By Guest Contributor on September 5, 2016
When I first arrived at seminary, they sat us all down and gave us lecture after lecture about all the rules and guidelines for graduating with our degrees. They told us the required courses, the available concentrations, and gave us tips on scheduling. What you don’t often hear, though, are just how few of the Read More...
By Guest Contributor on September 1, 2016
You have so many books to read, who can afford to read any more? That’s an excellent question, and a justification I used for burying my head in theology text after theology text. But I’ve starting asking a different question: “I have so many theology texts to read, can I afford to focus so single-mindedly Read More...
By Guest Contributor on August 29, 2016
I do not enjoy details. I do not enjoy rigidly structured environments. I do not enjoy tedium. And as a child, I loved the open window more than I loved the chalkboard. So why then, do I enjoy taking biblical Greek? Going into my first Greek class last semester I assumed that it would be Read More...
By Guest Contributor on August 15, 2016
There is a common misconception among Christians about Seminaries and seminarians in general. The misconception is that going to the Seminary gives one an automatic guarantee to be spiritual. In other words, people feel that by just being in the Seminary, one’s spiritual life gets an automatic ticket to blossom. While there is a particular Read More...
By Guest Contributor on August 4, 2016
If you are like me, then the thought of preaching or even speaking in public has been a life-long fear. Maybe you feel called to attend seminary but are worried about the class called “Homiletics.” Maybe you’ve even said to yourself, “How can I get out of taking this class?” Well, the truth is, for Read More...
By Guest Contributor on July 25, 2016
An important concept to know while in seminary is to live on a seminary budget. This involves personal examination, time, dedication, and fortitude. When you live on a seminary budget, it is important you make sure you are spending money on the things you actually need on a daily basis. A seminary budget is important Read More...
By Guest Contributor on July 7, 2016
Life in seminary can be hard. Even if we’re single and have a sweet financial set-up that leaves us free to focus on our studies without having to work, its still hard. But let’s be honest, most of us, details aside, aren’t in a place in life where we’ve got lots of free time, mental Read More...
By Paul Burkhart on June 30, 2016
The Daily Office: Seminarian’s Best Friend For my seminary Internship, each semester we have a different spiritual practice to engage in for the semester. The goal is to expose different people to different ways of engaging God in a deep way so that as they step out in ministry, they have these “tools” in their Read More...
By Paul Burkhart on June 23, 2016
In our previous post, I offered one helpful theological principle that I have found helpful to keep in mind as a seminarian preparing for ministry in which finances is involved. I encouraged us to view God’s creation as one brimming with creational, financial, and resourceful abundance rather than scarcity. Today I offer another idea that has helped Read More...
By Paul Burkhart on June 20, 2016
Having spent time around a lot of seminarians, I can tell you that the nitty-gritty, practical realities of pastoral life don’t get talked about enough. That’s a problem. But the bigger problem, in my view, is that whenever these things are talked about, it’s in a way you can’t really reproduce. I’ve watched too many pastors try Read More...