A New Leaf

Redeeming the Time

Written by Hannah Burleson

At the end of every semester (be it Fall, Spring, or Summer), when it gets to the final two weeks, I always realize how quickly it flew by and what a massive amount I need to get done, even though I kept thinking "I have plenty of time to do it." Then I always spend those two weeks stressed to the the max as I eat, breath, and live papers, projects, and exams. At the beginning of every new semester, remembering how miserable it was the previous semester as a result of my own procrastination, I get really excited about how I am going to do things differently this time. I am going to have a schedule and get everything done early. And I am going to be on top of every assignment. And I am NOT going to procrastinate. And I am going to do all that and still have extra time for God, my husband, my family, my friends, and myself. And I am going to be the most well-rounded, organized, get-it-done college girl on the planet. And then that never actually happens. I always fall into the same rut that I always fell into.

BUT NOT THIS SEMESTER!

This is it. I'm turning over a new leaf. This Fall, I am going to TRULY be that well-rounded, organized, get-it-done college girl. I am going to be the model Christian, wife, student, and friend. And I am NOT going to procrastinate or waste valuable time.

Oh, really? How, you ask? I have a plan this time. I have created a schedule which, if followed carefully, will allow me to fly through the semester (hopefully) stress-free. Here's what the schedule is going to be like:

SUNDAY: Sunday will be entirely devoted to Eva and the going's on at Eva.

MONDAY: Monday will be dedicated to the home. I will spend Monday's cleaning, buying groceries, doing laundry, and other various household chores.

TUESDAY: Tuesday, I will be in Florence at HCU. I have The Gospels with Cory Collins at 8:00 am. I have Timothy and Titus with Ted Burleson at 1:00 pm. Before heading home, we will have supper with my grandmother.

WEDNESDAY: Wednesday, I will have two online classes to spend time on. At 8:00, I have Daniel and Ezekiel with Nathan Daily. At 1:00, I have Ethics with Kerry Williams. Then, of course, Wednesday night Bible Study.

THURSDAY: Thursday morning, I will be in Florence at HCU. At 8:00, I have Introduction to Christian Theology with Cory Collins. Thursday afternoons will be spent getting a head-start on assignments for school.

FRIDAY: The entire day is dedicated to reading, homework, and assignments. If I'm good, maybe I'll get a date night with my husband every now and then. ;)

SATURDAY: Everyone deserves a day off, right? After all, it IS football season. (ROLL TIDE!)

I think I can do it. :)

If I have inspired anyone to join me in the quest to be the best you can be, click on the link below which will direct you to a helpful website which provides some helpful time-management tools:

Master Your Time. :)

Evangelistic Seminar

A Secret to congregational growth: meet the needs of the community in which you serve.

Written by Michael Farris,
Heritage Christian University Alumnus

Every Christian has a special place in the body.
The congregation's work at South Haleyville on July 29th serves as a great example of what can be accomplished when every member does their part!

Many in Haleyville, Alabama have had a difficult economic year. After a season of disastrous weather & rising unemployment, many parents struggle to make ends meet, even more so to budget for extra expenses such as backpacks & school supplies for their children. Being aware of this financial need, allows an opportunity to meet even a greater need in this society: the training of parents to train their children. After admitting the less-than-desirable results from the typical VBS, this congregation decided 3 years ago to incorporate their normal VBS into an ANNUAL PARENTING SEMINAR. (Classes for all age groups with the focused age-appropriate topics for everyone in the home, including godly principles for the family.)

What gets all the locals to step foot into a church building to enjoy listening to an hour presentation? Simple: SCHOOL SUPPLIES for their children. In an atmosphere of love and concern for all, the knowledge of the church's desire to help makes everything go very smoothly. With the advertisements making it clear that this event is not merely a 'handout' (which usually includes some wordy tract about the church that most may toss in the trash) all who registered for the Seminar were aware their only payment for all supplies is cooperation and appreciation.

