Convocation recap: ‘The Bachelor’ star Madi Prewett takes the Vines Center stage over CFAW

The ABC hit-show “The Bachelor” set the stage for Convocation March 31 as contestant Madi Prewett and husband Grant Troutt shared their testimonies and love for the Lord.

The CFAW convocation was an interview-style discussion led by Josh Rutledge, the vice president of the Office of Spiritual Development, and featured Prewett’s and Troutt’s story. 

The Convocation started with Prewett as she explained her backstory and how she grew up in the Church. 

“I grew up in a Christian home,” Prewett said. “I was raised by two parents who loved Jesus and loved each other and showed my sisters and I the importance of having a relationship with God from a young age.” 

If not in the church, Prewett was on or near a basketball court. Her father was a basketball coach and encouraged Prewett’s love for the game and her competitive spirit.

“I would walk into the gym, and my dad would be coaching the varsity girls’ team,” Prewett said. “And I would be smack-talking them at 8 years old.” 

As she matured, Prewett’s priorities changed, as did her faith. 

“All of a sudden, now I am boy crazy,” Prewett said. “From there, my faith began to change, and it became a lot more performance-based and became a lot more about what other people thought of me. I was constantly asking myself the questions, ‘Am I more than just my looks?’ or ‘Am I more than just my accomplishments?’”

Prewett continued to struggle with her identity in college, and she began to truly wrestle with God on who she was. 

“I remember watching a lot of my friends starting to change themselves and compromise and become people they said that they would never be,” Prewett said. “I started to feel the tension of that.” 

One night alone in her dorm, Prewett finally got real with God. She confronted herself and devoted her entire being to the Lord. 

 “I just remember saying that I was so tired of chasing after things that left me more empty,” Prewett said. “And in that wrestl(ing) and in that prayer, I remember saying to the Lord, ‘I want to go all in with you.’”

Prewett’s husband then shared his testimony story. From a young age, basketball was Troutt’s main focus. He found his identity in a ball, court and hoop. However, God wanted to use him for
something bigger.

“The Lord started to try and get my attention, but I didn’t see it at the time,” Troutt said. “In seventh grade, I broke my left arm (and) was out eight months. The next year, I tore my left shoulder labrum and was out eight months. Then in ninth grade, I tore my right shoulder labrum (and) was out eight months. I developed this hatred towards God, like, ‘Why are you taking this away from me?’”

Due to Troutt’s injuries, he eventually had to give up on playing basketball entirely and had no other option but to turn to God. A local pastor asked Troutt if he would like to join a Bible study on campus. He did, but it was not an easy journey for Troutt. He still bounced back and forth between living for God and living for
the world.

“That’s when the Xanax and the cocaine spiraled to a place (where) I needed to feel something,” Troutt said. “Feb. 14, 2016 was when I went to jail for public intoxication, and after I got out of jail, I had this wave of sobriety rush over me, and I was done.” 

Both of their stories had a huge impact on junior Leah Carneal and her walk with God.  

“I just loved how passionate they were about Jesus,” Carneal said. “I like how in their stories, they still struggled with living for the world because that’s something that we all struggle with.”

To hear more of Prewett and Troutt’s story, visit their facebook page.

Teel is a news reporter for the Liberty Champion