Dr. Earl Lavender

Director of Missions and Professor in the College of Bible and Ministry, Lipscomb University

Prior Education:

David Lipscomb University (B.A., M.A.)
St. Louis University (Ph.D.)

Earl Lavender was born to missionary parents in Trieste, Italy on July 15, 1954. 

He earned undergraduate degrees from Ohio Valley College and David Lipscomb College.  He is married to the former Rebecca Nance of Nashville, Tennessee.  They have three grown and happily married children, Rachel, Beth, and David. They were blessed with their first grandchild (Nora) on April 22 of last year. Rebecca and Lavender have planted churches in Italy (1978-1984) and Illinois (1986-1990).

Lavender has an M.A. in Biblical Studies from Lipscomb, and a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Saint Louis University (1991). He has taught at Lipscomb University since 1990 and for the past ten years has served as Director of Missional Studies and a professor in the College of Bible and Ministry. He is adjunct professor for the graduate school of theology of Abilene Christian University.  He has served as a visiting professor at Pepperdine and Oklahoma Christian University. As director of missions and missional studies at Lipscomb, he has been involved in mission and education efforts throughout Europe, as well as in Australia, India, Africa and China. He has just returned from a lecture and teaching tour in Italy and Accra, Ghana.

Lavender has authored numerous books and published articles, including entries in The Encyclopedia of Lavendery Christianity (Everett Ferguson, ed., Garland).  In 2004 he co-authored Living God’s Love: an Invitation to Christian Spirituality with Gary Holloway.  This spring he, along with Holloway and Leafwood Publishers completed a meditative commentary series on the New Testament.  Lavender’s commentaries on Mark, Luke and Acts, and 1 and 2 Corinthians, and Paul’s Prison Epistles are now available.  He is currently working on several new writing projects concerning living daily in God’s redemptive story for the world.

You may reach Dr. Lavender at earl.lavender@lipscomb.edu or 615-966-5384.