Pastor Tim Sprankle Uses Master’s of Divinity Degree to Tell Stories of ‘God Showing Up’

Dr. Timothy Sprankle knows how to tell a story, especially when God’s the one writing it. Executive director of the Charis Fellowship and graduate of both Grace College and Grace Theological Seminary, Sprankle has pastored Leesburg Grace Church for 17 years. He’s all about helping people find the words to describe how God’s been working in their lives. Just check his old business cards, which describe him as “Pastor/Narrator.”

According to Sprankle, everyone has a story. This is his.

God Broke In

Sprankle was born and raised in Worthington, Ohio. Though part of a loving, moral family, he grew up outside of the church. God broke through to him one afternoon in what Sprankle calls a “silly” way. But silly as it may be, the encounter led him to an all-saving knowledge of Christ Jesus. 

“A friend invited me over to play video games, and then he told me to stop saying Jesus’s name in vain,” said Sprankle. “I would never give that as an evangelistic tool to someone. But that’s what God used to get me into VBS, youth group, and eventually the Kingdom of God.”

By high school, Sprankle was leading Bible studies and ministering to non-believing classmates as a desire for ministry materialized in him.

Spiritual Formation at Grace

In 1999, Sprankle enrolled at Grace as a youth ministry major, eventually switching to biblical studies. He was active on campus as an RA and Growth Group Leader, but he found that athletics played the largest role in developing him as a leader.

“My cross country coach, Kirk Heng, gave us opportunities to lead devotions and called us to set goals for our lives,” said Sprankle.

In 2001, Sprankle graduated with his bachelor’s degree. Wanting to further his ministry training and stay in the area, he enrolled at Grace Theological Seminary for his master’s of divinity degree while his wife, Liz, finished her senior year at Grace College.

According to Sprankle, GTS’s master’s of divinity program built on the foundation that his undergraduate education laid. He developed close relationships with faculty, naming his mentorship with David Plaster as especially formative in his spiritual development.

“What I think is true about Grace, and what I always want to be true about Grace, is that because it’s smaller, you’re getting personal connection with professors,” said Sprankle. “And that goes well beyond what you can find in a textbook or a large university.”

After completing his master’s of divinity and spending a few years serving in house churches out West, Sprankle sought to lead a church with more structure. With two infant girls, the couple searched for a congregation near their extended families. Through Charis Fellowship and the reference of a GTS professor, Sprankle was connected to a pastoral position at Leesburg Grace Church in Leesburg, Indiana.

“A Story of God Showing Up”

After serving for 12 years at Leesburg, Sprankle felt God call him to further his education beyond a master’s of divinity degree. So in 2019, Sprankle enrolled at Biola University for his doctorate of ministry degree. His dissertation, entitled “Rediscovering God-talk: Congregational Formation through Sharing Testimonies,” was drawn from a passion that had existed since childhood.

“I love stories,” he said. “I love writing. I love hearing other people’s stories, asking questions, and drawing answers out. When I got to thinking about what a testimony is, I realized it’s just a story of God showing up,” he said.

Sprankle notes that the Bible is itself a story: a “true, big, awesome story” filled with testimonies of God’s work among His people. In his research, he explored how our everyday testimonies edify the Church today.

He finds that testimonies play a unique role in spiritual formation, providing a communal connection that preaching and worship cannot. It also gives a voice to members who may otherwise go unheard.

“The sermon says the pastor has permission to share his life, but a testimony says other people have permission to share their lives,” he said. “I love to hear from young believers, from women, and from minorities. You don’t have to have academic credentials or be a particular gender to share what God’s doing in your life.”

He points to marginalized figures in the Bible, such as the Samaritan woman and the man born blind, whose testimonies have pointed entire communities to Jesus.
Sprankle differentiates between macro-testimony, or salvation stories, and micro-testimony, smaller stories of God’s work. When the church only focuses on salvation stories, Christians who have grown up in the church can feel their testimonies are boring or “lame.”

“That’s why I like the micro-testimony,” he said. “Pay attention: When’s the last time a Scripture really spoke to you? When’s the last time a song touched your heart, and you wanted to share that with somebody? Where’s God meeting you at a crossroads? I love to help people get language for that and see God working.”

To Sprankle, structuring time for testimony-sharing is everything, inside and outside of Sunday morning service. During service, his congregants participate in “Simply Jesus Moments,” where members are encouraged to share recent times Jesus has shown up in their daily lives. Once a month, Leesburg Grace holds a “Family Worship Night,” in which members gather for a meal, worship, and the sharing of extended testimonies.

Sometimes, Sprankle shares a micro-testimony of his own…

Simply Jesus

In 2014, after two difficult childbirths, Sprankle and his wife felt God’s call to adopt a child with a disability. They knew God had placed their son in their path when they read Sensi’s description — a quiet child who liked to read would fit right into their family.

He had hearing and speaking disabilities, which resonated with the couple. After a stroke, Sprankle’s mother-in-law had also lost her ability to speak in the last decade of her life. The couple saw a divine echo. Perhaps God was calling them to care for someone else who had trouble speaking.

One night during the adoption process, Sprankle was reading to his daughters “The Trumpet of the Swan,” a children’s story about a father swan who attempts to teach his son to speak. As he realized the story’s parallel to his own life, he felt a rush of emotion.

“I’m just weeping as I read it,” said Sprankle. “I’m like, ‘This is what I want to be able to do.’ I’m trying to help my son find his voice.”

To Sprankle, it’s another example of God writing a story no one could have anticipated.

“I can see God working through how Sensi fits our family, even our experience caring for Liz’s mom after a stroke affected her speech,” he said. “Sensi has been a profound part of the story God is writing for the Sprankle family.”

As for future chapters, Sprankle has some hopes for the decades down the road, including turning his dissertation into a popular-level book.

“I love to write, and in my dream world someday, I’d like to transition into a different role at my church where I’d help a younger pastor take the lead,” said Sprankle. “Then, maybe I’ll teach a class at Grace and do some writing and speaking.”

No matter what his next chapter brings, Sprankle knows it’s being written by the Author of Life Himself.

Explore a master’s of divinity and a doctorate of ministry at Grace Seminary, and explore admissions here.