The Final Stretch…Capstone Courses, etc.
This semester is one of capstone projects:
- Writing a research paper that requires an advanced level of research and scholarship
- Teaching a class for 10 weeks on the topic of Small Group Leadership
- Taking a class that discusses the use of the Old Testament in the New Testament, translating both Hebrew and Greek
- Preaching topically: working through the analysis multiple passages to speak to key topics, and then crafting and delivering a compelling message.
It's been a long couple of months so far, and a few more are yet to come...but I am glad to be able to put the small pieces of my training together to make a coherent set of skills that will help me as a minister.
These days, it seems that the greatest challenge is simply dealing with the stress: wanting to do anything but more schoolwork, and yet being unwilling to balance my time between important non-school things, because the demands of the semester are so heavy upon me.
Oh how I hope that next summer really feels like freedom. People often think of me as a great student, but the truth is, I would much rather have a 40-hour a week job than be here. I am only here because God called me to DTS, and because He has put a passion on my heart to invest in and assist Him in the work of changing lives, 40+ hours a week. Ph.D? Not on your life, and only if God demands it of me!
Anyway, I needed to vent a bit, so there it is.
Pray for me. It's not easy being a seminary student.
Struggling to Worship
If your mind works anything like mine, you've probably spent a lot of Sundays distracted during the worship time. Busy with your own thoughts, angry at the person who came in late and disrupted you to get to his seat, or distracted by some abstract person or motion between you and the stage. Though worship consists of far more than what happens during the Sunday service, we tend to allow it to swallow the focus of our lives, until Sunday is the only day in which we act in a holy manner.
The following video has been very popular lately, and for good reason...it ironically reflects the truth that we need to get serious about worshiping, both on Sunday and throughout the week, with our singing, our witnessing, and our fellowship with God.
The Future of Missions Involves Effectively Reaching the Cities
The cities of America are filled with new ethnic groups that are virtually unreached. Surrounded by the megachurches of the majority, they go ignored because they are different, because they speak a funny language, and because the church members are absorbed in lives that barely notice them.
The International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention is working hard to re-educate the church on reaching the lost cultures inside their own American nation. If you are nearby and want to have your eyes opened, I exhort you to go to their conferences; New York, N.Y. (Oct. 20-22, 2011) | Houston, Texas (Nov. 17-19, 2011) | Vancouver, Canada (May 3-5, 2012)
Windows Phone Mango is Here! (Officially)
A few months back, I upgraded my existing Windows Phone to the Beta release of the new, enhanced operating system. Last week, AT&T and Microsoft passed along the official version to me, as one of its customers. And I must say, I continue to love the features: custom ringtones, multitasking, better GPS, voice-to-text on everything, and specialized Favorite people lists. If you are up for an upgrade, or considering a switch, I've never looked back after leaving the iPhone behind, and I encourage you to do the same. Check out this video to see it for yourself.
The First Service of Prestonwood Dallas: Glory to God!
This past Sunday was the first ever service for the Prestonwood Dallas church campus. Despite spending the week assembling furniture, cleaning rooms, and setting up the sanctuary--activities that culminated in the carpet install finishing at 5am Sunday morning--we were ready for 2,000 guests at 10am on Sunday. And the best part: God was ready to welcome those 2,000 guests.
God has been at work setting up this new church for months now, pointing us to the facility, reaching people in the area with the desire to encounter Him through the church, and equipping people to serve as ushers, greeters, media coordinators, worshippers, pastors, and children's ministers. Everything from the carpet to the sermon ultimately got its start in His initiative. Stacy and I were simply thrilled to be a part of it, and to feel the Holy Spirit at work in that place. Stacy and I have been growing alongside everyone else during this process--I spent the morning of the first service overwhelmed by my own personal encounters with Him--God had something for all of us that day.
Many months of new beginnings lie ahead for us in this new facility, and if you are looking for a church home in the North Dallas area, please join us! We would love to host you, and God would love to encounter you here...
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