Perspectives from a President
CMM has been training men and women to be Gospel Coaches for a decade. All over the world the gospel is being shared with leaders through a vital ministry of coaching. A few years ago, we changed our model to train potential coaches.
We now accept men and women who are referred to us by organizations that want our specific type of coaching. For instance, the Southern Baptist Conference of Associational Leaders is sending their Associational Leaders, Missional Catalysts, and Associational Mission Strategists to receive Gospel Coaching to sharpen their skills in assisting the pastors in their state associations.
At our most recent Gospel Coach Training, we had our first seminary President in attendance. Dr. Ike Reeder, president of Birmingham Theological Seminary, decided to implement Gospel Coaching into their doctoral program. Here is Dr. Reeder’s perspective:
“As someone who is deeply involved in the training of pastors and leaders of the church, I well know how often those who are in ministry are called upon to give advice, offer counsel, or provide an opinion. As we have developed programs at Birmingham Theological Seminary, though, we've often thought that the leaders we are training need to dig deeper into the lives of those with whom they work, those who look to them for leadership—not by simply spouting off simple axioms they have learned. Gospel Coaching provides a much-needed framework that helps leaders learn how to dig deeper in the lives of the people that are looking to them for that leadership by learning to actively listen, ask insightful, biblical questions, and by learning how to respond to the deep-seated needs that drive those whom we serve. Dr. Wood and his team actively invest in those who come to learn how to apply the principles of Gospel Coaching and I can say that after just one weekend, I've seen a difference in my own interactions with my staff and students at BTS, but also in my ministry opportunities. Gospel Coaching has helped me see that it isn't about my advice—it's my job to help people turn their eyes and to our Savior. I couldn't be more excited than to implement the Gospel Coaching program in our pastoral training at BTS!”
Click here to learn more about Birmingham Theoloical Seminary.
We are glad to partner with such a fantastic seminary, which provides biblical education and practical preparation for 21st century ministry.
Thank you for being an ongoing friend of CMM’s global mission, because all over the world His gospel is bearing fruit and growing.