Weekly Email: April 21, 2025

I hope you had a wonderful Resurrection Sunday! Praise God for the hope we have in the gospel. As joyful as this season is, I also know it can bring added stress and pressure. I wrote about that in this week’s Student Tip, and I hope it’s an encouragement to you.

We’ll be announcing a new initiative tomorrow that I think you’ll be excited about. Keep an eye on Southern’s social media platforms, and I’ll follow up with an email so you don’t miss it.

Summer courses are coming up soon. In the Program News section below, I’ve highlighted a few course options you may want to consider. I finish up with two encouraging stories from your fellow students.

Student Tip: When Everything’s Boiling Over

There are certain times in the semester where everything seems to collide, and this past week may have been one of them. Easter weekend brings so many good things: first and foremost celebrating the resurrection hope we have in Jesus Christ, other ministry responsibilities, family, and community. But it can also bring exhaustion, pressure, and emotional weight. For many of you, it wasn’t just the week of Easter. It was also Week 3 of an 8-week course. You’re carrying ministry, school, and personal responsibilities all at once. And that’s a lot.

If you’ve had a moment lately where you’ve thought, “I can’t do this,” you’re not alone.

One of the most helpful ways I’ve found to frame seasons like this is through a simple picture: imagine your life like a stovetop with multiple burners. Each burner represents a major area of your life such as your family, your ministry, your health, your coursework. And here’s the thing: you can’t have every burner on high at the same time. Something will boil over.

In especially full seasons, the best thing you can do is step back and ask: What needs to stay at a simmer right now? What can come off the heat altogether for a time? That’s not failure. That’s wisdom.

This is also why we’ve designed our program at Southern with flexibility in mind:

• If you need to take a break, you can pause for eight weeks and jump back in when you’re ready.

• Starting this fall, we’re introducing 16-week courses for students who need a slower pace across an entire semester.

• And if you’re in a season of extra capacity, you can take both 8-week and 16-week courses to keep making strong progress.

I want to be clear: at Southern, we don’t believe seminary should be easy, and I am pretty sure you believe this as well. We’re committed to rigorous theological education because we believe the gospel is worth it, and ministry demands it. But I also know that lasting fruit in your life and calling doesn’t come from grinding yourself into the ground. It comes from building rhythms of faithfulness and margin.

So if you’re in a hard week or a hard season, here are a few ways you can move forward:

• Name the stress. Don’t minimize it. Just putting words to the pressure you’re under can be clarifying and freeing.

• Adjust the expectation. Maybe this week isn’t about “A-level” performance. Maybe it’s just about showing up and turning something in even if its not the quality you expect of yourself. That’s still a win.

• Make space for recovery. Are you sleeping? Eating? Getting outside? Those things aren’t distractions. They’re what make endurance possible.

• Use lists and structure. When your mind feels overloaded, write things down. Then circle only what truly needs to happen today.

• Ask for help. Whether that’s your spouse, your pastor, or me, I want to support you.

Lastly, remind yourself: you’re not behind. You’re not alone. And this won’t last forever.

I see the work you’re doing. And I want to help you not just get through it, but to grow through it with grace and resilience. One step at a time.

Program News: Looking to Keep Moving Forward This Summer?

Summer can be one of the busiest times of the year. Between travel, kids’ sports, mission trips, and everything else on your calendar, it’s easy to put your coursework on pause. But if you're hoping to stay on track in your degree or take a course that will sharpen your understanding of Scripture and ministry, here are two opportunities worth considering:

1. The Gospel of Luke with Dr. Bill Cook
   Dr. Cook has taught at Southern for nearly 25 years and has served as a lead pastor here in Louisville for just as long. This brand-new course brings together his pastoral heart and academic depth in a way that makes the Gospel of Luke both accessible and transformative for students preparing for ministry.

2. American Evangelism with Dr. Albert Mohler
   Dr. Mohler only teaches a handful of online courses each year, and this may be the last time this one is offered for a while. You’ll learn from one of the leading voices in evangelical theology and also have the opportunity to interact with him directly through LiveSync sessions.

If summer allows for it, these courses can be a strategic way to keep growing and stay on track toward your goals.

Student Highlights: Equipped for Ministry

I’ve been reading through the recent student surveys, and I’m so encouraged by how many of you are actively applying what you’re learning in your classes to your current ministry context. That’s the heartbeat of our program at Southern, especially online, as we aim to equip you where you are, not just where you’re going.

Here are two examples that stood out and I wanted to share with you:

“It has become second nature to turn class into ministry. Just last week I used notes from Dr. Hamilton’s Old Testament 1 while teaching through Kings in our student ministry. After taking Biblical Counseling with Dr. Pierre, I was ready when two soldiers in our ministry opened up about struggling with anger. Because of that course, I knew how to walk with them biblically and practically. Every class is equipping me to serve better—right now, not just someday.”
— Anonymous student serving in military discipleship ministry

“At our small church, attendance is shrinking and evangelism was almost nonexistent. But thanks to my courses at Southern, I’ve built an evangelism strategy, taught training sessions, and launched outreach events. My biblical counseling classes have helped me walk with members through anxiety and discouragement. And my preaching classes have reshaped how I deliver God’s Word each Sunday. Southern is helping me shepherd faithfully in real time.”
— Michael S. (bivocational pastor)

If these encourage you as they do me, I’d love to hear how your classes are shaping your own ministry. You can always reply to these emails with a quick update.