Hello, friends!
Today, all over the United States, children (and adults) are getting dressed up in costumes, candy is being distributed, ghosts, goblins, vampires, superheros, and the like. There will be parties and there will be fun... That's right, it's Reformation Day!
500 years ago today, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the church in Wittenberg Church in Germany, sparking what would be known as the Protestant Reformation and a split from the Catholic Church. Regardless of what you think of, Protestantism, Catholicism, Reformed Theology, Arminianism, or Christianity in general, it's hard to argue with the fact that the Reformation was kind of a big deal and that those 95 theses changed the world in a profound way.
Martin Luther is an interesting guy. If you read biographies about him, you can see a man who was deeply dedicated to God and someone who dearly loved the Church. At the same time, he had some very anti-Semitic writings and ideas that should not be tolerated. I suppose, just like all of us, he was a flawed man. I doubt that Luther knew what he was started when he nailed his theses to that door. My guess is that he was just looking for change to a power system that was exploiting the poor and disadvantaged. In many ways, I can see parallels Luther's plight and what is happening today in the United States.
I am decidedly not Reformed in my theology but I can appreciated Reformed Theology for what it does and how it sees the world and salvation. On the main points of the Gospel, the Reformed and I do not disagree. I believe we are broken people who live in a broken world and are powerless to fix either of those things by our own actions. I believe in the power of God's grace (undeserved favor) that changes our hearts and draws us to Himself. This kind of faith is very freeing.
So, friends, as you celebrate your Reformation Day by passing out candy, dressing up, and going to parties, remember this. Jesus loves you and wants you to know that. You don't have to "fix" yourself. Let God do the heavy lifting and be free.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
PS: If you're reading this and aren't a follower of Jesus but are interested in learning more, you should totally message me! I'd love to talk more. =0).
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
Thursday, October 26, 2017
Where Are My Writing Utensils?!
Hello, friends!
When I started planting at Lincoln, one of the positive externalities of driving down to Jefferson City every week was that I got to carpool with my neighbor and friend Bob because he works down there too. The problem was that Bob needs to be at work by 8 (it used to be 7:30) so we have to leave CoMO by 7:15 to make it there on time. This isn't a problem from a waking up standpoint (most days) but for a campus missionary, there isn't a ton to do at 8 in the morning when it seems like you're the only one on campus. The system that I've worked out is that I drop off my friend, park on campus, and put the prayer box in front of the cafeteria before walking downtown to do work at a local coffee shop.
For the most part, this system has worked out really well. Since I've been doing proxe stations outside, I haven't had a ton of time to see folk in the caf. Still, every week I go collect the prayer requests in the box and it's always full. Students put in the normal college stuff for prayer. Some students want God to bless their studies. Others need help with finances. Other still have family who are sick or are in tough relationships. It's always a joy to see a box full of prayer requests and to be able to pray for the campus in more specific ways during our bible study.
HOWEVER, there is one part of the prayer box that I really don't like... I wish folk would stop stealing my writing utensils.
Pens, pencils, or whatever, when I drop off the prayer box at 8 in the morning, I usually put out 3-4 writing utensils. The prayer box isn't big enough for 3 to 4 people to put prayer requests in at the same time. It's just, I know that folk are going to take the writing utensils so I have to put extras there.
Look, I get it. Students need stuff to write with. I'm sure that at least part of the time, it's just a matter of students forgetting to put back whatever they were using. I'm not mad at the students. I'm not going to hunt down anyone and make them return my pens. I just wish they didn't always get taken.
It may seem silly but I have a theory. I think that folk take my pens because they rationalize that there are other pens so folk can still write prayer requests. No one wants to be the guy or gal who keeps other folk from writing prayer requests, so I can always count on one pen being there.
So, here's my plan to test my theory. Next week, I'm going to put out 8 pens and see how many of them are left at the end of the day. The week after that, I'm going to put out only 1 pen and see if it gets taken or is left. If in either case, exactly 1 pen is left over, I know that my theory is right.
These are the things that I think about sometimes... =0).
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
When I started planting at Lincoln, one of the positive externalities of driving down to Jefferson City every week was that I got to carpool with my neighbor and friend Bob because he works down there too. The problem was that Bob needs to be at work by 8 (it used to be 7:30) so we have to leave CoMO by 7:15 to make it there on time. This isn't a problem from a waking up standpoint (most days) but for a campus missionary, there isn't a ton to do at 8 in the morning when it seems like you're the only one on campus. The system that I've worked out is that I drop off my friend, park on campus, and put the prayer box in front of the cafeteria before walking downtown to do work at a local coffee shop.
For the most part, this system has worked out really well. Since I've been doing proxe stations outside, I haven't had a ton of time to see folk in the caf. Still, every week I go collect the prayer requests in the box and it's always full. Students put in the normal college stuff for prayer. Some students want God to bless their studies. Others need help with finances. Other still have family who are sick or are in tough relationships. It's always a joy to see a box full of prayer requests and to be able to pray for the campus in more specific ways during our bible study.
