CBF Enters Three Year Agreement with Center for Congregational Health
“"This new partnership will allow us to be the 'first call' for congregations that are experiencing stress or uncertainty, that are entering a time of interim ministry, and for direct ministry support to our church leaders"
The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF) entered into a three-year partnership with a consulting and training center to provide free consulting services to its member churches.
The Center for Congregational Health operates at a training center in Winston-Salem, N.C., and is available on-call to CBF churches that need help in strategic planning, interim ministry, conflict management, staff relationships and leadership.
"This new partnership will allow us to be the 'first call' for congregations that are experiencing stress or uncertainty, that are entering a time of interim ministry, and for direct ministry support to our church leaders," said Bo Prosser, the CBF’s coordinator for congregational life, to the Associated Baptist Press.
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The CBF is a moderate denomination that branched off from the Southern Baptist Convention a decade earlier over theological disputes. Churches in the loosely aligned Baptist State Conventions across the country are most often allowed to choose to take part in the CBF, SBC or both.
The CBF’s new initiative will allow the denomination to give resources for specific churches and specific needs. The partnership will also allow CBF-member churches free on-site consultation for up to 75 hours, with the churches paying only the travel costs for the consultants.
"Many congregations experience difficult challenges and unexpected opportunities. This partnership provides resources for congregations and their leaders in those extraordinary times," said Dave Odom, president of the Center for Congregational Help.
Terry Hamrick, the Fellowship’s coordinator for leadership development, agreed that the partnership will give many benefits to the denomination.
"We want to give [ministers] some practical handles to apply to their situations," Hamrick said to the ABP. One such program will train ministers to lead a "missional church," which is a priority in the Fellowship's long-term strategy.
