By Richard Clark, Vice President for Advancement
Preparing and sending the next generation of ministers is a mission Johnson has taken seriously on both our campuses for decades. One of the key verses that informs and motivates the work of pastors is 2 Timothy 2:2: “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others” (NIV).
Paul had already practiced what he preached with this young evangelist. So when he told Timothy to develop the next generation of preachers, he was simply emphasizing what Timothy had already experienced and observed.
One of the clearest evidences of Johnson’s ongoing commitment to the ministry of the local church and the Great Commission is that, since 2010, more than 700 students have graduated from our School of Congregational Ministry or School of Bible and Theology. Another 190 have graduated from the School of Intercultural Studies, many of them preparing for the mission field.
Florida, the state for which we have the most accurate statistics, illustrates the impact of this commitment to congregational ministry at the local level. Of the 199 Christian churches/churches of Christ in Florida, 58 (nearly 30%) are led by senior ministers who are Johnson alumni, the vast majority from the Florida campus. In addition to these, another 84 alumni serve in churches as youth ministers, worship ministers, children’s directors, and other ministry roles. This impact is multiplied many times over through Johnson alumni serving churches across the nation and around the world.