Thursday, December 15, 2016

eConnection from NTS - December 2016 from Carla Sunberg of Nazarene Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Missouri, United States for Thursday, 15 December 2016

eConnection from NTS - December 2016 from Carla Sunberg of Nazarene Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Missouri, United States for Thursday, 15 December 2016
REFLECTING THE IMAGE: Holiness is the Gift of God
During Advent and Christmas, it is good to remind ourselves that "Holiness unto the Lord" is a gift for all people. God is with us; it is his presence that sanctifies the Christian's entire life. Lately, I have been reflecting on the gift of God's sanctifying presence, and how this world is blessed through him even in the midst of seeming chaos. The thoughts below come from my most recent blog post.
May you truly be blessed as you draw near to God this season!
Scripture
Then all who survive of the nations that have come against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the festival of booths. If any of the families of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, there will be no rain upon them. And if the family of Egypt do not go up and present themselves, then on them shall come the plague that the LORD inflicts on the nations that do not go up to keep the festival of booths. Such shall be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not go up to keep the festival of booths.
On that day there shall be inscribed on the bells of the horses, “Holy to the LORD.” And the cooking pots in the house of the LORD shall be as holy as the bowls in front of the altar; and every cooking pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be sacred to the LORD of hosts, so that all who sacrifice may come and use them to boil the flesh of the sacrifice. And there shall no longer be traders in the house of the LORD of hosts on that day.(Zechariah 14:21, NIV)
Observation
The prophet’s vision is one of the advent of Christ. When the Messiah comes, there will be a dramatic change in Jerusalem, for the city will be made holy because of his presence. The vision goes beyond the birth of the Messiah and takes us to a view of the kingdom which Christ will establish. This is a holy kingdom in which God’s holy nature will abound. Holiness will reach far beyond the Levitical priesthood and the consecrated utensils and bowls in the temple. The Messiah will usher in a new era where God’s holiness will become the character of God’s people and beyond.
Holiness will be revealed in nearness to God. When the presence of God fills the city then a dramatic transformation occurs. The depiction is vivid for now the horses become as holy as the priests. Every cooking pot in the city becomes as holy as the utensils and bowls from the front of the altar. All of this because of nearness to the holiness of God.
Neither the horses nor the pots make themselves holy, but it is God’s presence that creates the transformation. This is the view of the kingdom which is to come, which is to be ushered in by the Messiah. It is in the presence of the Messiah that everything is to become "holy to the LORD."
ApplicationIn my tradition we have embraced the phrase “Holiness unto the Lord.” We wrote it on our doorposts and hung it on banners in our church buildings for we were a church born out of the holiness movement. But somewhere along the way our understanding of the phrase began to disappear and little by little the signs came down. Now you have to look pretty hard to find that phrase anywhere in a holiness church.
Church of the Nazarene, Portsmouth, OHIf we understand this scripture properly we just might want to, once again, embrace the old phrase “Holiness Unto the Lord” — or the contemporary translation, “Holy to the LORD.” The phrase points to a day in which the kingdom of God is revealed in the messiness of what is happening here on earth. The things that are holy are those close to God. Therefore if a church were to embrace being “Holy to the LORD” — the church would embrace a deeper walk with Jesus Christ. It would be a place where everything in the building would be consecrated in service to Christ’s mission in the world and every parishioner’s home would be filled with cooking pots that are “Holy to the LORD.” These would be places of hospitality which become transformational because they bring a fresh taste of the kingdom to those in need.
We may not have horses but we have horsepower. For those who embrace life in the kingdom, even their material goods become tools for use in Christ’s kingdom. Our car becomes an instrument which is “Holy to the LORD” because of our proximity to Christ. When we embrace our nearness to Christ and recognize that he is making us holy, then our material goods are given over in complete and total submission to his service.
“Holiness Unto the Lord” should be a sign that screams everything about the nature of those who are living life in participation with our holy God. Could it be that we took down and hid our old signs because they no longer depicted the nature of who we were? Did the signs come down when we could no longer explain it to the next generation because we were not the visible representation of a people living in close proximity to Christ?
I long for us as a community of faith to deeply embrace our holy Savior, Christ. In doing so, may we experience the transformation that occurs in his presence. Then, possibly, without the need for signs or placards our lives will reveal that we are, “Holy to the LORD.”
PrayerLord, I want to know you more. Please help me to live a life of faithful service in nearness to you. Amen.
Please click here to read this entire blog post.
Grace and Peace,

Carla Sunberg
President
END OF YEAR GIFTS
Tim McPherson, Dean for Advancement
THANK YOU for your participation in Cyber Monday and Giving Tuesday. Sixty-five people took advantage of the Center for Pastoral Leadership special and subscribed to the CPL for the first time! We hope you enjoy this excellent ministry resource and find it helpful and refreshing.
