Last week I moved into my new home: Wheaton College. Orientation was long and exhausting, but now that classes have started and I feel acclimated to my new surroundings, I felt it appropriate to update my three faithful readers on what I've been experiencing.
First of all, this is an incredible place. I feel so blessed to have come out of one great community (Wheaton Academy) and into another. This is a school that 1) puts God first in everything, 2) loves the people who attend it (like me), 3) has an exceptional academic reputation, and 4) has an OUTSTANDING cafeteria. I have no doubts that I will grow spiritually, relationally, intellectually, and physically (the food is really good).
There are two phrases that have become ingrained in my mind over the last week. The first is "community." One of the College's desires is to have a tight-knit on-campus community between faculty, staff, and students. The bottom line is that people love each other here. I have seen that firsthand from meeting people on my floor as well as up at HoneyRock and around campus. Just about everybody has "friend-potential".
The second phrase is the school motto "For Christ and His Kingdom." In has a nice ring to it (Jonathan Blanchard knew how to make a catchy slogan) and it truly is the vision of the school. It is too bad that WA abandoned this slogan and jumped on the Latin bandwagon with "Soli Deo Gloria" (even though, when translated, that is a great motto as well). Having the words "For Christ and His Kingdom" plastered all over campus provides a constant reminder of why I am here. I am not here to get a degree (though that is part of it), I'm not here to dominate intramurals (but I will), I'm not here to get fat (which I might), I am here to grow deeper in my love for God and to become equipped to serve His kingdom. That is the essence of Christian education. That is why I am here. I love it so far, I have met some great people and I'm in great classes. But, the longer I blog the later I'll be up studying so I had better go.
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Monday, August 27, 2007
John Piper in Wheaton
John Piper will be speaking at Wheaton College September 5-7, 2007. For more information visit http://www.wheaton.edu
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Just because I have not blogged for a while....
| I apologize to my three faithful readers for the long delay between posts. I simply have not had anything to say for the last week or so. But today is different. Today I leave for college, sort of. I am heading up to HoneyRock Camp in Wisconsin with about 100 or so of my future classmates to participate in the "Wheaton Passage." I honestly have no idea what I will be doing for the next nine days, except for spending time with a bunch of people I have never met before, but will be living with for the next four years of my life. Talk about pressure, I better make a good impression or I could end up at COD in a heartbeat. Just kidding. I'll let you three know how things go once I am settled into my dorm at the end of next week. |
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Embracing the Love of God
A couple of days ago, I posted a passage from the book Embracing the Love of God: The Path & Promise of Christian Life by James Bryan Smith. Today, I am writing my "review" of sorts for Smith's book.
If I had to sum the book up in one word, I would choose refreshing. Smith writes with a respect for the authority of God's word, hard to find amidst the explosion of the Emergent church, and a proper view of the doctrine of salvation.
The book is about God's love, as one could probably guess from the title, and is divided into three sections: "Knowing God's Acceptance," "Receiving God's Forgiveness," and "Experiencing God's Care." Within these sections are chapters that talk about how God accepts/forgives/and cares for us, how we ought to accept/forgive/care for ourselves, and finally how we ought to accept/forgive/care for others. I will provide a "teaser" from each chapter that I not only feel sums up the chapter itself, but also that sums up the love of Almighty God.
Chapter 1 "God's Acceptance": The first thing that it is important to note about God's love is that he loves us in spite of our shortcomings. He accepts us as we are. Smith puts it like this: "God loves me just as I am, not as I should be." Here's the thing about God, he knows who we ought to be, and we fall far short of that. The amazing thing is that he loves us anyway, and gave his son to bring us back into a right relationship with him. Smith hits the nail on the head.
Chapter 2 "Accepting Ourselves": For this chapter, I return to what I posted the other day: "Today, we live the lie that we are 'pretty good people' who occasionally 'make mistakes.'" The fact is that without Christ we are rotten people, living in rebellion against the living God, our Creator. Until we see ourselves in this way, we fail to see how deep the Father's love is for us and how much Jesus sacrificed on the cross.
Chapter 3 "Accepting One Another": Smith reminds us that "if we have been comprehensively accepted, than we must accept others comprehensively. No one is unacceptable in God's eyes. We are called to have the same vision." Smith talks about the following "lines of exclusion" that we draw: race, status, religion, and gender. He then reminds us that Jesus erased these lines, he came to save everyone, and we as Christians must accept everyone in order that they may choose to follow Christ as well.
