BRANCHES May 2013

BRANCHES 

IDENTITY 

STRUGGLES 

PARENTS IN A REAL 

DISCUSSION ABOUT 

HELPING THEIR YOUTH 

MAY 2013 | southwood.org 

ask a pastor: 

chad townsley answers 

questions about college & church 

all that’s fair: switchfoot’s john 

foreman’s “christian” music

SOUTHWOOD 

contents 

ABOUT THIS ISSUE 

Have you seen the latest Dove Real Beauty Sketches videos that are being shared on social 

media? An FBI sketch artist draws an image of how an individual sees themselves and then 

the artist draws someone else’s description of the individual. What happens every time? 

They see themselves as much less attractive, highlighting their flaws. Yet others describe 

them in a much more positive light, and more accurately! The video ends with “You are 

more beautiful than you think.” 

˜ 

What does this illustration say about our self-identity? We are so wrapped up in ourselves 

that we often miss the picture. Many of us are focused on how we look (and some feel 

like it’s just better to give up!) However, it’s not just our looks that affect our identity. 

Work performance, academic success, athleticism, those statuses that get lots of “likes”, 

our children’s success, our ability to deal with our children’s problems, our homes, how 

“Christian” we are—in most every facet of our lives we struggle with our identity. It’s not a 

new struggle. Remember being school-age? Jocks, geeks, cheerleaders, freaks, scholarship 

recipients and dropouts—everyone seemed to get a label or were trying to define one. 

2 

3 

6 

10 

15 

9 

about this issue 

pastor’s note 

REFLECT 

thoughts for young men 

Applicable excerpts from 

John C. Ryle 

sharing identity struggles 

Parents of youth in a candid 

discussion 

older streams 

Kevin Twit’s inspiration for 

Indelible Grace 

RESPOND 

5 questions 

RUF coordinator Rod Mays talks 

about getting involved in RUF 

In this issue we’ll be dealing with identity. It’s one of the greatest burdens dealt with in youth 

ministry, but we rarely grow out of it. Dive in to the discussion and consider your identity. 

The “Sunday school answer” is that it’s in Christ. If you’ve spent much time wrestling with it, 

I suspect you’ve found that indeed if we can’t rest in that answer, we’ll continue to struggle. 

So if you see me around, be sure to tell me how great you think BRANCHES is (one of the 

many things I factor into my identity). Or better yet, don’t, and remind me to rest in Christ. 

Bonus points for doing so on any day but Sunday. 


Editor-in-Chief Jonathan Barnette 

Designer Jacki Gil 

CONTRIBUTORS 

Will Spink 

James Parker 

Annalise Townsley 

Chad Townsley 

Rod Mays 

Vinit Mahesh 

PHOTOS 

Jonathan Barnette 

Katie Cochran 

FEEDBACK! 

We want to hear from you! Please send 

your suggestions and comments to 

branches@southwood.org 

1000 CARL T. JONES DRIVE | HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA 35802 

(256) 882-3085 | WWW.SOUTHWOOD.ORG 

2 MAY 2013 | SOUTHWOOD.ORG 

Jonathan Barnette, Editor 

JEAN F. LARROUX, III Senior Pastor 

MELISSA PATTERSON Executive Assistant 

ADULT MINISTRIES 

SARAH NIEMITZ Director of Community Development/Assimilation 

JAMES PARKER Chief Musician 

WILL SPINK Associate Pastor/Shepherding 

STUDENT MINISTRIES 

KIM DELCHAMPS Administrative Assistant 

NINA BANTA Director of Children 

NANCY McCREIGHT Assistant Director /Children/Nursery 

CHAD TOWNSLEY Associate Pastor/High-Life 

WINNIE WINFORD Assistant Director/High-Life 

MINISTRY SUPPORT 

PAT TRAPANE Bookkeeper 

JONATHAN BARNETTE Director of Communication 

JACKI GIL Graphic Designer 

JANICE CROWSON Director of Facilities/Finance 

LYNDA CLAYDON Facilities 

MIKE MARREN Facilities 

14 

16 

4 

5 

5 

8 

17 

18 

19 

question of the month 

How do you honor your mother 

on Mother’s Day? 

ask a pastor 

Chad Townsley addresses going 

to college and church involvement 

RELATE 

southwood by the numbers 

session update 

from the kitchen 

Triple Chocolate Salted Cookies 

from Annaliese Townsley 

ruf in huntsville 

Highlighting the campus pastors 

from UAH and Alabama A&M 

senior tweets 

Southwood’s seniors sound off in 

140 characters or less 

welcome to southwood 

Welcome these new families and 

communicants to Southwood 

all that is fair 

Looking at Switchfoot’s John 

Foreman’s “Christian” music 

UPCOMING 

EVENTS 

may 5 

New Adult Sunday School Begins 

may 5 

Senior Sunday 

may 14 

Providence Presbytery Meeting

PASTOR’S NOTE 

Chasing the Rabbit Into the Gospel Wonderland 

It was Friday night. The ACT was the next morning. 

The look of angst on my daughter’s face was palpable. 

When I asked her if anything was wrong she gave the 

definitive answer indicating total meltdown—she said 

she was “fine.” I knew we were in trouble. 

I looked at her across the kitchen and said, “Ann, 

when you don’t know an answer on the test you need 

to look straight at that question and tell it— ‘you are 

not a crack baby!’” She looked at me the same way 

you are looking at this page right now. I said again, 

“Tell question #32 in the math section— ‘you are not 

a crack baby!’” Puzzled, she said, “Huh?” 

I said, “Ann, when you see question #32 and you don’t 

know the answer, you panic. When you panic you think: 

‘I’m gonna fail the ACT. ‘ Then you think: ‘If I fail the 

ACT then I’m never gonna go to college.’ Then you 

think: ‘If I fail the ACT and never go to college then 

I’m never gonna get a job.’ Then you think: ‘If I don’t 

go to college and I don’t get a job then I won’t have 

any money. If I don’t have any money then I will have 

to live under an overpass. If I live under an overpass 

then the only happiness I will find is in doing crack. If I 

do crack I will probably end up getting pregnant and 

living under the overpass raising that crack baby all by 

myself.’” Then in a much louder voice I said, “Annie, 

question #32 is a math question, not a crack baby!” 

She laughed and said, “I got it!” 

In a split second we can extrapolate a “worst-case 

scenario” in our minds. I have held so many “crack 

babies” in my life I cannot tell you. If a bill is late or 

a phone call is missed or a house closing is delayed I 

begin emotionally spiraling toward the overpass. 

I want to appeal to you to turn your ability to “chase 

a rabbit” down the hole in a bad way into a skill that 

allows you to take a thought and “chase that rabbit” 

the right way in order to find the Gospel root of your 

struggles. This is really one of most helpful ways that 

we can “experience grace.” 

Let’s say that you are struggling with a particular sin. 

We’ll choose something safe like cutting people off 

in conversations. While rude and annoying, this isn’t 

one of those “bad sins” that we think, “Boy I’m really 

glad Jesus died for this….” But we need to “chase 

the rabbit” a little bit in order to see our real need 

for Christ. 

First, we need to re-file the behavior as a symptom of 

the sin and not the root sin. Whatever we see going 

on is an indication of something deeper in the heart. 

Therefore we ask, “what am I really saying when I 

interrupt my sister while she is talking?” Aren’t you 

really saying that your opinion or story or insight 

is more important than hers. Aren’t we also saying 

that our desire and need to communicate our story 

supersedes any value we might garner from listening 

to her story? Even worse, I cannot allow someone 

else to get the spotlight. I do not have the ability or 

humility to listen and be instructed by someone else. 

I am impatient and intolerant of playing second-fiddle 

to anyone. 

Now imagine you are corrected. You say, “yeah, 

yeah, I’m sorry… now finish and let me tell my story.” 

The problem remains, but now you have just given 

it some Christian frosting. Now, instead of actually 

listening you are pretending to listen so that you can 

be certain to be the next to speak. So now, added to 

our previous list we have hypocrisy, deception, anger 

and impatience. This is all wrapped up in a pretty little 

package called “I’m sorry” which was really just a 

down-payment on “it’s my turn next!” 

When we “chase this rabbit” down the hole we see a 

heart that is self-absorbed, self-serving, self-enamored 

and self-deceived. If we simply do sin-symptommanagement 

and teach ourselves to “wait our turn” 

we will never see our need for Jesus. We might see our 

need to use better timing or greater self-control but 

we don’t get to Jesus if we just manage symptoms. 

The real issue isn’t communication—the issue is my 

heart! I need deliverance not direction on how to 

be better. In most scenarios I need to look way past 

question #32 and see the cracks in my heart before I 

can really see my need for Jesus. 

