Breaking Vows to Silence

Hi everyone!

Since my last newsletter, I have watched newsletter upon newsletter
pass through my inbox and it is always with increasing pangs of guilt
that I read them knowing how long the gap has grown since my last
update. Thank you to everyone who has kept me up to date since, and in
spite of, my vow to silence (if only that, rather than indolence, were
my actual excuse).

Much has changed and much has stayed the same is probably the simplest
way I can sum up the tides on the beach of the life of James since my
last newsletter. Perhaps the best way to begin is to describe my first
year of full time ministry though.

Relentless

That was a word used during my time at college in the unheeded wisdom
of a pastor. As it turns out, he was right. The time that ministry
consumes is not measured or measurable. While perhaps I have had a
regular schedule somehow sleep is lost considering the arrogant grade 9
who refuses to receive advice, informal counsel is given on Saturday
afternoon or Thursday evening and there's still that grade 8 who has
verbal diarrhoea and I can't seem to get through to him.

Over the year, I slowly took over leading a young adults Bible study.
We started the year on the topic of guidance and then discussed the
five points of Calvinism (their idea, not mine). Since I took over
though we've done Titus and we've just picked up the new year in the
middle of Philippians. It's been a lot of fun - leading engaging Bible
studies is still not a strong point of mine though.

Teaching Bible Education at Grace College was doubtlessly the toughest
part of the year. I had 6 classes altogether of 14 - 16 year olds
(grade 8 and 9) and they conspired to demonstrate how magnificently
boring I could make something I find quite exciting. I taught them a
Bible overview (mostly Old Testament to be honest) and we did topical
lessons (e.g. "Is it okay to get a tattoo?").

I preached about 10 times last year but at a lot of different places. I
quite enjoy preaching when I have enough time to prepare sermons. I
also got roped into doing music, a ministry in which I still engage
with trepidation. I do enjoy it though and I've discovered that the
secret is simply to have singers and instrumentalists who can carry
things when your fingers go on strike in the middle of a song.

Living with my uncle (John; my mom's brother) has worked out pretty
well. I have learnt to do more in the kitchen than make toast so I feel
as though I am a better human being. My dear dear cousin Amy whom I
miss with all my heart (yes, she's reading this) left half way through
the year which was quite a relief. It's annoying having someone you get
on with really well always in your face and wanting to do stuff with
you, you know?

2014!

I put 2014 on its own line so that if you skipped the last bit you
would probably wind up here.

Teaching has dropped to 1 day per week - phew! In addition, Adam - the
youth guy at Christ Church Hilton (CCH, formerly Trinity Church Hilton)
- is now teaching 2 of my lessons (of which there are only 5). This is
quite a relief. The grade 8s last year were also a lot nicer than the
grade 9s so I'm pleased the grade 9s all passed and I don't have to
deal with them any more. This year's grade 8 group seem quite nice as
well so I think teaching this year will be a fair bit more manageable.

The Bible study group has taken a bit of a knock with single people
going to college far away from rural Hilton. It's still going
reasonably well in spite of the questionable leader.

This year brings a couple of new developments. First is that I have
just started a training workshop for Zulu lay preachers in a township
nearby. This is quite exciting as it is more along the lines of what I
would like to be doing in the future. It's also awesome to be working
with Zulu guys - I'd love to improve the Zulu I scraped through Matric
on but it's a daunting prospect. The first session went pretty well and
was well received by all the guys who attended so I hope to keep it
that way - apparently we may have a few more next time.

I am also rostered in to preach more often at CCH this year which is
cool but increases my workload quite a bit. Days are full and there is
not really time for the unexpected emergency or anything of that sort
so hopefully nothing like that will happen for the next 12 months.

I could put another line here for 2015 because one of the things that
has been occupying me for the last while is an application to do a
Masters in Biblical Exegesis at Wheaton College (In the USA). It's
apparently a difficult college to get into and I'm applying to a
difficult course to get into so we'll see how that goes and in addition
to all that, if their scholarship programme doesn't offer me any money
the plans basically go out the window because on my current salary I
need to work for the next 2 million years (or thereabout) before I can
afford to go.

So if you want to pray for me (which you should because who would pass
up the opportunity to talk to God), you can pray that somehow in the
chaos I manage somehow to complete an application that gets accepted
and is followed up by them throwing money at me. That in the effort to
apply and make things happen, I wouldn't neglect any of my actual
responsibilities. That I would have time to prepare for the training
course and for sermons in spite of the busy schedule. That ministry
would spiritually invigorate me. I really want to see this Zulu
training go well and I think it's in the best interests of the gospel,
so please would you keep that in your prayers. What I am hoping to gain
from my time here is experience in ministry that will well brew the tea
that college left in my brain, unfortunately it's not really measurable
but you can pray that it happens (if the metaphor is not too confusing
to be comprehensible).

Thanks for the support and encouragement over the last year. I think
it's gone quite well and I've enjoyed it.

Love in Christ,
James Cuénod

The Long Lost Newsletter

Well now I've had my four hundred years of silence, it's probably about
time to send a newsletter again. I thought college was busy. That was then
though.

Let me give you an idea of what I'm doing this year and then some updates.

I'm working at Trinity Church Hilton 2 days a week.
My responsibilities there vary depending partly on what needs to be done
and partly on how much I'm doing. I've preached, lead Bible study, done
Sunday school (for a number of different age groups), I've even played
piano (or at least tried). I think it's going pretty well - maybe you
should verify with them though. Looking forward to more Bible study
leading this coming term and who knows what else.

What do I do on the other 3 days? I work at Grace College.
Grace College is a local high school originally started from Trinity but
independent from it. It's a Christian school that welcomes everyone. My
main role is to teach Bible Education to grade 8s and 9s. I'm doing a kind
of Bible overview / biblical theology (for those in the know) course with
them. Teaching is far more of a challenge than I ever imagined and it's
definitely stretching me but I get the chance to teach the Bible to a
bunch of kids (many of whom have almost no biblical knowledge whatsoever).
I also prepare a kind of Bible study for teachers to use with small groups
of kids of Friday mornings where everyone comes to a "mentor" group so
there are real opportunities here.