Chapter 4 "God's Forgiveness": "Too many of us have lived with the misconception that God would rather condemn than forgive, and as a result we have lost the joy of living honestly and freely before a loving heavenly Father." Here is the amazing thing about God: he WANTS to forgive us. It is not something that he does begrudgingly. If he did not want to forgive, he would not have sent his only Son to die in our place. This reality should bring joy to our hearts, and make us treasure the Lord above all things.
Chapter 5 "Forgiving Ourselves": "God's love, manifest in forgiving us, is the foundation upon which we can begin the process of forgiving ourselves." Once our sins have been forgiven by God, we must be able to forgive ourselves. Otherwise, what message do we send to God? "I know that you forgive me, but I can't forgive myself" is an unacceptable position. Are we higher than God? No! God's forgiveness allows us to let go of our sin and the guilt we feel. " My sin, not in part, but the whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord!"
Chapter 6 "Forgiving One Another": "Forgiveness is not about justice, it is about healing. It is not logical, and it is not fair. But it is the way to real freedom, and if we can navigate through the turbulent waters of our pain and ask God's help in forgiving those we need to forgive, we will experience an inner peace that this world does not understand." People will hurt us, that is a given. But what should our response be, as those whose grievous sins against God have been wiped away? If you said forgiveness, you are correct. How dare we not forgive others when we have been forgiven for our sins. To not forgive is to devalue the forgiveness we have been given. Trust me. it is not easy to forgive, and that's why Smith says that we needs God's help. Without God, we cannot forgive. It is not in our nature.
Chapter 7 "God's Care": "God looks in our heart and sees what we really need. The answer may not come as we anticipate, but I have learned that it will come." Sometimes God is confusing; he does things that we do not understand and then we think for some reason that he does not care about us. Hear this: God always has our best interests in mind. He has a love for us that we will never fully comprehend, and even when it seems that he is hurting us, the outcome is always for our benefit.
Chapter 8 "Caring for Ourselves": "If we are to become aware of God's presence, we must search. This searching, this intentional openness to God's presence, is the primary way we care for ourselves." The best way for you and me to care for ourselves is to seek after God in all that we do. Where the Lord is, there is no evil. By seeking Him, we care for ourselves.
Chapter 9 "Caring for one Another": "God provides for us the example of how to care for one another. How does God care for us? God cares for our spiritual life, God cares for the health of our soul, and God provides for our physical needs. God is available, God listens, and God never abandons us. This is how we are to care for one another." Christ gave us the example of how to care for those in need. He was always concerned about their physical needs, but he was equally concerned about their spiritual needs. You cannot separate the two. Because of the Emergent church, there has been too much emphasis on the physical realm, including the environment. Jesus did not some to save the ozone layer, he came to save people. And we accomplish that by meeting people's physical needs, but always with the intention of exposing them to the salvation that comes through Christ. After all, what good does it do to save some one's earthly life, but do nothing to save their eternal life? If you said "nothing" than you're correct.
In summary, I was impacted greatly by this 163 page masterpiece. I feel as though James Bryan Smith did a fantastic job of summarizing the love of God, and how we ought to live in response to that love. I leave you with the words of one of the most powerful hymns out there:
If I had to sum the book up in one word, I would choose refreshing. Smith writes with a respect for the authority of God's word, hard to find amidst the explosion of the Emergent church, and a proper view of the doctrine of salvation.
The book is about God's love, as one could probably guess from the title, and is divided into three sections: "Knowing God's Acceptance," "Receiving God's Forgiveness," and "Experiencing God's Care." Within these sections are chapters that talk about how God accepts/forgives/and cares for us, how we ought to accept/forgive/care for ourselves, and finally how we ought to accept/forgive/care for others. I will provide a "teaser" from each chapter that I not only feel sums up the chapter itself, but also that sums up the love of Almighty God.
Chapter 1 "God's Acceptance": The first thing that it is important to note about God's love is that he loves us in spite of our shortcomings. He accepts us as we are. Smith puts it like this: "God loves me just as I am, not as I should be." Here's the thing about God, he knows who we ought to be, and we fall far short of that. The amazing thing is that he loves us anyway, and gave his son to bring us back into a right relationship with him. Smith hits the nail on the head.
Chapter 2 "Accepting Ourselves": For this chapter, I return to what I posted the other day: "Today, we live the lie that we are 'pretty good people' who occasionally 'make mistakes.'" The fact is that without Christ we are rotten people, living in rebellion against the living God, our Creator. Until we see ourselves in this way, we fail to see how deep the Father's love is for us and how much Jesus sacrificed on the cross.
