Learning from Daniel

"If you can't predict the future - and increasingly you can't - action trumps everything."
--From Just Start, by Leonard Schlesinger, Charles Kiefer, and Paul Brown

This isn't a new idea, but it's an easy value to forget among our organization - both among staff and our students.  It's so easy for us to overanalyze the unimportant particulars, logically give every excuse under the sun, proclaim that we need more training, and assess every possible situation.  It can give us the cover of impressing others by looking super intellectual, smart, logical, and extremely prepared, but the truth is - it's all a facade to hide our deep fears and paralysis around evangelism and all of the unknown the future holds for us.

My colleagues and I have gutted our fall conference in hopes of creating an environment that reverse engineers this over-analytical culture to propel us forward in building God's kingdom and developing followers of Jesus.

That's why the conference has been simply re-named:  act.

act:2015 is InterVarsity's discipleship fall conference for students all across upstate NY.  We gather together for a weekend in Liverpool, NY (basically in Syracuse) to spend quality time with God off of our campus grounds and be challenged to follow Jesus by taking action, not just thinking about taking action.  This year, we focused on the concept of stewardship and studied the book of Daniel to unpack some ways we were called to be stewards of the kingdom of God.

I was asked to teach some of the sessions on Daniel in order to train students to use the inductive study method to study God's Word on their own and within community as well as facilitate discussion around what we find about stewardship in these passages.

I was nervous about teaching the inductive study method in large groups of people, but once we got started and I saw what kinds of observations students were discovering and the connections they were making, it was exciting to see what I learned on my own and what students were learning as well.

Leaders are Readers: Compelling People

Harry S. Truman said, "Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers."  This 'Leaders are Readers' series highlights books I read and my reflections on them to bolster my leadership learning as I serve students on campus.

Today's book is:  Compelling People - by John Neffinger & Matthew Kohut

Learn more about the basis/premise of the book here.

Introducing the concept of how we project strength (the root of respect) and warmth (the root of affection) was extremely helpful for me to learn. 

At first when I was reading, it seemed like I had so much against me with the hand I was dealt as a young Asian-American woman with a nurturing personality bent towards conflict-avoidance and empathy.  It also got very overwhelming in the middle to read about the meticulous and multitude of ways that strength and warmth can be imbalanced or mismanaged.  

However, overall I think it was good to become a little bit more familiar with the concept with excellent examples of what strength and warmth look like, so that I'm more aware of ways I could grow in managing my strength and warmth.  And even if I can't seem to adjust all of the possible imbalances all at once, I think it would be a great reference book for taking next steps. 

It was also encouraging as I read to see what aspects of strength and warmth I was already working on and aware of for myself.  For example, I've been trying to be conscious about how I dress when I go to campus.  I also try to create space to build off of my natural warmth for public speaking engagements, while work intentionally on communicating my confidence and authority to project strength.

Here are some questions I'm reflecting on now that I've finished the read:
1) I've been intentional and conscious of how I project warmth and strength when I'm speaking publicly - how am I doing so when I interact with students on campus on a regular basis?   

2) Am I aware of how my student leaders project strength and warmth?  How can I help them recognize areas they could learn to manage how they project strength and warmth better?

Why I'd recommend this read to you:
1) It's an overall easy read.  

2) I think familiarizing yourself with the concept can be extremely helpful for yourself or for those you may be leading or interacting with.  It can be an interesting spring board for discussion around how we judge others, as well.      

What I'd be aware of:
1) While it's easy to read, I thought the middle section, Playing the Hand, was really tedious.  It definitely slowed down my reading pace.

2) The chapters are long, but the sections are short.  Using the table of contents is helpful for future reference.

3) While it's an easy read and the sections are short, it sometimes felt like it was lacking.  I wanted to read more about tips or other practical next steps to improve how I manage my strength and warmth.

Engaging God's power (Regional Staff Conference)

Regional Staff Conference (RSC) is held every summer before classes start.  It's a time of InterVarsity from all over the NY/NJ region gathering together to develop leadership skills, renew our vision, and engage in each other's lives face-to-face.

