Nursing as a Sacred Ministry: A Calling to Compassionate Care

Toccoa Falls College believes fundamentally that ministry is found in every avenue of our lives. We aim to develop students with Godly character to produce graduates who embody this belief as they serve Christ in their personal and professional endeavors. From the local church to corporate offices and everywhere in between, pursuing our work with a Christ-centered mindset enables us to shift the focus from ourselves and instead seek ways to meet the needs of others.

In Matthew 22, Christ is asked about the greatest commandment in all of the Law. Jesus responds in verses 37-40,

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (ESV)

As students navigate their time at TFC, they not only receive an education in their chosen field, but they also discover what it means to live a truly Christian life in every aspect. Life in Christ is simplified in the above passage. Above all else, love God. To love something requires an intimate knowledge of that thing, and our faculty and staff are dedicated to helping students integrate the study of God beyond mere theological understanding to true heart knowledge. It is through this knowing relationship with God that we can eagerly and passionately pursue the second commandment to love our neighbor as ourselves. Our understanding of Christ reshapes the way that we view and interact with the world around us. In each of our careers, we encounter people in need of the love of Christ. What a beautiful task God has entrusted to us, to make His love known to others through our daily interactions, personal skills, and passions!

This is the bedrock upon which the Fetterman School of Nursing is built. As staff, faculty, and alumni began to build this program 10 years ago, the holy calling of the nursing profession was ever-present in their design. Nursing provides a unique avenue to provide compassionate care and expertise in some of life’s most vulnerable moments and environments. The ministry of nursing can meet physical, emotional, and spiritual needs in almost every encounter.  With this in mind, TFC sought to build a program beyond only training students for the day-to-day tasks of nursing. Instead, we seek to train graduates in compassionate, patient-centered care with a deep-rooted understanding of Christian servant leadership.

Nursing is ever mindful of the health needs of individuals, families, communities, and societies throughout the lifespan, in rapidly changing and complex environments. The School of Nursing faculty believes that nursing, as a practice profession, is steeped in a Christian ethos of caring, dating back to the early Christian era. In a Christian worldview, nursing is a ministry of compassionate care whose goal is to foster optimal health and bring comfort in suffering and death. Nursing with a Christian worldview recognizes the sacred covenant between nurse and patient.

Nursing is a science and an art that builds on knowledge from the natural sciences, social sciences, and liberal arts. The Fetterman School of Nursing program uses a curriculum based on these academic disciplines to challenge students to become competent, moral nursing leaders who excel in compassionate care. This knowledge, combined with Biblical understanding, produces nurses who impact the world, transform health care, and understand nursing as a sacred ministry. Galatians 5:22 says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” We believe that a Spirit-led nurse is defined by these qualities, and these qualities are strengthened by a deeply rooted theological foundation. Not only will students progress through our program, developing the intellectual and practical skills necessary to be successful in their field, but they will do so with an intentional focus on Scripture. Through a broad range of scientific disciplines, the arts and humanities, mathematics, and theological and biblical studies, as well as practical simulation labs and clinicals, graduates are fully equipped for licensure.

In 2025, our Fetterman School of Nursing graduates had a 100% first-time pass rate for the NCLEX, the nationwide examination for the licensing of nurses. This statistic is just one example of the excellence demonstrated by this department. There is no sacrifice in intellectual and practical skill in the pursuit of Christ-centered nursing. In fact, both are required for holistic healing and optimal outcomes. With success in their licensure testing, TFC graduates display their readiness to enter the workforce and ministry field with the best possible preparation. As the alumni, faculty, and students of the Fetterman School of Nursing continue their work, they do so prayerfully and passionately, exemplifying our ultimate Healer in His tenderness and care.