The final day of The Berkeley Mission was unforgettable. After five full days of rigorous activity we wanted to spend the last day really building into and encouraging our students. What better way to do this than spend an afternoon at the home of Dr. Phillip Johnson.
Of course, Phillip Johnson is the man responsible for spear-heading the Intelligent Design movement, a movement in the throes of a fierce cultural battle with an evolutionary worldview entrenched in the major structures and thought forms of our society. Dr. Johnson has given a good fifteen years of his life to this particular battle and God has used his efforts mightily.
24 students and adults crammed into the Johnson living room. What a surreal moment. Sitting before us was a man who had given his life to the cause of Christ and whose impact will be felt long after he has passed from this earthly existence.
You could hear a pin drop as Dr. Johnson spoke. Even after suffering two recent strokes, his mind is incredibly sharp. With each question, Dr. Johnson launched into lucid explanation. Not only that, but his tender heart for the Lord was just as evident. Indeed, he shared with us how God has used his strokes to form his character. What a contrast in perspective to his atheistic counterparts who rail against God for ills of the world. Dr. Johnson truly knows what it means to “consider it all joy…when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance” (James 1:2-3).
I have never seen a group of high schoolers so quiet, so reverent. Clearly they understood the great honor it was to be in this man’s home and more importantly, to be in the presence of someone who has faithfully served the Creator with immeasurable impact. Our students did not leave the encounter with Phillip Johnson unmoved.
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