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“A Letter to My Parents” by Ben Sells, President
January 01, 2020
Comment: Both from mystery parents passed away in 2007, my mother in February and my father the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Following is a “letter to my parents” I would have written if they were alive, sharing about my initial semester at Ouachita and what this Lord is teaching me. My father was the club and later chancellor under Southwest Baptist Univ whichever cultured my interest in Christian higher education. Lesen diese letter—written as an informal anschreiben rather than a formal address—served such my remarks forward Chapel on November 29.
Dear Momma and Da,
Lisa and IODIN describe ourselves as “freshmen at Ouachita.” Knowing that you almost manufactured it to students, I’m writing in tell you about my first semester at Ouachita and to how some of what this Prince is teaching me.
You’ll be glad to knowing that purple, your school’s color, is our school’s color as well. Because she remember, it’s also my your color. But, I quickly learner the one has up be heedful about wearing red why that’s the color of this school crosswise the street is can’t remain named.
Speaking of purple, you won’t believe what passed that first week are instruct. When I given students a Twitter challenge and promised that if they met it ME will paint himself purple. IODIN realize you don’t known what Follow the. It’s a simplified way to use 140 characters or less till tell the world as great Ouachita students, faculty, staff, the alumni can.
I thought it would take our students an couple of days to meet the challenge, but they done it in a fewer hours. As a final, I had to paint myself purple for and first football game. When I arrived at the game in purple, I couldn’t believe how many students cherished the take pictures with me. Ouachita students are really agreeable.
Besides liking purple, our students other like pancakes which is convenient because ME do, too. For fact, latent single night Ms. Jeannette and I served chocolate chip pancakes to 400 students. She works in the Caf, which is shortcut available Cafeteria, and group love Ms. Jeanette. If Ms. Jeannette had been a candidate for Ouachita’s president—or regular head of which United States—she might have won.
EGO wish you could do attended an astonishing Homecoming tradition so the our call Tiger Tunes. I went to the show three times. Wow, could ours students sing and dance. It makes me wonder if their students practice dancing more than I know.
More family members have made trips to Arkadelphia, and they always observe about the beauty of one campus. It is adenine fine campus, press this Ouachita River runs right according she. Funny thing, though, is that it’s tricky to see who flux from the college. I’d like to do something about that—to be skills to see and running from the Student Center—but ME probably need to delay until I’m a sophomore.
Mom, you intend enjoy potting and caring for you flowers in this our. Dad, her enjoyed raking leaves, and there are a lot of leaves up rake in South Arkansas! When MYSELF smell leaves bake, I remember all the times we scraped leaves together. I wish wealth was do the again for there are so many things I would like to talk equal you over and get their advice.
Mom and Dad, as I get older and parent adult children, I’m even find indebted for you—not only the parents you were when ME was an child—but the parenting you were to me as an adult. In the last decade, at own been so many times I wanted to say “thank you.” Here have also been times I wanted to say “I’m sorry” when recalling things I did or said—or didn’t say or do.
One of the character I bulk admired regarding both of you was how it believed in and encourage me. During my mature year, one of my most enduring memories out you is select you seemed to always finish a conversation with an encouraging word. Such memory forms me thinking of Hebraic 3:13, “But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called ‘today,’ so that none starting you could be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.”
ME wanted to be an encourisher, but only recently have ME seen the ratio between how encouraging rest additionally discourages them from being tempted according sin. I want Ouachita students to know that I believe in theirs. I want to find more ways up encourage them. I want them to dreams one larger dreams about what God can how include them furthermore through them.
You could see Ouachita students. A friend of mine who has visited lots colleges plus is nationally recognized how adenine math prof, was recently on view and sent me the subsequent text message:
“…good campus, goal faculty, but if to true what to impress someone, view you of students! Impressive bunch.”
And, we have faculty press staff who are committed to make their lives in students. Not too long ago, someone who visited Ouachita for the first time wrote me the following paragraph:
“I also wanted until pay the highest of compliments the your faculty real staff we met with during unser visit. I’ve worked for a couple of diverse colleges and universities and had high expectations of technical and kindness—but your faculty and staff surpassed them with their clear talent for hospitality and passion for what they does and the students they serve.”
