Training opportunities for everyone from pew to pulpit

Training and development could also be called enrichment and enhancement. We all have skills, gifts and talents that God has given us but sometimes we need a bit of encouragement to release them. Mersey Synod provides training opportunities for everyone from pew to pulpit.  Whether you are wanting to refresh your ministerial practice, pep up the prayer-life of the congregation or introduce a new skill to your leadership team, there are opportunities out there.  There will be Synod-wide training but there is also the opportunity for pastorates to have training in their location too. 

Planned events for this year include Ministers Away Days and a May School.  The purpose of these is to enrich and refresh the Ministers in the Synod in addition to the continued professional development that they all undertake.  There is an Elders Day on 29th April which is for every Elder regardless of experience, including people who are considering Eldership.  The day will be a relaxed opportunity to discover more about Eldership roots, gifts and skills.  Elders will be encouraged to discover how they can share their experiences and benefit from one another.  This will be followed up through the year with Zoom sessions on specialist topics such as Mission, Safeguarding, Children & Youth Engagement and other subjects related to Eldership. 

Throughout the year there will also be one-off opportunities such as “Refreshing My Preaching” on 1st April which is open to anyone who preaches and will be led by Revd Dr Rosalind Selby, Principal of Northern College.  During the Autumn an event is planned called “Walk Through The Bible: Old Testament” which is just that!  This is a highly enjoyable, lively trip through the whole of the Old Testament in a day.  This event will be open to everyone regardless of age, background, experience.  This will be the highlight of the training calendar!

In addition to these events, we will be promoting Stepwise.  This is a whole-life, bible-based, discipleship programme for everyone and is a natural follow-on from the year of “Talking Faith”.  To find out more, sign up to the Synod Meeting in March.

Finally, if there are any training, enrichment or development areas that you or your church think would be beneficial, then please contact me: Emma Howarth, trainingofficer@urcmerseysynod.org.uk or 0151 7226590 or 0798 4335797

All training and development opportunities are listed on our Events page