Guidelines for
Training in Ministry and Extension
for Seventh Day Baptists

Training in Ministry and Extension is being developed by Rodney Henry as a joint project of the Council on Ministry and the Missionary Society of the Seventh Day Baptist General Conference, USA and Canada.

A BACKGROUND FOR T.I.M.E.

Seventh Day Baptists want to provide the best ministerial training possible for our pastors and future pastors. To accomplish this our Council On Ministry provides grant/loans to seminary students training for the Seventh Day Baptist ministry. Students are alloyed to go to some of the finest seminaries in the world for their training. These seminary students participate in two Summer Institutes which give them the necessary training in Seventh Day Baptist history and polity as yell as a thorough understanding of the Sabbath. This program has been very successful in providing academic training for ministry.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

Seventh Day Baptists have always been concerned about the training of their pastors. However, training and preparation for pastoral ministry has taken on different forms throughout our history.

First Hopkinton.

From our original church in Newport, Rhode Island, Seventh Day Baptists moved in a “westerly” direction. In 1708 the Hopkinton church (originally called “Westerly”) separated from the Newport church. This is after twenty-eight years of worship in their own meeting-house.

For the next one hundred and forty years only nine pastors would provide continuous leadership for that church. Their model of leadership preparation was simple. A man was seen by the congregation to possess ministry gifts. The congregation would call such a one to be ordained as a deacon to "improve his gifts”. The next step in preparation for the pastorate was to be called to become an elder in the church. Finally, the church would select among the elders, a leading elder. The leading elder was the pastor of the church for life.

William. L. Burdick gives insight into the preparation of these Hopkinton pastors for their ministry.

It will be seen from these facts that these men did not enter the pastorate of the church without preparation, as has often been represented. They had not had the advantage of colleges and seminaries, but they had long years of experience and testing before being entrusted with the pastoral care of the church. Their preparation was different from that of the schools, nevertheless it was real preparation of the highest character. The church, while being very diligent in endeavoring to lead men into the ministry and in giving them opportunities to develop, was also most cautious as to the preparation and ability of its elders. They were able men, monuments to any church. The work they wrought speaks louder than words (Seventh Day Baptists in Europe and America, Volume II, page 623).

Indeed, the work of these unschooled pastors does speak louder than any words. It was under the leadership of these pastors that the Hopkinton church grew to a membership of 947 (in 1816 it would have been one of largest churches in America). Besides producing nine fine pastors for itself, the Hopkinton church also provided eighteen other Seventh Day Baptist pastors and missionaries during this time. The Hopkinton church was indeed a “seminary” in that it was a “seed bed” for producing pastoral leadership for our emerging denomination.

Alfred Theological Seminary.

By the mid-1800's Seventh Day Baptists were experiencing phenomenal growth. We grew from 1782 members in 1811 to 6345 members in 1852. With this kind of growth we needed more and better trained pastors. In 1852 an Education Committee was formed to look into the possibility of establishing a theological department at Alfred University. The theological department was established in 1855 which became the Alfred Theological Seminary in 1901.

The addition of a theological department at Alfred University broadened the options for the preparation of Seventh Day Baptist ministers. Besides the “on-the-job” training for the ministry, Seventh Day Baptists could pursue academic training related to ministry. Even with a formal school of training for the ministry the need for pastors in our churches could not be fully met.

Even in 1901 we realized the need for training lay workers. Besides the normal three year course in theology, Dean A.E. Main offered a one year "Bible Normal Course" which was designed to train lay workers and evangelists. He also provided a correspondence course which was offered to the denomination.

At this time pastors who could not pursue academic training FOR the ministry were trained IN the ministry. While going "up through the ranks" from deacon to elder to leading elder (pastor) they were being challenged to "improve their gifts" in the context of the ministry of the local church.

By the turn of the twentieth century we were at our peak of growth. At this time we also had options for ministerial preparation. We had a theological seminary for the academic training of our pastors. We had “on-the-job” training for pastors who could not go for formal schooling, and we had training for lay workers and correspondence courses, as well.

