Hey guys, just wanted to give a quick update on what has been going on with us. This past week, we hit the support trail hard in Georgia and met with with a bunch of potential new supporters as well as a number of you all! Anyway, the trip went very well, and we really enjoyed connecting with everyone. We even got to make a trip up to my (Ben) old high school and see a lot of old friends!
Anyway, the Lord continues to teach us a lot through this process and we are learning to trust Him in many ways that we never have before. A thought that has come out of this for us is that the Lord wants us to see that the support we receive does not come from people but from Him. I think that this is even a great thought for all of us during this time of economic struggle. It can be so easy, when working a job, to begin to believe that we are our own providers but when in fact, God is still our provider. So, it seems that this season of life that the Lord has us all in is one in which we can all learn to look to Him more and ultimately see that He is our greatest desire and need! A verse over which I have been meditating here of late is Psalm 73:25-26, which says, "Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is nothing on earth I desire besides You. My flesh and my heart may fail but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever!"
Finally, the Lord is continuing His work here on the campus and showing Kaye and I how He really can work without us! How easy it is to begin to think that we are so crucial to God's work!?! Anyway, please continue to pray that the Lord would be at work in individual hearts as we ramp up toward our conference over the break and that the Lord would bring people to the conference. Love you all and we will keep the updates coming!
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Thursday, October 30, 2008
a few more...
The presidential candidates made an appearance...only one week left...I guess they're desperate to come to our party!
Personally, I think Ben and I made a better McCain/Palin...doesn't Ben look handsome with grey hair?
Ken and Barbie even showed up. These guys would be Ken & Barbie...Tim is the starting quarterback at PC and Summer is Miss Spartanburg. They fit the bill nicely!
All in all we had a great time!
Personally, I think Ben and I made a better McCain/Palin...doesn't Ben look handsome with grey hair?
Ken and Barbie even showed up. These guys would be Ken & Barbie...Tim is the starting quarterback at PC and Summer is Miss Spartanburg. They fit the bill nicely!
All in all we had a great time!
2nd annual halloween party...
This year marked our 2nd annual Halloween party for Campus Outreach. We had a costume contest this year, so we thought we'd show you some of the competition...
A couple of hunters...these guys look serious!
Remember those weird little troll dolls?!
Unfortunately, you can probably guess what this is...
IPOD commercial!
Fruit of the loom anyone?
A couple of hunters...these guys look serious!
Remember those weird little troll dolls?!
Unfortunately, you can probably guess what this is...
IPOD commercial!
Fruit of the loom anyone?
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Good Article
We were encouraged by reading this article with all the election drama going on...hope you enjoy it as well.
Let Christians Vote As Though They Were Not Voting
October 22, 2008
By John Piper
Read this article on our website.
Voting is like marrying and crying and laughing and buying. We should do it, but only as if we were not doing it. That’s because “the present form of this world is passing away” and, in God’s eyes, “the time has grown very short.” Here’s the way Paul puts it:
The appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no goods, and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away. (1 Corinthians 7:29-31)
Let’s take these one at a time and compare them to voting.
1. “Let those who have wives live as though they had none.”
This doesn’t mean move out of the house, don’t have sex, and don’t call Honey. Earlier in this chapter Paul says, “The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights” (1 Corinthians 7:3). He also says to love her the way Christ loved the church, leading and providing and protecting (Ephesians 5:25-30). It means this: Marriage is momentary. It’s over at death, and there is no marriage in the resurrection. Wives and husbands are second priorities, not first. Christ is first. Marriage is for making much of him.
It means: If she is exquisitely desirable, beware of desiring her more than Christ. And if she is deeply disappointing, beware of being hurt too much. This is temporary—only a brief lifetime. Then comes the never-disappointing life which is life indeed.
So it is with voting. We should do it. But only as if we were not doing it. Its outcomes do not give us the greatest joy when they go our way, and they do not demoralize us when they don’t. Political life is for making much of Christ whether the world falls apart or holds together.
2. “Let those who mourn [do so] as though they were not mourning.”