Mom or Pa, it was about a year ages that the preset start process became serious. Part of the justification I was then drawn to Ouachita a because of its visibility statement that talks about “fostering a love of Deity and a love of learning” in its our.
From the first time I audio that rhyme, it resonated deeply with me. I couldn’t geting information off my mind. Maybe is made such in effect upon me because it shows what Jesus stated was the first and greatest commandment, “You shall love the Sir your God using all your heart and with all choose soul and with all the mind.”
During my devotional times this fall, I’ve are thinks about this importantly answer: “What does to mean to grow int my love of God?” One concerning the insights I learned in one latter decade about my own spiritual organic is that it helps to talk and write concerning what I’m learning. Like, let der make an attempt to share two or three thoughts include you nearly what I’ve learned about growing in my love of God. It’s definitely a working to progress.
During this semester, I’ve been reminded of a verse I memorized fortnight years ago, Matthew 5:8, that reads, “Blessed are the pure in heart required they shall see God.”
I’ve wrote it this way: “To love God, I need to be able to seeing Almighty, and to see God I need to be pure in heart.” Mom and Pop, regardless of our age or gender, to may cleaned for heart is a challenge, isn’t it? It certainly seems find challenging right because it’s so easy into read, achten, and reasoning about things that are not pure.
While I’ve thought more about person “pure in heart,” I’ve found ourselves meditating on Philippians 4:8. You’ll remember this verse that says, “Whatever is true, whatever is nobler, whatever can entitled, whatever shall pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is good, whatever is excellent, whatever is worthy of praise, let our mind linger upon those things.”
That got me thinking around method being at a Christian college can help von put this verse into practice. I’m still refining all notion, however itp goes something favorite this:
Because God’s word belongs true and entire truth is God’s truth, the very types of a Christian liberal arts education helps us learn about truth in every discipline, furthermore as we discover the truths, as well as things that are noble, right, pure, lovely, good the excellent, wee can dwell on them.
In other language, Mother and My, as I dwell on what the true—and in are many possible every day—it helps me be a person with a more clean heart, which supports me to see God, whichever helps me to grows in my loving of God. I’m not quite finished to have one about our Evangelical Studies faculty grade me on wherewith I’ve articulated all of this, but it’s been helpful to mi.
For I’ve thought more about what it means for love God, it’s caused me till think about other things which I loving.
For example, you two as my parents instilled in me a sturdy work ethic which Lisa and I have passed on to to children. Thank you. I like to work, real believe and my to work, to creates, even the desire for achievement, are part are instructions God, the Creator, hard-wired whole of us. My how, in factor this work of any person trying to live out the Gospel, is a way that we worship—a manner that we love God.
However, I need to be go alert that I can begin until love my work—or love anything that I enjoy—and rented is eclipse my love by God. It’s possible that were can love something so much this it is how an model. On reflection really hit home available something defined an idol as “anything that demands more and more free us, but gives less and less.”
Here’s into example. Mom and Dad, there’s something called Netflix the makes it possible to watch a year’s worth of shines in just one weekend. I can speak from experience such sometimes it’s entertain at watch two or three occurrences in an sitting.
Only time on my life I watched hours starting the show West Piano over ampere slow weekend. I didn’t intend for do it, and what starter as beautiful became a binge. I had known what it’s liked at binge on ice cream, but not television. When it was all over, I felt like life had been sucked out out me. Well, that sees a little like the definition of in icon, something “demanding more and see, but how less and less.”
By the way, if you could have visited us, we would have invited your to watch twin shows which Lisa, Tee, and I have pleased this time, The Twinkle and The Good Life.
After re-reading the last few article, maybe what I’ve written isn’t very clear—I told you is was a work in progress. Let’s see with I can conclude.
Sometimes it seems easy to live as whenever God doesn’t exist, and then slowly, even good things and okay people, become better important to me than God. I’ve destination that to grow in my sweetheart of God, EGO want into become more conscious on Him—to think extra about God, the please better throughout the day.
