Spiritual Formation: A Journey Towards Christlike Transformation
By
Rev. Dr. Deborah Dennis
We are commanded to love and serve as Jesus did. Whether it is called “discipleship” or “spiritual formation”, we are on a journey to be transformed into the likeness and image of Jesus Christ for the sake of others.
A Reason to Run: In Pursuit of Academic Excellence
By
Wanda M. Coleman
Pursuing academic excellence in seminary means willingness to make the necessary adjustments and sacrifices in life in order carry out the call of God in our lives. One thing is certain when entering ministry and attending seminary: life does not stop because we are obedient to the call!
Faculty Focus: Dr. Mike Thompson
By
Miles Larson
Amid the busyness of the Christmas season, Miles Larson was able to sit with Dr. Mike Thompson, Professor of Practical Theology, and discuss some of the current themes in American Christianity.
The Meaning of Community
By
Paul W. Chilcote, PhD
Africans have a much better perspective on community than many in the West – a conception of community much like the biblical vision. Those of us in the West have much to learn from our African brothers and sisters in this regard.
Beyond the Nursery
By
Jerry Flora, Ph.D.
Bill, Spencer, Glenn, Phil and I were all in the Ashland Seminary graduating class of 1958. No, let me rephrase that. We were the class of ‘58 – all five of us.
The Light Unto My Path
By
Rev. Dr. Jacqueline Nelson, MA, DMin
To encounter God through the Word of God is both powerful and transforming. This is what I experienced as both student and Adjunct Instructor at Ashland Theological Seminary-Detroit.
The Impact of Mentoring: What Legacy Will You Leave Behind?
By
Dawn Morton, Ed.D.
We want to leave a legacy that builds upon what Christ is already doing within others. Through teaching and nurturing others, we share our Devotion to Christ; we share our Doctrine and theology; and we have Diligence for the task and the race ahead.
Ripple Effect: Smetzer Counseling Center (Part 1)
By
Dawn West
One of my favorite aspects of God is the way he redeems the painful events of our lives when we surrender them to him. God provided a similar generous exchange for Frances, a woman who suffered great personal wounds early in life. Many years later, nearer to the end of her days than the beginning, Frances used the wealth with which she’d been blessed to endow a counseling center on the Ashland campus of Ashland Theological Seminary.
Ripple Effect: Smetzer Counseling Center (Part 2)
By
Kendra Bermosk
There are experiences that change us, that make us different and make us better. From the first moment I walked into Smetzer Counseling Center, I knew that it was the place I wanted to do my practicum and internship experience. Little did I know just how much the experience would wind up shaping who I am and who I am becoming.
Faculty Focus: Dr. Ken Walther
By
Miles Larson
In 1976, Jobs and Wozniak were creating Apple, the ABA-NBA merger was being finalized, Jimmy Carter became the first president from the Deep South since the Civil War, and Dr. Ken Walther and his wife Linda moved to Ashland Theological Seminary to start a brief stint teaching in our sleepy Midwestern community.
Graduation 2012
By
Lori K. Lower
I have met students who are great prayer warriors, have had experiences in life that I can’t imagine or have told me about the work and call of God in their lives. These encounters with students have impacted my own life in incredible ways.
What We Do Matters Because What They Do Matters: Dale Stoffer
By
Dawn West
In the last issue we introduced you to Maqdalena, an ATS graduate working in Malaysia. This issue, we’re sticking closer to home. Dr. Dale Stoffer earned his MDiv at ATS in 1975. He returned in 1992 as a full time faculty member, after earning his Ph.D. and serving 12 years as a pastor and adjunct instructor.
Fingerprints on My Heart
By
Jerry Flora, Ph.D.
My schooling began in a small town in Pennsylvania’s coal country. Our house stood a half-block from the local fire station. When the siren sounded, I would race to an upstairs window and watch the volunteer firefighters run to the station, then roar off on their trucks.
What We Do Matters Because What They Do Matters: Edwin Harlin
By
Will Gravitt
When a person hears that a friend or loved one is beginning a degree program at Ashland Theological Seminary, they assume that a career in pastoral ministry is the next step. Though many of our graduates go on to lead churches around the world, not all follow that path. Rev. Edwin Harlin is just such a graduate.
Aspirations: The Next Chapter
We asked our graduates to let us know their hopes for the future, now that they are equipped with a seminary degree! The following is just a small sample of the exciting and humbling things the Lord is accomplishing through ATS graduates.
