3 Minute Ministry Mentor

How can a writing community support the creative work of developing a book? How can we approach writing in a sustainable and wholehearted way? Rev. Callie Swanlund talks with Eileen Campbell-Reed about how writing in community worked for her, and some key practices she used in writing her most recent book.  Swanlund's new book is called From Weary to Wholehearted: A Restorative Resource for Overcoming Clergy Burnout.  Swanlund is a regular at The Writing Table. Find out more about this writing community, here.  Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor :  https://3mmm.us/welcome  Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day."    #clergywomen #writingcommunity #writinglife #clergylife #clergymama #youngclergywomeninternational #pastoralimagination 

What does it mean to live into ministry in a sustainable and wholehearted way? Here are two big keys needed for unlocking ministry that is sustainable. Rev. Callie Swanlund. talks with Eileen Campbell-Reed about what burnout can look like and what it means to live into a sustainable and wholehearted ministry. Swanlund's new book is called From Weary to Wholehearted: A Restorative Resource for Overcoming Clergy Burnout. This book is her “love letter” to clergy and church leaders who are facing isolation, exhaustion, and burnout.  Swanlund is a regular at The Writing Table. Find out more about this writing community, here. Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor :  https://3mmm.us/welcome  Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day" and Pixabay for "Calm Night Piano Music."    #clergywomen #clergylife #clergymama #youngclergywomeninternational #pastoralimagination #baptistwomeninministry #Baptistlife #cooperativeBaptists #ordinationblessing #ordinationforimpossibletimes 

Remembering her ordination is necessarily tied up with stories, Eileen Campbell-Reed tells us. It means tending to the legacies of love that nurtured a calling, and being intentional about the ways we might carry out that legacy in these impossible times.  Have a listen to this story of ordination, and consider what following a calling means. This story of celebration and remembrance is also a day of celebration for the thousands of women ordained to ministry. It is also a lament for the thousands who might be called and yet do not (or will not) know the blessing of ordination because their denomination or their church does not recognize their gifts and calling. Many occasions for vocational loss, and grief. Even when all the best circumstances and context and the Spirit come together for an ordination, we are still living in what feel like impossible times to serve God, the church, and a beautiful and broken world. Take courage friends. The world needs your gifts. Now more than ever.   To encourage you, take a look at this blessing, Ordination for Impossible Times. Download a copy for yourself or a ministry friend: 3mmm.us/episode233 Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor :  https://3mmm.us/welcome  Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day" and Pixabay for "Calm Night Piano Music." Thank you to Anastasia Ker for the music “Be Thou My Vision"    #clergywomen #clergylife #clergymama #youngclergywomeninternational #pastoralimagination #baptistwomeninministry #Baptistlife #cooperativeBaptists #ordinationblessing #ordinationforimpossibletimes 

Imagine advocating for a place where women and lgbtiqa+ people preach and lead most Sundays. A place where seminary students seek to learn from wise pastors. Where every age person from youngest to eldest has a place and a role in the ministry, education, and worship of the congregation. Eileen Campbell-Reed offers 10 questions to inspire our #pastoralimagination to advocating for women. Have a look at more questions for better advocacy, here.  For more ways to advocate for women in ministry, have a look at the work of Baptist Women in Ministry, here.     Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor :  https://3mmm.us/welcome  Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day" and Pixabay for "Calm Night Piano Music"   #ministrywithchildren #kidmin #childrensministerpodcast #childrensdefensefund #clergywomen #clergylife #clergymama #youngclergywomeninternational #pastoralimagination #baptistwomeninministry     

Whatever ministry we are considering, it is profoundly important that we ask the children. After we ask them, we must listen. Eileen Campbell-Reed discusses her recent experience in a cohort to prioritize the well-being of children. The Children's Defense Fund shaped this thriving congregations cohort to recalibrate our ministries by listening to young people. Rev. Dr. Starsky Wilson, president and chief executive of CDF is asking us to prioritize the dignity, hope and joy of children in all our work. He is asking us to participate in “unleashing the joy of growing up.”   How do we begin unleashing that joy? Here are 12 questions to ask the children in our ministry settings.      Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor :  https://3mmm.us/welcome  Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day" and Pixabay for "Calm Night Piano Music"     #ministrywithchildren #kidmin #childrensministerpodcast #childrensdefensefund #hopeforchristianeducation #christianeducation #clergylife #clergymama #youngclergywomeninternational #pastoralimagination   

