Life

Yesterday, I posted a poll to help me choose a book for seminary. The problem: both book covers suck; both received 3 stars on Amazon; and both are similarly priced. So, I put it to a vote… And with a surprising 100% of the votes, the winner is…

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I need your help!

Here’s the deal. My professor at Biblical Seminary gave our class the option to choose between two books for one of our readings. The first is Models of Contextual Theology by Stephen B. Bevans. The second is Doing Local Theology: A Guide for Artisans of a New Humanity by Clemens Sedmak. I have no idea about either of these two books or authors. I don’t know which one is good, or maybe both are? Both book covers suck so we can’t choose a book by its cover.

So, I need your help! Please vote in the poll below on which book you believe I should read for my seminary class. Even if you haven’t read them, read the reviews on Amazon and help me out. I thank you. My class will also thank you.

Reflective Service at Redemption Church

Highlight(s):

1. Valentine’s Day was nice. Not because Amanda and I did anything spectacular, but because I know she loves me and I love her. I’ve become kinda bored with the “flash,” and I simply rest in the love my wife shows me.
2. Reflective, experiential, creative worship service at Redemption Church last night. We had an extended worship service. No preaching. We used stations of Jesus’ sayings and focused on Matthew 11: 28-30: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Pretty comforting words, don’t you think? It was nice to see our church slow down and reflect.
3. Congrats to the Saints! It was a bittersweet Super Bowl since I am a huge Peyton Manning fan. However, you can’t win them all…just ask Brett Favre, Jim Kelly, and Dan Marino. I am really happy for New Orleans. They are a city that has endured a lot. May God continue to work there as he already has done.
4. What about all of this snow?! Philly received over 3 feet in about a week. It’s crazy. If the apocalypse isn’t upon us, I don’t know when it will be. The only thing left is for Sadaam Hussein to resurrect from the dead with the Pope his prophet and Barack Obama his puppet. I think that’s how Joel C. Rosenberg told me it would happen. It’s been awhile since I read those books.

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Highlights:

Matt Schaub lifts Pro Bowl MVP trophy

1. Amanda and I spent Friday night in the city. We stayed at the Hyatt by Penns Landing with a riverfront view. It was really nice to spend some time alone with Amanda, which I’ve found is more difficult when you have a kid (albeit, I wouldn’t change my life right now if I could). We ate a two fantastic restaurants that I recommend: (a) Amada Restaurant — Amada is a Spanish tapas based restaurant and is home of the Food Networks new Iron Chef, Jose Garces. Both Amanda and I thought it was fabulous. We ate off of the Restaurant Week menu with two courses and dessert. The garlic shrimp, marinated olives, and grilled chicken with a fried egg on top reminded us of our honeymoon in Spain.  (b) On Saturday morning, we ate brunch at Max Brenner, which offers its own self-proclaimed “chocolate culture.” From different styles of hot chocolate in their “hug mugs” to chocolate banana crepes, we felt like we tasted the chocolate river in Willy Wanka’s Chocolate Factory.
2. The NFL Pro Bowl received 12 million viewers. The largest viewing audience ever for the seemingly tag-football game of the NFL season. I guess the week before the Super Bowl will be the standard henceforth. Congrats to Matt Schaub for winning the MVP. With Peyton Manning out of the way, the guy shines. Just imaging if the Colts weren’t in the same division as the Texans? Houston might make the playoffs!

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I have not done one of these in a long time, but I feel that I should update everyone a little on my life.

Kid #2

Highlights:

1. Amanda is pregnant, and we just found out last Thursday that this one will be a boy! His name will be “Evan” named after my grandfather, father, and me (in that order, too). I am very excited. As a dad, you have fantasies of playing catch with your son, going to games together, camping, fishing, etc. I hope to do all these things and more. Giselle tries her best to pronounce “Evan.” It started like “Ibann,” and now sounds more like “Ebbin.” Close enough.
2. Yesterday, our church plant Redemption Church voted Gary Alloway as our pastor. Gary had been with us from the beginning, and we on the leadership team believed God had called him to be our pastor. However, we wanted confirmation from the congregation, as well. This was confirmed! Pastor Gary Alloway.
3. I am in my second semester at my job, and I am beginning to feel like I know what I am doing. Overall, I love my staff and the people I work with. This sounds bad, but I like my job more than I thought I would. I guess that’s a good thing.

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So, after my “30 day” sabbatical from blogging, I have some fresh ideas as to what I want to do.

You will first see that I have updated the look of the blog, and, yes, I am aware it is a picture of the Brooklyn Bridge, but oh well.

Second, I have become increasingly interested in Rome and the New Testament so we will likely hit much of that in the next few posts.

Third, there are some updates from my life, and I will try to get back into the habit of updating that every week or two.

Fourth, I read so many books, but I hardly do any book reviews so I will focus on doing that.

Fifth, I am part of a church plant and believe it is the way for the future of the church. I hardly ever mention this on my blog, and I will seek to portray the struggle as well as the joy of church planting.

