President's Perspective

Hey, for any of you who may have forgotten, it's February—it's the month of Valentine's Day and of love! Hopefully, you still have time to pick up something special for the important people in your life. (And you don't even have to tell them that I reminded you!)

The love of my life, of course, is my wife, Martie. I remember so clearly the summer before our senior year of college when I finally summoned…

January is a season for resolutions. As we survey the year we've just completed, we look ahead and dream of what the next year may hold and what value we might instill on the coming season.

A friend once told me: "Joe, I've come to realize that my life is not made by the dreams that I dream but by the choices that I make."

Count on it: You will have plenty of choices in life. And usually, they boil…

The royal birth of King Jesus was filled with themes of joy and hope. Mary and Joseph had been told by angelic messengers that this baby would be the long-awaited Messiah, and the shepherds had heard that this royal baby promised salvation, peace and good will to all.

One of our great Christmas traditions is opening our homes to visitors who come to help us celebrate—like gift-bearing grandmas and grandpas, aunts and uncles, friends and neighbors—which reminds me of the fact that Joseph and Mary welcomed visitors who came to celebrate the royal birth of King Jesus.

You can't think about Christmas without thinking about gifts. And when it comes to opening gifts on Christmas morning, children are the best! It's so fun to watch them shout with amazement and jump for joy as they open their presents.

Speaking of gifts, imagine that you were invited to the palace of a king for Christmas. My guess is that you would go out of your way to give him a gift that would impress…

I'm fascinated by how intrigued we are with royal births. When British royalty, like Kate, Her Royal Highness, the Duchess of Cambridge gave birth to a royal child it draws international attention. We can't wait to see pictures of the baby surrounded with regalia, pomp and circumstance.

This Christmas we will be reminded of how different it was with the royal birth of King Jesus. King Herod, driven…

Sometimes I go out of my way to buy a special Christmas gift for Martie, and when I do, I find it hard to wait until Christmas to give it to her! So, the best thing that I can do is to drop hints along the way: "You're going to love it!" "It's what you've always wanted!" "It's something you can wear!"

I can't help but think that's the way it is with our God and His greatest gift of all: the Christmas…

One of my favorite fables is the story of a traveler who comes into a village and notices a barn with several targets painted on the side of it. Interestingly, an arrow was perfectly positioned in the bullseye of each target. Stopping at the local eatery, the traveler remarked that someone must be an amazing marksman to hit all the targets dead on. His server replied, "Actually there's a strange guy…

November means Thanksgiving is coming up—by far and away my favorite holiday. I'm sure our students agree, as it means a much-needed break before the final crunch of the semester!

I'm not sure why I love Thanksgiving so much, except that it has always seemed so uncluttered. Fortunately, it has escaped the commercialization of Halloween and Christmas. There are no goblins or trick-or-treaters, and…

Is it just me, or does it seem like Americans have become increasingly fascinated with outdoor experiences like mountain climbing, white-water rafting, rappelling and other treacherous activities? At Cornerstone University, I've noticed that outdoor wear has become a fashion statement and some students prefer to do their homework in hammocks strung high in the trees. Camping and hiking are popular…

It's that time of year again—our campus is humming with new and returning students settling into their dorm rooms and class schedules, likely all asking the same questions: who am I and what is my role on this earth?

Recently at Cornerstone we held a Talking Points event focused on the theme of justice and unity. We had a good turnout with insightful teaching and a panel discussion about issues that tend to divide the body of Christ.

If you are first and foremost a follower of Jesus, revel in the independence and freedom that you have found in Him. Picture yourself being led through the streets of your town, on display to your friends and family as a trophy of Christ's victory. When Jesus is the victor, no one can rain on your parade!

Our graduates have stories of significant influence in our world for Christ. Some in the ministry, some in missions and many in the marketplace where the testimony of their lives draws attention to the gospel lived out through them.

All of this makes me grateful that God has called me to serve in an enterprise that is busy raising a new generation of cultural influencers for Christ and His Kingdom…

Just ask any of our staff or faculty, and they will tell you that it is an exciting time to serve Christ at Cornerstone University! We are grateful for the generosity of our alumni and friends who support our vision to empower students as influencers in the world for Jesus Christ.

Kingdom work comes in a variety of ways. And our graduates creatively engage in their every day work to influence this world for Jesus Christ. The President's Office recently connected with Rob Bodtke, an environmental biology major and 2012 President's Award recipient. He shared about his young family, the importance of Creation care and his position at Cornerstone Ag Enterprises LLC. Everyday he…

Our world needs Christ-centered graduates. I'm reminded of that every day. So when I hear about our CU alumni influencing the world for Jesus Christ, I like to share their stories with others. Most recently, the President's Office reconnected with Janelle Brown, a business major and 2012 President's Award recipient. She answered a few questions about her life as a CU alumnus and her position serving…

In May, we launched over 600 graduates into our world to light up the cultures of their worlds for Christ and His Kingdom. And in this dark world, that's no small thing! But to be honest, while that is the fulfillment of our mission, there are lots of students that I wish we could keep in our campus community. Their positive influence on their peers and on our campus culture will be greatly missed…

One of the unique blessings of serving at Cornerstone is the joy of experience the dynamic diversity that God has brought to our campus.