You who are called by God. We know you have heard it. Someone saying surely you misheard. That you don't know what you are doing. You see the problems in the Church and the world, and you are ready with thoughtful and creative ways forward. They may say you are too young. Too old. Too busy raising children. Or too single. Too ambitious. Driven. Too distracted. Too much. They miss out on seeing you. The full you. The person God is calling to this work. This episode offers encouragement and a blessing for those days when you remember your calling. Learn more, here.  Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor :  https://3mmm.us/welcome  Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”      #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #youngclergywomen #baptistwomeninministry #BWIM #youngclergywomeninternational #lgbtqclergy #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #baptizedandordained #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #mentalwellness #TheologyThursday #selfcompassionpractices #LGBTQclergy  #mentalwellnessformen #mentalwellnessforwomen  #mentalhealthinthechurch #calledtoministry #thiscalling 

"You're feeling vocational grief." 3MMM Host Eileen Campbell-Reed shares this realization, and what it meant for her. In this episode, an excerpt from our All Saints Day Virtual Service, we invite you to take time to honor your loss and grief.  You may want to gather up a piece of paper and a marker or pen. As you listen, let yourself pay attention to your own spiritual well-being by giving a little space to your vocational losses and grief. The prayer offered by Kali Cawthon-Freels gives voice to the #vocationalgrief many ministers and leaders have shared.  Learn more, here.  Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor :  https://3mmm.us/welcome  Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”      #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #youngclergywomen #baptistwomeninministry #BWIM #youngclergywomeninternational #lgbtqclergy #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #mentalwellness #TheologyThursday #selfcompassionpractices #LGBTQclergy  #mentalwellnessformen #mentalwellnessforwomen #teenmentalhealth #mentalhealthinthechurch 

How do women thrive in ministry? Eileen Campbell-Reed explores this question by imagining a future where women in ministry are thriving - 5 "future stories" that look like this:   Women  thrive  in  ministry  because  churches  pay  equitably Women  thrive  in  ministry  because  leadership  is  collaborative.  Women  thrive  in  ministry  when  men  focus  on  care  for  themselves  and  all  people. Women  thrive  in  ministry  because  we  are  not  so  angry  all  the  time.   Women  thrive  in  ministry  because  child  well -being  is  normative,  expected, and  funded. Listen in to this episode that explores how men caring for their well-being and mental health affects flourishing in ministry for women and LGBTQIA+ clergy. Learn more.  Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor :  https://3mmm.us/welcome  Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”      #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #youngclergywomen #baptistwomeninministry #BWIM #youngclergywomeninternational #lgbtqclergy #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #mentalwellness #TheologyThursday #selfcompassionpractices #LGBTQclergy #youthministry #ministrywithchildren  #mentalwellnessformen #mentalwellnessforwomen #teenmentalhealth #mentalhealthinthechurch   

Episode 87: Baptized and Ordained  Eileen Campbell-Reed tells about how women and queer clergy are changing ministry for good. Baptized and Ordained is a year-long community, advance reading and feedback group, opportunity for live events. Sign up and find out more: https://BaptizedAndOrdained.org    Questions answered in the video:  0:20 A new book & community 1:45 How women and queer clergy are changing ministry 2:38 You are invited to become part of this community 3:13 What does the community include?  4:39 How will it work?  5:05 Why does this book matter?  6:46 Join by October 1 Three levels of the Baptized and Ordained Community: CLIO level: $5/month THALIA level: $10/month POLLY level: $20/month Learn more and sign up: https://BaptizedAndOrdained.org   BLOG: "How Women Thrive in Ministry"  ARTICLE “No Joke: How A Culture of Disbelief Keeps Clergywomen Pushing Uphill” BOOK: Pastoral Imagination: Bringing the Practice of Ministry to Life  BOOK: Anatomy of a Schism   REPORT: #PandemicPastoringReport   REPORT:  State of Clergywomen in the US https://stateofclergywomen.org  Music: “One Step Further” by Roman Senyk (on Pixabay) https://pixabay.com/music/indie-pop-one-step-further-141064/ Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome  Music: “One Step Further” by Roman Senyk (on Pixabay)   #pastoralimagination #baptizedandordained #LGBTQclergy #clergywomen #youngclergywomen #womeninministry 

3MMM | Podcast #86: How Women Thrive in Ministry Three Minute Ministry Mentor (3MMM) host Eileen Campbell-Reed is answering the question, how do women thrive in ministry?   She shares 5 ways to imagine future stories in which women are thriving.  This conversation opens up more about Eileen's latest book: "Baptized and Ordained" (working title).  This book will explore how women clergy and queer clergy are changing the practice of ministry for good.  In this episode, Eileen tells more about the ideas around this new book, and invites you to be a part of it!  To learn more about becoming an advanced reader for Eileen's book, visit and find out more information: https://eileencampbellreed.org/baptized-and-ordained  Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome   Writing? Join us at #TheWritingTable - find out about membership info and Free Write Fridays.   Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org    Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.” 

