Dave Rinker has served as a youth pastor for 15 years in a variety of settings, a high school religion and history teacher, adventure guide, and has worked in book sales and publishing. Dave’s commitment to education and formation have focused his teaching and writing on the Hebrew Bible, ecology, social studies and church responses to injustice. Backpacking, cycling, and adventures big and small are how Dave and his wife Caila make home with their two boys (Levi and Emerson) in Rochester, MN. Both Caila and Dave are graduates of Fuller Theological Seminary and are currently missing the mountains of California. Caila serves in chaplaincy at Mayo Clinic. Dave is author of Beards & Fields: Literary Eco-centrism in the Torah (Nov 2021).

About Psalms: This course intends to help students engage the book of Psalms in its literary, theological, and social contexts. Students will read with depth the theory and traditions of interpretation that the Psalter has inspired. This includes the history of reception in second temple Judaism as these engagements aim to thicken our use of the Psalter in worship and personal spiritual formation. Through the process students will develop their own resources as they interpret biblical poetry and attempt to think with the Psalter’s theological outlook.

Sean Kelly is the Senior Pastor at Peñasquitos Lutheran Church in San Diego, CA. Previous to PLC, he served Redeemer Lutheran Church in Fridley, MN for nine years. He is a graduate of California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, CA; Luther Seminary in St. Paul, MN (M. Div.), and Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, CA (D. Min.). Sean is a strong supporter of the work and ministry of Master’s Institute and served on the Board of Directors. Both of his congregations have hosted MI classes and he has sent numerous students to attend both the seminary and School of Ministry. Sean also supports and serves the Alliance of Renewal Churches, which provides care and connection for many MI alumni and pastors. Sean and his wife Jenny have four sons: Lance, Kyle, Andrew and Jack; they have two grandchildren, Kane and Riley.

About Developing a Leader’s Self Understanding: This course will introduce students to the necessary process of developing one’s self-understanding from the vantage point of one’s position as a leader. It will engage students with a range of tools to develop self-understanding, including an awareness of one’s gifts and blind-spots, for the sake of healthy leadership in ministry and a healthy personal life.

Developing one’s own self-understanding is an art; a journey. It’s not a destination to be reached, nor a goal to be achieved, yet it is mission critical to define amidst the challenges of leadership and ministry. This course will combine many familiar personal assessments and introduce some new ones in order to begin building a spiritual profile that will aid leaders in their ministry vocation. Developing one’s self-understanding is a process of continual refinement requiring thoughtful prayer, intentionality, evaluation, perseverance, patience, and communal guidance. It includes understanding the unique contribution one makes through Spirit-given gifting and natural born talent. It also includes understanding and identifying vulnerabilities related to personal discipline, temptation, and “blind-spots.” Recognizing emotional blind spots and triggers is as important as understanding one’s gifts and strengths.

MI appreciates regular partnership with Dr. Paul Eddy for courses such as God, Evil, Spiritual Warfare, Evangelical Issues, and Love and Covenant. Dr. Eddy has been a professor of Biblical and Theological Studies at Bethel University since 1997. After receiving his M.A.T.S. at Bethel in 1991 he also graduated with a PH.D. from Marquette University in 1998. He is a published author, mentor, Board member for The Lift CDC, research associate with the Center for Faith, Sexuality & Gender, and teaching pastor at Woodland Hills Church. He and his wife, Kelly, live in White Bear Township with their two sons, Jordan and Juston.

About Evangelical Issues: This is a course that introduces students to pressing and significant issues of theology and practice that historically have been the source of division as well as diversity. Students will be exposed to not only the issues, but the positive and negative results of these differences. This course will present and discuss differing sides of various theological issues that currently divide evangelical Christians.
Some topics include: Inspiration and Inerrancy of the Bible, Genesis One and Creation, Humanity, Salvation, Eternal Security, Destiny of the Unevangelized, Baptism, the Lord’s Supper, Charismatic Gifts, Women in Ministry, and Hell.