Digital Commons Network^™

Maximizing Planter Potential : An Analysis Of The Church Planter Assessment Of The Wesleyan Church, Andrew W. Merritt

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Preaching A Biblical Theology Of Singleness, Sarah Taylor

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Revisiting Pastoral And Church Leadership : A Holistic Paradigm For Effective Leadership In The 21st Century, Joshua Daniel Rungsung

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Church Revitalization : A Rediscovery Of Mission And Passion, Jonathan F. Fuller

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Seat At The Table : How Faith Is Formed By Simple Acts, Darren A. Narber

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

An Examination Of The Parental Role In The Discipleship Of Children, Robert B. Jarman

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Parents have an enormous role in the lives of their children. They are responsible for all aspects of their children’s development to prepare them to manage adulthood successfully. Parents invest much of their time in many important areas of the home, yet regarding discipleship, they will often pass on that responsibility to others or neglect it altogether. The danger of a lack of discipleship in the home is that it can potentially contribute to the growing trend of young adults leaving the faith. This thesis project examines the Biblical mandate for parents discipling their children, the reasons for parents not …

Mentorship For African American Female Officers Of Faith In The United States Air Force, Tanquer L. Dyer

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Mentorship has emerged as a critical component for the cultivation and development of leaders. Mentoring is beneficial for the mentee and mentor both personally and professionally. The United States Air Force (USAF) encourages formal and informal mentoring for their leaders through initiatives and regulations. Other branches emphasize leadership development; whereas, the USAF emphasizes career development. While African American female officers of faith continue to hold leadership positions, it is unclear whether mentorship serves as a factor of success. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore and understand the lived experience of African American female officers in the USAF …

A Line Of Matriarchs, Ron Bruner, Dudley Chancey

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

Although shared practices are central to religious socialization, relationships empower such sharing. Familial relationships are the most durable and effective of such relationships, even when family form varies. Though many ethnic and faith groups tend to emphasize patriarchal leadership within congregations and families, in fact, matriarchs serve as the spiritual anchors for succeeding generations in a surprising number of three (and more) generation families. Data supporting this assertion are a part of the results of the Three Generations Project, a study of faith families within Churches of Christ.

Resilient Faith: Building A Faith That Lasts In High School Students, Camille Miller

Christian Ministries Senior Capstone

With research showing that 40-50 percent of youth group kids walk away from the faith after high school, I wanted to research ways to build a resilient faith in students through a church youth ministry. Fuse is the high school ministry at Northpoint church that is represented throughout this paper. The Frankena Model will be used as the format for the paper as I develop a philosophy of ministry for Fuse that incorporates all the aspects of Frankena's model and looks to find a better way to do youth ministry.

Harvest Workers Ministry: Creating Passionate Life-Long Disciples By Nurturing Faith Development And Individual Callings Of Adolescents, Sam Wolowski

Christian Ministries Senior Capstone

“6 out of 10 twentysomethings who were involved in church during their teen years will fail to maintain their active spirituality during their years of adulthood” (Robbins 17). Even the majority of adolescents involved in the church eventually separate from their faith and faith community. David Kinnaman, the president of Barna Group, explains that more than 50 percent of teenagers and young adults who are not committed Christians report that their former faith community (e.g., church, parish, etc.) did not help them understand their purpose and view their gifts and passions as part of God’s calling (159). The separation of …

Bridging The Gap Between Profession And Practice: Clear Gospel Communication In A Context Saturated By Moralistic Therapeutic Deism, Jordan Dunn

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

Research indicates a pronounced discrepancy within American Christianity between self-professed Christians and individuals who embody a biblical worldview. Overwhelmingly, those who identify as Christians are not adhering to the teachings of the Scripture in their daily lives. The American church faces an imminent threat of Christians claiming to believe in Jesus even though their lives express the opposite. This chasm between profession and practice can be traced to an alternative gospel that has saturated the context of American Christianity: Moralistic Therapeutic Deism (MTD). MTD, under the guise of Christianity, promotes a false gospel that has led many believers astray regarding …

