Alexis Hammond - Student Spotlight

Alexis Hammond is one of the amazing students whom God has led to SCU this year and she is already impacting those around her. The journey to Southwestern Christian University was not always a certain path, but God has provided for all of her need.

            I am honored and humbled to have been given the opportunity to share a testimony of God’s goodness today. So, let me tell you a story: During my senior year of high school, my mother presented Southwestern Christian University as an option for application. I prayed about it and heard God telling me to come here, so I listened. Less than a week later, my mom and I drove 32 hours from California. I immediately fell in love with the school and the atmosphere on campus. After applying, we drove home. That was it, I was completely content with the idea of going to Southwestern Christian University.

That is, until I allowed other people to put doubt in my mind. Suddenly I wasn’t as sure that it was God calling me out here. On New Years Eve, I prayed and God told me that I could either stay in California or move to Oklahoma— the choice was mine. He would grow me either way. I decided right then and there that I would be staying in California and not be attending SCU that coming fall. I did my absolute best to forget about Southwestern and the joy I felt on campus.

I had fully succeeded in convincing myself that I was supposed to stay in California when I started The Awakening’s Summer Internship. By the end of the summer, God had completely wrecked my plans and I am honestly better for it. That summer, we travelled to Kenya, Hungary, Ukraine, and Cuba for missions. There was an underlying feeling of unrest in my spirit that I tried to suppress and ignore.

By Ukraine, I could no longer hide it, so I did what I thought would be smartest. I took it to God and told Him that I want to walk in His will for my life. But also, on a side note, I needed to know by the end of that week if He was changing my plans so I could make arrangements. He then told me something that changed my entire outlook on life. He said that I always say I want to walk in His will but I never give Him full control by allowing it to be His way. He tested my patience by telling me I would have answers by the end of Cuba.

While I wanted to know right then and there, I knew I had to submit myself to His authority and wait. I agreed for the first time in my life to give up control and let God do what was best. So, I waited. We landed in Cuba and I immediately was impatient and expected answers. But God was faithful to what He promised me and waited until the end of Cuba to talk to me about my plans and His plans. He told me that while it was my choice to either stay and grow in California or leave and grow in Oklahoma, that He would grow me more in one place than the other. In that moment, I surrendered my life to God and decided that I was going to have to tell my parents that in a few short weeks I would be moving to Oklahoma in order to attend Southwestern Christian University.

My parents recognized that God spoke to me and that if He wants to send me that He will provide for me as well. The Lord continued to show that His hands were all over the situation. While I did not plan on attending Southwestern until mid-July, God continued to open doors and provide for me. I was able to come to this school and I am so blessed to be here. God’s undeniable favor and His abundant blessings have come in over me like a flood.

I truly believe that I was called to be on this campus for a reason. I am so blessed to be able to call Southwestern Christian University the school that is going to prepare and equip me for my future. Thank you for providing a place for me to grow deeper in my relationship with God and stronger in my faith and trust in the Lord. I look forward to spending the next four years of my life being prepared for my future in this school.