[Chad] My name is Chad
and I'm a graduate of Southern Seminary.
I became pastor of Calvary in 1992,
and the congregation was struggling to stay
alive, about a hundred people.
Today, we're averaging almost 1500 on a weekend and
doing ministry in our community that is
changing lives.
Being a graduate of Southern equipped me
to lead churches,
to lead people to that life-changing
relationship with Jesus Christ.
[Amber] My name is Amber
and I'm a student at Southern Seminary.
My time here at Southern has been very intense
but very rewarding at the same time
I've been able to study God's Word and
learn more than I ever thought possible.
And I've been blessed so much by my
classes and the professors here.
[Chad] You know, I loved being a student at Southern Seminary.
They taught me how to think theologically,
how to love the Bible,
how to apply it to my life and ministry.
It gave me a hunger for learning,
I've attended the Alumni Academy,
I've continued to seek to feed myself,
challenge myself, stretch myself,
both in how I think,
and in how I think about ministry.
[Amber] It's been a really great experience
being able to learn more about the
Gospel and the Bible and learn about the
Word of God in ways that I had never
learned before.
'Southern for Life' to me means
being about the Gospel for life
because Southern is serious about the Gospel and
serious about sharing the love and hope
of Jesus with people and so being
'Southern for Life' means that no matter
where I am or what I'm doing I'm going
to share the Gospel with people and be
the light of Jesus and the love of Jesus
to everyone around me.
[Chad] 'Southern for Life' to me is
about being a student for life.
It's about never growing tired of the wisdom
and the excellence of God's Word.
It's about never forgetting that the truths that we
learn to apply to our own lives need to
be shared with those who are both in
Christ and growing in him and definitely
those who need to know the power of
Jesus Christ to change lives.
[Ambert] I am graduating with a MDiv and God has
called me to go back to my hometown and
minister to the people there.
There's about 40,000 unreached people who don't
have any connection to church or the Gospel.
I'll be working at a church organizing volunteers
and doing outreach ministry.
And going back to a place where there
are so many lost people will be
extremely helpful and beneficial, knowing
the Gospel and being able to share the
love and hope of Jesus with them because
of my time here at Southern.
[Chad] So 27 years later, I get to watch my daughter
graduate as a student of Southern Seminary.
That's an absolute delight for a dad.
It's just a joy for me.
[Chad] My name is Chad,
[Amber] My name is Amber,
and we're...
[both] 'Southern for life'.