Take Courage: Essays in Honor of Harold L. Senkbeil (Hardcover)

Take Courage: Essays in Honor of Harold L. Senkbeil By Timothy J. Pauls  (Editor), Dr. Mark A. Pierson (Editor) Cover Image
By Timothy J. Pauls (Editor), Dr. Mark A. Pierson (Editor)
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Description


Take Courage is a collection of essays, written by pastors and professors, about the care and cure of souls in the 21st century. As spiritual physicians, pastors are called to diagnose and treat all those suffering with the disease of sin. This noble task requires much from these undershepherds who are placed over Christ’s flock. Yet the Good Shepherd himself has provided the effective tools of this healing art: the life-giving word and sacraments. Pastors, then, specialize in applying the medicine of forgiveness and bringing comfort to broken consciences. Collectively, these essays teach and expound upon this theme.

This helpful book honors the 45 years of faithful service given by one such undershepherd, Harold L. Senkbeil. As a pastor, seminary professor, author, speaker, husband, father, and the executive director of DOXOLOGY, Senkbeil has consistently provided competent treatment for both laity and pastors by distributing the forgiveness won by Jesus on the cross.

About the Author


Timothy J. Pauls (B.A. Concordia College, Portland; M.Div., Concordia Seminary, St. Louis) serves as pastor at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Boise, Idaho. Predominantly a writer of resources for laity, his work has appeared in Logia; Concordia Theological Quarterly; and Seelsorger: A Journal for the Contemporary Care of Souls. He is a Collegium Fellow for Doxology: the Lutheran Center for Spiritual Care and Counsel. He and his wife, Teresa, have two sons.

Mark A. Pierson (M.A. Concordia University, Irvine; M.Div., Concordia Theological Seminary) serves as pastor at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Long Beach, CA. He has taught theology and philosophy at the high school, undergraduate, and graduate levels and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in New Testament Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary. His published essays have appeared in Learning at the Foot of the Cross: A Lutheran Vision for Education; Theologiaet Apologia: Essays in Reformation Theology and Its Defense; Making the Case for Christianity: Responding to Modern Objections; The Resurrection Fact: Responding to Modern Critics; and Objections Overruled: Answering Arguments Against Christianity. He and his wife, Kelly, have three daughters.

Praise For…


Hal first came to my attention via his first book, Sanctification: Christ in Action, and then soon after with Dying to Live. We were all struggling with how to make heads or tails of the Church Growth Movement, and especially its consequences for worship. We had been studying rubrics at the seminary but not really delving very deeply into the theology of worship overall. Kurt Marquart's dogmatics course and the wonderful liturgical life at Kramer chapel were very influential. Hal's books really helped me put the practical side of Lutheranism in place. How is this Lutheran life lived corporately and individually? What joy I had as I raced through page after page of Law-Gospel clarity, and this well-seasoned pastor who had tried the methods he now was critiquing! His service to the church has blossomed in amazing ways. His teaching career was stellar. The founding of DOXOLOGY, which has been such a positive force for good in the lives of pastors and their spouses and families, is the coup de grâce. Here's to you, my friend and father in Christ! Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison President, The Lutheran Church -- Missouri Synod

Take Courage, the Festschrift in honor of Pastor Harold Senkbeil's long and fruitful ministry, delivers that which the title bids. Whether debunking the missional church paradigm by confessing the church as family, exposing the misguided mantra of pastor as leader with the true identity of pastor as a servant, or unpacking the gifts of confessing Christ's ascension for the pastoral ministry, these essays offer both timely and practical help. As the reflection on Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan reminds us to be first served by Christ before we attempt to show mercy to others, this collection reflects how that truth has transformed the heart of Pastor Senkbeil and those blessed by his life. Rev. Paul F. Becker, S.T.M. Concordia Lutheran Church, Kingsport, Tennessee

In an age of antichristian, antichurch, and anticlerical rhetoric, daring to enter the service of pastoral ministry is not just a noble task. It is a perilous one. Fightings within and fears without, the young man seeking to serve in work-and-sacrament ministry dares not walk along. Take Courage is not just a tribute to a pastor's pastor who has dedicated some of the best years of his life to picking up fallen comrades along the way, binding their wounds and pressing them on. It is also a tool for young pastors and lay elders alike, a study guide for the challenges that face us, and an admirable contribution to the task at hand. Be strong...all you who wait for the LORD! Rev. Jonathan Fisk Author of Broken, Echo, and Without Flesh St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Rockford, Illinois

All praise and thanks to God for the life and ministry of Harold Senkbeil! This festschrift is a fitting doxology to the Lord for the blessing that Rev. Senkbeil has been to so many. His work through DOXOLOGY: The Lutheran Center for Spiritual Care and Counsel has been a tremendous blessing to pastors in helping them to grow in caring for the souls of others and for their own. Rev. Senkbeil's efforts have also benefitted many lay people and congregations as they serve together with their pastors. Praise God from Whom all blessings flow!  Rev. Jon Rathjen
Trinity Lutheran Church, Auburn, Nebraska 

This treasure of essays is a must-read for any pastor who feels his own failures in this office. You will find courage to be a faithful under-shepherd as you learn the habit of sitting at the feet of the Chief Shepherd. His leading makes this otherwise impossible office possible for you.  Rev. Matthew Wurm
DOXOLOGY Collegium Fellow
Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church, Brookings, South Dakota

What a great book! It reminds us that we need a pastor who is a shepherd and will point us in turn to this Good Shepherd. We should all, pastors and laity alike, read this book.  Rev. Benjamin Pollock

"Collegiality" has been a gift exhibited by Harold Senkbeil throughout his ministry. In him beats a desire both to know and to show a deep pastoral concern for his brothers in this ministry ––brothers he has served for decades with characteristic deep humility. The essays found in Take Courage fittingly build upon and extend the legacy of Senkbeil's efforts on behalf of the glory of God and the good of his church. Rev. Robert C. Zick, S.T.M.
2nd Vice President, South Wisconsin District

Hal first came to my attention via his first book, Sanctification: Christ in Action, and then soon after with Dying to Live. We were all struggling with how to make heads or tails of the Church Growth Movement, and especially its consequences for worship. We had been studying rubrics at the seminary but not really delving very deeply into the theology of worship overall. Kurt Marquart's dogmatics course and the wonderful liturgical life at Kramer chapel were very influential. Hal's books really helped me put the practical side of Lutheranism in place. How is this Lutheran life lived corporately and individually? What joy I had as I raced through page after page of Law-Gospel clarity, and this well-seasoned pastor who had tried the methods he now was critiquing! His service to the church has blossomed in amazing ways. His teaching career was stellar. The founding of DOXOLOGY, which has been such a positive force for good in the lives of pastors and their spouses and families, is the coup de grâce. Here's to you, my friend and father in Christ!  Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison
President, The Lutheran Church –– Missouri Synod
Product Details
ISBN: 9781945500572
ISBN-10: 1945500573
Publisher: New Reformation Publications
Publication Date: November 30th, 2016
Pages: 340
Language: English