Just say no - Seminary triage

While taking some time reading through some posts on Seminary Survival Guide I was struck Mark’s obvious, yet often overlooked, observation that we must learn triage.

There’s no way for you to work all the hours to get all the money you need, AND make straight “A”s in school, AND maintain an intimate walk with God, AND pour yourself out in fruitful ministry, AND develop an impressive resume, AND see to the needs of your spouse and family, AND develop a network of friendships to support you AND get the rest, exercise and proper nutrition you need.

It’s just not possible. The time and energy demands for each of these endeavors is much too great for one person. So please give up on this now. It is a pipe dream.

Mark is right… we can’t do it and be good at all of it. We must take the time to prioritize our lives and learn to say “no” and “wait” to some of the items fighting for attention in our lives. And, as hard as this is to say, that probably means missing an assignment or failing a test every now and then… I know, it is counter intuitive… fail a test!?!?! Is this guy crazy? Well, maybe… but the point is that there are times in your life when passing an exam is not worth the sacrifice of other things… like your family or your love for God.

Now, I hope it goes without saying that this in not a plug for being lazy. If you fail your test or miss an assignment because you are lazy… well, you deserve it. But, the point is that you need to perform triage. You need to know what is important and when it is important. Don’t be lazy… be wise… I think that is in the Bible somewhere

New Home Decor

So, our new home has some new decorations thanks to winter term Hebrew I.

Throughout the house you will find the following hanging on walls, doors, mirrors, and even the shower:

Should women attend seminary?

Now, some of you might read that and think, “that’s a stupid question.” And of the ones who think that, half of you think it is stupid for one reason and half think it is stupid for another.

However, the fact is that whether the question is good or not, it’s one I think we should tackle.

My short answer is yes. In fact, my answer is so much a yes that Just a Gal (my wife) is going to seminary with me. And by going, I mean attending.

The longer answer is that I think anyone who has the ways and means should attend seminary. And if you don’t have the means, I’ve already blogged about the ways… so, there is really no excuse. So, why everyone? Well, I guess mine is kind of a reverse logic… meaning, why not? Why not take time to study the depths and beauty of our redeemer and his gracious word? If you are a Christian, why would you not take the opportunity to do that?

Now, sure, we can have all kinds of debates about who can be an elder or deacon or sunday school teacher… and all the other debates that surround woman, men, and gender roles… but we can’t debate with Jesus.

Luke 10:38-42 (ESV)
38 Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, 42 but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

Is this a proof text for women to attend seminary? It has to be:

1. Uh, yeah Dr. Insert Your Professor’s Name is great… But this is JESUS!
2. Jesus was teaching. Again, better than Dr. Insert Your Professor’s Name.
3. Jesus said that Mary chose the good portion. He like that she was attending his seminary class.

So, there you have it ladies. Go to seminary. Jesus thinks its a good thing and so do I… but Jesus’ opinion is probably the better one to go with… I’m just a tag-a-long.

Learning and doing in seminary

I was reading James this morning and thinking, in particular, about James 2:24. Then, this evening I was reading Live. Work. Play. and was reminded how this applies to seminary. Worth quoting here:

I’m glad I am taking the time to go through seminary. It’s a chance to ask the big “God questions” before someone else asks me. It gives me the time and tools to consider what I really believe. It gives me a background and perspective on the Bible that enriches my ability to follow God and to lead and teach others.

But sometimes it’s … so … draining. If you’re not careful, it can become completely removed from any sort of “real life” or any sort of real application. “Faith” can become something that’s all in your head - not something that’s believed with your heart and emotions or your feet and actions.

Such a good warning and reminder. Seminarians need to remember that this is not a mere exercise in mental ascent. Our time at seminary is to equip and fuel the ministries that Jesus has given us. This isn’t on hold while we are in seminary. We must continue to shine as light in the world. If all we do is learn a bunch of information, but neglect to deepen our love for God and for people… then regardless of the grades we receive… we certainly fail.

Got a question? Consult your flowchart.

So, I came across this chart today on Gospel Resurgence this afternoon and thought you’d get a kick out of it. As I read through it I actually laughed out loud as I thought of all the people this would help (mostly the people who talk too much in class because they like to hear themselves talk).

My favorites are “Is your comment an attempt to teach the professor something you think he doesn’t know?” and “Is you comment likely to elicit an Amen?”

These are so funny (and probably helpful). When I first read it I just thought it was a joke… However, after reading the comments in the post I wasn’t sure… someone took it really seriously and had a long comment about it.

Either way, it made me laugh. So, here it is for your enjoyment.

