It is Good to Follow Jesus 跟隨耶穌真好

It brings me tremendous pleasure to welcome you, our MAK community, to the 2017-2018 school year. Two weeks ago our new staff began their orientation to Taiwan, to our Morrison community, and to our way of teaching and learning at MAK. We have a fantastic new crew joining our staff, full of energy and creative ideas. This past week our full staff spent the week continuing to work toward an educational program that is about knowing, being, and doing.

我熱烈地歡迎MAK大家庭中的每一位，來到2017-2018學年度。兩週前，我們的新同仁剛來到台灣，開始了對台灣、對馬禮遜以及在MAK的教導與學習方式的種種了解。我們有很棒又充滿精力與創意的新同仁成為我們的一員。上禮拜，所有的老師用了整整一週的時間，繼續在一個關於「了解、存在與行動」的教學計畫中努力工作。

Staff worked in grade levels, departments, and with job-alikes on other campuses to ensure that our classes are as engaging, appropriately rigorous, and as excellent as we can make them. Advisors and House Leaders discussed how to best meet the social, academic, and spiritual needs of our students. Much of our week’s activities also focused on our school’s vision of developing learners who ask questions (Lifelong Learners), take risks (Creative and Critical Thinkers), seek the Truth (spiritual discerners), collaborate (Effective Communicators), are responsible (Wise and Responsible Stewards), and are respectful (Moral and Ethical Citizens).

我們的老師和其他校區的老師們，依照年級、部門及教學屬性分組後一同工作，以確保我們的課程都是有吸引力的、嚴謹的內容，以及我們能盡可能地使課程變得優秀。諮商輔導老師與學生會的領袖們討論，如何為學生在社交、課業與靈命的需求上，提供最好的配合。許多週間活動的焦點也放在本校學習者發展的願景上，例如成為願意提問（終身的學習者）、冒險進取（創意與批判性的思考者）、追求真理（屬靈的分辨者）與協同合作（有效的溝通者）的學習者，這些都是他們負責任（明智與負責任的管理者）與尊重（人格品德兼備的公民）的表現。

In the midst of all our start-of-school prep, I want to invite you, our community, to join me in thinking on this year’s school theme: It is Good to Follow Jesus.

在開學準備的期間，我想邀請MAK大家庭中的每一位，與我一同思考今年度的校園主題—跟隨耶穌真好。

During his life on earth, Jesus said a great deal of interesting and controversial things, and one of those statements is recorded in John 8. In verse 12, he says, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” I don’t know about you, but I would never think of saying such a thing about myself. I don’t possess that kind of confidence. But along with our staff at MAK, I have made it my goal to follow Jesus – to read his words, to imitate his ways, to obey his commands.

當耶穌在世上時，祂說了很多有意思又具有爭議性的事情，其中一件被記錄在約翰福音第八章。約翰福音第八章第十二節，祂說：「我是世上的光，跟從我的，就不在黑暗裡走，必要得著生命的光。」我不知道關於這段話你是怎麼想的，但是我從來沒想過自己會說這種話。我沒有過這樣的信心，但是和馬禮遜的老師們在一起，我已經將自己的目標設定為跟隨耶穌，也就是讀祂的話語，仿效祂的方式和遵從祂的命令。

This is not an easy task, and I’ve been very clumsy, for years, in my attempts. But I can say that the longer I have tried, by his grace, the more I have come to know his light and life.

這不是一件容易的事。常年來，我雖然在一些事情上有所嘗試，而且常常結果卻差強人意。不過我卻可以告訴你，藉著祂的恩典，我嘗試的時間越長，越能知道祂的亮光與生命。

Statements like that last one always need an example or two.

舉一或兩個例子佐證上面我所說的話。

I do not like to ask forgiveness. I also don’t like to tell people that I’ve done something stupid. A little while ago I said something to someone that wasn’t particularly graceful or appropriate. Just about a week later, a third person mentioned to me that said person had told her what I had said. She was laughing because there was no way I would have said that. I smiled and carried on. But I knew full well that what she had heard was the truth about what I had said. A day or so passed, and I couldn’t escape the conviction, which I believe was God’s spirit working in me, that I needed to set things right – that I needed light and life. Scripture is full of verses about this. A great one is Proverbs 28:13: “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper.” So in the end, I admitted my foolish words to my friend who didn’t originally believe I had said them.

首先，我要說我並不是在尋求諒解，也不是要告訴人們我做了什麼蠢事。事情是這樣的，一段時間以前，我對某甲說了一些不是那麼得體或是恰當的話。而大概一個星期以後，有第三方向我提到，某甲曾經告訴她我所說的話。她當時在笑，因為她覺得我不可能會說出那樣的話。我笑了笑，繼續手上的事。可是我清楚地知道，那些她所聽到的，有關我說的話語都是真的。差不多一天後，我卻擺脫不了自我定罪，我相信是上帝的靈在我內心裡動工，我需要把事情擺對位置，也就是我需要耶穌的光與生命。聖經中滿是關於這樣的經文。最棒的是箴言廿八章十三節：「遮掩自己罪過的，必不亨通；承認離棄罪過的，必蒙憐恤。」於是，我向原本不相信我會說這種話的朋友承認了自己曾經說過的蠢話。

That was not comfortable. But it brought light and life back into my conscience and into my relationships. I also wasn’t particularly happy about doing it. It wasn’t a fun thing by any stretch. But agreeing to do what he asks of me was a good thing. Our lives are filled with messages about happiness. Happiness really is seen as the ultimate aim. But as followers of Jesus our goal is higher than that; it’s goodness and rightness. It’s long-term joy and hope in the fact that we are following the ways of the Maker of the Universe.

這不是件令人感到舒服的事，但是這樣的舉動卻將亮光與生命重新帶回了我的良知與我的人際關係中。我也並非特別高興做這種事，當事情橫生枝節時，一點也不有趣。然而，同意去實踐上帝要求我做的事卻是一件好事。我們的生活到處都充滿了幸福的訊息。幸福的確被視為終極目標，但是身為耶穌的跟隨者，我們的目標遠比幸福要來得遠大。我們的目標是良善與正直，而這也是我們跟隨宇宙的創造者長久的喜樂與希望。

As the year unfolds, we’ll continue, as a school, to look at ways in which it is good to follow Jesus. Here we’ve talked a bit about the first one – how he knows the way to go better than we do. The topics we will explore are:

1. He knows the way.
2. He is for you.
3. He knows you.
4. He is with you.
5. He can make you new.
6. He has a purpose for you.

隨著新學年的展開，校方仍會繼續尋找「跟雖耶穌真好」的方法。我們現在已經先談了一些關於第一個「他知道如何做得比我們更好」的內容，往後，我們將會接著探討的主題有：

1. 祂知道方法（學習聖經裡耶穌教導我們如何擁有更好的生活方式）
2. 祂為你而存在
3. 祂了解你
4. 祂與你同在
5. 祂能使你成為新造的人
6. 祂對你是有目的的

We invite you, too, to explore this year, if you don’t know Jesus, why it might be good to follow him. If you do know him, I invite you to revive your heart with the ways in which he is good to you. Our first combined chapel is on Friday, August 18, from 8-8:40. Please feel welcome to join us!

倘若你尚未認識耶穌，我們也邀請你在今年來探索，為什麼跟隨耶穌或許是件好事？同樣地，如果你已經認識祂了，我邀請你以上帝對你有益的方式來甦活你的心。我們的第一次聯合敬拜是八月十八日星期五早上八點至八點四十分舉行，歡迎你來與我們一起敬拜上帝！