2008 Optional Seminars

Conferees will be able to choose from these topics during the optional seminar times on Friday and Saturday afternoons:

Clergy Caregiving 101- "How to Get Started"

What does it take to start a Clergy Caregiving ministry?: Gary Harrison of Pinnacle Ministries will share what they've learned.

Ministry Team "Gone Toxic": Shepherding The Ministry Team That Is Imploding

"Sometimes the church (or ministry) is like Noah's Ark...if it weren't so stormy outside you couldn't stand the stench inside!" Discover how to increase your capacity as an effective shepherd whether Consulting, Counseling or Caught in the Clutches of a ministry team "becoming toxic". Learn how to implement several simple, but practical, tools that can help you evaluate and encourage a ministry team (or individual) toward spiritual, relational and missional health.

Denny Howard is the Director of Vitality Care Institute, providing consulting and counseling to ministry and non-profit leaders.

Helping Pastors Improve Their Ministries By 50%

Patti Cappa of Marble Retreat will share some ideas for increasing the resiliency and satisfaction of clergy marriages especially during times of crisis. Discussion encouraged and differences of opinion welcome. Patti is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with specific interests in family systems therapy and marital issues.

God and Asking: The Choice Between Two Roads

This presentation will address the distinction between choosing either the transactional or the heart-transformational road to fundraising. Popular and widely used transactional techniques get people to give by providing them something of earthly value in return. The less-used approach is the belief that generous Christian giving is the result of the transformation of a person's character as he or she is conformed to the image of Christ, becoming generous as Christ is generous.

Richard A. Haynie is director of development of OC International and an internationally known speaker and teacher. His two decades of experience in fundraising development have included work with The Navigators, International Bible Society, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and Dawn Ministries in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Maximizing Our Caregiving: a Discussion for Non-therapist Caregivers

Michael Todd and Tanya Wilson will facilitate a discussion on skill-building for caregivers who are not trained therapists. While tailoring the discussion to the unique issues presented by the participants, possible topics include:

• Recognizing and promoting appropriate boundaries in our helping
• Evaluating both the strengths and limitations of ourselves as well as those of our ministry organizations
• Knowing when to refer to others for more specialized helping
• Creating, building and nurturing a referral network among ministry/professional colleagues
• Sharpening our listening skills
• Proactively pursuing healthy self-care as professional caregivers

Michael Todd Wilson is director and cofounder of ShepherdCare and a licensed professional counselor in Georgia. His wife, Tanya, is a graduate from Reformed Theological Seminary with a master's in Marriage and Family Therapy.

Valuing your Greatest Ministry Resource

Much of what we do in Caregivers is aimed at the traditional male pastor. How can we care for the woman who is called to full-time ministry? She may be a pastor, missionary, professor, ministry leader--single or married to a co-pastor. This is not about women's ministry and it's not just for women! It's about the full body of Christ, so it's also for any man who's ever had a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister, has worked with women or met women. How can we support and champion one another?

Linda Kline is Director of Psalm One Ministries. She is a graduate of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and has a wide variety of ministry experience including teaching, speaking, missions, counseling, evangelism and discipleship in many different settings.