Take the risk of “chasing the rabbit” all the way down 

the hole on one of your sins this month. Find the 

cracks in your heart at the end. If you need help, ask 

one of your parents. If you are a parent, ask one of your 

kids. You both probably see the cracks in each other’s 

hearts pretty clearly. Whenever either of you tell the 

other one that you are “fine” then know this: you are 

just entering the Gospel wonderland. 

For more from Jean, check out 

his sermons at southwood.org 

jean.larroux@southwood.org 

@jflarrouxiii 

Jean F. Larroux, III 

Senior Pastor 

MAY 2013 | SOUTHWOOD.ORG 3

southwood by the numbers 

Students are the focus of this month’s very impressive count-up. 

982,800 

The total minutes spent 

in school by students 

from kindergarten to 

graduation. That boils 

down to 1,260 hours 

a year, 5,040 of those 

hours in high school 

alone! No wonder 

senioritis sets in early! 

101 

The average 

number of text 

messages sent 

in a day in one 

conversation 

between two high 

school students. 

If you’re about to 

have a high-schooler 

on your hands, you 

$1,078 

might want to consider 

investing in an 

unlimited text plan! 

sixteen 

The percent of students from High-Life that 

graduated and decided to attend an out of 

state school in the 2012-13 school year. 

69 

The percent of 

graduating High-Life 

students that chose 

to attend SEC schools 

in the 2012-13 school 

year. Which one will 

you be? War Eagle? 

Roll Tide? ...or maybe 

Hotty Toddy? 

The average cost of prom 

for a couple for 2013. That’s 

up from $807 in 2012. 

one 

Jar of Ham & Gravy baby food that was attempted 

to be eaten at High-Life during April. However, the 

attempt was unsuccessful, it was just too gross. 

4 MAY 2013 | SOUTHWOOD.ORG

elate 

SOUTHWOOD 

SESSION UPDATE WILL SPINK 

We want to keep the congregation informed regarding two significant 

administrative matters: the purchase of the “white house” and the 

development of by-laws. Following last month’s Congregational 

Meeting and the congregation’s decision to purchase the white 

house adjacent to the church property, the closing on the house 

has been completed. The previous owner will continue to live in the 

home for the next several weeks, so please respect her privacy. The 

Session is not rushing short-term or long-term plans for usage of the 

home, and input is certainly welcome at any time. 

The Session and Diaconate have also drafted by-laws for Southwood 

to recommend to the congregation, who would need to approve 

any such by-laws. The reason for this measure is that the church 

has not previously operated under any by-laws unique and specific 

to Southwood. The desire is to clarify procedures for operations 

within the church and to increase transparency and communication 

between Session, Diaconate, and Congregation. 

The goal is to have a Congregational meeting this fall to vote on 

approving the by-laws. However, since by-laws are lengthy and 

detailed, it would not be prudent or profitable to edit them word 

by word in such a setting. Thus, over the next few months, we want 

to give members opportunities to review the proposed by-laws, ask 

questions, and give input, so that we will be prepared to vote in a 

fall meeting. The first such opportunity will be Sunday, May 19, at 

9:00am in Seminar Room E. All who are interested are welcome to 

join us to discuss the by-laws, and other Christian Education classes 

will continue as normal that day. 

Much of the focus of the Session in recent weeks has been on 

shepherding issues, some of which are private in nature and 

others of which have been communicated to the congregation. As 

always, please talk with us if you have any questions or concerns 

or if you have a particular need. You can reach all the elders at 

elders@southwood.org. 

Triple Chocolate Salted Cookies 

from Annaliese Townsley 

2 cups Flour | ½ cup Cocoa Powder | 2 teaspoons Baking Powder | ½ teaspoon Salt 

16 ounces chopped Semisweet Chocolate | 4 eggs | 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract 

2 teaspoons Instant Coffee or Espresso Powder | 10 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, at room temperature 

1½ cups Packed Light Brown Sugar | ½ cup Granulated Sugar | 2 cups Semisweet Chocolate Chips | Sea Salt 

Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl; 

set aside. Microwave the chocolate in 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until 

melted and smooth. In a small mixing bowl, combine the eggs, vanilla and instant 

coffee granules; stir well with a fork to dissolve; set aside. 

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter at medium speed until smooth and 

creamy. Stir in the sugars and beat until combined, yet still granular, about 1 minute. 

With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the egg mixture until incorporated. 

Pour in the chocolate at a steady stream and continue mixing until combined. Add the 

dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated. Do not overmix. Fold in the chocolate 

chips. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for 30 

minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners. 

Scoop golf-ball sized dough-balls onto the sheets, spacing about 1½ inches apart. 

Sprinkle each cookie with sea salt. 

Bake for 10 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies have just begun to set but the 

centers are still very soft. Remove from oven and cool on the cookie sheets for about 

10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Cool the baking 

sheets back to room temperature before continuing with the remaining dough 

These cookies, a favorite recipe of students, were recently prepared for Cookie Tuesday. Each Tuesday an average of 200 cookies are prepared and served 

at the Townsley house. We encourage all Jr. High and Sr. High students to drop by and grab a cookie or two (or three) and hang for a while after school! 


SOUTHWOOD 

reflect 

THOUGHTS FOR 

YOUNG MEN 

(AND WOMEN) 

J.C RYLE 

This excerpt is taken from 

the book by J.C. Ryle called 

“Thoughts for Young Men.“ 

This is a compend of the 

chapter entitled: “General 

Counsels to Young 

Men.” J.C. Ryle was the 

first Anglican bishop of 

Liverpool, England. He 

died in 1900 at the age of 

84. His words are sobering 

and applicable to men and 

women of all ages. 

TRY TO GET A CLEAR VIEW OF THE EVIL OF SIN. 

Think for a moment what the Bible says about sin; - how it dwells naturally 

in the heart of every man and woman alive (Eccles. 7:20; Rom. 3:23), - how it 

defiles our thoughts, words, and actions, continually (Gen. 6:5; Matt. 15:19), 

- how it renders us all guilty and abominable in the sight of a holy God (Isa. 

64:6; Hab. 1 :13.) I tell you this day, is it not more sad to be dying of cancer, 

and not to know it, than it is to be a living man, and not to know this? 

feel weak, and unable to follow Him? - Fear not: He will give you power 

to become sons of God. If you love life, seek to become acquainted with 

Jesus Christ. 

NOTHING IS SO IMPORTANT AS YOUR SOUL. YOUR SOUL IS 

ETERNAL. IT WILL LIVE FOREVER. 

The world and all that it contains shall pass away. The works of statesmen, 

writers, painters, architects, are all short-lived: your soul will outlive them 

all. The angel’s voice shall proclaim one day, that “Time shall be no longer” 

(Rev. 10:6). But that shall never be said of your souls. 

Your soul is the one thing worth living for. No employment is good for 

you, which injures your soul. No friend, no companion deserves your 

confidence, who makes light of your soul’s concerns. The man who hurts 

your body, your property, your character, does you but temporary harm. 

He is the true enemy who seeks always to damage your soul. Think for a 

moment. What were you sent into the world for? Not merely to eat and 

drink, and indulge the desires of the flesh, - not merely to dress up your 

body, and follow its lusts wherever they may lead you, - not merely to work, 

and sleep, and laugh, and talk, and enjoy yourself, and think of nothing but 

time. No! you were meant for something higher and better than this. Your 

body was only intended to be a house for your never-dying spirit. 

Young man, God is no respecter of persons. God does not look at riches, 

titles, learning, beauty, or anything of the kind. One thing only God does 

look at, and that is the never-dying soul. The day is fast approaching when 

the soul will be the one thing men will think of, and the only question of 

importance will be this, “Is my soul lost or saved? 

Think what an awful change sin has worked on all our natures. Man is no 

longer what he was when God formed him out of the dust of the ground. 

He came out of God’s hand upright and sinless (Eccles. 7:29). In the day 

of his creation he was, like everything else, “very good” (Gen. 1:31). And 

what is man now? - A fallen creature, a ruin, a being that shows the marks 

of corruption all over… Alas, what a wreck is man, compared to what he 

might have been! 

See the Lord Jesus Christ despised and rejected of men, scourged, 

mocked, and insulted… and then consider, young man, what must be the 

evil and guilt of sin. Surely, if you did but think of [these things], you would 

break off with sin forever. Will you play with poison? Will you with hell? Will 

you take fire in your hand? Remember the words of Solomon: “Fools,” 

none but fools, “mock at sin” (Pro. 14:9). Pray that God would teach you 

the real evil of sin. 

