# Seminary After Marriage and Children



## TaylorOtwell (Oct 30, 2009)

After marriage and children, how does one afford to attend seminary while supporting their family?


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## fredtgreco (Oct 30, 2009)

You work. And you work. And you work.

I worked two part time and one full time job.


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## Andres (Oct 30, 2009)

fredtgreco said:


> You work. And you work. And you work.
> 
> I worked two part time and one full time job.



I'm sure this is implied by Pastor Fred, but I would also suggest along with work, work, work that you trust, trust, trust in God's provision. I hope to begin seminary within a few years and these two are my plans.


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## Romans922 (Oct 30, 2009)

I worked two jobs on campus, was an intern at my local church, help a man cut trees on Saturday. All at the same time... Do what you have to do...


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## FenderPriest (Oct 30, 2009)

You could do part-time seminary work. That's what I'm doing.


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## fredtgreco (Oct 30, 2009)

Andres said:


> fredtgreco said:
> 
> 
> > You work. And you work. And you work.
> ...



Absolutely. There were many months when we were not sure if we could meet expenses, but God always provided.


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## JonathanHunt (Oct 30, 2009)

If you work a full time job, how can you attend all the lectures at seminary?


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## Skyler (Oct 30, 2009)

JonathanHunt said:


> If you work a full time job, how can you attend all the lectures at seminary?



Night shift.


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## passingpilgrim (Oct 30, 2009)

I am doing this right now. I have three children (2 boys under 8 yrs old) and a little girl (21 months old). I work fulltime by stretching my hours on days when I am not in seminary and by working on Saturday for a few hours. I am taking 12 hrs and will finish my Masters of Arts in Christian Education on Dec 18, 2009. 

It is not easy. Most nights I am up til 2 or 3am writing papers and studying. But it can be done. One just has to be disciplined and most importantly your family (especially ou wife or husband) has to back you totally.

Being at a good church helps as well. They offer encouragement, support and advice on the journey ahead.

One last suggestion...I would find a mentor early into the process and ask them to be your accountability partner. So often, seminary can turn into "cemetery" and leave one feeling cold and distant from the rest of the world. Its nice to have someone to bring you back to planet earth and talk honestly to you.


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## FenderPriest (Oct 30, 2009)

JonathanHunt said:


> If you work a full time job, how can you attend all the lectures at seminary?



You have a very gracious employer. My boss requires 40 hours a week. Within reasonable parameters, I'm allowed to make that happen whenever I want during the week. And he doesn't care about over time, so I tag that on too.

So, I leave work at 10, go to class from 11-1, and am back to work at 2. I make up the time during the week


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## fredtgreco (Oct 30, 2009)

JonathanHunt said:


> If you work a full time job, how can you attend all the lectures at seminary?



I was an attorney - general counsel for a startup business. I did much work after "business hours" and when I had to, during class. The profs were fully aware of my situation, and when I had to leave class to take a conference call, they understood. It did not hurt that I was an older student (mid-30s) and that I was already an established elder in the PCA.


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## Puritan Sailor (Oct 30, 2009)

I worked part-(sometimes full) time, usually evening and night shifts as an RN. We also had church and scholarship support for tuition. It was rough sometimes. But the Lord always provided.


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## C. M. Sheffield (Oct 30, 2009)

*Preaching Through Seminary*



TaylorOtwell said:


> After marriage and children, how does one afford to attend seminary while supporting their family?



Given your doctrinal statement (the Abstract of Principles), I'll assume you're Baptisitic. If so, many smaller Baptist churches in and around seminaries will hire a young seminarian as their pastor and sometimes even help them pay for their schooling. I've heard of churches paying as much as half of their tuition! There are actually churches that do this as a ministry of sorts to young men like yourself. This is how my friend got his M.Div. from Southeastern.

If you were interested in going that route, I would advise you to submit your resume to seeking churches and also the Baptist associations in the area where you want to attend.


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## Michael Doyle (Oct 30, 2009)

I attend LAMP Seminary and hold an estimating position for a home improvement firm. I schedule stops at coffee shops during the day to listen to lectures, read early mornings and have class on Tuesday nights. I have a wife, two kids a mortgage and two car payments, but the Lord has provided for all my needs.


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## MMasztal (Oct 30, 2009)

While I've not attended seminary, my wife and I both went to grad school after we were married. For a couple years prior to leaving we saved as much as we could (we were both working) and lived ultra cheap when we got there (like our first visit to a restaurant was 18 months after we started grad school). We both worked two jobs while in our schools. Security-type jobs can be pretty good as they usually allow a good bit of time to study. If you don't have children, your wife can work to help support your household.

Since you're a professed young believer, and fairly young in years, taking some additional time isn't going to hurt. If anything, it will allow some additional time to pray about it and cement your desire to attend seminary.


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## tdowns (Oct 30, 2009)

*Well done...*

I'll just say...

to the sacrifices you all make, when called into the ministry.

Both before and after I might add...

Thanks.


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## Nathan Riese (Oct 30, 2009)

First of all, have you asked your church for support? The "ye have not, because ye ask not" principle can apply to a lot of things, you know!

At Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary (Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary) they have a distance education M.Div. and I got all the tuition paid for by my church, but I wouldn't have if I didn't ask them!

Second, what kind of seminary are you going to? Seminaries can be expensive: anywhere from a few hundred/credit hour to $500+/credit hour. Don't assume that the more expensive it is, the better it is (although the more expensive one may very well be better). Just make sure you check out _all_ your options before closing in on a seminary. Pray about it a lot.

If you do know what seminary you're going to, I just suggest asking your church to help you out a little bit (yearly offering perhaps?).

Also, if your budget is going to be tight, I'd suggest to cut off most things considered "extras" (starting now) which are not _necessities_. You can save a TON of money doing things like that.


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## JDKetterman (Oct 30, 2009)

I've always wondered this myself. I plan on teaching Martial arts while working my way through seminary. This way, I can have a flexible schedule while earning income for my family.


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## Wayne (Oct 30, 2009)

In addition to the other good advice, *prepare*.

1. Avoid debt (and clichés!) like the plague.

2. Save as much as you can.

3. Work to have a good vehicle in running order, debt free.

4. Start learning the languages, working esp. on vocabulary. Get the grammar in school, but work at learning the most frequently used words before you head off to school. Learn about 250 words each in Grk. & Heb. and save a bunch of work later. There are a couple of cheap guides that will point you to which words to learn (Metzger, etc.)

5. Sell the TV. 

6. Consider raising support

7. Oh, and stay out of debt!


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## SolaGratia (Oct 30, 2009)

TaylorOtwell said:


> After marriage and children, how does one afford to attend seminary while supporting their family?



That's why the Church "ordinary" should send men to seminary for training.


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## jawyman (Oct 30, 2009)

Personally, I receive a scholarship from my seminary as well as Presbytery and denominational support. I also work several part-time jobs. I mean I wash windows for the church and my church also extended another paid staff position to me and my wife. I also recently learned I could sell my plasma for $200.00 a month. I have 2 children (6 and 4), a mortgage, and a car payment. We sometimes don't know what is going to happen month to month, but the Lord is good and we have not lacked for anything.


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