But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9 Pastoral Theology FEATURES Doing Good Reaching People Where They Are A transformational community begins with one central, inescapable, principle: that each and every one of us is fearfully and wonderfully made in the image of God. This is the story of how the Kurka family quietly, but powerfully, lived that principle. Relentlessly positive, and quietly persistent, Jill Dicken, Dean of Student Services, encourages and cares for our students as they navigate the questions, the hardships, and yes, even the fun, of an education in Christian community. As recent graduate James Dewberry will tell you, you can always find ways to engage with the world around you whether it s a quiet conversation or a raucous show. 4 12 20 SECTIONS 2 President s Perspective 16 Mission Ready 28 Alumni News 10 Rave Reviews 18 Campus Life 33 Upcoming Events 11 Commencement 26 MA In Organizational Leadership RESTORER 1
PRESIDENT S PERSPECTIVE This issue of the Restorer captures how LCU is accomplishing its vision of being a Transformational Community of Global Difference Makers. The stories of graduates in the Class of 2018 and Lincoln Leaders who are serving around the world give evidence of global impact. In a Christian community, we communicate openly and honestly. We share our hearts with one another because we share a common commitment. You may have heard that LCU, like many other universities, is facing challenging times. That is true. As President, I can identify with the metaphor that David Johnston uses in his book Sustainable Futures: Christian colleges are paddling upstream against strong currents in leaky boats. The strong currents he addresses are demographic shifts, economic pressures, and regulatory changes. Taken collectively, these challenges have made the financial margin for many Christian colleges and universities, razor thin. To confront the challenges of a changing population of students and increasing resistance to the cost of education, Johnston suggests that schools like LCU focus on Christian community. Well-written mission statements, top-notch facilities, and well-qualified professors are important. But these things pale in significance to the importance of maintaining a community focused on the integration of faith and learning. One of the most significant benefits of attending a Christian college is the opportunity to develop lifelong relationships with like-minded students and faculty members. It is through such mentoring that deep, intellectual, faith-rooted thinkers develop. LCU continues to provide this kind of Christian community for those who study here and as you will see in this Restorer we are growing it. The leaky boats are the limited human, physical, and financial resources of most schools. Like many Christian colleges and universities, we have dealt with and continue to deal with deficit budgets, deferred maintenance, and downsizing our workforce. We are still working to right size our operational and fixed costs. These efforts alone though will be insufficient. You will also see in this Restorer how LCU is seeking to fix our leaky boats through our Mission Ready comprehensive campaign our first campaign in over a decade. Many of you have been faithfully paddling with us for many years. Your partnership is appreciated and your increased partnership as well as the partnership of others is essential as we face the challenges, and seize the opportunities, before us. Our trustees, faculty, and staff are convinced that the kind of Christian community and formative educational experience we offer students is worth offering, but we are dependent upon you and churches like yours to help us make it available, affordable, and accessible to more students for generations to come. Johnston concludes his book with this reminder, But we must never forget this important truth: God is in control. The best planning and analysis won t get us very far without the providence of God. Those of us who value and are committed to Christian higher education know that we are in this work not because of accolades, income, or other forms of earthly success. We continue in this work because Jesus Christ has called us to make disciples that will take their talents, their passions, and their faith into Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. For nearly 75 years LCU has been faithful in fulfilling its mission a fact evident in your life and the lives of many others. Please