Meet the Graduates:
Andre Riedlinger

More than 700 students complete their degrees at Fuller this year, with plans that will take them into a range of ministries and vocations. This series highlights just a few of these graduates.
 
“I was looking for a seminary experience that would do more than just give me knowledge about the Bible, the church, and ministry,” says graduating student Andre Riedlinger.  “I wanted to develop a ministry tool set that would prepare me to change with the dynamic nature of the global church today.”
 
Riedlinger also had a second important need in a seminary program: online coursework.  Having been a pastor over 13 years, he hoped to remain in his full-time position as Minister of Outreach/Assimilation at Johnson Ferry Baptist Church in Marietta, Georgia, while completing his studies long-distance.  Fuller’s young Master of Arts in Global Leadership (MAGL) program was a perfect fit: It not only focused on the leadership skills that would equip Riedlinger for ministry in a postmodern world, but also allowed him to complete a degree one course at a time through online offerings and occasional intensive courses in Pasadena.
 
As Riedlinger graduates this June he is preparing to take a new job as president of Grace Summit, a nonprofit counseling ministry in Roswell, Georgia, but he also anticipates an increasing intersection between ministry and daily life.  “The MAGL degree has opened my eyes to the myriad of possibilities for ministry in my own neighborhood, as well as my city,” he explains.  “I’m excited about seeing non-traditional groups and venues, such as barbeques, coffeehouses, and even my living room as places where God can use me to share the gospel of grace.”
 
Most important to Riedlinger is the way his view of ministry itself—and not only its location—has been transformed by the MAGL.  “The program has given me a new perspective on culture and an ability to ‘exegete’ my community, that I might understand how to walk with people rather than talk at them,” he says.  “My Fuller experience has opened my eyes to the different ways God can use me to equip disciples, connect with those seeking Jesus, and encounter the world as a participant rather than a narrator.”
 
Learn more about Fuller’s MAGL program.
 
Read more stories about Fuller’s 2009 graduates.