Equipping the Church: Bob Drew, a Two-Time Master’s Student

When Bob Drew was called into ministry in his late twenties, he immediately began to pray about where to attend seminary. He wanted a school that, in his words, “took to heart the need and desire to develop well-rounded pastors.” He explains, “This doesn’t mean sacrificing academic training. It means that in addition to academic training, they are trying to prepare pastors for ministry in the local church context.” At Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS), where he received a Master’s in Theological Studies and, a few years later, a Master’s in Bioethics, he loved that there was “a heart around shepherding and pastoring.”

Bob started his Theology Studies degree because he wanted to be well-equipped to minister in a local context and to learn more about God as he prepared to serve in ministry. A few years later, his interest in bioethics came as a surprise. “I don’t have a clinical background,” Bob says. “But I could see the problems coming up that the church was going to have to deal with related to things like IVF, abortion, and end-of-life issues. Getting the degree was more about being ready to minister when those questions arose.”

Bob enjoyed all of his classes as a student, but his seminars on Christian Ethics were among his favorites. They “gave me an awareness of who I am,” Bob says. He adds, “The professors were really good at engaging us in how [difficult topics] might play out with a congregant across a counseling session or a cup of coffee. They were real people who talked about their families and spent time with you.” He particularly enjoyed how there wasn’t a professor/student dichotomy, so it felt like everyone could learn from each other and had something of value to add.

In addition, Bob appreciated how he received guidance on how to apply what he was learning. “Most of the time, people just go to seminary to get a piece of paper but aren’t challenged to think about what they will do with it afterward. Pastors go to seminary because that’s what they are told to do, but what will you do with what you are learning?” Bob says that his professors took time to invest in him, giving him practical advice when it came to his future.

He grew tremendously in his relationship with God during his time at TEDS. “I grew because I was challenged in how I thought about the Bible and how I thought about God. The biggest thing might be the challenge of how to think biblically. At many seminaries I’ve observed, they teach students what to think. In contrast, TEDS taught me how to think and led me to the truth, but they didn’t correct me first. They let me think first and then guided me in the Word of God about what it says about something.” He says he learned to see the Bible as the “root,” the starting point when it comes to thinking about our most significant problems and questions when it comes to bioethics.

Learning to view everything through a “biblical lens,” as Bob puts it, prepared him well for his role as an Executive pastor at a large church in Arizona. He uses the Bible to work through difficult situations, like staff conflicts and congregational challenges, and to prepare himself to speak at funerals and weddings. The critical thinking ability he honed at Trinity was not merely cerebral but also highly tangible, and he calls upon it daily as he ministers to others.

His work in bioethics has also been helpful for him as he walks with people through difficult decisions related to healthcare. “I work with many congregants who have had to make decisions about end-of-life, like removing life support, as well as make challenging decisions around gender…The Bioethics and Theological Studies degrees have helped me think about how to handle those conversations with truth and grace. Even when there were gray situations, and you have that mystery of suffering, I learned how to help people process suffering in ways that pulled them closer to Jesus rather than run from him.”

Today, Bob writes on bioethics topics and the intersection of the Church, hoping to help Christians understand their role in answering these pressing questions. He hopes to help the Church flourish and have a voice in broader bioethics discussions, promoting a constructive dialogue between the secular world and the Church.

To the donors who make Trinity Evangelical Divinity School possible, Bob says, “It’s essential for folks who give to remember that they are giving to the extension of the gospel, not to a logo or a legacy of an institution. They are giving to the cause of Christ. They are creating more disciples.” He continues, “They’re not only giving to a student who just finished their undergrad work and is now jumping to seminary but also are helping fathers, mothers, and single parents who have a calling to ministry that might not be able to attend seminary without your help. Donors are helping people come to know Jesus that they may never meet until heaven!”