Psalm 42:7 (NIV) - “Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me.”
Romans 8:38-39 (NLT) - “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow-not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below-indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

The water metaphors make references to the chaos, the deep that was subdued at the time of creation. With the images of waterfall and the waves sweeping over the psalmist, he is expressing the sense of being overwhelmed, oppressed and threatened. When I read this, it reminded of the time I was at Ocean City. A bunch of us went in the ocean to ride the waves. But one time, I didn’t jump at the right moment. I was caught by a strong wave. The wave just took me and I was thrown down onto the shore. I was in pain. And it was pretty scary to be swept up like that, to not have control in that moment.

Perhaps some of us are going through chaotic times where our relationships in our lives are not in order; there is no peace at home, at work, no direction in life and we are overwhelmed. Just as God brought order to the chaos by His Word, Jesus came into our chaotic world to rescue us and reconcile us to God. He came near, to be with us. We don’t have to be afraid. Nothing, absolutely nothing can separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus.

Spend some time singing the Scriptures today, over and over again. Let the truth of God wash over you.

-DP

GBCA

The Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance (GBCA) nurtures and promotes a vibrant, diverse, and sustainable arts and cultural community, essential to the region’s quality of life. GBCA supports the needs of more than 400 members from the Baltimore region (Baltimore City and the five surrounding counties) including arts, culture, history, and heritage organizations, as well as individual artists. GBCA requires a strong infrastructure to steward its members and to develop new programs and initiatives.

POSITION OVERVIEW

In new online degree rankings announced January 10, 2017, U.S. News has again recognized UMBC’s online master’s degree in information systems among the top 20 in the nation. The degree program, through UMBC’s department of information systems, appears on the publication’s 2017 Best Online Computer Information Technology Programs list.

“We continue to be proud of our strong showing in the rankings of online information technology programs,” said Julie Ross, dean of the College of Engineering and Information Technology.

The online master’s program is designed for students who are advancing their education while balancing commitments to careers, family, and military service. Students and faculty in this area often complete research in areas such as health information technology, human-centered computing, data mining, artificial intelligence, and software engineering.

UMBC’s program ranked 19th on the 2017 list, joining other top-20 universities including the University of Southern California, New York University, Boston University, Johns Hopkins University, and Syracuse University. U.S. News also ranked UMBC’s master’s program in information systems in the top 20 in the country in 2016.

Image: UMBC’s IT and Engineering Building. Photo by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC.

Hello Everyone,

For those of you who live near by, I hope you’ve been keeping warm over the last few days! I had the pleasure of spending my holidays in nice warm weather but was greeted with below freezing temperatures when I got back. Check out the beautiful sunset  I witnessed just days before returning to the cold!

Playa Dorada, El Salvador

As we get back into the normal routine, I’d like to remind you all of two very important deadlines that are soon approaching!

February 1st: Regular Decision Deadline!

February 14th: FAFSA Deadline! Apply online by Valentine!

For those of you who haven’t submitted your application, you have until February 1st to submit the Common App and all supporting materials! AND if you haven’t already done so, please be sure to submit your FAFSA application by Valentines Day for need-based aid consideration.

You can keep up to date with your application status by logging in to your myUMBC account. Once you apply, be sure to create your account! If you have questions on how to do so, don’t hesitate to reach out.

As always, follow our social media accounts to receive the most up to date information about UMBC and don’t forget to use our hashtag, #UMBCAdmit!

@UMBCAdmissions