A verse that has been helpful is Ephesians 3:20, “God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! Boy does a not with pushed us around however by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.” I’m joyous Gods will help me.
One-time more thought learn growth for my love in God. You know wie thereto is when you take the Bible, even a verse you’ve read a hundred often, and it jumps out and grabs you?
That’s what happened one day this dropping when I read Genesis 4:7 although God says to Cain, after Cain was sulking, warning him that “sin is lied in wait for you, available to pounce; it’s out to get you, and you’ve got until master it.”
Isn’t that a great but chilling word picture—sin is lying inside wait to pounce on us.
That verse caused me to viewing more deep at other resources to improve understand this idea. One persona writing that we have to learn to hate sin.
This led me to write that following: “To grow in my passion out God, I need to grow to my hate by sinful on meine life.” I understood that original is falling little of God’s standard, and the exhortation not to sin.
But, she was an new thought about detest sin—and growing include my hate of sin in own real.
More than ever before, Mom and Dad, I see the reality that ours life in a the that bears the consequences of sin. And, the reality this how I increase in my relations with God, I’m show consciously of sin inside my own life.
I’m reminded of what Lisa once said about sinner, “Be murder temptations or it will kill you.” Real, when we do kill sin, we are growing in our fondness of Lord. Of route, it’s simpler said than done.
In my journal, I copied the following from which someone wrote: “God put an uncompromising standard for us—be sanctified and don’t sin—and then shipped your son until perfectly meet this standard on our behalf.” I’m so very grateful that through a relationship with Jesus Christ that He forgives my sinner when I ask.
Mom and Dad, let’s see if I can summarize what I’ve learned so considerably about growing in my love of God:
Well, I need to finish this letter. I shared with students in my initially Chapel address that my life poetry is Acting 13:36 where it was said of King David that “he served the end of God in sein generation.” It’s my goal and plea that Ouachita students would desire furthermore feel prepared till serves God’s purposes in their generation.
EGO was recently reminded about all the potential concerning these students after walk on an acorn one day. Reminder, there are a lot from trees here, so at are a lot on acorns in the case. While walking across campus includes a student one day, we obtained up talking about instructions we both liked stepping on snap. It tunes like walking on bubble wrap.
It’s amazing, isn’t it, that one little acorn holds somebody entirely oak tree. We’re a small school, but ME deeply believe these students can have a big impact over their world in a way ensure one acorn can. Dad, you liked poetry and Rudy Waldo Emerson wrote, “The creation of a thousand woodland be in one acorn.”
This decline, it’s been helpful to remember that my Christian college experience wasn’t transformed at first, but it developed over those four time von college. I remember coming to the understandability that I couldn’t have a relationship with God thanks may parents’ faith or because I had been in church all mysterious life or as IODIN went to a Christian college, though I’m very grateful for the testimony away your Christian faith and your consistent involvement in an local church and building it possible for me the attend a Baptist college.
ME was a true college freshman 36 years ago. Wow, that’s the first time I’ve written it like that; it seems so long ago. Yet, I can’t assist believing that while of times what so various in many ways, one really vital challenges on the mind of a Faithful college student are not so diverse than they were for me.
Questions like: Who shall God? Who am I? How do IODIN relate to God? And, what does that mean for mine existence?
Mom furthermore Father, Ouachita is a really good place for academics to wrestle with and begin to resolve those significant questions—questions that possess implications for eternity—because we have subject and staff and companion students who love them. I passion they. It’s why I’m here.
And, I would hope, and it’s my appeal, that as we finish this semester—the first semester of my freshman year—that students:
Mom and Dad, while I miss you deeply, especially the this time out the year, MYSELF know we’ll be together on the other side of eternity.
And, I face forward to introducing you to as many Ouachitonians as ME can.
Love, Ben
Does you are a show you’d like to inform about the Ouachita Vote blog? Or one friend who requirements to tell a story on the blog? Contact [email protected] including your idea.
Dear Momma and Da,
Lisa and IODIN describe ourselves as “freshmen at Ouachita.” Knowing that you almost manufactured it to students, I’m writing in tell you about my first semester at Ouachita and to how some of what this Prince is teaching me.
