Digital Commons Network^™

Grasping Love : How Relationships Help Us Know God, Dennis Gregory Mcelyea

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Lusting After God : Sexual Struggle As A Catalyst For Spiritual Intimacy And Healing, David L. Janvier

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Clergy Spiritual Transformation : From Depletion To Pastoral Presence, Ashlee Alley Crawford

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Wrestling With Disturbing Bible Passages : A Trinitarian Approach For Adults At Tri-Lakes United Methodist Church That Engages Family Systems Theory And The Twelve Steps, Jason L. Baxter

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Developing A Posture Of Worship : Spiritual Direction For Church Community, Caroline Raines Franks

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Pathway To Calling : Lifelong Practices And Disciplines For Discerning God's Call, Timothy Andrew Donovan

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Formation In Christ Through Conflict : Discerning God's Gifts In Group Spiritual Direction, Luke B. Richards

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Renewing Wesleyan Class Meetings Via Spiritual Formation Groups : An Examination Of The Class Meeting And Its Effectiveness At Discipleship Within The Modern American United Methodist Church, D.R. Mcewen

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Equipping The Saints : A Return To The Biblical Understanding Of The Priesthood Of All Believers, Benjamin Stilwell-Hernandez

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Coaching In Ministry : How Training In Coaching Can Enhance Christian Ministry, Pierre M. Eade

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Choose Your Own Adventure : Best Practices For Emerging Adults In The Salvation Army, Paul Cain

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Refining The Eden Community’S Pathways For Shaping Regenerative Christian Culture In The Apprenticeship For Regenerative Culture, Laura Callarman

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This Doctor of Ministry thesis presents a project designed to meet a need of the Eden Community, an intentional Christian community, regarding the pathways it uses to shape regenerative Christian culture among college students in its apprenticeship program, ARC. In this thesis, I connect the pragmatic aims of the Eden Community to theological foundations regarding the importance of ecclesial diversity and creative contextualization, features that empower the church to embody a variety of life-giving “alternative stories” with the capacity to present the gospel as truly good news to the entire world.

In this project, a team of nine stakeholders met …

Semiotic Transfiguration: Becoming More Fully Human, Vern Hyndman

Doctor of Ministry

Jesus invites us into a new life, not simply adherents to a set of standards. Jesus invites us through a power not our own to become most fully human; alive Spiritually, Physically, Intellectually, Relationally, and Emotionally (SPIRE). We become Jesus-InSPIREd holistic human beings, invited to participate in God-powered transfiguration of ourselves and others.

The United States Military uses challenge coins to encourage soldiers, and the coins display visual metaphors that echo the values and objectives of the donor and the donor’s unit. I made a challenge coin for Leonard Sweet as a gift of thanks for his generosity to me …

Theological Education And Spiritual Formation In The Lives Of Engaged, Emerging Adults, Markus David Colbert

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This thesis seeks to answer the following question: What is an effective discipleship method for emerging adults who are already engaged in IChurch? The method chosen was multi-layered and utilized corporate discipleship which involved a classroom setting geared toward theological and doctrinal education based on Bloom-Anderson’s taxonomy of educational objectives, communal discipleship which was concerned with small group activities and peer-to-peer accountability, and personal discipleship geared toward individual spiritual formation given an edited list of Whitney’s personal spiritual disciplines. Participants were asked to take an introductory Theological examination which plotted them from analyze level to the create level of Bloom’s …

Forming Saints In A Digital Context, Mark R. Teasdale

Great Commission Research Journal

Biblical and scholarly sources agree on the importance of forming Christians to seek after holy living to make them more effective evangelists, such that the ministries of evangelism and spiritual formation are intertwined. They also agree that one of the primary roles of the church is to provide for this formation. However, the practices for doing this have been complicated by the heavy move toward digital ministry because of COVID-19. Congregations can continue this formational work even in highly digital contexts by helping Christians tell their story through lifelogging, providing rituals and disciplines to sanctify time and physical spaces, and …

Experienced Pastoral Burnout And The Self-Reported Role Of Emotional Intelligence On Leadership Effectiveness During Burnout, Craig Wesley Folds

