Another Special Life in Christ:
These testimony lives are not stories of "role
models". Jesus is the role model! These are lives wonderfully touched &
changed by Jesus!
Condoleezza Rice:
She was born 14 November 1954.
From the Presidential Prayer Team Web Site: The segregated neighborhoods and schools of 1950's Birmingham, Alabama seemed an unlikely beginning for this classic over-achiever; but her parents continually reminded her that there are no limits to what one who works hard can achieve. Through her steady climb to positions of leadership from Stanford University to the White House, she has proved them right many times over.
She is now trusted with the security of our nation at a time of unprecedented threat. As President Bush's national security advisor, Condoleezza Rice is clearly one of the most influential women in the world. And though she is not the youngest national security adviser ever, she is the first woman in that position, and the dedication and determination she developed in her childhood have come to characterize her work at the White House.
Condoleezza (from a musical term meaning "to perform with sweetness") began piano studies at age 3, took up competitive figure skating in high school (rising at 4:30 am to practice before school), and graduated high school at age 16. She had earned her PhD by the age of 26 and was teaching at Stanford University within months.Ms. Rice's parents were both educators, and her father, Rev. John W. Rice Jr., pastored the Presbyterian church founded by her grandfather. Her mother was a high school teacher, and together, they worked to insulate their daughter from the abuses of the Civil Rights Era. At the same time, they wanted her to be aware of what was happening, so they took her to watch the marches. Though Condi's mother died in 1985, her father still stays close.
Music has always been a meaningful part of her life, both as a performer, but perhaps more significantly as a Christian. When two gospel tunes were performed at one of her many farewells from Stanford, her usually guarded demeanor softened, her eyes tearing up upon hearing His Eye is on the Sparrow and I Need Thee Every Hour. I wonder what more God has in store for her future!
(posted 10 August 2002)