Sunday, September 12, 2010

Reflecting on weeks past.

Two Wednesdays ago I heard the gospel message presented by a professor in a way that I had never heard before. He spoke of the way Jesus engaged a nameless woman in a crowd that had been suffering for years from a continual flow of blood. Not only did the Christ restore her physically but he gave her a new name: "daughter," reinterpreting the cold reality in which she had been living under . I could go on, but the moment has passed, and I couldn't recapture it here for you; but in this time, my heart was illuminated once again to the possibilities of how powerful the gospel is when unleashed in a diligent/creative way that is faithful to the text.

The following Sunday I had a incredible theological conversation with an elder at my church that set the stage for what was to occur later that night. At a Anglican church I attend in the city named St. Pauls, God again met me in a powerful way as I was communally worshipping through song as the name Yahweh was repeated again and again. Various scholars attest to the nature of the word 'Yahweh' in Hebrew as potentially being breath. Though this isn't implicit in the scriptures, it's consistent with Biblical Theology. When I came that night to St. Pauls, the previous week I had been meditating on the name Yahweh as I breathed in slowly the simple blessing of air he had given me (Psalm 150:6). While singing 'Yahweh' the presence of God through the Holy Spirit felt so close. Truly a sweet time, future thoughts of possible ministry flooded my mind, and even though I won't disclose it here (could have been just a passing thought, I will wait for it to be confirmed) it gave me a tremendous sense of passion and focus for what currently needs to be done.

The Wednesday after this God met me through study, early that morning. In the 6-8 weeks previous to that day I had been reading Augustine/Aquinas and books about them, including selective famous works by the two collectively. I was trying to grasp how our modern Evangelical theology had been shaped since (before) Christs death. Starting with Aristotle and Plato/Paul then working my way into modern times (Theological works stemming from Princeton etc). All of this came to a close around 7am that morning as I finished the final chapter on Biblical Authority by editor Jack Rogers. I want to aggressively attack, with some level of integrity, where a cultural context has been read into the content of scripture. The journey doesn't stop here, but God opened my eyes a little wider.

Now to bring everyone up to speed about my recent life in brief, I have been considering/praying about running for a position in pastoral care at Laidlaw, part of the student leadership body. Prayer in this area would be sweet. I was asked to preach to a cluster group on September 26th and I pray that God is with me through the entire crafting process. Please pray for me as well.

Areas for specific prayer:

To be brutally honest, this last week I was struggling with pride which I have since confessed to my accountability group and now... the world (wide web). I don't want any of it, I want more Christ in my life.

Prayer for future missions at Avondale Baptist Church to our neighbors in Fiji. Currently the pastor and I are pursuing what it would take to bring a group there.

Post-grad study in Jerusalem for Biblical Hebrew?

Preaching on the 26th and potentially October 10th.

More Christ in my life, with a greater passion for His words.

Student leadership. It would be neat for this opportunity to occur, but I would just as well be happy with not, if God has me elsewhere.

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May you be blessed and encouraged through this week as you focus in on God, meditating on his revealed words. I leave you with these, that are so close to my heart:

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, in ALL your ways acknowledge him and he will make your path straight.


His,
Piper