Seven Goshen College students participate in Ministry Inquiry Program; Summer program allows Goshen College students to test call to ministry

GOSHEN, Ind. – As the Mennonite Church continues to call young people to ministry, seven students will examine God’s call in their own lives by participating in the Ministry Inquiry Program (MIP) over the summer.

The summer 2006 group of Goshen College MIP participants includes:

Janie Beck, a sophomore Bible and religion major from Archbold, Ohio, will serve at Pasadena Mennonite Church in Pasadena, Calif. Beck is the daughter of William and Kathy Beck. A 2004 graduate of Archbold High School, she attends Zion Mennonite Church.

Brooke Blough, a sophomore collegiate studies major from Louisville, Ohio, will be serving at Oxford Circle in Philadelphia, Pa. Blough is the daughter of Ron and Rhoda Blough. She graduated from Central Christian High School in 2004 and attends Beech Mennonite Church.

Krista Ehst, a sophomore Bible and religion major, from Bally, Pa., will be serving at Emmanuel Mennonite Church in Gainesville, Fla. Ehst is the daughter of Tim and Sheryl Ehst. She graduated from Christopher Dock Mennonite High School in 2004 and attends Perkasie Mennonite Church.

Sheldon Good, a first-year communication and business major from Telford, Pa., will be serving at the Franconia Conference Office in Souderton, Pa. Good is the son of Don and Diane Good, and graduated in 2005 from Christopher Dock Mennonite High School. He attends Salford Mennonite Church.

Justin Heinz, a junior Bible and religion major from Goshen will be serving at Benton Mennonite Church in Goshen. Heinz is the son of Bryan and Lisa Heinz. He graduated from Bethany Christian High School in 2003 and attends Yellow Creek Mennonite Church.

Jeff Hochstetler, a sophomore business and history major from Orrville, Ohio, will be serving at Grace Community Church in Bryan, Ohio. Hochstetler is the son of Harold and Lois Hochstetler. He graduated from Smithville High School in 2004 and attends Oak Grove Mennonite Church.

Alicia Janzen, a senior social work major from Beatrice, Neb., will be serving at Faith Mennonite Church in Minneapolis, Minn. Janzen is the daughter of LeRoy and Doreen Janzen. She graduated from Beatrice Senior High School in 2002 and attends First Mennonite Church of Beatrice.

The Ministry Inquiry Program is a joint effort of Mennonite Church USA and the five Mennonite colleges in the United States. The 19-year-old program enables students from Mennonite colleges to test their calling and gifts for ministry by serving as pastoral interns. Under close supervision from host pastors, students take on various worship, pastoral care and administrative roles during their 11-week terms, including preaching, leading worship, youth ministry and hospital and home visits.

According to Jason Harrison, assistant campus pastor and coordinator of MIP, both students and the congregation benefit from the program. “Students are able to explore their calling with a pastor and a congregation, to test and develop their skills in this setting. For the congregation, it is a chance to examine its ministry from the new perspective of a student.” Harrison added that while not all students in the program go onto pastoral ministry, many are led to other leadership positions in congregational ministry.

Since MIP’s 1987 inception, about 40 percent of the over 300 that will have served in congregations throughout the U.S. and Canada have been from Goshen College – the most of any Mennonite college.

“There is no more important factor in my decision to answer the call to ministry than the Ministry Inquiry Program,” said one past participant. “Being placed in a caring, understanding and healthy congregation, with an equally competent, caring and wise pastor, enabled me to test my gifts for ministry.”

The Samuel Project, which examined the denominational leadership gap, reports that the number of seminary students has decreased by half since a 1983 peak and about a third of credentialed pastors are age 55 or older. By encouraging young people to scrutinize whether God is leading them to ministry, the college hopes to help increase the number of called, trained leaders for the future church.

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a four-year residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S.News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.