TRAINING IN MINISTRY

This century finds Seventh Day Baptists without an option for training pastors who are not able to go to seminary, for one reason or another. Today, there is little or no “on-the-job” training like that provided by such churches as Hopkinton. We have an excellent program that provides quality seminary education for our future pastors. But, we have not had any program which trains pastors of our churches who do not have a seminary education.

General Conference has recognized the need for this type of training since 1981. Every year since then we have recommended that the Council of Ministry develop and implement a lay-pastor training program. This resulted, in the implementation of the Certificate Pastors Training Program.

Rodney Henry is being employed by the COM (half support) to expand the Certificate Pastor Training Program into what will be called “Training In Ministry”. Training In Ministry or TIME will train people who are presently pastoring our Seventh Day Baptist churches but who have not have formal seminary training.

TIM will not be training pastors FOR ministry which is the focus of theological seminaries. These pastors are being trained IN ministry because they are already pastors of Seventh Day Baptist churches. TIM is not to compete with seminary training. It is simply designed to broaden our ministerial preparation so that all who are called to pastor can have the benefit of training.

TIM will be designed to take theological education to the pastor as he continues to minister in the church. It will focus on the training needs of the pastors with limited disruption of the pastor's life and ministry. The ministry of the pastor must be enhanced by the training and not disrupted.
I am excited about the possibilities of the Training In Ministry project! I see it as a way of implementing new forms of training which are greatly needed. The Council On Ministry has been working on this for some time but development has not moved along very fast. What we have been needing is someone who can concentrate on the project and really get it in gear. Now that is beginning to come about (Paul Green, Dean of the Council On Ministry).

TRAINING IN EXTENSION

Seventh Day Baptists are evangelicals who desire to share their faith and extend the church of Jesus Christ around the world. However, we have not been very successful, in our recent past, at bringing these desires to fruition. With our shortage of seminary trained leaders it would be easy for us to believe that church extension (church planting) is impossible. How can we even think of starting new churches when we hardly have enough pastors for our existing churches?

Training In Extension is built on the concept that church extension is possible if we can develop a non-traditional means of training church leadership within an extension church setting. The basic idea is that there is an opportunity for church planting wherever God's people need and want to be a Seventh Day Baptist church. We do not have enough trained people to take advantage of the many opportunities for church planting. There are many in our land who want to be a Seventh Day Baptist church but who live far away from existing churches and there are no leaders available to send to be their pastors.

Your Missionary Society has a vision for capitalizing on these many opportunities for church extension to an even greater extent. They have employed Rod Henry (half support) to develop Training In Extension. Training In Extension will bring church planting knowledge and skills to leaders who want to start a church but who do not have the necessary knowledge or skills. These extension leaders involved in the training will most often have full time jobs. Therefore, Training In Extension will be very careful to bring training in a way that these new leaders will be able start churches while being trained with the least amount of disruption to their lives and ministry.

Very few people will be able to handle the challenge of a career and church planting. Our history shows that our pioneers ancestors were just such people. Today, we are looking for more such pioneers who are called by God and willing to sacrifice for the sake of the Kingdom work. There are still frontiers in the Kingdom of God and He is still calling out pioneers.

The Seventh Day Baptist Missionary Society wants to start new churches. Training In Extension is a strategy which focuses on existing resources for church planting. We may wish that we had more or different resources for church planting. But TIE takes the resources we do have and puts them to work in our present extension opportunities with the prayer that churches will be started.
In the last ten years, fifteen new churches have been started that still go and grow. Four others have not. Of these fifteen, ten have been helped with aid in support of their pastors. Seven of these had seminary trained pastors while three did not. And there are other new groups with leadership that has not, and can not receive seminary training but need some encouragement and help in their ministries. Also, we feel that other new work can begin and grow IF there is adequate leadership. Thus the vital need for Training In Extension. (Leon Lawton, Executive Vice President of the Missionary Society.)


