Jeremy R. Geerdes Posts

This evening, I finished up week 8 of my second semester of seminary training. Given that the semester is 16 weeks long (not counting one week of break), that means that I have officially reached the halfway point of the semester. Assuming it will take me 7 semesters to complete the requirements for my M.Div., […]

The story of Lot recorded in Genesis 19 is one of tragedy. A chapter after Abraham begged God to spare Lot and the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah for his sake – Lot and his household should have amounted to more than 10 righteous people in those cities! – we discover just how misplaced Abraham’s […]

Genesis 17 opens with God coming upon Abram and delivering the clearest word of the Lord yet: Live in my presence blamelessly, circumcise yourself and all the males in your household, and I will give you a son by your wife Sarai by this time next year. It was a profound revelation, to be sure, […]

Genesis 16 tells the story of how Abram and Sarai compromised to see God’s promise realized prematurely. You can hardly blame them because they had already waited 10 years without the child God had promised, and they were not exactly spring chickens before that. But by taking God’s plan into their own hands, they caused […]

There is so much important stuff in Genesis 15 that it’s difficult to even express it all. Several years had passed, and yet Abram and Sarai had none of the offspring God had promised. Despite all that God had done for them in the meantime, it was entirely natural for them to question and doubt. […]

A few weeks ago, our church was blessed when the district office decided to give away its old copy machine. I jumped at the chance, and when I traveled that direction a couple weeks ago for a meeting, I took the opportunity to snag the thing. Well, okay. I say “I,” but in reality, it […]

That’s all, folks. Turn out the lights and shut the door. My first semester of seminary is in the books, and as of 11:59 pm last night, I’m on Christmas break. So I thought it was a good time to offer another update on the progress of my M.Div. at Wesley Seminary. First, the answer […]

Because it was specifically designed for people already engaged in vocational ministry, a week of online classes at Wesley Seminary runs from Friday through Thursday. Generally speaking, we have homework due each Tuesday and Thursday. Early yesterday morning, as we embarked on Week 10 of this term, one of my professors sent an email to […]

I have a policy. I will happily discuss politics and political candidates as a private citizen, but I will not do so from the pulpit, as pastor. What I am about to say, therefore, are my thoughts. As Paul told the Corinthians, “I (not the Lord) say…”

It’s been a little over eight weeks since I started this seminary journey. We’re now in the sixth week of our first round of online courses, and I think things are going as well as can be expected. The two courses that I’m taking right now are called “Missional Church” and “Change and Transformation,” and […]