This year it has been a joy to have Mordecai Njoroge, a student from Kenya, as a part of our student body. When you watch this video, you'll know why I find our students so inspiring!

Over the past few years, Cornerstone has developed a relationship with Ede Christian University in the Netherlands. What I love about this partnership is the opportunity it provides for our students to expand their cultural horizons. Every other year during J-term, we send a small group of business students to the Netherlands to visit Ede, and the following year they send a group of students to visit…

When I heard that one of our students had written and published a book over the summer, I was not surprised! Kim Kim Andrews, a senior psychology major, has been an outstanding student since the day she arrived on campus.

As a pastor's kid in India, Kim Kim was exposed to much of the brokenness that her country faces and grew up with a strong interest in counseling young women and adolescents. When…

Recently, I received an email from one of our students signed, Dhiraj. Needless to say I was curious...it's not your average kind of name. He asked if he could stop by my office and get acquainted. Meeting with students is a high priority with me so given my heightened curiosity about who he was and where he was from made it an easy "yes."

I was not ready for what I heard. Dhiraj is from Nepal. He…

You'll often catch me bragging about our great students, but I know I don't brag nearly enough about our amazing faculty.

When they aren't teaching classes at CU, our top notch professors are influencing the world for Jesus Christ through a variety of studies.

Dr. Nigel Crompton, professor of biology, recently traveled to the University of Warsaw in Poland to hold a plenary lecture at a mini-symposium…

I love the spring and summer months when the trees and flowers are in bloom all over West Michigan. I especially enjoy walking across campus here at Cornerstone when the tulips are in bloom and the white flowers of the dogwood trees are in full display. Most of all, it is rewarding to see our students enjoying the beauty of campus before they leave for the summer...hanging out together on the lawn…

Our vision statement for CU is to be a "Christ-centered university with a passion for global influence through the transforming power of the gospel." So you can imagine how exciting it is to see that vision becoming a reality.

Among the trips that our students take globally, every year they travel to Kakolo Village, Zambia, to the school that Chip Huber, dean of student engagement, helped start while…

Hanging our third National Championship banner was nothing short of a massive celebration here at Cornerstone. Students gathered in the Hansen Center to celebrate the third national championship for our men's basketball team.

But what was most remarkable about the Championship Celebration wasn't the school spirit or raving fans but the attitude of the winning team. Our men's basketball players were…

We never want to hear about a car crash and fiery explosion that affects the life of one of our students. But when the student is the hero in the story, I can't help but be thankful for the kind of students that God has brought to Cornerstone! I am so proud of Austin Reep's courageous "Good Samaritan" act to rescue a life in jeopardy.

This MLive news article did a phenomenal job covering the story…

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I thought you'd like to hear about the special celebration we had here at Cornerstone on Monday evening.

Our food service team prepared a fabulous Thanksgiving feast with all the trimmings for our students so that they could enjoy a traditional family meal together before going home for Thanksgiving break. Faculty and staff carved the turkeys and hams, served…

For those of us who went to college, we can remember what it felt like to be on our own for the first time. It was exciting, intimidating and perhaps, if you were like me, it was an opportunity for a bit of troublemaking!

College is a time of firsts. It's a student's first time being away from home, it's their first time living with a (sometimes strange) new roommate, and it's their first time making…

I love the cross-cultural dynamics our international students bring to this campus! They add richness and depth to our community and challenge our comfortable view of Christianity.

This year, we welcomed 29 new international students and 15 MKs ("missionary kids") from a long list of countries.

Last Monday, CU welcomed 18 high school students from mainland China to our campus for our first "Life Success Camp" which is an outgrowth of our global strategy. These students will spend 2-1/2 weeks here in the States, taking classes with some of our professors and making an overnight trip to Mackinac Island and a day trip to Chicago.

They are a great way addition to our summer programming here…

I recently returned from visiting our seminary, the Asia Biblical Theological Seminary, in Chiang Mai, Thailand, where I had the honor of participating in the installation of their new dean, Jim Blumenstock.

As I met and talked with the faculty at ABTS, I was so impressed with their passion to provide much-needed biblical and theological training to national church pastors and leaders. Over 140 students…

I recently visited one of our graduates in jail. He's been there quite a while and no doubt will be there for years to come.

His name is Craig Curtis, and he is the chaplain at the E.C. Brooks Correctional Facility in Muskegon, Michigan. Guys like Craig are my heroes! His work at the prison has been phenomenal, and last week I had the profound privilege of worshipping with Craig and 137 inmates at…