Chip's Thoughts and Ideas

Fighting Social Justice Snobbery By Samantha Bender, ACT:S Fellow

2012-01-27T08:20:00.000-08:00

On a day when I am prepping for our clean water event tomorrow and excited to see some cover designs for my book dealing with the topic of social justice, I needed to read this piece of writing from the national ACTS group...in many ways it profoundly exposes the struggle and sin I feel so very often as a self-proclaimed global issues and justice guy...

To whom it may concern,

I’m about to do something I hate doing…I’m going to admit that I was wrong.

I used to pride myself on being the one in my family who “cared about justice”. I was the one demanding my mom buy me fair-trade Christmas presents, or that my aunts gave money to charities instead of birthday presents. I was the girl arguing with anyone who suggested we take a family vacation to a resort on an impoverished island, I was the one who “got it”. Obviously none of those things are evil or wrong. I, however, distorted these good decisions because I felt so superior by ‘caring’ about everything. I knew about every injustice, and I wanted to do something about it. I was the definition of awesome.

While I was a Sophomore in college, strutting around in my “Save Darfur” shirt with my fair-trade coffee, my sister was a junior in high school. Her and her friends began organizing an event called “Mini-Thon”. Mini-Thon was a smaller version of a fundraiser put on every year at Penn State University that raises money for an organization dedicated to fighting and treating childhood cancer. My sister’s heart was broken by a family friend who was suffering from childhood cancer, and she couldn’t rest until she did something about it. They spent the year getting ready for the big event and ended up raising over 75,000 dollars!

Was I ecstatic? Was I so incredibly proud of my sister, or happy that such an awesome organization had been given so much? No. Foolishly, selfishly, I was not. The whole thing felt so “over-done” to me. “Suburban families and housewives raising money for charity… real original,” I remember thinking. My sister told me the amazing news and all I could do was chastise her for wearing a shirt from the Gap, which I added, was inevitably made in sweat-shop. “She just doesn’t care”, I told myself. My Super-Bowl-sized ego could be seen from space.

It’s alright, you’re allowed to hate me.

Eventually, through sheer grace, God was loving enough to kick me in the face. How dare I think that this amazing act of love wasn’t enough? How dare I think I was above it? At the end of the day, how dare I completely slander the name of God?

I’m afraid that more often than not, I’m not alone in this.

I’m afraid that it has been far too easy for us to group ourselves into exclusive clubs, those that “care” about justice, and those that don’t.

All it takes is for a social justice chapter to throw a moderately attended event and suddenly there is an assumption that everyone who wasn’t there could care less about starving children. Frustration from feeling like there isn’t a dent being made transpires into pawning the blame on those who aren’t “trying”. This on-going frustration turns into a strong sense of exclusion, and a belief that we are not only the only ones who care about justice, but the only ones who know how to do it right.

We will become immobile in this fight against injustice the moment we believe we’re better than anyone else. No matter how many campaigns you craft, no matter how many signatures you get, or how many hours you volunteer, Jesus reminds us again and again that we are no better than anyone else. We were all designed to change the world.

You get the picture here.

Today, remember that justice isn’t sexy, it’s not a label, and it’s not some indie band that you “heard of before it was mainstream”, it’s a way of life. Live justly in your actions and you may be shocked by how difficult it is and by how much you can learn from others… even from those who shop at Wal-Mart.

gasp.

With love,
A humbled self-absorbed activist

http://ht.ly/8HE8n

HOOPS for H2O--Year #2

2012-01-26T08:16:00.000-08:00

The loedown on our second annual event using basketball to help raise awareness and provide clean water for those with out it in our world today...I love the intersection of athletics and global engagement and change...

HOOPS FOR H2O Event Fact Sheet…Aquinas Game—JAN 28--3pm
A Basketball Event Where Fans and Players Can Provide Clean Water to the Thirsty in our World

*HOOPS for H2O website…this gives all the info about the event and tells people all they need to know…there’s even a link where people can donate online to the cause on this page as well…

http://hoopsforh2o.com/

*Online donation page where friends and family members and students can made a donation to the project…it is super easy…here’s that link…checks can also be made out to Living Water International and sent or given to Chip Huber at Cornerstone University…

http://www.firstgiving.com/hoops4h2o

THE GOAL: If we are able to raise $5,000 we would be able to fully fund the drilling, building, and community training for a well that will directly and immediately help save and improve the lives and futures of hundreds of children and their families in Guatemala!

WHY THIS EVENT IS HAPPENING:
INFO ABOUT THE GLOBAL WATER CRISIS...
Over 1 billion of the world's most vulnerable people in our world lack daily access to safe and clean water, and water-related diseases cost 443 million school days a year. Clean water is the foundation for other forms of development. Without easy access to water that is safe, countless hours are spent in water collection and household income is spent to purchase water and medical treatment for water-related diseases. Safe, clean water removes the single heaviest burden from the lives of the poorest people in our world. Not having to deal with this daily crisis means time for school and work, life and health, and allows individuals and communities to plan for tomorrow.

*To get yourself educated about the water crisis and believe in it yourself… you can check out some of the videos made by Living Water International, our project partner at the following website:

http://www.water.cc/news/videos/

10 Leadership Traits...from LeadershipandInfluenceBlog.com

2012-01-19T13:19:00.000-08:00

Here's a list suggesting that effective leaders often possess the following ten traits...interesting stuff as we begin the process of soon hiring our student leadership team for the 2012-13 school year across campus...

1. Focused
To lead a team to success, leaders must possess an extraordinary amount of focus. It’s important to eliminate distractions from the work area and to hone in on the key issues at hand. While leaders are often pulled in numerous directions simultaneously, they must be able to retain clear minds and focus on the things that matter.

2. Passionate
It’s possible to teach someone to be a leader, but truly effective leaders are already passionate about what they do. Your enthusiasm and level of commitment can inspire your team members and motivate them to do better work. Modeling the attitude you want each person to have is one of the most effective ways to lead your team toward a successful destination.

3. Assertive
As a leader, you have requirements for your team and goals that must be fulfilled. When team members aren’t meeting expectations, a leader must feel comfortable being assertive. Assertive leaders are firm and bold, unafraid to go after what they want. Such a level of certainty and confidence will serve both you and your team well as you tackle larger challenges and go after new goals.

4. Decisive
Leaders are often called on to make big decisions, so it’s also important for you to be decisive. Of course, a decisive leader should never be confused with an impulsive one. A decisive leader carefully weighs the potential effects of each option and chooses the opportunity that works best for his or her team. To be decisive, you must also feel comfortable taking responsibility for the results of your choice.

5. Empowering
Supporting your team is one of the best ways to encourage members to perform well. Empower each individual by making it clear that you trust his or her judgment. Give people the authority they need to do their jobs well and show them an appropriate level of respect.

6. Confident
Successful leaders are confident in their own abilities and decisions. If you want other people to believe in your capability as a leader, you must first believe in yourself. While you should make sure your confidence isn’t perceived as arrogance, there’s nothing wrong with feeling a strong sense of certainty about your choices.

7. Communicative
Always keep your team informed about what’s going on. All too often, leaders leave their team members out of important discussions and meetings. A lack of communication promotes the spread of false information and resentment among your team members.

8. Self-Aware
It can be tough to retain a strong sense of yourself and the way you appear to others, but focus on being self-aware. Consider your strengths and weaknesses as objectively as possible and don’t be afraid to ask for feedback on your performance.

9. Humble
Effective leaders are down-to-earth and easy to relate with. People feel more comfortable connecting with a leader who is humble and compassionate. Strive to understand where other people are coming from and keep a healthy, grounded perspective on your own achievements.

10. Honest
Finally, effective leaders are honest. Be upfront with your team members and trust them enough to communicate openly and authentically together. It’s important to build a level of mutual trust within your team so that each person feels comfortable addressing his or her concerns with you.

http://www.leadershipandinfluenceblog.com/10-traits-of-effective-leaders/#more-343

Post-Missions Cynicism By Curt Devine—REJECT APATHY MAGAZINE

2012-01-17T12:29:00.000-08:00

Here's a great article I gave to my recent team as we just finished our time in the DR this J-Term...great perspective and helpful thoughts in moving us forward from the amazing resource REJECT APATHY magazine's latest edition...

As I step into the church, bass booms against my chest. Neon lights reflect off the worship leader’s guitar as he sings, “There is no one like our God”—with Auto-Tune. As the song builds, my friend turns to me and says: “Doesn’t this sound amazing? They just spent $300,000 on a new sound system.”

I’m in an American megachurch, yet I can’t help but think about the Third World churches I visited this year—the ones with one Bible, no electricity and a lot of passion. Even though I want to worship, I only feel bitterness. This past year, I went on the World Race, an 11-month missions trip to 11 countries in Asia, Africa and Eastern Europe. While I love being home with hot showers and cold air-conditioning, the transition has been rough. I can’t help but judge friends who drop $100 on a night out, thinking, “That could feed the homeless boy I met in Tanzania for a year,” or think I’m better than the Lexus driver because my Grand Am is barely worth $1,000. Coming off the missions field can bring on all sorts of emotions from culture shock to loneliness to helplessness. But one of the most common and potentially insidious post-mission tendencies is to become a bitter, America-hating cynic. My first day home, I went to the grocery store and found myself overwhelmed in the cereal aisle with its endless array of General Mills cartoons. We can choose from more than 50 types of deodorant, 115 kinds of toothpaste and 1,000 channels on TV.

The conflict between excess at home and scarcity abroad is a lot to handle. The temptation can be to hate America’s abundance, or forget the poverty overseas and go back to life the way it was before. The key is living within the tension. As Christy Vidrine says in her book Unearth, “There is a balance between the humility of scarcity and the peace within excess.”

James, the brother of Jesus, writes that every good gift and every perfect gift comes down from above. Therefore, the first response we should have to the excess around us is thankfulness. God has given us food, water, shopping malls and Venti Mocha Frappuccinos, even though we don’t deserve them.

Our second response should be wise stewardship. I once heard a friend say she has a closet overflowing with clothes, yet she complains she has nothing to wear. This reminded me of Jesus’ parable in which a ruler gives varying amounts of money to his servants. Some make wise investments and use the money well, while one hides his share in the ground. The master returns and reprimands the servant for doing nothing. If we have full closets, stocked refrigerators or fat bank accounts, we should look for wise opportunities to give to others and encourage friends and family to do the same.

Another important fact to remember is the grass is always greener on the other side. When my team did ministry in Iringa, Tanzania, we partnered with a young teacher named Peter who was a little overexcited about America. He told us: “I’m so happy to be with a team from the U.S.A. I love American churches. One day I will go to America and learn so much about God!”

I stared at him in disbelief, thinking, Does he really think America has more of God than Africa? I told him most of my friends couldn’t wait to come to Africa to experience more of God’s presence. He didn’t understand. The truth is, we are all guilty of this way of thinking. The misconception most of us buy into says community, miracles and true passion only exist in the Third World. On the other hand, much of the Third World believes effective ministry only happens with lots of money and high-tech resources. Jesus says something completely different. In Luke 17, He teaches His disciples not to listen to people who say, “Here it is” or, “There it is,” referring to the Kingdom of heaven. Rather, He says, “The Kingdom of God is in your midst.” Experiencing God’s presence has nothing to do with where you are and everything to do with how you live with those around you. Every country poses its unique problems for those seeking God. In Ukraine, alcoholism is rampant. In Thailand, the sex industry plagues hundreds of thousands. In Tanzania, theft and crime create serious problems. Every country uniquely needs God’s grace, but the good news is He faithfully pours it out on those who seek Him, no matter the place or time.

Whether you’ve experienced extreme poverty or you simply want a change in your life, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

If you had all the time and resources to make an impact, what would you do?
Now, with the limited resources you do have, what impact can you have on your local community?
What small steps can you take toward making a global change?

America is not your enemy; it’s another opportunity. You don’t have to wait for a missions trip to experience God and share His love. The adventure isn’t over just because you’re home.

http://rejectapathy.com/magazine/archives/issue-02/statements/26152-post-missions-cynicism

A Final Post from the Dominican Republic...

2012-01-12T17:14:00.000-08:00

Hello for the last time from the Dominican Republic...we just finished a final team dinner together on a warm and breezy night...we said goodbye to new friends this morning at our ministry site and then headed into the capital city of Santo Domingo...we visited the market and then walked in and around some of the oldest buildings in the Western hemisphere, including the National Cathedral and National Monuments of the DR...these buildings are amazing structures and are almost 500 years old! I did have a very fun moment this am...as I went thru a pack of baseball cards I brought for my sponsored child in this community and school, we found together a baseball card with Jose Reyes and Hanley Ramirez that simply said Dominican Pride...it was a moment that connected us together as we took a picture of that card together...I love God's little fun surprises for a dad in the USA and a little boy in the DR who both love baseball and the Dominican Repubic...

We then drove to the coast and spent some time this afternoon enjoying a resort on the ocean...there has been good food, lots of Dominican music, and a time to relax at the beach after a very busy week for us all...in many ways, it is somewhat strange to be at a resort after being part of a community with such great physical needs during our time in the DR...you find yourself feeling somewhat guilty and somewhat resistant to what you see all around you...yet in many ways this resort represents more of who we are as blessed Americans...and the greatest challenge of this trip is yet to come in many ways...God's calling to us is not to just feel guilty and grateful...it is to live with what we have seen, experienced, and heard from God in a place of prominence in our daily lives...it is the challenge of living in our own community and culture that God has placed us in as a Christian who is compassionate, communicates about the needs of others near and far, and serves out of a heart that is full because of what God has done in Jesus for us...that's really our final task of this trip...to spend time asking God to show us specifically what our response individually and as a team will be as we come back to Cornerstone and the semester ahead...we'd ask you to pray for us to be motivated and passionate to be advocates for the people of the DR and to help us to build a community that is focused on others and creates a mindset of service and love and character in the soccer community and other places of influence in our lives...

We are tired and yet so very blessed after our time on this missions trip...thanks for reading this blog...I've loved being with young men and women who I believe will indeed change the world...CHIP

p.s. If all goes well, we should arrive back at GR airport sometime around 10:30 pm tomorrow night or so after our travel day! We know there is snow...and we will call from Atlanta with any flight updates!

A Final Day in Los Alcarrizos...

2012-01-11T11:28:00.000-08:00

Wow...it is Wednesday already...and we are finishing up our time in this community that we now find so familiar...it has been a short time but a remarkable full time of ministry and memories and being moved in Spirit and action here in the DR...

This morning we joined several hundred students for a time of prayer, Scripture, and the singing of the DR national anthem outside before school began...and then we jumped into our painting mode and finished the 3rd floor project, including putting on a new color on today...we are pretty excited to see the progress that has been made thru our work with our Dominincan friends in preparing this facility to open in a few weeks...

The afternoon was filled with time with students from the school...activities included face painting, bracelet making, coloring contests, and ring making...out team has loved interacting with many different groups of children this week...we even popped into a few classrooms to see what they were learning and up to as well...the power of education continues to be reinforced to us here...and w are grateful that even our participation in this trip helps that to be possible for more and more kids at risk and need in this area...you can't help but be excited about what God has in store for them as Christian leaders in the DR in the future...

And then we had our first official soccer match against the JOMA club team from Santo Domingo...our girls had a big win led by goals from Kate, Jen, Anna, Amanda, and coach's son Mitch....we played against a men's club team connected to this group the last couple years, and we love building a relationship where they are excited about playing soccer with Americans, are very interested in what is happening at Cornerstone, and are exposed to what it means to be an athlete who loves Jesus and plays as His representative...it has been a blast to have this sports component to our trip here...

We held our final nightly debrief session tonight as well reflecting on what we've experienced, how we have been impacted by the people and community here, and how we hope to participate in a renewed way in God Kingm work, at home and across the world...there was a spirit of immense blessing among us for the time here and the opportunity to serve and learn and love and be loved in the Dominican Republic...and I hope that all of you connected to this team will have a chance to hear their stories, talk about their questions, and be encouraged by their experience in seeing and joining making Jesus known in word and deed in a place unlike what we call home...

Tomorrow we head into Santo Domingo to see one of the oldest communities in the western hemisphere...and we hope to catch a few final rays of sun on the beach before flying back to snowy Grand Rapids on Friday...thanks for your prayers and partnership...I'll close with the words of the apostle John that summarize what we have seen and hope to live out in the days to come:

I JOHN 3:16-18 (The Message)

This is how we've come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. This is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves. If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God's love? It disappears. And you made it disappear. My dear children, let's not just talk about love; let's practice real love. This is the only way we'll know we're living truly, living in God's reality.

Water, Paint, Soccer, and a Familiar Face

2012-01-10T13:40:00.000-08:00

Tuesday in the DR brought more painting as we finished up most of the 3rd floor gym facility...we can't wait to see the women from the community that will soon be in this space! They are planning to open it to the public in just a few weeks...

It also brought a tour of the water purification system that they have here on site...they produce over 25,000 galllons of clean water every day that is sold at reduced cost to the people in the community, many who have no other clean water source...they even employ pastors as small business partners to distribute the water...and everyday trucks roll out of here and literally save and help make better the lives of children...clean water diseases account for more deaths of children than anything else in our world today...and I love the fact that this ministry is providing living water on both levels in Los Alcarrizos...in fact, we were here with the men's soccer team two years ago when the earthquake in Haiti occurred...and the Lighthouse project was able to bring over 100,000 bottles of water to church partners in Haiti...I love the passion here to not only change this community but also in the nation next door...and Dominicans serving Haitians is a powerful example of the church at work across traditional boundaries...

We continued in our soccer clinic work today...we hosted 30 or so students from the school ranging from ages 6-18...every time I come here there is a growing interest in the community in relationship to soccer and more kids are ready to play this game...even a few who who have given up some time with baseball to play "futbal"...Marissa Bliss shared her faith story with this group of kids after we finished our time with them...after te clinic we played a short match with some of the older boys who have put together the first-ever Lighthouse School soccer squad...the soccer field at the school is really the only facility in the area...

A highlight of today's time here was a visit from another CU student...Marcel, a member of our men's soccer team lives in the city of Santiago here in the DR...he was a Dominican high school student and soccer player who watched our men's team play last year and eventually ended up at CU this fall to begin college in the States...we've loved having him as part of the soccer and Cornerstone communities, and it truly is a blessing to see how God has connected him to us through our ministry and mission partnerships here in his own country...he worked and played alongside us today...it's a pretty great story...and we'd love to someday have a graduate of the Lighthouse School here attend school at CU...

Tomorrow is our final full day here in the Los Alcarrizos community...we'll conclude with work, visits to classrooms, time with kids, and a final soccer match...and some visits with children sponsored by folks in the CU men's soccer program...it will be fun to reflect on all we've experienced and what we will do in response to our time here...that's a huge part of what we are praying for...

Thanks for praying and following us this week...we enjoyed the most sun and warmest temperatures today...we love you and miss you much!

for the DR team,

CHIP

you can check out some more pictures and some videos at the UNTO website link below:

http://www.untoinc.org/news/

Mondays Leave You Exhausted in the DR!

2012-01-09T17:38:00.000-08:00

Today was another full work day for the DR soccer crew here in the DR...we split into crews and spent the day working to help prepare new facilities here on the ministry site...many of us were painting the third floor of the gym (hence, the pictures I'm sure you will see with paint splattered all over our faces from ceiling work!) and others were helping get new apartment ready for the ministry director and school superintendent here who has been a great encouragement to us as a team...and we finished the days with tons of wheelbarrow runs full of moving dirt and rocks over to the new kitchen site...

One of the unique things about our partnership down here is the physicalness of the trips...in many ways, I think it is why our athletes love the experience...it gives us an opportunity to serve with our hands and feet and the rest of our bodies in a tangible expression of our belief in the Kingdom work God is doing here...we are simply being led by the Dominican leadership as we do some things we might not normally do back home...and there is a pleasure in that service that we find in knowing we are part of God's bigger vision...even in small and hidden and tiring ways...and I am quite certain God is pleased...

Tomorrow we will get to meet over 1100 new friends as the students at the Lighthouse school return from Christmas break...there will be energy and laughter and conversation all around us...and we see the very reason we are here...we'll be popping into a few classrooms on our morning work break and hosting another soccer clinic for kids from the school in the afternoon...

This morning we read several passages demonstrating the compassion of Jesus in action in the Gospels...pray that we'll chase after that example of compassion in action as we care for one another and develop a new heart for the people and children of this community...and may it move us to action at home and across the world as a result of our time overseas...

Ok, it's time for an earlier bedtime...or else this guy will be crawling to breafast! It is tough keeping up with the energy and work capacity of college students! (you should have seen these girls carrying huge tiles up 4 flights of stairs all morning...)

For the DR team,

CHIP

Pictures from the first 3 days...

2012-01-08T18:35:00.000-08:00

A Report from a Special Student Blogger...

2012-01-08T17:14:00.000-08:00

Here's a summary of our Sunday from Jenna Wiersma:

We woke up this morning at 8 (yes, we got to sleep in an hour later than usual!) to go to breakfast that started at 8:30, breakast was eggs, toast, and papaya! Quickly after breakfast we had to go and get ready for Church that started at 10:30 which meant we had to leave at about 10 for our 15 minute walk there. The walk to Church was our first time to walk around and experience the community, we saw some of how the people lived including their very small houses, dentists, hair salons, and a countless number of dogs. All the people were very friendly and welcomed us with a smile as we walked by.

Church was an interesing experience, the people love to sing and a lot of the tunes of the songs were familiar to us but we had a hard time singing along with their songs in English while they sang them in Spanish. The message was given by a Korean pastor which meant it had to be translated to the congregation in Spanish and finally to us in English on a powerpoint. It was very overwhelming to listen to the Korean and Spanish and then have to look at the screen and read the English that was being written for us. After church we walked back and had lunch which was soup, ham and cheese sandwiches, plantane chips, and bananas. During our break today it rained which was nice because it cooled down, but not so nice because it welcomed many more mosquitoes.

At around 2 we began our walk arund the community. This was a time for us to see and better understand how the people live down here in the DR and hand out some candy for the kids. The kids were with us all throughout our walk, they love to get their pictures taken and love to hold our hands. It was a real eye-opener to see how the families live down here, as their houses are very close together and incredibly small. Their community is filled with trash and raw sewage, but in spite of all these things the people and the kids stil smile and laugh. They seem content and it is hard for us to understand because we know how much more they could have, but where they live and how they live is all they have ever known. I speak for more people than myself in saying that it was a very humbling experience for the group.

We walked back from the community walk and went right to our rooms to change into our soccer gear to get ready for the soccer clinic. About 25-30 kids came to the clinic and we pretty much taught them the basics such as dribblng, passing, and ending with small sided games. The kids had a lot of fun and despite the language barrier it was a fun and successful time for all of us! After the clinic we gave the kids the shoes that we brought down with us and it was cool to see how excited they were to get a new pair of shoes; sadly they do not get many new shoes or even shoes that fit them so it was awesome that we could provide them with so many shoes for them to choose from, they were so thankful and loved getting their new shoes.

Dinner was rice, beans, meat and fried plantanes and went to our debriefing time as a team shortly after. It was nice to reflect on our day as a team and talk about what we saw and how we felt about it. After our day was about finished we went to check email and play games, it was a nice and relaxing way to end our very eventful day.

Walking deeper into the community is always a difficult and overwhelming time as you encounter global poverty up close...and now we feel responsible to respond and not just feel bad...we'd love for you to pray for the team specifically as to how we become engaged in caring for the poor in the world near and far away...we are learning much from the Dominican people we are meeting here and we look forward to discovering more clearly how our time here will transform us as we see God transforming this community...we read Isaiah 58 to close our evening as we prayed that our light will break forth into the darkness as we feed the hungry, free the oppressed, and share the story of Jesus as His people today and tomorrow and in the days to come...

Tomorrow we head back to the work site for a day of construction tasks at the Lighthouse School...may you have a great week back home as we serve here...we miss you and are getting more anxious to share stories with you when we return...

Good night from our warm and beautiful island home!

CHIP

Working on the Weekend

2012-01-07T17:58:00.000-08:00

Hello again from the DR tonight...OK, to be honest, I can barely type this! My arms are so sore from all the work we did at the Lighthouse School today here in Los Alcarrizos...I am getting old and shoveling dirt and rocks for 9 hours in the Dominican sun has me struggling to get my coffee cup high enough to drink out of! Needless to say, today has been about hard work...work that is helping to provide an education for the children of this neighborhood and work where we join an amazing Dominican crew as they help change the future of this community...the CU student team here did a remarkable job as we poured the cement floor that will serve as the home for some cardiovascular work anddance classes for the community here on the 3rd floor of the gym building...2 years ago the men's soccer team laid the intial cement blocks on the floor below where many guys from the community work out in the only weight room in the area...it continues to be a privilege to be part of such a remarkable Kingdom vision that continues to grow and expand here in the DR...we love getting to be just a small piece of the story God is writing...

After our work day we hosted a group of Haitian girls for a soccer match...these girls are just learning the game and many of them have come to the DR to escape poverty and great struggles in Haiti...I loves seeing them welcomed into the community here and they now have a new place tp play soccer...we even had a male player from the school who has come to our soccer clinics and matches the last 2 years...after we finished the match, Kathy Butt shared with the girls why we are excited to be here and her own faith story...I always love seeing athletes use the platform of their sport to talk about what they are most excited about in life as followers of Jesus whom God has gifted to play a game that unifies people from cultures all over the world...

We debriefed tonight talking about the power of service for influence and impact in our world, and reveled in Scriptures we read this morning about each person in this world bearing the image of God...it's a pretty powerful thing to be able to help others whom God connects us to, whether here or in the DR, understand through our demonstration of His love that they are indeed created as humans who are marked with the very image of the almighty God, no matter what they have done, where they live, or what they have...keep praying that we will have opportunities to live and work and speak here in such a way that we will make that truth come alive for children and people in this community even as we grasp it anew for ourselves...

Tomorrow we will walk to a church where we will worship with our Dominican brothers and sisters, spend time in the community where people live, and host a soccer clinic for girls in the afternoon...we will think of you as many of us worship at the same time in very different places...

It is a blessing to be here and a blessing to be with guys and girls so eager to be part of God's mission...

We miss you and can't wait to share more stories in the next few days...off to sleep hard after this work day...

For the DR crew,

CHIP

Saturday Morning Reflection...

2012-01-07T04:02:00.000-08:00

We got the internet to work...so here's the full version of my blog from last night...off to work we go!

Greetings from Los Alcarrizos in the beautiful island of the Dominican Republic!

We arrived safely at our ministry site and home for the next week this afternoon after a smooth and uneventful plane ride...

It is warm and windy night here...we had a chance to take a quick tour around the campus here earlier and enjoyed our first home cooked Dominican meal...we eat amazing food prepared by some fabulous Dominican cooks...

It is always a joy to come back to this place for me...and I am thrilled to have a wonderful team of students and coaches here who are all anxious to serve and be part of what God is doing here in this part of the world...

As we walked around the Christian school facility here where over 1100 students receive the education they long for, it was so fun to see how God continues to build and grow the work here...I see the gym where there are now 3 floors of space for exercise and outreach where we laid the initial blocks on a bottom level; I see the kitchen which will soon feed 400 children breakfast before they attend classes where we help dig a hole in the dirt; and I see the third floor of classrooms now filled with more students where we poured cement into footings...what a privilege it is for the athletic community from CU to be part of this long term transformational work in this place where students are meeting Jesus and preparing to change the lives of their peers in the future of this nation...

One of the great blessings of a trip like this one is that we get to see God at work and join Him in Kingdom activity...we just finished a debrief and prayer time where many of the students here shared that they are so excited to see how God's Spirit will teach and use them as we work here and live life differently as a result of our experiences...even coming down here we brought several hundred shoes collected for the children of this community by a girl in Virginia who we have never met, but who God gave a vision to while she was here in this place...

We are very tired after an early travel morning and a long day...but we are excited tomorrow to go to work and help lay a cement floor for a place where many future girls will be able to exercise and meet one another and even be introduced to Jesus in the days and years to come...it will be a full and meaningful Saturday for us!

We are looking forward to hosting soccer clinics, playing a match or two, building relationships with children here, sharing our faith stories, and seeking God together in the days to follow...

Thanks so much for your prayers and your support of this trip...we can't wait to see what God is going to do in and through us as we serve Him and get to know His people in this culture in the week ahead...

We are off to bed as we will get an early start on the work side...everyone sends their love and hellos back home!!

For all the DR team folks,

CHIP

Hello from the DR

2012-01-06T18:28:00.000-08:00

Greetings from Los Alcarrizos in the beautiful island of the Dominican Republic!

We arrived safely at our ministry site and home for the next week this afternoon after a smooth and uneventful plane ride.

It is always a joy to come back to this place for me as we see all that God has been up to. You can see many projects that cu athletes helped start now completed!

We are headed to bed as we will be helping to lay a cement floor tomorrow at the school here. I will hopefully post more tomorrow as the internet is down and i am typing on a phone.

We love you and your prayers mean much!

For the dr team, chip

Prayers for 2012 DR Soccer Missions Trip

2012-01-05T12:33:00.001-08:00

My name is Chip Huber and this is my third year serving in the Spiritual Formation office at CU...I also happen to be a long-time soccer player, coach, and lover of the game...one of the highlights of my time here working with students at CU has been the opportunity to get to know many of the players in our soccer programs and be part of their lives and team as God is at work in and through them...and I am thrilled to once again have the opportunity to help lead and travel with coaches and players from the CU soccer community on this mission trip experience...

This trip is something that we see as being an integral part of our soccer programs...sports is truly an incredible relational connection and ministry tool all across our world...and we are excited to be returning to a place in the Dominican Republic where several athletic teams have gone in the last 2 years and we are able to use our hands, our resources, and our soccer abilities to serve and build relationships with a wonderful community of kids and adults in the DR...

As we head off to the Dominican Republic in a few hours, here's a prayer update I want to offer to you...we covet your prayers as we seek to have a transformational life experience together as a team and with the people in the DR...I'll be blogging from the DR several times over the next week and will get some help from the guys and girls in sharing stories and experiences from our trip...…here are ten specific ways you can pray for us:

1.Safety and health in our travels to and from and around the DR over the next 7 days
2.A good working out of schedule and administrative details as we attempt to see and be part of many different experiences in a short time period
3.Ability to connect with and love and learn from our Domincan brothers and sisters
4.The continued impact of the Christian school which is being used by hundreds and hundreds of students in this community, and the physical strength to help in the further expansion of this school to serve the needs of a growing child population
5.A deep sense of community and growth in our team as we seek to discuss and mull over the experiences and resulting questions we will encounter...we are excited to build deeper friendships with each other and use our athletic gifts in soccer as a ministry and witness tool...
6.A fresh vision for future projects and personal involvement in the work God is doing in the DR and other nations around the world
7.A greater love for Christ and a heart that beats and cares for and loves the poor and oppressed people in our world
8.Opportunities to pray for/with and encourage believers and the local body of Christ in the DR as we share the Gospel in word and deed with the children and adults in these communities
9.Ability to hear and receive stories and learnings that we can then take and use as powerful resources in being advocates and leaders when we return home
10.Growth and emcouragement from our daily times in the Scriptures, in prayer groups, and in team debrief sessions

We can’t wait to return and give you the stories of our trip along with some photos and videos we will have taken…once again, thank you for being part of this Kingdom venture for these young men and women…your overwhelming generosity and partnership is truly a remarkable blessing in our lives…we thank God for your friendship, gifts of love, and your prayers…

Together in His Work and for the 2012 Soccer Missions Crew,

Chip Huber
Dean of Student Engagement at Cornerstone University

A Final Thought on Christmas

2012-01-03T12:58:00.000-08:00

"No one can celebrate a genuine Christmas without being truly poor.
The self-sufficient,
the proud,
those who,
because they have everything,
look down on others,
those who have no need even of God —
for them there will be no Christmas. Only
the poor,
the hungry,
those who need someone to come on their behalf,
will have that someone.
That someone is
God.
Emmanuel.
God with us.
Without poverty of spirit
there can be no abundance of God."

–Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador

2012--Thoughts about Releasing a Book...

2012-01-03T07:13:00.000-08:00

This calendar year there are many, many things that need my attention in terms of improvement and development in my life...I've even had the chance to share some of my goals and hopes with my family driving home from our Christmas vacation trip to the great white north...

