Summer QuestDG: Spiritual Formation

This summer, we'll be investigating the critical, yet challenging topic of "Spiritual Formation" (below is a quote from Dallas Willard giving a brief description of it's importance and meaning). If you'd like to further your understanding and experience of a transformed heart -- the very wellspring of life (Prov. 4:23) -- then I believe this series will be quite valuable.

We'd love to have you join us, so feel free to contact me if you have any questions about Quest or about our summer Discovery Group. Just a quick reminder that we'll be meeting in the West Hall of the Morrison Building from 11:15am-12:15pm (right after the English worship service).

Grace and peace,
Andy

***** Quote from Dallas Willard *****

In Luke 6, Jesus points out that "there is no good tree which produces bad fruit.... Men do not gather figs from thorn bushes...." (vss. 43-44) It is the inner nature of the tree that determines its outward product. Likewise, "The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart." (vs. 45)

Spiritual formation in the tradition of Jesus Christ is the process of transformation of the inmost dimension of the human being, the heart, which is the same as the spirit or will. It is being formed (really, transformed) in such a way that its natural expression comes to be the deeds of Christ done in the power of Christ.

First Quest Discovery Group of the Summer

Hi Students, I'm looking forward to kicking off our summer QuestDG this Sunday, 6/3. We'll be meeting in the West Hall of the Morrison Building after the English Worship Service and go from 11:15am-12:15pm. Hope to see you there! More info to come...

Such a Blessing!

I just wanted to let you know how all of you have been an incredible blessing to me over these past two semesters. I've been challenged to grow in the Lord by our times of discussion, fellowship, and service.

For those who will be in Austin over the summer, it'll be great to have you here. I'm looking forward to the fun we'll have this summer. For those who'll be leaving Austin, you'll be in my thoughts and prayers. Looking forward to seeing you again next semester... :-)

Grace and peace,
Andy

Our Final QuestDG for the Semester

Because this Sunday (5/6) will be our last Quest Discovery Group class of the semester, we'll be having some special refreshments and extended time of fellowship. We'll also get the opportunity to reflect on and share about what God has shown us these past few weeks regarding living grace-filled lives. Lastly, we'll have some time to pray for each other.

Tina and I think this will be a special time for our Quest community as we look back at the year and then look forward to how God can use us during the summer months, so we hope you can join us!

Sunday, 4/29, QuestDG Recap: "How Legalism Corrupts Grace"

This Sunday we discussed what was legalism, why it is so appealing, and how dangerous it can be in corrupting our lives of grace. To gain insight about this, we examined why Jesus was so angry with the great legalists of His time (the Pharisees) in our study of Matthew 23.

Yancey sums up this week's theme well when he writes on page 210 of What's So Amazing About Grace:

"Jesus proclaimed unmistakable that God's law is so perfect and absolute that no one can achieve righteousness. Yet God's law is so great that we do not have to. By striving to prove how much they deserve God's love, legalists miss the whole point of the gospel, that it is a gift from God to people who don't deserve it. The solution to sin is not to impose an ever-stricter code of behavior. It is to know God."

Sunday, 4/22, QuestDG Recap: "Grace Abuse"

This Sunday, Tina lead us in a challenging investigation on how we relate the concepts of grace and sin -- specifically living in disobedience while being children of grace. We discussed how we are no longer slaves to sin, but slaves to righteousness, and how our obedience motivated by faith that God's will is good is an act of worship.

We also looked into the Scriptural principle that continual, deliberate sin can lead to our falling away from the faith. "Our assurance of salvation increases as we walk in obedience. The corollary is that we cannot feel secure about our salvation if we continually choose to live in disobedience."

Her encouragement for us was that we should not be careless in our walk with God and that we should pray for our friends who are falling into disobedience.