By Madi Urban
We have officially made it through a month of classes, internships, service, and host families. Roads are becoming familiar and our favorite coffee shops are being identified. After a month of everything being new, life as a Capital Fellow is starting to feel more normal.
Last week while driving back from Cornerstone School (where we serve one day each week), one of the Fellows and I got into a conversation about the idea of “normal life.” I was talking about how life has a lot of Tuesdays; days that are, well, normal. This fellow looked at me a bit incredulous and said something like: “Madi! No! Our lives aren’t normal! Every moment is holy, and every action is an act of worship! Life outside the kingdom, THAT is normal! Life in the kingdom is never normal!” (The exclamation points on every sentence are intentional. If you know, you know.) We debated a little bit, but ultimately decided we were both right.
There are a lot of normal days in life, days that look like many others. They aren’t particularly great or particularly bad. They follow rhythms that are familiar and often tiring. However, as this Fellow pointed out, there is incredible beauty in knowing that those mundane moments are part of a greater story. While the days might look similar, serving a God who is active in restoring his creation gives everyday life a purpose.
At our first classes with Dr. Bill Fullilove, our Biblical Theology professor, he offered us a story: the story of God’s work in creation and our place in it. It’s a story of God creating a good world and inviting his image bearers (us!) to rule with him. His purpose for our rulership was to fill the earth and cultivate it. The story goes on to describe awful human brokenness and God’s relentless pursuit of people to a) redeem souls and b) to bring about the flourishing of creation. Bill reminded us that our ultimate resting place will be the New Earth, a place of physical dwelling where the vision of Adam and Eve cultivating the garden with the Lord will be fully extended and complete in all the earth. Our lives do not stop with our salvation, the Lord’s initial purposes for his image-bearers remain. We are still called to be vice-regents, creating and cultivating the world by advancing technology, healing the sick, creating art, raising children, learning and exploring creation, building culture, governing justly, teaching, serving and so on. In doing so, we image the one who first created and brought order to chaos.
It is easy to hear this grand vision of purpose, but difficult to see the beauty of being part of the grand story. I was reading this weekend in Proverbs 27 that “the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.” Perhaps this is the truest beauty of Fellows: the ability to live in a community that encourages one another to not just engage truth theoretically, but to see redemption lived out, even on a normal Tuesday.
Pictures from the Week
How about another picture from Dye War 2021?!
The result of a friendly bet between two Carolina students and two UVA students about the outcome of the UNC-UVA football game. #GDTBATH
A couple girls met in Arlington to get pho after work!
Lots of hard work getting done on Fellows row! Apologies to the MPC staff, we are working on keeping our voices down
Become A Capital Fellow in 2022-23
We are now receiving applications for Season 16 of the Capital Fellows program!
Most fellows work in the marketplace - for companies, nonprofits, government offices. Three Capital Fellows work at our church each year as well. For these roles, we are looking for a worship fellow, a children's ministry fellow, and a missions fellow. These are special Capital Fellows opportunities because the Capital Pres Family not only pays your salary, but also pays your Capital Fellows program fees!!
The Season 16 program year runs from late August 2022 through mid-May 2023. If you are a college senior or recent graduate - or know someone that is - we would love to hear from you!
Pray for the Capital Fellows
Thank you for praying for the Capital Fellows each week!
October can be challenging for the Fellows. The newness of life in DC is giving way to the ordinariness of routines, commuting, deadlines, and other patterns post-college life. This can result in Fellows feeling tired and stretched. Please pray for the Fellows as they make the transition from college to post-college life and structure. Please pray for their community as they learn to love and serve each other IN their tiredness.
Want to pray for the Capital Fellows throughout the year? Download this handy prayer guide for your phone or tablet.
Benefits of The Fellows Initiative
You probably already know that Capital Fellows is one of 32 fellows programs in The Fellows Initiative network. Capital Fellows benefit from our affiliation with The Fellows Initiative in many ways. One of those ways is that all Capital Fellows alumni receive a 33% tuition discount at Reformed Theological Seminary for 5 years. For more information, please contact us.
If you know a church in the US or Canada that would benefit from joining The Fellows Initiative by launching a new fellows program. Please contact TFI by visiting their website.
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