Ice Pops

Faiza told me recently that she now associates ice pops with Christianity due to SCF's tradition of handing out ice pops at multiple campus functions, including move-in day, activities fairs, and the housing lottery. I find this amusing. On one hand, SCF doesn't want to only be known as the nice people who give out ice pops, but it isn't necessarily a bad thing to have this reputation, is it?

Pre Orientation 2010

Joe suddenly came upon the realization that just one year ago, he was a freshman here at Swat. "Time passes by quickly..."

Wes remembered meeting Joe at Orientation last year, and he remembered that Joe had just had jaw surgery, so his teeth were clamped shut. And that reminded Nate that he is going to get braces in October.

What is a collective blog*? Just some SCFers sitting around after Campus Advisor training one afternoon talking about what they remember from their Orientations, especially last year when the class of 2013 was the new freshman class. With somebody taking notes.

Andrew recalled helping Theresa move in. The whole Sepulveda clan- all her sisters and brothers- were there, too. The sign on her door said she was 2011... so why did she get to move in early? Haha, transfers! Tricky people, aren't they?

But Joe was less concerned with moving in than with finding something to eat, what with his special braces...

Claris still remembers move-in day like it was yesterday. "I got here and we had to wait in a line of cars to get to Wharton; there was a guy with lots of stuff but no car, and I helped him out by driving him to the dorm. And I met Maya for the first time- she was really shy! But our room was already set up. It was very pink-" she says, and then the same realization lights up in her face: "I can't believe I'm a sophomore!"

"Now," said Nate, "we're expected to help people! I mean, not really expected, but this is our territory. There's this heightened sense of responsibility that comes from nothing more than the title "sophomore". Now I know the ropes, now I see everything differently."

Claris said, "I'm really excited to meet new people! I'm excited to see roommates, and hoping to delve more into my studies. More focuse, not floating like last year."

"No more saying yes to everything. Learn to say no." said Andrew.

Claris then went off on a tangent about how to properly cut off split ends.

- - -

I remember meeting Cecelia!!! Thank God. – Hana

I remember Wes and Andrew moving me in, and meeting a bunch more SCFers at the orientation table, Greg and Cecelia handing out Go-gurts, and feeling very welcome. I was also very excited to meet my room and hallmates. Many of the people I met on the first day became some of my best friends. I share a spirit of common excitement with the class of 2014, and look forward to meeting them all .We were all freshman once, and know what it's like. - Josh

*What do you remember from last year's Orientation? Add it to the post! (click the pencil to edit)

Summatime Providence

Hello! Oh summer... where'd ya go? My summer was uncertain and that's an understatement. I came home expecting to have a job, but to my immense chagrin only received an email telling me that my job at harley had been eliminated by the hiring back of a supervisor. At first I thought it was God's way of releasing me to follow a calling to work at a Lutheran Outdoors Youth Camp in the Black Hills. Well, I was wrong. So, worse financial aid+no job+raised tuition=complete uncertainty about attending swat in the fall. And, (I mean this in an extremely non-casual way) God provided every week. I basically had a different job every few weeks. Everything from masonry to coffee to day camp and, ultimately, back to motorcycles for the rally. I've still been worrying though... Finances are really really stressful. But then today my Catholic grandma (the nutty one who hates my mother)wrote me a random check for a grand. Say what? Slowly I'm beginning to see how He works quietly through those places that one least expects. It's quietly rejuvenating.

Hope ya'll had a fantastic summer!

Love you!

Hana

Grace

Grace
noun
unmerited divine assistance given humans for their regeneration or sanctification

Recently, I read Phillip Yancey's book "What's So Amazing About Grace". I highly recommend it, and it is the reason why I am writing this. In it, Yancey wrote "I cannot claim that Grace is fair. Grace is, by nature unfair." That line reminded me of a particular line in one of my favorite songs, Be My Escape by Relient K. "The beauty of grace is that it makes life not fair". I didn't get the line until I read the book, where he explains: "We get the opposite of what we deserve". If you really think about it, this is shocking. As human beings, we feel a desire for justice to be done. We sense and intuitively know that some things are broken, wrong and out of place. We want evildoers to be punished and restrained. We often WANT people to "get what they deserve". What we often don't think about, however, is that we are all infected with the same brokenness we see around us. It bothers us, so we often ignore it, claiming to be better than the rest of the world because we try to follow the rules. And yet, even though we try, we fail. We cannot measure up to the rules. We are human. Our concept of "fair" is flawed. We all need Grace. Grace isn't fair, because it treats everyone the same. I need grace, the same as a murderer or thief.

In Matthew 20, Jesus illustrates Grace with a story about workers in a vineyard.
At the beginning of the day, workers agree to work at the set rate. Much later that day, the Master hires more workers, who were previously unemployed. At the end of the day, all the workers receive the same reward, though some had labored longer than others. This is Grace. Though by our own standards, it may not seem "fair", if we claim that another isn't deserving of grace, we reject it. I am reminded of an earlier post on this blog, when Andrew wrote about the woman at the well. Jesus showed grace in this situation as well. By showing us this grace, he allows us to live a life transformed. "Go now, and sin no more." Grace is the enabler of love.

Grace leads us to love, love leads us forwards to more grace. It's a positive cycle, which is something truly amazing. We see so much negativity in the world, yet grace offers hope, peace, and love when it it needed most. It is the antidote to the problem, and the way through conflict.

I often find it hard to show grace and forgive, but knowing that God forgave me, even when I didn't deserve it, and the feeling of gratitude that follows makes it far easier.

I pray that we can all more effectively show the presence of grace this fall, and for the rest of our lives. I think that this is by far the most effective way of illustrating Christ's love for us, especially during tough times, when we need it the most. John Newton said it right, Grace is Amazing, and can save us all.

-Josh