Why You Need to Check Out The Extension Squad

 I’ll admit, I initially picked up the Kindle version of The Extension Squad mainly to support my co-worker, R.M. Scheller. We always want to cheer on the people we work with when they put creative projects out into the world, so I figured I’d buy volumes 1–3, give them a read, and show some support.

What I didn't expect was getting completely hooked.

R.M. Scheller is a genuinely talented writer. The core premise — following a team of untrained emergency responders endowed with superpowers — brings a fresh, nuanced perspective to what it actually means to live and function like a hero. It’s an illustrated series that takes the typical superhero tropes and grounds them in a way that feels unique (and I say that as someone who usually hates how overused that word is!).

The plot moves fast, the characters grab you from the start, and the story genuinely keeps you turning pages to see what happens next. It completely transcends standard young adult fiction.

Now that the series is officially available as a book on Amazon, I couldn't recommend it more. Whether you’re a big fan of YA, love superhero stories with a twist, or just want a fast-paced, engaging read, go grab yourself a copy — you won't regret it!

A Bad Seinfeld Episode

I'm glad that my life doesn't take place in a sitcom. There'd be lots of laughs, sure, but I'd be in trouble at work.

First, some back story: In my first post-college job at a newspaper chain, I had a bad habit of eating my lunch mid-morning, which left me hungry in the late afternoon. I just didn't have enough self control, and I guess it had a bit to do with stress management. At some point I made a rule that I wouldn't eat any of my lunch until noon. I'm an all-or-nothing kind of person, and the rule has actually worked out pretty well.

Yesterday I brought to work leftover Peruvian chicken that my wonderful wife saved for me from dinner out with some of her Lafayette College international students. It's got this delicious green sauce that seeped through my wall of self control and destroyed my rule. By 11:30, I'd eaten half or more of the chicken.

One of my co-workers asked me if I wanted to join him -- and I think others -- for lunch at College Hill Tavern. I explained about the eating binge and he understood. Not a minute had passed (sitcom timing) when my boss asked me if I wanted to go to lunch with him.

I had just a few seconds to process this dilemma. I was partly full, but I didn't want to turn my boss down because even though he's good-natured and would have understood, well, he's my boss. Plus, I knew he'd take me somewhere good, these offers don't come too often, and no matter how hard I'd try, he wouldn't let me pay. I accepted.

In a sitcom, my co-worker would find out, and hijinks would ensure. I'd get some comeuppance for turning down his invitation and then accepting a better one.

As long as you don't tell Bill, and he doesn't find out about this blog, I should be safe.

You can keep a secret, right?

Making Disciples Who Make Disciples

I wrote the following article for the weekly electronic newsletter of my church, Cornerstone Church in Easton, Pa., where I serve as church chairman and head elder.

The American evangelical church has had no shortage of movements and fads in recent years, from “seeker sensitive” to “purpose driven” to “missional.” At the annual joint board retreat last month, we focused on a direction that we hope will become an integral part of how we carry out Jesus’ mission at Cornerstone: discipleship.

Discipleship is far beyond a flavor of the month—it’s what Jesus called us to do in the Great Commission, His last recorded words before ascending into heaven.

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”  

Matthew 28:19-20

Notice that Jesus didn’t say to make Christians of all the nations. It’s not our call to just share the Gospel and move on to the next person. It’s to make disciples. A disciple is someone who:

• knows and follows Christ
• is changed by Christ
• is committed to Christ’s mission

Making disciples involves teaching others the disciplines of the faith and helping them mature as followers of Jesus. This requires a relationship. It means sharing our lives with others and showing them what we’ve learned about reading and applying the Bible, prayer, servanthood, and so on.

But our job doesn’t end there. We need to help others become true disciples—those who will make other disciples. Jesus taught His disciples the gospel, showed them how to share it, then assigned them to preach the Gospel themselves. The teaching method in discipleship, as outlined by Dave and Jon Ferguson in the book Exponential, goes something like this:

I do. You watch. We talk.
I do. You help. We talk.
You do. I help. We talk.
You do. I watch. We talk.
You do. Someone else watches…

I’m excited about this direction! It’s a process of multiplication that we believe will result in many more Christians being:

“filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,
so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

Colossians 1:9b-10

School and Suffering

Last school year was a dark one for my daughter, Isabelle. "Dark" may seem a melodramatic word for a 5th grade experience, but it fits. It was her first year of middle school and she suffered through a bully, some nasty and petty kids, frustratingly repetitive instruction, and the personal changes that start happening at that age.

