April is a month for visitors, starting with Annie’s parents Stephen and Marilyn Herwaldt from Lansing, Michigan, for two weeks. Allan’s sister Allison, her husband Steve and their seven-month-old daughter Amelia are also visiting this month from England. And later in the month two of Will’s buddies will be coming for a week. It’s been a great experience having visitors here and remembering the first impressions that the township and the Powerhouse made on us: the vibrant singing and worship, the beautiful shining faces and the wonderfully welcoming hospitality have taken on fresh color and meaning as we observe first-time visitors taking it all in. It also makes us excited to welcome the teams from our churches back home (Grace Community Church and Atlanta Westside) at the end of May.
Annie’s dad was invited to lead a two-session seminar on biblical leadership for the elders and leaders at the Powerhouse, and everyone was really blessed by his presentation a few evenings ago. Mr. Herwaldt is clearly someone who knows Jesus. He is humble and thoughtful as he speaks, but when he’s presenting the truth he doesn’t waiver one bit. I was particularly interested in this session because our church back home, our pastor Ru and Rebecca and I are prayerfully considering the possibility of my serving as an elder when we return home. After the sessions I am still considering serving our church in this office, but I have to say that if there was any shred of thought that I could do it in my own strength, that’s gone now. Mr. Herwaldt went through all the biblical requirements of being an elder in the first session, and then fleshed out the different duties that elders perform in the church. Throughout both presentations it became clear that while the standards are high, they are qualities that are like Christ, and in that sense should be learned by all believers. We’ve posted the two sessions online for anyone interested. Click on the buttons below to listen.
Part I of “Biblical Leadership in The Church”: The Qualifications of an Elder
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Part II of “Biblical Leadership in The Church”: The Job of An Elder, The Tools of An Elder
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This past Sunday we enjoyed a relaxing family lunch with Annie’s parents and much of Allan’s extended family. We have felt warmly welcomed into Allan’s family since being in South Africa and always enjoy the feeling of having a family away from home when we see them from time to time. See the 3D Panoramic image shot of the group below.
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Starting with the man in the hat with sunglasses, to the right:
Steve, Allison and Amelia, Marvin, Annie, Stephen and Marilyn Herwaldt, Craig, Brendan, Allan, Robert, Ashley, Tatiana, Tanneth, Renee, Rebecca and Jolene.
Instructions for Viewing the 3D Panoramic Image: The image above is a three dimensional panoramic image. Click on the image and drag left, right, up or down to view the entire scene.
Filed under: 3D Panoramic Image and General by Nathan on April 6th, 2009. Tags: eldership, family, first impressions, leadership, visitors |
We just couldn’t miss the National Championship game last night, so we decided to watch it—live on ESPN at 3 in the morning! Will, Nate and I went over to the Nyathis’ house around midnight and were welcomed by UNC sweatshirts and T-shirts draped over the dining room table and chairs and, even better, Carolina blue sheets on the beds! With Mandla, the three of us woke up 10 minutes til tip-off and had a good time watching our alma mater secure its place as the #1 college basketball team in the U.S. We went back to bed around 6 a.m., satisfied and proud of our team but sad to miss the excitement on Franklin Street. Incidentally, the AR House was a house divided this year. To Annie and Rachael Dagani, both MSU grads: sorry about your team… there’s always next year…