14. Manna issue 65 - I in the Sky 天空的我
ANON—West Malaysia 馬來西部 ANON
LIFE OF DREAMS? 夢想的生活？
Veni, Vidi, Vici.
This often quoted Latin phrase,
purportedly coined by the great Emperor Julius Caesar,
succinctly describes an overwhelming victory over yet another hapless city state
standing in the path of his quest for eternal glory and recognition.
In English,
“I came, I saw and I conquered”,
the phrase resonates in the life of many of us today.
This was the brief but telling report sent back by the emperor’s messengers
to an adoring Roman senate craving for news of the battle.
Veni, Vidi, Vici. 我來，我見，我征服。
這是經常被引用的拉丁短句，
據說是偉大的皇帝尤利烏斯．凱撒所發明的，
簡潔描述打敗了另一個不幸城邦的壓倒性勝利，
立於他追求永恆榮耀和認可的道路上。
翻成英語，
“我來了，我看到了，我征服了”，
今日，這句話在我們許多人的生活中產生了共鳴。
這是很簡短但有說服力的報告，由皇帝使者傳回的，
給一個渴望獲得戰鬥消息的尊崇羅馬元老院。
Yet this, unfortunately, is also the battle cry adopted by many Christians in the TJC,
especially the younger generation,
who are caught up in the whirlwind pace of the 21st century.
We seek to live up the life of dreams, a life of “having it all”,
of grappling with the world and all of its glories and pleasures,
through the toil and labor of our own hands.
We plunder what we desire of this hedonistic life which we exhibit as trophies,
treasured pieces to serve as memories of our conquests and a motivation to grab even more.
然而，不幸的是，這也是真耶穌教中許多基督徒所採用的戰鬥號角，
特別是年輕一代，
他們捲入了 21 世紀旋風般的步調。
我們尋求實現夢想的生活，一種“擁有一切”的生活，
與世界及其所有的榮耀和享樂紐打的難分難解，
用我們自己雙手的辛苦和勞動。
我們爭奪自已所夢想的這種享樂主義生活，並且展示出來如同戰利品，
珍藏每一件成果，成為我們征服的回憶，並且獲得更多掠奪的動力。
Perhaps this is an overdramatized painting,
a bleaker picture than the true state of play.
But if one were to take a stroll into the digital realm of cyberspace
—Facebook comes to mind
—we can see from the postings that,
to a large extent, this state of affairs is unfortunately part of the lives of many Christians:
they are living to be gratified, ever seeking, grasping, fighting and striving after; dreaming.
或許這是一幅風格誇張的畫作，
比真實的戲劇狀態更加淒涼的畫面。
但假如有人閒逛網絡空間的數位國度，
—我想到了臉書 Facebook
—我們從貼文中可以看出，
在很大程度上，這種情況不幸的正是，許多基督徒生活的一部份：
他們活著是為了滿足，一直在追尋，一直在抓取，一直在奮鬥，努力追求；一直夢想。
THE “I” WITHIN 內在有"自我"
Poor souls, indeed.
Just like Solomon who wrote Ecclesiastes,
the king who had it all and lived it all,
and yet discovered it was simply not enough.
Palaces, gardens, power, influence, wives, wealth and wisdom,
all promised happiness and contentment, all represented the life of dreams,
a quest to achieve the illustrious state of “Veni, Vidi, Vici”.
靈魂真的很可憐。
就像寫下傳道書的所羅門一樣，
國王擁有一切，並且享盡一切，
卻發現這還是無法滿足。
宮殿、花園、權力、影響力、妻妾、財富和智慧，
一切希望的幸福和滿足，一切都代表了夢想的生活，
追求實現“Veni，Vidi，Vici”的光輝盛況。
Yet none of these delivered.
The more wealth, the more worry;
the more knowledge and wisdom, the more the spirit grows tired and weary …
and the list goes on.
At the end of it all, if left unchecked,
if we cannot break free from the numbing influence of Satan,
ours is a life which is meaningless, meaningless, all is meaningless.
然而，這些都沒有讓人解脫。
財富越多，煩惱越多；
知識和智慧越多，精神就越加疲憊虛弱……
而這種追求的清單可以不斷持續下去。
到了最後，若任其發展下去，
如果我們不能擺脫撒但麻痺手法的影響，
我們的生活就沒有意義的，沒有意義的，一切都是沒有意義的。
King Solomon of old is embodied in the life of many of us today,
always seeking, always searching and yet always empty and unfulfilled.
The route to happiness, purpose and contentment for a Christian seems an impossibility.
If Solomon, having it all, still failed to find the answer to this question,
as seen in the earlier chapters of Ecclesiastes, what hope do we have?
What, then, was the cause of old King Solomon’s problem,
which is also the root of all the troubles for those of us
who have inherited the problems of the old Solomon?
