Alumni Voices Archives - Sattler College

Unlikely Friendships: The Story of Turtle Heart – Episode 020

Sattler College — Fri, 30 May 2025 23:33:54 +0000

Don’t miss a future episode. Subscribe wherever you get podcasts! In President Johnson’s final podcast episode as president, he interviewed former Sattler student Lucinda Kinsinger. Luci shares how her love for writing—nurtured by a quiet childhood and a bold leap into blogging—led to the publication of two memoirs and two children’s books. She reflects on her time at Sattler College and the unexpected friendships that shaped her most, especially her relationship with an Ojibwe woman whose story inspired Turtle Heart. Now a stay-at-home mom, Luci speaks candidly about the challenges and joys of balancing motherhood with creativity, offering a moving testament to pursuing one’s calling, embracing each season, and forming deep connections across cultural lines. Learn more about studying at Sattler College. Mentioned in this episode: Chapters: 0:00 Introduction to Luci Kinsinger 2:13 Luci’s Writing Journey and Passion 5:38 Balancing Writing with Motherhood 9:54 Embracing Singleness Before Marriage 11:28 Impactful Friendships Across Cultures 21:27 Luci’s Books and Creative Works 23:21 Developing Unlikely Friendships Transcript This transcript has been auto generated and likely contains errors. Zack Johnson: 0:02 It is May 8th. It’s still May 8th, 2025. And I’m here with Luci Kinsinger, who actually was one of Sattler’s inaugural students. Can you remember, Can you believe it’s been like how long has it been, Luci? Luci Kinsinger: 0:20 Well, we’ve. You know, we had our 50 year anniversary, so it must have been like six years. Zack Johnson: 0:27 That’s right, that sounds about right, but I think Luci came to August in 2018, the fall of 2018, and spent two semesters here. And then, luci, where are you right now? Luci Kinsinger: 0:39 I’m in Oakland, Maryland. It’s like the little triangle on the very end of Maryland’s tale. Zack Johnson: 0:46 Well, first of all I’d love to hear about maybe rewinding a little bit when were you at when you decided to spend that year at Sattler and then how did things unfold in your life? And maybe just try to catch me up so I know sort of a timeline. And maybe just try to catch me up so I know sort of a timeline, and usually I love to ask people their general stories so that people know who you are before you came to Sattler and those kinds of things. Luci Kinsinger: 1:16 But I’d love to love to be filled in. So before I came to Sattler I was really just kind of hungry for some higher education. I always loved school and when I saw Sattler it kind of just hit something in me like this sounds really cool Going to this, going to Boston, interacting with professors that had been educated in places like Harvard and that had been educated in places like Harvard and the, especially the, the kind of niche worldview, not necessarily Anabaptist but yet having that early. Christian perspective. Zack Johnson: 1:59 Right, I was like I really, really liked it and and before. I think you’re still. Your claim to fame here, at least in my mind, is you’re the only student that’s maybe written a book before showing up as a student. And and I’d love to just talk a little bit about where did your, you know, where did you develop a habit or a passion to write and then we can follow up with at this stage in your life, how do you fit writing in with all the other things that you’re passionate about, and I’m sure your life has changed since you were here in Boston with that. Luci Kinsinger: 2:40 Yeah, it’s changed a lot. I’ve always loved. When I was a little girl, I loved reading. I would just, I spent my whole childhood just reading, reading, reading, and you know, I guess it’s kind of a natural. I was a shy person and so I would. I would vent by writing and I learned to love writing on that way. And then I started, I started a blog and it was very scary, publishing my first blog post and having people, actual people, read what you wrote. You know that was so terrifying. But then it was also really thrilling when you got good feedback. You know, people read this and they’re like I really like it, and so it was kind of intoxicating, I guess, and just, it was a way that I could. I still feel that way that I can express myself. Maybe parts of myself that I would not probably verbalize, I can express through writing, and so I just it’s just part of me, um, a creative part and an expressive part, that that is my art, I guess all right. Zack Johnson: 3:41 So since, since, uh, marrying and children, how do you fit writing and how do you keep that alive as a passion at this stage? And being a? I think you’re, I think I saw that you wrote yours you can say you’re a stay at home mom. I always, I always joke with my wife about better titles or alternative titles, but it’s a very important, one of the most important roles, so how do you fit it in now? Luci Kinsinger: 4:08 So I fit it in where and when I can. Sometimes it’s when I can’t sleep at night, sometimes it’s in the early morning, sometimes it’s over nap time, sometimes it’s with a child on my lap, just here and there. And it’s really hard now to find that quality time, that time where you can just focus and zone out. And I think the very best time that I actually get that is when Ivan has the children, for you know, maybe he’s working outside or something and they’re with daddy and then I. That’s the then. I love it. I come out of those times so happy because I actually got some some writing time, some real writing time, where you’re in a different world of your own. Zack Johnson: 4:49 I’ll make […]

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Evangelism in Daily Life – Episode 015

