PROPEL | A Podcast by Fellowship Pacific

In this episode, we have the privilege of hearing from Barton Priebe, Lead Pastor of Central Baptist Church in Victoria, as he talked with Jessica Powell about his new book, “Adopted by God: Discover the Life-Transforming Joy of a Neglected Truth.” You'll get to hear him explain why the doctrine of adoption is such an important one, why he says it's been a neglected truth in the church, and how there is life-transforming joy to be found when we truly embrace our identities as sons and daughters of God. He also shares how understanding and teaching this doctrine can be incredibly helpful for us as church leaders who are trying to help navigate our churches through controversies, such as the ones many of us are dealing with now during Covid! Get the book: Adopted by God (Barton Priebe) BARTON PRIEBE After working four years at Trinity Western University and thirteen years as lead pastor at Dunbar Heights Baptist Church in Vancouver, Barton became the lead pastor of Central Baptist Church in 2015. You will enjoy his preaching as he knows how to ask the right questions, engage attention, and thoughtfully guide you to biblical answers that impact all areas of faith and life. Barton enjoys cycling, skiing, sushi, reading, date nights with his wife, and having fun with his four children. He received his Doctor of Ministry from Northwest Baptist Seminary. He is also the author of "Adopted by God," "The Problem with Christianity: Six Unsettling Questions You Have Asked," "Belonging to God's Family: Measuring the Effect of Sermons on Paul's Doctrine of Adoption in the Lives of Believers," and co-author of "Everyday Apologetics: Answering Common Objections to the Christian Faith."

Our Leadership Development team has had the opportunity this year to partner with a group of women in Kampala, Uganda who had reached out to us as they were looking for resources for mentoring women in leadership. In this episode, Krista Penner had a conversation with Betty Mutunda, who is on the ground in Uganda — serving God with her gifts and mentoring other women to do the same. You'll get to hear her share about the challenges the church in Uganda is facing and how they are serving their communities in the midst of it. What God is doing through these women is incredibly inspiring and we are so grateful that Fellowship Pacific gets to play a small part in partnering with them in their ministry!

Parenting is hard. We know that. As parents we love our kids deeply and we long to see them flourish and thrive, but knowing how to help them do that often feels like a complete mystery. And then on top of that there's the pressure we sometimes put on ourselves as leaders in the church to be setting an example in how we raise our kids! Whether you're in the middle of raising teens yourself, preparing to do so in the future, or simply want to be able to come alongside other parents in your church to help and encourage them, you will definitely benefit from this conversation. In this episode, Elizabeth Faulkner sat down with Mark Gregston—cofounder of Heartlight Ministries and Parenting Today's Teens—to talk about what the most important thing to know is about parenting teenagers. For resources mentioned, visit the episode page HERE. MARK GREGSTON Mark Gregston, along with his wife Jan, are cofounders of Heartlight Ministries and Parenting Today's Teens. Mark is the Executive Director of Heartlight, a residential counseling center for teens in crisis located in Hallsville, Texas. Heartlight has become one of the country's finest residential counseling centers for teens and is known throughout North America as the “place to be” if your teen is struggling and hope is diminishing. Mark is also the host of Heartlight Radio's weekend program and heard on hundreds of stations with their daily program, Parenting Today's Teens. He has authored 12 books, written hundreds of articles about parenting teens in a difficult culture and is also the host of the nationally acclaimed read program. From his 45+ years of experience of working with teens and their families, Mark shares his insight and wisdom through podcasts, the Heartlight Stories YouTube channel, seminars, and weekend parenting retreats.

It's a brand new ministry year and once again, it's a ministry year that is beginning in the midst of a lot of the kind of change and uncertainty that makes leading well even harder than it usually is. So to kick off this new season of the podcast, we turned to three incredible leaders who are very familiar with the challenges of leadership and who also happen to be on our very own Fellowship Pacific team! You'll get to hear Krista Penner, Elizabeth Faulkner, and David Horita talk about their own leadership journeys and what they've learned from all the highs and lows — or the “good, bad, and ugly” — of leading. Recommended Resources: Leadership and Self-Deception (The Arbinger Institute) The Culture Code (Daniel Coyle) KRISTA PENNER Krista Penner is the Team Lead for the Leadership Development Team at Fellowship Pacific and also manages the Immerse program. Krista has a degree in the Humanities and over 20 years of corporate experience that she has the privilege of drawing from as she teaches board governance and leadership principles in our Fellowship Pacific churches. She has been with the Fellowship Pacific team since 2008, and although her role has expanded and changed over the years, her passion for the mission and vision of Fellowship Pacific has remained crystal clear. ELIZABETH FAULKNER Elizabeth Faulkner serves on the Leadership Development team for Fellowship Pacific. She has a Bachelor's degree from Northwest and 15 years experience leading a variety of teams and ministries at SouthRidge Fellowship including children, family, discipleship and interns. She is passionate about mentoring and developing leaders and teams and loves using her experience in those areas to serve our churches. DAVID HORITA David is the Regional Director of Fellowship Pacific. After completing his Master of Divinity at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, he has served in both small and large churches, as well as planting a church in Surrey in 1990. During those years he also received his Doctor of Ministry degree, and worked extensively on a variety of Fellowship Pacific Boards. Throughout the last twelve years, David has enjoyed working alongside others in the Fellowship Pacific Ministry Centre, applying much of his education and experience to developing church focused tools to help them achieve their unique vision within the Kingdom of God.

In all the many conversations we've been having about what the future holds for the post-Covid church, there's been one common idea that we keep hearing: a sense that God is at work doing something new in His church through Covid and a deep desire to participate with Him in whatever that is. But how do we know what it is that He's asking us to participate in? In this episode, Jessica Powell sat down with Jon Thompson, Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church and author of the books Convergence and Deliverance to talk about the importance of asking God if He has something specific for us to do before we jump into making our plans and what that actually looks like in practice for us as church leaders who are trying to discern what to do in a post pandemic world. More from Jon Thompson: www.thrivewithconvergence Books: Convergence Deliverance JON THOMPSON Jon Thompson is the Senior Pastor of Sanctus Church, a multi-site church in the Greater Toronto Area where he has been on staff for more than 20 years. Under Jon's leadership, Sanctus is characterized by dynamic Biblical teaching, vibrant community groups, compelling media, and powerful times in worship. Jon has a Master of Theological Studies from Tyndale Seminary, Toronto and a Doctorate of Missiology from Fuller Seminary, California. Jon is husband to Joanna and father to three kids—Hannah, Emma, and Noah. Jon speaks and teaches globally on the convergence of spiritual gifts, spiritual practices, and spiritual experiences in the life of the believer and the local church.

