Practical Theology Commons^™

Programa De Capacitación Evangelística Para La Iglesia Adventista Hispana De Poughkeepsie, New York, Fernando Rosario Castro

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

An investigation conducted along with the church board revealed that the congregation has not had an evangelistic training program in the last 5 years. Consequently, only 5 of the 347 members are involved in the evangelistic work of the local community. An evangelistic training program has the potential to involve members fully equipped to evangelize the people in their community.

Purpose

The purpose of this project is to develop an evangelistic training program to involve more church members in the evangelization of the community and to involve church members in holistic growth.

Methodology

This investigation belongs to the discipline …

Developing Small Group Ministry Based On Spiritual Temperaments In The Olympic Korean Seventh-Day Adventist Church In Los Angeles, California, Young Rin Kim

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Pastoral observation revealed that members of the Olympic Korean Seventh-day Adventist Church struggle to develop their own spirituality due to a lack of understanding regarding spiritual temperaments. Discerning one's own spiritual temperament or style is needed at both the individual and the church level in order to understand that there are more styles than those in the corporate doctrinal focus reflected in Adventism. Approaches to relationships with church attendees and responses to church-sponsored activities can be transformed by a better understanding of these temperaments/styles. Steps must be taken to expand Adventism to accept all different styles. A variety of …

Intergenerational Community Engagement Strategy To Minority Families In Urban Housing Developments Suffering From Generational Issues In The Pioneer Homes And Central Village On The Southside Of Syracuse, New York, Aaron V. Chancy

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

In the Seventh-day Adventist Churches Fundamental Beliefs, Fundamental Belief #13 The Remnant and Its Mission, pages 168-178 of the Seventh-day Adventist Church Manual (Church Manual, 172), there is no mention pertaining to the closing versus of Matthew 28. Yet within the evangelism endeavors, there is a lack of the elements of intergenerational ministry to families in low-income housing as a methodology in which to fulfill this mission. While the adage "If we get the children, we will get the parents" has been used in attempts to do ministry among low-income households, the lack of a systematic intergenerational evangelistic method …

A Strategy To Improve Contextualization At Hope Channel International, Vyacheslav Demyan

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Hope Channel International was created by the Seventh-day Adventist Church with the mission “to offer God’s good news for a better life today and for eternity through the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s wholistic understanding of the Bible” (General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists 2019–2020, 459). However, as many other evangelical media ministries in North America who are mainly “preaching to the choir,” creating their own “gospel ghettos” (Woods 2013, 22), Hope Channel’s audience mainly are the members of the Adventist Church. This compromises the scope of the existence of Hope Channel as a media brand. From the structural perspective, Hope Channel …

Trauma And Its Impact On Pastoral Leadership, David Sedlacek

Journal of Applied Christian Leadership

This article presents quantitative data collected from 607 seminary students at the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary from 2019 through 2022 on the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) they have suffered. ACEs include various forms of abuse and neglect as well as household factors such as being raised with addiction, mental illness, divorce, and the like. Also included are environmental factors such as being raised in an unsafe or deprived neighborhood. Included in this article are ACE data collected from pastors at the 2022 Called Convention, a quinquennial meeting for all Seventh-day Adventist pastors in North America, and a small sample of …

Missional Leaders' Multiplication Through Holistic Discipleship: The Fishermen Project As A Model For German Millennials In The Central Rhenish Conference, Christian Badorrek

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

If not through the influx of Seventh-day Adventists from diverse countries and their missionary efforts, the membership of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Germany would be stagnant. Most growing churches consist of people with migrant background and a large number of them conserve their native languages in their activities. Consequently, new approaches to reach the extremely secular indigenous population are rare, since the number of people who naturally have the potential to connect with them is rapidly declining. This downward spiral leads to an overaged Seventh-day Adventist church in Germany and seems to accelerate. Only very few millennials are …

The Pilot Project For A Conference-Wide Church Multiplication Project In The Ontario Conference Of The Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Jakov Bibulović

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

An assessment of the vitality of the Seventh-day Adventist churches in the Ontario Conference revealed a lack of multiplying congregations. This finding raised serious concerns. At the same time, the Ontario population net growth continued to increase at a higher rate than the Conference average net growth. There is a need for an intentional approach in identifying barriers for church growth, developing a strategy to remove these barriers, and initiating a congregational culture change that would unleash a God-given multiplication potential in congregations. In order to facilitate the congregational culture-change process, coaching in ministry would increase the chances for …

Implementing A Faith-Based Weight Loss Outreach Program For The Westside Community Of Jacksonville, Florida, Jonathan Peinado

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Jacksonville, Florida’s adult population has an obesity rate of 65.4% which is slightly lower than both regional and national averages (66.1%) but higher than the state average (63.2%).

