Raskolnikoff, the main character in Dostoyevsky's classic novel, Crime and Punishment, asks: "I should like to know what people fear the most. . . ." He answers, "whatever is contrary to their usual habits, I imagine." I suspect that Raskolnikoff is right, and Christian ministers are no exception. The culture in which many Americans live is extremely fast-paced, and it is easy to get caught up in doing and performing. If we as Christian ministers are not intentional about setting aside time for Christian formation, we will be absorbed into the immediacy of our culture and fail to cultivate the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). The sting of this realization is intensified when we remember that we cannot share with others what we do not ourselves possess.

Divinity students are particularly at risk in this regard. The workload and the pressure to make good grades quickly overwhelm many new students. It is very easy for them to get so caught up in classes, reading, and writing papers that prayer and worship are rapidly pushed to the margins of life. They soon become like those Jesus talked about in the parable of the Great Dinner (Luke 14:16-24) who were too busy to accept the invitation to the feast, saying, "please accept my apologies."

This is troubling because the habits ingrained in our lives as ministerial students are often difficult to change when we are appointed to various ministries. The student who is anxious about finishing her theology readings and fails to pray, worship, and serve others will naturally transition into the minister who is so preoccupied with meetings and administrative tasks that she cannot take time for devotions or meditation. The one who does not nourish her spirit in the practice of the spiritual disciplines will eventually be struck with an awareness of spiritual bankruptcy — making it difficult to preach.

One thing that the United Methodist students, under the leadership of Professor M. Douglas Meeks, have done to help resist perpetual busyness and cultivate re-creative holy habits is to start Covenant Discipleship groups. Dr. Meeks cast the vision that all United Methodist students would participate in a Covenant Discipleship group during their tenure at Vanderbilt. What began as two or three groups a few years ago has now grown into six, each consisting of six to seven students. From the beginning, these groups have had a significant impact on the divinity school, the church, and the Nashville community.

• The groups have fostered ecumenical conferencing as both United Methodist and non-United Methodist students give a weekly account of what they have done to follow Jesus Christ in the world in light of their covenant.
• Covenant Discipleship groups have helped students overwhelmed with academic pressures to keep their spiritual priorities straight and stay balanced so that they do not lose sight of their calling and burn out before graduation. They are learning that the spiritual disciplines are means of grace that form us into the people God intends us to be.
• The covenant groups have encouraged students to serve God's righteousness for and with poor and marginalized people. Groups have sponsored food and clothing drives, protested in the streets and at the Capitol against capital punishment, and joined in the struggle for just healthcare for low-income people. One group attended a funeral to support a fellow student who tragically lost her brother.
• Covenant Discipleship groups have led some students to rethink what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ today. One former student, Andrew Thompson, now Associate Chaplain at Lambuth University, wrote a master's thesis on the importance of Covenant Discipleship groups and how to re-contextualize them in a divinity school setting.
• Finally, Covenant Discipleship groups are stressing the importance of practicing the spiritual disciplines as pastors, chaplains, and spiritual leaders after graduation and of starting such groups in the congregations and faith communities they will serve.

Covenant Discipleship groups have had a real impact on the students at Vanderbilt Divinity School, and I suspect that they will continue to multiply and grow as students experience what God has for them in obedient discipleship and share their joy with others. These groups have even spilled over into the Graduate Department of Religion. I personally lead a group of four Ph.D. students, and we hope to add a couple more this semester when we organize our new covenant groups at our fall retreat. As these groups continue to flourish, we hope that God will work through them to touch the world around us.

Mark Emery Reynolds is a Ph.D. student in Theology at Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee. He is originally from Lakeland, Florida, and is a certified candidate in the Florida Conference for elders orders in The United Methodist Church. Mark and his wife Holly have a nine-year-old son, Jobe. Mark plans to graduate with his Ph.D. in the fall of 2004 and hopes to teach at a seminary that is rooted in the Wesleyan tradition.