We know from Revelation that heaven is going to be an incredible, multicultural celebration—more than we could ever imagine! And if we are serious about joining Jesus in asking for God's kingdom come here on earth, then shouldn't we expect our churches to start looking more like that multicultural reality? In this episode, Mike Mawhorter had a conversation with Josh Buys (Lead Pastor of Kingdom Life Community Church), Mark Buhler (Multicultural Pastor at Faith Fellowship Baptist Church), and Don Schuiling (Lead Pastor of Richmond Baptist Church) about what it takes to be intentional about growing diversity in our churches and why it matters. JOSH BUYS Josh is the Lead Pastor of Kingdom Life Community Church. MARK BUHLER Mark is married to Catherine and is blessed to have 4 children and 7 grandchildren. He is a trained high school Math and Science teacher, personal and career counselor and school administrator. He chose to follow Christ while on a trip to India right after university. He served at Rift Valley Academy in Kenya for 20 years in education and community development. Upon returning to Canada in 2011 he has served at Faith Fellowship Baptist Church in Vancouver in multicultural ministry and mentoring / discipleship. DON SCHUILING Don has been in ministry in a variety of roles for over 30 years. He loves people and walking through life with them. Helping people gain a better understanding of who Jesus is and how much he loves to lavish grace on them is what motivates his pastor's heart. Don and his wife Deb enjoy being outdoors whether it is just taking a walk in a local park or hiking in a more remote place. Their family is extremely important to them and they love getting together with their adult children.

We have some incredible partnering ministries here in Fellowship Pacific and one of those is New Hope Community Services. New Hope provides housing, support, community, and so much more to refugee families as they transition to healthy living. In this episode, Krista Penner from our Leadership Development team sat down to talk with Ann Barnard Ball, Executive Director of New Hope, about what's bringing hope to New Hope as they navigate the Covid-19 pandemic and look to a post-Covid future along with the rest of us. You'll get to hear incredible stories of some of the residents of New Hope and you'll learn about how God has been working through this ministry as they love and support the families He has brought them. CLICK HERE to visit the episode page on our website where you can find out more about how to pray for New Hope and other ways you can get involved. ANN BARNARD BALL Ann Barnard Ball is the Executive Director of New Hope Community Services, which provides the first home and a community of care for refugees during their first eighteen months in Canada. Ann has spent the last 25 years as an advocate of social justice in the areas of child welfare, poverty, and newcomers through organizations like the Children's Aid Foundation, Yonge Street Mission and New Hope Community Services. Ann also spent several years as the Executive Director of Advancement at Power to Change Ministries. She has a heart to see people of faith engage with and extend friendship to people who have struggled to be fully included in society. Ann is also working on a Master of Urban Studies at Simon Fraser University. Ann, her husband Steven and feline fur baby, Morse, live in Maple Ridge.

For the past year and a half, the majority of our ministries have been on hold and with that, our volunteer needs have been lessened. But now that we can actually start planning for in-person church, we're faced with the challenge of filling a lot of serving needs all at once. In this episode, Elizabeth Faulkner from our Leadership Development team talks with Paul Olson, Executive Pastor at SouthRidge Fellowship about how churches can start preparing now to re-engage our congregations in serving. PAUL OLSON Paul currently serves at SouthRidge Fellowship Church where he has been the Executive Pastor for the past 2 1/2 years. Before that he served at Burnett Fellowship in Maple Ridge for 22 years in various pastoral roles. He and his lovely wife Julie have been married 27 years and have 5 children. Paul has been part of FEB Pacific churches since coming to Christ close to 40 years with 28 of those serving in pastoral roles in Feb churches. Paul loves to see people grow in their walk with Christ and build community relationships that share the power of the Gospel.

Every generation grows up in a different time and a different cultural environment than the one before it, which causes it to be defined by different characteristics. And those differences can have a tendency to disrupt things and force us to ask ourselves what we care about more, engaging the next generation in a way that draws them to Jesus or sticking with the methods that have become very comfortable to us. In this episode, Elizabeth Faulkner from our Leadership Development team had a conversation with two of our Immerse students who are heavily invested in reaching Gen Z as they lead youth ministries in their churches—Peter Bird, Youth Pastor at The Meeting Place Church in Nanaimo and Eric Vila, Youth Intern at Central Baptist Church in Victoria. You'll get to hear them share what they see in Gen Z, what their hopes are for this generation, and what we as the church need to do to engage them in meaningful ways. PETER BIRD My name is Peter Bird, and I've been working as the Youth Pastor at The Meeting Place Church since 2015. My wife, Emily, and I have been married for just over 7 years, and we love living in Nanaimo! I also enjoy having conversations about the Bible, God, and life in general, and I especially love having these conversations and sharing God's love with youth. Other than work, I currently spend a lot of time working towards my MDiv through the Immerse Program, and when I'm not working, doing school, or hanging out with Emily, you can find me playing music, playing goalie in ice hockey, or looking for my ball on the golf course. ERIC VILA Hey! My name is Eric, and I'm the Youth Intern at Central Baptist Church. I live here in Victoria, BC with my beautiful wife, Sarah. I have been working at Central since 2018, and love working in youth ministry! I am passionate about nurturing, guiding, and raising up future leaders, both inside and outside of the church walls. Aside from work, I am pursuing my M.Div through the Immerse program. When I'm not busy with work or school, you can find me playing my guitars, hitting the road with my bike, or out on a hunt for good coffee!

In the past year, Covid has presented us with many challenges and as our collective stress level has been steadily rising, we have seen the pressure of the pandemic lead to a surfacing of issues that are now causing significant levels of division both in our country, our communities, and sadly, even in our churches. In this episode, Dan Cody from our Church Management Solutions team had a conversation with Scott Sauls, Senior Pastor of Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee. Scott is the author of several books, including his most recent work, A Gentle Answer, in which he discusses how followers of Jesus can live and love like Christ in a defensive and divided era. They talk about what it means to abide in the gentleness of Christ and why it is imperative that we model our posture after Him in the way that we share our strong convictions. For a list of resources, visit the episode page on our website. SCOTT SAULS Scott Sauls is husband to Patti, dad to Abby and Ellie, and serves as Senior Pastor of Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee. Prior to Nashville, Scott was a Lead and Preaching Pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian in New York City after planting two churches in Kansas City and Saint Louis. Scott has authored several books, including Jesus Outside the Lines and his most recent work, A Gentle Answer. He blogs regularly at scottsauls.com. His work has been featured in Christianity Today, Relevant Magazine, Qideas, Catalyst, Leadership Magazine, Outreach Magazine, annvoskamp.com, The Gospel Coalition, and several other publications.

In March 2020 we all found ourselves rapidly pivoting to online forms of ministry. At first it was just our church services, but as the pandemic stretched on, we saw more and more creativity in how churches found ways to run their ministries in digital ways. So what do we do now? As we get closer to the finish line of Covid, we find ourselves having to ask questions about what place these online platforms have going forward. We know that we can't really go back and that online ministry is here to stay in some form, but what does that actually look like? In this episode, Jessica Powell from our Church Management Solutions team spoke with Zach Yaciw, the Pastor of Village Online at Village Church. You'll get to hear him share his passion for engaging people in gospel-centered community, how they're finding ways to do that authentically online, and the ways in which online church has enabled them to reach people with the gospel all over the world in ways that never would have been possible before. For a list of resources mentioned, visit the episode page on our website. ZACH YACIW Zach Yaciw is the Pastor of Village Online at Village Church. Prior to starting this position, he completed the Immerse Program at Northwest Baptist Seminary. Zach was born and raised in Cloverdale, BC. He's passionate about seeing people have their lives transformed by the redemptive grace of Jesus. Zach and his wife, Lauren, have been part of Village Church since 2011.

