Some freshmen recently asked me, “What’s one of your favorite parts of being Ouachita’s president?” I replied, “Hearing seniors describe how God developed them educationally, personally and spiritually during their time at Ouachita.”
It’s their stories that give me joy in this work and ministry known as Ouachita Baptist University — and that illustrate the stewardship of Arkansas Baptists’ investment.
Let me introduce you to two seniors, G. Allen and Anna Katherine Green, both from Little Rock. G. is a philosophy major and an outfielder for Tiger baseball. Anna Katherine is an elementary education major.
They told their respective stories, which are more like testimonies, in Chapel last November. Following are highlights with links to read the entirety of their remarks. You’ll be encouraged.
G. Allen
G. didn’t initially come to Ouachita; he transferred here to begin his second year. It’s informative to hear from transfers — who almost always are coming from a public or secular university to Ouachita, a distinctively Christian university.
He began his remarks by citing Proverbs 16:9, “The heart of a man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.”
In high school, G. dreamed of playing college and, ultimately, professional baseball. His hard work and performance landed him a scholarship at a university with a premier NCAA Division I baseball team. Yet, instead of being excited and content during that first year, he became jaded and frustrated.
He told his Ouachita peers, “During the pain and disappointment of my freshman year, I began to submit my hopes, dreams, and plans to God. This process produced peaceful feelings and thoughts about leaving behind my dreams of baseball. In that season, I knew I had to step away from my plans and humbly trust that God would lead me. So, I transferred from Texas Christian University to Ouachita, recognizing the Lord ultimately determines my steps.”
With the benefit of time, he said, “That decision has been a blessing beyond measure.” Now, as a senior, “I’m incredibly thankful for my time here at Ouachita. Even though God has gracefully reinvigorated and blessed my baseball career, it can’t compare to the personal, relational, and spiritual growth I have undergone here at Ouachita.”
You can read more here.
Anna Katherine Green
Anna Katherine shared how God miraculously saved her physical life before she was saved spiritually. She captured our attention when telling us she was born with “half a heart,” diagnosed while she was in her mother’s womb, and that her parents were told she didn’t have much chance of living after birth.
Then Anna Katherine told us, “When I was born, I had these little, tiny extra veins that ran from my heart to my lungs, which allowed me to breathe and sustain life for the short amount of time that I needed. One of the nurses at Arkansas Children’s Hospital, where I would later end up having surgery, called these my ‘Jesus veins.’ I’ve never heard a more fitting name than that.”
She recounted many ensuing surgeries and shared from Job 5:9, “He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted.” She reminded us that the greatest miracle is “that a loving God would send his one and only Son to live a perfect life, die a painful death and rise from the dead to defeat our sin just so we could know Him, believe in Him and have eternal life.”
If you were to see Anna Katherine on campus, her miracle wouldn’t be apparent. Many of us didn’t know her story. Yet, this soft-spoken young lady boldly testified to a miracle-working God and pointed us to Jesus.
You can read more here.
Join me in praying that the Lord will continue to work deeply in and through the lives of Ouachita Baptist students.