Nobody wishes for a “desert experience”. Hearing God’s voice is difficult during this silent and lonely season. But we can find peace knowing that even when we don’t feel God, He is still hard at work, humbling, teaching, and preparing us for something greater. Many years ago, God met Jessup Senior Christion Seymour in the desert. After Christion’s mom left an abusive relationship, she moved his family to Mojave, the literal desert. Although Christion spent much of his childhood searching for connection and acceptance, it was in the desert that God finally revealed himself. “The time I spent in Mojave was pivotal to my faith. God brought me to the desert to heal and get closer to him,” said Christion. He got involved in a local youth group and found strong, Christian mentors. God used this desert experience to humble, teach, and prepare Christion for the next chapter of his life.

When Christion arrived at Jessup, he was eager to grow deeper in his faith. “Jessup spiritually invests in students by providing them with a safe environment where they can experience Christ and develop a relationship with God regardless of their age, ethnicity, or prior religious experiences,” said Christion. It wasn’t long until he called Jessup ‘home’. Jessup professors came alongside Christian, teaching him to trust in his abilities and expand his horizon. “The academic and professional experience I gained allowed me to develop good networking skills and gave me access to internship opportunities and careers that I didn’t think possible,” said Christion. “I have been able to do things at Jessup that I couldn’t do at other schools.”

Through his professors and mentors, Christion’s confidence grew and awakened his calling to leadership.  As Jessup’s current student body president, Christion gently leads with strength and compassion. He has secured an internship at the county sheriff’s department where he will learn from officers in the field. After graduation, he’s planning a career as a behavior analyst for the FBI, impacting the broader national community by bringing elements of faith, love, and tolerance to politics and civil service. “My time at Jessup is what reinforced my desire to become a behavior analyst. This was mainly because of the rich material and conversations that I had with professors and peers in my psych and criminal justice courses. The fact that Jessup faculty connected me with FBI agents and gave me an opportunity to visit an FBI field office was a major contributing factor in my decision,” said Christion.

As Christion nears the end of his time at Jessup, he needs your support to help him reach the finish line and begin leading by faith in a career with the FBI. “I want to go into the dark and ugly areas and bring light to the world,” said Christion. Just as God brought Christion out of his desert, He’s now helping him reach others during their desert seasons. “I want to show people that even on the darkest day of their life, there is still light and that justice and doing the right thing still means something in our morally corrupt society.” Jessup invests in each students’ faith, building them up in biblical truth and authority. It’s our goal for all students to love, know, and share Christ more. Jessup’s solid academic and biblical background will help Christion as he begins his career and seeks to influence men and women in his chosen field.

Your renewed partnership before the end of the year will make it possible for over 1,800 students to receive a solid, biblically-based, higher education experience. When you renew your support, students like Christion will shine the light of Christ in our world.

Sincerely,
Christion Seymour (’21)
Bachelor of Science – Criminal Justice