Practical Theology Commons^™

A Chaplaincy Training And Support Program To Equip Pastors For Ministry In The South Ghana Conference Of Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Nathan Teye Odonkor

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

There is currently no Adventist Chaplaincy Ministries capacity development plan to clinically train pastors as chaplains in the South Ghana Conference (SGC) of the Seventh-day Adventist church. This has resulted in the absence of professional chaplains within the denomination in South Ghana.

Method

I conducted a Chaplaincy Training and Support Program (CTSP) for 15 selected trainees at the South Ghana Church Headquarters Asoredanho-Accra. The Key area of competencies was Clinical Pastoral Education. I employed qualitative method of evaluating trainees by conducting oral and written assessments of data from trainees and ministry recipients.

Results

As a result of the CTSP, …

Discipling The Second Generation: Parent Education For Latino Immigrants, Richard Pinero-Calzada

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

There is a perceived lack of parental knowledge and skills in first generation Latino-immigrant families that contributes to second-generation youth and young adults leaving the Seventh-day Adventist faith.

Method

The purpose of this project is the development of a psychosocial adult education seminar geared toward Latino-immigrant parents, within the context of the United States, of second-generation children ages seven and younger. This project, however, is theoretical in nature, and has not been implemented. To assess the effectiveness of the seminar in regard to attitudinal and behavioral modifications towards parenting, a pre- and post-questionnaire was developed.

Results

This project consists …

Developing A Vision And Strategy For Multicultural Ministry: Woodburn Community Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Eduard Daniel Ciobanu

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The City of Woodburn, OR is home to a population of 24,223. Over half of the residents are Hispanic, while 1/4 to 1/3 are Russian Orthodox Old Believers. Adding to its diversity, 35.4% of the total population of Woodburn is foreign born. Started as a church plant 30 years ago, the mostly White, non-Hispanic Woodburn Community Seventh-day Adventist Church has traditionally kept a membership of around a 100, with a current membership of 101 and an average attendance of 38 in 2011. Despite an ideal, central location in town, an ability to embrace and support new members and attendees, …

Reducing Pastor-Dependency In The New Market Seventh-Day Adventist Church Through Self-Managed Ministry Teams, Shane N. Anderson

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Between 2004 and 2015, members of the New Market Seventh-day Adventist Church independently—that is, apart from the pastoral staff—initiated only a handful of new ministries (either for in-reach or outreach) and only occasionally attempted to substantially improve existing ministries. This stunted the church’s ability to reach, baptize, and mature new members. Two professional assessments of the church indicated that this problem was caused largely by an unhealthy dependence on the pastoral staff to make the majority of substantive ministry decisions.

Method

Self-managed ministry teams were implemented into a significant portion of the church over a period of 18 months …

A Marriage Preparation Program In The South Central Ghana Conference Of The Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Francis Tuffour

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Similar to many other places in the world, the divorce rate in Ghana is on the rise. Certain media reports in Ghana have attributed the spate of marriage breakdown to a lack of marriage preparation. The Seventh-day Adventist Church in the South Central Ghana Conference is confronted by a plethora of marital problems. Many couples schedule their wedding dates and then simply inform their pastors, whereas others adopt the traditional or customary marriage without telling the church. The short notice couples give to pastors and the church makes it difficult for adequate marriage preparation to take place. No official …

Training Volunteer And Non-Professional Health Educators In The Context Of The Milwaukee Seventh-Day Adventist Community, Glenn Cassimy

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The Sharon SDA Church is a prominent faith based organization (FBO) in the Milwaukee district. Like many other churches in the community, the Sharon SDA Church continually seeks to adopt innovative strategies to assist in improving the health status of their congregants. Although the Sharon SDA Church and various faith-based organizations implement health program initiatives as a part of their mission, at the end of any program effort, there is still the need for ongoing member support to assist congregants in fully achieving the goals they set during their health initiative. This study, therefore, is an attempt to provide …

Teaching Reflective Scripture Reading In The Context Of Small Groups In The Walla Walla University Church, Emily M. Whitney

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem.

