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There Is Hope in Your Dark Night

by David Asscherick
If there were Olympic Games for the person with the saddest story in all the Bible, obviously Job would take the gold medal, but do you know who I think would take silver? Jacob. His story has always fascinated and attracted…
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We Are Them

by David Asscherick
“Father Steve” was a fixture of my childhood. He was the longtime minister of the local Episcopalian church my parents attended. I remember him being kind and funny. I remember the strange robes he would wear on Sunday.…
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The Language of Love

by David Asscherick
What if I said this to you? “You should dead drift an olive wooly bugger, with just a touch of swing, right through the gut and watch for a flashy, butter-colored…
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Of Perils and Tyrants

by David Asscherick
In his excellent book, A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, Eugene Peterson writes, “All the wisdom and strength of the ancient world were in Mesopotamia and Egypt…Mesopotamian power and Egyptian wisdom were…
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Get in the Word for Yourself

by David Asscherick
Get in the Word for yourself. Get in the Word for yourself. Get in the Word for yourself. Get in the Word… That’s really all I want to say in this…
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A Little Bit More

by David Asscherick
Do you love snow? I’ve always loved it, but today I love it a little bit more. You see, I’ve lived in sub-tropical Australia for the last six years. “Cold” there is 50° Fahrenheit. So, as you might’ve guessed, it…
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But Now

by David Asscherick
Presently, for my local church, I’m in the midst of a preaching series on the book of Romans, called All Roads Lead to Romans. And the next sermon is on one of my three favorite passages in Romans: chapter…
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The Best Job in the World

by David Asscherick
I’ve heard quite a few people say it: “I have the best job in the world.” I always like it when I hear that, because it makes me feel really happy for the person that says it. And I’m one of those people. I say it.…
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Better Than Norway

by David Asscherick
I don’t know about you, but I love a good road trip. There’s something really satisfying about covering large distances while listening to a great audiobook or inspiring music. I’ve always thought the point of a truly…
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To Be His

by David Asscherick
“David, I’m so judgmental. I’m just so judgmental of others. I need Jesus. I love Jesus. He can change my heart, because I’m very judgmental of those who are not like me.” And there were tears that ran down the cheeks into a beautiful…
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ARISE and the Youth Revival of Our Church

by David Asscherick
There is a genuine revival taking place among the youth and young adults of my local church. Read that first sentence again, please. And again. This is not a hyperbole or exaggeration; it’s the wonderful, God-glorifying truth. Let me tell you…
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Climbing and Hiding

by David Asscherick
Lately, I’ve been taking my teenage sons, Landon and Jabel, to the climbing gym. I was introduced to rock climbing by two close friends, a young couple named Tim and Tanya, when I was a teenager. On my first day, I had to be essentially rescued by…
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God’s Own Grapes

by David Asscherick
Every ARISE class is a miracle. And not just a miracle, but miracles upon miracles. Like a cluster of delicious grapes, each one is amazing in itself and the cluster magnifies the miracle all the more. The 2017 class was no exception! One of…
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Draft Away, Part 2

by David Asscherick
I recently did the Rainbow Ride, a local 102.5-mile (165 km) race. It was my first large group ride, and it was awesome! The ride starts with a steep and winding climb, followed by a fast descent, and about 30 miles (50 km) of relatively flat…
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Draft Away, Part 1

by David Asscherick
Have you ever heard of drafting? Sure you have, but perhaps not the kind of drafting I’m thinking of. Drafting can refer to: Refining several preliminary versions of a piece of writing. Governmental enlistment of young men…
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It Takes Time

by David Asscherick
Discipleship is a bit of a buzzword right now, and that’s a good thing. As the church, and as followers of Jesus, we should be talking about discipleship. More than this, we should be doing discipleship. But right there is the…
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Go and Speed No More

by David Asscherick
Let me tell you about one of my least favorite Australian realities: speed cameras. Ugh, just saying those two words makes me feel ill. You see, in the US, where I’m from, you receive a speeding ticket by being pulled over by an actual officer and…
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Twelve

