National Service Project: Blood:Water Mission

Many fraternities have a national philanthropy. Something that all brothers come together to work towards, and in effort to improve the world in some small (or large) way. We, as Sigma Theta Epsilon, do not have a national philanthropy. We all do our part, I am certain for various needs, but I like to imagine what we can do as a united body, working together on the same cause, with the same goals.

This year at Fall Gathering, I announced a National Service Project. Until we can agree on a National Philanthropy to take on permanently, I would love to see us take on a charity each year as a National Service Project. This year we, as a National Christian Fraternity, will be working together to raise a goal of $5,000 to build a well in an African Village through our support of Blood:Water Mission.

Blood:Water Mission is a non-profit organization founded by the members of the multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning band, Jars of Clay, to address the HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa.

Blood:Water Mission exists to promote clean blood and clean water efforts in Africa, tangibly reducing the impact of the HIV/AIDS pandemic while addressing the underlying issues of poverty, injustice and oppression. Blood:Water Mission is building clean water wells, supporting medical facilities, and focusing on community and worldview transformation, both here in America and in Africa.

Here are some heart wrenching facts to help motivate all of us to do our part to support this project:

• Every day in Africa, women and children walk as many as six miles to get clean drinking water.
• About 45% of all Africans lack clean water (or about 311 million people).
• One American Dollar buys clean drinking water for one African for one year. That’s $1 for 1 African for 1 year.
• Sub-Saharan Africa has just over 10% of the World’s population. Sub-Saharan Africa is home to 60% of all people living with HIV/AIDS.

Please, join me in the fight. Visit the website. Watch the following video. Work with your chapter and your brothers and everyone else you know so that we, as Sigma Theta Epsilon, can do our part to extend a service project to meet unfilled human needs, as we live Christian lives of faith and service.

Remember, we’ve set a goal of $5,000 nationally to be raised by December 31st, 2008. Additionally, I’ve put forth a contest to the chapters: the chapter that does the best job as decided by the National Board of participating in this National Service Project and advancing the causes of the charity (including but not limited to dollars raised) will receive a brand new, customized altar kit. And, to help motivate and set an example, the National Board will be participating as another chapter.

A little later on, I’ll provide another entry to give ideas and suggestions for raising the money, and I’d love for it to turn into a giant idea-sharing session. But, for now, let’s just consider what we’re being called to, and how we will respond.

National Program Book

The Program Book for 2007-2008 was introduced and released this past weekend over Fall Gathering.

The Program Book contains ideas, activities, discussion points, and other content that will help to focus the brotherhood on the 2007-2008 program theme "Made For Love". I will be discussing some discussion points and highlighting activities on this blog.

The Program Book was distributed to all chapters last night via e-mail in a .pdf format. It is also available for download on the frontpage of the www.sigmatheta.org homepage. It is available for direct download by clicking here.

I hope this tool will be very useful in advancing the purposes and principles of Sigma Theta Epsilon while focusing on the program theme of "Made For Love"

--Tyler

Fall Gathering Discussional

At Fall Gathering, we gathered in the English Chapel at Ohio Northern University, and we had some praise and worship (thanks again, Quinn, for leading that), and we had what I’ve been calling a “discussional”.

I opened it by looking at a clip from “Star Wars: Episode II: Attack of the Clones”. The clip I showed was a conversation between Anakin Skywalker and Padme. The dialogue is what we primarily focused on:

Padme: It must be difficult having sworn your life to the Jedi... not being able to visit the places you like... or do the things you like.
Anakin: Or be with the people I love.
Padme: Are you allowed to love? I thought that was forbidden for a Jedi.
Anakin: Attachment is forbidden. Possession is forbidden. Compassion, which I would define as unconditional love, is essential to a Jedi's life. So you might say, that we are encouraged to love.

I shared briefly on how Anakin Skywalker was twisting the meaning of love, and mistaking two different types of love to make himself feel justified in selfish action. And I asked us to consider how we might twist words and twist love to fit our own desires and plans, rather than God’s at times.

I then looked at John 21:15-23

15When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?"
"Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Feed my lambs."

16Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me?"
He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep."

17 The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?"
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you."

Jesus said, "Feed my sheep. 18 I tell you the truth, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go." 19Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. Then he said to him, "Follow me!"

20Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, "Lord, who is going to betray you?") 21When Peter saw him, he asked, "Lord, what about him?"

22Jesus answered, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me." 23Because of this, the rumor spread among the brothers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say that he would not die; he only said, "If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?"

We talked a little bit about confusion between Peter and Jesus on the difference between Agape love and Philia love. We talked a little bit about how there is a time for both, and a time to be clear just exactly what love we are talking about and just exactly what love we need to be sharing and receiving.

