Digital Commons Network^™

Pastoring The Pandemic : Leadership Lessons From The Covid-19 Pandemic, Donald W. Merricks Ii

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Knowledge, Attitude And Behavioral Change : A Study Of Youth In Deliverance Church Ong'ata Rongai, Peter Keffar Njogah

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Sustaining Spiritual Change In Wesleyan-Holiness Systems Of Discipleship In Selected Congregations In Illinois, U.S.A., Stephen J. Descalzo

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Act Of Being : Older Adults In The Missional Church, Eva Marie Wolfe

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Syrian Christian Churches, Kerala : Spiritual Renewal And Revival In Contemporary Syrian Christian Churches In Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India, Samuel Thomas Varghese

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

How Shame Shapes Church Planting : Exploring Impacts On Gospel Receptivity Among Emerging Adults, Robert Mark Montgomery

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Cultivating A Transformative Christology : Adult Learning And The Study Of Philippians, Joshua Pack

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Equipping The Saints : Best Practices In Establishing A Five-Fold Equipping Ministry Team, David V. Ford

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Biblical Preaching, Teaching, And The Charismatic Gifts : Prioritizing The Essentials Of The Great Commission, Sylvester T. Toe

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Nietzsche: Dionysian-Apollonian Lord Of The Dance, Michael S. Mendoza

Liberty Theological Review

Friedrich Nietzsche introduced his philological study of the Ancient Greek's Apollonian and Dionysian duality in his first book, The Birth of Tragedy: Out of the Spirit of Music, in 1872. His interpretation of the two Greek gods underpinned his philosophy of the will to power, the Übermensch, and eternal recurrence throughout his career.

I contend that Nietzsche's philosophy would have a modicum of merit as a metaphor for Greek culture and the German society in which he lived if his underlying assumption about atheism was correct. However, his explicit rejection of Christianity led to a fatal flaw in his …

Faith In A Faithful God: A Biblical Theological Analysis Of Ezekiel 34:11-24, Jenna King

Biblical Studies Student Projects

Ezekiel 34:11-24 falls in the midst of passages concerning judgment and a future hope for Israel. This paper examines the themes of relationship and faithfulness as they are presented through the motif of God as the shepherd of his people. Furthermore, it examines the significance of the passage within the context of the broader Biblical canon, concluding with a brief examination of both historical and contemporary applications.

Theological Practices For Sustaining Community Renewal At Speedway Church Of Christ, Kent A. Ellett

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This project assembled a group of potential small-group facilitators for the purpose of drafting a small-group discussion guide to be used at the Speedway (Indiana) Church of Christ. The guide was intended to aid the discernment of missional practices which sustain the renewal of the wider community. Focusing on the Gospel of John, the intervention attempted to recover a temple Christology, construing the incarnation, ministry, death, and the lifting up of Jesus within the larger story of the temple’s ongoing re-creation of the world. In bestowing his glory upon the church, Jesus sends the church into all the world, as …

Redemptive Suffering In A Contemporary Context, Allison Magera

Honors Program Theses and Research Projects

Redemptive suffering is a Christian understanding of suffering which holds that the pain and adversities of everyday life can be spiritually united to Christ’s suffering and death on the cross in petition for the needs and salvation of oneself or others. Salvifici Doloris proves to be a foundational document in comprehending the many facets of this concept theologically, but practically, personal prayer in petition is often how one can spiritually “share in the sufferings of Christ.” There is also potential for this theological concept to apply elsewhere in Christianity outside of Catholicism, and in practice this concept should be delivered …

Chaplaincy: A Practical Approach To Caring For The Human Spirit, Susan Fair

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This DMIN project is based on the Pastoral Ministry program at Nyack College, which publicly promotes that it leads the student to become a professional in the ministry context. The problem is that the academic curriculum does not include components of Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE). The project facilitator reasons that the current environment demands that spiritual care providers possess a specific skill set extending beyond pulpit preaching, reading scriptures, and prayer. The literature review contains articles, journals, and books that explore caring for the human spirit within the physical, spiritual, emotional, financial, religious, and holistic context. The research methodology designed …

An Effective Online Training Strategy For Worship Leaders In Korea, Dong Hyun Kwon

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

A trained worship leader plays a significant role in a modern church's proper worship experience. It is hard to find well-prepared worship leaders, and most local churches need to train those who are or will be leading their worship services. There have been various courses for this purpose by several organizations in Korea. However, these programs have usually been limited to those who are able to attend at a certain time and place set by the organization. Those who do not live in large cities or cannot afford time off during those hours have been excluded from the opportunity to …

A Theological Exploration Of Death, Benjamin F. Bruner

Harding School of Theology Dissertations and Theses

No abstract provided.

