By Danielle Kearney, MBC Bethesda Kids Quest Future Leader

A year ago this time I would never have imagined that I would be here at McLean Bible Church as a Future Leader. First off, I did not even know the program existed, and secondly, I was looking to do missions and planned on heading overseas upon graduation. However, through a series of circumstances, including issues with my mom’s health, the Lord kept me in this area and led me to McLean Bible Church and the Future Leaders Program.

Now here I am part of a team launching a new campus in Maryland and being a part of the children’s ministry program and seeing God do such great work in this place. I have been able to establish such great friendships and have been able to see God do such a work in and through my life. In so many ways, this year is better than I would have planned and God has exceeded my expectations. Although this year has come with its challenges and discouragements, I am confident that I am in the Lord’s will and there is no other place I would rather be. God has so clearly confirmed that this is where He wants me and I have such a peace and joy in that.

I am reminded of Proverbs 16:9, “In a man’s heart he plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.”

I have learned that I must write my plans with a pencil and give God the eraser. God’s ways are so much greater than mine and His thoughts are so high above mine (Isaiah 55). In giving up control, there is so much freedom and peace in knowing that God is sovereign and will direct everything according to His perfect will. God knew where He wanted me and I am confident He has put me here at McLean for such a time as this. I am so thankful that God is the one writing the plans for my life and am confident that He will continue to lead and guide me as I follow Him.

By Bobby Morgenthaler, MBC Bethesda Student Ministry Future Leader

I’ve often wondered if a boxer’s sparing partner is allowed to say when to make the pummeling stop?  Interestingly, sparring partner is the title that often comes to mind when I think about my experience as a future leader, although, I’m not sure if know if being a sparing partner is even the best way to describe the Future Leader experience.  That title alone is misleading because of what it implies.  That would imply that every so often we get to swing back.  Swing back? …Ha!  No.  There’s no fighting back here.  In fact, for many of us Future Leaders, 2010 has been “the year of the beat down”.  It seems as though the hits keep coming and even when the white flag has been waved often the hits appear to come faster and with more destructive power than previous to surrendering!

Still, the weeks keep rolling on… We’ve been challenged, we’ve been stretched, we’ve been pushed to our limit, we’ve been worked, worked and worked some more and we’ve finally been broken in… I think.  At least we can praise the Lord (a bittersweet praise) that we’ve made it a third of the way through our commitment to serve here at McLean Bible Church because most of us are growing very weary.  In fact, there has been much debate, mostly amongst the Future Leaders, as to worth of all this “abuse”.  Is all of this worth it—the toil, the frustration, the anxiety of pleasing all of our managers?  Is there really light at the end of the tunnel?

Well, deep down we do think it’s worth it.  And earlier this week I think I found the light.  It seemed to come at peculiar time but it was a divine timing to say the least, and the main way I was encouraged was that I finally able to get my heart’s focus back on what I, and many of the other Christians in general, tend to loose sight of when we are so immersed in serving that it’s hardly worth calling service at all!  This encouragement came in the form of a sermon from John Piper entitled, Do Not Grow Weary in Well-Doing.  I’ve attached a small except below for you to see what I mean.  The passage he is referring to here is Galatians 6:9, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”  I hope it’s as encouraging for you to read as it was for me. 

Probably the worst enemy of enthusiasm is time. Human beings have a remarkable and sad capacity for getting tired of wonderful things. Almost every one of you can think of something you were enthusiastic about recently, but now the joy is faded. Your first day of vacation on the coast the sunset was breathtaking and made you so happy you could sing. But by the end of your stay you hardly noticed it any more. Vacationers get tired of sunsets, millionaires get tired of money, kids gets tired of toys, and Christians get tired of doing good. At first the excitement of teaching that Sunday School class was strong, but now you have grown weary of well-doing. The thrill is gone. At first you felt clean and strong in the Holy Spirit as you drove the van, taught the Lao English, led the small group, visited the newcomers, started reading the Bible, worked in the emergency shelter . . . but now you have grown weary in well-doing. The inner power and joy have seeped away. It’s a chore. You’ve lost heart.

But Galatians 6:9 says, “Let us not grow weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall reap, if we do not lose heart.” It doesn’t mean, of course, that you can never stop one job and start another. If you ask what the well-doing is that we must not tire of, probably the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22. is the best answer: don’t grow weary of being patient and kind and good and faithful and gentle and self-controlled. Don’t grow weary of manifesting your peace and joy in all kinds of acts of love to your neighbors and associates and family. In short, don’t lose heart in spending yourself through love, because if you do, the works of the flesh take over, and Paul says in 5:21, “Those who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom.” Or, as Paul says in 6:8, if you stop sowing to the Spirit and sow to your own flesh, you will not reap eternal life, but eternal corruption.

This is very controversial. Let it sink in. What is at stake in this text is eternal life; not merely sanctification, but also final salvation. Whether you go to heaven or whether you go to hell depends in some way on whether you grow weary in well-doing or not. The text is addressed to the church. Listen carefully, and note how the thought moves from verse 8 to verse 9: “He who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption; but he who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not (therefore!) grow weary in well-doing, for in due season we shall reap, if we do not lose heart.” You will reap eternal life, if you sow to the Spirit, that is, if you don’t grow weary in well-doing. Because of texts like these I understand my role as a pastor-teacher to be not merely a means to your sanctification, but also a means to your salvation. This text is written to help bring the saints of Galatia to final salvation, eternal life. Therefore, a sermon from this text to the saints at Bethlehem should also aim to help bring you to final salvation or eternal life.

