The Integration of Faith and "Real Life" for Men, and
How We Can Help Each Other Make a Difference
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| How does your 'belief' in God make any practical difference in the
way you sell Real Estate, or manage a quality control team, build a
custom home, or any number of ways you must apply your trade or
career? How integrated is your Christian faith with how you raise
your kids - I mean in detail, how does it really work itself out?
How does it impact the way you relate to and converse with your
neighbors; and guide you in the way you party, or plan, or pay your
bills? |
| So often we get the idea that to be "a good Christian"
means to be a guy who is highly involved at church, or even one who
just regularly attends church. A 'radical Christian' would be one
who is busily involved in a half dozen ministries throughout the
week. And, when it comes to "being a Christian out there in
the real world" we think it only means boldly holding a
bible study at lunch at work, or aggressively sharing the gospel in
the office, or not swearing, or not having a beer in public, or
belonging to the right political party (that was not a joke…), and
you can fill in the other typical views. Baloney ! |
| With that view floating around our culture no wonder most men
don't get excited about the Christian faith. In this class we are
going to discuss what it means to have faith in God in such a way
that it naturally integrates with all of the complexities of our
daily experience - at work, at home, at the club where we work out,
or at our kids school or sports teams were we volunteer our time.
Furthermore, that integration need not be embarrassing, or awkward,
or forced. We can be intellectually honest, socially sensitive and
aware, and religiously faithful without fitting into some spiritual
mold that simply does not fit. |
| There will be an emphasis on how we as men can both give and
receive as a mentor and apprentice of the teachings of scripture.
The lone-ranger approach to living a Christian life is appealing,
but it also contains the seeds of its own destruction. So, we will
learn how to be involved with one another in order to sharpen our
understanding of God and deepen our experience of faith, and also
how to just enjoy mutual friendship without a sense of guilt driven
obligation. |
| Teachers: Greg Davis, Arvin Engelson, Scott Downs, Russ Ikeda, and
others. |
About the Teachers
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Dr. Arvin Engelson No pastor
has served longer at Saratoga Federated Church than Arvin - 30+ years.
He is gifted in his mastery of the scriptures and skilled at guiding
souls into a deeper understanding of God, themselves, and those
around them. His first career was as a counselor at public and
private colleges. He has also taught graduate courses for Fuller
Seminary. Trained in philosophy at Westmont College, and then in
pastoral counseling and history of religion at Gordon Conwell, he
went on to doctoral work at Princeton where he studied (in
particular) formative and transformative life experiences from an
interdisciplinary perspective. The integration of spiritual truths
with the nitty-gritty of life is his expertise. "When I teach,
my chief motivation is to offer perspectives and tools that equip
people to live hopeful and useful lives. I am drawn to topics with
practical, quality-of-life application. Healthy faith begets healthy
persons, who leave others better off than they find them." |
| Greg Davis Greg
is Pastor of Discipleship and Missions at Saratoga Federated. Before
joining the Pastoral staff at SFC Greg was involved in business
ownership and management here in the valley for 15 years. He has
spent time in the mission field in South America, and is currently
in the Master of Divinity program at Fuller Theological Seminary in
Menlo Park. Greg has a B.A. in Biblical Studies from Multnomah Bible
College in Portland, Oregon. He brings a unique blend of theological
understanding, real-world experience and spiritual passion to his
teaching. |
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Russ Ikeda was born and raised in
Hawaii. He graduated with a Bachelors degree from the University of
Hawaii (1973), a Masters of Divinity from Fuller Theological
Seminary (1977), and a Doctorate in Spiritual Formation from the
Graduate School of Theology, Azusa Pacific University (2002). He has
been married for 27 years to Linda (who is a licensed Marriage,
Family Therapist) and the father of two sons (Ryan, 26 and Tyler
23). |
| He served as Associate Pastor at Saratoga Federated
Church for twenty-one years. In the initial thirteen years, his call
was to pastor youth and their families, while in the latter eight
years, he served as Pastor for Adult Education, Small Groups and
Assimilation. |
| Russ now serves as Director of Emmaus Ministries of
Silicon Valley, which he launched in July of 1999. This is a
relational marketplace ministry of coming alongside people on their
spiritual journey and providing pastoral counsel and spiritual
direction. He also is an adjunct professor at William Jessup
University (extension program), Cohort mentor with Fuller Seminary,
consultant to Willow Equities Land Development Company of San Jose
and the chaplain for the Los Gatos/Monte Sereno Police Department. |
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Scott Downs Scott is a
'Renaissance man'. By profession he is an artist, art teacher,
educator and two-sport coach. He is an avid student of history and
an insightful commentator of current culture. He is a father of
three, and a leader in the community. Yet, his greatest love is the
pursuit of God. In that pursuit he has ventured deeply into the
recorded lives of the men and women of the Bible. What he has
discovered is transformative for those with a teachable heart and
open mind. |
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