God’s Workmanship

By Trisha Williams, a member of the Culture Impact Committee

I was leading my online summer class through a discussion of the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley on Tuesday, July 14.  A lively Socratic discussion ensued about pride, family, desire for love, alienation, beauty, hatred, revenge, psychology, origin of life and influence of education on worldview development.

Right before calling a ten-minute break, I told the students to prepare for a question regarding scientific ethics. After all, Victor Frankenstein had used body parts from cadavers to stitch together his new creation. Was this right? Are there applications or implications to be learned from this novel written by a young eighteen-year-old woman in 1818 for our more “advanced society”?

During break I checked the news. The Center for Medical Progress had released its first undercover video depicting a member of Planned Parenthood leadership, sipping wine and eating salad, and all the while speaking about harvesting and selling fetal organs and tissue.

I relayed this news to my students and you can imagine how troubling and convicting the conversation became.

Since that day more videos have been released, Congress has voted against defunding Planned Parenthood at least for now, and four states have individually stopped funneling state monies to the organization. More videos are promised, and I’m sure—and hope—this issue won’t leave the political or private stage for a while.

My own conscience has been awakened and my heart hurts. It hurts for the life potential lost due to the abortion industry, the mothers who feel they have no other option and the fathers who don’t want to take responsibility or can’t. My heart hurts for the scientists who legally use fetal tissue in an attempt to better the human condition, for a country who claims to support the right to life except for the most vulnerable, for childless couples who long to be parents, for orphans who long to have parents, for children in the foster care system who are desperate to be cared for, and my heart hurts for God’s people.  What must we do and what can we do when confronted with such news?

I am number eight. I am child eight out of eleven born to parents who not only believed in the right to life, but also firmly believed that children were a blessing from God.  I have vivid memories from childhood of new acquaintances jokingly asking me, “Don’t your parents know how birth control works?” I knew I came from a unique family at a very young age, but it wasn’t until I was about fifteen when I realized that that question implied the person’s entrenched belief that I should not exist. If my parents had followed the culturally acceptable and honored traditions, I and at least seven of my siblings shouldn’t have been born.  As hard and as difficult as being in a large family can be, I can’t imagine life without my siblings, and I know now as an adult how much my parents sacrificed to ensure we did have a chance at life. 

Not only did they ensure we had shelter, food and an excellent education, but they also worked daily to introduce us to the source of abundant life, Truth himself, the Triune God, who knit us together to bear his image in our mother’s womb. The Creator God who made our limbs functional to move about on the earth he formed, who made our minds curious to explore the past and the present, and opened our eyes to recognize our sin and our desperate need for a Savior.  Inside our beating hearts we desired to know God and he who gave us the desire granted our request by replacing our stony hearts with a new heart, a heart of flesh and giving our tongues a new melody to sing.  This melody proclaims the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light.  This melody is the song of King Jesus.  Our voices now have the chance to join the millions of past and present children of God who desire to live as his “poema”—his workmanship. For this I am eternally grateful. 

Rosario Butterfield (author of Secret Thoughts of an unlikely Convert and Further Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert) said recently in a blog post: “I remember asking the women in church why Christians condemned abortion and celebrated capital punishment. I never heard a compelling argument. And then, one day during worship, we sang Psalm 102 and it hit me between the eyes. Here was the line of my undoing: “And peoples yet uncreated shall praise and magnify the LORD” (Ps. 102:18). I got it: abortion is not a right or an entitlement. Abortion steals praise from God by denying image-bearers the opportunity to live through and for him. Abortion despises and attacks and destroys the image of God. Yes, children must be protected from abuse, but abortion does not accomplish this.” (Here is the complete post.)

A few days after reading Rosario’s words, a former student of mine posted on Facebook: “Being against abortion doesn’t make you pro-life.” This young man is absolutely correct. It’s not enough to believe that abortion is wrong, we must be willing to go further. We must be willing to actually obey Jesus and love our neighbor as ourselves. To love the teen mom ashamed to admit she’s pregnant, to love the physicians who performs abortions and the nurses they work with, to love the men and boys who won’t take responsibility, to love politicians who we don’t agree with, to love foster children or orphans, to love the organizations that provide alternative solutions and long-term care for mothers who choose life, to love the unlovable. To love truth and hate sin so much that we teach and live faithfully even in the area of sexual purity and reproductive health. To love to the point that it hurts. 