TRAINING IN MINISTRY AND EXTENSION (T.I.M.E. )

Training In Ministry and Extension (T.I.M.E.) is really two training projects, Training In Ministry and Training In Extension. Training In Ministry is being initiated and sponsored by the Council on ministry and is focused on training persons already serving as pastors of Seventh Day Baptist churches. Training In Extension is being initiated and sponsored by the Missionary Society and will train church leaders in the extension setting with a goal to starting a Seventh Day Baptist church.

Rod Henry is being employed jointly by the Missionary Society and the Council on Ministry to develop and implement both of these training projects by General Conference time in 1986. Though the training context for the participants will be different for each of the programs, they will share many of the same materials. This will save time in the preparation of training materials.

The actual training process will probably involve participation from the various boards and agencies. This plus the wide denominational scope brings the T. I.M.E. project to the Coordinating Leadership Team. Here, the denominational executives will coordinate and evaluate the overall scope of T. I. M. E.

The Coordinating Leadership Team wants to be optimistic and visionary but also cautious because this is a new direction for us. Therefore, the CLT will embark on an examination of past and present models of the church, ministry, and leadership. W1th these in mind they will explore possibilities for the future which are both Biblical and Seventh Day Baptist.

Executive Secretary Dale Thorngate in reviewing the T.I.M.E. project indicates excitement about its possibilities.
Since 1976 when Seventh Day Baptists found out about Church Growth and heard anew the "Great Commission" we have been looking for the way to proceed that was right for us. This study of our present understanding of the church and how we got this way should help us know how to share our faith in a way that will honor God and increase our understanding of his Good News for today. I am personally excited about the potential for this new project.
T.I.M.E is an attempt to take advantage of our ministry and extension opportunities while they still exist. If we do not take advantage of them now, then we may have to spend much more in the future trying to get those opportunities again.

A TRAINING PHILOSOPHY FOT T.I.M.E.

EDUCATION IN A CHANGING WORLD
In The Modern Practice of Adult Education From Pedagogy to Andragogy, (1980) Malcolm Knowles showed that in the 1930's there was a significant change in the reality of life that should have changed the basic premises underlying educational philosophy. Before the 1930's social changes took longer to come about than the average life-span of the individual. Since the 1930's with the extended life-spans and the acceleration of change an average individual will go through several major societal changes.

The implications of this for education is slowly being understood more and more in our day. Before 1930 a person could be educated with knowledge and skills that would last a life-time. Since that time knowledge is changing so quickly and society is changing so rapidly that a person must be re-taught several times in order to keep pace. The "bottom line" is this: people cannot be educated once and for all. Education is an ongoing process.

I believe that this has implications for our Training In Ministry and Extension programs.

1. Our T.I.M.E. programs must have as a goal the equipping of extension leaders and pastors for a life-t1me of self-directed learning. Therefore, T.I.M.E. should be concerned with developing the skills of inquiry and providing resources to self-directed learners.

a. A corollary to this is the redefinition of teacher as a facilitator and resource to self-directed learners.

2. Theological training should go on throughout the life of the extension leader or pastor. To facilitate this we should develop a delivery system for this education which is convenient to them in terms of place and time.

Andragogy and Pedagogy

"Andragogy" is a term used by Malcolm Knowles in describing the various principles which are involved in adult education. He contrasts this with "pedagogy" which he uses to describe the principles of teaching children with the schooling model. He is very clear to show that each teaching model is good depending on the maturity and situation of the student.

Malcolm Knowles gives four basic principles underlying andragogy.

1. As individuals mature their self-concept changes from one of being dependent on others toward becoming a more self-directed human being.

2. As individuals mature they accumulate a growing reservoir of experience that becomes an increasingly rich resource for learning.

3. As individuals mature they want their learning experiences to help them better do tasks related to their social roles. There is a shift from subject centeredness to performance centeredness.

4. As individuals mature their time perspective on the application of knowledge changes from postponement of the application of knowledge to immediacy of application.

Again, it should not be thought that andragogy is better than pedagogy. Each is appropriate for a given teaching/learning situation and should be used accordingly. However, given the maturity

of those who will be involved in T.I.M.E. we feel it important to develop training programs keeping these andragogical principles in mind.