I've settled into Hilton life and I've gotten to know a number of people
here - the people at the church are very friendly. It'll take time to
develop deep relationships but I guess I've only been here a few months.
Some of the fun stuff so far has been getting back into Hebrew. I'm
working through a Hebrew textbook with another guy at the church which is
fantastic (but quite depressing to realise how much I've forgotten). I've
had the chance to see a lot more of college friends than I had expected to
see - they're not nearby but they are near enough. I've had the chance to
preach a bunch of times and I always enjoy that.

I haven't made any plans beyond this I'm just kind of enjoying life here.
I do miss college and the people and the study so don't worry humongous
books - I haven't forgotten you.

Sorry this newsletter has taken four months to land. Things are pretty
nuts - I'll try get back into the habit of sending these to keep you up to
date.

As for prayer requests. I could definitely use some divine enabling with
regards to teaching skills - I'm fascinating to myself but I could
certainly be a better teacher. Also for some good relationships to
develop, it's tough to leave the people you've been with for four years
and start from scratch although I think it's been quite successful when in
that light.

Keep well, watch out for the fish and stay away from the sunlight.
James Cuénod


--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2012-12-24

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To those
interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I have a theory that the frequency of newsletter writing is inversely
proportional to its importance. This one (which should have been written a
month or two ago), marks a beginning and an end. It is the literary
threshold at the edge of the college room and actual real life next year.
The door opens to Trinity Church Hilton (TCH). TCH is a CESA church (or
ReachSA Church if you're up to date) - that is, it's the same denomination
as GWC. I'm not certain what work will entail, I know that I'm going to
get exposure to everything that happens in a church in kind of internship
position and that I'll be involved at Grace College, a nearby school,
where I'll be teaching Bible Ed, doing some mentoring and some IT support
(the school is supplementing my income).

I have loved this year. The research/writing component was exhilarating
and undoubtedly my favourite aspect. The Old Testament module, which I
think I mentioned last time, didn't go too well but aside from that the
courses have been excellent and I have learnt an enormous amount. Honours
really gives you a chance to dig a lot deeper into what is being studied:
rather than rushing through 10 busy subjects a term and trying to keep
afloat, this year has afforded me the chance to excavate some issues
(which has always resulted in the awareness of being in over my head).

At the beginning of the year I moved out of res and have been renting a
flat with one of my classmates. This too I have really appreciated. I have
really developed quality relationships with a few guys and although it's
sad to be dispersing now with limited prospects of seeing each other much
in the future (from seeing each other every day), it's the kind of sadness
that I would wish on someone because it is the mark of joy.

My plans at this point are to stay at TCH for at least two years but I'm
hoping to continue with a Masters (hopefully overseas) after that. I don't
know where overseas, I don't know how I'll fund it, I don't know just
about anything. They're just pipe dreams at this point but hopefully far
down the line I'll be able to get into teaching at a Bible college.

Thank you for your support and particularly your prayers. Please don't let
them stop, I do not expect that ministry will be easier than college.

In Christ,
James


--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2012-09-23

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

You can tell that I'm feeling the pressure of the year's end when I don't
write a newsletter during a holiday. It's been a hectic little while. The
main thing that captured my attention was my dissertation (and rightly so,
I guess). I had a deadline for Monday the 17th for a first draft (it's
about 10000-12000 words). In case you don't know, I'm writing about the
book of Judges. Judges is structured in cycles which have a lot of similar
elements. My dissertation is basically looking at those elements and how
they and why they vary through the various narratives (and what the
variation means - I'm not really allowed to say the word "means" though
because that demonstrates total ignorance of the linguistic nihilism to
which our scholarship is now enslaved - it's fine though, you just find
other ways of saying the same thing and in practice ignore the fact that
somewhere out there Derrida is turning in his grave).

I didn't actually manage to submit a complete first draft though - that's
bad. At least if I compare myself to my peers I'm in roughly the same
place (at least we're all behind together) and I'm not the most behind
which is comforting; the weak are the first to become prey. The problem at
this point is the fact that the last course module is beginning next week
Wednesday (which I've just realised is now just called "this coming
Wednesday" - marginally more menacing). You are welcome to pray that I
would work supernaturally diligently (and let's not rule out miraculous
events that produce actual quality work. I really - surprisingly enough -
need God to help me to understand his word (preferably before I have to
submit))

The said module is our Old Testament course (which is nice since that's
where I'm specialising (in theory at least)). It's going to be on Exodus
(which promises to be fascinating). It's going to be taken by a guy from
Chad (which means it will probably have some African Theological insights
- superb!). It's going to be slap bang in the middle of the last bit of
dissertation writing (rats). It's going to be requiring more exam writing
(blagh). You can pray that I would gain a lot from this course. Exodus
(and the rest of the Pentateuch) are truly foundational and so for the
sake of understanding the rest of the Bible, this course really does hold
tremendous promise.

I could write a whole bunch of other stuff about Bible study and Friday
youth and weddings and all manner of eventfulness which seems to flurry up
at inconvenient times of the year. However, I think you've got the gist of
the last few weeks and the next few. My life is not limited in scope to
writing a dissertation and completing an OT module (though on the horizon
these things certainly seem to loom in ominous shadow over the sprightly
smaller things in view) so don't be overly concerned about that. Be
concerned that I honour God in my work and that as I seek to understand
his word, I wouldn't rely on my own strength but that I also wouldn't
abdicate my responsibility to pursue understanding through the Holy Spirit.

Thank you for your steadfastness in prayer. Thank you for your endurance
in reading newsletters. Thank you for being awesome (or at least above
average).

In Christ,
James


--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2012-08-24

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Time has flown since I last wrote and I realise now how much has happened
here, I'm sorry I haven't been better at keeping you up to date. I'm
starting realise that graduation (or not...) is much closer than I had
thought and I had better get cracking. Last Friday I handed in a rough
draft of the first chapter of my dissertation not knowing whether it was
even vaguely what I was supposed to be doing but the response of my
supervisor was pretty positive. This means that now he knows how much I've
done so I can't fool him into thinking I'm working when nothing more is
being produced but it also means I have direction and he can provide some
more guidance to me. He wants a full draft by the 17th of September – the
day after college holidays – and the whole thing has to be finished for
final submission by the 2nd of November which is a little daunting.

Because of work here, I may not have a chance to get back to Joburg these
holidays which is unfortunate but I guess I really do have to make the
most of this time now and I'm still enjoying my dissertation – something
people had told me not to expect. The second week back we begin with our
OT course on Exodus Dr Abel Ndjerareou
(I don't know how to say it either). It looks like it'll be good but it
also means much less time than is apparent for our dissertations (which
means I really do need to get cracking).

