Pastor's Life - Love

Loving People of Other Faiths by Charles Wiley, Ph.D. I enjoyed reading “God is big enough to hold all of our curiosity, doubts, joys, and fears” by Rev. Adriene Thorne (Pastor’s Life, June 2026). I, too, have deeply appreciated dialogue and friendship with people of other faiths, particularly with Muslims and Jews. And my day-to-day life is filled with encounters with Buddhists from Myanmar, who oversee businesses in my city, Muslims who have become friends because of our participation in formal dialogues, and several rabbis whom I count as close friends. I am grateful for these relationships. When I think of how I approach other faiths, I realize I almost always do so in the midst of relationships. Many years ago, I made a comment in a seminar that another student found troubling. She blurted out, “But you’re speaking from a Christian perspective.” To which I replied, “It is the only one I’ve got.” One of the joys of interfaith encounters is that we bring our whole selves into the conversation, and we are pleased when our conversation partners bring their whole selves as well. My commitment to Jesus Christ is at the center of my whole self. I have sometimes found that in formal dialogues some Christians are often consumed with finding common ground before the dialogue begins. I tend to practice a simpler approach: the only requirement for dialogue is a willingness to talk. Common ground, if it emerges, will rise up within the conversation.

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Charles Wiley, Ph.D. serves as Vice-President of Philanthropy at Day1, having previously served at Columbia Theological Seminary as Director of Leadership Support where he also taught theology and history. In addition to serving in various pastoral roles, for 21 years he served with distinction at the Presbyterian Church USA Office of Theology and Worship. Charles earned his Ph.D. at Princeton Seminary, his M.Div. from Duke Divinity School, and his B.A. from Davidson College.

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Church Financial Leadership Grant Program Grants are available to assist pastors to attend continuing education opportunities which will help them in leading their congregations toward financial and missional vitality. These grants can be used to help with half the cost to attend Stewardship Kaleidoscope or the ECRF program. More Information

Continuing Education Institute in Partnership with NEXT Church Zephyr Point and NEXT Church are partnering to hosting a continuing education institute in October. This education experience helps ministry leaders assess congregational needs, evaluate resources, and develop practical strategies. More Information

Pastor's Life - Truth

Telling the truth is an act of support and love by Rev. Jeniffer Rodríguez Michel There are moments in life we will never forget. Some of those moments have become memorable in our lives because they might be considered a big accomplishment or a milestone. There are other moments we would like to forget because they are considered shameful experiences that did not help us at all to end our day on a high note. There are different stories we can relate to based on those moments. Stories in which the answer has been, "I wish you would have told me…." ….That moment when I had a pink lipstick on my teeth and it was there the entire meeting. ….When I went to the restroom during a meeting break and I left with toilet paper hanging from my shoes. ….While having lunch and the spaghetti sauce plastered my cheeks well after I left the table. We need to rely on each other. As church leaders who run from one meeting to the next it is important we support each other. We might consider a particular support to be minimal from our perspective, but from another it could be important and even taken as a priority.

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Rev. Jeniffer Rodríguez Michel is pastor at the Oak Tree-Iselin Presbyterian Church, NJ. Jeniffer and her husband, Kyle Craig, are the parents of Emma Sophia and Eric Gabriel. Originally from the Dominican Republic, she pursued her Master of Divinity at McCormick Theological Seminary. Rev. Rodríguez Michel likes to do creative things with art, both for worship and personally. She is a chaplain of the New York City-based Ecumenical Choir Cántico Nuevo (New Song) and is involved in social justice issues.

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Church Financial Leadership Coaching Program The goal of the Coaching Program is to develop pastoral leaders who have a solid foundation in church financial literacy and appropriate skills in leadership and management so that their congregations create a culture that forms generous disciples. This 12-month program is offered at no cost and provides a coach to walk beside you while you build your culture of generosity. More Information

Pastor's Renewal Retreat Zephyr Point is hosting a retreat for both lay and ordained pastors; the conference is set for October 12-14, 2026. This gathering offers clergy and ministry leaders an opportunity to rest, reflect, and renew their capacity for ministry. More Information

Pastor's Life - The Call

Whether your church is mega or small, the call and the work matter the same by Rev. Lorenzo Small, Sr. A CNN article was recently sent to me regarding the success of a mega church in Atlanta that I will not name. The premise of the article was that this pastor has figured out how to reach young people in the thousands, while highlighting the continued failure of the mainline church in America. The article actually names the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) as one of those failing denominations. Now, before I write the rest of this devotion, let me say that we, disciples of Jesus Christ, celebrate wherever God is at work and persons are being reached with the glorious gospel of Jesus regardless of size and denomination. However, I refute any notion that says God is only at work in these mega places. Furthermore, I refute any teaching that says unless we employ a particular strategy, we are doomed for failure. So today, I write to encourage and warn us one-talent pastors, that is, pastors who serve in communities like mine, Battle Creek, MI. Pastors who serve in places where the membership of these mega churches exceeds the population of your entire city. I am writing to us lest we become discouraged and, like the unprofitable servant in Matthew 25:14–30, fail to take seriously the call God/Jesus has given to us to be just as productive in our small places as our brothers and sisters in these big places.

