By Brian Foreman
The ways that churches look for ministers and ministers look for churches have dramatically changed in the last 10 years. The
matching services that once proved useful at state and national levels, the classified ads in various publications and a greater number of seminary and divinity school graduates have all shifted. Are the tools and the graduates still there? Certainly—but the usefulness of these tools is lessened by the shrinking number of enrollees, graduates or graduates without an interest in congregational ministry.
Called in Context provides congregations and communities with stories of vibrant ministries discovered when churches look within—at the gifts of their own members or at individuals within their communities who have a non-traditional calling to ministry.
The relational piece of ministry is, and always has been, where lives are impacted. Multi-vocational ministers are becoming more prevalent and are committing to their communities. Faith formation in young people is a primary value of Christian Educators. It happens through rooted relationships, not programs.
The cost of turnover in these leadership spaces is high—not just the financial cost, but also the formation costs. No teenager should have three, four or five youth ministers during their time in school. These critical relationships take time to nurture, and noticing the call of someone already in your midst might provide the long-term relational stability your young people need.
Called in Context is a commitment to noticing, naming and nurturing calling within your congregation. These stories and resources encourage a culture of calling, beginning with those already in your congregation.
God has not stopped calling people. We have a responsibility to notice, name, and nurture those calls in others, without fear or embarrassment. These three keys to calling are central to Called in Context.
Notice
Every Christian is called to be the presence of Christ in the world. How we live that out is as unique as each child of God. Pathways to understand ministerial call are critical. Just as important are pathways to understand how God calls us to live our faith through our vocations in other fields and stations of life.
Name
Very rarely is there a story of someone who accepted a call to ministry that does not involve someone else noticing and naming the calling in them. God is still calling each of us, and we would do well to notice and name those calls in one another—whether it be to congregational ministry, a life of advocacy or a person in the field.
Nurture
Nurture is about intentionality, accompaniment and discipleship. This is a critical piece for responding to a calling. A nurturing intent spurs discovery and clarity around one’s call.
Expanding Our Imagination of Calling
Not everyone comes to vocational ministry in the same way. It is safe to say that there has never been a single throughway, but as congregations seek to fill ministry staff positions, there needs to be recognition and expansion of how this can happen.
Theological education experiences look different for every generation of minister in the church today. Some had fully in-person seminary experiences while others are experiencing it fully online. I suspect Kathy Pickett is a rarity in that her story is of becoming a grandmother before becoming a pastor. Her story reminds us that God calls people in such a variety of ways. Often, if we miss those calls, it is more a product of our own limited imagination compared to that of the Creator of the Universe who does the calling.
To notice someone’s calling means our antennae need to be attuned to seeking what God might be doing in the lives of those around us. For Dr. Telika McCoy, it came from her pastor, despite her well-designed intentions. Dr. McCoy went the traditional route of theological education, but to work in higher education, not congregational ministry. Her pastor, however, sensed a different call might be present. Today she is thriving in congregational ministry.
While Dr. McCoy’s pastor noticed her calling, the congregation at First Baptist Memphis were the ones who noticed and named the call they sensed in one of their own. Holly Hatton grew up in the church. She was an educator by trade. When the need for a minister with youth and children presented itself, the congregation asked her to lead the work as a volunteer placeholder. It didn’t take them long to realize she was not a stopgap but rather that she was called. The community named it and affirmed it in her.
When it comes to nurturing a calling in someone, the leaders of Second Story at First Baptist Columbus did just that with a young man in their midst who was clearly gifted to be the next leader of the ministry. Nico Moyer had all the gifts, even if he did not know it yet. But as the church looked for the next leader, they knew he did, and they nurtured that calling. Today he is discipling a new generation of students—and who knows, he might be nurturing a next generation of congregational leaders.
It is a sense of mutual investment that we need to attend to as it relates to calling, and particularly in this instance, equipping those who arrive to ministry in non-traditional ways. Emmanuel Baptist in Alexandria, LA, has several ministers on staff who were members first. They have other careers, and they are passionate about the ministries they lead at Emmanuel. While their gifts and interests aligned with the ministry of the church, the church also knew it needed to invest in them as they expanded their professional lives to include leadership in the church.
These videos will hopefully inspire and broaden your congregation’s sense of where ministerial leaders may exist in your midst. They also call us to notice, name and nurture the callings of people of all ages in our faith communities. What might God be calling you to do in response?
Rev. Dr. Brian Foreman is Coordinator of Congregational Ministries for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. Connect with him at bforeman@cbf.net.