Last, I am a proponent of men and women going into seminary for training. I will be basing many of my posts on what I am learning at Biblical Seminary, and I hope it gives readers a chance to peer into how seminary is going for me, and what seminary is like.

Grace and peace,

Evan

I haven’t blogged in awhile. Since my new job has started, I have been incredibly busy, but now things are slowing down; and I am glad to give an update.

Highlights:
1. We had an awesome vacation in North Carolina. Giselle loved the beach–sand and water. She gets really excited to be in the “wa-wa” (water), and every time she sees it she wants to be in it.
2. With that being said, we also took her to Sesame Place. She enjoyed the “wa-wa” there too. She gets really excited and starts to squeal with joy when she is splashing in it.
3. The Cliff Lee trade has been the best move the Phillies have done in awhile. He’s 5-0 with .98 ERA since coming to Philadelphia, and I’m sniffing another championship.
4. The Mets are collapsing. I would be lying if I said I was sad, but really it’s nice to see them in double digits behind the Phillies in the NL East.
5. My new job as Resident Director for Philadelphia Biblical University has been a lot of fun, even though it’s been a lot of work. I really enjoy the people I work with, and I am ready for the school year.

What I’ve Been Reading:
1. I haven’t had the chance to read much, but when I have I’m reading Barth’s Church Dogmatics I.2.
2. Also, I’ve been digging into Walter Brueggemann’s The Prophetic Imagination. It’s an excellent book. He’s not evangelical so there are some things I struggle with in this interpretation, but overall it’s a wonderful read.

Repeat on my iPod:
1. I finally got mewithoutyou’s new album It’s All Crazy! It’s All False! It’s All a Dream! It’s Alright. It’s a little more folksy than expected but still awesome in a way only mewithoutyou can be.
2. Also, I joined the fun with Derek Webb’s Stockholm Syndrome. He’s lyrics are very thought-provoking, and I’m hoping to see him at Revelation Generation (if I go).

What I’m Looking Forward to:
1. Seminary classes are beginning again in September. This is my last year, which is bittersweet. I love Biblical Seminary, and, if you are interested in a progressive evangelical seminary, Biblical is the way to go.
2. Less busy = more time with Amanda.
3. My brother, Jon’s, wedding is coming up in September. I also have his bachelor party this weekend, which I still am not sure what we are exactly doing, but it will be fun regardless.
4. Revelation Generation. I’m hoping to go, but I’ll have to see about getting tickets. It’s $75, but the lineup is pretty sick.
5. Blogging more. Let’s be honest…you missed me.

Yes, I got a job! Here’s an email I sent to my friends and family (and now to the blogosphere).

Hello Everyone,

As of Saturday, I accepted a full-time position at Philadelphia Biblical University as their Resident Director. I will be working as part of the Student Life Department and will be interacting with and assisting the Resident Assistants at the off-campus housing. This is wonderful news on a number of levels:

1) My 9-month full-time occupation drought has ended.

2) Amanda and I were concerned about finding a place to live even after I found a job. However, PBU will be giving us an apartment on campus to assist in my duties as Resident Director.

3) Since we decided to help plant a church in Bristol, I hoped to find a job near Bristol and a place to live in Bristol. Langhorne is not very far from Bristol so it’s almost as good as it gets!

4) I was hoping to find a job where I would be able to work with people regularly, and this job is as people-oriented as it gets.

I will be finishing up my two part-time jobs this week, and next week we’ll be on a much-needed vacation in North Carolina. Both jobs were sad to see me go but understood. I will no longer be getting free coffee and discounts since I won’t be working at Starbucks, and I won’t be bored to tears because I will no longer be working at Bisco.

I’m completely grateful to all of you for your prayers and support. Thanks so, so much.

With love,
Evan, Amanda, and Giselle

Highlights of the Week:

1. The Phillies came out of their slump to sweep the Mets in three games at home. I know the Mets are depleted, but that’s when you have to beat them. Also, J-Roll seems to be coming out of his funk, but we’ll see.
2. I gave a sermon at The Well on Luke 18:9-14 about the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. The key term of the sermon was “humility.” Though I’m trying to remain humble, it seemed that it went well, and everyone that I spoke to was pretty complimentary [it's the ones you don't speak to you have to watch out for ]. If you are bored to tears, and have nothing better to do, you can hear the sermon here. 
3. The 4th of July weekend was nice. I had Friday off, and so I spent time with Amanda and Giselle. I needed the day off. However, I had to work at Starbucks on July 4th so I still need a day off.
4. The Bristol worship has been going really well, and we are still working on small details like the church’s purpose, my role there, and more (obviously, these things are important. I’m being sarcastic).
5. I finished my 2nd of 3 years in MDiv program. One more year to go. I got my worse grade so far in seminary for my last class, but I have senioritis. Who can blame me?

