I hope this finds each of you well and blessed. My name is Cameron Warner, I am 28 years old, the husband to a beautiful wife and a father of three little girls – and a new baby on the way!  I am blessed to be serving in full-time ministry as an ordained pastor up in Idaho Falls, Idaho at a church named Watersprings Church. My hobbies include a for love painting, and being in the beauty of the great outdoors. In ministry, The Lord has opened the door where I get to serve in a variety of ways… in Kids Ministry pointing them to Jesus as the answer, in Biblical Counseling I attempt to demonstrate Jesus’ example, while teaching evangelism and leading missions it’s my desire to display Jesus as the only solution. My goal is to make Jesus famous and the hero of everyone’s story. My time at CCU pursuing my Bachelor’s in Biblical studies has helped prepare me for this mission.

Classes like Biblical Interpretation and Doctrines of the Bible along with several other Bible book classes have better prepared me for the open doors of ministry that the Lord brings my way.  This preparation makes me think of Ezra the Priest. In Ezra 7:1-7 we see “the hand of the Lord” was upon Ezra as he was committed to being skilled at the Word of God.  He knew God’s Word! This gave him favor not only with God but with the earthly king of Babylon. When we are skilled in God’s Word, it has a huge impact on our relationship with God, and an impact on everyone around us! Does your skill with the Word of God spill over into other parts of your life?

In Ezra 7:8-10 we see that although Ezra set his heart upon teaching God’s word to those in Israel, he spent all his time while in Babylon preparing by learning God’s Word and practicing it! Ezra was not just waiting and wishing he could teach! He was diligent to study and prepare for future ministry. He used his time in waiting well. What a lesson for us. Ezra set his heart on LEARNING, DOING, and then teaching.  Sometimes we tend to get things out of order. We want to teach, to lead, and to speak into other’s lives, but we need to remember that we first need to focus on learning and doing ourselves!

In 7:11-20 Ezra was given an opportunity by the king to fulfill what he had purposed in his heart to do.  When we are dedicated to learning, doing, and teaching God’s Word, it has a huge impact on our relationship with God, and an impact on everyone around us!  The Lord has given each of us the privilege of preparing in His Word for a life of fruitful service – make the most of it!

May the good hand of the Lord be upon each of you as you dedicate yourself to the Word of the Lord.  

With His Joy,

Cameron Warner

BABS in Biblical Studies

By Codie Winslow, Director of Library and Learning Resources

There is an inherent implication to pursuing an education – you want to learn. Often times it can be difficult to grasp concepts outside of our worldview, and we have opportunities to do just that within the context of the research and learning required through our programs of study. 

Here’s a new library resource recently added to the Calvary Chapel University Library that may prop the door open for curious learners interested in gaining understanding. World-Wide Religious News is a resource that curates published news on religious topics from all over the world. The Mission of WWRN is to provide the international academic and legal community (as well as various government agencies) with up to date religious news and the non-profit was initiated with the goal of promoting religious freedom and tolerance.

As the website outlines, “Throughout history, religion has proved to be a central component of society and human experience, shaping how individuals think and interact with their society and culture, both in an immediate as well as global context. WWRN’s service provides a nexus to information that highlights the unique interplay of religion and society and how this impacts the world of today.” 

The site is easy to navigate. There are three tabs across the top – you can search by religions, regions, and themes. In addition, there is an About section that explains more on the objectives of WWRN.

WWRN endeavors to provide a source of information on the following:

• Trends relating to new religious movements

• Religious freedom issues
• Legislation being enacted around the world affecting religion
• “Anti-cult” and “counter-cult” trends
• Government reports on religion and human rights
• Academic profiles on religious groups
• Links to other Web sources supplying information on religion

As a part of your academic journey at Calvary Chapel University, for academic programs in the College of Biblical Studies or for personal growth, you may find World-Wide Religious News to be a worthwhile resource. It might also make a good read or seed for sparking conversation with others around the topic of religion.