Grace in Action
Finding Grace in the Pain of Ministry: What Every Leader Needs to Hear
For Ethelbert de Leon, theological education became more than a path of academic growth. It became a place of healing, encouragement, and renewed purpose. Based in the Philippines, Ethelbert has completed multiple degrees in ministry and biblical studies and is now pursuing further theological training. Along the way, he found accessible online learning, supportive mentors, and a grace-filled community that sustained him through one of the most difficult seasons of his life and opened new doors for service.
Grace in Action
Finding Grace in the Pain of Ministry: What Every Leader Needs to Hear
For Ethelbert de Leon, theological education became more than a path of academic growth. It became a place of healing, encouragement, and renewed purpose. Based in the Philippines, Ethelbert has completed multiple degrees in ministry and biblical studies and is now pursuing further theological training. Along the way, he found accessible online learning, supportive mentors, and a grace-filled community that sustained him through one of the most difficult seasons of his life and opened new doors for service.
I thank God that I had other students at Grace who were also undergoing similar circumstances, shared experiences, and encouraged one another.
Ethelbert de Leon from the Philippines has pursued an extraordinary journey of theological education, earning a Master of Ministry, a Master of Arts in Biblical Studies, and a Master of Divinity, and he is now continuing his studies in a Master of Theology program. Alongside his studies, he serves as a volunteer student discipleship group leader and student coach, helping encourage fellow students as they grow in ministry and theological formation.
He began his studies near the end of the pandemic, a season when many students were still navigating uncertainty and transition. In those early days, the student success staff played an important role in helping him get started. He remembers their patience and willingness to address his concerns, which helped make the transition into online theological education smoother and more welcoming.
“It made it accessible for me… I can attend classes in the comfort and safety of my home.”
The accessibility of online learning became one of the key reasons this path worked for him. Being able to attend class from home made it possible to study in safety and comfort, while also reducing the costs that come with travel and commuting. He also deeply appreciated the scholarship support available to students living outside the United States, which made theological education even more attainable.
Yet the most defining part of Ethelbert’s story was not convenience, but what happened in the middle of personal pain. During his first year of study, he went through a deeply difficult experience in his local church, where he had served for 16 years. That season was painful and disorienting. But even there, he found that theological education was not just a classroom experience. It became a place where God provided community and encouragement.
Through involvement in a student discipleship group, Ethelbert found others who were also walking through difficult circumstances. In that setting, students were able to share their experiences, encourage one another, and remind each other of God’s faithfulness. What began as a source of support in his own hardship eventually became a new area of service. He was later invited to lead that same student discipleship group, allowing him to walk with others in the same way he had been cared for.
Another opportunity soon followed. Ethelbert was also invited to serve as a student coach, helping new students become familiar with the online learning environment and navigate the process of theological study. What is especially striking about his story is how a season of difficulty did not end in isolation. Instead, it became a setting in which God opened doors for him to serve, strengthen, and guide others.
Among the greatest lessons Ethelbert says he learned are two truths that shaped both his theology and his life. The first is confidence in evangelism. He shares that he came to understand he is successful whenever he shares Jesus with others. For someone who describes himself as an introvert, this became a powerful encouragement to obey God faithfully whenever the opportunity to witness arose.
The second lesson is even more personal: his identity as a child of God. He learned more deeply that there is nothing he can do to make God love him more, and nothing he can do to make God love him less. That truth gave him stability, assurance, and peace—not only in study, but in life and ministry.
“There is nothing I can do that can make Him love me more… and nothing that I can do that will make Him love me less.”
When Ethelbert reflects on his experience, he speaks warmly not only of what he learned but also of the people who taught him. He describes the professors as more than skilled instructors. To him, they were shepherds who cared for their students well. That pastoral dimension made a lasting impact and helps explain why he recommends this path so strongly to others who are considering theological education.
His story is a reminder that theological education can be more than academic preparation. It can be a place where God strengthens identity, restores confidence, and opens new avenues of ministry. For those who long to grow in biblical understanding while also being supported by a caring community, Ethelbert’s journey offers a compelling picture of what that formation can look like.
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