Read a Book

Winter break, for many, means extra time to do engage in activities we enjoy. I think its a great opportunity for students in particular to spend extended time reading the Word.



Use this break to do reading you normally wouldn't be able to do:
* read the OT
* read the NT
* read entire books at time instead of a chapter or a cluster of verses

Presents for Mom & Dad

Nice. In Chinese. I bought books in English for them but they didn't really read them. Hopefully Piper translates well.

In addition I got them some other nice stuff.

What We're Looking For

"Our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee, O Lord" - St. Augustine



In the next calendar year there will be at least two church plants within relative proximity to RCCC. Liquid will be starting in January 2009, and The Bridge has a planned start around Fall of 2009. There is also Jacob's Well, which is another church plant in central NJ with a heart to reach Rutgers students and even unworthy Princeton Students. Jacob's Well is part of the Acts 29 Network headed by my good friend Mark Driscoll. (OK, Mark has no idea who I am but I would want to be friends with him. I listen to about 3-5 of his sermons a week).

So, what to make of all this?

First, from the macro perspective, praise God!I think that many people will come to Christ and grow in Christ because of these churches. Even though I lead R8 at RCCC, my greatest desire is not for R8 to be the preeminent college ministry, but that many would come to God through Jesus Christ.

Second, from the RCCC internal perspective, we must ask ourselves tough questions. Where do we 'fit in' amongst all these churches? How does the planting of these churches change our ministry? Who are we and more importantly, who are we seeking to reach? With several EC people in leadership positions leaving for The Bridge, what are we doing to develop new leaders? With the more appealing methods that these new church plants employ, will RCCC seek to contextualize the Gospel more? There are tons of questions to ask, and we must be willing to ask the hardest ones, and then work through them thoughtfully and prayerfully.

Third, from a theological perspective, the churches must be about contenting for timeless truth through timely methods (yes, that's Driscoll). The churches must be about God. As I thought about these church plants and RCCC throughout the week, its easy to compare, contrast, and complain. The most important thing about a body of believers is their relationship with God and the presence and power of God at work amongst them. Flashy stuff can not make up for it, and a poor website can't diminish it. We are ultimately seeking God Himself whether or not we know it, and our hearts will be restless until we have Him.

So, as several new churches come to central NJ, I'm excited to see what will happen! For RCCC, I think it ought to cause a time of deep, thoughtful prayer and refining, while ensuring that God stays at the center of all we do and why we exist as a church.

The Difference

I live in two worlds. Well, maybe more. But two main ones are (1) The Corporate world (2) The Ministry world. I spend a lot of time in these worlds and many things about them are different. Here are just a few.

1. Patience - My experience in the corporate world of finance / consulting is generally one where people are not that patient. There are deadlines to meet and expectations to exceed. And you can't make mistakes. In ministry, there are deadlines of course and in many ways, even greater expectations. But, there's an overall environment of patience - an understanding that deadlines don't indicate the end of the world, and that in some sense, we all make mistakes.

2. Passion - In the corporate world, people are motivated by lots of different things - just like ministry. But on the whole, I'd say many people (not all) are motivated by money, prestige, and exit opportunities (job as a stepping stone to something else). In ministry, particularly lay-person ministry, there is no money for sure. There isn't prestige in the sense that you can brag about what ministry you're in. But in the best ministries I've observed or particpated in, there's an overwhelming passion for God that drives people. It goes beyond personal passion, its a passion that's placed within by God that consumes.

3. Prayer - There is perhaps now, more than before, an acknowledgement in the corporate world that there is a lot that happens or may happen that is out of our hands. In our economic downward spiral, there is a limited control of our financial destiny. But, at the same time we plan, strategize, and excute on ways we can cut costs and mitigate risks. All this is right. Yet, the underlying operating principle is that we, as humans, run stuff and its up to us. In ministry, humans run stuff and a lot of stuff is up to us. But there's something more going on too - there's a sovereign God reigning over the universe and over hearts and minds of people. And because He's sovereign we bring forth our requests and petitions to Him.

Jonathan Edwards | Resolution 20

20. Resolved, to maintain the strictest temperance, in eating and drinking.

It's Friday! This means a few things for me:

1) R8 - I look forward to Friday not because its the last day of work (OK, partially) but because I get to see my second family - my R8 leadership team, and I get to see all of our wonderful students to whom we are ministering to.

2) Essays - In theory, I dedicate my weekends to writing my businees school essays. This is only partially true. There's too much other stuff I need to do.

3) Salads no more - I eat salad for lunch and my 4pm meal about 4 times/week. Food at my work cafeteria is very reasonably priced and the salad bar is pretty good. But once the weekend hits there is no more readily available healthy food. In addition to that I'm always eating out on the weekend - burgers, wings, Hoagie Haven, etc. Bad news man.