Pre-Service and In-Service Training

In pre-service training the trainees are anticipating going into full-time service. The trainee usually has little ministry experience before or during his time of training. The training anticipates future full-time service and prepares the trainee for that.

In-service training means that the trainees are already in ministry. They have a place where they serve whether it is full-time or not. The amount of ministry experience of the trainees will vary but each will be actively involved in ministry.

Traditional seminaries and Bible colleges are basically pre-service approaches to theological education. This is a necessary approach for training some pastors and missionaries, especially the young and those inexperienced in ministry.

However, not everyone is able to avail themselves of traditional theological education. It is at this point that in-service Training In Ministry and Extension comes into the overall training program of Seventh Day Baptists. We will have our COM seminary program which focuses on pre-service training for ministry and our Training In Ministry and Extension which will be our in-service training in ministry program.

Identifying the Type of Leader Being Trained

It is important that ye identify the type of church leader that we will be training with T.I.M.E. Dr. Donald McCarran in Understanding Church Growth, identifies five "classes" of leaders within the church.

1. “Unpaid within the church.” These are the unpaid church leaders who serve the other members of the church as deacons, elders, Sabbath School teachers, clerks, etc.

2. “Unpaid outside the church”. These are the unpaid leaders of the church who are concerned with those who are outside the church. These are the evangelists and those concerned with social action. Their focus of ministry is to those who are not Christian or who are outside of the church.

3. “Paid or partially paid leaders of small churches.” Pastors of small churches who are either part-time or full-time, ordained or not ordained, fall into this class.

4. “Professional staff.” Pastors of larger churches and missionaries are in this professional class of church leaders.

5. “Bishops and Executives”. This is the level which offers planning and strategy for the denomination besides the many administrative tasks.

Our initial Training In Ministry program will focus on training the type three leader, “paid or partially paid leaders of small churches”. These pastors of small churches will be trained for that particular ministry situation.

Training In Extension will focus on training both type two leaders, “unpaid leaders who minister to those outside the church,” and type three leaders. Some extension leaders will not feel called to be the on-going pastor of the group once it has been become a church. So he will be trained as a type two extension church leader. Once the group grows they can call another person to become their pastor (type 3 or 4) or another person in the group could be trained as a type three leader through the Training In Ministry program. Some will be trained as extension church leaders (type 2) and then continue on to be the church pastor (type 3).

Theological seminaries are designed primarily to train level four professional leaders. Training In Ministry and Extension will focus on training level two and three leaders. Seventh Day Baptists need trained leaders on all levels. We have an excellent program training level four leaders in seminary. Training In Ministry and Extension will train leaders on another level. Again, we see that seminary and T.I.M.E. are not in competition but are complementary.

Training the Whole Person.

Training In Ministry and Extension wants to integrate training into the life and ministry of the trainee so that theological education is a life-long experience. T.I.M.E. should attempt to have training goals that will focus on the "knowing, doing, and being" aspects of ministry (Dr. Fred Holland's Integrated Goal Perspective).

The "knowing" aspect of ministerial training focuses on the information that is needed to be an effective church leader. This varies according to the level of leader being trained. Theological education has a great deal of information content.

The "doing" aspect of training is concerned to teach the skills that are necessary in being a church leader at any given level of church leadership.

The "being" aspect of theological education is concerned to focus on who the trainee is in his relationship with God, the church, the family, the community, and the world. Being is the most difficult aspect to program into theological training.

Training In Ministry and Extension should be a resource in aiding the spiritual development of those in training. This can be achieved through the proper balancing of the knowing, doing, and being aspects of theological education.

Dr. Fred Holland's Two-Track Analogy.

We propose a model of theological education patterned after Theological Education by Extension (TEE). TEE is a model of theological education which attempts to bring ministerial training to the pastors/leaders in the church without disrupting the learner's productive relationship to his society, church, and family.

Theological Education by Extension is carried out through the careful interaction of cognitive input, in-service activity, seminars and spiritual formation.