NOW, we are pleased to offer this special End of the Year giving opportunity: For gifts of $100 or more between now and December 31st, NTS will send a printed copy of Dr. Jesse Middendorf's latest book: "I AM."
Who is Jesus? In his new book, I AM: The Startling Claim of Jesus, Dr. Jesse Middendorf explores the meaning behind the seven I Am sayings of Jesus in the gospel of John. The reader is led to a thrilling and unmistakable conclusion: Jesus was making the outrageous, yet authoritative declaration: “I am God!”
Your prayers and gifts are so important in "preparing Faithful & Effective ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ."
Remember, gifts to NTS are tax deductible, and donors over the age of 70.5 may now plan each year to make transfers directly from an IRA to a charity. (In December 2015 the Path Act made the IRA rollover permanent.)
NEXT MONTH - The Seminarian Offering, January 29
By now, pastors should have already received their information packets for this essential offering. If each church would tell the story of NTS and take an offering that amounts to at least $1 per church member or attender, it would dramatically increase the support of NTS. Every dollar invested provides tuition assistance, teacher salaries, multicultural programs, continuing education, library books, technological services, student housing, building improvements and much more! Be watching the mail for instructions and posters. Click here for more information and resources: http://www.nts.edu/seminarian-offering.
THANKS AGAIN for supporting NTS in your prayers, in your giving and in sending students.
CONTEMPORARY ISSUES in THEOLOGY Forum
The NTS Contemporary Issues in Theology Forum is a three-day retreat designed for thought-provoking discussion, Christian fellowship and relaxation. Sessions will be held in Phoenix, Arizona, February 17-19 at Food for the Hungry downtown.
This Year's Theme:
Stewardship and God's Creation: Our Role and Responsibility in the Care of the Earth.
Please go to www.nts.edu/contemporary-issues to register. The cost is $200 per participant. This fee covers event costs and includes some catered meals. A list of recommended hotels will be provided upon registration. Registration is limited!
OUR BEST RECRUITERS Are Our Graduates and Friends
Our recruiting team does a great job. They place thousands of phone calls and travel thousands of miles a year looking for the next generation of faithful and effective ministers.
Our best recruiting tool, however, is a good word from alumni and friends of NTS. We are grateful that many of you are involved in this way!
Here's a reminder of how everyone can help:
As you are out spreading the love of Christ every day, pay close attention to anyone who may be interested in graduate theological education.
Send the prospective student's information to Hannah Beers (hbeers@nts.edu), our Director of Recruiting.
Direct the individual to www.nts.edu/start-your-journey. This is our new landing page linked to our new Facebook adverstising campaigns. From this page, people can explore their calling by expressing their interests on a simple form. One of our recruiters will follow up by contacting them for discussion and prayer.
We are so thankful for our vast network of alumni and friends who love this institution!
FACULTY CORNER
Judith Schwanz, PH.D.
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Real hope can only be found through the Word of God. But often, even the spiritually mature cannot truly hear God's Word by themselves, so they need help. This is one of the valuable ways Dr. Judi Schwanz serves the community at Nazarene Theological Seminary. As Professor of Pastoral Care & Counseling, Dr. Schwanz not only teaches, but she also provides counseling for any who seek a godly friend with an ear to listen.
"Dr. Schwanz teaches Pastoral Care and Counseling both in the classroom and in a whole host of things she does in the Seminary community. She is aware of and provides care for students who are ill, who are struggling emotionally or spiritually, or who simply need a pat on the back or an encouraging word. She links students here with their local churches and is aware of their development in ministry. She carries more than her share of faculty committee work and always has a smile and cheerful word for everyone connected to NTS.” -- Roger Hahn, Dean of Faculty
Judi is also the Director of the DMin Program, Research Consultant for that degree and Director of the Wynkoop Center for Women in Ministry. In her free time, Judi volunteers with a community organization called Project Linus, whose mission is to make and provide quilts for children in crisis situations. Project Linus also empowers these children by teaching them to quilt on their own.
Dr. Judi Schwanz holds a BA, Northwestern University, 1976; MA, Western Evangelical Seminary, 1987; MS, Portland State University, 1994; PhD, Portland State University, 1996.
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
2LT Drew William Bauerle
Since I was a young boy, all I’ve ever wanted to be was a soldier. I planned on very little
else throughout most of my life. While still in high school, and after being turned down several times from the military due to high blood pressure, I came to the conclusion that maybe military life wasn’t something God had planned for me. During that time I learned about PTSD, a disorder that haunts the very soul of the young men and women who come back from overseas, and I felt God pushing me to pursue a way to help.