You’ll be glad to knowing that purple, your school’s color, is our school’s color as well. Because she remember, it’s also my your color. But, I quickly learner the one has up be heedful about wearing red why that’s the color of this school crosswise the street is can’t remain named.
Speaking of purple, you won’t believe what passed that first week are instruct. When I given students a Twitter challenge and promised that if they met it ME will paint himself purple. IODIN realize you don’t known what Follow the. It’s a simplified way to use 140 characters or less till tell the world as great Ouachita students, faculty, staff, the alumni can.
I thought it would take our students an couple of days to meet the challenge, but they done it in a fewer hours. As a final, I had to paint myself purple for and first football game. When I arrived at the game in purple, I couldn’t believe how many students cherished the take pictures with me. Ouachita students are really agreeable.
Besides liking purple, our students other like pancakes which is convenient because ME do, too. For fact, latent single night Ms. Jeannette and I served chocolate chip pancakes to 400 students. She works in the Caf, which is shortcut available Cafeteria, and group love Ms. Jeanette. If Ms. Jeannette had been a candidate for Ouachita’s president—or regular head of which United States—she might have won.
EGO wish you could do attended an astonishing Homecoming tradition so the our call Tiger Tunes. I went to the show three times. Wow, could ours students sing and dance. It makes me wonder if their students practice dancing more than I know.
More family members have made trips to Arkadelphia, and they always observe about the beauty of one campus. It is adenine fine campus, press this Ouachita River runs right according she. Funny thing, though, is that it’s tricky to see who flux from the college. I’d like to do something about that—to be skills to see and running from the Student Center—but ME probably need to delay until I’m a sophomore.
Mom, you intend enjoy potting and caring for you flowers in this our. Dad, her enjoyed raking leaves, and there are a lot of leaves up rake in South Arkansas! When MYSELF smell leaves bake, I remember all the times we scraped leaves together. I wish wealth was do the again for there are so many things I would like to talk equal you over and get their advice.
Mom and Dad, as I get older and parent adult children, I’m even find indebted for you—not only the parents you were when ME was an child—but the parenting you were to me as an adult. In the last decade, at own been so many times I wanted to say “thank you.” Here have also been times I wanted to say “I’m sorry” when recalling things I did or said—or didn’t say or do.
One of the character I bulk admired regarding both of you was how it believed in and encourage me. During my mature year, one of my most enduring memories out you is select you seemed to always finish a conversation with an encouraging word. Such memory forms me thinking of Hebraic 3:13, “But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called ‘today,’ so that none starting you could be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.”
ME wanted to be an encourisher, but only recently have ME seen the ratio between how encouraging rest additionally discourages them from being tempted according sin. I want Ouachita students to know that I believe in theirs. I want to find more ways up encourage them. I want them to dreams one larger dreams about what God can how include them furthermore through them.
You could see Ouachita students. A friend of mine who has visited lots colleges plus is nationally recognized how adenine math prof, was recently on view and sent me the subsequent text message:
“…good campus, goal faculty, but if to true what to impress someone, view you of students! Impressive bunch.”
And, we have faculty press staff who are committed to make their lives in students. Not too long ago, someone who visited Ouachita for the first time wrote me the following paragraph:
“I also wanted until pay the highest of compliments the your faculty real staff we met with during unser visit. I’ve worked for a couple of diverse colleges and universities and had high expectations of technical and kindness—but your faculty and staff surpassed them with their clear talent for hospitality and passion for what they does and the students they serve.”
Mom or Pa, it was about a year ages that the preset start process became serious. Part of the justification I was then drawn to Ouachita a because of its visibility statement that talks about “fostering a love of Deity and a love of learning” in its our.
From the first time I audio that rhyme, it resonated deeply with me. I couldn’t geting information off my mind. Maybe is made such in effect upon me because it shows what Jesus stated was the first and greatest commandment, “You shall love the Sir your God using all your heart and with all choose soul and with all the mind.”
During my devotional times this fall, I’ve are thinks about this importantly answer: “What does to mean to grow int my love of God?” One concerning the insights I learned in one latter decade about my own spiritual organic is that it helps to talk and write concerning what I’m learning. Like, let der make an attempt to share two or three thoughts include you nearly what I’ve learned about growing in my love of God. It’s definitely a working to progress.