But while all the members spent countless hours preparing the classrooms, running errands, packing the bags, organizing the papers, cooking the meals, etc., a few more were needed to fill key-teaching roles to provide as much helpful, engaging, enlightening, fun, and meaty content during that short 1.5 hours the visitors time there. Along with the teachers within the South Haleyville congregation for the younger ages, Heritage Christian University alumni Kyle Mashburn & Michael Farris enjoyed the honor having Dr. Bill Bagents, Vice President of Academic Affairs at HCU, on board for a special benevolent & evangelistic evening- which met a variety of particular needs relating to the nurturing of the family.

Each speaker was given the class-group appropriate for their specialized field of expertise. Kyle, whose zealous emphasis in youth ministry suited him perfectly to both entertain and teach a full class of young junior high kids about what their roles are as children to their parents. Michael, whose joy for helping others find and develop their talents, not to mention love for magic tricks, helped appeal and relate to the high school group who are on the brink of serious decisions that will chart the rest of their lives. But no one other than Dr. Bagents was asked to accept the offer to conduct the interactive discussion with an auditorium class filled with the children's parents, grandparents, and guardians. His invaluable material and experience, along with his great ability to bond with strangers made the time fly while helping each one better deal with the situations that every parent needs advice for handling.

At the end of the program, every student present got a new backpack filled with the supplies needed for their school year. Members unite for a cause, different talents are needed & used, community is helped, the Lord's name is lifted up, God's will is taught, lives are changed. Such effective works must continue.

Media and the Christian

Written by HCU Alumnus Rusty Pettus

Recent studies suggest that the average student will digest 7 hours of media a day (Center for Parent/Youth Understanding). Much of this is done while multi-tasking (homework and music). This would include, TV, movies, the internet, music, talking/texting on your phone, etc.

When we think about a Biblical approach to talking about Media I like to use Walt Mueller’s 3D’s: Discover, Discern, and Decide.

DISCOVER

The first thing we have to help our students and parents to discover what is inside our media. When I look back at the music I listened to as a kid I am amazed at lyrics. I had no idea what many of the songs were talking about because I was just singing the hook. This is true for many of our students. We need to discover what is inside any music, TV, magazine, movies, etc. In the age of the internet we can do this by a simple Google search.

The reality is that most every form of media has something objectionable in it. But I like to think of objectionable media like sugar to a diabetic. A little won’t hurt you but a lot can kill you. We can usually handle a little objectionable material but too much will make us numb and acceptable to Satan’s messages.

DISCERN

Discerning is the art of identifying and understanding and then practicing good judgment. When it comes to media it is the art of paying attention to the message and understanding if it is profitable for godliness. In Ephesians 5, Paul encourages us to put away our old way of living and to embrace the life God has called us to. He tells us to “Carefully determine what pleases the Lord" (Eph 5:10 NLT). This is the heart of discernment. It is like a diabetic who can quickly determine if the food in front of them is good for them or dangerous. How much can they consume before it impacts them. It is the ability to identify the message and understand its impact on our ability to think godly thoughts.

DECIDE

We are now at the most difficult point, deciding what we need to do. At the end of Romans 7, Paul shares his struggle between wanting to do right and doing wrong. At the beginning of chapter 8 he continues this thought with a discussion on our thoughts. Paul says that those who are dominated by sin think about sinful things while those whose minds are controlled by the Spirit think on ways to please God (Romans 8:5). This is the heart of the media discussion. If I digest 7 hours of media a day and an hour of it is filled with objectionable material how will it impact my thought life that controls my actions? How many profane words, sexual suggestions, body images, etc. can I digest before they seep into my actions and worldview? We must decide what we allow into our heart.

For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander (Matthew 15:19). Jesus says that what we put into our heart will be lived out in our life. Our media consumption is a spiritual issue as it will impact our hearts, our minds, and our actions.

What's Right with the Church? (2)

In today's blog posting, Dale Jenkins, a member of the Board of Directors at Heritage Christian University, a gospel preacher, and a writer of an excellent blog, answers the question: "What's Right with the Church?"

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What’s Good About the Church

Written by Dale Jenkins

Any article dealing with what’s good about the church should be gazed at through the lens of:

• The reality that in the mind of God, the gift of Christ, the Pen of the Spirit and the design of the Godhead everything about the church is good, not just good, but great! There are no flaws in the heavenly design of this present bound rocket-ship to eternity (Matthew 16:16-18; Ephesians 3:10-12; Daniel 2:44-45; Acts 2:15-21, 41-47).


