Presidential Newsletter #13
June 6, 2025 2025-06-06 21:56Presidential Newsletter #13
Dearest Sattler Stakeholders,
I’m eager to share to share Presidential Newsletter #13. Onward to power, love, and sound minds/discipline (2 Tim 1:7).
Leadership Transition
It is with gratitude and deep honor that I introduce myself as the incoming interim president of Sattler College. I’ve had the privilege of walking with Sattler from its earliest days, and I’m humbled to now serve the mission in this new capacity.
I’m especially grateful to Zack Johnson for his faithful leadership over the past eight years. From being our very first employee to recruiting our first students to serving as a mentor for many students, his devotion has shaped the DNA of this institution. More recently, he developed the Entrustment program and made Sattler an international institution. There can be no doubt that his contributions have been profound. While he will no longer be president, Brother Zack has joined the Board of Trustees and will continue teaching.
Click here to read a message from the Board of Trustees about the presidential transition.
A Tribute to Zack Johnson by Finny Kuruvilla
I remember well first meeting Brother Zack when he was an officer in the US Air Force, while he was studying at Harvard University. After taking a Koine Greek class I was teaching followed by apologetics sessions, we would have long discussions over lunch about the Bible’s teachings about nonviolence. In those conversations, I saw a man who was committed to the kingdom and would trust God no matter what. I had the privilege of serving as a witness in his trial as a conscientious objector. He made that decision despite the consequence of having to incur hundreds of thousands of debt. I still remember where I was when he called me telling me that he was being released from the military debt-free! I had the even greater honor of knowing his late mother, who was rightly very proud of her only son. His mother Peggy gave our family a beautiful call to worship which sits on our fireplace mantle. I was even there when he met his future wife who became a student at Sattler! Sattler was a demolition site of concrete and wires and in walked a young lady who looked like an angel. The rest is history: two sons and one daughter later.
Zack loves his family deeply. He has a gift of connecting with people and leading out with vision. He has brought many people into his family over the years, and he made Sattler into a family that I hope continues for many years to come. Thank you Brother Zack for pouring your heart into this endeavor and shaping so many lives.
Sattler has been the journey of a lifetime–I am so thankful to have traveled the road thus far with such a faithful brother as Zack. May God bless you in all your future plans and endeavors, my dear brother Zack!
Commencement
A few weeks ago, we celebrated the graduation of Sattler’s fourth class. With this cohort, we’ve now sent 60 four-year graduates and 32 certificate students into the world. Join me in prayer that they would faithfully carry out the mission of proclaiming and living out the Kingdom of God wherever they go.
Our commencement speaker, Dr. Carlos Eire (Yale University), reminded us that “true learning never ends” and challenged our graduates to “betray their age in order to serve it faithfully.” Those words were a powerful call to countercultural, Christ-centered witness, one that resonates with Sattler’s mission as we seek to cultivate that very kind of faithful presence in the world.
Discover Boston
July 9-11, 2025 — Join us for Discover Boston, Sattler College’s 2nd annual summer camp for teens ages 14-18! Explore iconic landmarks, ride the harbor ferry, visit world-class museums, and experience life in one of America’s most historic and vibrant cities. Registration is currently full, but you are welcome to join the waitlist. Click here for more information.
Question of the Month
To compete in the contest, answer this question without the use of AI or other forms of “cheating.” Click here to submit your answer for a chance to win! This month’s prize is a lunch with the new president at a special location. If multiple people get it right, we will select one of those winners for the prize.
“Which college president got into legal trouble because he changed his views from infant baptism to believer’s baptism?"
Sharable Thought
The concept of God’s choosing a people (election) has been difficult for some people to stomach. It can seem exclusivistic and even stoke pride. But why did God choose (elect) Abraham? To be a blessing to all the nations! From the beginning, God’s election has been bound to the mission of blessing the nations with the truth and love of God. But Israel (and all too often the church) have forgotten this mandate. Michael Goheen writes, “It was difficult for Israel to keep the universal horizon of their mission clear. An exclusivistic nationalism constantly corrupted their understanding of election and covenant, as the book of Jonah shows. And so God gives psalms to Israel to constantly nourish their mission. Their songs in worship reminded them that they were a “so-that people,” a people blessed so that they might be a channel of blessing to the nations.
May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face shine on us—
so that your ways may be known on earth,
your salvation among all nations.
May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.…
May God bless us still,
so that all the ends of the earth will fear him. (Ps 67:1–3, 7, italics added)
Christians have been elected (chosen) to be a “so-that” people. Do you view yourself as having been chosen so that you can win the nations to the joy of the Lord? If we forget that “so-that” mandate, we have forgotten the purpose of God’s election of Israel, Jesus, and the church.
Prayer Requests
- Pray for our incoming students as they prepare to move to Boston this fall and begin a new chapter in their lives.
- Pray for our recent graduates, that they may walk faithfully into the callings before them.
Support Sattler
Refer a student: Did you know that most Sattler students applied because someone referred them? Here’s how you can help. If you know someone that would be a good fit for Sattler, refer them or help them start an application! As a token of appreciation, we’ll mail you an exclusive Sattler College pennant flag.
Give: Help make Sattler College available to more students by supporting our Entrustment fund.
Visit: While there isn’t a lot happening on campus during the summer, you can still arrange a campus tour and get to know us. Feel free to reach out to let us know you’re coming, so we can show you around.
Feedback: Do you have ideas to make this newsletter better? Let me know by sending an email to info@sattler.edu.
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