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March 2005
volume1, issue 1
We are excited to share this newsletter with you. Within this page, we hope you find information that will be useful to you in your ministry. Please feel free to share this page with friends and colleagues.
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Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time... Jonah 3:1
In some ways that is the most startling truth in the book of Jonah. God gave the prophet another chance. Deliberately, consciously, stubbornly, Jonah had disobeyed God. He had run from Him in a fit of rebellion, yet God came to the prophet a second time and allowed him to carry out His ministry.
On New Year's Day, 1929, Georgia Tech played University of California in the Rose Bowl. In that game a man, named Roy Riegels recovered a fumble for UC. Somehow, he became mixed up and started running in the wrong direction. One of his teammates outdistanced him and downed him just before he scored for the opposing team. Tech took the ball on down and scored. That touchdown was the margin of victory.
That strange play came in the first half, and everyone who was watching the game was asking the same question: "What will Coach Nibbs Price do with Roy Riegels in the second half?" The men filed off the field and went into the dressing room. They sat down on the benches and on the floor, all but Riegels. He put his blanket around his shoulders, sat down in a corner, put his face in his hands, and cried like a baby.
If you have played football, you know that a coach usually has a great deal to say to his team during half time. That day Coach Price was quiet. No doubt he was trying to decide what to do with Riegels. Then the time keeper came in and announced that there were three minutes before playing time. Coach Price looked at the team and said simply, "Men, the same team that played the first half will start the second." Then Roy Riegels looked up and his cheeks were wet with a strong man's tears. "Coach," he said, "I can't do it to save my life. I've ruined you, I've ruined UC, I've ruined myself. I couldn't face that crowd in the stadium to save my life." Then Coach Price reached out and put his hand on Riegel's shoulder and said to him: "Roy, get up and go on back; the game is only half over." And Roy Riegels went back, and those Tech men will tell you that they have never seen a man play football as Roy Riegels played that second half.
When I read that story, deep inside I said, "What a coach!" When I read the story of Jonah and the story of a thousand lives like his, I say, "What a God!" We take the ball and run in the wrong direction; we stumble and fall and are so ashamed of ourselves that we never want to try again, and He comes to us and bends over us in the person of His Son and says, "Get up and go on back; the game is only half over." That is the gospel of the grace of God. It is the gospel of a second chance, of a third chance, of the hundreth chance.
-Haddon W. Robinson
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What's happening between the church and the workplace?
Most adult Christians spend one-third or more of their waking hours at work, especially if you consider maintaining a household, raising children, and caring for elderly relatives as work, as I do. Regrettably, beyond "don't cheat, steal, or lie" and "tell co-workers about Jesus," many churches don't give very specific help to members who want to apply their faith to their work.
Christians may be giving up on their church as a source of guidance for work life, but they're not giving up on their faith. Independent, lay-led workplace Christian groups are springing up everywhere. There are Christian "affinity groups" at many large corporations, including Boeing. National organizations such as Crown Financial Ministries and Lead Like Jesus run well-attended seminars that apply the Christian faith in specific, practical, and effective ways. Local organizations such as Marketplace Network (Boston), Needle's Eye (Richmond), and the Pittsburgh Experiment are gathering long-term communities of believers who study and pray together regularly to get equipped for integrating faith and work. The New York Times Magazine even ran a cover story on Oct. 31, 2004 called "Faith at Work."
Here are some ideas for how your church could equip its members for the workplace:
If you have identified a trend you would like to highlight for future issues, please
e-mail berickso@gcts.edu and in the subject
line, write trends. We are looking for students like you to tell us what is
going on in your area of ministry - what seems to be a trend and how you are working
with that trend.
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"I am convinced one of the joys of heaven will be discovering the hidden ways that God, in his sovereignty, acted in our lives on earth to protect us and guide us so as to bring glory to his name, in spite of our frailty. As I look back over the years, however, I know that my deepest feeling is one of overwhelming gratitude.
"I cannot take credit for whatever God has chosen to accomplish through us
and our ministry; only God deserves the glory, and we can never thank him enough for
the great things he as done."
