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We here at the Sharing Faith Initiative hope you and your loved ones had a joyful and peaceful Easter. May this season of renewal bring fresh energy, meaningful moments, and joy as you reflect on God’s love and grace.
We also invite you to be a part of upcoming opportunities within either of our two grant-funded programs: Faithful Preaching Project and Children’s Sermons by Children.
This weekend with Faithful Preaching Project:
We are honored to welcome Rev. Dr. Lisa Cressman, Founding Steward of Backstory Preaching, this coming Saturday for a preaching workshop, available in-person in Wright Hall at the seminary and online through Zoom.
Title: “Spirituality for Preachers: Preaching is Your Life, Your Life is Preaching”
Date: Saturday, April 26, 2025
Time: 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. with an hour-long lunch break
A few more details:
Free to attend
Open to any interested faith-sharers
Registration Required—click below to register
Lunch is included with the in-person registration
There are two ways to attend Dr. Cressman’s workshop:
#1 - In-Person: Dr. Cressman will be on campus at Austin Seminary for the event, held in Wright Hall of the Seminary Library. Attendance is free and lunch will be provided.
#2 - Online through Zoom:The workshop is available for interactive online attendance through Zoom. We hope the online experience will mean that even more preachers can benefit from Dr. Cressman's guidance and expertise.
We look forward to welcoming Dr. Cressman at Austin Seminary and hope you can join us to reinvigorate your faith journey and preaching!
The new Lay Cohort application for Faithful Preaching Project is now live
We are looking for lay preachers at small mainline Christian churches to join a one-year cohort of 15-20 peers. The cohort will meet online with one another and a preaching coach, with the goal of cultivating more faith-full preaching. Through discussion and sermon sharing, lay preachers gain a community of peer-coaches who can encourage and support one another.
Eligibility Requirements for Lay Preacher Cohort
Commissioned and/or licensed by a church or denominational governing body to preach
Currently serving a small congregation (<100 in attendance)
Ability to connect to online learning portal provided by FPP
Click here to apply to the Lay Preacher Cohort 2025-2026
Applications will close on June 1, 2025. The cohort will be announced by July 1, 2025.
Hear what our current Lay Preacher Cohort has had to say:
“The Faithful Preaching Project has significantly bolstered my confidence as a lay preacher. I am deeply grateful for our community of faith where we can learn from one another and grow together. Hearing the experiences and insights of others has been both inspiring and enriching, providing me with renewed strength and a deeper understanding of my calling.” - Armel Crocker
“It has been enjoyable, and educational to learn how other lay pastors study and prepare their weekly messages. I’m finding the twice monthly meetings on Zoom to be very informative. I have learned things that are helping me to better form my sermons. Though this is a cohort to help with our preaching, we have also talked about some of the problems we face in the smaller churches that most of us pastor. ” - Larry Sears
We look forward to welcoming another set of lay preachers to a FPP Cohort!
Looking ahead: Children’s Sermons by Children wants to learn from your children’s ministry
Beginning in June, our team will lead a “Listening Tour” throughout Texas, conducting interviews at congregations to hear how children are experiencing God and how they are already participating in worship experiences. Our goal is to collect ten interviews at each participating congregation - five from children and five from parents, those working with children, and/or those leading worship. These interviews will be stored securely and used as research for the grant team and as learning opportunities for the cohorts.
After this year-long Listening Tour, we will form cohorts of staff member pairs from congregations who will meet online over 2 years to share successes and challenges. The cohorts are an opportunity for you to join with others in the same children's ministry boat, share insight and get fresh ideas about including children as proclaimers of faith. In addition to that, we will offer gatherings for the involved families and expert-facilitated workshops for children ministry leaders.
Interested in learning more about Children’s Sermons by Children? Fill out our Interest Form and we will be in contact with your congregation about participation:
Click here to fill out the Interest Form for Children’s Sermons by Children
We are excited to guide preachers and faith communities in discovering new ways to share their faith with confidence and joy, and we hope to see you soon.