Pacific Lutheran University (PLU), Oct. 28-30

As I think about my travels, now that I have gotten a year under my belt in this position, what last year were first time meetings and visits of people and places have now become annual reunions. A prime example is this year’s visit to PLU with my colleagues. Not only was I reunited with the campus and surroundings, but more importantly I was reunited with the people. At PLU that's campus pastors Nancy Connor and Dennis Sepper. (See photo with my colleagues Greg Schaefer from Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary and Heather McClintock from Wartburg Seminary & of course the dog Rudy who was a lobster for Halloween this year.)

Gosh it was great to see them again and catch up on all that has taken place at the school and in their lives since last year’s visit. They are remarkable people and truly exemplify what it means to be really, really good campus pastors — they care for the spiritual and personal needs of the young adults at PLU and you can tell they truly enjoy doing it. They are a great testimony to a vocation in ministry available to prospective students.

And speaking of prospective students, we were able to meet with a number of them in a variety of venues while on campus. We spoke to students following each of the three Reformation worship services we attended on campus throughout the weekend. We also gathered for lunch with a number of students.

One thing I noted was that many students I met at PLU are taking advantage of opportunities for travel abroad. These aren’t vacations; they visit other countries to learn and immerse themselves in another culture. They go with great anticipation and return changed. The world has all of the sudden gotten really big and complex. Luther Seminary requires a cross-cultural experience as part of the curriculum (for most of the degrees), So if you didn’t get such a chance in college, you will probably get one in seminary.