Clarus---Latin for bright, clear, or radiant---is a regional conference of The Gospel Coalition taking place in Albuquerque, New Mexico, from March 9 to 11, 2012. Christians from all over the Southwest region will gather at Desert Springs Church to hear speakers D.A. Carson and Fred G. Zaspel address the conference theme, "The Cross-Shaped Christian Life."

For good reason, the cross is the prominent symbol for the Christian faith. It is a symbol of the Christian's hope and of the tenor of the Christian life. The cross saves, motivates, and shapes us. It is our only "boast" (Gal. 6:14). In this video, Ryan Kelly---pastor for preaching at Desert Springs Church and a Council member of The Gospel Coalition---explains this year's theme:

Our speakers will address this theme across six sessions:

D.A. Carson

• "Living in a Difficult Time" - 2 Thessalonians 1
• "The Saving Word" - James 1:12-25
• "Christians Living in the Last Days" - 2 Timothy 3:1 - 4:8

Fred G. Zaspel

• "B. B. Warfield on the Doctrine of Sanctification"
• "Serving as He Served" - John 13:1-17
• "Forgiving As Forgiven" - Matthew 18:15-35

Conference attendees will receive free theme-related books from four publishers and conference discounts on hundreds of books and resources from visiting publishers and ministries. Read last year's Clarus '11 recap for links to audio and pictures from last year's conference with G. K. Beale and Carl Trueman.

The cost is $30, but students, married couples, and groups are eligible for special rates. Visit the Clarus website for more details or to register.

Mommy-y-y-y! Dad can't find his keys again and Judson is eating crayons and Norah didn't make it to the potty and I need help with my homework and someone rang the doorbell and now Dad really needs his keys and Mommy, why are you closing your eyes like that are you tired?

If this scenario sounds familiar, then this article is for you. Yes, you with the peanut butter handprints on your blouse and 14 sticky notes on your refrigerator.

I suspected that I could relate to you when I saw you drinking room temperature coffee leftover from yesterd--

Oh, hang on---I hear a baby waking up. . . . False alarm. Poor guy---he's teething. I started to tell you something. Hold on, it will come back . . . ah, yes!

Did you hear about The Gospel Coalition women's conference in Orlando this summer?

If you frequent the TGC site then you might have read about the conference. Perhaps you dismissed it as something you couldn't possibly attend because of your responsibilities at home.

Or maybe when you read about the conference the most pressing thing on your mind was multitasking your email and laundry at the end of a long day. I'm right there with you.

So while you're multitasking your email and laundry, I want to take a minute to encourage you to consider attending the conference in June.

Maybe the best way for me to do that is to tell you why I'm excited about going.

Behold Your God

My life is mundane. I don't say mundane in a negative way, but with a sense of hopefulness for holiness because of what Christ has done on the cross. The "whatever you do" in 1 Corinthians 10:31 includes all the little mundane moments like graciously finding my husband's lost keys (minus any sarcastic remarks), humbly cleaning up the mess on the bathroom floor, and cheerfully extending hospitality to those the Lord sends my way.

The theme of the conference is "Here Is Our God: God's Revelation of Himself in Scripture." To quote the conference overview:

It's a time to learn more of what Scripture says to us---and to say it to each other. A time to dig deeper into the character of God and his purpose for his people.

The subject matter of this conference is acutely relevant to my image-of-God-bearing, one-flesh-mystery-living, soul-shepherding, casserole-cooking, and Olympic shirt-ironing.

I can't think of anything that makes a more significant effect on my mundane life than the good news, "Behold your God!" (Isaiah 40:9)

Take a minute to read over the conference schedule---even the message titles are edifying! Women from various backgrounds---single and married, young and old, no children and grown children---should enjoy the teaching and fellowship.

But What About ___?

Maybe you thought about going and ran into these obstacles:

Life is too complicated.

You have responsibilities at home---you are the Manager, after all. Plus, your husband may not be available to take care of the kids. I hear you. We have three kids younger than five, and my husband's job (which is a blessing) keeps him very busy. Plus he has chronic nerve pain in his arms that prevents him from physically helping with the children. Every single day I pray that God would give me extra arms to help around the house---so how could I even dream about going to the conference?

When I realized that God faithfully provides everything I need for life and godliness, I thought, Well, why wouldn't I ask him to provide the simple resources I need for this special occasion?

So we prayed. Then we did some budget shuffling and calendar adjusting to make the conference part of our family vacation. Then God raised up some friends to help my husband with the kids during the sessions!

The Lord provides---ask him to provide for you if similar circumstances are holding you back from attending this conference.

It's too far away.

You might have to drive long distances or fly---and perhaps with a baby in tow or in utero. I can sympathize with you. Something I've learned from taking innumerable road trips and 57 flights with our kids is to never forget to pack three things---tenacity, a sense of humor, and earplugs.

I hope it encourages you to hear that a group of us from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates are planning to attend. You'll recognize us right away. We'll be the jet-lagged ladies carrying bags of American candy to pack in between all the awesome books we plan to buy.

Whether you're half an hour or 24 hours away, it could be a logistical challenge to get there. The Lord generously gives wisdom to those who ask, so ask him for wisdom as you consider making this trip.

God's Delight in His Gracious Providence

I'm excited to meet many of you in Florida this June! But I know that for every woman I meet at the conference, there are hundreds more who just aren't able to go.

And that's okay! God has determined the duration, intensity, and every other circumstance of this season according to his sovereign goodness.

Whatever season we're in we have reason to rejoice because . . .

• God the Holy Spirit illumines God's Word for us (1 Corinthians 2:10-13).
• God the Son is the living Word who became a human being and lived among us so we could behold God's glory (John 1:14).
• God the Father purposed since before time began to bring us near to himself through the blood of Christ (Ephesians 2:13).

