Things are coming together…

It’s the second week of J-term for me now, and I’m getting used to the rhythm of things. By the time I’m comfortably enjoying my new routine, it will abruptly change again!

Seeing as how I like to know what to expect, I was very happy to get a call today from my supervising pastor at church. We talked about the Discover Jesus class that’s coming up in February, and what my participation in it will look like. Two of the pastors will teach some of the classes, and another member of the church and I will teach the others. One thing I really like about my church is that all the ministries seem to run on team leadership, so I’m excited not only to have the opportunity to teach, but also to be involved in the planning and visioning of this ministry.

So, the first topic they gave me to teach on Week 3 is “What’s wrong with the world?” Whoops! Don’t get me started. Actually, that’s their clever way of introducing the topic of the “fall,” or sin entering the world. I will get a chance to introduce myself on the first night of class, so talking about sin won’t be my first interaction with the participants. That would be kind of a downer. But whatever the topic, I am very excited to teach—something I love doing but haven’t done in the church for a while.

Speaking of teaching, yesterday the pastor from the church I was at previously offered me a teaching opportunity that we first talked about last summer. Besides being a church-planter for the Hispanic Ministry of the denomination, he also started a ministry training program for leaders of Hispanic churches who may not have the opportunity to go to a formal seminary. So to kick off the new block of classes, he invited me to give a basic Greek class over two Saturdays in February. This is a great opportunity not just to introduce Biblical Greek to church leaders, but also its implications for understanding Scripture and how we teach it. At first I felt overwhelmed by the challenge of teaching anything useful about Greek in such a short amount of time (8 hours total), but thanks to some pointers from a couple of Greek professors I think I can do it and make it fun.

So, I have a lot to look forward to. It’s amazing how recently I’ve been itching for the opportunity to be more active in teaching and ministry again, and within 24 hours I’ve received two great opportunities. I knew God would surprise me!