We then had a good discussion. Points were hit upon about the power of words, the need to stick to your words, and the need to be authentic. Brothers from many chapters and a couple different eras shared, and I wanted to give us the opportunity to continue the discussion online, and to allow more people to share their thoughts.

So, please, come, share. Learn, teach, and help all of us be smarter than any one of us …

Discussional 1, School Year 2007-2008

My hope in devotions over the next year is that we can dig deep into the Scriptures together and find greater meaning and greater calling from them, particularly in the area of our theme for the year: Made For Love. As such, we’re probably going to be visiting the same scripture over and over again, as many passages in the Bible or rich and full of meanings. I’ll try to point out a single direction for a conversation to take, and I would love it if a multitude of brothers and friends of STE could join in the conversations and enrich it with their own thoughts, in sights, beliefs, and knowledge. But I would ask that if you see another direction to go with the scripture that is not in that focus range, that you bring that to me privately, and we can have another devotion/discussion on that topic as well.

This is the case with September’s Devotion/Discussion. I’m going to be digging in a little bit of 1 Corinthians 13. Given what our theme for the year is, I’m willing to bet we can spend a lot of time finding plenty of topics here. So I’m going to focus on just one for now.

In fact, I’m going to focus on just one small portion of the chapter, though I encourage you to read and reread it, so you can “live in the chapter” as we discuss it. I’m going to be focusing on the last verse, which is verse 13. It reads: And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

The question I want to ponder is the following: How great is love, and what does that inspire and cause us to do?

Let us start first by looking at what love is compared to here: faith and hope. These are the two other things that remain. And what do we know about these two?

Well, in Hebrews, we are told that faith is being certain of what we do not see. It’s a 180-degree turn from “seeing but not believing”. It’s going beyond trusting your eyesight, to trusting something greater (think about Luke Skywalker, being trained by Obi-Wan Kenobi during his first flight on the Falcon). The dictionary describes faith as: Confidence or trust in a person or thing, and belief that needs no proof. In the book of Matthew, we learn from Jesus himself that if we have faith (and faith that is only the size of a mustard seed), we can do great things, like moving mountains, and that nothing will be impossible.

And hope is not that dissimilar. The dictionary defines hope as: A person or thing on which expectations are centered, the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best, or to believe, desire, or trust. The contemporary rock band Skillet has a song entitled “You Are My Hope”, and from their lyrics, we get an understanding that hope is what gives us strength, live, and everything we could need, and that hope is the one thing that can rescue us when it seems nothing else can.

And yet, we are told that among these three, faith hope and love, that love is the greatest. That love is greater than the power to move mountains, and make the impossible possible. That love is greater than knowing things will turn out for the best, than knowing that a rescue is always possible, and our strength and life and all that we need.

What then, is love, that it is so powerful? How then, should we be motivated to show and share the love that has been given to us, that lives within all of us?

And what does the knowledge of how great love is compel, inspire, and cause us to do?

These are what I want to know. I wish to have a discussion with you on the power we have through love. I could give you my theories and what I believe are the answers, but I don’t think that’s good enough, because I know that all of us is smarter than any one of us.

So come, share, and give your thoughts …

Purpose of this Blog

The purpose of this blog is to highlight and offer insight into the programming of Sigma Theta Epsilon on a national level.

The blog will contain what I call “Discussionals”. They will be something that is a hybrid mix of devotionals and discussions. I’ll try to prompt us with some scripture, some of my insight, and some questions, and then hope we can come together, as fellow workers with our God, to find the applications and implications for our lives individually and corporately. This takes the place of the monthly devotions that Shannon Wagers, who was National Vice President before me, posted on a regular basis on our online discussion boards.

It will also contain snippets about the programming theme, and other programming issues within the fraternity. I would love it if chapters would submit highlights to me so I could post updates of really good events, power uses of the fraternity for the work of God, and outstanding implementation of the Program Book (once it has been distributed, of course).

I will also, on occasion, post a link to an article or some other sort of thing that catches my eye, where I think deep thought and discussion on the article or topic might prove beneficial to going deeper in our program theme, our desire to be fellow workers, and/or our walks with Christ.

I invite participation from everyone. Active brothers of STE, pledges, alumni, honorary brothers, friends of STE, or people just curious as to what or why or how of a National Christian Fraternity. I just ask that we keep it civil, and PG-rated.

So come. Discuss with me. Deepen our walked together. Let iron sharpen iron. Let us become fellow workers on new, deeper levels. Let us understand each other and grow together.

--Tyler