"Read It Again!": Storytelling To Imitate The Great Teacher, Kate Whatley

Senior Honors Theses

The student’s mind is bent on stories, asking mothers around the world to ‘read it again’. These stories preserve information and emotions for centuries. In the classroom, stories enliven motivation and empathy in ways that result in higher academic achievement and social awareness. Learning to use stories as a key instructional strategy will allow for more equitable opportunities in classrooms, encourage mental health and truth telling for the teacher and the student collectively, and allow the academic community to imitate Christ by contributing to the bigger story taking place across time. In application of using stories as teachers, this thesis …

Reproducing Lay Leaders In The Local Church Through Missional Mentoring, Jonathan A. Watson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

In many rural churches with 250 or fewer people in attendance each week, there is a need to properly train and prepare non-paid, volunteer laymen to serve in positions of leadership. Churches have been guilty of placing someone in an area of service with very little—or no—direction of what to do or how to properly lead. Without adequate training and leadership development, the spiritual growth of the ministry can be hindered as lay leaders are not equipped to effectively disciple those under their ministry. At Bible Baptist Church, the desire is to develop a missional mentoring ministry that will help …

Reviews, Robert D. Mcbain

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Reviews Wonsuk Ma and Kathaleen Reid-Martinez. Human Sexuality & the Holy Spirit: Spirit-Empowered Perspectives.

Robert D. McBain ................................................................................................333

Robert D. McBain. Depression, Where is Your Sting?

Cletus L. Hull, III .................................................................................................335

John R. Levison. The Holy Spirit Before Christianity.

William Lyons ......................................................................................................337

Andrew Ray Williams. Washed in the Spirit: Toward a Pentecostal Theology of Water Baptism.

Christopher J. King ..............................................................................................341

Makoto Fujimura. Art and Faith: A Theology of Making.

Martin Mittelstadt ................................................................................................343

Hannah R. K. Mather. Spirit, Scripture, and Interpretation in the Renewal Tradition.

Rick Wadholm, Jr. ................................................................................................345

Frank D. Macchia. The Spirit-Baptized Church: A Dogmatic Inquiry …

Expanding God's Redemptive Fractal: Spirit-Centered Counseling And The Transformative Wisdom Of Jesus, Bill Buker

Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology

Using the image of a fractal, a Spirit-centered approach to counseling is proposed that conceptualizes the Spirit’s activity as seeking to replicate the patterns of God’s redemptive story throughout creation by facilitating deep second-order change. Involving an epistemological shift from ways of knowing shaped by the conventional wisdom of culture to a renewed mind grounded in the transformative wisdom of Jesus, this deep change is explored from the perspectives of science and Scripture. Integrating findings from systems theory with the ministry and message of Jesus, this approach to counseling emphasizes relational premises and values believed to be characteristic of the …

Our Firm Foundation: A Biblical Theological Study Of Hebrews 2:5-18, Jenna King

Biblical Studies Student Projects

Hebrews 2:5-18 highlights the passage's emphasis of the relationship between Christ and man, as well as how this interacts with the ideas of suffering, glory, and atonement also present in the passage. This paper examines the text itself as well as its broader context within Biblical canon, concluding with an application of the content for modern-day Christians.

The Household Of God: Building Communities Of Shalom, Jodi Gatlin

Doctor of Ministry

This paper explores the problem of anxiety, loneliness, and division within the United States. Research shows that while anxiety, loneliness, and division are on the rise, church participation is on the decline. In light of this reality, this paper asks the question, “How can the church be a community so that lonely and anxious people can be seen, known, and belong?”