While the Seventh-day Adventist Church has emphasized the importance of God's Word and is effective in teaching people how to search Scripture for doctrinal truth, many disciples are not spending significant time in Scripture or growing in relationship with God. This lack of formational Scripture reading is due to numerous challenges that can discourage people from spending time in God’s Word. A primary challenge is that many people confess that they do not know how to read Scripture for relationship with God; they long to know how to read Scripture to hear from God and relevantly and meaningfully apply …

Developing, Implementing And Evaluating A Leader Development Process For Stone Mountain Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Joel L. Honore

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Stone Mountain Seventh-day Adventist Church’s vision calls for a reiterative process of growing the worship attendance to 2,000 worshipers, then initiating a new church plant every four years. At the initiation of this project, Stone Mountain Church did not have the capacity to achieve its vision. Its facility could not accommodate 2,000 worshipers. There were insufficient leaders to minister to 2,000 people, neither was there adequate leadership to take the congregation through a facilities expansion process. The shortage of leaders precluded the vision of Stone Mountain Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Method

Bolman and Deal (2008) provide four approaches for engaging …

Relational Health Through The Communion Service At The Lighthouse Seventh-Day Adventist Church In Fort Lauderdale, Fl, M. Curtis Powell

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The history of conflict at the Lighthouse Seventh-day Adventist Church can be traced to the different attitudes and approaches toward the corporate worship experience held by the membership. One view of worship is more akin to traditional liturgy and style. One segment of the congregation, composed mainly of older members, prefers the use of hymns, emphasizes reverence in the sanctuary, and is skeptical of drums. Their posture could be considered reflective rather than overtly expressive. The other view of worship is more akin to contemporary elements and style. They prefer more contemporary genres of music, a more contemporary liturgy, …

A Leadership Development Project Design For Financial Stability And Missional Momentum At The Houston Northwest Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Richard M. White

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The Houston Northwest Seventh-day Adventist church, located in Spring, Texas, has experienced very little membership growth and a decline in attendance and contribution in the ten years from 2003 to 2012. Due to financial challenges during this period, the church did not develop any defined and significant outreach or evangelistic strategies. The need to create financial stability and missional momentum consisting of leadership development is needed. A lack of such intervention the church would continue to remain stagnant in its membership growth with a decline in its contribution and attendance.

Method

This project document explored the Houston Northwest Seventh-day …

Lideranca Servidora: Um Estudo De Saude Organizacional, Dos Estilos E Praticas Da Lideranca E Da Satisfacao Do Trabalho Segundo A Percepcao Do Ministerio Pastoral Da Associacao Mineira Sul Da Igreja Adventista Do Setimo Dia, Luis Gustavo Cava Sa

Master's Theses

Problem

Considering that Southern Minas Conference (AMS) growth rate is lower than other fields within the Brazilian Southeast Union (USEB) an investigation was conducted regarding the organizational health, the practices and styles of leadership, as well as the job satisfaction level among AMS pastors.

Method

The study was conducted among 46 pastors who represent three levels of leadership: Top Leadership, Management and Work Force as established by the research instrument Organizational Leadership Assessment (OLA) that analyses the perception of the participants regarding six key areas of leadership, six levels of organizational health, and job satisfaction level of the Work Force, …

Grief Management: The Divine And The Human Factor, Ransom Khanye

Master's Theses

Problem

When someone is bereaved, friends, comforters and sympathisers at times try to make sense of the situation. Some people theoretically deal with issues surrounding the death of someone and grief of the surviving ones without any personal experience of these events. Hypothetical and imaginative reasoning in comforting other people is insufficient for making a real impact and a significant and lasting difference to the bereaved. The current study was to try to identify the most effective way to help and console people who have lost their loved ones.

Method

The process of collecting data for this thesis was online …

Measuring The Perceived Effectiveness Of Five Selected Professional Courses Taken By Alumni Theology Majors And How They Are Related To Selective Demographics: A Mixed Methods Study, Barry J. Tryon

Dissertations

Problem

The study was prompted by the need for the evaluation of current theological educational programs for preparing students to meet the many challenges of pastoral ministry in a rapidly changing world. However, to date there has been little published research addressing the effectiveness of undergraduate theological education. Furthermore, changes implemented in the theological education program at Southern Adventist University (Southern) have not been evaluated for their effectiveness for ministerial job preparedness.

