ASBURY ALUM

Before moving on to the new week, I wanted to give a shout out to my Alma Mater, Asbury Theological Seminary.

Last November Asbury sent an email and I perused it to see what was new on campus. A blurb about "renewal retreats" for alumni caught my eye. 

This was around the same time that Tim, Jamie, and I were talking about how long it had been since we were all together in one place. (2018!) 

So gathering back on campus just seemed ideal. We planned our retreat for January and the alumni office was on top of it, offering meetings with professors, pastoral counseling, and even a massage.

Going in, none of us was clear on the cost of the whole thing - staying at the hotel on campus from Tuesday night through Friday morning would be the biggest chunk - I was telling Melissa that I hoped they wouldn't charge us more than $75 a night.

Imagine my surprise at check-in this past Tuesday to find the stay in the hotel was free to all of us. Plus, the school threw in all three breakfasts and all three lunches to boot. Even the massage was paid for by the school!

Each of us had our own room with a large bed, fridge, TV (which I turned on once for 5 minutes), desk, and sitting area. 

On Wednesday morning, they asked us to come by the alumni office - for the purpose of gifting us with t-shirts, mugs, and hats among other items. 

I'm telling you, we were treated like royalty. And every person we met on campus - including the current president - thought it was amazing that the three of us had stayed in contact all these years and had the desire to spend substantial time together on campus. 

It reminded me how much I loved my time at Asbury in the late 90s and how much I owe that place. 

The school's graciousness throughout our time there made me proud to be an alum. 

I have decided: I plan to give Asbury a very nice gift in return once I make my first million. 😉

My spacious room:

My name on the wall of the administration building:

Breakfast at the Asbury hotel:

The sitting area in Jamie's room:

We had the run of Estes Chapel for a while one morning:

Modeling my new Asbury beanie:

(Covers the gray hair nicely)

God still moves in this place!