Have you ever  simply run out of words?  3MMM Host Eileen Campbell-Reed tells us about how she did. And how she "learned to pray in God's language" of silence. Perhaps you would like to give it a try? How to Start Meditating - a simple, step-by-step guide to a practice of silence and prayer.  More: 3MMM Episode 199: Pray, Read, Write How will you notice the quality of silence in your life? What is your calling in this season? + Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org + Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome + Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”      #howtomeditate #meditationpractices #pastoralimagination #clergylife

In this episode, we offer a Mother's Day prayer. Yet, it is not like the ones Eileen Campbell-Reed grew up hearing. This prayer is more of a psalm and a lament. It lifts up to God the painful and unspeakable facets of mothering and #mothersday. It also honors the gifts and graces of mothering. God in her wisdom sees and hears it all. There is no truth we cannot pray.   + For the full text of this prayer, go to eileencampbellreed.org  + Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org  + Faith communities have been challenged. Changed. Grieved. And it is time to talk about it. Check out the new Study Guide, here.  Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome  Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”     #Mothersdaygrief   #HannahService    #MothersDayPrayer #MothersDay2023 #pastoralimagination       

Episode 83: Finding Our Way   Has anything changed over the past three years in your ministry? If your answer is yes - check out this new resource.  Our goal in studying and seeking to understand the lives and practices of Christian ministers over the last 20+ years is to make this work more understandable. To support the people called to it. And, after the last three incredibly stressful and unprecedented years, to help renew the practice of ministry. To that end, Eileen Campbell-Reed wrote a 30-page #PandemicPastoring Report (PPR). It summarizes the research with over a hundred clergy and volunteer leaders in 20+ denominations. This episode invites Erin Robinson Hall talk about the new companion piece to that report: the PPR Study Guide.    Faith communities have been challenged. Changed. Grieved. And it is time to talk about it. Check out the new Study Guide, here.  Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org  Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome  Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”     #pandemicpastoringreport #pastoralimagination #neweraofministry   

Episode 82: Talking Through Tragedy How do we talk children through tragedy? What about parents and teachers, especially when the tragedy has impacted children and the places where children go, like schools or churches? And what about caring for congregations as a whole?  Last week in Nashville, we experienced what is reaching epidemic proportions in the form of another school shooting. This episode invites us to think about how we care for our children when they are exposed to or become aware of the tragedies of our world.  Download this handout to help you prepare to talk to our children and teenagers when crisis erupts. We need plans to help us respond with care and work for justice for our congregations and our wider communities.     Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome   Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”  #griefandchildren #griefcare #pastoralimagination 

Episode 81: Beauty of Motherhood There is beauty in parenting. Not because the work is all glamorous or easy, but because God's presence and grace is woven through it, even when it is messy and fraught and full of pain and tears and uncertainty. In this FULL CONVERSATION with Erin Strybis, Kimberly Knowle-Zeller, Erin Robinson Hall and Eileen Campbell-Reed, find out what these mothers claim about rising in the dark, fears about the violence that threatens our children, inequity among families with children, and how we can work towards justice for all children. How can we respond to the ways we measure and doubt ourselves as parents? Have a listen as they lift up the values of beauty and community, grace and blessing, play and justice, in the shared work and practices of parenting. Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”    #beautyofmotherhood #parentingforward #pastoralimagination 

This week we are talking once again with Kim Knowle-Zeller and Erin Strybis about their new book, The Beauty of Motherhood. 3MMM Host Eileen Campbell-Reed tells us: There is beauty in parenting experiences. Not because the work is all glamorous or easy, but because God's presence and grace is woven through it, even when it is messy and fraught and full of pain and tears and uncertainty.  Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome  Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”    #pastoralimagination #beautyofmotherhood