But tto be honest, this year has one particular desire/goal/passion for me...and that is to actually release the Zambia Project book I have been working on for the past couple years...

I've had a hidden desire to write a book for maybe the last decade or so...and it has been quite the struggle to see that dream realized over the last three years of writing about the experiences and relationships connected to our work and partnership in the African nation of Zambia...

To be honest, there were some moments when I wondered if the book would simply end up being lots of words and pages on a flash drive as I went through a move, new job, and different chapter of ministry from the time when I started this project till right now...but I just couldn't walk away despite life challenges and a lack of interest from some folks I thought would want to drive this project to completion with me....

Yet I am very motivated and really excited to try to get this book published and in print in the spring of 2012...and here are some reasons why:

1. I believe it is a story worth telling because it is the story of God's love for his people in Zambia and Chicago who both longed to know him more deeply and the full life he talks about in the scriptures...

2. I feel a deep responsibility and calling to be an advocate who raises up interest and response among this generation of young believers to be fully engaged in meeting the needs of the global poor and oppressed in today's world...

3. What God did at Wheaton Academy and is doing at CU is something I desperately believe is worth seeking to repeat in other creative and personal responses to relationships God invites communities to develop and experience across cultures and countries...

4. I am such a different person because of the joys and struggles I've had over the course of this project in Africa, and I love the opportunity to,share the first hand spiritual transformation so many friends and students have experienced...and am praying that this book will encourage and inspire others to see what God might have in store for them in the days ahead...

I've still got some work to do and several steps,to,take before I get to hand my former students and Zambian friends in person a copy of the book they made reality with their faith and their lives...but those moments are my dream for this new year...

Christmas Break Reading List

2011-12-24T07:28:00.000-08:00

Here's what I am excited to read in some of the quiet moments up north over the next several days:

1. new book on the rich rod years at Michigan... just can't help myself with this one...

2. Circle Maker by mark batterson...a gift from a friend...this author has deeply energized both of our spiritual passions...and this book on prayer promises to do the same...

3. Start Something that Matters by Blake Mycoskie...the story from the founder of toms shoes

4. stickyfaith by Kara Powell and Chap Clark...thoughts on how to build faith that lasts in students.

By the way, I love reading downloaded books from library on the kindle app!

Off to sit by the fire at the cabin with a book...

Reasons Younger Christians Check Out on Church

2011-12-16T18:12:00.000-08:00

Here's some really interesting stuff I have been processing with our team at CU this fall after I read Dave Kinnaman's new book called YOU LOST ME...a great read for anyone connected to young adults...here's the info to process and respond to below...

Overall, the research uncovered six significant themes why nearly three out of every five young Christians (59%) disconnect either permanently or for an extended period of time from church life after age 15.

Reason #1 – Churches seem overprotective.
A few of the defining characteristics of today's teens and young adults are their unprecedented access to ideas and worldviews as well as their prodigious consumption of popular culture. As Christians, they express the desire for their faith in Christ to connect to the world they live in. However, much of their experience of Christianity feels stifling, fear-based and risk-averse. One-quarter of 18- to 29-year-olds said “Christians demonize everything outside of the church” (23% indicated this “completely” or “mostly” describes their experience). Other perceptions in this category include “church ignoring the problems of the real world” (22%) and “my church is too concerned that movies, music, and video games are harmful” (18%).

Reason #2 – Teens’ and twentysomethings’ experience of Christianity is shallow.
A second reason that young people depart church as young adults is that something is lacking in their experience of church. One-third said “church is boring” (31%). One-quarter of these young adults said that “faith is not relevant to my career or interests” (24%) or that “the Bible is not taught clearly or often enough” (23%). Sadly, one-fifth of these young adults who attended a church as a teenager said that “God seems missing from my experience of church” (20%).

Reason #3 – Churches come across as antagonistic to science.
One of the reasons young adults feel disconnected from church or from faith is the tension they feel between Christianity and science. The most common of the perceptions in this arena is “Christians are too confident they know all the answers” (35%). Three out of ten young adults with a Christian background feel that “churches are out of step with the scientific world we live in” (29%). Another one-quarter embrace the perception that “Christianity is anti-science” (25%). And nearly the same proportion (23%) said they have “been turned off by the creation-versus-evolution debate.” Furthermore, the research shows that many science-minded young Christians are struggling to find ways of staying faithful to their beliefs and to their professional calling in science-related industries.

Reason #4 – Young Christians’ church experiences related to sexuality are often simplistic, judgmental.
With unfettered access to digital pornography and immersed in a culture that values hyper-sexuality over wholeness, teen and twentysometing Christians are struggling with how to live meaningful lives in terms of sex and sexuality. One of the significant tensions for many young believers is how to live up to the church's expectations of chastity and sexual purity in this culture, especially as the age of first marriage is now commonly delayed to the late twenties. Research indicates that most young Christians are as sexually active as their non-Christian peers, even though they are more conservative in their attitudes about sexuality. One-sixth of young Christians (17%) said they “have made mistakes and feel judged in church because of them.” The issue of sexuality is particularly salient among 18- to 29-year-old Catholics, among whom two out of five (40%) said the church’s “teachings on sexuality and birth control are out of date.”

Reason #5 – They wrestle with the exclusive nature of Christianity.
Younger Americans have been shaped by a culture that esteems open-mindedness, tolerance and acceptance. Today’s youth and young adults also are the most eclectic generation in American history in terms of race, ethnicity, sexuality, religion, technological tools and sources of authority. Most young adults want to find areas of common ground with each other, sometimes even if that means glossing over real differences. Three out of ten young Christians (29%) said “churches are afraid of the beliefs of other faiths” and an identical proportion felt they are “forced to choose between my faith and my friends.” One-fifth of young adults with a Christian background said “church is like a country club, only for insiders” (22%).

Reason #6 – The church feels unfriendly to those who doubt.
Young adults with Christian experience say the church is not a place that allows them to express doubts. They do not feel safe admitting that sometimes Christianity does not make sense. In addition, many feel that the church’s response to doubt is trivial. Some of the perceptions in this regard include not being able “to ask my most pressing life questions in church” (36%) and having “significant intellectual doubts about my faith” (23%). In a related theme of how churches struggle to help young adults who feel marginalized, about one out of every six young adults with a Christian background said their faith “does not help with depression or other emotional problems” they experience (18%).

http://www.barna.org/teens-next-gen-articles/528-six-reasons-young-christians-leave-church

Section #1 from 58: FAST LIVING…How the Church Will End Poverty by Scott Todd

2011-12-03T10:36:00.000-08:00

I just finished reading this remarkable read by Scott Todd inviting the church of Jesus Christ to imagine, believe, and then participate in helping to end extreme poverty for this next generation of children in our world...so many words and quotes and ideas struck me that I've decided to simply post some of the passages I underlined over the next few weeks on my blog...to be honest, I care too deeply about this huge idea and believe with all my heart that God is indeed calling those who know Him to engage in this remarkable Kingdom act in the days and years to come...so here's the first couple sections of many more to come...I hope you read the book or watch the accompanying documentary we showed a few weeks ago on campus at CU yourself!

The ideas in this book are designed to move you to expect that Christians, by God’s grace and power, will bring an end to extreme global poverty in the next 25 years. We can build a world where massive numbers of children will no longer die from mosquito bites, invisible killers in their water, or any other preventable threat. And on that journey we will no longer slouch under mediocre expectations of God or of ourselves. Instead we will discover sources of unexpected hope and draw strength to do what God has equipped us to do.

Expectations are not the same as hopes. They are hopes injected with confidence. Expectations also differ from possibilities. Possibilities are imaginable, perhaps even realistic, scenarios of the future. Expectations, on the other hand, are probable, seemingly inevitable scenarios for our future. Expectations provide a scaffold for our decision making, and we gamble on them every day. You can’t expect what you don’t believe possible.

High expectations innovate. High expectations persevere. High expectations don’t quit until they’re satisfied.

http://www.live58.org/

World AIDS Day--A Decade of Seeing December 1 as a Significant Day...

2011-12-01T20:02:00.000-08:00

I spent World AIDS Day 2011 on another campus...and I didn't hear one person mention that December 1 held that particular significance for them...no students wearing orange as hundreds did at Wheaton Academy and their weren't stories of those affected by HIV hanging from clotheslines strung across campus like we've done at Cornerstone...and I was reminded how significant this day has become for me...I've attended AIDS prayer breakfasts, taken massive school photos that have hung in my office, and been part of panels talking with those infected and affected by this virus over the last several years...and today I missed those people and being part of those events...and I was reminded that in so, so many places with people filled with people like me they still need to know what causes HIV, who its victims are near and far, what can be done to prevent its infection and spread, theneed for its treatment globally, and how good it is to have friends in your life who are overcoming the challenges of HIV, and the remarkable opportunity as a Christ-follower to pour out the love and hope that comes from Jesus into the lives of those affected by this disease...

I'm looking forward to World AIDS Day 2012 where I think I'll make it a point to spend time with others concerned about AIDS in our world today as a guy who 10 years ago wouldn't have seen anything special about December 1 as well...

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-23T14:59:00.000-08:00

I am sitting in a cell phone lot at the Detroit airport waiting for my dad's flight from Charlotte to come in...I've actually flown in to this airport on this same night a few times myself...and it has given me a few minutes of reflection as we head toward the annual Detroit parade and a huge lions game tomorrow...here's s few things I am do grateful for as this year winds down:

--a wife who never tires of taking care of our family and so many others as a nurse and all around compassionate problem solver...
--two kids who love to learn, love creating memories as a family, and care very much about what Jesus desires for them...
---parents and siblings we still love to go visit at all holidays and breaks...
--a soccer community that I love to be part of...
--people who believe in and are excited to read a book about Zambia and some students in this generation...
--the provision of God in a world where so, so many experience deep and profound suffering every single day...
--the joy of having a job where I daily see Jesus at work in the lives of those who long for his kingdom to explode all across our world...
--the love of my lord that sustains and keeps me going as it fills me with hope and anticipation for what is to come in the days and years to come...

My dad just called and he will soon be off the plane...it's time to reconnect and celebrate thanksgiving again...

Evangelicals and the Case for Foreign Aid by Richard Stearns

2011-11-17T12:01:00.000-08:00

Here's a recent piece from the Wall Street Journal written by the president of World Vision...we just hosted Rich at an afternoon coffee event here on campus and I always walk away from time with him impressed with his personal passion to honestly and thoughtfully tackle some of the most compelling and complex issues in our world today...I know that many of my friends are not fans of government foreign aid programs...and I know there needs to be a greater response from the church and other NGOs who do remarkable transformative work...but I have also seen programs like PEPFAR save and change lives among communities I have grown to love...it's worth thinking about as we walk thru our own economic crisis as we consider our commitment to the poor across our world...

Americans think 25% of federal dollars go to aid. It's really about 1%.

Washington is in an era of budget-cutting, so we frequently hear calls to shrink or eliminate U.S. foreign-assistance programs. In response, several religious groups (including my own) are highlighting how these programs reduce global poverty and hunger, saving millions of lives. But why are evangelical Christians largely absent from this religious coalition?

In a recent closed-door session on Capitol Hill, representatives from the National Council of Churches, Catholic Relief Services and Bread for the World met with several senators about the Senate's proposed reduction of $3 billion from last year's foreign-affairs budget. (The House would eliminate $9 billion.) The director of Church World Service, John McCullough, told reporters afterward that "responding to hunger and poverty is not a partisan issue. . . . It is a moral issue that people of faith, across the political spectrum, agree upon."

This is largely true, but a Pew survey earlier this year found that 56% of evangelicals think "aid to the world's poor" should be the first thing cut from the federal budget. In September, a Baylor University survey found that Americans who strongly believe that "God has a plan" for their lives—as evangelicals do—are the most likely to oppose government intervention on behalf of the poor.

There's much misinformation around about foreign aid. When a 2010 survey by World Public Opinion asked Americans how much of the federal budget they think goes to aid, the median estimate was 25%. In fact, poverty-focused aid makes up just 0.5% of the federal budget, while the entire foreign-affairs budget, including the operation of embassies and the salaries of diplomats, is less than 1.5%.

Many Americans also perceive our foreign-assistance programs to be ineffective and wasteful. I disagree. Before becoming president of World Vision in 1998, I was the CEO of Lenox, a manufacturer of fine tableware. While I knew plenty about selling china to newlyweds, I knew little to nothing about humanitarian aid. But when I flew to Uganda and met orphaned children who lived alone and without any adults—often depending on American generosity to survive—my heart was changed forever.

Coming back to the U.S., I set out to spread the truth about the plight of AIDS orphans to evangelicals who support World Vision. By 2005, thanks in part to the support of President George W. Bush, most evangelicals had become supporters of the U.S. government's AIDS relief program, known as Pepfar.

Americans should understand that foreign aid strengthens democracy. A 2006 report out of Vanderbilt University and the University of Pittsburgh found a direct connection between U.S. aid and increased democratization and good governance, as measured by the Freedom House index. Evangelicals generally support promoting democracy abroad not only because they support the values on which our country was founded, but also because they are strong advocates for the freedom of religion that accompanies democratic values.

Then there are the lives saved. Our aid programs don't have an unblemished record, and waste and corruption need to be rooted out. But Pepfar, for example, is now providing lifesaving drugs to three million people living with AIDS, mostly in Africa. It also provides care and support to another 2.5 million orphans and vulnerable children. If Congress cuts that program 10%, my organization estimates, 400,000 people will lose their medicine and potentially lose their lives.

The U.S. Malaria Initiative, meanwhile, has saved more than a million lives in Africa. And at a time when more than a billion people do not have enough food to eat, President Obama's Feed the Future initiative provides nutrition assistance and helps 21 South American, African and Asian countries feed themselves, without dependence on aid. Finally, American relief following natural disasters such as the Haitian earthquake or South Asian tsunami save lives and win America friends.

One objection that I often hear from evangelicals is that while aid is good, it is not the government's job. Yes, individuals and churches play a vital role in aid and development. But governments play a unique and vital role that private organizations cannot. The poverty-focused programs in the foreign-aid budget are facing cuts of between $1.2 billion and $3.2 billion from 2010 levels. In comparison, the largest American Protestant denomination, the Southern Baptist Convention, has a budget of $308 million for its missionary and aid organization.

We cannot let others suffer simply because times are tough in the U.S. All Americans must understand the urgency of the human need and the effectiveness of our government's aid programs.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204190704577026391811161000.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

The Circle Maker by Mark Batterson

2011-11-16T05:25:00.000-08:00

A little article about a new book coming out from one of my favorite authors...reminded me of listening to my African friends pray for rain...I've got to remember the central place of prayer in my leadership life...

I attended the Easter Prayer Breakfast at the Whitehouse this past April and right before walking through the buffet line we paused to pray. I was expecting the typical pre-meal prayer, but it turned into a defining moment for me. A sixty-seven year-old African American pastor began to pray with such familiarity and authority that after he said "Amen," I turned to Andy Stanley and Louie Giglio, who happened to be standing next to me, and said, "I feel like I've never prayed before."

Have you ever felt that way? Someone prays with such familiarity with God that you feel like you hardly know Him? Or they pray with such authority that you feel like your prayers are impotent by comparison? I wonder if that's how the disciples felt when they heard Jesus pray. Maybe that's why they asked Him to teach them to pray in a new way.

I've never met anyone who felt like they prayed too much or prayed too effectively. All of us feel like we fall short when it comes to prayer. But that's exciting because it means there is potential for improvement. There are new dialects, new tactics, new dimensions to be discovered. And if you transform your prayer life you transform your life. Why? Because the transcript of your prayers ultimately become the script for your life. We write the future with our prayers. Or in the words of Walter Wink: "History belongs to the intercessors."

The Legend

A few years ago, I was reading through The Book of Legends, a collection of stories from the Jewish Talmud, when I discovered the true legend of Honi the Circle Maker. It forever changed the way I pray. I pray more. I pray with more faith. I've learned how to pray circles around my dreams, my problems, my family, and most importantly, the promises of God.

A devastating drought threatened to destroy a generation--the generation before Jesus. The last of the Jewish prophets had died off nearly four centuries before. Miracles were a distant memory. And God was nowhere to be heard. But there was one man, an old sage who lived outside the walls of Jerusalem, who dared to pray anyway. His name was Honi. And even if the people could no longer hear God, he believed that God could still hear them.

With a six-foot staff in his hand, Honi drew a circle in the sand. Then he dropped to his knees and raised his hands to heaven. With the authority of the prophet Elijah who called down fire from heaven, Honi called down rain.

Lord of the Universe, I swear before your great name that I will not move from this circle until you have shown mercy upon your children.

Then it happened.

As his prayer ascended to the heavens, raindrops descended to the earth. The people rejoiced over the rain, but Honi wasn't satisfied with a sprinkle. Still kneeling within the circle, Honi lifted his voice over the sounds of celebration.

Not for such rain have I prayed, but for rain that will fill cisterns, pits, and caverns.

The sprinkle turned into such a torrential downpour that the people fled to the Temple Mount to escape the flash floods. Honi stayed and prayed inside his protracted circle.

Not for such rain have I prayed, but for rain of benevolence, benediction, and grace.

Then, like a well-proportioned sun shower on a summer afternoon, it began to rain in perfect moderation. Some within the Sanhedrin threatened excommunication because his prayer was too bold for their taste, but the miracle couldn't be repudiated. Eventually, Honi the Circle Maker was honored for "the prayer that saved a generation." The circle he drew in the sand symbolizes the power of a single prayer to change the course of history. It's also a reminder of this timeless truth: God honors bold prayers because bold prayers honor God.

The Challenge

We have not because we ask not, or maybe I should say, we have not because we circle not. We give up too easily, too quickly. If God has given you a dream, you need to keep circling it in prayer. You can't just pray. You need to pray through. You need to work like it depends on us and pray like it depends on God.

Prayer is the difference between fighting for God and God fighting for you. Some of you have been fighting so hard. Maybe it's time to pray hard. Then God will fight your battles for you.

I'm convinced of this: your leadership potential is directly proportional to your prayer capacity. You can't do anything until you pray, but when you start drawing prayer circles around your dreams and God's miracles, all bets are off. With prayer, all things are possible.

You tell me: is there anything more important or more powerful than prayer?

If the answer is no then let's pray like it.

Start circling!

http://www.catalystspace.com/content/read/the_circle_maker/

A Soccer and Life Story: A Coach, A Team, A Championship...

2011-10-26T20:55:00.000-07:00

Two years ago I read for the first time Donald Miller's exceptional book A MILLION MILES IN A THOUSAND YEARS...I was grabbed not just my Miller's retelling of his fascinating life journey, but more so by the book's main idea that God invites us, calls us, often pleads with us to actually live a better a life story...it's one thing to dream it, but another thing to passionately and purposefully pursue it...the book's central themes and ideas fit well with the curriculum we've been putting together for our first year experience course and it now is the summer pre-read for all incoming CU students as we invite them to conside the kind of story they are going to write and live during their time as college students...

I was talking one day with our men's soccer coach here at CU who happens to be one of my best friends and gave him an extra copy I had in the office to read...he resonated with Miller's words and decided to send out a copy to each of our returning and incoming soccer players to read before we began our fall 2011 season together...there was a hope, a belief, a prayer that God would write new stories in the lives of all players as each CU soccer guy would daily choose to live out the story of being a Kopion team together...

Last night there was what I would call the first ending to the story that is CU soccer 2011 version...we clinched the first WHAC regular season championship in a few long years and as a group giddily celebrated a rather extraordinary run of soccer over the last month of competition...it was to be honest a bit of a twist in the story that seemingly was being written when we had a 2-5 record heading to a game in Cedarville, OHIO...the story leading to a conference title featured highlight wins against Aquinas and Davenport teams that had ruined previous seasons and a commitment to hard work and playing one's roles that raised our level of play to one that simply sucked the life out of opponent after opponent...and there is much more to go...the story is not finished and our final game hasn't yet been played...and who doesn't love a story with post-season drama and excitement?

But the story of our soccer community is about much more than just a 9 game winning streak and a string of shutout victories...this particular soccer story is also about individual life stories where the hand of God has been at work changing and moving in His team at CU...there are the stories of these guys who make up this very special group of young men:

*a winger whose commitment to keep working and playing with a reckless energy enabled him to score some of the biggest goals of the year...
*two central midfielders from Canada who rejoined our team and immediately gave us life and skill and a huge dose of fun as they combined with a wonderfully gifted kid whose chose CU over bigger programs to form a remarkable midfield presence...
*a rock solid group of defenders who became a literal wall that couldn't be taken down thanks to backs who refused to make mistakes and a keeper who just kept the ball from hitting the ned inside his goal mouth home...
*a former MLS player who chooses to invest his significant soccer mind and experiences as a coach in the lives of NAIA players because he believes so much in them and this little soccer program in Grand Rapids, MI...
*a host of guys who compete every day in our training sessions and are able to come through with moments of meaningful play when asked to do so and can rejoice with the team's success in the times when they aren't personally out on the pitch...
*and a relentless senior striker whose return from ACL surgery this year has meant so much as he leads with example, encouragement, and faith in the idea that God has even more in store for us than what we could have imagined as he keeps putting the ball into the back of the net...

And as I read in my mind again the story of this team there is a larger story that overshadows many other things...it is the story of a coach who never wants to take the spotlight off his players and even in 2011 hasn't really wanted to get attention or sympathy despite a dramatic life and faith challenge in his own life...when Mark was laying in a hospital bed suffering after a colon cancer surgery operation that was completely unexpected, I know he was wondering what in the world kind of story was being written in his life and the soccer program he's invested so deeply in as its leader...there were and continue to be moments of fear and confusion and struggle as he attempted to walk the very long road of recovery...we were walking to our cars after this fabulous night at Davenport saying to each other, "Who could have imagined this night six months ago?" And as I drove away from the lighted field I thought to myself, "I think only Jesus could have imagined such joy in moments of deep pain and sorrow..." I love the way that the themes of redemption and restoration are so clearly present in the text of the Scriptures, and God has indeed is redeeming even cancer in Mark's life and restoring his health and family and his team through the peace and provision of the Holy Spirit...One of Mark's favorite verses is I Corinthians 15:58 where the Apostle Paul writes, "Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." CU soccer is very much the story of coach who has imprinted his Kopion spirit upon a team this year as they have stood firm together to fully pursue a better story as a follower of Jesus and a Christian soccer squad...

And as is almost always the case for those watching the hand of God at work in the lives of people in their world and especially for me when soccer is involved, the story of this particular group of guys is personal...simply put, they add depth and meaning and joy and stress and abundant life to my own life story and those closest to me...there's no group of guys and no team my 8 year old would rather cheer for; there's nothing quite like serving together among God's people near and far as His sports ambassadors; there's a unique life transformation that will happen for thousands of Zambians who will escape malaria's curse because of a new CU tradition called NIGHT OF NETS; and I have a remarkable community of men where I experience the love and friendship of the body of Christ as we travel to games, eat meals together, practice and play, and even win a championship...

So this is the story being written on a 75 by 120 yard piece of grass this fall on our campus, the story being written in the lives of college students who are bonded together as teammates playing the game all the world adores, the story of hope and healing reaching into a long time coach's life whose story is so very different than it was just one season ago...and that's what I celebrate and write about tonight...the very real reality that the author this remarkable soccer story isn't finished writing yet..and we aren't done living by any means...I can't wait to see and read and experience the final chapters this fall and in the days and years to come...

20 Points on Leading Millenials by Brad Lomenick at CATALYST

2011-10-24T21:08:00.000-07:00

Here's some great thoughts from a leader whose about my age as we all work at empowering and engaging those dynamic under 30 year olds we get to lead and watch lead every day...

1. Give them freedom with their schedule. I’ll admit, this one is tough for me.

2. Provide them projects, not a career. Career is just not the same anymore. They desire options. Just like free agents.

3. Create a family environment. Work, family and social are all intertwined, so make sure the work environment is experiential and family oriented. Everything is connected.

4. Cause is important. Tie in compassion and justice to the “normal.” Causes and opportunities to give back are important.

5. Embrace social media. it’s here to stay.

6. They are more tech savvy than any other generation ever. Technology is the norm. XBOX, iPhones, laptops, iPads are just normal. If you want a response, text first, then call. Or DM first. Or send a Facebook message. Not anti calls though.

7. Lead each person uniquely. Don’t create standards or rules that apply to everyone. Customize your approach. (I’ll admit, this one is difficult too!)

8. Make authenticity and honesty the standard for your corporate culture. Millenials are cynical at their core, and don’t trust someone just because they are in charge.

9. Millenials are not as interested in “climbing the corporate ladder.” But instead more concerned about making a difference and leaving their mark.

10. Give them opportunities early with major responsibility. They don’t want to wait their turn. Want to make a difference now. And will find an outlet for influence and responsibility somewhere else if you don’t give it to them. Empower them early and often.

11. All about the larger win, not the personal small gain. Young leaders in general have an abundance mentality instead of scarcity mentality.

12. Partnering and collaboration are important. Not interested in drawing lines. Collaboration is the new currency, along with generosity.

13. Not about working for a personality. Not interested in laboring long hours to build a temporal kingdom for one person. But will work their guts out for a cause and vision bigger than themselves.

14. Deeply desire mentoring, learning and discipleship. Many older leaders think millenials aren’t interested in generational wisdom transfer. Not true at all. Younger leaders are hungry for mentoring and discipleship, so build it into your organizational environment.

15. Coach them and encourage them. They want to gain wisdom through experience. Come alongside them don’t just tell them what to do.

16. Create opportunities for quality time- individually and corporately. They want to be led by example, and not just by words.

17. Hold them accountable. They want to be held accountable by those who are living it out. Measure them and give them constant feedback.

18. They’ve been exposed to just about everything, so the sky is the limit in their minds. Older leaders have to understand younger leaders have a much broader and global perspective, which makes wowing Millenials much more difficult.

19. Recognize their values, not just their strengths. It ain’t just about the skillz baby. Don’t use them without truly knowing them.

20. Provide a system that creates stability. Clear expectations with the freedom to succeed, and providing stability on the emotional, financial, and organizational side.

http://www.catalystspace.com/catablog/full/OCT11--20_points_on_leading_millenials/

Why Christians Are Not in a Culture War by LAURA ZIESEL in Relevant Magazine

2011-10-18T12:32:00.000-07:00

Here's a pretty thought provoking article exploring both sides of our "countercultural calling."

“The church has been called to counter and bless the culture.” - Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood

"[The church should be] unapologetically countercultural in our teaching of the Scriptures.” - Mark Chanski

We are gridlocked in a stubborn culture war. But I want to address the issue of being "called" to be countercultural. Opposing “the culture of the day” is often something I have heard we should do as Christians. But what does that mean?

Both of the above quotes seem to indicate a lack of understanding regarding the fact that we live among dozens of cultures as Americans. Shall we simultaneously be countercultural to each separate culture? That’s quite difficult since they are often opposed to one another.

It is implied that Christians should be countercultural regardless of what values are upheld by the culture. But acting in that way only encourages pride, stunts the growth of the Church and ignores the Spirit of God at work among all peoples. In fact, the Church can learn a lot from non-Christians—and if non-Christians agree en masse about something, that's called culture. And sometimes non-Christian culture is right.

Many cultures without the influence of the Church, for instance, are right about the importance of respect for their elders. Other cultures are right about personal liberty in the face of oppression. So to be blindly countercultural ignores the image of God emblazoned on each and every culture. Somewhere in each culture, He's there. We must learn to recognize those aspects, learn from them and use them as inroads for the Gospel.

Perhaps more embedded in the countercultural stance of the Church is the message that “you non-Christians” and not “us Christians” are full of worldly culture. A false dichotomy is established: “You” need redeeming while “we” are agents of redemption. The implication is that either a) the Church is cultureless or b) the Church has its own holy culture and that, because of a) and b), the Church is susceptible to the disease of contemporary culture and must always fight it.

And that is a major problem.

It is not true that the Church is cultureless. Culture is everywhere, even in God’s established Church. When tutoring some middle school students years ago, they asked me to define the word culture. The best thing I could come up with on the spot was the explanation that culture is those things in your life that seem normal to your family or friends but abnormal to other people. That isn’t the most sophisticated definition of culture, but I think it is helpful. The Church is full of behaviors and values that are abnormal to people outside (and often inside) our community. To say that any group of human beings can be cultureless is to be ignorant of what culture is.

In addition, it is impossible for the Church to be culturally holy. My argument for this is not theological as much as it is practical. The global Church is multicultural, and many of the cultures among our own brothers and sisters are contradictory to one another. Cultures within the American church alone oppose one another. On a global scale, the differences among cultures of the Church are overwhelming. So which one is right? American middle-class Southern Baptist culture? New England upper-class Presbyterian (PCA) culture? Kenyan poverty-escaping Pentecostal culture? Chinese house-church culture? They certainly don’t all agree.

I wholeheartedly agree that the Church is susceptible to the influence of worldly culture. But I disagree just as wholeheartedly that worldly culture is “out there” and is advancing into the Church unless we fight it. Because the Church is culturally imperfect just as the world is. So the problem with our view of the disease of culture is not that it exists, but where it exists. The Church should be made up of people who point to themselves and say: "Me. It's me. I am the problem with the world."

When Christians, as His representatives on Earth, fail to recognize the sin in our own hearts, even the cultural sin, we mar His image and bring ill repute to His name. Yes, there is sin in the world that we should fight. But we must always look to find the sin in ourselves first. When pastors, authors and teachers encourage us to counter contemporary culture without regard for the broken cultures within the Church, we look like a bunch of finger-pointing hypocrites.

I agree completely that the Church should be outside of culture, and even counter to it at times. But being countercultural should not be the aim of Christians and Christian teaching. We should be advancing God’s redemption first into our own hearts and then into the heart of each and every culture on the globe. But God’s redemption certainly doesn’t look like the exact opposite of whatever culture you are in. To be blindly countercultural regardless of the context is to make an idol of culture by shaping the Gospel around it instead of shaping our cultures around the Gospel.

Instead of simply being countercultural, Christians must counter the fallen and broken aspects of all cultures, even Church cultures. But while you do so, honor and build upon the redemptive glimpses of God you find.

http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god/church/features/27044-are-we-in-a-culture-war

Global Hunger Examined...Thoughts I Shared at our Feasting and Famine Event

2011-10-14T05:07:00.000-07:00

Global Hunger Conversation Notes

1. Two different conversations taking place around the world:
a. What should I eat?
b. How can I keep from starving?
c. World produces enough food to feed everyone. World agriculture produces 17% more calories per person today than it did 30 years ago. Can provide 2720 kilocalories per person per day for all in world. We will need to double food production by 2050 to meet global food needs…

2. Hunger – issue is Malnutrition… lack of some or all nutritional elements necessary for human health…lack of food that provides energy…
a. Children who survive early malnutrition suffer irreversible harm- poor physical growth/compromised immune function/impaired cognitive abilities

3. Causes of Hunger:
a. Poverty – between 1.3 and 1.4 billion people in extreme poverty… living on $1.25 a day or less
b. Economic Challenges – high food (consumer demand increases) prices (maize, wheat, rice, soybeans@ 40% higher than in 2007); rising fuel costs to transport food and water; global recession; poor agricultural challenges and methods…
c. Conflict – over 12 million displaced refugees globally due to wars and violence…
d. Climate Issues – environmental patterns may be changing… increased levels of drought, flooding, and climatic pattern irregularities…
e. Hunger Itself – poor health, low energy levels, mental impairments as hungry people can lead to greater poverty by reducing people’s abilities to work and learn…

The reality of Hunger Globally & Locally

1. Globally:
a. In 2010, it was estimated that 925 million people suffer globally from hunger – spike upward…1 in 7 people in our world today
b. About 3 million children die each year from things directly connected to malnutrition issues… children who are poorly nourished suffer up to 160 days of illness per year.
c. Countries with high levels of childhood malnutrition, economic loss can be 2-3% of GDP
d. Global Hunger Index: 3 Key Factors… (2010)
e. Prevalence of underweight children; proportion of undernourished kids; and the under-5 mortality rate
f. Top 15 rates: 13 nations in Sub-Saharan Africa; Haiti and Yemen outside Africa
g. The Thousand day Window of Opportunity: Conception to age 2 is huge!!