Having said that, this coming weekend brings with it an enjoyable annual
event: the bishop's weekend. Frank Retief (the retired bishop of CESA)
takes away the men of at college and talks about full time ministry. The
weekend is always a highlight not only because of books and chocolate but
because of the deepening of relationships that can happen there.

The Friday before last my flatmate was at a wedding in Durban and while he
was away I decided to remind myself about the fragility of material
possessions. While reading Lord of the Rings (Frodo just chucked the ring
into mount doom – more excitingly than I just made it sound though) I
heard some wailing outside but I dismissed it; "it's Muizenberg," "this is
the ambiance..." I decided to at least look around though and when I did I
realised that they were braaiing at the married res. It was a big braai
though because there was black smoke. "let's be responsible James, at
least go outside." Outside of course, I realised that the house next door,
that three college people called home, was the braai fuel and not much
braaiing was happening. I learnt that MTN's emergency number is worthless
after dialing it and hitting 1 because the emergency was life threatening
and in spite of their warnings about the criminal offence of calling it
when there was not an emergency situation and then subsequently holding
for about 5 minutes at which point I figured I was dead to them. I also
got to watch the roof of the house collapse, I think it would have been
more impressive than horrific if it hadn't been the roof of someone I'm
studying with and there hadn't been a crowd people filled with what I can
only think is sadism gathered around to watch someone's house burn down.
So that was Friday.

Speaking of fire, we could use some in our Bible study where the
Christians are mostly disinterested. The one exception is the
non-Christian girl who highlights, reads ahead and asks good questions and
answers questions intelligently. I'm a bit discouraged by their lacklustre
interest in the gospel but I suppose that they're preparing me for
ministry – which is also a bit saddening.

Plans for next year are still not occupying much time in my mind. I'm just
waiting for churches to get back to me and I'm okay with the fact that
meetings and discussions are lengthy and often contingent on other issues
being resolved. It's not a concern yet but I think by the end of next
month it will be.

You can pray for the families of the burnt house and for the non-Christian
girl at Bible study. Please also pray that I work hard in the coming month
especially and get a quality first draft done so that in my revising it's
editing and improving not rewriting. Please also pray for me as I try to
(co-)lead Bible study (and lead a small group table at Friday youth), that
I would be able to do so with wisdom and insight and that God would work
in my groups' hearts.

In Christ,
James Cuénod


--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2012-07-24

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am now a week back into college having had four weeks off. After exams,
I flew to KZN and went to my cousin's wedding in Pietermaritzburg (well,
outside PMB, in an area that's actually scenic). He was my second cousin
to get married and in the space of a couple of months. As always, I think
it's awesome seeing Christians get married. I was only there for two days
though, by Sunday we (the family and I) were driving back to Joburg. I
suppose that this is where I should throw in the fact that I watched Les
Miserables on the Saturday night which I quite enjoyed - I'm still
thinking about it but I think some interesting things could be said about
grace in contrast to Jean Valjean (that's for another time though).

In Joburg I didn't do any work. This was pleasant but frustrating and I'm
pretty glad to be back and trying to be productive again. On the other
hand, I managed to see friends from school a number of times which was
awesome. I also got to see some friends from college (who graduated with
me last year but went to work in churches). It was good to catch up and
see how they are doing. They could also give helpful advice to me
considering I'm planning on working in a church next year. I finished
reading a few books as well so I feel good about myself - I'm still going
through Lord of the Rings which is one of the best reads I've had. I also
took the time to update rekindle.co.za which has not had any attention for
quite some time. I still need to do a bit more on it but it's seen some
major improvements (if you have a smartphone, you should look at it and
compare it to the way it displays on a computer screen).

After two and a half weeks in Joburg I returned to KZN a few days early
for ministry week. I stayed with Graham (one of the guys doing honours
with me) and just had fun in Durban (where the weather is ignorant of the
fact that it's winter). Ministry week was good, perhaps a bit
disappointing because the team did not really gain in terms of learning
about the church we were at. Even so, we were involved in a holiday club
and so we had the chance to spend the week with a lot of kids who
otherwise wouldn't be at church. I also had an awesome time with my hosts
who were extraordinarily encouraging - hopefully I'll be able to keep in
contact with them. But it was all over pretty quickly and I find myself
back in Cape Town.

Last week I made the most progress on my dissertation that I've made in
quite some time (like 1/2 terms). I finally have a topic that I like and
that my supervisor is happy with. It feels like quite an accomplishment.
What lies ahead now is a church history assignment that is due next week
for the church history course we sat last term and some measurably
continuous progress on our dissertations. I also have the bishop's weekend
away to look forward to in a few weeks' time but that's about it.

Kyle, my flatmate, is having a rough time with some people he knows so he
could use prayer and considering I'm his friend I could use some prayer in
relation to that as well - it's hard to say what about, wisdom and grace
to say what's appropriate and helpful for both of us is all I can really
ask for. Of course, you can always pray for my devotional life and that
the struggle with sin wouldn't become a "snuggle" with sin. Probably most
importantly in this term is that I'd be particularly self-disciplined
since I have a no constraints and can easily be sidetracked.

As always, thank you for your prayers and encouragement.

In Christ,
James Cuénod


--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2012-05-02

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I wish I had more time to write. It has been a crazy term. Last time I'm
pretty sure I was telling you about the start of our next block course
(intensive module) which was Church History with Ashley Null. That
finished a week ago. The focus was the English Reformation and I must say,
my interest in history has been rekindled. I'm hoping to read Wolf Hall in
the holidays (a novel set in the court of Henry VIII) - tudor history has
been a lot of fun to peak into. It was a great course and Ashley Null is a
brilliant mix of academia and the pastorate. Church History was really
only a sort of break from the swift onslaught of exams. Perhaps I should
rather say, "The Exam". In the past staccato attacks have been the norm at
the end of each semester, hoping to beat us into submission by repeated
invocations of fear and dread. Not in Honours. On Monday I write the
single exam for the year (it's possible that there will be one more in the
fourth term but I'm not expecting one) and it's not going to be pretty.
Which reminds me, prayer for my fast frying brain and quick tangled tongue
would be much appreciated (prayer against them frying and tangling, that
is).

