Stories & Commentaries

Music streamed from the hotel meeting room as instruments and voices fused the chords of an achingly beautiful and poignant message. I quickly found a place to stand with the gathered worshippers as they continued with the song’s first verse: “Teach me ever to adore Thee, may I still Thy goodness prove, while the hope of endless glory fills my heart with joy and love.” 

There are many reasons why young adults become student missionaries (SMs), often pausing their college work, and their regular lives, to serve for a year or two in a place far from home. And as these five SMs’ year-long assignments drew to a close, they shared their stories — what they’ve learned about themselves, their relationship with Jesus, and what it means to serve others.

The modernist view of reality has taught people to look at their lives compartmentally. Work is a separate box from the church box, from the family box, from the social box, etc. It is not a problem, therefore, to act one way at work and another way at church, in both worship service and Sabbath School.

During the summer, I would get the car but my dad, who worked the 3:30 to 11:30 p.m. shift, would say two things: “Be back by 3, and don’t bring the car empty.”

My name is Madeline. I’m from Murphy, North Carolina, and I’m serving as a student missionary (through the North American Division Office of Volunteer Ministries) on the island of Chuuk, Micronesia. Despite the postcard-like views of palm trees and colorful sea coral, life in Chuuk is not a walk at the beach.

Every year Union takes one day off from classes to send students into the Lincoln community and volunteer. Project Impact has been a part of Union’s campus life since the 1980s.

On Dec. 2, 2017, Oakwood University students and student government leaders from colleges across the North American Division (NAD) dialogued with church leaders during the second Facebook Live Event titled “Is This Thing On?” (ITTO).

Associate professor of social work Daphne Thomas, assistant professor of social work Marni Straine, and university alum Steve Hemenway, a La Sierra University Church pastor, led a workshop titled “Bridging Gaps: Social Workers Provide Solutions in Faith-based Arenas” for the National Association of Christian Social Workers convention. The event took place Nov. 2-5, 2017, in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Heather Pulaski, a Kettering Physician Network gynecologic oncologist, recently performed the 5000th da Vinci® Surgical System procedure at Kettering Medical Center in Ohio.

My father, Gilbert Plubell, died on Thanksgiving evening, Nov. 23, 2017. Dad, known by all as Gil, was long-time leader in Adventist education.