New Adventures

 

Good morning, friends! My goodness, this weekend is exactly what my heart, soul, and body needed. The rest has been a gift beyond description. Both of us needed it far more than we realized, and it has been life-giving.

                I’ll tell you more about our weekend tomorrow, but today I want to tell you about a new adventure coming my way this year.

                When I graduated from Indiana Wesleyan twenty-five years ago this spring (WHAT?!) I had zero desire to continue formal education. Some of my friends went straight on to graduate school, but I was schooled out. I’d been in class since I was five, and by that time I was twenty-one and ready for a break. I wanted to experience life without homework. I wanted to see if it was as grand as I dreamed.

                It was.

                Bills aside, I thoroughly enjoyed adulthood. I enjoyed going to work, coming home, and having an entire evening that was all mine, to do with as I pleased.

                Several years later, four of my coworkers pursued master’s degrees simultaneously. They were miserable. I’ve never seen a group more stressed and frustrated in my life, and I declared on the spot, I would never go back to school. I did not want a life that was THAT stressed.

                Never say never.

                Within the last five years, God has been softening my heart toward school. It started when I took some online Bible classes for fun – back when we lived in Kokomo. It wasn’t a degree program, but I learned so much and loved doing it. After that, I realized if I could pursue a degree that meant something to my heart, I’d be willing to do it. I didn’t want to spend the time or the money if it didn’t matter, but if it did, I was willing.

                When I applied for my job at the church, I knew I’d have to do some form of additional education to accomplish the necessary licensing. I had options, ranging from certificate programs to degrees, and I have been researching, wrestling, and praying over this since last December.

                Ryan has been a gem, praying alongside me, encouraging me, and promising to support me in whatever route I chose as the best one.

                When I met with the credentialing committee back in April, they strongly encouraged me to pursue a Master of Divinity degree, and I strongly balked at the idea. The idea of trying to learn Greek and Hebrew completely terrified me, and I was far more content to entertain the idea of a general ministry degree, even if at a Masters level.

                Nevertheless, I kept researching programs, and one day, through a fluke, I happened upon a program created for people already serving in ministry. It’s designed to provide the degree in a way that allows for work and family life. That caught my attention, because I am adamant about being able to do my job well and staying present for my biggest loves and cheerleaders – Ryan and Lexi.

                I could do a Master in Ministry OR Divinity, and I still balked at the Divinity degree because of the language study. I met with the Admissions Counselor, and he encouraged me to consider it. I knew Jonathan wanted me to go for it. And as I prayed through this decision, Jonathan preached a sermon about the men on the Road to Emmaus. In Luke 24, the men say (after Jesus left them), “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scripture?” (v. 32). And as I read those words on the page, I knew what I needed to do. I knew I needed to let my heart burn within me – with the desire to learn, and that I needed to trust that God would open my eyes to Scripture, even through the daunting original languages.

                I applied for school – for a Master of Divinity – and waited to see if I would be accepted.

                I was so surprised to find the acceptance letter while at the planning day for our staff last Thursday. It took everything in me not to stand up and do a happy dance right then and there. I took a little screen shot and sent it to Ryan immediately – the best that I could do while in a meeting. I eventually printed it out and had Ryan take a proper picture of the moment.

                Despite all my years of declarations against going back to school, I am actually really excited about this. I am looking forward to learning new things, and I’m looking forward to the ways God opens my eyes to the Scriptures.