As summer draws to an end, my time in Upland has been blessed with many adventures near and far through the arts, travel, and professional development.
lectionem
Blood of Victory - Alan Furst
New Monasticism: What It Has to Say to Today's Church - Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove
The Story of Lucy Gault - William Trevor
The Meaning of Jesus: Two Visions - Marcus Borg and N.T. Wright
Unbroken: A WWII Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption - Laura Hillenbrand
Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy - Eric Metaxas
C.S. Lewis - A Life - Alister McGrath
excubia
Only God Forgives
Pulp Fiction
Silver Linings Playbook
Django Unchained
Safe Haven
Auschwitz: Inside the Nazi State
Blue Valentine
Immortals
Band of Brothers
Warrior
The Lincoln Lawyer
Drive
Blue Like Jazz
peregrinari
Illinois
Indiana
Kentucky
Maryland
Michigan
Minnesota
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Tennessee
West Virginia
Wisconsin
congressus
National Small College Enrollment Conference
North American Coalition for Christian Admissions Professionals Annual Conference
Willow Creek Association Global Leadership Summit
Thursday, August 22, 2013
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Messy Beginnings
A short conceptual reflection on my time as an undergraduate student at Taylor University.
Holistic education at Taylor University is promoted through a liberal arts study of the parts of a cell nucleus, financial ratios, and coiling clay pots. Corporately, through various disciplines, we learn to train the physical through spiritual lenses and how to live together in the Kingdom. Life in the residence hall the past year has been the pinnacle of my holistic Taylor education. I have seen and embraced authentic discipleship relationships in the face of grief, idols, and conflict. Community gets messy when your room is a place for the confession of sin; when a friend dies and space is cultivated for grief and tough questions; when pride gets in the way of forgiveness and relationships are severed. Our mess looks different and still remarkably similar.
Many of us have chosen to live in our mess rather than conceal or repress its presence. This makes the reality of messiness beautiful. The value of Taylor's community is transformative because together we pick up the towel, with our mess in sight, and willingly acknowledge the need for restoration. Through incarnational relationships, we live the reality of Christ's sacrifice and redemption. We wash one another's dirty feet. Our pursuit of intentional community, global engagement, and relentless discovery has holistically laid a foundation for life in the Kingdom.
We are His witnesses molded by the integration of faith and learning to 'turn our hearts and live to the process of maturing in Christ.' When we embrace living within messiness we see with opened eyes as He redeems for His glory what is imperfect - making the mess less messy.
Through our families, professions, and service we continue to witness to His redemptive work until the day we are fully redeemed. The context continues to change each day with new messy beginnings as we transition amidst our work as servant leaders marked with a passion to minister Christ's redemptive love and truth to a world in need. Yet we live with the assurance our God goes before us providing strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow.
Holistic education at Taylor University is promoted through a liberal arts study of the parts of a cell nucleus, financial ratios, and coiling clay pots. Corporately, through various disciplines, we learn to train the physical through spiritual lenses and how to live together in the Kingdom. Life in the residence hall the past year has been the pinnacle of my holistic Taylor education. I have seen and embraced authentic discipleship relationships in the face of grief, idols, and conflict. Community gets messy when your room is a place for the confession of sin; when a friend dies and space is cultivated for grief and tough questions; when pride gets in the way of forgiveness and relationships are severed. Our mess looks different and still remarkably similar.
Many of us have chosen to live in our mess rather than conceal or repress its presence. This makes the reality of messiness beautiful. The value of Taylor's community is transformative because together we pick up the towel, with our mess in sight, and willingly acknowledge the need for restoration. Through incarnational relationships, we live the reality of Christ's sacrifice and redemption. We wash one another's dirty feet. Our pursuit of intentional community, global engagement, and relentless discovery has holistically laid a foundation for life in the Kingdom.
We are His witnesses molded by the integration of faith and learning to 'turn our hearts and live to the process of maturing in Christ.' When we embrace living within messiness we see with opened eyes as He redeems for His glory what is imperfect - making the mess less messy.