So what can we do as the body of Christ at College Church in Wheaton, Illinois? How shall we then show this love? If you’re like me you start by feeling overwhelmed. Then, hopefully, you become wise and pray for wisdom and pray for all involved. Then God will show you a way you can use your gifts and abilities to take action.  Ephesians 2:10 reminds us “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”  What good works in this area of the sanctity of life might God be calling you to do?

Here are ways you can be involved:

1.  Learn more about bioethics and a Christian worldview from College Church member Paige Cunningham at 9:30 a.m. in Commons Hall at College Church, Sunday, August 16 and 23.

2. Contact your elected officials to urge legislative action against the use of federal tax dollars to support organizations that conduct abortions and profit from the sale of aborted fetal tissue.

3. Support organizations like CareNet—one of the church’s ministry partner organizations—that provide support to women in crisis pregnancies with resources, information, counseling, ultrasounds and support throughout a pregnancy. CareNetalso  provides post-abortion counsel and education to prevent teen pregnancy.

4. Support and encourage local families involved with Safe Families. Safe Families is a community safety net for parents and children facing crisis so that children receive safe temporary housing and care.

5. Support and encourage local families involved with foster care and adoption. In 2012, almost 400,000 children were in foster care in the U.S., with a fourth of those children eligible for adoption.

6. Support people in our communities who may be facing a crisis or unwanted pregnancy. We can provide care, friendship and the love of Christ in a vulnerable situation. Places like CareNet can also come alongside us in caring for those in our community.

7. Pray for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. Pray for lives to be saved, children to be protected and orphans brought into loving families. Pray for our leaders and politicians. Pray for local families involved in Safe Families, foster care and adoption.

As Hard as Dragon Scales

The band on my heart
Is the shackle on my arm,
As I succumb to the mirth
Of earthly charms.
I harbor pain not to be mine
In hands meant to grasp the Divine.

On the pile of gold I stake my claim,
Unaware that I have taken Sin’s shape.
My wings cannot bear me from my shame,
And the chasm below me hungrily gapes.
Selfless and selfish are now reversed,
And both of my forms are utterly cursed.

I see all I am not meant to love,
As temptation distracts from Above.
Your Mercy bids me exit the cave
To remove from Your image the title, “Slave.”
You await my depravity by the pool,
In which I see the reflection of a fool.

To enter it would purge me to death,
But You promise to give me Your breath.
“Remove your scales,” is your command,
But they resist my claws…like the band.
Layer upon layer I desperately scrape,
Only to find, alone, I cannot escape.

Your hands start to tear, piercing my heart.
They rebuild me as they rip me apart.
Into the water, You cast Your own
To reclaim what you turned from dust to bone.
You draw me out upon the shore
To wear the band nevermore.

I can only stand by falling to my knees,
crying, “Do with me as you please!”
The call of the gold is silenced in my ears,
And my eyes washed clean by joyful tears.
With my shackles gone, I can now run free
Down life’s path with You as all of me.

 by Alyssa Carlburg

Worthy of the Name of Christian

We have begun reading Getting to Know the Church Fathers in our summer book group. With Christians around the world facing so many different forms of persecution, the first chapter, on Ignatius of Antioch, brings an ancient perspective on a contemporary challenge. When Ignatius, (who was martyred around 115), was facing his end, he wrote:

I don't want to merely call myself a Christian--I want to back it up when it counts. For if I can back up my words, then I will be worthy of the name of Christian. I will be known as a man of faith even when the world can't see me anymore. It's not the things you can see that have true value. For example, our God Jesus Christ revealed his glory even more clearly when he ascended back to the Father and disappeared. Nothing is really achieved by trying to persuade people. Christianity's true power is discovered only when it is hated by the world. . . 

I pray that the events in that arena, and the unseen forces of wickedness behind them, will not conspire against me out of envy and prevent me from reaching Jesus Christ. Bring on the fire, bring on the cross, bring on the hordes of wild animals! Let them wrench my bones out of socket and mangle my limbs and grind up my whole body! Bring on all the hideous tortures from the Devil! Just let me get to Jesus Christ. Nothing on this wide earth matters to me anymore. The kingdoms of this world are entirely meaningless. I am at the point where I would rather die for Jesus Christ than rule over the whole earth. He alone is the one I seek--the one who died for us! It is Jesus that I long for--the one who for our sake rose again from the dead.