HOWEVER, there is one part of the prayer box that I really don't like... I wish folk would stop stealing my writing utensils.
Pens, pencils, or whatever, when I drop off the prayer box at 8 in the morning, I usually put out 3-4 writing utensils. The prayer box isn't big enough for 3 to 4 people to put prayer requests in at the same time. It's just, I know that folk are going to take the writing utensils so I have to put extras there.
Look, I get it. Students need stuff to write with. I'm sure that at least part of the time, it's just a matter of students forgetting to put back whatever they were using. I'm not mad at the students. I'm not going to hunt down anyone and make them return my pens. I just wish they didn't always get taken.
It may seem silly but I have a theory. I think that folk take my pens because they rationalize that there are other pens so folk can still write prayer requests. No one wants to be the guy or gal who keeps other folk from writing prayer requests, so I can always count on one pen being there.
So, here's my plan to test my theory. Next week, I'm going to put out 8 pens and see how many of them are left at the end of the day. The week after that, I'm going to put out only 1 pen and see if it gets taken or is left. If in either case, exactly 1 pen is left over, I know that my theory is right.
These are the things that I think about sometimes... =0).
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
Thursday, October 19, 2017
Finding Ways to Keep Moving...
Hello, friends!
A while back, I got a fitness tracker that does all sorts of fancy stuff. It takes my heart rate, it tells me how far I've run. It counts steps and calories burned. It tells me to breathe and has a timer so I know when Ezra's done with his timeout. The feature that I find most interesting is that my fitness tracker makes sure that I get in at least 250 steps every hour from 8am to 8pm every day. Y'all know that I'm super competitive, so there's not quite as satisfying as knowing that I nailed all 12 hours and nothing quite as heartbreaking as seeing that I missed a few hours on any given day.
What does this have to do with ministry? Well, as I'm writing this, I'm sitting in a coffee shop. If I wasn't at a coffee shop, I'd be sitting at home typing. One of the things I've noticed about this job is that as I've gotten higher and higher up in InterVarsity and my job descriptions have changed from doing mostly field work to doing more supervision and development, I don't move as much as I used to move.
Back when I was planting ACF, I could easily walk miles upon miles in any given day without even thinking about it. I'd bike to campus then have one meeting with a student in the Student Center before meeting another student at Memorial Union. I might decide to take some students on a prayer walk around campus then walk back to my bike so I could get home in time to get ready for that evening's activities. When evening came, especially for Large Group, I would spend the entire night on my feet, checking in on student leaders, connecting with students, and generally staying busy. I didn't have my fitness tracker back then but I'll bet that it would have been working pretty hard.
Now? More days than not are spent in front of a computer. There are emails to write. There are video meetings to be had. There are trainings to be planned. It's all good and important work. It's also much more sentient.
So, I've had to find ways to keep moving. I have a timer that goes off every 25 minutes so I can take a 5 minute walk. I make it a point to set up as many phone conversations as possible so I can walk back and forth while I'm in a meeting. With one of my supervisees, I make it a point for all of our meetings to have at least some element of walking and talking. The little things add up.
I'm going to say that the results have been positive. Knowing that I have 25 minutes to do something before I "have" to go take a walk and break my concentration keeps me working hard. I haven't exactly shed a bunch of pounds but I'm also not putting on a ton of weight. My legs are a little tired at the end of the day but at least I'm active. The next step? Treadmill desk. =0).
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
A while back, I got a fitness tracker that does all sorts of fancy stuff. It takes my heart rate, it tells me how far I've run. It counts steps and calories burned. It tells me to breathe and has a timer so I know when Ezra's done with his timeout. The feature that I find most interesting is that my fitness tracker makes sure that I get in at least 250 steps every hour from 8am to 8pm every day. Y'all know that I'm super competitive, so there's not quite as satisfying as knowing that I nailed all 12 hours and nothing quite as heartbreaking as seeing that I missed a few hours on any given day.
What does this have to do with ministry? Well, as I'm writing this, I'm sitting in a coffee shop. If I wasn't at a coffee shop, I'd be sitting at home typing. One of the things I've noticed about this job is that as I've gotten higher and higher up in InterVarsity and my job descriptions have changed from doing mostly field work to doing more supervision and development, I don't move as much as I used to move.
Back when I was planting ACF, I could easily walk miles upon miles in any given day without even thinking about it. I'd bike to campus then have one meeting with a student in the Student Center before meeting another student at Memorial Union. I might decide to take some students on a prayer walk around campus then walk back to my bike so I could get home in time to get ready for that evening's activities. When evening came, especially for Large Group, I would spend the entire night on my feet, checking in on student leaders, connecting with students, and generally staying busy. I didn't have my fitness tracker back then but I'll bet that it would have been working pretty hard.
