August 23, 2004
"God wants to bring out
the best in each of us this year" was the message Interim President
Peter Wiebe shared with Hesston College faculty, staff, students,
and their parents during the Opening Weekend worship service Sunday
morning, August 22, in Yost Center.
"When God created us, he
said, 'It is more than perfect,'" Wiebe explained. "He has
a plan for us, with richness in our future and hope."
"We don't want to be an embarrassment
to God," he continued. "I hope God will have a chance to
bring out our potential so we can be an exhibit of his grace."
Wiebe noted that the phrase "God
brings out his best in you" is the last line of the key verse
for the year, Romans 12:1-2 (from The Message).
He went on to explain how God
will be at his best at Hesston College during the 2004-05 school year.
"We want students to discover their identity and their gifts.
Our eyes are on what God wants to do for each student for the future.
"We want them to develop
a wholesome sense of self-esteem and a comfortable interdependence,"
Wiebe said. "We also understand that life is a journey. Your
son or daughter will make decisions within a supportive community.
"If we do our best, then
God will do his best to match us," Wiebe concluded. "It's
up to us and up to him."
During the worship service, two
new college employees told what they are anticipating for the coming
year. Kendra King, an admissions counselor and a 2001 graduate of
Hesston College, said she's excited to get to know faculty, staff,
and students again, to recruit other students, and to be involved
in college activities. "I'm also excited to be involved in changing
so many people's lives," she said. "Hesston College is not
just focused on academics, but also on developing relationships with
God and other people."
Tim Swartzendruber, new tennis
and men's basketball coach, as well as auxiliary programs director,
sees working at Hesston College as both a professional and personal
advancement for him. "I want to do my best to fulfill the mission
of Hesston College," he said. "I also want to grow myself
and help others to grow spiritually, professionally, and personally."
During Opening Weekend, students
expressed excitement about reconnecting with friends and making new
ones, participating in fun mod activities, and starting classes on
Monday, August 23.
Meanwhile, in a meditation during
the opening convocation Friday evening August 20, Michele Hershberger
offered a goal to students, faculty, and staff for the year: "Let's
give our life away so we may truly live."
Speaking on the topic "Living
Sacrifices," the chair of the Bible department explained that
in the ancient biblical world, sacrifice was an act of thanksgiving
to God. "It was a way to honor God and to say, 'I trust you,'"
she said. "So sacrifice came to mean real and total commitment,
and an act of worship to God."
Hershberger noted that in today's
world, commitment has a bad reputation. "Underlying our conscious
attitudes and beliefs about commitment is the dark thought that this
commitment will mean death for us," Hershberger continued. "Paul
understood this kind of thinking and wanted to radically change that,"
referring to Paul's words in Romans 12:1-2.
According to Hershberger, Paul
called us to sacrifice because of the wonderful things God has done
for us in the past, even though we didn't deserve it. And she added,
"He told us not to be conformed to this world, but be transformed--literally
morphed into something new--by the renewing of your minds.
Hershberger admitted that the
idea of a living sacrifice is an oxymoron. "It doesn't make sense.
If you're sacrificed, you're dead. But Paul says we are to be living
sacrifices.
"How in the world is that
life-giving?" she asked. "Paul says that total commitment
to Jesus, total sacrifice to God--is life--a miracle," she answered.
"We give all that is precious to use for a cause greater than
ourselves. We are very much alive, and full of joy.
"The thing that looks so
hard--committing everything to God--is really very hard, the hardest
thing you'll ever do in your life," Hershberger said. "But
here's the little secret--it is also the way to joy, the only way
to true life. The only way to truly be alive is to give your life
away."
Other Opening Weekend activities
August 20-22 included orientation for freshman and international students,
registration for classes, a parents breakfast, a reception for president's
scholars, a volleyball match between the varsity and alumni, a soccer
intrasquad game, and the annual mod olympics.
Written by Phil Richard, director of communications