Come and Return: A Strategy for World Evangelism
By
William P. Payne, PhD
In past generations the American church focused on the “going” aspect of the Great Commission. Yet, thanks to shifting immigration patterns, the world has come to America. In fact, local churches are surrounded by practitioners of other world faiths.
Fast Facts: ATS Campus Cities
By
Dawn West
In addition to our Ashland Center, ATS has established and expanding centers in Cleveland, Columbus, and Detroit. The following article gives a brief glimpse of the demographics within these cities.
They Are Us
By
Matt Soerens
Many in American society see immigration as a threat. For Christians, though, the Scriptural call to welcome strangers—even immigrants—invites us to see immigration as a missional opportunity for the Church.
The Nations Have Come To Us
By
Dustin White
Visions of courageous missionaries that travel to distant lands have captivated our imaginations. Yet, through the diaspora of today, as discussed in Acts 17:26-27, going to the nations no longer demands crossing oceans—oftentimes we simply need to cross the street. The nations have come to us.
What We Do Matters Because What They Do Matters: Maqdalene Kawotjo
By
Maqdalene Kawotjo
I knew deep in my heart that I had an important and unchangeable mission, though I didn’t know how to begin. Indonesia is a country of more than 250 million people, a variety of cultures and dialects, and the largest Muslim population in the world.
Global Perspectives on Missions
By
Paul W. Chilcote, PhD
If Christians today are serious about embracing God’s mission in the world, then they must learn important lessons from all quarters of the global community of faith.
To Hear His Voice
By
David Sutter
My wife of 15 years, Rolanda, is Navajo and was raised on the Navajo Indian Reservation in Arizona. Over the course of our marriage I have come to appreciate Navajo culture and feel a deep sense of love for her people. I have also been forced to acknowledge the pain and brokenness resulting from the actions of our government and the church.
A Time For Honor and Healing
By
L. Daniel Hawk, PhD
Throughout American history, civilizing the Indian has been synonymous with evangelizing the Indian. Early Protestant missionaries regarded European civilization as the cultural expression of Christian teachings and perceived indigenous cultures as primitive at best and satanic at worst.
Deputized to Feed
By
Jerry Flora, Ph.D.
The Middlebury Street of my boyhood was a fascinating place to live. A couple blocks away flowed a lazy river, always inviting exploration. At a similar distance lay an open trash dump, full of material for building fragile forts. A symphony violinist across the way practiced for hours in the evening. And every morning Mr. Anderson strolled up the street with his bulldog to open the corner service station.
Do Leaders Really Need To Pray?: The Role of Prayer in Leadership
By
John C. Shultz, Ph.D.
Why pray? Perhaps because as a leader you have come to the place where you’re in so far over your head you don’t have anywhere else to turn. Perhaps you just need a word of encouragement or an extra measure of courage in a challenging crisis.
A Sevenfold Prayer of Transformation
By
David A. deSilva, Ph.D.
When Jesus’ disciples asked him to teach them how to pray, Jesus responded by giving them a fixed prayer to recite (Matt 6:9-13//Luke 11:1-4). In that prayer, he taught them what they most needed to ask of God. As they prayed it attentively, he knew that their hearts and wills would be changed and brought more and more in line with what they were asking of God. What they were seeking in prayer was fully attuned to the change that God wanted to bring about in them and the direction in which God wanted them to go.
Eternal Value
The unexpected gift of tuition for my M.A. in psychology and counseling from Ashland Theological Seminary. I incorporate their core values of academic excellence, scriptural foundation and formation, community development and servant leadership into my business practice.
Cries of the Heart
We asked our readers to submit prayers from their own lives — prayers that have been spiritually transformational, cathartic, and raw in honesty.
Tales from the Tel
A handful of ATS students opted to spend five weeks of their summer toiling under the sun in the dirt of Tel Gezer in Israel with ATS Professor, Dr. John Bryon. Here are a few of their stories.
Jesus, Prayer, and the Temple
By
Stephen J. Knisely
When we think about key components of Jesus’ ministry, we usually don’t list prayer as a central theme. We may cite the Gospel as a central theme in his ministry, or the cross as a focal point of it. We may even point to the miracles of Jesus and his care for the poor and attention to the outcasts of society as a central aspect of the ministry of Jesus.