Saying goodbye to Katie

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What a sad blog title...sounds like she died or something.  Don't worry...its not that bad...but almost.  After an amazing year together the ESBS is saying a sad goodbye to Katie and John Francis.  Katie was one leg of our three legged staffing stool this year, and she was a HUGE part of the success of the program.  She has an amazing heart for discipleship, and she brought a ton of professionalism and solid Biblical knowledge to the mix...not to mention that her office was a model of cleanliness and orderliness...a real example for us all.

Katie and John are moving to Richmond Virginia to be close to family as they prepare for the birth of their first child (I think they said they would name it Tom Phillips Francis..?..even if its a girl.).  We're going to miss them both a ton, and we are so thankful to have spent a year with such an amazing couple.

Tom

class of 2011

Laura, Brent, Cheryl Anne,  Dave, Katie, John, Daniel, Todd, Nathanael, Abby, Shelby, Grace, Carla, Luke Julia, Tom, Scott (left to right)

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Last Saturday we celebrated with the class of 2011 as they finished their marathon through the Bible.  We changed the schedule up this year and gave the students three days at the end to just hang out and unwind...good decision...we had a great week just being together.  This year has been amazing in so many ways, and the students finished well.  Hard to believe that year 5 is over!  When we started the school the Lurecrest leadership asked me for a 5 year commitment...so I guess its time for me to buy a sailboat and move to the Bahamas:  my work here is done.  ( kidding...this job pays way too well...Im holding out a little longer...:)

Tom

the ESBS...a God story

phillips and students at the Walled Off

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12 years ago while I was working at Lurecrest as a summer camp counselor Ken Helser, then the camp pastor, came up to me one night at chapel and said that he had a picture in his mind of me walking out of the Walled Off at Lurerest with my wife and two children.  Being 19 at the time, and not having any idea what the future held, I tucked the word away in my heart and though "I wonder if that's ever going to come to pass."

When Ken spoke those words the Walled Off was more than a little run down, and it was used to house the camp speaker for the summer camping season.  The other 40 or so weeks of the year it sat empty...so naturally I thought "well that probably means that one day I'll be the summer camp pastor at Lurecrest, and my wife and two kids will come to camp for a week with me."

Little did I know that 12 years later, God would have Julia and I living in Lake Lure full-time, and that the Walled-Off would become the ESBS dining area and student lounge.

Just three weeks ago we welcomed our second child into the world, and now, as a family of 4 we walk out of the Walled Off together daily.

Ken Helser's vision was from the Lord, and no one really knew what it meant at the time .  Not me, not him...but God knew, and for the past 12 years God has guarded his plans for this program, and in his grace he has brought it to where it is today.  Im so thankful for His hand in my life, and for having the opportunity to see this dream of the school come to pass, and flourish as it has.  It confirms in my heart that this school is God's school.  It is in His hands, and He is in our midst.

mark masucci

mark masucci

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This past week we were totally fired up to have Mark Masucci with us wrapping up the year with a solid series on the gospel of Matthew.  Matthew's gospel is a masterful look at Jesus as the fulfillment of Israel's story, and teaching it well requires a thorough understanding of the story of the Bible, both NT and OT.

Mark brings 20 years of teaching experience in the SBS program, as well as a masters degree in Biblical studies from Regent Seminary in Vancouver.  He's a Bible master, and the perfect person to bring this book home for the students.

Mark's Matthew lectures are available on our website.  You'll be hard pressed to find better teaching on the gospel of Matthew anywhere online...also check out Mark's special lecture on "the use of the OT in the NT"...found under our special lectures tab on the audio page.  Take your understanding of how the NT authors used the OT to make sense of the life and ministry of Jesus to a whole new level with these great audio resources.  We're happy to provide them to you free of charge...hey but nothing beats being here in person...which by the way if you're interested in doing now is the time to let us know...we are almost full for next year!

Tom

Luke Wilsie Phillips

the pensive thinker face...just like Dad.

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Last Saturday Julia and I welcomed a new baby boy into our family.  Luke Wilsie Phillips, 7 lbs 4 oz.  After pulling an all niter at the hospital with our daughter Anna, Julia and I were determined to get to the hospital as late as possible with Luke.  When Julia started pushing we got in the car...We got to the hospital at 5:50 pm and Luke was born at 6:40...oops.

He's healthy and strong, and seems to have gotten the memo about sleeping at night and being awake during the day (yeah!)...

I think he's probably allergic to Myrrh, so just send gold and frankincense (UPS is totally unreliable with precious metals, better bring it in person)...the wise men are leaving on Sunday, once they clear out the basement is open for anyone who wants to come visit....:)