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Thursday, 05 November 2009
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What would you do with $10 to advance the kingdom of God?
That was the question posed yesterday to the students of ACF last night. ACFers got into 5 teams and brainstormed their best ideas. Some would donate it to charity. Others would buy a bunch of hamburgers to give away. Some decided that investment was the best way to go for the sake of future generations. No team had a bad idea and all would have definitely made the world a better place.
Then came the kicker. See, this wasn't a thought experiment. After each group shared their idea, I pulled out my wallet and said, "ok, go do it."
Last night we did something a little bit crazy. As I think I've posted previously, ACF has been in a bit of a lull. A false summit, if you will. We've been lacking energy and things have felt pretty dull. We definitely needed something to bring some spark back into our fellowship.
So that's what we did last night. Last night each team was given $60 and one hour to go make the world a better place in the name of Jesus. Here were the rules:
- Everything you do has to be done in the name of Jesus. Anyone can do something nice. In order for an action to advance the Kingdom, it has to be done in the name of Jesus. This can be as simple as saying, "because Jesus loves us so we are spreading that love to you" when asked "why are you doing this."
- All change comes back to me to be donated to the "Reading is Leading" program.
- If you're going to be late or need any assistance, call ME first.
And that was it. After that I let the teams go off and do whatever they saw was fit.
When we all came back together you could tell there was something different in the air. People were sharing their stories (some good, some a little scary) about their experiences. Everyone was abuzz. There were a lot of smiles and a lot of looks that said, "I can't believe we just did that."
We debriefed for a while. What were your reactions or emotions when you first realized that this was for real? Excitement. Shock. Fear. Anticipation.
How did you feel on your way back to the building? Excitement. Shock. Joy. Amazement.
I spoke for a while on why we did this. We did this because ACF is more than a bible study. ACF is more than singing a few songs and eating dinner. ACF is more than 2 hours on a Wednesday night to get your "spiritual quota" filled. ACF is about being a community that makes a real impact in the lives of those around us. ACF is about brining God's Kingdom to the University of Missouri and the City of Columbia and the students and people who study, work, and live her. ACF is about doing it like Jesus; feeding the poor, defending the oppressed, and healing the broken. We'd forgotten about that in the past few weeks and I wanted us to remember who we are.
Two final stories that sum up how successful the night was. After ACF about half the group went out for pizza. At one of the tables, one of the ACF leaders was talking to one of the non-Christians who joined us. The non-Christian said, "wow. It's so great that ACF is all about give give give." Doors are being opened.
Story number two. One of our ACFers and her brother had their car broken into last week and a few of her things stolen, including her GPS Two groups pooled their money together to buy her a new GPS. When they presented it to her, they said, "This is our way of loving on you because of how Christ loved on us." Then the tears came. =0). Her brother, who is not an ACFer came a little later to pick her up, and when he was told what happened, he was dumstruck. Doors are being opened.
My prayer is that this event will turn into momentum to finish out the year strong. Please pray for continued momentum, especially in the hearts of our Christian students who are not yet leaders, that they will be inspired to step up and help take ACF to the next level. Also pray for the non-Christians who were a part of this experience, that they will be asking questions and that doors will continue to be opened.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
Oh, as one last thing. Now we're getting into the season of Christmas shopping. If you are going to shop online, please click the link below and see if your online retailer is registered with GoodShop. If you shop using the link below, a % of the proceeds goes towards ACF. Thanks!
Raise money for University of Missouri InterVarsity just by searching the web and shopping online!
Thursday, 29 October 2009
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Hello, friends!
I hope that this Thursday is finding you well. We're in the middle of a storm here in Columbia, which is less than exciting. Adding to that is the migraine I am currently experiencing, so please excuse me if this post is less than coherant at times. Spell checking and proper punctuation are not really high on my list right now, but posting on Thursdays like normal is. I guess I'm a stickler for routine. =0)
Last night was a very low energy ACF. We're at the tail end of the midterm season right now, so a number of students were not there for tests and things of that nature. The students who were there had just gotten out of tests or have tests today and tomorrow, so everyone was a bit fried. I remember this feeling during my undergrad; it is a combination of fear that you will fail, stress from studying so much, and fatigue due to lack of sleep. It is not a good feeling.