SEEK TO BECOME ACQUAINTED WITH OUR LORD JESUS 

CHRIST. THIS IS THE CORNERSTONE OF CHRISTIANITY. 

But let me not be misunderstood. It is not the mere knowing Christ’s name 

that I mean, - it is the knowing His mercy, grace, and power, —not by the 

hearing of the ear, but by the experience of your heart. 

Young man, I set before you Jesus Christ this day, as the treasury of your 

souls; and I invite you to begin by going to Him. Do you feel unworthy 

because of your sins? - Fear not: His blood cleanses from all sin. Do you 

FOR ANOTHER THING, REMEMBER THAT IT IS POSSIBLE TO 

BE A YOUNG MAN AND YET TO SERVE GOD. 

I fear the snares that Satan lays for you on this point. I have heard it said, 

“You are requiring impossibilities in expecting so much religion from 

young people. Youth is no time for seriousness. God meant us to enjoy 

ourselves. There will be time enough for religion later on.” The world is 

only too ready to wink at youthful sins. The world appears to take it for 

granted that young men must “sow their wild oats.” The world seems to 

take it for granted young people must be irreligious, and that it is not 

possible for them to follow Christ. 

Young man, I will ask you this simple question, Where will you find anything 

of all this in the Word of God? Where is the chapter or verse in the Bible 

which will support this talking and reasoning of the world? Will it form the 

slightest excuse, in the Day of Judgment, to say, “I know I sinned, but then 

I was young”? 

There are difficulties, - but God will give you grace to overcome 

them. God is no hard master. He will not, like Pharaoh, require make 

bricks without straw. He will make sure the path of plain duty is never 

impossible. He never laid commands on man which He will not give 

man power to perform. Young man, try to serve God. Resist the devil 

when he whispers it is impossible. When Satan says, “You cannot be a 

Christian while you are young:” answer him, “Get behind me, Satan: by 

God’s help I will try.” 


SOUTHWOOD 

CURL UP WITH... 

FOR ANOTHER THING, DETERMINE AS LONG AS YOU LIVE 

TO MAKE THE BIBLE YOUR GUIDE AND ADVISER. 

The Bible is God’s merciful provision for sinful man’s soul, - the map by 

which he must steer his course, if he would attain eternal life. All that we 

need to know, in order to make us peaceful, holy, or happy, is there richly 

contained. Young man, I challenge you to make a habit of reading the Bible, 

and not to let the habit be broken. Let not the laughter of companions, - 

let not the bad customs of the family you may live in, - let none these 

things prevent your doing it. Determine that you will not only have a Bible, 

but also make time to read it too. Permit no man to persuade you that it 

is only a book for Sunday School children and old women. It is the book 

from which King David got wisdom and understanding. It is the book which 

young Timothy knew from his childhood. Never be ashamed of reading it. 

Be very sure that every practice in your life which is contrary to Scripture, is 

sinful and must be given up. This will settle many a question of conscience. 

Read it regularly. This is the only way to become “mighty in the Scriptures.” 

A hasty glance at the Bible now and then does little good. At that rate you 

will never become familiar with its treasures, or feel the sword of the Spirit 

fitted to your hand in the hour of conflict. 

AND FINALLY, ONE MORE THING, NEVER MAKE AN INTIMATE 

FRIEND OF ANYONE WHO IS NOT A FRIEND OF GOD. 

Understand me, I do not speak of acquaintances. I do not mean that you 

ought to have nothing to do with any but true Christians. To take such a 

position is neither possible nor desirable in this world. Christianity asks no 

man to be uncourteous. 

But I do advise you to be very careful in your choice of friends. Do not 

open all your heart to a man merely because he is clever, agreeable, goodnatured, 

high-spirited and kind. Never be satisfied with the friendship of 

anyone who will not be useful to your soul. 

There is no telling the harm that is done by associating with godless 

companions and friends. The devil has few better helps in ruining a 

man’s soul. You must remember, we are all creatures of imitation: precept 

may teach us, but it is example that draws us. Health, unhappily, is not 

contagious, but disease is. 

Young man, I ask you to lay these things to heart. Before you let any one 

become your constant companion, before you get into the habit of telling 

him everything, and going to him in all your troubles and all your pleasures, 

- before you do this, just think of what I have been saying; ask yourself, 

“Will this be a useful friendship to me or not?” Even a stone will give way 

before the continual dripping of water. “Show me who a man lives with,” 

says the Spaniards, “and I will show you what he is. 

Choose friends who will benefit your soul, friends whom you can really 

respect, friends whom you would like to have near you on your deathbed, 

who love the Bible, and are not afraid to speak to you about it, friends 

such as you will not be ashamed of acknowledging at the coming of Christ, 

and the Day of Judgment. Remember also the words of Solomon: “He 

who walks with wise men will be wise; but the companion of fools will be 

destroyed” (Pro. 13:20). 

BOOKS ON IDENTITY & STUDENTS 

HURT 

BY CHAP CLARK 

Today’s adolescents have largely been 

abandoned by adults and left to fend 

for themselves in an uncertain world. 

As a result, teens have created their 

own world to serve as a shield against 

uncaring adults. It will surprise and 

enlighten parents, youth workers, 

counselors, pastors, and all who want 

to better understand the hearts and 

minds of America’s adolescents. 

THE SEARCH FOR 

SIGNIFICANCE 

BY ROBERT S. McGEE 

Robert McGee’s best-selling book 

has helped millions of readers learn 

how to be free to enjoy Christ’s love 

while no longer basing their selfworth 

on their accomplishments or 

the opinions of others. In fact, Billy 

Graham said that it was a book that 

“should be read by every Christian.” 

ENGAGING GOD’S 

WORLD 

BY CORNELIUS 

PLANTINGA 

Approaching the topic of education 

from a variety of angles, Plantinga 

shows that Christ-centered learning 

teaches people to correctly see 

the world as God’s creation, to see 

providence in history, to handle 

secular knowledge critically, to 

develop good judgment and, 

ultimately, to use faith-filled learning 

in the service of God’s kingdom. 

CHRIS CHRISMAN GOES 

TO COLLEGE 

BY JAMES W. SIRE 

Chris Chrisman, a young Christian, 

goes to college only to have his world 

turned upside down. On campus he 

finds the challenges to his faith— 

both intellectual and personal— 

almost more than he can bear. Then 

he meets Bill Seipel and Bob Wong. 

Together, the three young men, two 

of them Christians and the other a 

self-styled atheist, forge a common 

MAY bond 2013 in the | SOUTHWOOD.ORG quest for truth. 7

SOUTHWOOD 

relate 

GIVING AND THE HEART VINIT MAHESH 

In Malachi 3:10, God instructs us to bring the whole tithe to the storehouse. blessings flow. It is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that my intelligence 

In the preceding verse, God places a curse on those who rob Him by and hard work drive my resources, but ultimately even my abilities and 

withholding the tithe. Later in Malachi 3:10-12, God makes great promise work ethic are gifts from God; therefore, offering of the first fruit of my 

of blessing to those who obey Him in stewardship. 

labors reminds me of God’s blessings in my life. This act of worship allows 

me to humbly acknowledge His goodness. It removes my self-reliance. 

My understanding of stewardship has evolved over the years. It is 

sometimes tempting to take a very fundamental view of stewardship. God I have selfish, materialistic desires. Contentment is a concept that is elusive 

commands it; therefore, I must obey to enjoy His blessings and avoid His in modern day America. Many men my age experience a “mid-life crisis.” 

curses. I can even take this to the next level. After all, we have all heard the Acknowledging God’s provision in my life protects my heart by providing 

saying “you cannot out give God.” Therefore, the more I give, the more contentment with that which God has provided to me. 

I will get. When I examine my heart, this level of understanding ends up 

being no more then an insurance policy or investment strategy. It still is all 

about me. 

As I read through the Scriptures, I realize that when God gives commands, 

we are the ultimate beneficiaries. When I apply this specifically to 

stewardship, it quickly becomes obvious that the Creator and Owner of 

the universe does not need my money to advance His kingdom. It is all His 

in the first place, even the portion with which He has blessed me. Perhaps 

then, when He commands me to give, He is after something else – my 

heart (Matthew 6:21). 

There are several ways that stewardship affects my heart. Besides being 

an act of obedience, giving compels me to remember from whom all 

Beginning Sunday, May 5, Vinit will be 

teaching a Sunday Seminar course on 

Biblical Stewardship called “The (He)art of 

Giving.” The class will be supported by the 

deacons and include principles from Crown 

Financial Ministries regarding a biblical 

approach to personal finances. This is one 

of several recommendations our Diaconate 

has made for helping develop the grace of 

liberality in our congregation. If you have any 

questions about giving, feel free to contact 

the deacons at deacons@southwood.org. 

