Gordon MacDonald (theologian)

Gordon James MacDonald (* 1939 in New England ), also known as GMAC, is an evangelical pastor, speaker, author, spiritual advisor to Bill Clinton and mentor .

Life

MacDonald grew up the son of a pastor in New England and studied theology. From 1972 to 1984 he was a senior pastor at Grace Chapel in Lexington , Massachusetts , and then worked for World Vision , a Christian charity, until 1987 . At the same time he also became President of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship , one of the largest evangelical student organizations in the United States. He also taught regularly at Bethel Theological Seminary in St. Paul , Minnesota , and Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary in New England.

In 1987 it was rumored that he was having an extramarital affair and that he lost his job as a result. He later wrote extensively about the hidden world, its weaknesses, and the process of restoration in the book When All Is Broken. Steps to a new beginning. Two years later he was pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Manhattan , New York City , and in 1993 he was able to return to Grace Chapel in Lexington.

MacDonald was a spiritual advisor to US President Bill Clinton . In 2001, he and his wife were among the emergency chaplains helping out at 9-11 .

In 2007 he was speaker of the No Regrets men's conference at Elmbrook Church in Brookfield , Wisconsin , on the subject: A Strong End . From 2008 to 2009 he was interim president of Denver Seminary and speaker at the Willow Creek Leadership Congress in Germany. MacDonald regularly wrote a column and articles for the German Christian magazine AufAtmen and attended seminars on spiritual life in Germany, for example in the Dünenhof near Cuxhaven, where it was mostly translated by his German friend Ulrich Eggers . Since his retirement he has devoted a lot of time to training and educating younger pastors so that they can mature into good leadership personalities. He has received similar encouragement and support through his mentor and friend, Vernon Grounds . From 2016 to 2017 the experienced pastor wrote a three-part series on Holy Community in the magazine AufAtmen , which dealt with the ideal, practice and problems of Christian community, which is a central concern for him.

Private

MacDonald is married to Gail, they have two children and five grandchildren and live in Laconia , New Hampshire .

Publications

• Driven or called. Order your life Projektion J, Hochheim 1988. ISBN 978-3-92535-209-6 (Original title: Ordering Your Private World. New German title: Ordne dein Leben. Perspectives for dealing with life and time. Projektion J, Hochheim 1992. ISBN 978-3-93366-002-2 . Other editions: Gerth Medien , Asslar 2009. ISBN 978-3-86591-389-0 ).
• Carried by God's blessing. SCM R. Brockhaus , Wuppertal 2000. ISBN 978-3417244250 , 2nd edition 2005. ISBN 978-3-41720-639-5 .
• To change means to live. About the creative power of a new beginning. SCM R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 2001. ISBN 978-3-41724-445-8 , 2nd edition 2008. ISBN 978-3-41720-652-4 .
• In soft tones. SCM R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 2002. ISBN 978-3-41724-443-4 .
• When it all breaks Steps to a new beginning. Gerth Medien, Asslar 2002. ISBN 978-3-89490-469-2 .
• Given to give away. From the blessing of generosity. Francke , Marburg 2005. ISBN 978-3-86122-737-3 .
• Back to first love. How your spiritual life gets new passion. Projektion J, Asslar, 2nd edition 2007. ISBN 978-3-86591-258-9 . (Original title: Restoring your spiritual passion )
• You make me strong How our faith becomes resilient - From the wisdom of a rich life. SCM R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 2009, ISBN 978-3-417266269 .
• Deeper. A story about people with potential, leaders with the right eye and the luck to change this world. SCM R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 2011. ISBN 978-3-41726-464-7 . (Original title: Going deep. Becoming a person of influence )
• I want my church back. When my spiritual home becomes alien to me. SCM R. Brockhaus, Wuppertal 2011. ISBN 978-3-41726-475-3 . (Original title: Who stole my church. What to do when the church you love tries to enter the 21st century )
• Why Jesus didn't have burnout. Be strong from within. Brunnen , Giessen 2012. ISBN 978-3-7655-1189-9 .

Audio / audiobooks

• Do your soul good. (Speaker: Kai U. Woytschak), ERF-Verlag , Wetzlar 2008. ISBN 978-3-86666-092-2 .

Web links

• Literature by and about Gordon MacDonald in the catalog of the German National Library
• [4] Gordon MacDonald on Christianity Today website

Individual evidence

1. ↑ [1] Article in the Washington Post
2. ↑ Article in the magazine AufAtmen 4/2002. Lessons from the pit. A diary from the operation in Ground Zero
3. ↑ [2] Key Lessons from Gordon MacDonald for Pastors
4. ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from April 27, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Speakers at the Willow Creek Congress 2012 in Stuttgart 
5. ↑ Article in the magazine AufAtmen 1/1998. Sitting on God's lap.
6. ↑ Article in the magazine AufAtmen 4/1999. My book of silence. The spiritual diary to help you listen to God.
7. ↑ Article in the magazine AufAtmen 2/2003. Convert the inner man.
8. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TICzFz0xWpg
9. ^ [3] Gordon MacDonald on the Churchleaders homepage
10. ↑ Article in the magazine AufAtmen 2/2005. Believe on the long haul. How God trains our endurance.
11. ↑ Article in the magazine AufAtmen 3/2006. Care for the soul.
12. ↑ Article in the magazine AufAtmen 1/2012. Deeper. Why spiritually mature people are a church's treasure - and how to find and build it up.
13. ↑ Article in the magazine AufAtmen 2/2012. Thinking about Steve Jobs .
14. ↑ Article in the magazine AufAtmen 4/2013: Relationships on the test stand. Ten vital values ​​for relationship quality.
15. ^ Gordon MacDonald: Holy Communion. Start of a three-part series on the ideal, practice and problems of Christian fellowship , magazine AufAtmen 4/2016, Witten, pages 54–59
16. ^ Gordon MacDonald: Such is community. Conclusion of a series on the ideal, practice and problems of Christian community , magazine AufAtmen 2/2017, Witten, pages 52–57
17. ↑ Article in the magazine AufAtmen 4/2011: 13 reasons for a good marriage. Why I am so happy after 50 years.