Rejoice that the Holy Trinity is working to ensure that you behold the beauty of your God and enjoy him forever!

Now go to the conference website to read more details about "Here Is Our God: God's Revelation of Himself in Scripture" and prayerfully consider if you should join us in Orlando from June 22 to 24.

Oh, and don't forget to take your clean clothes out of the dryer before you go to bed.

Many who have had the privilege of hearing John Piper preach in person would testify that it felt like a monumental event. His preaching powerfully combines truth and passion, leading to convicted and exhilarated listeners. After the sermon, certain hearers might leave wondering if they were just in the presence of a figure who will be talked about in future centuries.

Then they go back to their home church, where several things are different, including the preaching. Thankfully, the gospel is still proclaimed. In fact, the sermons are thoroughly biblical, but the ability of their regular preacher simply does not measure up to the phenomenal preaching they recently heard.

Unless you attend a church led by of one of the celebrated preachers of our day, you most likely have faced a similar situation. Either at a conference or on the internet, you have heard exceptional preaching, but each Sunday you're back in your simple little home church that hardly anybody beyond your town knows about, with its "nobody" of a pastor who will probably never preach to thousands.

What if your gospel-preaching pastor is not as good as one of the great orators of our day? Is it time to sell the house, pack up the family, and change churches? No, I don't think so. But what should you do?

Five Suggestions

First, rejoice that your preacher is a man who proclaims the gospel. In some towns, finding someone who preaches the true gospel is as difficult as locating that precious new golf ball you sliced 100 yards into the thick woods. I once endured a 40-minute sermon that consisted mainly of the preacher telling about his family's vacation. Though that might be an extreme example of non-gospel preaching, too many preachers fail to speak of the holy God, sinful humanity, and the redeeming work of Christ. But not your preacher. He speaks honestly about sin, boldly proclaims "Jesus Christ and him crucified" (1 Cor. 2:2), and then lovingly invites listeners to repent and believe. That is a reason to rejoice.

Second, recognize that certain men are uniquely gifted by the Lord to have an international ministry and appeal, but this is not the norm. The typical local church should be satisfied to appoint as pastors men who are "above reproach" in their lives, who believe the gospel and are able to teach God's Word, and who have an aspiration to serve as shepherds (1 Tim. 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9). Most preachers will not be strikingly smooth and polished. They may never be the keynote speaker at a big conference, but this is not a tragic shortcoming in your corner of God's kingdom. It is precisely his design.

Third, if your pastor is (honestly) dull, but he preaches the truth faithfully, a little statement I once heard might be helpful for you to remember: "The mature worshiper is easily edified." When hearing lackluster (even if biblical) preaching, immature worshipers will typically not listen to the message because they wish the messenger was more exciting. Conversely, mature worshipers eagerly receive the truth as it is proclaimed, even if it sounds like the preacher is reading a phone book.

Fourth, listen "outwardly" to the preaching. Here's what I mean: Sit with your Bible open and routinely make eye contact with the preacher. An occasional nod of your head when he makes a point will encourage him and stir up his confidence. In my experiences of both preaching and listening to sermons, I can confirm that yawning listeners with glazed-over eyes make mediocre preaching worse, while eager listeners inspire better preaching.

Fifth, verbally encourage the preacher(s) in your church. Every preacher who is not extraordinarily gifted has heard remarkable preaching and moaned, "After listening to that, why do I even try?!" This is a strange phenomenon, but great preaching from the renowned teachers of our day makes many "ordinary" pastors discouraged. Here's a simple way you can buoy your pastor: After a sermon, instead of just saying "Nice sermon!" as you head out the door, take a few moments to tell him what was especially helpful and/or convicting from the sermon. In the first church I served as a pastor, one young couple would stay after the service, about once a month, conversing with me about what they learned. These helpful conversations sometimes lasted for more than an hour. Even today, I am heartened when I recall their zeal for what was taught.

We should praise the Lord for giving us outstanding, well-known preachers, but let us not forget Paul's command to Timothy, who was entrenched in a local church with pastors whose names none of us knows: "The elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching" (1 Tim. 5:17).

The early bird registration rate for The Gospel Coalition national women's conference in Orlando ends in two days.

Visit our promotions page to learn how you and your church can help spread the word. Download full or half-page fliers (in color or black and white) and banners for your own website.

We hope to see you in Florida this summer!

So consider my list an admittedly foolhardy attempt---written from the vantage point of an American who subscribes to The Gospel Coalition's confessional statement---to discern the most important theology stories 0f 2011. Consider it a challenge for you to generate your own list and pray that God might bless his church with the faith and vision to see the world as he does.

10.) Marriages need help.

This story could have appeared in my 2010 list, and it might warrant an encore in 2012. Same-sex "marriage," legalized by New York state in 2011, continues to grab the headlines. But here's the bigger story: a growing number of Westerners have abandoned the institution altogether. The Pew Research Center recently revealed that a record low number of Americans---51 percent---are married. The rate dropped 5 percent in just one year, between 2009 and 2010. Christian appeals to the beauty of covenant faithfulness appear laughable when high-profile spokesmen approve gospel-emptying cruelty.

Probably no one sees this deteriorating situation more clearly than pastors. It's no coincidence, then, that ministers such as Tim Keller and Mark Driscoll have devoted theological attention to marriage. Reader statistics reveal that you are looking for this help, and The Gospel Coalition sought to provide it in 2011 by hosting video discussions and addressing a generation of young men who display little motivation to marry.

9.) 'Celebrity' pastors face backlash.

