Tickets, anyone?

Tomorrow night at 5:30 pm at the Bob Carpenter Center at the University of Delaware, Delaware's Youth for Christ will hold its annual silent auction and banquet. Christian comedian Mike Williams will perform as well. A Tenth member has two tickets that he does not need. For more information, click on "comments."

House for Sale

Karl and Susan Russo are selling their home. Here is the listing.

746 S. Chadwick St. 2 bedroom, 1.5 bathroom house five blocks south of Tenth. First Floor: Open floor plan LR, DR with hardwood floor. Powder room. Large eat-in kitchen with new ceramic tile floor. Appliances included Gas oven, gas range, microwave, dishwasher, garbage disposal, refrigerator, stacked washer/dryer. Kitchen opens to private fenced in brick patio (12'x18') with raised garden and pond. Second Floor: Two bedrooms with wall-to-wall carpeting and large closets. Newly-tiled bathroom with Jacuzzi tub and skylight. New environmentally-friendly windows throughout. Additional storage in unfinished basement and attic. Central Air. Walking distance to Broad Street Line (Lombard-South) and Center City. Less than one mile from Italian Market. Easy access to I-76, I-95. For sale by owner. $275,000. Please contact Karl Russo 215-545-4898 or karl81@wharton.upenn.edu if interested.

Final Exam

Tomorrow morning, Lord willing, Jonathan Olsen takes his final exam to be ordained as he stands before presbytery. He also will preach in the morning as part of that exam.

Though it is the local church that calls a man to minister, it is the presbytery who must approve the call and then actually extend it after examination. Once this takes place, the only step remaining is the actual ordination service scheduled for next Sunday.

Intern Interviews

Thank you for your prayers regarding the past two days of interviewing candidates for church internships. Jonathan Olsen joined me in these. We both marvel at the giftedness of each candidate and especially at their commitment to the city. Please continue to pray as we think through their calling here at Tenth.

Also pray for several of them who are in the midst of seminary exams.

Speaking of Tenth

I've just spent a pleasant morning meeting with five men from a neighboring church. They meet monthly, taking a full morning, for encouragement in their faith. Taking a whole morning, they believe has made a difference in allowing them to build relationships with one another. We discussed Tenth Church, its history and our recent planning process.

I have had several occasions recently to discuss Tenth with others either wanting to hear about our process or who are hiring an executive minister (not me), or simply wanting to know about the church. The characteristics about the church that come up and they particularly appreciate is our high view of Scripture, the insistence on expository preaching, the high concensus on basic theological doctrines, and especially the confidence in the sovereignty of God.

We closed with my reading Dr. Boice's last words to the congregation.

The Rise of the Creative Class

On Tuesday, May 22, at 6:00 pm, Philadelphians interested in creativty and its economic implications will have a rare opportunity to hear Richard Florida speak on this topic. Florida, a noted economist and author, will be giving a free public lecture at the University of the Arts. For more information and to RSVP, click here.

Employment Opportunities

There are a number of openings for managers working for a parking management company in Philadelphia. These positions will be filled within the next several weeks. The company requires a college degree or management experience for manager candidates although someone with motivation and good business sense can begin as an assistant or supervisor and move into a manager position from there. These are challenging positions with varied responsibilities including customer service, budgeting, marketing, scheduling, hiring & firing attendants and valets, etc. There are some fine people working for this company and individuals with integrity and a strong work ethic will be recognized and promoted. Direct questions to Gayle at 484-461-2848 or interested parties may call to request an interview: Michael Ataceri at 215-356-9423.

Adherents.Com

David Apple made me aware of this interesting website that provides religion statistics: http://www.adherents.com/.

Any other sites I should pass on?

Grill Thrill

Jesse Hubley writes:

We have an old Weber gas grill that we are looking to get rid of. It is about 20 years old, but still in working order. It does get hotter on one side of the cooking area than the other – it either needs a new burner on that side or perhaps it is just clogged. The cooking grates are old and starting to wear through, but those could be replaced also. We bought a new grill to replace this one, but I have been cooking on the old one “as-is” for years. If anyone would like it, they can contact me at jesse.hubley@comcast.net or 610-642-6301. It would be helpful if the recipient could pick up the grill from our house in Ardmore, but if they don’t have the means to do so, I can deliver it.