Method

This descriptive study measured the perceived effectiveness of five professional courses taught in the undergraduate theological educational program at Southern for ministerial job preparedness. A parallel mixed …

Baptism : Mode And Design, W. B. Godbey

William B. Godbey

No abstract provided.

Election And Predestination, W. B. Godbey

William B. Godbey

No abstract provided.

Women Approaching Death And Dying, Victoria Rue

Faculty Publications, Social Sciences

My mother died in 2008 at the age of 84 surrounded by her eight children and our father. As I turn 68, I wonder about the length of my own life and about how I will face my own death. In a feminist body-affirming theology, how do I embrace fear and my body in the death and dying process?At the bedside of hospice patients, I saw the gap in Christian feminist theology between affirming the body and embracing its decay. From these narratives, I suggest that what is needed is a Christian feminist approach to death and dying focused on …

Developing A Structure To Strengthen Youth Ministry In Florida Conference, Pedro E. Perez

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem.

Florida Conference did not have a way to connect the Youth Ministries Department to local churches to support the churches’ teen ministry. There was a need for a structure to create a connection between the conference and local churches to strengthen youth ministry in the local church. With over 300 churches in the conference, the youth director could not achieve this alone. Furthermore, there was not even a contact list to know which churches had a youth leader or young people. Developing a structure would be a means of gaining access to local church youth leaders so that the …

A Comprehensive Strategy For The Calgary Metropolitan Area Churches, Christopher L. Holland

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

In my 16 years of ministry, in every location I have pastored, the church has struggled to connect with the surrounding community. In Calgary, there are 14 Seventh-day Adventist churches and companies. These churches have, on occasion, worked in unity for evangelism. However, according to several of the local pastors, that has not happened for over 10 years. If the churches in Calgary are to fulfill the Great Commission, an effective way of engaging the community is needed. Because the communities that surround churches are growing increasingly secular, comprehensive evangelistic strategies may be an effective way of reaching them. …

Programa Para Confrontar La Disidencia Antitrinitaria En La Asociacion Central Amazonas De La Iglesia Adventista Del Septimo Dia, Abraao Vergasta Reis

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The task of this project was to develop, implement, and evaluate a seminar to confront anti-Trinitarian dissidence in the Central Amazon Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, Brazil. In a historical study, Burt (2006) pointed out that the progression of Adventists from anti-Trinitarianism to a biblical Trinitarian view has been a difficult process (p. 126), and he also explained on the same year that “the last decade has seen an increased anti-Trinitarian agitation within the Seventh-day Adventist Church” (p. 125). Whidden, Moon, and Reeve (2002) point out that there are “increasing reports” of anti-Trinitarianism in North America and around the world, …

Development And Implementation Of An Effective Training On Servant Leadership Among The Youth In The Gekomu Ii Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Fred M. Okemwa

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The Gekomu II Seventh-day Adventist Church has a membership of about 1,500. The youth account for 35% of this membership; however, many of these young people are unwilling to play active leadership roles in the church. The absence of leadership trainings for the youth to develop skills and acquire knowledge to enhance their leadership abilities is one of the causes for their lack of involvement in the leadership roles. As a result, the leadership strengths and talents possessed by these young people are underutilized thus affecting the overall leadership quality of the church.

Method

In response to the above …

A Strategy For Developing Outreach-Oriented Small Groups For Millenial Students At Georgia-Cumberland Academy Church, Greg Hudson

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Millennial students at Georgia-Cumberland Academy (GCA) are not being inspired and equipped to actively engage in community outreach. GCA is a boarding school with 80% of students having homes in other locations, limiting their opportunity to develop connections with any local community, both at home and at school. The result is that students are graduating without needed skills to spiritually interact with their community and to share their faith in Jesus in meaningful ways. About 60% of Adventist youth are leaving the church, and part of the problem may be their lack of connection to the outreach ministries of …

Expanding The Ecclesiastes Worship Center In Sacramento, California By Using A Documentray Of The Russian Reform Movement, Udo Sokolovsky

