Another in my series on A Prof’s Life.
IHOP breakfast with a student started the day, followed by a couple of hours of preparation for my chapel address at 10am. I preached on 1 Timothy 6:11-16 on what it means to be a man of God. My outline was:
I. The Warning (vv. 11-12)
A. Flee these things (love of controversy, of division, and of money)
B. Follow after righteousness, etc.
C. Fight the good fight of faith
D. Fasten your mind on eternal life
II. The Witnesses (vv. 12-15)
Be encouraged by these witnesses/motives:
A. Because many saw your confession (at baptism/ordination)
B. Because God sees you
C. Because Christ sees you
D. Because the whole world will see Christ openly at the judgment day
III. The Worship (vv. 15-16)
You have a great calling but you also have a great God:
A. He is Invincible
B. He is Immaculate
C. He Is Immortal
D. He is Invisible
E. He is Infinite
Two hours of admin followed that – mostly emails but also chasing up some incomplete coursework from last semester.
At 2pm, I Skyped into the Theological Education Committee (TEC) of the Free Reformed Churches of North America, the federation that my own congregation belongs to. The TEC is responsible for the theological education of Free Reformed Students at the Seminary and also has an oversight role regarding my own teaching.
I left the Seminary at 3:45pm to visit a member of my congregation who is in hospital and then drove an hour to Grant Christian Reformed Church. I counseled a pastor over the phone as I drove, in a pre-arranged call, and then grabbed a McDonald’s meal before speaking to the congregation about leadership. I talked the congregation through the elder checklist and the deacon checklist which we use in my congregation to keep one another accountable and to inform the congregation of what to expect from our church leaders.
Got home just before 9pm, and after a day of preaching and teaching about the ideals of leadership and now I’m just about to depress myself by the sad reality in the final presidential debate.