Almost there!

Quick update today…

Friends, I’ll be starting classes in about a month as I begin masters degree in Theology and Culture at The Seattle School. I’ve written a longer post about how I came to this program and would be happy to chat with anyone who is interested in knowing more (shoot me an email @ michaelvanpatter@gmail.com)! My aim here is to post one last time about fund raising.

Thanks to incredible generosity from many friends, there is only about $4,000 remaining to raise! Would you consider investing in my life and work and helping close the gap? I’m reposting details below on how you could make a contribution if you choose to do that. Thank you for considering!

HOW TO GIVE

If you would like to partner with me by investing in my educational costs, Hope Chapel has made it simple (and tax-deductable!) to do so. You can CONTRIBUTE ONLINE here or mail a check to Hope Chapel (908 N. Josephine Boyd St., Greensboro, NC 27408) with ‘education fund’ in the memo. 

I am hoping to raise $24,000, which will cover half of tuition/fees as well as some travel expenses for the four trips I will make to campus over the next 2 years. {UPDATE: As of August 17, I have received contributions of $16,975 and was also awarded a $3,000 scholarship from the school! So that leaves roughly $4,000 left to raise. THANK YOU!!!}

Fundraising Update

Hi there!

I’m smiling as I write this update. Y’all have already been so generous in financially supporting my educational endeavors, and so kind in your encouragement of this pursuit. I’m humbled and very grateful! If you didn’t get a chance to read the longer post I wrote with details about the masters degree I’m starting in the fall, you can read it here.

A couple of brief updates…

First off, we (Hope Chapel and myself) have received $7,825 of contributions. This is about 1/3 of the total amount I am hoping to raise (I wrote about those details here). This is amazing! {UPDATE: As of August 4, I have received contributions of $12,975. THANK YOU!!!}

Second, I found out a couple of weeks ago that I was awarded a scholarship by The Seattle School. From their website: “This is a $3,000 scholarship awarded to students who have demonstrated exceptional and “uncommon” leadership in a church or community context. It is awarded based on the applicant’s embodiment of relational maturity, integrity and innovative vision through leadership.” Needless to say, this was a big encouragement to me. If I add that to the funds that have been donated, that brings the total to $15,975. Praise the Lord!

I would greatly appreciate it if you would consider helping me close the gap on the remaining $8,000. If you would like to partner with me by investing in my educational costs, Hope Chapel has made it simple (and tax-deductable!) to do so. You can CONTRIBUTE ONLINE here or mail a check to Hope Chapel (908 N. Josephine Boyd St., Greensboro, NC 27408) with ‘education fund’ in the memo. 

If you have any questions about what I’m doing or about the fundraising side of things, I would love to chat! Send me a note at michael@hopechapelgreensboro.org.

I’m going back to school!

Hello friends far and near!

2021 marks my twentieth year in vocational worship/arts ministry (how can that be?!). The majority of that time has been at our beloved Hope Chapel, the church we helped to plant in 2008 in Greensboro. Hannah and I began our call to Hope as (relatively) newlyweds, added three children to our family along the way, journeyed with Watts through leukemia treatment, and grew in wisdom and understanding as we walked with the Lord through both beautiful and pastorally challenging seasons in our community. Additionally, over the past few years Hannah began work with Barnabas Counseling Center and has received significant training in trauma-focused therapy. All that is to say, we have been busy and engaged in the work that we believe God has called us into.

I don’t know if it’s that I’m approaching 40 or the notion that I am nearing the second half of my working life, but over the past couple of years, I have sensed a stirring in my heart as I’ve considered my future in ministry. I spent significant time in the past year discerning if, and why, I am still called to ministry, and if so, what that work might look like sustained over another several decades. In this process a few things began to come into focus for me:

  • I believe that the world needs people who have come alive (thanks to Howard Thurman for this beautiful phrasing) and I want to pursue that in both my personal and work life.
  • Looking back over the past 20 years, the work that I have perhaps loved most (i.e. what has made me come alive) is my work with artists and creative people. 

These foundational ideas helped me realize that yes, I do still feel a call to vocational ministry, and also clarified a direction in God’s unique calling on my life. The very short version is this: I believe that some significant portion of my vocational calling is to work in the “borderlands” between the church and the artist. These two entities have enormous power to benefit one another, but also a history and relationship fraught with disconnection, skepticism and wounds. I’m interested in the peacemaking work needed in that space.

These realizations unearthed a new question for me: how might I be well equipped to do this sort of work? Experience is certainly part of it, and I’ve been blessed with many opportunities to explore this over the years through relationships, collaborative projects, book studies, artist groups, and more. These experiences have been like trail markings, leading me into places of passion and calling. They’ve also awakened in me a desire to learn and grow in emotional, theological, and practical depth. I began researching graduate schools/seminaries that focused on this sort of training and eventually one program became a clear front runner. The Seattle School of Theology and Psychology offers an MA in Theology & Culture (with a specialization in ‘Imagination, Theology & the Arts’). The academic scope is excellent and engages much of what I have described above. But what sets this program apart from others is their emphasis on the spiritual, psychological and emotional health of each student (they are taking seriously the idea that the world needs people who have come alive!). The first year in particular includes significant group counseling type work with high focus on personal formation. Other courses include things like ‘Spirituality and the Arts”, “Care of the Soul”, “Beauty, Brokenness and the Cross”, and other theology and art classes. It’s capped off with a year-long “integrative project”, where a student explores a particular area of interest in both theory and artistic practice.

When Hannah and I began looking at the details of this 2-year program, we both had a deep sense that this was exactly what I’d been looking for. Additionally, because of COVID, for the first time they have begun to offer the program online (with two weekends of in-person learning each academic year) . I applied at the beginning of the year, was offered a spot in the upcoming cohort, and am now enrolled to begin in fall 2021. The leadership at Hope Chapel has been overwhelmingly supportive of this endeavor and they are helping me streamline some of my work to create space for school. 

Hopefully that gives you a sense of context for how we came to this decision! As we think about moving into this season, we would like to humbly ask you to consider participating with us through prayer and financial support. The tuition and fees for this degree total approximately $38,000 and there will be additional costs for travel . Honestly, it’s a bit of an overwhelming amount, but I believe that God’s economy is one of abundance and not scarcity, so I am reaching out in faith with this need. Hope Chapel has generously committed to funding  $19,000 (half of the tuition/fees)  and also agreed to receive contributions toward my tuition so that they can be tax-deductible. Would you consider joining me and investing in this work? Also, if you know of others who might have particular interest in the type of work I am pursuing, would you consider connecting me with them? I greatly appreciate any and all of your support!

HOW TO GIVE

If you would like to partner with me by investing in my educational costs, Hope Chapel has made it simple (and tax-deductable!) to do so. You can CONTRIBUTE ONLINE here or mail a check to Hope Chapel (908 N. Josephine Boyd St., Greensboro, NC 27408) with ‘education fund’ in the memo. 

I am hoping to raise $24,000, which will cover half of tuition/fees as well as some travel expenses for the four trips I will make to campus over the next 2 years. {UPDATE: As of August 4, I have received contributions of $12,975 and was also awarded a $3,000 scholarship from the school! So that leaves roughly $8,000 left to raise. THANK YOU!!!}

If you have questions about any of this, I would love the opportunity to talk more about it. Please reach out and let’s have a conversation.

With gratitude and excitement,

Michael

michaelvanpatter@gmail.com