ROY HUBBARD ALABAMA A&M 

Roy grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana where he was one of 5 

children. From there he attended Louisiana State University 

where he earned a degree in Elementary Education. While at 

LSU, he was involved with RUF and was a member of South Baton 

Rouge Presbyterian (PCA). In July of 2005, he began the Masters 

of Divinity degree at Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson 

and finished in May of 2008. While in seminary, Roy married Emily 

Chapman of Starkville, Mississippi in March of 2007. They have 

one daughter, Iris, and a son, Jonas. 

RUF IN HUNTSVILLE 

REID JONES UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA HUNTSVILLE 

Reid and Kelli Jones, together with their 2-yr-old Lucy, recently moved 

to the Huntsville area all the way from West Jordan, Utah, where 

Reid was an assistant pastor at a PCA church in the Salt Lake Valley. 

Since they arrived, the Jones family expanded to four as they recently 

welcomed their second daughter, Jordan. 

The Joneses are glad to be back in their home state of Alabama after 

several years of being away for a few different ministry opportunities. 

Reid and Kelli met while attending Troy University (Go Trojans!) more 

than ten years ago and they’ve been married for seven years. Reid 

received his Masters of Divinity from Reformed Theological Seminary 

(RTS) in Charlotte in 2010. 


espond 

SOUTHWOOD 

Why does RUF consider it important 

to have an “ordained” campus 

minister leading these groups? 

It seems that the pressures on college students are mounting each year: 

? 

eating disorders, homesickness, family dysfunctions (divorce, alcoholism, 

abuse), financial worries, broken relationships, personal addictions, and 

tragedies among family and friends are more than students can handle 

alone. The ordained campus minister’s ability to handle the Scriptures in 

an accurate way, to preach effectually, and to counsel with the application 

of Scripture lends a tremendous advantage for effective ministry during 

this critical phase in life and faith. An ordained minister is accountable to a 

Presbytery for his life and practice, under the authority and oversight of the 

church. This protects the student from loose or misapplied doctrine and 

builds a sound Biblical foundation. 

How does RUF see 

itself as an extension 

of the church and not 

a replacement for the 

church? 

It is not the purpose of RUF to strengthen 

campus ministry; our goal is to strengthen 

the church. RUF is only a means to that end, 

seeking to point to Jesus and His body 

through the great hymns of the church and 

the preaching and teaching of the Gospel. 

RUF develops leaders for the church. We develop relationships with the 

intentional purpose of sharing the gospel and discipling converts. We 

want students to get caught up in a vision that is much bigger than them 

and yet includes them—to show mercy around the world with spring 

break trips and service projects. RUF is a part of a denomination that 

wants to love and serve college students. Our baptismal vows don’t end 

with high school graduation but continue through college. RUF will have 

done a good job if ten years from now, we find all of these students in 

the church serving that local body. 

What makes RUF distinct from other 

campus ministries? 

One of the distinctives has already been mentioned, RUF is unique in placing 

only seminary trained and ordained ministers as permanent staff members on 

campuses. That minister preaches weekly through a book of the Bible or on 

a particular Biblical theme. RUF is a distinctly church-based campus ministry; 

our ministers are called by the church and must subscribe to our Confession of 

Faith. As a consequence we hold to a fixed theology for our ministry but allow 

flexibility in our methodology. We hold a distinctive respect for the academy 

and want to serve and love people there. As their guest, we aim to follow their 

policies without compromising our beliefs. 

We see a student’s calling at this stage in their lives to be a student, so we 

encourage them in that calling and do not busy them with activities that 

distract from their studies. We want them to understand that by being a good 

student they glorify God and also lend real credibility to Christianity in the eyes 

of their professors. Our evangelism is organic and respectful, helped along by 

our all-comers policy. Everyone is welcomed at RUF, not just Christians. 

FIVE 

questions 

RUF Coordinator Rod Mays 

talks about your student getting 

involved in college ministry 

What would you say to parents sending 

their students to college for the first 

time regarding RUF? How can they 

help their students connect? What is 

productive/counter-productive? 

This transition will be difficult. Some have said that the first year of college is 

the riskiest. Students often only see the good side of greater independence 

and come to believe that leaving home will be easy. Many can’t wait. 

Students and parents are seldom ready for what they are up against in a 

University context, from the classroom to the dorm room. The necessary 

work of “letting go” and trusting God with children will be a little easier 

if together they have actually prepared for this day. Getting a student 

connected to a campus ministry in their freshman year is crucial. Talk about 

it before they leave home. Get to know the RUF chapter and the campus 

minister. Students may want anonymity but then 

will be surprised by how lonely they may feel. 

Parents need to patiently inquire about what 

their children are doing: harassing your child 

or even expecting a campus minister to harass 

them on your behalf is counter-productive! 

What role can the local 

church play in supporting 

RUF as an organization 

and campus ministers and 

interns as individuals? 

First of all, the church must carry out its covenantal responsibility to edify 

members of the household of God. The church must fulfill their vows to 

assist parents in the Christian nurture of their children. Secondly, we must 

see the University as a mission field. We have a unique opportunity to reach 

these students for Christ and equip them to serve in church. Thirdly, if a 

church is close to a campus, an amazing opportunity exists to love students 

and assimilate them into the life of the church and into your homes. Fourth, 

financial support is a major way that the local church can support RUF. The 

overall budget of RUF is 23 million dollars. If every church in the PCA gave 

just $10.00 per member, our entire operating budget would be funded. 

This is a small investment to reach thousands of students on nearly 150 

campuses. Lastly, pray for RUF regularly. Campus ministers and interns are 

doing strategic kingdom work that Satan hates. 

WHO IS ROD MAYS AND 

WHY ASK HIM? 

Rod Mays has served as the national 

coordinator for Reformed University 

Fellowship (RUF), the campus ministry of the 

Presbyterian Church in America, for the past 

14 years. He has also pastored PCA churches 

in WV, MS and SC. He serves as adjunct faculty 

at Reformed Theological Seminary where he 

teaches counseling and pastoral theology. 

Rod has 39 years of pastoral and counseling 

experience and is the co-author of Things That 

Cannot Be Shaken, Crossway Books, and a contributor to Christ Centered 

Biblical Counseling, Harvest House Publishers. He enjoys playing tennis and 

traveling with his wife, Debbe. They have been married 37 years and have a 

married daughter and a grandchild on the way. 


Sharing 

Parents of youth in a candid discussion 

identitystruggles 

Chad Townsley: So the heart of the article, what I 

had in mind, is talking about the idea of identity— 

how it is that our students, your children, the 

students that you work with, struggle with finding 

their identity—in a world that has lots of things to 

say about who it is that our students are. But, what 

I want to start with first though, is a more broad 

question: If you had to make a list of the top five 

things that you feel like our students struggle 

with, what would some of those things be? 

Brock Warner: Not living dual lives. So, a 

Christian kid here and then a different life at 

school or soccer or whatever. 

Steve Williams: One thing they struggle with 

is confidence in themselves—trying too hard to 

perform. 

Chad: What kind of social pressures are upon 

them? What is it that fuels their insecurities? 

Carrie Jakab: I have girls, so it’s looks and clothes 

that they wear, shoes, and the car they drive. All of 

the tangible things. 

Chad: What are the lies that our students believe 

in regards to their identity? What is it that forms 

who it is that they think they are? How do they 

arrive at the conclusion of who it is that they 

believe that they are? 

Steve Jakab: I remember one of the things we 

did for the boys just in this last session or semester 

was about identity, and a lot of it had to do with 

what’s showing up on television. You’ve got to be 

this strong, muscular guy. You’ve got to be tall. 

You’ve got to dress well. Just everything that the 

media is kind of building you up like you’ve got 

to be this certain thing...it’s so unreal. 

Carrie: I think the media puts a lot of pressure 

that you have to be a certain way or look a 

certain way, and we were trying to show them 

that you’ve got to be confident in who you are in 

Christ, not what television shows you. I know just 

hearing my girls talk about “the cool crowd,” I 

think that shapes how they think about what the 

next step is for them. Is it trying to get in there? 

Or is it having confidence in them to not be part 

of that cool crowd? 

Brock: It’s really got to get into their hearts, 

and obviously that’s God’s job, Christ’s job, and 

our job to put them in a covenant world that 

creates that type of truth for them to live in. So 

many times I forget that their hearts are prone 

to wander, and I want it to be something else 

that made them wander, and maybe all I did was 

encourage them to. 

