Resources

My Parents - Danny and Frances Payne

With all due respect my Dad (Danny Joe Payne) is what we call in the South a "real piece of work."  That is, he just has a unique style about him.  He and I think very differently about a lot of matters but I still work (gratefully) out of a basic set of values that he gave me.  He taught me many of life's most valuable lessons.  My mom, Frances, modeled them powerfully and deserves just as much credit.  Dad was just more verbal about things.  He insisted on treating people with respect.  He insisted on doing the right thing even when it's difficult.  He insisted on working hard.  He insisted on finishing the job.  He valued the life of the mind.  He wheezes when he laughs and is a chain-sneezer.  The latter of these unusual traits he has bequeathed to me and I, in turn, to my children.

Dr. Bernie Yorton

Dr. Yorton was one of my very first professors at Denver Seminary.  He has had a wide-ranging ministry, including theological education, pastoral counseling, and interim pastoring.  He gave voice and validation to some of my deepest feelings and questions.  Though I have had the opportunity to see him face-to-face only once in the last 17 years, he has been one of the most influential mentors in my life.  It is not an overstatement to say that the time he spent with me on the phone several times a year saved me in ministry.  I believe in grace largely because of Bernie Yorton.  Bernie died this year (early 2008).  His son, Bryan, emailed me that he died just the way he lived; grateful and focusing on others til the end.  I want to live and die like Bernie Yorton.

Dr. Tom Noble

Dr. Noble was my PhD supervisor and is currently professor of systematic theology at Nazarene Theological Seminary in Kansas City, MO.  He also teaches part-time and provides PhD supervision for the Nazarene Theological College in Manchester, England where he maintains his permanent residence.  A native of Glasgow, Scotland and former history teacher, he studied under the venerable T.F. Torrance at the University of Edinburgh.  His PhD thesis at Edinburgh explored Gregory of Nazianzus' teaching about the deity of the Holy Spirit.  The range of his theological facility is impressive and seemed to be a bottomless well from which I could draw again and again while under his supervision.  It was an unexpected privilege to once sit under his ministry as he led worship and preached.  He is a gifted organist and delightful, informed conversationalist.  The Church of the Nazarene is blessed to have him in their ranks.

Dr. Ray Anderson

My closest friends and several of my students are by now sick of hearing the name of Ray Anderson because I quote and refer to him so often.  No person has had such profound influence on my theological thinking than this longtime professor at Fuller Theological Seminary.  I only had the privilege of meeting Dr. Anderson once, though he has been extremely and surprisingly gracious (and prompt) in corresponding with me any time I would write.  If there were to be a Ray Anderson fan club I would probably have to fight a good number of people to be the president, but it would be a worth it.  He has modeled and articulated the integrated vision of theologian and pastor that continues to propel me.  He, like Dr. Noble, was a student of T.F. Torrance at the University of Edinburgh.  So, it is a privilege to have become something of a theological grandson of Torrance through Drs. Anderson and Noble.

The Intellectual Life, by Sertillanges

Though written in the early twentieth-century, this volume is timely and timeless.  It provides both challenge and structure for those who see the life of study as a godly stewardship and not merely as intellectual curiosity.  This should be read by all who aspire to being lifelong learners.

Prayer, by Hans Urs von Balthasar

Well, if you're looking for a book on prayer that will make an immediate difference in the way you pray, then keep looking.  If you're looking for a book that will renew your prayer life slowly from the deepest recesses outward and also help you really pray theologically, this may be your book.  It's Roman Catholic, which only shows up in some spots.  Don't let that stop you if you're not Roman Catholic.  It's extremely Trinitarian.  It's a slow read and worth reading slowly.

The Science of God, by Alister McGrath

If you want a rigorously integrated approach to theology via scientific method, one that acknowledges the problems of enlightenment epistemology without buying the "full meal deal" of postmodernism, one that draws on the rich insights of Karl Barth without accepting his extreme disjunction between nature and revelation, then Alister McGrath's volume (actually a one volume condensation of his three-volume Scientific Theology) will reward your time and effort.

Surviving the Unthinkable: Choosing to Live After Someone You Love Chooses to Die. Eugene: Resource, 2015.

"J.I. Packer's Theological Method," in J.I. Packer and the Evangelical Future, Ed. Timothy George. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2009.

"The Theological Method of Premillennialism," in A Case for Historic Premillennialism, Eds. Craig L. Blomberg and Sung Wook Chung. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2009.

"Theological Reflection," in Preparing for Ministry, Ed. George Hillman, Jr. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2008.

The Theology of the Christian Life in J.I. Packer's Thought: Theological Anthropology, Theological Method, and the Doctrine of Sanctification. Milton Keynes: Paternoster, 2006. [see http://www.wipfandstock.com/bookStore.cfm?bookID=1428&do=detail]

"Mentoring: Cutting to the Chase." In Denver Seminary Magazine 2:1 (Spring 2006): 7-9.

"Mentoring Toward the Finish Line." In Compass 8:1 (April 2003): 4-6.

Review of Mentor: Guiding the Journey of Adult Learners, by Laurent Daloz and The Mentor's Guide: Facilitating Effective Learning Relationships, by Lois J. Zachary. In Teaching Theology & Religion. 5:3 (July 2002): 183-185.

Review of The God Who Risks, by John Sanders In Themelios. 25:1 (November 1999): 118-119.

"Taking the Long Way: Life Lessons From a Seminarian Who Didn't Do It By the Book." In The 1995 Seminary & Graduate School Handbook. 7 (1995): 22-24, 83.