Going to Seminary

Its time for another writing contest! We’re going to give away four e-readers or $200 toward books. (winner’s choice)

Have you thought about sharing your seminary journey with the world? Perhaps you are interested in pontificating about how seminary could be better, or have questions that you’re not finding answers to regarding your seminary journey. Maybe you already have a blog, but not the readership you’d like to have.

Now is your chance to build readership, pontificate about seminary to your heart’s desire, or give blogging your first go around.

Submit your 500 to 750 word article on whatever topic you like as long as it has to do with seminary. You must be a current seminary student and the articles must be original work not previously posted or submitted to another website.

Out of the entries we’ll select the four winners. Those winners will then submit three more articles, one per month, over the next three months. At the end of those three months they will get their choice of the e-readers. A Kindle, a Sony e-reader, a Nook, a Kobo, or a $200 gift certificate to purchase textbooks from Amazon, B&N, or Borders. All four writers will have their choice! Or if a new ereader is on the market at the $200 price tag we’ll gladly substitute it instead.

Submit your article by August 23, 2010, via email to justaguy[at]goingtoseminary.com. We’ll announce the four winners on August 30, 2010.

—–Update 8/20/2010—–

We’re going to extend the submission deadline until Friday, August 27. We’ll still announce the winners on Monday, August 30.

Need some ideas for writing about your seminary journey? We took a few “hot button” issues from past comments and experiences to help you get started. Feel free to use them.

• How do you deal with crappy profs who are teaching from notes that are 30 years old?
• What is a fair and unfair academic policy, or transfer policy, or admissions guidelines?
• Is it right for seminaries that hold certain theological positions to demand the same from students?
• What is the right balance between academic leaning and practical leaning assignments?
• How effective can a seminary student (who has never served as a pastor) be when criticizing a fellow seminary student who is a pastor?
• What is the usefulness of sitting around for hours gabbing about theological issues that won’t ever be resolved?
• How important is accreditation?
• What is the real dollar cost of seminary education?
• How many textbooks should be required for a seminary course?
• What is the ideal age for a seminary student?
• What role can mentors play in seminary education?
• How do I involve my spouse in my seminary journey?
• What if my spouse leaves me while I’m in seminary? What should I do?
• Is a seminary graduate better equipped to serve Christ than someone who didn’t attend seminary?
• What do you do about friends who are cheating?
• How do I keep my spiritual life alive in Seminary?

The year is 2015. Flying cars and hoverboards are everywhere, and most of us will have graduated from seminary. Maybe most of the world’s problems will be fixed in this short amount of time. There could be self-drying clothes and pizza that takes just seconds to hydrate… but probably not. And regardless of whether life is any easier five years in the future, Christian ministry will remain a tough task. So what are some of the challenges we will face in the future as we lead churches and ministries? It’s impossible to predict exactly what issues will face the church in the years to come, but it is highly likely that three problems which currently plague the church will only continue to be a problem if we don’t do anything about it.

Apathy against holiness- The first of these three problems is a general apathy: a nominal version of Christianity. The church doesn’t have a problem getting people into the pews—the real problem is getting those same people out of the pews and into the streets as ambassadors for Christ and sold-out disciples. The problem lies in a consumerist mindset found in our culture: that we go to church only to receive a service, and we need not make any contribution. There are many today who say that they believe in Christ and that they have been born again, but their life testifies that they have never truly been changed. They rely on a past conversion experience to get them by as a form of “fire insurance” to save them from hell, but there is no true fruit of salvation in their lives. If we look closely at Matthew 7:13-23, we see the danger of living no differently than the world and not having any fruit that accompanies genuine repentance. This faulty mindset that says holiness and a changed life is not a necessary fruit of salvation is often a result of…

Illiteracy concerning the Word- A second major problem in the church is a lack of knowledge about Scripture. The Bible might be the best-selling book of all-time, but unfortunately it isn’t as often read. If we don’t teach our congregations to dig deep into the Scripture and hide God’s Word inside their hearts, they will not be affected by God’s truth, convicted by the Spirit, encouraged by God’s promises, and strengthened to fight daily against sin and temptation. The danger here is evident. Christians who don’t know the Word will lack discernment, and will be spiritually malnourished. And without discernment, many will be deceived and led into…

A distortion of the gospel- Possibly the greatest danger facing the church now and in the future is a distortion of the gospel. When people see God as some sort of all-powerful Santa Claus who exists to shower them with earthly riches and make them feel good about themselves, we have reduced Christianity to nothing more than one great therapy session, and when we do this we leave the key doctrines of our own sinfulness, Christ’s work on the cross, and his victory over the grave far behind. I was once told to “never preach a sermon that would still be true if Christ has not been raised.” This is the greatest advice I have ever received. If we lose sight of the gospel and of the glorious work of Christ, we have lost the essence of true Christianity. If Christ had not died on the cross, we would still be dead in our sins, and if Christ had not been raised, we would have no hope at all. We must keep these truths in the forefront of our minds and our teachings.