Chad: What keeps our students from believing 

that they are sons and daughters of the King? 

Cathy Mayer: Keeping up with the Kardashians, 

America’s Next Top Model, Real Housewives, 

The Bachelor. Those are someone-that-lives-inour-house’s 

favorite shows. 

George Mayer: It’s me. Ha! 

Scott Pell: As a dad of a middle school boy, it’s 

very interesting the dynamic that boys have on 

each other. We can instill confidence in our kids. 

They can be good at whatever they put their 

minds to. But, it takes five seconds for his peers to 

tear each other down to nothing. They base their 

opinion of themselves on how people treat them. 

Brock: Yeah, it’s funny too, but as we’re talking, I 

just keep thinking over and over, “This is just like 

me.” We need the youth ministry to remind them 

“Because as a parent, I forget. I forget that I’m a son.” 

of their identity constantly. Because as a parent, I 

forget. I forget that I’m a son. 

George: We have to remind our kids and speak 

the truths into their ears every day. And the 

struggle is that as they get older, you don’t get 

much time with them... and it just doesn’t get any 

easier. 

Brock: No, it doesn’t because they go to college. 

And that’s what we’re seeing in our girls. It’s not 

this worry of “are they wandering right now?” 

We were talking the other day about just some of 

their struggles. “What am I doing? Am I wasting 

my time? I can’t figure anything out. Everyone’s 

got their world. Everyone’s got their life intact.” 

Clearly, we know that’s a lie, but I said, “I think 

part of it is because they’re not—at least for our 

girls—they’re not actively maybe pursuing the 

things that would remind them of who they are. 

They’re so wrapped up in school and grades and 


college and the busyness of life.” Well and to 

train up a child is to know your child well enough 

to help put them into paths where God has given 

them their glory. And it’s a lot of work. 

Cathy: When I sit with my daughter and watch TV 

with her and see she’s watching, I appreciate the 

fact that there are youth workers in this room that 

will watch The Bachelor with these girls and talk the 

truth in their life. My big thing is not to say, “You 

can’t watch this TV show. You can’t listen to this,” 

but to figure out what it is that they are drawn to, 

what it is that they’re identifying with and be able 

to speak the truth in their lives, kind of figure out 

how you can make those things connect. 

Brock: Help them discern. Rather than just give 

them yes and no. How much yes, how much no is 

what they’re going to run into as they get older. 

Scott: By discern, is it okay to make fun of the 

show while we’re watching it? 

Cathy: Absolutely. That’s required. 

Brock: That’s the most fun. 

Cathy: That’s required. 

Brock: Except I can’t watch The Bachelor. I just 

get so angry. 

Scott: No, I do too. 

George: I don’t bring up Catherine. 

Scott: Can you believe he picked Catherine? 

Chad: What was he thinking? 

Steve: I can’t believe Brock started watching 

the show. 

Chad: How is it that you speak truth into the lives 

of your students as their identities are formed? 

Carrie: Once you read their text messages, you 

have a lot of truth to speak to. Honestly, my eyes 

were greatly opened this week with a few things. 

Not that I was surprised, but I was thinking, 

“Okay, it’s time to step it up in my household.” 

But honestly, it’s being able to take those real 

situations that, look, my kid may be in also. I think 

the number one rule is for me to not go, “Oh, 

my gosh. What in the world are you thinking?” 

Because I was pushed back like that, and I know 

what it drove me to, so I think we need to be 

sensitive to the kids in not trying to draw this 

staunch line of “you can’t talk to that person.” 

The inner side of me wants to go, “You can’t talk 

to that person. You can’t be with them,” but to 

really speak the truth of what that’s about. Where 

is it coming from? What’s driving that person to 

need that in their life? And really being honest 

with my daughter and saying, “Look, you will be 

in this situation....” 

Bill Talbert: We also need to acknowledge to 

them that people make mistakes and you’re 

going to make mistakes. It’s not how you 

necessarily recover from the mistake but how you 

handle the mistake that makes the difference and 

really determines whether you’re going to come 

out of that and whether you’re going to turn in the 

right direction. Because if they’re talking about 

that they’ve done something and I’ve done it too 

in the past maybe when I was 18 years or whatever 

it was and I don’t say, “I’m not there now, but I’ve 

been there too and I’ve done that before too. 

And here’s how I moved beyond that.” Because 

otherwise, if we don’t say anything about that and 

we just say, “Oh, let’s handle it,” and you don’t 

acknowledge that you’re a sinner too, you’re not 

perfect either, then they have that misconception 

that they’re dealing with somebody that thinks 

they’re as good as God. 

Brock: I think the hardest thing for me as a parent 

though is not being reactionary. My first reaction 

to stuff that happened when my older girls were 

in high school—man, I went nuclear. And then I sit 

down for an hour and I end up where you were. 

So, I wish I was more like you because I would sit 

down for an hour and be like, “Oh, my gosh! I’m 

doing nothing but pushing them away.” I haven’t 

invited them into a conversation that says, “Okay, 

you know what? Yeah, you messed up on that. Boy, 

when I was 17, I did that a dozen times, but I didn’t 

know Christ. So the reason this is so awkward for 

you and frustrating for you is because you claim 

Christ and again, you’re out of sorts because not 

only am I speaking to your life, but the Holy Spirit 

is speaking into your life. And you know it.” That’s 

kind of the way that sometimes our conversations 

would go. I just wish I wasn’t the nuclear guy first 

because I’m just tired of repenting. 

Winnie Winford: If I can just comment on one 

thing. I was thinking about y’all’s kids and they 

are some great kids to hang out with. And I think 

a huge thing about it is: You know when you 

don’t have kids and you look at people that do 

have kids that you really like, you think, “Okay, 

I need to pay attention to what they’re doing 

because I would like to recreate that in some 

way.” I feel like I know a bunch about your sin, 

and not just your sin from when you were 17, but 

your current sin. And you all sit here talking about 

and having acknowledged your sin in parenting 

with almost every question—it takes boldness. 

This is something that you guys have been doing 

ever since I have known you, and not only does it 

create a community to be free in and to proclaim 

Christ and proclaim your own sin and know that 

“We also need to acknowledge to them that people make 

mistakes and you’re going to make mistakes” 

it’s okay. But also, your kids see how you guys 

are currently sinners and currently in need of the 

grace of God, and I can definitely see the fruit of 

that in the lives of the people in this room. 

Cathy: What I keep wanting to say is relationships. 

Relationships, relationships. And we certainly 

want our children to have a relationship with us, 

and I’m not foolish enough to think that I want 

Look Who’s 

Talking 

Chad Townsley 

High-Life Pastor 

Winnie Winford 

Assistant High-Life Director 

Steve & Carrie Jakab 

Kids’ Ages: 15 & 11 

Bill Talbert 


Cathy & George Mayer 


Scott & Kim Pell 


Steve Williams 


Jana & Brock Warner 

Kids’ Ages: 19, 19, 14 & 10

to be their best friend. I have to be their parent. 

Every once in a while, George and I will look at 

each other and go, “Oh, my gosh. We’re really 

parenting. We are really parents.”And I think 

about speaking truth in their lives and not just 

throwing a Bible verse at them. When I talk to 

my kids about Romans 8:28 or when I talk to her 

about Philippians 4:13, it’s because of what those 

have meant in my life and how I know for a fact 

that all things are not good. But the hope is that 

God, through your relationships with your friends, 

with your youth leaders, your church, your small 

group, your Crew is going to work those together 

for good at some point. And how do you get 

through those? You don’t get through them on 

your own strength. You get through because of 

Philippians 4:13 and the truth in that. 

George: What we are talking about is 

Deuteronomy 6. As you get up, as you lay down, 

as you eat, as you sleep, walk down the street. I 

provide something steady in the midst of a 

changing world. That’s probably our number one 

observation as we work with these students. It’s 

remarkable how much they change from year to 

year. So it’s not just physical, obviously, but the 

emotional/spiritual change that they go through 

is remarkable 

Steve Williams: Yeah, I was going to say we’ve 

got to consider all these kids. We can talk about 

parenting, but every kid is very, very different. I 

mean, you can’t parent them all the same. They’ll 

all turn out like a bunch of whack jobs. And so 

we’ve got to keep that in mind and we’ve got to 

know that there’s not one way to get there. And 

fortunately we’ve got small groups. We’ve got 

High-Life. We’ve got their friends. And you can 

control their friend group to a point and then you 

kind of hold onto your kids and you don’t let go 

of your kids. Some people say, “Oh, we just got 

to the point now we just let our kids go.” You 

for them? That’s the struggle. The concept is true 

and right, but it’s how to make it tangible in their 

lives. 

