~ What the World Needs Now! ~
Recently my
wife and I had the privilege of attending Western Seminary’s celebration
banquet for the graduating students of the Portland, OR, campus. (Western
Seminary also has campuses in San Jose and Sacramento, CA.) We were both moved
by the reports from students. Since then
we received the following summary letter from the president of the seminary, Randall
Roberts. I believe it is worth reading by every Christian. I have received
permission to reprint it in its entirety:
~~~~
Dear Friend:
“I learned that a pastor who
doesn't pray is like a chocolate Easter bunny… he might be sweet and pretty,
but really he's hollow, seasonal; and sooner or later, he's gonna get eaten
up.” That memorable image was shared by Sol Rexius, one of the six 2012
Portland graduates chosen to give brief testimonies about their time at
Western.
You have heard us talk a lot
lately about gospel-centered transformation, so I thought it might be
interesting to view that commitment from a graduating student's perspective. To
that end, here is a slightly abridged version of the rest of Sol's remarks:
“I've been a Christian for
23 years, a husband for 9 months, and a college pastor at the University of
Oregon for 8 months. I love my God, my wife, and my job—in that order, but in
different ways. And with my remaining time, I want to tell you about some of
the most important things I learned at Western Seminary:
* I learned that no amount of schooling can prepare
you for the complexity and diversity of real-life ministry, but a good seminary
education really gives you a head start.
* I learned that leaders must be readers, and readers
must be doers.
* I learned that there are a lot of people in this
world doing a lot more courageous things than I am. I know this because I had
class with them.
* I learned that success in ministry should be defined
not by great numbers, but great faithfulness.
* I learned that people who only see things in
black and white need to recognize that there are some grey areas in the
Christian life.
* I also learned that people who only see
things in grey need to recognize that there are some things that are in fact
black and white when it comes to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
* I learned that going on Carl Laney's Israel
study tour is a life-changing trip, and you might even meet your future wife at
the city gates of Jerusalem—just like I did.
* I learned that one of the most effective
preaching tools is a praying wife.
* I learned that you can't be a bad husband and
a good pastor at the same time.
* I learned to trust a man who is humble enough
to say nothing more than God says and bold enough to say nothing less.
* I learned that influencing people for Jesus
is way more exciting than impressing people with me.
* I learned that being a good leader means
learning to say ‘no’ to a lot of really great things so that you can say ‘yes’
to the right things.
* I learned that, contrary to popular belief,
sometimes you actually need to walk away from open doors and kick down the
closed ones.
* I learned that a preacher's authority comes
not from the elegance of his vocabulary, but from the truthfulness of his
message.
* I learned that motivational-speaking can
help, encourage, and even transform people, but only gospel-preaching can bring
dead people to life.
* I learned that at the core of the gospel is a
person to receive, not just a set of doctrines to affirm.
* I learned that if you want to see God raise
up another generation of strong, godly, biblical, and courageous pastors then
you better start praying for it… just like my mother started doing 22 years ago
when she attended this very graduation banquet, and
heard a speaker just like me get up and tell the crowd to begin praying for
such a thing.
* I learned that knowledge without wisdom is
impersonal, and wisdom without knowledge is impossible.
* And so I learned that going to seminary is
not a waste of time and that dying for the gospel is not a waste of life.”
In addition to Sol’s testimony, we also heard other graduates talk about
how they were going to use their Western training to provide Christian
counseling in Poland, leadership training in Egypt, and ongoing pastoral
leadership in Anchorage. Two others will be filling key staff roles in
Christian schools. The incredible diversity of strategic ministry roles expands
even further when you hear the stories of the dozens of graduates who have just
completed their programs at the three Western campuses.
I shared these words at the conclusion of the Portland graduation
banquet: “We have heard testimonies tonight that reflect the variety of gifts
and callings found in this year's graduating class. What they all share in common, however, is a
personal commitment to the uniquely transforming power of the biblical gospel,
a message that is desperately needed in every generation and geographical
location. They also share in common a significant amount of personal sacrifice
required to come to seminary to be equipped for faithful and fruitful ministry,
as Western students currently pay around 80% of the costs of their education.
As president, I'm committed to finding ways to make seminary more affordable,
and one way to do so is to invite people like you to help lighten that load
through your gifts. So as you leave you will be offered some information about
how you can help students like these cover the costs of their training, and I
would encourage you to prayerfully consider this strategic stewardship
opportunity.”
You see the same headlines that I do about the current crisis of
educational indebtedness. Total student debt in this country now exceeds one
trillion dollars. Whether you describe it as a million million or a thousand
billion, that's a lot of money: $1,000,000,000,000 (to save you counting, there
are twelve zeros).
And remember, Western is a graduate school. So students bring with them
an average of $25K of undergraduate indebtedness before they even start here.
Then they take programs ranging from 60-90 credits at $445 per unit (a tuition
rate in the low middle of seminaries nationally). Finally, they graduate and
assume positions as pastors, missionaries, counselors and teachers, typically
for modest salaries. We try to help by keeping our expenses as low as possible.
Look at our annual reports, compare them to other schools our size, and you
will be impressed by how economically efficient we are in offering a top-notch
education.
But we still need your help
to make our training more affordable for the kind of faithful shepherds that
you want for your kids and grand kids. So I offer to you the same invitation
that I presented to those who attended this year's Portland banquet: please
prayerfully consider what more you could do to help lighten a bit that financial
burden. Generations that take seriously the need to educate well the next
generations never regret that investment. That is all the more critical for
Christians who recognize the importance of passing on “the faith once
delivered.”
Thank you for helping us help people like Sol and his fellow Western
students.
Your brother in Christ,
Randal Roberts, President
~~~~
It is my
prayer that some of my readers will put Western Seminary (and other fine
seminaries) on their regular prayer list. To learn more about Western you may
click on the their listing at the right under “Worthy Websites.”
~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW
