When Christian Leaders Thrive: Reflections on Resilience in Higher Education

Over the past few years, I’ve had the privilege of walking closely alongside leaders serving in Christian higher education and asking them some very personal questions about the challenges they face. Many carry enormous responsibility — navigating cultural changes, financial pressure, theological issues, and the daily spiritual care of students, faculty, and staff (not to mention their own).

Through my doctoral research, I sought to understand what sets apart leaders who leave after 3-4 years (the norm) and those who are still effective under pressure. Based upon so much reading on resilience (Solomon rightly said that "there is no end of books") I expected to find the leaders I connected with would talk about the value of a positive perspective, optimism, and their ability to focus on "eating the elephant one bite at a time." Surprisingly, they all thought those ideas were largely unhelpful in the long run. 

I’m grateful to share that this work has now been published in the Journal of Christian Ministry, a publication of the Association of Doctor of Ministry Education. The article is titled: "The Surprising Resilience of Christian Higher Education Administrators” (link)

In it, I explore both personal and institutional factors that contribute to flourishing, even in seasons of disorientation and cultural disruption.

For those who serve in theological education, Christian leadership, or are discerning a future in ministry, I hope these findings are helpful. More than anything, I hope they testify to the competence and capability of God.

If the article resonates with you, I’d love to hear your thoughts. And if you know someone who serves in this space, please consider sharing it with them.

If you're looking to read the bible more this year, here's a few tools that can help:

1. This is an amazing story bible for children (designed for 10 and younger), seriously, it's really, really good even for adults.

2. If you've never read the bible, I'd read the comic (even if you're an adult - FYI, this gets close to what the bible actually says, and the bible is NSFW!)

3. If you're looking for a fresh translation to shake things up, I'd check out the Message, Y'all bible, or the "Immerse" bible series.

4. Historically, most people engaging with the bible never actually read the bible; they listened to others read it! (also, adults typically learn better by listening than reading) You probably already have the bible app, just subscribe to a reading plan for your commute.

5. If you want a study bible (i.e., with translator and theological notes) check out the NET Bible, it's the most "up-to-date" translation ever & has a lot of notes.

6. For the nerds out there: here's a reading list in Greek/Hebrew from easiest to hardest translations.

Another Paper!

Here's a link to my paper recently presented at the annual SPCM conference: Discipleship as a Driver for Organizational Sustainability

Feedback much appreciated!!

Yates

Rest

This past Thanksgiving we had the great pleasure of my mother's company! In addition to being my mother she has the superpower of yeast rolls and of being a grandmother. She works as a nurse at the only American hospital to overcome the Ebola virus (USA USA USA!) and told me something surprising that I have struggling with since: "sleep is more important than eating or exercise when it comes to our health." 

I believe this is probably true and if so it is the greatest irony I've seen in a long time.  Working too hard hurts us! 

OT Hebrew Reading List - Part Dux

Hilarious 

Several months ago I was home sick and figured out what books of the Hebrew OT have the most unique vocabulary (not just hapax legomenon) in the OT Canon. I posted my findings and to my surprise I was not the only one thinking about this problem!

As I keep thinking through the easiest way to help others grow in their understanding of scripture, new(er) Hebrew readers can really benefit by staring with simple words and working towards rarer and rarer words as fluency increases (There's a reason the Cat in the Hat series is so popular.)

Links to a quick draft of a Hebrew Bible Reading Plan can be found here (pdf) and here (xlsx), let me know how we can improve it! I think a good addition might be a weighted assessment of genre difficulty and incorporating that into this list but that might have to wait for another sick day.

Happy Reading!

Old Testament Hebrew Reading List

I have really been blessed by Dr. Dan Wallace's Greek New Testament Reading List. He was the one who introduced me to Biblical Greek at Dallas Theological Seminary.

The general idea for his reading list is that the Greek Bible (just like the English Bible!) doesn't start with the easiest book and work it's way into more complicated passages. For the new Greek student his organization was a Greek-saver. I could read passages such as John or Philemon and once I had my "sea legs" under me I could venture into more technical sections of Luke or Hebrews.