Through our families, professions, and service we continue to witness to His redemptive work until the day we are fully redeemed. The context continues to change each day with new messy beginnings as we transition amidst our work as servant leaders marked with a passion to minister Christ's redemptive love and truth to a world in need. Yet we live with the assurance our God goes before us providing strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow.
Saturday, February 23, 2013
Africa to Asia: Cultivating Community
January 5, 2013, 8:45p.m., Macau: As I am now only two full days into this journey, I realize my inherent need for discipleship community; a community of people committed to transparency and a willingness to succumb to the Lord's changing, molding grace rooted in love.
During the trip to Asia, I was among a group of fairly unacquainted individuals. It is no secret that I value relationships of depth with intentional investment, and so a three-week journey at surface level would not make for a personally positive relational experience. Although unintentional, at the onset of the trip I was able to assess potential opportunities for encouraging community investment. On the fifth day while waiting an hour for a bus, I became engaged in an extremely meaningful conversation with one team member. Learning his story leading up to and at Taylor, what he valued, cared for, and desired led me to respect this young man and be grateful for the origination of meaningful friendship.
Conversations at meals were frequently developmental to the making of a new community. Sharing ideas and stories, asking tough questions, and displaying emotions cultivated a body of individuals previously unbeknownst. Opportunities arose throughout the trip to engage in conversations with several team members. Each uniquely meaningful as authenticity, vulnerability, honesty, sincerity, grace and love were personified.
The experience of being a part of a new community was not only refreshing but inspiring. I am encouraged by the team members I traveled with for demonstrating many blessings, seeing many skills and gifts, and taking an invested interest in how stories are unfolding in the Kingdom.
Perhaps this experience most taught me that my own failings do not preclude the cultivation of community. One student shared with me that he appreciates that I deeply interact with situations and communicate "profound" thoughts. I admit the words he spoke sounded nice, but surely if my wretched soul should be so fully exposed, would not all respect be dismissed? I do hope I continue to express freely that where there is any good in my being it is not I but the Lord for I am nothing good of my own accord.
This lesson transforms my understanding of the establishment of community: relationships rooted in honesty to the self and others expose shared brokenness and celebrate the presence of Christ's redemptive work.
During the trip to Asia, I was among a group of fairly unacquainted individuals. It is no secret that I value relationships of depth with intentional investment, and so a three-week journey at surface level would not make for a personally positive relational experience. Although unintentional, at the onset of the trip I was able to assess potential opportunities for encouraging community investment. On the fifth day while waiting an hour for a bus, I became engaged in an extremely meaningful conversation with one team member. Learning his story leading up to and at Taylor, what he valued, cared for, and desired led me to respect this young man and be grateful for the origination of meaningful friendship.
Conversations at meals were frequently developmental to the making of a new community. Sharing ideas and stories, asking tough questions, and displaying emotions cultivated a body of individuals previously unbeknownst. Opportunities arose throughout the trip to engage in conversations with several team members. Each uniquely meaningful as authenticity, vulnerability, honesty, sincerity, grace and love were personified.
The experience of being a part of a new community was not only refreshing but inspiring. I am encouraged by the team members I traveled with for demonstrating many blessings, seeing many skills and gifts, and taking an invested interest in how stories are unfolding in the Kingdom.
Perhaps this experience most taught me that my own failings do not preclude the cultivation of community. One student shared with me that he appreciates that I deeply interact with situations and communicate "profound" thoughts. I admit the words he spoke sounded nice, but surely if my wretched soul should be so fully exposed, would not all respect be dismissed? I do hope I continue to express freely that where there is any good in my being it is not I but the Lord for I am nothing good of my own accord.
This lesson transforms my understanding of the establishment of community: relationships rooted in honesty to the self and others expose shared brokenness and celebrate the presence of Christ's redemptive work.
Monday, February 11, 2013
Africa to Asia: Uncertain Moments
I tend to be fairly cognizant of my surroundings and in most instances prefer knowledge to enable me with the ability to control my interaction with such surroundings. It must come with the passport: traveling relinquishes control.
