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Articles from this month's issue of the Berean News |
Perspectiveby Larry UrbaniakMonday, June 3rd, was checkout day. I retired. I walked out of York High School with very mixed emotions. I am writing this column two days later to share with you some of my thoughts and reflections. And to help me put it all into perspective. I taught half a year in Chicago. Then in the fall of 1965, I returned to teach at the school where I had done my student teaching. I have taught mathematics at York for 37 years. I was the “Duke of York” (a title that goes to the male teacher who has been at York the longest) for the last three years. During my career at York there were eight different superintendents and seven different principals. It is rather significant, however, that there were only two Math Department chairpersons in all those years. In my last year I taught seven students whose parents I had also taught. During the last month of school I have been overwhelmed by the kindness and thoughtfulness of students and colleagues, both present and past. It has been a very emotional time for me. I did not expect it to be so difficult to retire. I have received an abundance of cards, letters, personal comments, and gifts. Besides the usual all school retirement dinner and program (a very nice, rather formal affair), the department had a Sunday afternoon lunch and party for me and Gary, the other Math teacher who was also retiring. Joyce, David, Tracie, Mom, and Faith were able to attend both of these affairs. (Mom said she wanted to hear what everyone would say about me.) The department also took Gary and me out to dinner and a White Sox game. Students had a surprise party for me before school one morning, complete with decorated room, food, a giant poster, notes, and cards. I could go on, but you get the idea. And I’m not really a party-type person. As I walked out of the building Monday, I paused in front of the principal’s office. Our principal, Dr. Linda Yonke, was in a meeting. I waved and she saw me. She came out of her meeting and gave me a big hug. “I wish you weren’t leaving,” she said. And she cried. I did too. I have had tears in my eyes a lot these last few weeks. I have been greatly moved. I have been especially affected by the comments and notes that have mentioned my Christianity. We so seldom get to know who and how we are affecting others or whether they see us trying to live out our Christian commitment. I thank God for the job I have had. I have been blessed greatly. I have loved teaching. It is such a joy to see students light up when they understand. I will surely miss the daily challenges and interactions with students and fellow teachers. I have had the privilege of teaching courses to fellow teachers, of training student teachers, of mentoring new teachers, of contributing to a textbook, and even of being department chair for a short time. The people in my department have been great. We have shared, argued, joked, supported each other, and had a grand time together. The atmosphere in our department was always stimulating, challenging, and fun. We have loved each other. I will miss my fellow math teachers most of all. I have learned so much in my years at York. Yes, I have learned a great deal of mathematics, computer programming, and teaching techniques. But I have also learned much about interpersonal relationships, about giving and receiving, and about the influence and impact we often have without ever realizing it. I have learned the importance of Christian witness and influence in a large public high school. When we are open and vocal (in appropriate ways) about our faith, others open up and share and witness also. Discussing and sharing with fellow Christian teachers and students has been a particular blessing for which I am grateful. I am sad about leaving York High School. I think I will miss it. It has been part of the very fabric of my life for so long now. But I leave the best way possible, still loving my job. I did not think it would be so difficult. Nevertheless, I am still retiring. I think it is time. I look forward to a new phase of life and all the opportunities that retirement will present. And I hope and pray that I will be able to keep everything in proper perspective. |
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Roy's Reflections I’ll start my article with a story I read in a book titled “Illustrations for Preaching and Teaching”. “I saw him in the church building for the first time on Wednesday. He was in his mid-70’s, with thinning silver hair and a neat brown suit. Many times in the past I had invited him to come to church. Several other Christian friends had talked to him about the Lord and had tried to share the good news with him. He was a well-respected, honest man with so many characteristics a Christian should have, but he had never accepted Christ, nor entered the doors of the church. “Have you ever been to a church service in your life?” I had asked him a few years ago. We had just finished a pleasant day of visiting and talking. He hesitated. Then with a bitter smile he told me of his childhood experience some fifty years ago. He was one of many children in a large impoverished family. His parents had struggled to provide food, with little left for housing and clothing. When he was about ten, some neighbors invited him to worship with them. The Sunday School class had been very exciting! He had never heard such songs and stories before! He had never heard anyone read from the Bible! After class was over, the teacher took him aside and said, “Son, please don’t come again dressed as you are now. We want to look our best when we come into God’s house.” He stood in his ragged, unpatched overalls. Then looking at his dirty bare feet, he answered softly, “No, ma’am, I won’t - ever.” “And I never did,” he said, abruptly ending our conversation. There must have been other factors to have hardened him so, but this experience formed a significant part of the bitterness in his heart. I’m sure that Sunday School teacher meant well. But did she really understand the love of Christ? Had she studied and accepted the teachings found in the second chapter of James? What if she had put her arms around the dirty, ragged little boy and said, “Son, I am so glad you are here, and I hope you will come back every chance you get to hear more about Jesus.” I reflected on the awesome responsibility a teacher or minister or a parent has to welcome little ones in His name. How far-reaching her influence was! I prayed that I might be ever open to the tenderness of a child’s heart, and that I might never fail to see beyond the appearance and behavior of a child to the eternal possibilities within. Yes, I saw him in the church house for the first time on Wednesday. As I looked at that immaculately dressed old gentleman lying in his casket, I thought of the little boy of long ago. I could almost hear him say, “No, ma’am, I won’t - ever.” And I wept...” That’s a very sad story, isn’t it? But oh so true. We tend to look at those who dress differently, or with different hairstyles, or different transportation, through critical eyes....after all, they’re different! No, they’re not! The same God who made you, made them. And in scripture, where