Chapter 3 "Accepting One Another": Smith reminds us that "if we have been comprehensively accepted, than we must accept others comprehensively. No one is unacceptable in God's eyes. We are called to have the same vision." Smith talks about the following "lines of exclusion" that we draw: race, status, religion, and gender. He then reminds us that Jesus erased these lines, he came to save everyone, and we as Christians must accept everyone in order that they may choose to follow Christ as well.
Chapter 4 "God's Forgiveness": "Too many of us have lived with the misconception that God would rather condemn than forgive, and as a result we have lost the joy of living honestly and freely before a loving heavenly Father." Here is the amazing thing about God: he WANTS to forgive us. It is not something that he does begrudgingly. If he did not want to forgive, he would not have sent his only Son to die in our place. This reality should bring joy to our hearts, and make us treasure the Lord above all things.
Chapter 5 "Forgiving Ourselves": "God's love, manifest in forgiving us, is the foundation upon which we can begin the process of forgiving ourselves." Once our sins have been forgiven by God, we must be able to forgive ourselves. Otherwise, what message do we send to God? "I know that you forgive me, but I can't forgive myself" is an unacceptable position. Are we higher than God? No! God's forgiveness allows us to let go of our sin and the guilt we feel. " My sin, not in part, but the whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord!"
Chapter 6 "Forgiving One Another": "Forgiveness is not about justice, it is about healing. It is not logical, and it is not fair. But it is the way to real freedom, and if we can navigate through the turbulent waters of our pain and ask God's help in forgiving those we need to forgive, we will experience an inner peace that this world does not understand." People will hurt us, that is a given. But what should our response be, as those whose grievous sins against God have been wiped away? If you said forgiveness, you are correct. How dare we not forgive others when we have been forgiven for our sins. To not forgive is to devalue the forgiveness we have been given. Trust me. it is not easy to forgive, and that's why Smith says that we needs God's help. Without God, we cannot forgive. It is not in our nature.
Chapter 7 "God's Care": "God looks in our heart and sees what we really need. The answer may not come as we anticipate, but I have learned that it will come." Sometimes God is confusing; he does things that we do not understand and then we think for some reason that he does not care about us. Hear this: God always has our best interests in mind. He has a love for us that we will never fully comprehend, and even when it seems that he is hurting us, the outcome is always for our benefit.
Chapter 8 "Caring for Ourselves": "If we are to become aware of God's presence, we must search. This searching, this intentional openness to God's presence, is the primary way we care for ourselves." The best way for you and me to care for ourselves is to seek after God in all that we do. Where the Lord is, there is no evil. By seeking Him, we care for ourselves.
Chapter 9 "Caring for one Another": "God provides for us the example of how to care for one another. How does God care for us? God cares for our spiritual life, God cares for the health of our soul, and God provides for our physical needs. God is available, God listens, and God never abandons us. This is how we are to care for one another." Christ gave us the example of how to care for those in need. He was always concerned about their physical needs, but he was equally concerned about their spiritual needs. You cannot separate the two. Because of the Emergent church, there has been too much emphasis on the physical realm, including the environment. Jesus did not some to save the ozone layer, he came to save people. And we accomplish that by meeting people's physical needs, but always with the intention of exposing them to the salvation that comes through Christ. After all, what good does it do to save some one's earthly life, but do nothing to save their eternal life? If you said "nothing" than you're correct.
In summary, I was impacted greatly by this 163 page masterpiece. I feel as though James Bryan Smith did a fantastic job of summarizing the love of God, and how we ought to live in response to that love. I leave you with the words of one of the most powerful hymns out there:
How deep the Father's love for us,
how vast beyond all measure.
That he would give his only son,
to make a wretch his treasure.
How great the pain of searing loss,
the father turns his face away.
As wounds which mar the chosen one,
bring many sons to glory.
Behold the man upon the cross,
my guilt upon his shoulders.
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice,
call out among the scoffers.
It was my sin that held him there,
until it was accomplished.
His dying breath has brought me life,
I know that it is finished.
I will not boast in anything,
no gifts, no power, no wisdom.
But I will boast in Jesus Christ,
his death and resurrection.
Why should I gain from his reward?
I cannot give an answer.
But this I know with all my heart,
his wounds have paid my ransom.
