CollegePlus Leadership Capstone Event

If I could sum up the CollegePlus Leadership Learning and Execution Capstone in Colorado in just a few words, it would be, life changing.

 

We arrived Tuesday afternoon and from the very moment I met with the first 11 people in the group and we boarded our shuttle, I knew that this was going to be one of the most amazing weeks of my life. The awkwardness of meeting each other for the first time lasted only a few minutes. Once we had boarded the shuttle, life stories began to be told.

 

Hearing about how the Lord had worked in each of these people's lives and how that had brought them to this very moment on a shuttle headed for the Estes Park YMCA of the Rockies was inspiring. None of us were there by chance. There was no doubt in my mind that God had brought us together for purposes far greater then we could even imagine.

 

As the week progressed and we learned from Dr. Jeff Myers of Summit, you could see a change coming over the students as we each begin to learn how to tell our story, and put into practice good mentoring and coaching skills as we visited with one another. A sparkle shown in each eye as excitement for what the Lord was doing began to be realized. Here in this group of 38 students and 13 CollegePlus coaches, friendships for a lifetime were beginning to be forged. Plans for business and ministry opportunities were being expanded and suddenly went from dreams to tangible possibilities that a few months of collaboration and hard work could turn into reality. New business and ministry ideas were put forth, and in such a manner that none of us doubted that someday soon, they too, would be reality.

In four days strangers became fast friends. In four days those who were uncertain, reserved, and stood off to the side were exclaiming about how grateful they were that they had come. Those who felt hopeless about their dreams for helping to fill the desperate needs of others, like girls with low self-esteem, human trafficking victims, and orphans in Haiti had hope that their dreams did not have to remain dreams. We all had hope. Hope and an assurance that, together, we could make a difference in the world because 1) God had plans of purpose for our lives, 2) God had brought us to this place with people who shared our visions and dreams, people who would encourage us to not give up 3) we had the keys to effective coaching, mentoring, and networking that would make it possible for us to build relationships that would ensure we no longer lacked the support we needed to move forward with making a difference. We felt encouraged to tackle the highest mountain, knowing that with God, and the people He puts into our lives, nothing will be impossible (Philippians 4:13).

 

 

 

Degree Purpose

If you are a college student, then you have mostly likely encountered the following question from well meaning friends or relatives, "So what do you plan to do with your degree?" I like to rephrase that question. Instead of answering to what I will do with my degree, I would like to answer, "I like to think of my degree, not in terms of what I will do with it, but what it has done and is doing for me." At this point you will get puzzled looks, in fact you may have a puzzled expression on your face now. Let me explain.

I began the process of earning my degree through CollegePlus as an exercise in trust. I was scared by the phrase, "Credit by examination." I have always had to work hard to maintain a good grade. Studying and testing has never come easily for me. The idea of gaining my whole degree through distance learning was so daunting that I very seriously considered attended a brick and mortar college, because for some reason that option sounded far less frightening.

For reasons I may explain in another post, God really convicted me that leaving home and going several hours away to college was not a good choice for my spiritual growth, and that I needed to remain at home and involved in the lives of my family members and friends. For months I sat staring the option of starting CollegePlus in the face. "But Lord, I don't think I can do it. You know that testing isn't my strong point. I might fail…" The argument when round and round, and finally I remember the question that changed my life. "Katy, you have always told God that you would go where He led. How you would leave all behind and follow Him anywhere He asked you to go. What if He is not leading you to go anywhere? What if He is calling to serve here? What if He is asking you to trust Him in this journey of earning your degree? Will He be with you any less in passing exams than He would have been if He had called you to Africa? You said you would trust and follow Him anywhere, what if this is where He is leading you? Can you trust Him?"

That was the beginning of my journey to earning my degree. Since then there have been many faith stretching moments, many fears to overcome, and I know that there will be more as I continue forward. The question for me is not about what my degree will do for me, or how I will use it, it is, "How will God continue using this process to build character and ultimately draw me nearer to Him."

I have learned what it means to persevere. What it means to fail and try again. I have learned how to better manage my time and how to trust that He can help me overcome seemingly impossible odds. I made friends through CollegePlus who challenged the very core of everything I believed, causing me to seek the truth through His Word. Consequently I have grown by leaps and bounds spiritually. I could probably write a book on all that the Lord has taught me since I took that first step of faith and enrolled with CollegePlus.  The decision to begin CollgePlus really was a life altering decision.

For me college has never been about earning a degree that will give me better career opportunities, it has always been about trusting the Lord and following where He leads. The question is not always, "What will you do with your degree?" but rather sometimes it is, "What will your degree do for you and how will the Lord use it to grow you in ways that glorify Him?"