It seems that there is an inversely proportional relationship to my
ability to read and the time I have in which to do it. In the past few
weeks I've managed to finish Bonhoeffer (a biography about the guy - he
was a theologian involved in a plot to kill Hitler) by Eric Metaxas (it's
been criticised - and rightly so - but it's quite an enjoyable read) and
The Fellowship of the Ring (it's comprised of two books, I read the second
because I read the first earlier in the year). I have developed tremendous
appreciation for Tolkien; of all that I read, he most inspires me to write.

Not much (i.e. nothing) has happened on the dissertation front since last
we spoke. That's probably not good. I should probably do something about
that. I've spoken to my supervisor and I think he thinks I'm working. I
don't really want to break his heart though so I think I'm going to leave
him in the dark for now :).

I've been co-leading a Bible study this year. I think it's part of a
devious plot. I feel somewhat out of my depth and I think the other people
who come feel like I'm out of my depth too. It's rather like getting your
feet wet and not being able to dry between your toes; not pleasant. My
more spectacular, billboard-like, hold-the-press-type involvement at
church begins at the most opportune time: the day before The Exam. I'm
preaching tomorrow at Tokai (I know, it really is a plot). I'm preaching
on the feeding of the five thousand in Mark 6:30-44. I'm prepared for that
(I think I actually took preparation for that more seriously than exam
prep - that'll probably come back to bite me) but it's really not ideal
timing.

As far as prayers go, then, I think prayer that I wouldn't randomly pass
out while preaching if it should suddenly occur to me that I'm actually
about to write an exam - more seriously, the usual sort of prayers for
preachers; people would listen, preacher would speak clearly, preacher
would speak God's words (not his, even though he thinks his are quite
something), Holy Spirit would do what the Holy Spirit does in people and
preacher and sermon. And, that The Exam would be easily defeated and not
overly stressful (I'm planning on going to a piano recital on Monday
afternoon, that should be relaxing if The Exam is nasty) - and mercy from
the lecturer. Thanks very much for the prayers and thoughts, you rock.

In Christ,
James Cuénod


--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2012-04-22

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

As it happens, I am still alive (contrary to what your empty mailboxes may
have implied till now). Having survived the perils of an intensive course
entitled "Mark as Persuasive Narrative", I am now turning my attention to
the rest of the second term. We (I and my classmates) have been expecting
a nasty term with two intensives, half a doctrine course (and its
assignment and exam). We were right. I have a few outstanding assignments
for Mark (and by "outstanding", I am not presuming on their results), a
doctrine assignment as well as the regular course work and a church
history course to look forward to. Along with all that I need to do some
much needed work on my dissertation (which I will actually focus on during
the third term).

The past five weeks have essentially revolved around Mark. Peter Bolt, a
lecturer from Moore College, came out for the course which he handled
deftly. It was a thoroughly enjoyable and worthwhile course and it will
contribute to my dissertation (if I ever get there) so I've enjoyed this
time. We had a literary look at Mark: stimulating, illuminating,
invigorating.

During the holidays, I went to Joburg and worked on Mark. I managed to see
a friend who graduated last year (and hear him preach) as well as making a
perfunctory visit to Teatro (I watched Phantom of the Opera - it was good,
not as good as I'd hoped. Based on the way the music stuck in my head
though, it was probably better than I initially thought). In addition to
this, I got to see my cousin get married (go Kate!). It was awesome and at
the reception she delivered the best bride's speech in the history of
mankind (as far as I know).

Of course, it was also Easter. I wish I'd eaten more chocolate. I guess,
that's not something I'll regret in the future but I'm pretty sure I
missed out on those white eggs this year - rats. John Bell preached at
Honeyridge - he was excellent, truly excellent. I also read some of
Carson's "Scandalous" (a book about the cross and the resurrection) which
is also brilliant and made me stand in a little more awe and wonder at the
cross - always good and healthy.

More recently, I finally finished Narnia by reading the Magician's Nephew
and, reflecting on the analogies Lewis pens so masterfully, I have come to
the conclusion that the Silver Chair is the best of the Chronicles.

I'm reading Mark quite a lot these days. I'll probably preach from it on
the 3rd of June. Please pray I preach faithfully and manage to both
prepare properly and do college stuff. Please also pray that I would
manage to commit more time to prayer and Bible reading than I have been.
This year has been pretty exciting thus far, please praise God that I've
had the chance to come to college and that I'm loving it and that he's
using it on me.

I know I'm a newsletter backslider but please trust in the perseverance of
the saints ;)
Thanks for all the prayers and support.

In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2012-03-17

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I'm sorry I've left you in the dark for so long. Let me give you the
highlights of the last few weeks. The biggest adjustment has been work
schedule. Instead of the old lecture/study model, in the honours
programme we have one double lecture per fortnight. This means that
our time is pretty flexible (though we do still have daily college
life things like Chapel and prayer meetings) but it also means that we
have to be more disciplined with our work than I am being.

It's easy to keep on top of the doctrine course that we're busy with
(which is what the lectures are for) but in the background we are
supposed to be working on our dissertations (more on this later). In
addition we are now preparing for an intensive two week course on Mark
which starts right after the April holidays - in three weeks
(preparation includes doing a bunch of assignments and reading a
couple of books). I am intimidated.

When I arrived at college, there were two things I knew Christians
were bad at doing: (1) understanding the Old Testament and (2)
applying the Bible to our lives beyond becoming Christians. For my
dissertation I'm working towards not being bad at (1). I'm trying to
ask some interesting questions about the narrative/literature of the
book of Judges. Hopefully I'll figure out (2) given a bit more time.
I'm having fun but not really doing what is necessary at this point.

I'm co-leading a "young young-adults" Bible Study at Tokai Community
Church this year and realising my weaknesses which is helpful. In
fact, I would greatly appreciate prayer with regards to my ability to
effectively guide and teach that group.

Living out of Res has been great. I am loving the move although I feel
a bit out of the loop of what's going on at college. My flatmate
recently got engaged so it's interesting seeing him prepare for a
wedding and marriage.

I'm fairly stressed about the coming five weeks (and I don't
anticipate real relief for another six or seven weeks after that) and
I could use prayer that I would rely on God. You can praise God that
the new living situation is working out (as far as I know - if you
don't hear from me though, I may have been murdered in my sleep).

These coming few weeks are going to require some hard work but they
stretch over the holidays so I definitely need some divine assistance.