Of course we do not know what the future will hold, and it would be silly to make the claim that we do. But if these trends continue, they will remain serious issues for the church to contend with for many years. As those entrusted with the gospel and pursuing Christian ministry in some form, we need to lead the charge against these faulty ways of thinking. We must preach expositionally, teach and disciple individuals with fervor, and set the example ourselves. If we do not take a stand for faithful discipleship and sound doctrine, revival in the church will seem as unimaginable as flying cars in five years.

I wonder if you have a growing list of things you are going to do “when you get time.” For most people there seems to be at least a few things that are on a project list that are waiting for the right time or resources to be implemented. Some of these have more to do with the way we structure our priorities, and others are just waiting for the right pieces to fall in place. Either way, I bet that list (for most of us) is getting longer – not shorter.

My wife and I have experienced this at a couple of times in our marriage. We tried to get the timing right for me to step into fulltime ministry from a parttime role. We tried to wait for the right time to have a child. Once our boy came on the scene we wanted to wait for the right time for her to become a stay-at-home-mom.

In these few cases and SO many more, if we had truly waited for the “perfect” time – we would still be waiting. We have found it easy to find multiple reasons for delaying some life-changing decision; everyone does. But we have also learned that once we acted on those things – God provided. In fact, it became difficult to understand why we had not acted sooner rather than later.

I have had a similar experience with seminary and it became even more evident to me as I completed my journey at Rockbridge Seminary last month. For several weeks I had been longing for (and dreading a bit) the day when I had a week with no assigned reading, with no papers due at midnight, or some other seminary-related action to complete.
I just knew that once I graduated I would have tons of time to jump into the ever-growing pile of books I want to read. I would have more quality time to spend with my family. I was looking so forward to my well-deserved break of doing whatever I wanted to do whenever I wanted to do it.

My realization, however, was found on the opposite end of my assumption of all the free time I had coming. What I found is that I have absoutley no idea how I ever completed seminary! When I look at my schedule, there is no room for classes, homework, or papers. There is no time for me to engage professors or fellow students. And defintely no time to read page after page of something that I’m certain would make even God yawn two pages into it.

My point is that if you are waiting for the perfect time to jump in to furthering your education – that time might be right now. If you are thinking that you just can’t add one more thing or that your schedule is too cluttered – just ask yourself if that situation will be better, worse, or the same a year from now. My bet is that you will be just as busy or busier later as you are right now.

Now, admittedly, there are significant reasons to delay the timing of such an important decision, and the contributing factors are much broader than the scope of this post. But waiting for life to cease its incredible demand on you physcially, emotionally, and spiritually will be a long, long wait. Why not jump in and give it a go for a semester? See if you are able to do with seminary the same thing you do with every other hurdle life throws at you – face it head-on and conquer it through Him!

I once thought seminary was an impossible dream. After four years of undergrad, I had a Bachelor’s Degree in religion—but I also had thousands of dollars in debt thanks to student loans. Looking for a job out of college was a challenge, and I was only able to take on two part-time jobs. My plan was to work for a couple of years after college doing what I could to save, and then to attend seminary when I had made enough money to pay for it. However, before long my loans were no longer in deferment, and I had a monthly loan payment that was nearly a quarter of my income. I was barely able to save anything, and it soon seemed that I was at an impasse. Seminary seemed necessary for me to find a job as a pastor, but it seemed I would never be able to afford to go.

Maybe you’ve been in the same situation, or you are currently. Maybe your desire is to go to seminary and grow in your knowledge of God’s Word and practical ministry skills, but it just seems impossible. Either the money isn’t there, or the timing is off, and you wonder… will I ever make it? Will I ever be able to go to seminary? While going through a trial of this nature is certainly challenging, there are great lessons to be learned. I found that my time between undergrad and seminary was actually a very valuable experience.

