New Year Resolution: Continuing In Christ

In giving some thought to resolutions for this new year, I contemplated resolutions of heath (diet, exercise, etc.), of intellectual pursuit (more reading, less mind numbing TV, more discussion with friends of current events, etc.) and of spiritual benefit. I've concluded that his last one, pursuing spiritual vitality, is the key to the others because at our very core, our true essence is our soul. So my #1 resolution for 2012 is to continue in Christ. If you are also so resolved, here are some encouraging words from The Word . . .

John 14:23 – Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him and we will come to him and make our home with him.”

John 15:4 – Remain in me and I will remain in you . . .

John 15:5 – I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

John 15:10 – If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my fathers commands and remain in his love.

Acts 2:42 – They continually devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

Acts 2:47 – And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.

2 Corinthians 5:21 – God made him (Christ) who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Galatians 5:25 – Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

Philippians 1: 6 - . . . he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Colossians 1:10 - We pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: `1) bearing fruit in every good work

2) Growing in the knowledge of God

3) being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and . . .

4)joyfully giving thanks.

Colossians 2:6&7 – So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

2 Thessalonians 1:3&4 – We ought always to thank God for you, brothers (and sisters) and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.

2 Timothy 1:6 . . .fan into flame the gift of God Which is in you . . .

1 John 1:7 – If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

1 John 2:28 . . . continue in him . . .

1 John 3:24 – Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them . . .

1 John 5:2&3 – This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. This is love for God: to obey his commands.

2 John v.6&9 – And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands . . .walk in love. . .Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.

Revelation 22:11 . . . and let him who is holy continue to be holy.

Psalm 86:11 – Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.

Psalm 15 1&2 - Lord, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from heart . . .

Psalm 17:15 – And I – in righteousness I will see your face; when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness.

May every blessing in 2012 be yours continuing in Jesus Christ!

Miracles & Grace Throughout 2011

2011 - A most remarkable year. Here's a brief exercise that will encourage your heart and soul regarding Trinity Western University. If you go the the TWU home page (google TWU.CA) and click on LATEST NEWS, you will quickly come to "2011 NEWS". Scroll through all the news of the university over the entire year, the news that was featured on the TWU home page and quite often featured in the media throughout the year. Just taking in the scope of activities, celebrations, achievements, and events is breathtaking: from a CIS National Championship in Men's Volleyball, and the BC Premier's visit to campus to the recent estate gift of $4 million, the $5.2 million extension of TWU's science facilities, and the TWU Men's basketball tour in China. What a great year has been ours. In the aggregate, the stories are a testimony to God's presence and grace. As you look over the long list of wonderful stories, please know that there were so many stories of miracles and God's grace that were not reported on throughout 2011.

The sum total of all the stories creates a mosaic of a university whose essence is Jesus Christ, whose mission is to develop Godly Christian leaders in Jesus' name, and whose "ends" are that the world may experience Christ's Truth, compassion, reconciliation and hope. All of this is a reality based on the grace of God by the Holy Spirit in and through a wonderful university community as a gift to the world. At this special time of Christmas, we embrace the directive from Jesus to his disciples when he said "Let your light shine in such a way that others see your good works (read the great stories) AND glorify the Father (Matthew 5:16). So the glory goes to God!

Taking the time to review the list of stories and reflect on God's goodness throughout 2011 now makes Christmas even merrier!

Merry Christmas and Every Blessing in 2012 in Jesus' name!

The U: Magnificent in Mission, Glorious in Achievements

In a few weeks I will celebrate thirty-seven years of engagement in the service of higher education. In January 1974, as a doctoral student, I was tossed into a developmental psychology course as the instructor. Thence began my journey from the University of Kentucky through brief stints at the University of Maryland (European Division; one year) and Arizona State University (four years), eleven years with the University of Hawaii (tenure and promotion to full professor) and then administration in three Christian liberal arts colleges (16 years: Wenham, Mass.; Greenville, Illinois; Winnipeg, Canada) until my most recent five and one half years at Trinity Western University. That's a total of teaching, research and administration in eight institutions since doctoral study days in the early seventies. I've come to know first hand that universities and colleges are among the most remarkable innovations in human history. Reflections of the flawed humanity of universities aside, universities and colleges are magnificent in mission and glorious in achievements.

