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Well, I am happy to say that I just submitted my last assignment to complete my Master's degree in the School of Intercultural Studies. I would just like to thank all those who have been involved in my learning experience here at Fuller. It has been an exciting two year and one quarter experience. I have learned and experienced much during my time here. I believe I can say that I have more questions now than I did before I arrived at Fuller. This is fine because Fuller has trained us in a way to search for those answers and come up with new ones.
As I have mentioned before that our next adventure will be in the Philippines and my wife and I looking forward in going back in July. I hope to post one more time tomorrow.
Just a little over two weeks left and my time here at Fuller will come to a close. There are lots of transitions ahead, like packing, moving, and then moving again. However, the present is what I need to focus on right now. I am trying to finish up my paper here. I have just one. I have a little over two weeks left to finish it. I still have a ways to go. I keep telling myself to finish strong and do not take the easy road. There is nothing better than having a little pressure and a little stress during this time to keep me honest.
So what does the future have in store for me when I leave Fuller. Well, my wife, Cheryl and I are planning to go back to the Philippines to continue our work among the Muslim urban poor communities. We have been waiting to go back for the last four years and we believe we will go back at the end of July.
Most of what we will do in the Philippines is community development work in terms of transformational development. If you do not know transformational development is I encourage you to take Bryant Myers class called Transformational Development.
Well, I need to get back to writing. I have 30 pages or so to go. I hope to post again one or two more times, so until then.
Well, tomorrow the spring quarter will start. This will hopefully be my final quarter as a graduate student. I plan to graduate in June. Am I excited about finishing up my schooling here at Fuller? Sure, but I have my work cut out for me. As I mentioned in my last entry I want and need to finish strong. What is the reason for wanting to finish out my last quarter strong. Stay tuned...
I was hoping to blog more in the last couple of weeks, well it did not happen. Midterms came, and then papers and now finals are in the horizon. In the mist of all this I somehow found time to run one ultra marathon, a 50 miler, in January and I just finished the Los Angeles marathon this past Sunday. In light of this, I want to talk about finishing well.
In one of my classes actually all three classes that I have taken with Dr. Clinton, I call him Bobby, he always talks about how Bible centered leaders need and should finishing well. Somehow I during my time here at Fuller, I cannot get rid of that phrase. Even when I run an ultra marathon or a marathon, I could hear Bobby saying in the back of my mind, good leaders finish well, thus a good runner needs to finish well. In my mind that means running as hard as I can across the finish line no matter what place I finish.
Therefore, what makes a leader finish well? Bobby lists six major characteristics of leaders who finish well (Clinton, 2006):
1. Leaders maintain a personal vibrant relationship with God right up to the end
2. Leaders maintain a learning posture and can learn from various kinds of sources-life especially.
3. They evidence Christ likeness in character as shown by the fruit of the Spirit in their lives.
4. Truth is lived out in their lives so that convictions and promises of God are seen to be real.
5. They leave behind one or more ultimate contributions.
6. They walk with a growing awareness of a sense of destiny and see some or all of it fulfilled.
If you want to know more about leaders who finish well, well you will just have to take one of Bobby Clinton’s courses. Anyway, hopefully these characteristics will give you the desire to finish well in all that you do for the Lord, whether you are finishing up school, in ministry, at work, and or at home regardless if you are a leader or not a leader.
The question I leave with you is: Will you be a person who will finish well?
Works Cited
Clinton, Bobby. 2006. Having a Ministry that Lasts: by Becoming a Bible Centered Leader. Altadena, CA (accessed March 6, 2007).
During the fifth, sixth or seventh week of the quarter comes midterms here at Fuller. In the two years that I have been studying at Fuller, I have taken two midterms and no finals. Next week will be my third midterm and at the end of this quarter, I will have had my first final exam. One aspect that I have observed is that in the School of Theology there are a lot of classes that offer midterms and final exams while the School of Intercultural Studies seem to not offer midterms and or final exams, but offer a research project paper at the end of the quarter. For me, I prefer writing a research paper at the end of the quarter. The reason is that I have something that I have written that I can go back anytime and see what I learned or maybe did not learn.
I am not saying one cannot learn from taking a midterm or final, but in my experience, I do not remember as much of the material from taking just two midterms. I have on the other hand used my final research papers to help me develop a lesson or study for a small group, youth group, and sermon. I guess I like the practicality of writing papers than taking exams. I know everyone has a different learning style. So if taking midterms and exams helps you then more power to you.
One of the most talked about topics in missions is the issue of globalization. Globalization has opened up doors for all peoples, nations, and countries around the world. The Internet has been one huge contributor in this, as well as the cell phone. In fact, the cell phone has been able to connect others in developing countries that are living in rural settings to be able to do business with those in the urban setting. It seems like one can connect with anyone with one click of a mouse button or one text from a cell phone. The question that arises among those in missions, is how does one appropriate the good news in a world of globalization?
To some it may seem easy to share, present the gospel to others globally because we are all some how in this web of connections connected to each other. I would agree that globalization has helped in some ways for Jesus-followers to connect with others globally, but is the message we share understandable in the context they come from.
I want to leave these questions out there for you to respond too, before I give you my thoughts on this topic.
Currently reading The Next Christendom:The Coming of Global Christianity by Philip Jenkins
Happy New Year!
I do not know what you think about New Year resolutions, but I do not care so much for them. It is not because I cannot follow through with the resolutions I make because majority of the time will do what I set out to do. I love goals and I love to accomplish the goals I set, however, I like the flexibility of the goals that I set. For instance, last year in the mist of working three jobs and going to school full time, one of my goals was to complete my first marathon (for those who do not no how long a marathon is it is 26.2 miles). I was able to run not just one marathon, but two marathons (actually, I ran one ultra-marathon as well; I will probably share with you more about ultra-marathons later). Again, there was a flexibility of the goal I made.
Now what does this have to do with Fuller and the School of Intercultural Studies (SIS) of which I am a part of. Well, as a student, missionary, and missiologist, one thing you learn out in the field and even in ministry is to be flexible. I think for some, flexibility is a gift, because it is not an easy thing to do. In addition, flexibility is not a synonym for laziness, therefore, if some schedule or goal does not happen that does not mean you put it off completely; you adjust your schedule or goal and continue accordingly. Therefore, this blog posting will not necessarily be structured, but be flexible. There will be talks on theology, missions, globalization, social justice, children at risk, and more. We may travel along on a path only to come back to the topic or topics at hand. I will call this a spiraling effect. It is a postmodern thing or what I like to say a "POMO" thing.
I hope that we will have fun in discussions and interaction together. Some may agree with what I will say and some will not agree. As one professor here at Fuller says, "Let's agree that it is ok to disagree in the love of Christ." That pretty much is my guideline to all of this (I do not like rules, but guidelines). So enjoy the blogs.
Feel free to post a comment, questions, and possible suggestions you might want to know from a student who looks through a lens of different cultures to appropriate the gospel to them.
For those of you who have looked at and or read Sam's blog, I would encourage you to read Pete Rollins book called How (not) to Speak of God. It is a great book on the postmodern realm of one aspect of the emerging church.
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