At the end of April, Fellowship Pacific hosted five virtual events with panels discussing the topic of the post-Covid church. In each of these events, we asked our panelists four questions and they had some really great thoughts, so we decided to compile the highlights from their responses into this episode. You'll be hearing from a fantastic list of voices — all of them Fellowship Pacific pastors — about what they're seeing and thinking about with regard to what church will look like and needs to look like in the post-Covid world.

Microchurch. House Church. No matter what you call them, chances are you may have heard something about this model of church over the past year during Covid. Of course, this isn't a new way of doing church; it literally goes back all the way to the first churches. But it's a model that still feels unfamiliar to many of us in North America. Over the past year, however, there's been a growing interest in microchurch as a model due to the public health restrictions we've been living with. In this episode, Mike Mawhorter from our Church Lifecycles team has a conversation with John Pritchard, one of the founders and leaders of The Edge HC, a network of house churches that began in Calgary and has expanded all across Canada, from BC to PEI. If you've ever had questions about the microchurch, or house church, model, you're definitely going to want to listen in as they talk about why the microchurch model is such an intriguing one, what it looks like, and what it takes to start one. WEBSITES: The Edge HC | A Canadian House Church Network Tampa Underground Network Starling Inititiatives–Catalyzing Kingdom Movements Experience Life (experiencelifenow.com) BOOKS: Underground Church: A Living Example of the Church in its Most Potent Form(Brian Sanders Microchurches: A Smaller Way Brian Sanders The Rabbit and the Elephant Tony and Felicity Dale, George Barna The Tangible Kingdom: Creating Incarnational Community Hugh Halter Contagious Disciple-Making: Leading Others on a Journey of Discovery David and Paul Watson Other Books: Roy Moran & Chris Galanos JOHN PRITCHARD John is passionate about leaders staying on the edge of what Jesus is doing in His Kingdom and in this world. He obtained his Bachelor's Degree from Mountain View Bible College and his Masters Degree in Christian Leadership from CREST Leadership Development. He is the founder and leader of the Edge House Church Network which was established in 2006. John has also functioned as the Lead Facilitator for CREST Leadership Development since 2015. The house church movement and the five-fold ministry together have given him a new perspective on being the Body of Christ and he is spending his life helping other leaders explore the unlimited potential of following Jesus. John lives in Calgary, AB.

Evangelism is one of those things that we know is important, but if we're honest, many of us still struggle with it both as individuals and as churches. If that's you, then you will really appreciate this conversation that Jessica Powell from our Church Management Solutions team had with Shaila Visser. Shaila is the National Director of Alpha Canada as well as the Global Senior Vice-President for Alpha International and she is passionate about introducing people to Jesus. You'll get to listen in as Shaila talks about what is most important in the way that we share our faith, how to deal with the inevitable fear that comes up when it's time to invite someone to church or to a program like Alpha, and why evangelism is actually one of the best tools to grow your own faith and that of your congregation. Find out more about Alpha: www.alphacanada.org www.instagram.com/alphacanadaorg www.facebook.com/alphacanada SHAILA VISSER Shaila Visser is the National Director of Alpha Canada and the Global Senior Vice-President for Alpha International. She is the Executive Producer of both The Alpha Youth Film Series (2013) and The Alpha Film Series (2016), and currently holds positions on the Board of the Damascus Road Foundation and on the Board of Regent College—an International Graduate School in Vancouver. Shaila has a heart for people coming to know Jesus and is passionate about helping the local church flourish. She is a gifted communicator who is known for her strategic leadership as well as her ability to bring people together. Shaila is recognized as one of the Top 100 Most Influential Christian Women in Canada. Shaila lives in Vancouver BC with her husband, Ryan Visser, a Vancouver Police Officer, and their four-legged family members, Talon and Benny. You can reach Shaila on Twitter or Instagram @shailavisser.

Here is a sneak peak on Season 4 coming soon!

We needed to find a way to train pastors who knew how to apply the theology they were learning to real church situations with real people who have real problems. This was the challenge that led to Immerse. Immerse is a competency-based MDiv program where students earn their Masters degree while continuing to work in their ministry context. In this episode, Krista Penner from our Leadership Development team has a conversation with Ruth McGillivray, Interim President at Northwest Seminary & College; Kyle Nichols, Lead Pastor of Princeton Baptist Church; and David Horita, Regional Director of Fellowship Pacific about why this innovative style of education has been so effective in training up pastors. They also share about an exciting new expansion of Immerse that will make this type of learning experience available and accessible to even more leaders, whether in the church or in the community! Resources mentioned in this episode: Immerse MDiv program Immerse MABL program Living Life Backwards by David Gibson RUTH MCGILLIVRAY Ruth joined the staff of Northwest in 2017 as the Director of Competency-Based Education. She has a rich and extensive history in developing CBE programs, having formed such programs in the high-tech and Canadian apprenticeship sectors since the early 1990's. In 2019, Ruth transitioned her role to become Northwest's Chief Innovation Officer, and in 2020, she became the Chief Operations Officer and is currently serving as the Interim President. Ruth has her Master of Arts in Learning and Technology from Royal Roads University. She has been the Conference Director since 2018 for the annual international conference on CBTE, held in partnership with the US-based Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN), and leads a CBTE Advocacy Group comprised of leaders from the Association of Theological School, In Trust Resource Center, C-BEN, and four seminaries. KYLE NICHOLS Kyle is the lead pastor of Princeton Baptist Church. He and his wife Rachel (who is beautiful and amazing and who suffers patiently with Kyle's many changing interests (imagine it!)), moved to Princeton in 2012 where they started their family (currently holding at three young kids), and where they first felt the call to ministry. Kyle loves his family and is passionate about Christ's church; passionate about seeing us move as a family in the direction God calls us. DAVID HORITA David completed his Master of Divinity at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and then went on to serve in both small and large churches, including planting a church in Surrey in 1990. During those years he also received his Doctor of Ministry degree and worked extensively on a variety of Fellowship Pacific Boards before stepping into the position of Regional Director. David greatly enjoys working alongside the team in the Fellowship Pacific Ministry Centre, applying much of his education and experience to developing church-focused tools to help them achieve their unique vision within the Kingdom of God. He has been married for over thirty years to his wife Jo-Anna, and they have three adult sons. David and Jo-Anna love dogs, especially their wheaton terrier puppy—Winston Furchill, who is the unofficial office therapy dog.

In family, we take care of each other. We love each other and invest into each other's lives. The older teach the younger. It's just what happens. As the church, we are all adopted into God's family and just as mentorship is a natural thing that happens in our natural families, it's something that should be expected in our church families. In this episode, Krista Penner from our Leadership Development team talks with Anne Miranda, Pastor of Women's Ministries at Village Church about how we can develop this culture of mentorship in our churches—a culture that goes beyond just another mentorship program, but where investing into each other as the family of God happens organically and authentically. RESOURCES MENTIONED: Leverage Pods Mentoring Initiative That Sounds Fun by Annie Downs ANNE MIRANDA Anne's greatest passion is sharing the good news of Jesus and his teachings. She is currently the Pastor of Women's Ministries at Village Church in Canada. She also loves to develop women in leadership roles, through a network she co-founded called Leverage. Through this ministry, leaders are equipped with practical resources, inspired by the Word of God, and connected with like-minded leaders of leaders. Anne is also heavily involved as a board member of Ally Global, an organization that focuses on empowering women and children who have been rescued from sex trafficking by providing safety and education. Born and raised in a Lebanese heritage, Anne understands the challenges and beauty of being first generation Canadian. Her personal background is rooted in social justice. She developed Crime Prevention Programs for youth under the Attorney General's Office in British Columbia. She also loved her time in the classroom as an educator, teaching high school Spanish and English Literature. She is married to Carlos and they are parents to brown eyed beauties Nathaniel and Hannah.