So be it.

41.0 Miles Back Home

The Justice and Compassion team returned home from Englewood, thanking God for the great week of ministry as well as the spiritual and personal growth team members experienced. Here is one last glimpse into their week at Urban Youth Outreach.

Thursday
Day Four
by Jonathan

Thursday was water day! After breakfast, the team went to North Avenue Beach, where we had some sandy devotions and prayer for the children and youth we met this week. We then jumped in the lake and had a great time of fun and coming together even more as a team. A few of us even managed to get yelled at by lifeguards for swimming out too far.

On our way back to UYO (Urban Youth Outreach), we stopped at Harold's Chicken on 53rd Street. The chicken was unbelievable and the catfish brought Jaimeson to tears. Around 1:30, we returned to the center and head out on prayer walks.

For my prayer group (Mrs.  Humphrey, Emma, Heather, Eric and myself), this walk was the most eventful one of the week. At the beginning, we prayed with another group as well as members of the community. While this was special on its own, it became a particularly unique experience when one man thanked God that people from such different communities and cultures were holding hands to pray to our Creator. His enthusiasm about the unity in Christ of both black and white communities surprised me, but wasn't far-fetched considering the lack of diversity in Englewood. Later on our walk, we met a man working on his pick up truck in a parking lot. When we asked to pray with him, he insisted that we only pray in God's name, not in Jesus' name. Surprised by this, we asked him about his beliefs and learned the he stopped praying to Jesus when his "spirit" told him that it didn't work, and now only prayed to God. He seemed surprised to learn that we believed the Bible. After a little more discussion, he drove off and we prayed that he would recognize his need for the Savior as a mediator between our sin and God's holiness.

Back at the center, the afternoon started off as usual. After some play time, we performed a contemporary skit of the story of the Prodigal Son, hoping to teach the kids that God will forgive them no matter what. (Unfortunately, most kids had trouble going from the story to application.)

Then came the water balloons. For several hours, young and older kids alike were running up and down the street and all around the center, soaking each other with balloons, squirt guns and buckets. Young men who had literally shot at each other with intent to kill a few days before were now laughing together and chasing each other with water rather than bullets. This was a powerful example of the spiritual and relational reconciliation that God is performing through UYO.

After dinner, we had a Bible study with a group that meets at the center every Thursday night. The study was lead by Markus Lewis, who had spent 40 years as a homeless addict before coming to Christ. Also at the study was a young man named Rashad, a dancer who recently came to Christ after a suicide attempt, and a girl named Trenia. Following the study, Rashad gave us a dancing lesson, which was very humbling. All in all, a fun, eventful and fruitful day.

41.0 Miles South and East of Wheaton

What's the first thing that comes to mind when you hear "Englewood?" Most likely, you  immediately think of violence and gangs. That's true enough but our high school Justice & Compassion team also is discovering that it's a neighborhood full of children and families who need to hear that Jesus came to "proclaim good news to the poor . . . and to set at liberty those who are oppressed" through his death and resurrection.

The Justice & Compassion team, with Daniel Bair (far left, yellow T-shirt)

Follow the team's posts through its week in Englewood at Urban Youth Outreach, working alongside Daniel Bair.

Monday
Day 1
Emma and Heather

On the morning of our first full day in Englewood our service projects consisted of cleaning and organizing. After lunch, we had our first prayer walk, something we will do every day. In a prayer walk, the team splits into three groups and walk around a different area of the neighborhood praying for or with people we meet, or for other aspects of the neighborhood. One of the discoveries we made was the surprising openness and friendliness of the people we met. Almost everyone we walked by would greet us and ask how we were doing, something that doesn’t often happen in Wheaton. Many were open to the idea of us praying for them and some even prayed for us. Soon after we returned from our prayer walks, we opened the gate to let in the youth and spent the afternoon playing with them. “Playing with them” can be defined as pushing them on the tire swing, pushing them on the regular swing and giving them piggy back rides (but you HAVE to run or else you’re not good enough.) However, their favorite activity, and our favorite to watch, is the shoulder rides. The kids love to ride the boys’ shoulders and have them race from one end of the yard to the other which is terrible for our boys but great for a chiropractor!

