A time to study

With the fall term about to begin, I feel a mixture of dread and joy. I know I have a daunting task ahead of me but I also know that if I make it through I will be one semester closer to finishing my master's degree. But greater still, is the opportunity to struggle, to do something difficult for Christ, to bring myself closer in my own dependence on Him.

Last year was an awesome time not only to grow in knowledge but also in spirit. Seminary is sort of like going to church everyday, or being at camp all year long. One of the principal benefits is to be in daily exposure to the Word and to godly ideas. Seminary gives ample opportunity to live out Paul's instruction to the Colossians, "Set your mind on things above" (3:2 NIV). But it should also be an opportunity to "set your hearts on things above." (3:1) I've found that the mind and heart work together, one can lead the other. I pray that as I engage my mind, my heart will follow. Only by loving Christ can I truly love Him.

Another lesson from the book of Colossians is that when faced with wrong ideas, focus on Christ. Seminary is as much an exposure to heresy as it is to truth. Knowing what's wrong is part of knowing what's right. I don't know how many times I have been in class and thought "people actually believe that!" For me it is tempting to get drawn into theological battles when exposed to heresy. But the approach that Paul uses when addressing the Gnostic heresy at Colosse is to refute and refocus.

For example, in 3:8-3:12 Paul deals a blow to Gnostic ideas by reaffirming Christ's physical body and real death. He then immediately turns to the believers own experience to validate true theology. "When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive in Christ. He forgave us all our sins." Paul gives a one-two punch by first showing the errors of false theology and then reminding them of what Christ accomplished for them. In effect he says, "that Gnosticism is wrong and false, don't you remember what you were like before Christ, what more do you need!"

The purpose of protest?

With the Iraq war quickly losing public support and with the anti-war movement gaining new supporters, I have been thinking more about what is the best way to go. There is little doubt that much of the Iraq war was a mistake, WMDs, Abu Graib, unexpected insurgency, etc... And while we as a nation need to own up to these mistakes, I don't think pulling out immediately is the best way. Pulling out now would leave an Iraq in the hands of extremists. The comparitively few Americans that will die helping Iraq move towards self-rule will save many more lives. We did make a mistake in Iraq and that mistake is going to cost hundreds of American lives. But to pull out now would be yet another mistake that could costs thousands more. The only reason toi pull out is greed, feeling that American lives are worth more than Iraqi lives.

Your Preferred Model of Church

I recently came across this quiz on 'The Ooze'. I thought it was quite interesting. Link.

Personally, I scored highest in the 'Herald Model' meaning that the organization is secondary to the church's principle purpose of proclaiming the Gospel. I think that how you feel about church is often the combination of theology and experience. More specifically how you view God most directly impacts what you think His people should be doing. If God is primarily concerned with redemption of individuals than a church that loudly proclaims the Gospel is needed. If God rather wants to bring about a sort of cultural or social redemption (through His people) than a more social justice model fits.

ATSKids

After a couple of months of work, we have finished ATS Kids and the Island of Know, a gospel adventure game for kids. The game is designed to present the gospel as children play the game. If you are curious of my contribution to the game, I did all of the coding meaning basically everything you don't see I did. David, my coworker, did all of the graphics. Since neither David or myself have designed a game, I am quite happy with the result. If you are interested in doing a creative outreach to children please consider using this game. It is available for free online play (high speed connection reccomended) or on a CD (PC and Mac). Check it out at www.ATSKids.com