Volume 45 • Issue 2/2 • Fall 2014

“... be transformed by the renewing of

your mind that you may prove what

the will of God is...”

Planning andTransformation...

important themesin life and scripture

ADMINISTRATION

PresidentDr. Steve Hostetter

Dean of the CollegeDr. Steven Ware

Vice President for AdvancementJoan Berntson

Executive Vice PresidentCarol Nelson

Vice President for Enrollment ManagementMichael Barnes

Dean of Student Life / Youth Ministry DirectorRandy McKain

Camp Oak Hills DirectorScott Buchan

Center for Indian Ministries DirectorZane Williams

DIRECTION MAGAZINEVolume 45 • Issue 2/2 • Fall 2014

Editor Rachel Johnson - Director of Marketing & Communications

Layout and DesignBrent Johnson - Consultant

OAK HILLS FELLOWSHIP INC.1600 Oak Hills Road SWBemidji, Minnesota 56601 • 218.751.8670

Oak Hills is located along the shores of Lake Marquette in northern Minnesota. For over eightdecades, the staff of Oak Hills have helped people pursue Christian maturity by teaching the truth from God’s Word that changes lives. Today they achieve this through three focused ministries:

Oak Hills Christian College focuses on biblical education. Students may choose from ten bachelordegrees, six associate degrees, or a one-year Bible certificate.

Camp Oak Hills offers a quality, Christian camp experience for youth, while pursuing a vision for year-round ministry to families and adults.

Center for Indian Ministries reaches out to the Native American community to bring them the hope of Jesus Christ. The Mokahum Ministry Center provides culturally relevant Bible training for our Native American brothers and sisters.

www.oakhills.edu

“If we only knew the future and

could see the whole view,”

we may reason, “we would be able to make the

right choices today to enable or

improve upon that future.”

But God, in his wisdom, has chosen not to reveal the detailed future. Instead, Christ has given us a clearmission and purpose to carry on today and into thefuture until his return. At OHCC we are aggressivelypursuing that mission. We trust God to guide and direct our steps through the wisdom he provides even though we cannot fully perceive all the details of that future.

As we anticipate and plan our future efforts, the action steps we take are intended to enable us to beas effective as possible. Through our required BiblicalStudies Major we seek to prepare graduates to be righteous, just, compassionate, and godly people whoseGod given talents, skills, personalities and traits are developed to powerfully impact their world for the sake of Christ and his kingdom.

Along with this core initiative, we are proactive on anumber of fronts to increase our effectiveness and expand our reach. With regard to academics, we will increase not only the number of on-campus options expanding into marketplace ministries as well as professional ministries, but also implement programs that serve a vital need in today’s world.

For example: • We have launched a Bachelor’s degree in

Addictions Counseling this fall. • Plans are in place to initiate a Sports Management

program next fall. • A few years ago we ventured into distance education

starting with online courses and programs. • This fall we are expanding our distance education

to include classes at a couple of alternative sites.

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Planning our Future

EffortsWhy all this? So we can increase access to and reach more peoplewith a biblical education who will become “oaks of righteousness” in a world that is increasingly unfriendly to Bible-believing Christians.

To facilitate this great work, we have also launched a board-approved 25-year plan tocompletely remake the primary physical campus of the College. Initial steps already underway include transitioning all offices and services out of the central Administration Buildingto other locations on campus in order to prepare the site for the construction of two new residence halls. This on-campus environment is vital for teaching students how to live life meaningfully and productively as they rub shoulders with fellow students, engage inmentoring relationships with faculty and staff, and develop leadership capacities. In order tobe effective in accomplishing our mission, we must provide a learning environment thatis conducive to and enhances our desired outcomes.

These are challenging times!

As we all work together with the help of Godto fulfill the mission he has given us, hisChurch and Bride, may we be faithful andfruitful to the glory of God.

Dr. Steve HostetterPresident, Oak Hills Christian College

Campus TransformationWhat Has Been Happening Around the CampusOur summer was full as we repurposed space in multiple buildingsto accommodate the move out of the Administration Building. All the hard work was permeated with excitement and enthusiasm as we saw progress to goals and vision becoming reality!

• New administrative and faculty offices have been intentionallycreated near the centers of student activity with Student Life inthe Valley View Student Center, faculty in the Fellowship Center,and administration in the Schreiber Activity Center.

• We have moved out of the Administration Building in anticipationof its demolition.

• A new Center for Indian Ministries (CIM) welcome center is beingcreated from the former Ten Oaks Duplex near the entrance to theOak Hills campus in order to provide greater visibility and ease ofaccess. Volunteer involvement is moving this project along muchfaster than anticipated.