The first thing I learned was practical world experience. Going to a Christian college, it was easy to get trapped in the Christian bubble for four years. If I had gone directly to seminary, I never would have had the experience of relating to and working with so many unsaved people on a daily basis. During this time I learned how to be a bold witness and to look for ways to share the gospel with others at every opportunity. I also gained a new perspective on many things. It’s easy to get caught up in Christian quarrels over minor points of theology, and while theology is extremely important, I learned that eschatology and Soteriology aren’t exactly points of concern to the unsaved. My focus was no longer on debating theology, but on getting the gospel right and sharing it in an understandable way.

Possibly the most important thing I learned during the time I spent between undergrad and seminary was to trust in God, and to wait on His timing. This was my only option when things seemed bleak. I knew that while I had my hopes and plans, God was and is sovereign over all of His creation, and that His plan far exceeded my own in both goodness and perfection. When things are going well and according to plan, it is easy for us to rely on our own strength. It is in the difficulties of life, the trials and struggles, where we are brought to our knees before God and learn to trust in His unfailing love.

My story had a good ending: after a year of working and saving whatever I could, someone from my church stepped in and offered to pay for my seminary education. I am extremely blessed, and I never would have expected such a thing to occur. Would I ever have planned it that way? Not a chance. But God had a far better plan than my own. I wouldn’t trade the year I spent in the secular workplace for anything, as I learned many valuable lessons.

If you are struggling to find a way to make it to seminary, or if you’re wondering if you’ll be able to finish, take heart. We serve a great God, and with Him directing our lives, we have no reason to doubt His plan or to become discouraged. He will see us through, and more importantly, by the precious blood of His Son Jesus Christ, our greatest need has been met. We have been redeemed, and we can rejoice in the great God we serve, even in hard times.

When I began my online seminary degree three years ago, I was a bit hesitant because I feared that the substance that the final degree – the actual paper I would receive – might not be as “weighty” in the minds of those who had received a traditional degree from a brick and mortar institution.  I also feared that places I might have opportunity to serve would not consider my Master of Divinity degree from an online institution a “real” degree.  I must admit that even now after completing my online seminary journey, I get questions from would-be seminary students about my experience at Rockbridge and inquiries for my evaluation of the value of the experience.  I am so happy when someone opens the door for me to talk about it.

My first response to these questions is an answer that I came to when asking myself whether or not I should pursure training online.  I had to come to grips with the “why” of my desire to go to any seminary. When I enrolled in Rockbridge, my call to vocational ministry had been clearly affirmed many times and I had over 15 years of ministry experience.  But I didn’t have any formal training to support the calling that was so clear in my life.  This training was not critical for me to continue ministry as I felt confident God would open doors for me to continue to be his servant.  Rather, the larger realization for me was my desire to learn more to be a more effective agent in His Kingdom work.

The other affirmation was my assessment of other training opportunities at my disposal.  When I considered my options for training as a man with a family, serving in a ministry that I was certain God did not want me to disengage, and a budget that did not include Masters level training – my options were limited to online offerings or some other type of distance learning.  To help assess these options, I sought the counsel of someone who both valued continuing education and was a product of the traditional brick and mortar learning experience: my senior pastor who holds several degrees including two masters and a doctorate from Vanderbilt.

His encouragement to me was the value of the learning experience – no matter what the final paper might suggest to others.  We looked deeply into the mission of Rockbridge Seminary as well as other opportunities that were available to me.  Our discovery was that the quality of the learning experience at Rockbridge would fit well my learning style and my available schedule to complete my training.  But even more importantly, we found that the driving force and purpose of Rockbridge founders was not to provide a piece of paper at the end of an agreed learning cycle.  Their calling was to provide quality biblical training that would prepare and equip ministers to serve God’s Kingdom effectively and efficiently.

Over three years later, I have absolutely no regrets about the choice I made.  Had I not enrolled in Rockbridge I would still be serving at my current church and I would continue to be affirmed in my calling – but I would not be as effective as I am now as a direct result of the investment I made in seminary and that it made in me.  My experience at Rockbridge has made a significant difference in how I approach ministry in the local church and even how I engage my faith as a believer.

