I Confess…I stole from Oral Roberts
In honor of “The Man” whom I grew fonder and fonder of with each year I attended Oral Roberts University, I thought I should come clean and confess.
Yes, I did swipe a peppermint candy from his candy dish on his desk over twenty years ago. Oh, the guilt of it all… But I was young and was invited to wait in his office and the candy was there for people to eat, right? I can’t remember all the details of that day, or why I was in his office. I think I was waiting to view some old crusade footage of Oral Roberts for an article I was writing for the Oracle. Whatever the reason, I can still see the big brown desk and chair. Though the candy dish is fuzzy, I still have the red and white peppermint to prove I was there, in his office. I think I thought maybe if I had one of his peppermints “the anointing” would rub off. Sad to say after all these years it didn’t. Maybe I should have eaten it.
Why the confession? Because the world lost a mighty man of God today. Oral Roberts went to see his Lord and savior and I’m sure he couldn’t be happier. My time at ORU was one of the best times of my life. I loved every aspect of life on campus, okay, I could have done without the dress code and curfew every now and then, but I hear, that’s changed, lucky students. Through all the universities ups and downs, and all the media frenzy surrounding the Roberts family, one thing never wavered. Oral’s faith stood strong, his love for Jesus and the students shone from his grandfatherly eyes, and he never shied away from his message that “God is a good God” and we should “Expect a Miracle.” And his vision for the university remains today. “To raise up disciples that will go into all the world and preach the gospel to all nations.”
I remember Oral Roberts’ smiling face on my graduation day. We were admonished not to bring cameras up on stage when we accepted our diploma, but me and a couple of friends snuck them under our gowns. I was nervous when I sat down next to Evelyn, his wife, but she smiled while a friend snapped our picture. I wanted to squeeze besides Oral, but he was in the second row behind his wife, so instead I raised the camera and he smiled big for the picture.
On the day of Oral’s passing, I can’t help but remember the fond memories of my time at ORU and with a tear and a smile I imagine him in the arms of his Lord, next to his Darling wife Evelyn, while Jesus’ whispers “welcome home, my good and faithful servant. Welcome home.”
