Mitt Romney to Inspire Liberty students to do...what?

Gov. Mitt Romney to deliver 2012 Commencement address

April 19, 2012 : Liberty University News Service

Chancellor Jerry Falwell, Jr. announced today that Gov. Mitt Romney will address Liberty University graduates at the 2012 Commencement ceremony to be held at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 12, at Arthur L. Williams Stadium.

“We are delighted that Governor Romney will join us to celebrate Commencement with Liberty’s 2012 graduates," said Liberty Chancellor Jerry Falwell, Jr. "This will be a historic event for Liberty University reminiscent of the visits of Governor, and then presidential candidate, Ronald Reagan to Liberty’s campus in 1980 and of President George H.W. Bush who spoke at Liberty’s 1990 Commencement ceremony.”

This will be Governor Romney’s first appearance at Liberty University. Chancellor Jerry Falwell, Jr. will also be making remarks during the ceremony.

Liberty University's 39th Commencement will celebrate the achievement of more than 14,000 graduates with more than 34,000 guests expected to attend. The ceremony will also be broadcast by streaming video to the families of Liberty’s 70,000+ online students around the world.

Graduation day at Liberty University. A day of excitement, accomplishment and finality. As the graduation ceremony begins, these students will take in their final address from Liberty before they are sent out into the world.

Traditionally the graduation speaker's role is implore and inspire these students once more to carry out the vision that has been instilled in them by their university. Let's take a look at a few bullet points of Liberty's mission and vision statement, shall we?

Liberty University will:

4.  Promote the synthesis of academic knowledge and Christian worldview in order that there might be a maturing of spiritual, intellectual, social and physical value-driven behavior.

8.  Encourage a commitment to the Christian life, one of personal integrity, sensitivity to the needs of others, social responsibility and active communication of the Christian faith, and, as it is lived out, a life that leads people to Jesus Christ as the Lord of the universe and their own personal Savior.

How can a Mormon bishop be called on to inspire students to commit to a Christian worldview? How can a man who in his political career has stood for abortion and gay rights be called upon to implore students to social responsibility? And how can a current presidential candidate who continues to isolate a broad base of his party - conservative evangelicals - urge students to be sensitive to the needs of others? 

I still remember the great spiritual truths I was encouraged with during my time at Trinity and their incorporation into my graduation ceremony. I remember thinking how blessed I was to be graduating from a place that recognized and celebrated my faith. 

I can't help but think that some aspect of that celebration will be lost at Liberty on graduation day. To listen to an individual who does not share their faith, who is not imploring them to serve the same God, and who does not live up to the same moral standards these students are striving for is not fair to the graduates or their families and friends who have come to celebrate along with them. I can guarantee you Rick Santorum would never be asked to speak at Brigham Young University.

Whether Liberty saw this as a great opportunity to hear from a presidential candidate or an opportunity for some publicity, they need to consider what final message they want to leave with their students and what they want their students to exemplify when they walk out the doors. 

Credit where credit is due: 

http://www.liberty.edu/aboutliberty/index.cfm?PID=6899

http://www.liberty.edu/index.cfm?PID=18495&MID=53438

Much of what I post on this blog will inevitably be the reality of how far our culture has fallen from God's truth. 

Today instead I'd like to celebrate an individual exemplifying God's truth on a huge stage. 

Worship comes to American Idol: 

As I wrote on facebook yesterday: 

"In case you've missed it, there has been a young man on American Idol this season boldly proclaiming his faith in Christ week after week in his interviews and on stage.Tonight he was voted off. When given the opportunity to sing a final song, he promptly got down on his knees and worshiped. It was an incredible moment to watch. 

Praise God for people like Colton Dixon not shying away from opportunities to live out their faith on big stages."

Christians who authentically live out their lives of faith on public stages inevitably seem to garner fascination and often become a sort of phenomenon. Unbelievers seem so surprised that individuals could actually life out this lifestyle consistently that they find it hard to believe. Often this seems to set celebrity Christians up for failure, as they eventually will in some way disappoint, as the expectation becomes perfection. 

