June 2020 Connections

Connections Proclaiming the GOSPEL

LOCAL & GLOBAL STORIES, NEWS AND EVENTS of COLLEGE CHURCH

"There was love in those pickles, beets and green beans" See When Love Comes to Dinner

by Virginia Hughes on page 12

JUNE 2020

I Believe!

Side By Side

Global Voices

Saved from the Swollen Self

At the End of a Pandemic—Hope

Whose Hand Was It

JEFF WENCEL | 7

SARAH NELSON | 17

STEVE DRESSELHAUS | 18

TABLE OF CONTENTS 4

June Highlights

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Highlights of the Care and Share Fund and More | NANCY SINGER

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Saved from the Swollen Self | JEFF WENCEL

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How Does the Refugee Garden Grow? | A CONVERSATION WITH DAVE JORDAN

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When Love Comes to Dinner | VIRGINIA HUGHES

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Glorifying God, Loving Others | ERICK SOLOMON

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At the End of a Pandemic—Hope | SARAH NELSON

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Whose Hand Was It | STEVE DRESSELHAUS

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I Had Had Enough | PAT CIRRINCIONE

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Book Review | MICHELLE KELLEY

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New Members

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Milestones/Looking Ahead

JUNE HIGHLIGHTS Sunday Mornings JOIN US ONLINE! Our Sunday morning worship will continue throughout the month on our Facebook and YouTube channels and on our livestream webpage at college-church.org/livestream. Invite friends, neighbors and coworkers to join from their homes, and invite online discussion afterwards.

Additional resources for home worship and study can be found on our webpage college-church.org/ccathome.

You can find information about our online prayer meetings on page fifteen.

Join the College Church Channel at Right Now Media You can find Christian media content for families, small groups, kids, personal study or marriages in our new webspace at Right Now Media. This is a free resource for everyone at College Church to use (available on IOS, Android, Roku, AppleTV). To sign up for free and start using this online digital library right now, click here. Enjoy!

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Family Worship Moms and Dads, this has been a unique time to grow in your Family Worship! Do you feel the weight of shepherding your children to know and love Jesus? Kids’ Harbor will be posting ideas for you. For the month of June, we are partnering with Crossway to provide three great resources for you and your kids at a 40% discount! Take a look here to order now!

Congregational Meeting June 28 The Council of Elders announces that there will be a congregational meeting of members at 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, June 28. Members, watch your email for connection via Zoom webinar. Our agenda item under consideration will be final approval for the church to purchase the properties at 319 and 323 E. Seminary Ave. Information meetings prior to the member meeting will be Wednesday, June 24 and Saturday, June 27, both at 5 p.m.

Men’s Bible Study—Summer 2020 Men, join us for six weeks on Wednesdays, June 3-July 8, this summer as we discuss the book Disciplines of a Godly Man by Kent Hughes.

For the Zoom link, visit college-church.org/adults/men.php#subnavtop.

Run for the Stars You can still support Run for the STARS and social distancing! The Run for the STARS 2020 is still on, but it will be done virtually. This means you can register for the run now through June 13, and complete the run in the same time frame. You have the flexibility to walk or run at a time that is good for you.

Electronic registration Paper registration. Details at runforthestars.com

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CARING AND SHARING

Highlights of the Care & Share Fund and More Nancy Singer, director of administration and finance

College Church has a long history of helping people in times of need.

One of our primary means of helping each other with financial needs is through the Care & Share benevolence fund. Did you know that this fund was formally started nearly a half century ago, in 1974, with donations that year totaling $10,000, the equivalent of about $55,000 in today's dollars? The principles under which Care & Share operates for the people in our congregation who are undergoing financial hardship include the ability to maintain housing (and utilities), the need for transportation, food and medical/dental care. A sudden loss of a job, a death or a major medical emergency or accident are among those one-time occurrences that can wreak havoc on an otherwise stable family's financial picture. Care & Share is pleased to be able to come alongside and pay bills that can enable a family to regain its stability after this one-time emergency.

Just as the needs in our congregation have grown, so has the church's generosity. During this just-ended fiscal year, a record $201,000 in disbursements have been more than offset by record contributions of $277,000 to the fund. In many cases in the last few months, the coronavirus has been the one-time financial stress contributing to the need for help.

Besides Care & Share, the church established a special COVID-19 fund to meet some of the needs of those who may not be a regular part of our congregation or who may have needs that have been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, and they don't necessarily meet the criteria of the Care & Share fund. Although this fund hasn't been open very long, your generosity has already supplied $40,000 to the fund of which we've been able to help individuals and families with $15,000 in requests.

But there are many other ways people of College Church help and support each other. Of course, the overwhelming one is prayer. There are many organized prayer groups, missionary prayer groups and various church prayer times. But there are literally scores of small groups who pray for each other.

Women's Bible Study small groups, for example, meet via Zoom and continue to pray for needs and other concerns; men's groups, Kids' Harbor teachers, Adult Communities, pastoral staff, elders, deacons, deaconesses and missions boards all are praying for the congregation as a whole and individuals within these groups. Anyone who makes a need known will be prayed for dozens or even hundreds of times depending upon whether they make the need known publicly or privately. There are many individuals who no longer have the stamina or ability to serve as they once did but have become prayer warriors for people they know and those for whom they only know a name.

We are a prayerful church, often in our own prayer closets.

The deaconesses also oversee a ministry specifically devoted to assisting with physical needs—a ride to the doctor or to church, a room to be painted or a ramp to be built. Volunteers in our Helping Hands ministry provide meals for a new mom or someone recovering from surgery or an illness. Needs like these are also met by an individual's small group or Adult Community, and Helping Hands fills in the gaps.

As you read through this, did it occur to you that all of these "need-fillers" are congregants just like you? Of course, this is in addition to all the pastoral care that is provided for those undergoing stress in their marriages, child-rearing, caring for aging parents, relatives, spouses or children no longer following the Lord and countless other situations.

If you or a loved one or friend is undergoing any kind of stress, we want to help. We don't know about the need unless someone tells us. So, please talk with a pastor or go to our webpage, college-church.org and pull down the Connect menu or click on COVD-19 Help & Be Helped box to seek the help you need.

May God continue to bless his children.

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I BELIEVE

Saved from the Swollen Self Jeff Wencel

The Gospel of the Kingdom in the Risen Lord Jesus God is. He simply is. He possesses being—necessarily. He lives everlastingly, no beginning, no end, dependent on no one and nothing, possessing life in himself. His being therefore defines all reality.

When there was nothing, there was God, God existing in the fullness of divine glory: self-sufficient, selfsustaining, self-satisfied, exuberantly joyful, bursting as a cataract with unending, limitless holy happiness.

Before any man was made, before land and sea were formed, before any thing sprouted up or moved on earth, the Three-in-One and One-in-Three possessed complete bliss and peace in their infinitely full divine fellowship.

God the Father eternally perfectly generating and delighting in the Son, God the Son eternally perfectly reflecting and delighting in the Father, and God the Spirit eternally perfectly flowing back and forth between Father and Son as unending, limitless love, light and life. And God was without need, without lack, without defect.