2. Locally/In USA:
a. 15% of households, more than 50 million Americans, struggle to put enough food on table for families today…
b. ¼ kids at risk for hunger… 1/3 for African-American and Latino children
c. 20 million kids receive free or reduced price lunches each day
d. 100,000 people classified in Kent County as food insecure (600,000 people)
e. $4.37 per day per person if you are living on food stamps---$135/month

The Famine in Horn of Africa
Job 5:10-11… He provides rain for the earth; he sends water to the countryside. The lowly he sets on high, and those who mourn are lifted to safety…

1. What is a Famine?
a. Acute malnutrition levels/rates among kids exceed 30%
b. 2 deaths per 10,000 per day or 4 under age 5 deaths per 10,000 per day
c. At least 20% of households facing extreme food shortages

2. Current Famine Reality: Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania
a. 13.5 million people being stalked by hunger/ 35% of all children facing emergency levels of malnutrition
b. Water prices have increased more than 300% - families selling assets and going into debt to get clean water/food.
c. Animals and humans getting water from same place spreading diseases--Dying livestock, as high as 40-60% in localized areas
d. ¼ of Somalia’s 7.5 million people is displaced
e. 1500 refugees daily waiting to register at Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya, with over 400,000 people now living there – 3rd largest city in Kenya
f. Maize, staple food in Kenya, is currently priced 80-120% about normal, while projected harvest remains 30% below normal…
g. Historic levels of drought – some areas without measureable rainfall for several years
h. Children and adults now much more likely to die now from diseases like: malaria, pneumonia, diarrhea, malaria, measles…because of malnutrition issues…

3. Prayers to Pray:
a. End to drought – rain enabling food to grow and wells to be filled
b. Delivery of aid and implementation of long-term solutions
c. Pray for malnourished children and their families
d. Peace and good systems to deliver help in these days.

A Final Hunger Memory: Eating Porridge at Pre-School in Zambia…

DOES GOD REALLY CARE ABOUT SPORTS?...Some Thoughts Shared in Chapel at CU

2011-10-10T12:47:00.000-07:00

DOES GOD REALLY CARE ABOUT SPORTS?
7 Reasons I Think He Does…
Reflections from a life-long sports junkie…

A FEW NUMBERS TO CONSIDER…
*163 million people watched the 2011 Super Bowl while only 132 million people voted in the most recent presidential election of 2008.
*The 50 highest-paid athletes earned a combined $1.4 billion, or $28 million average in 2010
*Over 2.5 billion people watched some of the action on the field in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa
*In 2006, Americans spent over $17 billion dollars on tickets to sports contests and $90 billion dollars on sporting goods, over double what was spent on books. ($42 billion) The magazine Sports Illustrated sells as many copies in a month as To Kill a Mockingbird has sold since it was published in 1960.

REASON#1: We find joy in doing what we were created to do...

ROMANS 12:6-8: In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

REASON#2: We experience community as we cheer our teams...

HEBREWS 10:25...And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

REASON#3: Sports offers a dynamic place of Kingdom impact and witness through the influence of the athletic platform...

I CORINTHIANS 9:22-23...I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

REASON#4: Real character is modeled and displayed in the crucible of competition...

I PETER 1:7...These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

REASON#5: We get to reflect on what we are truly passionate about and the level of engagement we have with certain things in our lives in comparison to others...

COLOSSIANS 3:2...Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things..

REASON#6: There is great learning and growing thru the challenges and risks and disappointments found in athletics...

ROMANS 5:3-5...We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment.

REASON#7: We often come to the realization that all things are spiritual and each thing in our lives matters to God

COLOSSIANS 3:17...And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

NELSON MANDELA on SPORT:
"Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where once there was despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down barriers. It laughs in the face of discrimination.“

A Family Weekend at CU We Hope Will Create Memories and Change the World

2011-09-28T14:35:00.000-07:00

This coming weekend is a couple of days I always look forward to on the CU campus…it is Family Weekend and I love all the extra parents and siblings who come to CU and get a little taste of what college life is like in 2011…for parents it takes them back to past memories, and for siblings it gives them a little preview of what the future might hold…and in the midst of looking back and looking forward we’ve designed Family Weekend this year to focus on some really important things that are happening in our world right now…

On Friday we are inviting all CU students and the families visiting to help meet the needs of those in east Africa affected by one of the worst famines in recent memory…every day 18,000 kids across the world die simply because they don’t have enough to eat, and we are partnering with an organization called Feed My Starving Children because we think Jesus wants us to try and change that reality in our world…there are three blocks of time in where we need about 170 people to come to the Hansen Center blue gym and build meals for 2 hours that will provide the food and nutrition to children and families literally waiting and praying for food to eat…it is an experience I highly recommend as it has challenged me and my family to care more deeply about global hunger, and we’ve had a really good time trying to respond to the least in Jesus’ name…we are hoping to build 100,000 meals in just one day on our campus…sign up online today at this link and help us feed the hungry in our world:

http://volunteer.fmsc.org/Register/mobilepack/event.aspx?event=1109-169

On Saturday, we are hosting our second annual Night of Nets soccer matches to respond to another global crisis that threatens millions of children’s lives in our world today…malaria takes the lives of over three quarters of a million kids in sub-Saharan Africa each year, and this disease transmitted by mosquito bites at night is very much preventable…we never really charge students and fans at our soccer games on campus but we are inviting each person who comes to the women’s game at 12 pm or the men’s game at 2:30 pm to pay a suggested admission fee of $6 at this one match…you see, six dollars will purchase a treated bed net that will protect children all across Zambia from being infected with this deadly disease as they are sleeping… we love the fact that we get to play the game Africa loves and use the platform it provides to help save the next generation of soccer players on the other side of the world…in fact, these nets will be delivered to families this May by many of the athletes you can watch play on Saturday afternoon…you can check out more and even donate online if you can’t come to either of the soccer games at the website we created for our Night of Nets event:

www.cunightofnets.com

It really should be a fantastic weekend here at CU…we hope many of you share a bunch of laughs and create memories with your family members that have come to see you…and we hope that hundreds and hundreds of CU students do something on a fall Friday or Saturday that will together help make people’s lives and our world reflect more what God’s Kingdom looks like…lives where food is available and malaria is eradicated in the name of Jesus by His followers that love God and their neighbors…CUSG hopes you’ll be part of these events as we seek to make CU a place where our student culture loves to serve and bless those in need both near and far away…

Hope to see you packing food and watching soccer balls fly this weekend!

Chip Huber
Dean of Student Engagement/Family Weekend Coordinator

NIGHT OF NETS VIDEO

2011-09-23T10:42:00.000-07:00

Check out this video about our upcoming Night of Nets soccer matches next Saturday October 1 at 12 and 2:30 pm here at CU...love watching our players get jazzed about using soccer platform to respond to huge global issues like malaria..

http://vimeo.com/29078529

SPORTS SAVES THE WORLD...A Writing Piece You Have to Read by Alexander Wolff in this week's Sports Illustrated magazine..

2011-09-21T19:53:00.000-07:00

A fascinating, encouraging, inspiring article that speaks why I love sports more than ever today...I can't wait to go help prevent HIV/AIDS as we play soccer in Zambia this summer; I can't wait to provide thousands of bed nets to prevent malaria because we are inviting everyone we know to a couple soccer matches at CU next weekend; and I can't wait to dream and scheme with my son Trey in the years ahead how our love and participation in sports can bring God's Kingdom to this world...I hope you can read this whole piece and dream as athletes and coaches and fans along with us all...

In grassroots programs involving tens of thousands of participants around the globe, visionaries are using athletics to tackle the most pressing problems of the developing world—from AIDS in Africa to violence in Rio. Can such projects make a lasting difference, or is the dream of salvation through sports too grandiose? SI senior writer Alexander Wolff set off on a yearlong journey to find the answer

VANCOUVER

I ran into Johann Olav Koss again in February 2010, at the Olympic oval in Richmond, B.C. The sight of Koss, then a temporary coach with Norway's speedskating team, transported me back 16 years instantly, happily.

I can't help it: Listmaking is a male thing, even more a sportswriterly thing, and I fastidiously rank Olympic Games. With its glitch-filled first week, the trucked-in snow and the fatal crash of a Georgian luger, the Vancouver edition will forever be an also-ran. The Winter Games of 1994, on the other hand, still surmount my desert-island alltime top five list of Olympics. Lillehammer abides with me not just because Koss won three gold medals and set three world records in three races; Dan Jansen finally skated to a gold himself; and 100,000 Norwegians camped overnight in the snow so they could cheer cross-country skiers with cowbells the next morning. It was the harmonious vibe, the intimate scale, the clean Scandinavian lines of the venues, even the crisp weather—as if the Norse gods had dropped a membrane over the town, sealing it off from the world's impurities.

The only breach of this hermetic idyll was on the pedestrian mall of Lillehammer's main street, where a few people solicited for a charity called Olympic Aid. They invoked Sarajevo, the Yugoslavian city that had hosted the Winter Games a decade earlier and, as a result of the war in the Balkans, remained under what would be the longest siege in modern history. The looping anthem of Sarajevo's suffering, Albinoni's Adagio in G Minor, haunted me every time I walked by. It seemed to whisper that, even as nature re-created a little patch of Eden for the playing of games, mankind still ginned up reminders of its fallen state.

And then the Perfect Olympics delivered its own latter-day god, a man to go forth into the Imperfect World and set it right. I'd watched Koss skate his triple at the Vikingskipet Oval. I'd heard him pledge his bonus money to Olympic Aid and challenge his countrymen to give 10 kroner each for every Norwegian gold medal, inspiring his government and fellow citizens to give $18 million over 10 days (page 70). For this as much as anything else, SI named Koss its 1994 Sportsman of the Year, an award he shared with U.S. speedskater Bonnie Blair. My colleague E.M. Swift wrote the story about the Olympic champion from Norway with a "headful of dreams and almost a lifetime in which to accomplish them."

We were now 16 years into that life left to live. When I saw Koss at the Richmond Oval, I asked, How goes the battle?

Sport, Koss replied, is doing nothing less than trying to save the world. Olympic Aid, since renamed Right To Play, now reaches 700,000 children in 20 countries during any given week. But Koss's outfit is only one player among hundreds in a burgeoning global movement. Today the field known generally as Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) extends well beyond nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) such as Right To Play. It attracts growing support from foundations and corporations, while governments and international agencies are eager to serve as partners to groups on the ground. And as the effectiveness of programs is more precisely measured, SDP's value as a tool for good is becoming more widely acknowledged. Even the stodgiest onlookers agree that sport "plays the hidden social worker," in the words of former champion miler Sebastian Coe, now chairman of the London 2012 organizing committee.

That is a good thing, for almost half the world's population is considered poor, and a full 1.4 billion people—one fifth of humanity, including more than half of all Africans—are extremely poor, living on less than $1.25 a day. As maladies of plenty such as obesity, diabetes and heart disease afflict the developed world, and elite pro sports reek of excess, SDP is a sobering counterpoint, spreading health messages, pacifying communities in conflict, preparing refugees for resettlement and providing what experts consider the simplest means of promoting development: improved status for women. At the turn of this century, when the U.N. drew up its Millennium Development Goals to cut extreme poverty in half by 2015 and eliminate it entirely by '25, Koss and Right To Play led the way in determining how sport could best help.

On the morning of the 2010 Olympic opening ceremonies, across Vancouver at a symposium at the University of British Columbia, the former Canadian ambassador to the United Nations, Stephen Lewis, delivered a confession. Lewis, who had served the U.N. secretary general as an anti-AIDS adviser, had long been skeptical of the value of sports. But SDP had won him over. "[Koss] understood early that you could use play to convey messages that aren't available anywhere else," Lewis told his audience. "Sport has become a development philosophy. Who would have imagined that to be possible? What began as an instinct has now become a profound social cause."

I wanted to see how, exactly. So after the dousing of the Vancouver flame, I lit out for far corners of this Imperfect World in search of other friends of sport who, like Koss, had broken from their bubbles to heed the Adagio call of Lillehammer.

RIO DE JANEIRO

It's not a classic hillside slum, but Complexo da Maré is easily one of Rio's largest favelas—a sprawling neighborhood of 135,000 people hard by the route visitors will travel between the airport and the beaches when they come to this city for the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics. Rival drug gangs recruit kids as foot soldiers and sort out differences with gunplay. Luke Dowdney has driven me into the favela beneath weltering electrical wires and past huddled walk-ups. He parks our car and we stroll a block. A boy of no more than 15 preens in an intersection, automatic weapon slung over one shoulder.

Dowdney, a former British universities light middleweight boxing champion, came to Brazil in 1995 to study street children in the northern city of Recife for his dissertation in social anthropology. He was haunted by the murder of two kids he had grown close to and by the words of a 12-year-old drug trafficker who told him, "I'm going to die young, but I'm going to live well." One day a group of glue-sniffing boys asked him to show them some boxing moves. "When they'd get in a stance, they'd leave the glue behind," says Dowdney, 38, "and a light went off in my head."

In 2000, Dowdney founded a boxing and martial arts program in Maré called Luta Pela Paz, or Fight for Peace, and five years later he opened a training and educational center. On its first floor, boys and girls practice boxing, wrestling and the Brazilian martial art capoeira. In a suite of second-floor classrooms the same kids learn computer skills, citizenship and conflict resolution; they also practice martial arts in a third-floor matted dojo. Boxer Douglas Noronha, whose brother was shot to death in '01, is one of about 4,600 young Cariocas to go through the program. "You'd think I'd have become more violent," he tells me. "In fact, I've become a more controlled person. It's all about the self-confidence and discipline of not finding yourself in a position where, before you know it, somebody's got a gun."

Dowdney introduces me to another fighter, Roberto Custódio, who was 14 when his father was ordered out of the favela by a drug trafficker who was jealous of his relationship with a local woman. When he returned to look in on his family, which he supported as a bus driver, the drug lord settled the matter in his usual way, with bullets.

Figuring that fitness and martial arts would help him square accounts with his father's killer, Roberto turned to Luta Pela Paz. Then the unexpected happened. The program transformed his bloodlust into something altogether new. As he developed the discipline that boxing demands—and took the academic classes required of all participants—relatives marveled that his anger gradually drained away. Last October, Roberto, now 24, won the light welterweight gold medal at the Brazilian championships, and he is likely to qualify for the London Olympics as a welterweight. "Our program isn't just about getting rid of energy," Dowdney tells me. "It's also about rigor and values. The disciplined fighter will always beat the overwrought fighter. Luta means fight, but it also means struggle, in a good way."

Dowdney hopes to develop a funding stream from a new line of fightwear and lifestyle clothing called Luta (luta.co.uk). "If the line hits, it becomes the engine," says Dowdney, who runs a second Fight for Peace center in East London that has trained 1,700 boxers. "We're not about being a traditional charity. It's like boxing: You get out what you put in. If you're not trained, you don't win. That's life. You've got to step up."

Last spring, as a crew filmed a commercial for the Luta brand in a ring set up in a warehouse at the edge of the favela, a gunfight broke out between police and traffickers. The film crew dove under the ring for cover. That's what favela dwellers such as Roberto Custódio deal with. Says Dowdney, "Luta is about celebrating the real heroes in the favelas, young people born into extraordinary adversity who get painted as victims when they're actually aspirational heroes."

PORT ELIZABETH, SOUTH AFRICA

Tommy Clark figured his sojourn in Zimbabwe to play pro soccer after college would be a joyous homecoming. He'd spent part of his teens in that southern African nation while his father, former Scotland international Bobby Clark, coached Highlanders F.C. in Bulawayo. But what he found upon returning in 1992 left him mystified and heartbroken. Seven of his dad's finest players—seemingly invincible footballers whom Tommy had idolized—were dead or dying. Worst of all, no one dared say why. "I was there for a year," says Clark, who also taught school and coached, "and I didn't have a single conversation about HIV."

Clark hit upon the idea of using soccer to break down this wall of silence and educate Africans about HIV. He embarked on a medical career, with a residency in pediatrics and a fellowship in HIV research in the U.S. In 2002, Clark launched Grassroot Soccer with three ex-Highlanders, including Ethan Zohn, the Survivor: Africa champion who donated a chunk of his $1 million prize money to the cause. Today the organization operates in South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe and shares curriculum and resources with partners in nine other African countries. Studies confirm that graduates of the program wait longer to engage in sex; have fewer partners; and are more willing to talk about HIV with peers and relatives, take an HIV test and stay on treatment if they test positive. Those proven results have attracted such patrons as Elton John, whose AIDS foundation contributed $1.4 million last year to fund the program in Zambia. There's no way to tie the 50% drop in the HIV infection rate among South African teens from 2005 to '08 directly to Grassroot Soccer, but foundations are showing their confidence in the program with more grant money. This week the Clinton Global Initiative announced a $1 million commitment to a Grassroot program for South African girls.

Among the organization's most effective tools are the voluntary counseling and testing tournaments that it uses to reach the men who drive the disease. Clark invited me to a tournament in Motherwell, a township in the South African city of Port Elizabeth. For years locals had hidden behind euphemisms, saying of an HIV-positive woman, "She has a House in Veeplaas," a play on the name of a local neighborhood. But there had been a breakthrough a week before my visit, when South African president Jacob Zuma—a father of 22 children by multiple wives—announced the results of his own HIV test. (They were negative.)

The grounds outside a school teemed with players who ducked into a makeshift clinic between games, and Grassroot personnel touted a posttournament dance contest to flush more prospects out of a nearby supermarket. By the end of the day 289 more people knew their HIV status. "Five years ago, if you'd bring up HIV, everyone would shut down," one of the tournament workers, 27-year-old Mkadi Nkopane, told me. "Now a 10-year-old will tell you of an uncle or mother who's positive. The stigma will always be there, but it's much less now."

As the game that launches countless conversations in Africa, soccer is a natural idiom to cut through the taboos surrounding one of the continent's most pressing problems. In one popular drill, each soccer ball stands for a sexual partner. A player dribbling two balls is easily chased down by a defender who represents the AIDS virus; a player dribbling only one ball eludes that defender much longer, and a memorable point is made. Grassroot Soccer distributed thousands of "red cards" during the 2010 World Cup to help teenage girls, who can be up to eight times more likely to become infected than their male counterparts, use sass and humor to fend off unwanted sexual approaches. "The culture soccer creates around this topic is our 'secret sauce,' " says Grassroot Soccer COO Bill Miles. "By focusing on intergenerational sex and multiple partners, you try to shift social norms. And if you shift social norms, you change the epidemic."

Clark and his fellow ex-Highlanders work in part to honor the dead of Bulawayo—men such as the former star of the Zimbabwean national team who was refused service by bank tellers because of the stigma of AIDS, and the ex-player who trained as one of Grassroot Soccer's first coaches only to die before he could work with kids. "We're trying to be both bold and humble," says Clark, 40, whose program is nearly halfway toward its goal of a million youth participants by '14. "We ask for millions of dollars, and we're trying to change behavior and norms on a huge scale. But we also know we're not always going to have the answer, and that there may be a better answer tomorrow."

TEL AVIV, JERUSALEM AND THE WEST BANK

When it ventures to global trouble spots, basketball can flash a kind of diplomatic passport. In South Africa, hoops comes without the racial baggage of soccer (a largely black sport) or rugby (mostly white). In divided Cyprus it's loved equally by citizens of Turkish and Greek descent. In Northern Ireland it's regarded as neither a Gaelic game by Protestants nor a game of the British garrison by Catholics. All of which helps explain the success of Peace Players International (PPI), which has spent the past decade using basketball to build bridges among young people in divided communities.

In the Middle East such efforts face a challenge of another magnitude. Upon launching there in 2005, PPI easily found Israeli Arabs to mix with Jewish kids in its programs. But Palestinian parents in the Israeli-controlled West Bank balked at letting their boys and girls travel to Israel for integrated play. Meanwhile, poor coaching and inadequate facilities in the West Bank led kids there to fear that their lack of hoops competency would only bolster Israeli stereotypes of worthless Palestinians.

On a brilliant spring day in 2010, Brendan Tuohey flashes me a smile as he oversees a PPI youth tournament in a Tel Aviv park. "Five years ago we decided to build up the skills of Palestinian kids," says Tuohey, a former player at Colgate whose brother Sean had the idea for the organization. "It's a big breakthrough that players from [the Palestinian city of] Ramallah chose to get on the bus to come here today."

Some parents on both sides of the Israel-Palestine divide still hesitate to let their kids enter PPI's programs—Jews out of safety concerns and Arabs because of cultural norms for girls. But the chance to get good coaching at no cost, plus uniforms and occasional travel, has enticed some 5,600 participants. "They all come for sport," PPI Middle East director Karen Doubilet tells me. " 'Meet the other side' is just something they put up with in order to do what they really want to do."

Children ages 10 to 14 participate in PPI's "twinning" program, in which Jews and Arabs at first practice regularly in their home communities, then combine into mixed teams under two coaches (one Arab and one Jewish) and meet weekly throughout the school year. At 15 they're eligible to become PPI coaches themselves; last season two teams of 15- and 16-year-old Arab and Jewish girls competed in the Israeli first division under the PPI banner. Meanwhile, in hoops-deprived parts of the West Bank such as Ramallah and nearby refugee camps, PPI continues to offer its "single-identity" program to boost the level of Palestinian basketball, provide constructive outlets for kids' energy and train coaches as leaders.

Once PPI gets them, most participants buy into the coexistence component. It's based on a curriculum, developed by a U.S.-based conflict-resolution think tank called the Arbinger Institute, that supplies strategies for exploring why one side stigmatizes the other and how to change those attitudes. "After Arbinger they might still clique up," says Heni Bizawi, who has played and coached in the program, "but according to different variables, like Jaffa versus Jerusalem instead of Arab versus Jew."

Peace Players has helped make a fan of Raneem Nashef, a 12-year-old Arab who lives in the West Jerusalem enclave of Beit Safafa. She'll wake up early to watch TV broadcasts involving her favorite player, Omri Casspi, the Jewish Israeli who plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Her mother, Lubna, who grew up despising the yellow and blue of Maccabi Tel Aviv, Casspi's old club, catches me by surprise: "My daughter feels Casspi represents her. She knows he comes from her part of the world."

In the seemingly intractable Arab-Israeli conflict, progress is measured in tiny steps. "A lot of people in my school don't like Arabs and don't know that I play PPI," says Naomi Goldstein, 14. "I don't tell them."

Amir Abu Dalu, 19, an Arab who's now a PPI coach, also keeps his counsel: "Otherwise I might get in trouble."

But a tiny step is a step just the same. First a bus ride, then a basketball game, ultimately the realization that someone you thought was your enemy makes a pretty good teammate. "In basketball it's easy to communicate," says Dalu. "You can play a game and connect, just like that."

TORONTO

Johann Olav Koss runs Right To Play out of Canada's largest city, and University of Toronto professor and former Olympic distance runner Bruce Kidd has been a reliable sounding board for him. I've turned up at Kidd's office because SDP is one of his academic specialties, and I'm looking for a sense of where the movement has been and where it might go.

In the 19th century, English-speaking exporters of sport, freighted with ulterior motives such as imperialism and evangelism, held attitudes strikingly different from those of Luke Dowdney, Tommy Clark and Brendan Tuohey. The Victorians took their "Games Ethic" from the playing fields of Eton and sent it overseas to "civilize" the ancestors of many of the very people engaged by SDP today.

Fast-forward to 1987, to Kenya and the Eastlands of Nairobi. A Canadian environmental worker named Bob Munro looks on as a handful of kids play with a soccer ball made of discarded shopping bags tied with bits of string. "Clean up the field," Munro tells them, "and I'll give you a real ball." Soon Munro launches the Mathare Youth Sports Association (MYSA), a soccer league with a blunt message: If you do something, MYSA does something; if you do nothing, MYSA does nothing. To join elite teams, players must pledge to perform thousands of hours of community service together each season. Those who organize cleanups, counsel peers in AIDS-prevention activities and coach or referee younger kids become eligible for scholarships. Teams can't take a field unless they clear it of trash—but earn points in the standings for doing so. Today MYSA, which is owned and run by the youths themselves and was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2003 and '04, touches 25,000 young Kenyans at any given time with nested-in-sport programs in community building, health education and environmentalism.

Kidd points out that the recent rise of SDP coincides with the fall of apartheid as much as it follows from the efforts of Koss and MYSA. Activists who had led the international sports boycott that helped bring down the South African regime—Kidd among them—essentially asked, "What do we do now?" They rallied to the answer that came back from their allies in the new Africa: "Help us build sport."

Today even those in sport's sunlit uplands are responding to that cry. When he stood before the IOC in Singapore in 2005 to deliver the final pitch for London's 2012 Olympic bid, Sebastian Coe pledged millions in aid for SDP to benefit 12 million people in 20 countries. The IOC chose London over Paris, Moscow, Madrid and New York City in large part because of that commitment to "legacy." In its winning bid for the 2016 Olympics, Rio also distinguished itself over rivals such as Chicago with a superior commitment to grassroots sport. With the most recent World Cup and Commonwealth Games having taken place in South Africa and India, respectively, and the next World Cup and Olympics ticketed for Brazil, a legacy component for the developing world is the new normal for major global events.

But Kidd is among many students of the movement who sound cautionary notes. "It's woefully underfunded and highly uncoordinated," he tells me. "And it's completely unregulated and largely isolated from mainstream development efforts." At international conferences dedicated to SDP, delegates from the developing world complain about Westerners who parachute in with things that aren't wanted or needed. As Right To Play spearheads the handoff of responsibility to locals, such as a 500-person team in Liberia led by a former refugee who first encountered SDP in a displacement camp, Kidd credits Koss with leading a move away from "a top-down, we-know-what-you-need approach with First World volunteers."

Before the Brazilian national soccer team visited Port-au-Prince in 2004 to play its Haitian counterparts, organizers proposed offering free tickets to those who turned in a firearm, only to cancel the plan at the last minute out of security fears. Even so, without a long-term violence-reduction campaign, such an event would have been a one-off with limited impact. "More attention has to be paid to context," Kidd tells me. "It's got to be sport plus. Sport plus education, sport plus health, sport plus peace-building." For all its networking and digital platforms, SDP's biggest challenge may be coordination. "In Zambia, I saw kids in slums who'd been trained five or more times by different NGOs, while just outside the city there was nothing," Kidd says. "NGOs aren't just fighting for donors, they're fighting for kids."

Or as Eli Wolff of Brown University's Sport and Development Project, who also coordinates the International Sport for Development and Peace Association, puts it, "There's been this boom, lots of networks and groups, but not really a professionalization of the field. There's no credentialing process or quality control, the way there is for teachers or lawyers. And there's the question, Is it effective?"

It's a familiar demand in sports: Show me the numbers. Is a program actually creating a positive outcome or just coinciding with it? "Because there's so much evidence that participation is a good thing, it's easy to assume that programs work," says Amy Farkas, a former sport-for-development specialist with UNICEF. "It's a lot easier to simply justify your program's existence than to do the hard work of justifying the impact of the intervention. That's why all sport-for-development programs need rigorous monitoring and evaluation."

Kidd believes the clamor for M & E, as it's known, can be taken too far. "People who have personal trainers, who choose schools for their kids based on athletic opportunities, tell us, 'Prove it! Prove that sport has benefits!' " he says. "That's where Johann has made a huge contribution. He continues to argue on the rights-based front."

But practitioners of all types recognize that funders are increasingly insisting on proof of results. "You're tempted to do sport for sport's sake, because it's fun," says Miles, the Grassroot Soccer executive. "We like it. But you have to show donors the outcomes."

CHICAGO

The Beyond Sport Summit is a three-day mixer for all sides of SDP's triangle—problem, practitioner and patron. It's a place to shake loose funding and inspire others, and it serves as the Grammys of the field, a place to call attention to deserving programs. Dowdney, Clark and Tuohey turned up for the 2010 edition in Chicago, but so too did scores of first-timers, many with little more than a notion and a dream.

Since its founding in 2008, Beyond Sport, a London-based firm that helps match practitioners with corporate sponsors, has had a particular eye for the modest initiative that would have an enormous impact if only it could be replicated or scaled up. But even Beyond Sport can't recognize every worthy project. Cambodia, for instance, is a country whose 40,000 amputees, victims of some of the millions of mines laid during a decade of war, were long considered unemployable. Now more than 60% of the players in the Cambodian National Volleyball League-Disabled (CNVL-D), mostly demobilized soldiers from both sides of the conflict, hold jobs. Even more notably, with its sponsors and broad fan following, the league has so transformed public attitudes that many disabled Cambodians, athletic and not, now wear shorts to show off their prostheses. A league like the CNVL-D could flourish in virtually any postconflict part of the world.

Moving the Goalposts is another initiative ready for its scale-up. It offers soccer to Kenyan girls, who are much more likely than boys to be HIV-positive. The program distributes packs of sanitary pads imprinted with health messages, but it operates only in the coastal region of Kilifi—which invites the question, What if it had the funding to expand throughout sub-Saharan Africa?

Similarly, in barely five years Globalbike has touched the lives of some 400,000 people by supplying bicycles to frontline aid workers in Africa and Asia. A microfinance loan officer serving village artisans in Ethiopia, an engineer working to ensure clean water in Bolivia, a health worker delivering vaccines in Zambia—each can see three times as many people and carry five times as much equipment by bike as on foot. A U.S.-based pro cycling team spreads word of Globalbike's impact so far, which suggests what could be accomplished if tens of thousands of bikes were delivered to the field.

No one in the developing world wants to depend on Western aid, so much buzz in the halls and breakout rooms in Chicago was about programs that have come up with their own revenue streams—groups such as Grupo Desportivo de Manica in Mozambique, a soccer club turned community hub that is building Futeco Park, three pitches girdled by 1,500 trees flush with mangos, lychees, oranges, avocados, guavas and papayas, which members will harvest and sell to fund the club's activities.

Indeed, there's a salutary realism amid all the idealism. John Sugden, an English sociologist who pioneered the "twinning" concept 25 years earlier with a mixed-faith soccer team in Belfast during the height of the Troubles and who is now the director of Football 4 Peace, doing in the Middle East with soccer what PPI does with basketball, puts it both wryly and well: "It's not as if you can sprinkle the pixie dust of sport and everything's going to be fine."

But sport does have its bewitching power, and for evidence a skeptic need only look at South Africa. Even in solitary confinement Nelson Mandela knew that many of his fellow black nationalists played soccer during their captivity on Robben Island. As he heard how the future leaders of his country brought the game to life with their own meticulously run Makana Football Association (MFA), Mandela recognized that soccer brought them to life—and he could imagine them in turn taking the obligations of democracy seriously. Since the fall of apartheid, former MFA players, referees and officials have served as South Africa's president, defense minister, minister for safety and security, deputy chief justice and sports minister, as well as provincial premiers and members of parliament. In prison Mandela began to recognize a truth he would articulate decades later as a free man: "Sport can create hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down barriers. Sport has the power to change the world."

Mandela would demonstrate this masterfully as president of the new nation. Aware of the hold of rugby on the Afrikaaner imagination, he enlisted white captain François Pienaar to help him rally citizens of all races around the national team, the Springboks—long a symbol of white-minority rule—for the 1995 World Cup, which South Africa hosted and won. Says team manager Morne du Plessis of the story told in the film Invictus: "The very game that kept us apart for so long, he used to unite this country."

Thus modern South Africa owes its existence as a functioning, multiracial democracy partly to the braiding together of two epic sports stories—one from a largely black game, the other from a historically white one. Considering that sport, through the international boycott, helped do away with apartheid, it's not a bad showing for a few decades' work in one small corner of the globe.

Emmanuel Madonda grew up in Durban, South Africa's fourth-largest city, and now works for the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. "I was 14 at the time of the '95 Rugby World Cup, and it was a pivotal moment for my country," he tells me during a break in the conference. "But even more powerful is the ongoing delivery of programming, of working deeply with young people. In Zulu we have this concept of ubuntu: 'I am because you are.' That is the essence of it."

Today sporting ubuntu extends from the street kid in Rio who, thanks to boxing, is transformed from avenging tough into potential Olympian; to the African AIDS orphan who, thanks to soccer, has a better chance of living long enough to raise children of her own; to the Arab girl in West Jerusalem who, thanks to basketball, feels bound to the fortunes of a Jewish Israeli player in the NBA. Yes, we look up to Mandela and Pienaar, and to former NBA star Dikembe Mutombo, the Congolese seven-footer who built a $29 million hospital in his hometown of Kinshasa and received Beyond Sport's Humanitarian in Sport Award. We will always look up, because as fans it's in our nature to do so.