We talk a lot about leadership development here at Fellowship Pacific and for good reason. Not only is one of our values “Valued Leadership,” but we are also keenly aware of the reality that this mission we've been entrusted with will only carry on beyond us if we have leaders to take it. This is why we have Immerse—our competency-based Mdiv program—that enables churches to invest in the education of upcoming leaders in a way that's different from the traditional seminary. After all, if we want leaders for our churches who are theologically astute, grounded in God's Word, and able to lead well then we have to be intentional about training them! In this episode, Elizabeth Faulkner from our Leadership Development Team talks with Garry Firth, Lead Pastor of The Meeting Place in Nanaimo. Garry was one of the first graduates of the Immerse program and now is an Immerse mentor investing and developing the next generation of students. They talk about what makes Immerse such a different learning experience and why every church should be looking for leaders who they can support in being equipped and trained through Immerse. RESOURCES Immerse Program Email Elizabeth Faulkner to request more information about Immerse! Leader Culture Framework GARRY FIRTH Garry has served and been involved in church for most of his life. He graduated from the NW Baptist Seminary's Immerse program in 2016 and currently serves in the role of lead pastor at The Meeting Place Church in Nanaimo. Garry has seen God's creativity up close, having spent over 6500 hrs underwater working as a commercial diver. He has been married to his high-school sweetheart for over 35 years and has three daughters who are all married as well as two awesome grandaughters. When it comes time to unplug from it all, Garry likes to slip on a motorcycle helmet and hit the road...and if he's not hitting the road he's trying to hit a small white ball into a little wee hole in the grass.

As followers of Jesus, we know we are called to love and serve our communities. But in a time when we are inundated with the sheer magnitude of need that exists around us, it can sometimes feel impossible to even begin to address any of it. But what if we asked for help? What if we embraced the idea that we can have a greater impact in our communities together than we can on our own? In today's episode of the Propel podcast, you get to hear a powerful story of how two Fellowship Pacific churches have “leveraged their collective strength” and combined resources in order to make a beautiful, God-honouring impact in the community of Whitehorse. Jessica Powell from our Church Management Solutions team sat down with Kaitlyn Korzan, Director of Global and Local Mission at Village Church, and Jeremy Norton, Lead Pastor of Mountainview Church in Whitehorse to hear about how their two churches connected to partner in a project to bring hope and light to people who are struggling in Whitehorse. KAITLYN KORZAN Kaitlyn is the Director for Global and Local Mission at Village Church. She's passionate about bridging the gap between the church and the community because she believes there's power when the Church is activated to seek the lost, fight for justice, care for the vulnerable, and bring peace to the city. Kaitlyn loves exploring new places, being immersed in different cultures, and tends to be an adrenaline junkie. JEREMY NORTON Jeremy began serving at Mountainview Church in 2013 as Associate Pastor of Community Life & Equipping and then transitioned to Lead Pastor in 2016. He's passionate about anything and everything to do with Leadership. He believes Outreach is a crucial component of the local church, seeing needs met with the goal of sharing the Gospel. In his off time, Jeremy enjoys blogging, social media, fishing, hunting, playing soccer, and spending time in the outdoors with his wife Nicole and their three boys.

We all know people who view leadership as something they've arrived at. Maybe we've even been that leader. But leadership is never supposed to be about you and what you achieve, but rather it is about empowering others and developing people. In this episode, Krista Penner from our Leadership Development team is talking with speaker and author Lorie Hartshorn, host of the national daily show The 700 Club Canada. They discuss the need for leaders who are committed to investing into people—developing and empowering them in a way that lifts them up. You'll get to hear them talk about the importance of humility in leadership, how to lead when you're not the one in charge, and how we absolutely must grow in our emotional intelligence if we're going to be able to lead the way God intends us to. Books mentioned: Necessary Endings (Dr. Henry Cloud) I Have Walked with the Living God (Pat Robertson) Godmothers: Why You Need One. How to Be One. (Lisa Bevere) Put Your Dream to the Test (John Maxwell) Confronting Christianity (Rebecca McLaughlin) A Life of Listening (Leighton Ford) God and the Pandemic (N.T. Wright) From Fellowship Pacific: EQ Bootcamp LORIE HARTSHORN Lorie Hartshorn is a lover of Jesus, her family, and the local church. She's the Host of the National daily TV show, 700 Club Canada. Lorie is also an international speaker, author, and pastor. Her primary passion is to make Jesus known. She loves to see people grow in faith and experience spiritual freedom. Lorie served as the Pastor of Adult Ministries at Sanctus Church and was the Director of Advancement for EQUIP Leadership Canada, founded by Dr. John C Maxwell, training leaders worldwide. Her teaching can be seen on The 700 Club Canada, 100 Huntley St, Right Now Media, and Sanctus Church. Sunshine, books, cottage, food, and conversation, bring her joy! Lorie's bible study, Finding Freedom Bible Study, brings hope to many as a wake-up call to the reality of spiritual warfare and the power of prayer. Her newest speaking series, Do it Afraid, is enabling people to step through fear and into an adventurous life of faith! www.loriehartshorn.com

One of the most common frustrations facing our churches is simply not having enough leaders. So often we have a great vision and a great strategy, but we run into this lid that is the number of qualified, faithful leaders we need to carry it out. But what if God has already provided the leaders we need to carry out the vision He gave us? The reality is that there is a large group of untapped potential in most of our congregations—the women. And when you find ways to identify, develop, and release the female leaders in your church you will significantly increase the leadership base available to you! In this episode, our regional director, David Horita, talks to Kadi Cole—bestselling author of the book Developing Female Leaders and founder & CEO of Kadi Cole & Company where she works extensively with leaders in both business and ministry. They discuss the challenge of how to release the potential of every single leader in the church so we don't miss out on any of the giftedness, voice, and perspective that God has placed in our congregations. Resources mentioned in this episode Developing Female Leaders (Kadi Cole) Courses: Developing Female Leaders Masterclass Female Leaders Accelerator KADI COLE Kadi Cole has spent the last twenty-five years studying leadership and organizational development, most recently serving as an Executive Director at one of America's largest and fastest growing multi-site churches, a Director of Multisite and Female Leader Groups at Leadership Network, and a founding member of the Women's Executive Pastor Network. She is passionate about helping local churches thrive and equipping faith-based leaders to fulfill their calling through her leadership consulting practice. Ahead of her time in teaching churches to harness the diversity of God-given talents within their congregations, Kadi is a refreshingly balanced and sensible voice. She is the author of the bestseller, Developing Female Leaders, founder of MinistryChick.com, instructor at Kadi's Courses, and host of The Together Project Podcast, where Kadi helps men and women navigate the unique challenges that may arise in pursuit of that call together. Kadi is an engaging, practical, and down-to-earth speaker and thought-leader on a variety of topics related to leadership, organizational development, multisite ministries, spiritual growth and strengthening diversity within our team cultures. She lives in sunny South Florida with her family and her favorite pastime is hiking in her home state of Montana. Connect with Kadi at www.kadicole.com or @kadicole.