Strangely, I can't find a similar project anywhere for the Old Testament Hebrew! "Just start reading" I kept hearing, but surely I can do this in a way that's (at least slightly) less difficult! That being said, I present my Biblical Hebrew Reading List:

1 Deuteronomy
2 Exodus
3 1 Kings
4 2 Kings
5 Leviticus
6 Jeremiah
7 1 Samuel
8 2 Samuel
9 Zechariah
10 Haggai
11 Judges
12 Numbers
13 Jonah
14 Ruth
15 Ezekiel
16 Genesis
17 Malachi
18 Daniel
19 Ecclesiastes
20 Amos
21 Psalms
22 Joshua
23 Esther
24 Hosea
25 Micah
26 Joel
27 Zephaniah
28 Obadiah
29 Nehemiah
30 Isaiah
31 Lamentations
32 Proverbs
33 Ezra
34 Job
35 Habakkuk
36 1 Chronicles
37 2 Chronicles
38 Nahum
39 Song of Songs

It is generally accepted that there are two ways to evaluate a passages's difficulty: lexically (vocab) and syntactically (structure). Because syntactical difficulty is hard to empirically evaluate, the above order is exclusively based on lexical rarity. It assumes that a reader is familiar with the 500 most common words (I would use Anki if I were you; it's free and really good) and assigns a heavier weight to rarer words.  I got all my statistical data from Logos software, based upon Andersen-Forbes Analyzed Text and manipulated in Excel.

As the below chart shows, there can be a big difference in the number of words a reader would likely be unfamiliar with. If you start with Song of Songs you will likely be 4x as frustrated as if you start with 2 Chronicles!

The one other edit to the above list that I made was to combine books that are obviously related such as 1 & 2 Kings. If you want the spreadsheets, comment below and I can send them to you directly. 

For the past 5-6 days I have been bed-ridden due to a back injury and while the pain has likely been worse than I have yet experienced I was reminded that God has (from one perspective or another) allowed this pain to happen to me and that He is able to use it for good (Romans 8:28). As the drugs slowly began to work their magic, I have found myself thinking less about my immediate circumstances (including physical pain from my body, and innumerable  spiritual/emotional challenges) and dwelling more on the big picture items of my life.

A week before my injury another pastor's wife told me that she left her home and comforts to support her husband's role of serving the local Church. What I heard in translation was: "My life's work is to enable your life's work." What a conviction for pastors everywhere! If it is, in fact, true that Christ has given me and other servants to his bride (the Church) so that ultimately she might be fully equipped for every good work then this broader mindset God has given me should be the norm rather than the exception.

I recently read a letter from General Sherman to the "Christian General" Oliver Howard regarding Howard's assignment to facilitate healing after the Civil War

"I hardly know whether to congratulate you or not, but of one thing you may rest assured, that you possess my entire confidence, and I cannot imagine that matters that may involve the future of [...] souls could be put in more charitable and more conscientious hands. So far as man can do, I believe you will, but I fear you have Hercules’ task. God has limited the power of man, and though in the kindness of your heart you would alleviate all the ills of humanity it is not in your power, nor is it in your power to fulfill onetenth part of the expectations [...]. It is simply impracticable. Yet you can and will do all the good one man may, and that is all you are called on as a man and Christian to do, and to that extent count on me as a friend and fellow soldier for counsel and assistance."

I hope that similar words might be said to any one of my peers who have been tasked with caring for the Church!

"What does it mean" meets "what does this change?"

A Biblical Theology of the New Testament

Roy B. Zuck (Editor), Darrell Bock (Editor), David Lowery(Contributor), W Hall Harris (Contributor), Mark Bailey(Contributor), Buist Fanning III (Contributor)

25$ used on Amazon and usually
not more than $35 New

I found this book to nicely bridge vast theological concepts found in a systematic theology and nuanced technical linguistics one might find in a technical commentary. Five out of the six contributors are New Testament scholars (rather than purely Systematic Theologians) and I found their observations and opinions to be a fresh re-look at several positions which I had assumed for decades. This is not to say that NT scholars cannot weigh in on Theology, but simply to point out that the discipline of NT studies at Dallas Seminary was presented to me as focused on "what does it say" rather than "how does it affect my Theology?" 