Graceful parenting. That's not a description but rather an aspiration and a need. Authors Erin Strybis and Kim Knowle-Zeller  talk with Erin Robinson Hall and Eileen Campbell-Reed about their new book. The Beauty of Motherhood: Grace-filled Devotions for the Early Years, written especially for progressive Christian parents. We want share the first part of our conversation. Erin Strybis says when she was a new mom, the devotional books she picked up about parenting often made her feel like she wasn't living up to some imagined standard of Christian parenthood. She wanted a new kind of book. One that emphasized God's grace as it wove throughout her parenting, one that helped her notice where God showed up. A book that highlighted beauty in the ordinary. Have a listen to why this book is for parents whose theology shows them a God of grace and compassion, rather than judgment and punishment. March Givewaway! We are giving away a copy of The Beauty of Motherhood in March. One person from our 3MMM email list will receive a free book. You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”      #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #youngclergywomen #youngclergywomeninternational #lgbtqclergy #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #selfcompassion #parentingforward #raisingchildrenunfundamentalist #TheologyThursday #selfcompassionpractices #youthministrylife #youthministry #ministrywithchildren #kidmin #clergymama #beautyofmotherhood #parentingjourneys #adoptionjourneys  #mentalwellnessforwomen   

We are talking about the mental wellbeing of our children and teens. These years of forming identity, re-modeling the brain, and flying further from the nest are already a big challenge. Add three calendar years of isolation, disrupted schedules and rites of passage, missed friendships and opportunities. Then stir in what Dr. Joyce Ann Mercer calls the “triple pandemic of Covid-19, racial reckoning, and climate crisis.” The result is a toxic stew of anxiety, depression, lethargy, behavioral outbursts, health issues, self harm, and the highest rates of contemplating suicide among teens in many years.  How do we help our children with mental wellbeing?  Have a listen to Dr. Joyce Ann Mercer of Yale Divinity School. In this final segment of our conversation, she and Eileen Campbell-Reed explore the question: How do we need to be paying attention to our children and youth who are suffering in their mental wellbeing in the wake of the multiple pandemics. More on Mental Wellbeing, here. Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome    Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”    #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #youngclergywomen #youngclergywomeninternational #lgbtqclergy #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #selfcompassion #mentalwellness #TheologyThursday #selfcompassionpractices #youthministrylife #youthministry #ministrywithchildren #kidmin #childrenmentalhealth #mentalwellnessforwomen #teenmentalhealth #mentalhealthinthechurch     

Leading in loss is one of the great challenges of this moment. Why? The losses are monumental. The leaders are overwhelmed. And grief is rarely easy. Our guest Dr. Joyce Ann Mercer shares wisdom for attending to loss and grief for pastors, priests, chaplains and ministers. No matter your role, if you are leading any faith based or religious organization at the moment, attending to grief is a top need. What we don't need, says Dr. Mercer, is a checklist to make us feel better. However, she offers practical, concrete suggestions for how to lead people in times of loss. Have a listen to this conversation with Eileen Campbell-Reed and Dr. Joyce Ann Mercer of Yale Divinity School talking about leading in loss. More on Leading in Loss, here.   Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome   Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”  #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #youngclergywomen #youngclergywomeninternational #lgbtqclergy #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #selfcompassion #leadinginloss #selfcompassionpractices #leadinginloss #Lent2023 #Lentenpractices #Lentpodcast 

Self compassion. Who needs it? Well, all the humans. It is hard, however, to love others when we struggle to love ourselves. This can be reality for many people. Sometimes it is just a season. For others it is an enduring struggle. Have a listen to this conversation with Eileen Campbell-Reed and Dr. Joyce Ann Mercer of Yale Divinity school talking about self compassion practices. Dr. Mercer offers one practice from Dr. Kristin Neff, who has many resources on mindfulness. More on Self Compassion, here.   Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org    Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome  Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”  #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #youngclergywomen #youngclergywomeninternational #lgbtqclergy #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #selfcompassion #discernmentprocess #TheologyThursday #selfcompassionpractices 

We continue our conversation with Dr. Joyce Ann Mercer of Yale Divinity School about loss and grief. How do we integrate our losses into life? What helps you to live well with your losses and griefs?   Learn more about integrating loss and grief, here.    Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org   Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor: https://3mmm.us/welcome   Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”  #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #griefjournaling #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #griefandlossjourney #ambiguousgrief #TheologyThursday #integratingloss #chaplainlife 

How is grief, “another way of loving?”  Eileen Campbell-Reed welcomes Rev. Dr. Joyce Ann Mercer to talk about  about ambiguous grief.  Rituals and habits in every area of life, from parenting and teaching to being in community and leading the people of faith, have been disrupted and undermined. Now is the time to reframe and reimagine how to live creatively with these losses. How do we start? Find out more in this wonderful  conversation with Dr. Joyce Ann Mercer of Yale Divinity School as we consider ambiguous loss and grief.    Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org    Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome  Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”  #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #ambiguousloss #pastoralcare #pastoralcareandcounseling #embodiedloss #ritualsandrhythms #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #griefjourneys #griefandlossjourney #militaryfamilies 

