RUF at UGA

"Storms of Mercy" (Jonah 1:4-6)

"I Once Was Found But Now I'm Lost" (Jonah 1:1-3)

"The WEARY world REJOICES" (Mt 1:18-2:6)

This is Ben's message from our 2018 RUF Lessons and Carols Christmas service.

"Put Me In Coach--Our Participation in Jesus' Kingdom" (Col 4:2-6)

"How Jesus Changes Men, Women, and Marriage" (Col 3:17-19)

"Future You" (Col 3:10-17)

"You Can Change" (Col 3:1-10)

"Bless Your Heart" (Psalm 32:1-2) (Rev. Clay Werner)

Rev. Clay Werner of Good Shepherd Presbyterian reminds us of a God who calls sinners to bring our sins to him so that he can carry them away as far as East is from West.  In doing this, he blesses us--giving us the deep joy of possessing and experiencing his permanent and passionate favor in our lives.  

FallCon 4 of 4: "Sustainable Justice" (Micah 6:1-8)

Rev. Dr. Hunter Bailey is the former RUF Campus Minsiter at Emory University and current pastor of Christ Community Church in Fayetteville Arkansas.  He joined us as our main speaker at Georgia-Alabama FallCon 2018 and spoke about the "Micah Mandate" given in Micah 6:8.

FallCon 3 of 4: "Love Mercy" (Micah 6:8)

Rev. Dr. Hunter Bailey is the former RUF Campus Minsiter at Emory University and current pastor of Christ Community Church in Fayetteville Arkansas.  He joined us as our main speaker at Georgia-Alabama FallCon 2018 and spoke about the "Micah Mandate" given in Micah 6:8.

FallCon 2 of 4: "Walk Humbly With Your God" (Micah 6:8)

Rev. Dr. Hunter Bailey is the former RUF Campus Minsiter at Emory University and current pastor of Christ Community Church in Fayetteville Arkansas.  He joined us as our main speaker at Georgia-Alabama FallCon 2018 and spoke about the "Micah Mandate" given in Micah 6:8.

FallCon 1 of 4: "He Has Shown You" (Micah 6:8)

Rev. Dr. Hunter Bailey is the former RUF Campus Minsiter at Emory University and current pastor of Christ Community Church in Fayetteville Arkansas.  He joined us as our main speaker at Georgia-Alabama FallCon 2018 and spoke about the "Micah Mandate" given in Micah 6:8.

"Who Do You Think You Are?" (Col 2:6-23)

"The Mystery of Maturity" (Col 1:28-2:7)

"Immersed in Christ" (Col 1:24-2:3))

"A Match Made In Heaven" (Col 1:19-23)

The Gospel is the only thing that can free you to honestly face what YOU are actually like (weak, sinful, guilty, shamed) and what GOD is actually like (holy, just, righteous, gracious, kind, patient).  In other words, who Jesus actually is is a match made in heaven for who you actually are.  Colossians 1:19-23 is where Paul traces the Redeemer's compatibility with those needing redemption.

"A Bigger Jesus" (Col 1:15-20)

We're all prone to have a shrinking Jesus; that's why our anxieties, insecurities, restlessness, and hyper-activity are always in the background.  God knows this.  Paul knows it.  That's why he wrote the "Christ Hymn" in this letter.  In it we see Jesus as he is--supreme, sufficient, and seeable.  

"What Our Prayers Reveal" (Col 1:9-14)

Our prayers are where our hearts express their deepest perceived needs.  It's the same with Paul's prayer for the Colossians in the early part of his letter.  His prayer reminds us of what we need, who we are, who God is, and where he's put us.  

"Why RUF Is Here" (Col 1:1-8)

The Gospel is the demonstration and reality that God is one who meets us where we are with all of himself and all of his resources... while never leaving us stuck there.  At RUF, all we're trying to do is love others in the ways we've first been loved by God.  That's why we're aiming to be a community of redeemed sinners who meet each other where we are while never leaving anyone stuck there.  

"The End of Exile" (Rev 21:1-8)

"The Reversal of Exile in The Resurrection of Jesus" (Mt 28:10-20)

"Suffering and Glory in Exile" (1 Pet 4:12-19) (Joel May)

Our intern, Joel May, helps us understand what it means and why it matters that we share in Christ's suffering and glory.  

"Our Shepherds in Exile" (1 Pet 5:1-11)

"Our Strangeness in Exile" (1 Pet 4:1-6)

"Putting Down Roots in Exile" (Jer 29:1-14)

Jeremiah answers the question every Christian struggles with at one point or another: "How should I interact with the people and places God's put me in?  How can I be faithful without selling out or assimilating?"  

"Our Impact in Exile" (1 Pet 2:9-17, 2:24-25)

"Our Identity in Exile" (1 Pet 1:13-19)

Religion is like handing flight instructions to a caterpillar.  It asks the impossible and so it's inevitably defeating and pointless.  The Gospel, on the other hand, transforms caterpillars into butterflies and calls them to take to the skies and "Fly!"  Peter tells us that Christians were saved for holiness.  And freedom.  And obedience.  And love.  And so when God calls us to be holy as he is holy, he's inviting us deeper into our destiny.  And after putting giant wings on our back and changing our nature, he now calls us to watch as he teaches how to fly.  That's what learning holiness is like.  It's not simply a command to the Christian; it's a privilege, an opportunity, a gracious blessing.

"Our Temptations in Exile" (Ps 73)

In Psalm 73, Asaph lays his soul bare and shows us that when we lose perspective in our relationship with God, we also lose heart.  And when we lose heart, we lose our footing.  And when we lose our footing, we slip and fall.  Into cynicism, into burn-out, into unbelief and envying the wicked.  Asaph's words are an anatomy of how this happens.  But they're also an anatomy of how seeing the real and living God meet us in our mess is what puts us back on our feet--and restores our perspective and our heart in the process.  

"The Pain and Gain of Exile" (Deut 8:1-18)

It's in seasons of wilderness and suffering that God reveals most clearly the "real" you--good, bad, and ugly.  But it's also in the wilderness that he reveals himself most clearly--near, generous, and faithful.  In seasons of our lives when resources seem the most scarce, faith the most faint, and God the most distant He is actually up to some of his most powerful work.  And most importantly of all, Jesus' successful testing and training in the wilderness makes the wilderness not a place of failure for us--but a place of fruitful formation.

"Elect Exiles" (1 Pet 1:1-9)

The Apostle Peter calls us "elect exiles."  When he uses this term, he knows he's using words that have a rich, ancient legacy in the story of God's people.  But they're also words that seem to contradict.  How can we simultaneously be "elect" (chosen of God, redeemed, renewed, beloved, care for) and also exiled (seemingly wandering through the wilderness, homeless, homesick, abandoned)?  Isn't it one or the other?  We tend to think so.  But God, through Peter, insists we see our lives in 3-D color, not one-dimensional monochrome.  When we see ourselves for who we are--elect exiles--faith in our God grows vibrant and our endurance is fueled.