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Emotional intelligence (EI), employee burnout, and effective leadership traits are constructs that have been researched from a traditional, organizational perspective since the 1970s. Over the past 15 years, pastoral leaders and clergy have been identified as leaders working in the same capacity as public safety officials, medical professionals, mental health specialists, and other helping professions. Research suggests that leaders working in helping professions are often exposed to situations that may induce burnout, create emotional dissonance, and may have adverse implications on effective leadership behaviors during experienced burnout. The significance of this study lies in its identification of a gap in …

Developing, Training, And Equipping Lay Ministers To Serve In Leadership Roles At Small African American Churches, Angelia V. Lewis

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This thesis project explores the validity of a ministry training manual for developing, training, and equipping lay ministers at Fredericksburg Missionary Baptist Church. It assumes that if church members have leadership tools, they will use them to become more effective leaders. However, lay ministers often serve in ministry leadership roles without formal training. They should be trained and equipped by church leaders to lead effectively. Therefore, the question that this thesis project ask is, "Will a development and implementation of a leadership training manual equip lay ministers?" The Scripture is the primary literature resource for God’s provision in developing ministry …

The Church And Ethnopolitical Conflict In Kenya: 1982-2013, David Tarus

The Journal of Social Encounters

The chapter examines the role of the church in addressing the problem of ethnopolitical conflict in Kenya from 1982 to 2013. Though ethnocentrism within the Kenyan Christian community goes beyond the years cited to the colonial period and the immediate years following independence, the intensity of the problem after 1982 calls for special attention. The single event that marks political change in Kenya is the 1982 attempted coup. Although this was not successful, the coup heightened opposition against Moi’s rule and thus, 1982 marks the beginning of the recent history of Kenya, a history in which three phases may be …

The Chaplain As Part Of The Ministry Leadership Team, George Washington Willett Iii

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The chaplain is part of the ministry leadership team. The project aims to address the lack of a chaplain on the church ministry team, and the benefits chaplaincy adds to the ministry. Greater Faith Church lost the senior pastor to sudden death, leaving the founding bishop to serve as senior pastor. The leadership transition has caused the bishop to do most of the ministry work as the pastor. However, church ministry work is not only accomplished by the pastor. Church ministry is team leadership using all the gifts of the church. The study utilizes research methods within the church context …

Spiritual Outcomes Of A Faith-Based Camp Program For Children Of Incarcerated Parents, Raquel T. Ellis, Krystal Hays, Jeff Hamilton, Lemesis J. Reyes

Movement and Being: The Journal of the Christian Society for Kinesiology, Leisure and Sports Studies

Children of incarcerated parents are likely to experience a number of adverse outcomes including poverty, substance abuse, community violence, multiple caregivers, school failure, and justice system involvement (Hairston, 2007; Martin, 2017; Murphey & Cooper, 2015). The experience of having a parent incarcerated, and the negative outcomes associated with it, disproportionately expose these children to adverse childhood events (ACE’s) known to result in higher morbidity and mortality (Turney, 2018). However, spiritual resources, along with engagement with caring adults, can increase a child’s resilience and buffer the impact of these negative outcomes. This exploratory study describes Camp Agape California (CAC), a faith-based …

Designing A Program To Train Elders To Respond To #Metoo Experiences Of Adult Females In A Church Context, Jana H. Unruh

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

This project intervention explores resolution of systemic issues of church-based sexual harassment, abuse, and violence, referred to as #MeToo, through design of a training program for elders. As theological foundation for the project, the Gospel of Luke frames positive approaches modern church leaders can align with in the quest for solutions to #MeToo. The Good Samaritan parable and the story of Mary and Martha extract valuable lessons for church elders addressing sexual harassment, abuse, and violence experiences of adult women. In Luke, we find fresh understanding for questions of #MeToo through the highly relevant concept of “neighbor.” Luke will …

Incorporating Wisdom Christology Into The Phronesis Of Courtyard Church Of Christ, Tiffany A. Dahlman

