30th Oct 2012. By Donna Uning, Kuching, CM –
“Register now! Don’t miss Leeland live in concert as you experience college life first hand at Valor Christian College during Fall College Days” says my recent received email from Valor Christian College, Columbus, Ohio. As a Breakthrough Partner with World Harvest Church for almost a decade, to finally be a part of the Pentecostal mega church is overwhelming and a huge blessing. My sister Jenn and I have been looking at Bible colleges for some time, so we registered to attend college days at Valor which coincides with the Contending for the Faith weekend. College Days is a good place to experience what it would be like to be in a bible college. From March 15-17, 2012 we were to be in Valor Christian College for Spring College Days. That was our plan, but God has a bigger plan.
“There are two kinds of faith. One will get you through troubled times in victory – the other won’t” says Pastor Kenneth Copeland.
The journey has been long, faith driven, and not without snags. College Days was to start on Thursday night to Saturday. We arrived in Columbus Wednesday night from Los Angeles. We had already attended Pastor Benny Hinn’s Monday Night Service in his studio a few days earlier. He prayed for God’s favor with men over us that night. When we checked in to our hotel, we got upgraded to a suite with a working fireplace! God has provided for us all our needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus! By Thursday evening, the anxiety of going to World Harvest Church was great.
According to our previous online research, the trip from the hotel to the church would take 23 minutes – not! However, by this time, my sister and I know better than to trust those distance calculators online, the last few weeks had been an eye-opener to anything online. The cab driver took a long time to find our destination. As the meter got higher and higher, we were still nowhere near the college. By the time we got to the church, the fare was almost $100 (about RM300)! That was one-way and to think about the next few days, it was a dreadful thought. Nonetheless, we came all the way here, God brought us here, and He will get us through.
We were already late for the registration. Everyone had started to fill the gym where prospective students get to meet other students and teachers/pastors of the school. Not letting the awkwardness and slightly annoyed feeling (due to the cab ride) get to us, we managed to grab dinner and talk with some of the students. Due to the slight rain and cold weather, group activities were held in the gym.
Most of the attendees and visitors were made up of people of different ages, married couples, families, and even high school students. The night went pretty fast. Walking through the Hall of Faith – where the history of World Harvest Church is arranged on the stretched wall – it had not yet dawn on me that I was finally at the church. Jenn and I were taking photographs, talking with a Valor student about our trip to the church. There were many students and visitors walking through the hall that evening. However, one lady, Jackie, overheard our conversation and started talking with us. Hearing our dilemma, she offered to drive us to the event for the next few days! Hallelujah! Not only was she very friendly, we have so much in common, it was like we have known each other for years!
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God,” Romans 5:1-2
Three days at Valor College and World Harvest Church were not without hiccups, but those hiccups were nothing compared to God’s miracle far beyond our understanding. Apart from attending classes, we get to walk through the state-of-the-art studio where Pastor Parsley broadcasts his sermons through his Breakthrough television broadcast. Parents and prospective students get to see the campus life, activities and much more. The teachers, pastors, staff and students were very helpful and spirit-led. It was an awesome experience to be in a place where everyone puts God first.
The Contending for the Faith event, which ran at the same time, brought in Pastor Kenneth Copeland and his team from Kenneth Copeland Ministries (KCM). That was a “double bonus” for me because I am also a Partner with KCM. I have listened to Pastor Copeland’s sermons on DVD and read many of his books. Jesus Christ is faithful unto God, the word of God and faithful to you, he reminded.
Saturday afternoon, guests and partners were called to attend Pastor Parsley’s special anointing service. The worship was so great, we were singing, dancing, and worshiping till the end. Pastor Parsley laid hands on each and every one of us, with thousands of people turning up. It was a powerful time.
- Pastor Rod Parsley talking to students and guests at the MAC Café at Valor Christian College.
That Sunday, after the church service, Pastor Parsley said that he would like to meet visitors of the event and sign his book for the guests. Jenn and I were very excited to meet the Pastor. “I will not take a picture with you because I’m all sweaty right now, and I’m not a celebrity,” I remember the Pastor said. “I will not sign your Bibles because I did not write it,” he added. Before we know it, the line was so long, it turned into a double line! A church worker saw us and asked if we were lining up to meet the pastor. Yes, we said. She pulled us aside and led us to the front of the line, cutting a whole of people. We met the pastor and told him we came to the event all the way from Malaysia. It was the last day of the event; Jackie made plans for us to drive around Columbus.
“Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” Romans 10:17
God’s favor continues to overflow. We got a free ride to the airport because the hotel decided to pay for our trip due their late shuttle. Even when the airline representative said my luggage was opened and may not make the flight, I was not thrown off my tracks. Even when our bags were way overweight, the airline staff let it go, in all the airports all the way to Kuching. God has done so much, why should I expect less? Both my sister and I claimed and believe God for everything.
There was a Christmas ornament which I used to sell in my store which says, “It was all good, it was all God.” It has been about eight months since I last worshipped at the vast 5200-seat church with Pastor Rod Parsley. Valor Christian College, also known as The School of the Spirit, is located three miles from the parent church. Located in central Ohio, the 52 acre site also campuses Harvest Preparatory School and a large children ministry. Fall College Days starts again this November 1 – 2, 2012.