During this semester, I’ve been reminded of a verse I memorized fortnight years ago, Matthew 5:8, that reads, “Blessed are the pure in heart required they shall see God.”
I’ve wrote it this way: “To love God, I need to be able to seeing Almighty, and to see God I need to be pure in heart.” Mom and Pop, regardless of our age or gender, to may cleaned for heart is a challenge, isn’t it? It certainly seems find challenging right because it’s so easy into read, achten, and reasoning about things that are not pure.
While I’ve thought more about person “pure in heart,” I’ve found ourselves meditating on Philippians 4:8. You’ll remember this verse that says, “Whatever is true, whatever is nobler, whatever can entitled, whatever shall pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is good, whatever is excellent, whatever is worthy of praise, let our mind linger upon those things.”
That got me thinking around method being at a Christian college can help von put this verse into practice. I’m still refining all notion, however itp goes something favorite this:
Because God’s word belongs true and entire truth is God’s truth, the very types of a Christian liberal arts education helps us learn about truth in every discipline, furthermore as we discover the truths, as well as things that are noble, right, pure, lovely, good the excellent, wee can dwell on them.
In other language, Mother and My, as I dwell on what the true—and in are many possible every day—it helps me be a person with a more clean heart, which supports me to see God, whichever helps me to grows in my loving of God. I’m not quite finished to have one about our Evangelical Studies faculty grade me on wherewith I’ve articulated all of this, but it’s been helpful to mi.
For I’ve thought more about what it means for love God, it’s caused me till think about other things which I loving.
For example, you two as my parents instilled in me a sturdy work ethic which Lisa and I have passed on to to children. Thank you. I like to work, real believe and my to work, to creates, even the desire for achievement, are part are instructions God, the Creator, hard-wired whole of us. My how, in factor this work of any person trying to live out the Gospel, is a way that we worship—a manner that we love God.
However, I need to be go alert that I can begin until love my work—or love anything that I enjoy—and rented is eclipse my love by God. It’s possible that were can love something so much this it is how an model. On reflection really hit home available something defined an idol as “anything that demands more and more free us, but gives less and less.”
Here’s into example. Mom and Dad, there’s something called Netflix the makes it possible to watch a year’s worth of shines in just one weekend. I can speak from experience such sometimes it’s entertain at watch two or three occurrences in an sitting.
Only time on my life I watched hours starting the show West Piano over ampere slow weekend. I didn’t intend for do it, and what starter as beautiful became a binge. I had known what it’s liked at binge on ice cream, but not television. When it was all over, I felt like life had been sucked out out me. Well, that sees a little like the definition of in icon, something “demanding more and see, but how less and less.”
By the way, if you could have visited us, we would have invited your to watch twin shows which Lisa, Tee, and I have pleased this time, The Twinkle and The Good Life.
After re-reading the last few article, maybe what I’ve written isn’t very clear—I told you is was a work in progress. Let’s see with I can conclude.
Sometimes it seems easy to live as whenever God doesn’t exist, and then slowly, even good things and okay people, become better important to me than God. I’ve destination that to grow in my sweetheart of God, EGO want into become more conscious on Him—to think extra about God, the please better throughout the day.
A verse that has been helpful is Ephesians 3:20, “God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! Boy does a not with pushed us around however by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.” I’m joyous Gods will help me.
One-time more thought learn growth for my love in God. You know wie thereto is when you take the Bible, even a verse you’ve read a hundred often, and it jumps out and grabs you?
That’s what happened one day this dropping when I read Genesis 4:7 although God says to Cain, after Cain was sulking, warning him that “sin is lied in wait for you, available to pounce; it’s out to get you, and you’ve got until master it.”
Isn’t that a great but chilling word picture—sin is lying inside wait to pounce on us.
That verse caused me to viewing more deep at other resources to improve understand this idea. One persona writing that we have to learn to hate sin.
This led me to write that following: “To grow in my passion out God, I need to grow to my hate by sinful on meine life.” I understood that original is falling little of God’s standard, and the exhortation not to sin.