And then the triune fellowship overflowed. God spoke. He spoke in his Son—the Word. And worlds were fashioned. Matter was made (for God likes it). Man was made in our world of matter in God’s image. The Spirit was moving.

The first man was named Adam (meaning “man”). From his flesh woman was taken; and she was named Eve (meaning “life,” for she was the life-bearer). Man, unable to contain himself for joy, poured forth poetry: “Bone of my bone, and flesh of my flesh!” God put the couple in a garden full of romance and beauty. In that

garden of grace, we read of the first wedding—the only wedding ever where two sinless, spotless humans would lock lips untainted by unholy speech.

As Maker of heaven and hearth, of man and marriage, the Creator was King in his world. How could it be otherwise? And he made all things good. Very good.

But something the very opposite of very good entered the King’s realm.

Rebellion. Sedition. Sabotage. Seduced

by Satan, the sinless pair believed a lie about God. Rather than trusting (as the lovers had every reason to do) the truth of the King whose covenant communication was life, light and love, Adam and Eve embraced bad theology. They exchanged the glory of the immortal Creator for images of the creature. They then began to speak words contrary to the Word. They exalted the Self over their Sovereign and entered the kingdom of darkness and death under hard taskmasters— Satan, Sin and the Swollen Self. The Self became the center. Man became in man’s mind the measure of all things.

So, in Adam all fell, and fell hard. The holy King of creation had to react in wrath and exact a price as sin’s penalty.

Ruination and wreckage followed.

The light of God’s loving face was lost.

The wonderful world of life, light and love became a world of darkness and death. Sin entered the world through the Swollen Self insubordinate to the Word, and death through sin, and so death spread to all because all sinned. Now a divine curse hangs over humanity: man is estranged from his Maker and has lost his sweet fellowship with the Father, Son and Spirit.

But the Word would not let Satan, Sin or Self have the last word. God

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promised life for the world in the seed of the woman—the lifebearer. Eve would bring forth the promised King to crush the Serpent, Sin and Self under foot. Good news! The King would come, a second Adam, taking to himself our flesh—bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh(!)— and live the life we should have lived, trusting God fully, loving God supremely.

The Son wrought miracles, went about doing good and spoke the truth. He loved and obeyed his Father fully, submitting to a kangaroo court under a pagan prefect—even to the point of a shame-filled death on a cursed cross. At the cross, the second Adam paid the full price of man’s rebellion. At the tree he obeyed, eating the bitter fruit appointed for him, absorbing in his spotless person the full weight of the wrath of God. Full atonement! Salvation to the uttermost! Satan defeated, Sin put away and the Swollen Self put in its proper place.

Christ then rose triumphant over his enemies—exalted as King of the nations and beginning of the new creation. Seated at God’s right hand, pouring out his Spirit, promising to come in power and glory to judge the living and the dead, the King is making all things new!

Starting with a new humanity raised in Christ no longer devoted to the Self, the Savior is renewing his creation to submit to his sweet service, hear his lovely voice and magnify the CreatorRedeemer. Risen Reality has restored God to the center. When he is finished folding his own into his life, light and love, God will be loved supremely, neighbor will be loved as oneself and the earth will be “as full of the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” Man in Christ will enjoy full fellowship with the triune God in a great garden-city, the new Jerusalem. There the greatest wedding feast ever will be celebrated with divine joy in the everlasting kingdom of God. And God, not man, will be all in all.

The Risen Lord Jesus Dispels Darkness in the Gospel This retelling of the good news meeting bad news is the storyline into which I was born. It’s where I feel compelled to begin to tell my tiny part in the greatest story ever told. If I had never existed, this storyline would still be gloriously true, and still redound endlessly to the glory of God in Christ. And wonder of wonders, God in his great mercy has given me a part to play.

Now for my part in the story. In the year of grace 1976, I was born into a nominal Roman Catholic home. And yet, it wasn’t Muslim. It wasn’t Buddhist. It was Christian at some level.

Though not born again at the time, I was baptized into the name of the triune God. I now believe it was a valid baptism, one that signified the reality that would later be sealed in my life.

I memorized the Apostles’ Creed in second grade. There was some Christian moral influence. I’m thankful for all of it to this day, even though I am now firmly committed to a Protestant understanding of the faith.

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I was also born in sin. As all parents know, the inbred sinfulness of a child comes clear quite quickly. It was no different with me.

I was also significantly shaped, of course, by the surrounding culture. This culture exalted the Self and belittled God. So, I did not know God savingly and was not being shaped by a thoroughly Christian vision of reality—one defined by the Word made flesh and crucified and risen as Lord of all.

The dominant influence in my childhood and teenage years was the dominant secular worldview of the time suffused with modern and postmodern assumptions. The deities holding sway over my Swollen Self included naturalism, rationalism, deism, relativism, romanticism, humanism and popular psychology.

None of it was embraced with understanding. It was just the air I breathed. These were hard taskmasters. Sin only gained ground in my life as I grew into adulthood—that is, until the sovereign grace of God visited me in the gospel.

Much of my life was lived enslaved to the Swollen Self, and none of it was aimed at giving glory to God. As my God-given lungs took in divine air moment by moment in this staggering theatre of divine glory, I did not give thanks to God. Under an avalanche of ten thousand creational mercies (every day), I did not seek to know and make much of his light and love.

Instead, even given the gift of a divinely designed conscience, I suppressed the truth in unrighteousness and put the Self in the place of God. I was lord of my life. To my shame, I served Self until twenty-two years of age when God in Christ was restored to the center—when the risen Lord Jesus met me in the gospel.

And decimated the Swollen Self! Delivered me from my Self!

I sought to make much of me. By nature and birth, I was curved inward; by culture and context, I was nurtured to seek the Self’s glory. My life was a living death. In God’s universe, it is not fitting to savor the Self. We were not made to live a life of taking selfies. I was made to look at the worth of God and make much of his beauty, truth and greatness. There alone are life, light and love found. There alone is true freedom. But I was not even aware how bound I was in my self-imposed devotion to Self.

Deliverance and understanding awaited the light of the gospel.

Ghastly to behold, I traded the Fountain of Living Waters for “broken cisterns that can hold no water.” I did life not according to God’s design, but according to my desires. I flouted the Lord’s righteous rule to be my own lord. I did not love with heart, soul, mind and strength the One who made and sustained me. Not surprisingly, I did not love my neighbor as I loved my Self. I did not do so in great part, no doubt, because I was not gazing at God’s glory in Christ and reflecting that same glory into my neighbor’s life.

In my early twenties at Northern Illinois University, I came under the sway of the gospel. My blessed mother, coming under evangelical conviction, started giving me Bibles (yes, multiple: when one didn’t take, she’d try another). At one point, she gave

me a sermon on the need to be born again. I recall knowing I did indeed need new life and reconciliation to God, but I was too enslaved. I said: “Not now; later. I’ll cry out at the end.” For I did not want the Swollen Self’s grip on sin loosened. I did not realize what a miserable existence I was living.