I am also watching other traditional universities chase the online learning model as pioneers of online learning continue to set the pace and confirm its validity.  Although I believe that their motivation is driven as much by the opportunity of another revenue stream than anything else, the result for the learner is still positive.  I am thankful that Rockbridge and other quality institutions are continuing to set the pace that will give way for opportunities for learners to get training.  But more than that, I am so thankful for what it has provided in my life as a minister.  So what value do I place on my education from Rockbridge?  Invaluable.

For those of you who have families of your own, you may very well recognize the blessing they are in your life. While these relationships can require a great deal of patience, grace and love at times, they can also be very rewarding and love-filled. In fact, because of my family, I have had a difficult time listening to God.

About three years ago, shortly after my mom passed away, I kept hearing messages about sacrifice. At the time it wasn’t clear who or what was to be sacrificed but that a sacrifice would be required nonetheless. I came to realize that it involved my spiritual walk. Beyond that, I was clueless.

Not long afterward, a training opportunity was presented to me to become a lay speaker for my church which, among other things, would allow me to serve as pulpit supply. While I don’t clamor for opportunities to speak publicly, there was something about this invitation I felt led to pursue. About three months later, my pastor asked if I would bring the message at our two services one Sunday while he was traveling. I did end up speaking and knew almost immediately that pastoral ministry was what I was called to do.

Despite this sense of call, I kept hitting the brakes when it came to my family. I felt it was okay for me to make sacrifices but how could I ask my family to do that? At the time, we had two young children–ages 3 and 5–for whom we had waited countless years to hold in our arms. Understanding that children at this tender age need special love and nurturing, how could I step away from that to pursue what seemed like a selfish desire on my part? Also, I had been married 21 years at that point and clearly recalled the vow I made to my husband at the altar. How could I provide a balance between what it would mean to pursue several years of study to become a pastor (and an itinerant one at that) yet remain faithful to the vows and responsibilities I had as a wife and mother? If that weren’t enough, I had been in the workforce for a number of years. Could we manage on one income? After all, we had bills to pay just like everyone else.

With all the questions floating around in my head, I realized that these were decisions I couldn’t make on my own. To help me sort things out, I began candidacy studies (a discernment process within my denomination) to help me crystallize this call as well as to dig deep on this ministry-family struggle I was encountering. I spent several sessions with my mentor trying to understand what was best for my family. Should I forgo ordained ministry and continue my volunteer bible study teaching? Should I consider a lay staff role at a church? Should I just forget it all?

As time went on, it became evident that I couldn’t ignore the call God had placed on my life. But, despite all my longing for answers, I still couldn’t reconcile how I could “do” schooling and ministry and still meet my commitments. Should I take an alternate track toward education, attending weekend classes a few times per year? Should I pursue seminary part-time? Were there seminaries that I could commute to or that offered online programs? Could we afford it? It seemed like every time I turned around I had more and more questions.

Finally, I surrendered. After a lot of prayer, consultation, and a nearly two-year-in-the-making candidacy process, it finally dawned on me that it wasn’t my responsibility to make those decisions for my family. Just as I had relied on God to speak into my life about his plans for me, I had to trust that he would do the same for my family. And, over time, he did just that–in ways that I could not even begin to imagine.

My husband had always been supportive of me and, in time, he came to his own understanding of what this change might mean for our family and for him personally. He not only encouraged me to pursue seminary but offered to relocate to do so–this from a man who had lived in the same area all of his life. I knew then he was called, too. Within a matter of two months, God paved the way for us to respond:  I applied and was admitted to seminary, we listed and sold our house, we found another one in our price range, the girls were transferred to a new school, a scholarship was provided by the seminary to provide much-needed support and we found child care for those times that my husband would need to be gone for his job while I was at school.

It’s been said that God is interested not so much in our abilities as in our availability. In other words, he’ll provide the gifts and graces. We just need to say, “Here I am, Lord.  Send me.”

I grew up like a lot of guys in full-time ministry. I was in church every time the doors were open – my mom made sure of it. I did my part as a good Baptist by visiting with her and helping out in ministries that had captured her heart. She was an excellent model of a good, Christian woman and laid a godly foundation on which I could base my life choices.

After navigating through some tougher times in my late teens and early twenties, I landed in ministry as a bi-vocational youth pastor. I found quickly that due to my rearing in church I was prepared for most of the questions I received from both young people and parents, and found myself being so thankful for the background I had that well equipped me to minister to others. What I didn’t know, however, was what I didn’t know.