A couple years back I went to check my mailbox at church and I found a book on Christian dieting. What? Yes. I'm sure it that in the bookstore it came from it was placed right next to the Christian candle holders. But it is important that we take care of our body. Jonathan Edwards knew this even at the young age at which he wrote Resolution 20 above.

I think if we want to operate at top capacity it is important that we tend to our body. For me that means lots of water + (coffee) + vitamins + healthy food + exercise to counter my lack of sleep (Rockstar is for weekends only). I've become more aware of the importance of being in 'optimal' shape as responsibilities and demands on my time pile up. As busy as I am during the week, I often feel even busier during the weekends. So I'm going to be more careful about what I eat to the extent that I can post-Thursdays.

Anyway - time to eat a snack.

The Clothes We Wear

So today my pastor emailed me saying that, unfortunately, I can no longer wear jeans and sneakers when I preside during worship service. A presider basically does the opening prayer, makes announcements, reads the Scripture passage for the day, and then invites the pastor up to speak.

The presider also stands behind a big solid wood podium. So the only time people can see the lower half of my body is when I walk up on stage and walk off - a total of about 9 seconds or about 1.5% of the time I am on stage.

Nevertheless I've been asked to wear business casual.
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If I wore business casual at Mark Driscoll's church they'd probably tell me to wear jeans and sneakers - you know, how the pastor dresses when he preaches.

* The picture above is a screenshot of Mark Driscoll preaching to other preachers

An Awful Weapon

"...but do not forget the culture of the inner man - I mean of the heart. How diligently the calvary officer keeps his sabre clean and sharp; every stain he rubs off with the greatest care. Remember you are God's sword, His instrument - I trust, a chosen vessel unto Him to bear His name. In great measure, according to the purity and perfection of the instrument, will be the success. It is not great talents God blesses so much as likeness to Jesus.

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A holy minister is an awful weapon in the hand of God."

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- M'Cheyne, as quoted from Charles Spurgeon's "Lectures to My Students"

The ESV

Pre-order your ESV Study Bible: http://www.esvstudybible.org/#home

There are a bunch of good reasons to use the ESV. But, without going into the details about translation and meaning, here are just a few thoughts:

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1) I started using it because the guys I listen to use it

Yes, so I admit, I started using the ESV because Piper, CJ, Driscoll, etc. were using it and I jumped in. No, I didn't do my own research first - I just read their own research. Being a layperson and a learner, I think that's just fine. If I were positioning myself as some scholar than I'd be more obliged to do my own primary research.

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2) I continue to use it because I like it

I've lost count of how many times I've thought to myself, "that is so clear" as I've read the ESV...or how many times I've felt like I was seeing something completely new in a familiar passage. The translation is readable and I can read it knowing it's a faithful and accurate translation.

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3) I tell people to use it

I use it. I tell people I care about to use it. And I'm happy to see more people using it because I think its really great.

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4) Dealing with seperation anxiety

Was it hard 'leaving' my NIV? In a sense, yes it was. I grew up with the NIV - nearly all the sermons I listened to were preached from the NIV, all the verses I memorized were from the NIV, and all my bible studies and quiet times were in NIV. My most recent NIV was purchased in college - the time where I experienced the most fundamental theological and personal changes. It is in that Bible where I have underlined passages, written notes, drawn boxes and arrows and more. That Bible was my sword.

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But its not as if that has all disappeared. That particular Bible is still on the shelf right next to my desk along with a bunch of other books I re-access frequently. And its not as if all that was learned in the NIV 'era' is now lost like a friend that has passed on...it is still there, I can still read it and use it.

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Now though, I simply use my ESV for bible studies, quiet times, etc. and its always interesting comparing the the NIV and ESV.

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More: http://www.esvstudybible.org/#endorsements

Take Note(s)

Why You Should Take Notes

1) Keeps you awake
We're all tired on Sunday morning. You know you've nodded off before. If you're going to be asleep during the message, you're missing good stuff. Engaging in some sort of activity, like taking notes, will help you stay awake.

2) Helps you follow the message
I've asked myself many times during a sermon, "Where is he going with this? Did I miss a main point?" A good message will have clear organization. I've found that taking notes helps me to see more during the sermon than I would otherwise if I only listended.

3) Record your own thoughts as you listen
Every pastor wants his sermon to have some sort of impact. Hopefully, we're being impacted in some way as we listen - intellectually, emotionally, relationally... Maybe we become convicted of something we've done wrong. Perhaps we become movtivated or inspired in some way. Or maybe it triggers something we realize we need to do. Write it down.

4) Share it with someone who wasn't there
People actually miss sermons/messages? Yes, they do. Share the goodness of what you've learned. And let's admit it, sometimes even though we ourselves were physically present during the message, we weren't really there.