

Steve and Chris Weber recently sold their house and cars, stored household items, and moved to China to serve with a foreign non-government organization. Steve previously served on staff at Mars Hill Bible Church and Chris served as Vice President for Enrollment Management and Institutional Marketing at Cornerstone University.
One of the natural side-effects of leaving is "giving up." The other night I had the Asian flu. I didn't know our bodies could lose that much fluid at any one time. There were moments during that bout when I thought about giving up... going home... being sick in a safe place with doctors, medicines and emergency rooms!
But that's not the side-effect we are talking about here. This kind of giving up isn't about quitting. This giving up is about loss...
-Giving up familiar food
-Giving up family meals, outings, and birthdays
-Giving up face-to-face relationships, house church
-Giving up a"normal" salary, income, security
-Giving up cars, nice roads, Saturday drives in the country
-Giving up the place we gather called Mars Hill
-Giving up familiar tones and words
We have lived with these losses for less than 45 days and yet we are learning some powerful lessons about loss, grief and tears. At this point on the journey grief is greater than culture shock. We are told that failing to recognize and admit our grief might come out in anger and frustration with the very culture and people we have come to serve.
We want to embrace our losses, our grief, our pain... and there in that embrace know the depth of God's grace, his comfort and strength. The narcotics of trite words, material attainments, and self-amusements don't work here.
Pray that we face our griefs. Because we know, at least in part, that it is through this process of embracing our pain that we learn something about others who are living, walking in pain. And when we learn to embrace our pain, we will be able to embrace the pain of others in a more genuine, authentic way.

Last night I visited a man in our church who found out that he has a large mass in one of his lungs. He has lost 30 pounds and it looks as though he has cancer. I sat down at their kitchen table and chatted with him and his wife about their family and the Gospel. When we got done talking, I read them John 14:1-6. The Bible I had with me was ESV, but I changed it to mostly King James because it is so beautiful in that translation, "In my Father's house there are many mansions... I am the way, the truth, and the life..."
After I made that call I stopped by to see a young family. The father's twin sister has an aggressive form of cancer though she is only 37 years old. I leaned over the chain link fence around their pool and prayed for him and his sister and their parents.
Once when I was a student at GRTS we were talking in class about a terrible tragedy. I asked Dr. Crawford, "How do you pastor people at a time like that?" Dr. Crawford answered, "If you have not prepared them in advance, there is relatively little you can do at the time."
His answer has echoed in my thoughts for years.
Each Sunday when a pastor preaches, he is called to prepare his people for times of weeping and laughing, mourning and dancing. Can anything be more important? And, not only on Sunday. When we pray at their kitchen tables, and read John 14, and lean over chain link fences around pools, and when we plan weddings and funerals and write blogs our call is to shepherd God's people that are under our care (1 Peter 5:1-4). And, if we persevere, we will inherit a crown of glory that will never fade away.
Chris serves at The Red Brick Church in Stillman Valley, Il and can be heard on the radio in Rockford, Il. You can listen to his sermons online, read his blog, and look for his forthcoming book on forgiveness published by Crossway Books.
I received a call the other day from a local funeral director who asked me if I would agree to co-officiate a funeral with Tom from the local Catholic parish. As it turns out, the gentleman who passed away was Catholic and his surviving wife was Baptist. My first thought was, “My, how things have changed since the Crusades!” My second thought was, “Wow, how did they stay married for 60 years?” As Tom and I spoke about this unique opportunity facing us we joked about me not having a collar to wear and him letting me borrow one of his shirts (he’s 6’2” and I’m 5’9”). I gave the message and Tom presided at the graveside. After the funeral service many people remarked that this was the first time they’d ever seen a Catholic and a non-Catholic share a funeral service, and all of them expressed their deep appreciation that we would even think of doing such a thing together! Though I’m sure some would question the wisdom of my decision, I’m glad I took the risk. I know Tom and I believe he’s a faithful Christ follower. Many of my racquetball buddies attend that Catholic parish and when they heard the story a new openness and honesty came into our conversations. In fact one of those guys at the club opened up to me just last week about his own spiritual journey and in answering his questions I was able to share the gospel with him. One of the things I picked up during my seminary experience was the importance of learning how to disagree agreeably with people who held views other than my own. I appreciated the broad spectrum of theologians we were introduced to, many of whom were outside of my own theological and church tradition. If Dr. Hoch were still around I’d share this story with him and I think he would probably put his hand on my shoulder and quote some New Testament passage where Paul stepped out of his comfort zone and people were introduced to the gospel. Then he would quietly pray for me before locking up the bookstore for the evening.
Pastor Tim Cosby
M.Div., GRTS '91
Tim and his wife, Diane, love being grandparents! Tim is the Associate Teaching Pastor at Bella Vista Church, Rockford, Mi, and the Director of Racquetball Programming at Riverview Athletic Center. You can view his sermon notes and listen to his sermons online.
Patrick Kamau, a GRTS alumnus, and counselor at the International Students & Scholars Services at Western Michigan University, was recently inducted into the Counseling Academic and Professional Honor Society International in recognition of his academic excellence in the Counselor Education and Supervision doctoral program at Western Michigan University. He has been recognized by his professors and classmates for his strong work ethic and tireless commitment to serving others.
Patrick and his wife, Elizabeth Mugi, are from Nairobi, Kenya. Elizabeth is a nursing student at Grand Rapids Community College. She anticipates using her training as a nurse to open a clinic in Kenya for women who are victims of abuse. Patrick plans to seek a tenure position as a professor of counseling after completing his doctorate. He also anticipates returning to Kenya to teach and train in contexts including Christian universities, public universities and local churches.
“The rare mix of a theological degree and a secular degree will fill a great void. My education will grant access to all populations, Christian and secular, and allow me to teach and train from a thoroughly integrated perspective.”