Our friends from around the world often observe that American Christians demonstrate a peculiar affinity for celebrities. Global demand to hear from well-known American pastors and professors suggests this is not a uniquely Yankee phenomenon. Sinful people everywhere elevate men to a place of privilege that belongs only to God.

Several events in 2011 contributed to a backlash against the so-called celebrity pastors. Multisite churches, already the subject of great ecclesiological debate, now cross state and even regional boundaries. Should teaching ability trump local context? The Elephant Room raised questions about accountability: Do we the people bear responsibility to correct if a pastor outside our local church associates with a teacher whose orthodoxy we suspect?

Publishing, social media, megachurches, and many other factors continue to raise the issue of high-profile ministry, which requires sustained theological reflection and critique. Expect this story to move up the charts in 2012.

8.) Presbyterian Church in America warns against Muslim-idiom translations.

The PCA took action not long after Christianity Today published a cover story that assessed the recent history of exegetical and missiological debates over Bible translations published for Muslims. But the PCA response---which calls on churches to investigate missionaries and agencies they support---had been in the works for months before the controversy involving Wycliffe/SIL and many others expanded. The antagonists have yet to resolve their disagreement over whether Muslim objections obligate Christians to alter familial terms such as "Son of God."

While pastors and translators seek clarity and charity, Christians struggle with the overarching issue of how best to reach and relate to the Muslim world. Yale theologian Miroslav Volf suggested in a new book that we can blaze a trail forward by confessing that we worship the same God as Muslims. But the response to his response suggests this prospect does not excite conservative evangelicals who believe we can trust God to reveal the gospel to Muslims as we love earnestly and testify faithfully to his revealed Word.

7.) Harold Camping fails, again and again.

Christians would prefer to forget that Camping deceived so many and raised so much money to promote a prophecy that Jesus explicitly condemned (Mark 13:32). No, Jesus did not return on May 21. Nor did he return on October 21. Camping embarrassed Christians with his false teaching and wasted millions of dollars. But we can at least share Camping's evident (and biblical) desire that Jesus would return (Rev. 22:20). He certainly could at any time (Mark 13:35-36).

If church history teaches us anything, another Camping will emerge soon enough. We can't resist the temptation. But don't let the charlatans discourage you from teaching eschatology. Ignorance about the end times creates a vacuum filled by deceivers. Come, Lord Jesus!

6.) Christians in Afghanistan and Iran stare down death sentences for apostasy.

Thanks to new media, Afghanistan and Iran might as well be our backyard. When Christians face hanging, we often hear about it in the West. And our connected planet makes it easier to bring popular and political pressure to bear on authorities. Neither widely discussed case in 2011---Sayed Musa in Afghanistan and Yousef Nadarkhani in Iran---has thus far ended in execution.

Theologically, this story appears straightforward: Jesus warned us to anticipate persecution (John 15:20). And we can give thanks to God that communication technology provides us a voice we can raise in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in need around the world. But we must not expect American economic, military, and economic might to always ensure deliverance. As we pity fellow Christians besieged for their devotion to God, let us examine our own faith to see if we live in such a way that could ever invite or sustain persecution.

5.) Tim Tebow comes back.

It seems silly to concern ourselves with American football scores in a list of theology stories that includes the risk of martyrdom. But you can't argue with the interest generated by the outspoken Denver Broncos quarterback Christians love to cheer. Tebow's failure in training camp to earn the starting job provoked reflection about blasphemy and faith when success seems elusive. But his eventual on-field success, marked by shocking come-from-behind victories, led to a torrent of questions about public prayer, Sabbath keeping, gospel witness, vocation, and the sovereignty of God. Even sportscaster Bob Costas talked about theology during the halftime of Sunday Night Football. Pray for Tebow, possibly the most closely scrutinized athlete today, that he might maintain his remarkably consistent testimony to our savior Jesus Christ in word and deed.

4.) John Stott dies.

Eulogies sometimes tell us more about the author than the subject. Following Stott's death we learned that evangelicals appreciate leaders of conviction, charity, and global ambition. Stott stood in for the attributes we wished other evangelicals embodied. Some wished other evangelicals could be so convicted about expositional preaching and the importance of theology, particularly substitutionary atonement. Others wished evangelicals could be so kind, open to changing with the times, and committed to social justice. Stott domesticated the dichotomies we find so difficult to tame. We dearly miss this pivotal leader in the post-war growth of global evangelicalism.

We should not despair, though, that God hasn't yet raised up another Stott. Contemporaries probably lamented that God hadn't raised up another Charles Simeon, one of Stott's heroes. Stott's tenure included vigorous theological disputes with Martyn Lloyd-Jones, J. I. Packer, Billy Graham, and others. They debated when to abandon liberalizing denominations, what to teach about the fate of unbelievers, and how to balance social justice and evangelism. In other words, the debates that occupied Stott continue today.

3.) Arab Spring leads to winter of reckoning for Christians in the Middle East.

No one knows how this story will turn out. Political upheaval that began with such hopeful promise has already devolved into power struggles between popular movements and military authority in Egypt. Historic Christian communities in this ancient land rightly worry what a government dominated by Islamists might mean for their future. And that's where this story becomes a theological one. Practically speaking the decision to leave might appear obvious, when the alternative means risking your family's safety. Tens of thousands of Christians have already fled the Middle East during the violence of the last decade, and who can blame them?

But what could make you stay? Hope in the power of the gospel might compel Egyptians and other Christians still living in this troubled region to endure any hardship. So might commitment to the land of their forerunners in the faith and ours. Can a place bear theological significance? This is no merely academic debate for vulnerable Christians treated like dangerous foreigners in their homeland. They've survived Islamic encroachment for more than a millennium but need renewed courage and hope to persevere.

2.) Osama bin Laden killed by U.S. military.