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to address an identified problem Courtyard Church of Christ members were having with decision-making in a way that promoted shalom and reflected Christ to the world. I proposed that Wisdom Christology could assist in the decision-making process and formed an intervention team of five additional people from within the congregation to explore the situation through participatory action research. We met for six sessions in the early months of 2020. The team embarked on a thorough examination of Wisdom Christology through the Scriptures climaxing in the Wisdom Hymn of Col 1:15–20. Our subsequent collective understanding …

Ministry Mentoring Matters : Best Practices For Mentoring New Pastors, Keith Koteskey

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Hope For The Heartbroken: A Sacred Space For Grace, Patricia Mayes

Doctor of Ministry

This project addresses pathways for hope rising from heartbreaking behaviors of unresolved grief due to a loss from any source that prevents one from a life of peace, love, and future happiness. The audience is those persons and groups experiencing any life event that threatens a sense of well-being and loss of hope for a better future. Some of those events are death of a loved one, job loss, disruption of family dynamics, civic and cultural discord, workplace discord and dysfunctional relationships.

The key insight emerging early was while a local regional need existed, little support existed given current free …

Apprentice Life: Finding Life In The Way Of Jesus, Tim C. Mccarthy

Doctor of Ministry

The Apprentice Life: Finding Life in the Way of Jesus course is a project designed to address the difficulty of mobilizing more experienced believers at a large, western Canadian, evangelical anabaptist church to embrace their role in helping new believers grow up in their faith. The author has explored Old and New Testament teachings, various historic Christian traditions, contemporary faith formation theory, disciple-making literature, and the insights of local and expert contributors. Based on these discoveries, new believers are most likely to become resilient apprentices of Jesus when more experienced mentors in faith accept responsibility to pass on a living …

Single And Christian Masterclass And Community, Ryan Lui

Doctor of Ministry

As the number of people marrying later in life or not at all in the church and world continue to rise, singleness as a significant stage of life and ministry area must also rise. However, with the Western church’s traditional focus on evangelism, family, and church growth, among other things, singleness is not given the attention it needs and results in single Christians languishing.

As a pastor at an urban church who has worked primarily with single people in their 20s and 30s, the issues related to a person’s singleness have been a reoccurring source of challenge regarding pastoral care, …

The Intergenerational Church's Role In Family Worship, Jeremy Robert Jordan

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Throughout the Scriptures, God calls parents to teach their children to glorify God through worship. The Bible also commands all generations to encourage one another through worship and service. Throughout history, there are many examples of God’s people spending time in family worship, but over the past couple of decades, there has been a decline in parents discipling their children. A great number of parents are now expecting the church to provide the biblical training their children need. The lack of parents taking the time to teach their children and lead them in worship daily has led to high school …

Discovering Life Through Loss And Grief, Darcy L. Hansen

Doctor of Ministry

In times of loss, communities of faith come alongside bereaved individuals to offer support. That support is often short lived. When the casseroles stop, grieving people feel isolated and underserved in communities of faith when pastors and community members are ill-equipped and unprepared to care for them.(2)

The reason pastors and community members are ill-prepared to care for those grieving is historically, culturally, and theologically complex. Tackling such complexity is beyond the scope of this project. Implementing Occam’s Razor, where the simplest solution, with the least moving parts, suffices, enables me to address my NPO in a creative way.(3)

For …

Active Participation In The Two Direct Points Of Contact With God Within The Thomistic Metaphysics Of Human Nature, Richard. R. Palin Jr.

Theology Graduate Theses

No abstract provided.

Clergy Social Activity During War Conditions: The Case Of Western Regions Of Ukraine, Ihor Lutsan, Iryna Horokholinska

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

In this article, the authors analyze the impact of Russia-Ukraine war on church-religious life and the state of public consciousness in Ukraine and identify the main trends and contradictions in public reactions to threats to their lives and spirituality. The research focuses on religious communities of the western regions of Ukraine and their socially significant activities. The primary empirical source of the article was the study (by questionnaire survey) of the opinions of the clergy of this religious organization on the characteristics of parish life and the role of the pastor in the conditions of war. Three defining vectors that …