Each of the four elements plays a significant role in training leaders for the church.

1. Cognitive input refers to the information being learned. It is the knowledge, subject content or skills of a given course of study. This information will be packaged in self-study materials do be done at home by the trainee. (More on this later. ) This is represented by one of the rails in the two track analogy.

2. In-service activity refers to the local ministry context of which the trainee is a part. The cognitive input should be related to and used by the trainee in his particular ministry situation. This is represented by the other rail in this analogy.

“The Two-Track Analogy”

3. Seminars refer to the periodic group meetings whose purpose is to provide dynamic interaction between the cognitive input of the self-study materials and the trainees' in-service ministry experience. The major purpose of the seminars is to make sure that the trainees are applying their learning to their ministries. In the above analogy the two tracks of cognitive input and in-service activity are tied together by the seminars.
4. Spiritual formation is concerned with the spiritual growth and development of the trainee. This can be accomplished by helping the trainee develop needed devotional habits. In the above analogy spiritual formation is the road bed upon which the whole training process is built.

We are proposing to develop a Training In Ministry and Extension program for Seventh Day Baptists which is based on the interaction of these four elements. We will examine these four elements in more detail when we examine the training module.

Limitations

Training In Ministry and Extension is an attempt to develop the best theological education possible for those who are already in ministry and cannot go for traditional theological education. This program should not be compared with traditional seminaries. Seminaries are equipped to train theologians who are able to do independent research and writing. Seminaries often train students to critically analyze subject content. Seventh Day Baptists need many leaders with this kind of theological training.

However, not all church leaders are able to avail themselves of seminary education. We have several pastors who have not had any formal theological education. We believe that Training In Ministry and Extension can meet a growing need for theological education among these leaders, yet it has its limitations. We will not be able to train theologians but we will be able to equip some existing pastors and extension leaders for effective ministry in the Kingdom's work.

There are certain dangers and risks involved with all theological training. A danger we must be aware of with this program is fragmented superficiality. "A little learning is a dangerous thing" (Alexander Pope). This is especially true with theological education. We must take care to develop the most in-depth training we can given our training opportunities and resources.

THE TRAINING MODULE

A training module will consist of the interaction between the cognitive input, in-service activities, seminars, and spiritual formation for the learning of ministry knowledge or skills. In the language of traditional theological education a training module would be a “course” or “class” on a subject.

A training module will take from 8 to 10 weeks to finish depending on the subject being learned. A typical training module may have 6 weeks of self-study at one hour per day and five days per week (30 total hours) for cognitive input. This is followed by a weekend seminar of about 12 hours focused on applying the cognitive input to ministry. Following the weekend seminar the trainees will have 2 more weeks of self-study which is focused on the implementation of the skills and knowledge pertaining to the subject that was learned.

“A Typical Training Module”

There will be 3 or 4 training modules per year. They will be spaced throughout the year to avoid conflict with the holidays and with General Conference sessions. The overall program will consist of about twelve training modules.

SELF-STUDY MATERIALS

The cognitive input will be facilitated through the development of self-study materials. The self-study materials should provide the trainee with the information base that is needed for ministry. This information base is developed in answer to the question, “what does the trainee need to know in order to be an effective leader/pastor?”

The self-study materials will also provide the necessary information base to facilitate the learning of skills related to ministry. In this sense the self-study materials will be developed in answer to the question, “what does the trainee need to be able to do to be an effective leader/pastor?”

These materials must be developed in such a way that there is constant interaction between the knowledge and skills in the self-study and the in-service experience of those involved in training.

Self-study will be accomplished by the trainee at times that are convenient to him. It will require a minimum commitment of about one hour per day, five days per week during the training module.

Self-study materials will generally be a combination of a text of study and a workbook. The workbook will be the trainees' guide for studying the text. The workbook should include a learning goal for each hour, instructions for accomplishing that goal, questions which will guide the trainee as he learns, and suggested responses from the trainee.