Pioneer Women Administrators In The Interamerican Division Of The Adventist Church (1906–1940), Daniel Alberto Mora

Andrews University Seminary Studies (AUSS)

This article focuses on previously unpublished data concerning pioneer women who helped establish and govern different levels of the Adventist Church between 1906 and 1940 in what is now the Inter-American Division. The article begins with information obtained from different yearbooks, and then traces the identity and work of pioneer Adventist women in documents such as General Conference minutes, newspapers, civil registries, and through information provided by their descendants. It also highlights the contributions of these women as the first local missionaries and founders of the Sabbath School (1880s) and Young People’s Missionary Volunteer (YPMV) (1900s) departments. It also highlights …

For The Church, Sarah Moss

The Voice

No abstract provided.

81st Annual Pepperdine Bible Lectureship--Harbor: Running With Perserverance (2024), Mike Cope

Pepperdine Bible Lectures: Programs

Program booklet for the 81st Annual Pepperdine Bible Lectures, held at Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, April 30-May 6, 2024. The Pepperdine Bible Lectures is an annual event hosted by Pepperdine University featuring a wide variety of lectures and classes on topics and themes in the Bible and Christianity.

Mike Cope, Lectureship Director

Evan Woods, Tami Williamson, and Rachel Higgins, Lectures Team

“Jesus Freaks” Youth-Group Bands And The Power Of Christian Rock (1992–2000), Leah Payne

Faculty Publications - Portland Seminary

“What will people think,” Toby McKeehan, Michael Tait, and Kevin Smith asked thousands of young evangelical fans in 1996, “when they hear that I’m a Jesus Freak?” This trio of young men “on fire for God,” who performed as DC Talk, were the biggest thing in CCM in the 1990s. Their 1995 album Jesus Freak portrayed conservative evangelical youths as rock-and- roll rebels. “Welcome to the Freak Show,” the Jesus Freak tour, filled stadiums, and their high-energy, slickly produced concerts were teaming with screaming devotees. Fans pointed up to the sky as the band sang, “Jesus is the way,” in …

Mixed Messages: Reflections On Multiethnic Identity And Narratives In Youth Ministry Pedagogy, Joel Mayward

Faculty Publications - George Fox School of Theology

Drawing upon the work of Gloria E. Anzaldúa and Paul Ricoeur, this article presents a personal and scholarly reflection on the author’s multiethnic identity and how such identities may benefit youth ministry pedagogies and perspectives. The author explains Anzaldúa’s notion of nepantla alongside Ricoeur’s concepts of “narrative identity” and “social imaginary,” then demonstrates how these two thinkers’ perspectives can be interwoven and applied by educators and youth ministry practitioners. Ultimately, in sharing about his “mixed” heritage, the author contends that multiethnic individuals can serve as bridge-builders between cultures and generations.

Intergenerational Christian Community: A Vision For Spiritual Formation For All Ages, Robin Pyles

Doctor of Ministry

For decades, American churches have been struggling with shrinking attendance, particularly among young people. An increasingly polarized society that elevates individualism and secularization, along with widespread escalating age segregation, has contributed to this trend. In response to these societal norms, many local churches have defaulted to a primarily age-segregated programming model. This model results in the absence of a sense of community and belonging, and a lack of Christian spiritual formation growth among both youth and adults within the church. This research revealed that creating regular opportunities for meaningful cross-generational interactions that combine shared experiences of play, creative expression, intentional …

A College Outreach Initiative To Connect Paine College Students With Thankful Baptist Church, Christopher J. Waters

