The Ministry Collaborative Podcast: Highlights from Our First Year
Or…does it change why and how we do it? Does following Jesus change the “Christian segment” of our life or…could it change EVERYTHING? The Twentieth Century Theologian and Author, C. S. Lewis, once observed that believing in Jesus Christ did not change what we do, but...
I’m a Presbyterian so it pretty much goes without saying that I am not one to foist my religion on anyone else. Even so, about six years ago following a challenge by my friend Reggie McNeal, I started praying for people in public places. For...
Our first MM Quarterly Newsletter features Pastors for Texas Children (PTC), a ministry that lends a helping hand to children all over the state of Texas. PTC grew out of the Macedonian Ministry Dallas-Fort Worth Cohort that began meeting in January of 2013, under the...
What is the purpose of prayer? Is it to change God's mind? Is it to get what we want? Or...
During my Father’s career in the airline industry, I learned that there is a regulatory agency that mandates the number of hours per month that a pilot can fly a plane. The Federal Aviation Agency believes that pilots carry such responsibility that they must be...
We shine a spotlight on the wonderful success of our cohort group in Los Angeles, CA. The Stadia LA cohort is a diverse group of 20 Los Angeles area pastors committed to a mission of church planting, with the bold long-term goal of starting a...
In the baptism/confirmation liturgy from my tradition, the confirmand is asked two questions. The first is, “Do you turn from the ways of sin, renouncing evil and its power in the world? And the second is, “Do you turn to Jesus Christ and accept him...
How can we spark a fire to bring hope to our community? Rev. Dr. Sue Westfall shares on story of hope that brought about transformational change in the most unlikely of places....
In a very dark world characterized by terrorism, violence, and fear, Rev. Dr. Tom Tewell offers a word of hope about the inextinguishable flicker of God's light that no darkness can ever overcome. The Inextinguishable Flicker from Macedonian Ministry on Vimeo....
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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