But as human beings there's something else in our nature, which leads us to look around. Our eyes meet those of others, whom we engage as opponents, teammates, collaborators, neighbors and there-but-for-the-grace-of-God versions of ourselves. As Mutombo told the gathering in Chicago, quoting a proverb of his people: "When you take the elevator to the top, please remember to send it back down so someone else might use it."

Find this article at:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1190627/index/index.htm

THE POWER IN LIVING FOR THE OTHER

2011-09-21T12:12:00.002-07:00

Here's a couple questions I daily wrestle with in light of Paul's words about Christ's model and passion for us to pursue the unselfish life in Philippians 2:1-11...I shared these with the women's volleyball team at a pre-game devotion this afternoon:

#1) Do I trust in what Christ has done on my behalf enough that I don’t have to be obsessed with proving to everyone else watching that I am popular, successful, and worthy of love?

#2) Do I trust in the principle that God will honor and lift me up in life if I choose to put someone else and their needs before my own?

Honoring A Former Player at a Soccer Game

2011-09-14T06:43:00.001-07:00

Here's the text of something I shared yesterday as we honored those who have served our country...we loved wearing our special warm up shirts and sharing this day with one of our former players who is serving in Afghanistan right now...

Thanks for coming to the first home CU men’s soccer game of the 2011 season. We are excited for a great season ahead filled with lots of great soccer action on our home pitch. We are also excited today to honor a very special group of people at today's match. The men’s team is wearing special warm up camouflage shirts today to honor those who have and are currently serving our country as members of our military community. Written across the guys’ shirts is the team motto, the word Kopion, a Greek word that means working to the point of exhaustion for your cause and your team. There is no other group that embodies the Kopion spirit better than our armed forces as they protect and serve our nation and people around the world. The CU soccer team especially remembers and is grateful for the service of one of our former teammates and friends. Dan Kerstan was our starting goalkeeper who decided after his sophomore year to become an army ranger in the summer of 2010. Dan was one of the hardest working players in our program and was deeply involved in our team’s global service work in the Dominican Republic. Dan’s love for children and for justice in our world has led him to Afghanistan where he is currently stationed and is on the front lines in securing peace and safety and freedom for his fellow officers and the people of Afghanistan. We miss Dan every day but couldn't be prouder of what he is doing as our teammate and brother on our behalf. It is an unbelievable privilege and surprise to many of us to have Dan here today with us, as he is taking a bit of R and R time before returning to his post in Afghanistan later this month. Will you give him and all of our other military officers your thanks for their service with a round of applause? Thank you very much! Will you pray with me as we take a moment to pray for Dan and all those serving with him around the world today?

Why Student Leaders are Important by Doug Franklin

2011-09-13T07:21:00.000-07:00

Here's a thought I resonate with from one of the leaders I respect deeply when it comes to engaging students and helping equip them for impact in our world...it is especially interesting in light of Dave Kinnaman's new book coming out on the generation of Christian students that has left the church in their years following high school:

So much is being said about students dropping out of church. Many are leaving at the end of high school and not returning until their mid 20s or later. The question we as youth workers must ask is: “Why did they leave in the first place?” Believe me; I am not looking to place blame. I just want to know what is affecting these students and what our ministries can do to stop it from happening.

I believe the answer to “Why” is found in what students identify with. Do your students see their youth group as a ministry of the church to students or as the students’ ministry to the world? The question is an important one because it’s the difference between just attending and being owners. Owners don’t walk away. They have an investment, a stake in the goal.

Student ministries need to make owners of students.

Here's the link to Doug's Blog and this post:
http://www.dougfranklinonline.com/student-leadership/why-student-leaders-are-important/?utm_source=LeaderTreks+E-blast+-+Everyone&utm_campaign=0ceb0f4f90-E_blast_May_18_20115_17_2011&utm_medium=email

How Not to Hate America After Missions By Curt Devine in REJECT APATHY

2011-09-09T05:45:00.000-07:00

In about 10 days, we will kick off our annual Global Opportunities Week at CU...I love watching students get excited about joining God in His work around the world, and it is a major recruiting time for our spring and summer global mission/vision trips...I'm excited to take my first team over to Zambia...the impact of a trip like this is often life-altering...and yet there's often a huge tension coming back to the States...I appreciated these thoughts from the fantastic new website Reject Apathy below:

As I step into the church, bass booms against my chest. Neon lights reflect off the worship leader’s guitar as he sings, “There is no one like our God,” with an Auto-Tuned effect on his voice. I feel slightly uncomfortable. As the song builds, my friend turns to me and says: “Doesn’t this sound amazing? They just spent $300,000 on a new sound system.” I oddly laugh with a hint of anger. I’m now back in an American megachurch, yet I can’t help but think about the third-world churches I visited this year—the ones with one Bible, no electricity and a lot of passion. I think about the impoverished faces I met—the toothless street children in Nepal, the drug addicts in Kenya and the young prostitutes lining the streets of Thailand. I’m torn by the contrast. Even though I want to worship, I only feel bitterness.

Coming back to America after experiencing third-world missions is no easy process. I recently finished the World Race, an 11-month missions trip to 11 countries in Asia, Africa and Eastern Europe, and while I’ve loved being home with hot showers and cold air-conditioning, the transition has been rough. It’s so easy for me to judge friends when they drop $100 on a night out, thinking, “That could feed the homeless boy I met in Tanzania for a year,” or to think I’m better than the guy with a Lexus because my Grand Am is barely worth a grand.

Last week, a friend even told me she woke up crying every day when she returned from Africa because she couldn’t stand the wealth around her. While everyone coming off the missions field will struggle to different degrees, none of us should become bitter, America-hating cynics. Here are a few reasons why.

Abundance is not a bad thing
The first day I woke up in my own bed after coming home, I decided to go to the grocery store for some breakfast. I found myself in the cereal aisle reliving the scene from The Hurt Locker, staring at an endless array of General Mills cartoons staring back at me. I’d forgotten America is a land of excess. We can choose from more than 50 types of deodorant, 115 kinds of toothpaste and now 1,000 channels on TV.

This conflict between excess at home and scarcity abroad can be a lot to handle. The temptation will always be to either hate the abundance of America, judging your community for its consumption, or to forget the poverty abroad and go back to the way you lived before your trip. The key is to live within the tension. As Christy Vidrine says in her book Unearth, “There is a balance between the humility of scarcity and the peace within excess.”

James the brother of Jesus writes that every good gift and every perfect gift comes down from above, meaning every good thing we have is from God. Therefore, the first response we should have to the excess around us should be one of thankfulness. God has given us food, water, shopping malls, restaurants and Venti Mocha Frappuccinos even though we don’t deserve them.

Our second response should be wise stewardship. I recently overheard a friend saying she has a closet overflowing with clothes, yet she complains she has nothing to wear. This reminded me of Jesus’ parable of the 10 minas, where a ruler gives 10 minas (large amounts of money) to his servants to steward. Some make wise investments and use the money well, while one servant hides his share in the ground. The master returns and reprimands this servant for doing nothing. In turn, if we have full closets, stocked refrigerators or fat bank accounts, we should look for wise opportunities to give those things to others and encourage our friends and families to do the same.

Maybe the reason God has allowed us to live in abundance is so we can be a blessing to those who don’t. If we live within the tension of American excess and global poverty, we can respond with thankfulness and generosity, thanking God for what we have and giving much of it away to those in need. In this way, abundance is a gift.
God is the same—there and here

When my team did ministry in Iringa, Tanzania, we partnered with a young teacher named Peter who seemed a little overexcited about America. He told us: “Wow, I’m so happy to be with a team from the U.S.A. I love American churches. I love American books. One day I will go to America and learn so much about God!”
I stared at him in disbelief, thinking, Does he really think America has more of God than Africa? I told him most of my friends couldn’t wait to come to Africa to experience more of God’s presence. He didn’t understand.

The truth is, we are all guilty of thinking the grass is greener on the other side. The misconception most of us buy into says that community, miracles and true passion only exist in the third world. On the other hand, much of the third world falsely believes effective ministry only happens with lots of money and high-tech resources. Jesus says something completely different. In Luke 17, he teaches His disciples not to listen to people who say, “Here it is” or, “There it is,” referring to the Kingdom of Heaven. Rather, He says, “The kingdom of God is in your midst,” meaning that experiencing God’s presence has nothing to do with where you are and everything to do with how you live with those around you.

I’ve had friends tell me America is different from other countries because of rampant consumerism and selfishness, however, the truth is, every country has its struggles and poses unique problems for those seeking God. In Ukraine, alcoholism runs rampant. In Thailand, the sex industry plagues hundreds of thousands. In Tanzania, theft and crime create serious problems. Every country uniquely needs God’s grace, but the good news is that He faithfully pours it out on those who seek them, no matter the place or time.

New chapters bring new opportunities
Honestly, I do miss the World Race. I miss my community of friends. I miss the adventure of not knowing what next month will bring. I crave those raw experiences with God, yet I have to trust that new seasons in life bring new opportunities for living and loving well. Whether you’ve recently experienced third-world poverty or you simply want a change in your life, the great thing is that none of us have to sink back into the empty routines we used to live in.

Here are a few helpful questions to ask yourself:
•If you had all the time, money and resources to make an impact on the world, what would you do?
•Now, with the limited resources and relationships you do have, what impact can you have on your local community? Or, what small steps can you make toward making a global change in the future?

America is not your enemy; it’s another opportunity. You don’t have to wait until your next short-term missions trip to experience God and share His love with others. Take the lessons and experiences you loved from your trip and reapply them to your dorm room, church or neighborhood. The adventure isn’t over.

Here's the link to this article: http://rejectapathy.com/worldview/columns/26085-how-not-to-hate-america-after-missions

SOCIAL JUSTICE VS EVANGELISM--Maggie Canty-Shafer--NEUE MAGAZINE

2011-09-07T08:22:00.000-07:00

Here's a good read from the recently released first issue of REJECT APATHY...a great resource I gave to all our new students at CU during orientation...

There's always been tension between doing good deeds and sharing the Good News.

The underground railroad was a social justice movement that led thousands to freedom long before slavery was abolished. Organized primarily by Quakers, white evangelicals and black churches, many risked everything to host and care for the runaway slaves, working together to answer a truly biblical call.

The same call heard now.

Social justice is a complex subject for Christians. No one can disagree that Scripture commands to love the poor and oppressed, but what that looks like practically today is largely debated and at times ignored. As the world becomes increasingly more globalized and information more accessible, awareness along with responsibility has grown.

This responsibility comes multiple fold. Why, how and even if we combine social justice with evangelism is an ever-evolving discussion that must be considered from a local and global level. Both the individual and the church must play a role for the Body to have the impact Scripture intended—an impact we’re capable of but nowhere near.

The Two Sides of Holistic Ministry

Dr. Ron Sider, a professor of theology and author of Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger, doesn’t believe structural change is complete without sharing the Gospel. Referring to the active combination of word and deed as “holistic ministry,” Sider says that without social works, evangelism appears to be all talk. But without sharing the hope and good news of the Gospel, ministry lacks the Holy Spirit’s transformative power. Neither side of social justice ministry is complete without the other.

“People are both spiritual and material beings,” Sider says. “Addressing only half the problem only gives you half of the solution.”

This doesn’t mean the Gospel should be forced, Sider says. Offering to pray for those being ministered to or sharing evangelism through friendship can reveal Christ—without giving the impression that the material items given to them come from a place of self-righteousness or have strings attached.

“Each of us has contributed to the pain and suffering and decay in the world,” Sider writes in an essay on holistic ministry. “We thus serve with a posture of gratitude and humility, acknowledging our own brokenness before the cross. We recognize that ministering Christ’s wholeness to others is part of what makes us whole.”

But ministering the wholeness of Christ comes with a cost. With the average churchgoing Christian giving less than 3 percent of their income, the Church is lacking the necessary resources to make the changes the Gospel demands. Most Christians, Sider says, could afford to give 10 to 20 percent. And that disparity could mean a world of difference.

“We’re doing significant things, but the amount is pitiable. If Christians were giving what they are called to, we could vastly increase change,” he says. “We know how to reduce poverty—it’s just a matter of resources.”

The problem could possibly be starting from the pulpit. Fewer than one in 50 preachers stress responsibility to the poor as much as the Bible does, Sider says.

“God has a special concern for the poor, there’s no question about it,” he says. “If you don’t care for the poor and oppressed folk, then you’re not a biblical Christian.”

The Collaboration of Callings

One person whose life’s work is to care for the poor is Shane Claiborne. The Kingdom isn’t something Claiborne hopes for when he dies—it’s something he’s building now.

As a hands-on social justice activist, the author and Simple Way founder believes solutions must begin with relationship. Person-to-person contact is what will eventually lead toward reconciliation between the oppressor and the oppressed.

“It’s tempting to have virtual movements without roots on the ground,” he says of today’s society. “It’s often easier to care about the invisible children more than those right next to us. But without the relationship, it’s like eating virtual food: You end up starving.”

Acknowledging the call on each Christian’s life to be active in social justice, Claiborne believes much of the beauty of God’s plan is in the combined roles each individual can take, based on their own unique calling.

Claiborne references something the famous writer and theologian Frederick Buechner said about calling: “You have to ask yourself, ‘Where do my greatest gifts intersect with the world’s greatest need?’”

Changing How We Make a Change

Living in a community that cares for those nearest them, prays together, eats together and shares a love for God’s people has given new monastics like Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove—an author, speaker and minister—a glimpse of what it looks like when people stop building walls and start building bridges. The emphasis on community is key. Although it’s necessary at times, individual activism, Wilson-Hartgrove says, can sell Jesus’ original intentions for the Church short.

“The Church is Jesus’ plan for saving the world—which includes redeeming its broken social structures,” he says. “A conscientious objector to war is one thing, but a community of people who live peaceably together and do not return evil for evil is a more powerful witness, I think.”

In agreement with Sider, Wilson-Hartgrove believes social justice and structural justice cannot be separated when introducing God’s just order.

“Jesus doesn’t start a popular movement to take Jerusalem or Rome and institute God’s new order,” he says. “We’re practicing social justice when we invite friends into relationships of economic sharing. We’re practicing it when we live as communities of hospitality to those who are homeless. Jesus says the Kingdom is here—right here, right now—and you can begin living it.”

If the Kingdom is indeed here and now, then so must be the effort to increase the effectiveness of the Christian response to social justice crimes in the world today. For significant and lasting change, the solution must address the structures, it must have a long-term goal and it must always be a face, not a number. Whether giving shelter to people who need it, like those along the Underground Railroad years ago, or befriending the homeless in our city, that face must be His who called us in the first place.

Here's the LINK:
http://neuemagazine.com/blog/6-main-slideshow/1308-social-justice-vs-evangelism

HUMILITY: The Key to Great Leadership--Adam Jeske

2011-08-21T19:49:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago John Dickson spoke at the Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit. Here’s what he had to say about humility that I think is a huge concept leaders must embrace for true and real Kingdom impact...

Humility is the noble choice to forgo your status and use your influence for the good of others before yourself.

Humility will not automatically make you great. And being great will not make you humble. Humility makes the great greater.

Here are five characteristics of humility:

1. Humility is common sense. None of us is an expert in everything, so we understand our limits and thus need humility. Within the Church, because the Bible trumps all other knowledge, Christian leaders sometimes think they know about topics and fields way outside their area. Actually, what we don’t know and can’t do far exceeds what we do know and can do.

2. Humility is beautiful. We are more attracted to the great and humble than to the great who know they’re great and want us to know it, too. It’s not always been so. Our research found that a humility revolution took place in the first century, stemming from Nazareth. We found it was Jesus’ crucifixion that changed how ancient people thought about humility. Crucifixion was the lowest possible ending to life. “So did Jesus’ death mean he wasn’t as great as we thought he was?” No, they decided, and they redefined greatness, through humility. Western culture has been profoundly shaped by the cross of Christ. Our culture is profoundly cruciform. Philippians 2:38 has had a profound effect.

3. Humility is generative. It leads to new ideas. Humility has been formative for scientific investigation and for business theory and practice. The humbling place is where flourishing happens.

4. Humility is persuasive. That’s because the most persuasive person is the one who you know has your best interest at heart. If someone serves you tea, you may be more easily convinced by them later because of their demonstration humility through their service.

5. Humility is inspiring. If someone is aloof, you don’t feel like you can really follow in their footsteps, as you’re too different. We just admire them. But if someone is humble and open, we feel we can be like them. They are human enough. Some of the most inspiring leaders in history had no structural authority. Jesus comes to mind.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A List of Top 37 Leadership Quotes from the Global Leadership Summit

2011-08-20T12:22:00.000-07:00

Quite the list of quotes from the can't miss event at Willow Creek...which I missed this year...so I am glad for a look at these words...

1.We live in a world that’s crying out for better leadership. @billhybels
2.Nothing rocks forever. @billhybels
3.If you can’t predict the future, create it. –Len Schlesinger
4.Little bets and baby steps make all the difference. –Len Schlesinger
5.The world you see outside of you will always be a reflection of what you have inside of you. @corybooker
6.Who you are speaks so loudly I can’t hear what you say. @corybooker
7.Catalytic events are never nice, easy, or comfortable. @revdocbrenda
8.Pray for a divine mandate, name your catalytic event, mobilize people to go! @revdocbrenda
9.Competence is no longer scarce. –Seth Godin
10.I’m not a psychopath—I’m wearing a tie! –Seth Godin
11.There’s no map for being an artist. –Seth Godin
12.If it’s worth doing, why aren’t you doing it now? –Seth Godin
13.The world is begging for you to lead. –Seth Godin
14.To love is to give, to give until it hurts. –Mama Maggie Gobran
15.I’m just dumb enough to believe God can do anything. @stevenfurtick
16.If the vision isn’t overwhelming to you, it’s probably insulting to God. @stevenfurtick
17.One of the reasons we struggle with insecurity is because we are comparing our behind-the-scenes with others highlight reels. @stevenfurtick
18.If we aren’t careful we can become addicted to the narcotic of success and growth. @billhybels
19.I don’t know a single leader who ever regretted taking a tough assignment from God. @billhybels
20.May God grant that we are worthy to stand beside sisters and brothers standing in faith in the hard places. @wess_stafford
21.In silence you leave the many and are with the One. –Mama Maggie Gobran
22.We choose whether to be a nobody or a hero. –Mama Maggie Gobran
23.I would much rather deal with anger than apathy. @m_rhee
24.Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. @m_rhee
25.People are either wise, fools, or evil. You must deal with each differently. @drhenrycloud
26.It takes guts to do what leadership requires when you’re dealing with a fool. @drhenrycloud
27.Humility is the noble choice to forgo your status and use your influence for the good of others before yourself. @johnpauldickson
28.Humility is beautiful, generative, persuasive, and inspiring. @johnpauldickson
29.Enter the danger. @patricklencioni
30.People are hungry for those who will tell them the kind truth. @patricklencioni
31.Your job is not to look smart. It’s to help your team do more and better. @patricklencioni
32.The only thing worse than someone farting in a meeting is someone pretending they didn’t fart in a meeting. @patricklencioni
33.We, the Church, need to become cultivators of human potential and narrators of the human story. @erwinmcmanus
34.We need a revival of great storytelling. Whoever tells the best story wins the culture. @erwinmcmanus
35.Sometimes the truth is lost in a bad story. @erwinmcmanus
36.An ordinary human has never been born. But most of us die as tragically ordinary humans. @erwinmcmanus
37.Evil men don’t ask permission to create the future. @erwinmcmanus

Entering Consumer Detox by Mark Powley

2011-08-18T11:58:00.000-07:00

Loved this little piece from the book CONSUMER DETOX...isn't it what we all struggle with in so many ways almost every day?

"What I want," Lydia implored, "is for you to make me stop wanting the next summer fashion collection."

She was a young—early 20s, maybe—serious-minded Christian desperate for freedom from the shopping-mad culture all around.

I know how Lydia feels.

"Buy me!" screams the book on Amazon. "Dive in!" calls the beach from paradise on the travel advert. And the more subtle stuff, too: I desire films to help me to relax; I desire a car so I'm not restricted in my options; I desire food because—well, because it's just food. And yet all the time the "holy" guilt inside my head screams, "Desire is bad."

So what did I say to Lydia?

"No."

I said no. I can't stop her from desiring.

Why not? Because it's impossible. In fact, it's undesirable. God made you to desire. God is a desiring being. He desires you, for starters. And He made you in His image. So desire is part of who you are, and it can't be switched off.

So ... desire is good? Not exactly. Our addiction to stuff has unhealthy side effects. It doesn't truly satisfy—we have nearly three times as much stuff as our grandparents, but on average we're no happier than they were. It's not good for the planet. And it tends to make us just that much more self-obsessed.

The problem isn't the fact that we desire—it's what we desire. "Why are you working so hard and worrying so much about stuff that just isn't going to last?" Jesus asked. Don't stop desiring; desire the Kingdom. Seek that and everything else worth having will come with the bargain (Luke 12:29-34). If there's nothing at stake, our hearts are not engaged. If we're not risking anything real, our desire isn't going to follow. In other words, where your treasure is, there your heart will be.

Christianity has been called a personal relationship or a religion of the heart. But the heart is just where consumerism wants your faith to stay. It's a well-worked deal: Let God have your heart and consumer society will effortlessly take up the rest—your politics, your relationships, your finances, your fears, your habits and your imagination. Whether your Christianity is megazealous enthusiasm or chilled-out faith tourism, consumerism doesn't care. As long as your faith stays in your heart.

But Jesus wasn't interested in this kind of deal. He deliberately calls people to act in ways that evoke their desire; He calls out their heart by summoning them to action. He invites them to put their treasure where they want their heart to be.

James K. A. Smith describes this tellingly in his book Desiring the Kingdom. He writes that some practices are "identity-forming" in that they "get hold of our core desire." For instance, we may not feel that our shopping habits, film viewing and web surfing affect us that deeply, but all the while they are "grabbing hold of hearts and capturing imaginations, shaping our love and desire and actually forming us in powerful ways." To be a follower of Christ is to be on a journey where heart and life and possessions all get pulled along in the direction of the Kingdom.

So what kind of habits can reshape our desires? There are many: Sabbath worship with all our soul and strength; sharing life with other Christians; practical action for the poor, and many more. But Jesus did prescribe one particular habit to remake the desires of would-be disciples with plenty of stuff to their name: sell your possessions.

In fact, in Luke's Gospel. every time someone increases their possessions, it coincides with moving away from the Kingdom. Bigger barns, new fields, new oxen—it didn't matter what it was; their hearts were just following their newly acquired stuff. But to His followers, Jesus said "sell your possessions" and "those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples" (Luke 12:33 and 14:33).

There's no point turning this into a new law—our response should be Spirit-inspired, grace-filled and creatively unique. But this is definitely a call to action. So what could that possibly look like?

Idea one: sell your possessions. Call me a fundamentalist, but why don't we actually try what Jesus said? A few years back, I realized I had never sold anything to give the money to the poor. So I decided to make a sale—my high-tech keyboard. I can't say it didn't hurt, but I was amazed at how freeing it was. And four years later, in answer to a prayer, God gave us a piano for free. So sell something. Go crazy-sell two things.

Idea two: change tracks. A friend of mine did this. He was a successful management consultant in London, a bright guy with a bright future. But it turns out he was on a different track. At first it was just that he had an older car than most colleagues. Then he started sharing his budget with friends as a way of being accountable. Before long he negotiated a four-day week so he could serve his local church. Little steps, one thing at a time, but God was remaking the shape of his life. And where is he now? In Pakistan with his wife and kids helping to start microfinance initiatives.

It's not the destination that counts, though. It's the journey—the willingness to let the Kingdom change your desire, your habits and even the shape of your life. It begins with the smallest of steps, but where it will lead you, who can say?

25 BOOKS EVERY CHRISTIAN SHOULD READ

2011-08-08T14:16:00.000-07:00

Here's quite the list from a new book by RENOVARE highlighting A Guide to the Essential Spiritual Classics:

1 On the Incarnation St. Athanasius
2 Confessions St. Augustine
3 The Sayings of the Desert Fathers Various
4 The Rule of St. Benedict St. Benedict
5 The Divine Comedy Dante Alighieri
6 The Cloud of Unknowing Anonymous
7 Revelations of Divine Love (Showings) Julian of Norwich
8 The Imitation of Christ Thomas à Kempis
9 The Philokalia Various
10 Institutes of the Christian Religion John Calvin
11 The Interior Castle St.Teresa of Ávila
12 Dark Night of the Soul St. John of the Cross
13 Pensées Blaise Pascal
14 The Pilgrim’s Progress John Bunyan
15 The Practice of the Presence of God Brother Lawrence
16 A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life William Law
17 The Way of a Pilgrim Unknown Author
18 The Brothers Karamazov Fyodor Dostoevsky
19 Orthodoxy G. K. Chesterton
20 The Poetry of Gerard Manley Hopkins
21 The Cost of Discipleship Dietrich Bonhoeffer
22 A Testament of Devotion Thomas R. Kelly
23 The Seven Storey Mountain Thomas Merton
24 Mere Chris tianity C. S. Lewis
25 The Return of the Prodigal Son Henri J. M. Nouwen

Knowing What's Happening in our World

2011-07-29T06:37:00.000-07:00

I feel a greater responsibility to know what's really going on in the world...outside my own suburban world and even the issues in our own nation...and here's a great help list from Lauren Seibert at ACTS World Vision group...I do love that we can be so educated about global issues and needs in this generation...and with seeking to be informed comes responsibility to share what we know and respond...

1. Check out these TV network series:

•CNN’s “Freedom Project” - launched March 2011; tells powerful stories that turn the spotlight on modern-day slavery
•PBS’s “Wide Angle” - created in 2001 as a response to the lack of U.S. in-depth international news coverage; covers international current affairs documentaries

2. Customize your Twitter account. Make your Twitter a constant flow of up-to-the-minute news and advocacy stories by following news organizations (@nytimes, @alertnet), humanitarian groups (@WorldVisionUSA, @SaveTheChildren), key activists (@NickKristof) and others like @NGOBuzz. Check out our lists:

3. Find apps for your smartphone or iPod. Call+Response has a great app that keeps you updated on interesting news stories about human trafficking and slavery. The ONE Campaign also has an app to keep you up to date. Browse around; see what other apps you can find!

4. Sign up for email newsletters from relief, development, advocacy, and other nonprofit organizations. You can sign up for biweekly activism updates from us at World Vision ACT:S; for World Vision eNews with its broader focus on disasters, development, and stories from the field; for the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting; for customized news reports from the Council on Foreign Relations, etc.

5. Download reports. Many major aid agencies and other nonprofits publish monthly, annual, or special reports. International Crisis Group publishes Crisis Watch every month to summarize the world’s most urgent conflicts; Save the Children has an annual State of the World’s Mothers report; W.H.O. has a World Malaria Report ; the State Department has a Trafficking In Persons Report.

Secretly Incredible Leadership by BOB GOFF

2011-07-19T20:21:00.000-07:00

A great post from a remarkable leader writing on the Catalyst website...I read this story in the Starbucks book I read this summer...and believe deeply in his leadership perspective...

These days, it’s tempting to size your impact on the world by how many Twitter followers you have. Or unique hits to your blog. Or people in your pews. Or revenue targets achieved. Or whatever. It’s always been this way, I guess, though the metrics we use are always changing.

I believe we’re all hardwired pretty much the same way—to want recognition and praise, to be affirmed for the good work we’re doing. There’s nothing inherently wrong with it, but too often we make praise the point.

I think God operates in a totally different economy, one that’s not dependent on optimizing search engines, percentages, or any other feathers in our cap. Instead, I think God’s smile is the biggest when we are secretly incredible and when our leadership changes one life or a thousand lives without a lot of fanfare.

There is an old friend of mine, Don, who’s since gone home to be with God—he was secretly incredible. Don was a cell biologist who loved to climb mountains, sleep in the woods, and race cars. He was also wicked-good at science and pioneered some new freeze-drying methods. He was a researcher at his day job but would work off hours to freeze dry all the foods he loved for his excursions into nature. What could be wrong with freeze-dried beef tenderloin while you’re dangling from one carabineer on a cliff face, right?

Secretly incredible Don loved good coffee. He couldn’t handle steeping packets of store-bought mix or the freeze-dried crystals your grandparents liked. So he worked his science magic on some really good coffee from a local coffeehouse near the pier in Seattle. After a few test runs on his freeze-dried home brew, he was soon taking this high-end stuff into the mountains and sharing it with his friends.

Word got out within a small circle of friends about this revolutionary stuff. Pretty soon, Don was making it for other hikers, enthusiasts and whoever wanted to up their coffee game on the trail or the cliff face or wherever.

It wasn’t long before a little coffee shop heard about his invention. Actually, by this point, it wasn’t a little coffee shop anymore. Howard Shultz, the founder of Starbucks, hired Don to head research and development for the coffee giant. So Don got to combine his gifts in science with his passion for delicious things and worked for Starbucks for many years.

For decades, while he worked on other projects, he kept trying to convince everyone that Starbucks should package his freeze-dried coffee and sell it to anyone who wanted it. But because Starbucks’ identity was based in an authentic, Italian coffeehouse experience, Don could never push it through. The freeze-dried stuff was just too much of a shift for the company. Fast-forward a little bit . . .

I’m skipping a lot of the story here, but late in his career and life, Don was fighting a losing battle to cancer, a battle that eventually took him. To commemorate his life and his contribution to Starbucks, Don Valencia’s secret creation was finally released as Starbuck’s Via.

Via was more than just a name that sounded pretty Italian, it was a subtle homage to Don’s last name, the first and last letters of it at least. Don probably wouldn’t have even wanted that kind of acknowledgment, really, but he would have been gracious and let them abbreviate it. I think he felt the same way when his short life was abbreviated.

Don was one of those people that made you feel braver and bigger whenever you were around him. He was an intense person, too, who worked hard and focused on the task at hand. Don was magnanimous, but he wasn’t bigger than life. He was just him—nothing more, nothing less. And he liked it that way.

As I look around, and as I look inside, so many of us are trying to seem bigger than life. We’re trying to get noticed, do something grand, invent something new, or change people’s minds. But what I learned from Don is that the real power of being secretly incredible is leaning into your own unique hardwiring. Being secretly incredible means knowing who you are and, perhaps more importantly, who you aren’t . . . then giving everything you have with a focus that is genuinely you.

I believe that God made us all to be slightly different. It’s when you partner with God in your uniqueness that you can really make a difference. It may not get you on the evening news or a hash tag that trends, but you’ll get something much better, much richer: true satisfaction.

It’s not our role to create the breadth of our impact—that’s up to God. Our job—our purpose in life—is to find out what God made us for and then do that with reckless abandon, with whimsy. The ironic thing is, when we find that sweet spot like Don did and we stop talking about it all the time with our friends on Twitter or our website or our pulpit or our board meeting, the praise and recognition we once sought won’t be on our radars anymore. We’ll have traded up weak praise for an unshakeable, soul-level satisfaction. If you can cultivate that, you won’t need the fanfare anymore. You will be secretly incredible. And those are the ones who God always seems to pick to change everything.

6 books I read on our summer trip to MN...

2011-07-04T19:15:00.000-07:00

I admit it. I am a book-aholic and have been for the last 35 years. I love making wish lists on amazon.com and requesting holds online at my local library website...So every summer when we head north to the lake and the quiet cabin my backpack is bulging with a bunch of books I've been dying to dive into when my days aren't filled with returning emails and phone calls and living a life that often doesn't allow for lengthy sessions with my books on my current to read list...

The weather was great in MN this year and here's what I devoured over 10 days in the north woods with some titles and a little de-brief thought...

1.New book on ESPN...browsed thru all the interviews of my favorite sports personalities just for fun...loved the parts on their work to promote and produce World Cup 2010 in South Africa...

2. Radical Disciple by John Stott...great little read on some practical and surprising ways we can embrace the life of a disciple in our world today by one of the theologians I respect and resonate with most...

3. The Extra 2% by Jonah Keri...fascinating read on how a bunch of young guns from Wall Street turned around the baseball team in Tampa quickly and brilliantly...

4. Leadership is Dead by Jeremie Kubicek...re-read a book I had skimmed through and passed on to my team at CU...great thoughts on influence and leadership focused on others...

5. Onward by Howard Schultz...the CEO's story of Starbucks over the last few years and before...lots of great stuff on building and re-building a culture and I discovered why I've always been drawn to the Starbucks brand when it comes to my coffee type and sites...

