Connecting with Christ
Bluefield College students were offered the opportunity to experience Christ during Duremdes Christian Emphasis Week, September 25-27, featuring inspirational speaker Terrance Talley, the most sought-after speaker in the country for student assemblies.
The college has provided Christian Emphasis Week for students since 1992, thanks to the generosity of the event’s sponsors, Drs. Gene and Jane Duremdes of Princeton, West Virginia. The Duremdes wanted to “share with the students of Bluefield College some of the blessings they have received from the Lord” and give them an opportunity to “examine their spiritual lives” and to “seek answers to life-impacting questions.”
David Pedde, BC’s director of the Center for Worship Arts, organized this year’s Christian Emphasis week for the purpose, he said, of sharing relevant, real-life stories with students, hitting deep into their hearts.
His goals for Christian Emphasis week were to make an impact on the students who took advantage of the messages that were shared throughout the three days. The messages encouraged students to realize they are not alone in the world, and that other people are also going through difficult times and seeking answers.
Talley also had a goal for Christian Emphasis week: to have students experience Christ. He said he wanted students to know that Christ is real and that He is a God that loves you and is actively making an impact on people’s lives.
Talley used his unique ability to connect with students to share his messages. He has traveled across the country spreading hope to students for the past five years. Using his own personal experiences, both good and bad, he is known for having crowds laughing one minute and crying the next while conveying unforgettable messages.
With an obvious passion for people to come to God and realize they can be helped through all situations, Talley challenged students to step out of their comfort zones. Sharing stories of how God had helped him get to where he is today, he did not force the Lord onto people, but instead encouraged them to connect with Him and realize He could help them, too. The most important message he said he wanted students to take away is God’s love for them.
“God loves them — as simple as that may be,” Talley said about his most important message for students. “When I came (to Bluefield), I felt like there was a very low standard for God here, and I wanted to raise the expectation (of God) to the point where (the students) walk out of here and know that ‘my God loves me and He wants to be a part of my life.'”
One BC student who attended Christian Emphasis Week said that Talley had a lot of wisdom to share from his life experiences that was easily relatable to students no matter where they came from. She said Talley is one of the few speakers who has spoken at Bluefield College that was successful at connecting with students and helping them start a new path in their lives.
“I think it was a great opportunity for students to hear what was in the speaker’s heart,” she said. “It was a time to experience something new. Maybe (students) have not been around Christ and His worship so it was a great opportunity to allow Him into their hearts.”
Students added that they’d love for Talley to come back due to his ability to to connect with them. They said his life stories and journey through life make them feel like they are not the only ones going through the struggle. Sometimes that is all college students need to help them push through life’s challenges.