The year 2020 will be a milestone in history and a milestone for many people who lived through it. For me personally, it was a year of profound crisis but also a year of new ministry opportunities.
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Ministry in the Days of the Coronavirus Pandemic
Things happened fast in Slovakia from Monday to Friday, with news coming everyday about how the coronavirus was spreading throughout the world and governments began taking drastic steps. On Monday morning I held my last class on campus before switching to online only. Here’s how the coronavirus is affecting our family and ministry in Slovakia.
[Read more…]Todd’s Ministry Plans for 2020
Sometimes it seems like at the seminary it’s just the same ol’, same ol’ since I’ve been teaching the same classes for at least eight years. On the other hand, there are always new students and that’s what makes everything new every year. Along with new students, this year I’m hoping to do some new publishing, new coaching, new service for the denomination, and we’re hoping new partners will join our team.
[Read more…]Todd’s 2019 Ministry Review
I’ve always said that my main calling is not to teach at a seminary but to help the church better read and live Scripture (which includes teaching at a seminary). In 2019 my ministry expanded further beyond the seminary through theological mentoring for pastors and preaching elders, teaching an overview of Scripture for more local congregations, and involvement in the theological and ordination committee for our denomination.
[Read more…]Glad to be a Part of the EFCA and ReachGlobal
We’re happy to be a part of ReachGlobal, the global mission of the Evangelical Free Church of America.
We think its mission is right on target.
We exist to glorify God by multiplying transformational churches among all people.
And we think it’s great to be among those taking God’s message of salvation to the ends of the earth.
And we think you should too.
Our First 2019 Newsletter is in the Mail
I’ve just sent out our latest newsletter in which I resolve to communicate better with our support team in 2019 and januflect on the 2018 and 2019 ministry years. This year we moved in to a new home and I published my first book.
Forging a Trail Through Scripture: Learning to Read the Bible Better
Last year a few people from our local church in Banská Bystrica asked me to lead a group on how to read and study the Bible. So we started a Bible study club and set out to read the book of Acts together. We learned that the book of Acts works like a story that moves from tension to resolution and that the tension that drives the plot is defined by the programmatic verse in Acts 1:8.
[Read more…]Why I Think Jacob Never ‘Let Go and Let God’ (download)
For the past few years I’ve been attending the annual meetings of the Evangelical Theological Society and the Society of Biblical Literature. These are huge conferences (about 2,000 and 10,000 theologians respectively) where I have the chance to catch up with what’s happening in the world of academia and also present my own research. This year I presented a paper on my interpretation of the Jacob narrative, explaining why I think he never ‘let go and let God.’
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