The Ministry Collaborative Podcast: Highlights from Our First Year
Program Director Adam Borneman speaks with the Rev. Kathy Escobar (The Refuge, Broomfield, CO) about holding space for faith deconstruction, her passion for cultivating community, and navigating vocational discernment within existing systems....
The Ministry Collaborative program staff (Jennifer Watley Maxell, Ryan Bonfiglio, Mark Ramsey, Adam Borneman, and Adam Mixon) talk about remaining curious, the recurring nature of call, and the false dichotomy of "stay or go"....
A multitude of wise counselors. There are so many fascinating trends in our culture that have been accelerated by the pandemic. The one that most concerns me is the growing epidemic of isolation and loneliness. Pew, Gallup, Barna, Cigna, Harvard, and everyone else who has been...
We’ve been talking a lot the past few weeks about “what’s at stake.” As a reminder, here are some things not at stake. God’s steadfast love and faithfulness. That you are fearfully and wonderfully made. The long arc of God’s perfect justice. The soul’s longing for truth, goodness, and beauty. That...
Program Director Adam Borneman speaks with the Rev. Rob Dyer (First United Presbyterian, Belleville, Illinois; Ministry Architects) about the Christian equivalent of viral, the narratives we tell ourselves, and why people are not coming back. Rob's blog post was originally published here....
Program Director Adam Borneman and Program Curator Jennifer Watley Maxell speak with the Rev. Brady Radford (Trinity Presbyterian, Decatur; Lovewell Collective) about resilience, resets, and the strengthening power of community....
Program Director Adam Borneman speaks with Jennifer Pharr Davis (Blue Ridge Hiking Company) about resilience, her record breaking hikes, ecological stewardship, and the importance of recovering on the move....
“Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again.” Yeah, right. There’s been no shortage of ink spilled, thoughts spent, and lectures given over the course of the pandemic on how we can all be more “resilient.” That’s all fine and good. I’ve needed those reminders...
In part two of this conversation, Program Director Adam Borneman speaks with the Revs. Amy Starr Redwine (First Presbyterian, Richmond, VA), Susan Rogers (The Well at Springfield, Jacksonville, FL), and Kjell Ferris (Peace Lutheran, Plymouth, MN) about their recent sprint cohort experience; truth telling and...
”
I was the Facilitator for the first New York City cohort, and at the time, I was working in theological education on Christian leadership formation, so it seemed like a natural fit. What I discovered, though, was something quite different from my “day job.” While the content and topics of the curriculum was a crucial part of our gatherings, it was the community of mutual care and support that made the content relevant, not the other way around. And second, having three years of strong bonding created an extraordinarily resilient community that, in turn, was able to build up resilience in our leaders. I think every member of my cohort went through significant seasons of both joy and heartache, professionally and vocationally, during our time. And the cohort, in turn, lived out the exhortation of Romans 12:15, “rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep,” with a depth and integrity that I have rarely experienced, and often doing both in the same gathering. It was a privilege and a blessing to me and my own faith and ministry to be their facilitator, and I am eternally grateful to the Ministry Collaborative for calling me to that work!”
“It was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. It was unique to my particular situation. It was needed, appreciated and healing. It was affirming. Most valuable was the unspoken understanding of what we all were facing in our ministry context. There was a sense that we could finish each other’s sentences. Solidarity and empathy.”
Graduation Date:
May 23, 2021
“It was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. It was unique to my particular situation. It was needed, appreciated and healing. It was affirming. Most valuable was the unspoken understanding of what we all were facing in our ministry context. There was a sense that we could finish each other’s sentences. Solidarity and empathy.”
Graduation Date:
May 23, 2021
“I truly looked forward to this every week. The discussion topics, activities, and small group conversations were all very rich and meaningful. This experience gave me space to reflect on what’s happening right now in my congregation and community. It helped me to think about what might be next in my own ministry. It offered some very concrete ways I might work on equipping leaders in my congregation. I really enjoyed meeting colleagues from different places, denominations, and contexts–and learning from their experiences and reflections. I also appreciated hearing further conversation and reinforcement in the podcasts.”
Graduation Date:
July 14, 2021
“The experience was, in one word, enriching. It was timely as well. I was at a critical point in my own ministry and this literally breathed life back into me. The time went by so fast that I didn’t even realize two months had passed. To be able to share that type of camaraderie with other preachers, and realize that my struggles are not isolated, was liberating.”
Graduation Date:
March 18, 2021
“It was great to find confirmation and affirmation of my ministry through the voices of other pastors. I particularly enjoyed the focused time on talking about each of us as individuals and pastors, and not so much on what our churches look like.”
Graduation Date:
January 31st, 2020