I had heard older ministers and laymen talk about education among “preachers” when our church was preparing to fill a staff role, and the conversation was always two-sided. Educated professionals talked about the value of an education and seminary degree while less educated men and women (who, I might add, were just as successful as their well-educated co-committee members) spoke of the need for a down-to-earth person who was educated by life experience and the church. I could best be described as the latter. In fact, I entered seminary after having served bi-vocationally for more than seven years and full-time for almost as many.

Having grown up around all kinds of ministers, I had a great deal of respect for their seminary degrees. In fact, the older I got the more cheated I felt personally for not taking the opportunity to experience the classes and seminary life I heard them speak of on multiple occasions. I felt that I had no “cool” seminary stories or experiences from which to pull. But not one time did I ever feel like I was less equipped or prepared for ministry than those guys. In fact, I considered myself their equal. I did not have their training, but I was certain that I was called and that Christ was using me effectively for advancing His Kingdom.

When I began my seminary journey, however, all of that changed. It did not take very long for me to realize just how ill-prepared I was for so great a task as training, teaching, and being a pastor of any kind. I remember having this moment of self awareness where I realized just how little I knew before I began seminary and how little I was going to know after I received my degree. It was awfully humbling.

And then my mind shifted to the gifted individuals who had received extensive seminary training but had allowed me to enter ministry without the same experience. These individuals recognized God’s call on my life and set me free to do ministry under their care. When I realized that these men knew full well what I didn’t know, it made their willingness to trust me to serve God’s Kingdom as a trusted pastor all the more humbling. And the fact that they allowed me to serve freely under their care – not as an hireling, but as an equal – helped me see that the scope of their training and calling far surpassed the paper they had hanging on their office walls. These men understood the heart of Jesus and owned the responsibility of modeling His heart to those called to serve Him.

My seminary journey is now nearing an end, but my thirst for knowledge has not been quenched. In fact, the more I learn the more I have a desire to learn more. And the greater my understanding becomes of the chance others took on me when I answered God’s call on my life, the greater responsibility I feel to nurture the same in others. I am thankful for what I have learned and for what I have yet to learn and experience. But I am so much more grateful for others who allowed me to answer God’s call on my life long before I actually knew what I didn’t know.

Have you ever thought about going to seminary? Chances are your answer is ‘No.’ Maybe “No, I’m not looking to become a minister” or “No, I want to do ministry, not just learn about it.” If you had asked me two years ago if I was thinking about seminary I would have said “No way!” Yet… I’m now near finishing at Rockbridge Seminary with a Master of Minister Leadership. I want to share a bit about how I came to that point, and why it might be something for you to consider.

I have always enjoyed learning. It was an easy decision to continue after college to get a Ph.D. I followed that by being an Assistant Professor before making the jump to industry. Now I’m a software developer for a small company. I love my job, spending time with my family, and have been growing in my faith for many years. Things were very comfortable, and I wasn’t looking for more to do. Until Spring 2008…

I was on a team developing a ‘long-range’ plan for my church. I was excited that we taking an honest look at our strengths and weaknesses, identifying strategic ways to pursue our mission of developing fully-devoted followers of Christ. I realized leadership development was a huge need for us – not relying on staff or professional ‘clergy’ to do all God is calling us to do. Between this realization and the fact that I was turning 45, I was facing a mid-life crisis. No, not wanting a sports car, but a powerful realization that despite my success, I really had no clue about what it meant to be a leader, much less how to effectively develop other leaders. The impact of my life so far wasn’t what I had hoped it would be, and something needed to change. It became clear that the best way to have a significant impact – on other people and for the Kingdom – would be to become someone helping others be all they could be, developing others as disciples and as leaders. The big question was: how could I become such a person? My role-models were very task-oriented, great at getting things done, smart and hard-working, but not people who poured themselves relationally and intentionally into developing others.

At this time I learned about a seminary that was 100% online and offered a program of study on Ministry Leadership – how to build up disciples and disciple-makers. The timing was perfect, and I enrolled in seminary. I had no intention of changing careers, and still don’t know where this might lead me, but I’ve found the past two years to be an amazing growth experience. Seminary isn’t needed to do ministry, but I don’t think that people appreciate just how helpful or practical it can be. There are three groups of people I would like to encourage to give more serious thought about the possibility of seminary.

