Eternity Alone Will Tell

Well, today was the day. Yesterday I taught handbells for the last time at the Elementary school. Today, I was given the honor of conducting the entire rehearsal for MVA's handbell choir, partially because today was my last day with them. I did the first rendering of the completed promotional video and am even now putting the finishing touches on for the final rendering. I delivered (with the help of a student) 131 devotional books to the dorms. Lastly, I began to say my good-byes to a school that has meant so much to me in the past and means so much more to me now. I thank God for the way he has used people like Adan, myself, and so many others to bless MVA and the way MVA has blessed us right back.

So for now my friends, I say good-bye to Mount Vernon Academy and to this blog. At some point I hope to post the promotional video (rights to the music pending), but for now I simply want to thank MVA and God for the amazing journey we've been on. I leave MVA knowing with confidence that God is still working hard at this school, through this staff, and through these students. I leave a very proud alumnus, knowing that my school is one of the finest there is.

As the grand old school song states in the last verse, which has grown to mean so much more to me since graduating:

"When our lives shall close in triumph over cares and sin and woe,

When this race of life is finished, and we all shall homeward go;

May we meet with all the students, and our faithful teachers too.

Then we'll have a grand reunion, and be glad that we've been true.

For MVA go do your part, and loyal to her be. 

Eternity alone will tell what thou has done for me."

Numbers

One hundred and thirty-one...the total number of devotional books we now have thanks to a donation from the Ohio Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.

Eleven...the total number of elementary school handbell students I get to work with that are doing an amazing job and blowing my mind all the time.

One...the number of students that have returned to MVA after a two-week hiatus. We praise God to have this young man back at the Academy. I look forward to sharing the amazing lyrics he has written for some background music in the promotional video.

Several...the number of MVA handbell ringers I have the privilege of working with and tutoring. It has been a blessing to work with them and I appreciate how gracious they and their teacher, Mr. David Nino, have been to me.

Twenty plus...the number of students who are training to be literature evangelists and are going to be coleporteuring across the state of Ohio to witness and to earn money for school. Thank-you Dean Smith for bringing this amazing ministry to the MVA campus.

Many...the students and staff I will miss here at MVA and MVE when I leave for WWU this Friday.

One...and only: the amazing God we serve who blesses every day!

You Give and Take Away

Today, as always at MVA, was a good day. The ACTS community center (Adventist Caring Through Sharing) donated a few devotional books to the library, thanks to the solicitation of Jennie Downing. Mrs. Downing also came in and labeled all 116 of our books this morning, which was a tremendous blessing. We also are expecting more devotional books from the Ohio Conference office tomorrow. Praise God!

The video project, though daunting at times, is making headway. As soon as the project is complete and the rights to one of the background tracks secured, I look forward to sharing the creation with you.

I also am pleased to say the elementary school is doing well and that their handbell choir is growing each and every day.

In other exciting news, the new dishwasher arrived today. I was privileged to be among the first to see it, and I must say, it is a beauty. It is great to see how God is pouring how His blessings on this school and providing for us the things that we need.

One last item to share, which is a blessing that comes mixed with sorrow. This past Thursday, our sister school, Thunderbird Adventist Academy, had one of their students gunned down as he tried to protect his sister. We are grieving the loss together with them here at MVA. The outpouring of compassion from the students today was powerful. Alyssa Thompson, the SA Pastor; Paul Torchia, the chaplain; and Jennie Downing organized a collection of about 25 cards for the students to sign and send to Thunderbird and the family of the young man who was killed. I praise God for the way He is moving in these young people's lives and through this staff here at MVA. Now I ask that you not only continue to keep MVA in your prayers, but please also make Thunderbird a part of your conversation with God as well.

Curtains and Books

Though home-leave began yesterday, I took some time to go into the office today. Not only did my mother fix the curtains in the chapel, but I was also greeted by a second box of devotional books from Alden Thompson's Walla Walla University Church Sabbath School class. Today, the books were counted and cataloged, and I'm pleased to say that, so far, the Lord has blessed MVA with 111 devotional books, plus a few old quarterlies and a couple of additional books.