My virtual seminary experience

Ok, before I was just a guy going to seminary I was just a virtual guy going to a virtual seminary. Yes, I was an online student. The journey for me began about 7 years ago when I was trying to determine if God was calling me to seminary. I’m not so much sure how much of it was God and how much was me just looking for an excuse to skip town… either way, after looking into lots of seminaries and talking it through with my pastor, I decided to give distance education a shot.

Now, the first thing to note is that the education I received via my distance program was great. I loved sitting down and listening to the lectures, reading all my textbooks, writing my papers. I felt like these exercises truly helped me in my job (I was a campus minister). However, as time went on I discovered what I believe is the greatest challenge of distance education… life.

My wife and I moved to a new city, we had our first baby (little man), I went through 3 jobs (eventually getting back to campus ministry), we bought our first house, our basement was destroyed by a flood (3 times), we had our second baby (sweetpea)… and on and on… All while trying to find time to sit, read, and study. Needless to say, it didn’t really pan out.

Over the course of 5 years I purchased 6 extensions ($50 each) and withdrew from 3 classes (meaning I paid a lot of money for the class, didn’t do the work, and then bailed at the last moment). For me, there always seemed to be something more pressing than the classes… besides, they’d always be there tomorrow.

So, my experience ultimately led me to the decision that I’m going to have to do a residential program if I ever want to finish this degree. Now, please don’t take that to mean I think distance education is a bad idea… quite the contrary. I think it is amazing. However, I believe that it requires a certain type of person, with a certain personality, a certain discipline, and a certain situation. You might be that kind of person.

Anyone out there had any luck with the distance program? Let us hear your success story.

Deciding on a seminary - Which degree is for me?

253 seminaries… that’s a bunch. So, how do you decide on which one to attend?

Well, this is seminary, so prayer is always a good starting place. As you prayerfully submit your decision making process to the Lord, there are a couple things to think through. In this post, we’ll look at step one, “what degree do I want to pursue?”

This is step one because knowing what degree you want to pursue will help eliminate all seminaries that don’t have the degree and it will also help in future steps when you are looking at specific aspects of the program within the seminary you are considering.

Most seminaries offer several standard degree options (We’ll only be looking at Masters degrees in this series):

• Master of Divinity (M.Div.)
• Masters of Theology (Th.M.)
• Masters of Arts (M.A. in ___ )
  • Biblical Studies
  • Theological Studies
  • Christian Thought
  • Counseling
  • Missions
  • Youth Ministry
  • Religion

Now, this list isn’t exhaustive, but it is a good representation of what is available. So, what is the difference in all of these?

The M.Div. is seen as the “traditional” degree that someone would go to seminary to get. This degree is almost universally the standard for ordination in all mainline denominations. Meaning, if you want to be a pastor in a denominational church, then this is probably the degree you’re going to want to go for.

The M.Div. is going to take the longest to get, requiring 106 credit hours to graduate. You will be will be required to learn both Greek and Hebrew and you will take courses in theology, history, bible, and communication. Almost every M.Div. program is designed specifically to prepare the student for pastoral ministry.

The Th.M. is an advanced degree that almost always requires you to first have your M.Div. in order to be accepted into the program. That said, I feel like I’ve seen a few Th.M.’s that didn’t require it… but I believe they are few and far between.

The Th.M. is designed to allows a student the opportunity to take specialized advanced studies in theological research. Th.M. programs typically require 30-60 credit hours for graduation and will typically require writing a thesis paper. This degree is typically gained in preparation for doctoral studies (Doctor of Ministry, D.Min.; Doctor of Theology, Th.D.; Doctor of Psychology, Ph.D.) and typically emphasizes a specific area of study. For example, at Reformed Theological Seminary, the Th.M. program focuses on Reformation Studies (saw that coming).

Finally, the M.A. is a degree designed to give concentrated study in a specific field. Part of the appeal of the M.A. is that you are only taking classes that are in your area of study. So, for example, if you want an M.A. in Biblical Studies, then most of your coursework will be in classes studying, very specifically, the scriptures. However, an M.A. in Missions will also, study the scriptures, but it will focus more class time on engaging and ministering within different cultures.

Now, I don’t have the time to go into the details of all the M.A.’s available, but I hope you get the gist of what the degree is all about.

Knowing the degrees that are available to you will be useful as you seek to narrow down your list of seminaries. If you know you want an M.A. in Counseling… well, you’ve just knocked down a whole bunch of schools.

Our next step will be to consider geographic issues. “Should I stay or should I go?” - The Clash

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