God's Revelation in Creation

A little girl and her friends climbed up the hill, jumping, jumping, panting, letting out laughter, jingling like bright copper bells... When they reached the top of the mountain, she exclaimed and saw something It was a striking sight - a field of long-stemmed flowers, bright red and charming, swaying freely and lively on the arid highlands, calling her to embrace. The little girl ran over and immersed herself in the fiery sea. She picked the flowers with both hands and made a bouquet. She put her face against the bright petals and stared at them for a long time.

I still remember as an eight-year-old child the feeling of pure joy I felt on the wild and forbidden Tibetan Plateau, where the beautiful Lilium pumilum, whose Latin name is Lilium pumilum, grew. My parents were working in the exploration sector in China at the time. From the age of five to ten, my friends and I used to roam the hillsides, collecting “nostoc commune” (an edible fungus in northwestern China) after summer thunderstorms, drinking the sweet and refreshing mountain spring water… We picked green, tender, juicy wheat kernels and quickly fled from the Tibetans watching the fields. We climbed trees, picked unripe apricots, tasted their extremely sour taste and made all kinds of faces! I raised my head and looked up at the high sky, intently observing the eagle circling steadily and powerfully in the vast sky, thinking to myself: What else is there in the sky?

The remote rural plateau, 10,000 feet above sea level, left God's mark on my young and innocent heart. This impression of the Creator’s sovereignty and love for humanity in this remote place (general revelation) echoed in my heart at a young age, when I heard the Word of God (special revelation) and received it in my twenties This impression is even more profound when considering the costly gift of salvation.

my family theme

“We used to live on an island with a suspension bridge,” my mother recalled. “My mom’s parents owned an oil factory and store. They were quite wealthy and sent their three sons, my uncles, to college – one became a successful lawyer, one was a teacher, and one was a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner . My father was an only son and heir to the family fortune. My parents married and had eleven children. I was born in 1933, the fourth. They almost gave me to my uncle because he had no children."

When my siblings and I returned to Shanghai from the Tibetan Plateau in 1976, we were fortunate enough to live with my mother's uncle for about seven years. He became our primary caregiver when we were fourteen, twelve, and ten years old. We call him "Uncle". He was already in his seventies at the time. After the communist government came to power in 1948, he lost his job as a lawyer and later worked in a department store. He went through the Cultural Revolution, was sent to a labor camp, got divorced, and lost his house and property. But in my memory, he always had a smile on his face.

My uncle lived an organized and active life, practicing Tai Chi every morning, reading historical documents and books, willing to help neighbors with repairs in need, and taking us to visit his brothers every weekend. His brothers respected him so much that he was given the privilege of naming all their children! The names of his siblings' nephews and nieces always struck me as unusual: The Awake One, The Calling One, The Alert One, The Assuring One, The Informing One! I now have a deeper understanding of his lifelong passion and vision for justice, knowledge, and freedom, valuing honesty and integrity.

Looking back, I clearly see this as a larger theme that God has given my great uncle, my family, and myself. It is greater because God by His grace guides us to recognize the attributes and designs of His majesty—the invisible beyond the visible of the world. God revealed Himself not only through creation in my youth, but also through my family’s desire for the truth of His character. With a passion awakened for honesty, integrity, justice, knowledge, and freedom, I encountered truth and found salvation in His great grace.

Looking to the future

Looking ahead, I share a prayer through song, through the hymn “Lord Jesus, I Promised”—the hymn I sang at my baptism on October 25, 1992 (the lyrics are on the next page).

like

Considering the legacy of people in my past and the experiences of my youth, I realize the importance of love in moving forward.

In order to be a faithful steward of life, I need to treat people well. I whispered to God, "I'm ready. Please help me."

believe

對於我自己以及在主國度裏作領袖的親愛的年輕弟兄姐妹們，我聽到主說：“我不是告訴過你嗎？你若信，就必看見神的榮耀。”（約翰福音11:40b）。

我為所有人禱告，如猶大書所說的：

「那能保守你們不失腳、叫你們無瑕無疵、歡歡喜喜站在他榮耀之前的我們的救主─獨一的神，」
「願榮耀、威嚴、能力、權柄，因我們的主耶穌基督歸與他，從萬古以前並現今，直到永永遠遠。阿們。」（猶大書1:24-25）

歐華畢業於戈登康威爾神學院心理諮詢系，現在馬薩諸塞州擔任合格的心理健康臨床醫師。她熱愛清新的空氣和大自然，喜歡閱讀和聆聽故事，思考人生，唱讚美詩，與家人和朋友一起快樂，向人們傳遞上帝的愛。