In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

It turns out that when you get to honours, they let you do whatever you want. I arrived here the Sunday before last and since then have been given all the time to do whatever my heart desires. This, with the overarching instruction to strive for 10 hours of work per day. Freedom is great - all six hours of it.

The holidays were good. I managed to  get a fair bit of reading done which was my primary objective. I also brushed up on my Greek in anticipation of a competency test to which I say, "veni vidi vici" - or in Greek "ἦλθον εἶδον ἐνίκησα". I, therefore, have had the rest of this time to do whatever I think will benefit me most. The dean of post-graduate studies said that we should aim for 50 hours of work per week which is ten hours a day or eight hours if we work on Saturdays - which is a fair bit when our work at this point could be described in as many ways as you can think of to mean "reading". We were told a little about what would be expected of us now that we are in post-graduate studies and though somewhat intimidated, I still have that sense of adventure when at the threshold of what I have now found to be a dragon's lair.

You may recall I have moved out of the GWC residence into a flat. Rather than sharing with dragons though, I have elected to board with one of the guys who graduated with me last year and is also doing honours. So far it has been good but it's still early days to be able to know how the year will go. Regarding food: If not cereals, I eat honours for breakfast, buy college lunch (and eat it, unlike proverbial cakes) and sort out supper using a crafty combination of bread, peanut butter and leftovers as well as the occasional slice of dragon meat.

Thus far, I can say that the year has been a delight. Should any dragons rear their heads, I will be sure to fight valiantly in the hopes of slaying them. Should the opportunity arise to steal the dragon's treasure, I hope to use my time with diligence and alacrity. Should the dragon turn out to be friendly, I'll say something nasty and fight him anyway just because we post-grads are the boss.

You can pray that I will not be like the honours students of the past who have been known to become akin to moles, appearing rarely in the sunlight and certainly not for very long, quickly returning to their books. It is my hope that I will study hard this year without neglecting the college community.

In Christ,
James Cuénod


--
James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2011-11-21

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

This is just a quick one (at the commencement of its writing) to tell you
that last Friday I wrote my final exam. The internet connection has been
sketchy for a few weeks now and is making emails difficult but I just
wanted to thank you for prayers and support and say woohoo! The exams were
fine but by the end I was sick of them so I'm glad they're over. This
coming week has the college social, the graduation service, final chapel
and college cleanup so there are a few things to keep us busy. I've also
got to pack up my room and move my stuff to the place I'm staying next
year and use my parents to boost Cape Town's tourism industry.

I guess I'll send another email during the holidays but for now, I'm just
trying to recover from a whole lot of studying and assignments and not a
whole lot of sleep and relaxation (which is turning out to be a long
forgotten yet pleasant endeavour on the whole).

In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2011-11-12

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

One of the great things about receiving my newsletter is that you get
whatever random fact I happen to have most recently discovered. In this
case, that the earth travels in its orbit around the sun at about
29.17km/s. So when the earth has travelled another fifteen and a half
million kilometers (that's not just a wild number I threw out by the way),
I will have completed my last exam. However, when I calculate that I
realise that there are some slightly bigger things at play than my exams.

So yes, I have written my first exam (yesterday) it was Philosophy and I
think it went alright. Philosophy has been one of the courses that I've
enjoyed the most over this last semester. Next week I have three more
exams: Monday brings Doctrine of Holy Spirit and Salvation; Wednesday,
African Church History and Friday, Jesus and the Gospels. Somehow I
managed to hand in all my assignments over the last month of craziness
though I wish I'd had more time to digest and engage in some of them we
were rushing towards exams (at 29.17km/s) though, so I think everyone was
just churning them out.

I feel like there is a war in my mind. Living there would be living in
occupied territory (though something new invades at the end of every
assignment or exam), when nothing is there it descends into civil war.
Rest is strictly rationed and the dregs of motivation can only be
scrounged from dodgy parts of town.

To keep myself sane I have done some reading (The Curious Incident of the
Dog in the Night-Time, The Great Divorce and a bit more of the Hobbit, The
Three Musketeers, Introduction to Covenant Theology and Exegetical
Fallacies). Writing that parenthesis, I feel I should just say that in the
last four, I've only read the first two - the others I'm working through
slowly and read when my brain rebels from taking in any more information.

Thank you very much for the prayers, as I've said; I handed everything in.
There has also been significant progress regarding next year's
accomodation; I'll be staying with one of the other guys doing honours
whose been in res with me since 1st year. We're moving into another
student's flat because he's graduating with us this year and moving to
Rondebosch. This takes off quite a bit of pressure.

I'm still dreading the coming exams though. Please have me in your prayers
for this last week. I can't believe it's graduation so soon, I didn't even
realise that it was our last day of college until it was nearly over.
Diligence, motivation and perseverance are what I need now to make it
through the last stretch. Considering the way I started this email though,
please also pray that if not while I'm writing, at the very least after
I'm finished, my perspective would be broadened from the present inward
looking assignment to assignment type survival thing that's going on right
now. I will leave you with a quote that I found while reading for my
Isaiah assignment (in the preface of Alec Motyer's IVP Isaiah commentary):
As I look back now, and particularly over the intensive activity of the
last three years, there rises unbidden the picture of a very small mouse
nibbling heroically at a very large cheese. Indeed it is no picture but a
reality, and now that all is at last done, like Reepicheep of Narnia
(though, please God, without his endearing bumptiousness), I too lay my
sword at the feet of him who alone is worthy of all praise, the Servant of
the Lord, the reigning King and the coming Anointed Conqueror, Jesus
Christ our Lord.

In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2011-10-11

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

t lttl tm: hv t lv smthng t ...

I'm feeling the pressure of the final stretch and my ears are popping, I'm
getting to the point at which I have to leave something out.
Six assignments
Five exams
Six weeks
and third year is over.

It feels like yesterday when I wrote my first newsletter and I'm a few
weeks from graduation (assuming things don't go too pear shaped). Two
weekends ago I preached, I helped at an evangelism workshop, I went to the
old SRC farewell lunch type thing, I wrote an assignment, I practiced some
music (because last week I played piano - which was not a total failure,
so I was satisfied - the old pianist can have his job back though!).
Basically everything demands a lot of time and I don't have a lot of time
to devote to everything.

