Andrews University held its Spring Week of Prayer from Jan. 26–30. With the theme of “Unburdened,” students focused on the theme of forgiveness and its role in personal, faith and campus life with powerful messages from the week's speaker, Kessia Reyne Bennett.
Bennett serves as the lead pastor of the Pleasant Valley Church in Oregon and has shared from a wide range of pastoral and academic experiences. She has previously ministered at College View Church on the campus of Union Adventist University, Paw Paw Church in Michigan and in church plants in Illinois, as well as serving as the chaplain at Southern Adventist University and as a consultant for Adventist ministries. She has a doctorate in systematic theology from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, a master of divinity from Andrews University, and undergraduate degrees in intercultural communication and ministerial theology from Southern Adventist University. She and her husband, Joshua, have two daughters.
When asked how she prepared for this week, Bennett explained that this process began with a lot of prayer and reflection. “I prayed about this topic over the course of months,” she said, noting that there were several themes that initially stood out to her, including the importance of church, the cost of following Jesus, and what she described as “the unburdened conscience.”
After having a conversation with an Andrews University freshman during Christmas break, she ultimately settled on the theme of forgiveness as the focus for the week, which was a subject she had addressed many times before. She revisited earlier materials and outlined the structure for the week, originally planning five sermons, but later adjusting the schedule to include a Friday evening service. As part of her preparation, she explained that she read new material on forgiveness, revisited past sermons, and continued in prayer before selecting the subtopics for each day, and collaborated with others on campus to finalize her sermon titles and other visual elements. She also shared how several sermons were significantly revised after arriving on campus.
“There have been two messages that I have totally rewritten when I had the sense that what I had planned was not what the Spirit wanted me to say,” she explained. She also added that Tuesday and Friday’s messages were rewritten entirely, saying, “I would rather be obedient to what I understand God to be telling me,” she said, “even if it means doing more work and feeling less prepared, than being fully prepared and disobedient.”
When asked how forgiveness could contribute to healthier relationships and unity on campus, Bennett emphasized that forgiveness is essential for healthy relationships and a positive campus culture. “We are all the time hurting each other’s feelings or dropping the ball on our responsibilities or misunderstanding each other, so we are all the time needing to receive and give mercy and forgiveness,” she said. Without it, she noted, “a relationship… of keeping a strict record of wrongs… will quickly turn into a deadlock of icy emotional standoffs.” She also added that forgiveness involves accountability for one’s own actions and compassion towards others. “We can do our reckoning and release without any conversation, but often a direct and loving engagement is really required for the integrity of everyone involved,” she explained. Ultimately, she said, unity on campus doesn’t mean perfection, but accepting one another as God has accepted us, made possible through forgiveness.
Students in attendance noted that the topic really resonated with challenges commonly faced in the world today. Freshman Joy Broderick said, “This week of prayer reminded me of things about myself that I need to improve on as far as my relationship with God. I took forgiveness for granted, but the sermons helped me get a clearer picture of what true forgiveness is and how I can forgive others more genuinely.”
Additionally, students were very blessed by the praise and worship. Senior Taznir Smalling, one of the singers involved, said that the “week of prayer has always been inspiring during my years at Andrews. As a senior living off campus, I couldn’t go as much as I wanted to, but God allowed me to sing on Friday, which was the last day! This proves that God knows each and every desire of our hearts and he cares enough to give them to us as long as it is within his will.”
In addition to the morning services, the Friday evening vespers provided space for further reflection and discussion. The week concluded with an emphasis on applying principles of forgiveness beyond just the worship setting, but into daily interactions wherever we go. Week of Prayer offered students a structured pause from the busyness of the week, and gave a time for worship and reflection with their fellow students. This semester’s focus on forgiveness encouraged everyone to consider how grace, accountability, and reconciliation can shape both personal faith and their own lives at Andrews and beyond.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.