After President Obama delivered the stunning news on a Sunday evening, college campuses and Times Square filled with jubilant Americans. The terrorist behind 9/11 had met his just demise!

Only there seemed to be something disconcerting about these spontaneous celebrations. As far as we know Osama bin Laden resides in hell where he suffers righteous judgment for rejecting Christ and doing evil. Is this cause for rejoicing? There might be grave, public sinners and ordinary, private sinners, but we're sinners all the same. Some have been saved but not by their own doing---only the sovereign intervention of God spares us a fiery fate. Verses mount to support different views: some caution us against rejoicing it the death of the wicked (Prov. 24:17-18), while others remind us God is righteous in all his ways (Psalm 145:17), including judgment. Though we may weep for bin Laden and especially his many victims, we find ample theological grounds for thanking God this murderer can no longer carry out his evil designs.

1.) Rob Bell wins.

By nearly every publishing standard Rob Bell's Love Wins has succeeded beyond the wildest hopes. Controversy sells, and controversy abounded, aided in no small part by this website. Neither Bell nor his publisher, HarperOne, could have reasonably hoped for anything better. CNN, The New York Times, USA Today, and many other outlets looked in on the largely blog-based debate. Bell parlayed this phenomenal response into a television series. Probably only Rick Warren can now match Bell's star power among Protestant teachers. So according to this standard, Love Wins has been grave disappointment to anyone who holds a traditional evangelical view on conscious, eternal punishment. Bell won. No amount of blogging, speaking, reviewing, and refuting can change that now.

Yet this is not the only standard for evaluating these remarkable events. The breadth and volume of critical responses to Bell reveal surprisingly powerful resilience in the evangelical coalition, facing the powerful headwinds of pluralism. And it's about time we confronted our problem with hell and universalism. Surveys reveal that whatever their teachers might say, many evangelicals believe salvation can be found outside Jesus Christ. Last decade we saw during The Da Vinci Code kerfuffle that few Christians knew the history of the early church and formation of the canon. Pastors and scholars responded by shoring up this weakness. We've already seen the same this year in response to Bell, a more worrisome example than Dan Brown because of his evangelical pedigree.

Looking back on this distressing debate, we find both comfort and also concern in God's promise to hold teachers to a higher standard (James 3:1). If we really worry that Bell has betrayed Jesus and the revealed Word, then we can be sure God will hold him accountable. Indeed, none of us will be exempted from this all-knowing evaluation.

"I am a sect by myself, as far as I know" Thomas Jefferson wrote on June 25, 1819.

Jefferson was not conformed to the limits of his world but excelled in creativity and genius unmatched by his peers. He drafted the Declaration of Independence and was a chief architect of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom.

With the same creativity, Jefferson sought to move past what he considered artificial scaffolding in Christian religion---the doctrine of the Trinity, the deity and resurrection of Jesus, and the divine authority of Scripture. He sought to uphold the ethical teachings of Jesus while rejecting the doctrines of historic Christianity.

Yet 200 years later there remains in America an enduring and maturing commitment to Nicene Christianity---even in Jefferson's beloved hometown.

In Charlottesville, Virginia---home to Jefferson's university (the University of Virginia) and a few miles from Monticello---last week the New City Commons pastors forum hosted their third gathering. In partnership with the Kern Family Foundation, pastors from across the evangelical landscape converged to assess, discuss, and imagine the implications of faithful presence for the local church---faithful to the revelation of God in his Son and present as followers of Jesus in all spheres of culture.

The forum provided an extended exchange on applying Romans 12:1-2 to explore ways the church continues conforming to this world and needs a renewing of our minds.

Foolishness of Christian Sincerity

"Christians need to engage the world not just sincerely, but also wisely," said James Davison Hunter, author of To Change the World, in his opening remarks at the New City Commons forum. As a sociologist at the University of Virginia and director of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture, Hunter challenges the prevailing models of Christian engagement (conservative, progressive, and neo-Anabaptist) as based upon a fundamentally flawed understanding of culture and cultural change. [i]

In contrast to the assumptions of idealism and individualism in American Christianity, Hunter contends that cultures change over time through overlapping networks of elites and the institutions they lead. Unless Christians appreciate the role of networks and institutions in cultural change, they will continue to waste significant resources reinforcing the very societal ills they seek to redress, according to Hunter.

Sincerity in Christian engagement is not sufficient; wisdom is also essential.

Danger of False Modesty

The term elite might strike a negative chord, but it is a measurable social reality, not a value judgment. Christians called to servant leadership and humble stewardship on behalf of the "least of these" can superficially dismiss the term. Yet every person reading this article is literate (and in the lingua franca of our day) and has access to incredible amounts of information (all that the internet has to offer). Therefore, one does not need to think of how to become an elite, but rather recognize the existing opportunities to influence others.

"False modesty," says Greg Thompson, pastor at Trinity Presbyterian Church and board member of the New City Commons Foundation, "can lead to the neglect of responsibility." If we do not think of ourselves as having influence over others or being responsible for the flourishing of our neighbors, "it is easier to justify playing golf four days a week," he added.

Rather than rejecting the notion of influence, we ought to accept the responsibility with the sobering words of our Lord: "to whom much was given, much will be required" (Luke 12:48).

Need for Pastoral Stability

Practically, pastors can cultivate these values by pursuing longevity and stability within a particular local church. Shepherding congregations to renew their understanding of cultural engagement, creating or participating in networks and institutions that overlap, and stewarding resources toward the flourishing of our neighbors all require significant amounts of time (or presence). A vision of deep cultural change over time requires a commitment to sustained faithful presence in a particular time and place.