But God. God moved: his steadfast love pursued me. Sovereign grace reached down when I wasn’t reaching up. With a Godgiven nagging sense that I needed salvation from my Self, I attended a Bible church in DeKalb at a friend’s invitation.

There the risen Jesus met me on my Damascus road—a road aimed at the great Self at the end. But it was hell bound, headed for an eternity with my miserable Self, separated from my gracious Master and my God. Pastor Dumbacher was preaching through the Gospel of Luke.

It was at that place of preaching (in a pew in a little brick building on Fisk Avenue) that sight and sanity were restored: light broke in as the Lord of love and life made much of himself through the gospel of God—and drove the darkness away! At long last, I beheld by faith the glory of God in the face of the once-crucified-and-now-risen Lord Jesus. He overpowered my stubborn self-centered rebellion. For months I would sit on the edge of the pew tender with tears for sorrow and for joy.

My heart finally found rest not in the restless Self but in the Sovereign Savior.

My old Swollen Self, encouraged by the therapeutic Self and its near relatives, needed to meet Risen Reality. He decimated and displaced the Swollen Self and took its place at the center.

Finally, I was oriented on reality as Reality-Incarnate-andRisen alone can define what really is. To this orientation I shall now turn.

The Risen Jesus Is Lord of All in All of Life “Jesus is Lord” is the basic Christian confession. I believe it needs to be recovered as part of a much-needed recovery of the full-orbed biblical gospel in our time. Turning from a truncated therapeutic gospel for the Self, to deliver us from the Self and for the sake of reformation and revival in the church, we need to recover the whole Christ. When we do—when Jesus is being acknowledged and confessed as Lord of all—then we shall see, I believe, a new day of God being magnificently glorified in the gospel going forth in power, in millions upon millions of lives lived for Christ.

Reborn of free grace, I have been acknowledging for over twenty years now that Jesus is Lord—Lord of all. Little by little, year after year, sight and sanity continue to be restored. Yes, the old Self rears his ugly head. But he is dead. He is defeated. With the world, he is passing away. So, I have been enabled to live more in line with the way things really are, not in some dream world devised by the Self suppressing the truth.

This brings me to spell out just a bit of the progress God has graciously granted as I seek to live with the Lord Christ at the center. Passing over years of the reign of grace in my life, I’ll speak primarily to the present.

“It’s not about you, it’s not about me—it’s about the glory of God!” My wife, Emily, and I chose this theme for our wedding over twelve years ago, and it is indeed the theme of our lives to this day. Inscribed on our wedding rings is: “To the glory of God.” In our marriage, we are aiming to make much of him, not each other, and certainly not the old self who was crucified.

In recent years we have been working to recover a view of parenting as discipleship and Christian ministry. Discipleship and Christian ministry do not occur in only a few designated areas of life (for example, church programs or service projects).

The gospel of the kingdom reigns over every square inch of the King’s realm. Emily and I did not have children for our own sake, but for the sake of Christ. We exist and our children exist for his kingdom—for his good pleasure and purposes.

After eight years at New Covenant in Naperville, Emily and I have now been joined to College Church for four years.

For months now, in the year of our Lord 2020, we have been unable to gather with God’s people. The gathering on the Lord’s Day, to my mind, is unquestionably the high point of every week and most important thing we do as the Lord’s new humanity. In my home I have been seeking to cultivate a high view of this gathering in Jesus’ name under God’s Word. I confess missing it something fierce. I have also missed the sweet fellowship of brothers at Bible study. Men studying theology together is surely a significant step in gaining gospel ground in the world. Not least in a day when what it means to be a man has been significantly mangled.

Other dimensions of discipleship where I’ve been seeking to grow include service and giving and praying. The Lord Jesus in his message on the mount teaches us about giving in secret, doing good deeds in secret, and praying in secret. In a day when man is the measure of things, I think it’s too easy to do things, even “in the name of Jesus,” with an eye on being seen by others. So, I’ve been making it my aim, as much as possible, to serve, pray, and give in secret. I do not wish to trumpet my Self but the Word of the Lord, and he knows how far my deeds fall short of the perfection the Father demands.

With this reminder of what the Father demands, I desire to end my witness to the risen Lord Jesus with a word of thanksgiving.

I am exceedingly grateful to our holy God for having mercy on me in my misery. Apart from his mercy, I could expect only the hottest hell. So, I am grateful for my Lord’s dying love in bearing my punishment. I am grateful the Lord has become my righteousness. And I am grateful, above all, for the Godcenteredness of God. Without it, life would be a living hell. But God is good. God is great. And God will be all in all in the end.

Jesus is Lord. Lord of all.

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LOCALLY SOURCED

How Does the Refugee Garden Grow?

A Conversaton with Dave Jordan Rona Jordan brought her love and expertise in gardening to the Wheaton Square Apartments. Her husband, Dave, talks about this special garden project.

“We are friends with some refugees from the apartments through a group I play soccer with,” explains Dave. “Last year, a friend who lives there showed Rona and me the garden at Highpoint Church’s Wheaton campus (formerly First Baptist of Wheaton).” The church has had a relationship with the refugee community for many years.

When Rona saw the garden, she knew it needed work. “She contacted Highpoint and offered to help. The pastor told her the person at the church who oversaw the garden had moved, and my wife ended up tasked with preparing the garden for this year's growing season,” Dave said.

But Rona didn’t go it alone. “Sasha Brady, who worked for former College Church pastor, Todd Augustine and now works for World Relief, attends Highpoint Church and became our main contact and a good friend,” Dave recalls.

Rona and Dave’s kids helped as did volunteers from Highpoint and one of Dave’s refugee friends pitched in. Rona also had help from friends from a community garden she frequents.

“From College Church, we had help from my parents, Jim and Diane Jordan, Nate Peterson, his son Joel and Pastor Curt Miller. Tyndale House donated cardboard boxes and wooden pallets. Both the City of Wheaton’s forestry division and D Ryan Tree & Landscape LLC donated wood chips, and Highpoint Church purchased a large load of leaf mulch/ compost,” Dave said.

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There are 65 garden plots, roughly 8"x8", at the back of Highpoint’s parking lot. The team first cleaned up the area for the plots and then made paths between each bed using wood chips, and cardboard underneath to act as a weed barrier. “We mixed leaf mulch into each bed and roto-tilled them,” Dave continues. “We used parts of the pallets to make a small retaining wall on the north side since heavy rains tend to wash parts of beds into the parking lot there.”

So far, the volunteers have worked seven to eight full weekends and counting.

“The overall goal is to provide a garden bed to any refugee family at the Wheaton Square Apartments who wants one,” Dave says. “A couple weeks ago, we assigned individual beds to more than 40 families. Rona provided some seeds to each family from her own supply and from her community garden friends.” The refugees are beginning to plant and tend their own beds.

A few projects remain. The retaining wall needs to be finished, and the heavy rains in May created the need to address the run-off on the east side of the beds. “Rona would like to build a compost bin from the remaining pallets, and she may plant some crops in the unassigned beds for Highpoint Church to use to supplement their Sunday food donations,” Dave summed up.

