Spiritual Direction for Ministry Leaders

Disciple making is the critical issue facing the church today. A Doctor of Ministry in Spiritual Direction equips Christian leaders to guide communities in becoming mature disciples of Jesus Christ.

Spiritual direction provides a classic approach to deepening discipleship in Christian communities. As Christian leaders, spiritual direction in your ministry context begins with you; only then can you guide the entire faith family into a life of mature discipleship. As you travel through the D.Min. program together, the cohort itself will serve as a formation model for you as seasoned pastors and ministry leaders.

Guest speakers include Jonathan Powers and Steve O’Malley.

As you complete your degree, you will:

• Appreciate the vibrant historical Christian tradition of community spiritual direction.
• Integrate the practices of the Christian tradition into personal daily formation.
• Apply the wisdom of community spiritual direction in your ministry context to create mature disciples of Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Direction for Ministry Leaders Cohort Degree Plan

Sample Cohort Syllabi

Faculty

Rev. Dr. Stephen L. Martyn is Associate Professor of Spiritual Formation at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky in the United States and an Elder in the Kentucky Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. Prior to coming to Asbury Seminary in 2004, Steve served pastorates in Northwest Texas, Pennsylvania, New Mexico and Kentucky. He also served for two years as the first Director of Spiritual Formation for the Kentucky Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church.

Steve was born in Midland, Texas and raised in Quanah, Texas. He is a graduate of McMurry University, Asbury Theological Seminary, and received his Ph.D. in Spiritual Formation from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

In addition to his extensive leadership within four different Annual Conferences of the United Methodist Church, Steve has served in a multiplicity of settings in the United States and abroad through conferencing, teaching, writing and preaching in the areas of lay and clergy spiritual formation.

Steve is committed to reclaiming classic ecclesiology along with Wesleyan theology and spiritual formation processes for the worldwide church today. He is married to Diane Moore, and together they are blessed with three wonderful children and their spouses along with nine grandchildren. Steve is an avid outdoorsman.

Rev. Dr. Michael C. Voigts serves as an Associate Professor of Spiritual Formation at Asbury Seminary. Before coming to Asbury, he spent more than 25 years in pastoral ministry in Texas and Kentucky. His academic areas of expertise include Medieval Christian spirituality, Christian spiritual direction, and pastoral leadership. Mike is the author of Letters of Ascent: Spiritual Direction in the Letters of Bernard of Clairvaux (Wipf & Stock, 2013), as well as several academic and pastoral articles. 

Mike received a B.A. from Baylor University, an M.Div. and D.Min. from Asbury Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from Brunel University in London, England. Mike is a member of the Lay Cistercians of Gethsemani Abbey, where he is involved in the formation of new members and in the leadership of monthly meetings.

Mike and his wife Sheryl have two grown children and a rambunctious Yorkshire Terrier named Gracie. He is an avid sports fan and reads The Lord of the Rings each January.

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