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

College students’ declining attendance and participation at Thankful Baptist Church is a growing concern for the congregation and its leadership. For over one hundred years the church has had a strong outreach to the students at Paine College, a local HBCU and private Christian institution. However, over the last five years Thankful Baptist Church’s outreach to Paine College students has declined significantly. This research project implemented training for ten outreach volunteers and six weeks of mentoring for ten Paine College students to revive the declined college ministry to Paine College into an active ministry which attracts and retains college students …

Retaining Students After Graduation With Biblical Servanthood, Carlos Henrique De Freitas

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This thesis addresses the inadequate understanding of the biblical concept of servanthood among high school students (grades 9-12) within the congregation of Macland Baptist Church in Powder Springs, Georgia. As a result of this problem, students gradually distance themselves from their faith, discontinue church attendance, and cease participating in church service activities. The thesis of this paper is that exposing these high school students to various dimensions of biblical servanthood will significantly impact their understanding of this concept. The underlying assumption posits that a profound understanding of biblical servanthood, coupled with knowledge and service opportunities, will cultivate Christlike character in …

Exploring The Impact Of Spiritual Disciplines Among Disciples Of Christ, Sharon Yvette Hardy Hunter

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Spiritual disciplines have long been recognized as a means to foster more significant spiritual growth and maturity in the life of disciples of Christ. However, in today’s culture, there is a perceived lack of commitment to spiritual growth with new and established disciples of Christ of the twenty-first century vs. those of the twentieth century at Perfecting Church in Detroit, Michigan. Therefore, this study will look at the impact of introducing spiritual disciplines to new disciples of Christ to foster more significant spiritual growth and a commitment to a life of faith in Christ. Although faith community members embrace a …

Discipling Elementary Children As A Father, Jeremiah Jabez Canfield

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative study aimed to show the importance and the need for the father in the home to discipline his children. God did not give a father's children to provide for them financially, but God laid a clear plan in Deuteronomy 6:4-9 on how to point one's children to God. Even though this text is thousands of years old, it is still relevant to the culture today. It is easy to see that many fathers today are clueless about discipling their children and have left this job entirely up to the church. The busyness of life has also prevented fathers …

Grace-Based Faith Discipleship Approach Of Adults In South Rock Christian Church: Addressing The Contemporary Legalistic Lifestyle Of Disciples, Nicholas John Pannone

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Discipleship often evokes different responses. However, contemporary Christians have a faithfulness dilemma driven by the constant messages they hear. This DMIN project seeks to develop and promote a ministry structure that educates, equips, and enriches the Christian life based on God’s grace. The project seeks to provide a framework for participants to be transformed holistically by God’s grace. Often, the members of South Rock Christian Church understand grace as the entry point into salvation, but not the identifying trait of their faithful life in Christ. This action project consists of qualitative research that demonstrates a gap between belief and action …

A Divine Assignment: Church Supports For Caretakers And Children Impacted By Disabilities, Pamela Scretchen

Discernment: Theology and the Practice of Ministry

How can the church provide leadership in the area of inclusion and offer families a place of refuge and support? How does the church care for and teach children with disabilities? As a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst, I have partnered with congregations to start programs for families impacted by disabilities. Here, we show how a family affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder challenged their church to provide a sustainable program. There is hope that the church can lead inclusion efforts and develop special needs support for caretakers. The article reveals one family’s journey in returning to worship with their autistic son and …

Counseling By Default: A Study Of Pastoral Burnout Among Liberian Pastors, Helen Gibson-Newman

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Many Liberians turn to their pastors for help before considering going to a professional counselor. Pastoral counseling in Africa, especially in Liberia, is framed within African life and thought based on appropriate backgrounds that are evident in cultural assumptions and practices. Hence, pastoral counseling in Liberia assumes a cultural background central to the holistic Christian life that connects all dimensions of one’s social and spiritual life. Thus, the Liberian view of pastoral counseling is distinctly African, with a unique blend of noticeable Liberian values, traditions, and cultural practices based on a combination of its American and indigenous African heritage. The …