This year, we studied Acts 3-5 together and responded to God through prayer and worship for the first half of the conference.

Typically, in group manuscript/inductive studies, there are lots of helpful application questions to think about, with maybe one or two of them that really resonate with me.  If even that.

God, however, seemed to have different plans for me this time around.  That's typical God, right?

There were a few application questions that came from each study session of Acts.  But as I observed how Peter, John, and the early church of believers responded to their mission and message as witnesses, ALL of the application questions seemed to resonate with importance for me.  And being the type of person who needs way more time to reflect on my answers than just the 10 minutes or so we were given, I sensed God saying that I needed to hold on to these questions and spend time working through them with Him at some other time.

Here are a few of the questions I'm tackling with Jesus:

1. Where is it that I do not believe the power of the name of Jesus reaches?
2. Where have I allowed ignorance to be my god instead of Jesus?
3. What could happen and what would be different if I actually believed the name of Jesus held power of everything?

I don't know about you as you read through and think about those questions, but as I've been reflecting on my own answers, I've had to be brutally honest about what my answers really are.  It's been interesting to see which questions were easier and which questions were harder to interact with.  God has certainly been challenging me to reassess and think critically around how I engage with God's power on campus and in my day-to-day life.

Leaders are Readers: The Mission of God's People

Harry S. Truman said, "Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers."  This 'Leaders are Readers' series highlights books I read and my reflections on them to bolster my leadership learning as I serve students on campus.

Today's book is:  The Mission of God's People - by Christopher J. H. Wright

There was one thought that kept floating through my mind every time I picked up this book to read another section:  I wish my students would read this.

It would give great fodder for conversation around what the mission of God's people is, why we exist as an IV group on campus, and how those two things collide.

It was a great reminder of who we are called to be as God's people, and gave me a more thorough biblical look at our mission, beyond what I was taught in Sunday School as a kid.

Plus, as you read it you'd come across these great nuggets of truth that were packed with punch.  Like this one:

"When a whole community was called to know God, as Old Testament Israel was, it was a comprehensive social agenda, not just a badge of nominal national religion" (pg 151).

Wa-pow!

Here are some questions I'm reflecting on now that I've finished the read:
1) What would our InterVarsity chapter look like if students served and led from a place of God's mission as God's people, and not out of obligation, guilt, or fear?

2) How can I use the content and framework of this book to communicate the mission of God's people to my students?

Why I'd recommend it to you:
1) It's an academic read, but it doesn't read like an academic read.  It feels more conversational and logical as opposed to intellectual and stuffy.

2) I thought the sections gave helpful reflection questions for both individuals and groups.

3) It is thorough.  And I mean thorough.  It definitely feels like a textbook you would give out to a seminary class.

4) It gives a full, biblical exploration of the mission of God's people, not just the New Testament or one passage in the Bible.

What I'd be aware of:
1) It has TONS of side quotes and such.  I found them to be distracting although once in a while enlightening.  I skipped most of them because I hate having to read the main content and then go back to the side quotes or vice versa.


2) It took me a long time to finish reading.  Now granted, I'm a slow reader to begin with.  But, it confused me as to why it took me so long when it was a relatively easy read.  I definitely had a little celebration party for myself when I finally finished it.  Just a potential warning, I guess.

Regional Staff Training: 3 reasons why I'm going to miss it

In case you didn't know, I graduated...again.  

Instead of a degree, though, I got an InterVarsity branded laundry bag.  Maybe it sounds lame, but for someone whose job inevitably gets her massive amounts of t-shirts, it's actually very practical.  And practical gifts are great!

Anyway, Regional Staff Training is NY/NJ's training for new staff.  It's a 4 day training that happens twice a year, for 3 years.  I've really enjoyed this aspect of my job, so here are 3 reasons why I'm going to miss Regional Staff Training:

1. It was a reminder that my colleagues are just like me.  At the beginning of every training module, our cohort shared a significant incident (whether negative or positive) with the group and our reflections on it.  It was such a valuable practice that reminded us that we were not alone.  We struggle with similar struggles.  We understand each other's hardships of this ministry.  We experience the grace God pours out to us.  It helps dismantle any form competition or comparison that may build up when we're not together.

