By Sherri Huleatt  

Congratulations to Mark Abbott!

Several years ago, Mark Abbot and his wife of nine years, Alyson, were given the most heartbreaking news of their lives: their doctor informed them that they were unable to bear children. “When we first got that news, it was like our world, hopes, and dreams had crumbled,” wrote Mark. “I’ve spoken about the sovereignty of God, sung songs about it, even preached a time or two about it, but this time God was asking me if I was really going to believe it.”

Although devastating at the time, God used this heartbreak to shape a new goal for Mark and Alyson—to adopt.

At the same time, Mark was feeling a tug on his heart to return to seminary to pursue his Doctor of Ministry. Although this sounded great in theory, the cost of adopting a child within the United States is well beyond what most families can afford; add to that the expense of pursuing seminary and you may very well sink yourself into decades of debt.

But Mark’s faith was never shaken. “I know that no matter what happens to me in this life, God has a way of taking the bad things that happen and using them for good,” he wrote. And he couldn’t have been more right. Mark was recently awarded the Leith Anderson Scholarship—an $18,000 scholarship that will allow Mark to earn his DMin for free through Knox Theological Seminary.

Mark was shocked when he heard the news. “This was a gift from God,” he wrote. “It was the opportunity of a lifetime to earn my doctorate for free.” With this scholarship, Mark and his wife can follow through with their adoption plans without the additional financial burden of paying for seminary.

Knox’s DMin program also allows Mark to pursue his degree on his own time and keep his day job—something many seminary students have to sacrifice while attending school.

Mark is incredibly passionate about music and serves as the Minister of Music at Cherokee Avenue Baptist Church in Gaffney, SC. He received his Master’s degree in Church Music from Southern Seminary in 2009, and intends to put worship at the forefront of his Knox studies as well. “I really look forward to learning more about how the local church can spread the Gospel in this culture without compromising its values, traditions, or the Gospel itself,” he wrote.

In addition to preparing for his new educational journey, Mark and his wife are now in the final stages of the adoption process and are on the waiting list for a child to be placed in their home. “I’ve stopped asking why and started trusting that His plan is better for me,” wrote Mark. “His plan is better than any plan that I could come up with on my own.”

Learn more about pursuing your DMin on your own time with Knox.

The $18,000 Leith Anderson Scholarship is back! Enter to earn your DMin free below—the scholarship closes May 10.

This spring, the DMin is introducing a new track: “The Gospel in Church and Culture,” coordinated by Dr. Jim Belcher. The track draws on Scripture and Christian tradition to help pastors proclaim the Gospel in church and culture.

If you start before June, you can take Dr. Belcher’s “Mission and Tradition: Seeking Balance in Ministry.” The class will look at the emerging and traditional churches, seeking a third way for the twenty-first century—a path between tradition and modernity.

Congratulations to Gary Golike!

Gary Golike is the winner of our last Leith Anderson Scholarship. He’s a pastor in Nebraska with 33 years’ ministry experience. Gary is coming out of a sabbatical—he writes, “The scholarship comes at a perfect time in my life, and will fulfill a long-desired dream to continue my biblical and theological education.  . . . I feel that the opportunity to study at Knox is an intentional gift from God.”

“As a teenager,” Gary writes, “I began to wander and attempted to live in both worlds, staying close to life in the church, but also getting involved in worldly behavior. . . . After struggling through a philosophy class that emphasized existentialism and also some relationship issues, I was suddenly struck with the foolishness and purposelessness of my attempts to find my way apart from God’s will.”

If Gary’s wanderings sound familiar, it’s because the tension he faced—between church and culture, tradition and modernity—is the same tension addressed in the new Knox track with Logos. That tension is ancient, and it demands nuanced answers.

Apply to Knox’s Gospel in Church and Culture track by May 10.

Enter to win the $18,000 Leith Anderson Scholarship below!

The DMin scholarship is named after Dr. Leith Anderson, a well-known pastor, author, and radio ministry host. After ministering at Wooddale Church, in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, as a senior pastor for over 35 years, Dr. Anderson currently serves as President of the National Association of Evangelicals. The NAE represents 45,000 local churches from 40 different denominations and serves a constituency of millions. Along with other leading evangelicals, he has served on the Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships for President Obama. He has written numerous articles and books that include A Church for the 21st Century, Leadership That Works, Becoming Friends With God, and The Jesus Revolution. Anderson’s commitment to being Christ centered, gospel driven, and mission focused in a rapidly-changing culture is the heart of Knox’s mission in training ministers in the Doctor of Ministry program.

The winner can choose from either the popular Biblical Preaching and Teaching track, the Theological Exegesis track, or the new Gospel in Church and Culture track with Logos. For more information on the joint Doctor of Ministry programs with Logos Bible Software, please visit Dmin.me.

To enter the comprehensive Leith Anderson Scholarship giveaway, please fill in your entry below. The value of the comprehensive scholarship will be realized upon the student’s acceptance and enrollment into the program. This is not a cash prize.  Only qualified students who meet the academic requirements for entry into the program will be eligible for the comprehensive scholarship. Enter to win beginning Thursday, April 4, and the scholarship giveaway runs through Friday, May 10. Please enter your name, e-mail address, and highest level of education completed so we can best serve your needs.