Piper, John.  Do Not Grow Weary in Well-Doing. Desiringgod.org. 8/21/1983. 11/6/2010.

By Adam Schwenk, MBC Loudoun Future Leader

End of October already!? It’s hard to believe how quickly time has gone by, since I know we all vividly remember showing up in July. Washington D.C. was full of excitement and mystery, learning our way around seemed hopeless, and discovering our new responsibilities at McLean Bible Church felt like drinking from a fire hose. We felt overwhelmed, yet confident that God placed us here to serve Him and use our strengths throughout the church.

So now we stand at the four month mark. We’re still trying to find the best short cuts through traffic, but God is greatly working in us and through us. And our desire is to be faithful. Faithful to Him and faithful in our current ministry. He’s challenged us to pursue Him with all of our being and also to serve our church whether it’s in our strengths or weaknesses. Taking the words of Paul in 1 Timothy “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service.” We’ve done our best to be faithful in the little, and now God has given us greater responsibility at MBC. May God grant us His grace in being faithful in our service the remaining time this year!

By Kennard Blackwell
MBC Bethesda Future Leader

Just do it. That sounds so cliché. Thanks Nike. But no really, just do it. The reason why I like that phrase is simple: it’s reckless. It forgets all kinds of hesitation. It forgets the hesitation that is caused mostly by fear—fear of failure, fear of comparison, and fear of mistakes. We’re a talented nation full of talented people. It just saddens me at how many boring lives I see. The worst part isn’t that they are boring. The worst part is that it seems like everybody wants to strive for something such as purpose, enjoyment or fulfillment but they settle for the norm and sit in those seats that are made for dull people. And then they admit it.

Dude! Dudettes!!! Get up! WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!? (Pause) Okay, let me get up with you guys cause I’m not fully sprinting yet either. I’ve taken some baby steps but I got more track to cover. I get started but don’t keep going. My good friend Bobby constantly tells me to just go and do it because it’s what you want to do and doing it is the only way you’ll get better at it.

There’s so many things that we enjoy and love doing but won’t do it caused we’re scared or feel like we’re not able to do it. We’ve got a boatload of dreams but won’t let them sail. They could be a reality if we just went out and really did it. We can all walk on water if we stick with Jesus. Even if we make a mistake and sink a bit, He’ll still be holding our hands. Sometimes the only way we learn is from mistakes, either yours or mine. Failure is sometimes a step towards success or victory. True failure is having the dream but not waking up for it. And who cares if timing is off. Timing is subjective if it’s not God’s timing. The funny thing is that many of us feel like a late bloomer. Sometimes what we call “too late” is actually God’s “right on time.”

And this is where I am now. Being in the Future Leaders Program is growing me a lot and helping me to seek after my different passions. When it came to applying to the program, I was hesitant but I had to just do it. I had no clue what to expect, if it was right place for me, and if I would get in, but it was something I wanted to do. And so the Do-ing continues. I’m learning to chase after those godly desires and passions I have and not being scared to fail or be wrong about them. If I am, then I have to trust that God will correct me and put something else before me. And if I’m right, then I’ll keep going after it and be in expectation to see God perfect the craft and getting some glory. OOOH YEA! (fist pump)

So yea, “Just Do It” is one my favorite phrases. But give me some time though; eventually I should be able to say a new one: “Did It.”

By Jessy Baugh, MBC Bethesda Future Leader

Taking leaps of faith can be one of the scariest and hardest things to do when following Christ. Being a believer for most of my life I’ve always said that I’ll go where God calls me to go, no matter where and no matter how far…well it’s easy to say but much harder to do when it comes down to it.

I’m from Southern California and if you have ever been there you know that it’s a little piece of heaven here on earth, so imagine thinking of moving from Southern California to Washington DC…let’s just say it wasn’t easy to do but when God clearly calls you somewhere I have learned that you go no matter how far or how different that place can be.

I was terrified to do the Future Leader Program but I can honestly say that deciding to move from CA to DC was one of the best decisions of my life. I was so scared of leaving my home, family, and friends to do a one year leadership program but the Lord has provided everything that I need through this program and through the amazing people that I work with. Being a part of the Future Leader Program is like being a part of a new BIG family. I went to a Christian college but I never experienced the type of Christ-centered community that I have been experiencing here in this program. I spend most of my free time with the Future Leaders, we care about each other, support each other, and have a blast spending time with each other… like I said we have become a big family and it’s been one of the most amazing experiences to be a part of.

From what I’ve described it sounds like it’s fun and easy being a Future Leader…just hanging out with each other and building community…ha I wish. The Future Leader Program will stretch and grow you in ways that you didn’t think were possible. You’ll be asked to memorize the core values of the church, entire chapters of the Bible, to journal, teach bible studies, and on top of all that work full time in your ministry area. It’s some of the hardest work I’ve done but also the most rewarding and enjoyable work I’ve done in a long time. You will hear from the leaders of this program Rich and Rachel that this year will be one of the holiest years of your life and that statement is very true. Being challenged to memorize Scripture, work full time in ministry, go on a mission trip, being held accountable to having a personal devotion time every day, to pray for each other, and then to build community with one another while at work but also on your free time does in fact lead you to having one of the holiest years of your life, and I’m quickly discovering that I wouldn’t trade this year for anything and I’m only 1.5 months into the program and so excited to see what the months left will bring.

Like I said it can be scary taking leaps of faith for God…but I have come to learn that I never regret taking those steps of faith.