“Before Christ, we are essentially graves, separated by thick layers of sin and spiritual death—from the One we need most.”
Read The Life the Resurrection Gives by Ashley Anthony on page 8.
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April Highlights
PAGE 05
From the Editor
WIL TRIGGS
PAGE 06
It’s Not About the Bunny. It’s About the Lamb.
PAT CIRRINCIONE
PAGE 08
The Life Resurrection Gives
ASHLEY ANTHONY
PAGE 09
Opportunities for Prayer
PAGE 10
The Weight
KEITH BODGER
PAGE 12
Special Poetry Selections
PAGE 13
Artist Spotlight— Richard Moomjian
PAGE 14
Reminiscing Amongst Marigolds
ALEXANDER LEE
PAGE 16
Milestones
PAGE 17
New Members
PAGE 18
A Fifty-Year Partnership for the Gospel
VANESSA ROTH
PAGE 20
Celebrating 20 Years of Running
LORRAINE TRIGGS
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Sanctity of Human Life Updates
PAGE 24
Our Vision
PAGE 23
At the Bookstall
PAGE 25
Serving Opportunities
PAGE 26
Under the Radar
PAGE 27
Looking Ahead
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Campus Maps
Our Pastors, Directors and Residents: Josue Alvarado, pastoral resident | Matt Anthony, pastoral resident | Cheryce Berg, director of children’s ministries | Roger Burgess, pastor of visitation | Julie Clemens, director of disability ministries | Erik Dewar, pastor of worship and music Baxter Helm, high school pastor | Dan Hiben, middle school pastor | Tim Hollinger, technology director | Ann Karow, Human Resources Director | Howard Kern, facilities director | Bruce Main, pastor of visitation | Josh Maurer, pastor of discipleship | Curt Miller, missions pastor Josh Moody, senior pastor | Richard Moomjian, pastoral resident | Ben Panner, college pastor | Mindy Rynbrandt, director of women’s ministries | John Seward, executive pastor | Nancy Singer, director of administration and finance | Wil Triggs, director of communications
Our Council of Elders: David Bea | Mark Berg | Howard Costley, chair | Dave Gieser, vice chair | Randy Jahns | Heinrich Johnsen Josh Moody, senior pastor | Jeff Oslund | Roger Sandberg | Davi d Setran | Jeremy Taylor, secretary | Chad Thorson | Brian Wild man
332 E. Seminary, Wheaton, IL 60187
(630) 668-0878 | www.college-church.org
Connections is a monthly newsletter published for and about the people of College Church. Send news items and suggestions to: connections@college-church.org. Keep Connections in mind to promote a community event to the College Church family. Send event information by the following dates: For the May issue: April 9 For the June issue: May 9 | For the July issue: June 9
Is involved in middle school and children’s ministries at College Church. She and her husband, Matt, a pastoral resident, have four children and moved to Wheaton last August. This is Ashley’s first Easter at College Church
KEITH BODGER
is a regular contributor to Connections, and he and his wife, Mel, have been at College Church since 2012. Keith’s day job is as an environmental scientist for a local utility.
A regular contributor to Connections, Pat enjoys reading, baking, knitting. Her greatest joys are God and her family, and spending time with both makes for much joy and laughter. By the way, Pat doesn’t have anything against Easter bunnies.
ANITA
serves with Mission Eurasia, an organization she and her husband, Peter, founded. She works with A Home For Every Orphan to help promote in-country Christian adoptions around the world. She has authored several books including A Song in Siberia and Christians in the Shadow of the Kremlin.
and his psychologist wife, Linda, are new to the rich blessing that is College Church. Since Thomas retired from crisis counseling, he’s worked on a book (Confessions ) telling how the Lord can assist difficult but important work at every level.
and his wife, Virginia, have been members of College Church for some ten years. They have a daughter and a son, and four grandchildren. Alex works as a letter-carrier, and enjoys reading, writing, watching movies and going to flea markets.
Is a pastoral resident, serving in the college ministry. Richard enjoys reading theology, writing poetry and cooking meals at home.
A member of College Church, Vanessa has served as a deaconess and has participated on short-term missions trips. She is the chief operating officer of Outreach. Vanessa loves to spend time with friends and family, traveling, reading and perfecting her putt.
A self-declared news junkie, Lorraine does admire the wellwritten interview. On any given Sunday during the school year, you can find Lorraine hanging out with her favorite group of people—the Kindergarten Bible school students and their teachers.
POETRY ON PAGES 11-13:
by Anita Deyneka, Thomas Gaenzle and featured artist, Richard MoomjianEphesians: The Heavenly Places
Pastor Josh Moody preaching
APRIL 16: The Mystery of the Gospel, Ephesians 3:1-13
STARS Ministry Sunday
APRIL 23: The Love of Christ that Surpasses Knowledge, Ephesians 3:14-21
APRIL 30: Unity, Ephesians 4:1-16
SUNDAY EVENING WORSHIP SERVICES
Everyone welcome.
Palm Sunday
APRIL 2: 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m
The Eyes of Your Heart Enlightened: Ephesians 1:15-23, Pastor Josh Moody preaching. No evening service.
Thursday Communion
APRIL 6: 7 p.m.
Good Friday
APRIL 7: 6 and 8 p.m.
By Grace You Have Been Saved: Ephesians 2:1-10, Pastor Josh Moody preaching
Easter Sunday
APRIL 9: 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m
He Himself is Our Peace: Ephesians 2:11-22, Pastor Josh Moody preaching
SUNDAY MORNING WORSHIP SERVICES
Everyone welcome.
Join us at 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m. Livestream broadcast is at 9:30 a.m. You can watch it at college-church.org/livestream
A Journey to God
In Commons Hall at 5 p.m.
APRIL 16: Psalm 130, Pastor Ben Panner preaching
APRIL 23: Psalm 131, Pastor Baxter Helm preaching
APRIL 30: Psalm 132, Pastor Josh Moody preaching
ALL NATIONS Sundays 9:30 a.m. in C104F
• TEACHER: Jim Tebbe
• STUDY: The Mission of God in Scripture—Daniel 1-6, signs in John’s gospel, end of Acts after Paul’s arrest, messages to the seven churches in Revelation
• DESCRIPTION: Exploring the mission of God in Scripture through Bible study. There will also be testimonies, information about and prayer for the church in different parts of the world.
FORUM 15 Sundays 8 a.m. in C104F
• TEACHER: Bruce Main
• STUDY: JESUS NOW: Where is He? What is He doing?”
• DESCRIPTION: Major events of Jesus earthly life and what is he doing after the ascension from heaven.
GREEK CLASS Sundays 9:30 a.m. in the Board Room
• TEACHER: Jon Laansma
• STUDY: 1 John
• DESCRIPTION: Walk through the Greek text and message of 1 John in discussion format. Knowledge of Greek is not required for this class.
LIFE TOGETHER COMMUNITY Sundays 9:30 a.m. in Commons Gym or join by Zoom in C101
• TEACHER: Teaching Team
• STUDY: Varying Topics
• DESCRIPTION: Authentic, biblical community for adults ages 25–40
LIVING WORD Sundays 9:30 a.m. in C104A & C104C
• TEACHER: Doug Moo, Josh Maurer and Felipe Chamy
• STUDY: 1 & 2 Thessalonians
• DESCRIPTION: Fellowship and exposition of 1 & 2 Thessalonians, with application to life today
LOGOS Sundays 9:30 a.m. in C104E
• TEACHER: Dan Haase
• STUDY: The Gospel of John
• DESCRIPTION: Appeal of Jesus
THRIVE Sundays 9:30 a.m. in Crossings-Clapham Main Area
• TEACHER: Teaching Team
• STUDY: Varying Topics
• DESCRIPTION: Biblical community for 40s to mid-50s, including: single/married/widowed/ divorced. Join us to be encouraged and thrive.
VERITAS Sundays 9:30 a.m. in C104B & D
• TEACHER: Dan Block “Hearing Galatians with Moses.”
• STUDY: Book of Galatians—All ages welcome!
SUNDAY MORNING
NURSERY (0-2) at 9:30 and 11 a.m.
BIBLE SCHOOL (preschool-fifth grade) at 9:30 a.m.
WONDERS OF WORSHIP “WOW” (K-third grade) during second half of 11 a.m. service
CHILDREN’S CHURCH (preschool) at 11 a.m.
PRESCHOOL at 5 p.m.
GOD’S CHILDREN SING (Kindergarten and Pre-K)
CHILDREN’S CHOIRS (grades 1-6) at 5 p.m.
