Instructor(s)

Course Description

A theological and practical course designed to help the student to understand the spiritual character development required for effective spiritual ministry. The course emphasizes the development of spiritual vitality through Bible study, devotional reading, prayer, soulwinning and healthy lifestyles. This course will give students the opportunity to develop experiences and practices that will assist spiritual formation. It is intended to address current spiritual needs or questions that students may have and to offer the opportunity for self-care. This course is also intended to focus on building our relationship with God. Students will look at specific spiritual disciplines and practice these disciplines through such methods as retreats, spiritual direction, prayer, meditation, study, healthy relationships and behaviour. Students have flexibility in designing the experiences that they believe will meet their current needs. 

Students will design a project that will relate to a current spiritual question, concern, or area of interest. The project could be an interview with someone to gain additional insights, or could be a variety of other projects that are of significant interest and use to the student. Students will submit a review of a book and Spiritual Activity Journal at the end of the course. A Spiritual Formations Study Report will require the student to develop a 6-week study to teach basic spiritual formations lessons to new believers he/she has won to Christ. This study will include promotional materials about the course (flyers, postcards, bulletin inserts), plan for implementation (including suggested course times, class composition, and location), course teaching notes (45 minute teaching sessions produced in MS PowerPoint), and student handouts. Student will produce a journal of street evangelism, or on-vehicle soul-winning or mount an open air campus crusade and submit reports.

Course Notebook. The student will compile all coursework, own personality assessment, notes, book review, journal and report into a course notebook. This notebook will be submitted for a grade at the end of the course, and will be returned for use in future ministry.

Course Objectives

Upon completion of the course the student will:

1. Experience and participate in a variety of spiritual disciplines, in an effort to integrate them into a personal quest for Christlikeness.
2. Discover signs of growth in their personal relationship with God
3. Select and practice specific spiritual formation disciplines that have been used through the ages
4. Personally design experiences that meet their his/her needs and desires

Course Content

Topics

1. Walking with God: His Guidance and Grace (Biblical Examples)
2. Spiritual Disciplines 
3. Emotional Intelligence from Biblical Perspectives
4. The Word-Centered Life: Reading, Studying and Meditation
5. Spiritual Mapping 
6. Strategic Planning of Intercessory Ministry
7. Personal Witnessing & New Converts Visitation
8. Making Disciples to Disciple
9. Communal Spiritual Formation
10. Healthy Clergy lifestyle: Rest, healthy diet and Exercise (Gyming, dancing, etc)
11. Healthy Clergy lifestyle: Forgiveness, Laughter therapy, Managing Stress, Managing criticisms 
12. Life-long Personal Devotion
13. Family Spiritual Formation
14. Pastoral ethics and etiquette

Mode of Delivery

Through lectures, seminars, class interaction, group discussion, reading and assignments

Reading Materials

1. Chandler, D. J. (2014). Christian Spiritual Formation. Westmont, IL.: IVP.
2. Elom-Donkor, L. (2017). Christian Morality in Ghanaian Pentecostalism. Oxford: Regnum Books.     
3. MacArthur, J. F. (2013). Strange Fire. Nashville, TN.: Thomas Nelson.
4. Nouwen, H. J. M. (2018). Spiritual Direction. San Francisco, CA.: HarperOne.
5. Nouwen, H. J. M. at al. (2018). Spiritual Formation: Following the Movement of the Spirit. San Francisco, CA.: HarperOne.
6. Whitney, Donald S. (2014). Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life. Revised and Updated. Colorado Springs: NavPress.