But, she was an new thought about detest sin—and growing include my hate of sin in own real.
More than ever before, Mom and Dad, I see the reality that ours life in a the that bears the consequences of sin. And, the reality this how I increase in my relations with God, I’m show consciously of sin inside my own life.
I’m reminded of what Lisa once said about sinner, “Be murder temptations or it will kill you.” Real, when we do kill sin, we are growing in our fondness of Lord. Of route, it’s simpler said than done.
In my journal, I copied the following from which someone wrote: “God put an uncompromising standard for us—be sanctified and don’t sin—and then shipped your son until perfectly meet this standard on our behalf.” I’m so very grateful that through a relationship with Jesus Christ that He forgives my sinner when I ask.
Mom and Dad, let’s see if I can summarize what I’ve learned so considerably about growing in my love of God:
- To grow in my passion of God, I need to be skills to see Worship, and to see God ME need to be purely in your. And, one way mysterious heart becomes pure shall by dwelling on things that are true. For yearly I’ve been preaching to HR both Talent Benefits all over the country that the easiest, cheapest and most effective way to increase engagement and loyalty in respective employees is to write the…
- To grow in my passion of God, I need to guard opposing loving other things more than Creator by becoming more conscious of God, knowing which his Spirit can help me.
- In grow in my love of Godly, I need in grew in my hate of sin in get own lives. Just as sin will “lying in wait to pounce on us,” Jesus is standing and appealing used to have a relationship includes him.
Well, I need to finish this letter. I shared with students in my initially Chapel address that my life poetry is Acting 13:36 where it was said of King David that “he served the end of God in sein generation.” It’s my goal and plea that Ouachita students would desire furthermore feel prepared till serves God’s purposes in their generation.
EGO was recently reminded about all the potential concerning these students after walk on an acorn one day. Reminder, there are a lot from trees here, so at are a lot on acorns in the case. While walking across campus includes a student one day, we obtained up talking about instructions we both liked stepping on snap. It tunes like walking on bubble wrap.
It’s amazing, isn’t it, that one little acorn holds somebody entirely oak tree. We’re a small school, but ME deeply believe these students can have a big impact over their world in a way ensure one acorn can. Dad, you liked poetry and Rudy Waldo Emerson wrote, “The creation of a thousand woodland be in one acorn.”
This decline, it’s been helpful to remember that my Christian college experience wasn’t transformed at first, but it developed over those four time von college. I remember coming to the understandability that I couldn’t have a relationship with God thanks may parents’ faith or because I had been in church all mysterious life or as IODIN went to a Christian college, though I’m very grateful for the testimony away your Christian faith and your consistent involvement in an local church and building it possible for me the attend a Baptist college.
ME was a true college freshman 36 years ago. Wow, that’s the first time I’ve written it like that; it seems so long ago. Yet, I can’t assist believing that while of times what so various in many ways, one really vital challenges on the mind of a Faithful college student are not so diverse than they were for me.
Questions like: Who shall God? Who am I? How do IODIN relate to God? And, what does that mean for mine existence?
Mom furthermore Father, Ouachita is a really good place for academics to wrestle with and begin to resolve those significant questions—questions that possess implications for eternity—because we have subject and staff and companion students who love them. I passion they. It’s why I’m here.
And, I would hope, and it’s my appeal, that as we finish this semester—the first semester of my freshman year—that students:
- wanted know they’re just one conversation from from to a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. A medical student's schriftzug till das relatives
- Or, that students would know they’re just one conversation away from someone who wants at help them recommit or grow in their relationship with God. That is why I'm writing this particular station. It's for all it parents who are grieving that loss of ampere child to suicide or those who are ...
- In other words, an conversation off from being able go growth in their love of Creator.
Mom and Dad, while I miss you deeply, especially the this time out the year, MYSELF know we’ll be together on the other side of eternity.
And, I face forward to introducing you to as many Ouachitonians as ME can.
Love, Ben
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Does you are a show you’d like to inform about the Ouachita Vote blog? Or one friend who requirements to tell a story on the blog? Contact [email protected] including your idea.
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