Method

A faith-based weight loss program was developed for the residents of the west side of Jacksonville. The intervention incorporated behavioral, spiritual, and psychological modules. The program lasted a total of 10 weeks from beginning to end, with the main segment taking place over a 40-day (6-week) period. Participants underwent two biometric screenings, one at the beginning of the program and one at the end. They had daily health challenges such …

Three Miles Per Hour: Shifting From Performance To Heart Orientation Among Seventh-Day Adventist Pastors, Royce A. V. Odiyar

Master's Theses

This thesis examines the presence and impact of performance orientation among Seventh-day Adventist pastors. It identifies multiple factors involved in perpetuating performance orientation and includes strategies to shift from performance to heart orientation in life and pastoral ministry. Using a mixed-method design, this research collected qualitative data via focus groups and quantitative data via an online survey. There was a total of eight focus groups with thirty-three participants, and the online survey gathered fifty-one responses. Focus group participants and survey respondents included both men and women from North America who were ethnically diverse. The research revealed significant concerns regarding pastoral …

Strengthening Mission Through Strategy: An Analysis Of The Mission-Driven Excellence Strategy, Osvaldo Souza Santos Jr.

Dissertations

The Office of Strategy and Research (OSR) for the Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) churches in the North America Division (NAD) is beginning to implement a new strategy that focuses on mission. The OSR designed the strategy, created tools and materials to support the churches in implementing the Mission-driven Excellence (MdX) strategy. MdX combines planning and direction that helps church leaders to think strategically. MdX is a combination of pre-events, processes, and resources combined with local church strategies toward mission. The purpose of this study was to suggest strengths and improvements to the Mission-driven Excellence (MdX) strategy by seeking to better understand …

A Strategy To Help Parents Realize And Fulfill Their Role As The Disciple-Makers Of Their Children In The New Eden French Church, Wilfrid Louis Jean

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The New Eden French Seventh-day Adventist Church in Neptune, New Jersey, has been facing the challenge of any church situated in the metropolitan area. One of most significant responsibilities for any parent is to raise their children according to God's will. New Eden French Church has a large number of children (birth to age eighteen) growing up in the church. Pastoral observation suggests a lack of understanding on the part of parents regarding fulfilling their biblical role as disciple-makers of their children. I noticed a lack parental cleverness and resources indispensable to address their issues. This lack of success …

Programa Para Fomentar La TestificacióN En La Iglesia Adventista Del SéPtimo DíA Aliento De Vida En Memphis, Tennessee, Juan Rymer-ÁLvarez

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The church is a corporate unit with the primary responsibility of witnessing. When church members work together in witnessing, membership tends to grow in numbers and the church tends to improve its holistic health. In the Aliento de Vida Seventh-day Adventist Church, only a small group of members actively witness about their faith. Considering this problem, how important is it to develop and implement a program to encourage witnessing among the members of the Aliento de Vida Seventhday Adventist Church in Memphis, Tennessee? A witnessing program at this church has the potential to increase evangelistic participation.

Methodology

This research …

A Follow-Up Program For Public Evangelism Using Online Discipleship In The Indiana Conference, Eric Freking

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Traditional Adventist public evangelism in North America typically sees a large drop in attendance of new converts or potential converts shortly after the meetings end. I have personally held or been a part of around thirty evangelistic series in the past twenty years and have seen this pattern in each of them. The consequences are the loss of new or potential members, who, given more interaction with the evangelist, may assimilate into the church.

Method

An online discipleship program was created and launched in the Summer of 2020 in Indiana. Its purpose was to educate the participant on how …

Leadership Strategy For Sustaining Mission-Focused Vision In Years Seven To Ten Of Crosswalk Fellowship, Boyan Levterov

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

In January 2007, my wife and I led a core team of passionate Christian believers to start Crosswalk Fellowship as a parachute church plant. The plant was a part of the local Texas Conference of Seventh-day Adventist church planting initiative. The project had a successful start and reached the high standards to qualify for church status in the Texas Conference in less than one and a half years. Crosswalk continued to experience steady growth during the first five years of existence; However, in year five, people escaping crises happening simultaneously in the other two existing English Seventh-day Adventist churches …

Wholistic Stewardship Revitalization Strategy At Pueblo First Seventh-Day Adventist Church Rocky Mountain Conference, Anton Kapusi

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

During the last decade, I observed, in my role as pastor and director, that many churches were overcome with a low level of members-involvement throughout the Conferences I served, especially in the current local churches I pastor, reflected in spiritual discouragement, indifference, and apathy. Upon closer observation of the Pueblo First local church members' relationship and collaboration, I found that only the worship service and two Bible study groups were functioning, with about a dozen individuals in total attending. Some other ministries were also functioning, like the ACS and ACS Disaster Relief, in addition to the church building and …

Intentional Discipleship: Using A Personal Growth Plan With Microgroup Support As A First Step In Creating A Culture Of Discipleship At The University City Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Ryan Lee Ashlock

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

There is a general lack of understanding and practice of discipleship within Western Christianity. This lack of discipleship can be observed within the University City Seventh-day Adventist Church. Many Christians view their relationship with Jesus as something that affects the afterlife but has little effect on the present. There is a grave need for the church to have a culture of discipleship in which people are encouraged to have a daily and lifelong connection with Jesus.