Starting a church can be difficult at the best of times. Imagine starting a church without the normal opportunities of meeting face to face? Try building community and trust in an environment that hasn't really had much of a chance to do so. What are the odds of success? How do church planters respond? Do they bend? Break? Or burst through? Have a listen to three God stories, through three church plants, led by three planters, David Adkins (Village Church Abbotsford), Harrison Kwok (Northern Collective Church), and Kolby Milton (Live Free Church). God is at work. The newly planted church is his vessel. At Fellowship Pacific we choose to burst through revealing God's greatness and beauty! Resources mentioned: Gospel Fluency (Jeff Vanderstelt) The Honest Guide to Church Planting (Tom Bennardo) Establish Series (Ethnos Canada) DAVID ADKINS David is originally from London, UK. He was involved with a large international church planting movement there before he emigrated to Canada 15yrs ago with his wife Chrissy and their 3 kids. They spent five years in Burlington, Ontario with a church plant and the last 10 years in BC. He is the lead Pastor of Village Abbotsford, which is part of a multisite network of seven trans-Canadian churches. [https://thisisvillagechurch.com/location/abbotsford/](https://thisisvillagechurch.com/location/abbotsford/) KOLBY MILTON Kolby was born and raised in Kelowna. He has a Masters Degree from Northwest Baptist Seminary and has spent the past 15 years as a Pastor. Kolby has been married 15 years to his wife Lori, who is a Registered Nurse. They have three awesome kids—Beckett is 10, Estelle is 8, and Evie is 6. As a family, they love to spend the summers on the beach at gyro, or in the winter at Big White. HARRISON KWOK Harrison was born and raised in Whitehorse, Yukon after his parents immigrated there from Hong Kong over 40 years ago. He has three daughters and is married to Kaitlyn. Harrison is the lead pastor of the Northern Collective Church and just started his doctorate of ministry at Northwest Baptist Seminary.

It's not difficult to find books and trainings on how to be a good communicator, a good preacher. And for good reason—it's really important to know how to exegete a text, turn it into a sermon, and deliver it with excellence. But you can do all of that, and still miss the main thing—the preacher's own heart with God. In this episode, David Horita, our regional director here at Fellowship Pacific, talks with Barton Priebe, lead pastor of Central Baptist Church in Victoria about the different heart dynamics a preacher faces throughout the week and how you can make sure you are preparing your own heart as you prepare your sermon. Resources mentioned in this episode: The Preparation & Delivery of Sermons (Bryan Chapell) Preaching Christ in a Post-Modern World (Tim Keller) Preaching to the Heart (Tim Keller) Everyday Apologetics (Edited by Paul Chamberlain & Chris Price; Contributors include Barton Priebe, Mark Clark, Jason Ballard, Michael Horner, Kirk Durston, Jon Morrison, and Andy Steiger) BARTON PRIEBE After working four years at Trinity Western University and thirteen years as Lead Pastor at Dunbar Heights Baptist Church in Vancouver, Barton became the lead pastor of Central Baptist Church in 2015. People enjoy his speaking as he knows how to ask the right questions, engage attention, and thoughtfully guide you to answers that impact all areas of faith and life. Barton enjoys cycling, skiing, sushi, reading, date nights with his wife, and having fun with his four children. He received his Doctor of Ministry from Northwest Baptist Seminary writing on the impact of the Apostle Paul's doctrine of adoption in the lives of believers. He is also the author of “The Problem with Christianity: Six Unsettling Questions You have Asked” and a co-author of “Everyday Apologetics: Answering Common Objections to the Christian Faith."

Leading the church when we can't meet in person is a challenge. But re-opening will be a challenge as well as we work to ensure our gatherings are as a safe as possible for everyone who attends. How can we get ahead of the curve and prevent infection in our churches? In this episode, Mike Mawhorter from our Church Lifecycles team talked with Dr. Bridget Stirling about how pastors and church leaders can sift through the conflicting messages and lead responsibly—with faith—during this pandemic. Dr. Stirling is an epidemiologist and public health specialist with a PhD in Community Health services. She is a Director of Stirling Harmston Public Health Specialists and has worked in the area of disease control for over 17 years, both in Canada and internationally. And as a follower of Jesus, she also deeply understands the faith issues of the Covid-19 pandemic. She talks about how to use wisdom to mitigate risk while still fulfilling our mission, serving the frontline workers in our congregations, and re-opening safely once we are able to do so again. RESOURCES ARCC (Application to Reduce Communicable Diseases in Churches) www.stirlingharmston.com DR. BRIDGET STIRLING Dr. Stirling started Stirling Harmston Public Health Specialists in 2013 in response to the Ebola and MERS outbreaks. Working with a British colleague (Harmston), the two Public Health academics both studied at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and shared a passion for helping people in Lower and Middle Income populations. Together, Bridget Stirling and Jennie Harmston began developing prevention tools and training curricula to protect health workers and others from infectious diseases. Since the current COVID pandemic emerged, a team of public health specialists has been working to improve the safety of employees in the manufacturing, financial, communication and healthcare sectors. Dr. Stirlng's passion has long been for assisting the Global Church, so it was no surprise that she turned her experience and skills towards creating a Church Risk Assessment Tool (Application for Reducing Communicable Diseases in Churches, ARCC), as well as a community of best practice for church leaders to have access to her guidance, share ideas and get support.

Season 3 is starting next week! Episode 21 will be coming out on Tuesday, January 12 with epidemiologist Bridget Stirling! Episodes will now be coming out every Tuesday.

There is a constant need for more leaders in our churches and ministries, so how can we be intentional about building a culture of leadership development where we are consistently identifying, developing, and inspiring new leaders to carry out this big mission God has given us? This episode of the Propel podcast has Elizabeth Faulkner from our Leadership Development team talking with Steve Edelman, Executive Pastor at Central Baptist Church in Victoria, and Ben Kirlik, Youth & Young Adults Director at SouthRidge Fellowship, about their own journeys and wins in leadership development and building a culture of leader multiplication. RESOURCES If you're interested in developing your own framework and plan for building a culture of leadership development, make sure you check out our brand new workshop: Leader Culture Framework. We want to hear from you! Fill out our short feedback survey at www.febpacific.ca/propel-podcast STEVE EDELMAN Steve is passionate about seeing people transformed by Jesus and loves helping others thrive in that process. Steve says, “I believe we can change the world for the better and we miss out when our lives are not aligned with Jesus.” He is currently the Executive Pastor at Central Baptist Church in Victoria. Steve loves preaching, leadership, and discipleship. He works with families, mentors staff, multiplies leaders, and helps create/implement the vision. Prior to working at Central, he was the Area Director for Young Life in Mission, BC for four years. He also served as the Worship and Youth Pastor for North Valley Baptist Church for seven years. Steve is married to Megan and has three feisty daughters. Steve enjoys skiing, beach exploration, comedy, piano playing, photography and the general arts. BEN KIRLIK Ben joined SouthRidge in 2015 and is the Youth & Young Adults Director there. He is a lover of all sports, but most of all hockey as he captains a mens team in Langley. With his wife Alicia and daughter Elenor, he enjoys being outdoors, deep talks, better coffee than yours (unless you also prefer single origin small batch roasts), and instrumental playlists.