“To be honest, I don't even like gardening,” Dave confesses.

“It never would have occurred to me to take this on. My soccer friends and I have befriended many young refugee men, and we invite them to our homes, but this garden—Rona is the primary driver of the whole thing. She has a real heart to help refugees because of her own difficult upbringing and the challenges she faced when she came to the U.S. at age 16. Even though I'm not fond of gardening, I have enjoyed helping others, and it is good exercise.”

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FACE TO FACE

When Love Comes to Dinner Virginia Hughes

My mother, Frances, is blessed with good health in her nineties and remains an organized champion of cooking, efficiently completing household tasks and gardening every inch of her yard. Not a complainer, she raised eight children and birthed most of us in rustic conditions as a missionary overseas. For one family meal, Mom had prepared a delicious bean, pork and rice recipe from a missionary friend in Mexico. As we enjoyed it and added our compliments, Mom laughed and added we did not know how fortunate we were to have such flavorful beans lavished upon us. She had not been a fan of beans since her childhood until this recipe came along. We assumed her dislike for beans was because of war shortages or the Great Depression, but Mom shared about a difficult time in her life apart from those events.

When she was eleven years old, her mother got sick. Two years later, her mother died and went to be with Jesus, which left the family’s table with a sad longing.

Tears for their lost mother soon turned into beans boiled up in a pot they would eat for several days. Their sorrow compounded by the arrival of the one who came to help them get back on their feet. Hers was not the table they longed for.

As their father, Oren, entered home after work, he would lament silently, “Beans, beans, beans! All Elda cooks is red beans.” He was thankful for a hot meal—don’t get him wrong. His sister Elda had moved in to help Oren and his three children, Dale, Frances and Doris, following the funeral of Roberta, his beloved wife, about a month earlier.

Frances, now 13 years of age, insisted they did not need grumpy Aunt Elda. If someone must come, how about one of the friendly aunts, the ones who teased each other, sang in the kitchen and baked mile-high angel food cakes? Frances offered to be the cook herself.

Hadn’t she learned from Mother for years? As Mother languished, Frances had washed the clothes, cooked dinners, ironed brother Dale’s shirts for a quarter per shirt and helped Doris with just about everything. She swept floors and cleaned all over the house.

Had her father forgotten she also packed his lunch?

Oren could not hold back tears, and neither could Frances as he choked out the words that such a young girl should not lose her mother and bear the burden of running a household. “It’s too much, Frances, please. Let Elda do it and maybe you can help her a little.” Frances nodded.

Aunt Elda moved in and placed her giant stock pot in the sink with a loud clang to fill it with water. With a thunk, she set the pot on the stove and stirred in cups upon cups of red beans to boil. Frances peeked in the pot and thought, “That’s enough beans for an army.” Her heart sank when she realized that they were the army. Frances offered to help. No, Elda did not want Frances baking biscuits. Too messy. But Frances promised she would clean up any mess. She was old enough. No, they needed nothing else when beans were easy, filling and healthy. “But are they delicious?” Frances asked herself gloomily.

Several days passed, and Elda had not varied from serving red beans for dinner and mush for breakfast. Older brother Dale found refuge from the beans by eating at the tables of agreeable friends and neighbors. Oren brought home meat and vegetables from the grocer. Elda did not prepare any of it. Oren asked if she had seen the food he brought. She had. Would she please cook those? Elda was unsure. Could she then make a grocery list of items she would rather cook instead? What perfect timing since Elda did in fact need more red beans, and a large bag of onions would be mighty fine too.

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Oren brought bacon, ham and a beef roast, along with vegetables and bags of sugar and flour hoping Elda would add a morsel of meat or biscuit to a meal, but she quickly relegated the items she didn’t need, everything but the beans, to the cupboards and ice box.

Why didn’t Oren turn on the oven and bake a ham himself?

This number-one-best-question is answered with the fact that this was simply not done by most men back in 1939. Oren did not want to offend his sister, and he had no desire to assume kitchen duty. Perhaps his sister Elda was the genius here: cook passable food and handily wean needy relatives of one’s presence.

Oren took containers of beans in his lunch pail and offered them to anyone at work who would eat a serving. He bought bags of sandwiches from the lunch counter for himself and the children’s lunches in the following days. A welcome relief from the onslaught of beans.

One afternoon Elda stopped stirring the beans, turned off the stove and told Frances to serve up the cooked beans when their Daddy came home for dinner. Then she left her bean post.

Frances and Doris stealthily followed Elda the three blocks from Caroline Street to the neighborhood café near their church. As they watched, a few church members filed into the cafe to sit with Aunt Elda. The group ordered pie and coffee.

The girls wondered if Aunt Elda would order beans or maybe bean pie? Surely not, they giggled. They wanted to spy for hours, but Frances had an idea and they needed to get home right away. She planned to take over the kitchen during Aunt Elda’s absence.

Back home, Frances opened her mother’s recipe box. First the biscuits. Frances turned the oven to 450 degrees. Cold lard sat in the icebox for biscuit making. She measured out the flour, salt and baking powder, and swiftly cut small pieces of lard into the flour with two forks. She added a little milk as Mother’s instructions filled her mind, “A light touch and mix only as long as it takes for the dough to come together. Do not overwork the dough.”

Frances carefully placed the dough on the floured counter folding it onto itself and turning it for a total of four times.

Using just her fingers and not a rolling pin, she pressed the dough into a small rectangle shape. To make sure it was tall enough, she bent her forefinger. The measure from bent middle knuckle to top knuckle of her forefinger would do. Doris helped cut biscuits ever so gently using the small jar kept just for that purpose. “Press down and do not twist,” they reminded each other. Together they cut the biscuits, lined them up in the

baking pan with the edges touching, drizzled a small amount of milk over the top of the biscuits and put them in the oven.

Using a timer set to 12 minutes and carefully watching, Frances pulled perfectly baked biscuits from the oven just like she used to make with Mother. It wasn’t nearly enough biscuits; so, she made another batch. To help Doris practice spelling and writing, Frances dictated a grocery list: bacon, eggs, potatoes and carrots. She planned to give this grocery list to her father and look for future opportunities to cook something other than beans for the family.

Frances fried a whole pound of bacon in the iron skillet. She sliced tomatoes and put them on a plate. She found Mother’s pickles and blackberry jam and spooned some of each into Mother’s pretty bowls. Frances and her mother had managed to can rows of preserves before Mother weakened. Now, they could munch on these treasures and remember Mother happily for many meals. There was love in those pickles, beets and green beans. This was the delicious table set full of Mother’s preserved love they so desperately needed right now.

Jesus knew how to spread a table when the hungry came out to listen on the hillside. They starved in body and soul until he fed them hopeful words and baskets of fresh bread and fish, enough for everyone to be filled. The twelve baskets left over were counted by twelve men amazed at the miracle of the bread and fish multiplied before their eyes.