--Billy Graham, "God's Hand on My Life," Newsweek, March 29, 1999, 65.
If you have an illustration or quote you would like to share as noteworthy, please
submit to berickso@gcts.edu and in the subject
line, write illustrations.
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High-Tech Worship? Using Presentational Technologies Wisely. By Quentin J. Schultze. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2004, 0-8010-6480-5, 112 pp., $10.99 paper.
With wisdom and balance typical of all his writings, Quentin Schultze teaches us how to use computer and video technologies in worship services. He also teaches us when to avoid those technologies. He is neither a technophile nor a technophobe. Like all communication media, Schultze argues, the latest innovations have strengths and weaknesses. It will take you just a couple of hours to read this book, and those hours will be well invested. I highly recommend this book for worship pastors and teaching pastors.
One of the most striking features of the book is its blend of theory and praxis. Based on a simple but sound theology of worship (Chapter 2), Schultze offers practical advice with confidence. Much of that advice is conveniently summarized in 18 lists such as "Three potential problems in worship presentations" (65), "Causes of presentational distraction and awkwardness" (66), how to "Position a screen in a sanctuary" (68), and "Typical costs of presentational technologies" (79). Two lists demonstrate Schultze's balanced tone: "Possible advantages to using screens for singing" (54), and "Possible disadvantages to using screens for singing" (55).
This book grew out of personal experience as the author and his wife visited a different church each week during a nine-month sabbatical. During those months Schultze saw many uses of media that concerned him, as well as some uses that gave him hope. Yet the book is based on more than just anecdotal evidence. An appendix presents six tables of statistics discovered by a survey of 895 congregations conducted by the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship.
The book is clearly and efficiently written, humble yet authoritative in tone,
and full of wisdom. It only costs $10.99. Buy it, and pass it around to your church
leaders and staff.
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Take a moment to review the schedule of upcoming cohorts. Let us know if you would like us to send information to anyone you know.
Also, take a moment to see where we will be over the next few months. Maybe you can join us!
On January 13, 2005, Dr. David Currie was voted in as the new Director of the Doctor
of Ministry Program.
DAVID A. CURRIE, PH.D., Director of Doctor of Ministry Program; Administrative Faculty,
2005. B.A. (Haverford College); M.Div. (Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary); Ph.D.
(University of St. Andrews).
Dr. Currie brings a passion to nurture thinking Christian leaders, growing out of
20 years of ordained ministry in the Presbyterian Church (USA) -the last 14 as pastor
of a new church development-and out of teaching church history at the Boston campus
since 1998. His research interests and publications range from the history of evangelicalism,
particularly in Scotland, to contemporary approaches to preaching and worship.
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Featured here are links to websites that has proven to be a useful resource for ministry. Also featured here are subjects for research and good topics for thesis-projects. For example, wouldn't it be nice if there were a curriculum developed for teaching homiletics in India? If you have anything that you would like to add to this section, please submit it to berickso@gcts.edu and in the subject line, write links.
Will Messenger recommends googling any of the organizations or terms in his article,
"What's happening between the church and the workplace?"
Laura Nash and Scotty McLennan. Church on Sunday, Work on Monday: The Challenge
of Fusing Christian Values with Business Life. Jossey-Bass, 2001.
Lee Hardy. The Fabric of This World: Inquiries into Calling, Career Choice and the
Design of Human Work. Eerdmans, 1990.
Bill Thrall, et al. The Ascent of a Leader: How Ordinary Relationships Develop Extraordinary
Character and Influence. Jossey-Bass, 1999.
Randy Kilgore, 30 Moments Christians Face in the Marketplace, Vols. 1-2 and Leader's
Guides. Marketplace Network, Inc., 2000.
GCTS Mockler Center for Faith and
Ethics in the Workplace
Marketplace Network, Inc.
Check out what is happening with your colleagues around the world by clicking here. If you have any news you would like to share, please contact us at berickso@gcts.edu and in the subject line, write news.
Also, if you have any prayer requests you would like us to share, please contact
us at berickso@gcts.edu and in the subject
line, write prayer requests.
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You will be able to access previous editions of our newsletter from here as we
continue to e-publish.
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