In the forum's final session, Thompson challenged the pastors to look beyond any temporary conflicts or discontentment in our ministry locations and stay put. It is possible to attend a conference or read a book and begin to dream of doing ministry somewhere other than where God has planted us. Yet many of those thoughts, if we are honest, are motivated by pride and not love.

The calling to proclaim the love of God in the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ should work itself out in love toward our congregations and neighbors.

Jefferson, alternately, divided ethics and doctrine before privileging ethics. We do not respond to his challenge most effectively by privileging doctrine but by rejecting the division. May we love God with all of our heart, soul, and mind and our neighbors as ourselves---faithful to the revelation of God in his Son and present as followers of Jesus in all spheres of culture.

By 11 a.m. I had already talked with people representing a wide variety of work. One man just left a business he started to launch an organization dealing with generational conflict. Another had just left the pastorate to start an organization dealing with creative financial schemes in order to fund and support Christian groups working for justice in their communities. Others I met work in cosmetology, set design, sculpting, acting, and so forth.

I was at the "Gospel and Culture" conference, hosted by Redeemer Presbyterian's Center for Faith and Work in New York.

As an editor for The Gospel Coalition, I'm constantly thinking, talking, writing, and asking questions that concern pastors. So this event stretched my ability to engage with a wider array of Christians seeking to integrate their faith and work. There was no panel discussion on church planting; no breakout session on expository preaching; no Q & A's on pastoral counseling or discipling. Nothing. It was 400 people trying to make it as Christians in the workplace in New York City.

These folks had different questions. I spoke with a Wall Street investment banker who asked if he should be giving his money to charity, rather than politicians. A group of artists discussed common complaints in their field and asked how the gospel of Jesus Christ guards them from discouragement or idolizing success.

In the evening, a group of us walked down Wall Street and asked whether the financial district of Manhattan was fulfilling its mission to create economic and social flourishing in the life of the city. In what ways has it failed? The Occupy Wall Street movement added some unique perspective to that question.

From the stage, Richard Mouw talked on the sovereign presence of Christ; a number of leaders in various places in New York City---talent agents, book store owners, lawyers, business owners---spoke on faith in the workplace; and Tim Keller cast a vision of work and society restored.

Changed Tone

But the conference landed on a unique weekend for me, personally. That weekend I also preached my first sermon as the lead pastor of All Souls Church in the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and my sermon text just happened to be on the topic of work. My manuscript was already typed and set to be preached the next morning, so there wasn't much time to borrow any thoughtful content. But Mouw's opening address subtly helped changed my tone.

He began with challenging the usual divide between secular and sacred, but he did so by setting our minds upon the presence of Christ. "Welcome to the center of the universe," Mouw said, "not because you're in New York City, but because you're in the presence of Christ." We were in the presence of Christ, not because we were in the beautiful St. Bartholomew's Cathedral in Midtown Manhattan, and not because we were gathered together with 400 other Christians, but because Christ is present everywhere and holding together the universe. Like Abraham Kuyper famously said, Christ is sovereign over every square inch of this world. The reign of Christ is not only central for our Sunday gatherings, but it also infiltrates our work, family, and friendships. It shifts and transforms our obligations and allegiances.

The next morning, I'm confident my preaching was different than if I had not listened to the questions and concerns of the conference attenders and reflected the foundation of a sovereign Christ. How? I didn't just preach to the congregation of All Souls Church. I preached to congregants who were ad agents, writers, financial consultants, and teachers, who all had commitments, deadlines, and obligations. And their ultimate allegiance to Christ does not lessen those obligations; rather, it deepens them. Paul in Colossians 3:22-23 instructs slaves, whose ultimate allegiance is to Christ (Col. 3:24), not to neglect their duties to their masters, but rather to "obey in everything" and "work heartily." What a radical and subversive view of life!

In Paul's words and in our work we see that our relationship to God is not merely an ethereal reality detached from life on earth. Actually, how we relate to God has a significant effect on the world around us. Our relationship with God helps make sense of the world around us, not simply take us out of it. That is Christianity, and there's nothing in this world like it.

A few weeks ago, the church I planted and pastor (Redeemer Fellowship Church in Watertown, Massachusetts) had the privilege of hosting Plant New England, a conference sponsored by The Gospel Coalition, The NETS Institute for Church Planting, 9Marks Ministries, and Sovereign Grace Ministries. The conference was well-attended by nearly 250 pastors, church planters, aspiring church planters, and lay leaders from all over New England as well as New York, New Jersey, and even a few folks from the South who are interested in church planting in the Northeast.

While I thought the entire conference was a great success, one highlight was Mark Dever introducing the young men he is mentoring or has mentored for ministry. Mark offered a brief explanation of what each man does along with a description of the training they've received. Some work for 9Marks, others for Capitol Hill Baptist Church. Still more have recently entered the church's rigorous internship program. The glorious parade of men seemed like it would never end.

Biblical Basis for Investing

There's good biblical warrant for this kind of discipleship. The Lord Jesus himself invested deeply in 12 men over what was probably about a three-year earthly ministry. These men would go on to be the pillars of Christ's church. Moreover, a cursory reading through the Book of Acts and the Pauline epistles demonstrates that Paul trained men such as Timothy and Titus, who tagged along on some of his missionary journeys. No doubt he mentored them as they served alongside him, strengthening existing churches and planting new ones. Investing in young aspiring ministers is both biblical and also vital for the future of the church.

It's probably worth noting that I am more than a little biased on this issue. After attending seminary, I had the privilege to go through the residency program at The NETS Institute for Church Planting, which is a rigorous church planting mentorship program started by Christ Memorial Church in Williston, Vermont. We were there for about two and a half years, and Wes Pastor was willing to spend countless hours with us, digging into our lives, challenging us, encouraging us, and saying the hard things when needed. We were mentored in everything from our marriage and family life to my preaching, ministry, leadership, and biblical counseling. And now two years into planting Redeemer, I can honestly say that without this training, I'm not sure we'd still be standing.

