As a personal note from the author to begin, I was more than delighted to speak to the Spiritual Formation team about all of the exciting things happening at Warner in that department. I was even more delighted to receive so much information from them that I could not fit it into one article! So, what was meant to be a one-off article about Spiritual Formation will have to become one in a series of articles. This article will mostly focus on Spiritual Formation efforts in the fall 2024 semester. Stay on the lookout for more articles in the spring as our campus continues to pursue God and serve Him.
Warner Chapel
I sat down with Austin Morgan, Warner’s Director of Spiritual Formation and Chapel, and Casey Benjamin, Warner’s Coordinator of Outreach and Ministry, to discuss what Spiritual Formation has looked like on campus this semester. The first item of business was the changes that have come to chapel. These changes are not drastic, as Austin and Casey emphasized, but instead are small changes that they believe have made a large impact. The perspective on chapel has shifted to be entirely spiritually focused, cutting out any distraction, no matter how small. For example, regular, weekly campus announcements are not made at the beginning of chapel; chapels now begin by going straight into a time of worship. A small change like this has its effect, as every minute of chapel is dedicated to connecting students with God.
Another small change that has had a large effect is the incorporation of bilingual elements to our chapel. Starting this semester, lyrics for worship songs as well as Bible verses being read will appear on the front screen in both English and Spanish. Occasionally, one or more of our worship songs for the week will be partly or entirely sung in Spanish. But it doesn’t stop there! The music that is played before and after chapel, as well as the songs during the main worship time, have been purposefully chosen to represent the diverse cultures and traditions of the Warner student body. Austin and Casey say that the goal of this is to help every student feel like they can be comfortable and at home with their worship. They are working to get rid of any possible disconnect separating students from an authentic spiritual connection during chapel time.
Students Growing Closer to God
While it is hard to attach a numerical metric of success to spiritual growth, there are at least some tangible signs that God is blessing the efforts that are happening to make chapel better. This year has seen an increase in chapel attendance. In the past, we have seen attendance numbers decrease as the semester goes on, but thus far that has not been true for this semester. Weekly chapels have continued to maintain a large number of students attending, even as the semester is coming to a close in about a month. Further, we have seen a staggering amount of salvations, rededications and baptisms this semester. It is very hard to get precise numbers for these, but our best estimate is that this semester has seen roughly one hundred and fifty students either come to salvation in Christ or rededicate their lives to Christ so far. Beyond that, in many different churches across our community, we estimate that there have been nearly fifty students baptized this semester. Of course, the Spiritual Formation team does not take the credit for these successes, but instead are just thankful that God has used the changes they have made for His glory. We praise God for this incredible work that He is doing on our campus!
Warner Cares: Community Involvement
Spiritual growth is happening in our community as well. Casey has been working hard getting students plugged into local churches and ministries. A special shout out is due to South Lake Wales Church of God, Warner’s neighbor and partner in ministry, where Austin serves as the Worship and Next Generation Minister. Later this month, the Student Life team will be partnering with Feeding Tampa Bay, and in the spring they hope to bring a large group of students to serve there. As of the time of this article’s publication there is one time-sensitive community outreach effort. Warner is facing off against Webber International University in a Toy Drive Competition. Until November 9, new, unwrapped toys can be brought to the Student Life office as a donation to the toy drive. Or, you can visit Warner’s Amazon wish list for the competition here: https://a.co/g5rslgZ. These toys will be donated to the Lake Wales Care Center’s Holiday Store, where families in the community can come and “shop” for gifts for their children. We are grateful to be able to partner with Webber to make an impact on the Lake Wales area.
This is but a glimpse of all of the things that are developing when it comes to Spiritual Formation at Warner. We look forward to seeing how God continues to bless Warner throughout the rest of this semester, and we are excited to do even more at the start of next semester.
