This is Dr. Rata and Dr. Roberts’ second collaborative writing project. The two previously coauthored Fear God and Keep His Commandments, a commentary on the book of Ecclesiastes. Joining them as co-author this time is Grace alumnus Dr. Knute Larson, a pastor of 43 years. Each contributor focused on a different aspect of the commentary — Rata provided biblical insights, Roberts brought a psychological perspective, and Larson offered pastoral wisdom.

“For me, the joy is digging deep into the text of Scripture,” said Dr. Rata. “Everything in Proverbs pertains to my daily walk — from having the fear of the LORD, to how I treat my wife, my kid,s and those around me. Proverbs helps me be more generous with the resources God has given me and helps me not be content with what I already know. Being a lifelong learner is part of being wise.”

According to Dr. Rata, biblical exegesis requires close, deliberate reading and thorough research on the book’s context. To accomplish this, Dr. Rata consulted a variety of historical voices.

“I start by looking into the text and especially the Hebrew words and phrases used to convey the message of the book,” said Dr. Rata. “Then I look and see how other biblical authors treated those topics. Eventually, I look for illustrations from church history and see how the saints who went before us applied the wisdom from Proverbs to their daily lives.”

Dr. Roberts has also found the book of Proverbs to be transformative. “In reviewing the psychological research related to each topic covered in this book, I appreciated how the research so often lined up with the teachings in Proverbs,” he said. “On a personal level, my faith was challenged while writing each chapter, but the study of humility brought me to a deeper realization of the necessity of humility in our walk with God.”

Dr. Roberts hopes that readers of the commentary are as edified as the authors were in writing it. “The beauty of the book of Proverbs is that it is full of practical teaching, relating to all people,” he said. “We hope that our readership gains a deeper understanding of wisdom and right living from the three perspectives provided.”

Sacred Wisdom: An Interdisciplinary Commentary on the Book of Proverbs is intended for informed lay-level readers, as well as pastors, Sunday school teachers, small group leaders, students, and anyone who wants to understand the storyline of the Bible better. The book can be ordered on Amazon here.

A version of this story originally appeared in a press release from Grace College. Find out more about Grace on their website here.

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“God has been so gracious to this institution from the very beginning,” said Dr. Drew Flamm, president of Grace College and Seminary. “I find it fitting that as we recognize a historic milestone in our timeline, our numbers have reached a historic high — only more evidence of His grace. We are grateful that in 1948, the leadership of Grace Theological Seminary saw a need to start Grace College, and I praise the Lord that we continue to strive forward together to know Christ and make Him known.” 

This fall, Grace tied its second-largest incoming undergraduate class with 465 new students. The diverse group comes to Winona Lake from 19 states and 15 different countries. They are studying a wide array of disciplines across Grace’s seven academic schools, including its School of Science and Engineering, which was introduced this summer.   

“By introducing the School of Science and Engineering and giving our STEM programs their own home, we can increase resources and advancements in these fields and expand the agility of these programs as they respond to the needs of our community and the needs within the broader market,” said Dr. Kevin Roberts, provost at Grace College. 

The school has already seen enrollment growth in majors such as nursing, medical imaging, and computer science, and has also made way for new developments. This summer, the school launched a new academic research center: The Center for Movement and Well-Being. Funded by a Lilly Endowment Grant, this new center will provide programming to help Kosciusko County residents take ownership of their health and wellness and equip exercise science students with the skills they need for their careers.  Likewise, the Department of Engineering received $443,240 from the Don Wood Foundation to increase the visibility of the program, purchase new equipment and build new connections with the community.

Grace Theological Seminary has seen tremendous growth in its enrollment this year. Welcoming 82 new students, the seminary totals 208 students engaged in theological education through an array of delivery methods: on campus, online, on-site, and on demand. 

“This is the highest number of incoming students the seminary has seen in a long, long time,” said Dr. Freddy Cardoza, vice president of Grace Theological Seminary. “What is perhaps even more exciting is that we offer dozens of on-ramps for students to begin our various programs throughout the year, so we will soar past 208 students over the next several months.” 

A large percentage of those students are those pursuing online master’s degrees through the seminary, which saw a 54% increase this year. This comes on the heels of a new seminary offering: a completely online MDiv program delivered with high-definition videos that launched this fall. 

Grace Online welcomed 150 new students this year. The MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling grew by 31%, and College Launch, Grace’s associate degree in high school program, grew by 59%.

“As our students increase and our programs grow, we are dedicated to improving the student experience,” said Dr. Flamm. “This summer, we renovated Beta Hall, a male dormitory, and in the spring, we broke ground on our new Tom Roy – UPI Baseball Park. We are so thankful for the last 75 years of Grace College, and we are hopeful as we look to the next 75 years ahead.” 

Find out more about Grace College on their website here.