Sattler College — Thu, 19 Sep 2024 20:22:55 +0000

Don’t miss a future episode. Subscribe wherever you get podcasts! Sattler alumnus Timothy Miller reflects on how his journey of faith led him to pursue a calling in pastoral ministry and family business. Timothy shares insights on the importance of spiritual disciplines, integrating faith with work, and how the gospel shapes our view of life’s challenges. They explore the significance of witnessing to the resurrection in everyday life and how even ordinary vocations can provide powerful moments for evangelism. Timothy also offers advice on overcoming fear in sharing the gospel and building meaningful relationships within a Christian context. Learn more about studying Biblical and Religious Studies at Sattler. Mentioned: Mentioned in this episode: Chapters: 0:04 – Introducing Timothy Miller and His Journey at Sattler14:52 – Discussing Bivocational Ministry and Family Life18:51 – The Role of Faith in Everyday Work29:10 – Developing Spiritual Disciplines in Family and Ministry41:40 – Overcoming Fear in Evangelism and Witnessing to the Resurrection Transcript This transcript has been auto generated and likely contains errors. Zack Johnson: 0:04It is September 5th 2024. I’m here with Timothy, the Timothy Miller. How are you doing, timothy? Timothy Miller: 0:13I’m doing real well. It’s my birthday, so what better day to be on a podcast. Zack Johnson: 0:19I did not know that Happy birthday, thank. You know that happy birthday, so thank you. I’d love, I’d love to just uh get a quick intro to who you are. Um, I don’t have a bio or anything, but who are you, what are you about and, uh, what are some of your passions? Timothy Miller: 0:37yeah, so I’m timothy miller. Uh, I’m a sattler alumni. I was part of the inaugural class, the class of 2022. And so I lived in Boston almost four years working on a biblical studies degree. I am now back in Sarasota, florida, which is where I grew up, and currently pastoring in a local church here called Hope Fellowship, in a local church here called Hope Fellowship. I’m also involved in a family business, a furniture store, and then I have four very energetic boys who I spend a lot of time with, and one beautiful wife who is a very amazing person. Zack Johnson: 1:20That was a beautiful introduction, and then can you just remind me one thing we have in common, I think, is our love of naming children. What are your boys’? Timothy Miller: 1:31names Timothy. My oldest is Malachi, he’s seven. My next is a five-year-old His name is Justus, our three-year-old is Cohen, and then our youngest is almost one. He’ll be one next week and his name is Creed. Zack Johnson: 1:49Creed, I actually remember a conversation with you where you met somebody and they had children that had very similar names to yours and it builds some sort of camaraderie. Do you remember that conversation? I can’t remember who we were chatting about. Timothy Miller: 2:02Yeah, One of my professors had a good friend who their first two boys had the exact same name as ours. They were Malachi and Justice. And then our thirds are different. We’re Cohen and they were. Theirs was Asher, I think, but we had talked about Asher for Cohen, so it must be a lot of similar thinking. Zack Johnson: 2:24This is a side tangent, but I’m just going to go on it. I’m still convinced that we have free choice in naming children, but we’re completely shaped by something that that makes us choose similar names. I’m I. Timothy Miller: 2:36We had a. We had a great conversation about that when you founded this last winter. Zack Johnson: 2:40Right, that’s, that’s right uh, but I’m going to reiterate that that’s continues to be the trend, that continues to be out here. Timothy Miller: 2:48We’re we’re affected by our cultural milieu. I think is the technical way of saying it. You can’t get around it, that’s right. Zack Johnson: 2:56Well, I’ll throw you a couple of softballs here. I know that the podcast audience we’re not exactly sure who listens to this, but I know that when I chatted with some of the new students here, some of them had listened, and so it’s a Sattler-centric audience plus some people just probably tuning in to see what we’re up to and checking in. Why, way back in the day I think I met you in either 2017 or 2018, why did you choose to go to Sattler back then? Timothy Miller: 3:26or 2018, why did you choose to go to Sattler back then? The thing that caught my attention initially was the fact that they were offering biblical languages at an undergraduate level, in particular, intensive, communicative biblical languages, which is quite unique in the college landscape. Biblical languages, which is quite unique in the college landscape, and my passion I really wanted to dig into biblical Hebrew and Greek, and most of the time you have to go to seminary to really get serious with biblical languages. But, not having an undergraduate degree, I wasn’t ready to make that step, so this seemed like a great fit for me, being able to jump right into biblical languages at the undergraduate level, and definitely have benefited greatly from that. I still read biblical Hebrew and biblical Greek every day in my devotion, so it’s been an extreme, really been a blessing for me. Zack Johnson: 4:23How do you do that in your devotions? I’m just curious, what does that look like? Timothy Miller: 4:28Yeah, it’s pretty low key. So for me, part of my daily devotions is reading some from the Old Testament and from the New Testament, and so I still read in English as well, because I can’t get through stuff nearly as fast in Hebrew and Greek, but I try to at least every day. It ends up usually averaging more like five to six days a week that I try to read at least a couple verses […]

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