Urban Pastors Fellowship

Pastors Prayer and Planning Retreat

This past year, I (Pastor Bryan) had the privilege of leading the Urban Pastors Fellowship, a ministry that brings together a dozen EFCA pastors who serve in the heart of the Twin Cities. We gather monthly for prayer, training, and fellowship. This is an important ministry of the North Central District, which serves EFCA churches across Minnesota. Our fellowship is one of seventeen such groups serving pastors throughout the state.

Each month, the fellowship gathers at a different EFCA church in the city. Our time is structured around three key elements: we share coffee, one of our pastors teaches on a topic relevant to our shared urban vocation, and we pray together. After our meeting, we get lunch at a spot in the neighborhood, continuing our fellowship. Last year, our training focused on the vital topic of preaching God’s Word.

In addition to our monthly meetings, we also gathered for a Pastors Prayer and Planning Retreat (see picture above) at a camp up north in January. This extended time allowed us to prayerfully plan for our ministries and continue to support one another as pastors navigating a similar urban context.

Through this ministry, Trinity City Church is able to invest in the health of local churches and pastors far beyond our own congregation. It has been an important ministry where I not only get to pour into other pastors, but also get edified and encouraged by my colleagues in the gospel.