PT 544 The Spiritual Formation of the Leader Course Syllabus Location: Bethany University, 800 Bethany Dr. Scotts Valley, CA 95066 Semester / Year: Fall / 2011 Course Start Date: Tuesday, September 06, 2011 Course End Date: Tuesday, October 04, 2011 Professor Name: Dr. Steve Chandler, D.Min. Professor Email: [email protected] Course Description: This course is a study and experience of spiritual dynamics in a Christian leader. Emphasis is placed upon the role and experience of the Holy Spirit in personal practices of Christian life. Direction for Spiritual Formation (DFSF) emphasizes the link between followers of Christ and the Spirit’s ministry of shaping a life for the glory of God as revealed in Scripture. The course emphasizes a biblical theology of spiritual formation including personal application. Class sessions utilize a variety of learning methods and environments including lecture, dialogue, small groups, readings, and the practice of Christian disciplines such as fasting, prayer, reflection, spiritual gifts, and mentorship both in and out of the classroom. The class blends cognitive appreciation of what others say (essentially Scripture and wisdom from others) with personal discovery through experience and dialogue producing greater effectiveness as Spirit-filled leaders. The course prioritizes the intentional development of the inner-life of the minister in order to produce greater effectiveness as a spirit-filled leader. Course Objectives: The student will understand and apply principles of personal spiritual formation by doing such things as: 1. Developing a general awareness of historic spiritual literature and disciplines. 2. Learning classic and Pentecostal charismatic Christian disciplines and virtues of spiritual life. 3. Participating in unique dimensions of small-group peer accountability in Christian spirituality. 4. Memorizing and applying elements of a healthy self-critical perspective toward one’s personal life and ministry. 5. Acquiring a sense of openness and responsibility to and dependence upon peers in the Body of Christ. 6. Developing greater sensitivity to the guidance of the Holy Spirit in personal life and ministry. 7. Utilizing empirical inventories as tools of personal growth. 8. Developing the ability to effectively engage in a broad range of spiritual disciplines and meaningfully reflect upon the experience. 9. Identifying one’s personal spiritual gifts. 10. Developing a plan for applying personal spiritual growth principles with a view to future ministry. Required Textbooks: Foster, Richard. Streams of Living Water: Celebrating the Great Traditions of Christian Faith. (San Francisco: Harper Collins, 2001). 424 pages ISBN 0-06-062822-7Hattaway, Paul, Brother Yun, The Heavenly Man. (Grand Rapids: Monarch Books with Christian Solidarity Worldwide, 2002). 351 pages ISBN 1-85424-597-X Frazee, Randy. The Christian Life Profile: A Discipleship Tool to Assess Christian Beliefs, Practices and Virtues. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005). 62 pages ISBN 0-310-25161-3 Course Outline: Pre-Course Read the Foster: Forward, Introduction and Chapters 1,2 Read the Hattaway: Preface, Introduction and Chapters 1-6 Complete The Christian Life Profile: A Discipleship Tool to Assess Christian Beliefs, Practices and Virtue Week 1 Course Overview Read Foster Chapters 3, 4 Read Hattaway Chapters 7-12 Professor: Introducing Five Reasons for Spiritual Formation / Overview the Six Streams Week 2 Read Foster Chapters 5, 6 Read Hattaway: Chapters 13-18 Student Presentations Spiritual Growth Development Plan Professor: Overview the Six Streams Week 3 Read Foster: Chapters 7, Afterward Read Hattaway: Chapters 19-24 Student Accountability Group Presentations Looking at Streams 3 & 4 Professor: Silence Week 4 Read Foster: Chapters Appendix A & B Read Hattaway: Chapters 25-29 Accountability Groups Presentations Professor: Where Do We Go From Here? Week 5 Presentations: Personal Spiritual Growth Plan Methodology: This course will utilize a wide variety of learning methods and approaches including lecture, group dialogue, small groups, readings, student testimonies, and practice of many of the Christian disciplines both in and out of the classroom. While the course will have a strong cognitive component, it is intended to be a personal experience in the spiritual growth process. Your learning enjoyment and success in this class are most important to the professor. If you have any tested or recognizable learning disability, please come and talk with me as soon as possible. I will do my best to arrange alternative methods/approaches to fulfill the course requirements. Embracing the following guidelines will assist the professor and students to enjoy a more creative, productive, and rewarding semester.1. Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the assigned date. - Late work receives a one letter grade reduction for each 24 hours beyond the due date. 2. Assignment Format - Assignments are typed and double spaced with your name is on the first page. - Staple multiple page assignments in the upper left hand corner; no covers or binders. - Errors in grammar, spelling, sentence structure, capitalization, etc., receive a lower grade. - The professor reserves the right to delete any assignment, add any not listed, or make changes in any assignment. 3. Eligibility for an “incomplete” grade is based on illness, emergency, or unavoidable conflicts in scheduling. Make application for an incomplete in person with the professor. 4. Attendance - There are five sessions in this course. Participants are expected to be present and on time. In case of an absence please access information distributed in class from peers. Attendance is worth one-third of the final grade. 5. Professor’s Appointments The professor encourages email and phone appointments for dialogue and mentoring relationships. Grading Guidelines Final grades are holistic and based on the completion of all course assignments. In addition, at the end of the course the professor will review each student’s accumulative work for overall academic quality and other professional considerations such as initiative, follow-through, and Christ-like character reflected in the student’s approach to learning. Along similar lines, the following criteria will be employed to adjust accumulated points in determining a student’s initial and final grade. A