This text comes from a Evangelical, Dispensational perspective which is largely assumed throughout. Although contrary positions are not examined in detail, extensive footnotes (for most contributors) are provided, directing to extensive treatments elsewhere for the dedicated student. Probably the only "beef" I had with the theology presented here was various contributors' position on salvation. (Although I was glad to see that the Free Grace position is addressed!) 

I thought the greatest strength in the volume is it's ability to summarize main themes of a author (a must for every preacher/student!) and the greatest weakness to be (justifiably) a lack of comparison of theological development from the OT. I would highly recommend this to anyone who already has a technical commentary and a systematic theology and is looking to span the gap between the two. I would not recommend this book as a stand-alone introduction due to some technical sections and to the assumed theologically competent background of the audience.

4 out of 5

How it's made... not PBS but KJV.

The Text of the New Testament: Its Transmission, Corruption, and 

Restoration

Bruce M. Metzger & Bart D. Ehrman

35$ on Amazon but much cheaper
when classes are not starting!

This book is a very helpful introduction to anyone interested in the history of the New Testament Text. The style is detailed enough for the academically-oriented (read: seminary/biblical Greek student) but complete enough for the layperson to keep up with the conversation. The footnotes are abundant and very helpful for further research while not necessary to follow the flow of thought.

There are several chapters however, that the layperson (and probably most students) would prefer to gloss over and return to for reference. For example, the history of most significant witnesses to the NT is given at least in brief. (Manuscript histories can only hold my interest for so long. After two or three dozen of these I found myself counting down to the end of the chapter)

I also found myself questioning the motive of the author(s) as I came to the latter portion of the book. Around two-thirds of the way through the text there is an unnatural shift from broadly summarizing textual scholarship to representing a very one-sided perspective of modern textual research. (For several pages, each of the resource cited are other works from the author) Furthermore, the tone of this portion of the text becomes more critical (In the non-academic sense. Perhaps it could be described as cynical?) of contrary views. To put it simply, much of what is suggested could not be classified as “conservative” in the ecclesiastical sense. That being said, I hope and trust that this is simply an attempt to bring the first edition (c. 1964) up to speed with modern research and as such reflects current trends. I do wish that a greater diversity of opinions were presented.

Good book, definitely worth reading in light of modern “DaVinci Code and “Stigmata” discussions.

Four-and-a-half papyri out of five. 

Rank my marriage?

The happy couple

It's wedding season. 

This past weekend Kelli and I were so happy to witness two friends of ours become married. They have been pursuing each other and God for several years and it has been clear that their future marriage will encourage others and glorify God in many ways. 

Sitting in 3-4 wedding this summer (PTL!) I have heard many sermons and seen many ceremonies. With all this driving to and fro, I have begun to think quite a bit about what I have been experiencing lately. 

In most of the wedding "charges" (sermonettes?) that I have been present for, most reflect a Biblical perspective of marriage as being a commitment for life. (See Mark 10:9, 1 Corinthians 7:39 & Romans 7:2-3 for a few examples.) While I completely agree, I think that we (Evangelical Christianity) have dropped the marriage ball and missed the point.  I'm all for life-long marriages, but that is not what defines a good marriage. Having a "Diamond Jubilee" (a 60th wedding anniversary) doesn't mean that you have had a successful marriage. 

The point of getting married is not to stay married. 

