WMU National Director Wanda Lee Addresses Chapel

Dr. Wanda Lee addressed the OBU community during chapel service on Wednesday, March 26, at 10 a.m. She is the executive director of the national Women's Missionary Union (WMU), serving in that position since 2000. The service highlighted "Woman's Mission and Ministry Day" on the OBU campus.

She was born in Russellville, Ala., and grew up in Michigan and south Florida before returning to Russellville during high school. She earned her nursing degree from Samford University and then served as a pastor's wife, registered nurse, and international missionary in the Leeward Islands from 1979 to 1981. She was president of Georgia's WMU from 1993 to 1996, before becoming executive director of the national organization in 2000.

Lee continued the semester's chapel theme of "brokenness." She recalled stories and encounters through the years where she has seen God take broken people and do great things. "We can change the face of our world by moving one person at a time from brokenness, to holiness; from hopelessness, to hope," she said. "And that results in everlasting joy, for both the giver and the receiver."

"Your education and your training is a gift from God. What you do with it will be determined when you give it back to Him," she said. "And if you give it back to Him, I promise you He will take it and use it in ways you cannot imagine. He will make an eternal difference through you."

She challenged the students to search ways they can fulfill God's purpose in their lives, asking them, "Where is that point for you, where the deep gladness of your heart meets the need, the deep hunger, of the world, where you can make a difference?"

She also challenged the students to use their talents and abilities for the Lord and to give their lives to him. "I have never regretted offering all that I am and all that I have back to him. He has done far beyond anything I ever dreamed of."

Founded in 1888, the purpose of WMU is to educate and involve preschoolers, children, youth, and adults in the cause of Christian missions. For more information on WMU, visit www.wmu.com.