You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets. — Matthew 22:37-40
What a joy for our whole family to participate in the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship MidWest Faculty Ministry Conference. A shout out to Bob Trube for his superb directing of the conference and the InterVarsity staff (Robin Capcara, Bob Clark, Debra Clark, Howard Van Cleave, Charles Yu) who alongside the presenters (coordinated by Todd Lundberg) and the amazing InterVarsity Cedar Campus staff/crew truly hit a home run. To God be the glory!
For Bob Trube’s “on the ground” reflections on The Ends and Goals of Higher Education in Twenty-First-Century America: Change and the Calling of the Christian Educator visit
- Higher Education Books
- The Line Between Prudence and Courage
- If God is With Us’
- Redeeming Online Education
- The Power of Sacrifice
- The Question of Identity in Academic Life
Thank-you for praying for . . .
- a rich time of reflection/conversation centered around the Word of God for all those present (faculty, spouses, children . . .). Keep your eyes out for a Bible study series on the life of Joseph (written by InterVarsity GFM Colleague Charles Yu).
- insight for program staff and presenters in preparation, delivery of material, personal conversations, and follow-up.
- growing clarity on what it means for the people of God to be creatively engaged in higher education. One of the ESN initiatives is a blog series on mentoring. This should be up and running by the end of the month. If you desire to contribute and/or raise questions/concerns to be addressed, please let us know.
- the sending forth of participants in mission during a complex time of change.
- the further development of a community of conversation through online resources such as the
- safe travel from InterVarsity’s Cedar Campus (Upper Peninsula, Michigan) — especially those of us making the journey with a number of kids. Note: Although shortly after crossing the Mackinac Bridge our six year old threw up, somehow we managed it quite well and we all got back in the minivan for the journey back to Lancaster County, PA.
Throughout the week (and on our family’s way home), we knew that you were praying for us! We look forward to the fruit gathered from the MidWest Faculty Conference 2014 and the upcoming interactions via local and online hubs. Please stay tuned for an Update Series as we work out what we discussed and encourage larger dialog on this blog and the conference site. As you have topics of concern and interest, please post below. What a joy to be part of this growing online learning community with you. To God be the glory!
Tom enjoys daily conversations regarding living out the Biblical Story with his wife Theresa and their four girls, around the block, at Elizabethtown Brethren in Christ Church (where he teaches adult electives and co-leads a small group), among healthcare professionals as the Northeast Regional Director for the Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA), and in higher ed as a volunteer with the Emerging Scholars Network (ESN). For a number of years, the Christian Medical Society / CMDA at Penn State College of Medicine was the hub of his ministry with CMDA. Note: Tom served with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship / USA for 20+ years, including 6+ years as the Associate Director of ESN. He has written for the ESN blog from its launch in August 2008. He has studied Biology (B.S.), Higher Education (M.A.), Spiritual Direction (Certificate), Spiritual Formation (M.A.R.), Ministry to Emerging Generations (D.Min.). To God be the glory!