- The other day I walked into my Psychology class a little early, finding the previous professor that was teaching in that class talking to a student about personal issues it seemed. She was venting about a broken friendship and he gave her advice like a friend, or even a dad would. It made me smile because professors here truly and honestly care for us as people, not just as students that need a grade and a diploma.
- Today (Thursday), the band Jars of Clay played in the Amphitheater in the afternoon. Finishing a midterm and then sitting and watching a wonderful band play next to great friends of mine was awesome and a great end to my school week.
- Today I was walking to class and a guy was opening the door to class and didn’t realize I was behind him, therefore not opening the door for me. He turned around and apologized. It made my day. How many guys care enough about something as small as opening a door that they apologize when they forget to? Makes me love going to a school surrounded by people that care about their faith and being Christ-like.
- It is in Southern California. And being born and raised only an hour away I will never lose my love for clear skies, warm weather, and being able to sit outside in the grass outside my dorm and do homework. It was the most beautiful day today.
- Sunday I found out that I got the position as Alpha Leader for next year and I could not be any more excited to be able to share my love of people, APU, and more then anything, Jesus. I love that we have so many opportunities to use the gifts we have to benefit others and glorify God.
- I get to worship God through music at Chapel alongside people I go to class with, serve with, eat with, and live with 3+ times a week.
- People here are genuine. I have never met such passionate, God-fearing individuals in my life. But at the same time I love that you don’t have to profess to believe in Jesus to be educated here. We learn from people at all walks in their life, with all backgrounds, and with various beliefs. We have opportunities to reach out, show the love of Christ, and simultaneously look up to others.
- I walk around campus and see our president (John Wallace) socializing, teachers having lunch with students, and students praying. Call me crazy but this would have NEVER happened in high school.
- I love APU because it seems that everyone that goes here loves APU. There is almost a general consensus that our school rules, and it makes it rule that much more.
The Azusa Pacific Blog
Thoughts, ideas, and information from APU students, faculty, and staff
Posts Tagged ‘chapel’
I love APU because…
Megan Friday, March 11th, 2011APU Dictionary
Megan Wednesday, March 9th, 2011Alpha: A group you will be placed in the day you move in that includes a sophomore (sometimes a junior) alpha leader and about 8-12 other freshmen. You will all be in the same beginnings class (its a 350 person class that usually just has people speak about current issues) and you will meet one other time during the week to get to know each other and have fun. Its a great way to meet people and as awkward as it may feel as first everyone really does end up loving the program.
Biola: ……..
Communiversity: Community + Diversity, a program that plans events and makes the school fun (simply said).
Cookie Mill: One of our popular off-campus food options. They have amazing ice cream sandwiches with your choice of ice cream and cookies for cheap. It is right by the Mods (next to Stater Brothers), so it is in easy walking distance.
Crazy 8: A team of 8 extremely school spirited students that hype up the crowd and the athletes at sporting events.
Donut Man: A donut shop down the street (a car ride away, not really walk-able distance) that has the GREATEST donuts on the planet. It is basically legendary here at APU. Its open 24/7 and usually anytime you go there you will see other APU students.
D-Group “Discipleship Group:” A group that you can choose to be placed in that meets one time per week for 1-2 hours and talks about life. Some have Bible studies, some just hang out, some read a book together, it all depends on the group. Usually its 4-6ish people and they always have an upperclassman as a leader. It’s always same-sex groups. I am in one currently (I just started it this semester) and it is an amazing way to feel connected to the community here and feel as if you always have people to go to if you need anything. I always look forward to hanging out with my girls.
“Freddy” Cougar: The lovely school mascot!
GYRAD: “Get your roommate a date.” Self explanatory?
High Sierra: A “study abroad” opportunity in Yosemite for all majors that is mainly done by freshmen and sophomores (but juniors still do it sometimes!). It creates a very tight knit family and provides so many opportunities to do anything and everything in nature you could ever desire! I have many friends that have done it or are there now and they ALL claim it to be one of the greatest experiences of their lives.
Intermurals: Sports teams set up by us students! Currently, a lot of the girls on my hall are on a soccer team together and they love it.