Suggested Division of the Self-Study Training Hour

1. Reading and understanding the learning goal for the hour. 2 min.
2. Reading and understanding the instruction for accomplishing that goal. 3 min.
3. Reading and understanding questions and asking other questions pertinent to the goal. 5 min.
4. Completing the assignment for the day. 40 min.
5. Completing the assigned response which will be the application of the learning goal. 10 min.

Total 60 min.

The Workbook
1. Learning Goal. For each training hour the workbook will contain a learning goal for that hour. This learning goal should be as specific as possible. It will be the focal point for everything that is done in the training hour. All reading and assignments for that hour should be related to the training goal.

2. Specific Instructions. The workbook will also give the specific instructions which the trainee is to complete in order to accomplish the learning goal. The instructions may be to read specific material, perform certain tasks, or perhaps to observe some kind of activity. Since self-study time is quite limited for any given training module it is important that this time is used with the greatest economy.

(Note: In order to economize on the time of the trainee there may be times that certain background might need to be given in the workbook to preface the assignment. Sometimes author background may need to be given. Perhaps the assignment will involve reading a chapter of a book in which the first chapters are not assigned. In this case a short synopsis of the preceding chapters may need to be given. All of these types of things will be included in the workbook for each training hour.

3. Specific Questions to sharpen the focus of the trainee while he does the assignment will be included in the workbook. Based on the goal and instructions for the hour, the trainee will also be given the opportunity to ask questions he would like to see answered by the assignment. With these questions the trainee will better know what to look for in the assignment.

(Note: Questions raised by the trainee which the assignment does not answer will be given to the instructor to be answered during the seminar. These unanswered questions will also help to modify the self-study materials of the training module to better meet the needs of those in training. )

4. Written Responses. The trainee will be asked to write out responses to the assignment. This response will ask him to apply or relate the assignment to one facet of his life or ministry. After five training hours the trainee will mail in his responses and unanswered questions to the instructor and to the Training In Ministry or Training In Extension director.

These weekly responses will help the instructor and program director monitor the progress of each trainee. It will also provide weekly accountability for the assignments. The responses and unanswered questions of the trainees will also be of great assistance to the instructor in developing the weekend seminar.

IN-SERVICE ACTIVITIES

Traditional theological education is geared for a delay in the application of ministry knowledge and skills. The delay of application is necessary since traditional theological education trains for future ministry. This delay in application will not be necessary in Training In Ministry and Extension.

Every pastor or extension leader in Training In Ministry and Extension will be actively involved in ministry. Therefore, there should be immediate application of the knowledge and skills of ministry to the actual ministry situations of the trainees. The daily responses for each training hour and the seminars should make sure that the applications to ministry are being made by each trainee.

SEMINARS

The primary goal of the seminars is to relate the knowledge and skills of the self-study materials to the ministry situation of the trainees. THE INSTRUCTOR DOES NOT TEACH THE SUBJECT AT THE SEMINARS. The trainee learns the subject content during the self-study time. The seminars are used to make sure that the trainee is able to apply and relate the knowledge and skills from the self-study to their ministry situations.

The primary seminar goal of application can be facilitated in several ways. This goal can be best reached by focusing on participation rather than on presentation. The easiest way of under
standing the following four methods is to see them as involving the trainee in a particular situation which could occur in real life. The "situation" is condensed to exclude distracting details and the problems of time.

1. Problem solving. In problem solving the trainees are asked to bring all of the knowledge and skills of their self-study to bear on the problem presented at the seminar. Ideally, it is best to do problem solving with the real problems that are being faced in the ministry of one or more of the students. The instructor is there to help the trainees use the knowledge and skills of the self-study for solving the given problem.

Problem solving involves five steps.
a. Identification of the problem.
b. Collection of needed data from the self-study.
c. Selection of trial solutions.
d. Evaluation of possible solutions.
e. Choice and discussion of best solutions.

2. Case Studies. With this approach the instructor presents to the trainees at the seminar a detailed account of an incident or situation. The students are then asked to evaluate the ideas or performance of the people involved in the case study using the knowledge and skills from the self-study.