I'm also pleased to say that I was able to speak with another parent of a potential student for this year just today on the phone and that I Mr. Morris spoke to an alumnus that is trying to recruit another student for next year. God continues to bless day by day.

UPDATE: We also added a photos section. Check out the new tab at the top.

Bullet-Points of Blessings

It's been a little while since I wrote something, and it's time to share some more good news!

• Genevieve Cuva, the new taskforce cafeteria worker (and an MVA alum from the class of 2009) has arrived on campus.
• Mr. and Mrs. Spittle of the Newark SDA Church and the Mount Vernon Hill SDA Church have donated more devotional books to the devotional book library.
• Adan and I survived puppy-sitting for the chaplain's dog.
• So many teachers have been so helpful in putting together the MVA promotional video, which is making rapid progress.
• Adan did a wonderful job speaking for dorm worship on Sunday.
• I was able to speak at a regional SDA Pastor's meeting today about MVA, my experience there, and the positive results of our graduate survey.
• Speaking of the graduate survey, the results have been compiled. All the students who have graduated MVA since 2008 have been contacted. Over 85% have replied and of those, we have discovered MVA has a 99.25% acceptance for graduates to colleges and universities across the nation.
• Staff and church members such as Mr. Nino, Mrs. Bellchambers, and others have graciously helped my mother and I get from place to place now that my mother's car is out of commission. We want to especially thank Dean Woolcock for allowing us to use his vehicle for a sad but important trip to Columbus today.
• Speaking of the sad trip, Adan Rodarte finally had to return to Walla Walla today. We have been extremely blessed to have him here at MVA. It is clear that the students will miss him tremendously as will the staff. He has endeared himself into hearts of all he has come into contact with at MVA and we certainly will keep in prayer as he continues to pray for us here in Ohio.                                                                                                                                                                        

The Generous Alumni

I don't know which alumni to thank or who initiated the project, but I do know that the glory goes to God and I am eternally grateful for the generosity of the graduates of Mount Vernon Academy. Today, it was confirmed by the MVA Food Service Director that the alumni have given

approximately $18,000 to purchase a new dishwasher, grill, grill stand, and immersion blender.

He also informed us that the Academy is already making money off of the sales of fresh baked goods such as sweet rolls and bread. We praise God for the way He blesses this school day by day.

Grateful Day by Day

There are a myriad of things in my life to thank God for today. Some of them are personal and not for this blog, but many of them are related to MVA and would be appropriate to voice here.

Firstly, I praise God for the fantastic alumni of MVA, who have graciously raised the money to help the school purchase a new dishwasher, which is so desperately needed. There may also be funds to purchase a new grill as well.

I am grateful for Dr. Alden Thompson and his Walla Walla University Sabbath School class, who just today mailed out two boxes of devotional books for the MVA Devotional Book library. I am also thankful to Donna Rudderow of the Worthington SDA Church who also gave a bag of used devotional books.

I am grateful for people like Joann Erskine, Jennie Downing, and Adan Rodarte, who came in and helped Margaret. Sutton (Advancement Director and Alumni Coordinator at MVA) get out a huge mailing for the alumni and for fundraising. With that, I am grateful for staff like Margaret. Sutton, Jeff Morris, Dan Kittle, and so many others who work so hard to make MVA the incredible place that it is.

I am grateful for opportunities to work with the young people at MVA and MVE in helping them discover the joy in music and I am grateful to have the opportunity to watch them learn and grow.

Lastly, and most importantly, I thank God for the students at MVA, students who are seeking to learn, seeking to lead, and above all, seeking God in their lives. Every time I come to MVA and interact with these students I feel blessed. I am grateful to be an alumnus of MVA and I thank God that He continues to bless this school day by day by day.