|
Asa admits
it's pretty challenging to be a Christian in Washington,
which he describes as a city full of "self-importance
and ambition." But his years at Huntington helped him rise to
the challenge. |
Blessed.
That’s how Asa Swan, a 1999 alumnus, describes his years at Huntington.
Serving as student-body president for two years, acting in five
college plays, and graduating magna cum laude top his list
of accomplishments.
But Asa’s years at
Huntington weren’t just about a young man taking life by storm. God had
a plan for Asa, and Asa’s college years had much more to do with
an inner change than building a power-packed resume.
As a transfer student,
Asa was looking for a school with a stronger emphasis on Christian
life.
"I didn’t even
want to look at Huntington, but an overnight campus visit changed
my mind," he explains. "I was so impressed with the fact
that the guys in my suite didn’t curse or talk about getting
drunk or having sex. Instead, they asked, ‘How is your
relationship with Jesus?’ I was floored. By morning, I had
completely changed my mind about Huntington."
A chapel service one
month into Asa’s Huntington experience confirmed that he had made the
right choice. "The Holy Spirit touched me in a way that I
don’t think I’d ever experienced before." In that moment,
Asa realized that God loved him and wanted an intimate
relationship with him. "That’s why he brought me to
Huntington," he says. "I’m a preacher’s kid, and I always
had a relationship with God, but that was the moment I knew God
was real and that he was calling me."
This spiritual
awakening opened the door for God to lead Asa in a new way.
"Before I came to Huntington, I knew what I wanted to do with my
life, and I wanted God to come with me," Asa says. Instead,
he learned that "God walks ahead of me, and I walk in His
footsteps and follow Him."
That path has led Asa
to graduate school at Western Kentucky University, where he
studied history, especially the role of tobacco in Kentucky
politics, which became the topic of his master’s thesis.
Asa currently serves
as a legislative assistant to Kentucky Republican Congressman Ron
Lewis, researching the issues of foreign policy and abortion,
keeping the representative up to date on any bill that comes up
for a vote in these areas. He admits it’s pretty challenging to
be a Christian in Washington, which he describes as a city full of
"self importance and ambition." But Asa’s years at Huntington
helped him rise to the challenge.
For Asa, knowing how
to write a well-thought-out argument was key. He especially
appreciates Dr. William Hasker’s ethics class. "After 40
years of being in philosophy, Dr. Hasker still has a deep and
vital relationship with Jesus," Asa says. "His course
really challenged a lot of my personal views and
perspectives."
In addition, Asa cites
Dr. Dwight Brautigam’s American Constitutional History class as
especially helpful. "We studied the principles that our
nation was founded on," principles Asa relies on daily in his
life in Washington.
The relationships Asa
formed with these professors was just as key as what he learned
from them in the classroom. "They mentored me. They lived
transparent lives," he says. Asa still remembers the day
Brautigam opened class by "asking us to pray for him because
he was having a rough day." As role models, these
professors-as well as Dr. Paul Michelson and Dr. Linda Urschel-helped
him to see that you can be an intellectual and a Christian.
Discover
what Huntington University can do for you.
Are you interested in studying
history at a Christian college?
Tell us about your dreams and aspirations, and we'll respond immediately
with a custom viewbook made just for you! Build
one now! |
Asa is also thankful
for the off-campus learning opportunities he experienced during
his Huntington years. He worked for Elizabeth Dole’s
presidential campaign, focusing on the straw pole in Des Moines,
Iowa, his first hands-on experience with politics.
Through these
experiences at Huntington, Asa’s worldview "expanded hugely,"
he says. "Huntington helped me form that Christian perspective on the
world that is so key. I now have a deep desire to see things the
way God sees them."
Asa’s advice to
future Huntington students interested in government and politics?
"If you’re
interested in politics and Huntington, do it," he says. "The
professors at Huntington have such wisdom about life and all the issues
that you face as a public servant. You will leave with a
foundation that is solid. Without that, you won’t last."
|
