THE RATIONALE
There seems to be a missing link between formal theological education and the practice of pastoral work.
When a medical student masters anatomy, biochemistry, or orthopedics, they come under the care of an attending physician in a residency program, in order to learn the art of medical practice. In order to arrive at an applied knowledge. I believe the same should be true in pastoral work.
The art and practice of pastoral ministry must be learned from a seasoned pastoral practitioner so that biblical and theological grounding can learn to be applied in a local church environment. This dot connector seems more important than ever as the complexities of local church ministry are evolving rapidly.
The participants in this cohort are young men desiring to develop toward, or exploring the potential of, church planting or lead pastor ministry in the future. The goal is gather them to have careful and intentional discussion and guided group learning with regard to the heart and soul of pastoral practice.
We want to explore the habitat of ministry (the local church), understand the character and person of the pastor, build a philosophy of pastoral practices necessary to sustain fruitful ministry that lasts, and to strengthen ministry skills.
The goal would be to think together on the basis of assigned readings, group discussions, concept workshopping, and one-on-one guidance from the cohort leader.
The hope would be that the things learned as a part of this cohort could be brought back to the participants’ local churches as the participants work alongside their senior leaders to implement the philosophy and practices shaped by the cohort.
AN OVERVIEW
INTENDED PARTICIPANTS: 1) Young men (see the note below), serving in an associate pastoral role, who desire to prepare and become equipped for next steps in ministry, specifically church planting or lead pastoral work. 2) Young men in formal theological training who desire to hone a sense of call, and exploring the ups and downs of pastoral ministry. 3) Young men serving in a lead pastoral role who want to go back to the basics and gain language, refreshement, and encouragment for the work.
COHORT LEADER: Joel Busby, Lead Pastor, Grace Fellowship and other friends in ministry who will be invited as guests.
FORMAT: Though this is contigent on the geographic location of particpants, the cohort most likely will gather via ZOOM™ for two-hour meetings, for one year, January through December 2021. The time will be divided between prepared talks from Joel and group discussion.
Some prep work will on occasion be required, both before and after the meetings.
DESIRED OUTCOMES: 1) Provide practical discussion related to the nature of local church ministry. To build a “theology of the local church,” and to make connections as to how ministry should take shape in light of this framework. 2) To provide an environment to talk about issues of pastoral character, discipline, and sustainability. 3) To grow in an understanding of ministry philosophy. 4) To develop and share “best practices” with regard to ministry skills (preaching, pastoral care, strategy/vision, leading teams, developing others). 5) For participants to “return” to their local church environments, more ready to love, serve, and support the folks in their care, as well as their senior leaders.
ESTIMATED GROUP SIZE: Between 5 and 10 particpants.
COSTS: $600 fee for the year. The idea is that conference/professional development dollars in your budget, if you have that, could be put toward this effort. However, let me know if cost is prohibitive.
TO APPLY: For more information, or to apply, email me: joel@gracebham.org.
SESSION TOPICS AND SCHEDULE
January : A Good Ecclesiology Will Cover a Multitude of Sins
Pre-work: Write a paragraph summary of your working definition of a church, and a definition of a church’s mission.
February: Pastoral Identity: Who is a Pastor? And What Does a Pastor “Do”?
Pre-work: Selected reading, including the Pastoral Epistles
March: Pastoral Integrity: Self-Awareness, Pastoring as a Human Being, Disqualifying Tendencies, etc.
Pre-work: Self-Awareness Exercise
April: Pastoral Work as Prayer: The Inextricable Length Between Attentiveness to God and Caring for Souls
Pre-work: TBD
May: On Being Formed: Personal Godliness, Spiritual Disciplines, and a Rule for Life
Post-work: Create a Rule for Life
June: Marriage or Singleness and Pastoral Ministry
Pre-work: Come prepared to discuss your biggest struggle in marriage or in singleness, as in pertains to ministry.
July: On Avoiding Total Meltdowns: The Emotional and Physical Health of the Pastor
Pre-work: TBD
August: Forming Others: Thinking Carefully about the Task of Discipleship
Pre-work: Write paragraph summary of a philosophy of discipleship.
September: Ministry Skills: Leading, Loving, Equipping, Training, and Developing a Team
Pre-Work: TBD
October: Ministry Skills: What is Preaching? Process for Prep, Sustaining Weekly Preaching
Pre-work: Come read to discuss your top 3 mess-ups or weaknesses in your preaching
November: Ministry Skills: The Preaching Lab
Pre-work: TBD
December: Ministry Skills: Caring For Souls and the Underrated Act of Pastoral Listening
Pre-work: TBD
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Why “young men”?
Though the tradition in which I serve reserves the office of elder/pastor for men only, I believe strongly that women should be equipped to serve churches in a variety of ways. However, for this experience, I hope to help young men in particular. As a man, I believe I have some unique ways that I can challenge young men to think about their masculinity and its bearings on how they approach pastoral work.