2. We learned side-by-side and from each other.  One of my favorite and most helpful parts of RST has been the workshopping element.  There were segments of training where we would share with each other some aspects of ministry and leadership that we were struggling with, and then helped by sharing some ideas of what to do or some best practices we had.  Sometimes you just need someone who's not your supervisor to give you feedback and ideas. 

3. It was really fun!  The NY/NJ staff are pretty fun people.  We like playing games, talking, eating, reading, having adventures, and spending time with each other.  We respect each others' need for alone time and encourage the value of play and rest.  What a great way to develop camaraderie and build relationships in a non-work context.  

We celebrated together, mourned together, learned together, and laughed together as peers and colleagues at Regional Staff Training.  Why wouldn't I miss it?

Post-Basileia Story: The gift of an image

It's been another hard year, but Basileia was so good and refreshing that I nearly forgot all about how hard it was.

One of the reasons is because of a significant moment for me during chapter time.  While I had been leading these sessions earlier in the week, I decided to step back and give control over to the new Servant Leadership Team (SLT, student exec board) to get some practice.  So I kept my mouth shut as much as I could and let them run with their ideas.  They started off by posing the question, "What does vision mean?" to the group for discussion.  Then Marian spoke up.

"Well, I like to think of vision as a picture of an island," she said, in her usual light-hearted manner.  She went on to explain how we are standing on an island, looking out and seeing another island across the water, and how it looks so beautiful and wonderful that we just can't stay on this island any longer - we must get in a boat and go to that other island.  Vision is the picture of getting to that other, better island.

via Unsplash

To you, it may seem silly or insignificant, but let me tell you a little bit about who Marian is.  Marian was one of the very first students I started working with when I switched campuses to RIT.  My official capacity began at Basileia the year Marian was one of my new student leaders.  It was a crazy year of learning about the campus culture and learning how to lead in the midst of that learning.

One of the ways I led was by teaching the new team what vision was and how it described the current state of the chapter.  The image I used was that of an island.  I said that some students were in the boat, ready to go to that wonderful island but just didn't know how, and some students were back on the shore, confused about why we needed to leave this perfectly good island in the first place.  I often exhorted the SLT to lead other students in such a way that invites more students to come on board the boat, and invites the students who are already on board to have greater clarity around the direction in which we're going.

It was such a distinct image for me that I even journaled about it.

So hearing Marian share about this image was a rattling moment for me in bringing the past 3 years of staff to the present.  It was a moment of experiencing God's presence, with Him saying, "I have been and still am doing a good work in you and through you."  It was a concrete, tangible way to hold on to Jesus in a time where not many of those moments come around.

What a gift from the Lord!

The vicious cycle of Basileia.

My students must think I'm a broken record.

Basileia this, Basileia that.  Come to Basileia!  Let's get you to Basileia!  Sign up for Basileia!  Basileia is awesome!  [Insert any fabulous, passionate vision about why you should come to Basileia here!]

They must think I'm getting paid on commission per student I get to register for Basileia, or get some kind of bonus.  Now wouldn't that be pretty sweet.  Too bad it's not true.

We start talking about Basileia early.  And yet, I don't think we start talking about it early enough.  We talk about Basileia a lot.  And yet, I don't think that we talk about it enough.

The hope is that students will have the dates in their calendar before they start setting up their summer plans.  The hope is that we'll communicate the value of Basileia enough so that students will actually make it priority to put it into their summer plans.

Makes sense, right?  Sounds like a great plan, right?  Well, somewhere along the way this plan always morphs into its own monster.  We talk about Basileia early, and then students say they don't know what they're doing at that time, so they don't want to commit.  We talk about Basileia the month before, and then we start hearing some form of a reason why they can't go.  Co-ops.  Not enough money.  Too far away.  Aka, "I committed to something else."

I often translate these reasons to really mean:  students don't trust God enough to provide their needs, and/or students don't think there's enough value to make it a priority.

