OVERVIEW

  • Ministry is made up of relationships. Between pastors and their people. Between the people of God and people far from God. That's why we built the Community Leadership Cohort to give you the relationships, resources, and resolve you will need in order to lead your people deeper into community and farther out on mission.
  • Over the course of our time together we will help you assess and address not just the health of your people, but your health as their pastor. We will be with you every step of the way, and we hope that the relationships and strategic tools we offer you will encourage, energize, and equip you for faithful and fruitful labor in your context.

WHEN 

  • First Gathering: Fall 2021

    • Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
    • Wednesday, September 15th at 2:00pm—Friday, September 17th at 12:00pm

     

  • Second Gathering: Spring 2022

    • Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
    • Wednesday, January 19th at 2:00pm—Friday, January 21st at 12:00pm

WHERE

We believe transformation and learning happen best in the context of real relationships, so we've reserved a spacious and beautiful lakeside home.

2019-03-21 - fire pit-dallas house

2019-03-21 - view of lake-dallas house 2019-03-21 - hot tub-dallas
2019-03-21 - screened in porch-dallas house 2019-03-21 - dining table-dallas house

We built the cohort to give you the relationships, resources, and resolve you will need in order to lead your people.

LEADERSHIP

  • Justin Elafros, Groups Pastor, and Dr. Jared Musgrove, Pastor for Leader Development and Groups, serve at The Village Church, Flower Mound, TX. Dr. J. J. Seid, Director of Leadership Development, serves at Frontline Church, Oklahoma City, OK. Read more about the team here.
  • Between them, Justin, Jared, and J. J. have a combined 38 years of experience developing and overseeing groups ministry.

Who will participate in the cohort?

  • The cohort will be capped at nine participants in order to allow for personalized coaching and development, ensure equal participation for all involved, as well create space for cohort members to connect with each other and not just the facilitators.
  • Regardless of your context or the size culture of your church, if you are the one currently tasked with moving your people deeper into community and farther out on mission, this cohort is for you. You might be the lead pastor, an associate pastor, or another key leader. You might be tasked with leading the education department, developing an overarching spiritual formation philosophy, or overseeing and launching small groups. Though cohort participants serve in diverse roles, they all share a common goal of equipping their people for the Great Commandment and the Great Commission.

What will participants receive? 

  • The four days of training have been deliberately spread across across two two-day development gatherings spanning a six month time period in order to give participants ample time to implement strategies, make changes in their personal health and development, and receive coaching, encouragement, and accountability along the way. Making changes that last will take time, encouragement, and single-minded attention.
  • The two development gatherings will be hosted by staff of The Village Church in Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX and staff of Frontline Church in Oklahoma City, OK.
  • After the initial gathering of the cohort, participants will have access to scheduled phone coaching as they seek to grow personally as well as lead change within their ministry context.
  • Participants will be given opportunities for ongoing relationship and mutual development with other cohort participants. As they look back on these kinds of experiences, cohort participants often point to the relationships formed with other cohort members as the element that pays the greatest dividend over time.
  • Participants will gain access to ministry strategies and tools from Frontline Church and The Village Church.
  • Participants will benefit from coaching phone calls with the cohort facilitators.

What is required in order to participate?

  • Commitment to be present at and participating in each of the gatherings.
  • Commitment to do the reading and writing necessary to complete the training and assessment assignments given before and after each cohort gathering. (These will be not be burdensome or unnecessarily time-consuming, but they will be important for getting the most out of the cohort experience. Think articles, not books, and short answers, not essays.)
  • Commitment to be increasingly open, honest, and servant-hearted as the cohort members slowly grow in knowing each other and building trust with each other over time.
  • The all-inclusive total cost to participate in the cohort is $2,500, with the full amount due prior to the first cohort gathering. (Registration fees are non-refundable, with exceptions made for medical emergencies.) Once applicants fill out the brief online application and are then notified of their acceptance, they will receive an invoice, due immediately. The registration fees will also serve to cover the cost of housing for both cohort gatherings, as well as most meals, including coffee and snacks. Breakfasts and lunches will generally be prepared and eaten together in the residential setting of the cohort, but participants can plan to cover one or two nice meals out per gathering.