6. Tim Tebow biography...this guy is and was one of the most disciplined and focused people on the planet...there's no mistake as to why he's become who he's become...

I've actually still got a couple more books I'll take home in the backpack unread...hopefully I'll crank thru some more pages before the fall madness begins!

13 Documentaries Worth Seeing as a Different Type of Summer Movie Experience

2011-06-27T14:31:00.000-07:00

Here's a baker's dozen of documentaries worth checking out from the World Vision ACTS website...many of these films have served to break, educate, inspire, and bring reality home to myself and a generation of students seeking to figure out how and where the Kingdom needs to break through in our world today...

HUMAN TRAFFICKING

1. Call+Response, directed by Justin Dillon, explores the reality of modern-day slavery by merging investigative reporting (undercover in the brothels of Cambodia, interviews with prominent luminaries such as Nicholas Kristof and Cornel West, etc.) with musical response. Performances by artists such as Moby, Natasha Bedingfield, Cold War Kids, Matisyahu, Five For Fighting, Switchfoot and more show that music is also part of the movement against human slavery.

2. At the End of Slavery, by International Justice Mission (IJM), takes you inside the ugly business of modern-day slavery, from the brothels of the Philippines to the brick kilns of India. Undercover reporting along with testimonies from former slaves, experts, and modern abolitions both prove the harsh reality of the crime and offer hope for its end.

3. Very Young Girls, by Girls Educational and Mentoring Services (GEMS), explores the reality of sex trafficking in New York City. Young women, who were often as young as 12 or 13 when they were forced into prostitution and now struggle to leave “the life” behind, tell stories of extreme manipulation and abuse. The film also focuses on GEMS and its founder, Rachel Lloyd, a former prostitute who now dedicates her life to helping other women escape their abusers, heal, and get an education.

4. Invisible Children, shot in Africa by a team of three filmmakers in 2003, documents the reality of child soldiering in Uganda, where kids were forcibly recruited into the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).

5. Sex+Money: A National Search for Human Worth, follows a group of journalists as they travel across the U.S. investigating how the sexual exploitation of children has become “the nation's fastest growing form of organized crime” and how we can fight back.

HIV & AIDS

6. Tapestries of Hope exposes the Zimbabwean myth that raping a virgin cures HIV/AIDS. Check out our review of the film here: “Film Reveals Both Horror and Hope”

7. Angels in the Dust takes place in the midst of the devastating AIDS epidemic in South Africa, which has left thousands of children orphaned. Offering a ray of hope, the film tells the inspiring story of Marion Cloete, who left behind life in a wealthy Johannesburg suburb to build Botshabelo - a village and school that provides shelter, food, and education to more than 550 South African children.

8. A Closer Walk provides a broader look at the global AIDS epidemic by interviewing individuals from all over the world: Uganda, South Africa, Haiti, Switzerland, India, Nepal, Ukraine, Cambodia, and the United States. Their stories cover the broad spectrum of the AIDS experience - everything from AIDS orphans to doctors, social workers, human rights advocates, scientists, government leaders, and NGO officials.

9. The Lazarus Effect, a documentary by HBO, reveals the transformative effects ARV treatment can have on people and communities affected by HIV. The hopeful thread of this film shows the real impact - and the continuing need - of the large-scale AIDS programs being implemented in sub-Saharan Africa.

10. We Are Together: The Children of Agape Choir, told mainly through the eyes of a family of nine children who lost their parents due to AIDS, describes the creation of the Agape Child Center for orphaned children - and the resulting children’s choir that helped provide healing through music and led to a global journey.

MALARIA

11. Malaria: Fever Wars offers a global view of the malaria pandemic, discussing where in the world it occurs, possible cures, and what is (and isn’t) being done about it. Scientists, doctors, and many others offer their opinions on how to overcome this devastating infectious disease.

12. When the Night Comes, directed by Bobby Bailey, founder of Invisible Children, follows Bailey’s journey through with a small team through Northern Uganda to tell the story of malaria and examine its effects on children and families. Watch the full length free on Vimeo.

13. ACT:S to End Malaria is a short 12 minute video by ACT:S and RELEVANT magazine that tells the story of malaria and how we can do our part to help end malaria deaths by 2015. The film unearths malaria’s devastating ripple effects into economic and healthcare infrastructure, childhood development, school absenteeism, and more.

But I do not despair...By Adam Jeske, Associate Director of Communications for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA

2011-06-24T21:11:00.001-07:00

A great little piece from a guy who I loved meeting at CU last year...a voice worth listening to, especially due to how he and wife have lived what they write and say...

Close your eyes and imagine this…

Imagine if our culture was taken to the -nth degree, to its logical end.

Maybe Lady Gaga is president. Maybe digital devices hang in front of our faces, precluding any unmediated communication. Maybe our nations war over water. Maybe norms about intimacy and privacy have melted. And maybe our speech has deteriorated into grunts, slang, and chuckles.

If North American culture keeps it up, we could be in big trouble.

Our culture is infatuated with stars like Justin Bieber, and our top TV show is even called “American Idol.” We revel in Charlie Sheen “winning.” Our king is LeBron. Chatroulette and PostSecret spotlight our basest tendencies and hidden shames. College grades are inflated. Polar ice caps are melting. Our states are broke, and our nation is $14,421,378,214,947 in the red.

As consumers, we spend more than we make. Kids kill other kids. Yesterday, I heard the phrase “economic collapse” on the radio a few times. A friend of mine jokes that she’ll put her tent in our yard when it really hits the fan.

And that just may be in the United States. Think of international conflicts, malnutrition, malaria, HIV and AIDS, human trafficking, simple grinding poverty, and the vulnerable people (especially children) who take the brunt of it.

Holy smokes. I’m only 33, and I sound like a crotchety old man. My years overseas have held a lot of pain for me and for those near me. But I’m not a Chicken Little kind of guy — I do not despair.

Jesus came to this screwed up world. He died and rose to break the brokenness — of me, of you, of LeBron, of Gaga, and of the systems in which we swim. So I work to tell that Good News and to train up leaders for God, for good.

I work for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship.

We’ve served God for 70 years, now at 550 colleges and universities across the country. And God works through InterVarsity: By His grace, students and faculty members start following Jesus, the culture of institutions is shifted, and graduates head out to lead in every sector for Jesus, from education to business to medicine to technology to politics to families to nonprofits, and of course the Church.

InterVarsity alumni are leading all around the planet, along with our sister movements in the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students.

Jesus has saved and redeemed us. And now we serve so that others have that same opportunity, and so that we give God the maximum glory in every sphere we touch.

The work of InterVarsity’s campus ministry doesn’t result in bunch of ignorant, pie-in-the-sky Pollyannas. Rather, we have trained and sent hundreds of thousands of thoughtful, talented leaders into society (and around the world), with God and His priorities in the Bible guiding them.

Last week, I met with colleagues from InterVarsity and World Vision ACT:S about ways we can work together to encourage and equip the next generation of leaders who will follow Jesus, share Him with others, and seek His righteousness and justice.

And that is even better than President Gaga.

6 things to know at 20-something...

2011-06-20T19:24:00.000-07:00

A piece from the WORLD VISION ACTS blog written for college students...

Now that you’ve been around for about two decades, you know that what happens in high school isn’t the end of the world, that driving your parent’s old station wagon won’t really affect your social status, and that college homework is much harder than you thought it was going to be.

You’ve also been around long enough to know that meaningful friendships are the ones that last, that deciding your career path is an exhausting challenge, and that “growing up” and “living out your faith” is easier said than done.

Here are six things really worth taking seriously in your 20s.

1. Practice generosity. An easy way to think about generosity is to believe that it’s only for rich people. It’s only for people who have lots of spare change and too many clothes to fit in their drawers, for people who are 401K-secure and appear on TV shows like “Secret Millionaire.” But the fact is, generosity isn’t that.

Being generous doesn’t mean being rich. It means sharing what you have. In the same way you were taught to share your toys and goldfish crackers on the playground as a kid, you should also share your knowledge with your classmates, your wisdom with your younger siblings, your talents with the church, and your Top Ramen with your roommate.

2. Make it count. You know when they talk about the “glory” days? What they’re really talking about is right now. After all, 20ish can be one of the best, most fun times in your life. You can stay up ‘til three a.m. and eat Taco Bell every meal if you choose to. You can start a rock band (or just play “Rock Band”) and switch your fashion style with the season.

But let me tell you: there is nothing glorious about years of student loan repayments, no job, and no retained knowledge from your senior courses. What I’m saying is… being 20ish is not cheap. College is not cheap. So if you’re going to pay more money for school than you’ll probably make in your first five years out of college, then don’t waste it. Go to class. Get smart, and make it count.

3. Explore. When you were five, you walked across the street holding your mom’s hand. When you were fifteen, your dad nervously sat in the passenger’s seat as you took your first drive. But now that you’re 20ish, you’re more on your own than ever. Take this opportunity to explore and discover yourself, and explore again. In another 20 years from now, it might not be so easy.

Explore career paths and hobbies, travel destinations and volunteer opportunities, campus clubs and part-time jobs. Explore your likes and dislikes, your political and religious viewpoints. Maybe most importantly, explore your faith. Explore the reasons why you believe what you believe, and then stand up for them.

4. Don’t skip the rules for one night out. Being in college is one of the first times in your life that you are without ever-present parental control or your youth pastor’s moral supervision. You can do what you want when you want.

But just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should. Part of “growing up” is growing your ability to be able to discern the difference between right and wrong and when something isn’t worth it. Skipping the rules for [insert your own thought here] is one of those things that isn’t worth ruining your reputation over, being kicked out of school for, or compromising your moral integrity.

5. Making your parents proud still counts. This is one of those principles that’s way too easily ignored by young adults. It’s like the moment we get out of the house, and “on our own,” we think we’re invincible and that we’re only accountable to ourselves.

But we’re wrong. For most of us, at 20ish, our parents are still paying our cell phone bill and flying us home during Thanksgiving weekend. The truth is, our parents deserve much more of us. They deserve to be able to be proud of the daily decisions we are making. (And honoring your parents is a biblical mandate, too. “Honor your father and your mother…” –Exodus 20:12)

6. Dream big. Consider this: Every year, nearly one million people die because of malaria (Source: World Health Organization, Who.com). Now consider this: We could be the generation that actually ends malaria. To me, that’s not just a possibility that we live with… it’s a responsibility we have to make this world a better place.

You don’t have to be rich or old or famous to make a difference. You can be 15 or 50 -- it doesn’t matter. All you need is a dream big enough to chase. Look at organizations like Invisible Children, Krochet Kids, and TOMS Shoes. They were all founded by young people who dreamed big and pursued their dream to make a difference.

Our world needs young people who dream for an end to malaria, who dream of peace and unity and an end to poverty. It’s no longer the next generation’s job. It’s ours.

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. -Margaret Mead, anthropologist

.

SO MUCH MORE THAN EXPECTED: Being a Dad

2011-06-19T18:41:00.000-07:00

Occasionally there will actually be something in life that goes beyond my expectations and is greater than it is promoted to be...even in a media saturated and globally connected environment! Things like the grass in a major league outfield, the friendliness of an African village community, and the beauty of a Colorado mountain peak...

And there is absolutely no doubt that being a dad is at the top of this unique list...having Olivia and Trey as my two children is and continues to be a remarkable part of my life and faith and personal growth...I love them more than I imagined I would, I worry about them more than I should, I spend more time with them than I expected I would as they grow up, and I pray for them more than just about anything else...

On Father's Day today I am blessed because God has given me this responsibility and privilege to seek to control my frustration with their choices, to help them not become materially focused in a suburban world, to teach them what God says and longs for their lives without sucking the life out of following Jesus, and to set them free to become independent and mature and confident in a world that breeds insecurity, sarcasm, and not growing up as a way of life...

Being a dad is one of the highlights and joys of my life in these days...and I am so, so glad that it really is way more than I ever dreamed it would be...and that's why Father's Day is such a good day for me...

Selections from the book TRUE RELIGION...

2011-05-31T12:53:00.000-07:00

I recently finished reading Palmer Chinchen's book where he shared stories about taking pieces of heaven to places of hell on earth...

I loved the read as it was full of stories from places and peoples and moments in Africa...and it reminded me how much my life feels incomplete not having been able to travel there these past 2 summers...

Here's a few thoughts from the book that resonated with me as I read them:

PIECES OF HEAVEN...
*when you enter the grime of a city dump to wash children, you take a piece of heaven with you...
*when you hold a child orphaned by AIDS until she falls asleep in your comforting arms, you take a piece of heaven...
*when you take a mosquito net to the hut of an African family, you take a piece of heaven...
*when you give a barefoot man a pair of shoes, you give a piece of heaven...
*when you buy groceries for a family whose father has lost his job, you give a piece of heaven...
If places of hell exist, then in the name of Jesus, take a piece of heaven there.

SHALOM...
Let me tell what this world would be like if we all lived to share God's shalom and make the world just a little bit more like heaven:
*shalom means men would stop their cars when they see a guy pushing his car uphill...
*shalom means babies in Africa would sleep under mosquito nets...
*shalom means mothers in Haiti would make cookies for their children with flour instead of mud...
*shalom means husbands would never hit their wives...
*shalom means women in Ethiopia would no longer be sold for sex...
*shalom means women and children would never be chained to trees...
*shalom means girls would never be raped...
*and shalom means junior highers would never again sit alone at lunch...

The Cross and Suffering

2011-05-23T17:36:00.000-07:00

As I have been struggling with the sudden loss of my good friend and spiritual formation ministry partner Ryan Davis, I ran across these words I read a few years back from John Stott, who acknowledged that suffering is "the greatest single challenge to the Christian faith..."

I could never myself believe in God if it were not for the cross...In the real world of pain, how could one worship a God who was immune to it? In my imagination I often turn to the lonely, twisted, tortured figure of Jesus on the cross, nails through hands and feet, back lacerated, limbs wrenched, brow bleeding from thorn-pricks, mouth dry and intolerably thirsty, plunged in God-forsaken darkness. That is the God for me! He laid aside His immunity to pain. He entered our world of flesh and blood, tears and death. He suffered for us. Our sufferings became more manageable in light of His. There is still a question mark against human suffering, but over it we boldly stamp another mark, the cross which symbolizes divine suffering. 'The cross of Christ...is God's only self-justification in such a world' as ours.

Three Secrets to Developing Students Today by Tim Elmore

2011-05-19T06:48:00.001-07:00

One of the latest pieces from Tim Elmore on seeking to help this generation of students grow and mature through meaningful learning methods and experiences...

Kids today belong to a generation that’s never known a world without hand-held and networked devices. According to author Anya Kamenetz, “American children now spend 7.5 hours a day absorbing and creating media, about the same amount of time they spend in school.” What’s more, because kids have grown up multi-tasking they can cram 11 hours of content into those 7.5 hours. That’s more than a day at a full-time job. The truth is, it’s a new day. We have to figure out how to use this new world to develop a new generation.

Let me remind of you of something. Back in the 1960s, people bemoaned the vices of television. The American public became aware of how much time can be wasted in front of the tube, and worse, how damaging the violence, language and suggestive behavior can be to children. Eventually, however, some smart people began creating shows like “Captain Kangaroo” then “Sesame Street” and later “Blues Clues.” Based on research, producers recognized there were virtues in what many assumed was an “evil” medium. From “Sesame Street’s” debut in 1969, it changed the prevailing mindset about a new technology’s potential. People began to realize TV is neutral. It can be used for destructive or constructive purposes. Bingo. The same is true for today’s new technology. Handheld devices are at the same turning point, with an important distinction: they can be tools for expression and connection, not just passive absorption.

Take the “Smartphone” for example. It is a handheld device that’s simple to use and engages kids in their own learning process, at their own speed. Anya Kamenetz continues, “For children born in the past decade, the transformative potential of these new devices is just beginning to be felt. New studies and pilot projects show smartphones can actually make kids smarter.”

I have a question for you. Are you still teaching students the way you did five years ago? Whether you are a faculty member teaching a class of 300 freshmen college students, or a youth pastor with 20 kids in your youth group—you must be committed to engaging today’s student in a new way if you plan to flourish.

Case in point. In 2010, the U.S. Department of Education earmarked $5 billion in competitive school reform grants to aid pilot programs and evaluate best practices. Major foundations are zeroing in on handhelds for preschool and primary grade students. The students, as young as six, pick up the devices and immediately engage in solving the math games on them. When the application is in a foreign language, they’ll group up in communities of three and help each other figure out the menus. Kids actually begin teaching themselves. Teachers can track student’s progress through software on their laptops. Everyone wins. It’s a virtual “pocket school.”
“What’s at issue is a deep cultural shift, a fundamental rethinking not only of how education is delivered but also of what ‘education’ means, writes Kamenetz. The very word comes from the Latin ‘duco’ meaning ‘to lead or command’—putting the learner in a passive position.” It’s still teacher centered. We’re the active ones.

1. Problem Based Learning
PBL is brilliant because it incentivizes students. Growth doesn’t revolve around a lecture or sermon, but solving a problem. Dr. Galen Turner, at Louisiana Tech, has changed the way they introduce students to engineering. Faculty ask them to look around the world and choose a problem. Then, they must invent something to solve that problem. All their learning revolves around addressing a real-life issue. Suddenly, any lectures they hear are relevant.

2. Student Driven Learning
This is where education is going. SDL engages students because their progress centers around their own speed and ability. Karl Fish teaches freshman algebra to ninth graders in Aurora, CO. He switched how he leads his class. He puts his lectures on YouTube, since students are on that site each night anyway. His class is now more interactive, as he helps students with their homework, helping them think about how to solve problems. Karl calls this switch the “Fish Flop.” It’s working.

3. Experiential Learning
The term isn’t new, although most schools and churches still don’t practice it. Today, students need real, three-dimensional experiences in their learning process. The flat screens they interact with on their phones, computers and TV require authentic experiences with real people in real time to produce authentic maturity. In 1985, David Kolb provided helpful insights into what makes experiential learning so powerful: Experience, Reflection, Abstract Conceptualization, and Experimentation.

ONE.LIFE--A Few Thoughts from Scot McKnight's new book

2011-05-06T12:55:00.001-07:00

A couple pieces I loved from chapters 2 and 8 on Kingdom and Church Life in ONE.LIFE--Jesus Calls and We Follow, a new book worth your read by our graduation speaker at CU this year: (he's also an alum!)

WHAT IS A CHRISTIAN?

A Christian is one who follows Jesus by devoting his or her One.Life to the kingdom of God, fired by Jesus' own imagination, to a life of loving God and loving others, and to a society shaped by justice, especially for those who have been marginalized, to peace, and to a life devoted to acquiring wisdom in the context of a local church. This life can only be discovered by being empowered by God's Spirit.

KINGDOM

Jesus means this when He speaks of the kingdom:
God's Dream Society on earth, spreading out from the land of Israel to encompass the whole world.

God's Dream is UBUNTU...God's people living before God and with others in a way that embodied the will of God in a new kind of society...
*Kingdom is an interconnected society
*Kingdom is a society noted by caring for others
*Kingdom is a society shaped by justice
*Kingdom is a society empowered by love
*Kingdom is a society dwelling in peace
*Kingdom is a society flowing with wisdom
*Kingdom is a society that knows its history
*Kingdom is a society living out its memory
*Kingdom is a society that values society
*Kingdom is a society that cares about its future

An End of the Year Note to CU Students...

2011-05-04T19:38:00.000-07:00

A little note I wrote to be posted at the CU Facebook site:

Can you believe that it is May and another school year is finished at CU? I’m sure it has been a year filled with all sorts of things in your life and your time here in Grand Rapids…lots of group activities, research papers and exams, late-night events and conversations, a basketball national championship title, and hopefully the building of some great friendships and creating of life-long memories that are defining your college experience…

We have loved the privilege of being part of your Cornerstone experience as a team of servants all over this campus, and we love the reality that this is a place where God has started and is even building some remarkable dreams for your life…as another year at CU draws to a close know that there a few things we want you to know we will be praying for you all as you head into the summer of 2011…

*We pray that this summer will be a time of rest and renewal where you experience the presence of the God who made you and loves you…

*We pray you will have experiences that deepen and stretch your faith as you discover more clearly your role in God’s Kingdom work…

*We pray for God’s provision and protection and healing in your life in all areas…physical, emotional, spiritual, and even financial…

*We pray you will experience great joy in relationships with family and friends…

*And we pray you’ll know how much you as students are appreciated and valued by all of us at CU!

We will be counting the days till we see many of you back on campus next September, and we can’t wait to hear all that will happen in your lives as followers of Jesus in the next 4 months…we really do believe that the best is yet to come at CU and in your life as well!

And please, please keep in touch with us over the summer…we always welcome your phone calls or emails and would love to catch up in person if you are ever back on campus!

CHIP HUBER

Dean of Student Engagement

PHILIPPIANS 1:6… And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns…

Broken Bread Meal...and A Drive to a Turf Soccer Field in Grand Rapids

2011-04-29T12:51:00.001-07:00

Last week at CU we had a little different kind of dinner in a season of end of the year parties and banquets...we ate the meal that people around the world eat when they are able to find food distribution from an NGO or USAID program in the midst of hunger and poverty...

It's called the Broken Bread meal and several folks from our ACTS campus chapter and other globally concerned students ate this simple porridge in paper bowls on the floor in our student union...to be completely honest, it was prepared a bit thicker than it probably should have been, and for almost everyone in the group it was pretty tough to choke down...a lot of spoons were mixing it up over and over again as we read stats about the vast numbers of people dealing with malnutrition and the direct correlation between rising oil prices and food costs in the third world...it is honestly a pretty sobering and guilt-inducing time when you realize that you are caught in the struggle that you are used to food tasting good and wanting to be thankful as others are around the world for whatever God has provided...

As we sat eating and pushing our food around, I flashed back to a day a couple summers ago where I spent a morning at a little pre-school in rural Zambia...we spent part of the morning mixing porridge with some local women from the village who were selling it to the school to support their families and taking care of orphans of their own children who had passed away in the AIDS pandemic...and then we poured out good sized portions, honestly bigger than the ones most of us took last night, into plastic bowls that we hand-delivered to a packed classroom of 2-4 year olds...over the next couple minutes, we silently watched almost every single child devour the food put in front of them...in fact, most of them abandoned their spoons and licked the bowl clean as they finished eating the porridge filled with the nutrients their bodies craved...the image of the remnants of this meal on these African children's faces has stayed fresh in my mind over the last few years...

I also couldn't help but think of my own kids and my friends' children reactions if they were served this meal...I am more than certain that the bowl wouldn't have been clean...in fact it most likely would have been greeted with strange faces and cries of disdain when they tasted it...in reality, they are the outward expressions of the internal feelings we had sitting around on the floor the other night, even as people who do have a real concern for those who are hungry all over the world...

These African experiences and memories can often seem removed from every day life in west MI...unless one gets connected with kids who live differently even here in Grand Rapids...this past Saturday our soccer team here at CU hosted a clinic for some kids who are part of Sabaoth Ministries, one of our urban partners for our first year experience program at CU...there is a group of Hispanic kids who love soccer and play on an abandoned cement lot in their neighborhoods who are regulars in their after school program...as we thought about our end of the year team banquet, we wanted to do something different...this has been a season filled with unusual challenges, disappointments, and times of growth through difficulty...athletic banquets in general tend to highlight victories and stroke the egos of those who are most physically gifted on successful teams...in many ways, we long to be a different kind of program, and hope we'll do some things that demonstrate those values when we have a chance...

So we decided as a coaching staff that this year's banquet day would have a different feel...we'd still honor our best players, thank players who worked hard to improve as athletes, and thank our seniors for their investment in our program over the last four years...but we'd include some kids who might not have been to a banquet before, or owned a pair of soccer shoes, or ever stepped on a turf field in our celebration, with the hope that it would become more of a day that reflected how Jesus might view how we think about the gifts we've been given to play this game we love and how He might want us to throw a party...

(I was thinking about Luke 14:1-24 as a backdrop for this decision...)

So I had a couple guys meet me and we drove our cars down to the Sabaoth ministry meeting spot in south Grand Rapids...we each took several kids with us as we headed off to a local indoor soccer facility our team regularly practiced at...as I was driving my little mini-van east to Kentwood I quickly picked up that many of these kids hadn't been to this part of town before...and it wasn't like me where I had just moved into the area and was still getting thru the list of places to eat and visit across the community...we saw planes getting ready to land and I heard that they'd never been to an airport before...it was kinda fun for me to be able to point out things to them as we drove...maybe I was playing the guide role for one of the first times in west MI, to be honest...

And then we got to the MVP soccer facility...and we had a great time playing soccer games, running them thru some footwork drills, watching them play small-sided games, and getting to teach and play the sport we love to and with them on a surface that I heard some of them comment was "amazing"...and I thought of how I have spent hours and hours and hours evaluating and protecting and complaining about the grass and turf surfaces my teams have played on in literally thousands of practices and games over the last thirty plus years...and I was taken back to the first time we played as a high school team on field turf and how much we adored that night...I still have pictures in my head of these kids in sweater vests and jeans and old tennis shoes playing soccer with joy that simply put I don't usually see in the kids I regularly coach with new adidas gear from head to toe...and the hour of time we'd been able to secure ended way too quickly for the ten year old kids and the 20 year old college players...

We then drove back to our campus and almost 20 Latino pre-teenagers sat at banquet tables with parents and college players...and ate their hearts out...to be honest, eating for students on our campus is often an exercise to complain...the food isn't what they'd like and they are sick of seeing similar choices...and all of us who talk like that are more than little out of touch in reality...I watched these young kids devour the food out on the buffet table...and go up more than twice to get their fill of that which seemed like a pretty amazing spread from their perspective...

We presented each of the kids with a ball signed by each of the guys on our team...and despite the fact that I doubt any of our signatures will earn any of them big money on EBAY in the days ahead, they loved receiving an Adidas ball with names on it from some of the most advanced soccer players they've ever gotten to meet in person...and the after banquet pictures with our guys mixed all in with them defined for me what I hope our program will do to serve the local community through the use of our gifts in the months and years ahead...

So what did a Saturday lunch and a Monday dinner remind me as another school year draws to a close? It reminded me of how those who hunger physically and spiritually are crying for me to respond...the voices are far, far away and within a short drive...And I was reminded once again that very few things engage my spirit more and give me Kingdom joy than being with those who are hungry...hungry for what their body needs and hungry to show me what life is really like and how much I need to be in relationship with those who God calls BLESSED all throughout the Scriptures...

As this year ends I look forward to some rest and will be dreaming of the days next year when kids from south Grand Rapids play soccer at halftime on our lush game field on the CU campus...and I share a porridge meal with the kids in Africa who love the very same game we do as we all hunger and thirst for the Bread of Life and Living Water Jesus longs to provide for all of us...

MATTHEW 5:6
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

A Closing Prayer for LENT

2011-04-24T17:40:00.000-07:00

May we bless the world with comfort. Comfort when a child is suffering and no parent can help, so that we may become the arms of a God who heals. Amen

May we bless the world with peace. Peace for the persecuted and those who struggle to provide, so that we may become the feet of a God who brings good news. Amen

May we bless the world with love. Love for the ones who only encounter the demons in others, so that we may become the heart of a God who feels every human affliction. Amen

May we bless the world with wisdom. Wisdom to pass wisdom, so that we may become the mind of a God whose dreams become reality with the breath of a word. Amen

And the blessing of God, who provides comfort, peace, love and wisdom, be upon us and all that we love and pray for this day, and forever more. Amen

Seven Myths We Believe About Students by TIM ELMORE

2011-04-05T19:04:00.000-07:00

With each generation that grows up, we become accustomed to new standards and lifestyles. Some change is good; others, not so much. Personally, I am only for change that leads to improvement. Too often, our changes are drifts away from what’s good and healthy. Sadly, we don’t even notice. For instance, today, very few adults (parents, teachers, coaches, youth workers) expect a seventeen year old boy to be a mature adult. After all—he’s still a kid. He plays video games, texts his friends and goes to movies and malls. Yet, this is a shift from, say, a hundred years ago. Less than a century ago, seventeen year olds led armies or worked on a farm, or in a factory. They were expected to do so. Their parents needed them to produce something and they discovered they were capable. Slowly, we bought into the idea they are not ready for this kind of responsibility. And, of course, teens are willing to buy into that idea, too. Kids love the idea of adult autonomy, but not the idea of adult responsibility. In time, the standard just sinks lower.

The New Normal Shouldn’t Be Normal
Let me suggest seven changes that have occurred over the last century that created myths we’ve become accustomed to:

1. Myth One: Kids are unable to make commitments.
Today, students have short attention spans and get bored easily, but teens are indeed able to make and keep commitments. Centuries ago it was normal to get married at 15.
2. Myth Two: Kids shouldn’t have to work in high school.
Today, a minority of teens work outside the home. They don’t need to; mom and dad supply a nice allowance. Three or four decades ago, most of us worked a job at 16.
3. Myth Three: Kids can’t be expected to have adult conversations.
Most think—they’re just kids; how can we expect them to interact with grown ups? A century ago, kids attended a one-room schoolhouse and had to interact with all ages.
4. Myth Four: Kids should have whatever they want.
Fifty years ago, parents were proud to give their kids whatever they needed. Today, kids often get whatever they want. It’s the new normal. Going without is not an option. This is sad.
5. Myth Five: Kids shouldn’t take any unsafe risks.
Society is consumed with safety. We won’t let our kids do anything without a helmet and adult supervision. But risk is part of what makes our nation great and part of all progress.
6. Myth Six: Kids can’t wait.
Today, kids have short attention spans and little patience. It’s a Google reflex. But delaying gratification is part of maturing. As a kid, I grew as I waited for things I wanted.
7. Myth Seven: Kids should not be expected to produce anything.
We unwittingly bought into the idea kids are only consumers, not contributors. But I’ve watched teens use their gifts and generate something—and they come alive when they do.

Do you remember the story of “The Emperor’s New Clothes”? It was the tale of a king who went out into his monarchy without any clothes on. Everyone was afraid to say he was naked—except for one guy. Just like me saying the water tastes bad in Dallas, it’s time we woke up and acknowledge the truth. We cannot simply get used to a lesser version of kids. I believe the day has come that we declare the reality of our situation:

We have done a poor job as adults, in getting this generation of kids ready for life. If they flounder, it is because we’ve focused on preparing the path for the child instead of the child for the path. I believe in this next generation. These kids are great and they’re capable of much more than we’ve expected. We have not led them well. We’ve protected them instead of preparing them for life as adults. It’s time we get them ready to lead the way into the future.

Are you making something? BY SETH GODIN

2011-03-24T10:12:00.000-07:00

Making something is work. Let's define work, for a moment, as something you create that has a lasting value in the market.

Twenty years ago, my friend Jill discovered Tetris. Unfortunately, she was working on her Ph.D. thesis at the time. On any given day the attention she spent on the game felt right to her. It was a choice, and she made it. It was more fun to move blocks than it was to write her thesis. Day by day this adds up... she wasted so much time that she had to stay in school and pay for another six months to finish her doctorate.

Two weeks ago, I took a five-hour plane ride. That's enough time for me to get a huge amount of productive writing done. Instead, I turned on the wifi connection and accomplished precisely no new measurable work between New York and Los Angeles.

More and more, we're finding it easy to get engaged with activities that feel like work, but aren't. I can appear just as engaged (and probably enjoy some of the same endorphins) when I beat someone in Words With Friends as I do when I'm writing the chapter for a new book. The challenge is that the pleasure from winning a game fades fast, but writing a book contributes to readers (and to me) for years to come.

One reason for this confusion is that we're often using precisely the same device to do our work as we are to distract ourselves from our work. The distractions come along with the productivity. The boss (and even our honest selves) would probably freak out if we took hours of ping pong breaks while at the office, but spending the same amount of time engaged with others online is easier to rationalize. Hence this proposal:

The two-device solution

Simple but bold: Only use your computer for work. Real work. The work of making something.

Have a second device, perhaps an iPad, and use it for games, web commenting, online shopping, networking... anything that doesn't directly create valued output (no need to have an argument here about which is which, which is work and which is not... draw a line, any line, and separate the two of them. If you don't like the results from that line, draw a new line).

Now, when you pick up the iPad, you can say to yourself, "break time." And if you find yourself taking a lot of that break time, you've just learned something important.

Go, make something. We need it!

