Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary & Training Future Ministers
Wednesday, September 3rd, 2008If you’ve never had the privilege of spending a couple of days at one of our six Southern Baptist Seminaries, you’ve missed a blessing! God is working in a miraculous way in the lives of young men and women who are preparing for ministry at those campuses.
Last year, my husband, Steve, spoke in chapel at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (Fort Worth; his alma mater), at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (Louisville) and Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (Wake Forest NC). As we traveled to each of them, I marvelled at the uniqueness of each one, and the quality and commitment of their faculty and students.
We’ve also had the privilege of visiting at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (New Orleans) and Golden Gate Theological Seminary (San Francisco) in the past.
The only SBC seminary we’d never seen–until last week–was Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City MO. The MBTS campus is beautifully situated on a hill overlooking Kansas City, and the students and faculty on that campus are amazing. It is obvious that God is at work there, and the atmosphere is charged with an enthusiasm about sharing Jesus. The school had invited several state executive directors for informational meetings about the school, and Steve was invited to share a word about Indiana Baptists during their chapel service. President Dr. Philip Roberts and his wife, Anya, were wonderful hosts and we enjoyed hearing their heart for preparing future Christian leaders.
If you’ve been following the path of Hurricane Gustav, you may know that New Orleans seminary was evacuated. Their preparation for such an event is extraordinary, however, and seminary classes continue via Internet until students return later this week. God’s work must go on! An email from Dr. Rhonda Kelley, President’s wife, says “Thank you very much for your prayers. We feel them. God has been faithful to protect us.” Check their website for updates, and keep on praying for NOBTS.
Our Cooperative Program dollars are well-invested in these six academic training institutions dedicated to teaching future ministers.
I also had the privilege of visiting the campus of the Cuba Baptist Seminary in Cuba this spring, where training has exploded off the campus. We heard personal testimonies of men who spent many years of their lives in prison because they were seminary students. I was on Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary’s campus last month to take a graduate class, and observed a beautiful campus with an enormous commitment to God. Steve and I were at Kiev Theological Seminary last year and were enthralled with our IMB missionaries teaching church planting to Ukrainian pastors. God is raising up many committed young people to vocational Christian ministry across our globe, and He is using seminaries across our world to train and inspire them for service to God.
Pray for our seminary leaders and students! Encourage them. I’ve pasted a chapter of ways to encourage seminarians from my book, Fresh Ideas-1000 Ways to Grow a Thriving and Energetic Church. (pasted below)
RECENT PUBLISHED ARTICLES:
“Fresh Ideas” articles were published this week in the Illinois Baptist and The Utah-Idaho Southern Baptist Witness.
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SEMINARY STUDENTS
“I chose you before I formed you in the womb; I set you apart before you were born. I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:5
God’s called them. We’ll encourage them. Need fresh ideas to lift up seminary students from your church?
Recognize Them
Encourage the church to faithfully pray for church members who are called to fulltime ministry by occasionally printing a list of seminary (more…)