WEDNESDAYS
KIDS’ HARBOR WEDNESDAY CLUBS at 6:45 p.m.
The Wednesday clubs include Pioneer Girls (grades 1-5) and Boys Brigade (grades 1-5). Pioneer Girls 3-4th grade class is full and no new registrations are being taken.
SUNDAYS
INCLUSION CLASSES at 9:30 a.m.
CHILDREN/TEEN STARS: at 9:30 and 11 a.m. in C001/C003
Commons Tunnel Level
ADULT STARS: 9:30 and 11 a.m. in C002 & C005 Commons Tunnel Level
STARS Choir at 5 p.m. in Commons Main Level
STARS MINISTRY SUNDAY is April 16
WEDNESDAYS
PRAISE IN ACTION at 6:45 p.m. in Welsh Hall Sanctuary Building
FRIDAYS
SQUARE DANCING WITH THE STARS on April 14 at 6:308:30 p.m. in Commons Gym
SUNDAY MORNING FOUNDATIONS, 9:30-10:30 a.m. in the KMs room
WEDNESDAYS large group gathering, 6:45-8:15 p.m. Crossings East
SUNDAYS at 9:30-10:30 a.m. in the Crossings Sunday night Discipleship in the Crossings at 7-8:30 p.m. on specific Sundays
WEDNESDAYS from 7:30-8:30 p.m. in the Crossings—Clapham main space and small groups in host homes
SUNDAYS at 10:45 a.m. in the Crossings
Building Gospel Friendships, Shaping Biblical Convictions
THE TABLE Tuesday night event, April 25, at 6:30 p.m. in the Crossings.
HOME GROUPS: Monday-Thursday at 7 p.m.
A landing place for you to grow in Christian community and launching pad to send you out in the ministry and mission of the church. Weekly gatherings and events. For more information, contact Kaitie Girgis at kgirgis@ college-church.org
continued on next page
MONTHLY GATHERING
SATURDAY, APRIL 15: in Commons Hall, 9-10:30 a.m.
This year we are looking at Matthew 22:35-40, seeking to better understand what it means to love God fully and how this impacts the way we love our neighbors. These mornings are open to all women and include a short teaching, testimony and time around tables with discussion questions.
WOMEN’S BIBLE STUDY
Wednesday Morning: 9:30-11 a.m.
Wednesday Evening: 6:45-8:15 p.m.
This semester we are diving into Luke’s Gospel and getting an up-close look at the compassion of Christ. We anticipate a joyful and fruitful journey together. To register, visit our website.
LARGE GROUP— Monday, April 17, 9:30-11 a.m in Commons Hall
PLAYDATE— Monday, April 24, location: TBD, please check our website for more information
MEN’S BIBLE STUDY
Wednesdays at 6:45-8:15 p.m. Commons C002 (tunnel level)
This semester we will study the Gospel of Luke together. Our hope is to cultivate a hunger for God and an ability to handle God’s Word in daily life.
MEN’S GATHERING
Saturday, April 1, at 7:30-8:30 a.m. in Commons Hall
“Learning to Lament the Psalms”
You are invited to the April Men’s Gathering. Enjoy breakfast, hear encouraging testimonies and cultivate a greater hunger for God’s Word.
Celebrate Easter/Spring at our New Beginnings Art Show, which will run from March 26-April 30 in the Crossings.
Open Sunday-Friday, 12-2 p.m.; Saturday, 6-8 p.m.
Tuesday, April 10, at 7:00 p.m. in Crossings. Our once-a-month fellowship centers around building a creative community where we discuss the insights and ideas of others and share our creative efforts. This month we are reading an essay, Why Art? Why Write?
https://makotofujimura.com/writings/why-art-why-write
We will also consider the OneWord Journal word for April “plant.” For more information email artspace@collegechurch.org or visit college-church.org/artspace
Smartphone Photography: How to Shoot and Edit Like a Pro Saturday, April 22, 9:00 a.m.-noon, in Crossings
Led by photographer, Meagan Shuptar Register at college-church.org/artspace
Unlock the creative power of photography with your smartphone! In this workshop you’ll learn from a professional photographer how to shoot and edit photos that will take your everyday images to a new level. Learn fundamental photography techniques, tips on how to have full control of your smartphone’s camera, editing apps and skills that will enhance your photos and more. We’ll spend an hour together learning and then put them into practice with a short session for sharing and feedback.
Are you new to College Church? If so, you’re invited to our Visitors Lunch on Sunday, April 16, at noon in the lobby outside the Sanctuary. Come and meet pastors and staff, learn about College Church and find out how you can get involved. Lunch is on us!
Join the senior adults (55+) of College Church on Friday, April 28, as we enjoy a delicious dinner together, followed by an entertaining program. Marianne Kim, composer, pianist and organist will present a varied program of her fresh and vibrant arrangements of spirituals, gospel music and hymns. She is an amazing artist with her command of musical styles ranging from classical, jazz and gospel. She has served at Moody Church and is currently the lead organist at Christ Church Oak Brook. The evening begins with a reception at 5:30, dinner at 6, and the program at 7 p.m. Reservations are required by April 25 by emailing keenagers@college-church.org
Ready to participate fully in the life and ministries of College Church? Come find out about College Church’s history, core beliefs, ministries and what it means for you to be a member. This one-day only membership opportunity will be Saturday, May 6, from 8 a.m.- noon; registration is requested. For more info, contact Christy at membership@ college-church.org, or call (630) 668-0878, ext. 175.
With Easter this month, the words of this issue of Connections point to the many different aspects of the core truth of our faith, the resurrection. The life that comes from Jesus alone is new, lasting, and always able to give us more than we can know or imagine. We see Easter expressed in both word and deed. So we can know. There is a certainty to the resurrection. When we know both the person of the resurrection and embrace the truth of the event itself, our lives are changed. And not only our lives, but also the world around us.
I commend to you the testimony of faith in this month’s “I BELIEVE” story from Alexander Lee on page 14. Or Pat Cirrincione’s journey from St. Patrick green and Easter bunnies to the reality of real Easter. Read of Ashley Anthony’s journey of faith from family faith to her embracing of truth that is both personal and eternal. Or there is Keith Bodger’s meditation on the weight of the cross.
This month we also look at milestones of local outreach. Celebrate Outreach’s 50th anniversary and the 20th anniversary of Run for the STARS as you read this issue. Reaching out beyond the walls of church is what Outreach and our run are about. You can also check options for outreach in our Sanctity of Human Life column.
Poetry fills this issue—from Anita Deyneka and Thoman Gaenzle and Richard Moomjian, our featured artist for this month.
There are countless aspects of resurrection life and truth. This April Connections is filled with just some of them. You surely have others. Think of them and then declare the good news of Jesus with others.
Happy Easter. Blessed spring.
Lastly this. From Kevin Casey and me and the participants in our Psalms workshop where we considered the Trinity:
Father, Son and Spirit, Rich in mercy, Slow to anger, Filled with steadfast love,
O Yahweh God.
Father, Son and Spirit, Our defender, Light of splendor, You’re the way, truth, life,
O Yahweh God.
Father, Son and Spirit, Ever present one, Glorifies the Son, Bringing joy, hope, life.
O Yahweh God.
Growing up on the west side of Chicago, in our Irish neighborhood, meant that Saint Patrick’s Day was the most important event of the year. It was celebrated with the wearin’ of the green, Irish beer, mutton stew, potatoes, Irish whiskey, Irish soda bread and Irish dancing! I learned to do the Irish jig with the best of the grannies teaching me! And living in Chicago meant the Chicago River became green, and my girl scout troop was in the Chicago Saint Patrick’s Day Parade! After the celebrating, and people coming home on wobbly legs from the local pubs, the neighborhood became quiet once again, until the time we all began to get ready for Easter.
Like Christmas, Easter came with its own set of traditions and rituals. Like Christmas, when we made a visit to see Santa Claus and give him our list of gift wishes, Easter found us cuddling up to the Easter Bunny for the same reasons. Next came the search for new Easter clothes: an Easter dress, new shiny white shoes with anklet stockings, an Easter bonnet, purse and white gloves. The boys had it lots easier—a new white shirt to wear with any color slacks in their closet. After all, it was all about seeing what the women were wearing as they walked into church, so we could gossip about it on the way home.