What's the Problem?

So why aren't more pastors doing this kind of work? I recently had lunch with a young man who grew up in the church, came to faith at a young age, felt a call to ministry in college, has served in multiple local churches, and sought out the pastors of those churches to mentor him. No one was willing to give him the time. Unfortunately, his story is not unique. A couple weeks ago, a sharp young Gordon-Conwell Seminary student who attends our church asked me to mentor him as a part of his required "mentored ministry" program. While attending the program's mandatory training for future mentors, I realized one of the school's biggest concerns was that churches would seek to be a part of this program in order to get cheap/free labor in areas of need (namely youth or music ministry) without really investing in these young men for the future.

Anyone who's ever pastored a church knows there are never enough hours in the day to even scratch the surface of an inexhaustible to-do list. We've all felt the tension of seeing those little boxes multiply far more rapidly than we're able to check them off. We also need to stay connected with our wives and manage our own homes if we're even to remain qualified for pastoral ministry. All that to say, it doesn't take long to add things up and simply come to the conclusion that mentoring young men is a great thing for other pastors whose to-do list doesn't look like mine.

Uniquely Gifted

We may need to step back and ask some hard questions:

• Is everything on my to-do list necessary?
• Are there other people in the church who can and should help out with some of my responsibilities?
• What are some of the roles I'm serving where I am not uniquely qualified and can therefore train others to serve?
• What am I uniquely qualified to do in the local church?

I would argue that pastors are uniquely qualified to train young pastors. Young ministers can have other mentors who speak truth into their lives on a variety of fronts. But one who has never pastored a church himself cannot really mentor a pastor in all of his duties. My mentor at NETS walked the road I was going to travel. To this day I still pick up the phone and call my mentor and grill him with questions. He's had multiple experiences with situations new to me. He's thought through planning a new sermon series or starting a new ministry. He's been there and done that.

Long-Term Effect

As we count the cost of sacrificing precious time to invest in others, it's helpful to stop and consider the long-term effect of this investment. The day after the Plant New England conference, I read about another megachurch starting yet another campus, where the message of the pastor would be piped in via video. Let me be clear: my point here is not to argue whether we need more churches or bigger ones. But after watching Mark Dever introduce his "football team" of young disciples who are being trained to plant new churches or go into existing ones, I believe the long-term effect of unleashing these men is greater than any one ministry could ever accomplish.

After all, a ministry built around one man has a short shelf life. We live in a fallen world. Pastors get sick and die. I think we would all agree that the more solid pastors out there the better. Compound this with the reality that pastors who have been invested in are more likely to do the same, and it doesn't take an MIT degree in applied mathematics to see that the long-term implications are wonderful indeed.

Final Plea

Pastors, we all want to be faithful in the ministry God has given us in the local church. Our great legacy might be seen in the young men we train up and send out. Let's do the hard work of preparing good, Christ-centered sermons. Let's do the hard work of biblical counseling. Let's do the hard work of casting vision, planning, and starting new ministries.

Let us also invest in the young men who will plant new churches, revitalize dead or dying ones, or pastor existing churches and faithfully preach the glorious gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ for many years after we're dead and gone.

This November 4-5, Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York celebrates nine years of committed focus on workplace ministry with an ambitious conference called Gospel & Culture 2011. More than 50 people involved in faith-and-work ministries are preparing for this weekend of gospel transformation for 400-plus people who want to re-envision their work. Keynote speakers Tim Keller, Martin Bashir and Richard Mouw will be augmented by spotlights on participants in the Center for Faith & Work ministry who work in different spheres of society. Breakouts will help people understand how the gospel can transform their own sense of calling and purpose.

Redeemer launched its Center for Faith & Work (CFW) in 2003 with a series of classes based on Tim Keller's lectures to church leadership on Christian cultural renewal. From its beginning in 1989, Redeemer has encouraged Christians to be deeply engaged in seeking the peace and welfare of the city (Jer. 29:1-9)---that is, to be "in" but not "of" the city. The church wants to be distinguished by its love and service to all people and yet be distinctive in its handling of things like money, sex, and power. CFW was founded to develop ministries that would equip, connect, and mobilize the church community toward gospel-centered transformation in their professional and industry spheres.

CFW grew, with the help of a vision campaign in 2005, to develop a range of ministries that would:

• equip individuals to fully apply the gospel to their lives and develop a Christian worldview of their profession and industry;
• connect professionals within a field in ways that inspire and challenge gospel-centered behavior; and,
• mobilize our people to become agents of change for the common good inside existing institutions and by starting new entrepreneurial organizations.

There was immediate demand for vocation groups. People wanted to meet other Christians in their profession and talk about the challenges and opportunities they share. The lay leaders of each group are responsible for their own agendas, although all receive CFW staff support for logistics and theology. Today there are 17 monthly vocation groups, led by more than 90 leaders, serving more than 1,000 participants a year.

Redeemer has a particularly large and active group of young people who work in finance. The 2008 financial meltdown caused many to re-examine the purpose of the financial industry and their calling to that line of work. Change---like the financial industry faces in areas of globalization, regulation, and economic slowdowns in various parts of the world---presents opportunities for rethinking and renewal. The finance group is using references like Bob Goudzwaard's Capitalism and Progress to better understand some of the forces that have shaped financial services today and think through ways the industry could better serve the world.