After graduating from MidAmerica Nazarene University, I was approached by a friend who was a Major in the National Guard. He asked if I had ever considered Chaplaincy. My course of study during college had been psychology. Psychology is such a broad major I knew I would need further education to make a career out of my degree, and studying at NTS has been a great decision. After much time praying, studying, health tests and scans, and a mountain of paperwork, I’ve recently been commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant, Chaplain Candidate, in the Army National Guard. The best part of becoming a chaplain is, not only do I get to help soldiers who may deal with PTSD, but I also get to be with them on an everyday level. Whether it’s a difficult marriage, financial struggles or other life difficulties, the Chaplain can be influential and a part of each of life’s challenging moments. Of course, the best for last: Chaplains are unique in the way that they are able to spread the Good News of God to their soldiers. Often times it’s the chaplain’s faith and recognizing that God is in control that it brings other soldiers to know Christ. Thanks be to God![2LT Drew William Bauerle]
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT - "Faithful & Effective"
The mission of NTS is to prepare "faithful and effective ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ." The stories of alumni in ministry are the story of NTS.
C. Dale German (Class of 1975)
C. Dale German, DMin, is a graduate of Southern Nazarene University, Nazarene Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. He and his wife, Emmalyn, live in Bethany, Oklahoma. Their son, L. Dale and his wife, Laura, also live in Bethany, Oklahoma.
Immediately after graduating from NTS in 1975 I realized the inadequacy of my seminary education, when in my first church of 8 people I had not studied basket weaving for the one student in my Sunday school class. However, all was not loss. Over the next 33 years, what I learned in theology, history, homiletics, theology, doctrine of holiness, practices of ministry and much more saved my pastoral and teaching neck many times over. Like other former NTS students, sometimes congratulating myself for intuitive wisdom, I would later find in old seminary notes a professor at NTS had lectured on that very matter and guided us through the maze.
My clear call to preach came in an NTS chapel service. Rather than a big service in the chapel, we were divided into small groups. Mine met in the tower chapel. Dr. Richard Taylor asked us to share our call to preach. When I said I didn’t have one, Dr. Taylor said, “You sound like me when God said, “Richard, I’m calling you, stupid.” Years later, I pastored Dr. Taylor and asked if I remembered correctly him using the word “stupid.” He said, "Yes." Anyway, after that chapel my wife Emmalyn and I knelt in our home and prayed. We both realized we were already led to NTS, loved ministry, loved the Church and were willing to serve if God called. Divine confidence of a call came to both of us. That was 42 years ago. The security of that call led us to six full time pastorates, three years of full time missionary service teaching in the Theological Seminary in Australia, years of published writings and, in retirement, a volunteer year of service in Swaziland, Africa.
Today, there are online (internet) classes at NTS. I’m glad in my NTS years we had to move to Kansas City, because there I was exposed to the global Church leaders, the way the general Church functions, the reasons for annual reporting, the breadth of Nazarene Publishing House, general board meetings, personal friendships with the professors and lifelong friendships with fellow students, many whom eventually became Church leaders themselves in every facet of our Nazarene denomination.
The NTS professors who taught me are all pretty much gone now, but their profound influence on my life lives in me and continues benefiting uncounted lives I have influenced from my NTS years. Multiply that by the number of students those NTS professors taught, and only God knows the total.
I’m still busy in retirement now, but things have slowed down from how it used to be. I graduated in 1975, and now I’m 75 years old. There has to be a sermon in there somewhere.
Maybe it’s this:
Early investment in NTS theological education--expensive, difficult, and hard earned--is the best investment a young person called to ministry could make. It pays off in professional confidence. It adds wisdom to God-inspired intuition. It teaches where to look for answers to imponderable questioning. It opens doors to infinite life choices. It is collegiums. Even in retirement’s golden years, an NTS education aids in biblically evaluating changing cultures, new methods and even affords opportunities just like my sitting here at my house in Oklahoma writing this, knowing these words will go around the world through technology and maybe help someone decide what to do about preparing for ministry.
We’ve been saying it all over the place for decades now, “God is good… all the time.” And so He is! And FYI, so is NTS!![C. Dale German]
PHOTOS WANTED from Alumni & Friends!
Lori Neely, Alumni & Donor Relations
The mission of NTS is to "prepare women and men to be faithful and effective ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ." This is a mission for the past, present and future.
We would love for you to share some of your favorite pictures of your life at NTS. (Pictured is Dr. William Greathouse, president of NTS from 1968 to 1976.)
Do you have any snapshots of yourself or your peers fellowshipping with professors, conversing with friends, serving others, studying hard with friends, playing hard in the "off time," attending special seminary events and more? We are looking for photos informal or formal, individual or group, color or black and white, digital or paper, professional portraits or snapshots. We plan on sharing some or all of the collected photos with our NTS alumni, friends and more.