Alumni ProjectUpdate

Thank You...to our generous alumni!

In anticipation of transitioning offices and

classrooms out of the Administration

Building, the goal for this year’s alumni

project was to raise $15,000 to purchase

chapel chairs which double as classroom

desks. With your help and a generous

$7,500 matching gift, we exceeded the

goal and raised more than $24,000!

The extra funds helped pay for additional

matching chairs needed to complete the

transformation of the chapel.

Your contributions will serve

our students for years to come!

Campus Transformationwww.oakhills.edu

Update on Capital Campaign FinancesWe are excited to share recent developments about the campaign.

Efforts over the past months to put the structures in place to support a successful capital campaign are now generating increasing interest and participation in the campaign. We have visited with a number of key donors who are passionate about God’s work at Oak Hills. We praise God for the following report on the participation of God’s people and the financial progress.

Celebrating God’s Provision for Oak Hills• President Steve Hostetter and Joan Berntson, Vice President for Advancement have met with a

number of key donors in the past few months and we are grateful to report that there has been agenerous response at this early stage.

• Join us in celebrating a recent generous gift of $100,000 from a local businessman who was introduced to the project by one of our board members.

• We continue to experience God’s blessing through the generosity of a growing and committedteam of donors whose financial gifts enable this first phase of transformation to move forward.

Phase 1 Campaign SummaryThis phase provides offices and services in four other buildings on campus, removes the Administration Building, replacing it with a new women’s residence hall.

Phase 1 Campaign Goal $2,200,000Gifts and Pledges $1,416,000Remaining Total Needed $ 784,000

Thank You!for your interest and involvement in the Lord’s work at Oak Hills.

We appreciate your continued prayers as we move forward in these exciting times.

Our Online and Distance Education serves people all over the globe.

• An active duty Marine deployed in the Pacific • A Bible Institute graduate working among orphans in South America

• A woman who works full-time and lives just abit too far away to attend courses on campus

• Other students include: pastors, a pastor’s wife, children and youthministry workers, a police officer, court administrator, para-professional educator, and more

Christians learning and living out their faithin their communities - that’s the beauty of online at Oak Hills!

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BACHELOR DEGREES• Business Administration (NEW THIS YEAR)• Leadership and Ministry

ASSOCIATE DEGREE• Biblical Studies and Ministry

Transformed by therenewing power ofthe Spirit of God

I first came to Oak Hills in the fall of 2011. I was 19, and for the previous10 or so years I had been pretending to be a Christian. I came to OakHills not to learn more about God, but to get away from home.

I had been raised in a churchgoing family. I always believed in God,and I believed that what the Bible said was true, but I was far fromready to relinquish control of my life to Him. I spent my first year atschool caring very little about my studies, but through them God beganto work in my heart. As I sang along one day during worship time, I sud-denly realized I wasn’t just lying to those around me, I was lying to God.I began to cry and a friend came over to ask why. I confessed, and heprayed I would choose to truly follow Jesus. I didn’t choose that night.

I graduated in the spring with a one year certificate, and went on toa year-long job I had lined up at a Bible camp. It was disastrous,and I quit in mid-August. That October, I had some minor surgery on my esophagus. It was an outpatient procedure, and there was little riskinvolved. As I lay in bed the night after the surgery, I began to feelstrange. My chest hurt, my heart was beating irregularly, and I feltnumbness creeping up my arms and legs. I thought I was about to die,and realized where I was going if I did. Despite that, I still didn’t chooseJesus that night. I went to the hospital and was told there was nothingwrong. They offered me some anxiety pills and sent me home.

Still I put off the decision: Would I follow Jesus or not? On December10th of 2012, I was sitting in my room listening to a song by Phil Keaggycalled “The True Believers.” As I listened to the song, the lyrics tuggedat my heart and a voice in my head said, “If you don’t choose to followJesus now, before you leave this room, you never will.” After severalminutes of mental anguish, I knelt down. I told Jesus I didn’t know exactly what it would mean, but I wanted to follow Him.

After that, God brought me back to Oak Hills and, for reasons unknown to me, placed me in the Pastoral Ministry program.As soon as there was an opening in the ice that spring, I was baptized.He brought wonderful friends into my life, and I have much to be thankfulfor. I don’t know where God will take me after I graduate, but the futureisn’t as frightening as it once was. I’ve learned that knowing what the future holds isn’t important. What is important is doing God’s will now,wherever He has placed you. Do your best to follow Him, and He willtake care of the rest. May God bless you.

