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If you’re interested in inviting some unbelieving, skeptical, or seeking yet thinking friends to a pre-evangelistic event for professionals, Eric Metaxas and Os Guinness will be at the University Club of Chicago (76 E. Monroe) on May 6th, where Dr. Guinness will be addressing, “Can Freedom Last Forever? The Framers’ Forgotten Question and How We Are Doing Today.”
For more details click here.
Hi, my name is Crystal. For those new to IBC, I was actually baptized right here at IBC about two years ago. I didn’t grow up a Christian and God in his infinite grace and mercy, opened my eyes and gave me a new life. But that is another story for another time…
Right now, my vocation is being a medical student at UIC College of Medicine. I am past my pre-clinical years so I actually spend a lot of time in the hospital and a lot less time studying. I am graduating medical school in a year and I have decided that I want to pursue a career in obstetrics/gynecology. One issue that I have been struggling with this year and probably in the years to come is abortion.
Here are some basic stats: every year in the U.S, there are 1.3 million abortions, most performed before 12 weeks of life. 10 years after their abortion, at least 70% of women regret their choice. But abortions performed today are relatively safe and only about 1 in 100 women suffer complications. Since Roe v Wade legalized abortion in 1973, more women have sought abortions while significantly less have died from them.
Abortion is an issue that has polarized politics and even the medical profession. Since the time of Hippocrates, there have been codified values that every medical practitioner should follow. They are as follows: 1) autonomy, the patient has the right to refuse or choose their treatment; 2) beneficence, the practitioner should act in the best interest of the patient; 3) non-malfeasance, first do no harm; 4) justice, scarce resources should be distributed equitably; 5) dignity; 6) truthfulness and honesty. Is abortion ethical based on those guidelines? Like several other hot button topics in medicine, there is no clear answer because abortion can be understood to violate some principles while respecting others.
The Bible does not explicitly address the issue of abortion. But Genesis 1:27 clearly states: “So God created man in his [own] image, in the image of God created he him, male and female he created them”. God has a plan for all life, even from the moment of conception. In reference to John, Luke 1:14 writes: “For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb”. An early Christian treatise, The Didache 2.2 (c. A.D. 85-110) commands, “thou shalt not murder a child by abortion nor kill them when born.” Another non-canonical early Christian text, the Letter of Barnabas 19.5 (c. A.D. 130), said: “You shall not abort a child nor, again, commit infanticide”. It is clear that LIFE is part of God’s awesome plan and the taking of life is SIN, a deviation from God’s perfect plan.
But many of the women who seek abortions deserve our compassion, not our judgment. They are young, destitute and/or victims of abandonment and rape. They have no support system to raise children and many of them make the painful decision to have an abortion. In meeting some of these women, I have repeatedly asked myself: “What right do I have to illegitimize their choices? I will not be the one to raise their unwanted child and I am only forcing these women to resort to back-alley procedures if abortions were banned.”
In struggling with this issue, God has forced me to acknowledge my rebellious heart towards Him. I am distracted by what the medical community defines as ethical but I must be bound by God’s laws. As 1 Cor. 3:19 clearly states: “For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness.” Even though I may swear an oath to my profession, my identity comes from my relationship with Christ. A passage that I have been meditating over is Dt. 30:10: “If thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep his commandments and his statutes which are written in this book of the law, [and] if thou turn unto the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul…” It is not a burden to follow God’s commandments but instead a glad acknowledgment that He is a merciful God with a plan to redeem his people. In this specific situation, I must have faith that abortion is not the best way to love these women. By performing an act that is so in violation to God’s plan, we hurt them more than we can hope to help them.
This winter, I will be doing a “trial residency” at UCSF. UCSF has a great OB/GYN program but it is best known for their family planning curriculum (which includes contraceptive counseling, sterilizations, and 1st trimester abortions). Please pray that I will love and serve my patients and follow God in everything that I do.
Hello IBC Family! We are in the process of making a new summer schedule for the Sunday morning service volunteers and would like to get an updated list of those people who are available and interested. Helping out Sunday mornings is a great way to serve fellow IBC members, meet new people, and use your gifts and talents in God’s kingdom! Here is a list of servant opportunities we have at IBC:
- Welcoming Team
- Kids Corner (kids 0-5)
- Sunday School (kids 6 and up)
- Worship Team (musicians and AV technicians)
- Set-Up and Tear-Down Crews
- Scripture Reader
Our next schedule will be for the summer period (May 16ththrough August 22nd). If you are available and would like to serve in any of these areas and/or want more information please email Daniel Matlack at drmatlack@gmail.com by May 2nd. Please send a message to Daniel even if you are currently on a team.
Christian girl seeking Christian girl! Anne-Marie will be moving at the end of May and would like to live with one or more roommates. She’s a westsider and would prefer to stay that way, but is open to other areas as well. Can pay rent up to $700 including utilities. Please feel free to forward on to anyone you know who might be interested. Contact info: am_landeg
I’ve been a member of Immanuel for about two years and am grateful to be a part of this community. I am discovering that it is important to surround myself with Christians because on my own it’s very difficult and a struggle for me to live the Christian life.