Method

Building on conclusions drawn from theological reflection and a review of relevant literature, an intervention was developed that sought to draw church …

An Evangelistic Approach To Children Of The Brantford Seventh-Day Adventist Church In Brantford, Canada, Alexander Gietsel

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Over the past five years (2015-2020) the Brantford Seventh-day Adventist Church has experienced a decline of baptism among young people ages 10-14. Some of them have been involved in church programs, and some have attended the local Christian school. According to Barna (2003a), children are more ready to accept Jesus at ages 10-14. At Brantford Seventh-day Adventist Church, this is the average range of the children. This church has more than 80 families and more than twenty-five children at that age group. After many of them leave for high school, they lose interest in baptism and in following Jesus. …

Training Local Church Leaders To Study And Teach The Bible Inductively At Manteca Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Bruce Blum

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Seventh-day Adventist churches in Northern California are experiencing a trend toward larger districts and fewer pastors per capita. A decreasing pastoral presence means that local churches are more dependent on volunteers to lead out in the spiritual care and feeding of the church family. In this setting, much depends on the competence of volunteers who teach the Bible. Most of these volunteers have not had the benefit of formal training in hermeneutics, biblical languages, or effective teaching methods, yet they are called on to facilitate Scripture study that leads to inspiration, engagement, and transformation.

Method

I proposed in this …

Developing And Implementing A Community-Based Hospitality Awareness And Training Program In The Green Bay Seventh-Day Adventist Church, Titus Naftanaila

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Most churches in North America usually consider themselves as welcoming and friendly to guests and existing church members. However, they may excel in programs and ministries, but visitors evaluate many as uncaring and cold. During my 25 years of ministry, I personally have pastored three mid-sized Adventist churches where a constant number of guests confirmed the difference of perception. The inhospitality of the church deprives the guests and the new converts of the essential benefits for emotional and spiritual growth with a direct impact on the retention rate.

Method

A community-based hospitality awareness and training program was developed and …

A Strategy To Manage Members Expectation Of Pastor's Work In Multicultural Churches In Birmingham, England, Steve Palmer

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

2017 the North England Conference administrators evaluated my ministry, and although they were satisfied with my work, the feedback from some of the church members indicated dissatisfaction. It was evident that the diverse ethnic and cultural groups had different expectations of the role and responsibility of the pastor. It was difficult for me to do fulfill all their expectations.

Method

The research method employed in the design of this project was a qualitative one. It explored the question under examination by using semi-structured interviews, questionnaire, mentorship training, discussions, pastors' expectations, and cultural intelligence seminars. The semi structured interview and …

God, Others, And Ourselves - The Stories We Tell And The Meaning We Make: A Narrative Approach To Adventist Mission In The South England Conference Of The British Union Conference, United Kingdom, Wayne B. Erasmus

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

A disconnect exists between the Adventist Church in the United Kingdom and its wider context as evidenced through the reduced number of accessions coming from the majority population and from second, third, and subsequent migrant generations. This present study was to propose and trial a worldview awareness training experience.

Method

A Six Conversation journey experience was devised and presented over a six-week period in the summer of 2021 via Zoom, in line with adaptations due to the COVID pandemic. Volunteer Adventist participants would explore their individual and collective meaning and identity narratives, grow awareness and understanding of other such …

Developing And Testing Concise Evangelistic Videos For Millennials And Generation Z In Columbia, Missouri, Hiram Rester

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Gathering an audience for evangelistic meetings has become increasingly difficult via traditional proclamation approaches. This challenge is even greater among young adults and has been observed where the researcher pastors in Columbia, Missouri. Research shows that technology has changed the way people choose to receive information. This is particularly true of Millennials and Generation Z. Additional strategies must be developed to meet the needs and demands of the digital age, especially by making use of concise online videos. Concise videos need to be developed and tested to aid in engaging with Millennials and Generation Z. Beyond that, it was …

Programa De Capacitacion Para El Desarrollo De Nuevos Secretarios Ejecutivos De Uniones Y Campos De La Division Sudamericana, Edward Heidinger

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

In the territory of the South American Division (SAD), the rate of rotation of leaders in the secretariat area is high, when compared with presidency and treasury. According to the corresponding minutes of the executive committees and constituency meetings of Unions and Fields of the SAD, during the period of 2015-2020, at the Field level, 39% of the changes corresponded to the secretariat, and, at the level of Union, this indicator rises to 47%. In addition to this, there is the challenging reality that the secretariat’s spectrum of action is wide and specialized, and consequently, different from the pastoral …

Utilizing Personality Theory To Help High School Students Find Meaningful Spiritual Growth Practices At Portland Adventist Academy In Portland, Oregon, Jonny Wesley Moor

Doctor of Ministry Projects

The Problem

Some students at Portland Adventist Academy (PAA) struggle to connect with God and many never develop personal habits of connecting with God or learn how to grow into mature relationships with God.