It's painful to see your children go through this. You want to rescue them. You want to drive to school and say some inappropriate, your-name-will-probably-appear-in-the-Express-Times-type words to those causing her misery.

At my elementary school in Annapolis, Maryland, intimidation and bullying ran rampant in fourth through sixth grades. I can remember being chased, struck, and belittled. It wasn't until sometime in sixth grade that I realized I had nothing to lose and stood up for myself. (In one memorable incident, I accidentally nailed the most notorious bully in the most sensitive location during dodgeball. He menacingly approached me. Adrenaline coursing through my body, I let him know that I was ready to fight right then and there. Nothing really came of it.)

I also remember the indignity of walking onto the bus, seeking a seat as other kids sat toward the edges of theirs, letting me know I was unwelcome. One kid was questioned as to why he let me sit with him.

I could go on, but I'll get to the point. It's found in the Bible, Romans 5:3-5:
Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

I'm far from being able to "glory" in sufferings. Sad to say, I'm just not that godly. Maybe one day. But the fact is, my difficult experiences in school made me stronger. They also gave me a particular compassion for the underdogs in society that I'm told is noticeable.  I don't wish the adversity that I or Isabelle experienced on anyone, but I recognize that it can build character--character I've seen in Isabelle--especially if someone lovingly guides the person through it.

I desperately hope that I'm doing a good job of that.

Oliver Gets Dance Fever

Ever had one of those moments with a family member where you think, "Now where did THAT come from?" It happened with my son, Oliver, during March Around the World, an annual cultural/educational event at his elementary school that my wife organizes. Some of her international students teach the children about an aspect of culture and lead them in a related, interactive activity. I took the brief video below during a session on Bollywood dancing.

Moments of Genius #1: Toothpaste Snack

Some years back, I went to a new dentist after mine retired, and I was horrified to learn at my first visit that I had many cavities. Since then, I've kept a toothbrush and toothpaste at work so I can brush after eating sweets.

I have this weird habit of brushing at my desk for a bit while looking at work stuff on my computer and then taking my toothbrush to the bathroom to finish and rinse. Today in the middle of this, a coworker entered my office and began talking to me. I had no choice but to feign laryngitis or swallow everything. I chose the latter. Really gross.

Maybe one day I'll grow up.

So Jesus Didn't Know Everything?

Well, I caused some controversy in Sunday school yesterday. (I attend Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church in Easton, Pa.) The class was discussing Jesus' calling of the 12 disciples, specifically how He knew things about them that could only be known supernaturally. The prevailing sentiment was that Jesus knew because He's God. After all, Jesus knew us "before the foundation of the world."

I disagreed. Strongly.

Yes, Jesus was fully divine and fully human, but He "emptied Himself" (Philippians 2:5-7) to live as a man, accepting the limitations of humanity. How could it be true that "Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature" (Luke 2:52) if he exercised His divine omniscience? Knowing things supernaturally and performing miracles through the Holy Spirit is consistent with this. It was the "power of the Lord," not the power that He set aside, that was "present for Him to perform healing" (Luke 5:17).

Jesus lived a Spirit-filled life. He was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil (Matt. 4:1). He "returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit" (Luke 10:14) and quoted the prophecy stating that "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me" (Luke 10:18). He "rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit" (Luke 10:21). God "anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power" (Acts 10:38). He gave instructions to His disciples through the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:1-2).

It was through learning, not omniscience, that Jesus realized John the Baptist had been taken into custody, which led Him on a particular course (Matt. 4:12). He marveled at the centurion's faith (Matt. 8:10). While sometimes He asked questions as a rhetorical device, at other times He posed them to gain information. For example, when the woman who had suffered a hemorrhage for 12 years touched His garment, He asked who touched him and looked to see (Mark 5:30-32). He asked a father how long his demon-possessed son had been exhibiting such behavior (Mark 9:21). Also, He said that He did not know the day and hour when heaven and earth will pass away (Matt. 24:35-36). And He wouldn't have needed to be led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit if He were acting in omniscience.

Jesus also did incredible miracles through the Holy Spirit while maintaining the vulnerability of having emptied Himself of His omnipotence. When He fasted, He became hungry (Matt. 4:2). After being tempted by Satan, he needed angels to minister to Him (Matt. 4:11). He needed an angel to strengthen Him in the garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:43). He experienced agony (Luke 22:44).

If we understand that Jesus emptied Himself and was empowered by the Holy Spirit, we appreciate how He humbled himself and accepted the limitations of humanity in His incarnation. We also gain a sense of the power available to us.