In addition to holding classes during the school semester at EABST, we also meet to hear preaching in chapel twice a month for several reasons. One is that we long to convey to our student body the sense of weighty joy that comes with the pastoral calling—weighty because on that final day we will be held accountable for those in our care, and joyous because we strive for an eternal reward, not a perishing one. We also want to give our students good examples of biblical exposition. Preaching, like many other skills, is much more difficult to learn without seeing it done well. Another reason we like chapel is that it serves as a reminder that what we are learning about the Bible can never stay in our heads, we have to pursue the work of the Spirit to change our lives with what we learn and to use us as instruments for the change of others.
Frequently guests from around Nairobi come to speak for us during these chapel times, but we as faculty and even our upper-level students take opportunities to preach too. I spoke recently on prudence from Proverbs 22:3. Pictured above is one of our students encouraging us from 1 Peter 1. His reminder was to see the present challenges of life in light of the eternal hope we have in Christ, "an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away" (1 Pet 1:4). What a joy to be a part of God's curriculum for these men as they seek to serve Christ's church and spread the fame of his name in this city of Nairobi and among the nations!
