Written by Dr. Thomas White, President of Cedarville University
Nashville, Cedarville, Grand Rapids, Chicago, Milwaukee, Des Moines, Denver, and San Diego finished.
With us just over halfway through the Transformed Tour events, let me provide you with an update. Spoiler alert: The most exciting thing to me doesn’t even have to do with an event, but I’ll get to that.
I have learned that sleeping in an RV while it is traveling down the road is not as easy as it sounds. Bumps, turns, stops, bad roads, potholes, etc., all wake you up, but the longer the trip and the more tired you get, the better you sleep through them.
I have learned that experiencing pollen from five states in just over five days wreaks havoc on my nasal system.
Despite some challenges, our events have been amazing. We have had good crowds at the events, approaching 500 in attendance with 70 prospective students multiple times. More important than numbers, we have been accomplishing our goals. First, we wanted to glorify God well throughout the nation through worship and the Word. We have proclaimed hope in the transformational power of the Gospel. Second, we wanted to engage with and encourage alumni. Third, we wanted to recruit potential students. Fourth, we wanted to have conversations with supporters of the University. We have accomplished all of these.
The Transformed Tour has already been a success. The return on our investment has already proven this trip to be worthwhile, and I suspect exponential returns beyond what we anticipated.
We have had donors make commitments, we have had spiritual conversations of eternal significance, we have had students tell us these events solidified their college choice, we have shared laughs and good tears with alumni, we have introduced families to Cedarville for the first time, and we have worshipped King Jesus all the way to the West Coast.
But the most amazing part of the trip for me has been the conversations with some amazing people. I have watched our staff and students serve others. I have listened to them engage strangers with the beauty of God’s creation. I have heard their testimonies as we have traveled together. I have listened to one of our nursing students share an incredible story of her faithful witness of Christ to a dying man during clinicals. I have watched staff, spouses, and volunteers take ownership over various parts of our tour. Just to mention one MVP, Caroline Smallwood has taken ownership of our merchandise table, setting it up, operating it, and tearing it down. She serves with joy and works as hard as anyone. She is the wife of our Vice President for Advancement Will Smallwood. They are an amazing team. I have been encouraged, motivated, and challenged by them and by the rest of our incredible team members. I wish you could get to know them all like I have.
Time and space will not allow me to tell you of all the encouraging conversations and hospitality at each stop and how special this team is. You should have great confidence in the quality of our HeartSong team and our Advancement team as they serve Jesus and Cedarville with excellence. We have had some special moments as a family and made some unforgettable memories … some of which I suspect you will see video of later this fall. Like driving a jeep up and down steep rock slopes in Arches National Park. I think many of us may have squealed, demonstrating the pure joy of that adventure.
But most of all, I have been in awe of how God has ordained every stop with special moments. Tired but excited, weary but ready to worship, humbled at the opportunity to serve King Jesus, our team is always ready for one more song, one more act of service, and one more opportunity to tell of the transformational power of the Gospel. So, pray for sound sleep and for good health as we experience even more pollen. But more importantly, pray that we keep serving well, and that God continues to provide those special moments throughout the rest of our journey as we continue to stand for the Word of God and the Testimony of Jesus Christ.
Tags: Cedarville, Chicago, Denver, Des Moines, Grand Rapids, Milwaukee, Nashville, San Diego
Posted in: General