My favorite moment of last night was not Colton's moment of worship, but his response to why he thought he'd been kicked off. His response was to apologize to the judges for comments he'd made after his performance the previous night about not caring what they had to say. He quickly stated that these statements were not in line with who he was, and that an apology was due. 

Perhaps even more powerful a testimony than a perfect seeming life is the ability of a well known believer to admit his shortcomings and publicly, voluntarily and sincerely rectify them. Shall we sin all the more so that grace may about? certainly not. But we should be honest and vulnerable as we show unbelievers what grace and a relationship with Christ truly mean. 

Forgive the poor quality, but I hope this video gives just a glimpse of what millions experienced last night: 

No one may ever read this...


and that's ok. Although I hope that eventually people will. Maybe once I get better at this.


This blog was used over 2 years ago to update my supporters while I was in Rwanda. Since then it has sat vacant, visited probably only by me on occasion to revisit my experiences there. 


God is teaching me a lot of things that I want to share and work out through writing. As I noticed myself more and more often posting lengthy monologues about these issues on Facebook, I thought perhaps I should transfer these paragraphs back to a blog. 


I contemplated starting a new blog, but as a testament to where I've been and how God has changed me, I decided to simply add to what's already here. 


I hope to use this page as a storehouse for my thoughts and the repeated thoughts of others on  God's truth applied to our culture, political landscape and social justice issues. That is the plan..we'll see where it goes...

Thanksgiving Rwanda Style - no electricity necessary

Our electricity may have been out all day, but I still had a great Thanksgiving will a few of my favorite people here in Rwanda. Here are a few pictures to show you what Thanksgiving looks like in Africa, and also to introduce you to a few of my friends here.



Vestine, or "Shami" as she likes to be called, joined the FH Staff about two months ago as the student life coordination assistant. Shami is one of the sweetest, most kind hearted people I've ever met. She has an incredible heart for God that she never hesitates to share with others. She has been quite a blessing to have around.



Nate, as you can probably tell, is not Rwandan. He is one of a few Americans on staff here in Rwanda. Nate runs a water project about an hour outside Kigali, and I have spent the last six weeks or so helping him do the accounting for his project. He has lived more places and experienced more by 24 than most people ever do, and is never short of stories. He also helps me keep my sarcastic sense of humor sharp - sarcasm is lost on Rwandans.



Aidah is our cook and housekeeper at the guesthouse here in Kigali. She is also one of the most entertaining people I have ever met. She has broken every stereotype I have ever had about African women. She yells constantly, loves dancing and beer, and shares her opinions on people without a second thought. She's also an amazing cook.



I hadn't really made Thanksgiving dinner before. I was pretty proud with my first ever attempt - especially considering the circumstances. I couldn't have done it without Aidah and our gas oven.





As you can see, even though I wasn't with my family, and things looked a little different than they usually do, it was a great Thankgiving. I have so much to be thankful for.

Looking back & looking forward..

With a little over 3 weeks to go before I board a plane (well 4 planes..) bound for home, and as I'm watching a lot of my American friends here leave ahead of me to go back to the states, I'm starting to get a little more excited to come home. I am also starting to realize all the things I am going to miss here. With that in mind, I have compiled my top 10 lists of things I am excited for back at home and things I will miss in Rwanda. Enjoy.

Top 10 things I'll miss about Rwanda:

1. Being constantly surrounded by natural beauty - hills, volcanoes, blue skies, flowers, the list goes on and on..
2. Being a part of and learning about a new culture and its history
3. Lots of downtime - my internship is my only real responsibility here and I don't remember the last time I had so few things to fill my day
4. Mornings out on the front porch - spending time with God in the mornings while looking out over the beauty of Rwanda has become one of my favorite things here
5. Weather - Rwanda's climate is about as close to perfect as it gets - a few hot days here and there, but most of the time it's mid 70's and rains for a couple hours everyday. Perfect.
6. Conversations - having the tough conversations about poverty, development, western involvement in Africa and other similar issues with Americans who are passionate about the same things I am but who have been here longer and know so much more than me. So much to think about.
7. The wonderful Rwandese and Ugandan people I have met - they are so warm despite all they have been through. .They are more than willing to share the best parts of their country with me as I explore and spend time here.
8. Traveling - I have gotten to see so much of Rwanda and even Uganda in the time I've been here
9. Walking everywhere - the built in exercise of living in Africa is great. Unfortunately the midwest winter weather will prevent me from carrying on this practice when I get home.
10. Being in Africa - I don't know exactly what role Africa will play in my future..but I know that I've loved my time here and that this place will always be a part of my life in some way...

Top 10 things I'm excited to return to:

1. My family & friends - I can't wait to be back with all the people who mean the most to me and to share life with them again!
2. Sunday mornings at my church
3. Ease of communication - being able to speak the same language as everyone around me
4. Spurs & Vikings games - and just the sporting world in general
5. Diet Pepsi
6. Whole grain bread - this stuff is hard to come by here
7. Christmas! I'm excited to get to celebrate the holiday without having to be around for most of the commercialized season
8. My cell phone - not having to rely on skype or facebook to talk to the people I love
9. My car - walking here is great, but it will be nice to be able to go where I want, even after dark.
10 More conversations - being able to process the last few months of my life with the wonderful people in my life who share my passion for Africa & social justice - I can't wait for their insight!

Five weeks to go...

Five weeks from today, assuming Skyteam doesn't change any of my flights, I will arrive back in the US. I'm not really sure at this point how I feel about coming back. I am feeling at home in Rwanda, gaining confidence in traveling the country, and building several good friendships. I will miss the people I have met, the beautiful weather, and quiet mornings on my front porch.
I am also excited to come home. I can't wait to see my family and friends, and share my experiences. I am also anxious to be removed from the African context so that I can begin to process the things I've experienced here. There have been many emotional ups and downs, frustrations and joys that I cannot fully process while I am here. One of my favorite parts of this trip has been conversations I've had with other American and European development workers and volunteers who have been here much longer than I have. Their experiences and insights, both positive and negative, have given me a lot to consider in the way I view Western involvement in developing countries and my own future involvement.

Last weekend I visited Volcano National Park here in Rwanda. It was perhaps the most beautiful place I've ever seen. Here are a few pictures:

Scenes from northern Uganda

I think the best way to share my experience in northern Uganda is through pictures:



These huts are home to the women who participate in FH's New Life Centre in Kitgum. This program offers protection, counseling and education to vulnerable single mothers and their children. I stayed on the compound with these women for the three days I was in the area. There are currently 28 women enrolled in the program, half of whom were formerly abducted child soldiers. These women suffered from unimaginable emotional and physical trauma, but also exhibited hope and joy in their song and dance they often did on the compound.



Downtown Kitgum. This was my first time really spending time in an Africa village, although Kitgum is bigger than most village centers. There were a few shops that all seemed to sell the few same products that they were able to get ahold of.



One of my favorite things about northern Uganda was seeing the Acholi children out playing in their yards at dusk, no longer having to worry about being abducted by rebels. Innocence has returned to childhood for these kids. As we passed by they would run out to shake our hands and curtsy or yell "muno bye" to us from their homes. Muno is the Acholi word for white person and bye can mean hello or goodbye.




NGO's were everywhere you looked in Kitgum. This road to our compound shows signs for 4 different organizations whose offices were on this road.

Though war has been absent from this region for about three years, and people have now been allowed to move out of displacement camps, devastating poverty remains in northern Uganda. Despite this, there is a simple beauty in African skies and landscape as you also see here.

I feel so fortunate to have finally been given the opportunity to see the region and people God has given me such a passion for. This journey was one of emotional ups and downs, but as I saw the women at the Centre begin to smile and open up despite all they've been through, it gave me hope that northern Uganda can overcome the great devastation it has suffered for the last 25 years. It makes the last four years of volunteering for Invisible Children so worth it.