it says “let us make man in Our own Image”, it doesn’t give one perfect model for human appearances! Jesus is the Savior of ALL - when He gave the great commission, He said “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matt 28:19 When He said ALL nations, that’s exactly what He meant, and He has a special place in His heart for the “everyday Joe.” In fact, He spent most of His time with plain old everyday people: people who didn’t put on false pretenses, who didn’t feel the need to put on a dog and pony show to draw attention to themselves. So remember: the person who looks like they need a bath, who drives the old, broken down car, who doesn’t have fancy clothes to wear to church; they need Jesus too. And you can be the first step to their meeting Him face to face, or you can be the one with the insensitive words who drives them away. And I don’t want to be the one who has to stand before God one day and explain THAT ONE...how about you? So reach out a hand in Christian love and fellowship; perhaps help them to their feet, because under that unattractive exterior layer may be the most special person you will ever meet, but you’ll never know it if you don’t try to find out. |
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Viewpoints
The Purpose of Worship by Dennis Thorfeldt In the 4th chapter of Revelation, John is given a revelation in which God is seated upon His throne surrounded by the heavenly hosts. “Day and night they never stop saying: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty who was, and is, and is to come.’” The praise of God seems to be a law written into the very structure of the universe. The Bible teaches that our ultimate purpose is to praise God. In him we were also chosen…in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. (Ephesians 1:11-12) Richard Foster defines worship as “to know, to feel, to experience the resurrected Christ in the midst of the gathered community. It is our responding to the overtures of love from the heart of the Father.” In the past most Bible Student churches and conferences have vastly underplayed the importance of worship. If you look at some of the old (and perhaps present) convention programs, you will find that often 7 or 8 sermons were crammed into a single day. Possibly, there might be a half-hour testimony or song service squeezed in between. Thankfully, things have changed, at least in the free Bible Student movement. The Berean Christian Conference begins each day with a half hour Worship Service and ends with Vespers each evening. Our church here in Lombard (Cicero) used to start Sunday services with the singing of 2 or 3 hymns which were selected by the chairman of the day (frankly, quite often, with not a lot of thought put into the selection of the hymns). Today we have a carefully planned 30 minute Worship Service accompanied by 4 praise singers, and from a 6 – 8 member praise band. This praise team rehearses several hours each month to prepare for the worship services. One of the best ways we can worship God is through praise. “But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.” (Psalms 22:3) Praise is where God lives. He inhabits our praises. He is at home in praise. When we are praising God, we are, in effect, inviting Him to be in our presence. This is even more true when we praise Him with fellow Christians. Don’t you just feel the presence of the Lord when, we as a congregation, sing a stirring song of praise to the Lord? Don’t you just feel that the Spirit is right there in the room? That’s because God inhabits our praise. In Psalms 100, the psalmist tells us to: Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. The psalmist tells us to “enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise” Any time we enter into worship, we should start out with praise and thanksgiving, whether it is private worship or at a church service. Rushing into worship without first praising the Lord is like trying to break into His tabernacle without entering through the gate. Worship helps prepare our hearts for the sermon or Bible study that follows. Music provides a medium for the expression of our emotions. It helps us to express joy and thanksgiving. It helps to focus our sometimes fragmented minds and spirits into a unified whole poised toward God. It is often one of the means by which people make a decision to consecrate their lives to the Lord. Music has a way of softening the heart and making us more receptive to the urgings of the Spirit. It can be used as an instrument by which the Lord can reach us through our emotions. The purpose of worship is to change us. If it doesn’t, it's not real worship. It should not be viewed as a spectator sport. Paul says that “When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.” (1 Corinthians 14:26) Some Christians seem to expect to be entertained by the worship service. Or they play the part of “worship service critic”. Instead of being blessed by the experience and joining in the praise, they focus on the quality of the presentation. But worship is not a talent contest. Its purpose is first, to bless and glorify God, and second, to bring about a change in ourselves by experiencing the resurrected Christ. As Paul said, “all of this must be done for the strengthening of the church.” |
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A Kid's View A mother was preparing pancakes for her sons, Kevin, 5, Ryan, 3. The boys began to argue over who would get the first pancake. Their mother saw the opportunity for a moral lesson. “If Jesus were sitting here, He would say ‘Let my brother have the first pancake, I can wait.’ Kevin turned to his younger brother and said, “Ryan, you be Jesus!” After the church service a little boy told the pastor, “When I grow up, I’m going to give you some money.” “Well, thank you,” the pastor replied, but why?” “Because my daddy says you’re one of the poorest preachers we’ve ever had.” A wife invited some people to dinner. At the table, she turned to their six-year old daughter and said, “Would you like to say the blessing?” “I wouldn’t know what to say,” the girl replied. “Just say what you hear Mommy say,” the wife answered. The daughter bowed her head and said, Lord, why on earth did I invite all these people to dinner?” A Sunday school class was studying the Ten Commandments. They were ready to discuss the last one. The teacher asked if anyone could tell her what it was. Susie raised her hand, stood tall, and quoted, ”Thou shall not take the covers off thy neighbor’s wife.” At Sunday School they were teaching how God created everything, including human beings. Little Johnny, a child in the kindergarten class, seemed especially intent when they told him how Eve was created out of one of Adam’s ribs. Later in the week his mother noticed him lying as though he were ill, and said, “Johnny what is the matter?” Little Johnny responded, “I have a pain in my side. I think I’m going to have a wife!” A Sunday school teacher asked her little children, as they were on the way to church service, “And why is it necessary to be quiet in church?” One bright little girl replied, “Because people are sleeping.” A little boy was overheard praying: “Lord, if you can’t make me a better boy, don’t worry about it. I’m having a real good time like I am.” |