partner with us in preparing the next generation of Kingdom leaders to be Mission Ready. For Advancing the Kingdom around the World, Don Green, President MISSION Lincoln Christian University is a Christian higher education community whose mission is to nurture and equip Christians with a Biblical worldview to serve and lead in the church and the world. ADMINISTRATION DON GREEN, DMin President BRADY CREMEENS Dean of Enrollment Services JILL DICKEN Dean of Student Services LYNN LAUGHLIN, DD Special Assistant to the President Vice President of Alumni Services SILAS MCCORMICK, JD, PhD Executive Vice President G. STEVE POPENFOOSE Vice President of Finance TRUSTEES Dwayne Cooper / Champaign, IL Karen Diefendorf, Chair / Rogers, AR Dr. Don Green / Lincoln, IL Habeeb Habeeb, Vice-Chair / Champaign, IL Dr. Gene Harker / Whitestown, IN Warren Knoles, Secretary / Springfield, IL Chris Lawler / Catlin, IL Pat McDonald / Wentzville, MO Mark Miller / Franklin, IN Dr. Sherry Miller / Hickory Hills, IL Dr. Tamsen Murray / Oklahoma City, OK Kathryn Ransom / Springfield, IL CREATIVE TEAM Editor-in-Chief / Silas McCormick Creative Consultant / Dave Grout, Timberline Team Consulting Designer / Patrick Edrington Writers / Billie Jarvis-Freeman, Silas McCormick Photography / Grant Beachy, Allison Chitwood Published by Lincoln Christian University 100 Campus View Dr., Lincoln, IL 62656 217-732-3168 / LincolnChristian.edu Restorer@LincolnChristian.edu 2 LINCOLN CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY RESTORER 3
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rave REVIEWS PUBLICATIONS: 1 Dr. Kim Baldwin, Associate Professor of Clinical Mental Health Counseling, presented Healthy Boundaries, Self Care, Complex Trauma, and Reactive Attachment Disorder, for Catalyst Ministries, Bloomington, IL (a ministry for equipping and empowering women and children-at-risk both locally and in the developing world). 1 2 Dr. Christopher Beard, Professor-at-Large, joined the faculty at LCU in Fall, 2018 as the program director for the MA in Organizational Leadership. Dr. Beard holds a PhD in Leadership Studies from Johnson University as well as degrees in New Testament and Business Administration. 2 3 Dr. Sharon Bloch, Associate Professor of Science, published Faith and Science: A Partnership in The Lookout (October, 2018). The purpose of the article is to help the readers see the unique relationship between science and faith through stories of scientists whose faith drove their scientific research. 3 4 Dr. Kevin Dell, Professor-at-Large, joined the faculty in Fall, 2018. His teaching responsibilities include courses in the MA in Spiritual Formation, MDiv, and MA in Ministry. He holds a DMin in Spiritual Formation and an MDiv from Lincoln Christian Seminary as well as undergraduate degrees from St. Louis Christian College and Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. 4 5 5 Dr. Mark Mangano, Professor of Old Testament, led a workshop for the Intentional Church Conference in Decatur, Illinois entitled, Daniel in the 21st Century. Dr. Mangano summarized the workshop this way: the winds of secularism are blowing hard against the Church of Jesus Christ. Christians can learn from the life of Daniel valuable lessons in dealing with the contours of secular cultures. 67 6 Dr. Brian Messner, Professor of History, chairs the Subvention Committee of the Association of Ancient Historians. The Subvention Committee provides funding grants for graduate students and junior faculty to attend the annual meeting of the Association of Ancient Historians. The chair also mentors grant recipients at the annual meeting. 7 Dr. Chuck Sackett, Professor of Preaching, taught Hermeneutics in Moldova and in Heiligenkreuz, Austria. 7 10 LINCOLN CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY RESTORER 11
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upcomingevents NOVEMBER 10 Lincoln Leaders Scholarship Day 15-18 The International Conference on Missions 29-30 Christmas in the Chapel (LincolnChristian.edu/christmas) DECEMBER 1-2 Christmas in the Chapel (LincolnChristian.edu/christmas) JANUARY 5 Spring Registration FEBRUARY 16 Church Leaders Conference (LincolnChristian.edu/churchleaders) MARCH 19 Spring Visit Day (LincolnChristian.edu/visit) APRIL 5-6 The Vine Conference (LincolnChristian.edu/thevine) 13 Early Registration Day 24 Christian Women s Conference (LincolnChristian.edu/cwc) 32 LINCOLN CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY RESTORER 33