by David Asscherick
On February 8, ARISE Australia’s fourth three-month session began enthusiastically here in Kingscliff, Australia with students from all around the world. Norway, Germany, Finland, the United States, Canada, and South Africa, in addition to…
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We’re all Special Needs

by David Asscherick
In 2014, Michael and Lisa Gungor, who together form the band Gungor, had a child with Down Syndrome. They named her Lucette, meaning “light." Also in 2014 a woman tweeted…
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Nate

by David Asscherick
Here’s a miracle story. Fifteen years ago, I was preaching an evangelistic series in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The series was a joint venture with Adventist-Laymen’s Services & Industries…
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Bouncing Students

by David Asscherick
A pastor. A physical therapist. A builder. An investment banker. Since its inception, ARISE has attracted diverse groups of people, and this year’s class was no different.…
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Truth, Love, and Lance

by David Asscherick
“What Lance couldn’t handle was the truth.” So said Betsy Andreu at the close of Alex Holmes’s difficult-to-watch documentary on the rise and fall of Lance Armstrong, Stop at Nothing: The Lance Armstrong Story. Lance is not…
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My Thoughts on the Present Conversation Regarding the Ordination of Women

by David Asscherick
I am admittedly surprised to hear over and over again that the current conversation and study the Seventh-day Adventist Church is having regarding the theology of ordination, generally, and of the ordination of women to pastoral ministry,…
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Leaving the Best Behind

by David Asscherick
Recently we had our car broken into. Between the damage to the car and the stolen goods, it set us back several thousand dollars. Not the nicest “Welcome to Australia” moment one could imagine. I can still recall the almost nauseating feeling in…
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Twelve

by David Asscherick
Yeehaw! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! Amen! Yes, I know I’m geographically Down Under, but, wow, am I flying high right now! It’s the Monday after the final weekend of the ARISE Australia…
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Happy Digging

by David Asscherick
Paul the Apostle said some strange things, things hard to understand. Even Peter agreed (2 Peter 3:15). And if some of his writings were admittedly puzzling back then, how much more so would that be the case today, nearly two millennia later? I…
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Just Like Acts

by David Asscherick
A really cool thing happened recently, and I can’t wait to tell you about it. Here goes… It started at the Light Bearers Convocation earlier this year. The theme was Jesus Only, and was a…
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An Opportunity of a Lifetime

by David Asscherick
It’s hard to believe, really. It happened to me, and I’m still trying to grasp it, to take it in. What happened? Well, I just preached to representatives from more than 110 countries during two globally-significant, Seventh-day Adventist…
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What Is the Meaning of Life?

by David Asscherick
A consequential question, to be sure. But, first, another: what is meaning? What does meaning mean? Who’s to say what the answer is to either of these queries? Or, for that matter, to any query of consequence? Who decides what meaning…
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CROSStraining 2013

by David Asscherick
Short of making the sun stand still, it is no easy thing to make room for four months of instruction in just nine days. Nevertheless, we here at Light Bearers are trying anyway! ARISE has, for the last decade, been a four-month endeavor. We have…
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Listen for the Beauty

by David Asscherick
Just the other day, while on my morning run, I had a rather sublime revelation. I get these “running revelations” quite a bit actually. Maybe it’s the increased blood flow, or the quiet time, or the aloneness of it all, I really don’t know.…
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Just Like the Cross

by David Asscherick
I get admittedly nervous when I hear these words: “Pastor Asscherick, you changed my life.” You see, I’m not in the life-changing business; I’m just a messenger, a mail carrier. The biblical term is evangelist, one who carries a…
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Ten

by David Asscherick
Family My youngest son, Jabel, just turned ten. In the absence of a miraculous intervention, I will never again have the joy and privilege of parenting a less-than-double-digit aged child. Life moves on. Time does its thing. “The past…
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Leaves of Hope, Healing, and Home

by David Asscherick
Emily Bronte, in her poem Fall, Leaves, Fall, writes: Every leaf speaks bliss to meFluttering from the autumn tree.  Here in Oregon, as I write this, autumn has come and (nearly) gone. Leaves are aground wherever one…
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In My World…

by David Asscherick
In my world, there would be no sexual slave trade, because there would be no customers. In my world, there would be no promising politicians, because people would be too informed and intelligent to believe them. In my world, there would be no…
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Look Mom! I’m a Televangelist!