In Jerusalem during Passover, Jesus gathered his twelve together for a particularly important meal, the Passover feast they had remembered from the time of Moses. Then suddenly Jesus brought the new covenant to the table as he broke bread and poured wine. Jesus explained how he is the spotless lamb. His body and his blood broken and poured out for whoever believes in him. Be forgiven. Be saved. Do this. Remember me together.

By Friday, the disciples had lived through terrible days. Betrayal by Judas, violence, betrayal by the religious leaders, more unspeakable violence and denial among themselves. They watched their beloved leader, teacher and friend lay down his life to become as Savior of the world. Fear flattened their faith and waves of anguish wrecked their souls.

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On the third day, Jesus arose and was back with them just as he had said. After the resurrection, Jesus fed his people again at a familiar spot by the Sea of Galilee. He told them to put their empty nets on the other side of the boat, and the nets were filled with fish. Jesus cooked and taught. He taught and cooked.

“Feed my sheep, feed my sheep, feed my sheep,” Jesus said and handed a grilled fish to Peter, who trembled with the need to be forgiven of all his recent denials. And this is how we know what love is. Jesus did not yell at Peter, nor did he heap ashes from the cooking fire upon his head. Punishment was deserved, but Jesus gave grace and fed his loved ones by the sea.

along fine. Frances then cooked, cleaned, washed laundry, ironed Dale’s shirts, packed her father’s lunch and helped younger sister Doris with just about everything for another six months.

What flavor is this grace? The best-ever tasted. Jesus gives grace to us as we gather close to him and stretch out our hands to receive it. This is the table we long for and desperately need. And he wants us to be forgiven, fed and then hand the good news, the food of life to others.

Magdalen had a large cooking pot, a pressure cooker, which landed on the stove with a familiar thunk, causing momentary worry. But Magdalen’s pressure cooker created delicious southern fried chicken. She stirred up flaky, light biscuits using White Lily Flour, an old southern secret. She also shared a wealth of gardening knowledge and expanded the family’s garden. Magdalen spread a delicious table of food cooked with love and warmth. She often spoke of Jesus and sang a familiar song, “He who fed the multitude, turned the water into wine, to the hungry calleth now come and dine!” When love comes to dinner, we are truly fed. This is the table we all need.

Bliss walked into the kitchen that day with Oren when he smelled bacon and saw hot homemade biscuits on the table with sliced tomatoes, Roberta’s blackberry jam, beets and green beans from her garden. The cloud of mourning was lifted. They were going to be okay. Love had come to dinner.

Aunt Elda was hugged by all and thanked sincerely as Oren assured her, she could return home and the family would get

To the children’s delight, their father fell in love again and married the fun loving, lively assistant who came to shepherd the youth group at their growing church. The children teased their father that they had seen Magdalen first, met her and loved her first as well. Magdalen was a match made in heaven for all of them. Frances was pleased to be a young girl again and willing helper to Magdalen around the house.

Old Fashioned Lard Biscuits {that Young Frances Baked}

2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1/3 cup cold lard 2/3 cup cold milk, plus a couple tablespoons to drizzle over biscuits before baking (buttermilk if you have it)

Tip: Chill the mixing bowl, flour, lard, milk and mixing forks for 1 hour or longer before making recipe 1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Make sure oven rack is in the center.

2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.

3. Cut in cold lard until the mixture resembles small peas. Use a pastry cutter or two forks.

4. Stirring with a fork, add milk to flour mixture, and lightly stir to make a soft dough.

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5. On a lightly floured surface, carefully fold and turn dough over itself four times. Press dough into a rectangle shape gently with your fingers to approximately a one-inch thickness.

6. Cut with floured 3-inch cutter.

Press down firmly, do not twist.

7. Place the biscuits in an ungreased baking pan or on an ungreased baking sheet side by side.

8. Drizzle the two tablespoons over the top of the biscuits.

9. Bake for approximately 12 minutes.

10. Serve piping hot with butter, jam and honey.

MEXICAN CHILI

{the recipe from a missionary friend who taught Frances how to make delicious beans, when she thought she would never eat another bean in her life!} Pinto Beans: Wash and cook according to package directions.

Season with salt & pepper.

Prior to serving, add 2 pieces of cooked, crumbled pieces of bacon to beans.

Meat: 1 ½ to 2 pounds of any beef or pork tenderloin cut into cubes, season with salt, pepper, onion powder and a few shakes of chili and cumin powder.

Fry in hot oil until browned.

Add to meat in pan: 2 teaspoons chili powder, or more to taste.

2 teaspoons cumin, or more to taste.

Cover meat with water, simmer until meat is fork tender, at least two hours or longer.

Before serving, add flour (1 tablespoon per cup of liquid in meat pan) to a little water in small bowl, stir vigorously and add flour mixture to meat mixture to thicken as gravy. Stir thoroughly to combine with meat. Simmer for ten minutes.

Rice: Fry rice in 2 tablespoons hot oil in skillet until lightly browned.

Add 1 onion chopped.

1 clove of garlic, chopped Stir and sauté for a few minutes.

Then add: 1 small can of tomatoes, chopped Cover with water and bring to a boil.

Lower heat and simmer until water is cooked out of the pan.

Place lid on pan and don’t stir the rice while steaming. Allow to steam with heat turned off and lid on for at least 15 minutes.

Serve rice, beans and meat in separate bowls to allow guests to make their own portions. Goes well with tortilla or chips, guacamole or avocado slices.

Prayer Gatherings Now Online Call the church office or email info@college-church.org for details on how to join one or more of these prayer meetings.

Sunday Morning Prayer

Friday Lunch Prayer

8-8:40 a.m. Led by Pastor Eric Channing

12-1 p.m, led by Glenn and Ann Deckert and Wil and Lorraine Triggs

Monday Morning Prayer 6:15-7:15 a.m. Led by Elder Rob Wolgemuth

Wednesday Night Prayer 7-8 p.m. Led by Pastor Curt Miller

Aaron-Hur Fellowship will meet on

Thursday, June 25, at 7 p.m. at the home of Marr and Mary Miller, 1607 Stoddard Avenue in Wheaton (630) 668-8828. Our guests will be Todd and Sue Kelly, serving worldwide with Leadership Resources (LRI).

Our weekly prayer pulse email goes out every Monday. You can get weekly prayer updates via that email. Sign up by clicking "Enews signup" on our website. Or, if you already receive other emails from College Church, click "manage my preferences" at the bottom of any of our emails and select prayer pulse to add yourself to the prayer email.

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SIDE BY SIDE

Glorifying God, Loving Others Erick Solomon Wheaton Bible Church (WBC) has called our Pastoral Resident, Erick Solomon, to be their campus pastor at their Tri-Village Church, the Streamwood campus of WBC. Erick will finish his residency with us this month and will officially join the pastoral team of Wheaton Bible Church on June 1.

Let’s give thanks for Erick’s time of ministry here with us and pray for him and his family during this time of transition. Pray that God will use Erick in the days ahead to change lives and bring many into a lasting walk with Christ.

Dear College Church, This is slightly unusual because I’ve already said thank you and goodbye to a number of you a few months ago. However, as you know by now, my after-residency plans have changed, and starting in June, I will be the Tri-Village Church Campus Pastor (a.k.a.