Paul explained one purpose of marriage to a group of Christians who lived in Ephesus. (turns out that they were not unlike modern Christians in many ways!) Paul was trying to explain why people would ever submit to one another in marriage and uses the illustration of Jesus and the Church for perspective. (Check out Ephesians 5:22-33) Just as Jesus sacrificed himself (literally) for the people he loves; husbands should put every need of their wives before their own. That's weird and unnatural. Just as Christians do best when we respect and submit to Jesus, wives also are to respect and honor their husbands. That too is weird. Marriage is one of those weird thing that hopefully begs the question of the observant non-Christian... "why?" [insert gospel here]

Moses explained to the children of Israel in Genesis 2:24 how the party first got started. Adam was capable of meeting all his requirements at his 9-5 job but was still missing something. (This passage is the only passage to be quoted 4 times in the Bible) He still needed someone to come along side him to help him be all that God had planned for him to be. God had made Adam to live in community with Eve. To say it another way, marriage is awesome. I am personally in a better place now than 18 months ago when I wasn't married. In fact, when God plans for someone to be single; He personally comes along-side that person and gives them supernatural power to accomplish it. (sometimes called a "spiritual gift;" 1 Corinthians 7:7)

Sadly, many of the sermons that I have recently heard have missed this. 

I would love to have heard my friends describe their desire and passion to towards their future spouses just before they get married. (especially the males ones!) Christ has an even greater desire to be united deeply with all Christians. Christ has a burning passion to know me today better than he did yesterday. (2 Corinthians 11:2 & Revelation 21:9-10)

If people are not looking at how unnaturally my wife and I treat each other, then we are probably doing it wrong. (in other words, we look like every other couple) If I love her well and she respects me well (again, it's weird) then as individuals we will be better off than before. Imagine if I sacrificially romanced Kelli like Noah in "the notebook" or if Kelli valued what matters to me as much as Adrian in Rocky.

As Christians it should be understood that marriages are meant to stay together! Instead of reminding myself to "stick this out, stick this out" in hard times; I need to focus on God who is my only hope anyway. We can't do this outside of God's strength, but with God's empowerment, it's easy. (Matthew 11:30 &1 Corinthians 1:18-2:16) 

The point of getting married is to glorify God.

Does the "teaching Church" still exist?

Book Review: The teaching ministry of the Church (2nd Ed.), Edited by William R. Yount

$15 @ half.com

Today marks the end of my summer reading list remaining un-touched. (PTL) 

I was assigned this book for my "Christian Education 101" class and I found it very helpful and informative while at the same time challenging me to be more involved in my local church. 

Cons: The first section lays a theological framework for the rest of the book (not a con) but key terms at times suddenly change as the reader progresses from chapter to chapter (despite the otherwise excellent editing of Dr. Yount) For example, "Christian Education" in one chapter means the education on might receive in Sunday School while in another chapter is meant to be any education with a Christian perspective. In this passage, the authors give many examples of teaching challenges which are "hot topics" in modern Christianity without defending their position or offering room for discussion. While they generally serve their point, I found many of the examples to be distracting at best.

Pros: The articles are full of scripture. By my estimate there are over 650 individual verses quoted in the book. (Nearly 2 per page!) The perspective of the authors are typical for most conservative evangelicals and I expect that the language "speaks truth in love" into most of the environments that this book comes into. The authors are clearly familiar with the state of the evangelical church... and their Bibles and are looking to unite the two together. The latter three quarters of the book are very helpful and instructive for nearly every educational manner found within the Church. Each chapter clearly demonstrates the author's proficiency in the medium (for example, adult ministry) and describes a rich pedagogy, goals, means to obtain those goals and evaluation. 

I was challenged by this book through many of the questions it raises. Is there a tension between "head knowledge"(instruction) and "heart knowledge"(discipleship)? How does the Holy Spirit continue to teach long after the lesson is over? Do I allow room for the Holy Spirit's work in my instruction and instructing? How can I learn God's truths better? How can I teach God's truths better? 

This book teaches that while each individual Christian is in a continual state of learning and teaching; each Church function should have teaching included in some degree. I would recommend this book to every Christian hoping to strategically serve his/her fellow believer and encourage his/her own spiritual growth.

Translation: if I can't get you to buy it, definitely read it. 

Five out of Five pointed sermons

AMY