Lessons from a Seminary Student
The process of seminary is best described as a marathon. It is a fairly long and dubious process of attending class, studying, reading, and taking tests. Many walk away from seminary with their degree in their hand saying that it was not worth it. My response to this perspective is this: seminary is only as good as you are willing to work to make it beneficial for your life. Many expect seminary to hand you all of the experiences and lessons that is needed on a silver platter, but this could not be further from the truth. As soon as I began seminary, I desired nothing more than to experience as many lessons as I could. So what lessons did I learn over the past four years?
Lesson #1 — How to be both academic and pastoral
A major criticism I hear from layman in the local church is that many seminary students do not understand how to navigate the ministry sea waters with a pastoral heart. Many, they say, have succumbed to the “ivory tower” with no desire of coming down from it. The answer to this critique is to not accept a false dichotomy between having an academic mind and pastoral heart. Rather, it is to encourage young men and women entering into the ministry to serve others in their local churches with an academic mind along with a sense of love, grace, and mercy. My first class during my first semester was Old Testament Survey, which was taught by Dr. Charles Savelle. The first time I entered his class, I was filled with excitement and curiosity. I remember asking myself, “will I be able to acclimate myself to a classroom environment after being out of school for several years?” I also wondered how studying theological and other pastoral issues would be different than studying economics or accounting. These questions along with the excitement of learning new topics led me to feel like I was starting grade school all over again. On that first day of class, Dr. Savelle began by introducing himself, what the course would cover, and what will be expected of us during the semester. As the class proceeded, the one thing I quickly learned about Dr. Savelle was that he taught with a humility and love for God and His people. It wasn’t as if this professor acted in a way that portrayed himself as some man sitting in a theological and academic “ivory tower.” He genuinely lived out the humility of Christ. This example from Dr. Savelle extended to other professors in the school. These godly examples taught me how to glorify God by being academically minded while having a pastoral heart. I will be forever grateful to see this taught through the lectures I experienced while at Southwestern.
Lesson #2 — I am just a student
When many students arrive on campus for seminary, they believe they are ready to change the world for the Kingdom of God. Many also tend to think they deserve the pastoral title that will be guaranteed to them once they graduate (or perhaps even beforehand). A lesson that I quickly had to face was this: I am just a student. What this means is that I am in a season of life where I should be focused on learning and growing extensively. That is not to say that I will stop learning and growing once I graduate, but my focus should not be centered on seeking a title or particular position in this season. During my first year of seminary, I attended the Havard campus of Southwestern in Houston, Texas. After this initial year, I eventually moved up to Fort Worth to study on the main campus. After moving into the Fort Worth Hall dorms, I was faced with an experience I had never known. While pursuing my undergraduate degree at McNeese State University, I lived off campus so I did not experience community bathrooms and other “college life” activities. At the age of 24, I was now living in a 100 year old dorm that smelled and looked quite like what one would expect from a guy’s dormitory building. The first time I saw my dorm room, I quite honestly thought I had made a terrible mistake. Fortunately, after living in the dorms for a year my experience became quite different. The friendships I began to share in quickly formed, which God used to further grow and teach me about Himself. If you talk to any male student from Southwestern that lived in Fort Worth Hall, the first thing they will likely tell you is related to their experiences of endless debates and conversations in the TV room. This particular location just happened to be right next to my room. Throughout all of the conversations I took part in, the one thing that I learned was said by a fellow student: “Jared, we are all just students.” What he meant was that every single person taking part in these conversations were still growing and learning about themselves and God. We should be intent on remembering that as we took part in those conversations. Not only was this student encouraging me and others to be humble, but we shouldn’t act as if we are ready for the title that we aspired to have. This student also meant that we should enjoy this short time of life where we are simply focused on learning. As I entered seminary, I was under the impression that I was ready for a lead pastor role in a big church. What I quickly realized was that such a role is not something that should even cross my mind. Rather, I should be content on this season of learning that I have been in and wait on the Lord to place me in a ministry position as He sees fit. Throughout my four years in seminary, I became impatient about simply being a student. The lesson I learned of being patient and content, and enjoying this time of being in a season of learning and growing became an important highlight in seminary.
