The Power of Stories

Today in chapel, we heard about stories.

Everyone who spoke was affected in a different way by a different story, and all of us as listeners also connected in an unique way. From personal stories to Bible stories that everyone knows, every story has a meaning.

Junior Abby Bush said she remembers
being a child and acting out the part
of Jarius' daughter when her mother 
would read the Bible story in church.

Many times, we go through things that we really don't want to go through. We wonder why anything like that would have to happen. But everything happens for a reason, and if we share our story and the meaning behind it, people around us will be able to take something from it and learn something about us. Although it may make us feel vulnerable, sharing our expierences with others really does help both ourselves and the listener. People can get advice, wisdom, encouragement, or a feeling of love just from listening to one story. And when no one has to hide anything, we can experience freedom like we never have before--because we know that we are accepted for who we are.

-- Brie Rotelle

The "O" in RADIO: Openness

MCUSA's Glen Guyton used the last day of Spiritual Life Emphasis to review what he had talked about in the previous chapels, and to discuss the last topic in his RADIO theme: Openness.

R = Reaching. Reach out to the source of your faith and stay connected to God. Then reach out to those around, maybe even a new crew.

A = Adopting. Give up whatever separates you from fully participating in God's family. Treat others like part of the family. Enjoy all the benefits that come with being part of the family of God.

D = Discipleship. Find a spiritual mother or father, a mentor who can help you walk the walk. You don't have to go it alone.

I = Involvement. Don't be a spectator in your life, or your faith. Get involved! Realize that your gifts and talents are important. Use them!

O = Openness. Be open to the call of God on your life. If you are open to who God created you to be, you will be amazed at what He can do through you. Be open to new people, people who are different from you. Be open to making mistakes. Some of the greatest inventions in the world have been the result of mistakes.

Take your everyday, ordinary, walking-around life and place it before God as an offering. Don't be conformed to this world, don't let the world drag you down to its level of immaturity. But be transformed--and be open to what God has for you.

The “I” in Radio: Involvement

The takeaways from Thursday morning had nothing to do with dancing, piggy-back rides, or the long lost brother of Menno Simons—although from the past three mornings, anything was possible—but rather Glen had for us three visuals to go along with his message. He had three objects made from clay: a terra cotta flower pot, an ornate candle holder that he borrowed from our campus pastor’s wash room, and a small, simple tea cup. He analyzed each object and showed us each of their differences and how their lone similarity was that they all were created from clay.

So what? Thursday’s focus was involvement. Like the clay objects, we as people are all unified by one similarity. We are humans, created by God, placed here on earth to further His Kingdom. Aside from this lone similarity, we are all created vastly different; we all have different gifts, talents, traits, and things that set us apart to do things that other people may not be able to do. Glen told us the story of a big event that he was heading up. He told us how there was a lady who came up to him at the end and asked if she could help clean up. He said this was one of the most impactful moments in his dealings with Involvement. She had no desire to be in the spotlight, she just wanted to help out and get things done.

We should strive to use our gifts, our differences, to reflect Christ’s light into the world; whether that means being “out in front” or being the “trash can.” The “trash can” imagery was used to demonstrate that even something as seemingly lowly as a person who helps out behind the scenes, or helps clean up when everything is done with are in fact just as important to the operation as the people who head it up. All that matters is that we become involved.

-- Andrew Gordon

The "D" in RADIO: Discipleship

Today was our third day in SLEW, and we came onto our third topic of R.A.D.I.O.--Discipleship. Most of what Glen talked about today was about having a mentor; having someone who would do anything for you, encourage you, pray with and for you, and be there for you. Our mentor should be someone who we look up to. Someone who we trust and who has similar ideas about life.

As Christians, we want people to see Jesus when they look at us. We try to act like Him, love like Him, and live like Him. Jesus is our mentor. When we need comfort, support, encouragement, love, or just to be held, Jesus is always there, and always will be. But sometimes He seems too far away to reach... and we need something more tangible. Something like a mentor. When we feel like we can't reach Jesus, we can reach out to others. They can help us through and share in the struggle.

Glen was able to connect all of our words in R.A.D.I.O with the D... discipleship. We adopt others into the family of Christ so we can reach to Jesus... and each other. We all need to "let go and let God." Everyone needs help, and you can find someone who can give it to you.

So make a list of attributes of people that you like. See how you would want your mentor to act, and write it down. You will be blessed if you can be discipled by someone else in the family of God.

-- Brie Rotelle

The "A" in RADIO: Adoption

Glen mentioned on Tuesday that “Adoption,” by definition, means to choose, or to make one’s own by selection; to take and rear, or to accept or act in accordance to an accepted principle. After we “reach out” to God—the first term of R.A.D.I.O. —he “adopts” us into His family. God picks us, He isn’t stuck with us. After reading Dr. Seuss’ The Starbelly Sneetches, Glen made the connection between the ethnocentric, or should I say starocentric, sneetches and people. Sometimes we get so caught up in the stuff we have, the clothes we wear, the people we are around and so many other pointless material things. I am guilty of this and sometimes it seems I can’t help but care about the stupid images of what the “ideal teen” is according to the media.

The parallel to the sneetches is obvious. But unlike the sneetches, we believe in God who, in turn, loves us regardless of “stars upon thars” or the strict criteria of this modern generation. Glen said “…it’s not the clothes who make me who I am.” Not the clothes but God’s “ridiculous” grace which we do not deserve.

Life starts when we are adopted into the family of God by his grace, and He will provide all we need to live it. Let’s attend to Glen’s challenge for us this past Tuesday and give it up, whatever it may be, that holds us back from loving God and loving others. Let’s live life booming and crazy-loud; maybe even as loud as a radio.

-- Abby Bush

The "R" in RADIO: Reaching

Students probably don't remember the boomboxes of the 1970s and 80s--maybe only from pictures. They were big as a house, weighing up to 25 lbs., with 16 batteries, hyper-bass and scads of speakers. Like the one pictured above.

They made some serious noise, and everybody in a quarter-mile radius heard you....even felt you. That's how deep and loud the bass boom was from these boxes.

Today, the loud, in-your-face, hear-you-comin-from-a-mile-away boombox has given way to a more "genteel" form of entertainment: the personal stereo. You know it as an iPod, or mp3 player. These technological wonders create the same big sound the boomboxes made, but they make it available ONLY to you. You listen to what you want to listen to, and those around you can't hear a thing. They may not even be aware you're listening to music at all.

Let's say each of these music devices represented the way we live our faith. Which one would best represent your faith?

In the first chapel of Spiritual Life Emphasis Week, Mennonite Church USA's Glen Guyton suggested to Dock students that while the boombox is a technology that has fallen out of fashion, it is by far a better analogy for the way Christians are to live their faith.

"I want you to think about your faith this week," Guyton told students. "It should be big and booming, just like that big old boombox--not some iPod Nano faith."

What kind of faith do you have? Is it like a boombox, out there for all to see and hear and feel? Or is like an iPod--a quiet, I'll-just-keep-this-to-myself kind of faith. If your faith is more like an iPod than a boombox, maybe it's time to let the world know what kind of beat you're listening to. You never know--they may want to dance to it, too.

Talking about boomboxes was also Glen's way of introducing the SLEW theme, R.A.D.I.O. On Monday he discussed the first letter, "R," which stands for "Reach."

"One of the things I have come to understand," he said, "is that God always has his hand out to us. We simply have to say yes, and reach out to him. The spirit of God connects each of us. So reach out to God. Did you give God the summer off? Reach out to him. Reach out to other people. You'll be amazed what God can do."