How can we shape our discernment practices? Consider how to discern renewal of purpose and vocation in your life with these questions. Have a listen to this conversation from our recent “Tending the Fires” virtual event with Rev. Dr. Kadia Edwards and Rev. Dr. Duane Bidwell. More on these ministers, here.     Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org  Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome    Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”  #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #blackchurchstudies #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #discernment #discernmentprocess #TheologyThursday #questionsfordiscernment 

Our lives, our churches, and ministry itself have changed. And more changes keep coming from the ripple effects of the pandemic. These realities open up questions about vocation and purpose of work and life. We recently offered a live zoom event for ministers, chaplains, professors, and lay leaders called “Tending the Fires.” Vocation is one of the fires in our lives that needs regular tending. If we want to keep our  purpose and focus for life clear, then we need to give questions of vocational discernment our consistent, compassionate attention. Have a listen to this practical exercise from our recent “Tending the Fires” virtual event. Eileen Campbell-Reed offers four questions that help you see what your current situation offers you. Grab your copy of the free printable used in this episode here: https://3mmm.us/TendingFires     Download a copy of the #PandemicPastoring Report:  https://pandemicpastoring.org    Thank you! You are invited to subscribe to weekly episodes of Three Minute Ministry Mentor https://3mmm.us/welcome    Thank you Stockaudios for the podcast theme music, “Happy Day.”  #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #blackchurchstudies #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #discernment #discernmentprocess 

How will we honor what we have done before we look forward? Honoring the ways we spend our energy and love is a counter to false dreams of consumer culture. During the recent “Tending the Fires” virtual event, Eileen Campbell-Reed talked with fellow pastoral theologian, Rev. Dr. Duane Bidwell. He works in medical education with the Veterans Administration. Duane has a “Ten Things I Did that Mattered” practice that invites us to honor how we spend our energy.  Want to find out more? More about #pastoralimagination and naming our 10 Things here.  We would love to send you more for your pastoral imagination - new episodes, printable downloads and resources, and more. For pastors, chaplains, activists, spiritual leaders, ministers, theological educators, and seminary students. Sign up today: 3mmm.us/welcome    #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #blackchurchstudies #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors #WritingTable #FreeWriteFridays #tenthingsthatmatter 

What are you reading this week, and have you considered how to read with your fully embodied and relational self? Whatever is happening in the world, we still read. We read for news and information. Reading inspires and moves us to action. We read so that we can prepare to preach and teach and organize our communities of faith. We still have a long way to go, when reading scripture, to make room for everyone in the text. Listen as host Eileen Campbell-Reed interviews Rev. Dr. Angela Parker about her book If God Still Breathes, Why Can't I?  Together they discuss how important it is to read scripture in ways that makes room for everyone's experiences. And, in particular making space for Black and Brown bodies to show up and be seen and heard with each reading of the text.    #pastoralimagination #ministryinpractice #clergylife #clergywomen #clergywomenofcolor #blm #blackchurchstudies #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #womenauthors  

Join the conversation as 3MMM's host Eileen Campbell-Reed interviews author, minister, and mother Traci Smith. What started out as a way to teach and nurture her own children's faith in honest, messy and every day ways, turned into the Faithful Families book series.   If you have children, minister with children, or are part of a community of faith that includes children, you need to know about this series! Faithful Families help parents and ministry leaders give words and spiritual practices to support following Jesus. The books are unapologetically progressive in their approach and theology. In their conversation, Traci offers a treasure trove of ideas, creative thinking about how to handle theology, practice, and learning for children. We hope this will help inspire your pastoral imagination!    #pastoralimagination #faithfulfamilies #author #femaleauthor #clergylife #theologypodcast #clergypodcast 

Now is a good time to remind everyone that you have permission to read a book. Any book, in fact!   We are reminding you to give yourself permission to read. It might seem like a small thing in the moment, yet it prepares us with both spiritual support and also important information to do the big things we are called to do in ministry, like parenting, teaching, writing and life. So, what will you give yourself permission to read this week? #givingmyselfpermission #read #reading #selfcare #permission #podcast #clergylife #clergypodcast #theologypodcast #pastoralimagination 

How do we fear bravely? How do love and courage and fear dwell together? Author, Catherine McNiel joins us to share about her new book Fearing Bravely: Risking Love for Our Neighbors, Strangers, and Enemies.   Join her conversation with 3MMM host, Eilieen Campbell-Reed as they share about what it means to not be paralyzed by fear but use it as a tool to grow and live out of courage and love.    #pastoralimagination #givingmyselfpermission #pandemicpermissionproject #fearingbravely #riskinglove #femaleauthors #clergylife #theologypodcast #clergypodcast #clergywomen #spiritualwriting