This Friday I'm handing in an assignment for Spirit and Salvation, I've
chosen the topic "The Spirit's Work of Illumination in the Life of a
Believer" because I'm a masochist and enjoy enormous readings of Barth and
his critics.

If I ever go insane, I imagine it would be under circumstances similar to
these.

I don't think insanity is a likely outcome so that needn't be a prayer
item but certainly finishing strong, actually spending time being mastered
by the Word rather than trying to master it all the time and perseverance
are all things I would appreciate your prayer for.

It's not long to go
bt i dnt hv tm t wrt mr, thts wh m lvng t th vwls. ttfn.

In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2011-09-12

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Have you ever had the experience in which something happens, such as a
glass is knocked off a counter and as it falls, everything seems to be in
slow motion and suddenly you've caught it as though you've got fantastic
super powers? Well, I'm watching the glass fall I just hope at the end of
the year it looks like I have super powers...

The term ended quite suddenly with the SRC handover being pushed earlier
by a week. I'm quite relieved that I no longer have that responsibility,
it's quite a weight off one's shoulders. The new guy in charge is pretty
good and I think he'll do a quality job. The organisation of the handover
(with elections and nominations and everything that goes with it) was not
the only thing that contributed to a sudden term end, I also preached for
class from Judges 6. I was inspired to start preparing for it a few weeks
earlier than I would have when I saw the other guy preaching the same
passage take out commentaries. That was good. I have since discovered that
Judges is possibly one of the most misunderstood and least accurately
preached (if preached at all) book in the whole Bible. It took me about a
week of reading and re-reading the text and then the book and then
commentaries to come to the conclusion I had no idea what was going on. I
got some kind of structure eventually but it took me another two weeks to
come to some decision about what the point of it all is. Even now, I've
been studying it some more and I'm not sure. By God's grace, the sermon
went down well even though I wasn't that happy with it but it's made me
think seriously of seeing if OT Narrative or the book of Judges could
somehow be a dissertation topic for next year.

I'm on holiday now though which has been very good and I return on the
morning of the 18th. The holidays have brought the seemingly inescapable
dental work with which they have become virtually analogous. This time
it's putting a shaft into the bone to prepare for a crown (which will wait
until the next holidays). Thankfully all went well and I'm already feeling
much better. So far this holiday I've spent some time writing Bible
software with a friend from college and reading. I finished off Surprised
By Joy (by C. S. Lewis) which was a fantastic read and I read a short
biography on Byang Kato (a hugely influential evangelical African
theologian) which I read for a biographical sketch I have to put together
for class the coming term. I still need to get a fair bit of college work
done over the next few days so please keep my diligence and focus in your
prayers.

In addition to praise for smooth handover in SRC and successful dental
surgery, prayer that I would get work done this holiday and figure out
some direction for my honours topic this year; please also pray that I
would find some accommodation next year (I and the guys in res with me who
are thinking of doing honours are thinking of moving into a little flat or
something next year to escape the walls of res) and you can pray that I
would be given super powers but I feel like that might be cheating or
something.

Thanks ten to the power of six (which is a million in non-scientific
notation terms) for the support and the prayers.

In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2011-08-11

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

At church last Sunday I heard one of the coolest metaphors for utilitarian
Christianity's view of God (Christians who are "Christians" because of
what they get out of it): God, the divine vending machine. Maybe that's
not new to you but it was quite appropriate an analogy and I enjoyed it.
Tokai Community Church is doing a series on Jeremiah in the morning and
Job in the evening this term and the Bible studies are doing topical Bible
studies on elements from the Apostles Creed and none of that is the right
currency for the divine vending machine.

Courses at college are almost all intense and full semester courses. That
means, this term very few of our assignments are due but next term we're
going to be hammered by them if we haven't got a good head start. SRC
Elections are coming up which means my term as Residence Representative
is, and I say this with relief, fast coming to an end. It does mean that
in addition to praying that I correctly manage my time you can pray for
next year's SRC (they really have a huge role behind the scenes). I will
probably still be here next year, I've just handed in my "Application for
Continuation" form to do honours here next year with a bunch of my
classmates which is an exciting prospect. Please keep my future in your
prayers though and ask God to help me pick a research topic wisely. I'm
also in the process of applying for a bursary for next year, one of the
sections of the application asks for a few names of people who may be
willing to support me (or the college in general) and so I thought I'd ask
here if you are willing to have your name put there. The support can be
any amount, I just need to know in the next week or two. This is another
item regarding which I'd appreciate your prayer. Honours is, as I have
said an exciting thought as is the rest of the semester, though it is
quite daunting (as my degree is around the corner) and yet these too;
whether I attend every chapel, hand in every assignment and graduate magna
cum laude this is still not the appropriate currency for the divine
vending machine.

Over the long weekend I didn't do much work, I had lots of fellowship
though. A few of us went to support a girl from college on Saturday
afternoon in a dance competition (in which she absolutely dominated,
winning ballroom and latin). On Monday I went out with other friends to
Stellenbosch which was a good time and on Tuesday we had a birthday party
for one of the guys who will be staying for honours. I think one of the
biggest changes I have noticed in myself since coming to college is that I
have come to value relationships far more highly. In Work of Christ at the
beginning of the year we were shown that unity and mere friendship are
through Christ. Even being a good friend though is not a currency that
works in the divine vending machine.

Perhaps part of the problem becomes that there is no "divine vending
machine": it is a false understanding of God and the way He operates. We
don't put something in, like being a good friend or good student or good
Christian and, thereby, get something out. Rather, God in His grace gives
us every good and perfect gift - an important truth in an age of nominal
Christianity and the kind of mystic ideas that would have us believe we
can manipulate God into doing what we want.

Please pray that our lives conform to His will rather than us trying to
manipulate Him. I've put some prayer requests through the news, the future
(including post-Honours), time management (as always), wisdom for research
topic, next year's SRC and I think that's it. That's all that comes to
mind. Thanks for enduring another long newsletter.

In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2011-07-05

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Today's fun fact: The side of a Jacobs Krönung has stuff written in three
languages; English, Greek and Hebrew. Jacobs was made for Bible College
students! The reason I felt it necessary to preface this newsletter with
that fact is that I have that delightful aroma wafting around the study
right now and it's good to share.