by David Asscherick
Quick: what do Jim Bakker, Ted Haggard, and Jimmy Swaggart all have in common? Answer: they’ve all made my life harder. At various times, and in various ways, they all succeeded in sullying my profession, my faith, and, worst of all, my Savior.…
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What is ARISE Trying to Accomplish?

by David Asscherick
Someone told me that someone had a friend who was told by someone else that, “ARISE Bible workers don’t get results.” Sure, a rumor is a rumor, but the alleged statement does actually raise an important question, one that I’ve been asking…
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The Hour Has Come

by David Asscherick
It was, without doubt, one of the highlights of my life: more than a thousand young people standing arm in arm, committing themselves to God and to making a difference in Europe. Even now as I write, my heart thrills within me as I remember that…
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Boston

by David Asscherick
My family and I recently had the privilege of spending some time touring around Boston following a speaking appointment. Not being a city person, I had but mild anticipation. The primary goals were to expose my boys to some American history, and to…
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New Zealand: My Glory and Joy!

by David Asscherick
It is no secret to those who know me that I regard New Zealand as “the best country on earth.” I’ve been there four years in a row, and have no plans or desire to stop my annual visits. My most recent visit, which I’ve just returned from,…
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A Class of Their Own

by David Asscherick
The ninth four-month ARISE class has come and gone. It’s hard to believe we’ve been at this for nearly a decade! Every class is special, I’ll be the first…
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Here We Are!

by David Asscherick
Even though it’s happened, I still can hardly believe it. We merged. We moved. We’re here. After months of conversing, praying, thinking, and planning, it happened. And, again, I still can hardly believe it. But here’s the good news, no…
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Fifteen Lessons From Fifteen Years, Part 3

by David Asscherick
A lot has happened since Part Two was written and posted, not the least of which is that ARISE has moved to Jasper, Oregon to …
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Asscherick Sermon Featured in Adventist Review

by David Asscherick
What a privilege it was to conduct the Week of Spiritual Emphasis at the General Conference World Headquarters earlier this year! Blessings continue to flow from that…
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Fifteen Lessons From Fifteen Years, Part 2

by David Asscherick
The original plan was one post with all fifteen points. Plan B was fifteen points in two blog posts. Now we’re on Plan C: fifteen points in, you guessed it, three posts. Life has a way of suddenly rearranging our otherwise perfect and precise…
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Fifteen Lessons From Fifteen Years, Part 1

by David Asscherick
Pastor Torres, complete with wetsuit, baptizing me in the Black Hills of South Dakota. Best day of my life. It was June 6, 1996. Five days ago was June 6,…
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ARISE is… Both

by David Asscherick
ARISE is thoroughly Gospel-centered. ARISE is authentically Adventist. Let’s be unmistakably clear: there exists no tension whatsoever between these affirmations. Both can be affirmed concurrently, absolutely, enthusiastically and…
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God and Mark

by David Asscherick
Recently, I met Mark. Mark was scared. Mark had spent the last week cutting people’s limbs off. I’m not kidding. February 22nd saw Christchurch, New Zealand rocked by a deadly earthquake. At present nearly 200 have lost their lives.…
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Frontline Report: February 22 Christchurch Earthquake

by David Asscherick
David Asscherick shares his eyewitness account of the 6.3 quake. A deadly earthquake (6.3 magnitude) struck Christchurch, New Zealand yesterday at 12:51 p.m. Reports are that the Central Business…
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Prepare. Prepare. Prepare.

by David Asscherick
Twenty-six point two miles. 138,435 feet. 1,661,220 inches. There are many permutations, but the distance remains the same: long. For reasons not perfectly clear to me, running a marathon seemed like a good idea. That was six months…
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