There is so much to grieve these days. The list seems nearly endless. Yet grieving remains hard work, and it is easy to ignore or leave aside. We invite you to join 3MMM host Eileen Campbell-Reed as she offers you a way to give yourself permission. A pathway to practice spiritual attention to the grief in your life. How will you give yourself permission to grieve this week?   #pastoralimagination #3MMM #givingmyselfpermission #pandemic #pandemicpermission #clergylife #clergywomen #theologypodcast #grief #grieving #healing 

This week Erin Robinson Hall shares from her experience, giving us all permission to laugh.   In these oh-so-challenging days we sometimes need to give ourselves and each other a permission slip. If we can do the small things — evening things like laughing — then we renew our energy for the big things we are called to be and do.   Join our conversation as we learn about the health benefits of laughter while laughing a little together together along the way!   #3MMM #pastoralimagination #givingmyselfpermission #pandemicpermissionproject #theologypodcast #clergywomenpodcast #practiceofministry #clergywomen #lol #healingwithlaughter #laughter

Join our conversation with Elizabeth-Anne Nordgren Lovell, a recent seminary graduate, college professor, and lover of podcasts.  In this episode we talk all things podcasts, pandemic, and permission slips. In our conversation I ask Elizabeth-Anne how the pandemic has impacted her life and her ministry. Spoiler alert: she made use of podcasts!  Enjoy my conversation with Elizabeth-Anne as she shares both about podcasts as entertainment, but also as tools for self-care and ministry.   Do you listen to podcasts regularly? Where? When? Do you have a favorite? We would love your feedback!! Take our quick survey here.  #3MMM #pandemicpermission #pandemicministry #podcasts #podcasting #clergywomenpodcast #theologypodcast #pastoralimagination #selfcare #practiceofministry

In Part 2 of this Advent series, Eileen Campbell-Reed shares more Advent stories, prayers, and poetry. With each one, a wish for some of the hope, peace, joy, and love that marks our circle through the Advent season. May you find health, safety, and space for your grief. Because this year, and this last 21 months, has been heavy with loss. We all have lots to grieve, and there are so many residual and ripple effects. The story of Jesus' birth and life was also marked deeply by grief. So we are in compassionate company.    #writingforyourlife #runningforyourlife #spiritualwriting #Adventreflections #Advent2021 #clergylife  Find more from Three Minute Ministry Mentor in our weekly email - reflections and resources for your #pastoralimagination! Subscribe:  3mmm.us/signup 

This Advent, Eileen Campbell-Reed shares some Advent stories, prayers, and poetry. With each one, a wish for some of the hope, peace, joy, and love that marks our circle through the Advent season. May you find health, safety, and space for your grief. Because this year, and this last 21 months, has been heavy with loss. We all have lots to grieve, and there are so many residual and ripple effects. The story of Jesus' birth and life was also marked deeply by grief. So we are in compassionate company.  More from Three Minute Ministry Mentor in our weekly email - reflections and resources for your #pastoralimagination! Subscribe:  3mmm.us/signup    #adventgrief #blueChristmas #deeppeace #clergylife #awkwardbraveandkind #longestnightservice #adventreflections   

Challenge. Question. Conflict. Change. How do you practice ministry in a no-win situation? Eileen Campbell-Reed has noted some themes -  financial, staffing and volunteer challenges. Vocational uncertainty and the need for fresh discernment. Conflicts. Hope and resilience. Big transition. And there are no easy answers. There is, however, a deep well of wisdom and support to draw upon. Have a listen to this conversation with four mentors who work with new pastors in the Helping Pastors Thrive initiative.  They talk about ways pastors are facing what looks like no-win situations right now - theological conundrums and pandemic pastoring.  #pastoralimagination #pandemicpastoring #nowinsituations #churchinapandemic #helpingpastorsthrive #theologicaleducation #clergywomen #clergylife   

Collaboration. Listening. Getting around life's brick walls. Understanding identity. Adapting to new places and situations. Each of these moments are part of the everyday work of ministry. Recently, Eileen Campbell-Reed sat down with three new pastors to talk about pastoral imagination. It was a wonderful conversation about learnings and how the Pastoral Imagination book and journal can support and inspire the work of ministry. In addition to being new pastors, Elizabeth Nance-Coker, Carrie Jarrell Tuning and Michael Ramsey are also participants in the Helping Pastors Thrive Initiative. The initiative is funded by the Lilly Endowment and sponsored by the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina. #HelpingPastorsThrive #pastoralimagination #theologypodcast #newpastors #clergylife #clergywomen #clergyhealth   