The Method

I developed twelve devotional habits designed for different personality types. Six of the habits focused on prayer and six on Scripture. I taught six religion classes for three weeks, collecting data from 100 junior and senior PAA students. Their ages spanned from 15 to 19: two students were 15 years old, thirty-eight were 16, thirty-eight were 17, twenty were 18, and two were 19. …

A Cross-Cultural And Cross-Ethnic Model Of Integrated Ministry To Second-Generation Immigrant Youth In The Seventh-Day Adventist Church In Dublin, Dan-Gheorghe Serb

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Dublin, like most major cities in Western Europe, is a multicultural and multiethnic city. Most members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Dublin are first-generation immigrants who tend to import their native brand of Adventism into Dublin local churches. Moreover, outside the church worship experience, immigrant members are inclined to gravitate toward mono-ethnic and mono-cultural interactions. Their children are the New Irish and are thus better integrated into Irish culture and society. This situation seems to destabilize young people in the church, with many second-generation immigrant Generation Z youth showing disinterest in church life, and some of them leaving …

Seminario De Evangelismo Urbano Para La Iglesia Adventista Del Séptimo Día Hispana De Delancey, En El Bajo Manhattan, Rafael Omar Lebreault

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Jesus called the church to make disciples of Him among all people groups, and urbanization is a major issue to consider in the fulfillment of that mission. In 1950, only 30% of the world’s population was residing in urban areas; in 2018, urban dwellers were already 55% of the world’s population; and that number is projected to be at 68% by 2050 (United Nations, 2018, p. xix). As the world grows more and more urban, the church needs to be more and more intentional in reaching out to people in urban settlements, in order to reach people where they …

Elaboração De Um Manual Filosófico Para Editores Da Casa Publicadora Brasileira, Wellington Vedovello Barbosa

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The Brazilian Publishing House (CPB) is one of 60 publishing companies that belong to the Seventh-day Adventist Church. With 120 years of history, CPB is dedicated to providing literature in accordance to the distinctive mission of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Consequently, the publishing house expanded in different directions in order to feed the church and produce devotional, theological, and evangelistic materials and textbooks. Committed to publish material with not only technical quality but above all doctrinal fidelity, the institution has continuously invested in procedures and guidelines that guarantee the theological integrity of its products. Committees responsible for evaluating materials …

Missional Prayer: The Ebenezer Model As A Relational Catalyst For Disciple Making Through The Collegedale Seventh-Day Adventist Church, James Gordon Moon Sr.

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

In a 2010 missional assessment, the Collegedale Seventh-day Adventist Church was made aware of a missional blind spot in relation to the external needs of its ministry context. A 2017 MinistryInsight.com Priorities Report also identified the region's desire for warmth and friendship from religious communities as a top ministry preference. In a 2018 effort to begin addressing these needs, Collegedale’s pastoral staff chose "Christ has called us to Make Friends," an actionable expression of Jesus' commission to make disciples. In light of these factors, the Collegedale Church needs a relational catalyst to encourage attenders and members to make friends …

Seminario De Orientacion Matrimonial Basado En El Libro De Cantares Para La Iglesia Adventista Del Septimo Dia Hispana De Plano, Texas, Ronaldo D. Marsollier

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

Although marriages and families have experienced threats and obstacles in every age, they suffer today from a plethora of pernicious onslaughts of growing intensity. The seeds of familial unhappiness and disintegration are often sown long before arriving to the nuptial altar. These realities highlight the importance of seeking a solid marital orientation before, during and after the wedding ceremony. The condition of the family, starting with its foundational marital entity, inevitably affects the destiny of the individual, the church and society. As it is evident in the area of North Dallas in Texas, multiple challenges and problems endanger the …

Escuela De Capacitación De Liderazgo Para Ancianos De La Misión Sur Metropolitana De Chile, Josue G. Espinoza

Doctor of Ministry Projects

Problem

The observations made by this researcher between 2019 and 2020 in the South Metropolitan Chile Mission led to the conclusion that most elders from the 79 organized churches showed leadership deficiencies. This was deduced from observations during local church training events, activities provided by the local conference, and also from the analysis of growth indicators in congregations. It is also important to note that the average of 6.3 congregations per pastor makes it difficult for the elders to develop as local leaders. Added to this condition is the high mobility of pastors who often remain for only one or …