This semester has been so full of adventure and fun, as well as trial and pain. The first two weeks here were all fun loving preparation with my NYSUM (New York School of Urban Minsitry) team and then we were off! 5 1/2 weeks later, we had just poured out our bodies and souls to be Christ's love and light in the city...and it was well worth it!
Now, about a month after NYSUM, I have already completed multiple tests in classes that I have only been in for 4 weeks! It's crunch learning and lots and lots and lots and lots (did I say lots?) of reading [okay, maybe it's just me...], but it's all about topics and subjects that I love! I just want to take you through my courses and let you hear the type of things I'm learning here on the hill at EBI:
Sin, Christ, Salvation
This class is full of practical knowledge and wisdom about the person of Jesus Christ and the different ways the Church throughout time has dealt with doctrine concerning him (Christology). It also addresses the original state of man and the doctrine of our salvation (Soteriology). I have enjoyed the class lectures well enough, but have been overwhelmingly surprised by the awesome nuggets of truth I find in the reading. For example, in A Theology for the Church by Daniel L. Akin (pg. 534) it says, in a chapter on Jesus:
Modern scholarship has correctly shown that the Gospels are not strict biographies, but presentations of Jesus told from the standpoint of faith and for the purpose of furthering faith. The Gospels are part of the kerygma, the proclamation of the early church, which means that Jesus can be known [historically] only through the testimony of his followers. Liberal scholarship errs, however, in assuming that this testimony results in a distortion of the historical Jesus. Contrary to the assumption of discontinuity, the New Testament not infrequently testifies to the respect with which the Jesus tradition was held (1 Cor. 7:6, 12, 25). There is reason for confidence that the early church acted as custodian of the Jesus tradition rather than as corrupter of it.
I don't know if that's cool to you...but it is to me! There is so much historical and literal archeological evidence that backs up our faith. We had one of the top biblical archeology guys in the world himself (Dr Scott Carroll) come and lecture us just the other week. I literally held in my hand a cuneiform tablet from Abraham's day and I held the second earliest manuscript piece of the gospel of John in my hands. And they are discovering new evidence daily! I mean- if we knew and comprehended all the information that is out there- and still rejected Jesus- we'd be greater fools than ever. And honestly, I think that may be what is happening in these last days. Jesus is going to become more and more evident and so the rejection of unbelievers will become even more condemning and hardening. It's just incredible.
Anyways! Back to my courses:
Worship Leadership
Man, do I love this class! Definitely one of my tops ^_^
In this class, we go through a workbook written by the teacher himself (actually the Father of one of the sweetest girls here on campus, a good friend of mine, Becca) that he has compiled over years of teaching. He admits himself that it is often more of a discipleship book than anything else (there are lots of Bible verses!)...but we need first to be good disciples of the Lord if we are going to be any kind of leader in worship! So I have learned beautiful things about life and it's trials and the character and hand of God in everything...just too much to even say! I have been convicted about the reason I come to worship the Lord- sometimes for more selfish reasons and not out of a desire to ascribe "worth-ship" to the King of all Kings. It's all too me like a rich spring of wisdom from which to draw. This teacher is like an father who really wants the upcoming generation to learn from his mistakes and learn from his revelations. He wants to uncover the truth and the reality of things right off the bat so we don't have to struggle in coming upon it ourselves. He knows only the Spirit will make head knowledge into heart knowledge and help us to live out what we are learning...and I am all for that. Yes, Lord!
Already, I am encouraged that I don't have to be a "super-star" worship leader in order to start out on the journey. I can stumble and fumble and not do "awesome" in all the technical stuff- but it's about being obedient to God's call, persistent and full of faith that He will perfect me. All that technical stuff is well and good, and I do need more practice, but God is first looking for hearts that yearn for him with a passion and desire to worship "in spirit and in truth." (John 4:23) Amen!
I actually led worship for an hour during one of our praise nights here on campus and God did a fantastic job with it! :D
Basic Christian Counseling
This class may just be my favorite...but I'm thinking it's because it deals a lot with me. (and we all like "me," eh?) It's a class about Christian counseling, but it itself often becomes like a big counseling session....in the greatest of ways! I am learning a lot about myself and the ways that I deal with issues and trauma...with progress and people. I don't know if everyone likes sociology and finding out what all the subconscious thoughts affect in a person--but I sure do! It's so neat how God made us super complex and able to function in this life!
The teachers are a couple and they alternate days that they teach. I love them both so much, but I've grown especially adherent to the wife and her wedding of compassion and intelligent deduction in the area of counseling. Something that gets said around here is that "all truth is God's truth." If the secular world has a theory about psychology or counseling that lines up with Biblical truth (ie. postive self talk and Philippians 4:8), it's the Lord's to use and make prosper.
This class is mainly like a question and answer session, and a lot of good comes out of that because we are learning what we actually have questions about. And I'm looking forward to a cool genogram project that is gonna take things into a generational perspective!
Well, those are the classes that I'm in right now. I've already completed Urban Ministry and Romans, which were great classes, and I'm actually all signed up for next semester! Here are the classes I'll be taking, God willing:
Spiritual Warfare Basic Worship Piano Synoptic Gospels History of Ancient Israel | ||
| Public Speaking & Preaching I Management For Christian Leaders | ||
I am grateful, too, because the tuition for next semester is over $1000 less than last semester! YES, LORD!
As for how I'm doing personally, the struggle with fibromyalgia rages on, yet Jesus walks to me on the water and I am sure that no thing is more powerful than His name. He has been telling me recently that my concerns should not be higher than Him in my life.
"What concerns are above Me are defeating to you."
That's the truth. When I learn to view God as "high and lifted up" (Isaiah 52:13), 24/7, in any and every time and circumstance, the things of earth become strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.
Amen
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