Nazarene Theological Seminary

I’ll never forget standing under the stars in my front yard in southern Mississippi on a cool March night. . .the night that I answered God’s call into ministry. But the next morning I wasn’t exactly sure what to do next. At age 23, I had an accounting and business administration degree under my belt with almost two years of experience as an accountant. So I decided to ask some of my former professors at TNU who’d taught my general education religion classes. I expected them to tell me to come back to Trevecca to complete an undergraduate degree in religion; however, each one advised me to go straight to NTS.

So after marrying Gina, the woman I’ve now lived with for half my life, we set off to Kansas City where we spent six of the best years of our lives from 1984 to 1990. Yes, I said six years! It actually took me five years at NTS to finish my M. Div. because my wife and I were both in school and both working for most of that time. But there is no doubt that those five years shaped me as a person and shaped my sense of vocation more than any other years of my life. When I came here, I was about as theologically “green” as you could be. But the professors here, while shaking my foundations to their very roots, were patient with me, making sure to build stronger foundations in the places where the old shaky ones had stood. They not only shared their considerable knowledge with me, they also shared with me a passion for life-long learning and for carefully articulating the gospel of Jesus Christ. They opened my eyes to a wide world of rich resources from the history of the Church, contemporary biblical scholarship, great living theologians, and great practitioners of the faith.

But it wasn’t just the professors who shaped me during those years. The friends I made at NTS and the relationships we developed have had a lasting impact on me. The discussions we had, the ping-pong we played, the prayers we prayed for each other, and the jobs we did just trying to pay our bills, were all precious moments of God’s shaping grace in my life. Most of them are now pastors and have remained my lifelong friends. Even when we haven’t seen each other for years, we can pick right back up where we left off when we see each other (like I did with Bill Bowers last spring on a steelhead fishing trip when I was in Washington). It’s hard for me to go very many places in the Church of the Nazarene without seeing one or another of them. I can’t imagine that I’d be teaching here at NTS attempting to shape future church leaders without them having poured their lives into mine as we were being formed here together. With the apostle Paul to them I say, “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.”
           
My last year at NTS was probably the most formative of my life. That year, I was privileged to serve as a teaching assistant for then Professor of New Testament, Alex Deasley. In those days, he allowed his teaching assistants to teach a week’s worth of classes in one of his introductory courses. Although I was scared to death at the start of the first day, to my surprise, it was a totally energizing experience. It was one of the most enjoyable weeks of my life and by the time it was over, I had numerous students go out of their way to suggest to me that I might have the gift of teaching. With additional encouragement from Dr. Deasley (and my wife!), I sensed that God was calling me into the teaching ministry. So off Gina and I went, this time to St. Paul, Minnesota to enter a doctoral program in New Testament. When I entered the program, I found that NTS had prepared me well for engaging in doctoral studies.

After forty-nine months of a southern boy living in the great frozen tundra (but who was counting?), we moved to ENC where we spent four years in my first teaching assignment. From there we moved south again to my alma mater, TNU where we spent four wonderful years as well. When the call came to interview at NTS, I was completely surprised. I had really never thought that we’d ever return to live in Kansas City. In fact, I was reluctant to even come and interview at first because I was quite happy at TNU. However, God had always led Gina and me by opening unexpected doors. So after discussing it with her and with a number of others we respected, we decided that we should at least walk up to what appeared to be an open door.

I came to interview not really expecting to leave Nashville. Already at TNU, I was very conscious of being a part of shaping young people preparing for ministry. But when I arrived at NTS that day, there was something that just felt right about being here. As I walked through the halls, I had a powerful sense of how my own life had been molded in this very place by faithful professors and fellow students preparing for various forms of ministry. As I reflected on it, the prospect of being a part of a similar experience for others who were very close to going into a ministry assignment was both exciting and sobering. When the invitation to join the faculty came, God opened a number of other doors to make it possible for us to seriously consider making the move to Kansas City. At that point we became sure of God’s direction for our lives, and when we arrived here in July 2002, Gina said it best with, “I feel like I’ve come home.”

When I arrived back at NTS, the face of the faculty had changed a great deal. There were only four members of the faculty who remained since my student days. At first it was a little odd calling people by their first names that I had always called “Doctor.” But everyone was so gracious and welcoming and after just a short time, I had that kind of deep assurance that you get when you know that you’re exactly were God wants you. There are so many times when I walk down the halls, go into a familiar old classroom, or listen to the organ in the chapel, that I remember the incredible formative grace that came to me in this place. My prayer is that I’ll be found faithful as a conduit of that same grace to the variety of students whose paths will cross mine here at NTS.