Christians mourn with real, deep, painful mourning, especially over losses—loss of those we love, loss of health, loss of a dream. These losses hurt. We cry when we are hurt. But we cry as though not crying. We mourn knowing we have not lost something so valuable we cannot rejoice in our mourning. Our losses do not incapacitate us. They do not blind us to the possibility of a fruitful future serving Christ. The Lord gives and takes away. But he remains blessed. And we remain hopeful in our mourning.
So it is with voting. There are losses. We mourn. But not as those who have no hope. We vote and we lose, or we vote and we win. In either case, we win or lose as if we were not winning or losing. Our expectations and frustrations are modest. The best this world can offer is short and small. The worst it can offer has been predicted in the book of Revelation. And no vote will hold it back. In the short run, Christians lose (Revelation 13:7). In the long run, we win (21:4).
3. “Let those who rejoice [do so] as though they were not rejoicing.”
Christians rejoice in health (James 5:13) and in sickness (James 1:2). There are a thousand good and perfect things that come down from God that call forth the feeling of happiness. Beautiful weather. Good friends who want to spend time with us. Delicious food and someone to share it with. A successful plan. A person helped by our efforts.
But none of these good and beautiful things can satisfy our soul. Even the best cannot replace what we were made for, namely, the full experience of the risen Christ (John 17:24). Even fellowship with him here is not the final and best gift. There is more of him to have after we die (Philippians 1:21-23)—and even more after the resurrection. The best experiences here are foretastes. The best sights of glory are through a mirror dimly. The joy that rises from these previews does not and should not rise to the level of the hope of glory. These pleasures will one day be as though they were not. So we rejoice remembering this joy is a foretaste, and will be replaced by a vastly better joy.
So it is with voting. There are joys. The very act of voting is a joyful statement that we are not under a tyrant. And there may be happy victories. But the best government we get is a foreshadowing. Peace and justice are approximated now. They will be perfect when Christ comes. So our joy is modest. Our triumphs are short-lived—and shot through with imperfection. So we vote as though not voting.
4. “Let those who buy [do so] as though they had no goods.”
Let Christians keep on buying while this age lasts. Christianity is not withdrawal from business. We are involved, but as though not involved. Business simply does not have the weight in our hearts that it has for many. All our getting and all our having in this world is getting and having things that are not ultimately important. Our car, our house, our books, our computers, our heirlooms—we possess them with a loose grip. If they are taken away, we say that in a sense we did not have them. We are not here to possess. We are here to lay up treasures in heaven.
This world matters. But it is not ultimate. It is the stage for living in such a way to show that this world is not our God, but that Christ is our God. It is the stage for using the world to show that Christ is more precious than the world.
So it is with voting. We do not withdraw. We are involved—but as if not involved. Politics does not have ultimate weight for us. It is one more stage for acting out the truth that Christ, and not politics, is supreme.
5. “Let those who deal with the world [do so] as though they had no dealings with it.”
Christians should deal with the world. This world is here to be used. Dealt with. There is no avoiding it. Not to deal with it is to deal with it that way. Not to weed your garden is to cultivate a weedy garden. Not to wear a coat in Minnesota is to freeze—to deal with the cold that way. Not to stop when the light is red is to spend your money on fines or hospital bills and deal with the world that way. We must deal with the world.
But as we deal with it, we don’t give it our fullest attention. We don’t ascribe to the world the greatest status. There are unseen things that are vastly more precious than the world. We use the world without offering it our whole soul. We may work with all our might when dealing with the world, but the full passions of our heart will be attached to something higher—Godward purposes. We use the world, but not as an end in itself. It is a means. We deal with the world in order to make much of Christ.
So it is with voting. We deal with the system. We deal with the news. We deal with the candidates. We deal with the issues. But we deal with it all as if not dealing with it. It does not have our fullest attention. It is not the great thing in our lives. Christ is. And Christ will be ruling over his people with perfect supremacy no matter who is elected and no matter what government stands or falls. So we vote as though not voting.
By all means vote. But remember: “The world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:17).
Voting with you, as though not voting,
Pastor John
Let Christians Vote As Though They Were Not Voting
October 22, 2008
By John Piper
Read this article on our website.