Chad: How does the ministry of Southwood 

come alongside you as you parent your kids in 

these struggles? 

Bill: I think a big thing is that this is another 

avenue that they can share what’s going on 

in their lives—what they are struggling with— 

another comfort zone they can go to that makes 

me feel, as a parent, that there is something that 

if they don’t tell me, they told someone here at 

High-Life. 

Carrie: It’s a safe zone here. 

Bill: But what I’ve seen in particular is my son 

having the opportunity to also play that role of 

listener because some of his friends are going 

through some of the same struggles. Which 

means he’s actually had an opportunity to be 

“Every kid is very, very different. I mean, you can’t parent them all the same. 

They’ll all turn out like a bunch of whack jobs.” 

mean, having those conversations which happen 

every day and not just, “Hey, let’s sit down. Let 

me grab my Bible and let’s look at this.” That’s 

a quick turnoff. How are we “Jesus with skin on” 

even for our kids? It’s a lifelong task. 

Chad: And it’s taking kids that are constantly 

changing and applying something to them 

that’s steady, and that’s the word of God. But it’s 

contextualizing it. You know your kids far better 

than we do, and we’re here because God’s 

chosen us to come alongside you and help you 

as you raise your youth and it’s really just kind 

of do what we can to provide relationships, 

to encourage you in the word, but to really 

don’t ever let go. You let the rope out slowly and 

then accelerate so then you’ve got these big rope 

burns on your hands from them taking off. You 

just have to remember that they’re so different. I 

mean, there’s no one-stop shop for how to raise 

kids. You’ve got to be sensitive to that. 

Cathy: Amen. 

Carrie: But I do struggle with how do I really teach 

them what their identity—teach them to the point 

that they know what their identity is? I can say it, but 

I know it’s hard for anybody to grab that concept, 

and especially for them, they’re like, “Whatever, 

Mom.” But I try, on a daily basis, to teach them who 

they are in Christ. How do you make that tangible 

something like a counselor, someone to help 

them through the situation or at least be the 

listening ear. 

Brock: He’s got wisdom, right? You’ve imparted 

wisdom. He’s gained it here at High-Life, so yeah, 

that’s great to see him responding. 

Kim Pell: For my kids it is just being with their 

leaders in their small groups that has been so 

helpful. The biggest thing is that nobody at 

High-Life trivializes anything that’s going on, 

realizing that what they’re dealing with is a big 

deal and that’s what’s important in figuring out 

their daily life.

Chad: In light of all these things, my final 

question is about you all as parents. How 

have you in the past and how do you currently 

see yourselves struggling with these same 

identity issues? 

Scott: In our family, I can push my wife’s 

buttons really good, and I can find where she’s 

fragile. And I can just do it once, and our kids 

see it—we live some of that out in front of 

them. They see that they’re not the only ones 

that can fall to pieces any second. What is really 

hard is Satan has worked his way into the world 

through things like Facebook and Twitter and 

Instagram and all that sort of stuff. You’re now 

attacked on all sides, so you can just tap that 

glass and it breaks. So it’s a constant battle. 

Steve J: Or you get on to one of your kids and 

you look at them and you realize as a parent, 

“Hey, that’s you over there. Just a little mini-me.” 

Carrie: It’s the epitome of yourself. 

Steve J: It’s just a replica of me in another 

body. So I’m sitting there getting onto my 

daughter. And then I think, “Where do you 

think she got that?” 

Brock: I struggle with identity big time. I’m a 

comparison freak, so it can be materialistic; it 

can be reward. Whatever it is, I can go down 

really fast. For me I’m always thinking in wins 

and losses. I’m constantly feeling like I want to 

win absolutely everything. I lose anything and 

that means that I stink, and Jana always gets 

on me. She tells me, “Quit talking about my 

husband that way”—because I shred myself. 

I always tell people, “The reason I do it is so 

you can’t.” So if I verbalize it fast enough, then 

I take away your ability to give me an identity, 

and it makes me very defensive too. 

Carrie: My issue is image. I’m very much a 

comparison sort of girl—thinking all the time about 

how I don’t look like that person or that person... 

so that’s where my identity is, and I hate it. I hate it 

because I know that it’s me not focusing in on Christ. 

You have to go back to those truths, that he is the 

one who loves me for who I am right now, today. 

Chad: It’s amazing how that’s the deeper level of 

obedience that the Gospel pushes us towards 

because we can’t muster that up on our own. To 

believe the Gospel on that level, that despite what I 

think of myself when I look in the mirror or when you 

see your production numbers at work or whatever 

it is, despite what I think those numbers say about 

me, what truly matters is what the cross says about 

me. And you can’t muster that belief up. Your heart 

must be transformed. 

Brock: It pushes us there. 

Chad: What I see this conversation boiling down to is 

that the world has all kinds of things to say about our 

students and your kids and you all yourselves. There’s 

all kinds of voices playing in, but really, their identity, 

it’s dual. They are sinners and saints, and that’s our 

struggle until Jesus returns. Your sin doesn’t determine 

your standing before God. But that’s still so much of 

what your heart is capable of. So you are still a sinner 

that God’s not finished redeeming, but gosh, when He 

looks down on you, He smiles and He smiles so big, 

and He loves to do it every single day because of what 

Christ did for you. So it’s holding those two things in 

balance. Reminding our students that they’re messed 

up. That they’re far more messed up than they think. 

But, guess what? There’s a greater verdict, and that’s 

the one that is proclaimed on the cross. 

Brock: You just want the greater voice to win, right? 

Because the voice, it’s Satan and accusing, and it’s 

Christ and loving, and they are so contradictory to each 

other. You just want the voice of Jesus to be louder. 

Steve W: The big thing is you just have to keep 

loving them. Just keep loving them and they’ll 

come back. 

Jana Warner: Loving them in these ways is 

a lifetime thing. We constantly need to come 

back to the truth with them and help them 

know it. 

Brock: I was just thinking about what you just 

said. It’s a lifetime thing. I mean, how cool is it 

that we get to be the ones to affirm kids with 

the gospel by having these conversations, 

because we have a church that is encouraging. 

We get to be the granddad that encourages 

our grandchildren and helps maintain that 

legacy. My dad loving me by saying he’s proud 

of me, means as much now as ever. When he 

says stuff like that, it really does matter. I really 

still need to hear my dad say, “I’m really proud 

“They’re messed up. They’re far more messed up than they think. But, guess what? 

There’s a greater verdict, and that’s the one that is proclaimed on the cross.” 

of you” because he didn’t. And now he knows 

it, which is so cool and he was willing to accept 

it and does it now. He’s like, “Okay, I know my 

son needs that.” And we’ll get to do that. 

That’s just really cool. 

Chad: I’ll take the liberty of the final word 

just to say that what I hear you all saying is 

that as you interact with your students, you 

can only give to them what you’ve received 

yourself. We’re only good parents to the 

extent that we really comprehend our ability 

to apply the Gospel to our own lives. Not 

that we have it figured out, but that’s where 

it’s so easy to miss the mark as a parent. If 

all you’re concerned about is your child’s 

behavior or performance or whatever is, then 

you’re actually forecasting your own identity 

struggles on them. But that’s what this whole 

conversation is about—sharing the gospel 

with our kids everyday by showing them we 

continually have to ourselves.

FLOWERS 

14% 

ACTS OF 

SERVICE 

23% 

Join us on 

Sunday, May 

12th in honoring 

all the moms at 

Southwood! 


Question of the Month 

How do you honor your 

mother on Mother’s Day? 

CARDS 

35% 

14 MAY 2013 | SOUTHWOOD.ORG 

JEWELRY 

2% 

LUNCH OR 

DINNER OUT 

26%

eflect 

SOUTHWOOD 

OLDER STREAMS JAMES PARKER 

igracemusic.com is the 

brainchild of Kevin 

Twit, the RUF pastor at 

Belmont University in 

Nashville, TN. Much 

of our congregational 

worship music comes 

from this catalog. It is 

amazing how ministry 

to students could lead 

to such a profound 

connection with 

writings from the past... 

provided this bridge. Kevin began to dig through hymnals and 

find good texts to sing, many of which had fallen out of use, 

such as Dear Refuge of My Weary Soul, and I Asked the Lord 

That I Might Grow. He would photocopy these words for his 

students and tell them to consider them prayerfully. It was a 

very different perspective from many of the songs the students 

had been singing. 