Kaleo: A Wednesday night option for Chapel that is LOVED on this campus. It is a more intimate setting, less people, and the sermons usually relate and build off each other. I would highly recommend going when you start attending APU because if not when you do end up going to Kaleo you will wish you went from the very beginning (my roommate made that mistake haha).
Liturgical: Another Chapel option some Thursday nights that provides a service similar to Mass (lots of hymns) where it is very personal. I have never been, but many of my friends go and LOVE it.
Mods: A (mainly) sophomore living area that looks like little houses all around the area behind Trinity and Engstrom and the Baseball field.
My Tie: Often done in Freshmen living areas, all the guys will put a tie in a hat and the girls will pick one. Whatever tie you pick is your date for the night.
Resident Advisor: An upperclassman that lives on each hall (and mod or apartment complex) and regulates all their residents and plans events to bond the living communities. They also have a roommate (the RAR, Resident Advisor Roommate).
Falling in Love with South Africa
Renna Nightingale Friday, February 25th, 2011Hello lovely readers !
I am still loving life here in South Africa! The Lord has truly given me a heart for this place and these people. I can already tell it is going to be amazingly difficult to leave.
Because this semester is service and travel-based, our classes are condensed into a much shorter time frame. We began classes the last week of January, midterms were last week, this is dead week, and next week is finals! I can hardly believe it!
Unfortunately for me, I am taking isiZulu, an African “click” language, and class extends until the end of March. This is because I am taking a full two semesters of isiZulu, instead of the traditional one! Classes are quite intense, but I love being able to speak isiZulu with the people! Most of the time, South Africans don’t expect Americans to speak isiZulu. I love surprising them by greeting them with their first language!
Most people are almost fluent in at least two languages here. I find that fascinating! I love that many people are familiar with English, because that eliminates a language barrier.
Even though we’re not on the Azusa Pacific California campus, we still have chapels. I am a theatre major and have been singing for much of my life, so I am blessed to be able to help lead worship once a week! I love APU chapels, but there is something about helping lead worship for fifty people that you have come to know and love—the same people who are living this crazy adventure with you.
Today, my isiZulu class took a field trip to Pietermaritzberg, a city near where we are studying. It was so interesting to walk through the busy city and observe South African life! Most people walk on the left side, as they drive on the left side!
I absolutely love it here. I am so thankful for this experience!
K.C. Wednesday, January 19th, 2011
Welcome back in two days, Cougars! Today I was on campus to finish up some things before the semester starts and I just want express how blessed and privileged I feel to be part of the APU community. The new semester brings chances for new opportunities and changes, and each and every one of you is at a great place to embrace them. It’s often said that a student gets out of the college experience what one puts into it, and I hope that this semester can be one in which we put our all into this amazing university that has put so much into us simply by allowing us to be here.
To students new and old, I would encourage you to make the most of this semester, embracing every opportunity and storming every obstacle. Get involved in at least one new thing on campus — an intramural sport, a leadership position, a club — and let it enrich your university experience. Take advantage of the great resources we have here to help us succeed in our academics, especially the faculty. They’re so willing to help — if you need it, let them know! I know a few of my professors last semester were always up for grabbing coffee or just lounging and chatting in their offices. Get connected with a mentoring group or a D Group through the Campus Pastors’ office. This is an amazing place to be at — do something this semester to enrich your college experience.