Once home, it was all about the Easter egg hunt and Easter breakfast before dashing off to our grandmother’s house for another Easter egg hunt before lunch. The only lamb in sight was the butter lamb on the table with the food, and the Easter lamb cake served with dessert. No mention was ever made about the Resurrection of the Risen Christ, or even considered a part of our celebration! How could that be after walking through the Stations of the Cross many times over between Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday? I have no answers, which is truly sad.
It wasn’t until many, many years later, when I began to read about the life of Christ that I began to understand who he was, and what he did for not just me, but for all of us. Then I began to read about Jesus last days in Jerusalem, before his crucifixion. However, It took many more years before I read the Gospels and began to realize that Jesus was the Savior, the Son of the Living God. It really hit home at one Good Friday, and I finally understood that it was not about the bunny, but about the Lamb.
I didn’t know what to expect at that Good Friday service over twenty years ago. I thought it would be an evening of prayer, but not much else. While I was sitting in church that night, looking at the people, the banners, the deep purple coloring everywhere, the quiet congregation. In walked one of the pastors carrying a cross on his back. Slowly he walked down the center aisle, bent over from the weight of what he was carrying, to the front of the church. I remember him placing the cross on the steps, and then the Good Friday service began.
I was all right until we began to sing “Amazing Grace.” As those words poured over me, I began to sob. I had never cried in church before, not even at funerals, and yet there I was, sobbing! Uncontrollably! I was visibly shaken as the tears kept falling down my face, and so embarrassed at allowing my emotions to take a hold of me in such a manner. But then, as I looked around me I saw tears falling down the faces of other people. I understood at that moment that “God had saved a wretch like me,” and if it weren’t for the pew keeping me in a confined space I would have crumbled to the floor. I remembered doing the stations of the cross throughout Lent while growing up in school and as an adult, but it wasn’t until that Good Friday service I realized how little I understood of the crucifixion, and what Jesus death really meant.
After I collected my wits about me, I stood in awe, as we filed out of church in darkness and silence as one by one the candles were extinguished. It felt like I was walking out of a tomb, eerily quiet and heavy and holy.
Then Easter Sunday arrived, and I decided to attend the sunrise service. As we all followed the pastor into the
church the brightness of the Sanctuary was astounding. And it hit me—Jesus had risen! The tomb was empty! The joy in my heart came close to exploding. How can I explain the overwhelming feelings that came over me or explain the joy I felt. I had trusted the Lord as my Savior months before, and I believed that he died for my sins so that I could have eternal life with him in heaven, but that Easter morning, I saw what Jesus had accomplished. The smile would not leave my face! The constant smile, that still hasn’t left me, but this, this was a joy beyond imagining!
The Lord has risen, and he will come again, and when that happens “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-10, ESV)
And that is why, it’s not about the bunny, it’s about the Lamb of God, slain and worthy.
the teaching ministry of Pastor Josh Moody, features Bible teaching, both online and on the radio. This exciting ministry with a global reach continues to grow in impact. Here in the U.S., the program is heard on the radio in about 70 locations. Globally, the ministry also has a mission impact. The teaching is heard online through the OnePlace and TWR360 platforms, which have extensive listenership outside North America. Imagine! More than 35,000 people have been touched with some form of gospel content through this outreach, either an online audio message, a spiritually encouraging article, or a devotional reading. You can listen locally on Moody Radio (WMBI) at 10 p.m. M-F and 7:30 p.m. on Sunday and can have daily devotionals delivered right to your inbox.
Your prayers and partnership with this ministry are greatly appreciated.
godcenteredlife.org
“In the beginning, God created” but it wasn’t too long before man messed it up. Believing equality with God a thing to be grasped, Eve ate the fruit and Adam ate too.
Our stories begin with Creation and the Fall because even though God created and it was good, our first parents sinned, and they’ve passed down their sinful natures to us. According to Scripture, sin has earned spiritual death for everyone.
but it never did. Week after week, I tried praying more earnestly, and feeling worse about my sins and living my life in a way that might be more pleasing to God. Even so, every Sunday I ended up in the same church sanctuary, all my weekly efforts producing more and more doubt within me.
Simply, my weekly labor was cleaning up the graveyard. The grass was neatly trimmed, the outside of my gravestone shone, and flowers rested neatly nearby. My grave looked spotless, but it was still a grave.
In Ezekiel 37, God led Ezekiel out into the middle of a valley and walked him through piles and piles of dried-up bones. Up close, Ezekiel witnessed no signs of life in that barren valley. The bones could do nothing in their own power except sit and rot, so God’s question may have been surprising: “Son of man, can these bones live?”
Before Christ, we are essentially graves, separated by thick layers of dirt and grass–layers of sin and spiritual death–from the One we need most.
When I was in sixth grade, I looked like a normal student on the outside, but I was spiritually dead on the inside. I spent my Sundays at church, reciting the sinner’s prayer and willing doubt to go away,
“O Lord God, you know,” Ezekiel responded. He probably wondered what we might wonder: What does God want with a mess of dried bones?
“Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with
skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord.”
When Ezekiel prophesied, the bones started rattling and shaking as they came together, and soon sinews and skin covered them until they formed an army of lifeless bodies. Then God gave them his very breath so that they stood before Ezekiel–alive.
The call to the Israelites in Ezekiel 37 from the Lord is the same call he gives to the spiritually dead today: “Hear my words. Respond to them. You are dead now, but life is coming. One day, I will dig up your grave and empty it and bring you to life. I will resurrect your dry bones and give you my Spirit.” Just as I waited each week for Sunday to come, with fresh hope that my doubt might disappear, the Israelites waited and waited for their graves to be opened, just as God promised them. They were waiting for Sunday too.
Do you see God’s hand in the resurrection of the dried bones? He called to the bones, made them into men, gave them life, and gave them his Spirit. It may seem strange at first that we (as the dead ones) only have to hear and respond while God does all of the raising and shaping and breathing to make us alive, but this is what he does. We were once piles of dried bones, unable to come to life in our own power, but then Jesus Christ the Son of God came for us.
Call the church office or email info@college-church.org for details on these prayer meetings.
Sunday Morning Prayer 8:15-8:40 a.m. in C101
Monday Morning Prayer 6:15-7:15 a.m. in the Board Room
Wednesday Night Prayer (Zoom only) 7-8 p.m.
APRIL 5: Phil Smith, training worldwide with Accessible Hope International
APRIL 12: Terri Miller, organizational leadership and communication worldwide with ReachGlobal
APRIL 19: Brian and Warrie Blackburn, administration and MK education worldwide with Mercy Ships
APRIL 26: Bill & Laurie Stough, organizational leadership and discipleship in Uganda with AIM
MAY 3: Janet, MK education worldwide with Services in Asia for Family Education (SAFE)
Friday Prayer for the Persecuted Church (C101 or Board Room) 12-1 p.m. Led by Wil and Lorraine Triggs. The weekly prayer guide is also available at our website: https://bit.ly/3vzdcAz
Falsely Accused. Betrayed. Seized. Delivered into the hands of sinful men. Condemned to death. Mocked. Flogged. Scourged. Scorned. Reviled. Crucified. Forsaken. Buried.
Risen.
The Israelites were waiting for Jesus, and as a middle school student, I was waiting for Jesus too. I hadn’t realized the spiritually dead can’t doubt less, or act better, or even pray in their own power–I hadn’t realized that bones can’t do much of anything. Then one day, I heard the word of the Lord, and this once pile of dried bones was resurrected to new life in Christ.
Because Christ’s tomb was opened and emptied, our tombs are opened and emptied. Believers who walk the halls of College Church are reminders that the Father has chosen to love piles of dried bones for our good and for his glory. We are living, breathing testimonies of the crucifixion and resurrection of our Christ, and we are new creations whom the Spirit enlivens.
On Easter, we celebrate the miracle of new life where there once was no life. Praise God that Christ is risen. He is risen indeed!
AARON-HUR PRAYER FELLOWSHIP
Aaron-Hur Fellowship will meet on Thursday, April 13, at 7 p.m. at the home of Eric and Marilyn Enstrom, 1460 Stoddard Avenue in Wheaton (630-248-5016). All are welcome!
BARNABAS PRAYER FELLOWSHIP meets in the Centrum (2nd floor) of Covenant Living at Windsor Park to pray for our missionaries and hear from one of them. Details for April will be in the prayer enews.
Our Prayer Pulse email goes out every Monday. You can get prayer updates via that email. Sign up by clicking “Enews signup” on our website. If you already receive other emails from College Church, click “manage my preferences” at the bottom of any email and select Prayer Pulse to add yourself.
