Tag Archives: ministers

Pakistan: Educators Celebrate Pastors, Invest in Leadership Development

Posted on December 2, 2019 by | Comments Off on Pakistan: Educators Celebrate Pastors, Invest in Leadership Development

Dr. MaryAnn Hawkins teaches in Pakistan.

By Carl Stagner

Earlier this year, we brought you the story of “Facebook Seminary”—an innovative, online approach to providing quality education to pastors-in-training in Pakistan. Every Saturday evening during their semester, they gather around a screen to learn under the teaching of Anderson University adjunct professor, Dr. Sarah Blake LaRose. The George Theological College in Karachi, Pakistan, originally hoped that a theological professor from the United States could actually come and teach for at least a year, but the costs were prohibitive. Thus, the Facebook idea was born. Sarah has now taught the Pakistani students for three semesters using the free video option of Facebook Messenger. Continue reading →

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Pastors Help Pastors Reach New Heights of Wholeness, Wellness

Posted on October 2, 2019 by | Comments Off on Pastors Help Pastors Reach New Heights of Wholeness, Wellness

Tom Pelt and Jonathan Absher hiking in Colorado.

By Carl Stagner

At 14,000 feet, the views are breathtaking, but so is the air. Lower levels of oxygen—considered “thin” air—combined with unpredictable weather and potentially hazardous trail conditions, can pose health risks, at minimum, to even the most avid athlete. Hiking alone is not recommended at such altitudes, though many insist on doing so. Church of God pastors Tom Pelt and Jonathan Absher have reveled in the mountaintop experience among Colorado’s highest peaks and have recognized the vivid parallels to ministry. In an effort to see pastors minister at their peak, they’ve championed the holistic health vital to the daily climb. Without reinventing the wheel, but with intentionality and a genuine love for fellow pastors, they’ve taken specific strides in recent years to come alongside pastors, pull them out of isolation into community, and help them reach new heights of wholeness and wellness. Continue reading →

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Pastor Appreciation Month: Fifty Creative Ways to Bless Your Pastor

Posted on October 1, 2019 by | Comments Off on Pastor Appreciation Month: Fifty Creative Ways to Bless Your Pastor

By Brian Kluth

Across America and the world, pastors and church staff members faithfully serve and love their congregations. Many pastors and staff members have followed God’s call on their lives to serve the Lord and their churches, regardless of the sacrifices they make. National research shows that most pastors are operating with limited financial resources to meet their families’ current and long-term needs. Fortunately, God is bigger than church paychecks and has many ways he can provide for his shepherds and workers through the generosity of God’s faithful people this Pastor Appreciation Month and throughout the year. Continue reading →

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Pastor Appreciation Month: Church Boards That Bless Their Pastors

Posted on September 16, 2019 by | Comments Off on Pastor Appreciation Month: Church Boards That Bless Their Pastors

Plan now to Bless Your Pastor this October for Pastor Appreciation Month!

By Brian Kluth

Most pastors have advanced degrees and work fifty to seventy hours each week caring for their congregations, but most Christians are not aware that their pastors and church staffs may not be paid well. A pastor’s week is filled with early morning meetings, office hours, visitations, counseling, sermon preparation and prayer, evening committee meetings, and weekend worship services. Yet research shows the majority of pastors make less than $50,000 per year and do not receive health insurance benefits or retirement contributions from their churches. Just in time for Pastor Appreciation Month (October), here’s a list of seven things church boards and congregations can do to make sure their pastors and church staffs are properly cared for, loved, and blessed. Continue reading →

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Convention 2019 TED Talk Format Speakers Speak Out

Posted on April 5, 2019 by | Comments Off on Convention 2019 TED Talk Format Speakers Speak Out

Clockwise from upper left: Matt Anderson, Allyson Smith, Jake Zaske, Erin Taylor

By Carl Stagner

The Friday night session of Church of God Convention 2019 & General Assembly is slated to be something very different than the Movement has ever seen. Weaved into an interactive worship experience led by Josh Edington, a TED Talk-style format will give four of the brightest and best younger ministers in the Church of God the opportunity to address the gathering in brief, but engaging conversation. Allyson Smith (Community Church of God, Atlanta, Georgia), Matt Anderson (McDowell Mountain Community Church, Scottsdale, Arizona), Erin Taylor (First Church of God, Alma, Michigan), and Jake Zaske (Indian Creek Community Church, Olathe, Kansas) are looking forward to participating in an evening designed to challenge pastors and lay leaders to breathe, speak, and give life to their churches and communities. In an interview with Church of God Ministries (CGM), each one offers an introduction of who they are and why they’re anticipating Orlando. Continue reading →

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Congregations Take Advantage of Free Tax Resources

Posted on January 24, 2019 by | Comments Off on Congregations Take Advantage of Free Tax Resources

New e-books offered through ChurchEXCEL.

