The Heart Behind Chapel Services
Your spiritual life is a priority at Ohio Christian University. We believe that private and public worship are necessary for full spiritual development and are a vital element in your Christian university education.
Our goal in the Spiritual Formation department is to set students up for a lifetime of faithfully serving and abiding with Jesus Christ through revealing the nature of God and the truth of scripture, creating opportunities to encounter Christ, and practicing spiritual disciplines that open them to the transforming work of the Holy Spirit. We want each student to take the next step towards Christ, whatever that may look like in their life. And then, with God’s help, to take the next step. And the next.
University chapel is one way students can take that next step in deepening their relationship with Jesus Christ. It is the time for the entire college community to meet together in a structured time of worship. This time is the integration point of spiritual, academic, and community life. Chapel is where we intentionally pursue and offer ourselves to Christ through passionate worship and biblically rooted teaching.
The university chapel environment may seem like church but our goals are a bit different. Our mission is to “prepare students to serve effectively in the church and society.” We want chapel to be a place that students encounter God in a transformational way that gives them broader understanding of who God is, how their faith touches every part of life, and their calling to build the Kingdom of God in unique, creative, and world-shaping ways. We want speakers to share the truth of the Word of God by modeling how they do this in their own life, work, and ministry. We want our teaching to push students to think about God’s work in our world and how they can be a part of it.
We believe that passionate worship is about more than corporate singing and loud music. Worship is intentional reflection on the nature and character of God. It is our opportunity to respond to His goodness both intellectually and emotionally; in spirit and in truth. We design our worship services to reflect the cultural diversity on our campus, and we seek to provide students with multiple ways to express their praise and adoration to the Father. Taking time throughout the week to engage in corporate worship with students, faculty, and staff strengthens community and cultivates unity on our campus.
It is with these ideas in mind that we plan and create the chapel schedule. We hope that you are blessed by being able to hear the teaching of Word of God and the shared testimonies of his saints.