We can’t know the weight of the cross on Jesus, but we can imagine it. We can ponder it. Despite our sinful lives and the pain through which we go, nothing can compare to the weight of sin on Jesus on the cross. Every sin was applied to Jesus on the cross. Every sin of Genghis Kahn, of Hitler, of the Khmer Rouge. But more applicably, every one of your sins and every one of mine was laid upon Jesus. And, speaking for myself, that’s a lot of sin. Every person’s sin committed in the past, right now and every sin committed in the future, was accounted for on the cross.
Accounted for…what does that mean? As Jesus died on the cross, he said, “Tetelestai.” In English, it’s translated as “It is finished.” Tetelestai is a Greek word and is an accounting term: “paid in full.” All the debts are paid, they’re accounted for. We owe nothing because Jesus paid our debts. He paid our enormous debts by suffering and dying on the cross.
Isaiah 53 foretold the suffering that Jesus would bear on the cross. It’s astounding what Jesus went through.
Verse three—“He was despised and rejected by men.” Haven’t we all been despised and rejected? By classmates, colleagues, kids, spouses, friends and strangers. For me, I’ve been despised or rejected for good reason. For Jesus, it was for me and you, not because of what he did.
Verse four —”Surely he has borne our griefs and carried
our sorrows: yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God and afflicted.” Our grief was on him and he carried our sorrows. We have all grieved. Many far more than others. But all our grief has been borne (held up, supported, propped) by Jesus. Our sorrows…I’ve had some. So many have had so much more. But Jesus carried all our sorrow.
Verse five —”But he was pierced for our transgressions; crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement
that brought us peace and with his wounds we are healed.” Upon him, not upon us, but upon him, was the chastisement. We get the peace and the healed wounds. Jesus gets the chastisement.
Verse six—”All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned — every one — to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” The iniquity of who? All. Everyone reading this. All. No exception. We’re all guilty and he makes us free.
Verse seven—”He was oppressed, and he was afflicted.” It isn’t getting any better for Jesus on the cross. What else has been laid on him? Oppression and affliction and then in verse eight, oppression and judgment. He was oppressed. We are relieved of the punishment for our sins because he takes them on.
Verse ten —”Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief.” This is so tough to reconcile. We get the relief. Jesus gets “crushed and grief.” For what? For you and me.
Everything was on Jesus. Everything. I can’t pretend to know what it was like for Jesus. There have been times when I’ve been troubled by something. Usually, I can get to sleep. But many times, I’ll wake up at 3 a.m. and my mind will start whirring about something that’s going on and I won’t get back to sleep. Sound familiar? Was it like that for Jesus on the cross? Do you ever shudder and shake your head with shame when you think of something you said or something you did? Was Jesus shuddering with our shame and sin—not his, mind you, but ours.
We talk about the physical death on the cross at Easter. And it was awful. But what was going through Jesus’ mind? He faced despising, rejection, sorrow, grief, chastisement, oppression, affliction, judgment and guilt. As he hung on the cross, and tended to the thief, did his mind race with worries? Was he shuddering, not just from the excruciating pain, but also from the weight our sin.
Weight that only he could fully bear.
I saw Him first as a boy of twelve
I kept the Temple gate fast
To keep the heathen out I stood
The most valuable of all will last
Will you be coming in? I asked
He winked with knowledge and good cheer
Was that smile subterfuge itself?
Something so kind can’t be sincere!
Passing over, He asked about my gout
Peculiar, I thought, that the public knew I never entertained a doubt
A boy is a boy is another boy
We think before we can reflect
And believe only what we want
We see what we expect
His eyes seemed cocked irreverent?
His stride seemed slightly impudent?
They said He spoke with scholars— Teaching on the Torah!
I would have given Him his coppers!
Begging attention like an houri!
I saw Him next a man of thirty-three
Not in the grave, but inside me!
He healed my gout
But His real gift—
He healed my heart
First impressions never die too fast
The most valuable of all will last
Go down to those deep dark places
Down to the ballast of your soul
Escaping any good graces
Which could make you feel holy or whole
Sink deeper I ask
Then deeper still
Go further
Further still if you dare
You must believe it can
No—it will—
His Light can even reach there.
Go across and down
To the bad part of town
Where homes are falling apart
Go deeper
Walk wrong-er
‘Til you’re not safe any longer
And ‘til worry arrests your heart
Keep going
Until your own ears hear
Kids fussing
Lampposts buzzing
And chain-linked fences appear
In places forgotten
Without even a prayer
His Light can reach even there.
Now go down again
Down deep in your mind
Think of the darkest and worst
Person you can find
The worst of all
The worst of all time
Whose soul is covered in sin-ister grime
Now they
Yes they!
Are furthest from Him
Their future is hell bound
Grimmest of grim
Are they the worst of people you know?
And most unlovely, as far as people go?
This thought might shock you
And give us a scare:
His Light can reach even there.
We believe it deep down It needs deep’ning yet
Us religious folk especially
Seem to forget
That He came down—
Yes, deeper than that He walked in the darkness
With sinners He sat
Ate with the worst of them
Drank with them too
Our very own darkness
He shone right through
Right through our deep darkness
Right through our despair
Straight through the sin
That makes nests in our hair
Straight through our scales
Of what’s right
And what’s fair
—This great truth to herald This hope now to share: He reaches
Straight down
Straight to the bottom.
His Light can even reach there.
Mountains and hills burst into song. Trees of the field clap their hands. Sentinels of Cedars stand.
Rivers laugh and leap, hugging their wandering banks. Sea waves rise and roar their thanks.
Roses of Sharon bloom. Lilies of the Field dance. Daffodils smile and prance.
Palm branches wave and waft, lining the way to the cross, Peace and victory come at last.
The angel of the Lord rolls away
The stone forced to seal the tomb.
Heaven and earth rise, rejoice.
Resurrection Day!
Strange wedding vows
Were said that day
Strange lovers these To have their way
Strange vows beyond
All wedding hopes
Beyond vision and All telescopes
Past perception
Beyond art
Beyond “death do us part”
Strange wedding vows and
Strange wedding bands
Pounded, posted, nail-beaten
Vowing words
Unbeaten
Two anguished lovers, Crimes to cover,
Asked the bride, “Remember me?”
The Other answered “Verily, In Paradise you’ll be With Me.”
Such strange vows
Such strange relief
God-with-us
Wed the thief
These lovers, in their agony
Pledge vows
Throughout eternity
If all we have to say is, “please”
Then gratitude is strangely
Knees
Here’s the truth: I first started writing poetry when I met a gi rl in college. “I like you” was getting old. So instead I sought to communicate my wild and at times (she told me, later) overwhelming feelings I had for her in poetry. And much to my surprise, the poems worked. I got the girl (Now, my wife, Shelby).
Alongside Shelby’s encouragement to continue writing poetry, I heard pastor & author Eugene Peterson say these words, which opened my eyes to the power of art, poetry and all things creative. He said: “We take the things God has created, and let it shape our lives. That’s art.”
In my mind, writing poetry was no longer simply to win the girl (success!) or to “put myself out there.” I felt free to pursue every thought, feeling, or truth and express it as best I could in new ways. I was simply taking the things God had created, and letting God’s beauty in creation shape my life
Now I try to collect lines I hear or think about which could, one day, become a poem. My journals and my phone are full of these lines. I try to set aside an hour or so on the weekends to write poetry. Sometimes the lines are fears, sometimes joys, or sometimes just an idiom that I can’t, for the life of me, figure out. Other times, it’s a truth in Scripture that must be honored with thoughtful and curated words. I’m grateful that God has created such an interesting world, where our creative endeavors do not exhaust the beauty or glory in what He has made. I’m seeking to me more open, more available, more interested. I’m seeking to write poetry less as a means to an end (like to win the girl), and instead as a means of worshipping t he Beginning and the End. And that perspective has made all the difference.
Alexander Lee
Like King Solomon, I occasionally get my hands dirty working in a garden. But while Solomon grew cypresses and henna trees and vines in his garden, populating it with monkeys and peacocks, I in mine mainly spread mulch around, and plant little marigolds where my wife with her spade indicates in the dirt. Unlike Solomon, I have only one wife. Yet the king and I agree, after seeing enough of life, that in the end, “all is vanity and chasing after wind.”
