CBU graduates urged to live their purpose with passion

Riverside, Calif. (May 2, 2018)— Dr. Ronald L. Ellis, president of California Baptist University, congratulated hundreds of graduating students during an Online and Professional Studies commencement ceremony at the Events Center on May 2.

From May 3-4, CBU will hold three additional ceremonies, representing the first spring commencement ceremonies held in the Events Center. With more than 1,434 individuals who are eligible to participate in commencement activities in the spring, combined with the candidates for graduation in the fall 2017 semester, the Class of 2018 represents CBU’s largest graduating class ever (2,549).

Ellis said the ceremony was an opportunity to celebrate the accumulation of hard work.

“Today, the goal you have been pursuing for years at last is at hand. Today, we congratulate the graduating Class of 2018. We celebrate the achievements realized this day because each of you graduates made it your purpose to earn a degree,” said Ellis during his commencement address.  

Ellis noted that each student has an important story to tell about their development as individuals through their time at CBU.

“Many [students’ stories] involve personal examples of service and transformation that you experienced or witnessed as you seized the opportunity to put your faith into practice. Some served in the densely populated urban settings of Southern California. For others, mobilization meant serving cross-culturally in major cities across America or far-away places around the globe,” Ellis said. “The details vary from one story to the next; but in virtually every instance, your participation demonstrated some or all of CBU’s student outcomes, known as the Core Four. These are qualities that every graduate of CBU should embody—to be Biblically Rooted, Academically Prepared, Globally Minded and Equipped to Serve.”

Ellis urged students to take their training and use it as a foundation to live a life of purpose and significance. 

“My earnest hope and prayer is that each of you will lean into this new beginning with genuine Lancer zeal. May you ‘Live Your Purpose’ with passion, and with the same determination that has guided you to this joyful day of celebration. May your CBU experience and your CBU degree serve as rock-solid building blocks in a strong foundation for your future goals and dreams. And may the Lord continue to bless,” Ellis said.