Saturday, January 05, 2013

C.S. Lewis College update
For those of you interested in the status of C.S. Lewis College, which I have written about several times, below is the latest from the C.S. Lewis Foundation.
The bottom line is that Hobby Lobby has given the Northfield Campus in Massachusetts to a Christian foundation that will decide who gets to use the campus. The CSL College people still are trying to get approval for the college to be on the Northfield Campus. --Mike H.


C.S. Lewis College Update


Greetings and Happy New Year!

I want to take this opportunity to thank you for your contribution as a Founder of C.S. Lewis College and for your words of encouragement and prayerful support through the ups and downs of this past year of uncertainty.

In particular, I am writing to apprise you of late-breaking news regarding the Northfield Campus: The Green Family of Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. has donated the campus to the National Christian Foundation (NCF), which is a nonprofit grant-making foundation. NCF has taken ownership of the property and will, from this point on, conduct the search for a suitable recipient for the campus.

An excerpt from Hobby Lobby’s press release reads as follows:

"NCF is a nonprofit charity based in Alpharetta, Ga. Hobby Lobby has made donations of other properties to NCF in the past and is confident they will care for the property with the same commitment demonstrated by Hobby Lobby over the past three years. NCF will continue the work of finding a long-term owner for the property that will honor the legacy of D.L. Moody.

We're thrilled with the opportunity to further preserve the heritage of the Northfield campus and to serve Hobby Lobby with their charitable giving objectives," said Steve Chapman, NCF Vice President of Communications."


Please know that the C.S. Lewis Foundation remains deeply committed to the founding C.S. Lewis College at a site that suits the particular vision of the College as a Christian college of the Great Books and Visual and Performing Arts that is actively committed to engaging the broader secular community. We continue to be interested in the Northfield Campus as our preferred site and are seeking the needed funding to launch the College there.

With this in mind, we would welcome your continued prayers and best wishes as we make contact with the National Christian Foundation to explore the future possibilities of launching C.S. Lewis College on location in Northfield.

Further up and further in!

J. Stanley Mattson
President & Founder
C.S. Lewis Foundation




Jan. 5, 2013, column:

End of the world should be last thing we worry about



In case you missed the news, the world didn’t end Dec. 21, as some people thought the Mayan calendar predicted. In fact, if you’re reading this, we’ve made it to Jan. 5.
Some “worlds” did end that day. By coincidence, it was the last day at work for my wife, who is moving to a new job after 28 years in a place she loved. It also was the last day at work for my brother, who is retiring after a productive career in education.
But both are embarking on new phases of their lives, so they have new worlds to enjoy. Kathy is glad she will be closer to the patients she treats, and Sam will have more time for golf, travel and ranching.
Actually, followers of Christ believe that at the real end of the world, they will have a wonderful new environment to enjoy forever. Many of us are uneasy about the future, but those who believe the scripture’s words should be confident.
“Has this world been so kind to you that you should leave it with regret?” wrote C.S. Lewis. “There are better things ahead than any we leave behind.”
Paul said it more succinctly in Philippians 1:21: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
I don’t waste much energy worrying about when the world will end. The final day could be tomorrow with some comet striking the Earth or with Jesus showing up literally as portrayed in the Bible.
For any of us individually, though, it also could end tomorrow as our pastor, Tommy Politz, described in his sermon Sunday — with a car accident, an aneurysm or any unpredictable calamity.
Even in the best scenario, the longest any of us will be here is a few more decades, so for each person, the end will arrive soon. Compared to the trillions of years of eternity, each life is shorter than a tweet.
My mother has been in poor health for a while. Although little was said about it during Christmastime, I know all my family, especially Dad, my brothers and sister, were thinking more about Mom than about presents or turkey and dressing. We’re thankful that as the New Year approached, she was feeling better.
Christmas Day did remind us we can’t predict the future. The electricity went out on the windy, snowy day, and instead of our traditional holiday feast, we ate cold ham sandwiches.
I didn’t hear anybody complain. There’s no point in worrying about what we can’t control, and the biggest thing in that category is when we will leave this Earth.
Sunday’s sermon was based on a letter by James, brother of Jesus: “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. … If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” (James 4:14 and 4:17)
Clearly, as our pastor said, we should do good things now, not “someday.” We all put things off until someday, whether it’s losing weight, volunteering or telling someone we love them.
What we do today should be our focus, not when it all will end. And even when we worry about our loved ones, Christian hope can comfort us. Consider this German saying: “Those who live in the Lord never see each other for the last time.”
Mike Haynes teaches journalism at Amarillo College. He can be reached at AC or haynescolumn@hotmail.com. Go to www.haynescolumn.blogspot.com for other recent columns.