In 2006, CFW started an entrepreneurship initiative (Ei). Working like a church-planting center does for entrepreneurial pastors, the Ei is a catalyst and incubator of new ventures launched by entrepreneurs in the congregation. Specifically, it encourages people to start for-profit and not-for-profit organizations with gospel foundations. A city-renewing gospel movement takes both new churches that reach those in the city who don't know the gospel and new businesses and organizations that bring art, new products and services, and ways of operating into the city. The annual Ei Forum gathers investors, experienced entrepreneurs, and start-up entrepreneurs to give a gospel vision and develop best practices. The Ei community has expanded by word-of-mouth and now includes entrepreneurs, investors, and pastors from 10 cities around the country. The annual business plan competition is in its sixth year. It has helped launch more than 10 new ventures, including:

• Tegu Inc.: a toy company manufacturing in Honduras;
• Restore: a safe house for victims of sex trafficking;
• Beacon Health Center: serving a marginalized neighborhood in Staten Island;
• Working Proof Galleries: an online gallery of design prints that shares profits with charities; and,
• Open Hands: a legal services clinic.

The Ei steering committee and network of investors and advisers is also helping start business plan competitions at Kings College in Manhattan and Sojourn Community Church in Louisville, Kentucky.

The arts ministries of the Center for Faith & Work are also vital to what we do. More than 15 percent of the Redeemer congregation are artists working in music, dance, visual arts, fashion, acting, and film. The quarterly InterArts Fellowship spotlights the work of different artists and has featured speakers such as Max McLean, Steve Garber, and David Taylor. Arts vocation groups meet by discipline on a monthly basis and support the artistic endeavors of participants. Through the Culture Club, artists invite non-artists to different cultural performances and exhibits around the city to open people's eyes to the transformative power of art.

Finally, in 2008 Redeemer launched an intensive, top-tier training program called Gotham Fellowship. Gotham offers the theological, spiritual, and relational foundations required for meaningful and sustainable integration of faith and work. The current class comprises 18 men and 18 women in their 20s and 30s who work in the fields of law, business, finance, education, government, healthcare, and the arts. The fellowship extends over nine months, from Labor Day weekend through Memorial Day weekend, and includes weekly meetings, monthly Saturday gathering, and three weekend retreats. Gotham alumni are already serving as leaders in CFW, Redeemer, and their workplaces.

The appetite for faith and work teaching, discussion, and application continues to grow at Redeemer and in New York City. For many ambitious, well-educated urban professionals, work is the primary focus of their lives and often the environment God uses to draw them to himself and renew their hearts. Idols of power and money, influence and recognition, typically rise to the surface in a work context. However, Redeemer's CFW is seeing and sharing the fruit of the gospel as lives are changed and callings are re-envisioned this November.

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New York City metro residents can register for $180 to attend Gospel & Culture 2011. The events on Saturday, November 5, will be held at St. Bart's, 325 Park Avenue, in New York. If you live outside the metro area, the registration fee is $205. Registration includes all conference materials, Friday night Glimpses throughout the city, and Saturday lunch and refreshments.

The Italian immigrant experience at the beginning of the 20th century reflected a host of concerns, the sum of which is often described with the phrase "bella figura" (literally "beautiful face"). It is a type of beauty for which our countrymen long, a value and overarching priority aimed at securing a better life for yourself and children by putting your best face forward, always.

As Italian families said farewell to relatives, gathered their brood, and crossed the Atlantic, they faced new, energizing prospects. Between the years 1900 and 1914, more than 3.5 million men, women, and children traveled this route. Crowded ships carried families, mostly from the southern region, to America's promising shores. Through each trial---there were many---these fervent, emotional, and warmhearted men and women, with a strong love for food, music, and especially for family, carried the doctrine of bella figura in their hearts.

Going Public

After the Great Depression, first- and second-generation Italians started to dot America's media landscape. A number of celebrities---from Frank Sinatra to Sophia Loren to Joe Di Maggio---introduced Americans to the cose all'italiana (qualities of being Italian). Of course, not everyone appreciated these qualities, which necessitated anti-defamation leagues such as the Order of the Sons of Italy, an organization for which my great-grandfather labored until his dying day. As Italians were making a name for themselves, the bella figura was going public.

In his classic book, The Italians, Luigi Barzini explains the importance of public image for the Italian.

Reading facial expressions is an important art in Italy, to be learned in childhood, perhaps more important for survival than the art of reading print. Spoken words may be sometimes at variance with the grimaces that accompany them. The words should then be overlooked. Only the face counts (61).

Anyone raised in an Italian home understands precisely what Barzini is describing. We look at the face, and we see the man---which, by the way, is why Italians are conflicted when they visit places like London. I recently experienced this firsthand. The notorious impassivity of the English is often interpreted as conclusive evidence of their coldness. We reason that as people willingly withhold warmth and emotion they must be bereft of such qualities. It's terribly unfair, but perception is taken as reality. This, by the way, is how bella figura works.

As the decades unfolded into the 1970s, the Italian persona acquired wider exposure. Celebrities such as Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, and John Travolta took the bella figura in new directions. One thinks for instance of Travolta's character, Tony Manero, in Saturday Night Fever. Such personality, charm, lazy English, and carefully engineered hair style transformed the so called "Guido"---previously a pejorative appellation describing the Italian American working class---into a celebrity. In fact, you might point to a classic scene in which this development occurred. It was at the dinner table when Tony's unemployed and choleric father slaps him on the head. Tony yelps with melodrama exclaiming, "Watch the hair! You know, I work on my hair a long time. And you hit it. He hits the hair." With this scene the bella figura turned a corner.

