In Psalm 101, the subtitle my Bible gives this psalm is “A Vow of Integrity” (Now would be a good time to find your Bible, borrow one, click over to biblegateway.com, or sock your friend in the face and steal their Bible and read it). In verse 6 David describes the type of person he wants around him as king. Since this psalm was written early in his reign (2 Samuel 5-7), most of his boys around him would be the ones following David in to battle. David wanted men who “follows the way of integrity” (Psalm 101:6b Holman Christian Standard Bible).

One definition of Integrity is “the quality of state of being complete or undivided” (Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary). Throughout this psalm, David uses the phrase “I will…” over 7 times. He is determined in his young reign to live a life of integrity to God and asks the same of his men (v.6).

How does this apply to us in the 21st century? How do we live lives of integrity? Would we be the type of person that King David would want to go to war with? Are we the types of believers that can and would fight for each other spiritually (praying for each other ect…)? I believe we can and we are! Here are a few suggestions to become that person:

1. Love Unconditionally (1 John 4:11-12)
2. Pray Continually (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)
3. Read the Bible like it was a Crime (Psalm 119—yeah, all of it)
4. Get together a lot (Hebrews 10:25)
5. Don’t allow anything to get between you and the Father (Psalm 101:3 NIV)

This is not a simple 1-2-3 program for developing integrity. That takes time walking in the real world walking with God—and He isn’t going anywhere soon (Matthew 28:20).

CU around!

Garrett Barley aka g-
Psalm 19:14

Here’s what’s going on! It’s sticky and will remain at the top of this page until otherwise noted!

A Compassion Check-Up

In the gospel of Matthew, the disciples come to Jesus and ask Him what are the signs that the end of the age is coming. The rest of chapter 24 Jesus explains what the signs will be. Verse 12 states “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold” (Matt. 24:12 King James Version)

I don’t need to tell you that we live in crazy times. It seems that nobody really cares about anything but their own agenda. Jesus said that “because iniquity shall abound…” Iniquity is defined as gross injustice or wickedness (Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary). When I accepted Christ, the Holy Spirit awakened me to the spiritual realities of this present age. Sin, once enjoyed, now offends me. When I read this scripture and ones like it (2 Timothy 3:1-5), I realize that iniquity, if not checked, can slip into a believer’s life and hinder or halt their relationship with God and compassion for others will die.

We truly need to check our compassion meters. I have had two people really check how I was doing. “Sam” was the first person I truly was involved with in a disciple-mentor/ Obi-Wan Kenobi-Anakin Skywalker type relationship. Sam is now a guest of Colorado Department of Corrections. Do I just cast him aside as an “untouchable” No! Of course not! The other person is “Sally”. She has been diagnosed with cancer—and she has an 18 month old baby boy. I pray that I am not too cowardly to talk to her about Christ or pray for her.
Ask God today where you are when it comes to compassion for others. Then think of ways to apply it in your slice of the world.

Have Fun, Stay Young, Drink Pepsi,
Garrett Barley aka g-

This morning, while checking out Twitter, a tweet by @CampusMinGuy caught my eye – "Characteristics of College Ministry,"  based on an article written by @bensonhines.  I clicked the link, and just finished reading through the article.  WOW, I wish I’d had a copy of this with me yesterday.  It does one heck of a job of explaining what I couldn’t get into words.  Here is an exerpt -

The practice of college ministry is far more like Missions than like Christian Education.

So ministering to a college campus is in many ways more like Missions in Mozambique than it is even like Youth Ministry.

The more I work with college students, the more I think this is true.  Go to http://bit.ly/JfPEY for the full article.  Or just track me down on campus, I’ll have a copy with me today, just in case….

 -Kevin

Fall 2009 semester is about to kick off!  I hope everyone had a great summer!  Christian Challenge has some great
opportunities this semester to get to know each other and to seek the
Lord.  My name is Garrett and I will try
to keep this site up to date as much as I can. 
To keep up on what’s going on this semester, check the calendar for
times and locations of Bible Studies, Foundations, and other shenanigans.

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your
own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your
paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6 NIV

Why We Can’t End Poverty

Written by: Tim Glenn

I
realize that what I’m about to post isn’t going to be very popular. But
I’m willing to post it because I hope it will start a healthy
discussion.

Here it is: Over the past few years, I’ve heard
this phrase come up literally dozens of times at missions conferences,
ministry events, churches, on blogs, etc. The dicussion turns to
poverty and inevitably someone says “this is the generation that can
end poverty.”