Gunnar Kolstadis a senior at Oak Hills Christian College in the Pastoral Ministry program and is also a member of the Student ActionLeadership Team (SALT). After graduation he would like to stayin Northern Minnesota if the Lord provides.

College Lifewww.oakhills.edu

Transformation . . . an important theme in scripture

Dr. Wisdom

Dr. Jeff Wisdom is the ChristianMinistries department chair and

program director for PastoralMinistries at Oak Hills.

He obtained his Bachelor ofBiblical Science from WesternBible College in Morrison, CO;

and went on to earn a Master ofDivinity in Pastoral Ministry from

Gordon-Conwell TheologicalSeminary in South Hamilton,

MA and a Ph.D. in New Testament from the University

of Durham in Durham, England.

Dr. Wisdom is also the pastor ofSell Lake Community Church

near Shevlin, MN. He has beenwith Oak Hills Christian College

since 2004.

God takes us as we are and where we are, but he is not content toleave us there. Growth and change are regular, and even expected,characteristics of the Christian life in scripture.

I have been on sabbatical this past spring. This is a time of rest, refreshment, and reflection. It is a break from the regular routine of academic life and responsibility todevote significant time for growth, both personally and professionally.

During my sabbatical, I have focused my attention on a writing project on Galatians.My doctoral dissertation was on a key theme in Galatians. When I finished my degreeabout fifteen years ago, I had several people in a church who asked to read my dissertation. I appreciated their interest, but I advised against this attempt. A dissertationin any field is written for a very narrow audience. I did make a commitment then "to translate my dissertation into English!" My goal is to make some of the results ofmy study available for people in the church. And this is the task that I have pursuedon sabbatical.

An important theme in Galatians is the characteristic of the progressive growthtoward maturity in the Christian life. By the power of the Spirit, God intends to move us toward maturity in Christ. This maturity results in obedience to the law ofChrist (Galatians 6:2) and the production of the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23). All of this progressive growth is aimed at the fulfillment of the command to love one another (Gal 5:14).

This is not an expectation of perfection in this life. But it does recognize that God acceptsus as we are, but he does not leave us as we are. Gunnar is someone in whom Godhas been doing a work of transformation. He is a significantly changed young manfrom the freshman that I met a few years ago. But God is not done with him yet; thework of transformation continues day by day. God intends to transform each followerof Jesus into the very image of his beloved Son. Thanks be to God who accepts usas we are but who desires to make us like his Son by the work of the Spirit in us.

Camp Lifewww.campoakhills.com

Scott BuchanCamp Oak Hills Director

The new kitchen was readyfor summer camp 2014!

When a fire destroyed the camp kitchenlast September, the primary concern wasto have it rebuilt so that summer campwould continue without any interruption. Through God’s provision of manyskilled workers and generous giftsfrom friends of camp, we moved intothe new kitchen two days before the start of camp!

The dining hall project continues with these needs: install furnaces, finish off the newbasement rooms, paint the exterior, build an enclosure around the coolers, and finishthe walls and ceiling in the dining room as funds are available. This project marks thefirst major step in the transformation of Camp Oak Hills from a summer youth camp toa year-round camp ministry! Thank you to everyone who is taking part in this work!

Camp ministry is effective because it removes campers from normal daily distractions, immerses them in God’s word, shares the opportunity for new lifethrough Jesus, builds memories through adventures in the outdoors, and guides themwith spiritual leaders. We saw the fruit of God’s work in 41 young people receivingChrist’s gift of salvation, 8 rededicating their lives to Him, and 44 making other commitments in their walk with God!

Camp Staff 2014

CIM LifeCenter for Indian Ministries www.centerforindianministries.org

Classes begin at Mokahum Ministry Center

Mokahum Ministry Center kicked off the 2014-15 school year with six students representing tribes from Oklahoma to Canada. Two students arereturning in the second and third years of the ministry program, while fournew students are beginning the one-year discipleship program.

The biggest change for Mokahum this year is a restructuring of the curriculum that allows for third-year students to do an internship in theirfinal semester. The staff has seen a need for ministry students to getmore practical, “on-the-ground” experience in their chosen area of ministry, and the new internship program should help fill that gap.

