February 2026 Update
Level 2, Term 3 Ends
Another term bites the dust! Outside of a lasting strep infection, and an ongoing ear infection, it has been a relatively smooth experience with 100% less car wrecks compared to last February. The Church History class in particular was rather mind blowing, as I had not heard much about early American Christianity, the 1st and 2nd Great Awakenings, or the history of the Restoration movement beforehand. Even though the churches of Christ do not hold to any creeds, believing the Bible itself is pattern enough to reproduce the Apostolic church, I feel our congregations have done a disservice by not teaching anything about our original founders—their chief motivation, of seeking Christendom’s unity by appealing to the unchanging common denominator of inspired scripture, has been rather obfuscated over 200 years of repeating early church mistakes. This is hardly irreversible or even unexpected, but it does mean the modern Christian might need to borrow that Restorationist spirit to review what our ancient Gospel actually entails. You can see my notes on this topic and recent others here:
Right now we are on domestic campaign, the local evangelistic push required to graduate. Beating the streets is hot work in Texas, even at this time of year, but I hope to report some fruit from it soon. Afterwards is my final break week before Term 4 and graduation, fast approaching. Big thanks to everyone who went beyond to ensure the Israel trip is ago! I’m still trying to set up something productive for summer, though planning while keeping up with SIBI is frankly like juggling two jobs (last year’s trip to Mongolia being prime example). I must admit, I might need to get a third job to help supplement support over the mission and youth focus classes later this year; despite my best efforts budgeting, I actually rely on one-off donations quite a bit to pay monthly expenses. That should be possible then, since the school intentionally tries to avoid homework for extra-credential courses, but it is definitely out of the question for the immediate term. If you want to discuss specifics about my current situation, the provisions I have for the future, or other sensitive considerations, feel free to contact me in person. I’ve given my life to the vision God gave me to get so far, and will continue to do so willingly, but it is foolish to be a lone sheep if I can help it.
Above is my second chapel sermon, which I gave on February 16th; I still am working on physical presentation, but I hope improvement is still evident from earlier recordings. One never feels entirely sufficient for the task of spiritual warfare, but I suppose the enlisted’s strategy is not his own, eh? To God be the glory!