Connected by Purpose, For Purpose, and On Purpose

“Whatever you do, hold on to that school,” were the instructions Dr. Myles Munroe gave to Dr. Oscar J. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood as he stood on the jet bridge, preparing to leave Fort Wayne, Indiana. It was more than just uttered words; it was a prophetic word, an instruction passed from a spiritual father to his son. A spiritual father speaking into the heart of his son, confirming the divine purpose placed upon him by GOD Himself. As Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood reflects on that moment out of many instructions spoken into his life by Dr. Myle, he is eternally grateful for his spiritual father.

Though Dr. Myles Munroe has transitioned to heaven, the relationship they share has been divinely orchestrated by GOD. They were connected by purpose, for purpose, and on purpose for the assignment Dr. Oscar J. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood was called to do.

Dr. Myles Munroe is honored as the spiritual grandfather of The Destiny Dome Embassy @ Cathedral of Praise Int’l (GOD’S I Am Possible® Church of Hope), Cornerstone Christian College Prep Day and High School (GOD’S I Am Possible® School of Hope), and CCBCI-Global (GOD’S I Am Possible® Bible College of Hope). He visited Fort Wayne, Indiana, on numerous occasions, sowing Kingdom principles and training students and members of both C-Prep and DDE@COPI.

Their relationship began when Dr.  Nelson Dowdell-Underwood contacted Oral Roberts University in search of a speaker for a church cruise conference in the Bahamas. Their recommendation was Dr. Myles Munroe.

From that encounter forward, an everlasting relationship between Dr. Myles Munroe and Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood was formed. He visited Fort Wayne numerous times to preach and teach Kingdom principles, even gracing C-Prep’s students with his presence and instruction. This is why the prophetic instruction, “Hold on to that school,” was not just a request; it was a prophetic command. Dr. Myles recognized the royalty, excellence, and anointing on C-Prep, and he knew the entire world, including third-world countries, needed access to what GOD was doing at C-Prep.

Through Dr. Myles’ visits to Fort Wayne and C-Prep’s visit to the Bahamas, he understood that C-Prep was not just an ordinary school. It was a global, Kingdom commodity and tool. He saw it as an educational model that would connect people worldwide and give hope to generations to come.

Often when Dr. Myles traveled the world, he would return to find a thoughtful gift from Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood waiting on his desk in his office. One day, in his Bahamian accent, Dr. Myles told Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood, “Boy, you are my encourager.”

Imagine what those gifts did for a leader who gave so much to the world, and what it meant to hear your spiritual father call you, his encourager.

Dr. Myles, known as the “Father of Purpose,” saw in Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood, the “Father of Possibleology®,” a global statesman destined to unlock possibilities and potential not only in students within the classroom, but also in every human being navigating every area of life.

Dr. Munroe’s connection to Fort Wayne extended through his family. His brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Dr. Richard and Sheena Pinder, also visited Fort Wayne several times, even being housed by Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood and his wife, Dr. L. Helen Underwood, during one of their stays. As a result of Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood’s hospitality in the Summer of 1997, Dr. Pinder released a prophetic word, “Go out and look for a new house because GOD is going to bless you with a new one,” and GOD fulfilled that prophecy!

In the Spring of 2014, when Dr. Pinder and Mrs. Sheena last visited Fort Wayne, Indiana, Dr. Pinder came with a message from Dr. Myles and delivered to Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood, “Dr. Myles wants you present at the conference. He wants you back home with the family.” That was the last earthly instruction given to Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood from his spiritual father before he transitioned to heaven in 2014.

The night Dr. Myles Munroe transitioned, he visited Dr. Oscar J. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood in a prophetic dream. Escorted by two angels disguised as elderly nurses in the church, Dr. Myles gave Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood kingdom instructions. As Dr. Myles was being escorted back, and Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood looked down at his feet, and he saw a new pair of gray shoes.

The gray shoes were symbolic of the mantle passed down to Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood, for what yet had to be done in the Kingdom of GOD as well as the realm of education globally.

The mantle passed down to Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood was for the global assignment to bridge the gap between the disenfranchised and left behind around the world, including third-world countries, because GOD has made all human beings Possible in CHRIST.

Dr. Myles Munroe saw what the world needed in Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood: a leader, a visionary, a pioneer, and a spiritual father, willing to sacrifice for others so they could rise and Possibilisticly break limitations.

Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood not only carries his spiritual father’s mantle, but he mirrors his selfless spirit. While each has a unique and assigned purpose by GOD, their callings are similar, which is to uplift and transform lives. Both men of GOD have received prestigious accolades and awards for their contributions. Dr. Myles Munroe was named an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 1998 by Queen Elizabeth II for his global impact, and he received both the Bahamian Silver Jubilee Award for Community Service and the Congressional Medal of Honor in Peru for leadership training in Latin America.

Similarly, in 2024, Dr. Oscar J. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood was honored with the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award by the U.S. 46th President Joe Biden, in recognition of Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood’s years of global service and impact. He was Indiana’s first African American Teacher of the Year, a National Teacher of the Year nominee, and recipient of the Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction Award in 2018, just a few of the many acknowledgments of his possibilistic work across the Globe.

Although this is not a full compilation of Dr. Myles Munroe and Dr. Oscar J. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood Awards and Achievement, but the imprint of GOD is evident on them both. In addition to Dr. Myles being visible in Dr. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood.

As seen with Dr. Myles Munroe and Dr. Oscar Nelson Dowdell-Underwood, GOD-given purpose has to be unlocked by someone who is already walking in the depths of that purpose and is anointed to call out that hidden potential.

From the beginning of their father-son spiritual relationship until now, and even in the future, Dr. Oscar J. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood continues to carry the mantle of Dr. Myles Munroe. Their relationship is a testament to what happens when GOD divinely connects two people for Kingdom impact. It is a reminder that what GOD does is forever.

Dr. Myles Munroe's legacy lives on, not just through books and messages, but through his birth children, Myles Munroe Jr. and Charisa Munroe-Wilborn, whom I admire for the work they’re doing to uphold their parents' legacy.  I, too, one day will carry out the legacy of my grandfather, Dr. Oscar J. Nelson Dowdell-Underwood, Dr. Myles's spiritual son, who continues to carry out Dr. Myles Munroe’s legacy.

This is more than a story. It is a divine relationship, forever molded by the hands of GOD that will impact the Kingdom of GOD even in its last days.