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

During the last decades of the twentieth century, the Greater Sacramento area of California became one of the largest Russian-speaking communities in the United States. According to Russian American Media, there are approximately 300,000 Russian-speaking residents. Many of them came to America as victims of religious persecution. However, today only about 30,000—just 10% of the total number of immigrants—are active members in different Christian churches. One reason for this is that the Russian Orthodox Church is trying to intensify its impact on Russian immigrants by linking all that is Russian with Orthodoxy. As a result, many Russian immigrants do …

Training The Members Of The Hacienda Heights Seventh-Day Adventist Church To Create Missional Communities, Brett Poynter

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

A 2011 analysis of the Hacienda Heights Seventh-day Adventist Church revealed it had poor missional health in it, was not outreach focused, small group oriented, or a discipling community. This attributed to plateaued church growth with a congregation consisting largely of boomers and a significantly low percentage of GenX’ers and millennials.

Method

An intervention to train the members of the Hacienda Heights church to create missional communities was developed and applied as a means to improve the church’s missional health and growth. The intervention was developed by studying missional church literature and assessing the church and community. The resulting …

A Singles' Ministry Project At The Mt. Rubidoux Seventh-Day Adventist Church In Riverside, California, Ekele Nwankwo

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The purpose of this study was to discover, develop, evaluate, and implement a supportive singles’ ministry at the Mt. Rubidoux Seventh-day Adventist church by way of planned activities and educative programs designed to serve the needs of singles in that congregation. The study was designed to determine the impact the singles’ ministry has on the church and how to shape the ministry in the future. Although society has viewed singles in different ways, depending on time and place, in traditional societies, women and men who did not marry were viewed as imperfect and lacking. Singles battle with strong expectations …

A Process For Implementing Devotional Patterns For Members Of The San Diego Central Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Limuel M. Liwanag

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

A church with declining membership for over 20 years and almost devoid of additional new member through baptism is a pastoral concern. Such is the situation with San Diego Central Seventh-day Adventist church. This scenario appears contrary to the biblical formula for individual as well as congregational health that Jesus emphatically stated in John 15. Connectedness to Jesus, the Vine, naturally results in fruitfulness. When a person does not bear fruit, it may indicate a lack of or no connection to the Vine at all. Connection to Jesus is nurtured and sustained by a devotional pattern. A process that …

A Discipleship Model For Youth At The Paradise Adventist Church, Milton Daniel Marquez

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

For more than a decade the Paradise Adventist Church had been experiencing a common problem facing most churches in North America: approximately 60% of the youth were leaving the church. Rainer and Rainer (2008) argue that one of the factors in two-thirds of young adults between the ages of 18 and 22 leaving our churches after high school is the lack of a simple and effective discipleship process. Pastoral observation concurs that a primary contributing factor to the loss of Adventist youth is that the youth are not being discipled effectively and thus not rooted in Scripture, connected to …

A Parental Management Strategy For Single-Mothers With Adolescent Boys In South Chicago, Philip C. Willis Jr.

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The Mizpah and Brunswick Heights Seventh-day Adventist Churches are located in a predominately low-income community in the South side of Chicago. The church has many single mothers who face the challenges of raising their children without the presence of a father or male figure. This has had a devastating impact on the family and the children. Single-mother families are more likely to suffer from economic insecurity than two-parent families (McLanahan, 2004). Father-loss causes object hunger in males (Herring, 2005) and 75 % of all drug users and 65 % of all suicides (Sowers, 2010) come from fatherless homes.

Method …

Technology Training For Administrators And Pastors In The Greater New York Conference Of Seventh-Day Adventists, Rohann D. Wellington

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The Greater New York Conference (GNYC) is located in what is considered the media capital of the world. Media and technology have changed our lives in meaningful ways, both globally and locally. The church in its local context, in this technological age, is struggling to adapt technology in meaningful and effective ways to impact discipleship and evangelism practices. I observed that the administrators and most of the pastors in the GNYC do not understand how to adapt today’s media technology effectively, and therefore, lack a vision regarding how this tool can be effectively adapted for ministry delivery.

Method

A …

The Power Of Praying Parents, S. Joseph Kidder

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Armageddon, W. B. Godbey

William B. Godbey

No abstract provided.