What can I do? Paul Baloche

The Shack

The Shack

Summary by:smartjack
This book is a novel written by William P. Young. He wrote this as a Christmas gift for his children. He never had the intention of publishing this book. But when many of his friends and relatives read it, they liked it very much and advised him that he should publish it since it was a very nice novel. Thus he decided to publish this book. Young formed Wind Blown Media for the sole purpose of publishing this one book. The Shack has achieved its #1 best selling success via word-of-mouth and with the help of $300.00 web site; nothing else has been spent on marketing.

The Novel

Mack is the main character in this novel. His full name is Mackenzie Philips. He is a father of five children. One day Mack takes his three children on a camping trip to Multnomah Falls and Wallowa Lake near Joseph, Oregon. There, while playing on a canoe, it flips and two of the children fall into the lake. While one manages to escape the other son of Mack almost drowns. Mack wastes no time and immediately jumps into the lake to save his son, leaving behind his youngest daughter Missy alone at their campsite. He manages to save his son. But after he returns to the campsite with his two sons he finds his daughter missing. Later, he discovers that his daughter has been abducted and murdered by a serial killer known as the "Ladybug Killer". When the police are called they find an empty Shack in the woods where Missy was taken but her body is not found.

The bulk of this book consists of Mack’s experience with the trinity. One day Mack receives a note in his mailbox from "Papa", saying that he would like to meet with Mack on that coming weekend at the shack. Mack suspects that the note may be from God, who his wife Nan refers to as "Papa". Mack goes alone to the shack. But when he arrives and finds nothing, he decides to go back. But as he leaves the shack and its surrounding place get automatically transformed into a wonderful lush and inviting scene. He goes inside the shack and finds manifestations of the Trinity into three persons. The God our Father takes the form of an African American woman. She calls herself ‘Papa’. Jesus Christ is a Jewish carpenter, and the Holy Spirit is personified as an Asian woman named Sarayu. Mack talks with Papa, Jesus, and Sarayu about Missy's death and his relationships with the Trinity. Mack also has various experiences with each of them. At the end of the conversation, Mack goes with Papa for hiking. Papa shows him where Missy's body was left in a cave.

As Mack leaves the Shack to come back home he meets with a serious accident. After he gains consciousness in the hospital, he come to know that he did not in fact spend the weekend at the shack, but that his accident occurred on the same day that he arrived at the shack. He also leads the police to the cave which Papa revealed, and they find Missy's body still lying there. With the help of forensic evidence discovered at the scene, the Ladybug Killer is arrested and put on trial.

The Shack Originally published in Shvoong: http://www.shvoong.com/books/novel/1865715-shack/

Charlie and Lola 新發現

Happy Birthday Jesus

Ho ho ho~~~Happy belated Christmas~~

I had a series of activities to celebrate Christmas since begining of December, but this is what I did on 12/24 and 12/25:
I spent my Christmas Eve with my dear friend Sharon, going back to Meilun to see my old mates and went to visit a second hand bookstore(時光二手書店) . Spend my Christmas rainy night with Patty and had dinner with Debbie and her room mate together. Patty and I then visited another decent second hand bookstore in Hualien down town called "舊書鋪子"a famous Chinese writer's old place (楊牧故居) now transformed into a lovely second hand bookstore. Patty and I then later went to have a drink(紅豆湯&燒仙草) next door and she told me what she knew about Jesus and I told the complete verion of the birth of Jesus according to Bible in great delight =) Not much things were going on in Hualien on Christmas day. But a serene night was good enough for Jesus and I.

Here's one clip for you my friend. Merry Christmas :o)
Where ever you are, what ever you do, Jesus Christ is in your heart with you.

Cheers
Charity

Concert night 12/4 花蓮9803雷鬼Red-I 樂團表演

December 06, 2009

The consuming fire of Your love has once again captured my heart, rescued my soul. My life has a purpose because of Your unconditional love. Your love makes me whole. I shall never repress my real self and just be real honest with You to be honest with others. My life has been a mess without You in the past two months, and now it will never be the same. For now I have You in my heart that I am in You and You are in me. Oh my God, this Love how can it be…

Friday evening has officially become a concert night for Sharon and I now that we had two concerts and will probably go to a cello concert next Friday night and will likely to continue this pattern till holidays separate us.

December 4 Friday evening, Sharon and I went to get some free dinner with the class teacher and other ten second year classmates. Then went to my place for a little rest and headed off to 9803 coffee shop with great anticipation that our English English teacher seized every chance he’d got in his classes to adversities about it. Red-I reggae music. I invited Debby to come along, and surprisingly she said she’d love to go. Sharon and I arrived there on time nine in the evening, not many people there yet. We took the front seats (again) Rock n Roll area搖滾區(because of Sharon really) next to the window. Both of us had a cup of hot latte in our hands and talked along to catch up our former life stories in delight when suddenly a big penguin grinned at us through the windows. It was our English English teacher. (use your imagination, doesn’t he look like a penguin with his hair cut and his attitude?) Our entertaining penguin with a not-so-heavy-sexy British accent called his dear colleague Mister Green to come along and checked ‘us’ out. And they probably said something like this:

“Hey they are my students! Sharon and Charity!” bragged the penguin. “Charity!” exclaimed Mr Green, taking another gulp of his Taiwan beer. More grinning.

