As a Colorado native, Wade never really wanted to move to Texas. But sometimes God has other plans.
Wade hasn’t been a traditional type of student. After high school, he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. He didn’t want to waste time or money attending a university when he wasn’t sure what he really wanted, so when a friend told him about a small Bible school overseas in Austria, he thought, Why not? “When I signed up, I wasn’t really a Christian. I just thought it would be a cool experience with some great people,” Wade says with a laugh. “But the Lord did a work in my heart, and my passion for the Word, for telling people about God, and for the outdoors grew.” He came back a different person, but one thing was the same: he still wasn’t completely sure what he wanted to do for school.
He spent time traveling and mountaineering until he made the decision to start pursuing his bachelor’s degree in outdoor leadership with a nearby college, but The King’s University kept popping up in his head. He thought it was because there was a TKU extension campus in Colorado Springs that was affiliated with the church his family went to, but as he prayed about it, he heard the Lord tell him he didn’t need a degree in outdoor leadership, but he would need one that coincided with his other passions: digging into His Word and sharing that with the world. When Wade looked closer at The King’s University, he realized the evangelism and missions degree (now called the cross-cultural ministry degree) was the perfect fit.
This Jesus-loving outdoorsman attended TKU in Colorado Springs for a time, and then got down on one knee and proposed to his girlfriend. She said yes, and during their engagement, they started feeling like they weren’t meant to stay in Colorado Springs. The option of going to The King’s University main campus in Southlake, Texas, was always there (even though neither one of them were super excited it was in Texas), but they visited several other schools before finally deciding to visit The King’s University in Southlake.
Wade and his fiancé visited TKU on a Wednesday and were able to attend chapel and tour the campus. They were blown away by how open and welcoming the school and its staff were, and afterward they took a short drive to Gateway’s Southlake Campus. “We walked in and there was no one there,” Wade says. “But as we roamed the campus, we said to each other, ‘This is home. This is where we are supposed to be.’” It was one of those defining moments.
They made the big move from Colorado to Texas, now as husband and wife, and Wade started attending The King’s University in Southlake shortly after. As a new transplant to Texas and with the knowledge that the main campus was larger than the extension one in Colorado, he was a little nervous about what he’d find. But at new student orientation, he ended up having a lengthy conversation with former TKU President, John Spurling, which spoke volumes to Wade. “The focus on relationship and community is coming from the top down,” Wade says. “And as a result, the community atmosphere here at the main campus is like jumping into deep water after wading in only a couple inches for so long. There’s so much available, and I look forward to the day-to-day community.” Wade came to TKU newly married, new to Texas, and new to full-time school, but everyone—from his professors to those in the Success Center to his fellow students—made the transition seamless.
With a few semesters under his belt, Wade is loving Texas, loving Gateway, and loving TKU. He is keeping his expectancy high as he waits to see where God will take him next. He believes some kind of international ministry is ahead, so he is soaking in all the knowledge and information he can while he’s here. “I love TKU’s approach to teaching ministry. It’s a breath of fresh air,” Wade says. “I know other people who have gone to Bible school only to have their passion destroyed and their faith on the line, but in every class at The King’s University, I’m challenged to discover my passion, walk in sonship, and pursue a deeper relationship with the Lord.”