NWC student published in RELEVANT

An article written by Northwestern College junior Stephen Dykstra has been published on RELEVANTmagazine.com, an online version of the Christian magazine RELEVANT.

The article, entitled “Four Things the Church Learned in 2014,” describes what Dykstra believes are important lessons the church has learned over the past year about culture, society and Christian methods of engagement within the secular world.

“The article initially began as a blog post on my personal website,” says Dykstra. “My roommate at Northwestern encouraged me to submit my piece to RELEVANT, and I heard back from one of the magazine’s editors a week later.”

Dykstra uses well-publicized events from 2014, like the civil unrest in Ferguson, Mo., and the controversy surrounding Mark Driscoll’s resignation from Mars Hill Church in Seattle, to show how he believes the church and Christian response have evolved.

“I had a desire to summarize a very complicated, disconcerting year—one in which the church played an influential role,” explains Dykstra. “Although there were times in 2014 that were discouraging, I found hope in the many ways the church responded. I’m excited to see how Christians will work toward a better future as we enter a new year.”

A public relations major from Pella, Iowa, Dykstra serves as a teaching assistant for a religion professor and as the features editor for Northwestern’s student newspaper, the Beacon.

Read Dykstra’s full article at http://www.relevantmagazine.com/god/church/4-things-church-learned-2014.