On Thursday, October 29, Tod Vogt, Mission Alive’s executive director, visited Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas, to share a vision and an invitation: imagine where God might be calling a new generation to cultivate innovative faith communities.
In conversations with campus ministry interns, Vogt explored the opportunities for ministry on university campuses. Together, they considered how new communities of faith could create space for students to encounter Jesus, form meaningful relationships, and engage the questions that shape university life. Vogt also joined Dr. Carl Williamson’s Evangelism and Church Planting class, connecting the work of starting new faith communities with spiritual formation and discernment. He encouraged students to imagine how their gifts and preparation might become part of God’s work—and how listening for God’s leading could shape their next steps.
The visit included preaching at two chapel services: Tabernacle, a gathering of undergraduate Bible majors, and a service hosted by the Harding School of Theology. In both settings, Vogt shared how Ezekiel 47 has shaped Mission Alive’s missional imagination and invited students to envision new possibilities for faithful ministry.
After meeting with Dr. Monte Cox, dean of the College of Bible and Ministry, Vogt joined approximately 15 students for a Mission Alive church-planting interest dinner. Their questions and enthusiasm brought the day’s conversations into focus. Students expressed tremendous excitement about interning with Mission Alive’s innovative faith communities, or IFCs, and potentially launching their own communities.
Vogt left Harding grateful and encouraged. What began as an invitation to imagine became a conversation about concrete possibilities: internships, new communities, and lives offered in faithful response to God’s call.
Please join Mission Alive in praying for Harding University and these students—that they will discern God’s leading, grow in courage and faith, and discover their part in cultivating innovative faith communities where new life can flourish.