Weimar College is offering a new class this semester with a fresh approach to learning. How to Start a Ministry (LEAD 130) was created in response to a student’s desire to know how to start a ministry that God put on his heart.

How to Start a Ministry is not a typical, formal class within the four walls of a classroom. Students usually meet at the home of the professor, Dr. Randy J. Siebold, Weimar Center’s Vice President of Education. The group often shares food before class and is always filled with lively discussion, good counsel, and input from everyone on the topic of the day. There is one major requirement to be in the class: Everyone has to have a ministry project they are working towards.

Danielle, a sophomore pre-med student, started the class without a specific ministry idea, but that soon changed. “The class brings to life what God has already placed in you,” she says. Her goal is to start a ministry to help young girls deal with relationships and “at risk” behaviors caused by low self-esteem. She says, “The ministry class helps to refine what God wants us to do and helps us build on that. But the class is not just about ministry; it is about leadership and life. I know I will take lessons from this class with me through life.”

Another student, Carlos, says the class really helped him clarify his vision. “The class makes my ministry goal seem more possible,” he says, “I know that with God’s help it will happen.”

The class has dealt with a variety of topics such as allowing God to reveal His mission for you, developing leadership-level communication skills, as well as the power and simplicity of mission and vision. The class has challenged the students to see their ministry as one of continuous improvement. “We can’t wait until we have everything planned and perfect before we start our ministries,” says Dr. Siebold. “We need to do our best at that which lies nearest…and start now. God will bless us as we follow His leading today.”

Dr. Siebold focuses on preparing very relevant material for the students to learn and discuss in each class. The teaching is not merely theoretical, but focuses on the practical needs of a leader in ministry. Dr. Siebold draws on his own experience as well as ideas from the best minds in the field of leadership. He plans to help the class develop into a series of leadership courses for the College focusing on Biblical concepts of leadership.