Our bible study last night was Luke 9:1-17. This is the story where Jesus sends out the 12 for the first time then when they return, Jesus feeds the 5000. I really like this passage for a number of reasons. The first reason is because it teaches me so much about always being in a mode of ministry. I think that the disciples (like so many of us so often) forget that following Jesus is not a "job" as much as it is a lifestyle. There are always opportunities to serve. We never get to take time off and say, "nope, sorry. Today I'm not going to be a champion of the gospel." This makes my job especially difficult when one considers what I do for a living while trying to also incorporate a Sabbath into my lifestyle. Because campus ministry is my work, ministering to students is my job. The fine balance that I need to find is how to have a Sabbath while not neglecting people. The answer as I see it? Build community with people who are not students. I figure this way I can still be open to opportunities to serve and minister to folk while it not being part of the job description. Don't get me wrong, I love working with students and would not trade my job in for anything. BUT, rest has to be an important part of the equation.
Something that is troubling me a little about our fellowship is that I think we've hit a false summitt. Numbers are by no means the most important way to define success, but they can be one of the metrics used. Right now our ACF is not growing. Part of that is due to midterms and finals and things like that, but still, we are averaging about the same numbers that we did last year after a huge explosion to start the year. That in of itself would not be a bad thing except that I worry that ACF is ok with that. Rule number O.N.E. is that "Outreach Never Ends." I'm worried that our time of outreach has grown stagnant. It is often said that a fellowship likes to take on the personality of the staff worker. If that's the case then I need to be more proactive in inviting folk to ACF and creating a culture where invitation always happens.
A few things to be praying for. Please pray one for my health. Migraine season is really no fun. Second, please pray for a spark in our fellowship. We need the Holy Spirit to move in a really powerful way if ACF is going to continue to grow.
Have an excellent day
~Adam
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Thursday, 22 October 2009
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Hello, friends!
Happy Thursday to you all! I hope that you had an INCREDIBLE week! I actually had a pretty solid week myself! Allow me to share it with you.
A bible study that I haven't mentioned a whole lot but is really cool is our International Student Bible Study (ISBS). What I really like about ISBS is that it is pretty much student run. One student came up to me before the school year started and said, "hey, I want to lead a bible study for the international students in ACF. Can I do that?" My friends, of course she can! With one student already on board, our next step was to find other students who had a heart for this. We were blessed in that 3 other ACFers wanted to reach out to international students as well! Now that we had a team, the rest was easy! A friend of mine who does International Student Ministry at WashU sent me a set of bible studies that she developed for her students. From there, it was a matter of picking the right bible studies and getting a time and place.
ISBS has been so much fun! The leaders have really stepped up. We've had 5 ISBS weeks so far. I led the first bible study and each leader has led a bible study since. We've had a number of committed students who have shown up and really had a great time participating in discussion and learning about Jesus.
Tuesday night was especially great. One of our students invited us over to his house for dinner before bible study. He, along with one of our leaders, cooked a delicious meal for us. It was so much fun hanging out and enjoying one another's company. When dinner was over, everyone was really engaged in bible study, asking good questions and thinking about the passage said. We did the Parable of the Sower and in the end when we asked, "what soil do you think you are?" everyone was really open with their answers. The student leader did a great job of facilitationg discussion and making everyone feel at ease. I was definitely blessed by ISBS.
Yesterday was a day of fun all its own. Howie, my supervisor, came in to Columbia (from Saint Louis) to spend the day doing ministry with me. Thankfully, he came on one of my busy days. =0). As soon as he came in we went to a meeting for the Association of Campus Religious Advisors (ACRA). While it wasn't necessarily a whole lot of fun (the meetings rarely are), it was good to hear afterward from Howie that at every school he has worked at, the inter-faith type groups face the same struggles and issues that we are facing in terms of trying to be a positive influence on campus. We talked business over lunch and Howie got to sit in on one of my discipleship times. I really appreciated his insight into how I can become better at pastoral care, which is something that has been a weak spot of mine.
Then, of course, there was ACF. I'm really enjoying this new attitude that I have toward Wednesday nights. Maybe this is one of those things that comes with experience. I know that even though we start @ 7 most folk aren't going to show up until 7:20. I know that some students are not going to come because of midterms. I know that God is going to bring the right folk to be a part of our group that night. It's very freeing to know that my stressing out about who is coming and who isn't doesn't really change anything. God wants ACF to succeed, so He is going to make that happen.
One of our students cooked dinner today and she did an excellent job. There was lots of food and it was all delicious. She even made rice crispy treats for dessert! A-maz-ing. =0). The musical worship team did an outstanding job this week. We did one song that divided up the guys and the gals and the whole group really enjoyed that. We even got to play a game this week, which is something that we haven't done in forever! The entire evening the room was filled with laughter and folks enjoying one another's company.
