Cedarville Magazine, Fall 2014

Next, God brought unlikely partners together to help me form a nonprofit organization and write a grant proposal. He inexplicably gave me favor among county policymakers, some who were not even supportive of the SRA abstinence message. Finally, God humbled us with the largest grant in the state (at the time) to change what would be taught to 25,000 students in two counties in their sex education classes! As God gave me each new opportunity, my heart would race and my mouth would become parched. But each time, God reminded me He was there and gave favor in those efforts.That realization was terribly humbling. At that point, I thought God had tasked me to help youth in our kids’ school and in the other county schools. That was a big enough job and one that reminded me daily this was God’s work, not mine. That realization made it easier to be bold. A Statewide Platform God continued to open doors. The first time I testified before the state legislature regarding Ohio’s sex education guidelines, I was humbled that God gave me just the right words to say in response to questions from legislators. I learned an important lesson that day. As Christians, we can be bold without being obnoxious, and part of bringing light to darkness involves the way we speak truth (2 Cor. 4:2, Matt. 5:16). God then gave me a place of influence over SRA abstinence education in the state when I was asked to apply for a position at the Ohio Department of Health. The position provided guidance and oversight for SRA programs serving more than 100,000 students in the state. In that place of leadership, boldness was easy, right?Wrong! The public nature of the job painted a target on my back for those who loathed any program that might encourage young people to restrain their sexual urges. At one event, I was assigned a bodyguard because organizers feared for my safety. Looking back, though, I see God was using this time to prepare me for my current position as President of the National Abstinence Education Association (NAEA). (Learn more at theNAEA.org.) National Influence In my role at NAEA, I am honored to nationally represent SRA abstinence education from our office in Washington, D.C. God continues to take me places that force me to acknowledge my weaknesses and His strength. I regularly work with members of Congress and national pro- family groups, draft legislation and policy, meet with key members of the Obama administration, and debate the abstinence issue in the national media. It probably comes as no surprise that ours is not a popular position in the current sexualized culture. But God continues to give us favor in some of the most unexpected places, reminding us that boldness gives the opportunity to let our light shine before men “that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matt. 5:16). Boldness is like a muscle that becomes stronger as it is exercised. This is especially true when God enables people to be bold, in spite of themselves, and in spite of the fact that the circumstance might be uncomfortable. Since God has equipped us to be His image-bearers, our boldness and courage should not be paralyzed by the “what if ” (this bad outcome happens); it should be compelled by the “even if ” (trials come, God will be glorified). In the midst of our obedience to this “courageous boldness,” we are, after all, only to be faithful. It is comforting to know that it is God, and not us, who is responsible for the results. Valerie (Dell) Huber ’80, M.Ed. ’10 serves as the President of the National Abstinence Education Association, a Washington, D.C.-based professional association in support of abstinence education. She received both her bachelor’s degree and M.Ed. from Cedarville University. She was honored as Cedarville’s Alumna of the Year in 2013. For more information about Huber and her undergraduate and graduate education at Cedarville University, read “Learning to Change the World” in the spring 2014 issue of Cedarville Magazine at cedarville.edu/huber . Abstinence-education supporters visited Capitol Hill on April 3, 2014, during the NAEA-organized Abstinence Day on the Hill. Huber and others spoke to members of Congress, advocating for the priority of sexual risk avoidance in federal sex education policy. Cedarville Magazine | 17