Culture. It's a word we hear a lot right now, but what is it? And more importantly, how can making shifts and changes to your culture actually help you achieve your mission? In today's episode, Elizabeth Faulkner from our Leadership Development team talks with Ben Hall, Lead Pastor of Shuswap Community Church, about culture change and what it has looked like to lead his church through that change in a way that advances their mission and vision. Resources mentioned in this episode: Gospel Care Collective EQ Bootcamp Leader Culture Framework BEN HALL Ben Hall has been the Lead Pastor of Shuswap Community Church since 2013 where together they are seeking to declare and demonstrate the transforming power of the gospel. Having grown up in the Fellowship, graduated from Northwest, and served in various capacities throughout, he has grown to love the local church and is passionate about church planting. Ben and his wife Kirstin have four kids and in his free time he enjoys running and coaching football.

This has been a year filled with uncertainty, transition, and adaptation, and every single one of our churches and ministries has had to learn how to navigate the ever-changing landscape of 2020! In this episode, Dan Cody from our Church Management Solutions team got to sit down with Scott Bayley, Executive Director of Camp Qwanoes, and talk about how the Covid restrictions have impacted their ministry this year. You'll get to hear about how staying focused on their mission has enabled them to adapt their methods, and how God has been faithful to lead and provide every step of the way. CONNECT WITH QWANOES www.qwanoes.ca Qwanoes Facebook Qwanoes YouTube SCOTT BAYLEY Scott Bayley is the Executive Director at Camp Qwanoes. He has been in senior leadership at Qwanoes since 1989, after graduating from Simon Fraser University. Scott grew up at South Delta Baptist Church, becoming a Christian there when he was five, with active involvement through his university years. He has helped plant two Fellowship Baptist churches. Scott is married to Julie, one of Qwanoes' Associate Directors, and they have three young adult children, Jared, Devin and Kara.

The ability to navigate through change has always been an important skill for leaders to have, but never so much as in this year called 2020. In a time filled with more rapid change than most of us have ever seen in our lifetime, every single one of us has found ourselves in the position of having to lead through uncertainty. So how do we keep moving forward when the only thing that's certain is that everything is uncertain? This is the topic of conversation in this episode as David Horita, our Regional Director at Fellowship Pacific, talks with Brent Chapman, Lead Pastor of Southridge Fellowship Church and President of Fellowship Pacific. They talk about the things that are most important for church leaders to be thinking about when it comes to their leadership as well as what needs to change in them. BRENT CHAPMAN Brent and his wife Pam have been at SouthRidge Fellowship for all 24 years of its existence, serving the last 15 years as the Lead Pastor. During his time at SouthRidge, he has been part of leading the church through several stages of growth, including moving from a small church of 40 to a large church of over 600 on a Sunday morning and building a 4.8 million dollar facility. He graduated from TWU in 1993 and Northwest Seminary in 2001. Brent has served on several of our Region's boards, commissions, task forces, and consultation teams. He is currently serving as the President of our Regional Board. Brent's ministry passions include all things about leadership, leadership development, and global missions. Brent's other passions include his children and two grandchildren, using his hands to work on projects around the house, and trying to mock David Horita whenever he can. Some useless trivia about Brent: he was born in Medellin Colombia; is colour blind (red-green); married for 26 years; wished he had 3 more inches of vertical so he could easily dunk a basketball; loves eating seafood; watching action movies; and is a charter member in three Fellowship Pacific churches.

If your church board isn't functioning well, then your church will not function well. It sounds like a strong statement, but the truth is that your board really is a microcosm of what's happening in the rest of the church. So how do we navigate the dynamics of church board governance and the relationships between the board and the pastor in a way that has everyone pulling together to advance the mission and vision of your church? That's the topic of discussion in today's episode as Krista Penner from our Leadership Development team talks with Dustin Laird, Lead Pastor of Redemption Community Church, and Larry Lagerstrom, Board Chair at Redemption Community Church about how this works out in their context. They discuss the concepts of responsibility, authority, and accountability and talk about how the connection between these three principles plays out in the relationship between Dustin as lead pastor and the board. They also talk about how to keep growing and developing as a board in order to be highly effective in what matters most. Resources mentioned in this episode: Church Leaders on Mission: This newly updated board training is available from Fellowship Pacific and is done in three sessions (two hours each) either over Zoom or in-person. DUSTIN LAIRD Pastor Dustin and his wife Kim have two daughters, Hailey and Lia. Dustin has graduated with a BA in Youth Ministry from Briercrest Bible College and his Masters of Divinity from Northwest Baptist Seminary. He and Kim moved to Surrey in 2012 sensing God's call to plant a church and on Easter 2013 Redemption held its launch service. They share a vision to see lives transformed by the gospel as individuals discover the freedom and joy of loving and being loved by Jesus. LARRY LAGERSTROM Larry is the Board Chair for Redemption Community Church, sits on the Fellowship Pacific Board, and is involved with the Immerse program helping with the student selection process and mentoring students. He also has several years of leadership experience and managing effective teams in his 30+ years with TELUS until his retirement 4 years ago. In their spare time, Larry and his wife enjoy spending time with their children and grandchildren.

There are many ways our churches have benefitted from digital technologies and online platforms, especially during this season of Covid. But there is another side to our digital age that we have to consider and take into account or we may just find that the tools we're using are taking us in a direction we never actually intended to go. In this episode, Jessica Powell from our Church Management Solutions team talks with Jay Kim, author of the book “Analog Church: Why we need real people, places, and things in the digital age.” They discuss the values of our digital culture and why we need to be cautious, thoughtful, and intentional about the ways in which we leverage the technology available to us. Resources mentioned in this episode: More from Jay Kim: Analog Church: Why we need real people, places, and things in a digital age www.jaykimthinks.com Other resources mentioned: Church Pulse Weekly podcast Canoeing the Mountains (Tod Bolsinger) JAY KIM Jay Y. Kim serves as lead pastor of teaching at WestGate Church in the Silicon Valley of California, and as a teacher-in-residence at Vintage Faith Church in Santa Cruz, California. He is the author of Analog Church (InterVarsity Press, 2020). Some of his written work has been featured in Christianity Today, The Gospel Coalition, Relevant Magazine, Outreach Magazine, Missio Alliance, and Pastor Resources. Jay lives in the Silicon Valley with his wife Jenny and their two young children.