古代所羅門王實現了我們今日許多人的生活，
總是在追求，總是在尋找，但總是感覺空虛和無法滿足。
基督徒通往幸福、目標和滿足的道路，似乎是不太可能。
如果是擁有這一切的所羅門王，仍然不能找到這個問題的答案，
就如傳道書前幾章所述，我們還有什麼盼望呢？
那麼，到底有什麼原因，導致產生老所羅門王的問題？
這個問題也是我們這些人所有煩惱問題的根源，
而我們繼承了老所羅門的問題？
The problem lies in the “I”:
“I set my heart”, “I built for myself”, “I acquired”, “I made”, “I planted”,
“I this”, “I that”, “I, I, I”!!
問題出在“我”這個字上：
“我下定決心”，“我為自己建造”，“我獲得”，“我製造”，“我種植”，
“我做這件事”“我做那件事”“我，我，我”！！
The insistence of the first person singular is striking.
It is reiterated, time and time again, and it is out of sync,
discordant and in conflict with the will of the Lord.
There is no other book in the Bible that uses the word “I” so many times
than Ecclesiastes in its earlier chapters.
堅持使用第一人稱單數的情況，很讓人震驚。
一次又一次的重複，而且還不同步，
與主的旨意不合又衝突。
聖經的古時經文中，沒有任何經卷使用“我”這個字，
比傳道書用了這麼多次。
The problem with the Solomon of old, and us, who would be the new Solomon,
is that we keep thinking only of ourselves,
the reiterative and recalcitrant, “I”.
We are unable to say “NO” to “I”.
As for happiness, purpose and contentment,
we ought to know better as Christians.
We were taught
that these dwell in a very different world … the world devoid of “I”.
古代所羅門和我們，以及想成為新所羅門王的人，所面對的問題，
是我們一直只想著自己，
一直重覆和頑強使用“我”。
我們無法對“我”說“不”。
至於幸福、目的和滿足，
作為基督徒，我們應該想得更清楚。
我們得到教導，
這些人生活在一個非常不同的世界……這個世界沒有“我”。
But we choose to refuse and reject our lessons from the Bible.
We scribe more and more in cyberspace our thoughts, our desires, our pleasurable moments,
our acquisitions, our purchases, our grandiose plans, our extravagant meals.
We scribe more and more of this great “I” in the sky in the world of the clouded dreams.
Does this not ring a bell and sound familiar?
Is this not just as old King Solomon was in Ecclesiastes chapter two?
What of this “I” … can it be tamed?
Will it be saved?
但是我們選擇拒絕，不接受我們從聖經中學到的教訓。
在網絡空間我們記錄越來越多，我們的思想、我們的慾望、我們愉稅的時刻，
我們的學習，我們的購物，我們的偉大計劃，我們的奢華餐飲。
我們在雲端夢想世界的天空中，抒寫越來越多這個偉大的“我”。
這難道不足以讓人警惕，聽起來令人熟悉嗎？
難道這不正是傳道書第二章，所羅門王所說的事嗎？
這個“我”到底是什麼……它可以被馴服嗎？
它會得救嗎？
SAYING “NO” TO “I”對“自已”說“不”
It can, and it will, if only we muster enough courage and strength to say the hardest word of all to “I”;
that of “NO”.
如果我們能鼓起足夠的勇氣和力量，對“我”說出一切最艱難的字，它就可以做到，而且會發生；
就個那個“不”的字。
If we lack the ability and the desire to say “NO” to the self serving, self selfish “I”,
we lose the ability to say “YES” to a better life,
a life of purpose, happiness and contentment that which was intended by our Lord Jesus.
When we say “NO” to “I”,
we are committing ourselves to a higher and greater purpose.
We must reject and stay far away from this unrepentant and domineering “I”,
bound and bolted on tightly to this dying world of man
and remember, instead, to seek the will of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
who wants us free from these shackles.
Unless we can say “NO” to this “I”,
we will never be able to break free from this plague which afflicted old King Solomon
and which continues to afflict so many of us wannabes.
如果我們沒有對自我供給與自我自私的“我”，有說“不”的能力和願望，
我們就失去了有更好生活，說“是”的能力，
一個有目的、有幸福和有滿足的生活，那正是我們主耶穌所想要給我們的。
當我們能夠對“我”說“不”時，
我們正把自已，託負於主的旨意，以期能實現更高、更偉大的目標。
我們要拒絕，並且遠離這個頑固霸道的“我”，
這"我"緊緊捆綁栓接於這個人類垂死的世界，
記住，要反過來，去尋求我們救主耶穌基督的旨意，
祂想讓我們擺脫這些束縛。
除非我們能夠對這個“我”說“不”，
我們將永遠不能擺脫折磨老所羅門王的禍患，
並且繼續摧殘我們很多崇拜追隨的人。
To many still in their youth and at the peak of life,
the rallying call of this age continues to be “Have it all”.
