Fall arrived quickly, and our schedule hasn't slowed down!

We were excited to welcome new students into our live classes and see several new seminarians take on the challenge of pursuing graduate degrees. It is encouraging to see individuals willing to invest their time and energy in studying God's Word and preparing for greater service.

We began our fall semester with a module taught by Dr. Tom Knickerbocker on A Biblical Design for Ministry. Dr. Knickerbocker completed his doctorate this past year, and this course grew out of one of his doctoral projects. As part of that work, he revised a book and developed approximately 18 lectures from the material. I especially enjoyed hearing him draw from his years of experience in various areas of ministry. His practical insights, combined with biblical instruction, made the module both informative and beneficial. This course will be available online soon.

Our travels leading up to the fall semester kept us busy as well. We have several students in Canada, and we had the opportunity to travel there for a weekend focused on the Holy Spirit and His ministry to believers. I taught throughout Sunday and then spent another two hours on Monday evening teaching on the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. We had over 70 church members attend the Monday evening session! What a blessing to see so many people willing to set aside their time to study the Word of God. Their hunger for biblical teaching was a tremendous encouragement to us.

God continues to be good to us and to the ministry of Independent Baptist Seminary. We now have over 40 students enrolled in programs! Most of these students do not live in Delaware but are studying from locations across the United States and beyond. It is exciting to see the Lord expanding the seminary's reach and allowing us to help individuals who might not otherwise have the opportunity to pursue additional biblical education.

We recently put together a short video for Capitol Baptist Church, our home church, featuring testimonies from several of our students. We wanted to encourage our church family by showing them how God is using the seminary ministry. If you have a few minutes, I would encourage you to watch it. I believe it will encourage you as well. You can watch the video here: https://vimeo.com/1231335309

Thank you for your continued prayers, encouragement, and financial support. The Lord has been so faithful in providing for our needs, often in ways we could never have anticipated. As the seminary continues to grow, so do the opportunities to minister and the financial responsibilities that come with them. Our desire is to keep biblical education affordable, especially for those already serving in ministry. We are grateful for the churches and individuals who have partnered with us in this work, and we continue to trust the Lord to provide as He opens new doors of opportunity. It is a privilege to serve Him in this capacity, and we look forward to seeing what He will do in the months ahead.

Prayer Requests

1. Travel and safety: Please pray for our safety as we travel, as well as the continued reliability of our vehicle.

2. Fruitful ministry: Pray that God will continue to use my wife and me as we minister in churches. Our desire is to see souls saved, believers strengthened, and God's people encouraged to love and study His Word.

3. Financial provision: Pray that God will continue to provide the funds needed for seminary travel and enable us to offer discounted classes to those serving in ministry.

4. Wisdom in growth: As the seminary expands, our administrative responsibilities continue to increase. Pray for wisdom as we manage these additional tasks while maintaining our focus on teaching and helping students.

In His Service,

Steve Damron

Pictured below:

While in Canada, we were able to visit the Jarvis Street Baptist Church in Toronto, where T. T. Shields preached for many years. During that time, he started the Toronto Baptist Seminary. I enjoyed getting to tour it.

Tom Knickerbocker had great energy and knowledge teaching this course. We look forward to offering it online to others soon.