What's the first thing you think of when you hear the word “worship?” For most of us, it likely involves some version of singing together with other believers. And there's good reason for that—singing and musical worship are an important part of how we honour and praise God. But what do we do when gathering together, and especially singing together, are some of the riskiest things we could do? In this week's episode, you'll get to listen in as Mike Mawhorter from our Church Lifecycles team talks with four worship leaders about the challenges and opportunities of leading the church into worship during this Covid season. You'll hear from Jayson Oldham, Director of Worship Arts at South Delta Baptist; Todd Gallahar, Pastor, Musician, and Songwriter; Kenzie Korzan, Worship Leader at Village Church; and Jared Mawhorter, Pastor of Worship and Youth at Richmond Baptist. They discuss the ways Covid has challenged them in their worship leading, how to create opportunities for congregational worship that don't include singing, and what their hopes are for the church as we move forward through and out of the pandemic. JAYSON OLDHAM Jayson is the Director of Worship Arts at South Delta Baptist Church and has enjoyed living and being a pastor in the great community of South Delta since 1998. He and his wonderful wife, Juli, have three kids and are currently fostering a fourth little one! Life is full and God is good. TODD GALLAHAR Todd is a pastor, speaker, musician, and songwriter who is all about loving others, singing from the heart, and soaring on the wind God provides. He is married to Amanda and together they have two nearly grown boys. You can find him at toddgallahar.com KENZIE KORZAN Born and raised on the west coast, Kenzie Korzan's love of the performing arts was fostered by gracious mentors and teachers from a young age. Her further studies at the Berklee College of Music ignited a passion for creativity in and through the church. This passion led her to Village Church, where she was brought onto the Worship Arts staff in 2016. Her most recent project was a collaborative EP showcasing musical interpretations of the first book of Psalms called Psalms (Book One) by Village Worship. Her and her husband, Nate, just welcomed their first child, Judah James, in June of this year. JARED MAWHORTER Jared Mawhorter is a pastor at Richmond Baptist overseeing the Worship and Youth ministries. He loves leading people to declare the goodnesses and greatness of our God. He grew up in a home that valued music and loved God. Jared has been a part of music ministry within the church since the 8th grade when he started learning to play the drums. Jared and his wife, Katie, have 3 precious children.

If you aren't able to understand why you react the way you do and manage your own emotions, how will you be able to understand and address the reactions and emotions of the people you've been asked to lead? This is the question being asked in this week's episode of the Propel podcast as Krista Penner from our Leadership Development team talks with Kyle Corbin from Immanuel Church and Zach Yaciw from Village Church. Both Kyle and Zach have attended EQ Bootcamps with Fellowship Pacific and they discuss what they've learned about the importance of EQ and how it impacts their ability to lead well. Resources mentioned in this episode: Pastor EQ Bootcamp Books: Gospel Fluency (Jeff Vanderstelt) God is the Gospel (John Piper) Divine Conspiracy & The Spirit of the Disciplines (Dallas Willard) The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry (John Mark Comer)

We know how important children's ministry is. After all, how we lead our children and families now has a direct impact on the church of the future. Every single leader should be thinking about how we are passing on faith to every single generation. But how do we do that in a time where our children's ministries have lost so many touch points with the people they serve? In this episode, Elizabeth Faulkner from our Leadership Development team talks with three Children's Ministry Directors: Anna Koehn from Ridge Church, Tom Drinkwater from Central Baptist Church Victoria, and Leora Sawatsky from Campbell River Baptist Church. They discuss the challenges they're facing as they continue to try to reach children and young families during the Covid-19 pandemic and the surprising opportunities that have come along with all the change. You'll also hear about the different things they have each tried and get some inspiration and resources for your own ministry. Resources mentioned in this episode: The Gospel Project curriculum RightNow Media ANNA KOEHN Anna has been a part of Children's Ministry at Ridge Church since walking through the doors in 2013. Prior to coming on board as staff in May 2019, Anna worked in Children's Ministry and in the not for profit sector. Having the front seat to watch kids discover and follow Jesus resulting in small disciples who share their faith with those around them, is what wakes Anna up in the morning. Equipping young families to set Biblical foundations for their kids amidst a crazy stage in life is also something Anna is passionate about. Anna lives in Maple Ridge with her husband Nathan and together they have the fun of bringing up their four kids - Katelyn, Caleb, Cece & Hannah, all ranging in preschool to elementary school ages. When not chasing kids or working, Anna loves playing video games - sometimes with a kid, and other times not. TOM DRINKWATER Tom Drinkwater has been part of the Central Baptist staff team since August 2014. He was raised in Victoria and attended Saanich Baptist Church with his family. He graduated from Taylor University and Bible College in 2006, and recently completed his Master's degree through the Immerse Program at Northwest Seminary. Tom is a very charismatic and outgoing person who attributes his joy to the love he has for his Savior and the good news of the Gospel message. He brings his kid-friendly nature, enthusiasm, and drive into his role as Children's Director, where he hopes to see young hearts forever changed and empowered by the love of Jesus. In his spare time he has a passion for international missions, art, strategy games, socializing, greasy food and theme parks, especially the BIGGEST and TALLEST scary roller-coasters! LEORA SAWATSKY Leora has been the Director of Children's Ministry at CRBC since January 2012. She and her husband Dylan moved to Campbell River in 2008 from Three Hills, AB where they met while attending Prairie Bible College. Leora grew up at a Christian Youth Camp in Quebec (Frontier Lodge) where her parents were the general directors. Through camp, short term mission trips and Bible school it became clear that Leora's passion was to serve and love families and children. She continues to be passionate about serving and loving children and families through providing environments, events and programs for learning more about who God is and what He is like.

Are we taking seriously the call to pass on our faith to the next generation? How we do that? What values are most important to the young people in our communities? Does the church actually have something to say to the issues our youth are facing? In today's episode, Krista Penner from our Leadership Development team talks with Sid Koop, Executive Director of Truth Matters Ministries, and Joshua Kazakoff, Pastor of Youth & Community Groups at Central Baptist Church about how the church can get serious about reaching young people and how to do that effectively. You don't want to miss this conversation! Resources mentioned in this episode: Island Youth Worker's Conference www.islandyouthworker.ca Books + Podcasts Youth Ministry Team Podcast Generous Justice (Timothy Keller) Faith for Exiles: 5 Ways for a New Generation to Follow Jesus in Digital Babylon (David Kinnaman & Mark Matlock) iGen: Why Today's Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy—and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood—and What That Means for the Rest of Us (Jean M. Twenge) SID KOOP Sid has been involved in full-time youth ministry for over 19 years. Following his time at Briercrest Seminary, Sid spent 4 years in Canmore as the youth pastor at Canmore Trinity Bible Church, 11 years at the Evangelical Free Church of Lethbridge as Director of Student Ministries, and the last 4 years in Kelowna British Columbia with Truth Matters Ministries. In 2001, Sid founded Truth Matters with the mission to help the next generation see and experience the truth of Jesus Christ. Since 2013, Sid has put his full-time energy into Truth Matters Ministries as the Executive Director. Currently, Truth Matters runs 7 youth worker training conferences across Canada each year under the title “Canadian Youth Workers Conference”. Sid also speaks to students, equips youth workers and informs parents at conferences, retreats, and events across the country. He has a Masters in Youth and Family Ministries and is currently working on his Doctor of Ministry in Emerging Generations at Gordon-Conwell Seminary. Sid lives with his wife Jen and two boys Cole and Payton at Green Bay Bible Camp in Kelowna British Columbia, where his wife is currently the Executive Director. JOSHUA KAZAKOFF Josh grew up in the small town of Powell River and was brought to Victoria in 2009 to complete his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and History at the University of Victoria. He graduated from the Immerse Program through Northwest Baptist Seminary with a Masters of Divinity in 2017. He has an amazing wife and two kids He is passionate about seeing youth from all over Victoria come to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour and bringing that good news to their friends and family.