With this battle cry stems the cause of the problem that “I” can do it all,
and “I” can be and have everything, even if not all at once,
but if “I” can work for it, “I” will eventually attain it.
“I” must have it.
We continue to serve the “I”
as we shy away from making the hard and right choice of saying “NO” to “I”.
We fail to see or choose to ignore the irreconcilable conflict and dilemma,
that to say “YES” to “I”, is an affirmation of the self
but a rejection and refusal to accept the pathway of the Lord.
對於許多還年輕與生命正巔峰的人來說，
今世的戰鬥口號仍然是“擁有一切”。
隨著這個戰鬥口號源自於問題的起因，就是“我”可以解決一切，
而“我”可以有成就，擁有一切，即使不是馬上就能擁有，
但若“我”可以努力達成目標，“我”最終將得到它。
“我”必須擁有它。
我們繼續為“自我”服事，
正如我們避免做出因難卻正確的選擇，能對“自我”說“不”。
我們不能看出或選擇忽視勢不兩立的衝突和兩難困境，
對“我”說“是”，是對自我的肯定，
但卻是一種拒絕及放棄接受主的道路。
We must instead say “NO” to “I” which translates to “No way” to a hundred desires,
“No Thank You” to a thousand temptations, and “BE GONE Satan”,
as your riches in millions and the height of the glory and fame promised are but nothing to me
… NOTHING.
相反的，我們必須對“我”說“不”，這代表了對一百種慾望說“不可行”，
對一千種誘惑說“不，謝謝”，然後說“撒旦退去”，
因為你那數百萬的財富，以及那承諾的榮耀和名譽，對我來說都一文不值，
…無足輕重。
As the horn and trumpet of “Veni, Vidi, Vici” sounds out loudly,
please leave the battlefield of the world
to those who continue to strive for this meaningless and fruitless life.
Flee from the life of service to “I”;
the “I” in pursuit of the wind, an empty and unfulfilled life.
隨著“Veni, Vidi, Vici，我來，我見，我征服”號角和號聲的大大吹響，
請把世界的戰場留給
那些為這沒有意義、毫無結果人生而不斷奮鬥的人。
遠離為“自我”服務的生活；
這“我”只會捕風捉影，過著空虛無法滿足的人生。
REMEMBERING OUR CREATOR 紀念自已的造物主
For those filled with youthful vitality and vigour,
seeking to carve a path for ourselves,
remember now your Creator in the days of your youth,
before the difficult days come and when you take no pleasure in them
(Ecc 12:1).
Fear the Lord, keep His word and stay on His pathway to salvation,
so that, when the day of the Lord comes as He surely will,
each and every one of us will be counted as worthy to wear the crown of righteousness.
Perhaps, through the divine mercies of our Lord Jesus,
this “I” will be saved,
and will not be one of those hapless billions of souls vanquished by Satan,
in the nefarious scheme to bring all of humanity with him, the fallen angel, into damnation.
對於那些充滿青春活力和精力的人，
想要為自己開闢一條道路，
現在年輕時，當紀念造物主，
在困難的日子到來之前，當你不喜歡他們之時
（傳 12：1）。
敬畏主，遵守祂的話，走在祂得救的道路上，
如此一來，當主日如祂所定的日子，來到之時，
我們每個人都將被認為配得公義的冠冕。
或許，經由我們主耶穌神聖的憐憫，
這個“我”將能得救，
也不會成為撒旦消滅的那些不幸數十億靈魂中的一員，
在其邪惡的計劃中，墮落的天使將全人類帶入地獄。
What will become of our “I” …
the chapter is left open, the journey is not finished.
Many are in grave danger of falling.
That is the honest truth.
Can we pull ourselves back from the brink of this everlasting pit?
Do we have the courage, strength and the moral fortitude to overcome these trials of life?
我們的“自我”將會變成什麼樣呢？……
此章節尚未完結，旅程亦尚未結束。
許多人都面臨沉淪的死亡危險。
這是純然的真理。
我們能否將自己，從這個永恆深淵的邊緣拉回來呢？
我們有沒有勇氣、力量和道德毅力，來克服這些生活考驗呢？
Let us stern ourselves and resolve to overcome this “I”
and succeed where our ancestors, Adam and Eve, failed.
Bring on this new battle cry of “Jesus Christ”,
our Lord and Savior, and He will lead us ever onward.
讓我們堅定自己，決心戰勝這個“自我”
並於我們祖先亞當和夏娃失敗的地方，取得成功。
帶著“耶穌基督”這一新的戰鬥號角，
我們主和拯救者，祂將帶領我們永遠前行。
Less of self, but More of Thee, Lord.
少愛已，多愛耶穌，主啊。
小頁 markvmax@hotmail.com
歡迎主內同靈來信加入翻譯
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