Ms. Kim Has Started the School Year!

Over 20 years ago I participated in my first Disciple Bible Study and my life was forever changed. I fell in love with scripture and knew I wanted to follow Jesus. The Spirit planted a seed in my heart, a dream of going to seminary. As I’ve continued to discern my call, God led me into ministry here at Manchaca UMC and toward ordained ministry as a deacon in the United Methodist Church. This fall, I enrolled in Perkins School of Theology at SMU in Dallas, pursuing a Master of Arts in Ministry, taking another step in my candidacy process and fulfilling my seminary dream.

As I attended orientation at Perkins in August, my heart was overwhelmed with joy and gratitude. (Even typing this up, I’m tearing up a bit!) I can hardly believe this amazing opportunity I’ve been granted to learn and study Christian history, our sacred scriptures, and ministry theory and practices in such a wonderful community of professors, staff and peers. I am grateful for my church family that has nurtured my own spiritual growth, affirmed my call, and accompanied me on this path. With every step I take, I bring you with me. Your support and encouragement mean everything, and I am constantly thinking about how I can apply what I’m learning at our church.

Many of you have asked how this hybrid learning model works. I am taking 3 courses: Introduction to Theological Studies and Research, Interpretation of the Old Testament, and The Christian Heritage. All three of my classes have live sessions over zoom on Tuesdays. I begin the day at 7:30 am in one class and end the day at 9:00 pm in my last class. I’ve begun getting accustomed to the weekly rhythm of assigned readings, video lectures, discussion posts, and quizzes for each class. I find pockets of time for reading and writing in the early morning hours, in the evenings, and on weekends. This week I’m preparing for my first theological research papers in two of my classes (yikes – and I thought sermon writing was challenging!).

In addition to the online classes, I will take two in person-courses (3 credit hours each). These week-long “intensives” may be on the SMU campus or they may be in other locations. One option is even in England, visiting the historical places associated with John Wesley! I have to pay for travel and lodging on my own though, so I will likely be staying local. In the fall 2027 semester I’ll complete an internship here at Manchaca UMC – something I’ll learn more about this fall.

My professors and the Perkins staff have been uplifting, encouraging, and challenging. I’ve enjoyed their lectures and the reading assignments, and I have already learned so many new things. My ITSR class is teaching us the nuts and bolts of theological thinking, reading, interpreting (shout out to the Wesley Quadrilateral!), and writing. We are encouraged to read generously, spiritually, carefully, critically, and methodically. My Old Testament professor wears a bow-tie, tells the most thought-provoking and profound stories, and has a passion for Biblical stories that is infectious. We’ve been learning how to ask “good” questions behind the text, within the text, and in front of the text in order to dive deeply into the narrative. It’s definitely my favorite class - I’m always disappointed when the hour-long live session has ended. And the Christian Heritage class has been the most challenging so far, stretching me to do my very best on each assignment. I have a 100 in the class so far - but Kendall and Bruce will tell you that every time I turn something in I still think it’s not good enough! We’ve been learning about the early church in the first couple of centuries. The writings of the martyrs have been especially inspirational, and it’s fascinating to read the debates of the early church theologians and the apologies (defense) of the faith against various heresies.

Along the way I’ll be sharing my experiences and a bit about what I’m learning. Your prayers are much appreciated!