The Behrend Beacon Music lecturer Barnard wraps up Lenten Soup for the Soul series by Christine Kleck staff writer Rather than sing or play music. Dr. Daniel Barnard, lecturer in music and choir director at Behrend, was asked to talk about his experiences with God in his speech last Thursday as the final speaker in the “Soup for the Soul” Lenten lunch and reflection hour. Sponsored by the Protestant Campus Ministry and Catholic Campus Ministry at Behrend, this hour of relaxation and reflection took place over during Thursdays in the Lenten season in the Smith Chapel living room. “1 have been a Christian for a long time,” Barnard began. Explaining that he would discuss something about God that he learned as a college student, Barnard said that those experiences really altered the way that he viewed-and interacted with God. “They really changed my relationship with God, from one that acknowledged His existence and one that acknowledged that Christ had come to die for my sins, but it wasn’t a personal relationship where I feel like I knew Him and He knew me - it wasn't like that, and I didn’t know that it could be like that,” he said. After completing his undergraduate degree, Barnard went on to get his graduate degree in Greeley, Col. “I moved there not having a job, not really having any money. While I was there I met and fell in love with a girl who was attending the University of Colorado, and she convinced me to meet with one of her advisors, who was a campus minister there,” he said. Barnard met once a week with the advisor to talk about his spiritual life and from those meetings he got an idea. “What I learned from him lasted a lot longer than she did,” he said. “I learned what he did and how he reacted to God. He would get up every morning and they actually called it quiet time, and he would spend about 20 or 30 minutes praying and reading his Bible and recording what he read, and his reactions to them. It was just sort of a daily reflection, and he was also an avid Scripture memorizer and was very regular in praying. Those were the three things that he did, so those were the three things that I tried,” Barnard said. At this point in his spiritual journey, Barnard began to keep a record of his readings and his reactions to those readings in two small blue binders that he brought to the Lenten luncheon and that he read from later in the course of his speech. “I started spending regular time praying, and what happened really surprised me, because it’s like any other relationship. We get to know people by spending time with them, and it’s not by just thinking about it. It’s by actually interacting, and as I started reading Scripture, 1 started learning a lot about Every Friday: •Great Happy Hour Specials from 5-7 •DJ Starts at 10 p.m. Every Sunday: • NASCAR! • $1.50 Bud and Bud Lt and Wing Specials During the Race Pool Tournament at Ipm w/ *DJ Playing all the cash prizes Hits Every Tuesday: •Karaoke Starts at 9 p.m. Eve: •DJ Starts at 9:30 •No Cover Charge :Y Saturd God’s character,” Barnard said. He began to write down what he read in scripture and how he felt about those readings. From this activity, Barnard made a key insight into his faith. “ I realized that someone in Scripture felt the same way that I did about myself at that time,” he said. Talking about a particular instance where he made a connection between his own life and what he read in the Bible, he recalled a stressful day in graduate school. Once when Barnard was up late working on a term paper, he took some time to read Scripture. “It was a psalm and David had said, ‘Help me, oh Lord, for the waters have come up to my neck.’ That was exactly how I felt,” he said. Barnard remembers the impact that this practice had on his life at that time “As I went about that process of just regular reading and writing and reflecting every day, there came times when God used the Scripture that was there to speak directly to me - there was no doubt about it,” he said. Making copies and highlighting key journal entries from his reflection journal, Barnard then referred to specific instances in his writings that stick out to him. After reading some Scriptural passages from Jeremiah that he made note of specifically in his journal, Barnard recalled 4 realization that he made in that reflection. “This so struck me, that 1 thought that it was God saying to me that He wanted me to seek Him with my whole heart, and if 1 did He would be with me," he recalled. “That became a landmark pillar for me in my journey,” Barnard said. Around that time Barnard found himself working several jobs and with little money. He had to decide if he wanted to continue his schooling or not. “It was going to really be a step of faith if I went (to school),” he said. But around that time he read a Scripture telling him to be strong because his faith would be rewarded. “And that encouraged me a little bit, because at least 1 knew I was going in