Recently a loose slip of paper dropped out of a book that I rediscovered on a book shelf at home. The notes on the paper express some thoughts about universities worth sharing. The text is in my handwriting, but I have no recollection of authorship, whether it is my pensive pondering of the essence of the university or the captured thoughts of another. If the latter, I apologize for the absence of a citation and credit due. Here's what I wrote long enough ago to not remember the source . . .

The university is always in the process of becoming. At any moment it is both the product of the past and the seed of the future.

A university thrives when there is an ongoing dialogue about the most important questions and less a power struggle about who is to be allowed to speak based on who alone has "privileged knowledge."

A university suffers when there is a deficit of unity. (There is sometimes not much "uni" in the university.)

A university is at its best when it models reconciled diversity while manifesting itself as unity which preserves diversity and diversity which strives for unity.

A Christian university does not stand over against the world, but rather is sent into the world and exists for the sake of the world.

It strikes me that the word university above could be swapped-out for the word "church". A university, even a faith based one, is not a church. Nevertheless, in the very back of my mind, lost down in some cranial crevice, is the thought that the five statements above about the nature of universities may actually be paraphrases of the writings of David Bosch, the deceased missiologist from South Africa. A return to my office on Monday and a perusal of my Bosch writings off the shelves of my bookcases at work may occasion an updated citation. In the meantime, I marvel at all the universities and colleges in which I've had the privilege and joy of service. Each one is remarkable in its essence, mission, and achievements to the betterment of society and hopefully in attribution to the glory of God! They are magnificent in mission and glorious in achievement!

Same old, same old ambivalent embrace?

In the Canadian context, public universities comprise approximately 99% of higher education. Independent universities (private, not-for-profit) are an anomaly making-up less than 1% of higher education institutions; a 99-1 ratio. Christian universities and colleges in Canada make up most of the tiny 1% of private, independent institutions. In the USA it's different. The public state universities and community colleges (UCLA, U Texas, Ohio State) and private universities and colleges (Harvard, Stanford, Baylor, Notre Dame) comprise a 3-2 ratio (60% public, 40% private). This makes cross-border comparisons of higher education systems difficult if not impossible. For example, usually of the top twenty-five US universities annually ranked in the US News & World Report magazine, twenty-two are private. The three public universities are ranked in the twenties leaving nearly all of the very best ranked universities in the private, independent column. The US system of higher education is a mix of public and private institutions with a range of options across the board. A university is a university is a university, public or private. Not so in Canada.

In Canada, private (not-for-profit) universities are rare and receive an ambivalent embrace within the culture. It is curious that two nations evidence such an enormous difference in the role of private, independent institutions in each respective nation. Why is that? Why do private, independent universities in Canada struggle with basic access issues to higher education programs and support systems available only to public institutions when all parents of students pay the same taxes? Should Canada's future include a more intentional embrace of private, independent universities? What does such an embrace look like? Provincial governments have the responsibility and authority for the framework of higher education in each province. What adjustments must provincial governments make to add value to society through the resources that private, independent universities represent? In what ways might private, independent universities further bring added value and consumer choice to the citizens and residents of each province? These are not unimportant questions. As the cost of higher education rises and government funding for universities declines, provinces must wrestle with the questions raised above. Canada can no longer afford to give private, independent universities the same old, same old ambivalent embrace.

Between Thanksgivings and Christmas

Canadian and American Thanksgivings for 2011 are past. We find ourselves between Thanksgivings and Christmas. Glory in the highest. We live between thanks and praise. It is for many a time of the year to let our thanks for what has been done to spill over into praise for the doer. We are especially mindful of others by whom, in their goodness and kindness, we are the beneficiaries: friends, family members, work supervisors, faithful employees, honest public servants, those who serve in the military, health care professionals, pastors, librarians, and many others. When we reflect on their acts on our behalf, it is easy for thanks to spill over into praise. Praise spoken becomes a much deserved expression of affirmation. Too often the grace and goodness shown to us by others can go unrecognized and unacknowledged. This season between Thanksgiving and Christmas is a time to generously express our thanks and praise.