Voting is like marrying and crying and laughing and buying. We should do it, but only as if we were not doing it. That’s because “the present form of this world is passing away” and, in God’s eyes, “the time has grown very short.” Here’s the way Paul puts it:
The appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no goods, and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away. (1 Corinthians 7:29-31)
Let’s take these one at a time and compare them to voting.
1. “Let those who have wives live as though they had none.”
This doesn’t mean move out of the house, don’t have sex, and don’t call Honey. Earlier in this chapter Paul says, “The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights” (1 Corinthians 7:3). He also says to love her the way Christ loved the church, leading and providing and protecting (Ephesians 5:25-30). It means this: Marriage is momentary. It’s over at death, and there is no marriage in the resurrection. Wives and husbands are second priorities, not first. Christ is first. Marriage is for making much of him.
It means: If she is exquisitely desirable, beware of desiring her more than Christ. And if she is deeply disappointing, beware of being hurt too much. This is temporary—only a brief lifetime. Then comes the never-disappointing life which is life indeed.
So it is with voting. We should do it. But only as if we were not doing it. Its outcomes do not give us the greatest joy when they go our way, and they do not demoralize us when they don’t. Political life is for making much of Christ whether the world falls apart or holds together.
2. “Let those who mourn [do so] as though they were not mourning.”
Christians mourn with real, deep, painful mourning, especially over losses—loss of those we love, loss of health, loss of a dream. These losses hurt. We cry when we are hurt. But we cry as though not crying. We mourn knowing we have not lost something so valuable we cannot rejoice in our mourning. Our losses do not incapacitate us. They do not blind us to the possibility of a fruitful future serving Christ. The Lord gives and takes away. But he remains blessed. And we remain hopeful in our mourning.
So it is with voting. There are losses. We mourn. But not as those who have no hope. We vote and we lose, or we vote and we win. In either case, we win or lose as if we were not winning or losing. Our expectations and frustrations are modest. The best this world can offer is short and small. The worst it can offer has been predicted in the book of Revelation. And no vote will hold it back. In the short run, Christians lose (Revelation 13:7). In the long run, we win (21:4).
3. “Let those who rejoice [do so] as though they were not rejoicing.”
Christians rejoice in health (James 5:13) and in sickness (James 1:2). There are a thousand good and perfect things that come down from God that call forth the feeling of happiness. Beautiful weather. Good friends who want to spend time with us. Delicious food and someone to share it with. A successful plan. A person helped by our efforts.
But none of these good and beautiful things can satisfy our soul. Even the best cannot replace what we were made for, namely, the full experience of the risen Christ (John 17:24). Even fellowship with him here is not the final and best gift. There is more of him to have after we die (Philippians 1:21-23)—and even more after the resurrection. The best experiences here are foretastes. The best sights of glory are through a mirror dimly. The joy that rises from these previews does not and should not rise to the level of the hope of glory. These pleasures will one day be as though they were not. So we rejoice remembering this joy is a foretaste, and will be replaced by a vastly better joy.
So it is with voting. There are joys. The very act of voting is a joyful statement that we are not under a tyrant. And there may be happy victories. But the best government we get is a foreshadowing. Peace and justice are approximated now. They will be perfect when Christ comes. So our joy is modest. Our triumphs are short-lived—and shot through with imperfection. So we vote as though not voting.
4. “Let those who buy [do so] as though they had no goods.”
Let Christians keep on buying while this age lasts. Christianity is not withdrawal from business. We are involved, but as though not involved. Business simply does not have the weight in our hearts that it has for many. All our getting and all our having in this world is getting and having things that are not ultimately important. Our car, our house, our books, our computers, our heirlooms—we possess them with a loose grip. If they are taken away, we say that in a sense we did not have them. We are not here to possess. We are here to lay up treasures in heaven.
This world matters. But it is not ultimate. It is the stage for living in such a way to show that this world is not our God, but that Christ is our God. It is the stage for using the world to show that Christ is more precious than the world.
So it is with voting. We do not withdraw. We are involved—but as if not involved. Politics does not have ultimate weight for us. It is one more stage for acting out the truth that Christ, and not politics, is supreme.