Today, we put on a skit about the creation of the world for the younger kids. As a follow-up craft, we made flowers out of tissue paper and pipe cleaners. We were tickled by the fact that boys were so enthusiastic about this seemingly girly craft. When the yard is open, our team members rotate and go upstairs to the prayer room for 20-30 minutes at a time.  Unfortunately, one of our most cherished team members may or may not have fallen asleep during his prayer time, because he was up there for over an hour…

We are looking forward to a fantastic, eye-opening week of service and learning here in Englewood. Please pray that we will stay strong and energetic throughout our whole time here, and that God would work through us so that we may show love to these kids the way Jesus loved us

Tuesday
Day 2
Sam O. and Eric

After breakfast and our morning devotions, we started working on our daily work projects. Some of the things we did were painting, putting in railings and fixing the fences (We will probably do the same work tomorrow).  After finishing our work, we had lunch and then headed out into the neighborhood for our prayer walk. One group walked the route to the middle school, another went through the downtown area, and the third team went to another part of the neighborhood with a different school.  Some of the teams met up with kids who went with us on our routes and, after helping us pray, came back to the ministry with us.

The afternoon is when the real fun starts. After returning from our prayer walks with many kids we started by creating bags and making our own paper airplanes. Around 3:30, we did a very interactive message which the younger kids were very much involved in. The story from today was about Jesus calming the storm which also correlated with the craft and snack. For the rest of the day we played basketball, made more bags and paper airplanes, a slip-n-slide and friendship bracelets. To wrap the day up we ate dinner as a group and learned more about the neighborhood from Keith and Daniel.

Throughout the day we learned about many people and situations that we could pray about/for. One person that needs prayer is C.J. who is currently on medication and is going through tough times with his family. Also, for the young kids who are going through all this violence. Finally, the community as a whole that they could turn towards you to fight their problems.

Day 3
Wednesday
Allie and Betty

Waking up today was more difficult than previous mornings. With a busy day before us, we groggily made our way to breakfast and in hope of caffeine. Eventually we made it to team devotions from Acts and a hilarious (to Heather) voice crack coming from Jaimeson. After refreshment from the word, we continued working on the porch railings, something we started yesterday. During the work project, we were joined by Keith and Shaun from “the hood“ who wanted to hang out and spend more time with the team.

Moving into the afternoon, we went on our daily prayer walk. We stopped to pray next to a “safe passage” sign—part of a program meant to provide safe ways for children to walk to school through gang territory—for the school and the passage. Jackheim and Shaun, the two elementary-aged kids who were walking with us both admitted that they do not like school, but were shy about that statement once Sam Vanheast told them that he’s a teacher.

After the prayer walk we returned to the outreach center where the gates were already open for business. We enjoyed spending more time with the kids and created fun memories through the tire swing, nail polish, makeup, bead bracelets, play-set, and more. Sam and Sam starred in our Noah skit which received many laughs and smiles from our crowd. I then got the opportunity to sit down with a few pre-tween girls to read through parts of the Big Picture Bible. The girls took turns reading through the pages, and I had an ironically encouraging experience when I realized that one of them couldn't read.  She was enthusiastic about sitting in my lap and getting her turn to read a page, but she just did not know what it said. For a moment I was worried but then her friends stepped in. As she ran her finger under the words, all her friends joined in to read with her. They continued to read the entire page together without a single comment that would bring her down or make fun of her.

Stand Firm: A Global Story

For thousands of global Christians, suffering for the sake of the gospel is more than a rush of social media chatter and videos and speculation. It's a daily reality that comes with following Jesus and desiring a better country.

The following story was printed in Connections for July 18-19.

"Choose Jesus or choose your family!" Mannu's parents threw down the gauntlet. She chose Jesus and never saw her parents again. The pain aches to this day.

Mannu had been living in India, but one year after her marriage, she and her husband relocated to their native Nepal. At that time it was illegal to witness to Hindus. Evangelists faced a six-year prison sentence. In spite of the threat, they immediately began a church in their living room. Some of the first believers were neighbor women whom Mannu taught to sew. They believed and brought their husbands. Today the church has more than two thousands members.

Mannu's husband was arrested but freed on bail while his case was pending. Eight years later his case finally came to court. He was sentenced to six years in jail followed by banishment. His lawyer advised him to activate the banishment at once, rather than go to jail. He did.