When I was a child, I thought and understood as a child, as it says in 1 Corinthians. I was born in a small trading town by the sea in the Philippines. In my grandparents’ grand house, I whooped and whined and whiled away the days as though the hours were inexhaustible. My childhood memories are vague, but they are wrapped within a membrane of contentment. Nonetheless, being memories, their substance is lost to time. Nothing in this life, as Solomon realized, lasts forever.
The apostle Paul writes that when he became a man, he “put away childish things.” Often, we simply outgrow those childish things. But often also, we cling to them like toddlers with security blankets.
In my later years at a Catholic school in Cebu City, basketball became my main juvenile preoccupation. I shot hoops under the tropical sun, eager to dunk the ball through the sheer intensity of my desire. My height however, at 5 feet 9 inches, brought my aspiration down to earth. My spirit was willing, but the flesh was not tall enough. My love of the game diminished, to be replaced at around sixth grade with reading and literature. Soon I was writing adolescent adventure stories and long narrative poems, all of them increasingly serious in style, but invariably self-conscious and self-serving. My ideas turned secular, doubtless in reaction to the religious flavor of my education, but likely as well as a result of the strict Jesuit regimen of that education.
The Jesuits were gung-ho on rationalism and independent thinking. The act of writing, to an impressionable and immature student, allowed—welcomed—the investigation of new ideas and exploration of one’s fancies. In my senior year of high school, my parents sent me to the United States as an exchange student, and there, in the heady, easy-going freedom of American public education, my creativity blossomed. I lived a year in Oregon, returning to the Philippines in denim overalls, sunglasses, and a sweatshirt that showed the shark from Jaws, the summer blockbuster that year.
My sojourn in America transformed me into a bohemian, cool in aspect and sensibility. But unknown to me, within the bouquet of my creativity lay the seeds of intellectualism. In college, that intellectualism turned
“My word…will not return to Me empty.” ISAIAH 55:11
fervent and then fierce. All the Bible stories I had learned at home and in school suddenly lost credence. Adam, Eve, Noah? Eden, the Flood, a talking donkey? These characters and notions were promptly tossed aside as hopelessly outdated, and along with them, their accompanying relevance. I stopped believing in a personal God; instead I was a neutral cogitator—a man after Rodin’s famous statue—and also a pedant and a bore.
I was above it all—above my mediocre grades, above my parents’ and peers’ approval, above society’s mores. I questioned everything, and therefore was beyond reproach.
I continued to attend Mass to pacify my mother, who was devoutly Catholic. But being agnostic, I sneered inwardly at her devotion. One day I said to my mother, “Your religion makes things too complicated! I think the Protestants have got it right. If you’re going to be a Christian, all it ought to require is faith—no rituals or sacraments or ecclesiastical middlemen. Why can’t faith alone be enough?”
My mother stared at me, aghast.
“I’m just being honest,” I clarified.
That must have counted for something—being honest. It kept me, thank God, from losing my way entirely.
Books, as it happened, were my sacramental relics. Books—from the Hardy Boys series, Reader’s Digest condensed novels, the tales of Poe and Stevenson and Borges, the volumes of humanist expostulation on my desk—had a hold on me, like opium. So, when the Christian library ship Logos docked at our city one rainy season, I went to check it out. It was there I picked up, out of all the thousands of books on offer, a copy of C.S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity . The Holy Spirit must have had a hand in that selection; certainly, the title intrigued me. Mere Christianity? Nothing but Christianity? And a book authored by a presumably wordy Oxford don?
I brought the book home and read it, and in the next months proceeded to read half a dozen more works by Lewis: The Problem of Pain, Surprised by Joy, The Pilgrim’s Regress , among others. They are with me still, on a shelf, a testament to God’s grace and good timing and eye for irony. Lewis’s candid elucidation, used by God, guided me through the thicket of intellectualism, and into the sunlit meadow of blessed knowledge.
The appeal of intellectualism is its permanent postponement of an ultimate answer. The questions posed by the human condition are many and difficult, and the humanist response to these is to say existence is a trackless desert and the final truth is that there is no final truth. Or else to
say existence is a map, and where you are on the map depends of how you draw the map. Humanism is a perversely interesting undertaking, but it leads nowhere. Given that we all chase after wind, existentialists conclude life is all about the chasing; that whatever one does, so long as one is chasing anything, one will find oneself in some shape or other, and that is the end of it. Some people debunk matter and decry the chase altogether, identifying rather with the wind—with nothingness, nirvana. They believe chasing is futile because anything one catches or acquires just sets one back further from being nothing. C.S. Lewis persuaded me of the hopelessness of both ideologies. Lewis proposed Christ is either a liar, a lunatic, or Lord. Presented thus, the options open to a seeking person are inescapable. I had enough sense, and certainly sufficient sin, to say, “Yes—You are Lord. Forgive me.”
SOLUS
I was baptized, in seawater no less, soon after my conversion after college. My mother, via her own road, had found Christ as well. When I recount to her that conversation, we had about faith in Christ being sufficient for salvation, she smiles, and forgives my teasing.
Upon becoming a Christian, my worldview shifted focus. International and interpersonal conflicts, instead of being indecipherable, revealed themselves to be the predictable terrestrial skirmishes in a war waged by spiritual combatants, and in which the only casualties are fleshand-blood partisans, namely us. Issues of psychology and philosophy were clarified in light of biblical wisdom. I retained my political antennae, and nurtured my mental life, grateful that it was fruitful and not, as it had been, bankrupt—which is not to say I experience no more issues of a personal nature. Why, yes, sin does continue to nip at my heels, and too frequently draws blood. To walk one’s faith is sometimes to sway and falter like a drunk, sometimes to swagger like a big shot, sometimes to leap like a buffoon. The unsaved can sin and chew gum at the same time. Christians can walk in faith and repent of their missteps at the same time—a miracle of ambulation.
Albeit more slowly, my heart softened, recovering from its old life of moralism and conceit, of impatience and indifference. The wheels of remorse, turning jerkily, move me onward to regular repentance.
Basketball, eons after the Bulls’ dynasty, elicits no interest in me. I am done with courting the muse of literature, and with making sense of the local news, and with deifying western civilization and American conservatism. Our continued on next page
ideals too subtly turn into idols with hardly a change in enunciation, then as we watch, they vanish like wisps in the breeze. Over our joy and pain, over life and death, God is sovereign. In him we have our being (Acts 17). We hide (Psalm 91) under his wings. We may chase after wind, but Christ is the Lord of the wind and the end of all our chasing: the pearl of great price (Matthew 13) which no childish object in this world can replace or displace.
I, like Paul, had grown to manhood. I taught freshman psychology at the local university, and on a couple of evenings went to “charismatic” prayer meetings. Soon my whole family was singing and worshipping at a Sunday service led by a Pentecostal missionary. In 1985 I taught English in China, and there met Virginia, from Illinois. We dated and got engaged; no fourteen years of waiting for us, a la Jacob and Rachel.
At age 28, I came to America, a married man and unemployed, but optimistic. In 1992, three years into a career with the Postal Service, and by then the father of two children, I took my oath of citizenship. Since that time, our world has changed, as surely as Middle Earth did. America, moving away from God inch by defiant inch, has today distanced itself from the divinity which inspired its founders. Yet God is yet at work here and elsewhere. The lawlessness around us is evidence of God’s foreknowing. God rules over the past and future; to Him both are present in one eternal moment. The prayers of the Church will approach critical mass until the moment the sky explodes in brilliance to reveal the King of glory unsheathing His terrible swift sword. As Billy Graham noted, a newspaper laid open beside a well-thumbed Bible can only affirm a believer’s faith.
Planting my wife’s marigolds in the spring, I can’t help recalling the previous flat of flowers I put in the ground twelve months ago. Flowers fade all right, as Isaiah observed, though he was no great gardener either. My knees ache from squatting. I am 63 years old, and a grandfather of four: Noah, Naomi, Oliver and Jonah, in order of appearance—a cast from the Old Testament. King Solomon bends down to give me a hand with the marigolds. “Easier than cultivating fig trees,” he opines, grabbing a trowel. When I turn my head, I see no one. The sky, though blue, darkens metaphysically. “It is nothing but wind,” I remind myself. I know there is a way to everlasting permanence— to an existence without and beyond expiration. It is a narrow way, but firm and trustworthy.
“I am the Way,” Christ says simply, beckoning. That is the choice of everyone’s journey.
Isla Hope was born to Josh and Brittany Bell on March 19. Isla joins her siblings Margaux, Naomi and Jack.