I don’t know if I believe that. In fact, I’m not totally sure Christians are called to end poverty. Before you go looking for handy throwing stones, allow me to explain:

First, let me say that I do believe there are enough resources in
our world to take care of everyone. There’s enough food. Enough water.
Enough materials for shelter and clothing. But to make sure everyone
gets their fair share, it would mean an end to greed and corruption. It
would mean a massive shift in human nature. I don’t think this
generation, or any other, can accomplish that.

Secondly, I don’t know of any scripture that says we are called to
rid the world of poverty. We are called to fight injustice. We are
called to be a voice for the voiceless, look after the orphan and the
widow. But I don’t know of any verse that says we are expected to rid
the world of poverty.

And third, I wonder if saying that we can end poverty is contradictory to what Jesus told us:

“The poor you will always have with you…” –Mark 14:7 (NIV)

Granted, a lot of people misuse that quote. They use it as an
argument against doing anything about poverty: “We’ll always have
poverty, so it’s fruitless to try to fight it.” That’s not the point I’m making here.
What many don’t know is that Jesus was actually quoting a passage from
Deuteronomy. That original scripture goes on to tell us what we’re
supposed to do about poverty:

“There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore, I
command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor
and needy in your land.” –Deuteronomy 15:11 (NIV)

Notice that the command is not to “end poverty” but to give. To
share. And when a command is given, obedience is what’s expected. I
don’t think we’re called to end poverty. I do think we’re
called to be obedient to God’s command. It’s about taking care of those
who are less fortunate. I think it’s about making sure that no child
ever starves to death for lack of food, or dies from a preventable
disease. It’s about making sure no one has to drink unsafe water. It’s
about making sure everyone has a chance at life.

I think God allows poverty so that His glory may be shown … through His people doing His work … obeying that command.

My boss reminded me of the old ad campaign, McGruff the Crime Dog.
Remember his famous catch-phrase? “Take a bite out of crime.” Not END
crime … but take a bite out of it. I think we can take a bite out of poverty. I think we can stop some of the injustices. I’m just not sure we can end it.

Okay. Now you may grab your stones.

From Strong’s Concordance:

"Compassion – σπλαγχνίζομαι; splagchnizomai – Pronounciation= splänkh-nē’-zo-mī – to be moved as to one’s
bowels, hence to be moved with compassion, have compassion (for the
bowels were thought to be the seat of love and pity)"

It made me laugh to learn that in biblical times, compassion was most closely related to a tummy ache. However, the idea that something could move you so much that it, well, "moved" you is interesting.  I don’t know that I’ve felt any symptoms of this sort of compassion before, but I know that I have felt sympathy with other’s sufferings.

I’ve never had my things washed away in a tsunami or cyclone.  I’ve never lost everything I’ve had to a fire.  Really, my life has been pretty much devoid of all catastrophic things.  Hence my lack of empathy.  I’ve never been there, I don’t understand the feeling the way that other people do.  For instance, my wife is about to have a baby.  She keeps having contractions and trying to explain how they feel to me.  "They’re kinda like having a really bad back ache (I can empathize), but the pain is all over your abdomen (no idea what she means)."  Without actually carrying a child myself, I really can’t empathize. 

What I can do is sympathize.  I don’t like seeing her in pain.  I get her hot packs for her aches and bring her drinks when she’s too hot.  I don’t know what she’s feeling exactly, but I don’t like it.  The same goes for victims of major disasters.  Just because I haven’t experienced it, it doesn’t mean that I can’t or don’t care.  I can feel sorry for those who lost their homes and lives in Hurricane Katrina and the earthquake in China.  I can send money to the Red Cross.  I really can be moved to the point of emotional pain by the pain that others feel.

This is the embodiement of Compassion.  Being so sympathetic to someone’s pain that it drives you to do something about it.  This is why we start Compassionate tonight.  There is pain in the world, and Jesus calls us to do something about it.  "He saw the multitudes and was moved with compassion…"

7PM tonight in the New Buisness Building, Room 110.

So what is a TD anyway?  I’m not talking about Touch Downs or Total Domination, but about Thursday Dinners.  These free meals come with a bunch of people to hang out with, a place to sit, and a short devotional about something spiritual.  I know, I know, you’re asking, "But why, oh great writer of the blog, should I, a lonely college student, come to eat at the Christ Center at 5pm on Thursday nights when I can get my meals in the Cafeteria?"  Well, reader, I am glad you theoretically asked. 

