| Dear Friends, Can you think back to the time where you were a sophomore in high school, or perhaps even college? The etymology of word “sophomore” is broken down like this: sophos is the greek word for “wise or clever” and moros means “foolish”. So, literally, when you are a sophomore, you are “a wise fool.” If you were anything like me as a 16-year-old sophomore, you may have been a little more fool than you were wise. However, according to 1 Corinthians 4:10, being a fool is considered to be a good thing. How can this be? What do I mean by this? “We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute.” The Apostle Paul is telling the Corinthian church that being a fool for the sake of Christ should be viewed in a positive light. Why? Because anyone engaged in Christian ministry will inevitably be labeled as a fool. Anyone engaged in the task of proclaiming the word of the cross, which is folly for those who are perishing (1 Cor. 2:18), will be seen as a fool by those who are perishing. The world doesn’t have a category for our belief in a guy who lived and supposedly died on a cross 2,000 years ago. It doesn’t make sense to them. Why would someone commit their life to someone they have never even met or never even seen? As Christians, we know the answer to this question. We have seen. We have met him. And we believe by the power of God’s grace. By his grace, God gives us faith to behold and see Christ and him crucified. By his grace, we have met Jesus at the foot of the cross where we exchanged our sin for his righteousness. This is how we can have faith. And the very same cross that was our salvation becomes our proclamation. If you have been saved by the cross of Christ, the cross of Christ will become the content of of your preaching. You may not be called to preach in the pulpit on Sunday mornings. However, make no mistake. Every Christian must be involved in Christian ministry centered around the foolish spectacle that is the cross. If you are a Christian, this implies two unavoidable realities: 1) the cross will become center to your life and speech and 2) you will be characterized as a fool for it. Do your lost friends, neighbors, family, co-workers, etc. consider you to be a fool for the sake of Christ? Or are you so concerned with reputation and status that the priorities of Christ get put on the back-burner? Have gospel-centered conversations and cruciform-living been unimportant to you as a result of “keeping up appearances”?What is it going to take for you to see yourself as a fool for the sake of Christand wise in Christ? Indeed, the world regards you as a fool for following a carpenter that lived 2 millennia ago. Simultaneously though, Christ will call you wise for attaching yourself to him. So, be a sophomore for Christ. Be a wise fool for him. NxTGen is our group for young adults at Redeemer that meets on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday each month for a time of fellowship, learning, and growth. Contact Pat Howell with questions.  Our students are also going to be starting the Fall off right with a great time of fun, food, and a Bible study series. Make plans to join and invite a friend! CHANGE OF PLANS, PLEASE READ Because of the incessant heat there is to be a slight change of plans for that afternoon. Instead of s’more and outdoor worship, we will be playing water balloon games, enjoying freeze pops, and singing worship indoors. If you have a student that is planning to attend, have them come in clothes they don’t mind getting wet.  Parents! It’s almost Awana time! Registration is open for the fall. We will be having a Kick-off night on August 30th for parents and kids. Hope you will join us!  And you can register for Awana here: https://redeemerlr.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/1833857 Also, here is an intro letter that outlines some specific info of what you can expect Awana to look like in the Fall.  Here is a breakdown of each age group and class:  Finally, here is the vision for Awana as laid out by Laura White:  Coming this fall… Contact Jen if you have any questions.  I don’t know about you but I have been super challenged and encouraged as we have been trekking our way through Hebrews 11. We will continue to look at the lives of the patriarchs as Matt will take us through how Moses had faith in the promises of God. See you at church. Blessings in Christ, Cole Perkins |
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