The Bible has something to say about thanks and praise. In Psalm 100, verse 4, we read "Come unto his gates with thanksgiving. Enter his gates with praise." I truly love this brief passage. This is one of the several Psalms of ascent, songs sung by pilgrims ascending up to Jerusalem to worship. Wherever you are, you go up (ascend) to Jerusalem and up to the Temple mount. This is a picture of upward movement into intimacy with God. The Temple has several gates and courts leading eventually to the most intimate place of all, the Holy of Holies. Thanks moves us through the various gates into ever increasing proximity to and intimacy with God. Thanks to God for what he has done moves us through each gate into the next court. Thanks spills over into praise to God for who he is, a God who does great things: blesses, sustains, strengthens, gives good things to his children, and so on. Elsewhere in the Bible it says "God inhabits the praises of his people." We thank him increasingly for what he has done, is doing, and will by faith continue to do in the days ahead. Our thanks spill over into praise to God when our reflection on God's acts on our behalf reveals his character of perfect (holy) love for us. In response to God's grace, we praise Him. God responds and honours our praise by drawing even closer. Remember God also says "Draw near to me and I will draw near to you."

Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, we find ourselves between thanks and praise. We see the deep, intimate possibilities we may pursue in relation to our personal intimacy with God. It is our abiding privilege, our remarkable opportunity to be rooted in God's past faithfulness and yet reaching with thanks and praise for even more of his grace in the days ahead! With thankful hearts, we praise God from whom all blessings flow!

Where Smaller Is Better . . . A Greater Blessing!

When I was seventeen, I had my heart set on going to a large eastern university. My father saw differently. My two older brothers had left home a few years earlier to study at a large university, though not the same one that I had picked out. Millions of students do well in large university settings. My brothers' experiences, however, were far from positive. They were just numbers in a large system. Their professors did not connect with them on a personal level. Their social lives were not enriched, and their spiritual development was completely disconnected from the university experience. After one semester, they transferred to separate, smaller Christian liberal arts colleges where they thrived. One went to Malone College and the other to Asbury College (both now small universities). Both brothers are physicians today, having built strong, positive lives on the foundation of their subsequent undergraduate experiences. From observing my older brothers' experiences, both within separate Christian higher education contexts, my father quickly developed settled views about what kind of environment was optimal for my future. In his mind, a smaller Christian setting was a "best buy." I enrolled in Asbury. While I was tremendously unhappy about his choice, it turned out that he was right. The small Christian liberal arts college was a healthier, more caring, more engaging context for my holistic development through my undergraduate years. Besides, I found the love of my life there and married her. This alone had lasting social-spiritual impact. My two younger brothers followed suit and the five of us were the beneficiaries of a higher higher education where smaller was better, more personal, more engaging, and a greater blessing!

Transcendence, Ascendence, Presence

Is it truly possible for a university to develop graduates of competence and character who are real servant leaders, transformed to impact the world in Jesus' name and for his sake? Can a university aspire to such a lofty vision and be the kind of dynamic, educational community so devoted to such an end? And if so, what would be the essence of graduates from such a university? In Called to a Higher Purpose* (p. 74 & 75), I suggest three distinctives:

1) Transcendence - rising above and going beyond the ordinary in the case of seeking unprecedented, unparalleled shalom for the world. (Here shalom is defined broadly as human flourishing);

2) Ascendance - gaining and moving ever upward in intimacy with God, and in justice, mercy, and solidarity with others; and . . .

3) Presence - personally recognizing and meeting the real needs of the poorest of the poor and loving those in need, even when some may be unlovable and seemingly undeserving.

With discipline consecration, the aspirations of such a university may be realized in its alumni whose transcendence, ascendance, and presence in the world ("the marketplaces of life") truly have a lasting impact on the world to the glory of God. May it be so!

*Called to a Higher Purpose is available in the Trinity Western University bookstore.