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Watch this video about Uncertainty…

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“Go and make disciples of all the nations.” So begins the Great Commission. But are we obeying Christ’s call?

The Perspectives class is a great way to enter the Great Commission. It begins at the Hudson Community Chapel on January 12^th and meets Mondays from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Or take the class on Tuesday evenings, beginning January 13^th at Grace Christian Missionary Alliance Church in Middleburg Heights.

All our new ministries are so exciting: the Discovery Groups, the International Student Ministry, Crossroads, and the Western Ohio Enterprise demonstrate how many in our fellowship are pursuing the Great Commission.

But are we taking the gospels to “all the nations” by participating in God’s work around the globe?

[callout]Meet missionaries serving in the Middle East or in cannibal tribes or the slums of India[/callout]

What Will You Discover?

If you want God to rock your world, take Perspectives on the World Christian Movement. The fifteen-week course offers a challenging look at the theology, history, and methods of missions. It’s appropriately titled, as any alumni will agree: the class transforms your view of God, the gospel, the world, and your part in God’s plan.

Meet missionaries serving in the Middle East or in cannibal tribes or the slums of India. What stories they tell, and the pictures and insights! This is a typical night at Perspectives class.  It means developing deep convictions and new understandings you never held before.

“It was really eye-opening to see how much of the world doesn’t have access to the gospel and what missionaries are doing that we have no idea about,” Diana Michalek said. She also loved learning about the many indigenous movements such as the underground church in China. Her favorite memories of the class include a video about how a tribe in Papua New Guinea came to Christ and hearing Don Richardson (author of The Peace Child­) speak.

It’s so easy to get bogged down in our own culture’s version of Christianity, but it isn’t an Americanized belief,” said Jackie Leon. “Learning about missions broadened my understanding of the way the Lord works around the world.” This was important to Jackie because a secular friend told her Christianity was a Western religion, but the Perspectives class helped her understand that, “God doesn’t want every church to be like the Western church.”

Practical Learning

“We’re learning about things we can do here,” Diana said.

Ryan Leon agreed: “It really helped to learn about the history of missions, what worked and didn’t work in different fields.”

Be forewarned: Perspectives will change you. Diana, Jackie, and Ryan have taken new steps to financially support missions work, write to missionaries, teach others about missions, reach out to international students, and learn more through reading. The Gibsons, missionaries to Taiwan, took the course as freshman in college and asked, “If we’re able to go, why not go?” It’s a scary question, but the Gibsons are so glad they asked it.

“I recommend every Christian take Perspectives,” Jackie said.

Check out perspectives.org for more information and to register soon!

Video Describing the Course

[googlevideo]http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7015285992431636337[/googlevideo]

Read all about the new Love Ethics class sponsored by Columbus, Xenos, featuring ... guess who? Cleveland people can go without any class costs, of course...

The poster says it all…

Do You Know the Old Testament? On October 1st we launch an Old Testament survey course for the first time in nearly a decade...Students will be guided through the entire Old Testament by Darlene McCallum and Mark Michalek...

Do You Know the Old Testament?

On October 1st we launch an Old Testament survey course for the first time in nearly a decade, and it promises to deepen an understanding of God’s character, your relationship with God, your ability to defend your faith, and most important to understand

“It’s a big chunk of the Bible,” Mark Michalek said. “But what’s it doing there? Your understanding of the Bible is incomplete without the Old Testament.”

The class is a vital part of the Leadership Training Class series, so those enrolled in LTC should plan on attending the class.

Raised in a Post-Christian era, many Christians — especially those under 40 — are so unfamiliar with the Old Testament they become uncomfortable speaking about it and the concepts it teaches, Mark said.

Students will be guided through the entire Old Testament by Darlene McCallum and Mark Michalek. The Scarlet Thread will serve as a background textbook. The course will answer questions such as:

How does the Old Testament apply today? Should we digging through the laws and applying them? What’s the role of the Old Testament in your daily life?

Is God different in the Old and New Testaments? Critics such as Dawkins would say so. How would you defend accusations like this:

The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character of all fiction; jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control freak; a vindictive, blood-thirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously-malevolent bully. Richard Dawkins, God Delusion, p.31 [Haughton-Mifflin, 2006]

Old Testament Survey will meet every other week for five sessions, with a test. It will cost $35, but $10 for students and $50 for couples.