Wheaton Bible Church’s Streamwood campus). That’s why you’ve been stuck with me longer than you thought! With all the physical distancing recommendations, it is a little weird to be finishing out the residency without being able to say 'bye in person.

I want to reiterate how much of a joy it has been to serve alongside you all in different ways these last two years. I really believe that God brought my family here because this is exactly where we needed to be as we navigated life and ministry after seminary. I am truly grateful to call you my partners in ministry and my family in Christ. I am a better pastor, a better husband and father and a more mature Christian because of God’s work through you.

You have welcomed me and my family into this community and we couldn’t be more appreciative of how the Lord has used you in our lives. We hope that God has used us in yours in some small way. We love you, College Church. And it is a bittersweet experience to finish out this residency and move into the next post God has for us.

Thank you for taking us in and being part of God’s story in our lives. Please pray for us as you send us out, namely that we might demonstrate the love, welcome and good news of Jesus to the people that God has us serving in the Streamwood and surrounding communities.

Remember as you continue to serve and work for God’s kingdom that your work, whatever it is, must be done dependent on the Holy Spirit founded in the work of Christ on your behalf seeking to glorify God and love others. That is my prayer for you in this moment. Be the church wherever you are, in your homes and in your neighborhoods.

Exemplify the rest of Jesus in these stressful and anxious times. Display the hands of Jesus in your community as you serve others. Your work is not in vain. He sees. The world sees. And our prayer is that as others see, they might glorify our Father in heaven and that he would bring many to salvation.

Your Brother in Christ, Erick Solomon

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SIDE BY SIDE

At the End of a Pandemic—Hope Sarah Nelson Sarah Nelson, artist, educator and College Church member, writes to her beloved church. And she painted the watercolor (below) as a reminder of the joy and hope we have in Christ, together.

I want to say thank you. Thank you for reminding me that my church isn't the building, but the body of Christ. With social distancing so important, I never realized how important elbows are to the body of Christ.

I grew up in College Church. My parents joined a Sunday school class for young couples.

The Thirteen Club was a place where they made friendships that lasted through their years at College Church. As the couples grew older, had children and moved away, the Sunday school class ended but the friendships stayed on. Years later, Mom found out that she had cancer. She had a brain tumor which left us little to do but make her comfortable and wait. During that time every member of that Sunday school class came for a visit or a meal. There were also letters from friends who had moved away. The body of Christ supplied joy for my family when we needed it most.

I have a group of friends where I find my support. Years earlier I was part of a Sunday school class. Pacesetters.

That group of friends grew older, got married had children and moved away. The class ended but the friendships lasted.

Through these friends I have found support and joy. I thank God for the joy that I feel with my friends.

This has been a difficult time. Sometimes the isolation is so overpowering all I want to do is stay in bed and watch TV. With the support of my friends and College Church, I have been able to get up and work and create. I have found joy.

The Bible is full of stories of how friends support each other. Jonathan supported David and helped him when he was being hunted by Saul. Paul and Barnabas supported each other in their mission trips. Ruth supported Naomi and made the choice to travel back to Naomi’s home. In all these friendships, they went through hardships, but the friends supported each other and found strength in Christ.

I gave the church this picture as a reminder of the joy that we share in Christ. Through Christ we have hope and with hope we have joy.

I don't know when all this will end, and we can enjoy the new normal. When we do get back together in the building as a congregation, I know I will be crying.

I thank God for the Bible, prayer and also friends. With the Bible I learn, with prayer I know grace and with friends I share joy.

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GLOBAL VOICES

Whose Hand Was It Steve Dresselhaus When I was in early high school, my dad and I wanted to make a SCUBA dive on a shipwreck off the coast of Venezuela. My parents were missionaries, the kind of loving and gentle people who give missionaries a good name. It was during Semana Santa, Easter week, the time when everyone who could spent the week camping on the wonderful Caribbean shores of Venezuela. By the time we arrived at the beach community, all the boats were already chartered.

Someone happened to remember an old fisherman who had a boat. We found our way to his hovel, a rickety shack built on stilts over a muddy swamp. To get to his house we walked along a precarious wooden dock which woozily swayed under each step, threatening to hurl us into the muck below.

The dancing dock announced our approach long before we knocked on the door of the hut.

The old fisherman came out to meet us. For me, growing up in Venezuela, unpleasant sights were not rare. The fisherman that emerged from his hovel was one more of those unpleasant sights. Ragged dirty clothes clung to him. Long, tangled, greasy hair hung down both sides of his head. The worst part was his skin. Some disease had ravaged his skin leaving it discolored, torn and scabby. Growing up in Sunday School and hearing all the Bible stories had given me an idea of what leprosy must look like—this man fit my image of that dread disease.

My dad and the fisherman talked for a few minutes and then agreed on the price to charter the boat for the day. My dad then held out his hand. The fisherman paused, looked at my dad and then slowly extended his own hand. As their hands met and for those few seconds they touched, I looked at the disfigured face before me and saw in those eyes a sight I will never forget should I live a million years. For the first time in what must have seemed like a miserable eternity to the old man, somebody touched him. He felt skin other than his own rotting exterior. I can only describe what I saw in the old man’s eyes as a kaleidoscope of emotions—delight, joy, sorrow, yearning, desperation, unresolved grief. No one had touched that man for years as he dwelt in isolation, in his lonely shack above the putrid backwater of the swamp in a cruel, involuntary social distancing caused by universal rejection. Yet my dad touched him. My dad, a man who loved Jesus and who loved the people Jesus loved, demonstrated the very thing Jesus would have done had he been with us on the rickety dock.

That emotion-filled fisherman must have wondered who touched him: a man named Elton or Jesus. Maybe it was Jesus touching the man through the hand of a man named Elton.

Did my dad take a foolish risk? I don’t know that he even thought about it. In my dad’s desire to live like Jesus he simply did what came naturally to him. Was my dad wrong in touching that untouchable man? Should he have stayed six feet away and breathed through a mask?

That question will never be answered, nor should it be. Human suffering and our reaction to it should never be relegated to simple yes or no calculations. People are more than just the purposeless accumulation in one place of a hundred billion random evolutionary accidents.

Each person is just that, a person, with hopes, dreams and fears that need to be dealt with individually.

What I can say with certainty is that the three-second handshake on the dock 50 years ago changed my life. That act of selfless love helped set the course for the life I am now living.

Those three seconds gave joy, however fleeting, to the fisherman and gifted him with a memory he took to the grave. They gave me a way of life to pursue. I was very proud of my dad. I hope I am like him.

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So, here we are in 2020. We may not have people with leprosylike conditions coming to our doors, but do the poor and hurting in front of my house here in a poor fishing neighborhood in Mexico have COVID-19? How do I respond to their need? Is my health more important than their hunger? Do my comfort and security trump their fears? Do I learn how to meet their needs without violating safe social distancing practices? Do I lock myself away with my food and drink and spend the next month doing social distancing while playing on the internet in my air-conditioned office?