By the way, there are some awesome new photos up on the APU Flickr. Check it out. :)
God First! :)
The Providence of God
K.C. Tuesday, November 16th, 2010What a beautiful fall day! It’s days like these that I am amazed at God’s providence. Truly, He knows our every need before we know it ourselves. I would like to share something that happened to me at chapel a few weeks ago — a story of God’s providence — and I hope that this inspires others to pick themselves up and be a part of life even when they don’t feel like it. Two Wednesdays ago, I was feeling down and didn’t feel like going to Kaleo. I know that when I feel this way, though, and I end up going, I am always blessed. In my mind, I rationalized this as well as the fact that I had to go for chapel credit, and trudged up the stairs. After I walked in, I realized I’d forgotten something and went back to my apartment. I wrestled with already being home, but remembered what I’d told myself earlier about being blessed and having to go, and picked myself up and walked back over. I was met with closed doors and empty handed chapel greeters — they were out of cards. I went to the other door to inquire as to what I was supposed to do when I was at chapel on time and it was already full, and before I could ask my question, the greeter recognized me and waved towards the stairs — he remembered me leaving a few minutes earlier. Up the stairs, I found that there was one chapel card left! Once inside, there was not a seat to be found, and I sat on the floor by the door. During worship, Woody asked that we pause for a moment and pray to God, letting Him know where we were at at that very moment. Well, for me, at that very moment, I was feeling tired, stressed, worrisome, and dejected. I poured all of this and more out to him, and prayed a very specific prayer, unsure that it would be answered the way I would have liked but rationalizing that at least I had expressed it to Him. At the end of the service, the girl sitting next to me asked if I had a couple of minutes to talk. My heart started pounding — was this the answer to prayer I had asked for? We stood near the door where we had been sitting, and she expressed to me what was an exact answer to my prayer. I was in awe. Had I sought my own way, had I not gone to chapel, I would not have experienced this very moment. God’s providence in that moment was amazing. His love is an agape love — unconditional and everlasting. He knows our needs before we think them. There is a verse that I’ve always held very dear that I’d like to share with you — the verse is Jeremiah 29:11, and it reads like this: “For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” May we be reminded of His love, mercy and grace in every leaf’s turning, every fall breeze, and every beautiful sunset.
The One Where I Talk About God’s Presence
Hannah Wednesday, October 6th, 2010This week has been pretty consistent with the norm for a week at APU. The chapels have been great. The classes have been challenging yet very interesting. The weather’s been totally unpredictable. We go from scorching hot to raining and cold in less than a week. It’s actually pretty exciting, I never know what I’ll wake up to. I had another test in anatomy. I went to Kaleo tonight (the Wednesday night chapel). I spent some quality time laughing with my roommates this morning over facility management’s entertainment/possible annoyance with the completely avoidable flood in our bathroom.
In all the norm however, God has put a few things on my heart this week that I would love to share. One thing about APU that I personally don’t believe you could find anywhere else are people who truly brighten your day every time you cross paths. When I was first touring the school before I came here, I immediately noticed something different about APU’s campus. People smile at you and say hello when you walk by, and open doors for you. This is a different kind of Christian university, there’s something so special about it.
My family goes to a Christian camp on Catalina Island every summer called Campus by the Sea (aka CBS). This is where I could say I first began having an interest in attending Azusa Pacific. The summer before my senior year in high school, one of my long time girl friends was talking about possibly going to APU for college. I would say that the kind of people who run and go to CBS are role models for me in my aspiration to be the best Christian girl I can. This may seem irrelevant to what I was saying about APU being a special place, however, it was kind of the deciding factor for me choosing to come here for college. I absolutely love going to CBS every summer for one reason. You can truly feel God’s presence there. When I stepped foot on APU’s campus as a little tour student, this same feeling of God’s presence washed over me with an intensity I never could have imagined.
His presence on this campus is ever more and more obvious to me every day. It pours from the Upper Turner Campus Center and Felix Event Center during chapels. It’s ever present in the classrooms. But most significantly, I experience God’s presence and love every single day in the students and faculty.
I was having lunch with three of my friends on Tuesday afternoon. I don’t know why this day stuck out so much for me as being one where I knew God was present. Danielle is probably one of the most caring and selfless people I have ever met. She is there for me every single time I’m feeling down, or just need to talk. Mitch is such a huge support. He pushes me to do my best, and walks alongside me in pursuing my faith and life goals. Jeffrey is just such a joy. His bubbly personality and overflowing happiness with life is contagious to everyone around him. As we talked, I felt so much love and care just overflowing from each of their hearts. I had been having a fairly stressful day, and my lunch with them put me at complete peace. These are the Christians I want to be like. I thank God every day for calling me to a school where its normal to have friends like these. I don’t think you can find these kind of people or these kind of Christ-centered friendships everywhere. APU is a God filled school. I hope you have the chance to experience the environment I have the privilege of living in every day.
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