Join our conversation with Rev. Alisha Smith Haddock. She is helping us see how multiple factors are impacting the community of North Nashville. Back in March, Nashville was hit hard by tornados that ripped through Middle Tennessee and destroyed and damaged, houses, churches, businesses and schools. Just a week later, the pandemic was declared and the U.S., including Nashville, entered into a “safer at home” period, slowing the recovery. North Nashville was hit especially hard. And as Rev. Alisha says, “Our issues didn’t start on March third.” She and other leaders in North Nashville have been working for years, decades, to “right some wrongs for people and a whole community that has been pushed to the margins.” Long before the tornado, the 37208 zip code was “a culturally rich place with tremendous historical significance.” Yet that area of the city has been coping with: food desert conditionslack of economic developmentpredatory lending practicesabsentee landlordspolice harassment and brutalityhigh incarceration ratesneighborhood gentrification  Have a listen to how one faith community is called to collaborate.   #3MMM #pandemicpastoring #pandemicgrief #NorthNashvillestrong #Nashvillestrong #theologypodcast #clergywomenwpodcast #gentrification #37208 

Join us for a conversation about grief rituals. Author Lee Kravitz shares about his exploration, experience, and writing about death and grief. Lee is a journalist and a former editor-in-chief at Parade Magazine. And he is also author of the memoirs, Unfinished Business: One Man’s Extraordinary Year of Trying to Do the Right Things* and Pilgrim: Risking the Life I Have to Find the Faith I Seek. Lee talks about his life-long journey to understand death and grief and his participation in his synagogue’s Chevra Kadisha, or holy burial society. #3MMM Host Eileen Campbell-Reed asks Lee two questions to close the interview:+ How are you living differently because of what you have learned?+ How are you thinking differently about your morality during this time? Listen in to hear these responses to inform and inspire your #practiceofministry.      #griefrituals #pandemicpastoring #unfinishedbusinessbook #pandemicgrief 

Rev. Dr. Beverly Wallace has spent her life caring for grief.  Many threads of personal experience, research, teaching, and pastoring are woven into her vocation of caring for grief. In this episode, she highlights those threads and how they have shaped her vocation.    Caring for Grief in a Pandemic During the present pandemic, Wallace sees the essential and ongoing needs for advocacy and liberation, two of the central purposes of pastoral care. For African Americans this season of isolation, grief and loss also amplifies disparities and inequities. Hear about the rituals we all need, and the questions that Dr. Wallace says we need to be asking in this time of pandemic grief.      #3MMM #pandemicgrief #pandemicpastoring #liberationandgrief #pastoralcare #griefcare #caringforgrief #womenofcolorandgrief #griefconversations 

“So much of Zen practice is about warm hand to warm hand transmission.” Ian Case, Director of the Brooklyn Zen Center, joins #3MMM Host Eileen Campbell-Reed in this episode of our series on pandemic grief.  With the “stripping away of ritual and form” members of the Zen Center now meet for Dharma talks (educational teaching), services of meditation, and practice groups in online platforms. Many members are also finding ways to “bring the temple into their own home.” The community is experiencing some “lovely and surprising” side effects of the move to a virtual community. Listen to our conversation about establishing community intimacy, the importance of community agreements, and coping with community grief.   #3MMM #pandemicgrief #pandemicpastoring #communitygrief #BrooklynZen #griefconversations   

Listening matters. It matters for pastoral practice as well as personal relationships and every part of our lives. Listening is intimately connected to paying attention to life with all of our senses. Rev. Dr. Mary Clark Moschella, the Roger J. Squire Professor of Pastoral Care and Counseling at Yale Divinity School joins #3MMM Host Eileen Campbell-Reed for a conversation about the power of listening. Ready to hear more? Subscribe to our 3MMM email here ----> 3mmm.us/MemberRegistrationSubscribers receive new (free!) videos to inform and inspire YOUR practice of ministry each week. #thinkingtheologically #listeningincommunity #listenfirst #pastoralcare #imaginationandjustice #clergylife #ministrylife #theologicaleducationtrends#pandemicpedagogy #pandemicpastoring #pandemicgrief 

