Nazarene Theological Seminary

Student Spotlight: Susan Welch Armstrong

 Sometimes I wonder how I got here.  I look around my seminary classes at many students who are at least half my age and at my professors who are about my age (give or take), and wonder what God has in store for me.  I don't know what lies ahead in ministry, but I do know that God has called me and that I need to be equipped to fulfill that call—so here I am at NTS.  How did I get here, though… 

I wanted to be a music teacher for as long as I can remember.  I received a great education at Point Loma Nazarene University and then went on to graduate school at the University of Oklahoma to receive my master and doctoral degrees in choral conducting.  I taught music and directed choirs at Eastern Nazarene College and Malone College, and believed I was right where I needed to be.  Then in 1998, our family moved to Idaho where my husband served as the Athletic Director for Northwest Nazarene University (NNU).  There wasn’t a position for me at NNU, but there was an opening for Pastor of Worship and the Arts at Nampa College Church. 

 The decision to move to full-time music ministry was a pivotal one.  I was surprised to find how much I loved it!  I probably could have done without the hassle of the Living Christmas Tree, but loving the people, leading them in worship, ministering together and sharing in their lives—all joy.  When the opportunity later came for me to teach at NNU, it seemed to be an easy decision to return to full-time teaching.  I was surprised, though, how much I missed being at the church; it made me realize my call to ministry.

 As a result, I pursued ordination.  The online course of study through NNU was a great start.  Slowly, though, I began to consider attending seminary.  But did I really need another degree?  I soon realized that theological education isn’t really about the degree itself or the “letters” behind my name, but rather about the knowledge and skills that have already proven invaluable to my ministry among the dear people of my congregation.  The NTS In-Service M.Div. Degree Program is allowing me to complete my studies while teaching part-time at Baldwin-Wallace College and serving as Worship Pastor at Elyria (OH) Community Church of the Nazarene. 

 My studies at NTS have been fun, challenging, humbling—and I have learned SO much.  Did I mention humbling?  It’s not easy going from professor to student—but the humbling has been a gift, a part of my spiritual formation.  Some classes have been so amazing that I have come away speechless with wonder and gratitude for the opportunity to learn so much about God and His Word.  Other courses have provided up-to-date, practical instruction in ministry.  Both have made me a more effective pastor.
 The faculty at NTS is fervently committed to producing pastors and teachers who truly know God and are steeped in His Word.  As students, we are taught to think deeply and critically, to know the right questions to ask, and where and how to locate answers.  These godly, caring men and women are firmly grounded in the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition.  We learn together, in community, as we question our assumptions, re-think and affirm our foundational beliefs, and become open to new revelations about God and the Bible, ministry and discipleship in the 21st century.  

NTS almost feels like a second home to me.  The other In-Service students become my temporary family each semester.  We laugh and cry together, support, encourage and keep each other sane as we try to survive dorm life and eight hours a day in class for two weeks at a stretch.  

As I look back, it is really no surprise that I ended up attending NTS.  My father, Reuben Welch, was in the Seminary’s first class of students in the fall of 1945.  He pastored for a number of years before serving as religion professor and Chaplain at PLNU for 30 years.  He is the finest preacher I've ever heard (a completely unbiased opinion, of course) and has preached hundreds of sermons.  Still today, at age 82, he begins each Monday morning preparing for the Sunday School lesson he will teach the following weekend.  His time at NTS was transforming for him—it was there that he gained insights and cultivated disciplines that have been foundational to his life-long ministry.  The result is that week after week, he finds and shares new insights and perspectives in passages of Scripture from which he has preached hundreds of times before. 

 God's call and my dad's example are why I am at NTS.  The call to preach the Word, to be a disciple and to disciple others, to lead worship, to care for the flock and seek the lost, is both a great privilege and a huge responsibility.  This is too important an assignment for my preparation to be passive, to go unchallenged, uncorrected.  Like my dad, I plan to keep reading and studying for the rest of my life, but right now I need to spend a few years in concentrated preparation for ministry—the NTS In-Service Program is making it possible for me to do just that.