Currently, I work for MidwesternUniversityMedicalSchool in Downers Grove, IL. We have programs in Dentistry, Pharmacy, Clinical Psychology, Physical Assistant, Podiatry, and Physical Therapy. I serve as an eResources Librarian which means I make sure people are getting access to information they need and want. Also, I manage a portion of the University’s web site. I work pretty closely with faculty and students. Many of our students are awesome and bright. They keep me feeling younger tooJ I’m also learning a ton related to the Health Sciences which is pretty cool.
I have an undergraduate degree in History and a Master’s in Library and Information Sciences. In the role I am in now, it requires me be detail oriented and is pretty technical, so I am always looking for ways in which I can be creative. I believe God designed us as creative beings.
In 2008, I graduated from Harrington College of Design with a degree in Interior Architecture. I love beauty. I love creating beauty and being surrounded by it not in a superficial way, but more so in a real, raw way… (if that makes any sense). I am hoping to venture out and do something with this degree eventually and put it to good use.
I am not 100% sure that God has me where I am right now for his purpose. I am learning to trust in Him. I do know, however, that over the years, God has humbled me, and as a result, I am able to relate to others in a more real and genuine way. I like to appear as if I have it all handled, look good, and am in control, but the truth is I’m not in control as much as I’d like to think I am. It’s really comforting to know that He is and has a plan for all of us. I continue to pray that God will help me and use me to service his purposes.
Thanks for reading…
Don’t forget that the next MISSION CLASS is this Sunday after the second service.
I’ve always loved stories.
Growing up in Singapore, home-schooled by my missionary parents, I learned to read early and read often.
I’ve always been visual.
I watched every minute of TV, every movie and played every computer game my parents would allow. (They tried to rein me in, tried to keep me reading, I didn’t make it easy on them, bless them.)
Education wasn’t too hard for me.
I pick up concepts quickly; I remember facts and logic always fell into place. I’m not so good with names and dates, but always tested well. Spiritual gift, maybe, should thank my mother’s excellent educational foundation, perhaps, blessing certainly.
So in high school I got myself into a college-level engineering program. I really loved… the people there. Some of the best years of my life, for some reason! And I was good at it: graduated second in my class. Turns out there’s a word for that: salutatorian. Yeah, I wouldn’t have known it either. (Curse you, William McClendon) Did enough math in high school that I never had to take another math class again. And (shame on me) I didn’t.
But I didn’t… enjoy engineering.
So I went to college for art!
Computer graphics: just as spacial, just as geometric, none of that ‘math’ nonsense and nothing collapses on innocent people if I’m goofing off at the computer.
Computer… animation. Do some story telling, why not, in the process. Wasn’t so good at it, not the ‘art’ stuff. Oh the computer was no problem, and I didn’t lack for ideas… just didn’t have that endless drive to create. Too content to view, to read, to play.
I had no trouble graduating (despite World of Warcraft’s best efforts), what I did not have was a portfolio. Ended up… drifting awhile. Unsure.
Cousin invited me to stay with him. Figured there’d be more for me in Chicago than in Richmond, Virginia. No one needs someone with computer skills who thinks spatially to relive the Civil War.
Then my uncle asks me, out of the blue, I do ‘computer things’, right? Well, sure. Need something?
Turns out his company, where my cousin works, a small investment firm, had a graphic designer who was out sick for a long while. Needed someone to help, just once a month, get their performance reporting formatted and out the door to investors and potential clients. I knew some, but not all of the software, and learned the rest on the job. Started part-time as a consultant and was hired, maybe a year later for a full-time position.
You’ll just have to forgive a bit of rambling: I too-easily see the interconnections in things to not start from the beginning. But here, then, is what I do:
Data, you see, is not information. Information is not knowledge. After knowledge comes understanding and wisdom, but those are quite beyond my power. What I do is take data and wrap it in context and present it such that it’s easy to read. Sounds simple, but has been very challenging for me. I’ve learned Adobe InDesign like the back of my hand, I’ve dabbled in typography, and sampled branding. I taught myself XML (convincing the computer that this number, right here, is the December_Return_2009 in all it’s glory) and Excel.
I love my job. I learn new things constantly, no two projects are the same and I feel genuinely helpful.
More importantly: my uncle runs a Christian business. There are prayer meetings every week and everyone is a joy to work with.
It’s not what I hoped to do. It’s not even what I thought might happen. But once again God knew best. My vocation? To communicate, clearly, the complicated.
How I got here? Grace alone.
Daniel H – a member of Immanuel and Moody Junior – is doing an internship this summer with the church plant. He wanted to check if anyone at Immanuel needs (or knows anyone who needs) house sitting this summer at any point between the beginning of May and beginning of August or maybe had an extra room for a boarder. Contact him with leads.
Saturday Night Prayer Meeting is tonight at 7:00 PM at The Meeting Place.
Peter Hong, long-time member of Immanuel, and his wife Lydia have been in Thailand for the last year or so and are preparing to go back next month.
This Sunday in both services they will be sharing a little bit about what they will doing and their needs for prayer and financial support. For those interested in hearing more, there will be lunch provided after the second service where you can talk more with Peter and Lydia and find out ways you can partner with them in their ministry.
If you know you want to attend that lunch, please RSVP to info so we can have a rough idea of how much food to order.
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