• But to acknowledge that reality without being continually cognizant of the constant actuality that the church is flawed from the earthbound human side is nothing more than creating a Pollyanna outlook that will lead to a disappointment severe enough to sink your faith. I have personally been a part of eight wonderful but very real congregations from the time I became a Christian 40 years ago. Each of them blessed my life more than cursing it, and each nurtured my faith while challenging me with differing issues within them. Each at times have been remarkably encouraging causing me to soar, and each at times has disappointed me causing me to question my place in that congregation.

One of the real weaknesses I see in many in our brotherhood is an over-analysis syndrome that often leads to self-hatred. About a year ago, I attended a program on church plantings put on by one of the more progressive para-church organizations out there (Karios, I think they would agree with my adjective). It was a useful time but the highlight was one of the speakers who was not a member of the churches of Christ. He spoke of traditional strengths of the church which was rich because the things he cited as our strengths were the things that many in the room have been running away from. He talked about autonomy, about church governess (i.e. elders, deacons), about a’cappella singing, about the weekly observance of the Lord’s Supper. Then he said one of “your” real weaknesses seems to be a “self-hatred of your rich history.” I had lunch about 10 years ago with one of the leaders of the progressive movement in our fellowship. He asked how things were going in my work and as I talked about how much I loved it he said: “That’s refreshing. So many of the preachers I spend time with are unhappy with their work and hopeless about the future.” I remember thinking: “I’ve heard you speak, it is not surprising you attract those who are malcontent.” Why is it that those who seem most progressive in our fellowship are also the most malcontent? I think it begins with a desire to change to make things better - but then it doesn’t know how to stop - so it feeds itself. I get most bashed when I talk good about the church by those at either extreme. Randell Matheny said it well about ten years ago: “From their bashing of the brotherhood, some seem to hate their spiritual inheritance, preferring instead to laud religious departures from the Word” (http://forthright.antville.org/stories/1001252/).

So with a sense of reality I want to write about what is good about the church.

Several years ago, Joe Barnett first put out a tract with the title “Churches of Christ, Who Are These People?” It was always one of my favorites and to this day is a relevant classic. I've been around members of the churches of Christ for over nearly 50 years now. I've watched them across our country and in over twenty other countries and I've noticed a few things.

The churches of Christ, who are these people? They are caring, loving, compassionate people of Christ who respond to any real need whether it be spiritual or physical (They have taken the lead in low maintenance relief efforts. Whether through the local church or para-church organizations like Disaster Relief or Healing Hands, by far the greatest amount of dollars given go to the individuals it was meant to help, not to pay marketers and for marketing plans). Witness the millions given to places like Ethiopia, Poland, Africa, India, Japan, Haiti: Find any disaster and nearby you'll find members of the churches of Christ standing with loving and meaningful support. They give sacrificially and spontaneously. They give from the oldest to the youngest. They don't like to see others hurt or oppressed because they genuinely love people like God does. Is it surprising? While we are not a “social gospel folk” our fervor for the Word has made us leaders in social relief!

The churches of Christ, who are these people? They love young people. Their biggest events in the local church and in the larger brotherhood are youth events (Lads to Leaders, Winterfest, CYC, VBS, Bible Camp, etc). We care about our children going to heaven and their faith.

The churches of Christ, who are these people? They are people who want to do right. My experience has been that members of the church of Christ want to do right. They make mistakes, sometimes gross and glaring and hard-to-forget ones, but not because the desire to do right is not there. I've never heard a single one of them say they were the only ones going to heaven or claim perfection. I have heard them say over and over that anyone who obeys God will be saved by His grace. Now, they strive for perfection, but isn't that what we all ought to do?

The churches of Christ, who are these people? They are people who are forgiving. I've seen it time and again. Just when a situation looks out of hand, repentance occurs and God's people rush to the aid and defense of the penitent one. They forgive and accept back people whom others would not. It's not just a second chance, but a third and fourth and...