the right direction,” Barnard said. Closer to the time that he had to make that decision, Barnard :ryM • Molson Monday • All Molson Products $1.50 Wed. Ap •Bacardi Silver Promotion w/ Giveaways Don’t fyjiss Live Music Every Thursday! Friday, April 5, 2002 Music Lecturer and Chorus Director Dan Barnard explained how God made him just “get up and do it” in the last Soup for the Soul last Thurs day evening. nday: All Day uAO m recalled a week of passages that he read and wrote about that helped him to make that decision. Passages about Jacob found in Ezekiel, inspirational words in Daniel, and a final reading in James stating, “Show me your faith without deeds and I will show you my faith by what I do,” all helped him during that week in his decision-making process. “It was clear to me that God was tired of giving me subtle hints - and He was just saying ‘Get up and do it’,’” Barnard said. After talking to his advisors and applying for the fall semester, Barnard knew that he still had a lot of praying to do. “It was a tough row to hoe -1 was broke,” he said. Considering whether or not he should take out a loan to help his financial situation, Barnard turned to Scripture for inspiration. “The righteous one will live by faith and if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him. Keep your lives free of the love of money, be content with what you have, never will I leave you, never will I forsake you, ” he recalled reading as an inspiration at that lime. With that in mind he did not take out the loan, but was fortunate enough to receive a check from his mother after his last bit of food was eaten. “That was an area where I was obedient and God showed himself to the faithful,” Barnard said. Finally, Barnard recalled the time he was working on his master’s thesis. Contemplating whether or not he should move home to work on his thesis, he again turned to Scripture. From Deuteronomy he read, “You have stayed long enough at this mountain, break camp and advance into the open...” Barnard believed that out of context, God was using that passage to tell him to go home. “If I had to live based on my own choices, what wrong decisions I would have made,” Barnard noted. Concluding with a quote from Hosea, Barnard said, “Let’s press on to know him, and then once we know him...sure as the rain comes, he will be found in us - he wants to be found in us.” Finally Barnard said, “I can’t even tell you the impact that it (reading Scripture) made on my relationship with God. Now I know Him. It couldn’t have made a bigger difference.” ————— ————————————— —*r will be accepting applications for the position of Editor-in-Chief for the 2002-2003 school year. Applicants should submit a letter pf intent (resume optional) to Ken Miller, director of student affairs by Monday, The Beacon will also be looking to fill several other positions including: - staff writers - staff photographer - A&E Editor - assistant news editors - wire service editor - supplement page editors National Day of Silence at Behrend by Becky Weindorf managing editor Shhh. If you find that a friend won’t talk to you Wednesday, try not to take it personally. The Behrend campus will participate in a National Day of Silence, which is a national youth movement to protest the silence of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered people and their allies. In an effort to stop the spread of this discrimination, several students will be participating in the 24-hour day of silence, and may show you a small piece of paper to you with the following on it: “April 10, 2002 - National Day of Silence... Please understand my reasons for not speaking today. I am participating in the Day of Silence, a national youth movement protesting the silence faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and their allies. My deliberate silence echoes that silence, which is caused by harassment, prejudice, and discrimination. I believe that ending the silence is the first step toward fighting these injustices. Think about the voices you are not hearing today. What are you going to do to end the silence?” The Day of Silence began in 1996 at the University of Virginia. The day was a success, with local news coverage and more than 150 participants, so Maria Pulzetti decided to take action and work to make the day a national event. By 1997, more than 100 colleges and universities took part in the silence. The day is in part coordinated by Trigon, Behrend’s gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and straight alliance. There is more information available about the National Day of Silence at http:/ /www.dayofsilence.org, or you can email Trigon at trigonpsu@hotmail.com. The Behrend Beacon April 15, 2002. Most positions can be taken for credit or are paid sss. -Looks great on a resume! E-mail: behrcolls@aol.com Attn: Rob Wynne -or- call the Beacon office at 898-6488.
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