3. Role Playing. This can provide the trainees the opportunity to put their knowledge and skills to use in situations contrived by the instructor. This artificial situation provides a means of applying ministry knowledge and skills and also evaluating the performance of the trainees in a simulated situation. This is especially useful in applying the skills of ministerial training. (Note: Role playing is a good means for getting the trainees emotionally involved in the subject. However, the role playing should be carefully planned and thought through so that the trainees do not feel that they are merely playing childish games. )

4. Modeling. Demonstrating the most effective performance or attitudes of a pastor or extension leader is one of the best ways of showing the trainees the application of ministry knowledge and skills. This is not easy given the time and place constraints of most seminars. But modeling should be used whenever possible.

The seminar should be on the weekends so that there can be participation by those who work outside of the church context. The structured time for these seminars should total about 8 to 12 hours. Besides the actual time of discussion and interaction the seminars should include the following.

SUGGESTED SEMINAR SCHEDULE

1. A prayer for the concerns of the trainees should begin the seminar. This can be a time of sharing. The students should feel open and free to share their ministry concerns and problems. The instructor can learn a great deal about the ministry situation of the trainees during this time.

2. A time of sharing by each new instructor will introduce the trainees to the new instructor. The new instructor should briefly share his testimony and ministry experience. This is not a time for the instructor to flaunt his education and ministry successes but a time to try to develop an atmosphere of intimacy.

3. A short quiz which is taken from the learning goals of the self-study materials should be given. The quiz is designed to find out if the trainees are being successful in learning the content from the self-study materials. Have the quiz prepared in advance and allow from 15-3O minutes for its completion.

4. A short review of the content of the self-study materials should follow the quiz. Though the quizzes will be marked later by the instructor, the act of reviewing will serve as a correction to the quiz, giving the trainees immediate feedback. Educators stress the need for the immediate “knowledge of results” for the adult learner. Take about 30 minutes for this.

5. Questions from the trainees clarifying the content of the self-study materials should be encouraged after the short review. Take whatever time is necessary clarifying the material.

The remaining six to eight hours of the seminar should be spent in application of the material to their ministries through problem solving, case studies, role playing, and modeling. Be creative and be practical in this important application and clarification part of the training module. The seminar should give the trainee "experience" with the subject content so that it becomes part of him.

Wayne R. Rood challenges modern education in The Art of Teaching Christianity when he says, "modern education will probably be able to improve its quality only as it discovers effective ways of vitalizing the fragile values of the informal teaching-and-learning relation. (1968:16). He contends that Christian teaching must include and yet go beyond “knowledge about” a subject (cognitive) where the focus is on subject information or theory. Christian teaching should also use informal education to focus on the affective aspect of learning which he calls “knowledge of” a subject. “Knowledge of...deals with attitudes, convictions, and emotions and results in decision and action” (Rood 1968:17). The focus of the seminars will be to give the trainee “knowledge of” the subject while the self-study provides “knowledge about” it.

The secondary goal of the seminar is to motivate and stimulate the trainees to continue their self-study. Try to communicate your interest in them and their ministries. The instructor should make himself available to them for counseling and encouragement.

SPIRITUAL FORMATION

Spiritual formation is concerned to develop the spiritual dimension of the extension leader or pastor. This is a difficult aspect to program into a training module. Training In Ministry and Extension will attempt to deal with this aspect of training in two ways. By making daily personal devotions a regular part of the training module and by having the first training module deal with the subject of leadership formation.

Devotional materials will be provided as part of the training module materials (SDB Quarterly or "Upper Room"). The trainee can use these materials or others but they will be asked to keep a "devotional log" showing how elements of the daily devotionals were applied to their personal lives and ministries. In this way it is hoped that the trainee will develop good devotional habits.

The first training module for both Training In Ministry and Training In Extension will focus on the overall subject of leadership development. The thesis of that training module is that God develops leaders in a variety of ways and that academic training makes up one part of the overall process. The training module will examine a variety of leadership process items and see how these items were used in developing the leaders of the Bible. Finally, the trainees will use their understanding of leadership development to examine how God has been developing them as leaders making them sensitive to the whole spectrum of leadership development.