What I’m reading:

1. Karl Barth’s Church Dogmatics: the Doctrine of the Word of God I.1.
2. N.T. Wright’s Justification: God’s Plan & Paul’s Vision (still not sure what the big fuss is about).

What I’m listening to:

1. Relevant Magazine’s podcast. The most recent one was really funny (and informative). It’s always a good listen.
2. I’ve been using my parents van this week and been listening to a lot of satelite radio. Not sure what I’m going to do without all of the ESPN radio stations.

Jealous of: Tim and his megachurch salary. As I type, he is at the Poets, Prophets, and Preachers seminar featuring Shane Hipps, Peter Rollins, and Rob Bell. Not only is he there, but he visited the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame, which begs the question, How can he be the youth pastor of our young people and financially support Satan’s tool of rock n’ roll? He must be going there because he wants to relate to his youth group kids. So, I ask, Tim, do you want to get fired? If you want to relate to the kids, give him Third Day. Oh…

Surprised by:

1. Sarah Palin’s resignation. I too am perplexed as to why (love affair? just kidding, but, if it comes out, I called it). Not saying I’ll miss her fights with David Letterman, but theoretically, if McCain won the last presidential election, and for whatever reason he “kicked the bucket,” she would have been our President. So, I guess that means something.
2. Steve McNair’s murder. He was found shot dead with a girl next to him also shot dead. Whatever the reason, the more that comes out about McNair and this woman just gets worse.

Looking forward to:

1. Vacation. I can’t say it enough.
2. Scripture & Culture Seminar with Dr. Darrell Guder and Andy Crouch. I hope to make it. It’s at The Well so it’s not far from me, and it’s only $10 (for students, $15 for everyone else), and I’ve heard both speak before, and both are excellent…I guess I’ll go.

It’s been awhile since I gave an update on my life so here’s some things to fill everyone in on what’s been going on.

Highlights:

• 1.   Amanda and I decided that God was calling us to join a church plant in Bristol, which The Well is beginning. This means (a) that I’ve withdrawn my resume from a few youth ministry positions; (b) that I must find a job in some other field; and (c) that we are really excited about this opportunity. It was really interesting when Gary (pastor) approached me about it one day when we had met for coffee. He asked me to join up the leadership team as one who would focus on theology and the like. I loved the idea! But it is volunteer so that means major sacrifices. Eventually, as I prayed about it (and Amanda did too), I felt called to do it, even though it was illogical from a financial standpoint. But I told God he would have to get Amanda on board too. One day, unprovoked, Amanda mentioned that she too felt God was calling us to Bristol. If you’re married, you know that this is a big deal when your wife feels equally called to your place of ministry. So, we are a few weeks in. We are meeting at someone else’s house right now, and we hope to find a building for the Fall. Please pray for us.
• 2.   Amanda finished up the school year. Her first year as a teacher! And I’m very proud of her. It was difficult at times learning a new trade, but she was awesome at it.
• 3.   Amanda also pick up summer work as a Pampered Chef representative. She did really well at her first show. If you are looking to have a show at your house for your friends, she’s the one to call.
• 4.   Giselle’s been learning new things like crazy. She’s walking and running. She knows multiple words, and she’s so wonderful.
• 5.   Our friends, Tim and Susan, are pregnant (well, actually Susan). They are having a baby boy so Giselle will have her choice between Nathan and the other boy. Both must fill out an application, go through an interview process with me, provide 3 professional references, 2 spiritual references, and then they can have a supervised date with Giselle, which will be supervised by me and Mr. T.
• 6.   Our friends, Ron and Juli, became members at Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia. I’m happy for them. Praying that Juli finds a teaching job this Fall. Ron works at Delaware County Christian School, and he will be looking into ordination in the PCA before he becomes super-famous and takes over Tim Keller’s church (whoops! I probably shouldn’t have told you that).

Something I enjoyed: U.S.A.’s performance in the Confederation’s Cup. I didn’t think they could make it into the next round after poor losses to Brazil and Italy, but after they defeated Egypt (and with help from Brazil’s 3-0 win over Italy), they made it into the next round to beat top-seeded Spain. The final between US and Brazil was a great exhibition of soccer. Unfortunately, after the US was up 2-0, Brazil rallied to win 3-2. Thinking they weren’t even going to make it out of the divisional period, the fact that they made it to the final game is commendable.

Disappointed by: the Phillies. They were doing so well, but recently they’ve been dropping the ball (sometimes, literally). But we are on a two game winning streak so maybe things are looking up. (Good news, the Mets still stink so we are still in 1^st place).

Job update: currently working two part-time jobs. Starbucks about 10-15 hours per week, and I’m a Sales Assistant at Bisco Industries 28 hours per week. Bisco is a distributor of electronic parts for cars, planes, etc. It’s a temp job, but no one has called me “Fire Guy” or “Temp” yet.

Looking forward to: Vacation. I need it. End of July we are going to North Carolina with my parents. When you don’t have much money, you mooch off of your family’s vacations.