Applications are now open for the second cohort of the Compelling Preaching Initiative.
The Initiative, funded by a generous grant from Lilly Endowment, seeks to build the capacity for bold, innovative preaching within Arkansas United Methodist clergy to transform churches and communities. Programs through the initiative will support individual preachers who can transfer a honed skill set to meet the needs of each appointment.
Arkansas United Methodist clergy under a full-time appointment (elders, deacons, local pastors, and associate members) are welcome to apply for a 2-year cohort with 12 participants. Cohort applicants will be chosen at the beginning of the 2-year experience (2024, 2025, 2026, and 2027). Selection will be based on a written application and 2 recommendations (direct supervisor and SPRC or equivalent representative). The CPI Advisory Board will give careful attention to diversity and inclusion as the cohort is selected. Applications are due November 1, 2024.
Year One
The cohort will attend the “Practice of Preaching” Retreat at Winthrop Rockefeller Institute on Petit Jean Mountain. The retreat will focus on formation in the roles of public speaking, completing a short oral assignment for evaluation from a Preaching Coach, peers, and CPI, preparation and sharing of ideas, relationship building, sabbath keeping, hikes, worship, and rest.
The cohort will divide into three groups of four to design an “Innovation in Preaching Pilgrimage” to learn from practitioners in the US. Each group will have $20,000 and must complete the proposal and budget in the form of a grant request to the CPI Project Director and Advisory Board for review and approval. Proposals will include the purpose of the pilgrimage, evidence of initial conversations with practitioners, a budget, and travel plans. Pilgrimage grant proposals no later than May 31st with cohorts making the pilgrimage during the late summer/early fall.
The cohort will travel for the second retreat to Sedona, Arizona for five days and four nights for “Finding Your Voice and Creating Resiliency for Preaching.” This retreat experience will help pastors wrestle with shame and perfectionism, discover a deeper sense of resilience, and show up more authentically in the pulpit. Traveling to Sedona allows participants to retreat from the constant expectations of work and life, experience a different landscape filled with majestic beauty, have the opportunity to hike and explore, and be fully immersed in spiritual growth and renewal. The content of the retreat will have two main foci: The Enneagram and The Daring Way Curriculum.
Year Two
The cohort will gather for a third retreat (April 2025) to present innovation in preaching findings to the cohort (four days and three nights at Winthrop Rockefeller Institute on Petit Jean Mountain) by preaching to their peers in a retreat setting with the cohort, Project Director, and Preaching Coach offering written and oral feedback. The Preaching Coach will provide ongoing coaching as clergy return to ministry settings. A practitioner with expertise in sharing a digital or social media presence as a medium for preaching will also be available to troubleshoot and provide best practices for an online presence in preaching.
Returning home, clergy will participate in a pulpit swap to engage a congregation in a different ministerial context and try one of the innovative preaching findings gleaned from the retreat. The hope is that congregations that host a cohort participant will be open to (and qualify as a different context for) the pulpit exchange. In preparation for the pulpit swap, the details of mileage and accommodations, a post-worship fellowship meal, videography, and an assessment survey will be provided. Cohort participants will also preach the same sermon to their home congregations. The Congregational Coaching Team will invite the congregation to fill out a survey on the practice of preaching and the effectiveness of the new form in communicating the gospel message. A video of both sermons will be shared with the Preaching Coach for feedback and follow-up conversation.
The cohort will present pilgrimage learnings at the “Innovation in Preaching Workshop” held annually at the John and Marjem Gill Preaching Workshop at Hendrix College. A nationally recognized preacher or practitioner will also provide a workshop for clergy gathered around the state on the second day of the event. A celebratory meal at a local Conway, Arkansas restaurant will be held for the cohort participants at the end of the second day of the workshop.