Louisa Ruth was born to Zach and Olivia Oslund on February 10 in Colorado Springs, CO. Louisa joins her big sister, Rose. Her maternal grandparents are Jon and Terri Penner and her paternal grandparents are Jeff and Alison Oslund.
Pray for Pat Slone and family as they grieve the loss of Pat’s husband, Joe , who passed away on March 25 in Kentucky.
Pray for College Church missionary Beth (Dan) Long and family as they grieve the loss of Beth’s father, Donald Hall Stilwell, who passed away on March 23.
Pray for College Church staff member Diane Stephen and family as they grieve the sudden loss of Diane’s husband, John , who passed away in Florida on March 22.
Pray for Terri (Jon) Penner and family as they grieve the loss of Terri’s mother, Patricia Brown Paglione , who passed away on March 21 in Southhampton, PA.
Pray for Linda (Ken) Kelley and family as they grieve the loss of Linda’s father, Cyrus Adams , who passed away on March 18.
Pray for friends and family of longtime member Marilyn Kitchell who passed away in Lewisville, Texas, on March 12.
Pray for Abbie (Jeremy) Cook and family as they grieve the loss of Abbie’s father, Garth Miller , who passed away on March 7 in Ohio.
Pray for Kimberly Hutson and family as they grieve the recent loss of her mother who passed away in the Rockford area.
Pray for global worker Irene (Jeff) and family as they grieve the loss of Irene’s father, Grant , who passed away on February 19.
Nat is married to Sarah (currently going through the membership process) and they have five children. His parents felt called to be tentmakers in the Middle East, so Nate has lived in that part of the world. As a TCK (third culture kid), his family is spread out all over the world. Nat is an elementary school teacher in St. Charles. He enjoys playing guitar, song writing and developing his art skills.
The Valles have four children and one grandson. They are involved in the Veritas Adult Community. Pam loves praying for others. For most of John’s career he was a sales manager for payroll and benefits companies. John now does part-time consulting. John loves spending time with his grandson as they over tools and anything with wheels. Pam is retired but for many years had her own college admissions consulting business. They own a RV and love to travel.
SARAH
Sarah grew up in Wheaton and has three brothers. She works as a buyer at Tyndale House Publishers. She is involved in the 20s group and one of its small groups. She teaches in Kids’ Harbor, and you can find her in the Stingray classroom on Sunday mornings. Sarah likes to run, write letters and hang out.
Maddie grew up in Wheaton and has two brothers. She is involved in the 20s ministry and serves in the high school ministry. She works as a middle school teacher in Des Plaines and teaches seventh-grade U.S. history and science. She enjoys being around students and mentoring them. Maddie likes hanging out with friends, playing Spike Ball, running and playing board games.
Mark is married to Vicki and they have three children— one is new member, Maddie. You’ve probably seen Mark around church often as he has ushered at the 11 a.m. service for years. Mark has worked in sales/industrial automation in the Chicago area. He enjoys hanging out at Home Depot.
The Weviks live in Crystal Lake and gladly make the drive to Wheaton for church. Rebecca attended College Church as a child, and remembers the “verse lady.” Rebecca’s sister, Sarah Nelson, is also a member. The Weviks attend the Living Word Adult Community. Ed is a retired United Airlines pilot. Rebecca retired after 37 years as a flight attendant for United Airlines. They love to travel and play golf together.
Christine and Cam Williams have been married almost 20 years and have four children. Christine began attending College Church as a Wheaton College student. She taught middle school in Chicago, then studied to become a registered nurse and worked as a home health nurse for several years. She is a ministry associate at College Church working with the younger STARS.
Renee and daughter Lydia recently moved to Wheaton from Bourbonnais. Renee discovered College Church on a visit to the Billy Graham Museum. She and Lydia have been attending ever since. Renee attends the Thrive Adult Community. She works as a lawyer, teacher and homemaker, while studying to take the bar exam. Renee’s teenaged daughter, Lydia, participates in the middle school ministry and the student choir, Glorify! Lydia likes to paint, play piano and flute, sing, dance, run and write.
“We need to do something about the troubled youth that are hanging around the downtown area in Wheaton.” That was a comment made by a Wheaton pastor in the early 1970s at a Wheaton Ministerium meeting. The Ministerium was an active organization in the late 1960s and early 1970s with at least 25 churches participating. Pastor Nate Goff, the senior pastor of College Church at that time, was an active member of the Ministerium.
Partly due to that comment, the Ministerium formed a committee to investigate the needs of the youth, look at ministry models, and bring back recommendations to the group. The outcome of that process was a recommendation that the churches of Wheaton come together to sponsor a faith-based charitable organization to form a youth outreach program. In 1971, a board comprised of the senior pastors from the Ministerium churches and a lay representative from each church was formed. In 1973, the organization took on the name of Wheaton Youth Outreach (now Outreach Wheaton) and was incorporated. Two part-time youth workers were hired. Pastor Goff served on the board as the pastoral representative, and Jay Avery, a College Church congregant, served as the lay representative. College Church contributed its share of what was a $20,000 budget back then.
By 1975, the ministry had fallen apart. One of the staff members alienated most of the churches. The board was unwieldy and short on organizational development experience. Fifteen of twenty churches pulled out, including College Church, and the second staff person quit. The five remaining churches adopted a new plan that included offering a job to Chris Ellerman, a recent George Williams College graduate with a master’s degree in social work. Chris’ first assignment was to bring back the churches that had resigned—one of his first calls was to Pastor Goff. Pastor Goff affirmed Chris’ call. They prayed together for Outreach, and Pastor Goff recommitted College Church as a sponsor for Outreach. Within a year, Outreach was back in College Church’s budget, and this support was placed under the elders’ budget because it did not fit under the missions budget mandate. Within a few months, Jay Avery rejoined the board as the church’s representative, to be followed in 1980 by Phil Stough.
In the early 1980s, both Outreach and College Church became more aware of the overwhelming needs of the families living on the southeast side of Carol Stream: 50% of the families were headed by single parents; 45% of the children were living in poverty; 75% of the children were behind in school; domestic violence was substantial, and substance abuse was prevalent. Outreach responded to the needs in southeast Carol Stream in 1985. Leaders Mark Taylor, the president of Tyndale House Publishers and an elder at College Church, Phil Stough, the vice principal at Wheaton North High School and a member of the board of missions at College Church, and Chris Ellerman called together the senior pastors of three of the largest churches in Wheaton, the CEOs of the Christian organizations located in the southeast section of Carol Stream and the CEOs of a number of local corporations. Pastor Kent Hughes, senior pastor of College Church at the time, was among the pastors in attendance.
A three-year pilot project was proposed at the meeting with ministries focused on wrapping support around families headed by single moms—counseling, case management, and children’s ministries for elementary and middle school students that included Christian education. Lay volunteers from the sponsoring churches were seen as a critical component in service delivery. The proposed budget was $100,000 with suggested annual support of $5,000 to $10,000 per institution. Once again, College Church signed on as one of the founding churches for Outreach Carol Stream (formerly Outreach Community Center).
The three-year “pilot” project was successful—every ministry was filled to capacity within five months. Lay volunteers carried the tutoring program, and a junior high club was hosted by College Church at the church and staffed by the Pacesetters—the adult community for singles in their 20s and 30s. By 1989, it was obvious that a facility had to be built. Land was donated by an Outreach board member, who was also a College Church member. College Church pledged $100,000 for the capital campaign, and the other sponsor churches and corporate partners pledged over $400,000. The new facility opened in 1991, debt free, all the result of the commitment of the Christian community.
In 1992, Outreach decided that the future of the Community Center was in the hands of the local churches, who had a passion for reaching out locally and serving holistically. At that same time, Pastor Hughes was in conversation with the elders for College Church to move outward and to do more outreach to the local community. Pastor Hughes designated Pastor David Helm with the responsibility to carry this forward with the Community Center as the primary outlet or focus for this effort. Pastor Helm called together a group of volunteers who were already active at the Center, dubbed the group the “Dream Team,” brought Chris Ellerman together with them and, over the next six months, the assignment was to dream out loud about ministry opportunities at the Center. Out of that effort came the idea to create a resale store to the benefit of Outreach Carol Stream, and Twice is Nice was born!
Twice is Nice opened in 1994. Financially, it broke even expenses during year one. In years two and three, the profits began, and support for the ministries at Outreach was started. Dozens of volunteers from College Church pitched in to make the store a success, and the congregation of College Church continues to donate clothing and household items to the store.