Now? More days than not are spent in front of a computer. There are emails to write. There are video meetings to be had. There are trainings to be planned. It's all good and important work. It's also much more sentient.
So, I've had to find ways to keep moving. I have a timer that goes off every 25 minutes so I can take a 5 minute walk. I make it a point to set up as many phone conversations as possible so I can walk back and forth while I'm in a meeting. With one of my supervisees, I make it a point for all of our meetings to have at least some element of walking and talking. The little things add up.
I'm going to say that the results have been positive. Knowing that I have 25 minutes to do something before I "have" to go take a walk and break my concentration keeps me working hard. I haven't exactly shed a bunch of pounds but I'm also not putting on a ton of weight. My legs are a little tired at the end of the day but at least I'm active. The next step? Treadmill desk. =0).
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
Thursday, October 12, 2017
Riding Solo and riding stronger...
Hello, friends!
If there are ever any questions about who is stronger between Meg and me, let these past few days next few days be a reminder that Meg is definitely the stronger of the two of us.
Our story begins last week when Ezra came home with a stomach bug. We aren't sure where he caught it but our guess is that it's from daycare. Well, since our boy Ezra is great at sharing, he decided that he wanted to share his newfound illness with his family! First, he gave it to his sister. Then, they shared it together with Meg. Finally, I was the last on the list to get this generous gift. All you have to do is look at how Meg and handled our illnesses. What does Meg do while she's sick? The same things she always does. She cooked delicious meals. She hung out with the kids. She did some cleaning and generally made sure that our house didn't fall apart. Of course, I wasn't a completely negligent parent/husband so I was there too, helping out, and especially changing all the poop diapers when the smell got to strong. The important thing to note is that Meg's taking care of us didn't change at all. She still even managed to meet with folk and get some work done.
Now, and Tuesday, when I was sick, that's a different story entirely. What did I do? I slept. I got up for a little bit to change a diaper and play with the kids but for the most part, I slept. Why? Because I was sick and I'm not as strong as my wife. =0). Me being sick meant her parenting solo for the most part. Her being sick? That was business as usual.
Fast forward to these next few days. This weekend, I'll be heading to Baltimore to visit a campus I'm coaching and attend a wedding of a roommate from college (congrats, Vic!). Meg will be riding solo from Friday evening through Monday morning. That means 3 bedtimes, at least 2 baths for Ezra, more than a handful of meals, a trip to church, and at least 2 naps. What's going to change because I'm not around? Nothing. Because my wife is super strong and a total boss.
HOWEVER, today, Meg and Thaliea are in Lawrence, KS doing a staff visit. That means that Ezra and I are riding solo for the evening. He took a bath last night and he's been at daycare all day today so pretty much my job riding solo requires me picking him up from daycare, feeding him, and getting him ready for bed. Do you know what's going to change from the normal routine? Allow me to illustrate...
This is not a home cooked meal. This is not at our house. This is not part of the normal routine. Why? Because I am weak, or at least weaker than my wife.
Mind you, I know that I'm totally falling into a stereotype about fathers vs. mothers. I'm well aware that not every dad is like this. I also am capable of cooking for, cleaning up after, and generally keeping my son and daughter alive and well. It's just so much easier to do it this way... because I'm weak.
So, if you have a moment, please be praying for my family this weekend. I'll be away so please pray an extra dose of strength for my extra strong wife. Pray that the kids will eat well, nap well, and not miss their Daddy too much.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
If there are ever any questions about who is stronger between Meg and me, let these past few days next few days be a reminder that Meg is definitely the stronger of the two of us.
Our story begins last week when Ezra came home with a stomach bug. We aren't sure where he caught it but our guess is that it's from daycare. Well, since our boy Ezra is great at sharing, he decided that he wanted to share his newfound illness with his family! First, he gave it to his sister. Then, they shared it together with Meg. Finally, I was the last on the list to get this generous gift. All you have to do is look at how Meg and handled our illnesses. What does Meg do while she's sick? The same things she always does. She cooked delicious meals. She hung out with the kids. She did some cleaning and generally made sure that our house didn't fall apart. Of course, I wasn't a completely negligent parent/husband so I was there too, helping out, and especially changing all the poop diapers when the smell got to strong. The important thing to note is that Meg's taking care of us didn't change at all. She still even managed to meet with folk and get some work done.
Now, and Tuesday, when I was sick, that's a different story entirely. What did I do? I slept. I got up for a little bit to change a diaper and play with the kids but for the most part, I slept. Why? Because I was sick and I'm not as strong as my wife. =0). Me being sick meant her parenting solo for the most part. Her being sick? That was business as usual.
