Daniel ViezbickeMinisters are like plants, or so I suggested in my last article. Like any living thing, plants must grow. While some plants stay indoors for the entirety of their lifespan, most plants that begin indoors need to go through a process called hardening...
Jeanette PiferIn my first year of teaching, I was on my knees praying about every class. I knew I needed help, and God was indeed faithful. Sure, I made mistakes, as any novice does. But when I reflect on that first year of teaching, the faithfulness of God was...
Jeffrey WiesnerHow can a church effectively launch its small groups? What specific details need to be considered to get a small group ministry off the ground and running? Such nuts and bolts details are the burden of this particular article.
Ray Van NesteWhen I teach my pastoral ministry class, I assign Pastoral Care by Gregory the Great. The first time I taught the class, one of the students said, this guy sounds like a Catholic. Yes, indeed. Not only was he a Catholic—he was a pope! Why would I, a...
Scott HarrowerWhen I first met Marcel, he was slowly rubbing the side of his head, a small figure sitting alone at the back of our church. Tears streamed from his eyes as he told me that the sermon had moved him. Over the next few weeks, I began to get to know...
George HillmanGrowing up, my family had a weekend farm just north of the town where we lived. As a kid, it was a great place to explore nature and learn many life skills. It was on that farm, for example, where I learned how to drive a manual transmission even...
Michael F. BirdRevolutions are by their very nature destructive and disruptive. Revolutions bring old things down and erect new institutions and networks in their place. Revolutions bring conflict. They trample down things once thought sacred and raise up new...
Rudy RubioI met once a Latina single mother who’d been experiencing real hardship. She was unable to pay for adequate childcare for her four kids because she had to take on two jobs to make ends meet. She didn’t come from a very religious background. She was...
Peter Krol“I need to hear a voice from heaven.” That’s what Robert, an atheist, told me after we met together to read the Bible for most of an academic year. We had studied John, Romans, and selections of the Old Testament to examine both the claims of Christ...
Jeremy WalkerThis article was originally a series of articles. It has been combined into one long article. You can easily navigate the different parts of this article using the table of contents below. Table of contentsPart 1: Spurgeon, the Young RecruitPart 2:...
Logos StaffIf you could take a couple seasoned pastors out for coffee and ask them all your ministry questions, what would you ask? Some pastors who are barely hanging on after the past year might ask how they can get back on track spiritually or relationally...
Lexham PressBelow is an excerpt from Finding Our Voice by Matthew D. Kim and Daniel L. Wong that addresses the forms of discrimination Asian Americans commonly face and how to begin to address that pain pastorally. *** “What are you?” “Where are you from?”...
Jennifer GrishamHow are you discipling families in your church? You may not have a formal family ministry, but having some sort of discipleship plan for parents and children isn’t optional. In days like these, where churches, schools, and kids’ extracurricular...
Leadership does not begin with a title or position. It begins the moment you are concerned more about others’ flourishing than you are about your own. — Andy Crouch, Strong and Weak Leadership means risk. One of the most significant risks a leader...
When students ask for recommended books on pastoral ministry before entering seminary, I usually have Paul Tripp’s Dangerous Calling at the top of my list. Tripp points out many of the common heart problems related to pastoral ministry. But this...
Jake MailhotWe are all tempted to believe lies about our identities that shape our daily lives. As Dayton Hartman puts it, “Our hearts, apart from God’s regenerating grace, are literally lie-producing and lie-believing machines.” But Hartman is convinced there...
Everyone’s experience in seminary is going to be unique, but Danny Zacharias and Ben Forrest believe there are certain skills and habits that apply to anyone in a seminary context. Their new book, Surviving and Thriving in Seminary, equips students...
As society and technology careen toward an uncertain future, what does the future hold for Christian ministry? I sat down with Dr. Randy Roberts, president of Western Seminary, for his insights on the next generation of pastors, how technology...
Ryan Nelson“What’s your calling?” How you answer that question could change the way you see your entire life. The answer—and the process of learning how to answer—helps us find our place within the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:4–30)...
Denise J. Murphy“See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;” Hebrews 12:15 I have been alive long enough to have a good share of life experiences. Many that...
A seminary professor once relayed the story of an idealistic church member who complained that pastors should get “real world experience” before beginning pastoral ministry. The professor listened at first, but soon grew impatient with the...
On April 27, Logos is partnering with Dr.’s Les and Leslie Parrott, authors of the much-praised premarital resource Saving Your Marriage before It Starts, for a free webinar on premarital counseling especially for pastors and ministry leaders. Logos...
Liz MeltonChaplains come from all walks of life and serve as Christian leaders with spiritual influence. Whether working in hospitals, in the military, or elsewhere, chaplains apply leadership skills to influence people through the gospel and provide those...
When one of the Logos Pros traveled to Desiring God to train John Piper on how to use Logos, we offered additional training to Bethlehem College and Seminary Faculty. In this post, BCS adjunct professor Dieudonné Tamfu writes of his own experience...
Jonathan WatsonDuring the Protestant Reformation, a concept arose to prominence that has deep implications on our theology: the priesthood of all believers. This is the conviction that we are as priests before God, with access to the Father through his Son...
Larry BaxterAs a volunteer leader attending seminary online, I sometimes feel out of place. I don’t have the experience or skills of many of my classmates. But as an ex-professor and someone with a PhD in Chemical Engineering, there is one thing I do...
Sean McGeverIt was my first B in a long time. When I started taking Hebrew in seminary, I knew it would be difficult. I had heard enough warnings, and part of me wanted to rise to the challenge precisely because of that. I’m competitive by nature. I wanted to...
Alan NobleFor many university and seminary students, the excitement of a new semester is only overcome by the anxiety of a new semester. Learning is a privilege and a joy, but too often it is experienced as a burden and a judgment.
Chris PalmerI am often asked a version of the same question. A parent leans in and says, “If my child goes to seminary, will their faith hold up?” It is a fair question. People imagine a classroom where professors dismantle everything they ever believed, and...
In the shifting landscape of higher education, where enrollment pressures, cultural changes, and technological disruptions press in, a school’s core values can function as a compass. For Christian institutions, they’re not just guiding principles...