Because of my ocean-based lifestyle and work, because I was raised in Venezuela, because of good health in the past and good health now, I may have a greater risk tolerance than some.

My good health could change in a second, even before I finish wri . . . (Ha, it didn’t). Because of my belief in the escalating reconciliation of all things (see Colossians 1:15-20) and my hope for a wonderful future, I am not panicked by the current reality.

We are in this together, so for the sake of unity, let’s respect each other’s actions. Those of us who are less risk adverse must not flaunt our freedom. For the sake of others, we must do what we can to protect them by exercising appropriate social distancing and taking protective measures seriously. We must comply with the mandates from our authorities even if we view them as a bit exaggerated. Those who feel they must follow strict protection

protocols must be tolerant of those of us who seem a bit more relaxed if what we are doing serves others. If my handing out of survival packs of food to the poor people in my neighborhood makes you uncomfortable, I will in no way whatsoever be hurt if you ask me to keep my distance from you till this crisis is over. I will be more than happy to respect your concerns. I fully understand your concerns and your desire to protect not just yourself but also those around you including me, and I sincerely thank you for your concern. Your attitude is truly honorable.

Now to answer the big questions left hanging in my story. No, my dad did not get sick and the diving that day was superb.

Here’s Colossians 1:15-20 (NIV, italics are mine). This passage from the Bible is why I am not discouraged.

“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.”

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LIFE LESSONS

I Had Had Enough Pat Cirrincione Okay, it is 2:23 in the morning, and I am up and writing at my computer. I have had several sleepless nights lately, and so I wake up and play my 100th game of Candy Crush, and then countless games of Solitaire, and then when I tire of that, I begin to pray. You are right, there is definitely something wrong with the order of that sentence.

At the beginning of this pandemic, I made a list of daily things I should do to keep busy and away from the TV, except for Jeopardy. It was going along fine until a few weeks ago, when I noticed that I would weep at the strangest times. What is going on, I wondered? I’m keeping busy, I FaceTime with my children and grandchildren, my husband and I haven’t argued about anything, and my projects are showing signs of completion. I wake up each morning and praise, thank and petition our Lord and continue this practice throughout the day. Yet I am weeping. This is absurd. It needs to stop. So, I decided to get my walking shoes on and go for a walk.

A-h-h-h-h, the beauty of the outdoors. The lush green grass, the beautiful buds on the trees, the high blue sky with glimpses of floating white clouds. It was all breathtaking and quite beautiful! But, alas, where were the people? Where were my fellow walkers and joggers? Where were the strollers pushed by tired-looking moms? Was I in some sort of dream? Was I the last one living on the planet? And then I saw it, another human being jogging, or were my eyes playing tricks on me? Nope, the person was coming closer, and I knew I had to cross over to the other side of the street to keep the proper social distance. I had hoped for a smile and a wave, but instead I saw a look of disgust cross the jogger’s face! Oh, imagine the joy if I had received a smile and a wave. And then the weeps wash over me again in giant waves of sadness.

Lord, what have we done? You created us to be social creatures. You yourself loved to visit with Adam and Eve and walk in the garden with them. You loved hearing about their day. Lord, what have we done? This aloneness, this isolation, this separation from family and friends, from our churches and our jobs.

I was feeling like Job, alone and lonely, but then I realized that I was falling into the trap of feeling sorry for myself. Not only that, I realized that in my excitement to get out of the house for a walk in the fresh air, I had forgotten to do some basics—brush my teeth, comb out my bed head hair, and not wear the torn and bedraggled sweatshirt and sweatpants I have been wearing for weeks.

I probably startled that poor jogger, looking like a walking dust mop or Pigpen from Charlie Brown and friends. I must have had dust puffs emanating from my body with every step I took, and soon my weeps turn into hysterical bouts of laughter, and I laughed until my sides ached. I would have scared the snake right out of paradise if it had a glimpse of me.

And then I realized that I had been forgetting the most important thing in the world. The Lord—I had him. And in him, I find happiness, joy, love, peace, contentment, and it’s okay to have the weeps, that crying is okay, but we still have Jesus. And Zoom! And the telephone! Even in this pandemic, God made sure we still have a way of staying connected and seeing people, and talking and laughing, and most of all, breathing and laughing until our sides hurt.

That is when I began to have hope again. Hope that I will enjoy the pool next summer, that we will be together with our family members again, hope that we will walk up the front steps of church and hug people we haven’t seen in a while – okay, maybe not hugging just yet, but walking up those church steps into the Narthex and entering the Sanctuary will be like winning the lottery, but even better.

In the meantime, I have decided to write weekly letters to our grandchildren, call them once a week, keep to my daily routine, with prayer being front and center, and to hang on to believing that through the Lord, all will get better, because I know he wants only what is best for his creation.

Well, it is now 4 a.m. and I’m beginning to feel tired and think that I might just be able to get back to sleep before the alarm goes off in a few hours.

Please remind me, Lord, not to walk out of the house this morning before making sure I don’t have bed head and I don’t look like a dust mop walking down the street. Time to say good night, or good morning, our Father. Amen.

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BOOK REVIEW

Organic Outreach for Ordinary People by Kevin Harney Reviewed by Michelle Kelley I need to make a confession–I am not someone who is traditionally big into outreach efforts. I absolutely see the necessity; I just haven’t always felt like it would be my thing.

Most of my life has been spent, joyfully, around and with other believers. Truth be told, I have often felt ill-equipped to share my faith. What if someone asks a question I’m not prepared for? What if I say something wrong and increase the distance between them and the Lord? What if it’s just plain awkward?

I wish I had read Organic Outreach for Ordinary People much sooner.

Kevin Harney starts the book with a story about a woman who tells another woman to smell her hair, and then goes on to passionately “evangelize” about her new hair care product (a familiar picture to this curly-haired reader). He mentions how often he hears excitement in people’s voices as they talk about new restaurants and home gadgets. And, how often, there is more excitement in those conversations than in conversations about Jesus.

Kevin very graciously and beautifully speaks first to the heart of the reader. He doesn’t seek to lay on guilt but to help the ordinary believer crack open his or her eyes to the reality of Scripture’s call. God has equipped and specifically placed every Christian, not just our wonderful pastors, to speak into the lives of those around them. Our pastors, likely, don’t know your neighbors. They don’t know the moms on your kid’s soccer team. They don’t have the friendships or unbelieving family members you do. The truth is, we are all called to be witnesses to God’s work in our lives. If that sounds scary, please, read this book. It is filled with examples that made me realize I could have similar conversations and I bet you can, too.

Harney points out that outreach is simply being genuinely yourself—living and speaking like a Christian, whether in the presence of believers or non-believers. It’s the willingness to tell your co-workers you went to church on Sunday and were encouraged. The boldness to take a chance and ask your waitress if she has any requests you can pray for before you eat your meal. The humility to ask a neighbor if he minds whether you share for a minute about how Jesus has been working in your life.

Outreach is not a onesize-fits-all process.

