This is the second half of a two parter. Click here if you have not read Part I.

The Gordon County Christian Ministerial Alliance (formerly the Gordon County Ministers Association) is a collaborative effort of a few local church pastors. Some will automatically be offended by anything that suggests ecumenical but what I wrote yesterday applies; we can do more working together than against each other. Baptist, Methodist and Presbyterian pastors feel the same pressures and isolation. While we may be able to function as individuals we can thrive as members of a society, an organization. Is your church not enough? It’s not about that. The church is something a pastor pours into. Being part of a collaborative effort allows ministry leaders the same connections and opportunities as church members have in the body. I don’t want to use a cliche like synergy but it conveys what I mean in this case. There are members on paper we don’t see very often but the core of the group is one Baptist pastor, two Methodist pastors, one Methodist minister of music, one Presbyterian pastor, one Seventh Day Adventist pastor, one hospital chaplain and currently two ladies that represent another Methodist church and the local Episcopal church. We differ in our theology in ways there are secondary to our main goal which is bringing the Gospel into our community. When we make more of Christ and less of ourselves we can work together in spite of our differences. Continue reading →