And summer is over. I watched a lot of Star Trek, did some evangelism, prepared for this semester's Greek and reada textbook, visited a Jehovah's Witness convention with a few fellow church members (which was very beneficial by the way to see how they lived, "studied" and it was a good way of getting into the mind of a cult). Now I'm in the swing of things...
At first I was pretty overwhelmed, but once I was able to input all the due dates for my assignments and corresponding email reminders I feel like things are in place, organized, and systemetized. I now can see a doable semester of schoolwork.
Narrative preaching class is looking pretty good. I still believe the depth of the preaching is not nearly what a structured Expository sermon would provide, even though Narrative sermons are still called "expository." There will be quite a while longer though for me to flesh out my questions and issues with the class and I'm sure the best person to answer those will be the teacher I have because is the well known professor of Homiletics on campus. I'm excited to see what will come of the class. We were given our preaching passages on the first day and it looks like I have 1 Kings 17:1-16: The story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath. I've heard this story preached before I think. I'm excited regardless though because I love preaching and yet am terrified of it at the same time.
Greek Exegesis was a shocker at first and a rough transition from a summer with little study. I've made all A's on the homework so far however. It turned out it's not quite as much Exegesis as it is further Grammar study. The professor said we'll get into true exegesis next semester. It turns out our homework assignments are simply all the in-class questions he would ask us throughout last semester. He was actually preparing us for Exegesis the whole time. for that reason my first couple of homework assignments went from taking 2 hours or more a night to about an hour and a half. It's getting easier and I praise the Lord for that!
Systematic Theology brings a reasonable workload and a surprisingly light amount of reading. It's supposed to expand on the first intro-level Theology class, but something tells me it will only remind me of what I already know. That's cool though... it's naturally hard to remember stuff anyway. I took the first quiz and didn't miss anything. I'm thinking this class will be free of hassle.
American Church History and Evangelism is still a wild card. The teacher seems to enjoy provoking thought (which is good), but if it's only on the level of foundational things it will get boring real soon. It looks like we'll be studying the major American revivals and church movements. The workload seems reasonable, but there's a lot of reading. Right now I'm thinking the class will either be just alright or a waste of time. Apparently we're gonna watch videos from secular sources (which immediately feels like a waste of time) and I'm also not sure how valuable the lectures will be. Part of this is due I'm sure to the fact that the professor originally planned to teach the class left the school and someone had to replace him.
Student Outreach has had a booming kickoff. We made ourselves known at a major beginning of the year chapel and then followed with a chapel that was entirely our own. I was scrambling around before it started getting everything organized. We had a video clip of a student preaching, a few photos, and then one of the ladies from a former sister floor who is now married agreed to sing Bill and Cindy Foote's Rescue The Perishing. This was followed by Dr. McDuffee who spoke about the importance of public proclamation. It was a simply awesome message that well portrayed the heart of our ministry. I'm planning to get a copy of the CD to send to my former roommate who was unable to return to school this semester. We had our PCM chapel and that seemed to go well. I'm excited at what the Lord is going to teach the students who've come into the ministry this semester.
I've also begun this semester with a plan to spend Wednesdays and Fridays in prayer about a couple specific things in my life. I'm dedicating these days to the Lord to worship Him and petition Him about some things on my heart. This doesn't mean of course that I won't do any homework or work (if I can get a job), but simply that I will set aside time to seek God with a clear purpose on those days. My new roommate and I are getting along well. His personality is the punk fun type... I suppose the best way to explain it. the other day he came back to the dorm with google-eye glasses, wind up chattering teeth, and Jesus pencil toppers. We've had some opportunity to share a bit about ourselves and pray together to inaugurate the semester. It looks like we will complement eachother well. He's also (as many are) quite a bit younger than me. He's already expressed a respect for me and my leadership. He wants to learn from me. Lord, keep me humble! May no sign of pride arise in even the inner recesses of my thoughts!