Season 2 is Here! Make sure you are subscribed to get instant access when episodes are released.

If you work or serve in ministry, it's pretty much inevitable that you will be part of a team. Ministry is not solo work. And whether or not that team is a healthy one will have a significant impact on your ability to move forward in the mission God has for you. In this episode, you get to learn from our own team leaders at Fellowship Pacific: David Horita (Regional Director and Church Lifecycles Team Lead), Krista Penner (Leadership Development Team Lead), and Dan Cody (Church Management Solutions Team Lead). They discuss questions around what it looks like to have healthy team dynamics and what leaders can do to help build those in their own team and culture so they can be healthier and therefore, more effective. Recommended Resources from Fellowship Pacific: Birkman Method for Teams Called to Serve (Church Board Training) Crucial Conversations

Along with Covid-19 have come numerous changes to the ways that we're able to do ministry. But what if those changes are really just new opportunities? In this episode, Todd Chapman from our Church Lifecycles team talks with Joshua Lee, Lead Pastor of Nordel Multicultural Christian Church about how God is building His community and at the same time, He is building us! He has given each one of us abilities and passions and He will open the doors for us to use what He's given us in order to serve the people He's asking us to serve. In other words, we just have to “get on the horse” and hold on for the ride.

The fact that burnout in ministry is an issue is not new information. One quick search is all it takes to see the disheartening statistics on this. And that was before Covid-19 changed everything about how we do ministry and life and family! In this episode, Jessica Powell has a conversation with Dr. Josh Kruse (Pastor of Counselling at Village Church and Registered Psychologist) about how burnout affects us in ministry work, especially when we find ourselves leading through a crisis like the one we're in now. You'll get to hear practical advice and invaluable wisdom for how we can fully live out our calling in ministry without falling into the trap of carrying what we were never meant to carry and burning ourselves out. Resources mentioned in this episode: Books + Podcasts Village Church Counselling Podcast Convergence (Jon Thompson) Emotionally Healthy Spirituality (Peter Scazzaro) Boundaries (Henry Cloud & John Townsend) Assessments Emotional and Spiritual Health Assessment (Peter Scazzaro) Emotion Wheel Dr. Josh Kruse Dr. Josh Kruse is the Pastor of Counselling at Village Church and a Registered Psychologist. He is passionate about helping people heal and grow to be more like Jesus in every area of their life. Dr. Josh has an M.A. and a Ph.D in Clinical Psychology from Biola University and an M.A. with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy from Pepperdine University. Prior to working at Village Church, he was on full time faculty at Trinity Western University and worked as a Psychologist in private practice. He lives in Surrey, British Columbia with his wife Rachael, and their four children ages 17, 16, 11, and 9.

Comparison—we all know we're not supposed to do it, but somehow it always seems so easy to fall into, especially when it comes to ministry. So how do we fight it? In this episode, Elizabeth Faulkner from our Leadership Development team has a conversation with Darin Phillips (Lead Pastor at Oceanview Community Church in Ladysmith), Jordan Gold (Campus Pastor at Shuswap Community Church in Salmon Arm), and Dan Steenson (Youth & Young Adults Pastor at Maple Ridge Baptist Church in Maple Ridge) about the challenges of comparing ourselves to others—something that seems to be even more pronounced during this COVID season. Through some great stories, life experiences, and wisdom from God's Word, you will hear practical insight and encouragement for helping you with that inner battle of comparison.

Most of us would say that of course we want our churches to be effective in reaching people of every nation and every tongue. But the reality of what it takes to actually do that so often feels overwhelming and out of reach. In this episode, Krista Penner speaks with Paul Park––lead pastor of South Delta Baptist Church––about how we can start to take real steps towards removing the barriers that keep us from reaching our diverse communities, and why it is vitally important that we do so. Mentioned in this episode: Many Colors: Cultural Intelligence for a Changing Church (Soong-Chan Rah) Paul Park Paul joined South Delta Baptist Church in 2013 and has fallen in love with the church since then. He transitioned into the lead pastor role in late 2017, and has been blessed to serve Jesus and the community of South Delta alongside SDBC. He has a strong passion for preaching God's word and communicating the love of Christ to anyone who is willing to listen. Outside of ministry, Paul enjoys spending time with his beautiful wife, Sarah, and their son, Nathan.

Elizabeth Faulkner talks with Wes Linde from Southridge Fellowship about what it looks like to be missionaries during COVID 19 and we can reach people “one life at a time.” They explore how to be a light to our neighbours through this new shared common experience of COVID 19 paired with being intentional in how we interact. They also talk about how even cancelled missions trips and being forced to discover new ways of finding community create the possibility of us becoming even better at leveraging the voice and influence of everyone in the church, not just the voices on Sunday morning.

Description: How do we restart our churches after Covid-19? We're all in uncharted waters here. As one of the participants stated, it's like building an airplane while you're flying it. As we're able to restart, will things return to the way they were before, or will a new normal emerge? How can we restart our face-to-face ministries in line with the Province's 4-phase plan? How can we restart while staying safe, and what role is technology going to play moving forward? In this episode of the Propel podcast, three Fellowship Pacific pastors join Mike Mawhorter to discuss what restarting may look like in urban, suburban and small town settings. Resources: Faith Fellowship Baptist Re-Opening Plan “24 Questions Your Church Should Answer Before People Return”

In this episode, David Horita, regional director at Fellowship Pacific, talks with Marc Kinna. Marc is the Executive Vice President Operations & Chief Operating Officer at Baptist Housing, which is one of the largest faith-based providers of seniors housing and care in British Columbia. They serve over 2700 seniors in 21 residences around the province, including affordable housing, independent living, assisted living, and long-term care. You'll get to hear Marc share about the incredible opportunity that exists for ministry among seniors and how the Covid-19 pandemic has increased that opportunity and need for this ministry even though it has required a change in how they care for and support their residents. As Marc explains, one urgent, practical need their residences have right now is for personal protective equipment (PPE). If you or someone you know has any PPE, they will gladly accept donations at any of their locations. Alternatively, you can also donate at SafeCare BC. To find out more: www.baptisthousing.org

Krista Penner speaks with Renata Prates about her passion to reach people with the comfort of the gospel through social media. Renata unpacks the call of Jesus in her life to reach out and take risks as she connects with those in her sphere of influence and beyond.

In today's episode, Elizabeth Faulkner talks to Shawn Barden at Mountainside Community Church about what his church has been up to since the coronavirus crisis began. They talk about how God spoke to Shawn months before this crisis started, preparing him to be ready in his heart for what God would call him and his church to do. Shawn shares about how his church is being innovative in mobilizing their church and community to care for those who are most vulnerable in their community. Furthermore, he challenges us to consider the mission of the church beyond even the next couple of months and consider what God may ask us to give up and fight for in order to be a light in our communities. For more information about the Elk Valley Covid Support Team, visit www.evcst.com

This Podcast will be filled with conversations with Pastors and Leaders all over the region of the Fellowship Pacific Region of Baptist Churches.