There were several instances in Africa and Asia that demanded I recognize my lack of control. I was held-up entering Kenya due to customs, feared entering mainland China, and interacted with the natural environment that seemed to possess the power to finish my days.
December 17, 2012, 5:04p.m., Naivasha, Kenya: Our [hippo] boat guide was Peter. He was a bit older, but was quiet and wise like my father. I felt safe going on this adventure with him. We went near the shoreline and were able to see several hippos. Whenever Peter saw a hippo he got closer so we could take pictures. At first it was a tad nerve-wracking knowing that hippos do attack and kill boaters, but Peter was an expert.
The exhilarating moments of seeing and hearing a hippo rise from the water certainly made the adventure worth the minor stress. As if the hippo boat ride extravaganza was not enough, a game drive at the Nairobi National Park a few days later certainly exceeded my expectations. We began the drive before 6:00a.m., hoping that by doing so we would see wildlife. And wildlife we saw...
December 20, 2012, 4:00p.m., Nairobi: I was closer to death today more than any day thus far on my Kenyan adventures...within fifteen minutes we crossed paths with a rhino that had a very pointed horn. Quickly the rhino began chasing our vehicle...within seconds we could hear it huffing as we decided to speed away from our perceived dangerous predicament...The vehicle became lodged deep in the mud and there was no way out but to push - which required us to get out of the car in the Nairobi National Park with hundreds of dangerous creatures.
Despite moments of frustration, uncertainty actually led to moments of dependence on the Spirit and the fellowship of friends, which brought great joy. This reminds me of the Israelites as they wandered in the desert, relying on the Spirit of God going before them and providing insight to the community leaders. Too quickly the Israelites pleaded to make their own way, to maintain control, in a foreign land. The amenities of my travels were certainly incomparable to those of the Israelites, yet I sought independence despite my ignorance and limited perspective.
While I was waiting at immigration control to be admitted to mainland China for the first time, I was surprisingly anxious. The thought of entering this unknown governmental and cultural nation with stories of persecution did not seem appealing in the moment. I decided, somewhat unconsciously, to relinquish control: I stood alongside fellow believers and hummed "Holy Spirit, you are welcome here, come flood this place and fill the atmosphere." It was one of the more peaceful moments of my adventures.
While waiting in the Ft. Wayne International Airport December 13, I wrote: I fail to trust Him when I am not in control, which ironically is all of the time. And from the Beijing International Airport on January 23, I reminded myself that from the African plains to the Great Wall of China, I have seen His handiwork and declare Great is Thy Faithfulness.
In the midst of great uncertainty, the certainty of my uncertainty demands my submission to the One who is greater and has remained faithful.
There were several instances in Africa and Asia that demanded I recognize my lack of control. I was held-up entering Kenya due to customs, feared entering mainland China, and interacted with the natural environment that seemed to possess the power to finish my days.
 |
| Friends Elle Wightman, Mark & Audrey Statler, boat guide Peter |
The exhilarating moments of seeing and hearing a hippo rise from the water certainly made the adventure worth the minor stress. As if the hippo boat ride extravaganza was not enough, a game drive at the Nairobi National Park a few days later certainly exceeded my expectations. We began the drive before 6:00a.m., hoping that by doing so we would see wildlife. And wildlife we saw...
December 20, 2012, 4:00p.m., Nairobi: I was closer to death today more than any day thus far on my Kenyan adventures...within fifteen minutes we crossed paths with a rhino that had a very pointed horn. Quickly the rhino began chasing our vehicle...within seconds we could hear it huffing as we decided to speed away from our perceived dangerous predicament...The vehicle became lodged deep in the mud and there was no way out but to push - which required us to get out of the car in the Nairobi National Park with hundreds of dangerous creatures.
 |
| Gongbei Port of Entry, Zhuhai, China |
While waiting in the Ft. Wayne International Airport December 13, I wrote: I fail to trust Him when I am not in control, which ironically is all of the time. And from the Beijing International Airport on January 23, I reminded myself that from the African plains to the Great Wall of China, I have seen His handiwork and declare Great is Thy Faithfulness.