Fast forward to these next few days. This weekend, I'll be heading to Baltimore to visit a campus I'm coaching and attend a wedding of a roommate from college (congrats, Vic!). Meg will be riding solo from Friday evening through Monday morning. That means 3 bedtimes, at least 2 baths for Ezra, more than a handful of meals, a trip to church, and at least 2 naps. What's going to change because I'm not around? Nothing. Because my wife is super strong and a total boss.
HOWEVER, today, Meg and Thaliea are in Lawrence, KS doing a staff visit. That means that Ezra and I are riding solo for the evening. He took a bath last night and he's been at daycare all day today so pretty much my job riding solo requires me picking him up from daycare, feeding him, and getting him ready for bed. Do you know what's going to change from the normal routine? Allow me to illustrate...
Mind you, I know that I'm totally falling into a stereotype about fathers vs. mothers. I'm well aware that not every dad is like this. I also am capable of cooking for, cleaning up after, and generally keeping my son and daughter alive and well. It's just so much easier to do it this way... because I'm weak.
So, if you have a moment, please be praying for my family this weekend. I'll be away so please pray an extra dose of strength for my extra strong wife. Pray that the kids will eat well, nap well, and not miss their Daddy too much.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
Thursday, October 5, 2017
29 Lives Changed...
Hello, friends!
We are back from Fall Conference and International Fall Retreat! To say that we Jesus was there would be an understatement for sure. Between the two conferences, we say 27 students recommit their lives to Jesus and 2 students make first time decisions! Praise the LORD!
This was a different conference/retreat for Meg and me in a number of ways. First of all, this was the first time in a while that we were staffing two different conferences simultaneously. The past few years, we've found that our international students needed something a little bit different than what a traditional Fall Conference could offer. This year, Meg and our other ISM focused staff put together the Fall Retreat, which looked like tons of fun. The meal times and rec times were the same but our content and structure were very different. I'd say it was a smashing success!
Another big difference this year was for me. The past 3 years I served as the Fall Conference director. My job was to do a little bit of everything. I worked with my team to make sure that we had seminars, free time, hospitality, worship, and the speaker all set up and ready to go. I led the staff meetings, checked in on registration, and made sure that all of our logistics were set. This year, I led a seminar... and that was all. I also checked in on my Lincoln students and took care of some family stuff (more on that in a second) but overall, it was a pretty chill weekend. I'm not sure which one I like better, being in the thick of everything vs. having a slower pace, but it definitely was different.
One last big difference was having Thaliea with us. Ezra stayed at my aunt's place over the weekend but Thaliea came with us. She was SUPER popular (because, of course!) and it felt like Meg and I did a good job of coordinating our schedules such that we could both be fully present while also making sure we were watching her. Thaliea and I went on a number of walks around the camp ground and had more than our fair share of smile contests. I changed diapers and rocked her to sleep. It was pretty great.
So, with another Fall Conference in the books, it's time for the rest of the semester. Praise Jesus for the lives that were changed this weekend. Would you please pray with us that we will be able to follow up well with those students who made decisions, and that God will continue to work in their lives moving forward.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
We are back from Fall Conference and International Fall Retreat! To say that we Jesus was there would be an understatement for sure. Between the two conferences, we say 27 students recommit their lives to Jesus and 2 students make first time decisions! Praise the LORD!
This was a different conference/retreat for Meg and me in a number of ways. First of all, this was the first time in a while that we were staffing two different conferences simultaneously. The past few years, we've found that our international students needed something a little bit different than what a traditional Fall Conference could offer. This year, Meg and our other ISM focused staff put together the Fall Retreat, which looked like tons of fun. The meal times and rec times were the same but our content and structure were very different. I'd say it was a smashing success!
Another big difference this year was for me. The past 3 years I served as the Fall Conference director. My job was to do a little bit of everything. I worked with my team to make sure that we had seminars, free time, hospitality, worship, and the speaker all set up and ready to go. I led the staff meetings, checked in on registration, and made sure that all of our logistics were set. This year, I led a seminar... and that was all. I also checked in on my Lincoln students and took care of some family stuff (more on that in a second) but overall, it was a pretty chill weekend. I'm not sure which one I like better, being in the thick of everything vs. having a slower pace, but it definitely was different.
One last big difference was having Thaliea with us. Ezra stayed at my aunt's place over the weekend but Thaliea came with us. She was SUPER popular (because, of course!) and it felt like Meg and I did a good job of coordinating our schedules such that we could both be fully present while also making sure we were watching her. Thaliea and I went on a number of walks around the camp ground and had more than our fair share of smile contests. I changed diapers and rocked her to sleep. It was pretty great.
So, with another Fall Conference in the books, it's time for the rest of the semester. Praise Jesus for the lives that were changed this weekend. Would you please pray with us that we will be able to follow up well with those students who made decisions, and that God will continue to work in their lives moving forward.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)