The passage we studied was Luke 8:40-56, the story of the bleeding woman and Jairus' daughter. When I read the passage what really stood out to me were the words "faith" and "restoration." It wasn't touching Jesus' cloak that healed the woman in the same way that it wasn't Jesus taking Jairus' daughter by the hand that healed them both. It was the faith of the woman and the faith of Jairus to believe that Jesus had the power to do those things that led to the healings. But the best part is that the fun doesn't stop there. Because if Jesus was only about healing then there would be a sort of vending machine quality to him. It would be "insert faith, receive healing," and that would be the end of it. But Jesus is about more than just healing. He's about restoration. When Jesus stops and asks, "who touched me?" then waits until the woman comes forward, it isn't so he can embarrass her. It's so he can say, "my child, your faith has healed you, go in peace," and restore her to society. The woman who had been bleeding for 12 years was ceremonially unclean by Jewish standards for 12 years. She was an outcast and unable to participate in society. By calling her out and saying those words, Jesus did more that heal her. He restored her back into society. That is what our God is all about. He's about making us right.
I love where ACF is right now. I'm super excited for where it's going. Soon we are going to start looking toward next semester and hopefully finding new leaders in our group. Please pray that as we begin this process, Jesus will be working in the hearts of students to want to step up and make a difference in ACF. Also pray for my own wisdom and discernment as we start the leadership selection process.
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
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Thursday, 15 October 2009
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Hello friends!
Happy, gloomy Thursday to you! Well, at least gloomy weather wise. Actually, gloomy in other areas of life as well. I'm fighting the flu right now and it seems like the flu might be winning. The mornings have been pretty good, but as I've tried to go on campus this week I've really felt terrible. Still, that hasn't stopped Jesus from doing some awesome work! I'm going to recap last night's ACF and then I have a GREAT story about a new student entering the kingdom!
Last night was a really weird ACF. Seriously, I've had a few hours to mull it over and process it and I still can't make sense of it all. Last night we had our lowest attendance of the year, but we also had the most newcomers we've had since the beginning of the year and a good number of the folk who showed up haven't been to ACF since the first two weeks. It seriously felt like a whole different fellowship last night.
The passage we studied was Luke 7:36-50. It's the story of Jesus going to the Pharisee's house for dinner when the sinful woman comes and washed Jesus' feet with her tears. The point we were trying to get across was that our heart condition is really key when it comes to being in a relationship with Jesus. The Pharisee had a heart of judgment. He invited Jesus over because he wanted to "test Jesus out." He wasn't sold and needed Jesus to prove himself. On the other hand, the woman came in with a heart of praise. She didn't know everything about Jesus, but what she did know was enough to convince her that she was willing to sacrifice and look foolish in order to give praise to Jesus. Guess who got their sins forgiven? Yups, you guessed it, it was the woman! Amazing, right?
Because I'd been sick the past few days I really didn't get a chance to prep the bible study until yesterday afternoon. I wasn't sure if i was going to have the leader's lead discussion or if I was going to run Bible Study like I did last week. Well, when I got to ACF last night it didn't matter because it turned out that I'd forgotten to bring the text! So, instead of doing a bible study, I made up a sermon on the spot.
Brothers and sisters, back in High School I was a member of the speech and debate team and one of my strengths was improv. Apparently I've been too far removed from those glory days because last night was ROUGH. I'm sure it wasn't as bad as I think it was (my perfectionism often makes me my harshest critic), but it certainly wasn't one of my better sermons. Still, Jesus works through our deficiencies, right? My only hope is that Jesus spoke through my ramblings. =0)
Like I said earlier, I don't really know what to make of last night, so I'm just going to chaulk it up to a funny experience and Jesus being big enough to make it work. NOW, on to my really great story!
Joey has been dating Emily, one of our student leaders, for a few months now. Emily has really had a heart to tell Joey about Jesus and this year he's been a semi-regular to ACF. Joey described himself as someone who is generally open to the idea of Christianity, but not sold on it yet. Emily convinced Joey that it would be a good idea for him to join us at Fall Conference.
During the Saturday night session of FC09 I was up on stage with the worship team. I looked at my Mizzou students and saw Joey was just sitting there with a stone blank look on his face. I wasn't sure of what to make of it, but something wasn't quite right. I talked to Emily about it on Sunday morning at breakfast and she said that Joey was in shock that night more than anything else. I decided to have lunch with Joey on Tuesday.
On Tuesday Joey, Emily, and I went to the McDonald's on campus, which is Joey's favorite place to eat. I asked him how FC09 was, and he said that it was a great time. The Saturday night session hit him like a ton of bricks and that look on his face was because he was in shock. He described it as moving from level 1 straight to level 100 on the spirituality scale. An invitation to follow Jesus for the first time was made on Saturday night, but he was so dumbstruck that he felt paralyzed. After a few days to process it, he said that really what it came down to was that that feeling of God's presence scared him. He didn't want to go straight to level 100. He wanted to experience levels 2-99 first and felt like he couldn't give his life to Jesus before he knew what he was getting himself into.
