Whether it’s a new team, a church transition, or some other circumstance, care teams are often left to piece together how to create a sustainable and helpful system for creating cultures of care. Today, Janelle and Katie share their experience entering into the Care Ministry Cohort, where the community, helpful resources, and coaching made all the difference. You can apply for the 2025 Care Ministry Cohort, beginning in January, and begin a guided journey toward cultivating a culture of care at your church!

Quotes

• The cohort came at the perfect time.
• It is ok to be patient and wait.
• We’re not trying to start from the ground up. But we’re trying to renovate.
• The cohort did a great job of starting at the basics.
• We don’t want cookie-cutter care ministries. We want care ministries that look and feel like your congregation.

Resources

• CareMinistryCohort.com

Connect with Hope Made Strong

Website: HopeMadeStrong.org

Socials: Facebook – Instagram – Twitter – YouTube

In this episode, Pastor Trent Kirkland, from Zion Church in Clarion, Pennsylvania, shares his experience hosting the first local Church Mental Health Summit in North America. Pastor Trent discusses his personal journey with mental health, how his daughter's eating disorder and his experience as a mobile crisis worker shaped his understanding of the mental health crisis, and the steps his church took to address it in their community. He highlights the importance of building collaborative relationships between the faith community and human services, and how hosting the summit fostered these connections. The conversation also covers how local churches can become safe spaces for mental health support through awareness, training, and partnerships.

Quotes

• "I was a pastor for a number of years who didn’t think about mental health issues because it wasn’t staring me in the face."
• "As a parent, an eating disorder gets your attention."
• "One of the things that made the event a success was the balance between local and national speakers, adding so much credibility to the whole event."
• "The ultimate solution for human flourishing is Jesus, but we also need to address mental health practically."
• "I wanted human service agencies to know that the faith community values what they do."

Resources

• https://www.churchmentalhealthsummit.com/host
• https://www.zionlife.com/

Connect with Hope Made Strong

Website: HopeMadeStrong.org

Socials: Facebook – Instagram – Twitter – YouTube

In this episode, Laura and Rebecca discuss how to maximize the benefits of the upcoming Church Mental Health Summit, offering practical tips for attendees, including registering early to avoid last-minute technical issues and organizing watch parties for community engagement.

They also highlight the advantages of the all-access and ultimate passes, which provide ongoing value through access to summit content for volunteer and staff development. Rebecca shares ideas for involving church communities and sponsors in making the most of the summit, while Laura emphasizes the importance of intentional participation to fully absorb the content.

Quotes

• “I love our summit. You get the packet that you can download, and you can go through and highlight all the things you want and get super excited about." - Rebecca Bailey
• “If you have the capacity to get the all-access pass, please know it’s our heart’s desire that you use that over and over in your church—for volunteer training, staff discussions, and watch parties.” - Laura Howe
• “We don’t want people to feel left hanging. This could be a great opportunity to kick off a think tank in your community or start a cohort for ongoing discussions.” - Rebecca Bailey
• “Set your intention, be present, schedule your time, and engage with the online community to fully participate.” - Laura Howe

Resources

• Church Mental Health Summit
• All-access Pass
• Ultimate Pass
• Care Ministry Cohorts

Connect with Hope Made Strong

Website: HopeMadeStrong.org

Socials: Facebook – Instagram – Twitter – YouTube