Mother's Day Race

The website for Sunday's Mother's Day race is http://www.phillyraceforthecure.org/. A map was not up when I checked, but here is the the description given.

The 5k/3.1-mile course runs through Center City using Market Street, Chestnut Street, Arch Street, and JFK Boulevard. The 1-mile Fun Walk will be an out-and-back route on Martin Luther King Drive (formerly West River Drive). The courses are subject to change.

The first race begins at 8:15 am. All of the Ben Franklin Parkway will be blocked off. You should have no difficulty coming from the Walt Whitman Bridge or taking the Schuykill to South Street.

Housemate Wanted

Two Christian men are looking for a housemate to share a large 3-story row house in South Philadelphia. It is in a nice neighborhood in the 1400 block of S. 13th St, near stores and a park. Cost is $390 per month plus 1/3 of utilities. Available June 1. Contact Joe German at 215 271-8787 or JLG950@verizon.net for more information.

Sermon Reflections

I can't quite figure out Phil's Sunday sermon title - King Me! Is "King" an adjective or a verb?

I can guess where Aaron was when he came up with his sermon title - Desperate Wailing - the church nursery!

Tut Tickets

Beth Kayros has four tickets for sale for the King Tut exhibit. They are for June 2, entrance time 12:00-12:30. If anyone is interested, they can e-mail Beth at bkayros@yahoo.com.

Intern Interviews

With Jonathan Olsen, I begin two days of interviewing intern candidates for next year. Please for discernment during this process.

All-Rounder

Going through some papers, I came across an interesting interview of Dr. Boice by the Stoney Brook School's publication. Here is an exerpt giving biographical info:

"Jim Boice came to Stony Brook from McKeesport, Pa., in 1951, entering in the eighth grade. Five years later he had established himself as a Stony Brook all-arounder: letterman in three sports, co-editor of the 1956 Res Gestae, artist, photographer, singer in "The King's Men," member of the Advisory Committee. His classmates named him as one of the most popular persons in the Class of '56."

Saying Goodbye

We will be having a goodbye reception for the Messner family on June 3, following the Sunday evening service. If you would like to sign up to bring an hors d'ouvres or dessert (finger-food preferably), please contact Anne Davies at adavies@tenth.org or x243 by May 25.

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday to Elder Carlos Perkins who turned 80 today. Isn't this the age that Moses was called into the ministry?

Mother's Day

Men, Mother's Day is this Sunday. Write yourself a note now to buy a card (for your mother AND for your wife, if married with children). Flowers would be nice. She would not mind being taken out for a meal or you preparing a meal.

1, 2, 3...

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

1, 2, sorry, 4, 5, 6

1, 2, 3, 4, oops, 6

my fault, 4, 5, 6

1, 2, 3, 4, 5, ouch

Ginger and I had our first dance lessons last night. We are learning the waltz. We are not quite gliding on air, but give us a little time. Regardless, it is fun. Not a bad way to spend time together.

Packets of Seeds

Hi Phil,

I just wanted to write and let you know that Laura and I took advantage of the Broad Street Run to worship at John Leonard's church (the Cresheim Valley churchplant). We were hugely encouraged. It is simply amazing what the Lord is doing there. The sweet communion among the amazingly diverse congregation is palpable, and their excitement to reach out to the community is equally evident. For example, they got a booth in front of the church for the annual Chestnut Hill spring street fair. They gave away free packets of seeds with the church's address attached, auctioned a free tree - donated by a member, and gave away free paperback ESV bibles. Watching John and Christie out amidst the throngs of people handing out information and chatting about the church was really moving for a guy who is going into pastoral ministry. They had over 50 people sign up and say they wanted more information about the church!

It seemed like the entire church spent the afternoon evangelizing! You can tell that the core group is committed to that community. I was almost moved to tears watching it (and even now reflecting upon it!).

Anyway, please pass this along to anyone at Tenth who might find it encouraging to know that the church plant really doing the Lord's work.

In Him,
Hunter

Welcome, Josiah!

Dwaine and Dianne Whitley proudly announce the arrival of their fourth grandchild, Josiah Fleming. Congratulations!