I asked him what he would do if he was given the opportunity to accept Jesus again. He said that he wanted to, but he didn't know if he was ready. We talked a little about what following Jesus really means, about how it is a process and about how when we decide to follow Jesus it is the beginning of the journey, not the end. That really resonated with him and he said that he wanted to take the plunge. So, right there in the McDonald's Joey prayed and asked Jesus to come into his life and be his Lord and Savior! Hooray!!!
The moral of the story? Follow up is awesome and Jesus works at McDonald's. =0)
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
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Monday, 12 October 2009
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Hello friends!
Just a few hours ago I returned from Camp Mihaska in Bourbon, MO, home of the Missouri Area's Fall Conference 2009 (FC09)!!! I am ridiculously tired, but I know that if I don't post now, I'm not going to be remember to post about it. So sleep will have to wait a bit longer.
From a staff perspective, I had a really easy role this year at FC09. My only official duties were to take care of ACF during "chapter time," and play percussion on the Worship Team. I know that this was done intentionally by the conference directors so that I could have more time with my students, which is something that I really appreciate. In previous conferences I have had a much expanded role which led to me not spending any time with my students and feeling really terrible about it by the end of the weekend.
26 students from ACF joined us at FC09, from all sorts of backgounds, both culturally as well as spiritually. Some students were non-Christians, others had grown up in the church. We had international students as well as Asian Americans come. What I really appreciated was how well our group meshed together. Sure, not everyone was best friends with everyone else by the end of the weekend, but we all got along and had fun with one another. It was so great to see folk at mealtimes and during free time.
Chapter Time was really a blessing too. Since our group was so big, we split up into 3 groups. Our international students as well as the leaders of the International Student Bible Study (ISBS) were in one group and from talking to the leaders it sounded like they all had a really good time and bonded with one another. Andrew led a group of student leaders and potential student leaders. I haven't debriefed in full with him yet, but from what I have heard, they spent a lot of time in prayer and the students were really blessed by that. My group was the non-Christian students, the Christians younger in the faith, and the Servant Team folk who invited them to FC09. I really enjoyed leading that group because it was a really great time to process the messages and give people an opportunity to ask questions and express their real concerns.
Our theme for FC09 was "Come and See," which centered around missions. Len Andyshak, who is the International Student Ministry (ISM) staffer at Kansas was our speaker. Len has been on staff for 35+ years and has gone all over the world preaching the good news. He was a perfect speaker to talk to our students about what it means to be on God's Mission. God's Mission is bringing His power to the people. When we take a step of faith and just do it, not only are people blessed, but we are also changed and blessed in the midst of that. It was really powerful stuff.
If you've ever been to a Christian conference before, you know that the night before the last day is usually reserved for the altar call and a time of extended worship. FC09 was no different. I am happy to report that on Saturday night 5 students made decisions to follow Jesus for the first time! On top of that, 20 more students made a recommitment to following Jesus, including 5 students from ACF! Praise Jesus that He worked in such a powerful way during our time together!
Two last things before I think it's time for me to head to bed. The first is I have to say how much fun it was playing percussion on the worship team. As much as I love playing guitar and bass, I may have the most fun playing percussion because it gives me so much freedom to be creative. I'm not a very good drumset player, but I sure can play a pretty decent Djembe. Add a cymbal stand so I can hit a few crashes with my hand, tie a tamborine to my leg, and give me a shaker to play with, and I can turn myself into a really funny looking one-man-band. =0). It was also a joy playing with the worship team. Our leader, Kale, did an excellent job of giving great musical cues; he didn't have to say a word but I still knew exactly what he wanted me to play. Andrew played bass and really let his fingers fly. Our two vocalists, Erica and Karissa, have two of the sweetest voices I have ever heard. Drea was on keys and really played well. All in all, it was an enjoyable experience and I would definitely do it again.
Like I'd said before, ACF broght 25 Asian/Asian American students. Add to that the 20 Asian/Asian Americans that WashU ACF brought the 35 African American students from WashU Harambee, and a smattering of Asian Americans and African American, and International students from some of the other chapters and I would say that 90+ of the 120 or so students at FC09 were minorities. That, my friends, is really fun to see during a time of worship.
Thank you all so much for your prayers about FC09. I want you to know that those prayers were heard and God answered them in a big way.
Have an excellent day
~Adam
intervarsityadam
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- Name: intervarsityadam
- Gender: Male
- Member Since: 12/18/2007
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