Insights Blog

Cedarville Insights provides answers to your pressing questions about Microsoft Word, Excel, and Powerpoint, as well as college undergraduate and graduate programs, theological and philosophical questions, and general purpose information.

Worship Leader, Your Greatest Ability May Be ...

Worship team leading worship in chapel by Roger O'Neel, Ph.D.

originally posted on worshipleader.com

As a professor, I get the opportunity to work with undergraduate and graduate students every day. Our purpose statement is “ Equipping Worshipers to Serve.” Part of “equipping” is training students musically to prepare them to serve the local church. Currently, our constituent churches (the churches that send us students and where our students go to serve) use primarily contemporary worship styles, typically involving praise bands and vocalists.

How long will this be the case? Will our current “contemporary” style be the style for most churches 5, 10 or 20 years from now? Will the role of a worship pastor continue to be the primary vocalist or instrumentalist? What new musical styles will impact the church? What models or forms of worship will change the way we “do” church?

I tell my students that their greatest ability may be flexibility.

Posted in Graduate Certificate in Worship Leadership MA Worship and Theology Worship

Think Before You Click: Using Dating Apps

Girl clicking on cell phone Dating apps have become popular among college students, but are they safe to use? Is it possible to use them in a God-honoring and self-protecting way? It is, but you should follow important safety guidelines.

Let's start with two general principles:

Know the general reputation of a dating app before you sign up. Not all dating apps are created equally in standards of conduct and the culture of participation. There are some apps out there that wisdom would tell you to not even sign up and get started with a group that is not likely to be edifying.
Make sure you are emotionally ready for a relationship. As an image-bearer, you are valuable and do not need anyone else to complete you. If you are not ready to date and navigate a relationship, that is OK. The best thing you can do to protect yourself is to not step into online relationship spaces while you are in a season of healing or when personal growth should be the priority.

Posted in Title IX

Did You Know? Facts About Master's Degrees

Did you know that jobs that require a master’s degree at an entry-level are projected to grow by 15% between 2019 to 2029? Or that nearly 2/3 of students finishing a baccalaureate degree plan to complete a master’s degree? How about that nearly 1/4 of master's degree recipients in 2018-19 were underrepresented minorities, giving them a critical pathway to job security and higher pay?

Posted in Master of Athletic Training MBA MDiv MMin MSN PharmD

Think Before You Click: Protecting Yourself as an Image-Bearer – Clues to Spot a Sexual Scam

Girl clicking on cell phone Sextortion … revenge porn … catfishing … Did you know that college students are at a very high risk for all of these? (Yes, even Cedarville students!) And not just women are at risk – college-age men are increasingly finding themselves victims of sexual scams. Read this full post to find out about protecting yourself as an image-bearer by identifying clues to spot a sexual scam.

Posted in Title IX

Balancing Job, Family, and Grad School: 5 Principles for Christian Nurses

Nurse practitioner standing in front of patient “How do you do it?”

That was usually the question that people asked after they discovered that I was enrolled full time as a graduate student in the dual-track Nurse Educator and Family Nurse Practitioner focus areas in the M.S.N. program at Cedarville University. As a wife, mom of three under 12, contingent nurse at an inpatient hospital unit, adjunct clinical professor, and active member of the church, I understood why they were asking. When I felt the Lord calling me to pursue a degree as a nurse educator and family nurse practitioner, I entered with prayerful fear and trembling. Hanging over my computer — where I have spent countless hours (many during a pandemic and many during long nights) — were the following 5 guiding principles that helped me balance my job, family, and graduate school.

Posted in MSN

Think Before You Click: Protecting Your Fellow Image-Bearers

Girl clicking on cell phone As we increasingly experience life through our online communities, we need to remember Jesus’ calling to love our neighbor as ourselves. Everyone on our social is our neighbor! Sexual harassment and abuse in our online spaces has dramatically increased. As image-bearers we cannot see online abuse as normal or less serious than what may happen in person. We each have the ability and voice to create a safe and respectful online space. But we must use it!

If you notice someone being harassed or abused in an online space, use methods of Bystander Intervention to Speak Up! for those who are experiencing online harassment and abuse.

Posted in Title IX

8 Reasons to Pursue an MBA From a Christian University

There are a lot of options when choosing an MBA. As a follower of Christ, is it really that important to choose an MBA from a Christian university? Isn't business the same anywhere? Turns out it is not.

Read about 8 reasons why it's important to choose a Christian university as you pursue an MBA.

Posted in MBA

Think Before You Click: Reflecting and Preserving the Image of God

Welcome to April! I love that in the month of April we get to experience how our Creator redeems the darkness of winter as He brings us the warmth and growth of spring. We have a God who seeks to renew and redeem the experiences of our lives, and He has called us to participate in His work of redemption as we bear His image to others.

As we look for ways to participate in the work of redeeming the darkness, Cedarville University will be observing Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Our theme for this year is “Think Before You Click: Building Online Communities of Image-Bearers.”

We have chosen this theme because as technology has become such a significant part of our everyday lives, a student’s risk to be exploited or experience harassment has increased. It is up to each of us at Cedarville to speak up to prevent sexual harassment and exploitation in the virtual community that we are currently living in.

During this month we hope to provide practical tips on how to protect yourself from sexual scams and exploitation, how to protect others by understanding consent in the online world and through bystander intervention, and how to stay safe using dating apps.

Posted in Title IX

Future Success Depends on Innovation

Woman standing in front of whiteboard

According to a McKinsey survey of top executives, 84% acknowledged that the future success of their companies will depend on innovation. That makes sense if you accept the most basic definitions of innovation: the activity of new ideas, products, and processes.

The problems that businesses, startups, sole proprietors, corporations, ministries, educational institutions all face is that problems have become more complex and the timelines to address change is shorter than...

Posted in MA in Innovation MBA

Shortage of Clergy Coming?

Man standing in front of small group study We are living in challenging times. We have endured two years of a global pandemic, which has led to millions of deaths worldwide. We have experienced political and financial uncertainty in our nation. We have witnessed increased violence in our largest cities and now watch in horror at the loss of innocent lives in Ukraine. The world needs the message of hope found only in the Gospel.

These challenging times provide opportunities for theologically trained, ministry-equipped individuals to make a difference in people's lives. Ministry leaders and pastors are desperately needed right now.

Unfortunately, it is also a time when, according to a recent Relevant article, there is a shortage of clergy coming. The article cites an October study from the Barna group that found that 38% of pastors were at least considering leaving full-time ministry. The concern is even higher for Millennial pastors; around 50 percent of them are considering quitting.

Posted in MDiv MMin