Fall has been a full and exciting time for us in Duluth. On Sundays we’ve continued our journey through the book of Matthew in chapter 11. We’ve learned about dealing with doubt by studying how Jesus addressed John the Baptist when his confidence in Jesus was waning. No one doubts Jesus when things are going well, but we suddenly question His purposes when life becomes difficult. The antidote is to wait through suffering, look around at what He is doing, and learn not to be offended. Later in the chapter, Jesus had hard words for those who refused to repent of their sin by making excuses and blaming the messenger. When we’re born again, sin becomes repulsive, and those who truly know Christ will repent. On Wednesday evenings, we followed up with these subjects during our weekly rewinds, diving deeper into doubt and repentance in small group discussions.
We shook up our typical Wednesday rotation with some different material, which was both challenging and admonishing. We spent two Wednesdays watching a series of films about Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, who were faithful Jewish-Romanian Christians during World War II. In “Tortured for Christ”, we followed along with Richard’s story of faithful evangelism and ministry to the Russians who had invaded his country and how he stood up to the religious leaders of his day who were compromising their faith because of government pressure. All of this landed him in prison, where he was subjected to torture, loneliness, and cruelty for years. After the film, we had a large group discussion, where we were challenged to evaluate our lives as soul-winners and the cost we will pay for the salvation of the lost. In the movie, “Sabina”, we saw the story of how both she and her husband came to faith, and the subsequent radical effect it had on their lives. They started by ministering to the people around them, their neighbors, whether they were pleasant people or not. God blessed their efforts, and many, even enemies, came to Christ. It was moving to see how their huge sacrifices and endurance later in life began through the small acts of faithfulness, hospitality, and love in their neighborhood.
We were blessed with beautiful weather all through October (the news said the last time it was this warm in the fall was 1903), and we took full advantage of it. Several of us headed down the street from the church to work on installing siding on one of our neighbors’ houses. We worked alongside the homeowner and his family and were able to get a significant amount of work done. It was a great way to connect with our neighbors because there’s nothing like working alongside others to build a deeper relationship.
On the same weekend, we were delighted to host the Street Level Summit up in the Northland, with all members of the campus ministries joining for a weekend of learning, fellowship, and… kickball. Pastor Tim was the guest speaker for the first evening at the church, and he spoke on having “an unfinished life”. The group spent the night and then did some more sessions at a local hostel in downtown Duluth. Pastor Justin taught the first of a two-part message at the church on a Saturday night and then followed up with the second message at church on Sunday. He spoke on the contrast between the kind of people who use God, and then the kind of people God uses. It was very encouraging to have our church full on Sunday; we’re such a small group, that being able to worship and fellowship with a larger body is such a joy, and it makes us long for Heaven when we will all be together. After the Sunday message, the Street Level members headed to UM-Duluth for some costume kickball, in the spirit of the season.
On October 31st, we had an all-church Halloween costume party at the Street Level House. It had all the makings of a good time: food, games, guests, and trick-or-treaters.
-Annie