Many aspiring singers and songwriters end up passing 

through Belmont. Kevin’s young RUF group and his Sunday 

school class were full of talented folks. In their meditation on 

some of these old texts, they also began to contribute new 

tunes to some of these hymns. From 1995-99 the first round of 

Indelible Grace hymns were being developed and being sung 

in the Sunday school class and RUF meetings. It was around 

that time that Kevin put an ad in the church bulletin asking 

help from anyone who had a home studio, so that he and his 

students could record the first Indelible Grace album. Kevin 

Kevin Twit went to Berkeley College of Music in Boston to study recording says about the album, “we didn’t think we would get a chance to make 

engineering. After graduation, he took a job at the university’s recording another CD so we put seventeen tunes on that first one. Then people 

studio and was also leading a student bible study. His job gave him the just flipped out over it.” He went on to say that he and his students 

opportunity to interface with students and talk about the gospel, and realized, “people didn’t just like the CD, they really thought the vision, 

also gave him the flexibility to read all of the old books for which he had what it was about, was very important.” Soon after the release of that 

developed an affection. He says, “I was discipled by old books without album, they made a second one. 

much guidance besides God [fortunately] leading me to good [ones].” It 

was during this time in his life he began to feel a call to ministry and a desire They also applied for and received a grant from the Calvin Institute 

to attend seminary. 

of Worship. The grant enabled them to transcribe all the music and 

compile the RUF hymnal, to be able to put together a tour, and to host 

In 1995, he attended a sonship conference, Jack Miller’s last. They sang a conference at Belmont. The conference was attended by people 

Arise, My Soul, Arise during the first day of the conference. To him, it from all over the country. What Kevin and his students were doing 

seemed that the beautiful words of the hymn weren’t accurately reflected resonated with many people, and some of them had been doing the 

by the somber nature of its tune. So that afternoon, he wrote a new tune for same thing for years but didn’t realize there were others with the same 

the hymn. Jack Miller heard it and loved it. They sang it for the remainder vision. Kevin said about the conference, “[It] seemed like God had 

of the conference. It became the theme for the week. This was the start of been stirring up a desire to connect with these older streams among 

what would become Indelible Grace. 

a lot of different people.” And a connection with “older streams” is 

exactly what Kevin’s students needed in order to understand that they 

After Kevin had graduated from Covenant Seminary, He started working are not alone in their struggles, and that their faith is not a passing fad, 

with students at Belmont University in Nashville as an RUF pastor. In his but an abiding river. Isn’t this what we all need? To be connected to 

numerous conversations with students, a common theme emerged. Many a broader community? 

of the students would come to him with doubts about their faith. In Kevin’s 

words, “they would conclude that there was no way they could be Christians The way we sing songs will always change over the course of time, but 

and still have these doubts and struggles. I would say to them, ‘haven’t our common existence will always lead us down similar paths. Indelible 

you read the Psalms?’ And it began to dawn on me that their idea of what Grace sheds light on our past and helps connect it with our present 

it felt like to be a Christian was way more influenced by the songs they reality. I encourage you to visit their website igracemusic.com and 

were singing than by the bible.” Being troubled by this, he saw the need search through the online hymnbook and other resources available 

to begin singing substantive songs—songs rich in scriptural allusion and there. Some of Kevin’s essays are on the site, as well as helpful articles 

doctrinal truth—that would help bridge this gap. The worship lexicon of written by others. When you do, remember that you are a participant in 

these students was anemic. They did not have a good means of connecting a deeper, older stream, that has been here for thousands of years and 

the bible with their own personal experience. The old hymns of the faith will endure until the end of time. 


SOUTHWOOD 

respond 

ASK A 

PASTOR 

Chad 

Townsley 

Answering questions 

about college kids’ 

involvement with 

ministry while at school. 

What are some ministry resources that 

you would recommend for a college 

student today? 

The number one recommendation I always give is Reformed 

University Fellowship (RUF). This ministry, being the official 

college ministry of our denomination, is dedicated to 

teaching reformed biblical doctrine. Another strength of 

RUF is the way in which it models a biblical world and life view as 

its campus ministers and interns shepherd college students in their 

everyday lives to equip them in grace. In addition to RUF, both Campus 

Crusade and Campus Outreach have a positive presence on hundreds 

of campuses across the country. All three of these ministries succeed 

in prioritizing the great commission by moving towards unbelievers on 

their respective campuses. 

What are some of the most important theological concepts a high school student 

needs to understand as they transition to college? 

First, God is in control of everything. Most high school 

seniors have yet to face the type of life challenges and 

questions of faith that the age and stage of college brings. 

Our students must wrestle with this pivotal piece of doctrine 

as they choose career paths, take leaps of faith in new friendships and 

geographical locations and as they potentially seek a spouse. Daniel 

4:34-36 tells us of a God who is orchestrating his work through his 

kingdom for all eternity. College students need to understand they 

are a part of a much larger story, with a loving, caring, powerful God 

executing a plan for their lives. 

Second, it’s okay that they are not okay. One of the biggest lessons 

that a college student will ever learn is just how much they don’t know 

about life and just how much help they are going to need along the 

way as they transition to adulthood. The hardest part of learning this 

concept is realizing that this posture of daily need is precisely where 

God wants us. Jesus explains in Mark 2:17 that he has come for the 

sick, not the well. It is so easy for college aged individuals (and the rest 

of us for that matter) to believe that we have/had the world by the tail 

in our early twenties. At some point, whether it is through a broken 

relationship, the failure of a college class, a major life mistake or just 

Should a college student transfer 

their membership to a church in their 

college town? 

Generally speaking, yes, I encourage students to get 

invested in this way at a church in their college town. 

Our Book of Church Order (BCO) specifically addresses 

situations like that of a college student who resides in a location 

other than their hometown. BCO 46-4 explains that those who wish to 

retain their original communing membership may become associate 

members in their town of temporary residence. This membership 

status gives the individual all of the rights and privileges of a member, 

with the exception of voting in meetings and holding office (these 

rights are retained where they are full communing members). To join 

a church as a full-communing or associate member is very valuable 

as it establishes a formal relationship between the student and the 

church. This is particularly important as the student engages in the 

worship and work of the church (i.e. partakes of the Lord’s Supper) 

and as they require shepherding and care. 

the constant reproof of a roommate, our students will realize their need of 

a Savior. If not affirmed with the gospel of grace amidst the pressure to be 

okay, this life phase will drive students toward dark spiritual lies about how 

their performance shapes their identity. 

Third, sanctification grows best in community. God intends for us to grow 

through communities of his covenant people. Finding a Bible-believing 

church and Christian community of peers is vitally important as students 

navigate their questions of faith and the problem of their sin. These 

communities of sanctification need to be a place where students are not 

only affirmed in the gospel, but also challenged to grow because of it. 

Last, God’s going to fix it all. Although God’s work may be very clear during 

portions of our lives, we still need the hope of final redemption. As students 

learn the implications and tensions of the previous three theological 

concepts, they will need the promise that Jesus is going to fix it all upon 

his return. Revelation 21 details the final judgement and eradication of all 

the evil and wrong in our world. This passage is our hope and longing as 

we wrestle with God’s plan, realize our sin and work out our sanctification. In 

addition, it contains the promise that there is nothing we or anyone else can 

do to foil the work of redemption that God is doing and will do in the future. 


espond SOUTHWOOD 

senior tweets 

Southwood Seniors give us a taste of what they’ll miss the most about 

High-Life in 140 characters or less. 

Erin Neighbors @neighberin 

Singing and dancing on stage at my first High-Life ever #firsttimecrewmember 

Emily Sutphin @emilysutphin 

So many memories made on HL trips #addaboychad #sighs 

@lovemysrcrewfam 

Chad Townsley @thectown 

That time I was literally scared for my life (and Ken’s life) in the three caves! 

#foreverafraidofthedark 

Kevin Butler @Kevin_Butler8 

Making a PB & J sandwich with my feet and making someone else eat it 

#firsttimeonstage #OnlyatHigh-Life 

Winnie Winford @winniewinford 

Cereal Killers! @meganwilliams @laurenmoran #halloween 

Lindsay Birchfield @linds_birch 

The Duck Boat. #chattanooga #JrCrew #NEVERAGAIN @HIgh_LifeSPC 

Lauren Tepool @laurentepool 

Scaring all the freshmen boys #ringaroundtheroses #threecaves 


Lets get a monster truck to roll over Kayla’s car! #PigPickin 


Blob catastrophe #bloodynose #subtweet @kevinbutler 

Chad Townsley @thectown 

Edge dance parties - the hot yoga of Youth Ministry. @winniewinford @kaylaki 

#greatestworkoutoftheyear #ineedoxygen 

Drake Vaccaro 

@High_LifeSPC Favorite memory was Jr Crew training and long lasting friendship the 

weekend gave us #duckboat #nooga 

Emily Sutphin @emilysutphin 

first jr high memory being steamrolled by winnie #scared #loveher 


How many girls can sleep on the stairs at one time? Allie, Bailey, McCarley, Alex, Allie 

#slumberparty 


Freshmen slumber party!! #rollingbrockshouse #injury #photosession 


He is mighty #Awesome #intown2012 

Lauren Tepool @laurentepool 

I will miss the in town mission trips #signs 

Lindsay Birchfield @linds_birch 

Run with perseverance #surrounded #hebrews12:1 #seniorquote 


SOUTHWOOD 

relate 

WELCOME TO SOUTHWOOD 

The group pictured below is the newest communing members of Southwood. 

