Office of Advancement Update

Chapel today was awesome. 

God's Spirit was evident from beginning to end.
 

For me, it was in the context of the Bible Study that I led at church last night here in Springfield.  We are studying the book of Hebrews.  A passage that has been very special to me for many years is Hebrews 1:1-4 - where we are given a description of our Savior as sufficient in every way for all we need.  We see His power, dignity and majesty and are led to soar higher than any earthly peak.  So this morning the Lord had prepared my heart for a special time of worship with the students.  With Jim Edge's leadership we believe the most important thing we do is the spiritual formation of the students.  To that end, we want chapel to have an intimate family atmosphere filled with hope and revival.  It is in that context that I want to share with you that today's chapel was unusually blessed.

When I walked in, Breakaway Band was leading the students in an inspiring and upbeat praise chorus by Paul Baloche Hosanna. One phrase is:

Hear the sounds of hearts returning to You.

We turn to You.

In Your kingdom, broken lives are made new,

You make us new.
 

'Cause when we see You we find strength to face the day,

And in Your presence all our fears are washed away.

Washed away.

By this time the kids were into it singing loudly.  There is nothing like 500 young men and women praising the Lord together.  It is at times like this that I am reminded of where many of them have come from, and how God is going to use them to reach a lost world.The band then led us in a fresh arrangement of the old hymn, My Savior's Love:

He took my sins and my sorrows and made them His very own.

He bore my burden to Calvary, and suffered and died alone.
 

When the last verse started I thought the lid was going to blow off the place:
 

When with the ransomed in glory, His face I at last shall see.

Twill be my joy through the ages, to sing of His love for me.

How marvelous, how wonderful

Is my Savior's love for me.
 

We were then led into the a new worship song You Hold Me Now
 

On a day when I shall see all that You have for me

When I see You face to face, there surrounded by your grace

All my fear is swept away in the light of your embrace

Where Your love is all I need and forever I am free

Where the streets are made of gold, in Your presence healed and whole.

Let the songs of heaven rise to You alone.
 

By this time it was obvious that God was working in a great way in the hearts of everyone present.  Faculty, staff and students were obviously moved by what God was doing.  Then Bethany Slack, a member of the band, closed the music portion of the service with a song I had never heard, entitled simply:  Soon. What a great song about our future with the Lord of Hebrews 1:1-4:

Soon and very soon my King is coming

Robed in righteousness and crowned with love.

When I see Him I shall be like Him.

Soon and very soon.
 

soon and very soon, I'll be going

To the place he has prepared for me.

There my sin erased, my shame forgotten.

Soon and very soon.
 

I will be with the One I love,

With unveiled face I'll see Him.

There my soul will be satisfied

Soon and very soon.
 

Though I have not seen Him,

My heart knows Him well.

My heart knows Him well.

Jesus Christ, the Lamb, the Lord of heaven.
 

Throughout the worship we were led into the presence of One Who is the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person Jesus Christ, God's Son, the Word made flesh. 
 

President Edge then shared his heart for the students, and experiences in his life that form the foundation for the decisions he makes on a daily basis.  He spoke of his burden to see each student reach their full potential in taking the gospel to the whole world.  I am thankful that we have such a man with character and sensitivity to God's leading as President of BBC.  I am also thankful for our Campus Chaplin, Jon Slayden, whose obvious love, not just for the Lord, but for our students, challenges all of us to walk closer to the Lord.

Even though the past couple of years have been filled with days of sacrifice and difficulty for our college, it is days like today that I am made aware of the great future that God has for Baptist Bible College.  I want to thank every one of you who make our load a little lighter by your prayers and financial support for Baptist Bible College.  In my mind, after 39 years in ministry and 22 years as a senior pastor, I can't think of a better investment of my resources than in the next generation of pastors, missionaries and Christian leaders.  I wish each of you could be here.

Rob Hoffman

Vice President of Advancement

Baptist Bible College

Baptist Bible College - How to Partner with Us - BBC Family Reunion - Fall College Days 2010