Well the penguin was probably feeling proud that he’d talked into two of his students to come while his mate didn’t seem to have any yet. The two teachers gave us a great laugh. It was hilarious to see two English teachers having their beer in their hands, chatting with the vocalist Patrick of Red-I and doing nothing really. Debby got here just in time for the performance and had a lovely creamy drink with little alcohol in it, which she drank it all within three songs.

The performance was really nice. Though the place was not big, pretty cozy, I really liked it. One vocal, a bass, two guitars, a drum. Simple and pure Reggae. The offbeat rhyme, similar to jazz with a little aboriginal flavor mixed. Very nice. Patrick the singer had a vocal voice with personality and simply special and absolutely suitable for Reggae music. One thing three of us really liked is that the band would interact with its audience and makes it more fun than just to listen to the music. And that is something can only do in a small cozy concert. All in all, we really enjoyed it. 200 NT is definitely worth it.

Seeing Red-I playing the songs made me think of Alison and thought about would she going to live a life like them. I soon realized she’s not going to be like them wandering about with lots of cigarettes, alcohol, and all that. Because she knows the purpose of life in Christ and she will not and cannot compromise in those material satisfaction. She’s going to be a very decent international jazz singer. I just know it. I miss you my friend. Miraculously, Alison rang me the next day and updated me the news and talked about her career and stuff. I was just thinking of her and so God made her call. I’m thinking to go back to Taipei this weekend now. =D

Dearest hear the whisper of the wind,

Life can be so beautiful…

Charity

Thanksgiving Holiday 2

大半夜凌晨一點01:02

我的感恩節回家節暨東華校慶暨東華國際文化節一個星期為期七天的假期(台北五天花蓮兩天)愉快的結束了=) My 5 day break in Taipei, the thanksgiving holiday, National Dong Hwa university international festival, has finally come to an end.

11/21 全家好不容易團圓了… For the first time after three months, my whole family gathered together to celebrate dad’s birthday. Ever since I gone for university, and my sister Maranatha to a private junior high which required students to live in a dorm, we seldom have times to really just gather up and eat a meal. I used to think that having meals together with your family is the most normal thing to do in life, but I didn’t realise how hard it can be, to have a simple happy life, till I go for university, apart far from home. I love my mom and my dad. Though mom hasn’t changed much with her gossiping phone calls and dad’s love for us to buy too much food and mom would complain about the leftovers, I love them forever. My sisters Gloria and Maranatha went to have some supper滷味 after the youth service Saturday evening(11/21). I thought that this day would never happen, but it actually did. Three of us, in a cosy store, eating noodles with chopsticks, catching up like friends! The scene I’d always dreamed of actually came true. We were just talking about junior high school, high school, and of course university life. No fights, no arguments, no “I’ll tell MOM!.” Just awesome. Maranatha accompanied me to the night market later in the evening, I just felt like going(I was on my holiday!) and she said she’d love to go with me. We bought nothing really, some more snacks, and a pair of shoes lol! (Don’t tell mom!) White guy spotted that evening: 10 Ten. Oh what’s more, The day I hung out with Alison(11/18三)to have breakfast in IKEA and spent the night in Eslite bookstore, white ladies spotted: 6, white guy spotted that day: 22. Which is quite scary, and most of the guys I saw were young, around 30 I suppose, which makes it even more scary. When did white foreigners occupy the Taipei City when I’m gone?

The last day I spent in Taipei was nice. I had this idea that I should spend time with my little brother who is seven now on my last day in Taipei and so we went for a little walk to grab a cup of milktea 五十嵐! My favourite. And went to a local bookstore to hang out and just doing nothing. That’s what I like to do, sadly, hang out with myself or friends in a bookstore, browsing books or just standing and doing nothing. We were just looking at things and browsing some DVDs and talking like kids, I mean I was talking like kids, he’s seven. And as we walked back home, we bumped into Moses and Allen. What a surprise! So I decided to invite them to my home and catch up a little. I was doing countdown actually, countdown the hours I still had before catching the train to Hualien. In the last hour in Taipei, I was talking to my two dearest friends, which makes a perfect end for my Taipei holiday. Dad gave me a ride to the train station, and here I was in Hualien Meilun with my the other dearest old freshmen classmates Vivian and Nancy, we had supper at the 自強night market 棺材板~ 太好吃了!! 大土豆紅豆湯真好喝! I guess Taiwanese like to catch up by having supper! Delicious. Having gossip about our dear old mates and talking about life in Dong Hwa and life in Meilun. Very nice. I love my holiday! My thanksgiving holiday friends visited number: approx. 5. Families, church old friends, Enchi, Jennifer, Alison, Moses, and Allen. Bookstores visited times: 4. Readings during the holiday: The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, Have a little Faith(read first part Spring standing at the second floor in Eslite bookstore), and The Uninvited a ghost story play. School will start tomorrow and I cannot complain. School must start because I’ve decided to make my English right and know English the language and the culture as much as I can in four years. And after the break, I know I’ve had a very pleasant rest and am ready for the challenges ahead. I enjoyed my holiday and this is what I thankful for. I’m thankful for my thanksgiving holiday! Thank you thanksgiving! Another thing I done for my own pleasure, I sent a message to Adam to wish him a happy thanksgiving on Friday 11/27 and it makes me feel good. It don’t matter if he’s gonna reply me or not, I just wanted to write him a thanksgiving note and it feels right and I have no regrets.

Happy thanksgiving! Wheather you celebrate it or not ;D

Cheers,

Yahsin