Lesson #3 — Seek the Kingdom of God
A major temptation in seminary is to begin to have a focus on building one’s own kingdom rather than the Kingdom of God. This temptation is likely derived from witnessing celebrity pastors preach and influence thousands of individuals. There are many “celebrity pastors” that I have learned and gleaned from, but that should not lead me to covet after their position or title. This leads me to reflecting on another lesson I learned from seminary: my heart and focus should be on seeking the Kingdom of God rather than the kingdom of Jared. Throughout seminary, I experienced many interactions and connections that taught me many significant and invaluable lessons. One student in particular I began to connect with during my time in the dorms provided me with many of these lessons. After months of spending time with this student, conflicts and drama began to become more common. One major theme in the conflicts that followed this individual always related to his desire to become famous and well-known in Southern Baptist circles. He would seemingly always attempt to gain attention and followers by posting intentionally harsh content on social media. This led to conversations where he would complain about individuals attacking him on his posts by saying things like, “these people have never done anything for the kingdom of God.” Quickly, it became evident that this student did not desire to glorify God, but to gain fame and glory for his own namesake. Others would echo these same conclusions. One individual heard him complain about an internship at a local church. This particular church did not allow interns to teach a lot. Rather, they were asked to manage the building in ways that included cleaning. He claimed that scrubbing toilets and cleaning floors is beneath him. He wanted to preach and nothing else. Interactions with this student helped me realize something that I had also been guilty of: my goal in seeking to serve God vocationally should not come from a desire to be made famous, but from a desire to lay my life down for God’s people. Seminary has taught me that not only is being a Christian about dying to self, but the pastorate is only for those that have no desire of fame or glory except that which is given to Christ.
Lesson #4 — Serve the Local Church
One would think that every seminary student would be faithful at the local church they attend. During my experience over the past four years, I found that many students lacked faithfulness in their own local church. This led me to experience another lesson that, even though I knew intellectually, my heart had yet to cultivate: serving the local church should never be merely an option, but an obligation that comes from a place of love and gratefulness for the local body of believers. Scripture is clear that believers should not abstain from gathering together with the brother and sisters in Christ with whom they have covenanted together (Hebrews 10:25). As students of the Word of God, it is pertinent to be faithful to the commands of God. It became immediately clear that if I ever aspire to be a lead pastor of a local church, I should also have an infectious desire for the visible representation of His people. A disconnection between the academic world and the local church is all too familiar. If seminary students refuse to be committed to the local church, this disconnection will continue to exist. As a result, the layman in the church will never aspire to learn theology and doctrine. The current assumption that theology and doctrine is “just for those seminary students” will not cease and God’s people will not grow intellectually. The local church desperately needs seminary students and seminary students desperately need their local church. I am grateful that the professors at Southwestern conveyed this to the students.
As my time in the M.Div. program at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary comes to a close, there are so many people that I would like to thank for helping me grow and learn through this process. First, my wife and best friend, Amy Causey. She has given me so much grace through long hours of studying and classroom work. Additionally, she has provided priceless advice and wisdom that has helped me make many vital decisions. Secondly, I want to thank my family for all the encouragement and support they have given me. My parents, (Michael and Lisa Causey), Amy’s parents (Gene and Crystal Harrington), grandparents (Johnny and Linda Johnson), my sister and her husband (Daniel and Annalaura Yarbrough), and Amy’s brother and sister (Geno and Allison Harrington). Thirdly, I would like to thank the professors that I have learned so much from and have received encouragement through the program: Stephen Presley, Charles Savelle, Paul Hoskins, W Madison Grace II, and Travis Dickinson. The strongest aspect of Southwestern are the professors here. You will not find many conservative seminaries with a better faculty. Lastly, I would like to thank my church, Graceview Baptist Church. They have given me countless opportunities to serve and grow while working through the M.Div. program. I am forever grateful for this local visible expression of God’s people.