Don’t miss the opportunity to welcome them into the family. 

Derrick & Ariel 

Grant 

Brian, Cathy & 

Jenna Day 

Anna & Taylor 

Pell 

Matthew 

Mantooth 

Joseph 

Judge 

John Allen 

Stogner 

Ella 

Jakab 

Christian 

Clark 

Camp 

McCoy 

Brynn 

Holbrook 

Sara Grace 

Clark 

Lake 

Treen 

Luke 

Thomas 

Thomas 

Watkins 

Arabella 

Dempsey 

Josey & Rand 

Mullins 

(Paige & Bella) 

Tim & Veronica 

Adcock 

Not Pictured: Blake Lane, Chloe & Tanner Kauffman, Lilly McKay Harris, Maddie Byrd, Mark & Cynthia Patterson, 

Sydney Scoggins, Noah Stuckey, Zach Boyett 

SUMMER SUNDAY SEMINARS WILL SPINK 

The Session and Christian Education Committee are 

excited about the new adult Sunday Seminar classes 

for the summer trimester. These classes begin Sunday, 

May 5, and are a great way to experience more of God’s 

grace to us and think together about how it impacts our 

daily lives. 

The (He)art of Giving, Vinit Mahesh and Deacons 

This class is a refreshing approach to the subject of stewardship. 

After all, does the Holy Spirit need us to share the gospel with 

unbelievers or does He honor us with the privilege of our 

involvement? Likewise, does the God of the universe, who created 

and owns all, really need our giving to advance His kingdom, or is 

His command of stewardship a mechanism to capture our hearts? 

Over the next eight weeks, we will explore truths of stewardship in 

a manner that will take us beyond the point of “compulsory and/ 

or guilt giving” to a spiritual act of worship. We will use biblical 

passages and stories as well as biblical principles from Crown 

Financial Ministries as we delve into God’s plan for our resources 

and our hearts. 

Buried Treasure: Gospel Gems in our Old 

Testament Story, Will Spink 

The Old Testament may not be the first place you’d think of looking for 

gospel-rich, intensely practical truth. But as we cover an overview of 

the entire Old Testament, we’ll learn together that understanding the 

story of our God and how he relates to his people is part and parcel of 

understanding our story—who we are, why we are here, what God calls 

us to, and how we relate to Him. 

Who Are We and Why Does It Matter?: A Study 

of Paul’s Messages to Churches in Ephesus, 

Colossae, and Philippi, Alan Judge 

When the Apostle Paul wrote from prison to churches he loved, what 

did the Holy Spirit guide him to communicate? Time and again, Paul’s 

heart and passion returns to the foundational identity believers have “in 

Christ.” He then talks about the profound implications this new identity 

has for all of life. Join us as we explore three different letters from Paul 

to three different churches and learn how the message he has for them 

as communities of believers still applies to us today. 


elate 

SOUTHWOOD 

ALL THAT IS FAIR WALKING THE LINE 

JAMES PARKER 

“Just because something is labelled ‘Christian’ doesn’t mean it has any spiritual nourishment; and just 

because something is labelled ‘Secular’ doesn’t mean the opposite is true either.” -Andy Gullahorn 

“The term ‘Christian’ applied to anything other than a human being is simply a marketing label.” -Derek Webb 

“For us, these songs are for everyone. Calling us ‘Christian rock’ tends to be a box that closes some people out and excludes them. 

And that’s not what we’re trying to do. Music has always opened my mind — and that’s what we want.” -Jon Foreman 

Jon Foreman is the lead singer for the band 

Switchfoot, an alternative sounding rock band 

that exploded on the music scene in the late 

90s. Switchfoot signed early on with Columbia 

records and is currently with Atlantic. In 2002, 

their music gained national acclaim because 

a few of their songs were 

featured in the movie, A 

Walk to Remember. Also, 

several of their songs from 

their second album were 

released as radio singles 

and climbed to the top of 

the billboard charts. They 

are definitely part of the 

secular mainstream music 

industry. However, they 

have simultaneously gained 

notoriety in the Christian 

Contemporary Music (CCM) industry as 

well. They are a very compelling rock band 

that has, against all odds, been successful in 

both Christian and secular circles. 

Fast-forward a few years to 2007. Foreman 

released the first of 4 solo EPs, Fall, Winter, 

Spring, and Summer. These EPs are quite a 

departure from Switchfoot. They are out of the 

box with respect to what CCM execs would 

consider to be “Christian music.” However their 

thematic content is very orthodox and biblical. 

For example, the song Equally Skilled, from 

the Fall EP, is a nearly verbatim retelling of 

Micah chapter 7. Yet, there are other songs on 

the same EP that are gritty autobiographical 

laments about Foreman’s own struggles with 

insecurity, doubt, and fear. 

The same is true of the 

Winter EP that followed 

the release of Fall. The 

song White as Snow 

is almost an exact 

restatement of Psalm 

51. Yet the preceding 

song, Somebody’s 

Baby is difficult to 

listen to because it 

is such a sad and 

painful song about 

the death of a homeless woman. 

The song I Am Still Running is Foreman’s 

personal confession that he still feels in himself 

a desire to wander away from the open arms 

of Jesus. It’s refrain prays, “build me a home, 

inside your scars... inside your open arms, the 

only place I ever will belong.” But he never 

says “Jesus” in that song, so it probably would 

never pass thru the filters of the Christian 

music industry. 

Spring and Summer were released later and 

they contain amazing scripture songs as well. 

Instead of a Show, taken from Isaiah 1, The 

House of God Forever, which retells Psalm 23, and 

Your Love is Strong, which is taken from the Lord’s 

prayer. Your Love is Strong has received acclaim in 

the CCM world, but the rest of these songs have 

not, and the albums are not sold in most Christian 

book stores. 

As he alludes to in the quote above, Foreman and 

Switchfoot have been able to walk the line between 

what is “secular” and what is “sacred” by being true 

to their Christian faith and true to their craft. They 

seek to be the best at what they do, not in order to 

produce shallow religious propaganda, but in order 

to make good and compelling art. Derek Webb and 

Andy Gullahorn, the other two artists quoted above, 

have echoed this sentiment in their music as well. 

In their opinion (and mine!), making honest art that 

appeals to mainstream culture doesn’t have to be 

mutually exclusive from an authentic faith in Jesus. 

These 4 EPs from Jon Foreman should be in your 

library. The lyrical content alone is brilliant enough 

to make them worth the money, and the musical 

content is equally as impressive! I am grateful for 

artists like Jon Foreman and pray for many more 

like him to come to the surface so that we can be 

blessed and enriched by their perspective. C.S. 

Lewis wrote these words about Christian literature, 

but they can be applied more generally toward art 

itself: “The world does not need more Christian 

literature. What it needs is more Christians writing 

good literature.” Jon Foreman is one of the latter. 

THE MERCHANTS OF COOL 

Which came first, the chicken or the egg? It 

seems like such a silly question. But apply 

it to something that hits closer to home. 

Which came first, the perceived desires of 

teen culture, or the $150 billion marketing 

niche that has been carved out to meet 

these “needs?” 

The PBS Frontline documentary, The 

Merchants of Cool, poses this question. 

It closely examines the niche that has been established and how it 

commands the attention of the most powerful consumer demographic 

on the planet. It is an infinitely compelling film, and more than a little 

disturbing, because you see behind the curtain to the motives of 

this industry. At its core the creators and sellers of pop culture 

exploit what they find in order to turn a profit. And they do so at the 

expense of the young. Everyone (with discretion) needs to see this 

documentary, especially parents. Not so that we can become fearful 

and overprotective of our kids, but so that we can help them to gain 

the tools they need to become wise—to know what is actually being 

said, and sold, to them in this world of endless slogans. 

“Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be 

wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” Matthew 10:16 

Watch it for free at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline

BRANCHES May 2013

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?