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Rev. Lorenzo Small serves as Lead Pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Battle Creek, Michigan. He is a graduate of North Carolina A & T State University where he studied Finance. Following graduation, he moved to St. Paul, Minn., where he worked for a number of years in the corporate world (for such companies as 3M Corporation and Eli Lilly). While there, he felt the call to the ministry and was ordained as a Baptist minister. Following graduation from Union Presbyterian Seminary he was ordained and installed as pastor of Pleasant Ridge Presbyterian Church of Lancaster, S.C. Rev. Small is a board member of the Foundation for Reformed Theology. He previously served as pastor of First United Presbyterian Church of Charlotte, N.C.

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Pastors need to take time for legacy planning Pastors attending the 2026 Luminosity Conference in Orlando were invited to reflect deeply on faith, family, and the lasting impact of their ministries during a workshop titled "Legacy is not just for Laity," presented by Rev. Ellie Johns-Kelley and Rev. Erin Skinner. Read Story

Church Financial Leadership Grant Program Grants are available to assist Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) pastors and New Worshiping Community leaders to attend continuing education opportunities, such as Stewardship Kaleidoscope, to help pastors lead their congregations toward financial and missional vitality.  More Information

Connection and vulnerability are keys to supporting faith communities, congregations “Human beings need connection,” Rabbi Sharon Brous said. “It is connection that gives our lives meaning and purpose.” She spoke at the Luminosity Conference in March urging church leaders to resist isolation, embrace vulnerability and deepen human connection. Read Story

Pastor's Life - God sustains

God sustains pastors as they do God's work by Rev. Dr. Alice Ridgill While driving on a bright, sunny day a few weeks ago, I crossed a bridge I had driven over many times before. As I approached it, my familiarity made the crossing feel entirely routine. However, what I assumed would be a mundane excursion became a memorable experience. On that unforgettable day, I found myself not only appreciating the parts of the bridge I could see but also reflecting on and appreciating the parts I could not. Although I had crossed that bridge countless times before, it had never dawned on me that what lies hidden below a bridge is far more important than what is seen above. Bridges don’t stand because of what is visible above the surface; they stand because of what is securely anchored below the surface. As I casually drove across the bridge, I realized that it is not the visible beams or cables that enable bridges to endure. Rather, it is pilings driven into bedrock and caissons sunk deeply below the waterline, those unseen foundations, that enable bridges to continually bear the weight of vehicles day after day, month after month, and year after year.

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Rev. Dr. Alice Ridgill is a scholar and preacher with more than 25 years of experience in pastoral ministry and presbytery leadership. She has served as a solo pastor, campus pastor, and organizing pastor of New Faith Presbyterian Church in Greenwood, South Carolina. Most recently, Rev. Dr. Ridgill served as Associate General Presbyter of the Presbytery of Charlotte, where she provided executive leadership to 93 congregations. She currently serves as a chaplain in the United States Air Force Reserve.

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God Makes All Things New: New River Presbyterian Church, West Philadelphia What happens when three historic African American churches choose unity over closure? This is the powerful story of New River Presbyterian Church, a faith community in West Philadelphia born from the merger (or rather, marriage) of First African, Calvin, and Good Shepherd Presbyterian churches. Led by Rev. Dr. Eustacia Moffett Marshall and supported by the Presbytery of Philadelphia and the Presbyterian Foundation, this community reimagined church for the 21st century, including hybrid worship, affordable housing, youth programs, and healing spaces. Watch Video

Who is Jesus, and who are you? "Each week as we walk through Lent, we discover a story of who Jesus is. We witness who he is to us in our tradition and who he was to the people of his time and his community." Rev. Zoë Garry walks through the Sundays of Lent in a Lectionary Preview for March. Read Now

Pastor's Life - Ordinary Time

Pastoring in Ordinary Time by Rev. Lauren Gully So often the people in our congregations assume that we, their pastors, are something more than ordinary. Whether it is our role, the visibility of our work, or the sacred trust placed in us, it can be easy for others — and sometimes for us — to imagine that pastoral leaders exist on a level slightly removed from the ordinary realities of life. But the simple truth is that we are ordinary people. We carry heavy burdens. We navigate hard transitions. We experience joy and loss, exhaustion and hope, often alongside the very same struggles present in the lives of the communities we serve. Much of life, when we are honest, is profoundly ordinary. Living is hard work: raising children, caring for aging parents, navigating financial stress, managing health concerns. Living is also deeply joyful: celebrating graduations, a spouse’s promotion, the birth of a child, or a long-awaited reconciliation. Nearly everything we experience could be called ordinary, not because it lacks meaning, but because it is shared human ground. These moments are not insignificant; they form the necessary framework of our lives, marking time with peaks and valleys that shape who we are becoming. The ordinary is where life actually happens.

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Rev. Lauren Gully serves as the Pastor for Mission and Outreach at Lafayette-Orinda Presbyterian Church in California, where she previously held the role of Pastor for Spiritual Formation. Her background includes creative writing, global service-learning, interfaith dialogue, young adult ministry, and a strong passion for sustainability. Currently, Lauren serves on the board of Hope Solutions, a local housing non-profit, and is completing her thesis, “How to be Angry at God,” for her Doctorate of Ministry at Duke Divinity School.

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The Story of Transfiguration "Acknowledging the lordship of Jesus is not about building tents for Jesus — literal or metaphorical — but about partcipating in the mission he had initiated." Rev. Dr. Raj Nadella shares in a Lectionary Preview for February 15. Read Story

Luminosity Conference Make plans to attend the Luminosity Conference in Orlando, FL from March 9-11, 2026. This conference will be an inspiring and transformative experience filled with insightful teaching, practical strategies, and meaningful connections. Join us as we learn, dream, and grow together — because the future of ministry starts with leaders like you. More Information