In the midst of great uncertainty, the certainty of my uncertainty demands my submission to the One who is greater and has remained faithful.
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Africa to Asia: Malls to Slums
Since enrolling three years ago at Taylor University, I knew the opportunity to travel to Asia for an international business study tour would be available during January of my senior year. But a leisure vacation to Africa during Christmastime was an opportunity I could not forgo. Kenya is home to my friends Mark and Audrey Statler who teach and live at Rosslyn Academy, an international Christian school in Nairobi.
Although the purposes of my visits differed, both provided a glimpse of global business and economic diversity. The Kibera slum of Nairobi is the largest urban slum in Africa and sits within minutes of westernized malls, restaurants, and homes. It is no secret that this sort of economic divide is a global reality.
December 19, 2012, 10:01a.m., Nairobi: We went along the exterior of Kibera, Nairobi's slum. I felt scared, maybe terrified in this place. Was I fearful of poverty? Of instability? Of being the minority?
If answers exist to my questions, I know them not. The agony of the unknown produces fear. Economic insecurity is no exception. The lack of clean water, adequate shelter, and consistent income are realities I have never known. In the midst of that reality though, there are people living moral, ethical, and opportunistic lives. Perhaps they know this better than I.
Within days of visiting the third-world, developing-nation of Kenya, I took part in one of the fastest-growing economies of the world. The rapidly transitioning economy of China consists of economic diversity that seems to challenge communism's aim.
A visit to Janes Lock Company, which produces door locks for Brinks sold in Walmart, Ace Hardware, and Home Depot, gave me a glimpse of Chinese manufacturing. The facilities and infrastructure reminded me of the Industrial Revolution. The company employs 1,500 workers who live on site and are allowed to go home, often in rural China, one week per year during the Chinese New Year. Starting wages: USD $30 per month.
January 10, 2013, 2:30p.m. Doumen, China: Since workers are paid by piece production they are permitted to work whenever possible to increase productivity and thus increase wages. I know as an American consumer lower labor costs mean a lower final goods cost, but I have a deeper and more meaningful appreciation for products "Made in China." I have seen the hands and faces of thousands of human beings, people, with souls, producing goods.
Equipping people with the resources of business and the values of personhood demonstrated through the Church engenders the opportunity to develop communities. Humanness inspires a wealth of opportunity where economic circumstance would hinder development. The walls and chains of economic divide crumble under the weight of human potential. Resources benefit growth, but the Redeemer, through His people, changes lives both in malls and slums.
Although the purposes of my visits differed, both provided a glimpse of global business and economic diversity. The Kibera slum of Nairobi is the largest urban slum in Africa and sits within minutes of westernized malls, restaurants, and homes. It is no secret that this sort of economic divide is a global reality.
December 19, 2012, 10:01a.m., Nairobi: We went along the exterior of Kibera, Nairobi's slum. I felt scared, maybe terrified in this place. Was I fearful of poverty? Of instability? Of being the minority?
If answers exist to my questions, I know them not. The agony of the unknown produces fear. Economic insecurity is no exception. The lack of clean water, adequate shelter, and consistent income are realities I have never known. In the midst of that reality though, there are people living moral, ethical, and opportunistic lives. Perhaps they know this better than I.
Within days of visiting the third-world, developing-nation of Kenya, I took part in one of the fastest-growing economies of the world. The rapidly transitioning economy of China consists of economic diversity that seems to challenge communism's aim.
A visit to Janes Lock Company, which produces door locks for Brinks sold in Walmart, Ace Hardware, and Home Depot, gave me a glimpse of Chinese manufacturing. The facilities and infrastructure reminded me of the Industrial Revolution. The company employs 1,500 workers who live on site and are allowed to go home, often in rural China, one week per year during the Chinese New Year. Starting wages: USD $30 per month.