Entering into the Story of the Bible by Scot McKnight

2011-03-07T13:43:00.001-08:00

An excerpt from a great book on reading Scripture in a way that informs and transforms our lives every day...The Blue Parakeet: Rethinking How You Read the Bible

The Bible is what the Bible is, and I believe it. "Let the Bible be the Bible" is my motto, because teaching the Bible has taught me that the Bible will do its own work if we get out of the way and let it. Someone once said that the Bible needs no more defending than a lion, and I agree.

I have learned that when we take our hands off the pages of the Bible, read and listen to its words, and enter into its story by faith, something happens. It renews and continues to renew its powers. It becomes what it was meant to be, something both more intimate than an old pair of jeans and more unusual than alien creatures, something like a familiar stranger or an unpredictable neighbor or a pet lion whose presence invigorates its surroundings. Something like the glory of the ocean, which on the surface appears gentle and strolling and pleasant to observe, but under that surface there's a vibrant, teeming, swirling, dynamic world full of beauty and wonder. Or perhaps listening to the Bible is like having the most powerful person in the world sit down with you for coffee as a friend and chat with you.

Hot Theology by Dan Kimball

2011-03-02T18:54:00.000-08:00

Here's a pretty insightful blog with an amazing final quote from Spurgeon and a great Seinfeld episode reference as it deals with a significant theological issue in our day...I reread it as this topic will grow in significance as many talk about the release of Rob Bell's new book this March...I am hopeful people will actually read the book and dialogue intelligently...

If we ignore the reality of hell, we make one of Jesus' frequent teachings a mere metaphor.

Clocking in at 55 minutes, I nearly broke my personal record for the longest sermon I've ever preached. It was "Hell."

In our series called "Hot Theology," the topics were determined from surveys of the congregation. The most common question: "Would a loving God send people to hell?" That's hard to cover in 35 minutes.

The subject of hell and judgment is all over the New Testament. Still, we don't hear much about hell today, at least not from the church. We tend to cover other subjects repeatedly, but ignore one that Jesus talks about all the time. There are some exceptions, but the preachers yelling "turn or burn" on street corners are rare.

There is an episode of Seinfeld where Elaine's boyfriend, Puddy, becomes a Christian. He starts listening to Christian music and begins badgering Elaine about going to hell. At one point he asks her to steal the neighbor's newspaper for him because she's "the one going to hell, so [she] might as well steal it." Elaine explodes, starts whacking him with the newspaper, and screams, "If I am going to hell, you should care that I'm going to hell!"

I think Elaine has the right perspective. We cannot approach the subject of hell merely as a doctrine and ignore the human impact. Teaching on hell is not for the sake of knowing Christian trivia or to satisfy theological curiosity. If we believe in hell, and if we believe people created in God's image will either experience eternity in communion with him or apart from him, then we should be communicating the gospel, both the good news and the bad news.

Of course, this calls for balance. Christians have often been guilty of making hell the primary motivation for salvation. I believe this is an alteration of the holistic gospel found in 1 Corinthians 15. But if we completely ignore the reality of hell and judgment, we are forced to make one of Jesus' frequent teachings little more than an obscure metaphor.

Because of the church's tendency to be unbalanced about hell, and because of our cultural assumptions about the afterlife, I began my sermon by having the congregation read aloud every single New Testament passage about hell. The exercise took several minutes but it got people participating and thinking. We compared these passages with popular portrayals of hell—from The Far Side cartoons to AC/DC's "Highway to Hell"—to see how we've had our beliefs shaped by pop culture, the red devil with horns and a pitchfork, and all that.

Then we looked at concepts of the afterlife from other cultures and religions. Christians aren't the only ones who believe in a "hell." Despite our culture's growing discomfort with eternal judgment, we shouldn't be embarrassed by a belief that's been almost universally held throughout history and still is today.

I led the congregation through a study of the words translated "hell" in English: Jesus described Gehenna, the garbage dump outside Jerusalem where bodies were thrown, where worms ate flesh, and where fires continually burned.

Finally, we returned to Elaine on Seinfeld and what matters most—the mission.

As Charles Spurgeon said, "If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our bodies. If they will perish, let them perish with our arms around their knees. Let no one go there unwarned and unprayed for."

Dan Kimball is the pastor of Vintage Faith Church in Santa Cruz, California

Why I’m Excited About the Next Wave of Leaders...from Brad Lomenick at the CATALYST Blog

2011-02-23T12:29:00.000-08:00

I resonated with this piece from the Catalyst group blog...especially as we begin the student leader hiring process for next year here at CU!

I love leaders. And especially next generation leaders. Specifically those leaders who are currently in their 20′s and 30′s. And I’m incredibly hopeful regarding this next wave of leaders. Incredibly excited and hopeful and expectant. Expectant that they are going to take the reins and move things forward like no other generation before them.

Here’s a few reasons why I’ve got great confidence in the next generation of leaders:

1. Passion for God. Everyone seems to think we’ve lost a generation of Christ followers in our country, but after seeing the 23,000 college students gathered at Passion a few weeks ago, and the 20,000 + who gather at Urbana every other year, and the 20,000 who were just in Kansas City for the IHOP One Thing gathering- this instills confidence that the next generation of leaders love Jesus and are passionate about serving Him and making Him known for their generation. Read Gabe Lyons’ latest book The Next Christians for further explanation and clarity.

2. Willing to work together. 20 and 30 somethings are more willing to collaborate than any other generation before. They trust each other. Really. And see collaboration as the starting point, not some grandiose vision of teamwork that is far off in the distance. Collaboration is now the norm.

3. Don’t care who gets the credit.. For the next generation- it’s Way less about who, and way more about what.

4. Generosity and sharing are the new currencies of our culture. In business, relationships, networks, platforms, technology, distribution, content delivery, etc- Open source is the new standard. This new wave of leaders has tools/resources such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Flickr, Instagram, and tons more social media tools that make influencing much more readily available.

5. Understand the holistic responsibility of influence- willing to connect all of life together- faith, compassion, charity, work, career, church, family, friends. It’s all connected. There is way less compartmentalizing of life among the next generation of leaders. .

6. Authenticity wins. Trust is incredibly important. Leaders won’t have followers going forward unless they trust them and see that they are authentic and real. Authenticity is not only important to the next generation, it’s a requirement.

7. Not willing to wait. Young leaders are ambitious and passionate about making a difference now. Not willing to wait their turn. They want to influence now. Evidence of this is the explosion of church planters in the last 4-5 years.

8. See social justice as the norm. Leaders who care about the poor and lean into causes and see the social gospel as a key ingredient to following Christ are no longer seen as the exception. Young Leaders see taking care of the poor and sharing the Gospel as BOTH crucial to the advancement of the Church and of God’s Kingdom. 20 somethings I believe are and will continue to become more balanced in their pursuit of both. They don’t have to be one or the other.

9. Seeking wisdom and mentors. Overall, I sense that 20 and 30 somethings are highly willing to be mentored, and are hungry for wisdom from older leaders around them. Those of us Gen X’ers tend to think we have it all figured out. Millenials and Gen Y are assumed to have it all figured out because they have so many tools and technology at their fingertips. But from what I’ve experienced, they still are seeking wisdom, just as much as any other generation before them.

A Silver Lining for the Steeler Nation...By Lindsey Talerico, World Vision blog manager

2011-02-10T13:57:00.000-08:00

A few years ago we drove up to a village community in Zambia...and were shocked by the site of kids and adults in the village wearing CHICAGO BEARS--SUPER BOWL CHAMPS t-shirts...we laughed, maybe cried a little bit as disappointed Bears fans, and loved seeing loss turned to gain in a part of the world where football means futbal...it's a tradition I love...and hope to see gold and black in Zambia in the future on a trip there!

Maybe you were one of the 151 million people to watch the Green Bay Packers victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLV. If you’re not a sports fan, surely you still enjoyed the cheeseburger sliders, nachos, great commercials, and good time with friends and family.

Certainly, there is nothing quite like American football that can split a nation by team, and then bring us back together for one unforgettable championship game. But that’s not the only reason to love the power of the Super Bowl. Any production that bids 30-second ads at around $3 million each is worth tuning into — if not for the spectacular cinematography, then at least for a hardy laugh or two.

And while the Super Bowl is the Holy Grail of American sporting events, it’s also a source of hope and help to thousands of people around the world — which is one reason why World Vision loves it.

For the past 15 years, the National Football League has donated to World Vision its pre-printed championship merchandise bearing the name of the team that does not win the title. This means that right now, thousands of articles of merchandise, including t-shirts, sweatshirts, and ball caps, are being sorted by the NFL and retailers to be sent to World Vision.

Here’s how it works: The NFL pre-prints about 300 shirts and hats for both Super Bowl contenders for after the game. At the same time, retailers like Sports Authority, Dick’s, and Modell’s place their merchandise orders in advance according to the market location of their stores and the potential winning teams. Basically, a retailer in Green Bay, Wisconsin, would order the pre-printed Super Bowl Champion Packers gear the same way a retailer in Pittsburgh would buy pre-printed Super Bowl Champion Steelers gear. But a retailer in Florida might not order either contender’s pre-printed merchandise, because their market doesn’t have much of an interest in buying Super Bowl Champion gear for either team.

Once the gear is pre-printed, it is shipped from the printing center to the retailers’ distribution centers, where it is counted and distributed to individual stores. Once at the stores, staff members hold the gear until the winning team is determined, at which time shelves are stocked and gear is sold. This is where World Vision comes in.

At this point, all unused gear for the team that does not win is repackaged, shipped back to the retailer distribution centers, counted again, and donated to World Vision. As gear begins to arrive at World Vision’s international distribution center in Pittsburgh, as it will in the next couple of weeks, it is counted one more time and sorted by size, gender, and destination — meaning that a t-shirt might go to a country with a warm climate, like Nicaragua, and a sweatshirt to a country with a cold climate, like Mongolia.

World Vision identifies countries and communities in need overseas who will benefit from the gear. This year’s unused Super Bowl merchandise will make its way to Zambia, Armenia, Nicaragua, and Romania in the months to come. On average, this equates to about 100 pallets annually — $2 million worth of product — or about 100,000 articles of clothing that, instead of being destroyed, will help children and adults in need.

That’s 100,000 reasons to love the Super Bowl even more.

Eleven Trends for 2011...from Strategist Will Mancini

2011-02-05T18:29:00.000-08:00

Here are some predictions about new and enduring trends we can expect in North American ministry in 2011 and beyond...

1: Increasing diversity of opinion about what good vision and strategy look like

In 2010, Craig Groeschel posted on the Death of the 5 Year Plan, yet vision mavens like Jim Collins still talk about 20-year BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals). To add to the confusion, the list of “how-to-do-church” books grows exponentially. We’ve gone from simple, deep, organic and total to sticky, viral, dangerous and hybrid. Are we getting clear yet?

2: Articulating the biggest picture will be the leader’s greatest asset

Every church leader is saturated with countless best practices, bombarded with more communication, and ministering to people struggling with increasingly complex lives. This gives us a hyper-need for clarity. Communicating Jesus-centered meaning in life has never had more competition. The best leaders won’t take the most basic assumptions for granted.

3: Social media will open new possibilities for more churches

Unfortunately most churches lag behind the “real world” by 10 years or so when it comes to technology and communication. But online giants like LifeChurch.tv not only lead the way with technology, but do so generously by offering sites and apps like VideoTeaching.com and YouVersion.com. There is a new world of possibilities for vision and strategy not just for large churches but for every spiritual leader with an innovative spirit. Church online, Facebook, and Twitter are just the tip of the iceberg. For example, check out Gordon Marcy, John Saddington, Charles Lee, and Terry Storch.

4: Visioning and spiritual formation will emerge more visibly as disciplines

True visioning in the local church should always be a Spirit-led, Word-anchored exercise of daily spiritual formation. But it is easy to separate the strategic and the spiritual in daily practice. In the future there will be little tolerance for strategic conversations and visioning exercises that aren’t first God-worshipping and God-listening initiatives. Church leaders are tired of anything in the name of vision that smacks of corporate ideology.

5: Small will continue to be the new big

Thinking, acting, and leading small will continue to mark the church landscape. One factor is the new normal of multi-site churches. Leadership Network played a key role in accelerating this innovation which helps larger churches expand through smaller beachheads. Second, as church planting and missional thinking continue to expand, smaller expressions—from house churches to missional communities—become more legit against the traditional, monolithic measurement of big-church-butts-in-seats. We have recently witnessed the birth of a new network to small town, small church America called The Sticks. Last year brought counter-intuitive book titles and blog posts like The Strategically Small Church and The Micro Manifesto.

6: Networks will become the new denominations

As new learning, new strategies, and new relationships cluster in frontline church planting networks—Acts 29, Redeemer City to City, New Thing, ARC, ChurchPlanters.com, PLNTD, Vision360 and the ICF Movement—the knowledge, encouragement, and accountability of traditional denominations become less valuable. Please note that these networks are not trying to be new denominations. Some effective networks, like Stadia and the Church Multiplication Network, are denominationally based. But the momentum of these networks is changing the game.

7: Leaders will pay more attention to shorter time horizons

The emphasis on leadership in the future will be preparing for the uncertainties of the future, rather than trying to predict them. As a result, answering the question, “Where is God taking us?” requires a 90-day focus and a 1-year horizon of shared storytelling like never before. Will other time horizons be important? Yes they will, but not like the way we used to think about it.

8: The intersection of personal and organizational vision will be magnified

Peter Drucker recognized early on that the movement from an industrial to an information paradigm would push the envelope on personal clarity and self-management for business and non-profit leaders. Yet I find very little evidence in the ministry world that a hunger for personal clarity is making an organizational difference. Even so, I suspect this is coming.

9: Visioning will involve making meaning rather than predicting the future

Life brings a daily tidal wave of monotony. We all fight to keep our daily routine vital and life-giving in view of greater purposes. A key attribute of vision is and always will be how it keeps people focused on the future. But one aspect of vision that will bring increasing value is how it refocuses our work today. This is why I like the word “clarity” as a practical substitute for “vision,” especially in church. Expect that people will not care about where your church is going until you can make meaning for them right now. Why am I in worship? Why should I participate in a small group? Why should I give to your church? Clarity today before you envision tomorrow.

10: External focus and biblical justice will stay prominent

Now that biblical justice has returned to mainstream evangelicalism, it will remain a prominent feature in our vision and strategy work. Strengthening this trend will be a generation of Millennials who will rise in organizational leadership. They mark an era of altruism where volunteerism and social entrepreneurship are the standard not the exception. Generationally speaking, they care more about people “outside of the organization” than the boomers did. The mantra we will continue to see, sparked by Eric Swanson, is “Don’t be the best church in the community; be the best church for the community.

11: Churches will consult for vision clarity rather than for capital campaigns

For almost four decades, capital campaign consulting has been the dominant category for “strategic outsiders” in local churches. The role of consulting is moving away from packaged campaigns and programs towards the ability to navigate organic and culture-savvy solutions. Help in clarifying vision has become the most common reason for a pastor to pursue a consultant, according to the Society of Church Consulting.

The Harvest is Past... and We Are Not Yet Saved

2011-01-30T11:57:00.000-08:00

A great piece from a partner in Zambia with Jubilee Center about justice and courage in Zambia...hoping to visit their ministry with students this May back in the mother land!

We argued last week that Evangelical and Pentecostal leaders are a major force on the Zambian political scene. Our leaders receive invitations to the State House; and public media outlets: the ZNBC, the Times of Zambia, and the Daily Mail quote Pentecostal and Evangelical leaders more than any other religious constituency. We also noted that during the election candidates will be appealing for our votes and the votes of those we lead. How much difference do we make in how our members vote? Leaders do influence their people, but in the absence of quantifiable data we are not sure how many Evangelical or Pentecostals vote or what other issues we care about apart from the “Christian Nation” clause.

Evangelicals are rightly known for efforts to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to the lost. Pentecostals are known for proclaiming the message of generous giving as a way of coming out of poverty as well as for exploring new forms of worship and for building new church structures. Both groups however are still lacking when it comes to caring for the needy beyond their church community. As one who identifies with both groups I can say we also have a difficult time making disciples who practically understand what it means to be Christian citizens in Zambia and the world.

Consider the economy of England in the 18th century that was largely built on the abusing children from poor families who were made to work in coalmines and factories under terrible conditions, and on the slave trade that cruelly exploited Indians and Africans. A ruling class addicted to privilege, licentious living, and status dominated the English government. It was during this period that God raised up William Wilberforce out of a life of wealth and class, who in part was a disciple of John Newton a former slave trader turned pastor, to lead through his position as a Member of Parliament to influence his fellow lawmakers to abolish the slave trade in England.

Much of Zambia’s current leadership is no different than the 18th century ruling class that enslaved the poor and oppressed the weak for personal gain. Copper prices have soared to record highs and yet those living in poor communities are seeing little change. Our natural resources and economic future are being sold and yet the proceeds are benefitting only a small band of investors and the elite ruling class. The majority of the Zambians still lack access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation. As a result, women and children spend a disproportionate amount of time collecting water and then caring for those who have contracted water-borne sicknesses from that water. Jeremiah lamented in the scriptures, “Remember O Lord what happened to us; look and see our disgrace. Our inheritance has been turned over to aliens our homes to foreigners” (Lam.5: 1-2) He cried, “Harvest is past, summer is ended, and we are not saved. For the brokenness of the daughter of my people I am broken; I mourn, dismay has taken hold of me. Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has not the health of the daughter of my people been restored?”(Jeremiah 8:20-22)

Zambia needs a John Newton who will tell our Wilberforce in Parliament that “God has raised you up for the good of the church and the good of the nation.” Do we have a Wilberforce in Parliament...someone who will forgo wealth and privilege for a higher cause? Do we have a John Newton in our pulpits...one who has the credibility and courage to speak boldly to the ruling class on behalf of the marginalized and disciple them to make a difference for good?

Lawrence Temfwe

Notes from A Chapel Message to Open the Spring Semester in 2011...

2011-01-24T20:19:00.000-08:00

I JOHN 3:18...
“Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth.”

I JOHN 4:7-12...
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

I JOHN 4:16-21...
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.

WHAT IS LOVE?
Love means I will follow through on my commitment to:
do what I say I will do
and
be who I say I will be

JAMES 1:19-27
My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

THE PROBLEM WITH WORDS...
*so many of us don’t want to fully believe because of the broken promises we have experienced

*how often do we say things we don’t actually do?

I JOHN 3:16-20
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth. This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.

A Quote from Generous Justice by Tim Keller on the story of the Good Samaritan…
In the story of the Good Samaritan, Jesus was giving a radical answer to the questions, “What is love?” and “What does it mean to love your neighbor?” Jesus answered the questions of a law expert by depicting a man meeting material, physical, and economic needs through deeds. Caring for people’s material and economic needs is not an option for Jesus. He refused to limit the implications of this command to love. He said it meant being sacrificially involved with the vulnerable…

Jesus also refuses to let us limit not only how we love, but who we love. It is typical for us to think of our neighbors as people of the same social class and means. We instinctively tend to limit for whom we exert ourselves. We do it for people like us, and for people whom we like. Jesus will have none of that. By depicting a Samaritan helping a Jew, Jesus could not have found a more forceful way to say that anyone at all in need—regardless of race, politics, class, and religion—is your neighbor. Not everyone is your brother or sister in the faith, but everyone is your neighbor, and you must love your neighbor.

THE POWER OF ACTIONS...
*this is where you see ideas turned into reality and a desire becomes your true passion in life

“The greatest cause of atheism is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, then walk out the door and deny Him with their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”
BRENNAN MANNING

THE CHALLENGE FOR GOD'S PEOPLE...
*truly care for people in your communities…

*focus on the needs of others rather than fixating on your own stuff…

*when you have the opportunity to simply change another’s life, you must take it…

A VISION FOR CU THIS SEMESTER...
Speak Less

Do More

Young People Who Walk Away from Faith and May Not Come Back...

2011-01-21T13:11:00.001-08:00

The latest research spelled out here drives me to help this generation of students discover together with me the goodness of God, the blessings of following His call, and the joy of being engaged in Kingdom work...those are the things that draw people toward Jesus and His Church and keep students engaged in the community of faith...

The statistics are grim. According to Rainer Research, 70 percent of youth leave church by the time they are 22 years old. Barna Group estimates that 80 percent of those reared in the church will be "disengaged" by the time they are 29 years old. Unlike older church dropouts, these young "leavers" are unlikely to seek out alternative forms of Christian community, such as home churches and small groups. When they leave church, many leave the faith as well. Barna Group president, David Kinnaman put the reality in stark terms:

Imagine a group photo of all the students who come to your church (or live within your community of believers) in a typical year. Take a big fat marker and cross out three out of every four faces. That's the probable toll of spiritual disengagement as students navigate through their faith during the next two decades.

Strangers from Our Midst

Kinnaman reports that 65 percent of all American young people report making a commitment to Jesus Christ at some point in their lives. Yet, based on his surveys, Kinnaman concludes that only about 3 percent of these young adults have a biblical worldview.

Kinnaman translates the percentages into real numbers: "This means that out of the 95million Americans who are ages 18 to 41, about 60 million say they have already made a commitment to Jesus that is still important; however, only about 3 million of them have a biblical worldview."

Of course, that doesn't mean that there are 57 million young ex-Christians in the country. Only the most theologically lax would count anyone that makes a pledge or says a prayer as a genuine disciple of Jesus. On the other side of the coin, not having a biblical worldview doesn't seal your fate as an unbeliever. Ultimately the precise number of young adults leaving is beyond human knowing. Still, such research shows us something very valuable about young people outside the faith. As Kinnaman concludes, "the vast majority of outsiders in this country, particularly among young generations, are actually dechurched individuals."

In other words, these are not strangers, some mysterious denizens of a heathen underworld. Rather, most unbelieving outsiders are old friends, yesterday's worshipers, children who once prayed to Jesus, even if they didn't fully grasp what they were saying. Strictly speaking, they are not an "unreached people group." They are our brothers, sisters, sons and daughters, and our friends. They have dwelt among us.

Won't They Just Come Back?

Some hold out hope for a mass return, believing that once these young people settle down and have families, they'll come back to faith. And indeed, in past generations, people raised in the church who leave do tend to come back once they establish careers, marry, and have children. However, there are reasons to believe that this return will not automatically occur with this generation.

First, there's reason to believe that today's young people are leaving the faith at a greater rate than young people of previous generations. Reporting on the latest studies, Harvard professor Robert Putnam and Notre Dame professor David Campbell note: "Young Americans are dropping out of religion at an alarming rate of 5 to 6 times the historic rate (30-40% have no religion today versus 5-10% a generation ago)." Comparing today's young people with their parents may be like comparing apples and oranges.

Second, young adulthood is not what it used to be. For one, it's much longer. Notre Dame sociologist Christian Smith describes this new extended phase in life: "The transition from the teenage years to fully-achieved adulthood has stretched out into an extended stage that is often amorphous, unstructured, and convoluted, lasting upward of twelve or more years." This is important because some of the defining milestones of adulthood, such as establishing a career, getting married, and having children are also factors that tend to drive people back to religious involvement. Past generations may have returned after the leaving during young adulthood. But coming back after a two or three year departure is one thing; returning after a decade or more away is much more unlikely.

It may be comforting to view what's happening with young adults as a temporary phenomenon, a short-term hiatus, and assume that they will automatically return en masse. Let's pray that they will. Unfortunately, such thinking may do more harm than good by giving us false hope and luring us into complacency.

A Final Blog from the DR...

2011-01-12T13:50:00.000-08:00

Hello for the last time from the Dominican Republic...we are just getting ready for a final team dinner together on a warm and breezy night...we said goodbye to new friends this morning at our ministry site and then headed into the capital city of Santo Domingo...we visited the market and then walked in and around some of the oldest buildings in the Western hemisphere, including the National Cathedral and National Monuments of the DR...these buildings are amazing structures and are almost 500 years old!

We then drove to the coast and spent some time this afternoon enjoying a resort on the ocean...there has been good food, lots of Dominican music, and a time to relax at the beach after a very busy week for us all...in many ways, it is somewhat strange to be at a resort after being part of a community with such great physical needs during our time in the DR...you find yourself feeling somewhat guilty and somewhat resistant to what you see all around you...yet in many ways this resort represents more of who we are as blessed Americans...and the greatest challenge of this trip is yet to come in many ways...God's calling to us is not to just feel guilty and grateful...it is to live with what we have seen, experienced, and heard from God in a place of prominence in our daily lives...it is the challenge of living in our own community and culture that God has placed us in as a Christian who is compassionate, communicates about the needs of others near and far, and serves out of a heart that is full because of what God has done in Jesus for us...that's really our final task of this trip...to spend time asking God to show us specifically what our response individually and as a team will be as we come back to Cornerstone and the semester ahead...we'd ask you to pray for us to be motivated and passionate to be advocates for the people of the DR and to help us to build a community that is focused on others and creates a mindset of service and love and character in the soccer community and other places of influence in our lives...

We are tired and yet so very blessed after our time on this missions trip...we appreciate your prayers and support more than you know...we are excited to tell stories, show pictures, and talk about what God is up to in this world when we return...don't be afraid to ask questions of us when we are back with you...

Thanks for reading this blog and giving us encouraging comments back...I've loved being with young men who I believe will indeed change the world...CHIP

p.s. If all goes well, we should arrive back at CU sometime around 2:30 am or so after our travel day tomorrow!

A Final Day and Night in Los Alcarrizos

2011-01-11T17:58:00.000-08:00

It is just about 10 pm here and we are all hanging out as a team after a full last day of work and conversation here in the community we have enjoyed being part of for the last 6 days...today was a day of sweat and reflection for all of us...we spent several hours under the warm Caribbean sun breaking rock, shoveling and wheelbarrowing dirt, and smoothing out the ground of a future community center space where a new church plant will soon become reality and there will be a new well where people can come to get water used for bathing and cleaning in a community where almost have no access to running water or even a natural water source...the guys on this team have worked and worked and worked this week...it truly is an act of worship as we work so that change can happen in the lives of those we work alongside in the days and years to come...they love the sense of being part of God's work in progress...and very much look forward to possibly seeing one day what they helped to start...

It is easy to see why we are doing what we are doing as Zac Tolsma and I spent time with the little guy and girl the Bell and Huber families sponsor here so they can attend the Lighthouse school...as the little girl hugged me and asked when we would be back again, you are blessed by your chance to invest your blessings to bless the lives of someone who you pray and believe God will use mightily someday...

We then somehow found the energy to beat a Dominican softball team that had previously been undefeated in the mission trip team challenge world...who says soccer players aren't good baseball players?

And then we sat down for a time where we refelected on what God has spoken to us individually and as a team, what he has taught us from His Word and our experiences, and the responses and next steps we plan to take in our lives, the soccer community, CU, and the world...

Here's a little window into our world and what God has been up to this past week in the DR:

*We see again that the church is a global church and doesn't just look like American in its worship and passions...
*We embrace a new passion for service and evangelism...and love how the two fit together so very well...
*We are excited to discover individually the specific callings God has upon our lives to use soccer and other gifts for impact on other people's lives
*We are committed to hosting local soccer clinics for kids in need in the Grand Rapids community...
*We are pumped to expand our Night of Nets event to have even greater involvement at CU and impact globally as we meet the needs of those in desperate need around the globe...
*And we are dreaming of a community that is built on brotherly love, demonstrates the character of Christ on and off the field, and grows in its care for each other and vision for what Jesus can do in and through us as His athletes and followers...

Needless to say, it was an inspiring time of celebration...a time to thank God for calling us here so we can learn from and embrace a new people and culture, discover and build new relationships, see how the game of soccer is a connection to people and vehicle for sharing the hope and meaning found only in Jesus wherever you go in this world, and leave with tired hands and full hearts from a place where God is physically and spiritually building something that reflects His glory to the people of the Dominican Republic...

Tomorrow we will share a last meal with the staff here and take a little visit to Santo Domingo and spend a few hours in the capital city at the market and the incredible historical sites in the place Christopher Columbus came to so many centuries ago...and then we will relax together at a beach resort and enjoy a little AC and a warm shower before heading back to Grand Rapids on Thursday...

Know tonight as we head to bed that your prayers are being answered in the lives of young men...for all the CU Soccer crew, CHIP

Guest Blogger Night...A Few Words from CU Soccer Player Josh Rimel

2011-01-10T18:51:00.000-08:00

Tonight I am turning over my writing job to one of the CU soccer guys...Josh Rimel came back for a second year here in the DR and offers his perspective on the trip so far...tomorrow is our final work day here at our ministry site...we are blessed and learning and experiencing much...I would have loved you to hear our conversation about how being a soccer athlete offers us incredible opportunities for ministry on the field and across the world...can't wait to see some of the visions God is birthing becoming reality...and here's Josh's insider's perspective:

It has now been five days since we have gotten here and everyday has been just as exciting as the day before. To start off each day we usually work in the beating sun for a minimum of about four hours doing brick work. This can possibly involve anything from carrying cinder blocks up flights of stairs to lifting buckets of cement above your head to fill in colums for a new floor on a building. At the end of each day you are so sore and tired that you can't wait to fall asleep on your bed that is most likely surounded by mosquitoes that show no mercy to your aching body... and in the morning you wake up to do it all again. Some people would question why would a group of college guys would raise $1500 to spend their semester break doing this for a week. Well, the answer is quite simple. We all were presented with an oportunity to be able to take a little time out of our busy lives to fly down to the Dominican Republic and help an orginaztion in a small community that is trying to make a difference, and we couldn't pass the invitation up. Every day here I can say I have definitely gained much more than I have given. As you walk out the gates of the ministry camp and walk a block away you find yourself literally in the midst of pretty sever poverty. You see what so many times you only hear about exisiting somewhere in the world. This has really opened my eyes and made it so much more personnal to me. Also being able to actually be an active part of what your money goes toward, and seeing what it is being used for I feel encourages your desire to send and return again. I can honestly say that each one of the guys who came down here to the Dominican Republic wouldn't have changed their mind if they were given another chance to spend their vacation time serving people, sharing Jesus, and playing soccer in the Dominican Republic. Good night from the DR!

A Sabbath Day in the Caribbean

2011-01-09T10:25:00.000-08:00

Sunday is always a bit different on trips here in the Dominican Republic...most of our other days are filled with work, with play, and a busy schedule...today is our different day in our time here in this community...we walked to church this morning...the church was planted many years ago by a missionary from South Korea and we enjoyed the worship service as a team...there is often a freshness and a vibrant spirit to the church celebrations around the world...and you can't help but be caught up in the authentic and passionate worship of God in His people here in the Dominican Republic...

One of the blessings of being here is the food we are eating that is cooked by some outstanding Dominican ladies...the food is authentic and we have all the energy we need to do what we are called to do in our time here...

In the heat of a Sunday afternoon we still found the energy to play a softball game with some guys from the area and played a little futbal with our new friends from Haiti...Ian Grotenhuis talked with the guys about how his teammates have often served as key people in helping him to become more the person that Christ is calling him to be, and encouraged the Haitian guys to care for one another...

Tonight we are headed to get a little ice cream together...it has been a great day to enjoy each other's company, worship together, play together, and talk about anything and everything...we are blessed to be here and blessed to be a community of Christian soccer players and coaches...tomorrow we are back on the work site and will be traveling to a community that loves soccer here in the DR...it is a joy to be able to share the Gospel in word and deed together...

We pray for a great week ahead for you all!

CHIP for the CU Soccer Crew

Saturday Happenings

2011-01-08T17:25:00.000-08:00

On a warm and sunny day in the DR, we once again tackled the task of helping to build the walls of an addition to the Lighthouse School...many of the guys are becoming quite accomplished at laying block and it is always fun to see the levels of the walls growing as you think about the lives that will be changed inside those walls...we also got a chance to knock the soccer ball around with some guys who enjoy the game at a local field here in the DR...and it's always fun to see and play with children playing on the dirt fields anywhere in the world...this game we love truly does connect and transcend all cultures...Isaac Grotenhuis got a chance to share with the guys about how Christ has changed his life and his love for the people of the DR as He's been involved in God's work for the second year here in this community...

