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Theresa Miller

Miller-Theresa.jpg“When I first met my husband, he had a very legalistic understanding of Christianity,” Theresa Miller says. “I kept talking to him about how dichotomized the church is—how we are concerned about our personal salvation but ignore such issues as societal justice or how faith applies to our work. I found my copy of the book All of Life Redeemed and said, ‘Here, read this.’”

Terrence did read the book, written by four former CCO staff members, and he came back to Theresa and said, “Your Gospel is so much bigger than mine. My gospel is getting up and doing devotions and going to a Bible study once a week. Your Gospel covers everything.”

Theresa was introduced to that “big Gospel” during her years as a student at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, when she connected to the CCO’s ministry there. She started going to fellowship meetings because of a “cute guy” who invited her, and that decision ended up changing her life.

“I grew up in the church so I considered myself a Christian, but my attitude about Christianity was that I could take it or leave it,” Theresa admits. “I believed it, but it didn’t apply to me day to day. Then I met CCO staff members and moved in to a house full of Christian students and we all had to participate in a foundational Bible study. That’s when I first began to hear new things, including the concept of ‘all of life redeemed,’ that God cares about everything in His creation. It was the first time I heard that it all mattered. That foundational class, based on Colossians 3, taught that whatever you do in word or deed, do all to the glory of God the father. Ever since then, that word whatever has been my primary motivator to serve the Lord in my job, in my family, my community, how I raise my son, everything.”

After spending several years working as a journalist, Theresa now works for Prudential Financial, Inc. as Vice President of Global Communications. She credits the CCO with helping her figure out how to approach her work through the lenses of her Christian faith.

“Everything I do comes down to working to reflect God’s truth in how I treat colleagues, telling the truth about my company to the public, and advocating for practices that will serve our stakeholders well,” Theresa says. “I was a journalist for almost 15 years, and my goal was the pursuit of the truth in any story. Journalists like to joke around that crossing into PR is crossing into the ‘dark side,’ so I when I moved into PR I chose my spot carefully, and came to Prudential because of how much I respected the PR team here when I wrote about the company as a journalist.

“But whether a journalist or a PR exec, the goal is really not very different. I’m still telling a story, with my goal now to accurately portray the true character of my company or client—in good and bad times. Companies like mine aren’t like a corner deli where you can figure out everything about the place in one lunch hour. Big companies are complex, and they owe a clear, transparent story in exchange for the trust they receive. The Bible leaves no room to create a spin zone. As a result, the only product I have to offer is the truth.”

When their son began high school, Theresa and Terrence moved to Easton, Pennsylvania, in “one of the worst neighborhoods in the city.” They are committed to their work, their family, the church, and especially their community.

“We bought the house on purpose, hoping to be part of some transformation in the neighborhood,” Theresa says. “We bought a gigantic house so that people could stay with us. Last fall, were ready to pack it in—the house was costing too much, seemed too far from work and church—and then suddenly people started showing up. We now have a weird, but very cool, gathering of people in our home every Thursday night, a fellowship of sorts, started with international students from Northampton Community College who were lonely and needed a place to meet others. A Vietnam vet who works with the NCC students on campus also attends, as well as Lafayette Christian Fellowship kids who come because of the cross-section of people. Some weeks it 20, some it’s five or six, and it’s organically ethnically diverse.”

And people’s lives are changing as a result. Theresa’s husband, Terrence, has worked with the Federal Justice Department on an anti-gang initiative, and the Millers have started a related nonprofit called HopeUnseen. Terrence does outreach in the city, helping young men escape the gang lifestyle, and the Millers find themselves naturally doing college ministry and inner-city ministry, even as they follow more traditional career paths.

“There is such a freedom in realizing that I can serve God without being a missionary or a pastor,” Theresa says. “The CCO taught me that. I interviewed to come on CCO staff when I was getting ready to graduate, and I was encouraged to follow my calling into journalism and apply my faith there. Now, 25 years later, I’m working in public relations as a Christian, and I’m passing that same message on to college students in my neighborhood. I’m actually doing campus ministry. I am so thankful that the Lord worked the way he did.”