5. “Let those who deal with the world [do so] as though they had no dealings with it.”
Christians should deal with the world. This world is here to be used. Dealt with. There is no avoiding it. Not to deal with it is to deal with it that way. Not to weed your garden is to cultivate a weedy garden. Not to wear a coat in Minnesota is to freeze—to deal with the cold that way. Not to stop when the light is red is to spend your money on fines or hospital bills and deal with the world that way. We must deal with the world.
But as we deal with it, we don’t give it our fullest attention. We don’t ascribe to the world the greatest status. There are unseen things that are vastly more precious than the world. We use the world without offering it our whole soul. We may work with all our might when dealing with the world, but the full passions of our heart will be attached to something higher—Godward purposes. We use the world, but not as an end in itself. It is a means. We deal with the world in order to make much of Christ.
So it is with voting. We deal with the system. We deal with the news. We deal with the candidates. We deal with the issues. But we deal with it all as if not dealing with it. It does not have our fullest attention. It is not the great thing in our lives. Christ is. And Christ will be ruling over his people with perfect supremacy no matter who is elected and no matter what government stands or falls. So we vote as though not voting.
By all means vote. But remember: “The world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:17).
Voting with you, as though not voting,
Pastor John
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
8 men and a baby
Hello everyone. Sorry for the lack of posting lately...it's definitely not because things haven't been happening around here, just our lack to post about it. So, since school has started 8 guys have prayed to receive Christ with some of our student leaders. This has been so cool to watch our student leaders really own their faith & to be faithful to share it with others. Many of the guys that became Christians are on the baseball team where one of the guys Ben leads has been laboring for the last 4 years & is just now seeing the fruit of his labor. So praise the Lord with us for this & that it will continue & that God would protect these new believers & grow them in their faith.
The baby part of course means that Ben and I are having a baby!! We are about 9 weeks along & due in mid-May. We are very excited to be adding our very own home-grown disciple! We'll keep you updated on how baby Creasman in utero is doing. We do know that it is very small right now & we were able to see it's little heartbeat at our last appointment. And we also know that it is making it's mom quite sick. We keep telling it not to, but it's not listening yet!
We'll try to be better bloggers!!
The baby part of course means that Ben and I are having a baby!! We are about 9 weeks along & due in mid-May. We are very excited to be adding our very own home-grown disciple! We'll keep you updated on how baby Creasman in utero is doing. We do know that it is very small right now & we were able to see it's little heartbeat at our last appointment. And we also know that it is making it's mom quite sick. We keep telling it not to, but it's not listening yet!
We'll try to be better bloggers!!
Saturday, September 13, 2008
a few pictures from the summer
We wanted to post some pictures from our Leadership Project down in Myrtle Beach. We asked some students to send us some pictures since we weren't there. God really did a lot in our PC students down there this summer (as well as in South Africa). We are really seeing the fruits of that on the campus right now as students are really seeking to spend time with other students that might not know the Lord as well as grow in their own relationship with Him. Enjoy the pictures.
The whole PC clan.
The girls.
The whole PC clan.
The girls.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
safari continued
Elephants! It was cute to watch because the baby elephants would hold on to their mom's tail with their trunks as they walked along!
This was the only view the rhinos ever gave us. I think they were trying to tell us something!
The pretty zebras.
This was our treat we got on the last day as we were driving back through the park one last time before we had to check out...we spotted lots of cars & so we knew their was something good to see and this is what we found...
The King of the jungle was 10 feet from our car...there were actually 2 of them. I said out loud "they look so nice" and Ben quickly replied, "their not!". So don't worry we didn't try to pet them!
This was the only view the rhinos ever gave us. I think they were trying to tell us something!
The pretty zebras.
This was our treat we got on the last day as we were driving back through the park one last time before we had to check out...we spotted lots of cars & so we knew their was something good to see and this is what we found...
The King of the jungle was 10 feet from our car...there were actually 2 of them. I said out loud "they look so nice" and Ben quickly replied, "their not!". So don't worry we didn't try to pet them!
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