Today, Twice Is Nice is contributing over $150,000 annually to Outreach to support the center, and this year the store is on track to contribute its highest annual profit ever to Outreach. Back in 2006, College Church and Outreach celebrated a major milestone in our partnership–Twice is Nice reached the $1 million mark in contributions to the community center! We celebrated together in a Sunday evening service as we praised the Lord for blessing this ministry partnership. We are on track to reach the $2.5 million mark sometime in 2024!
Over the years, Outreach has grown to include Neighborhood Resource Centers in five communities across the western suburbs and a Transitional Housing Program and Employment Opportunity Center. In total, Outreach serves almost 4,000 people annually. The ministries at Outreach Carol Stream have grown from service to 200 in 1986 to more than 1,500 lives touched in 2022. Volunteers have grown from 50 in the early years to over 400 annually. As many as 150 volunteers are active each week in relational ministries. The facility has grown from a 1,000-square-foot office to a 24,000-square-foot multi-purpose center full of faith-based activities available to all of the residents of southeast Carol Stream.
Most importantly, Outreach’s greatest impact is how the gospel is being shared daily throughout our programs. Whether it’s the Christian education classes in the youth
development programs, Bible studies in the Transitional housing programs or prayer being offered at the end of every basic needs appointment, God’s presence is invited into the activities and services at Outreach.
Sarah (not her actual name) was one of the first children to participate in the program when the Community Center in Carol Stream opened in 1986. Her family was living in southeast Carol Stream and one of Sarah’s fondest memories is participating at the Community Center.
“I don’t know what my mom and I would have done if we hadn’t had the Center to turn to.” At age 15, Sarah revealed that her father had been sexually abusing her for years. The Center not only made sure Sarah had counseling, but also made sure Sarah and her mom were supported by a church. Through this experience and relationship at the Center, Sarah found her way to God. She accepted Christ in high school which became the anchor to her life. The Center provided Sarah a scholarship to attend Judson University where she met her future husband. Today, Sarah, her husband and three children are serving as missionaries with Missionary Flights International based in Florida. There are countless other children and adults who have been impacted for Christ over the last 50 years. Come celebrate with us on April 22.
This year, Outreach (formerly Outreach Community Ministries), is celebrating 50 years of serving God in word and deed in the western suburbs. You’re invited to honor Outreach’s history and commemorate its five decades of community impact. Help Outreach celebrate hope, share its mission, and serve our community’s most vulnerable neighbors. This milestone celebration kicks off on Saturday, April 22, 2023, with a 5K Run, Walk and Wheel in Wheaton, followed by a dinner and program celebration, and culminating with an evening of worship featuring Grammy-nominated and Dove Award Winner Kari Jobe. Outreach looks forward to welcoming all from College Church especially since it’s had an impressive partnership with Outreach for over 50 years. We invite you to celebrate and worship with us. To learn more, visit: weareoutreach.org/50
Twenty years! That’s an impressive run for a 5K. Dawn Clark, who proceeded Julie Clemens as director of disability ministries, talked about the beginnings of Run for the STARS (RFTS) in an email interview.
“Back in 2003, the pastoral staff wanted a way to bring in the community to Summerfest [an annual summer event for the church and community],” wrote Dawn. “Mark Ahrenholz, an avid runner and director of administration at the time, and former missions pastor, Bruce Wilson approached me about having the race funds go to the disability ministry.”
“I did think that the community might respond to sending individuals with special needs/disabilities to camp such as Joni and Friends and other Christian camps,” Dawn continued. The staff agreed that this was a great cause for a 5K and Run for the STARS came into existence.
The first year a large committee was pulled together to put on the race, and Dawn represented the disabilities ministry, and the following year she became the ministry staff person and served as the coordinator of Run for the STARS. “I brought the committee together and approached individuals to be the race director, including my husband, Stephen.”
The run’s original purpose was to bring the community to the church to hear the gospel as part of Summerfest, and its secondary purpose was to raise funds for the STARS. “For me, I felt RFTS was a concrete way to show the community that the church honored the lives of people with disabilities. As Christians we are pro-life and that includes more than a stance against abortion. We demonstrated our pro-life stance by supporting the STARS and their families through all their lives. That is one reason I felt so strongly about having the STARS involved strategically in the race.” Daw n related.
The first Run for the STARS was June 14, 2003—the now-familiar second Saturday in June. This year, however, the City of Wheaton asked if RFTS could change its race day. Director of Disability Ministries Julie Clemens took advantage of the run’s anniversary year and chose May 20 for the run. Though the race has moved from its traditional date, Pastor Josh Moody
continues the tradition of the senior pastor praying at the beginning of each run.
On that first year, the Dash for the STARS was introduced as Dawn explained so “the STARS who might not be able to run a 5K could participate in the race. I also thought it would be good for the community to meet some of the people that the race was supporting.”
The run has changed through the years, but its commitment to the STARS and their families has remained constant “and I believe the commitment of its volunteers,” Dawn wrote. “College Church member Todd Busteed has been the race announcer from the start—he is absolutely awesome and does a great job of recognizing runners as they cross the line.”
Both Dawn and Julie agree that Run for the STARS couldn’t happen without volunteers, from race director to committee members to STARS and their families who have stuffed runner packets. “I often heard STARS and their families say that they loved volunteering because it gave them a chance to give back to the church for all the church had done for them,” Dawn added.
The race does take place rain or shine, but Dawn vividly remembers one of the early races. “We really wondered whether the race would survive the horrible weather. It just poured, and we jokingly said it was Run for the Ducks! I wondered whether any volunteers would show up much less the runners. I really felt that this was the end of RFTS. Yet, all the volunteers showed up and we had a little over 200 runners (I think more than 300 had registered). We had such camaraderie. I sensed God’s smile and after that RFTS was firmly established.”
For Julie, she remembers those virtual runs during the pandemic. “Those races were hard. The first run in 2020, most people didn’t know how to record a run so they would send in their results. But we have amazing corporate sponsors who continued to give, because they knew the need.”
Based on records for 16 of the 20 runs, Julie calculated that more than 8,500 runners have participated in RFTS. That first year, Dawn recalls there were around 250 runners, and around $10,000 was raised. “Last year (2022),” Julie adds, “There were 495 runners and dashers, and $55,000 was raised.”
Julie also remarked that “we’ve had several runners in their 80s participate, including Marilyn Kitchell, Tim and Joe Klenk and even Pastor Moody’s father. And a grandfather of one of our STARS ran the race last year in his mid-nineties. The youngest runner was five years old.”
Though hard to calculate, Dawn wrote that funds from the run have helped send STARS and their families to camp
and church retreats as well as supporting summer music camp and providing job coaching. Hundreds of families have benefitted from race proceeds.
“I received a letter from Joni and Friends recently thanking us for supporting families who attend their family camps,” Julie noted. “Their letter stated that College Church has given to Joni and Friends for 29 years, for a total of nearly $160,000. Not all those years included money from Run for the STARS, but the years that we’ve had the run, we’ve been able to give more to support STARS families.”
From Julie’s perspective, “Run for the STARS is a day where families can come out and support our STARS families in several ways. They can register to run and sign up their kids for the Dash for the STARS. It’s a great time to remind kids that the STARS were created in the image of God like the rest of us, and this is why we show up for them.”
See you at the run on May 20.
The goal for this twentieth anniversary run is 700 runners. If you’re not a runner, register to be one of the 98 volunteers still needed for the 2023 anniversary run, and show up on May 20 and cheer the STARS and runners. Register by April 30 to guarantee your shirt size. Online registration closes on May 18 at noon, but there is walk-in registration/packet pick-up from noon to 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday of race week, and walk-in registration on race day as well. And new for this year, an award for the faster pastor.
Walgreens, CVS, and Rite-Aid plan to dispense abortion pills to patients in states where abortion remains legal. The FDA eliminated restrictions that prevented retail pharmacies from offering Mifepristone, also known as RU-486, the primary drug used in abortion.The FDA will now permit retail pharmacies to apply for certification to dispense abortion pills to those with a prescription. Prescriptions can be received without an in-person appointment to verify gestational age of 10 weeks or less and to check if a woman has a life-threatening ectopic pregnancy. Walgreens, CVS, and Rite-Aid plan to sell the two pill regime that now accounts for 54% of abortions. Women are already experiencing abortions at home without medical supervision and having to face additional trauma of disposing of the bodies of their children themselves. Chemical abortion puts women at physical risk for dangerous hemorrhaging, septic shock, and infection from remaining fetal tissue. Infection can lead to infertility. If a woman is also infected with Chlamydia at the time of abortion, she is at increased risk of Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID). Symptoms and side effects of PID can include future infertility, abscesses, and chronic pain. Tragically, some women who have refused abortion are being given abortion pills secretly without their knowledge by their partners who do not want a child.
