Fellowship Center for Ministry Development to strengthen churches by strengthening clergy

Fellowship Southwest has launched a new initiative to strengthen churches by helping them discover, train and nurture ministers.

The Fellowship Center for Ministry Development provides a focused response to a growing need among congregations throughout the region, announced Fellowship Southwest Coordinator Marv Knox.

“As much as any other factor, our ability to develop vocational ministers will shape the future of congregations and their communities across the American Southwest,” Knox said. 

Stakeholders in ministry preparation have collaborated throughout the past year, pondering needs, considering options for meeting those needs, and praying for wisdom to approach those needs and resources to meet them, he added. 

The group heard clear and compelling requests for assistance, he said. Churches want to help members discover their call to ministry, need leaders who are well-prepared, and know their leaders must be nurtured in order to remain effective.

The group developed the Fellowship Center for Ministry Development. It encompasses  three major endeavors to support ministry development, including:

• Discovering the Path, or ministerial calling

• Learning to Serve, or theological education

• Nurturing in Ministry, or ongoing clergy support

“All three of these aspects of ministry development are vital,” Knox stressed. “Churches face a bleak future if we fail to help ‘call out the called’ and point gifted students and young adults toward vocational ministry. 

“But to be successful, they must be well-trained and prepared for service, fully equipped to minister in their context. And immersing them in nurturing contexts is mandatory to thwart burnout and to equip them—and their churches—to thrive.”

The planning group developed goals and objectives for each area of focus:

Discovering the Path

The goal is to prepare followers of Christ to listen for and respond to God’s calling upon their lives.

Objectives of discovering include:

• Encourage churches to create an environment where individuals may hear God’s calling upon their lives.

• Provide resources to enable churches to guide members to hear and respond to God’s calling, giving special attention to children, youth and young adults as they discern vocational opportunities.

• Offer support for congregations as they respond to members who sense God leading them to serve churches and/or other religious organizations.

Learning to Serve

This emphasis focuses on theological education. The learning goal is to provide opportunities for individuals who are exploring vocational ministry, enabling them to prepare for service in and through the church and Christian organizations.

Objectives include:

• Provide contextualized graduate theological education for Baptist students who are entering vocational ministry.

• Train Baptists to minister as clergy and lay leaders in a noncredit context, designed for students who are not able to pursue for-credit theological education.

• Create opportunities that enable ministry students to make connections and engage with Baptist communities and resources. 

Nurturing in Ministry

The goal of nurturing clergy is to provide mentoring and peer support, especially for ministers in the first decade of their careers. And as far as possible, to provide ongoing nurture for clergy throughout their careers.

Objectives include:

• Collaborate with CBF and regional partners to provide access to existing mentoring, peer-learning and other vocational development programs. 

• Expand programs across the Southwest, so that every minister who desires support has access to a community of nurture—if not in-person, then virtually.

• Shape these communities for various contexts and cultures.

• Empower congregations to offer pastoral residency programs, enabling participants to receive in-depth, ongoing training, nurture and encouragement from experienced clergy and lay leaders committed to ministry formation and development.

• Create programs that enable recently graduated seminarians to “buy down” student debt by staying in place in participating congregations, for which those congregations would pay off prorated shares of the loans.

For more information about the Fellowship Center for Ministry Development, contact Knox at marv@fellowshipsouthwest.org.