Discipleship Growth At St. Mary Of The Angels: Developing A Catholic Senior Citizens Religious Education Program, Dennis Trimboli

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This action research project aimed to develop an adult religious education program allowing senior citizen parishioners to mature in their faith and discipleship. The project’s population (60+ years old) were members of a small Catholic parish in South Carolina. The age group was designed to embrace pre-Vatican II Catholics. It was hypothesized that their understanding of discipleship would differ from post-Vatican II Catholics. The incentive for the project was the researcher’s concern that seniors may have grown complacent in their faith. The program used mixed research methods. An initial assessment of the population’s “discipleship standing” was necessary and obtained by …

Intergenerational Model Of Discipleship, David Lyn Sampson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Some of God’s most prominent spiritual leaders are characterized by their deep intergenerational connections. People like Moses and Joshua, Elijah and Elisha, Paul and Timothy, and Jesus and John exemplify it. In this study, “intergenerational” means creating opportunities for intentional dialogue and interaction cross-generationally to foster mentoring and biblical discipleship. This research aims to create an intergenerational model of ministry that will encourage churches to embrace intergenerational discipleship concepts. It is not uncommon for church ministry to seem like silos, with people compartmentalized according to age or phases of life. Silo ministry can hinder individuals from forming generational relationships. Unfortunately, …

Resetting Foundations. Congregational Training For The Small Group Ministry: An Action Research To Correct Intent, Cultivate Community, And Grow Spiritually, Jarrett Gallardo

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Small group ministry is crucial for the health and well-being of the church. The problem this DMIN action research sought to address was that Valley Gate Church did not grasp the purpose of small group ministry due to not implementing small groups with well-defined intent. Valley Gate Church is a church plant that launched in 2016. This DMIN action research aimed to create and implement a six-week congregational training to develop small group leaders and members at Valley Gate Church. Twenty-two participants were involved in the entire six-week training. All participants took a pre- and post-training assessment consisting of surveys, …

Intercultural, Intergenerational, Hybrid Discipleship At Kingdom Life Community Church, John H. Littlejohn

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This action research project aimed to facilitate the development of a discipleship curriculum through which the diverse members of Kingdom Life Community Church (KLCC) would spiritually mature. The proposed curriculum was developed considering the church’s intercultural, intergenerational, and hybrid realities. During a ten-week trial period, a curriculum was designed and implemented in KLCC’s weekly small groups, called Kingdom Life Communities (KLCs), using a diverse sample group of 18 participants. Data was collected from the sample group and analyzed using statistical tests for quantitative data, and the unitizing, coding, and categorizing of qualitative data. The intervention yielded positive results, with each …

Moralistic Therapeutic Deism: A Classical Critique, Michael W. Cunningham

Liberty Theological Review

In 2005, American sociologist Christian Smith coined the term “Moralistic Therapeutic Deism” in his book, Soul Searching, The Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers. At the time, this phenomenon was heralded as a new “religion” for emerging generations, yet it ascribes to no formal text, deity, or doctrine. It serves as a self-focused compilation of secular philosophy, politics, culture, and spirituality flavored with fragments from popular religions. While there is no formal MTD doctrine, there are five affirmations: (1) A God exists who created and ordered the world and watches over human life on Earth, (2) God wants …

Worship Space And Immigrant Memory: Korean Parishes In Los Angeles And New Jersey, Hansol Goo Ph.D. (Cand.)

Journal of Global Catholicism

It has been often observed that national parishes in the US play a central role for Catholic immigrants in preserving and transmitting the cultural heritage of the community. For Catholic immigrants, a parish is more than a place of worship. It is a source of belonging, comfort, friendship, social interaction, and most importantly, a place in which the immigrant’s cultural heritage is reaffirmed and preserved. The early European immigrants to the US built their national parishes following the architectural style of their homelands, by which they could express their cultural identity. However, more recent arrivals like Asians and Hispanics are …