Church Staffer (no seminary training)

A recent study shows that 83% of seminary graduates highly valued their experience and found it quite practical. Yet only 10% of churches require a seminary degree for staff members! This disconnect reflects a wariness about traditional seminary education. If you’re serving on staff at a church, know that there are now excellent seminary options that are online, biblical, practical, where you do not have to put your life on pause for two-three years to get training.

Volunteer Ministry Leader

Seminary is not just for those looking to be ‘career’ ministers! All Christians are ministers, but God has gifted some to be teachers and equippers to build up others for ministry. This is based on giftedness, not on position or career. Sometimes the best person to challenge volunteers trying to juggle career-family-ministry is a peer facing the same struggles. Developing a better understanding of the bible and practical ministry is not just for full-time pastors. Consider seeing if your church might partner with you, allowing you to serve as a ministry-intern and/or covering seminary costs.

Halftimer / Retiree

It’s common to drift into your 40’s-50’s and find yourself lacking a good answer for the question “What am I here for?!” Bob Buford calls this “Halftime”, when a desire awakens to change your game plan from success to significance. One of the greatest benefits of seminary is that it helps you consider this question of life purpose, and helps you find a biblical framework for significance. My classes have included people of all ages.

Today’s guest post is by Dr. Sam Simmons. Dr. Simmons is co-founder and vice president for learning design at Rockbridge Seminary. ©Copyright 2010. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Bob rubbed his tired eyes. For three hours he had been staring at seminary Web sites trying to decide where to apply. He was particularly interested in three seminaries but felt like he needed to probe a little deeper before making his final decision.

Returning to the three Web sites, Bob wrote down the phone numbers, and then pulled out his cell phone to make the calls. While dialing the first number, he slowly closed his phone, realizing he needed time to think more carefully about what questions to ask.

I have listened to questions from prospective seminary applicants like Bob for 25 years. In almost every instance, the most important questions were never asked – questions relating to learning design. A seminary’s learning design is how a seminary intends for you to change as a result of completing an academic program – change in knowledge, understanding, attitudes, and skills.

If I could catch Bob before he makes that first call, here are three questions I would suggest he ask before he settles on where to attend seminary.

How will your seminary help me understand and fulfill God’s call?
A generation ago, students entered seminary with a calling to one of a handful of ministry
multiple ministry roles. Seminary courses were developed accordingly.

Today, seminary students are more likely to view God’s call in terms of Kingdom, journey, and relationship. Rather than entering seminary with a calling to a specific ministry role, they are more likely to be committed to a journey of obedience that could include multiple ministry roles.

Seminaries are beginning to adapt to this new kind of student. Some provide an entry course that helps incoming students clarify God’s call and process how they are designed and shaped uniquely for Kingdom influence. With the average age of incoming seminary students approaching 40 years old, help is often provided so an older student can understand how life experience and secular work skills relate to God’s call.

Without some perspective of calling, a student can be overwhelmed with the vast assortment of programs and courses from which to choose. Charting a course of study is easier when a student has a clearer perspective of God’s call and a sharper focus of where ministry development is needed.

How will your seminary help me be more effective in ministry?

The root of the word “seminary” is “semen” or “seed.” The original idea was that seminary would be a season of planting seed into a young minister’s life – seed that would start bearing fruit after the student left the protective care of seminary life and assumed his first ministry position in the real world. Traditional seminary education was built on the assumption that a student would complete seminary before assuming full-time ministry responsibilities.

Students entering seminary today are more likely to be serving already in a full-time ministry position. Instead of enrolling in seminary for credentialing in order to find a ministry position, they enroll in seminary because they need help in being more effective as a minister.

Increasingly, seminaries are seeking to make theological education more directly relevant to local church ministry. Some are responding by designing curriculum that is competency- guided. Others are building assignments in a way that use a student’s ministry position as the primary platform for learning.

When I graduate, how will I know if your seminary has helped me?
Seminary is more than passing courses and receiving a diploma. It is a learning journey of growth and development. The entrance into seminary represents one point in your journey.

Graduation represents another. In between, seminary study has influenced you. After three or more years of study, you have a right to ask how.

Did seminary study help you grow? Are you better prepared to minister? Did the seminary program influence you in the way it was intended? These questions will be difficult to answer unless a seminary has embedded these evaluation tools into the learning process from start to finish.

