isn’t it dirty ?"

I survived 9 days of Perth, and 9 days of …
… mum and sisters (who nearly didn’t survive 9 days of flies and chilly winds - notwithstanding summer)
… in-laws
… kids
… all of whom were on the same trip, and some pretty awful food.

I have returned with …
… an even tan (thankfully)
… three pairs of new socks (only)
… substantially less money in my bank account.

I’m not sure if I wish to undertake anything as logistically and emotionally challenging again.

Pictures to come, when I’m done with my backlog at work.