Tonight we reflected on the things we have seen so far here in the DR...we've seen poverty, we've seen community, we've seen obvious needs, and we've seen joy in the children and friends we have made...this morning we looked at a myriad of Scriptures that speak so clearly about God's overwhelming heart for the poor, the oppressed, and for justice...and we talked tonight about the struggle we often face in knowing how to respond to what is going on in our world as we have been made aware in a fresh way of the needs in places outside of our own communities...I often tell students that I actually pray for them to be gripped by this tension...gripped to the point where they have to struggle with God and made a decision to respond and get personally involved in the physical and spiritual needs of the people of the world God has made...we'd love if you would pray and even ask us as we get home about the struggle that we want to produce fruit of change and commitment in our spiritual lives...we want to hear I John 3:18 and not see our brother and sister in need and then choose to not do anything for the long haul...for we want God's love for us and for them to compel us to action and not just words...

Tomorrow will be a bit of a rest day...we actually need it...we'll walk to a Dominican church in the community here and then will welcome our Haitian friends back for a little more futbal later in the afternoon...and we might even need to practice a little baseball...some Dominican kids want to play us Tuesday night...and let me tell ya...Dominican kids can play baseball!

May you enjoy Sunday and we will think of you worshipping back at home as we do the smae in another place in the world!

For all the guys...CHIP

A Busy Friday in the DR

2011-01-07T18:20:00.000-08:00

Hello again from the DR...we have had a more than full day together here on our first full day on our ministry site...we spent most of the day working hard in the sun and heat! The guys were involved in mixing cement, laying block for a kitchen facility, filling columns on the third floor of an addition that will make 5 new classrooms and make a Christian school education available for 150 more children in the community, and shoveling and wheelbarrowing and getting dirty...there is a joy and energy that I love seeing in young men serving with passion and joy in being part of all that God is doing here...

We spent the early evening playing some pick up soccer on the small field here by the school with some local Haitian guys who love the game of soccer...Matt Roberts had a chance to share with them why we are here and how his soccer playing is an expression of love and passion from the gifts God has given Him to honor Him...and we heard from them about how their families have been affected by the Haiti earthquake and the challenges of being a refugee of sorts here in the DR...and mayn of them were still wearing some CU jerseys we had distributed last year...always a joy to play the game we love in another part of the world...

And we just finished a pretty intense conversation about the challenge of living a life of compassion and service, both in other cultures and among the poor, and yet even more so in the soccer community at CU where God has placed each of us at this time...there was a real sense in the room tonight that there must be a greater commitment to caring for, building each other up, and reaching out and holding one another accountable so as to experience the richness of the community Christ longs for us to experience as brothers in Christ who have been invited to play and do life together in this season...we'd ask you to pray for courage and wisdom as to how they can live out a heart of compassion and service in the days to come...

We are always reminded down here of God's presence in all of our world...and the reality that He has made each Dominican and each American, each Canadian, in His very image...we looked at several passages this morning before breakfast focusing on the Imago Dei, the reality that we are made in the image of a Creator and bear the Likeness of His Son as His Creation...it's a powerful idea that gives us love and passion to see change come to the lives of people in need here in the DR, and invites us to love our neighbors that God has brought into our daily lives...

We will sleep well tonight...and tomorrow we will be doing more work and playing more soccer...we are headed to another community later tomorrow afternoon and I may not be able to blog until Sunday...we miss you all and pray for a wonderful weekend back at our homes...we promise not to complain too much about the heat down here!

With our LOVE from all the soccer crew,

CHIP

HELLO from the DR...A Study in Contrasts

2011-01-06T17:11:00.000-08:00

Hello from the DR soccer missions crew! I am sitting outside on a little porch area outside a Christian school where over 1100 students come to school each morning...we had an uneventful travel day and were warmly greeted by our Dominican hosts at the airport when we arrived on this beautiful island...to be honesat, we are all pretty exhausted after just grabbing a few hours of sleep on one of our two flights...it will be an early bed time for this typically late-night crew!

When we got to the Los Alcarrizos community where we are staying and serving this coming week, we had a chance to see all that God is up to down here...the ministry we are partnering with here is involved in all kinds of Kingdom activity...we saw the water purification plant they operate that provides clean and affordable water for the community while also employing local pastors to provide them income; the school we'll be working on to add 5 new classrooms providing outstanding Christian education to over 1000 kids in one of the poorest areas in this part of the country; a kitchen facility we will be laying a foundation for that will provide breakfast for 400 children each day; new houses for the poorest of the poor here; a fantastic weight room and workout facility we helped to build last year that is now finished and serves as a center for relational evangelism with all types of kids and young adults in the community; and a new community center site where we will be hosting an outreach event for kids in the community later this week...it is exciting to see our opportunity to join God and others from all over the world in the work He is doing here to change people's lives in Jesus' name here...

And as we walked through the community past people's homes and talked with hundreds of local children, I couldn't help but be struck by the incredible contrast in where we came from and then found ourselves in the same day...we left the blowing snow and found ourselves sweating on a twilight walk dressed in tshirts and shorts; we left homes and cars and clothing that were replaced with things some had only seen in charity specials late at night on our televisions; and we left behind lives cluttered with media and grades and constant communication and busyness for a place where we spend the evening writing and talking about why we came to this place and what we think God might want us to wrestle with both this week and in the future...

I always love hearing the hearts of young men as they share about their very real desires to know Jesus more deeply and understand in a fresh way what God is calling them to do in terms of how they live and what kind of impact their lives might be able to have...your prayers for their prayers really will make a difference this week...

Tomorrow we will be up early and get to work on the construction sites here...we miss you and look forward to sharing our stories in the days ahead...

Stay warm thinking of us down here! For all the soccer guys...

CHIP

Thoughts on Millennials Leaving Their Faith and the Church Behind...An Interview with My Friend Josh Riebock

2011-01-05T10:46:00.001-08:00

Josh Riebock speaks to young people at camps, churches, colleges, retreats, seminars, and conferences. He recently spoke to the students I work with at Cornerstone University. He is author of My Generation: A Real Journey of Change and Hope (Baker, 2009). In this interview, he speaks with Drew Dyck about how churches can impact the lives of young people.

Ed Stetzer has described many youth groups as "holding tanks with pizza." Teenagers generally seem happy with their youth groups, but then most of them end up drifting out of church after graduation. What's going on?

Let's be honest, you can find a lot more fun things to do in college than eat pizza. If there's not a more compelling reason, why would you waste your time? Growing up I hated youth group. I didn't see the point. To me, if it doesn't get beyond the pizza and movie and games, eventually you're going to drift away.

When I look at my life, and the lives of the people that I know and still know, the people that end up wandering off from church often do so simply because they never understood the need to be in a community. The church that they were a part of before perhaps never presented it that way or told them that existed. It was more like, hey, just one more night of fun! Come get a break from homework. There's just nothing inspiring about that. It potentially creates a real faith struggle. You wonder, "If I don't see the point of church and church seems to play such a major role in this whole Jesus thing—what does that tell me about Jesus?" There's a potential domino effect. I think the church needs to either say that it's not essential, or it needs to act essential. To say it is and then to not act that way—it creates so many problems.

In your book you write that Jesus was relevant, but not relevant because he wore the latest tunic and fashion sandals. We've all seen the leader who is 40 years old and wears skinny jeans and a faux hawk, but doesn't get it. How can you be both relevant and authentic?

Part of relevance is tied to the second word you used: authenticity is crucial. As a soon as that disappears, irrelevance is soon to follow. I don't believe that someone has to look like me, act like me, and like the same things as me in order to impact me. Most of the time, and when I look back through my life, some of the people that have had the greatest impact on me, and some of the people that I will still go in my life regularly, are more than 20 years older, and are in completely different vocations. They dress like suburban dads.

The reason I go to them is because more than anything, their actions have demonstrated to me over and over that they care about me. I mean, honestly, what is more relevant to someone than that, than knowing someone cares about you? If we invested half as much time thinking of how to care for young people as we did sitting in meetings talking about this new series we're doing, or how we're going to amp up a program, things would be much different. None of this is new. But when we insult young people when we think that because a building is cool or the music is good, that all of a sudden they're going to go, "Oh, now I want to be here!" They just think, how shallow do you think I am? It needs to be about something more. What would it look like as a church to really demonstrate humility to these students, to demonstrate what it looks like to serve and to be involved as opposed to laboring over that other stuff? I think students would get a completely different picture of why the church matters and of who Jesus is.

The younger generation is so media saturated. They've been inundated with advertisements their whole lives. They can really smell when someone is trying to package something and sell them full of goods.

In my six years of being a youth pastor, I found that the one thing that seemed to break through to students is when someone got involved in their lives. It's not that being relevant doesn't help. It does. But those things are not compelling enough to keep someone. It's not compelling enough to draw them deeply into something. And we know this. Can you tell me what the number one movie in America was a year ago?

Oh, man, you got me there.

We don't remember that stuff. It all comes and goes! If you were to try to remember what series your church studied four months ago, that's tough. I barely remember the message I heard three days ago. But I remember the people who were involved in my life. I realize that this is guess basic stuff. But I think if we would invest in students, we'd find that God's wired our souls that way. Unless we speak that language, and unless we invest our hours in people, we're not going to demonstrate to students how essential Jesus is and the essential role the church plays in conveying his message.

Why do many young people seem to be bailing on the church and even on the Christian faith?

A big part of it is that we haven't communicated anything compelling about it. The way we demonstrate it is boring. The faith that we live out in front of them isn't the faith that they find if they actually read scripture. It's almost feels like there are two completely different stories being told. If someone is actually investigating their faith and pursuing Jesus, at some point those things are going to collide and it just creates problems. Some choose not to reconcile those two experiences. They choose to ditch it rather than work through it.

Another factor is that we've kept younger people out of most leadership positions. That's a problem. The younger people don't have a voice. I heard about an older church that's wrestling through the idea of how to connect with the younger generation. So they gathered all the leaders and some younger individuals and asked for their input. One of the teens said, "Well, if you really want to demonstrate that you care about us, about the younger generation, you've got to let us make some of the decisions." Someone asked, "Well, what exactly do you mean?" The young person said, "For example, why not let us have a say in the music and the worship?" The elder looked at this young person and said, "That's a great idea, but your generation doesn't fund this church, we do."

When I hear things like that, it's no mystery why young people walk away. Of course not every church is like that, but sometimes there's a sense of entitlement with the older generation because they have the power and money. That can be incredibly discouraging for a young person. They just think, well, I'm 20 years away from having a voice here anyway, so maybe I'll come back then when I actually matter.

It's just exactly the opposite of the message Jesus teaches. He would say that you have power so that you can serve. You have resources so you can give and not ask for anything in return. You've been put in a position of leadership to demonstrate what it looks like to be a servant rather than lording over people.

That kind of posture of humility changes everything. Suddenly young people would feel like they're contributing something that matters to them instead of just being asked to join in something that matters to someone else.

Prayers for the 2011 CU Men's Soccer Trip to the DR

2011-01-04T06:26:00.000-08:00

My name is Chip Huber and this is my second year serving in the Spiritual Formation office at CU...I also happen to be a long-time soccer player, coach, and lover of the game...one of the highlights of my time here working with students at CU has been the opportunity to get to know many of the guys in our soccer program and be part of their lives and team as God is at work in and through them...and I am thrilled to once again have the opportunity to help lead and travel with coaches and players from the CU soccer community on this mission trip experience...

This trip is something that we see as being an integral part of our soccer program...sports is truly an incredible relational connection and ministry tool all across our world...and we are excited to be returning to a place in the Dominican Republic where several of the team members went last year and we are able to use our hands, our resources, and our soccer abilities to serve and build relationships with a wonderful community of kids and adults in the DR...

As we head off to the Dominican Republic in a few hours, here's a prayer update I want to offer to you...we covet your prayers as we seek to have a transformational life experience together as a team and with the people in the DR...I'll be blogging from the DR several times over the next week and will get some help from the guys in sharing stories and experiences from our trip...…here are ten specific ways you can pray for us:

1.Safety and health in our travels to and from and around the DR over the next 7 days
2.A good working out of schedule and administrative details as we attempt to see and be part of many different experiences in a short time period
3.Ability to connect with and love and learn from our Domincan brothers and sisters
4.The continued impact of the Christian school which is being used by hundreds and hundreds of students in this community, and the physical strength to help in the further expansion of this school to serve the needs of a growing child population
6.A deep sense of community and growth in our team as we seek to discuss and mull over the experiences and resulting questions we will encounter...we are excited to build deeper friendships with each other and use our athletic gifts in soccer as a ministry and witness tool...
7.A fresh vision for future projects and personal involvement in the work God is doing in the DR and other nations around the world
8.A greater love for Christ and a heart that beats and cares for and loves the poor and oppressed people in our world
9.Opportunities to pray for/with and encourage believers and the local body of Christ in the DR as we share the Gospel in word and deed with the children and adults in these communities
10.Ability to hear and receive stories and learnings that we can then take and use as powerful resources in being advocates and leaders when we return home

We can’t wait to return and give you the stories of our trip along with some photos and videos we will have taken…once again, thank you for being part of this Kingdom venture for these young men…your overwhelming generosity and partnership is truly a remarkable blessing in our lives…we thank God for your friendship, gifts of love, and your prayers…

Together in His Work and for the 2011 Soccer Missions Crew,

Chip Huber
Dean of Student Engagement at Cornerstone University

11 Things for 2011

2010-12-28T19:26:00.000-08:00

So as this year draws to a close, it is exciting to be in a different place than last year in many ways...as 2009 ended it was very much about seeing where we had come from and all the differences and changes that were now present in our lives...and now a year later I find myself not looking back so often but instead looking forward to new things that will happen in our lives and some goals and visions I am seeking to pursue and make reality in 2011...so here goes the target list for 2011 with 11 things I long for God to help me chase after in the coming 365 days of a new year:

1. Embrace a new level of simplicity...I want to take real steps in not buying, accumulating, and spending time with stuff that I don't need and ultimately adds very little real meaning and joy to my life...and I long to teach my kids how to spend less so we can give more in a better way...

2. Read more and watch video less...I need more time with written words rather than just pictures and voices on a screen...

3. Don't be controlled by fears...I find myself as I get older being more consumed by the uncertainties and challenges of life, and I need to embrace more fully the measure of contentment and confidence I have as one who has a God who is intimately concerned and involved in even my life...

4. Run almost every day for the sake of my physical, mental, and spiritual health...this time in the day is critical for me in each of these dimensions...

5. Allow the Scriptures to be present and central in my thoughts and mind...to read the Bible, to memorize its life-giving words, and to listen to others teach from it in a systematic and central way in my daily routines...

6. Write more notes to my colleagues, my friends, and my family...simply because I love to write and I believe deeply in the power of encouragement and belief in the lives of those God has put in my life...

7. Manage my sports obsession and love of all things athletic...I can so easily divert my attention from the people and things that matter most to the games that matter not as much...and I have a little guy who I am training in this regard every single day...

8. Be more honest with my feelings with others...at times my desire to create peace and to promote happy and healthy relationships causes me to hide my true emotions and thoughts for the sake of not rocking the boat...and I need to invite more feedback from those I lead and serve in various arenas in my life...

9. Be less accessible and available when I need to be fully present with key people in my life...I struggle to not fall prey to electronic demands when I should be focused on the situations and people right in front of me...

10. Discover the best places outside of the Cornerstone community where I can invest my time and gifts for the furthering of the Kingdom of God...and I can't be afraid to invite others to come together to help facilitate real change in this world...

11. Finish the writing, editing, and publishing of the book I have been writing about my life and student engagement in the Zambia Project and beyond...it is time to get it done and time to get it out...and will require that which I find often to be so hard to do...but by the end of 2011, I want to be holding this book in my hand...and let the story God has been writing be known...

With prayers for courage and discipline and focus to pursue these dreams and passions God's Spirit has been stirring in my heart...here's to a new year indeed!

Be Rich This Christmas by Andy Stanley

2010-12-09T17:38:00.001-08:00

I know some people who are great at getting rich. But when it comes to being rich, I'm less than impressed.

In their defense, they have many problems non-rich people don't have. For instance, they need to come up with a retirement plan to ensure their golden years really are golden. I know lots of people who are faced with decisions about trading in slightly used cars, remodeling a room of their house, or upgrading to the latest, largest LCD. And who doesn't have a hard time planning how or where to spend their two weeks of paid vacation?

These are rich people problems. I have them. And my guess is one of these sounds familiar to you too.

Don't think you're rich? If you earn more than $37,000 a year, you are in the top four percent of wage earners—in the world. Congratulations! You're rich.

The thing is, "rich" is a moving target. When you were 16, $37,000 would have made you feel rich. A mortgage, a few kids, and two cars later, the same can't be said.

Throughout our lives we aspire to earn more money and accumulate more stuff. But when we earn more and collect more, our desire for more just grows.

What if we spent less time worrying about getting rich and more time and energy being rich?

The average American spends 67 days every year watching TV, but only 48 hours serving others. This December, are you focused on getting rich or being rich?

Let me help you shift gears this Christmas. Support a cause. Be rich.

A Chapel Message on the Incarnation: GOD WANTS YOU ON THE FLOOR

2010-12-06T18:45:00.000-08:00

Here's some notes from my latest chapel talk at CU...

Implications of the Incarnation:
A Journey from Spectator to Participant in God’s Kingdom Ventures

The Power of Jesus’ Engagement:
JOHN 1:14…
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
HEBREWS 2:14-18
Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. We also know that the Son did not come to help angels; he came to help the descendants of Abraham. Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. Then he could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested.

Some of the differences between the bench and the field…
*Watching things happen vs. determining the outcome

*Making comments about what is wrong vs. being part of a solution

*Wishing you could be part of something cool vs. living out a Kingdom-sized dream

An Old Testament Model…
NEHEMIAH 4:13-23:
So I stationed armed guards at the most vulnerable places of the wall and assigned people by families with their swords, lances, and bows. After looking things over I stood up and spoke to the nobles, officials, and everyone else: "Don't be afraid of them. Put your minds on the Master, great and awesome, and then fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes." Our enemies learned that we knew all about their plan and that God had frustrated it. And we went back to the wall and went to work. From then on half of my young men worked while the other half stood guard with lances, shields, bows, and mail armor. Military officers served as backup for everyone in Judah who was at work rebuilding the wall. The common laborers held a tool in one hand and a spear in the other. Each of the builders had a sword strapped to his side as he worked. I kept the trumpeter at my side to sound the alert. Then I spoke to the nobles and officials and everyone else: "There's a lot of work going on and we are spread out all along the wall, separated from each other. When you hear the trumpet call, join us there; our God will fight for us.“ And so we kept working, from first light until the stars came out, half of us holding lances. I also instructed the people, "Each person and his helper is to stay inside Jerusalem—guards by night and workmen by day." We all slept in our clothes—I, my brothers, my workmen, and the guards backing me up. And each one kept his spear in his hand, even when getting water.

Three factors that keep us sitting getting spiritual splinters…
*DIFFERENT REPUTATION

*RELATIONSHIP RISKS

*FAILURE

ACTS 17:6
“Paul and Silas have turned the rest of the world upside down, and now they are here disturbing our city,” they shouted.

God wants you ON THE FLOOR
*Are you watching God’s work in the world or are you part of His Kingdom strategy being fleshed out among His people?

*Where do you currently need to get into the game and take advantage of a clear opportunity you have to use your gifts to change people’s lives and the world for Jesus’ sake?

Some Thoughts on Being a Sports Fan Who Follows Jesus

2010-12-04T08:23:00.001-08:00

Today's the first home game for the CU men's hoops team...we have a fabulous team this year and my family and I love being fans at their games in the long Midwest winters...here's my latest editorial writing for the CU school paper on what is means to be a fan at CU...off to cheer on the Golden Eagles...

If you were to ask me what some of my favorite memories of my first 16 months on the CU campus are, I’d be able to share all kinds of stories about Terra Firma events, global justice awareness activities, meals in the dining hall, meaningful classroom interactions, and hundreds of meetings and conversations with staff and students in the CU community.

However, I’d also have to tell you that my CU highlight moments include plenty of time spent in the bleachers or on the sidelines of our CU athletic fields. I am a sports junkie/nerd who is perfectly content attending and watching any kind of athletic contest, except for horse racing or NASCAR races; I think it has something to do with the lack of human movement and the lack of presence of a ball or other object being moved around! The sad truth is that I’m well on my way to raising another generation of this type of passionate sports fan, and one of my most distinct CU memories is my seven year old son waving his gold CU spirit towel right in Dr. Ostrander’s face at the WHAC Basketball Championship Game last March!

I love athletics, love hanging out with athletes, and love being a CU fan. But I also sometimes wonder how my faith and my being a fan are connected in my life. I’ve actually pondered questions like “Does God care about how we cheer at games? Can Christians really care passionately about the outcome of sporting events? How does the fact that I am part of the CU community influence what I choose to do at the athletic contests I attend?” I am fully aware that thinking about these questions may not be normal, but as I’ve reflected on them I think they really are worth consideration in an American culture that reveres and is in many ways fixated with its athletic events.

So here are a few thoughts in response to those questions as we consider what it means to be a CU fan…

1. It is a good thing to attend and be engaged at our sporting events! There is a powerful sense of community that is developed at these events and your presence and participation makes a huge impact on the lives of hundreds of students on our campus who are passionately pursuing the calling God has invited them to pursue with the gifts and passions He’s placed in their lives. It is so appropriate to be there in big numbers and to be there with loud voices!

2. I believe that the best kind of cheering focuses on celebrating what our teams and athletes do well. Your energy and feedback can and does stir them to continue to pursue excellence and often helps them sustain their effort when they are fatigued or struggling at a moment in the match or event. I know that there is an incredible temptation to focus our energy and words on the negative things that the other team’s players are doing. I’ve seen and laughed at the crazy ways crowds on TV and in other settings have tried to distract, intimidate and even humiliate athletes on opposing teams. But I’m always drawn to the fact that there is a person behind the player, and I’m convinced that the words of Scripture paint a picture where God loves when our words inspire and encourage rather than potentially harm or damage, even in the heat of competition.

I love the words of Solomon in Proverbs 16:24 (NIV): “Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.”

3. There is a unique reality as a Christian community that how we compete and cheer and what we do as fans does represent who Jesus is to the folks from outside our community who are playing and watching along with us in athletic settings. I’ve received more than enough letters and emails from people after games as an administrator and coach that have made me quite certain that they definitely are watching us as Christians in that context. It might seem a bit unfair or judgmental to us, but it also is a reality that offers us an incredible opportunity to demonstrate what the character and nature of Christ looks like. We simply are different as a community of fans because we proclaim Jesus as Lord of our lives. Our culture and other spectators can form impressions of both Christ and His church from coming to a game against Cornerstone University. That is an incredible opportunity for us to bless people and honor Christ in this competitive cauldron. It’s one I am excited about and hope you will embrace as you live out your college life and your faith as a CU fan.

I resonate with the vision Paul offers for us in Philippians 2:13-14 (Message): “Do everything readily and cheerfully—no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God.”

I just finished watching a fall season of great crowds at soccer and volleyball and cross country events; and the winter months promise some incredible basketball action from some very good CU squads; and there’s new softball fan seating awaiting us in the spring…

I’ll look forward to seeing you cheering long and loud at these unique CU events, and I’m praying the world will see Jesus in us and through us as we live out the calling of being Christian fans…

GO CU!

Remembering Getting Tested for HIV on World AIDS Day

2010-12-01T10:04:00.000-08:00

It is World AIDS Day again...a day that has become a key one on my calendar over the last several years...I find myself wearing orange orphan shirts and almost always am involved with some meaningful awareness and response events on campuses with my students...and today is no exception at Cornerstone...and as I was thinking about the impact of this pandemic on so many people near and far I call friends in our world, I remembered one of my most poignant encounters with HIV...and one of the most meaningful and motivating...so below is a post from a couple years ago I wrote after getting tested for HIV a few years ago at a local clinic...may we see what I posted as my facebook picture become reality as we promote testing and prevention and treatment even still today so that no children will be born in 2015 with a positive HIV status...I'm off to get ready for a good day here thinking of God's invitation to love and care and support those impact now and in the future...

This morning I drove over to Wheaton College and picked up a good friend, one of my former students, and we headed over on a very cold Chicago morning to the DuPage County Health Department offices. We had both been there before to get shots before heading to Africa, but this visit was a little different. We were there to take an HIV test so we would know our status in relationship to having the presence of HIV antibodies on our body. Now to be honest, both of us admittedly felt a bit strange doing this at first. And even for many who might regularly read this blog you may very well think that it was an even stranger thing for us to do.

It was something that both of us wanted to do and felt like we needed to do as people who have been and continue to be deeply concerned about the issue of HIV/AIDS both in Africa and here in America. And yet to be honest, as an evangelical Christian it might seem to many of my friends like something unnecessary or perhaps even unthinkable due to the nature of the HIV virus being most often transmitted here in America through sexual contact or intravenous drug use involving needles due to most of the cases of mother to child transmission through birth or breast milk being prevented through medical care. (although not always the case) We both essentially had zero risk factors for testing positive because of our lack of drug use and choosing to abstain from sex till marriage and only having sex with a spouse for a lifetime up till this point. These decisions have come from our own decisions to seek to with the help of God's grace to pursue this lifestyle out of what we believe our faith as a Christ follower calls us to do. And yet these lifestyle choices are obviously not shared or embraced or acted out by many of our friends and fellow human beings who we love, care about, and want to be healthy...

We have both seen and heard about the incredible fear and stigma and even discrimination that takes place with those who are HIV positive, along with the very real physical impact and suffering that many living with HIV or AIDS are experiencing worldwide...more than anything else related to this disease, I long for the prevention of contracting AIDS and to stop its spread for people both in Africa and here in the USA and Chicago...and for those who are HIV positive but do not know it yet I want them to immediately get the medicines needed to help them stay healthy and be able to feel good about themselves and their role in society...and these critical things cannot happen if people do not feel free or comfortable to get tested and know their own status...and if people like me and you are willing to get tested, we can make it more normal, more accepted, and less scary for anyone who wants to know if they are HIV positive, and even more acceptable to talk about this disease so we can help reduce the infection rate of this life-changing disease...

Here is my experience this morning...even as we walked into the health department building, I found myself three times in a row having to tell different folks that I wanted to get an HIV test, and wondering just a bit what they were thinking about me...but to be honest, I didn't feel hesitant or ashamed because I knew it was a good thing for me to do...I was brought into a private room and was asked a series of questions concerning my risk factors and given basic information about HIV and what would happen if the result was positive...they even took down my address because sometimes people don't stay around to hear the results in the 20 minute period while you wait for your results...my counselor was a very nice young lady who seemed both surprised and pleased at how I answered the questions about my sexual experiences and needle use...I know she was actually quite overwhelmed when my 21 year old friend told her he was a virgin...after a finger poke I walked out to the waiting area where she would come find me with the results after the 20 minutes needed to do the analysis of my blood in a quick rapid test...(by the way, the test was free, I was treated very well, and I just walked in and was out in under an hour)

As I sat in the waiting room chair I thought and chatted with my friend about what these moments must feel like for those who were unsure or fearful about what the results might show...results that have life long implications...we thought about our Zambian friends who don't want to get tested if there are not medications available or the hidden lifestyle choices that might be revealed and disapproved of in DuPage County by people they are close to in their lives...it served as an experience producing empathy and understanding for those who may be dealing with the impact of this virus...and hopefully produces an opportunity to speak into the lives of those who may need to be tested and helps encourage all types of folks to get tested and know their status and reduce the stigma that still unfortunately is part of cultures all across the world...

My counselor motioned for me to go back into the room with her and she asked me to sit down and looked at my results one more time...there was a split second where I found myself wondering "WHAT IF" even on a personal level before she told me my result was that I was negative in terms of my HIV status...and despite the fact that I knew logically that would be the case, it again allowed me to experience a taste of what it feels like to be that person wondering in that moment...as I walked out of the office after thanking her for the service she had provided me there were a few things that stuck with me after getting tested:

1. It is powerful and meaningful to enter into positive shared experiences so we can build rapport and get on the same ground when we have opportunity to not stay at a distance from those who we care about but may have different life experiences...

2. Getting tested and discovering your status in terms of HIV is easy to do and is something everyone should consider doing, especially if you have any doubt about what your status might be, regardless of what you think others might think of your behavioral choices

3. Choosing to live by the vision God has set out in Scripture for relationships is an aid in maintaining health and peace in our own personal lives

4. AIDS is an issue that we must not ignore in Africa, in Washington DC, in our own neighborhood...it deserves our attention, education, compassion, and action...

5. You cannot live life based on the fears of what others might think about you when you know you should do the right thing regardless of their possible reaction and response...living in the light rather than the dark is always the best choice...

It was a morning I won't soon forget...and one I hope many others will soon count as a shared experience with me in the days to come...

The Thanksgiving List for 2010

2010-11-24T16:08:00.001-08:00

I am enjoying the first days away from work at CU in several months this week up in the great white north of MN...it's a week filled with meals and coffee with long-time friends, time with family, a few sporting events, lots of WII, and some time to read and reflect...so here's a smattering of things that I'm most thankful for as I look back at 2010 and start peering toward 2011...

*Family...near AND far...including parents whose concern for my life never stopped when I left the house and the state...

*Ingrid...turned 40 this year...she's my rock and my greatest source of love and wisdom for all life brings...

*Olivia...so bright and a heart for her friends that's growing...love talking about faith and justice issues with here already...

*Trey...my sports buddy who always is ready for a game of catch or passing the soccer ball around...and who wants to be part of every piece of my life...

*CU in so many ways...a job I get excited about and that is growing...students who love God and are desperate to grow in knowledge and action...the soccer program--players, coaches, trips overseas, and doing something I love...leadership I trust and believe in and who I learn from...and a community to be part of--something so few have in their workplaces...

*Dental care for me when it's not even on the radar of the people I've met in all parts of the world...despite the pain and cost!

*The ability to change thousands of lives thru a soccer match and a basketball game...because we get to share God's blessings to meet the prayers of others...

*The joy of reading and writing and creating...and being allowed to do so almost every single day of my life...

*Friends in places like Charlotte and Chicago and LA and Minneapolis and Atlanta and Houghton and Detroit and Annapolis who I feel safe telling the whole story to about my life, and who sharpen me in ways I can't do on my own...

*The World Cup in Africa this summer...pure fun and joy and bliss...feeling so much a part of something thousands and thousands of miles away...

*ESPN...so shallow, but so true for a sports junkie like me...

*The church...both where I go weekly and so many places across the world...where God's people are at work doing Kingdom stuff in remarkable ways...

*And the blessing of following Jesus for another year...and believing that God's whisper, His voice is indeed worth hearing and obeying in my life...and living and experiencing His presence and power and care in the midst of the struggle and fears and dreams and questions this side of eternity...

The joy of the Lord is indeed my strength...and I am most grateful on a cold early winter night for that joy and peace that trumps all else as I look back at 2010...

HOOPS for H2O: A CU Men's Basketball Event for Clean Water in Kenya

2010-11-17T11:38:00.000-08:00

Here's the latest collaborative event between and athletes and our ACTS social justice group on the CU campus:

The Cornerstone University men's basketball program and ACT:S student organization is hosting a unique global fundraising event at CU seeking to raise awareness and resources in the basketball and college campus communities to help provide clean water for a school community serving orphans in Kenya.

When: Wednesday, December 8, 2010 at 7:30 pm
Men's Basketball Game against Aquinas College

Where: The Hansen Center on the CU campus in Grand Rapids

Giving to the cause: All CU students will be invited to make a $5 donation to the project as the typical cost to attend a basketball game. (CU students do not pay to get into home games.) There will also be special water bottles on sale that night at the game, and anyone who attends the game will also be able to make a donation to the well project. All the proceeds from this event will go directly toward the building of a clean water well for a school in Kenya.

The goal: If we are able to raise $5,000 we would be able to fully fund the drilling, building, and community training for a well that will directly and immediately help save and improve the lives and futures of hundreds of school children and their families in Kenya!

Info about the Global Water Crisis: Over 1 billion of the world's most vulnerable people in our world lack daily access to safe and clean water, and water-related diseases cost 443 million school days a year. Clean water is the foundation for other forms of development. Without easy access to water that is safe, countless hours are spent in water collection and household income is spent to purchase water and medical treatment for water-related diseases. Safe, clean water removes the single heaviest burden from the lives of the poorest people in our world. Not having to deal with this daily crisis means time for school and work, life and health, and allows individuals and communities to plan for tomorrow.