In short, we are looking for pictures to give others a window into the life and work of NTS in the past or present--pictures that are interesting, meaningful, fun!
Please mail or email the pics to NTS, let us know who is in them, and tell us why these are among your favorites. If you send actual photographs, they will be scanned and returned.
Send to Lori Neely:
Email: lkneely@nts.edu
Mail: NTS, 1700 E Meyer Blvd., KCMO 64131
We appreciate your help with this project!
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION CONSTITUTION Updated
Our most recent version of the Alumni Association Constitution is available at www.nts.edu/alumni-constitution. In the fall of 2016, your alumni council recommended a few changes that were then approved by the NTS Board of Trustees and affirmed by a vote of the Alumni. This constitution reflects those revisions.
Dr. Steve Estep
President, NTS Alumni Association
Table of Contents
Quick Links
CENTER FOR PASTORAL LEADERSHIP (CPL)
The CPL continues to add new content to the LIFELONG LEARNING COURSE LIST on the CPL WEBSITE. Website subscribers have unlimited access to CPL sponsored webinars and other events which, when viewed, are automatically reported on the website to help the busy pastor keep track of their 20 hours of lifelong learning hours needed each year. NEW WEBINARS recently added include When a Woman Preaches featuring Rev. Tara Beth Leach, and Making Sense of Revelation led by pastors Jon Middendorf and JR Foresters.
UPCOMING EVENTS Keep informed about upcoming continuing education events, CPL webinars and other happenings at NTS by visiting the EVENTS page of our website regularly!
COMING UP NEXT: Webinar: Ecclesiology, the Church and the Mission of God, January 13-16, 2017 on Lifelong Learning Portal, On January 17 a Facebook Live 'Ask Me Anything' Session from 11am - 12pm (Central)
Chapel Speaker: Tyrone Flowers from Higher Mpact, February 7, 2017, 12:30pm (Central)
Chapel Speaker: Rev. Tina Harris, Lead Pastor at historic Grand Avenue Temple UMC (in KC), February 14, 2017, 12:30pm(Central)
Chapel Speaker: Rev. Charles Tillman,February 21, 2017, 12:30pm (Central)
Rascism and Church Lectures: Leah Gunning Francis, Dean at Christian Theological Seminary (Indianapolis), Author of Ferguson and Faith, March 7, 2017
QUICK FACTS Did you know that courses for the NTS Master of Divinity degree can be taken not only in Kansas City, but also in Bethany, OK; Mount Vernon, OH; Nashville, TN; Quincy, MA; and San Diego, CA? Click here to learn more about NTS as a Multi-Campus Seminary.
  1. Did you know that an NTS graduate who is currently pastoring serves, on average, two years longer than someone who has not attended Seminary? 
  2. Did you know that in all ATS-accredited schools (including NTS), there has been a steady increase in recent years in the number of Seminary students who are age 50 and above? 
  3. Did you know that in the 2014/2015 academic year, NTS had 366 "unduplicated" students enrolled in our courses? (The average for our peer schools was 210.) 
  4. Did you know that NTS is the only Nazarene institution in the U. S. whose Master of Divinity Program is nationally accredited by the Association of Theological Schools? 
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1700 East Meyer Boulevard
Kansas City, Missouri 64131, United States 
Address postal inquiries to:
Nazarene Theological Seminary
1700 East Meyer Boulevard
Kansas City, Missouri 64131-1246, United States
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Special Invitation from Carla Sunberg of Nazarene Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Phoenix Arizona, February 17-19, 2017
The NTS Contemporary Issues in Theology Forum is a three-day retreat
designed for thought-provoking discussion, Christian fellowship and relaxation.
Sessions will be held at Food for the Hungry, downtown Phoenix.
Registration is Limited!
Theme:
Stewardship and God’s Creation:
Our Role and Responsibility in the Care of the Earth
Discussion Text:
Introducing Evangelical Ecotheology:
Foundations in Scripture, Theology, History, and Praxis  by Daniel L. Brunner; Jennifer L Butler and A.J. Swoboda
Today's church finds itself in a new world, one in which climate change and ecological degradation are front-page news. In the eyes of many, the evangelical community has been slow to take up a call to creation care. How do Christians address this issue in a faithful way?
Click HERE to Register
$200 per Participant
Fee covers event costs and includes some catered meals.
A list of recommended hotels will be provided upon registration.
REGISTRATION IS LIMITED!
For more information contact Lori Neely at NTS
816.268.5434 - lneely@nts.edu

Nazarene Theological Seminary
1700 East Meyer Boulevard
Kansas City, Missouri 64131, United States
800.831.3011
nts.edu
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Address postal inquiries to:
Nazarene Theological Seminary
1700 East Meyer Boulevard
Kansas City, Missouri 64131-1246, United States
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at

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