Above All
by President Greg Christy
Five years ago, as a candidate for Northwestern’s presidency, one of the first documents I became familiar with was the Vision for Learning, which articulates the four goals we have for graduates of NWC. We want them to:
- Trust, love and worship God
- Engage ideas
- Connect knowledge and experience
- Respond to God’s call
I still remember being struck by the fact that the first goal listed was for our graduates to trust, love and worship God. That spoke volumes to me about Northwestern’s values. Few institutions of higher education share this value, much less articulate it so prominently.
It is one thing to make this claim, but another to deliver on such a promise. Yet the fulfillment of this goal is something I witness consistently in the lives of our students and alumni. Each time I return to Orange City from visiting alumni around the U.S., I am reminded again that our graduates trust, love and worship God.
The culture that has been created over many decades at Northwestern nurtures this value. We are blessed to have dedicated faculty and staff who share this commitment. They take very seriously their responsibility to teach our students about its importance, but they also model it in the classroom, across campus, and in their churches and communities.
There are many things that make Northwestern graduates stand out from the crowd, but perhaps none is as distinctive as their understanding of all of life as worship. This worldview is what compels them to be lifelong learners and Christ followers. It spurs them to pursue excellence in their professional and personal lives—because excellence offered out of faith and love for God is worshipful.
We want our graduates prepared to contribute to society through meaningful work, but above all, we want them to know that abundant life flows out of a love relationship with Jesus. As the Gospel of Mark says, “What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?”
May the Lord’s amazing grace continue to be with our community as together we seek to grow deeper in our trust, love and worship of God.
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