Elijah was a runner. After the showdown on Mt. Carmel, the prophet ran 25 miles in the strength of the Lord all the way to Jezreel, leading the king in his chariot. (1 Kings 18:46). About 375 years later, a man named Pheidippides supposedly ran from Marathon to Athens to announce a Greek victory over Persia in battle. After his 25-mile run (not 26.2), he collapsed and died. What a contrast!
Elijah didn’t only not die after his run, he never died. He would go on to restore the Schools of the Prophets that Samuel had initially established but had fallen into disrepair during the time of apostasy.
Weimar
One such modern-day School of the Prophets is Weimar University, with the mission and goal of preparing modern-day Elijahs to be ready and help others be ready for translation at Christ’s return. To support needy students, the students and staff are participating in the annual “Lake Tahoe Marathon Event,” asking for sponsors to pledge support for them for each mile run. Last year, donors sponsored 26 runners and gave close to $150,000, helping many students with their tuition. This year, the goal is to raise over $500,000. And with over 150 runners, both of Faculty and students, we hope to raise even more awareness. Our team captain himself (Dr. Paul Ratsara) is going to run the entire 72 miles around the whole of Lake Tahoe again. That is leading by example! He said, "We run for a good cause and participation, not to exalt ourselves. We don’t believe in competition but rather cooperation and partnership.” His pain will be the student’s gain as we spread the word about this fundraiser.
At the end of the run this Sunday, October 15, 2023, the many hundreds of runners will have an opportunity to stop by our extra-large Health Expo that will be run by students and staff of Weimar University.
How to Sponsor a Runner
The Weimar.edu website lists all the runners for the 72-mile, Marathon, Half-Marathon, 10km, and 5km categories on this webpage. If you want to search for an individual runner, go to this page and click “+Add Runners.” You can add as many runners as you want. Sponsorship is by the mile. In our case, my wife, myself, and our three kids are all running the 5k. You could sponsor all of us! To be clear, sponsorship doesn’t go directly to any student’s account but to the scholarship fund, making it possible for more students to pursue a Christ-centered, mission-focused education (including me and other needy students). That is why every donation will matter. Here is a promo video that gives more information:
Why Support Weimar Students?
Weimar University is a private Seventh-day Adventist school that receives no government funding or church subsidy, depending primarily upon supporters and tuition. But, many students who desire to come to Weimar need help to afford to do so. Many come solely by faith. However, because of work-study programs (as Ellen White said each school should have) and sponsorships from generous Adventists who love True Education, the school has a history of graduating nearly 57% of their students with zero debt and over 71% with under $2000 of debt! But this doesn’t happen without the support of those who appreciate the mission and message of the University.
You may have heard that Weimar University recently became accredited. This is true. There are many critics of accreditation, insisting that it involves compromise of the faith. I used to have my doubts, as well. But this is simply not true. Dr. Nedley explains: “The accreditation doesn’t compromise our beliefs as a distinctively Seventh-day Adventist experience. It only holds us to the standard that we are meeting our mission.” Not one principle of our faith was compromised in the slightest to achieve this benefit. And a benefit it is for spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Accreditation of Adventist Schools
On September 21, 1909, Ellen White stated:
We want none of that kind of “higher education” that will put us in a position where the credit must be given, not to the Lord God of Israel, but to the god of Ekron. The Lord designs that we shall stand as a distinct people, so connected with Him that He can work with us. Let our physicians realize that they are to depend wholly upon the true God.
I felt a heavy burden this morning when I read over a letter that I found in my room, in which a plan was outlined for having medical students take some work at Loma Linda, but to get the finishing touches of their education from some worldly institution (Ellen White, Manuscript 71, 1909).