• At the front end, a seminary should help you construct learning objectives based on God’s call and your ministry development requirements.
• As you take courses, a seminary should help you capture learning snapshots that track your progress.
• As you near completion of your academic program, a seminary should help youevaluate the degree to which your learning objectives were met .

Perhaps you are considering seminary education. If so, gather and study information on your prospective seminaries prayerfully. And as you do, be sure you ask the most important questions.

I am a second year student at Campbell University Divinity School. Campbell is embedded deep within the Baptist denomination. It is affiliated with the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina, the Baptist World Alliance, and is also a partnering institution with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF).

Too bad I’m not Baptist.

“Why then are you going to Campbell?” you might ask. Good question. Let me share some reasons that were not a part of my decision to continue my education here and at the same time share some reasons that did influence this decision.

First, I did not come to Campbell because of its Baptist heritage, or, more accurately, their specific theology. If I had to choose a denomination (which I’m not opposed to doing—I have not had to come down in a camp yet), I would probably appreciate and feel most comfortable in the Anglican tradition. This does not mean, however, that I do not appreciate certain elements of Baptist tradition. If I could stand none, I would not be able to cope in this context (believe me!), nor be able to serve in a Baptist church.

Campbell is generally considered as fairly moderate, both theologically and I would imagine politically. I would consider myself theologically moderate. I was not attracted to a more “liberal” or more “conservative” seminary. My thoughts are that in a “liberal” context, conversation and beliefs are more often too subjective—boundaries can be lost. In a “conservative” context, conversation and beliefs are too objective—boundaries are tight and perspectives are unnecessarily limited. I have found good, productive conversation among those who, like has been mentioned in a recent article here, are okay with tension; ones who are not purely subjective or overly objective.

On a different note, I did not come to Campbell because of its name. Being only ten years old, Campbell does not have a reputation like that of, say, Duke Divinity, or Fuller Theological Seminary, or Dallas Theological Seminary. I am confidant that this is developing, however.

Having grown up in a part of the country with four distinct seasons (Fort Wayne, Indiana), the appeal of warmer year-round weather played a piece in the decision process.

Even though the weather is great, the city that Campbell is located in would probably not be known at all if the university was not located in it. This is another consideration that did not factor into my decision. Buies Creek has one stoplight; it’s the one on campus. The largest cities closest to Campbell are Fayetteville or Raleigh (although Dunn has a Wal-Mart).

One of the biggest confirmations that led to me attending Campbell Divinity was the support of my wife. By nature (or nurture, rather), my wife analyzes every decision to the smallest iota. When she expressed being on-board to move out of our recently-bought home in Fort Wayne, depart from family and friends, and leave everything familiar to her in order to relocate to North Carolina, I was sure this was the place to pursue. I had been considering other schools, of which my wife shot down; but, she liked the sound of North Carolina.

Along these same lines, when my wife and I came to visit Campbell (May 2008), one of the things we attempted to accomplish was to see about a possible job for her with the university. In the two and a half days we were in town, she received an offer for a position with Campbell’s School of Pharmacy as an Admission’s Counselor. Another significant contribution to us making this move.

Another factor that was not weighed in making this decision were the professors. I knew nothing about them. Since I have been in class and have had some of them, I have appreciated many things about what they do and who they seem to be as people of faith. Oh, and yes, I have learned some great things from them as well.

An obvious reason that did contribute in this decision was simply being accepted. At the time, I had another application in at a local school, although the school was not a seminary. I was not admitted into that program, but through the series of interviews with Campbell Divinity staff and faculty, I had received an admittance. I looked no further at that point.

As I was applying for Campbell Divinity School, two of my closest friends in Fort Wayne were doing the same. The plan was for us three (taking along our respected immediate family as well) to attend school together (which was probably one of the most significant elements of the decision making process). Unfortunately this idea never came to fruition as we had planned.

Some of these things may sound familiar to you as you considered, or are considering, picking a seminary. If I had to be honest, I probably did not do the kind of research that one may think to do before pulling the trigger on making such a move. At the same time, it would seem to be an unrealistic expectation that there is a seminary out there that would be “perfect.”

I am completely confidant and entirely at peace knowing that I am in a good place. Having a confirmation from my wife and close friends would have been enough, so all of the logistical details that God worked out was more than convincing—it was exciting. I know me being at Campbell is cool with God, and is indeed assisting in my education as student of God’s word, my development as a disciple of Jesus, and my training as a minister of the gospel of God.