January 10, 2013, 2:30p.m. Doumen, China: Since workers are paid by piece production they are permitted to work whenever possible to increase productivity and thus increase wages. I know as an American consumer lower labor costs mean a lower final goods cost, but I have a deeper and more meaningful appreciation for products "Made in China." I have seen the hands and faces of thousands of human beings, people, with souls, producing goods.
Equipping people with the resources of business and the values of personhood demonstrated through the Church engenders the opportunity to develop communities. Humanness inspires a wealth of opportunity where economic circumstance would hinder development. The walls and chains of economic divide crumble under the weight of human potential. Resources benefit growth, but the Redeemer, through His people, changes lives both in malls and slums.
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Africa to Asia: Global Church
December 16, 2012, 10:30a.m., Nairobi: What a blessing to worship with Kenyan brothers and sisters this
morning! The church is a permanent tent facility located just down the road from Rosslyn (Academy) and the US Embassy housing. I have never felt as though church may be a dangerous place until today. Military security guards welcomed us onto the church grounds.
As a Christian in the United States, I have grown up hearing the stories of the global church. These stories frequently caused me anguish, and rightly so, considering the persecution of believers, a need for theological training resources, mass spiritual revivals, and miraculous healings. In my mind, these stories did not unify my fellowship with the global church but distance its reality.
While in southern China, our group was blessed to have a hospitable tour guide, Eve, who planned our business and recreational visits. Eve, a 23-year-old woman, works for a high-ranking Communist Party official. Days before leaving, she communicated that she did not believe anything although her mother was a devout Buddhist. Regardless of the nature of our visit, the presence of the Spirit in our lives had positively impacted her.
At the conclusion of our time, Eve expressed her gratitude for our kindness and cried as she said goodbye to us. The reality of the global church became visibly evident. The grace and inclusiveness of the Spirit's presence has led to tears of joy in my life as well.
Church services in Macau and Hong Kong were Westernized and met freely. An Australian pastor in Hong Kong led the call to the identification and abandonment of idols and the cultivation of real faith based on the character of God. In Macau, an American minister challenged the small congregation of thirty people to "learn, accept, share, and remember what the Lord is teaching us through communion with us and our fellowship with others." I have heard the same verses, songs, and prayers before, on the other side of the world. I was not merely a visitor in these congregations, but a member of the collective global church.
And despite my preconceived notions of governmental restrictions, the global church was publicly visible in Beijing. The Three-Self Patriotic Movement, the only state-sanctioned Protestant church of China, has led to the development of hundreds of congregations throughout mainland China. Despite affiliation with the government, the service we attended was akin to a typical American service: prayer in the name of Jesus, a theologically-sound sermon, and songs proclaiming "Christ alone."
Conversations with unregistered, underground, church members revealed such illegal gatherings were rooted in a fundamental belief in the separation of church and state and freedom from censorship. Persecution of such illegal practices are dependent upon regional enforcement policies. Whether in state-sanctioned gatherings or behind closed doors, the church in China recognizes a need for Christian education, which is a part of my story, a story within the global church.
January 22, 2013, 10:52p.m., Beijing International Airport: The global church has both expanded through this trip as I more fully understand the growth of the church in China, and it has shrunk as I consider the proximity of church issues and contact, even connecting Taylor to the people of China. This brings me great joy in regard to how the Lord is at work worldwide.
Today, the stories of the global church take on a new light as I consider the notion that the church in China and the church in Kenya hear the stories of the church in the West just as I hear the stories of the church in China and the church in Kenya. My story also carries the message of grace, redemption, and healing amidst a broken, messy world. The interconnectedness of the global church truly does traverse borders, oceans, and languages with the universal message of Truth.
As a Christian in the United States, I have grown up hearing the stories of the global church. These stories frequently caused me anguish, and rightly so, considering the persecution of believers, a need for theological training resources, mass spiritual revivals, and miraculous healings. In my mind, these stories did not unify my fellowship with the global church but distance its reality.
 | |
| Friend Tommy Decker and Tour Guide Eve |
At the conclusion of our time, Eve expressed her gratitude for our kindness and cried as she said goodbye to us. The reality of the global church became visibly evident. The grace and inclusiveness of the Spirit's presence has led to tears of joy in my life as well.