W.C. White asked his mother in response:
“Jesus said at one time, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: all therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works.” [Matthew 23:2, 3.] Now the law says that a man shall not practice medicine unless he has a diploma from a college, and unless he has passed the examination of the state board and has a certificate. The law would not recognize the diplomas of our physicians unless they have studied some things that we do not think are really essential. For instance, in their preparation they have to study a number of things that we think they might get along without, but we can teach them. We do not have to teach these subjects in their way; we can teach them in our way. When it comes to the study of drugs, they teach how to give them. We can teach the dangers of using them, and how to get along without them. In some other schools they teach geology on the evolution basis. We can teach geology and show that evolution is false (Ibid).
She responded: “Well, you must plan these details yourselves. I have told you what I have received, but these details you will have to work out for yourselves.”
J.A. Burden then said, "It seems clear to me that any standing we can lawfully have without compromising is not out of harmony with God’s plan.”
And Ellen White closed the conversation by saying:
No, it is not. All I can say is that I have had very distinct light, however, that there is danger of our limiting the power of the holy One of Israel. He is the God of the universe. Our influence is dependent upon our carrying out the Word of the living God. We weaken our powers by not placing our dependence upon God and taking hold of His strength. This is our privilege (Ibid).
Some were unclear about whether it was appropriate for the College of Medical Evangelists to be accredited. So, a committee was appointed to approach Sister White with the question: Did she mean a Bible school that trains competent medical missionaries or a medical school that does that as well as one that “will qualify the students ... to pass state board examinations and become registered, qualified physicians for public work”?
Her answer was clear when she answered on January 25, 1910:
The light given me is, We must provide that which is essential to qualify our youth who desire to be physicians, so that they may intelligently fit themselves to be able to stand the examinations required to prove their efficiency as physicians. . . . The medical school at Loma Linda is to be of the highest order…. And for the special preparation of those of our youth who have clear convictions of their duty to obtain a medical education that will enable them to pass the examinations required by law of all who practice as regularly qualified physicians, we are to supply whatever may be required, so that these youth need not be compelled to go to medical schools conducted by men not of our faith. (Ellen White, Medical Ministry, p. 57)
From this point forward, it became clear that Adventists need Adventist schools to fulfill the healing ministry of Christ globally. Too often, our young people would go to be trained as medical missionaries in secular schools and lose their way. By meeting regional accreditation standards without compromise, they were to be the head and not the tail in medical lines. Of course, the temptation to compromise would come, and the line between appropriate accommodations and unholy union with the world would be blurred, if not, in some cases, obliterated. By God’s grace, this is not in Weimar University’s future.
Accreditation is not evil as long as the recognition does not result in compromise. If this should ever be a test, however hard, I am confident that the leadership at the school is prepared to choose God over a denial of faith. That time might come as the end nears; however, until it does, reason and inspiration agree: take advantage of open doors and opportunities for the gospel of the kingdom. “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15-16).
It's Not Accreditation – It’s Government Money that is The Problem
Not all government help is bad. But we better be careful when that government help comes with strings attached. If your local city offered your church 10 acres in a prime location entirely for free, jump on it. If they said it's yours if you host the city council once a month, run the other way. Any strings attached, however thin, are too much.
I’m not opposed to government grants and scholarships if that money is unfettered from conditions and isn’t given preferentially. However, when Christian schools accept scholarships, it handcuffs them to the policies of the money-giver. By taking the money, the schools are forced to enroll LGBT students and not “discriminate” on who they hire. They’ll have to start tearing off the “Men” and “Women” signs from the bathrooms. What they teach comes under scrutiny. And once the money starts flowing, shutting that faucet off will be virtually impossible. The school will be faced with a “compromise or die” scenario. Attorney Michael Peabody writes about this danger and the implications of the recent Supreme Court decision Carson v Makin (6/21/22) in this article.
When students decide to attend Weimar University, they come fully aware that the Lord will be their help, not Uncle Sam. So, scholars step out in faith and come through work-study opportunities, savings accounts, personal appeals for support, and fundraisers like this Lake Tahoe Scholarship Run.