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“The M.Div. is a quintessential seminary degree, highly regarded among pastors in the field, and it’s time to give ministry leaders access to Grace Seminary’s top-notch M.Div. program regardless of where they live,” said Dr. Freddy Cardoza, dean of Grace Theological Seminary and School of Ministry Studies. “Grace Seminary has had a long-standing history of equipping church leaders for ministry through our M.Div. program. Unwilling to compromise quality for flexibility, we’re giving our online students the same thought-provoking content, excellent teaching and access to our sage professors as our residential students.”

The 75-credit-hour program will be delivered online in an easy-to-navigate learning platform with engaging, high-definition videos. The delivery platform is designed to give students who engage online the same instruction a residential student would receive in the classroom. 

In addition, all seven concentrations of the degree will be accessible for Grace M.Div. students who engage online. The concentrations include pastoral studies, general studies, Christian ministry, intercultural studies, exegetical studies, pastoral counseling, and chaplaincy. These concentrations allow students to align their studies with their current area of ministry or ministry interests.

“With Grace Seminary’s online M.Div., you will be trained to meet today’s most prevalent ministry needs and build a bridge to meet the ministry needs of tomorrow – all while maintaining fidelity to Scripture,” said Dr. Karla McGehee, director of digital learning at Grace Theological Seminary. “It’s so important to us that our online programs are student focused, ensuring that the virtual learning experience is an extension of our overarching mission to teach, train, and transform ministry leaders for Christ and His Church.”

To learn more about the online M.Div. through Grace Theological Seminary, watch the promotional video on Grace College’s YouTube channel, visit seminary.grace.edu, or talk to an admissions counselor at seminary@grace.edu. 

This information originally appeared in a press release from Grace College & Theological Seminary. Find out more information about Grace on their website here.

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Many pastors in the Charis Fellowship received training at Grace Theological Seminary in Winona Lake, Ind. Two such pastors who are both now serving in northern Ohio are Josh Wilson, lead pastor at Ashland Grace Church, and Joel Zook, lead pastor at Southview Grace Brethren Church. A version of this story appeared in a blog from Grace Theological Seminary. See the original post here and find out more about Grace here. 

The call to ministry is oftentimes an invitation to follow God to distant and far-off locations. Even for those who do not choose to be missionaries, God’s call can lead them to places where they have not been. The paths for many are interweaving with others, allowing them to meet and serve alongside new and old friends alike.

With seminary students coming to Grace from all over the world and being sent out to locations around the world, imagine our surprise when we found out that two recent Master’s of Divinity graduates wound up in the same small town of Ashland, Ohio. Josh Wilson is the newly appointed lead pastor at Ashland Grace Church. (You may recognize the names two previous lead pastors; Dan Allen, who served on Grace College’s board of trustees, and Dr. John Teevan, our interim college president.) Joel Zook is at Southview Grace Brethren Church, where he has been the lead pastor for about six months.

Josh and Joel were both a part of our blended program, receiving both their bachelor’s degree and a Masters’s of Divinity in just five years at Grace Theological Seminary! The blended program allows each student to choose from seven undergraduate majors and fifteen graduate programs, providing more than 100 different combinations to choose from.

Josh was our first blended program graduate, receiving his bachelor’s degree in Biblical Studies and his M.Div. in Pastoral Studies in 2018. Joel received his M.Div. in Pastoral Studies in 2019. They were also recipients of several awards, Josh receiving the Biblical Studies Award and the Kenneth E. Bickle Award for expository preaching. The following year Joel received the Faculty Award as well as the Homer A. Kent Award in New Testament.

Get to know these pastors in Ashland, Ohio, and learn more about how their time at Grace left its mark.

How did you first hear about Grace and decide to attend here?

Josh: I grew up in Winona Lake, so I’ve known about Grace College for most of my life. In my junior year of high school I felt called to pursue ministry and Grace was an obvious choice!

Joel: I learned about Grace through the leaders at my church growing up. I grew up at Grace Church in Wooster, Ohio, so a lot of my pastors and mentors had attended Grace College and/or Seminary.  But the biggest draw for me was the 5-year blended program. It was hard to pass up that opportunity!

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The founding story of Wycliffe Bible Translators and their mission to end Bible poverty has motivated countless young men and women to study Bible translation. One such person is Lucas Cone, who finished his undergrad degree in Bible translation at Grace in 2020 and his M.Div. at Grace Theological Seminary in 2021.

Read on to learn more about Lucas’ experience in the program.

How did you land on the Bible translating major at Grace?
I did not know that the Bible translating program existed when I came to Grace. I started as a communication major, but I soon desired to pursue a Bible degree. As I explored the options, I learned about Bible Translation and a light bulb went off. I love languages, I wanted to study the Bible, I am interested in overseas work…so I went for it.