This first training module will attempt to give the trainee an overview of leadership development focusing on the vitality of the leaders relationship with God. (It is hoped that this aspect of spiritual formation will become clearer when the first training module is produced.)

It is important that the program directors and all of the instructors understand that they are cooperating with God in the process of leadership development. Wayne R. Rood identifies the Christian teacher as "one element" in the overall development of the learner.

The teacher of Christianity is an enabler a catalyst, an assistant. He is one element for the learners in a life full of inclinations toward fulfillment, one single existence in the midst of all the tremendous inrush of reality on the pupil, and that is all he needs to be one element, a single existence (Rood 1968:51).

The second area of spiritual formation that needs to be addressed by Training In Ministry and Extension is in the area of developing Christian community. To quote Dr. Rood, “the task is to prepare a student to be a pastor to a community of people rather than an administrator of denominational practices” . These training programs will be training students in the context of the Christian community (the church). The goal of spiritual formation is to cooperate with God in developing loving, caring pastors and extension leaders. It is the love of God through these leaders which will best create a loving and caring community of believers.

ACCOUNTABILITY

The Training In Ministry and Extension project director (Rod Henry) will be responsible for the overall development and implementation of these training projects. He will report to both the COM and the Missionary Society on a monthly basis. The project director will work closely with the executives of the COM and Missionary Society on this project so that the responsibility of these programs can be transferred to them. After that time Training In Ministry and Training In Extension may each have a "program director."

Instructor Accountability

The present project director and the future program directors will not be teaching most of the training modules. Instructors for the training modules will be enlisted.

The instructors will be accountable to the program directors for the content and format of the training modules. They will be responsible to monitor the progress of each trainee by studying the written responses sent to then. They will call each trainee to give them weekly feedback on the written responses which they received and studied. The instructor should make himself available to the trainees for questions or consultation related to the training module.

The instructor should work with the program director in developing the content of the seminars. The instructor is responsible to provide an outline of the content of the seminar to the program directors one week before the seminar is to meet.

Trainee Accountability.

1. Accountability to the instructor. The trainee is accountable to the instructor of the training module. This accountability comes in the form of written responses for each training hour. These responses must be sent to the instructor each week during the training module.

2. Accountability to the self-study materials. It is the responsibility of the trainee to learn the content of the training module from the self-study materials. If he does not understand the material or the instructions it is his responsibility to call the instructor to work out the problems.

3. Accountability to the program director. The trainee is responsible to send a copy of his written responses to the program director. He is also accountable to the program director for the overall progress of his training program. Any problems which the trainee has with a particular training module, an instructor, a seminar, or with the overall program of training should be related by him to the program director. The training instructors will relate to only one part of the training process, while the program directors will relate to the whole training process.

(For Training In Ministry Pastors Only.)

4. Accountability to the church of service. Those in the Training In Ministry program, will be responsible to implement their training in the church where they are serving. Each TIM pastor should have his church select two members of the church to act as the pastor's “Training Support Group”.

Duties of the Training Support Group

a. Be familiar with the training program: its learning goals and time requirements.
b. Counsel with the Training In Ministry pastor in helping him to implement the training goals in their local church.
c. Help the TIM pastor make time for training.
d. Provide prayer and general support for the pastor as he ministers and trains.
e. Evaluate the "implementation" phase of the training module in light of the learning goals and the commitment of the tra1nees.

( Note: Copies of the implementation agreement and the learning goals will be mailed to the Training Support Group along with an evaluation form. )

Training In Ministry CHURCH Accountability.

Those pastors involved 1rl the Training In Ministry program should involve their churches in the tl-a1ning process from the very beginning. Churches must realize that it is a commitment of from 5-7 hours per week and for three or four weekends per year. A clear understanding by the church of the overall program will help to head off potential future problems.

Training In Ministry and Extension is an investment of time by the church and pastor which will reap its rewards in more effective ministry by the pastor and for the church.

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