Kazakh Paintings, Nazi Hunters, and the Power of Memory

This past Saturday I got the surprise of my life when, following a lunch with a longtime friend from Kazakhstan, I was presented with a painting we had once owned in Almaty, Kazakhstan. In fact, this item was one of the first things we "accessorized" our apartment with upon arrival there in 1994. Boy, did it bring memories back for Sabrina, me, and the kids!

Dave and Theresa Knauss really pulled a fast one on us! We had given them this painting as a gift when we moved back to the U.S. in 1997 and never imagined we would ever see it again. As Sabrina and I spent much of last Saturday gazing at the painting, we were reminded of the power of an object to bring your mind back to the past and relive old memories. I was translated back to all of our Russian language lessons with Gulya, our language teacher, sitting on the couch under this painting, not to mention all the Bible studies, birthdays, times of worship, and, yes, even a few "cultural stress breakdowns." Oh, if only this painting could talk!

I was thinking about the powerful connection we can have with people, places, or things in our lives all this past week, especially after my lunch with Dave Knauss. For much of the 1990's, the "Knauss House" (now expanded to number six and seen here in the pic to the right) was a big part of our lives, particularly as we prepared to move to Central Asia and work together there. We had spent a couple of holiday seasons together in their little village of Vanovka (as it was once called) and benefited from their encouragement, gracious hospitality, and shared vision in Christ.

As I was recently watching a documentary on the life of famed Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal (The Life and Legacy of Simon Wiesenthal), I was reminded once again of the enormous power a thing like a painting or a place like a hotel can have on your memories. Mr. Wiesenthal had lost 89 family members in the Nazi death camps and had subsequently spent six decades tracking down over 1,100 Nazi war criminals around the world. On the occasion of his 90th birthday, he requested that he celebrate it at the Imperial Hotel in Vienna, Austria. Ironically, the same hotel was one of Hitler's favorite places to hang out and conduct WWII. Himmler had a suite there and there was even a bunker underneath for Hitler and the rest of his henchmen. I was so struck with something Simon Wiesenthal said as he contemplated the irony and utter joy of celebrating one of his lasts birthdays there: "I want the history of this hotel to read that Simon Wiesenthal held his 90th birthday here with a kosher dinner. Hitler is gone, the Nazis are no more, but we are still here singing and dancing."

Whether it's encouraging us with something like a graciously returned painting or bringing to light the irony of having a Holocaust survivor celebrate his 90th birthday inside one of Hitler's old hangouts, I'm reminded of how faithful God really is. In Wiesenthal's case, it speaks to the living, breathing, and historic reality that God keeps His promises through time. From the calling of Abraham to the last pages of Revelation, He has promised to preserve a remnant of Jewish people unto Himself. As a Gentile believer in Christ, I've been grafted into "Abraham's tree" (Romans 11:17-18), and now have the blessing of being connected to my Father and all that the Kingdom promises entail as a member of the Bride of Christ. What an amazing salvation!

"Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father,

There is no shadow of turning with Thee;

Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;

As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.

Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see;

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided,

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me!"