"What’s really at stake here? How will this change people’s lives?" - Danielle Tumminio Hanson 3MMM Episode 53: Bonus content! Hear more about:  + how to make space for tender conversation in diverse learning spaces + what we can learn from remorse + how embodied, relational learning can look in #seminarylife + how we can redefine and have new understandings of family  Rev. Dr. Danielle Tumminio Hansen, of Seminary of the Southwest, talks with host Eileen Campbell-Reed about how ministers, activists and theologians make connections between literature and theology. Danielle shares her story of walking alongside her friend's infertility journey. She explores what embodied theology looks like in the #practiceofministry and what #purposefulrest has looked like for her. Ready to hear more? Subscribe to our 3MMM email here ----> 3mmm.us/MemberRegistrationSubscribers receive new (free!) videos to inform and inspire YOUR practice of ministry each week.#thinkingtheologically#imaginationandjustice #clergylife #ministrylife #theologicaleducationtrends#harrypottertheology #GodandHarryPotter #BrotherMolly #infertilityandministry 

3MMM Episode 52: Spacious Conversations Rev. Dr. Danielle Tumminio Hansen, of Seminary of the Southwest, talks with host Eileen Campbell-Reed about how ministers, activists and theologians make connections between literature and theology. Danielle shares her story of walking alongside her friend's infertility journey. She explores what embodied theology looks like in the #practiceofministry and what #purposefulrest has looked like for her. Ready to hear more? Subscribe to our 3MMM email here ----> 3mmm.us/MemberRegistration Subscribers receive new (free!) videos to inform and inspire YOUR practice of ministry each week. #thinkingtheologically#imaginationandjustice #clergylife #ministrylife#harrypottertheology #GodandHarryPotter #BrotherMolly #infertilityandministry 

“It’s not just about reading a text, it’s about reading a text in the midst of a community. . . it means listening to what is going on in the world.”  Thinking theologically . . . Thinking with Imagination Thinking with Curiosity Thinking in Community Rev. Dr. Eric Barreto of Princeton Theological Seminary reminds us of the imaginative work that pastors, activists, and theologians do in this conversation with #3MMM Host Eileen Campbell-Reed. Subscribe (free!) here ——-> http://3mmm.us/episode51 and receive episodes of 3MMM Year Two with scholars, leaders, and mentors in the practice of ministry.   #NameTheTruths #practiceofministry #imaginationandjustice #justiceneedsimagination #LPIProject #clergylife #seminarylife  

#3MMM Episode 39: Pulled Up Short  When it goes well, we learn to practice ministry with improvisation. Even when it does not go well, we can learn from our failures to grow in the practice and expand our repertoire of possible responses, try new modes of recovery, and learn how not to lose our balance entirely. What has pulled YOU up short lately? How are you recovering and learning from the experience?

#3MMM Episode 49: Boundaries Boundaries can serve us well in the practice of ministry. When boundaries give clarity to relationships and prevent the abuse of power, they are worth maintaining. Boundaries can also become barriers in the work of ministry. How does this happen? In this episode of Three Minute Ministry Mentor, see how Pastor Randall leads a congregation to consider the physical boundaries they created with a wrought iron fence around the church house. A boundary that they intended to enhance safety had turned into a barrier with the neighborhood the church was hoping to serve. 

This episode of #3MMM explores what it means to embrace joy in ministry --“Your call is what brings YOU joy and energy.” http://3mmm.us/episode50 “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” - Howard Thurman #embracingjoy #joyinministry #womeninministry #howardthurman 

 Episode 48: Holy Fierceness Identify the complexities of sustaining "holy fierceness" in your practice of ministry. This week, #3MMM asks - What healing and compassion do I need in order to lead with holy fierceness? 

3MMM | Episode 47: Congruence  “I think it’s sustaining to me to have some basic congruence between what I’m doing and what I think is important.” – Rebecca This week’s episode of #3MMM is a story about Rebecca. She has some things to say about congruence, integrity and ministry. Her stories help us think about what it means to embody our values in ministry. How are you cultivating congruence? How are you teaching it to the young people in your life and ministry? 

Episode 46: Knowledge Use  #3MMM  How am I making practical use of the knowledge I have acquired?  http://3mmm.us/episode46  

Conflict in ministry is hard. It is hard because it often feels personal. It is hard because it can evoke feelings like anger, self-doubt, fear or shame, feelings that are unpleasant to digest. And it is hard because change of any kind is often accompanied by some conflict. Yet change is also essential for flourishing in ministry. And it follows that conflict is often one aspect of health and growth. So how do we do we navigate conflict well?   This episode of #3MMM explores how we can reframe the normalcy of conflict. Rather than being something we seek out, or try to avoid at all costs, conflict is better understood as a regular and unavoidable byproduct of healthy change, renewal, and growth.