• Ask your pharmacist if their store will be getting into the abortion business by providing abortion pills.
• Encourage your pharmacist not to participate in facilitating the death of preborn babies.
• Call or write to the local store manager.
• Send email to CEOs of Walgreens, CVS, or Rite-Aid by signing the petition at Live Action website or call Walgreens at 1-800-925-4733, call CVS at 1-800-7467287, call Rite Aid at 1-800-748-3243.
Saturday, April 8, 1:00-2:00 pm. Join Sanctity of Human Life Task force at 40 Days for Life’s year-round peaceful prayer vigil. Meet on Waterleaf pregnancy resource center’s property across from Planned Parenthood Aurora’s driveway. We were glad to speak with a couple pulling out of the clinic who initiated contact as they saw our sign and wanted Waterleaf info last month!
Sign up to receive SOHL monthly e-newsletter to which includes events schedule and life-related news. https://college-church.org/impact/sohl/
Sunday, April 23-Sunday, May 14. Pick up bottles at church. Donate and return bottles on Sunday, May 14, Mother’s Day. Funds are critical for operating costs of Caring Network pregnancy centers. Include giving QR code. https://www.caringnetwork.com/ baby-bottle-drive-give
Diapers (all sizes- opened packages accepted), wipes, baby lotion, shampoo, and wash, diaper cream, and formula
• April 2 outside the sanctuary
• April 9 Kids’ Harbor
• April 16 outside the sanctuary
Caring Network provides free pregnancy services such as pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, consultations, resources and referrals, gospel witness, as well as support and counseling for post-abortive women and men in our community.
Wheaton’s Caring Network Baby Supply Bank distributes baby essentials every two weeks to needy clients who have chosen to parent despite difficult finances.
Scan the QR Code to order on Amazon. Select “Church of the Resurrection’s Gift Registry Address” for where to ship.
A Better Encouragement: Trading Self-Help for True Hope
By Lindsey Carlson
Confronting Jesus: Nine Encounters with the Hero of the Gospels
By Rebecca McLaughlin
Forgive: Why Should I and How Can I?
By Timothy Keller
Poetry of Redemption: An Illustrated Treasury of Good Friday and Easter Poems
By Leland Ryken
Popologetics: Popular Culture in Christian Perspectives
By Ted Turnau
Pray Big: Learn to Pray
Like an Apostle
By Alistair BeggRooted: Reconnecting with the History of the Church
By Edward RhodesSarah Edwards Delighting in God: A biography
By Sharon James
The Seed of the Woman: 30
Narratives that Point to Jesus
By Nana DolceTeach Us to Want: longing, ambition & the life of faith
By Jen Pollock Michel
True Feelings: God’s Gracious and Glorious Purpose for Our Emotions
By Carolyn Mahaney & Nicole Whitacre
The Unquenchable Flame: Discovering the Heart of the Reformation
By Michael ReevesThe vision of College Church is summarized in three words: “Proclaiming the Gospel.” This higher purpose elevates and focuses all our activities. We have identified five initiatives for the purpose of proclaiming the gospel.
Pathway. We structure our ministries so that you can Discover Jesus, Grow in Your Faith, and Impact the World. Our goal is to call a pastor of evangelism by June 2023 to lead the discover portion of this pathway.
Community. We are a community that cultivates care, encouragement and connection. Our goal is to mobilize us all to care for each other, call a community life pastor, and have increased use of counseling with designated space in the Crossings.
Discipleship. We will elevate biblically rigorous and practical discipleship. Our goal is to explore more adult communities and two churchwide educational seminars on matters of current discipleship importance by December 2023.
Campus. We will increasingly activate our campus. Our goal is to utilize the Crossings as a crossover space to reach our community, for student and family space, with phase 2 plan established and capital campaign launched by December 2023.
Planting. We will leverage the church’s history of church planting, training programs, and connections across the country and world. Our goal is to plant multiple new churches in partnership with likeminded churches by 2030.
1) Our Discipleship Committee continues to work at increasing our personal disciple-making efforts within the life of College Church by casting and modeling a vision for more intensive discipleship within the context of mentorled groups of two or three.
2) Our Adult Communities (AC) are growing. The newest of our Adult Communities are Living Word, Life Together and Thrive. All three meet during the 9:30 hour. Life Together meets in Commons Gym and is geared primarily for people in their mid-20s-40s from all walks of life. Living Word meets in two sections of Commons Hall. The teaching team includes Doug Moo, Felipe Chamy, and Josh Maurer. They recently finished studying 1 and 2 Thessalonians and are now in Philippians. Thrive is our newest class, started to provide biblical community for all people, primarily in their 40s to mid-50s. They meet in the main space of Clapham in the (middle section) of Crossings. This brings our number of ACs to eight, and we continue to explore the creation of more communities at different hours.
3) There are many challenges and issues in our world worthy of special attention. The first of these special workshops/seminars is in the planning stage and will focus on biblical sexuality. Watch for details about this seminar in future issues of Connections.
CURRENT JOB OPENINGS AT COLLEGE CHURCH INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING POSITIONS:
• Ministry Associate for STARS Respite Care (10-16 hours per week) See details: https://bit.ly/41b1fQB
• Sales Associate for Twice is Nice Resale (10-15 hours per week) See details: https://bit.ly/3kcKST6
Stay
by visiting our job opportunities webpage:
For more information, please contact Ann Karow at: akarow@college-church.org
Looking for ways to serve at College Church that can be flexible with your schedule? Be part of the Go Team! Within our church family, there are frequent requests for help in a variety of ways—taking a meal to someone after a hospitalization, providing transportation to a medical appointment, helping move a piece of furniture, minor maintenance work or handyman help, or even help with a computer problem. Consider being part of the team so that we can show love and serve one another well! Follow the link and Join the Care Team https://college-church. formstack.com/forms/care_team
There’s an exciting change for this year’s Run for the STARS. In celebration of our 20th anniversary, the Race will be on May 20! In order to keep the race running and viable for the future, we want to expand our leadership team and need help in the following areas:
• Marketing/Race Promotion/Advertising
• Fund Raising
• Logistics
• Race Day Registration
• Social Media
If you are interested in serving on the Run for the STARS leadership team, please email Julie Clemens at jclemens@college-church.org or call (630) 668-0878. Our first meeting will be in early February.
Have you been thinking about how you can serve, but prefer doing it behind-the-scenes? Consider joining Kitchen Fellowship. We meet every Monday in the Commons Kitchen from 10:30 a.m. to noon. We do light cleaning and organizing to keep the kitchen ready for the next event. Don’t miss out on this fun way to serve. Email Dstephen@college-church.org you’d like to serve.
It’s no fun to hear about an event after the fact. That’s why we’re Introducing Under the Radar. If you know of a local event that includes College Church members or attenders or may be of interest to them, email connections@college-church.org with the details and we may be able to include your event in this space.
Cantigny Visitor Center
Wednesday, April 5, 9-10:30 a.m.
Come see what’s “behind the curtain” for the 2023 planting season! The Cantigny Horticulture team will share plans for the spring, summer and fall gardens in the park, and field questions from the audience about their plant choices. Parking is free on the first Wednesday of the month. Register for this free event here: https://sales.cantigny.org/performance. aspx?pid=21336
ChinaSource is hosting a lecture by Daryl Ireland at the Billy Graham Center on April 26 at 7 p.m. The lecture will be about Chinese Christian posters. There also will be copies of Ireland’s new book, Visions of Salvation: Chinese Christian Posters in an Age of Reflection available for purchase. Read a short article about these posters. at http://bitly.ws/CkEu
The English Connection Series with Soprano Katherine Petersen
Saturday, April 22, at 3 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church in Wheaton
In a celebration of the music of England, amazing Soprano Katherine Petersen performs Les Illuminations by Benjamin Britten with the Camerata Chicago Chamber Orchestra. Conducted by Maestro Drostan Hall, Camerata Chicago will also perform the Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis by Vaughan Williams and the Spanish Lady Suite by Edward Elgar.
TICKETS
After Discount: Adult $37.50; Senior $30; Students $7.50; Children $1.50.
Use coupon code CCCC for a 25% discount. This event is not sponsored by or a function of College Church.
cameratachicago.org
