TWC ARCHES Spring 2013

F
Tennessee Wesleyan students
attend student mission conference
our Tennessee Wesleyan College students didn’t take a
break from their educations during their December winter
break. Accompanied by TWC professors Dr. Chris Dover and
Dr. Nancy Gregg, Meagen Akins, Tara Bugg, Kortni Lake and
Sara Phelps were some of the more than 16,000 participants
who gathered together in St. Louis, Mo. to attend Urbana 12, a
large-scale, empowering missions event that aims to compel this
generation to give their whole lives for God’s global mission.
“I went to Urbana looking for direction for my life after
graduation,” said Bugg, a TWC senior majoring in church
vocations with an emphasis in youth ministry. “It was a wonderful
opportunity to worship, fellowship and do Bible study with more
than 16,000 people. We were also given the opportunity to hear
stories of missionaries from around the world.”
Founded in 1946 and targeted toward students, the Urbana
conference is a diverse gathering of students, recent graduates,
missions practitioners and church leaders in North America. The
conference features a multicultural array of speakers, seminars,
music, worship, prayer and Bible study.
“This trip to the Urbana student missions conference was a bit
of a homecoming for me, as I had participated in the 1979 and
1981 conferences,” said Dr. Dover, TWC chaplain and instructor
of religion and church vocations. “The contacts made at those
events resulted in my spending a year in Japan, where I served as
a short-term missionary, helping the Japanese churches expand
their outreach through conversational English classes.”
Dr. Dover encouraged his students to follow in his footsteps and
take advantage of the more than 250 missions organizations that
were present at the conference to talk with participants about
opportunities for service all around the world. From business and
medical skills to teaching and evangelism, conference attendees
learned how their specific interests and talents could be used in
God’s service.
“Urbana was a great place to learn about the costs and joys that
come along with the mission work that God is calling us to do
here at home and all around the world,” said Phelps, a TWC
sophomore majoring in church vocations with an emphasis in
youth ministry. “We were able to talk to many mission agencies
and missionaries about
their organizations and
the potential possibility
of serving with them.”
Mission work is a
cornerstone of the
educational experience at Tennessee Wesleyan. Students
are encouraged to serve in their local communities as well as
globally. TWC students most recently have served all the way
from stateside in Arkansas to out of the country in Guatemala.
“As a result of Urbana, I am now more aware of different
theological schools and I am expanding the schools I will apply
to,” said Akins, a TWC senior majoring in business administration
and professional accountancy and marketing, who is looking to
continue her education with a master’s degree.
“I am also open to applying for various internships at a few of the
mission organizations. I feel more confident about my academic
future and feel that I am heading in the right direction with my
life. Urbana 12 was an amazing experience academically and
personally and it opened my eyes to a lot of different ways to
participate in mission work.”
Inspired by the success of the Urbana conference trip, Dr. Dover
is making plans for more TWC student trips in the future.
“The Urbana conference provided Dr. Gregg and I with a list
of contacts and leads to help us expand TWC’s study abroad,
service-learning and short-term missions programs,” said Dr.
Dover. “Plans are already in the works to take a larger TWC
contingent to the next conference in 2015.”
“It was a wonderful opportunity to worship,
fellowship and do Bible study with more
than 16,000 people.” Tara Bugg~
TWC Senior
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