But my goodness, if you don't think God can provide the funds, time, or transportation to get there, then what does that say about the God we claim to trust and follow, or seek?  

I don't know about my students, but I believe that God is trustworthy and faithful.  I don't want students to come to Basileia for the sake of having another body in the room.  I have personally experienced and witnessed the power of God through His ministry at Basileia and want others to have an experience of their own.  And that is not so that they could leave with a temporary, spiritual high, but that they can remember how God met them, how He is faithful, and how He will continue to be faithful and powerful even after they've come down from the Adirondack mountain top.  Basileia can be a tremendous turning point for us as individuals and as a community, and I don't want students to miss that opportunity. 

And here are 5 Reasons why I think Basileia is WORTH IT, students:

1. Your presence makes a difference.  You think it won't matter or make a difference if you're not there, but that's a lie.  That's why I don't just accept it when you say, "Oh, I'll just go next year."  I believe God speaks to us individually, but He also speaks to us as an RIT community as well, your voice and presence is a vital part of shaping our response to His invitations.      

2. Your leadership potential and spiritual growth is worth investing in just as much as your education.  You spend tens of thousands of dollars and/or work to earn that money in scholarships to invest in your vocation.  How about spending a few hundred to invest in your spiritual growth and leadership development?  And guess what?  I don't think figuring out the money is a big deal because we believe in the God of the universe, a God of abundance, not of scarcity.  Do you trust that He'll provide?  Have you tried to creatively problem-solve your situation with your co-op, your family, or others?

3. Basileia is a unique time and space you can't re-create at home.  Yes, God will still be present with you wherever you are.  He is still doing a work in you.  But there's something about spending a week off campus, with peers who share the same values, at a beautiful lake with no school work or tests to worry about that creates space for the Holy Spirit to move in ways that you just don't experience in a different setting.

4. You gain skills for personal growth and community leadership.  It's not this temporary spiritual high of meeting with Jesus and then coming back down the mountain only for the glow to fade and everything to go back to the way things were before.  These are skills you can take with you back to campus, as well as the rest of your life either directly or if you apply them to your context.

5. Meet InterVarsity students and staff from other colleges and universities.  RIT's chapter is part of a bigger movement.  At Basileia you get a glimpse of what God is doing in others on different campuses.  These students and staff can have such valuable insight, wisdom, and ideas to share with you, but they also understand some of the burdens you carry as a college student and the difficulties of leading others.  Take advantage of the time you have there with them!

--From "The Living Reminder" by Henri J. M. Nouwen

The minister, as a living memory of God's great deeds in history, is called to heal by reminding people of their wounded past and by connecting their wounds with the wounds of all humanity, redeemed by the suffering of God in Christ.

But what are the implications of such a viewpoint for the personal life of the minister? 

The temptation is strong to ask the "how" question:  "How do I become a living memory of God; how do I accept and connect; how do I lift up the individual story into the divine history?"  These questions are temptations insofar as they avoid the more basic question:  "Who am I as a living memory of God?" 

The main question indeed is not a question of doing, but a question of being.  When we speak about the minister as a living reminder of God, we are not speaking about a technical specific tool, techniques, and skills, but about a way of being which embraces the totality of life:  working and resting, eating and drinking, praying and playing, acting and waiting.  Before any professional skill, we need a spirituality, a way of living in the spirit by which all we are and all we do becomes a form of reminding. 

One way to express this is to say that in order to be a living reminder of the Lord, we must walk in his presence as Abraham did.  To walk in the presence of the Lord means to move forward in life in such a way that all our desires, thoughts, and actions are constantly guided by him.  When we walk in the Lord's presence, everything we see, hear, touch, or taste reminds us of him.  This is what is meant by a prayerful life.  It is not a life in which we say many prayers, but a life in which nothing, absolutely nothing, is done, said, or understood independently of him who is the origin and purpose of our existence.

Who will go? Who will go?

"I'm too busy."
"I need to step down from leadership."
"I don't have time."
"She has a crazy packed semester."
"I broke down twice this week because I'm so stressed."