Since Tony Manero, the disco-dancing culture of Guidos, (and their feminine counterpart, called "Guidettes"), has reached its third generation. Children of the 1970s, inspired by Travolta and the Bee Gees, were the first generation. Following in their footsteps, but losing the platform shoes was the second generation (of which I was a card-carrying member in the 1980s. Any Guido from Long Island will have likewise frequented nightclubs such as Images, Avanti, and Metro 700). And now we are in the third generation, which can be summed up with two words: Jersey Shore. If Tony Manero turned bella figura in a different direction, then MTV's reality television program, with its devotion to tanned skin, manicured nails, and tweezed eyebrows, has steered it off the tracks and toward a train wreck.

Vanity Fair

The role of Guido in Italian American culture has emerged as a highly contested debate among scholars. In fact, they have been debating the issue for 20 years. In 1991, professor Donald Tricarico, a sociologist at Queensborough Community College, CUNY, published an essay "Guido: Fashioning an Italian-American Youth Style" in The Journal of Ethnic Studies. In January 2010, the John D. Calandra Italian American Institute invited Professor Tricarico to lead a colloquium on his research. The event was entitled, Guido: An Italian American Youth Style. Some in the Italian American community objected to the Calandra Institute holding the event at all, seeing it as a "legitimation" of the guido lifestyle and a support for MTV.

Another scholar who has been part of the conversation is Fred Gardaphe, distinguished professor of Italian American studies at Queens College. His insights have been helpful in explicating the ironic dimensions of the Guido phenomenon. In his recent book, From Wiseguys to Wise Men, Gardaphe quotes Gloria Nardini, who says that bella figura is "a central metaphor of Italian life." This is our thesis. In this vein Gardaphe is quoted in Time as saying, "The major key to Italian American culture is something called 'bella figura.' It basically means, to put on a show so people don't know the real you," he said. "If you're poor, you make them think you're rich. If you're rich, you make them think you're poor." For an immigrant people emerging from a history of foreign conquerors and the lack of a nation-state until 1870 [when Italy underwent reunification]," he says, "It's all about protection."

Gardaphe's emphasis on the importance of "protection" is shared by other cultural exegetes. John Gilmore, long-time pastor in Sicily, develops the same theme in his book Five Million Islands. Gilmore quotes the famous novelist and lover of Italy, Norman Lewis, as saying, "The climate for many of those [immigrant] Sicilians that remain is one in which the familiar 'Omertà' [code of silence of conduct] has slowly deepened into a real and paralyzing fear, which has finally penetrated the Sicilian sub-conscious."

Such fear and longing for protection, according to psychologists, is the engine room of Italian eccentricity; it is also the driving impulse of bella figura. At its best, this impulse gives us the dramatic and artistic beauty for which Italians are famous: arches of prosciutti and mortadelle hanging from ceilings with old world charm, elevated melodies of opera, cannoli, and Napoletani to rival the grandeur of the Sistine Chapel, smiling faces and warm, expressive gesticulation. It also gives us a culture that asks little more from life than a dark tan, six-pack of abs, and pressed laundry, and the erotic advantages that such qualities are thought to afford.

The Beautiful Face

Part of the challenge currently facing sociologists is determining who has the right to define a positive portrayal of Italian American identity. In other words, who is to say that the Guido persona is any less legitimate or noble than the alternatives? In such a non-foundational world, devoting one's life to such banalities as "GTL" (gym, tanning, and laundry) is just as respectable as being a tailor, chef, or a priest. No one is in a position to argue otherwise. However, I would like to suggest that such epistemological relativism is precisely where these sociologists let the side down.

What if there is an objective criterion for evaluating the merits of Italian American culture, a standard that enjoys widespread acceptance. How wonderful it would be if such an authority spanned the generations, including geography, gender, socio-economic status, and the vagaries of culture. How marvelous to have a benchmark that has stood the test of time, even from centuries of intellectual scrutiny by the brightest thinkers the world over. Something lifted up as truth while at the same time lying beneath our feet as the reliable foundation upon which to build human identity. Thankfully, there is such a source: the text of Holy Scripture.

How can a religious relic like the Bible possibly speak in a meaningful way to the question of Italian American identity? Well, if that is how one poses the question, it is unlikely that he or she will acquire any insight. Such a biased view militates against intellectual honesty and is nothing more than fundamentalism in disguise. Thankfully, there are fewer people thinking so narrowly these days. Even among the irreligious, the Bible is at least recognized as a repository of wisdom.

Scripture has a great deal to say about bella figura. The theme of God's glorious face runs through the warp and woof of redemptive history, perhaps most notably in the Aaronic blessing of Judaism: "The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace (Num 6:24-26). Not only does this motif describe God's beauty, but it also designates his promise of redemption (Matt 17:2; Mk 9:2; cf. Ex 34:29).

Of all the biblical references to face in the New Testament, there is one that stands out as particularly relevant to the question of identity. I recently had the privilege of expositing this text in Rome at Breccia di Roma in a message titled La Bella Figura di Christi (The Beautiful Face of Christ). Here is the leading edge of the passage:

For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor 4:5-6)

From this text I explained to my Roman friends that appreciating the beauty of Christ and following him by faith is in no way antithetical to Italian identity. In fact, it is just the opposite. Because God is the source of everything that is glorious about Italian culture---the vocal cords for singing, hands for masonry, feet for dancing, and hearts for passion and romance---it is in the life of God that such qualities realize their fullest potential.

Where exactly do we apprehend this life? Saint Paul says it is in the "face of Jesus Christ." The history of Christian thought, in the tradition of Augustine and Aquinas, describes it in terms of "beatific vision." Here in relationship to God through the living Christ---the One who died and rose victoriously out of death---God satisfies the deepest desires of the human heart by providing justification, purpose, moral sensibility, and beauty. Jesus the Christ is the telos of every culture, the firm ground for human flourishing, and the criterion for measuring what is virtuous and true. He is La Bella Figura.