Ugather

A personal anecdote

On Thursday, the 15th, Union had its first uGather of the new semester. The speaker and coordinator of the event was Ariel Patterson. The atmosphere was lively as people took to their seats and engaged in conversation with each other. The worship team started off the praise with the song Shout to the Lord and ended on The Power of Your Love which was beautiful to hear. Afterwards, announcements were rolling out with some notable items, including HeartScan presented by Buell Fogg and Union’s new SALT program presented by Felicia Sanders, the outreach coordinator for the initiative. During the section, the audience took the surprise of learning of Kim Canine’s birthday, with all joining in on a happy birthday chant, which was all fun and joyous. 

Patterson took to the stage after a short introduction by Jolina Schaber, Union’s student chaplain. Ariel gave acknowledgement to the previous coordinator and prayed to start her talk. She proceeded to give the audience a question for discussion: What is your favorite season? After much deliberation, Patterson shared her thoughts. Her favorite season is summer. She expanded on possible other interpretations of seasons, which led her to introduce the concept of the season of waiting. Ariel summarized her life in Florida and her experience in Colorado. She stated that she felt a mix of emotions when her life flipped upside down.

To drive the point across, she shared music lyrics by “Seasons” by Hillsong Worship. Patterson wove into her message God's choice to get involved with humanity to save it instead of staying back and watching it destroy itself. She reflected on her own life, saying that if her life did not have the twists and turns it had, she would not be the person that she is in the present. Ariel encouraged the audience to trust God in their own season of waiting, whether it is in academic work, dating, or career choices. 

For those reading this article, I would highly recommend attending all the uGathers you can. Messages like the one from this article have impacted me personally, and I think anyone can benefit from stories like this. To see more stories like this, search Union Adventist University Live on YouTube and watch the programs anytime.

By Jared Lorenzo