Pray for our students:• Calvin (Ojibwe)• Terrence (Ojibwe)• Kevin (Ojibwe)• Alicia (Chippewa)• Michael (Muscogee Creek)• Jacob (Ojibwe)

Zane WilliamsCIM Director

investing in Oak Hills Christian College, Camp Oak Hills, and Center for Indian Ministries

A gift to an endowment can have a significant impact far into the future

Scholarship Endowment FundsA gift to an Oak Hills endowment helps fund scholarships forcampers, Native Americans and Oak Hills students. Alumni andfriends of all three ministries can designate a gift of any sizethrough their estate to these established funds.

• Presidential Scholarship Fund (Oak Hills Christian College)• Camp Oak Hills Scholarship Fund (Camp Oak Hills)• Mokahum Ministry Center Scholarship (Mokahum Ministry Center)

Named EndowmentsThere are also a number of named endowment college scholarships.These funds may receive gifts at any time or can be used to designate gifts for estate planning purposes.

• The Arthur Anderson Memorial Scholarship• The Robert Thompson Memorial Scholarship• The Laureen Vogel Memorial Scholarship• The Don Wagner Memorial Pastoral Scholarship• The Kenneth J. Wold Scholarship• The David A. Smith Memorial Scholarship (includes camper and

Mokahum scholarship funds)

A new endowment fund may be set up for an initial minimum gift of$25,000 and is often used to create a scholarship in memory or in honor of a loved one or faculty member.

For More information please talk to:• Your financial planner, tax professional or• Joan Berntson

Vice President for AdvancementOffice: 888-751-8670 ext. 1249 Cell: 218-766-2738

Special gifts to Oak Hills

We are grateful to those who think of this ministry as a vehicle to express their heartfelt respect and honor for important people in theirlives, and to invest in the work of the Kingdom of God in this world.

In Memory of: In Honor of:Betty Jo Buschman Nick HargettChaplain John K. DodgeLarry HaagFern HannanAlice KastnerLowell KastnerMillie LarsonBob ThoringKatherine UnderhillDixie Vollen

Advancement

IN MEMORY Our thoughts and prayers are with these families.

• Rev. Earl J. Wilder, Jr. (Former Oak Hills staff from 1968-1986)

• Timothy C. Johnson (’90)

• Sally Esther (Neadeau) May (’92)

FAMILY NEWS

• Matt & Jenny (Vincent) Nevala (Both ’98) The Nevalas are currently living in Honduras, serving children and families as part of the World Gospel Outreach.

Alumni News

Alumniwww.oakhills.edu • Alumni & Friends

BIRTHS 2014

• Chris (’13 MMC) & Janine (’12) BallardSon: Zachariah Alex born April 16, 2014. Weighed 9 lbs. 4 oz. and was 22” long.

• Shaun (’09) & Marta (Lesczynska ’08) BreilandSon: Jaxon Milo born April 26, 2014. Weighed 7 lbs. 5 oz. and was 20” long.

• Jacob (’13) & Nicolle (Harthan ’10) GieseSon: Jason Theodore born July 11, 2014. Weighed 3 lbs. 13 oz.

• David (’11) & Leetha OsburnsenSon: Hayden Isaiah born July 26, 2014. Weighed 8 lbs. 2 oz. and was 20.5” long. Joins big sister Bentleigh Grace (2).

• Eric (’13) & Carmen AakerSon: Liam James born September 9, 2014.

• Nathan & Casandra (Roy) Myrvik (Both ’11) Daughter: Brielle Renee born Sep. 30, 2014.Weighed 7 lbs. 5 oz. and was 20” long.

Alumni Connection at:

www.oakhills.edu • Alumni & Friends

• Alumni Directory - user name: alumni / password: connected

• Personal Updates - Keep us informed with your news and photos!

• Or email updates or news to: alumni@oakhills.edu

If you have Oak Hills student handbooks from before 1980 and would like to give or lend them to the archive department,

please contact us at alumni@oakhills.edu.

Having a baby? Pick up a complimentary Lil’ Oakie baby onesie* fromthe welcome center at Oak Hills. To have one mailed toyou, visit www.oakhills.edu/give (just pay shipping and handling).

Email a photo of your Lil' Oakie to alumni@oakhills.eduand he or she may be included in a future Directionnewsletter! *Available sizes: 6 month and 12 month

Henry Johnson Son of Rachel Johnson,

Director of Marketing at Oak Hills

Ezra Anderson Son of alumna

Bethany (McKain '06) Anderson

NONprOfIt Org.

U.S. pOStage

PAIDOak HIllS

fellOwSHIp, INc.

permIt #41

Oak Hills Christian College1600 Oak Hills Road SW, Bemidji, MN 56601

DIRECTIONMagazine

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Planning and Transformation...important themes in life and scripture