Our Partner: Living Water International served over 2 million people in 25 countries in 2009. LWI built 639 new wells and rehabbed 1126 wells globally in the last calendar year. Living Water International exists to demonstrate the love of God by helping communities acquire desperately needed clean water, and to experience "living water"—the gospel of Jesus Christ—which alone satisfies the deepest thirst. To learn more check out: www.water.cc

WEBSITE LINKS:
Information Website: http://hoopsforh2o.com/
Online Donation Website: http://www.firstgiving.com/hoopsforh2o

A Special Christmas Invitation: Advent Conspiracy
All CU students are also invited to consider doing something different for the Christmas season this year. Students are invited to ask their family or friends to choose to make a donation to the CU HOOPS for H2O Project in lieu of receiving a Christmas gift this year. You can invite people to help give the life-changing gift of clean water instead of giving you a present.

You can see more about this idea at the website: www.adventconspiracy.org/water

The End Comes So Quickly

2010-11-09T19:28:00.001-08:00

So tonight a final whistle from the center referee blows, and at the end the shrill noise, the soccer season of 2010 for a group of young men at CU and their coaches is done...it still feels unexpected and sudden although you know that only one team in the country will end their season with a win and you've come to the point in the schedule where you won't be favored to win in any game you play from now on...and even though I've had many, many years of this particular moment, it still affected me tonight as I stood on the sidelines after our match against Davenport...

And here are some pictures of the feelings and emotions and experiences of a group of guys that have spent almost every single day together for the last three months...

*You see a senior guy with tears streaming down his face proudly telling the rest of the guys that he loves them and loves being part of this CU team...and that love is returned back to him...

*A freshman sits on the bench quietly amazed that his first semester of college is moving so quickly...and wondering how the next three years of soccer will be different than this year a of huge transitions and adjustments...

*A few players refuse to talk to anyone because they really thought they were primed to win and are left wondering if they could have done more…

*A sophomore guy wipes away tears because he just isn't ready for this season to end...and for the unique experiences the soccer season offers for his life and make it the best time of the year...

*A captain who tore his ACL weeks before the season was to begin embraces his brother with frustration over what he imagines he could have done to help the season go longer and looks forward to next August more than anyone can imagine..

*Several guys slowly unwrap tape from their legs with their bodies bumped and bruised and beat up from 3 months of intense physical work and contact...

*Players who have played few if any minutes on the field this year still mourn the end of this season where they have practiced and competed and made memories and friendships even if they haven't scored any goals or made spectacular saves...

*The coaching staff picks up litter and packs up the ball bag one last time feeling unfulfilled and yet incredibly proud of the growth of the players and men they've invested their lives deeply into at the expense of family time, other career opportunities, and daily contentment...

*A group of fans mourns the loss of one of their centerpiece social activities...including the girlfriends and roommates and family members who cried and cheered with all the good and the bad moments...

*And I walked away with one of our senior captains and leading scorer this year talking about what in the world you do when soccer stops after more than a decade of being focused on it as your job, your passion, your calling...

The end comes so very quickly...and with the ending comes a bit of sadness, shock, and strangely a bit of relief from the stress of games and performance expectations...but in the midst of the end comes a new season of life and soccer we now look ahead to...and that forward glance is filled with optimism at all the players returning, the gratefulness for having people to live all of life with from the this community, and the challenge of making oneself more equipped as a person and player to excel in the next season to come...

It is now past midnight and I know my son Trey went to bed sad tonight that he and I won't be standing on the sidelines of the WHAC Championship Game Saturday afternoon...and I'll feel a little lost tomorrow as I drive on to campus not being able to look forward to games on the weekends and being able to swing by practice and share my heart with these guys on my way home...but more than anything, I am filled and blessed to be part of a group and season that gives life to me and all who are part of the soccer program at CU...and I'll smile thinking how in 2 months many of us will be playing soccer with kids and teams in the Dominican Republic doing something we love in order to serve the poor in our world and experience Jesus and His love in a fresh way as a team...the end has come far too quickly...but for this team of followers of Jesus who come together to try and play the beautiful game in a most beautiful way the best seasons are still to come...morning will come after this night where the season ended...and the God who invited us and brought us together to play on His behalf has even more to come in the future than we can ask or imagine because His power and love resides in us...

With Thanks for this Season and Hope for the Seasons to Come...

A Love That Runs Deep

2010-10-26T12:50:00.000-07:00

I admit it...I love the fall...in many ways for the last 15 or so years of my life it has been the busiest time of my year...and I guess to be honest, I'm pretty much a guy who thrives on activity and being engaged in the high school and college communities I've been part of...but it's also more than that...I love the often perfect weather that seems to show up in the MIDWEST in the months of September and October...I love more mundane things like college football Saturdays...and I love all the new things that fill our family life as we re-enter the school year season and get connected to new friends and new experiences...

And I love one other thing that I've even reconnected with again this fall...the beautiful game we call soccer in the USA and the joy of being part of a team that plays a season...these two months are forever etched in my own yearly calendar as the times when I'm supposed to be on a sideline watching diagonal through balls get played, head balls won, and half-volleys cracked into the corner of goals...and it's something I've fallen in love with beyond my expectations...

This fall of 2010 has been one of the busiest in recent memory in terms of activities, new programs, lots of relationships, management responsibilities, and time required at our various CU campus initiatives...often times, the schedule threatened to exhaust me and leave me worn out to the point where I've found myself losing a bit of the fire and passion for what God has called me to do...

And in the midst of those moments and seasons of life, I've discovered that the antidote I need to inject into my life is to spend time with something I truly love...something that strangely restores my energy and enthusiasm instead of wiping me out...these moments are often to be with the people that I love the most...long time friends and Ingrid, Olivia, and Trey...creating memories with them makes my heart full and fills back up those wells of passion and joy...

And then perhaps most strangely for so many of my peers and even my fellow Americans, I find that my heart needs for me to walk out to the soccer pitch...a few years ago, I ended up having to walk away from the fields where a major chunk of my heart was poured out and built strong for many, many falls in a row...I missed coaching and its emotional roller coaster ride for sure...but more than that I missed being part of the sport...being part of the game the world loves in a hands-on way...being part of a bunch of guys that care so deeply that they commit almost silly amounts of time and emotion to its pursuit...

The soccer coach here at CU has become one of my best friends quickly on the campus and graciously has invited me to step back inside the soccer world in a small but significant way for me...the days when I walk from my office to the practice field are ones that cause me to walk with a smile on my face...and I still even find myself going back to old habits as I'll wear some CU soccer gear to the office on game days...

And when I stand on the sidelines during our matches, I am reminded of how good it is that God created these things in our world that give us great joy, great pleasure, great heartbreak...things that we do very much love...and I often offer these strange prayers of thanks for this game that I've fallen in love with...a game that has brought into my life many of the people whom I love most deeply...a game that has enabled me to fall in love with the cultures and peoples all over the world...a game that I love coaching my son in as he cracks a left footed volley to my great surprise...a game that has helped allow me to connect in new places every time I've made a major transition in my life to a new place...a game that I grew up playing but is something that I seemingly enjoy and treasure even more as I age...

The soccer schedule is winding down for Trey and the CU guys this very week...and I'm already feeling that tinge of sadness as winter will soon be here and soccer on grass will disappear around here...but in my heart, a love will still burn and flicker...and I reflect on the truth of Proverbs 4 where Solomon writes about how our heart is indeed the very "wellspring of life" for us...and I am reminded that I Corinthians 5 rings true as the love Christ pours out upon us does in fact compel us to pursue with passion that which God invites us to be part of in His world...

The other day I went out to practice on a gorgeous October afternoon and offered a quick reading of I Corinthians 13 and reminded myself and a bunch of college soccer players how blessed we are all to love what God has gifted us to do...how beautiful the love is that teammates have for one another as they share these truly unique corporate experiences...and how remarkable it is for us to be able to create memories and moments that will forever shape and stay with us as a Christian soccer community built upon a love for a beautiful game, for each other, for the Kingdom work it allows us to do as we live and bask in a love that runs so deep...

Three things will last forever...faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love...I CORINTHIANS 13:13

Weeping Because of Malaria...

2010-10-20T19:25:00.000-07:00

I did something tonight that I've done several times before, but hadn't done in quite a while...I wept for the children and families in sub-Saharan Africa...I wept not out of pity or guilt, but because of the personal stories I encountered in watching a documentary filmed to raise awareness and response to the global health pandemic of malaria...

I screened a documentary for a bunch of students here at CU concerned about global poverty and justice issues called WHEN THE NIGHT COMES...it's a piece done by some of the folks who did the Invisible Children documentary and was sponsored by the UN and ONE CAMPAIGN groups...we just completed hosting a major malaria event called Night of Nets where we raised several thousand dollars at a CU soccer match and will be able to distribute over 1000 insecticide treated malaria bed nets when he head to Zambia in May for families at great risk of being affected by this awful disease...

I've probably shown over 100 documentary style pieces done concerning issues in Africa, and I like to think I'm fairly aware of some of the impact lack of resources and as Bill Gates calls it "the accident of geography" has upon many people's global situations and life challenges...

But this particular film was exceptionally well done and the filmmakers had access and demonstrated great sensitivity in telling and showing life stories in northern Ugandan communities...and my heart was once again broken and I was educated in a meaningful way about what life does and can look like for a people that have the deepest faith in a God who will see them thru very challenging things and who has remarkable plans for their futures...

And as I sat in a classroom just outside my office covered with African paintings and photos and treasures, the tears came once again, despite my want to stop them and my head's ideas that I couldn't possibly still be crying about things on the other side of the world...

But I wept...I wept because 500 million people globally deal with a horrific health issue that was swept away from our American world over 50 years ago...I wept because I saw once again the utter despair and grief of parents who lost their one year old babies in clinics that would never pass health codes anywhere in the western world...I wept because Ugandan teenagers just assumed that millions of people in our country were dealing with malaria in our country because of our type of climate...I wept because girls who love to play soccer don't just worry about their homework at night after practice, but instead worry about falling asleep and exposing themselves to the bite of an insect that could end their life as it has others in their immediate families...I wept because the people interviewed just assumed we were going to help end malaria when asked about it...I wept because this disease that is completely preventable is keeping almost each of the millenium development goals from being achieved...I wept because we were able to raise enough resources to provide over 1000 desperately needed nets with just a bit of work and energy from some middle class college athletes and globally minded students on a Saturday in September when for millions of people a net would make the difference between life and death...I wept because only 20 students or so will come see this documentary about creating a future for people without one and over 200 will go watch a film made over 25 years ago about an actor's make believe past and future...I wept because I don't worry about even sleeping under a bed net in Africa when I go because of the preventative medicines I take while traveling...I wept seeing the privilege it will be to hand a net to a family that will sing and dance for joy in response this summer as I walk dusty roads in a nation I've grown to love...and I wept because of the fact that I honestly believe with all my heart that millions of my fellow Christ followers are missing out on great joy and meaning and intimacy in relationships with amazing cultures and peoples and Jesus Himself because their faith hasn't made room for the reality of a global God who has blessed some so they may bless others and bring life, truly abundant life to each and every person made in His image on this planet no matter what global crisis or issue they are facing...

And perhaps most of all, my tears fell because I know that God still longs for me to do more...He longs for me to invite more students in this generation to be the church that loves their neighbors near and far in our world...and He longs for me to use my gifts, my influence, my voice, my loves to help do things like end malaria by 2015...because that's His calling and His passion for me in this moment of my walk with Jesus...and so often I don't cry like I should and love like I should and live like I should in light of what I know to be true in Scripture and in our world...

So tonight as I finish writing and head to bed where a mosquito is the last thing on my mind as the night has come to Grand Rapids, I am glad for a film that makes me weep again...and am praying tonight with my CU student friends with such open and compassoniate hearts that our tears will lead us to repentance and acts of restoration as the church of Jesus Christ that will wipe away the tears and the fears of our African friends as malaria disappears in the villages and homes and lives of those in a place where God has not left and has so much more to do in the days to come...

Wiping Away the Tears in my Eyes Because of the One Who Brings Light and Life Even When the Night Comes to All of Our Lives...

4 Views of God

2010-10-18T06:40:00.001-07:00

Here's a posting from Kara Powell at Fuller Seminary about some recent research on how people view God in our culture...some interesting stuff...

A friend forwarded me this “USA Today” summary [1] of some research on Americans’ views of God conducted by a few sociologists at Baylor University. I thought their 4 categories for views of God, while not necessarily never-before-thought-of, are nonetheless helpful. Here’s an excerpt from the article:

Froese and Bader’s research wound up defining four ways in which Americans see God:

•The Authoritative God. When conservatives Sarah Palin [2] or Glenn Beck [3] proclaim that America will lose God’s favor unless we get right with him, they’re rallying believers in what Froese and Bader call an Authoritative God, one engaged in history and meting out harsh punishment to those who do not follow him. About 28% of the nation shares this view, according to Baylor’s 2008 findings.

“They divide the world by good and evil and appeal to people who are worried, concerned and scared,” Froese says. “They respond to a powerful God guiding this country, and if we don’t explicitly talk about (that) God, then we have the wrong God or no God at all.”

•The Benevolent God. When President Obama says he is driven to live out his Christian faith in public service, or political satirist Stephen Colbert [4] mentions God while testifying to Congress in favor of changing immigration laws, they’re speaking of what the Baylor researchers call a Benevolent God. This God is engaged in our world and loves and supports us in caring for others, a vision shared by 22% of Americans, according to Baylor’s findings.

“Rhetoric that talks about the righteous vs. the heathen doesn’t appeal to them,” Froese says. “Their God is a force for good who cares for all people, weeps at all conflicts and will comfort all.”

•The Critical God. The poor, the suffering and the exploited in this world often believe in a Critical God who keeps an eye on this world but delivers justice in the next, Bader says.

Bader says this view of God — held by 21% of Americans — was reflected in a sermon at a working-class neighborhood church the researchers visited in Rifle, Colo., in 2008. Pastor Del Whittington’s theme at Open Door Church was ” ‘Wait until heaven, and accounts will be settled.’ “

•The Distant God. Though about 5% of Americans are atheists or agnostics, Baylor found that nearly one in four (24%) see a Distant God that booted up the universe, then left humanity alone.

This doesn’t mean that such people have no religion. It’s the dominant view of Jews and other followers of world religions and philosophies such as Buddhism or Hinduism, the Baylor research finds.

The Harvest is Past... and We Are Not Yet Saved

2010-10-11T05:50:00.000-07:00

A great piece from a partner in Zambia with Jubilee Center about justice and courage in Zambia...hoping to visit their ministry with student this May back in the mother land!

We argued last week that Evangelical and Pentecostal leaders are a major force on the Zambian political scene. Our leaders receive invitations to the State House; and public media outlets: the ZNBC, the Times of Zambia, and the Daily Mail quote Pentecostal and Evangelical leaders more than any other religious constituency. We also noted that during the election candidates will be appealing for our votes and the votes of those we lead. How much difference do we make in how our members vote? Leaders do influence their people, but in the absence of quantifiable data we are not sure how many Evangelical or Pentecostals vote or what other issues we care about apart from the “Christian Nation” clause.

Evangelicals are rightly known for efforts to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to the lost. Pentecostals are known for proclaiming the message of generous giving as a way of coming out of poverty as well as for exploring new forms of worship and for building new church structures. Both groups however are still lacking when it comes to caring for the needy beyond their church community. As one who identifies with both groups I can say we also have a difficult time making disciples who practically understand what it means to be Christian citizens in Zambia and the world.

Consider the economy of England in the 18th century that was largely built on the abusing children from poor families who were made to work in coalmines and factories under terrible conditions, and on the slave trade that cruelly exploited Indians and Africans. A ruling class addicted to privilege, licentious living, and status dominated the English government. It was during this period that God raised up William Wilberforce out of a life of wealth and class, who in part was a disciple of John Newton a former slave trader turned pastor, to lead through his position as a Member of Parliament to influence his fellow lawmakers to abolish the slave trade in England.

Much of Zambia’s current leadership is no different than the 18th century ruling class that enslaved the poor and oppressed the weak for personal gain. Copper prices have soared to record highs and yet those living in poor communities are seeing little change. Our natural resources and economic future are being sold and yet the proceeds are benefitting only a small band of investors and the elite ruling class. The majority of the Zambians still lack access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation. As a result, women and children spend a disproportionate amount of time collecting water and then caring for those who have contracted water-borne sicknesses from that water. Jeremiah lamented in the scriptures, “Remember O Lord what happened to us; look and see our disgrace. Our inheritance has been turned over to aliens our homes to foreigners” (Lam.5: 1-2) He cried, “Harvest is past, summer is ended, and we are not saved. For the brokenness of the daughter of my people I am broken; I mourn, dismay has taken hold of me. Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has not the health of the daughter of my people been restored?”(Jeremiah 8:20-22)

Zambia needs a John Newton who will tell our Wilberforce in Parliament that “God has raised you up for the good of the church and the good of the nation.” Do we have a Wilberforce in Parliament...someone who will forgo wealth and privilege for a higher cause? Do we have a John Newton in our pulpits...one who has the credibility and courage to speak boldly to the ruling class on behalf of the marginalized and disciple them to make a difference for good?

Lawrence Temfwe

HOLY DISCONTENT...A Key to Moving from the Head to the Heart to the Hand

2010-10-08T13:14:00.000-07:00

Here's some of the thoughts I shared at our CU chapel closing Global Opportunities Week...they flow from my engagement with Bill Hybels' book by the same name that helped frame what God was at work doing in my own faith and life...

OPENING QUESTIONS: Why do certain people care about certain things? AND Why do people do what they do in their lives?

IDEA #1: The motivating reason why millions of people choose to do good in the world around them is because there is something wrong in the world that gains their attention.

IDEA #2: THE POPEYE MOMENT...It happens when we reach the point where we can’t “stands no more!”

IDEA #3: TWO THEOLOGICAL DRIVING FORCES: Restoration and Reconciliation

IDEA #4:Restoration…Romans 8:20-21
Against its will, all creation was subjected
to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the
creation looks forward to the day when it
will join God’s children in glorious freedom
from death and decay.

IDEA #5:Reconciliation: Colossians 1:15-20
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all
creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven
and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers
or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for
him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning
and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he
might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his
fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all
things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making
peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

IDEA #6: LUKE 4:18-22…Jesus’ Passion for Mission...He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him.
Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: "The Spirit of the
Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to
the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and
recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim
the year of the Lord's favor." Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back
to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue
were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, "Today this
scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."

IDEA #7: The Kingdom Begins to Come.. Thoughts from Dave Livermore’s Cultural Intelligence...
*The “already/not yet” tension exists where the kingdom is already
present/embodied in Jesus’ life/ministry while not yet fully present…
*Jesus’ work is already present while also moving history forward to
the time when all will be made right…so we have to forever hold in
tension both the present and the future realities of the kingdom. One
without the other just isn’t possible. If the kingdom is fully future, the
church is without power. If the kingdom is fully present, the church is
without hope.
*We are a colony of the kingdom created to give people pictures of what
Jesus’ reign looks like and as a testimony of the kingdom that will one day
be fully realized. And a huge part of the contextualization process is
learning to put on kingdom sensors so we can spot where God’s reign has
sprung forth into our fallen world and where it has not yet come to bear.

IDEA #8: The Process…There develops an irresistible attraction to a specific cause that compels people to invest joyfully of their time, their money, and their energies…and it is almost always linked back to a single spark of frustration that fuels what is now a raging fire in their souls…and you become an unstoppable force for good

IDEA #9: The Outcome…You see, what wrecks the heart of someone who loves God is often the very thing God wants to use to fire them up to do something that, under normal circumstances, they would never attempt to do in their normal condition and lives.

IDEA #10: Scripture’s Push On Our Lives…And so we then refuse to stay just fed up…and we get fueled to action by this restless longing for the better day realities God says are coming soon. It is entirely possible to rest in God’s promise of a better day while we work our tails off to usher it in…

IDEA #11: Helpful Steps in Becoming More Discontent:
*Feed Your Frustration

*Take More Risk

*Fan the Flame

IDEA #12: APPLICATION QUESTIONS: Where Do You Go From Here?

1. What one thing can’t you stand in our present community/world?

2. What piece of God’s restoration work do you long to be part of in your life?

3. What is your next one specific step in acting on your own “holy discontent?”

IDEA #13: A FRANCISCAN BENEDICTION

May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that you may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
So that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.

May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and
To turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.

Amen

SOCCER and MALARIA BED NETS...A Perfect Combination

2010-09-16T05:44:00.000-07:00

I still remember the first time I went to a village in Zambia...we had waited a long time to meet the people and to see the place where we had raised funds for in order for the people there to be able to build a first school building for their community...and yet to be honest, those first hours were really a bit overwhelming...it was unlike any place I'd been before and there were the usual struggles with language and culture differences that left me feeling a bit like an outsider despite the immense joy I felt and the Zambian people felt in celebrating how God had brought us together in a Kingdom way for Kingdom purposes...

But after some village tours, welcome speeches and dances, and exchanges of thank yous and gifts we walked down a dusty village trail to a 120 yard long by 75 yard wide piece of African dirt where for me everything suddenly became comfortable and usual...we put on soccer jerseys and played a full match against a local village team scoring goals on wood frame goalposts at the edge of a field where the grass grew instantly longer as you stepped off the soccer pitch...this game was something that was familiar and loved by both teams playing and I found myself playing without inhibition and talking to Zambian players without some of the same fears and questions I had been struggling with just minutes before...although I must confess I have never played a game since where someone with a megaphone on the sidelines was screaming out the play by play of the action on the field interspersed with comments like "We will defeat HIV!" and "AIDS has no chance of beating us now that we have education!" in between the announcements of who had scored the latest goal...

Soccer did then and has for several more years connected me in community with friends in Africa in a unique and surprisingly strong way...and I have watched soccer become a vehicle of community and service for people in obvious need and people with plenty of stuff all around them...soccer has allowed me and hundreds of students to help provide AIDS education programs, health care and food and clean water, new shoes and uniforms and equipment, and the chance to share the story of the Gospel in a long term ministry and community development partnership for close to a decade now...

So when some of the coaches and players in the Cornerstone University men's soccer program began to ask some questions about how they could as a program use their sport to help change the world as an outgrowth of what God was up to in their own lives, I immediately thought of an idea our ACTS poverty and justice group on campus had heard about called Night of Nets...the idea was to host an event that would highlight the devastating impact of malaria upon African kids and their families while seeking to raise resources for the purchase and distribution of life-saving and malaria-preventing bed nets to those at great risk of catching the disease from mosquito bites...

We came up with the Night of NETS event where we would invite people attending both the CU men's and women's games to pay a $6 admission charge that would purchase a bed net for a family on the other side of the world...and we ended up creating a website and other opportunities for people to get involved in the cause as we sought to change the lives of 1000 families in Zambia because of the playing of a game that is revered and treasured in the African culture...and as we host this event, we will strangely once again through the beautiful game called soccer experience community with people who we have very little in common with on many levels...and it gives us a wonderful opportunity to use athletics and serving the poor to create a truly community event for our own college community...we are expecting that we might see the largest crowd to ever watch a soccer match on our campus and we hope that students who have never really understood the beauty of soccer and the reality of the health crisis created by malaria can do both on a 120 by 75 yard piece of grass on our campus that day...

It is tough to try and draw people together physically, socially, and spiritually on a campus like ours where so many students are doing so many different things...many live off campus, many have extra jobs, and many come from different economic and denominational backgrounds...but we all desperately long to be part of something fun and significant together...and that's why I think athletics and service are so valuable in bringing us together to celebrate the gifts of those in our community and the power of coming together to share gifts with others outside our community...

And that's why I've had Saturday September 25 circled on my calendar for the past several months as a day I couldn't wait to experience...and to my joy and amazement, many other folks on our campus are feeling the same way...soccer players are inviting old teammates and family members to come see them play; students are planning to sleep under bed nets outside the night before the game to raise awareness; people from other parts of the country are supporting our project; and flyers about this day are literally plastered everywhere you look on our campus...

Only a God like ours could create a game to be a conduit to most perfectly connect people like me with people like my Zambian friend Fordson...and that's why for me Soccer and Bed Nets are a strangely perfect combination...and I can't wait to deliver these bed nets in Africa to villages in May with some of our CU soccer players before we play a match together in the African dirt...and we'll be thinking of the community we represent back at CU and in the body of Christ as a smile creeps over our faces and a tear rolls down our cheeks...and the Kingdom, the community of Jesus, made up of soccer players from both Grand Rapids and Zambia, will break forth in a most beautiful and blessed way...

For more information on the CU Night of Nets event that is part of World Vision's ACTS to End Malaria campaign you can check out their website for this special soccer fundraiser match at: www.cunightofnets.com

NIGHT of NETS Event Info

2010-09-13T09:59:00.000-07:00

A CU Special Event: NIGHT of NETS—Saturday September 25th

“The Beautiful Game Helps Make a More Beautiful Life for the Children of Africa”

Come see the CU men’s and women’s soccer teams play on the CU soccer field at 12 pm (MEN’S GAME) and 2:30 pm (WOMEN’S GAME)…

You are encouraged to pay a $6 admission fee that will change the lives of families in Africa forever…the $6 price of attending a soccer game will purchase a bed net that will help prevent the spread of malaria in sub-Saharan Africa where the disease is the leading killer of children in the region… and the nets will be distributed on a CU trip to Zambia this May…

You can check out more details at the Night of Nets event website: www.cunightofnets.com

You can donate even if you can’t come to the game…money can be brought to Chip Huber in Spiritual Formation or you can donate on-line (checks made out to World Vision)

We will see you at the soccer match and please invite your friends to this CU event where you can make a life-changing difference while supporting our athletes!

Summer of 2010 Reading List

2010-08-22T18:49:00.001-07:00

The whole crew of CU students will be on campus in just a few days...and the next few weeks of my life are ones with just about every minute filled with activity and conversation and people...and the moments to read beyond emails and ESPN scores are few and far between...but I did grab a few moments to read during the summer season...and here's some of what I read in a top 10 list of the books and articles and words...

Africa United: Soccer, Passion, Politics, and the First World Cup in Africa by Steve Bloomfield

The Slow Fade: Why You Matter in the Story of Twentysomethings by Reggie Joiner, Chuck Bomar, and Abbie Smith

Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan

Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the World by Tracy Kidder

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life by Donald Miller

Cultural Intelligence: Improving Your CQ to Engage Our Multicultural World by David Livermore

Playing the enemy : Nelson Mandela and the game that made a nation by John Carlin

Warrior Princess: Fighting for Life With Courage and Hope by Princess Kasune Zulu

Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson

The New Shape of World Christianity: How American Experience Reflects Global Faith by Mark Noll

*And way, way too many online and magazine articles about every dimension of the 2010 World Cup Experience...although, I never tired of reading them all, to be honest...

MONTANA TALK #3 Notes

2010-08-07T18:25:00.000-07:00

Notes and Quotes below...

DON’T WASTE YOUR LIFE ON PURSUING ANYTHING BUT JESUS…

To Know One Thing:
“You don’t have to know a lot of things for your life to make a lasting difference in the world. But you do have to know the few great things that matter, perhaps just one, and then be willing to live for them and die for them. The people that make a durable difference in the world are not the people who have mastered many things, but who have been mastered by one great thing. If you want your life to count, if you want the ripple effect of the pebbles you drop to become waves that reach the ends of the earth and roll on into eternity, you don’t need to have a high IQ. You don’t have to have good looks or riches or come from a fine family or a fine school. Instead, you have to know a few great, majestic, unchanging, obvious, simple, glorious things—or one great all-embracing thing—and be set on fire by them.”
John Piper, Don’t Waste Your Life

Are you listening to the call of Christ on your life?

THE CALL OF THE SAVIOR: The voice of Jesus has become a sure beacon ahead of me and a blazing fir within me as I have tried to figure out my way and negotiate the challenges of the extraordinary times in which we live. It allows us to find and fulfill the central purpose of your life. OS GUINNESS

Jesus invites you to do these things and live this life:
*EMBRACE HIS CHARACTER
*SACRIFICE YOUR LIFE
*FOLLOW THE HOLY SPIRIT’S LEADINGS
*IMPACT THE WORLD
*SPREAD THE GOOD NEWS

I JOHN 5:4-5…Every God-begotten person conquers the world's ways. The conquering power that brings the world to its knees is our faith. The person who wins out over the world's ways is simply the one who believes Jesus is the Son of God.

There is nothing more compelling, more satisfying, more demanding, more overwhelming, more significant than a life lived following, loving, and serving the Lord Jesus. CHIP HUBER…after 4 decades of life

MONTANA TALK #2 Notes

2010-08-07T18:21:00.000-07:00

Notes and Quotes Below...

Spend Your Life Chasing the Things That are Eternal

What do you think you will care about 50 years from now? What things in your life today will still be important to you?

4 Things That are the Stuff of Eternity…and of Ultimate Worth…

The Kingdom of God—A FUTURE EVENT AND PRESENT REALITY
Luke 17:21; Matthew 6:10; Hebrews 12:28

People—DO WE TRULY PUT OTHERS FIRST?
John 13:34-35

The Body of Christ—WE ARE LIFETIME MEMBERS…
Matthew 16:18

Our Souls—THE VERY HEART OF WHO YOU AND I ARE…
Matthew 16:26; I John 3:2

Most people are not satisfied with the permanent output of their lives. Nothing can wholly satisfy the life of Christ within His followers except the adoption of Christ’s purpose toward the world He came to redeem. Fame, pleasure, and riches are but husks and ashes in contrast with the boundless and abiding joy of working with God for the fulfillment of His eternal plans. The men and women who are putting everything into Christ’s undertaking are getting out of life its sweetest and most priceless rewards. J. CAMPBELL WHITE

Only one life, twill soon be past; Only what’s done for Christ will last…

A PRAYER FOR THE COOL GENERATION…from the book Don't Waste Your Life:

O God, who will get in their face and give them something to live for? They waste their days in a trance of insignificance, trying to look cool or talk cool or walk cool. They don’t have a clue what cool is. Of course we cannot use the word cool to describe true greatness. It is a small word. That’s the point. It’s cheap. And it’s what millions of young people live for. Who confronts them with urgency and tears? Who pleads with them not to waste their lives? Who takes them by the collar, so to speak, and loves them enough to show them a life radical and so real and so costly and Christ-saturated that they feel the emptiness and triviality of their CD collection and their pointless conversations about passing celebrities? Who will waken what lies latent in their souls, untapped—a longing not to waste their lives? O that young and old would turn off the television, take a long walk, and dream about feats of courage for a cause more precious than anything else in their world. If we would dream and if we would pray, would not God answer? Would He withhold from us a life of joyful love and mercy and sacrifice that magnifies God and makes people glad in God?

RESOLUTIONS OF JONATHAN EDAWRDS…
RESOLUTION #5: Resolved, never to lose one moment of time; but improve it the most profitable way I possibly can…
RESOLUTION #6: Resolved, to live with all my might, while I do live…
RESOLUTION #17: Resolved, that I will live so, as I shall wish I had done when I come to die…
RESOLUTION #22: Resolved, to endeavor for myself as much happiness, in the other world, as I possibly can, with all the power, might, vigor, and vehemence I am capable of, or can bring myself to exert, in any way that can be thought of…

Risk is right. And the reason is not because God promises success to all our ventures in His cause. There is no promise that every effort for the cause of Christ will succeed, at least not in the short run. John the Baptist risked calling King Herod an adulterer when he divorced his own wife in order to take his brother’s wife. For this John got his head chopped off. And he had done right to risk his life for the cause of God and truth. Jesus had no criticism for him, only the highest praise (Matthew 11:11). Paul risked going up to Jerusalem to complete his ministry to the poor. He was beaten and thrown in prison for two years and then shipped off to Rome and was executed there two years later. And he did right to risk his life for the cause of Christ. How many graves are there in Africa and Asia because thousands of young missionaries were freed by the power of the Holy Spirit from the enchantment of security and then risked their lives to make much of Christ among the unreached peoples of the world! And now what about you? Are you caught in the enchantment of security, paralyzed from taking any risks for the cause of God? Or have you been freed by the power of the Holy Spirit from the mirage of Egyptian safety and comfort? Do you men ever say with Joab, “For the sake of the name, I’ll try it! And may the Lord do what seems good to Him?” Do you women ever say with Esther, “For the sake of Christ I’ll try it! And if I perish, I perish”? JOHN PIPER

What will be the legacy left by you on our campus at the end of this school year? Your college career? Your days on this earth?