But Mannu stayed and appealed the case to the king. If she lost the appeal, she would be imprisoned in her husband's place. She had peace about that. It was more important for her husband to stay out of jail, because his ministry was more pivotal, she felt. She stayed because she felt God had given her Jeremiah 42:10-12:

"If you stay in this land, I will build you up and not tear you down. I will plant you and not uproot you, for I am grieved over the disaster I have inflicted on you. Do not be afraid of the king . . . whom you now fear. Do not be afraid of him, declares the Lord, for I am with you and will save you and deliver you from his hands. I will show compassion so that he will have compassion on you and restore you to your land."

Several months later, a national revolution took place. Mannu's husband returned, and in time, received, awards from the ministry of education for the Nepali textbooks he had written while in exile.

When Mannu first learned of her husband's arrest, their children were in boarding school in India. She traveled to the school, took her three children apart into a corner and talked to them about the joy and the suffering that comes with serving the Lord. Then she told them their father had been taken.

"How come Daddy gets all the privileges? was her oldest daughter's response to the bleak news. Since that time, that girl has graduated from Vellore Medical School and has returned to Nepal to provide medical care for her people.

Next Steps

Stop by the church any Friday at noon and join the group that prays for the persecuted church. The group meets from noon-1 p.m. in the room across from the Reception Desk in the Church Office (which is in the Commons).

Also, mark your calendars for the Fall Missions Festival, October 9-11, with its focus on the persecuted church.

Thank You for Your Service

As we celebrate Independence Day with parades, picnics and fireworks, we would do well to remember to thank God for our Church family members who are serving in the military. The following list is from the brochure, "Pray for Our Troops," which is available at College Church.

Salvatore Cirrincione
Nephew of Pat Cirrincione
Army

David Curlin
Brother of Micah Lindquist
Army, Chaplain

Richard DiBiaso
Nephew of Joe & Pat Slone
Marines, Corporal

David Elsen
Son-in-law of Wayne & Nita Martindale; wife, Heather
Army, Lieutenant Colonel, LTC 

Abigail Johnson
Daughter of Beth and the late Doug Johnson
Navy

Max Johnson
Son of Beth and the late Doug Johnson
Army, Lieutenant Colonel, LTC

Andrew King
Son of Chuck & Karen King
Army, 2nd Lieutenant

Hannah Kosirog
Daughter of Glen & Debbie Kosirog
Air Force, 2nd Lieutenant

Joshua Littell
Grandson of Judy Littell
Marines

Christopher Martis
Son-in-law of Scott and Cathy Evangelist
Marines, 1st Lieutenant

Paul Meyer
Son of Ed Meyer
Army, Major, Military Intelligence

Brendan McMillan
Son of Mark and Beth McMillan
Army, 2nd Lieutenant

Billy Milford
Son of Laura Vossbruch
Army, Specialist First Class—Musician

Nate Mullins
Son of Robert and Beth Mullins
Army

David Olson
Nephew of Marilyn Ritter
2nd Lieutenant, Army, Finance Corps

Elizabeth Olson
Niece of Marilyn Ritter
Army, SPC, Chaplain’s Asst.

John Patterson
Son of Dave Patterson
Air National Guard,  Colonel

Joseph Schneider
Grandson of Dick & Donna Schneider
Air Force

Eric Singley
Son of H.E. & Noretta Singley
Air Force, JAG Corps Captain

Joshua Slone
Son of Joe & Pat Slone
Marines, Lance Corporal

David Starke
Brother of Sarah Starke
Army

Hunter Taylor
Son of Jeremy & Christian Taylor
Army, PFC

David Tebbe
Son of Jim and Beth

Patrick Tyson
Grandson of Joe and Joyce Walta
Army, Captain

Rachel Tyson
Granddaughter of Joe and Joyce Walta
Army, Lieutenant

Elizabeth Wiltgen
Daughter of Roland and Nancy Tally
Air Force, Staff Sergeant

Joshua Wiltgen
Son-in-law of Roland and  Nancy Tally
Air Force, Staff Sergeant

Eric Woldeit
Nephew of Pat Cirrincione
Army

Douglas Yates
son-in-law of Daniel & Ellen Block; wife, Jonelle
Captain, Chaplain

Picnic Lunch

A blanket spread out on the grass

Sun, cloud, blue sky dance

across the afternoon.

We listen and watch the miracle speak.

Hungry, I reach for the picnic basket.

But we left it at home

In our rush to beat the crowd.

Then the basket arrives,

tuna and sourdough

just for us and a few thousand more.

What did I do to deserve this?

by Wil Triggs