reEquip // Piloting the Ship // 7th Oct '26

reEquip // Piloting the Ship: a day on leadership vocabulary for those in Christian ministry

With Adrian Reynolds

reEquip is a monthly opportunity for those in pastoral ministry to connect and be taught / encouraged in their ministry positions.

Join us for our October reEquip day with Adrian Reynolds.

One of the quiet struggles of Christian ministry is that we often find ourselves leading long before we feel we’re ready. We're (relatively) trained in theology, in scripture, in preaching and pastoral care, but the practical realities of leadership? How to care for yourself sustainably, how to have hard conversations, how to build a team that actually functions, how to navigate the gap between your calling and your capacity? These things rarely feature in our training, and most of us have had to work them out the hard way - through instinct, observation, and the occasional (or frequent) painful mistake.

The result is that many of us in ministry carry a quiet sense of being out of our depth. Perhaps not so much in our faith, or our theology (though maybe…) - but rather in the day-to-day relational and organisational demands that church leadership actually places on us. We lead because we have to, but we don't always lead as well as we'd like. And we suspect there's wisdom available that we haven't yet found.

This reequip day is an invitation to pause, reflect, and think carefully together about what it means to lead well - starting with ourselves, moving outward to those we serve, and then considering what it looks like to lead alongside others.

We won't pretend to have all the answers, but we believe the questions are worth our time.

Schedule:

9.30 am - Meet for coffee/tea and pastries

10 am - Session 1: Leading ourselves Our effectiveness as leaders is inseparably linked to our wellbeing as believers. We'll explore what it looks like to honestly know ourselves, tend to our own souls well and so lead from a place of health.

11 am - Break for coffee/tea

11.30 am - Session 2: Leading others The language we use to describe leadership shapes us more than we realise. We'll examine some of that vocabulary - where it comes from, whether it serves us, and what a more distinctively Christian framework might look like.

12.30 pm - Community worship

1pm - Lunch

2pm - Session 3: Leading in community Most of us find leading alongside other leaders quietly difficult. We'll reflect honestly on what makes this hard, and what wisdom - about ourselves and others - might help us do it better.

3pm - Q&A with a cuppa

3.30pm - Finish

About Adrian Reynolds (from FIEC profile)

Adrian has been on FIEC staff since April 2017, first as Training Director and now as Associate National Director.

He previously served as one of the leaders of The Proclamation Trust and as Associate Minister of East London Tabernacle Baptist Church. Before this he pastored Yateley Baptist Church. Adrian started his working life as a Chartered Accountant and specialised in training as well as working as a senior manager in the pharmaceutical industry.

Adrian became a Christian on a Crusader camp in 1981 and ended up marrying the local Crusader leaders’ daughter, Celia. They have three daughters, two of whom are married. Adrian is a keen musician and cyclist and enjoys both reading and writing. He is the author of several books and commentaries, including two in our FIEC Ministry Journeys series. He is an elder at Christchurch Harborough.

About our reEquip initiative:

The statistics relating to pastoral ministry burn-out is high. Too high.
For many the life of church or para-church ministry can be stressful, busy and, very often, lonely.
The to-do list can be overwhelming and unending, leaving little to no space for any kind of self-study or growth – often we feel out of our depth. Often we feel like calling it quits.

reEquip seeks to support and encourage those in pastoral ministry. Come and:

(1) receive focused teaching and training that will help us in our ministry life, whether in pastoral skills, practical ministry, bible teaching or areas of theology,
(2) enjoy the company of and learn from others in similar situations and
(3) enjoy a delicious lunch together!