Rev. Lorenzo Sewell, pastor of 180 Church in Detroit and a member of Rochester Christian University’s Board of Trustees, spoke at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Thursday, July 18. 

Sewell spoke about his troubled youth and said, “I had a radical experience with Jesus Christ that changed my life forever. If you believe that Jesus still changes lives, then put your hands together and give our great God great glory.”

The convention was held at Fiserve Forum, which holds about 17,000 attendees. Nielsen, a global information and measurement company, said an estimated 25.38 million viewers watched the fourth and final night of the convention, with about 72 percent being over age 55.  

The 180 Church hosted former President Donald Trump at an event in June 2024. 

Sewell became the lead servant of Evangel Ministries in Detroit in 2019 after serving as lead pastor of Woodside Bible Church’s Pontiac Campus. He joined RCU’s board in 2023.