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As I look back at my journey to how I got to Truett Seminary, all I can say is, "wow God." It is all God. I am always in an awe-struck wonder of our good and faithful God. He drastically transformed my life, and it is a privilege and an honor to serve Him.
If you were to tell my 16-year-old self that I would end up at Seminary, she would laugh, and she would not believe you. I didn't know what I wanted to do after college, but I never, in a million years, thought it would be this. As God has consistently shown me in my life, what I have planned is never quite what God has planned.
My journey begins in my freshman year of college at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Before coming to college, all I knew was religion. I lived my life in fear of doing wrong, thus putting extreme pressure on myself to do good. I believed that the way to get to God was by doing good things. I had an encounter with a dear friend and mentor in the fall of my freshman year that changed everything I thought. I vividly remember the conversation we had. I remember exactly where we were sitting when she presented the gospel to me. We were sitting at a table outside Rams Dining Hall on a beautiful sunny day. She read Romans 6:23 to me, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." She explained that there is nothing I can do to get to God on my own because my sin is so great. My sin is so great that I deserve eternal death. But, then she shared the good news – that the gift of eternal life comes through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is by faith, and faith alone, in Jesus that puts me in right standing with God, not by my works. As Ephesians 2:8-9 states, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast." Salvation is a gift from God that comes through faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ; it is not something that can is earned in any way. God spoke to me loud and clear that day. He gave me an understanding. It clicked. That is the day when I stopped living a religious life and began living in a personal relationship with Jesus. I began to live in faith.
Ever since that day, my desires have changed. My passions have changed. My outlook on life has changed. The way I live my life has changed. I no longer live for myself, but I now live to know Jesus and make Him known.
My undergraduate years were not easy at all, but rather very difficult. I almost failed out of school during my first semester, received an underage possession of alcohol citation, was almost stripped away from field hockey (what I thought was the reason I was at UNC ), and went through a difficult breakup. I faced a lot of things that, without faith, would have wrecked me. But thanks be to God, these trials only refined my faith and made my relationship with Jesus so much stronger. I remember coming home from a long day of school & practice and watching Ravi Zacharias, theological debates (Anyone who knows me knows I love deep thinking and deep theological conversations haha), and staying up late and digesting the word of God. I was hungry for more. I wanted to know God deeper.
In the midst of all of those trials, God led me to the most incredible ministry, Athletes in Action. God knew what I needed in a time of hurt, confusion, and questioning. It is through Athletes in Action that God shaped me and taught me the importance of community. God put amazing women in my life who encouraged me, walked alongside me, and pointed me to Jesus. That is where I met some of my dearest friends. I was surrounded by men and women who were on fire for the Lord. It was contagious. I honestly do not know where I would be without that ministry. I am so thankful for that ministry and my brothers and sisters who are a part of it. If you are reading this, you know who you are. Thank you, and I love you!!!
At the time, I wasn't sure what God was up to in the trials I was facing, but now I see it. He was leading me to Himself. He was showing me that He is the reason I was at UNC; to find Him and pursue Him. He was lighting the way of my path. He was strengthening my faith to prepare me for what was to come, Seminary.
It was the summer of my sophomore year of college when I heard about Truett Seminary. I attended an AIA summer sports camp called Ultimate Training Camp in Colorado. Each camper was paired with a small-group leader, and God paired me with Elizabeth Perkins, who happened to be an incoming Seminary student at Truett. She told me about Truett and the sports ministry program. After she told me, Truett never left my mind. I prayed and prayed about it and felt God calling me to pursue it.
His hand is all over my story. God led me to UNC to find Himself through the Athletes in Action ministry, which led me to a summer sports camp where I heard about Truett Seminary. That is how my journey ended up in Waco, Texas. I have never been more confident that this is where I'm supposed to be right now. It is crazy how God works. He is sovereign, and He is good.
With love,
Mary Kathryn Harrah
Hometown: Yorktown, Virginia
Undergrad: UNC Chapel Hill
Favorite Verse: "This is how God showed His love among us: He sent his one and only son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." 1 John 4:9-10
DISCLAIMER: I am truly honored to shared MK's story with you all today! MK was my first friend at Truett Seminary. She welcomed every part of who I was into her heart and she loved me so well. I cannot say enough about MK's heart for the Lord. It is truly one of a kind. Thank you, MK for sharing your story!
I have so much love for you, MK! I cannot wait to be ROOMMATES.
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