I exhort the elders among you…shepherd the flock of God that is among you…clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another… 1 Peter 5:2,5
I started Fortifying Shepherds to help Jesus’ church by ministering principally to its leaders. After forty-plus years serving as a church planter, senior pastor, and in numerous transitional pastorates, I am deeply persuaded that the most critical grace essential to relational flourishing is humble, other-centered servanthood. I count it an enormous privilege to come alongside church leaders in their striving to lead vital churches governed by Ruling and Teaching Elders who glorify Christ by intentionally shepherding their flocks as servant-leaders.
Fortifying Shepherds seeks to assist church leaders to embrace, practice among themselves, and model for their congregations, the Gospel grace of humble, other-centered servanthood, because most organizations suffer dysfunction and strife due to unchecked pride and underdeveloped humility. Believing that there is no greater foundational Christian virtue, and no greater need for church leaders, and no greater grace indispensable for vital one-anothering in the body of Christ, this ministry conducts workshops and retreats on a variety of subjects designed to help church leaders cultivate humility in their hearts and to assist Sessions to assess vital leadership and shepherding dynamics, Biblical church mission and vision, and congregational health- central to all of which is humble, other-centered servanthood. The incomparable Jonathan Edwards wrote:
Humility, then, is the most essential thing in true religion. The whole setting of the gospel and everything that belongs to the New Covenant should have this effect upon the hearts of men.
Workshops offered by Fortifying Shepherds
-Fortifying the Lord’s Shepherds: Nurturing Humble Other-centered Servanthood for Session and Congregational Vitality
This is the flagship workshop of Shepherd’s Apron, consisting of various tracks which fall under the headings 1) Clarifying Your Calling, 2) Stewarding Your Calling, and 3) Assessing Session Vitality. They are predicated on the fact that we all need to battle relentlessly for humility and against pride, and they are designed to inspire and foster robust commitment to the Biblical grace of humble, other-centered servanthood, for the spiritual health of individual Ruling and Teaching Elders, the Session, and their flock.
-Ruling as a Servant-Leader
This workshop explores a variety of issues related to servant-leadership in the pattern of the Lord Jesus, who ruled in wisdom, grace and truth.
-Helps for Shepherding
This workshop seeks to train elders in a variety of specific shepherding skills.
-Safeguarding Humility in the Life of a Church Leaders
This workshop explores the many critical factors involved in assisting church leaders to cultivate and pursue humility.
-Assessing Church Vision and Mission
This workshop uses a variety of assessment tools to help leaders evaluate “where we’ve been, where are we now, and where do we desire to go.”
-A Church Leader’s Conflict with Sin and Satan
This workshop will show how the humble church leader must constantly mortify sin and fortify himself against the Evil One.
-The Devotional Life of Church Leaders
This workshop is a how-to exploration of the most important aspect of a leader’s life: enriching heart and mind in personal time with the Lord and his Word.
-How to Use a Transitional (Interim) Pastor
This workshop helps Session’s answer the many questions arising from the prospect of using a transitional pastor.
-How to Form and Use a Pastoral Search Committee
This workshop prepares Sessions for the crucial task of walking their congregation through the formation and functioning of a Pastoral Search Committee.