a2f newsletter.

happy wednesday.

hope you’ve been enjoying the incredible week. a foretaste of spring. packed week. we had our regularly programmed a2f tgif + noblemen + new eve. but on top of that, we held our yearly tradition - valentine’s day of compassion. always thankful for an opportunity to show love to a group of people who are often forgotten. just our attention alone was a gift to them as one bro shared how one of the residents just opened up about his life and that bro could tell - he just needed someone to talk to. we got to also put on a program, pass out “sock muffins” and, of course, share the gospel. shoutout to justin + sam for giving the messages (sam, for at least being a trooper and prepping for it 🫡).

the sisters also held a galentine’s. what is a galentines? to be honest - i’m not entirely sure. only girls allowed. but from what i can pick up from my office is - a lot of food, a lot of laughter, and opportunity to share + pray. and then ending the night with… dancing? if you want to know more - well you’ll have to wait until next year.

here’s the vlog for this past week.

for this week - we’re going to be starting a new series leading up to our baptism. “how does salvation actually work” - we’re going to be talking about what it means to be saved and questions related to that theme like can you lose your salvation? if you want to learn more - come this sunday. 12p. walc 1018. lunch afterwards.

again, if you have any questions, go ahead and use this form - q + a with dj form

and if you would like a coffee chat with either me or tabby, we created this standing google calendar link - schedule a coffee chat with dj or tabby

dj.

sunday. 3/1. 12p. walc 1018.

a2f sunday. how does salvation actually work? what does it mean to be “saved”? how come the gospel feels so restrictive when i know it ought to be joyful? come join us to learn more. and, of course, lunch afterwards.

i was challenged again this week by a counter-intuitive statement jesus presses into his disciples.

i’ve been thinking about glory.

maybe it’s because the winter olympics are here. men and women who have trained their entire lives for a single moment—one run, one jump, one race—for glory. a skier, despite her age and an injured knee, chose to race one more time. she crashed and broke her leg. why take that risk?

glory.

it’s a difficult word to define, but we know it when we see it. glory is to be seen and honored. to be noticed. to be respected. to matter.

every culture has its own strategy for attaining glory.

for first-century jews, glory came through power—through signs and miracles that demonstrated divine favor. for the greeks, glory came through wisdom—the brilliance of the mind. and for us, modern americans, glory comes through competence. through career. through accomplishment. through building something impressive enough that others cannot help but notice.

this is how we ascend. how we become someone.

but when jesus speaks about glory, everything turns upside down.

“the hour has come,” he says, “for the son of man to be glorified.” and then he immediately explains what he means: unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone. but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

glory, according to jesus, comes through descent.

it comes through falling to the ground like a seed. through dying. through losing one’s life. through serving rather than being served.

it is so counter-intuitive. so deeply paradoxical.

and yet, this was not merely something jesus taught. it was something He lived.

he was the seed that fell into the earth. the seed that died. as he walked toward the cross, he chose the path of descent—the path of surrender, of suffering, of apparent loss. but that death was not the end. it was the beginning. through His death came life. through His suffering came salvation. through His descent came his glory.

and in the end, the promise was fulfilled:

“the father honors him.”

this is the pattern of glory in the kingdom of god. down before up. death before life. surrender before honor.

and now jesus extends the same invitation to us.

it is, if we are honest, a frightening invitation. it means releasing our grip on our need to be impressive. it means letting go of our demand to be seen and validated by others. it means trusting that what feels like loss may actually be the path to life.

but it is also an invitation with a promise—a promise proven true again and again. first in jesus Himself, and then in countless lives transformed by following him.

tim keller once captured this paradox beautifully:

george müller, who cared for more than 10,000 orphans in england, was once asked the secret of his life. he answered simply:

this is the way of glory.

not the glory of being noticed by the world, but the deeper, truer glory of being known and honored by god.

and the invitation still stands before us today.

to fall like a seed.

to trust the promise.

and to discover that on the other side of surrender lies life.

until next time.

dj.