Mission week at Grace my freshman year also had some influence in the decision. I remember quite vividly a speaker from Wycliffe sharing a moving story from his experience with Bible translating. It highlighted for me how much I take for granted having access to God’s Word in a language I understand. I can read a hundred translations just in English, and my ancestors have been able to read the Bible in their heart language for who knows how many generations. Meanwhile millions are living and dying without access to God’s Word in a language they understand.

Why does the world need Bible translators?
There’s a great need for Bible translation. Some statistics from 2021 indicate that of the roughly 7,000 spoken and signed languages in the world, about 1,800 languages do not yet have translation projects started. Over a billion people do not have a Bible in their first language and millions and millions have no Bible in any language they understand.

What did you learn from your program that will stick with you the longest?
Tough to say. The summer I spent studying linguistics with SIL was remarkable. I learned so much, but what impacted me perhaps most was simply being in that unique environment, surrounded by future, present, and past global workers, some there to teach, some there for further training, and others, like me, there to get our feet wet. It was a diverse group, but there was a united desire to see people of all nations worshiping God and hearing/reading His Word in their heart language. The community, conversations, and relationships were priceless.

Are Biblical language courses like Greek and Hebrew helpful for the process of Bible translating?
This is not a simple question. There are different stages and roles within Bible translation and depending on a variety of factors, there can be different approaches to translation. So depending on what approach you use and what stage of the translation you are working on, you may or may not need to have familiarity with Greek and Hebrew. Nonetheless, I’m glad I studied it, and it opens up more possibilities for those who do.

What are ways that people can rally behind Bible translating efforts without becoming Bible translators themselves?
There are great organizations that focus solely on Bible translation such as Wycliffe and others that do Bible translating as part of church planting, like Ethnos 360 for example. These and other organizations need all sorts of people with all sorts of abilities. They need pilots and graphic designers and teachers and accountants, etc. If you have a skill, one of these organizations can probably use you. Even if you don’t do that, the whole body of Christ can and should be praying for the spread of the Gospel and strengthening of the church in the world, and Bible translation is an important part of that.

Lucas Cone is halfway through his two-year pastoral residency at Grace Polaris Church in Westerville, Ohio. This story appeared in a blog post from Grace College. See the original post here and learn more about Grace College here. 

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Throughout his career, Kary Oberbrunner has faced a number of closed doors. From being denied the job he thought was his calling to trying to get his books published, he knows the sting of rejection.

Now a Wall Street Journal and USA Today best selling author and CEO of Igniting Souls Publishing Agency, Kary has learned to tune out the hum of critics and listen first and foremost to the voice of God in his life.

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Presidential Scholarship Days, an annual competition for high-achieving high school seniors, awards more than $2 million in scholarships. These days are one facet of the robust financial aid program at Grace College which provides institutional financial aid to 100% of its students with more than 25% attending tuition-free. This year, the scholarship days transpired on four different Fridays throughout the year. One full-ride scholarship was awarded at each event.

Jozee King-Cook, who won the first full-tuition scholarship of the competition, was so excited to attend Grace that she pushed up her original fall enrollment date to start this past January.

“This scholarship is extremely important to me because it signifies more than just payment for college; it signifies all of the hard work, dedication, strength, faith and will it took to reach this point,” says Jozee, who is now living on campus and studying world languages and English education. She intends on becoming an English language teacher to people around the world.

Hannah Kozlowski also has plans of pursuing an English degree and is awaiting the day she will officially call Grace College home.

“For me, the biggest part of receiving this scholarship is God’s undeniable hand of provision and guidance,” said Hannah. “The Presidential Scholarship not only helped me financially, but it also served as a means of confirmation from God. I am so excited to go to Grace and to see what God will do during my time there.”

Jai’Lin Parker also recognizes that without God, this opportunity would not be possible. “I am truly honored and excited that I have won this scholarship,” said Jai’Lin. “God is a way maker, and I am thankful for this opportunity He has given me.”

Jai’Lin plans on studying accounting at Grace. She hopes to become a successful African American businesswoman who inspires the next generation of African American children to become whatever they dream of becoming.

Also dreaming of making an impact in the business world, Seth Busby will major in business administration and sports business at Grace. He hopes to enter the field of business law.

“I feel honored and blessed to have received this life-changing scholarship,” said Seth. “This is something that will have an immense impact on my future path.”

Presidential Scholarship Days are for students who meet two or more of the following criteria: 3.75 GPA, top 20% class rank and 1230 SAT or 26 ACT. Larger scholarships range from $15,000 per year to full-tuition, and all attendees receive a minimum of $1,000 per year added to their generous merit scholarships.

This year’s 263 competing scholars came from 18 states and four foreign countries. Their average high school GPA was above a 4.0.

The event schedule kicked off with an optional lunch and campus tour. The scholars then attended a student life panel before participating in 20-minute interviews with Grace College professors. The day continued with academic group meetings and wrapped up with a formal dinner where guests heard from the Grace College administration.

This story originally appeared in a press release from Grace College. Find more information about Grace on their website here. 

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