It’s hard to imagine any church board meeting in the next couple of weeks in which we don’t discuss handshakes or hand sanitizers. Or how to visit the most vulnerable members of our congregations. Or how the peace can be passed without human contact. Or...
Recently, Stacy Williams-Duncan of the University of Virginia (Wahoowa!), addressed ministry leaders on the topic of digital culture. Among a score of important insights, one sentence stood out: “Sharing on social media is not the same as curating information for your audience.” It may be rare...
A friend who sometimes calls herself a ‘serial parishioner’ tells the story of visiting churches in her midwestern community some years ago. I went to the United Church of Christ for several months. When I expressed interest in joining, the pastor replied: We’re so glad you’re...
Pastors and church leaders are quick to assert that they are not in competition with other churches. But most will admit that, while they aren’t trying to compete, they do feel pressure to “keep up.” This leads to many spiritual ailments: distraction, envy, disappointment, and—most...
Where does imagination enter into our work? How do we learn to see new possibilities in the resources available to our congregation? Who teaches us how to imagine our church life together? What possibilities do they help us to see? We think these are great questions...
In church life, January--not April--can seem like the cruelest month. All the routine meetings, tasks, and assignments that everyone deferred in December land back on the calendar with a thud. And there are budgets to finalize, and often congregational annual meetings, and sometimes new board...
Most of us learned a certain way of doing chores: we were told to get through with all the “compulsory things” and then we would be “rewarded “ with something fun or meaningful. First the mundane, then the meaningful. I think we’ve imported this approach into ministry. ...
As we conclude the year, we are appreciative of all the comments, ideas, and suggestions you have offered in response to these posts. We are always eager to hear from you with suggestions of topics to explore. Just let us know here if you have...
Ah, Advent! Well, certainly in church, you will hear congregational leaders saying, with at least a little exasperation, “Ah, December!” What a month! Crowded calendars, last minute financial asks, special programs and everything else. It is unlikely that the First Century gospel writers could have imagined one...
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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