Eager Apollos

Through out the summer we are doing a bible study through the latter part of the Book of Acts. The content of these chapters is Paul’s journeys through out the Mediterranean. We are currently in our fourth week and are in chapter 14 of Acts.

We aren’t meeting in the SURC (Student Union and Recreation Center) on campus during the summer, instead we meet in students’ apartments, my house or Matt’s place. Meeting in our personal residences affords us the opportunity to experiment a little bit with our meeting time.

Last week we placed a little altar in the front of the room. We opened in prayer, talked about Acts 13 then moved into a time of prayer where students had the opportunity to come forward and light a candle. As they lit the candle they had the option of saying out loud what they were seeking from God or thanking him for.

I have done this in the past, when I was in youth ministry. The kids always enjoyed this kind of prayer because it was engaging, active and involved fire. I figured I would give it a shot with the college group to see how they would respond.

When the students were done we prayed once more and moved into a time of communion.

After we finished up at my place we headed out to Dollar Scoop Night at Winegars. A good time was had by all.

Matt and I are currently engaged in an ambitious project. Last quarter we decided that we were going to preach through the Book of Romans. We understood that there was no way we could do an exhaustive look into the text, the number of meetings in the next two quarters simply isn’t enough time. So instead we are attempting to cover Romans via the themes and arguments that Paul is using.

We looked at a couple of outlines of Romans and came up with a series of twelve themes that were going to cover. We have already covered the historical context of Romans which touch on the beginning of the first chapter of the book (1:1-13) and the end of the book (15:14-16:27).

The next topic is going to be the universal sinfulness of humanity which covers the majority of the first three chapters. We are going to have to skim of the details, but we will touch on both of Paul’s arguments as to why both Gentiles and Jews are sinful and why this means that all have fallen short of the glory of God.

We are hoping this method will leave students with a better understanding of what Romans says as a whole. We feel that this will better serve them when they revisit Romans on their own.

Wednesdays down in the SURC, students involved in CA gather for our weekly meeting. During the hour and half we come together and catch up on the events of the week, participate in a humble (but reverent) worship service, and then Matt or I will discuss/teach a topic.

The students are competent and sharp. They ask good questions and their comments are astute. It has happened a couple of times that I have presented an idea and have been taken to task as to the biblical background or basis of that idea. This group keeps me on my toes. Their critical minds have been honed by their time at Central and it will serve them well in their future faith.

After the teaching time, we sing another song and then hang out for an undetermined amount of time. One night we didn’t get out of the SURC until almost 10pm. Everyone helps pack up and a few help load the van.

In the picture above, Matt is tired of packing the keyboard in and out every Wednesday night and consults Brian on perhaps leaving it in the overnight locker from now on. Brian, being one of those astute students I just described, helped Matt see the light.

This first week has been crazy busy. Departing from our normal weekly schedule Matt and I decided to do the book table on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, instead of just Tuesday. We just wanted to get the faces of CA out there for the new students.

The book table is a long standing part of CA’s ministry. Every Tuesday we show up, tape up our banner around the table, toss out some books that Matt and I have been reading, and put up a “question of the day” for passerbyers to ponder and vote on.

The question is meant to be provocative and often entices conversation from those who decide to stop and vote.

Besides the question of the day and the good conversation it yields, the book table is also a pillar of the ministry because CA students or people in relationship with Matt stop by and check in. Students stop and chat us or chat with other students that pass by. We hear how there weekend has gone and what they are up to for the week ahead. Info gets disseminated and students outside the fold of CA get recruited for the mission to Mexico or the classes that Matt teaches (like how to read the Bible).

Beyond the book table, I have begun PTing with the ROTC Battalion. Physical Training (PT) starts at 7:00am and goes for about an hour. We work on the various tasks that we will be tested on later in the quarter (Push ups, sit ups and 2 mile run). My purpose in going to be “with the troops.” Chaplains call this a “ministry of presence.” The more time you spend around the soldiers the more likely they are to approach you if they have a real problem or concern. So in that effort I am going to PT and will be attending some training events.

I was invited to the ROTC BBQ to help kick off their year. They handed out awards and presented new cadets with information about opportunities that they should take advantage of as the year continues. The Professor of Military Science (PMS, this means he is the biggest deal at the CWU Army ROTC Battalion) was kind enough to introduce Matt and Myself to the battalion so that we may aid the soldier and future leaders in whatever way we can. On a related note, please be in prayer that a certain cadet gets a scholarship. He is working hard to be worthy of such an honor.

We also had our first weekly meeting. Matt introduced me and I spoke on the topic of being a “community set apart.” The student leadership flexed their muscle and came up with a worship session that, quite frankly, impressed me, especially on such short notice. Above is a banner I put together for the occasion.

That is what has happened up until this point. Later today (Friday 25th) we have “The Cave.” Matt likes to call this event the “unbible study,” a cryptic description that is worthy of more explanation then I can go into here.

Matt will be taking a group up Manastash Ridge later this evening and Sunday is a potluck for all who want to come.

Please, be in prayer that our strategy is up to par, as far as God’s opinion is concerned, and that we are flexible enough to shift when we need to.