By Carl Stagner

In case you haven’t been following the news, a variety of changes to tax law in the United States went into effect last year. The resulting impact on Church of God ministers and congregations must not be ignored. Pastor, are you aware of how the legislation effects minister’s taxes? Has your church accountant considered the tax law changes and what they mean for IRS reporting? Thanks to Church of God Ministries’ partnership with ECFA through ChurchEXCEL, Church of God congregations are already taking advantage of online access to everything you need to know about minister’s taxes and church reporting—absolutely free. Continue reading →

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Eight Simple Ways to Express Appreciation for Your Pastor

Posted on October 12, 2016 by | Comments Off on Eight Simple Ways to Express Appreciation for Your Pastor

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Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. —1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 (NIV)

In October we take time out every year to say thank you to our pastors for the hard work and dedication they show their churches and congregations throughout the year. What does your church have planned for your pastor(s) this year? Here are a few simple ways you and your church can show them your appreciation. Continue reading →

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Virginia Takes Steps to Address Pastoral Health and Excellence

Posted on June 16, 2016 by | Comments Off on Virginia Takes Steps to Address Pastoral Health and Excellence

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By Carl Stagner

Pastors, you are not alone. Across the country, in your state, and likely even in your community there are other men and women called to preach the gospel just like you. They spend countless hours in study, sermon prep, visitation, counseling, event planning, fundraising, and cleaning the bathrooms, too. Like you, they shepherd a flock with its beauty and its imperfections. So why do so many pastors go it alone? In the Church of God, state assemblies and regions have discovered the power of SHAPE—Sustaining Health and Pastoral Excellence—to bring pastors together in fellowship, networking, and accountability. About twenty state or regional assemblies have been encouraged by the impact of SHAPE on their pastors and, by extension, their congregations. Now SHAPE is on the move, and its destination is Virginia. Continue reading →

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Women in Leadership: Practicing Our Theology

Posted on February 2, 2016 by | Comments Off on Women in Leadership: Practicing Our Theology
Photo: Four of our outstanding women pastors, (clockwise from upper-left) Shannon New-Spangler, Cheryl Sanders, Melissa Pratt, and Donna Rothenberger.

Photo: Four of our outstanding women pastors, (clockwise from upper-left) Shannon New-Spangler, Cheryl Sanders, Melissa Pratt, and Donna Rothenberger.

By Doug Talley

I remember the gender wars of elementary school. As kids looking for validation of our worth, we guys would declare that we were the superior gender and, of course, the girls would make the same claim. We’d argue back and forth, but I don’t remember anyone ever winning. The arguments led to tension, but not to resolution. By the time we got into middle school or high school, we readily abandoned those arguments. But that doesn’t mean that gender bias went away. Continue reading →

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Leadership Focus: Taking Credentialing (and Leaders!) to New Heights

Posted on November 19, 2015 by | Comments Off on Leadership Focus: Taking Credentialing (and Leaders!) to New Heights

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By Carl Stagner

Credentialing ministers in the Church of God is nothing new. The Church of God has always championed developing leaders and pastors. Over the years, however, it has become increasingly difficult to get the most out of credentialing systems that were adopted more than fifty years ago. Sure, many have been updated here and there, but when three states came together and said, “We can do better together,” they effectively launched an initiative that would revolutionize credentialing in the Church of God. Continue reading →

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CHOG Convention 2015: Retired Ministers, Spouses Offered Reduced Registration

Posted on April 13, 2015 by | Comments Off on CHOG Convention 2015: Retired Ministers, Spouses Offered Reduced Registration

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By Carl Stagner

Decades of faithful service to the kingdom of God have not been forgotten. For thousands of pastors across the movement, blessings realized today have only been made possible because of those who paved the way before them. Though no one could ever thank our retired ministers enough for their commitment to the Church of God, one simple gesture of appreciation has just been announced. Church of God Ministries is pleased to offer a reduced registration rate for retired ministers and their spouses until June 15. All you need to do is call Church of God Ministries at 800-848-2464, and ask for your retired minister registration rate! Continue reading →

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UPDATE: Church of God Yearbook

Posted on April 2, 2015 by | Comments Off on UPDATE: Church of God Yearbook

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WHY A YEARBOOK?

• For more than one hundred years, it’s been one of the key connections in the ministry life of the Church of God.

• It provides mission-critical information for our church body: how we are organized and where we can go for answers, assistance, and direction.

• It tells a story: about who we are as a fellowship and about the partnerships that unite us in ministry. Continue reading →

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SHAPE Expands to Jamaica

Posted on January 5, 2015 by | Comments Off on SHAPE Expands to Jamaica

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By Paul Dreger

The first SHAPE training outside of the United States and Canada took place November 6–8, 2014, in Kingston, Jamaica, as nine pastors from across the country gathered for three days of intensive training as SHAPE cluster leaders. Gathering at the United Church Center Conference and Retreat Center in Meadowbrook, the group spent long days in relationship building, being introduced to the core values of SHAPE, and experiencing the SHAPE journey. Continue reading →

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Church and Minister Registration 2015: Patience and Grace Requested

Posted on November 3, 2014 by | Comments Off on Church and Minister Registration 2015: Patience and Grace Requested

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By Bob Moss

At Church of God Ministries, we are mindful that there have been some frustrations with minister and church registrations this year. Perhaps the following words will give needed perspective:

In 1965 my parents took our family on a big adventure. We left Warren, Ohio, in our new Ford station wagon with a pop-up tent camper in tow. Our destination was California via Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone Park, and other sites of interest.   Continue reading →

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Jesus—the Subject at Pastors’ Fellowship 2014

Posted on May 16, 2014 by | Comments Off on Jesus—the Subject at Pastors’ Fellowship 2014
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Photo: A choir leads in worship at Pastors’ Fellowship 2014 at First Church of God in Winchester, Kentucky.

By Carl Stagner

Jesus—Savior and Lord. The way, the truth, and the life. The apostle Paul describes Jesus as the one by whom all things were made and for whom all things were made (Col 1:16). On May 5 and 6, Jesus was the subject through the preaching, teaching, worship, and fellowship at the annual meeting of the Pastors’ Fellowship at First Church of God in Winchester, Kentucky. Their theme clearly illustrated this focus on the author and finisher of our faith (Heb 12:2 NKJV): “When Jesus Does the Preaching.” As they have for forty years, Church of God pastors from near and far met to encourage one another and once again emphasize the theology and doctrine of the Church of God, at which Jesus is the center. Continue reading →

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