These are just a few of the phrases I've heard way too many times in way too many different forms this semester.

Now, I understand that even the hardest-working, most organized folks can have a lot on their plate.  Believe me, as a recovering perfectionist who is often tempted to place her worth in what she produces instead of God, I know what it's like.  Of course, I definitely value and support students being diligent in their academics and well-rounded in their activities outside of school as well.  In fact, I believe because God is Lord over all creation and made us in His image as humans who create, build, analyze, and imagine, we should be impelled to learn about His creation and His work as much as possible.

At the same time, the fact that so many students say this worries me.  One reason is because even though all of the above phrases seem similar, they can actually be interpreted in a few different ways:

A) "I don't know how to manage my time well, and so I actually end up wasting a lot of it and try to get by with doing the minimum."

B) "I am saying yes to everything and have taken on more commitments than is humanly possible."

C) "I don't know how to work diligently and then trust the Lord as I rest," or, "I don't make resting as a priority."

D)  "I actually just don't like the changes that have been made or InterVarsity just doesn't meet my needs anymore, so I just don't want to come anymore but don't want to say that directly to your face in case it hurts your feelings."

Or, it could actually indicate that this student really does have a significant amount of work that even if you cut everything unnecessary out, would still take up a lot of time.  But it's hard to differentiate between these students and the ones listed above, because they can all be expressed the same way.

The other reason why this worries me is because the resulting consequences often means two things:

1) All of the students who are committed to serving, manage their time well, and don't over-commit end up getting burnt out because now they're taking on what others do not step in to do.

2) It's usually an indicator that students are more focused on structures, tasks, and their own wants that they have lost sight of the vision and/or lost sight of who God is and what His purposes in the world are.

I believe these are two seemingly innocent but dangerous things that the Enemy uses to paralyze students from participating in the great work God is doing on campus.

Right now, less than 1% of RIT's campus is being reached by all of the Christian groups combined.  That means there are still thousands of RIT students who potentially have not heard the good news Jesus brings.  The question that keeps popping into my head is, if the Christ-following students will not go, who will?

Weeping for RIT.

My Servant Leaders (the student exec team) and I have taken on the practice of spending 15 minutes of our weekly meeting to study and discuss a Bible passage.

As you can imagine, 15 minutes is not a lot of time to study a Bible passage.

To combat that a little bit, I've asked the leadership team to spend the entire week prior to the meeting in that passage during their quiet times with Jesus.  They can study it however they want.  They're encouraged to pray through whatever comes to the surface for them.  They're expected to come to our meeting having spent much more time with this Word on their own than we're able to do so together, armed and ready to share what came up for them during the week.

We're going through the book of Nehemiah, and this past week we went over the first chapter, where Nehemiah hears about the tragic state of condition of Jerusalem and Judah:  "The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame.  The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire" (Nehemiah 1:3, ESV).

Like I said, 15 minutes is not a lot of time to study the many layers of scripture we could unpack.

So we focused on one point - how Nehemiah responded to the news.  Here's what we found:

He immediately wept and mourned for days.  Nehemiah must have cared deeply enough about Jerusalem and his people that it brought such grief into his heart, as one would if someone very close and dear to them had passed away.

He fasted and prayed.  Nehemiah is brought to his knees, but not only that, he does not pray a prayer of, "Please help and deliver them, Lord!" or, "Why must my people go through this suffering?".  Instead, he interestingly prays a prayer of confession.

He identifies with the good and the bad of his people.  Not only does Nehemiah pray a prayer of confession (weird), but he identifies with his people in their sins!  "We have sinned against you," Nehemiah 1:6b says.  "Even I and my father's house have sinned."  He doesn't try to put the blame on anyone else.  He doesn't distance himself from his confession; even though he seems like he has the right not to involve himself.

He wasn't physically there.  This was in response to news that someone had brought to him from afar - he hadn't even seen the state of his community with his own eyes.  Either Nehemiah was super touchy-feely and sensitive, or he cared so deeply and identified so deeply with his community that he was moved deeply by this tragic news, even though he was miles away from the desolation itself.   

