Date of Award

2026

Document Type

Project Portfolio

Degree Name

Doctor of Leadership in Global Perspectives (DLd)

Department

Seminary

First Advisor

Jennie Harrop, DMin

Second Advisor

Ekaputra Tupamahu, PhD

Third Advisor

Jason Swan Clark, DMin

Abstract

While Sabbath practices are central to God’s design for human flourishing, Compassion Church currently lacks a shared, accessible formation pathway that supports individuals and households in practicing Sabbath in sustainable, life-stage–appropriate ways within the demands of contemporary life and ministry.

This doctoral project responds to that need by developing and testing a Sabbath formation guidebook designed to help individuals and communities engage Sabbath as a gift through the practices of stopping, resting, praying, and playing. A key insight emerging from the research is that Sabbath is not merely a discipline to be mastered but a relational space in which God meets people with rest, renewal, and grace, offering an antidote to the hurry and fragmentation that shape much of contemporary life.

The ministry context for this project is Compassion Church in Corvallis, Oregon, a multicultural, intergenerational congregation of approximately two hundred people, where the author serves as Lead Pastor. In addition, the author oversees a regional seminary of approximately thirty students training for pastoral and ministry leadership in the Pacific Northwest, which informed the project’s attention to both congregational and leadership formation.

The outcome of this project is a practical, theologically grounded Sabbath guidebook that provides reflective practices, pastoral guidance, and life-stage–appropriate tools. The guidebook is designed to function as a repeatable formation pathway for individuals and communities seeking to cultivate sustainable Sabbath rhythms within everyday life and ministry.

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