Moving Ministry Leaders from knowledge to Action
We’re living out our calling to ministry in a time of rapid change. We know we need to be nimble, but how do we keep up with new realities and put the latest research into action? Bridging the gap between learning and action is what Vibrant Faith MasterClasses are all about.
Over the course of two 90-minute interactive online sessions, MasterClass Instructors distill new learnings into training experiences that make it easy for participants like you to learn, practice, and use new tools to fuel ministry reinvention.
What You Gain from a MasterClass:
- New paradigm-shifting insights into a topic.
- A clear path to implement what you’re learning, with a toolkit of action steps
- Renewed energy and momentum for ministry reinvention
- New colleagues in ministry who share your same concerns and are driven by your same hopes.
Our Course Catalog
Are you a ministry leader who is concerned about the mental, emotional, or spiritual health of your congregants? Do you often hear from anxious parents and grandparents in your church, and wonder how you might offer more meaningful spiritual support to the individuals and families impacted by the rapid pace of change and the overwhelming complexities of life and faith in this digital age? If so, this is the right course for you! Together, we will survey the riches of the Christian liturgical tradition, exploring how these time-tested practices can promote spiritual grit and emotional stability today, especially for congregants who describe the current cultural climate as chaotic, disorienting, or dreadful. This highly interactive course will introduce you to a wide range of theologically faithful, trauma-informed, and ecumenically-sourced liturgical resources, equipping you with the ancient spiritual rhythms and contemporary faith practices you will need to build resilience in the hearts and minds of your congregants. You will also learn how to adapt existing liturgies for your local context, cooperating with the Spirit as you invite your people to cultivate clarity, challenge complacency, call forth courage, and convey the compassion and comfort of Christ.
Most people feel like they don’t know how to engage another person’s story well. They feel inept, clumsy, overwhelmed, and/or they don’t know what to say and what not to say.
This online training will provide an introduction to the art and science of StoryWork. The good news is that engaging another person’s story is a skill that can be learned. It is not a magical ability that some people have and some people don’t. There are certain principles that apply—principles that can be learned—that’s the science part. And then there are techniques that need to be caught by watching others do it—that’s the art part. In this training, I will teach the principles and techniques of effective story engagement. In Session 2 of this course, Dr. Nancy Going and Rick Lawrence will lead participants through a hands-on process for embedding StoryWork in your congregation.
Age segregation in society has been widely researched and shown to have a significant impact on our general communal wellbeing. Applying this research to churches has been challenging, due to the scope and scale of the sociological work. A recent case study of ten multi-denominational churches applied the research through the lens of four constructs of age segregation. The results offer us an opportunity to identify parallel structures that hinder or heighten age integration. The impact that connecting generations in relationships has on spiritual formation and generational discipleship has practical and timely insights for churches today. Join me for this two-session MasterClass as we explore practical ways to plant new approaches to intergenerational ministry in your church.
Meet Our Instructors
Rev. Dr. Mark Slaughter
Rev. Dr. Mark Slaughter serves as the Minister of Worship Arts at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Burnsville, MN. Before moving to Minnesota, he served as the Minister of Music and Worship at First Baptist Church in Owensboro, Kentucky. He has also served in churches in Virginia and Tennessee. In addition to his 35+ years of ministry, he received a Doctor of Ministry from Fuller Theological Seminary, Master of Divinity and Church Music from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Bachelor of Music from Belmont University. Mark is a “calculated adventurist” who loves to have his eyes wide open and his mind filled with new experiences. Mary Jo (Jody) Slaughter has been his partner in most of these adventures, and his wife for 32 years. They have two young-adult children, Wesley and Mary Katherine.
Adam Young
Adam Young is a therapist who focuses on trauma and abuse. He’s the host of popular podcast The Place We Find Ourselves. He lives in Fort Collins, Colorado, with his wife Caroline and two children, a daughter (15) and a son (12). Adam is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) with a Master’s degree in Social Work (Virginia Commonwealth University) and Divinity (Emory University). He is also certified in EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). Adam is an Allender Center Fellow, and enjoys mountain biking, skiing, soccer, and windsurfing.
Christina Embree
Christina Embree is the founder and director of ReFocus Ministry. She holds a doctorate in spiritual formation with a focus on age segregation and intergenerational ministry and a Masters degree in ministry focused on Children, Youth, and Family Ministry. In addition to coaching churches of multiple denominations and traditions all around the globe, Christina serves as the Minister of Generational Discipleship for the Great Lakes Conference of the Brethren in Christ and as Next Gen pastor at Open Door Church in Lexington, Kentucky. She is widely recognized as a speaker and author in the areas of generational discipleship, intergenerational ministry, and family ministry. As the mother of three, she is familiar with the challenges of faith at home and pastoral ministry. She, along with her husband Luke, share a love for the church, their community, and the global work of peace and restoration through Jesus.