As we discussed these observations in our mere few minutes, one question kept coming to mind:

Why don't we respond to the brokenness on RIT's campus the way Nehemiah responds to Jerusalem's brokenness? 

It was a question I posed to the Servant Leadership team.  I asked them to imagine if they had gotten some news from someone during the winter break that RIT's campus was in shambles, would they react the way Nehemiah did, in weeping and mourning and praying prayers of confession on behalf of the sins we as a community committed?  Definitely not, we all agreed, myself included.

But why not? I wonder.  And what would it take for us to get to a point where we did identify and care so deeply with the RIT community that we wouldn't hesitate to respond to and lead out of the spiritual shambles we face everyday?

Ambition is the name of the InterVarisity conference Nathan is currently attending in Florida.  It's for both staff and students who desire to learn more about planting ministries.  I'm kind of bummed I decided not to go, but I figured it's probably also good that I'm not traveling anymore after the craziness of this last month.

But I'm still very excited for Nathan and all of my other friends and colleagues who are attending.  I'm praying and hoping that God will peel away any distractions and soften any hardened hearts so that they can be ready to receive a Word from Him.  I'm hoping it'll instill a renewed fervor to reach the lost and participate in the work God has invited them into.  I'm praying that the speakers, conversations, seminars, and environment will be helpful and significant for moving God's mission forward.  I'm hoping God will bless them with courage despite fears or hesitations they may have about the planting work God is sending them to.

While I'm here back in Rochester, I've been thinking about my own 'ambitions' in this ministry.    

ambition

noun

1.

an earnest desire for some type of achievement or distinction, as power, honor,  fame, or wealth, and the willingness to strive for its attainment:

Too much ambition caused him to be disliked by his colleagues.

2.

the object, state, or result desired or sought after:

The crown was his ambition.

3.

desire for work or activity; energy:

I awoke feeling tired and utterly lacking in ambition.

What am I striving for?  Yeah, I can quote InterVarsity's vision statement in my sleep, and I know the components of our purpose statement.  I know it all in my head.  But is it truly what I'm seeking after?  What does that look like?

When I think about it, I think it's easy for me to get caught up in the circumstances.  I'll start off with good intentions to participate in the work God has called me to, and then when things don't go the way I expect them to, or I don't know what to do, I start striving towards getting back to solid ground or even just getting the minimum done to survive the day.

Nathan and I have been going through Joshua in our personal studies.  These verses have been weighing on me:

Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you.  I will not leave you or forsake you.  Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.

It's helpful to be reminded of God's presence and his exhortation of courage out of the confidence that God does not turn back on His promises.  It reminds me that God has definitely called me to this ministry at this time, and He does not turn back on His promise to be with me in answering this call.

I pray for and with my friends and colleagues at Ambition for the very same strength, courage, and presence as we encounter the Lord in these next few days and as they return with all that God has given them to bless others.

Blessing to the nations.

I'm reading, The Mission of God's People:  A Biblical Theology of The Church's Mission, by Christopher J. H. Wright.

This is an excerpt from page 72:

Election is not the rejection of the rest, but ultimately for their benefit.  It is as if a group of trapped cave explorers choose one of their number to squeeze through a narrow flooded passage to get out to the surface and call for help.  The point of the choice is not so that she alone gets saved, but that she is able to bring help and equipment to ensure the rest get rescued.  "Election" in such a case is an instrumental choice of one for the sake of many.

In the same way, God's election of Israel is instrumental in God's mission for all nations.  Election needs to be seen as a doctrine of mission, not a calculus for the arithmetic of salvation.  If we are to speak of being chosen, of being among God's elect, it is to say that, like Abraham, we are chosen for the sake of God's plan that the nations of the world come to enjoy the blessing of Abraham (which is exactly how Paul describes the effect of God's redemption of Israel through Christ in Gal. 3:14).

Reading this book has been a slow-going process (because I read slow, not because of the content), but it's constantly reminding me of why I'm doing what I'm doing and all the things I'm trying to remind or instill in students at RIT.

Our mission is to be a blessing to the nations, not to bring comfort to ourselves.