Schools of the Prophets – “To Heal a Hurting World”
We are the church of Laodicea, though we don’t like to admit it. Satan is taking strategic aim at God’s church, and we are not awake to recognize it, much less resist it. Biblical education is more critical now than ever. Our children have been basking in the enemy's darkness until every bit of light is painful to them (John 3:19-21). Jesus calls us out of the world in no uncertain terms. Yet we read of schools bearing our God-given name force-feeding the youth profane works of Satan and calling it education. This isn’t just the recipe for spiritual indigestion; it is a poison that will spiritually destroy them.
No one would claim that Weimar is perfect, but notice:
“The youth are to be encouraged to attend our schools, which should become more and more like the schools of the prophets. Our schools have been established by the Lord; and if they are conducted in harmony with His purpose, the youth sent to them will quickly be prepared to engage in various branches of missionary work. Some will be trained to enter the field as missionary nurses, some as canvassers, some as evangelists, some as teachers, and some as gospel ministers. (Ellen White, Fundamentals of Christian Education, 489).
More and more. We should aim higher in our school systems, not seeking ways to compete with the world or prepare our students to simply make a “success” of life. There is a perishing world to win and no time to spare. Let us fit up workers for the Kingdom of God! And don’t forget the inspired statement that says: “I wish to tell you that soon there will be no work done in ministerial lines but medical missionary work” (Ellen White, Evangelism, 523)
I like what Dr. Neil Nedley said: “God has provided us a unique opportunity to provide tools through higher education to accomplish our vision, ‘To Heal a Hurting World,’ and our mission of modeling and producing leaders in medical missionary work.”
My Story
The story of my arrival at Weimar is like so many of the other students here on campus. Full of miracles and God’s providence. Heeding God's clear leading, I enrolled in the MA in Biblical Mission and Wellness at Weimar University this fall. I was working in southern Indiana as a local pastor and serving as one of the Indiana Conference evangelists. After a conversation with my Conference President, Elder Vic Van Schaik, about church growth, church planting, and education, he told me about this new Medical Missionary master’s program at Weimar. He encouraged me to speak to a fellow pastor from the first cohort of this program. While praying together about a possible opportunity here, I received a text that I found out later was from Dr. Nedley asking me if I would be interested in this new medical missionary program.
A dozen miracles later, we had uprooted from Indiana, and the five of us moved into the HopeMobile (our evangelism RV) and drove across the nation to Weimar just before classes started. The training I have received thus far has been invaluable. Because of the University initiative called Total Community Involvement (TCI), I’m already putting the lessons into practice here locally every week. The miracle story is much longer, and I tell the rest of my story here but suffice to say, I’m excited about where this next chapter in my life will take me.
Once again, I invite you to support the scholars and missionaries-in-the-making here through the Lake Tahoe Scholarship Run. Sponsor a runner. Sponsor 10 of them. We need your help.
________________
Weimar University is a self-supporting, Seventh-day Adventist institution located in the Sierra Nevada foothills of northern California. Since 1978, its vision has been “To Heal a Hurting World” – a goal shared by its students, faculty, and staff from almost 50 countries. Home to the NEWSTART Lifestyle Program and the Nedley Depression and Anxiety Recovery Program, Weimar University also includes the Weimar Natural Foods Store, Weimar Academy, Weimar Elementary School, and Weimar Farms. These industries and organizations provide students with educational and work-study opportunities while positively impacting the local community.
Lineage Weimar Institute History
Weimar University Update with Dr. Neil Nedley
________________
****
Wyatt Allen served as a traveling evangelist and associate speaker for Amazing Facts for over six years. He served as a pastor and conference evangelist in the Indiana Conference for the past three years. He recently moved with his wife and three children (Purity, Zealous, and Simplicity) to Weimar, California, to pursue a Biblical Mission and Wellness graduate degree. His miracle-life story is documented in his book The Least of the Least.