Church services in Macau and Hong Kong were Westernized and met freely. An Australian pastor in Hong Kong led the call to the identification and abandonment of idols and the cultivation of real faith based on the character of God. In Macau, an American minister challenged the small congregation of thirty people to "learn, accept, share, and remember what the Lord is teaching us through communion with us and our fellowship with others." I have heard the same verses, songs, and prayers before, on the other side of the world. I was not merely a visitor in these congregations, but a member of the collective global church.
 |
| Haidian Fellowship Church, Beijing |
Conversations with unregistered, underground, church members revealed such illegal gatherings were rooted in a fundamental belief in the separation of church and state and freedom from censorship. Persecution of such illegal practices are dependent upon regional enforcement policies. Whether in state-sanctioned gatherings or behind closed doors, the church in China recognizes a need for Christian education, which is a part of my story, a story within the global church.
January 22, 2013, 10:52p.m., Beijing International Airport: The global church has both expanded through this trip as I more fully understand the growth of the church in China, and it has shrunk as I consider the proximity of church issues and contact, even connecting Taylor to the people of China. This brings me great joy in regard to how the Lord is at work worldwide.
Today, the stories of the global church take on a new light as I consider the notion that the church in China and the church in Kenya hear the stories of the church in the West just as I hear the stories of the church in China and the church in Kenya. My story also carries the message of grace, redemption, and healing amidst a broken, messy world. The interconnectedness of the global church truly does traverse borders, oceans, and languages with the universal message of Truth.
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Africa to Asia: World Tour
A whirlwind journey has led me from Upland to the streets of Nairobi, Indianapolis, Columbus, Hong Kong, Macau, Zhuhai, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Beijing, back to the snowy cornfields of Taylor University.
I have seen, tasted, felt, heard, and smelled life on three continents, five countries, and in four languages spending 34 of the past 45 days overseas. Today the world is smaller.
While in Zhuhai, China, I had the opportunity to visit with hundreds of primary school age children. Some students knew more English than others, but the universality of a game of basketball, smile, laugh, or hug humanized the unknowns of linguistic communication.
St. Francis of Assisi is described as having "discerned the hidden things of Creation with the eye of the heart." Through this lens, surely the heart of and for man minimizes the magnitude and depth of the Earth. From Africa to Asia, I realize that the differences of culture have enlightened the realities of humanity in a small world.
January 4, 2013, 8:52p.m., Macau: Many people live among the land I now trek and it is my prayer that I may see the world in small ways through their eyes so I may understand, in some minimal way, their interaction with their Maker. He has stored hidden treasures and what a joy to see how He has utilized those gifts across many borders and waters.
Through stories, pictures, tears, laughs, and praises, I invite you to join me on this world tour as I reflect on small glimpses of His wonderful creation proclaiming How Great Thou Art and Great Is Thy Faithfulness.
I have seen, tasted, felt, heard, and smelled life on three continents, five countries, and in four languages spending 34 of the past 45 days overseas. Today the world is smaller.
St. Francis of Assisi is described as having "discerned the hidden things of Creation with the eye of the heart." Through this lens, surely the heart of and for man minimizes the magnitude and depth of the Earth. From Africa to Asia, I realize that the differences of culture have enlightened the realities of humanity in a small world.
January 4, 2013, 8:52p.m., Macau: Many people live among the land I now trek and it is my prayer that I may see the world in small ways through their eyes so I may understand, in some minimal way, their interaction with their Maker. He has stored hidden treasures and what a joy to see how He has utilized those gifts across many borders and waters.
Through stories, pictures, tears, laughs, and praises, I invite you to join me on this world tour as I reflect on small glimpses of His wonderful creation proclaiming How Great Thou Art and Great Is Thy Faithfulness.
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