God bless
Saturday, August 4, 2007
Crisis Response
For a fantastic sermon on how Christians ought to respond to the various crises in our world today, visit http://www.wheatonbible.org/?p=519. The sermon was given on July 30 by Rob Rienow, Family Pastor at Wheaton Bible Church. I just finished listening to it and I was blown away.
Friday, August 3, 2007
I am not a Good Person
I am in the process of reading Embracing the Love of God by James Bryan Smith as part of the "Wheaton Passage" program that I will be participating in August 14-23. On page 31 of this book, Smith brings to light a huge error in thinking that Christians have made:
"Today, we live the lie that we are 'pretty good' people who occasionally 'make mistakes.' The Christian doctrines of original sin and of human depravity have been replaced by a philosophy of original goodness and human potential. G.K. Chesterton noted, 'Certain theologians dispute original sin, which is the only part of Christian theology which can really be proved.'
We want to excuse our behavior and pretend that we are basically good and decent. I have noticed how shocked and horrified people are at their own sinfulness. In the midst of a confession I will often hear people say, 'How could I have done such a thing?' Understanding our nature, 'How could I not?' is the better question.
In his poem, 'As the Ruin Falls,' C.S. Lewis wrote, 'I have never had a self-less thought since I was born.' Even at our best, Lewis believed, we are selfish. Our most noble acts, our highest virtues, are still tainted with self-interest."
This passage is loaded with truth. In the society that we live in, how we see oursleves is of great importance. As a result, even in the Church, we like to sweep our depravity under the rug and consider oursleves to be "good people." The reality is that we are sick, sinful people from birth and we are in desperate need of a savior. We may not like to think of ourselves as dependent on somebody else, but that does not change the reality that we are completely lost outside of Christ. Until we embrace the fact that are evil beings in need of the love of Jesus Christ, we are riding a fast-track to destruction.
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
"The Bog"
I am spending this week with my family at the Jellystone Resort in Warrens, WI. After some morning mini-golf today, which was a disaster for me, we began driving in search for a place to eat lunch.
the first place we came across was called "The Bog." That should have been our first clue, but since the sign also said "Casual Fine Dining,"we thought we should give it a try. As we pulled into the parking lot, it became apparent that the place was under construction. Several large pieces of machinery were scattered around the premises and there was dirt everywhere.
I walked in ahead of everybody else in order to use the restroom. I was overcome by the sound of an electric saw and the smell of sawdust as soon as I walked through the door. As I approached the bathroom door, I heard one employee say to another, "Tell him not to flush the toilet." I stopped dead in my tracks, unsure if I was the "him" she was referring to. I was not prepared for what happened next.
An older gentleman, probably the owner of the restaurant, then turned to me and said, "Oh yeah, don't flush the toilet 'cause the pipes are open outside and the poor guys out there will get a face-full if you do." I was not sure how to handle this, so I just said "Ok" and walked into the restroom.
I thought about flushing just because they told me not to. I mean let's be honest, has anyone ever told you NOT to flush? No. In fact, most parents have to stress flushing to their children. It was just downright hilarious. To make a long story short, we ended up not eating at "The Bog" because of the saw that was being used in a corner of he restaurant (yes, there was a saw INSIDE the place!). Instead we enjoyed a nice, quiet meal at Perkins in a nearby town.
"Don't flush," haha.
the first place we came across was called "The Bog." That should have been our first clue, but since the sign also said "Casual Fine Dining,"we thought we should give it a try. As we pulled into the parking lot, it became apparent that the place was under construction. Several large pieces of machinery were scattered around the premises and there was dirt everywhere.
I walked in ahead of everybody else in order to use the restroom. I was overcome by the sound of an electric saw and the smell of sawdust as soon as I walked through the door. As I approached the bathroom door, I heard one employee say to another, "Tell him not to flush the toilet." I stopped dead in my tracks, unsure if I was the "him" she was referring to. I was not prepared for what happened next.
An older gentleman, probably the owner of the restaurant, then turned to me and said, "Oh yeah, don't flush the toilet 'cause the pipes are open outside and the poor guys out there will get a face-full if you do." I was not sure how to handle this, so I just said "Ok" and walked into the restroom.
I thought about flushing just because they told me not to. I mean let's be honest, has anyone ever told you NOT to flush? No. In fact, most parents have to stress flushing to their children. It was just downright hilarious. To make a long story short, we ended up not eating at "The Bog" because of the saw that was being used in a corner of he restaurant (yes, there was a saw INSIDE the place!). Instead we enjoyed a nice, quiet meal at Perkins in a nearby town.
"Don't flush," haha.
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