Last time I mentioned the youth programme: the "SOUL" course. It finished
really well and it looks like the group has grown because of it. Every
week the main leader got a different kid to share his/her testimony (they
were prepared) and it was encouraging to hear from them. Term finished
fine, the last week is a blur but exams are now scarred into my memory.
They weren't that bad but results aren't out yet so I can't say that with
real certitude.

I've also been anticipating ministry week for some time and it was a
blast. We spent most of the days studying a passage and then preparing and
improving Bible studies from it. I think its safe to say that my group has
some idea of what to do with the story of the rich young ruler in Mark
10... I (and two other guys) also had a chance to preach. I chose to speak
from Mark 4:35-41 which is the story of Jesus calming the storm. I love
getting the chance to sit and sikkel with a passage for the time that I
had with this story. I haven't preached from plain narrative story before
and it was tough but I enjoyed it.

So now I'm on holiday, I have two weeks left in which to try to read the
King of God's Kingdom (600pg) and The Consequence of Ideas (200pg), I've
just finished Tozer's "Pursuit of God" and it was brilliant. I don't have
the whole two weeks though because next week I'm going to be helping with
the holiday club. A college friend and I are writing Bible software which
we're now trying to write with some design plan and so when I'm not
reading, I'm programming or making coffee. I love the holidays.

Lastly, I'm becoming more decided (not in any definite sort of way) in my
plan to do honours next year. I've not yet made a final decision but
that's where my thinking is going. The exciting question then becomes what
to write on (the honours course consists of a handful of courses and a
mini-dissertation, of 20000 words I think). The trouble is I like
everything. Greek is making sense and I like systematics so I could write
some sort of doctrine paper but then I feel like I'd rather spend my time
understanding what the Bible is trying to say and so do a study on Hebrews
or something. The problem is I also want to do something in the Old
Testament because I want to chance to improve my Hebrew and be an
evangelical who has looked at the Old Testament (because it's only really
liberals who do right now). A few options have come to mind but I've got
time on my side for that.

So please would you pray for finality in my decision for next year. Please
also pray that I would be able to focus in my reading during the coming
two weeks so that I get through enough of it. This coming semester looks
to be hectic (which is why I've started reading now) so I would also
appreciate your prayers for my ability to manage time and not get bogged
down too quickly (it does seem inevitable). Praise God for an awesome
ministry week though and a positive response from our host church (Trinity
Church Hilton) and thank God for His sustaining us through exams.

Now for some more coffee.
Exciting times... What? You can't end like that James: a participle is not
a finite verb!
Times is exciting.

In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2011-06-01

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

At this point I feel sort of like a small child with an impossibly large
MacDonalds burger. I can't really sink my teeth into everything, I'm a bit
overwhelmed but "bada ba da ba, I'm loving it". The last few weeks have
picked up in time commitment at church and assignment commitment at
college.

Life on the one half of the roll is church where I've been involved in a
few cool things. First, Christianity Explored. It's a Tuesday night dinner
aimed at non-Christians or young Christians who want to explore
Christianity and ask any questions they like. We have tables of about five
to eight for the meal and so the format is conducive to discussion which
centers around a different topic every week. It seems to be a really good
evangelism tool. Sort of coupled to that is the SOUL course on Friday
nights which is simply Christianity Explored for youth. This is going
phenomenally well; it also uses the dinner format and so we're broken down
into table groups the content is simply made more appropriate for a
younger audience. Finally, Thursday nights are still Bible Study. We've
been going through Romans and I've got to say that this Bible Study has
been such an encouragement to me for the future of Bible Studies.

The other half of the roll is college. I don't really know what to say
here other than that life goes on. Today I presented my Ethics III paper
on "Deceit in Gameplay" which was fairly well received. It was quite an
enjoyable assignment, it has just taken away time that I needed to finish
off the term's work before hitting exams which are looming large all of a
sudden. The end looks to be a killer but focus is shifting from work this
term to ministry week. I've got a sermon to prepare as well as a couple of
Bible studies.

The meat and stuff in the middle has been a rebirth of some of our former
glory days as far as society goes. We've had a bunch of good social times
in the last while which, it seems to me, is one of the best things about
being at college.

Please pray that I'm really grown by the work of this term. I suppose that
until next year you can pray for me about next year and, really, the
following years. Time has been scarce so please pray that devotion is the
word that characterises devotions for me. Thank you and enjoy the chips.

In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2011-04-30

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I remember when time meandered its way through an afternoon. I recall days
when I used to do whatever took my fancy. The holidays were almost like
that; I had plenty of work to get through during that week - I just
didn't. So, arriving back I had to catch up on the stuff that I had due.
I've handed in assignments, started a new course, I've even done an exam.

I imagine that the outcome of the exam is of some interest. It was for
"Work of Christ" and the scope was enormous. The subject was lectured by
Robert Doyle, a guy out from Moore College in Australia. It has been one
of my favourite courses thus far. Last term I wrote an essay for it
researching the cry of dereliction ("My God, my God, why have you forsaken
me?") and in what sense Jesus was forsaken. I really enjoyed the essay and
it was meticulously examined which I appreciated because the notes on my
essay will be very helpful in trying to improve my writing and
researching. Regarding the exam though, I was a bit nervous going in, I
had been particularly interested in one aspect of the course and had
studied it more carefully (the extent of the atonement, if you're
interested) and - to my great delight - it came up.

The exam was last Tuesday and it seems like the third years have largely
been measuring time in BE and AE (Before Exam, After Exam). We did,
however, have a good break beginning on Good Friday. I read C. S. Lewis'
"Till We Have Faces" in the break which was pretty cool. I'm not really a
big novel reader but I enjoyed it. Lewis is cool because even if you don't
like reading, you can manage his books which are easy reading, engaging
and - best of all - short (it makes you feel like you've accomplished
something). I went to a Passover meal at Muizenberg Community Church and
then I went to the Easter services at Tokai Community Church (which, I'm
not sure whether I've mentioned, is my placement church this year). By the
way, I can recommend Easter with a fresh slice of "Work of Christ" on your
mind. Those time filled days are now gone though.

I must admit; I don't know how many weeks of term remain, I don't know how
many assignments are coming up, basically I don't know what's going on in
the near future with regards to college. What I do know is that the Fun
Run is happening on the 7th of May (I'm not down to run but I'm hoping to
change that - although I feel like I should be nearby after they nearly
burnt down the pavilion by overloading an extension cord as soon as I
turned my back - it's like a conspiracy) and then, the end of the term
brings with it not only exams but ministry week which promises to be
fantastic.