The churches of Christ, who are these people? They are people who sometimes argue. They argue because they are passionate about Truth. Seldom are the arguments that I've seen engaged in the result of either side not wishing to follow God's Word, but on how to best follow the Divine Instructions. And they are patient: They may not like where someone lands but they are so slow to cut people off.

The churches of Christ, who are these people? They are not credal. Sometimes people will talk about the church being strict or narrow-minded. My experience is that since we have no creed but the Bible we offer greater freedom than most religious groups. Prove it by the Bible, and there will be no creed to keep your congregation from practicing it.

The churches of Christ, who are these people? They are people who wish to hear the Word of God held up as their authority. They get low marks sometimes in tact, an area where most are sincerely working on improving, but what they lose in tact is often made up for in sheer desire to be true to God's Word. They want to hear preachers give Biblical evidence to support what they are saying. They are sincere and simple in their pure attempt to remain true to God's teaching. Most of them are not condemning, or cruel, or judgmental; but patient and kind and searching for God's truths.

The churches of Christ, who are these people? They are people who wish to see God's Word preached around the world and will make sacrifices to see that it is done. They will give of their money, time, talent and energy to take that Word to the poorest, remotest village in the world. And they'll wear a big smile as they go.

The churches of Christ, who are these people? They are my brothers and sisters scattered across the globe. They make mistakes, but they are only human and God knows that. He also knows their intentions and their hearts. I am thankful to be a part of such a people.

The churches of Christ. Why don't you investigate further? Let me close with a few things I love about the church:

• I love the church local. I love church autonomy. Willard Collins once said that “anything that God wants done can be done through the local church” and he was correct.


• I love the struggling church. I love that we are aware that we are fellow strugglers.


• I love the healthy church - that even when we struggle we still serve.


• I love the commitment to the Bible - something worth leaning on.

What's Right with the Church?

A few weeks ago, I asked several friends of Heritage Christian University to respond to the question: "What is right with the church?" Adam Faughn, the preacher for the Lebanon Road church of Christ in Nashville, Tennessee, provides the answer this week. Adam keeps a regular blog; you would do well to visit often. – Justin Imel

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What is Right with the Church

Written by Adam Faughn

We live in an era when there are many attacks on the Church of our Lord. Many seem to find pleasure in listing every mistake made by congregations or individuals. While there is a place for pointing out mistakes and shortcomings, we can get so caught up in that side of things that we fail to remember just how glorious and beautiful the Lord's Church is.

Think with me of just a few of the things that are right with the Church.

• The Church has the Right Builder, Purchaser and Foundation: Jesus Christ. Jesus stated that He would build His Church (Matt. 16:18). He loves the Church enough that He was willing to purchase it, even with His own precious blood (Acts 20:28). He also stands as the Chief Cornerstone of the Church (Eph, 2:20). Other organizations are built upon sinful, frail men. The Church is built upon and bought by the perfect Son of God.


• The Church has the Right Creed. God loves us enough that He has given "to us all things that pertain to life and godliness" (2 Pet. 1:3). We have the book from the Lord, which contains "the faith, once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 7). Other groups must vote, or wait for a board of men to decide what they will believe. Are you not grateful that we have a creed that does not change, because God does not change? If we wish to please Him, we should be grateful that He has told us exactly how to do just that.


• The Church has the Right People. Yes, we are all sinful (cf. Romans 3:23). Yes, we will fail each other at times. I am convinced, however, that the people of God are the finest people in the world. Everywhere it is my privilege to travel, it is a joy to see people who love God and who desire to shine His love to their community and to the entire world. These are people who have found Christ, the Foundation; who have read and obeyed the Bible, the "Creed;" and who now live, trying to help others to do the same.


• The Church has the Right Hope. One of my favorite songs is "The Christian's Welcome Home" (written by Mary Kidder). It reminds us that, though we struggle in this life, Christians are on the same journey to the great reward of heaven. That is our hope. Paul told the Christians in Thessalonica not to "grieve as others do, who have no hope" (1 Thess. 4:13). We will shed tears in this life, but we have hope, and it is the right hope: the hope of heaven.

Surely, there is more we could add to this list, but may these things remind you that there is so much that is right with the Church of our Lord. May we seek to share those "right things" with a world gone ever so wrong.