Where in the world is SEBTS? {Jillian Reeder}

This summer, we have been hearing about the adventures of SEBTS women around the world. Today's post is from the family of a recent graduate. Read on to find out how Jillian Reeder is serving the Lord as she, her husband Corey, and their little Eveylnn Rose prepare for ministry post-graduation.

Hello! My name is Jillian, and I am married to a wonderful and goofy man named Corey and have a sweet baby girl named Evelynn Rose.  Corey just graduated from SEBTS in May.  We enjoyed our four years as seminary students seeing God provide over and over again for us and making friends that feel more like family, but we are now off on a new adventure!  On June 8^th, we drove about 400 miles north to the state I grew up in: New Jersey.  

New Jersey carries with it as many reputations as there are people who live there, and unfortunately many of these are negative.  But New Jersey really is a beautiful state! We are already enjoying being near the shore, having cooler days than in NC, produce stands on every corner (it is the Garden State!), and living near family.  These roads and people are still familiar to me; however Corey will have some adjusting and learning to do (which he is mostly excited about!).  God lead us to NJ because of a pastoral intern position at Shawnee Baptist Church which was offered to Corey (I grew up as a member at Shawnee and most of my family attends there still).  As the pastoral intern, Corey will have many different responsibilities and opportunities which we hope will prepare him for future ministry.

One of our main objectives is going to be helping to kick start a college and young adults group at the church.  There are many church members who fit in this category, but the group has had difficulty getting the momentum it needs to be stable.  We are hoping to create a strong group identity with an official name, consistent meetings each week, and contexts where great relationships can be developed.  We are praying for great relationships in which we can disciple others. God has definitely prepared us for this during these past few years of serving at Bay Leaf Baptist Church. We had opportunities to take part in discipleship groups and to lead a small group there, but we are absolutely dependent on God to go before us and lead us each step of the way!

Along with these new roles, we will maintain some of our previous ones as well. Corey is a Chaplain Candidate (Soon to be Chaplain!) in the Army Reserves, which means that he goes to train one weekend a month with his unit. He will continue this in NJ, but with a different unit out of Ft. Dix.  Corey’s position in the Army also means that this summer he has 7 weeks of training at Ft Jackson, SC… so he will not officially start at Shawnee until September.  Evelynn and I will be in NJ staying with my parents during this time.  Of course we will hate to not have Corey with us for so long, but we plan to keep ourselves busy with beach days and family time.

At this crossroads between our time of preparation at SEBTS and our future ministry in NJ and the Army, we are amazed at God’s faithfulness and excited to see what He has in store!

As she mentioned above, Jillian is married to Corey, a recent SEBTS grad, and they currently live in New Jersey with their sweet Evelynn Rose. Jillian spends her time chasing down the fastest 1-year-old on the east coast, knitting, and being with friends. She loves the Lord and sharing His truth with other women.