Instead, he writes, “Every person is unique, so each journey will be different. Remember, outreach is an adventure, not a formula. It takes flexibility, creativity, and an adventurous heart.” He lays down some general practices he has seen work, such as increasing our love for our neighbor, prayer, creativity and sharing naturally in conversation.

One thing I appreciated is that he writes very practically.

Though he is not new to sharing his faith, his examples seem attainable. At the end of each chapter, there are a couple ideas of how to put into practice what he has just shared, as well as reflection questions and a prayer. I found these very thought provoking. They would also lend themselves well to a book study for a small group.

The chapter on prayer especially hit home for me. As we enter spiritual territory, he reminds, we can expect spiritual warfare.

But prayer is powerful, and our God is active. He writes three specific ideas in a section titled “Warfare Prayers,” the first being, “Ask God for discernment to see where the enemy is at work.” These words were a breath of fresh air to my prayers that God would open the eyes of those whom I love who don’t know Jesus.

This book didn’t give me the answers to the many questions of my non-believing friends. But it did remind me that God’s spirit is alive in me, and it fought the lie that tells me he can’t, or doesn’t want to, use me. He does. And he wants to use you, too.

God has, without doubt, been working in my feeble attempts to be genuine about my faith, and his Spirit has graciously answered my cries of prayer. I am excited how the Holy Spirit is moving. “Outreach is an adventure,” and I hope it’s one you’ll join me for. And, I suggest you pack a copy of this book for the road ahead.

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NEW MEMBERS

Amy Tews

Larry & Penny Tomko

Randy & Mary Urban

FAMILY: Amy grew up at College Church, along with her parents, Chris and Sarah Tews, and her sister, Alison.

Rick and Marilyn Huffman are her uncle and aunt, and Rebecca Wolgemuth is her cousin.

FAMILY: They met at the former Bell Laboratories in Naperville where they were both employees. They married in 1989. Larry has two children and five grandchildren.

PLACES I’VE LIVED: currently Glendale Heights, but have a son in Glen Ellyn and a daughter in San Diego.

9 TO 5: Larry is a retired electrical engineer. Penny is a retired patent paralegal.

9 TO 5: Mary is a homemaker after having worked in computer technology.

9 TO 5: Works as a graphic designer.

PASTTIMES: Enjoys reading, baking and being outdoors.

CHURCH INVOLVEMENT: Co-leads a 20s ministry small group, Front Door Ministry, women’s retreat committee, Kids’ Harbor.

PASTTIMES: Larry is the principal bass trombonist in the DuPage Symphony Orchestra, where he has been playing since 1980. Penny enjoys reading, walking, gardening and genealogy.

CHURCH INVOLVEMENT: Larry plays with other brass musicians. Penny is involved in Women’s Bible Study.

FAMILY: They married in 1987 and have three children.

PASTTIMES: Mary enjoys spending time with family, as well as walking and reading.

CHURCH INVOLVEMENT: Joint Heirs Adult Community, Women’s Bible Study, Kids Korner, midweek prayer

Mike & Cheryl Sorenson PLACES I’VE LIVED: Illinois, California, Wisconsin FAMILY: Married in 1994 in Wisconsin, and they have three children.

9 TO 5: Mike is a software engineer for DRW Trading. Cheryl is a grad student in humanitarian and disaster leadership at Wheaton College. She also serves at Dignity4Girls.org and works as a graphic designer.

PASTTIMES: They both love the outdoors and enjoy biking, hiking, kayaking and taking walks—and all things related to Boston. (Mike’s father grew up there.)

CHURCH INVOLVEMENT: Women’s Bible Study

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NEW MEMBERS (continued) Mike & Melissa Solis PLACES I’VE LIVED: Mike grew up at College Church. He and Melissa married in 2015 and lived in St. Louis while Mike attended seminary, and now they are back in Wheaton.

Melissa grew up in Greensboro, North Carolina, and met Mike while at Wheaton College.

FAMILY: Mike’s father is Anthony Solis. His mother, Julie, passed away in 2018. His younger sister Danielle also lives in the area.

9 TO 5: Mike is part of College Church’s pastoral residency program and works with Pastor Josh Stringer in discipleship and the Front Door Ministry as well as with Eric Channing in pastoral care. He also co-leads a small group. Melissa works as a counselor at a treatment center for eating disorders.

PASTTIMES: Mike enjoys board games, going on walks and baking bread. Melissa enjoys cross-stitching and connecting with friends.

CHURCH INVOLVEMENT: Melissa serves in the 20s ministry as a small group leader.

MILESTONES/LOOKING AHEAD Condolences • Please be in prayer for Olga Sauer and family as they grieve the loss of Olga’s mother who recently passed away.

• Pray for Marilyn Kitchell, grieving the loss of her brother, Frank Miller, who died in Toronto, Canada.

• Pray for Karen Olsen as she grieves the loss of her mother, Joyce Olsen, who passed away on May 7 in Wheaton.

• Please be in prayer for Lisa (Howard) Kern, Lisa’s mother Marlene, and their extended family as they grieve the loss of Lisa’s father, Chuck Vittitow, who passed away on May 7, in Princeton, Illinois. Howard and Lisa Kern are on staff at College Church.

• Phil (Carla) Stough, Jim ( Joan) Stough and Bill (Ruth Stough) grieving the unexpected death of their sister Helen Stough Doughty at home in Plano, Texas, on May 22.

Births and Marriages • George Andrew was born to Gordon and Samantha Cepuran on May 24. George’s paternal grandparents are Carl and Marilyn Cepuran.

Take advantage of events—some one-time, some ongoing—that are taking place around town this month.

Also, keep Connections in mind to promote a community event to the College Church family.

Send event information by the following dates to connections@college-church.org.

For the July issue: June 7 | For the August issue: July 7 | For the September issue: August 7

Connections is a monthly newsletter published for and about the people of College Church.

Send news items and suggestions to: connections@college-church.org.

332 E. Seminary, Wheaton, IL 60187 • Phone: (630) 668-0878 • www.college-church.org Our Pastors, Directors and Residents: Eric Channing, pastor of congregational care and family ministries | Cheryce Berg, director of children’s ministries | Julie Clemens, director of disability ministries | Erik Dewar, pastor of worship and music | Zach Fallon, senior high pastor | Dan Hiben, junior high pastor | Tim Hollinger, technology director | Diane Jordan, director of visitation and care | Howard Kern, facilities director | Curt Miller, missions pastor | Josh Moody, senior pastor | Ben Panner, college pastor | Mindy Rynbrandt, director of women’s ministries | John Seward, executive pastor | Nancy Singer, director of administration and finance | Mike Solis, pastoral resident | Josh Stringer, pastor of discipleship | Wil Triggs, director of communications | Michael Walker, pastoral resident | Jacob Warren, pastoral resident Our Council of Elders: David Bea | Howard Costley | Dave Gieser, vice chair | Randy Jahns| Heinrich Johnsen | Dan Lindquist | Josh Moody, senior pastor | Phil Nussbaum | Tom Nussbaum | Jeremy Taylor | Mark Taylor, chair | Tad Williams | Rob Wolgemuth, secretary

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