There is a stretch of road I travel often. We call it the Military Highway.
It runs through places like Fort Leonard Wood, Killeen, Newport News, West Florida, Hawaii (I know it’s in the middle of the ocean), Sanford, the NC Capital Area, and Colorado Springs. Soon, it will run through Clarksville, TN. The time zone shifts. The climate varies. But the rhythm is familiar.
Military communities move fast.
Orders change. Assignments shift. Families relocate. Leaders deploy. Congregations turn over. Stability is measured in seasons, not decades. If you are going to lead in that environment, you must understand speed.
But if you only understand speed, you will not last.
That tension is why the Manna Multiply Movement exists.
And it is why Manna University plays a strategic role. Pastor Jonathan Fletcher once described Manna U as the “whetstone of the Military Highway, sharpening the cutting edge of our leaders.”
I think he’s spot-on.
Over the past several years, I have had the privilege of preaching, teaching, and meeting leaders along this highway.
At Manna Church Fort Leonard Wood, I’ve watched leaders step into responsibility quickly because the mission requires it. At Manna Church Killeen, I’ve chatted with former soldiers and spouses about navigating transition while trying to remain anchored in calling. In Newport News, I’ve seen the steady work of shepherding in a region shaped by naval movement and generational change. In West Florida and Hawaii, I’ve met leaders serving transient communities who must build trust rapidly while knowing that many relationships will be temporary.
In Sanford, in the NC Capital Area, and in Colorado Springs, each context carries its own tempo. Each church must move with agility. Each leader must adapt.
The Multiply Movement is not an accidental expansion. It is strategic deployment.
When families arrive at a new duty station, they need community. When a young soldier senses a call to ministry, they need training and formation. When a small group leader shows potential, development cannot be delayed indefinitely.
But here is the danger: speed without depth produces leaders who burn out, drift, or fracture under pressure.
That is where Manna University steps in.
A whetstone does not create the blade. It sharpens it.
Churches raise leaders. The mission identifies leaders. Experience exposes leaders. But formation sharpens them. It aligns conviction with competence. It integrates theology with practice. It grounds charisma in character.
On the Military Highway, leaders cannot afford to be dull.
They face complex ethical decisions. They navigate trauma. They counsel marriages strained by deployment. They disciple new believers who may move across the country in eighteen months. They preach in contexts shaped by global conflict and cultural volatility.
They need depth.
I have sat in airport terminals after preaching at one Multiply site, preparing to fly to another, thinking about how quickly everything moves. I have watched leaders step into responsibility at an age when most would still be observing. I have seen the urgency of the mission up close.
But I have also seen the quiet danger of thin formation.
That is why we refuse to choose between depth and speed.
Multiply is depth AND speed in action.
Manna University does not exist as a detached academic institution. We serve the Church. Our online and on-campus classrooms are filled with pastors, worship leaders, counselors, nonprofit directors, military members, marketplace influencers, and emerging leaders who are already serving.
They do not have the luxury of pausing life for education. They are learning while leading.
When I think about the Military Highway, I do not just see church buildings. I see a network of leaders who are being sharpened for long-term faithfulness.
At Fort Leonard Wood, I think about leaders who will PCS quickly, but carry formation with them for decades. At Killeen, I think about the multiplying effect of one well-trained leader discipling ten others. At Newport News, West Florida, Hawaii, Sanford, Capital Area, and Colorado Springs, I see nodes of influence that stretch far beyond local zip codes.
I often tell our team that sharpening is not glamorous. It is repetitive. It requires friction. It takes time. But without it, the blade loses effectiveness.
Along the Military Highway, there is no shortage of opportunity. The question is whether we are forming leaders who can steward it.
That is why I am grateful for what is happening and what is coming.
Clarksville will not simply be another location. It will be another strategic intersection on this highway. Another place where leaders are identified, developed, and deployed.
Multiply is not about expansion for expansion’s sake.
It is about a faithful presence in strategic places.
It is about depth AND speed.
It is about ensuring that as the mission accelerates, our leaders are sharpened, steady, and theologically anchored.
And it is one of the greatest privileges of my role to travel that highway, witness what God is doing, and watch leaders being sharpened for the long haul.
Dr. Carlo A. Serrano, President