Ah one last matter which weaseled its way out of the foreground of my mind
is that of the melting pot. The melting pot is a nearby cafe type bar
thingy-do (that's right "thingy-do" is actually a technical term, look it
up). On Wednesday they have "open mic night" and on Thursday they have
"blow-your-eardrums-out-it's-too-loud reggae" (I wonder if that means I'm
getting old). Now you may be expecting me to say that I am now famous.
This is not the case. I have, thus far, spared the world my unspeakable
talent. A few college guys have been going there though (to perform and to
listen) and it is beginning to turn into a great witnessing opportunity.

On a slightly different note, I would appreciate your prayers. I've got
mounds of work that would rival Mugg 'n Bean muffins, I have
administrative stuff to do for things like ministry week, SRC and the Fun
Run, there's that looming question of what will become of me next year and
in the midst of all that stuff I'd kind of like to be reading my Bible,
praying and - just generally - being a Christian. So, with particular
emphasis on the last bit, please would you keep me in your prayers. This
would be appreciated considerably more than the aforementioned muffins.

I think that as time went on in my writing of this newsletter my mind
became more frivolous - I just reread a part of it and thought, "that's
what comes of putting the word meandered into the opening sentence James,
you need to just calm down with your verbage".

In addition, I hope that this Newsletter made you smile as much as it made
me wonder about whether or not I am in a regular state of mind for a human
being. My insanity, for your amusement.

By the indelible grace of God,
In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2011-04-02

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I must begin by saying that I am sincerely sorry that I have not sent out
a newsletter in the last month. Time to write and send newsletters has
consistently eluded me especially over the last couple of weeks.

The most recent in my recollection of work for GWC has been an assignment
for "The Work of Christ" which, for me, was an essay on Jesus' being
forsaken and what that means. I must say, it has been one of the most
beneficial essays that I have written at college; it was one of the
assignments that, once finished, leaves you loving Jesus more. I felt
privileged to be doing it. I've had assignments for just about every
subject though and so time studying and writing has been exhausting. One
other 'assignment' that I should comment on is preaching in class. I had
to preach a parable from Matthew and so I chose to preach on the parable
of the unforgiving servant (from Matthew 18) and I felt that it went well
(and I mention it because I had an awesome time doing it).

In spite of the busyness, I have had the chance to do a few other things.
I visited YWAM a few weeks ago which was interesting as GWC doesn't have
much to do with them and so it was a good chance to meet with them. They
had a missionary from China do a talk encouraging people to go to China
but don't worry, I'm not feeling pulled very strongly in that direction.
GWC has just had their annual lecture, Peter Jensen (a big-shot from
Australia) was the guest speaker and he had some thought-provoking things
to say.

I also went through to the city to see the wildlife photo exhibition; in
first year I went to the WWF Wildlife Photographer of the Year display and
it was a treat so I took the opportunity to do so again. It did not
disappoint but as I think about the photos, I realise that no photo can
truly capture the grandeur of its subject. On Friday the 1st TGIF Cape
Town (an early morning meeting around a talk which is aimed at thinking
Christian business people) began, the topic was beauty and I was reminded
that the beauty of this world is only pointing to that of the next.

A bunch of the guys at college have recently started taking advantage of
the diversity of culture and minds available and we have been meeting to
talk about African Theology (a relevant topic given our context). I have
found these discussions incredibly stimulating lately and I've added this
interest to my thoughts about the future. Speaking of the future, please
keep that in your prayers. I'm home for the holidays right now so I'll
have some more discussion with my parents, doing honours has recently
popped more strongly into my radar. I'll be going down to KZN for ministry
week though which promises to be good. I'm leading a team to my uncle's
church in Hilton and hopefully I'll leave there with some more direction
regarding next year.

Please keep ministry week and plans for the future in your prayers. I've
got a pile of work to do in this break (which is only the next week) and
then I have an even busier term to look forward to. Please pray that
college work would keep pointing away from itself rather than drawing
attention away from its glorious subject. This year has been challenging
but exciting, so please pray that I would be enthralled by the studies
because of their goal.

Finally, thank you for reading my newsletters.

In Christ who saved me!
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za

James Cuénod's Newsletter 2011-02-15

James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To those interested who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I trust that this email will find you well. Over the December holidays
(really the January holidays), by God's unfailing grace, I turned 21.
That's a lifespan more than 500 times that of a worker bee and I haven't
harvested a drop of nectar. I did, however, have the privilege of
preaching during the holidays to the Honeyridge youth group and in the
main service. I relished the chance to expound God's word and thoroughly
enjoyed it. God's Word is sweeter than honey.

The holidays flew by swiftly but I managed to do some reading and see a
number of people. Somehow things that I wanted to do still slipped through
the cracks though. Nevertheless, the holidays drew to a close with
unexpected abruptness when I realised that I had a few SRC
responsibilities to take care of before returning but all in all, the
Christmas period was a much needed and appreciated break from college life.

Upon returning we didn't get much of a chance to get into gear and the SRC
were at work immediately, welcoming new students (especially the ones
moving into college residences) and preparing for commencement camp.
Commencement camp is an annual event which marks the start of the regular
timetable after summer school (a.k.a Greek/Hebrew week). I've always
enjoyed commencement camp although this one was particularly hectic
because of my involvement during the time leading up to it and during the
actual camp. During summer school, those of us who have done Greek and
Hebrew, were lectured on Galatians, 2 Corinthians, Luke and Revelation by
Paul Barnett. The lectures were good but somewhat rushed.

The fact that internet connectivity for me has been reduced (which will
hopefully change in the near future) coupled with my 25 hour day schedule
has delayed this newsletter by a couple of weeks so I'm kind of relieved
to be writing it right now. I'm realising how true it is that Satan
delights in a "busy" person, it's much easier to persuade him not to be
over-devoted to devotions.

Please redouble your prayer efforts as this term - in fact, this year
looks to be an intense workload. Pray for diligence in studies and, more
importantly, for spiritual growth to match any intellectual growth. I'm
also not certain which church I will be attending this year, it looks very
much like Tokai Community Church is the best option but please ask God to
make it clear.

The coming year excites me, the following year confounds me and the future
humbles me. Grace alone.

In Christ,
James Cuénod

--
James, a bondslave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
http://www.rekindle.co.za