“Were the whole Earth echoing His eminence
His name would burst from sea and sky
From rivers to the mountain tops
We’d hear Christ be magnified.”
As I let the words from Wednesday’s Life Together wash over me, I couldn’t help but be humbled and awed by how immensely great God is and how deserving He is of all the praise we could ever give Him. Starting every Wednesday morning with a time of corporate praise and worship has made me so grateful to be here at Fellows. It has helped me value the unique experiences and moments here, like Life Together.
But what is Life Together? Life Together is thirty minutes every morning, Monday through Thursday, devoted to spending time with God while building a thriving, active community in pursuit of His presence. It looks a little different each day, but everything we do is rooted in practicing consistent rhythms of time in worship and His Word. Every Monday, we do scripture meditation; Tuesdays are spent praying through scripture, sometimes alone, sometimes with a couple of other Fellows; Wednesdays are spent primarily in worship through song; Thursdays are occupied with time spent in very careful, meditated and intentional reading and interpretation of God’s Word. Devoting time as a whole class to humbling ourselves before the seat of the Father and inviting him into our days, our work, our relationships, and our year here at Fellows has been a transformative rhythm in my life. 
Returning to worship, how do we, as the Impact Fellows Class 19, pursue praising our loving Father? What does it even look like to truly worship? Louie Giglio, the global pastor at Passion City Church Atlanta, wrote, “Worship is our response, both personally and corporately, to God—for who He is and what He has done, expressed in and by the things we say and the way we live.” In our modern American church culture, we can be tempted to view worship simply as songs that we sing at church every Sunday morning while drinking our Starbucks and planning that afternoon’s events. Scripture suggests a much different, more Christ-centric approach; however, that is more than just song. Yes, as lovers and followers of Jesus, we are instructed by scripture to lift our voices in praise of our King (see Psalm 63, for example). As Pastor Giglio says, worship is not merely in song but a total way of living that we strive for, particularly as Fellows here at Impact. Whether in the games we play, the meals we share, or study sessions, our essential mission is that God be glorified, revered, and adored in our thoughts, words, and deeds. As Fellows:
We seek to thank the Lord for the ways we see him moving and breathing life through our campus, which is just one small corner of His Kingdom.
We seek to be filled with the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
We seek not to be served but to serve, modeling the example that the Lamb of God set for us in His time here on Earth.
We seek to trust God and His plan for all the Fellows, Residents, Staff, and Professors here on campus, even when it doesn’t make sense.
We seek to adore, honor, and praise the Creator and Sustainer of life, to whom be all the power and glory forever.
So, as I stood amongst all one hundred and three students as we sang the words:
“Christ be magnified
From the altar of my life
Christ be magnified in me.”
Last Wednesday, I couldn’t help but reflect on how marvelous our God is. We continue to strive to worship Him in all that we say and do here at Impact 360, and our prayer is that we will never cease to give glory back to the one who reigns supreme above the universe.
“I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.” – Psalm 63:2-4
May the Lord bless you and keep you,
Sam Stehlik, Class XIX Fellow