Cedarville Magazine, Summer 2019

§ § Renovated and expanded science and engineering space ( $5M ) § § Expanded our Physical Plant Operations Center ( $1M ) § § Renovated and expanded the chapel ( $3M ) § § Preparing to build a 282-bed residence hall ( $14M ) § § Preparing to build an additional dining facility, including a Chick-fil-A ( $7M ) § § Preparing to build a civil engineering facility ( $3M ) § § And more! The $60 million of debt reduction and infrastructure investments in the past six years improved the fiscal health of the institution. As a result, our financial stability shows in our Composite Financial Index number, which has increased from a 1.5 in 2013 to an all-time high of 7.7 . Financial institutions consider anything above a 3.0 good and above a 5.0 as ready to reinvest in the future health of the organization. Through the generous grace of God, Cedarville University has experienced transformational financial growth, positioning us well for an aggressive 10-year campus master plan. Cedarville University is a worthy investment, with the financial stability to lead the way in training students who will stand for the Word of God and the Testimony of Jesus Christ, regardless of whatever environmental or cultural winds might rage against them. Now is the time for further investment in an already- successful model to train the next generation of leaders with academic excellence to impact eternity. Operating from a position of strength, Cedarville intends to influence generations of students who will affect their families, their vocations, and their churches for all eternity. God has put Cedarville University in a position where strategic investments from God’s people are needed, not to bail out a shaky enterprise, but to secure a thriving Christian university for generations to come. SPIRITUAL VIBRANCY Changing lives and shepherding hearts toward God matters most. Numbers indicating enrollment and financial success and new or renovated buildings are for nothing if our students are not being transformed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Our resources are simply the means by which students can be trained to reach the nations for the sake of the Kingdom, regardless of their vocation. All of this is driven by a discipleship-based model aimed at training the next generation with intense discipleship and academic rigor. We require a profession of faith for admission to Cedarville University. Yet, we know that many of the 1,000 new students who enter campus each year are not where they need to be with the Lord. For that reason, we begin the fall semester with a weeklong Fall Bible Conference. During this Bible conference, we clarify the Gospel, call for repentance, and provide an invitation to respond. In the spring, we have a three-day missions conference with a similar emphasis. This past year, through God’s generous grace, we saw about 35 students make professions of faith and more than 200 students repent or rededicate their lives to Christ just during the Fall Bible Conference. Through Bible conferences, Bible minor courses, discipleship programs, intentional mentoring, and more, students’ lives are being transformed. Megan’s life was forever changed following Fall Bible Conference her freshman year: “What is incredible is I had actually planned to kill myself that night … It seemed like there was so much sin in my life, and everyone at the University was so good, it just did not feel right. Thankfully, God had other plans.” That night, after Bible conference, Megan accepted the Lord and has begun a Bible study to help reach younger girls struggling with depression, anxiety, and sin. For Heidi, it was all about genuine, authentic, Christian community she experienced at Cedarville: “When the Lord brought me to Cedarville, He just opened my eyes and I was able to see that this is the kind of community I had been craving. I saw in other people a deep affection for God that I wanted to have and knew I didn’t have.” Heidi became active in our Discipleship Groups (d-groups) and serving in leadership on Disciple Council. She remained in Printy Hall, a popular freshman residence, to “pour into girls who are just starting out and maybe for the first time actually taking their faith seriously.” Heidi said, “The Lord has just given me a heart for that because of what He did for me.” For alumnus Stephen, life change took place as he interacted with faculty and staff who modeled Christlike character and what it meant to honor God with your vocation: 4 | Cedarville Magazine