Firstly, it’s a well proven fact that eating food keeps you alive longer.  Even more than that, it’s well known that not paying anything for afore mentioned food will cost less than actually paying for the food.  Furthermore, eating within community makes aforementioned "free meal" even better, because according to the "theory of the ice cube tray," spending time with cool people makes you cooler.  Plus, cafeteria food has been determined to cause serious boredom, mostly due to the repetitous servings of "breaded meat-like cutlets" with "Masked potato-substance" and "Gravy-flavored semi-liquids."  Basically, it’s a great chance to not eat there, just to break up the monotany of it all.

So come and enjoy tonight.  I believe spaghetti will be served, hot and ready, at 5pm.  There should be some sides and drinks as well, along with a bunch of super cool people to hang out with and get to know.  Just watch out for Z, he’s a downer….

SeRFS stands for Safe Rides for Students.  It has existed since 2001 as a service that ChallengeMSC provides to all students at Mesa State.  If any student needs a ride on Friday or Saturday nights, we’re here for them, no questions asked.  There is never any charge to get a ride from SeRFS, but drivers do gratefully accept tips to help offset the costs of donating their own gas.   

Why would anyone ever want to drive people who have had too much to drink around?  Wikipedia does a great job of describing what being a "SeRF" is:

"The rationale is that a serf "works for all," while a knight
or baron "fights for all" and a churchman "prays for all;" thus
everyone has his place. The serf works harder than the others, and was
the worst fed and paid, but at least he had his place."

The term actually comes from the feudal system – Serfs were the bottom of the barrel, so to say, just one step above slaves.  But, they served an important purpose.  Without Serfs, the Barons, Knights, Kings, Dukes, etc. wouldn’t eat, wouldn’t have places to live, and would live in the squalor of their own filth.  Serfs were the unnoticed gears that kept the monarchy running.

In much the same way, SeRFS has been providing these Safe Rides for seven years, making sure that over 15,000 people that were not capable of driving themselves safely made it home without problems.  They give up their own time and money to serve others, and most people don’t even notice the hard work they do. 

Before SeRFS began running on the weekends, the rate of student-aged DUI’s was up, as were the number of sexual assaults and violent crimes in the areas that parties occur.  Once the idea caught on, all of these statistics began to taper off.  SeRFS was and is still making a difference on the Mesa State Campus.

So, next time you or someone you know is thinking of hopping in their car and driving home when they shouldn’t be, remember that there are students out there who care enough to be the DD – even if it means not getting to go out themselves.

Call them anytime between 9 and 2 on Friday or Saturday: 257-9797.  It may be the best call you make all weekend.
 

The Great and Illustrious History of Christian Challenge at MSC –

Christian Challenge was started here about 60 years ago, in the early fifties.  It flipped through the hands of various directors over time until 1980 rolled around, and a young man by the name of Darrin Crow took up the challenge given to him by his director, Chip.  Darrin has been leading Christian Challenge ever since (except for a short sabbatical once), teaching students about how God loves them and how He wants them to be a part in changing the world.

ChallengeMSC (aka Christian Challenge) exists to lead students to a deeper understanding of Christ through our five passions – Worship, Teaching, Leadership, Prayer and Evangelism.  These are the basis of everything we do at ChallengeMSC.  It is our goal to bring students to a level of spiritual maturity by the time that they finish school that they will have a strong grasp on their faith as they leave the relative security of the college campus and face the "real world."  They will know the why’s and how’s behind being strong in their beliefs in a world full of doubt and hostility against what they believe.

We have a bunch of weekly events that help us to reach this goal; everything from some awesome Men’s and Women’s groups and free food to both large and small groups and one-on-one discipleship.   We do have four full-timeish ministers on campus – the man, the myth, the legend Darrin Crow, the sports guru and general helper-outer guy Zach King, our resident geeky computery come-up-with-amazing-ideas guy Kevin Young, and our new addition, the amazing and talented Vicki Tucker, who is heading up our women’s ministry.

So feel free to check back here occaisionaly, and see what is going on with ChallengeMSC.  On the top of the page there are links to info about all the directors (except Vicki… but we’re working on it) as well as to our calendar and contact information.  Remember that God is God, and you are not.  His will wins in every situation.  The sooner you learn that, the easier that college will be.