From Genesis through Revelation, Scripture witnesses to God’s presence in creation, uniting with humanity to expand God’s heaven and earth temple into the rest of creation. Within God’s temple, God’s people are called to love God first, then self …

The Father’S Business: Exploring The Challenges Of Second-Generation Ministry Leaders, Garrett Booth

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

Today’s pastoral leader must balance more competing priorities than ever before. Pastors are responsible for strategic planning, providing excellent messages, developing a staff or ministry team, overseeing finances, and building ministries to meet the needs of their flocks and communities. Many times, the demands of pastoral leadership, especially in a growing church environment, can be so consuming that the family of the pastor pays the price. Pastors’ children who grow up in such a leadership environment face their own additional pressures and extra challenges. This project explores the question “What are the challenges of growing up as a pastor’s child …

The Ministry Of The Spirit, Prophetic Witness: A Theological Model For Prophets, Matthew C. Larson

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

Much of Christianity today neglects the role of the prophet. Christians who do acknowledge prophetic ministry commonly limit the impact of prophecy. Pentecostals, who embrace the role, often do not have a full biblical understanding of what a prophet is and what a prophet is to do. The project first builds a theological framework for the function of prophets and prophecy within the ecclesial community. From the theological framework, a model of the prophethood of believers is developed to encourage prophetic ministry that is inclusive, exercises discernment, and is faithful to the witness of Jesus Christ. The prophetic model is …

Announcements, David R. Dunaetz

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Identifying Current Gaps In Church Planting Movements Research: Integrating First- And Second-Order Perspectives, Warrick Farah

Great Commission Research Journal

The proliferation of church planting movements in least-reached peoples today provides an opportunity ripe for missiological research. Using the online application form for the Movements Research Symposium 2020 of the Motus Dei Network, this article identifies six gaps of understanding in the missiological discourse on movements: 1) Deepening Theological and Missiological Descriptions of Movements, 2) Identifying Best Practices and Effective Movement Strategies, 3) Clarifying Issues of Ecclesiology – Practical, Theological, and Spiritual, 4) Training Movement Catalysts and Practitioners, 5) Highlighting Contextual, Sociological, and Holistic Features of Movements, and 6) Documenting Movements with Respect to Verification, Metrics, and Administration. However, issues …

Complete Issue Fall 2021: Innovation In Churches, David R. Dunaetz

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Developing The Practice Of Biblical Mentoring Through Expository Preaching At Kepler Road Baptist Church, Jerry L. Durden

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Developing the Practice of Biblical Mentoring Through Expository Preaching at Kepler Road Baptist Church (KRBC) is a project in which the presence and practice of mentoring in the Bible is studied and how applying that practice in the local church would benefit the individual participants and the church ministry. The author’s goal for this project was to teach participants about how the Bible presents mentoring and to instill in them the desire to adopt mentoring as a lifestyle. The research for this project was accomplished through accessing material from the Jerry Falwell Library Online and by visiting the library at …

Church Leadership: Effectual Strategic Planning Towards The Congregational Growth And Maturation Of Go And Teach Christian Ministries, Christopher L. Kingdom

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This thesis action research project is comprised of the effectual strategic planning toward the congregational growth and maturation of Go and Teach Christian Ministries. The project was embarked upon to address what had seemed to be a problem within the church’s leadership. The focus on church growth in membership numbers, rather than the membership, had seemed to creep into the leadership of GATCM. It seemed that the programs and events of the church were geared more toward attracting outsiders and adding new members to the church rather than creating an atmosphere of growth within the church attendees. From a foundational …

Racial Reconciliation: A Theological Approach To Building Relationships, Calvin Glass

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Racism within the Christian community in America has resulted in social unrest and has plagued the Christian church in a way that mandates urgent solutions to this untamed malady. This research focus is centered on learning a practicable methodology based on biblical principles that address racial reconciliation (building God-approved relationships) that will combat racial disunity among Christians. The study method used BBR (Building Better Relationships) consisted of interviewing and teaching a focus group representing a Black pastor and five church participants on racial relations issues within the church context. From the recommendations of the senior pastor, a focus group from …