Jack Of All Trades John T. "Jack" McKinney is a man of varied interests and talents. This world has not seen many men who mix the hobbies of astronomy. archaeology. organic gardening and jogging with a deep knowledge of Hebrew, Latin, Greek and Ger· man the way this teacher, preacher and father does. To McKinney, a native of Sweeney, Texas, and graduate of Abilene Christian University, life has been a very busy schedule of schooling and preaching for a long time. As a college student, McKinney first showed his versatility in such activities as A Cappella Chorus, the Badminton Club, Press Club and Art Club. In addition, he was elected to Who's Who in American Colleges and Universities and served as president of his senior class. Following college, graduate work, a stint as a youth director, some teaching and marriage, McKinney left for a year of intensive mission work in Frankfurt , Germany, and 15 more years of service in Zurich, Switzerland. "Three of our four children were born in Switzerland," McKinney said. "We took our oldest over there at the age of six weeks. The kids enjoyed life overseas but had some trouble adjusting when we returned to America. " The Bible Department ' s Timothy Club changed its em· phasis this year in order to provide for more student·professor and student·student interac, tion. The club met from four to five times a semester and incor· porated some new programs to go alongside the conventional lecturing series. This year ' s group of Timothy 's was treated to special "dialogue nights" when a few Bible professors formed a panel to discuss questions submitted by the audience. Student leader Foster Cam commented, "These times allowed for a good exchange. The students were able to ask questions that they might be afraid to ask in a regular Bible class or couldn ' t discuss because of the time factor. " Each Bible major was also divided into a small group of seven or eight people who met in the homes of Bible faculty members to just talk and get to know each other. The structured lecture series was presented this year in order to orient those in attendance toward a life of service to the Lord. Speakers like Bob David· son, Phil Slate and Don Yelton discussed topics ranging from graduate school to God 's work Upon his arrival back in the states, McKinney was appointed assistant professor of Bible and Biblical languages at what was then Harding College. During the last seven years he has been preaching for the church of Christ in Pilot , Ark. He has also worked closely with the Interna · tional Campaigns and the World Evangelism Forum. Perhaps McKinney's effec· tiveness is best seen, however, through the eyes of those he teaches. Last year the language scholar was selected as one of the campus ' distinguished teachers. Frank Barker, a senior rel tgious education major said, "Mr. McKinney 's understanding and use of the Greek inspired me to apply myself to a deeper study of the language. I have a tremendous admiration for the man. Along with his spiritual exercise, McKinney is a dedicated jogger. In 1980 the running en· thusiast legged out 1,350 miles, with 180 of that total coming in one month. "It makes me feel better," said the distance speCialist , of one of his favorite pastimes. On a deeply serious note, McKinney talked about what was most important to him, "We're living in an international age. My goal is for more people to enter the foreign mission fields. It is time we started learn· ing the ancient languages and put them into use for the cause of Christ." Through Abilene, Germany, Switzerland and many other places McKinney has left his mark. Thank goodness Harding has had the joy of meeting this man who has left his mark on the world and a small Christian college in Arkansas. ~ - Jimmy Allen WITH HIS DOG at his side, Jack McKinney eryoys a moment of relax· alion. in Poland. Overall, Cam stated, the year was one of trying new things in order to get more students interested and active in the program. " We wanted to get more comradery or esprit de corps between the Bible majors and the teacher s. I think the Timothy Club proved to be a vital link of fellowship between the students themselves and thei r professors." ~
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc5NA==