reEquip // Not so with you: a day on power and leadership dynamics for those in Christian ministry

With Dr Mark Stirling

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

Join us for our February reEquip day with Dr Mark Stirling, programme director in Contemporary Christian Leadership at Oakhill College and co-editor of 'Not So with You: Power and Leadership for the Church.'

Power is one of those things ministry leaders are trained to preach about but rarely trained to hold. We can quote Philippians 2 in our sleep, but knowing what to do when we're the one setting the agenda, shaping the culture, holding the authority - that's a different matter.

Left unexamined, power doesn't disappear because we're uncomfortable naming it. It just goes underground, shaping how we lead through unspoken assumptions and quiet self-protection rather than anything we've thought through - and the cost usually lands on the people we lead.
Mark Stirling has spent years wrestling with this, as a pastor and now as he trains others for ministry at Highland Theological College and the Chalmers Institute as well as Oakhill College. He co-edited Not So with You: Power and Leadership for the Church, out of a conviction that the church needs to consider more carefully how we steward power along the lines of Jesus. 

This reEquip day is a chance to think that through properly - what power actually is, and what it looks like to lead well… rather than merely lead.

Schedule:

(you are most welcome to join us for community prayers beforehand at 9am)

9.30am - Meet for coffee/tea and pastries

10:00 am - Brief welcome & devotion

10:15 am - Session 1: What power is - A biblical theology of power and authority. Why Scripture is far more comfortable naming and confronting power than the church often is, and what "servant authority" actually costs.

11:15 am - Break for coffee/tea

11.45am - Session 2: How power moves - The informal, hidden currents of power in church life: charisma, deference, isolation, "soft power." How healthy leaders can drift into unhealthy patterns without actually ever intending to, and how to recognise the warning signs in ourselves and our structures.

1pm - Lunch

2pm - Session 3: Building healthy power - Practical safeguards for churches and teams: accountability, plurality, transparency. What it actually looks like to structure leadership so that power stays distributed, visible, and answerable.

3pm - Q&A with a cuppa

3.30pm - Finish

Please do contact hello@yarntonmanor.com if you would like to come but cost is prohibitive

Registration closes 12pm on Monday 1st.

About Dr Mark Stirling:

(from Oakhill's website)

Mark is a former medical doctor who then pioneered work amongst university students with the Navigators in Edinburgh from 1998 to 2004.

In 2021 Mark and his wife Jenny moved from St Andrews where Mark had been senior pastor in a new church (Cornerstone St Andrews). They relocated to the Scottish Highlands where Mark has been teaching at Highland Theological College as well as directing the ongoing work of Chalmers Institute in a variety of theological education and formation initiatives. The heart of life and ministry for Mark and Jenny is the hospitality of an open home as a reflection of the Gospel of grace.

In 2007 he completed an MA in Exegetical Theology at Covenant Seminary in St Louis, and in 2011 gained a PhD in Biblical Studies from St Andrews University on the topic of discipleship and maturity in Ephesians. In 2023 Mark co-edited a book with Mark Meynell, Not So with You: Power and Leadership for the Church, reflecting a long-held concern for healthy biblical leadership.

He loves the mountains of Scotland and occasionally swinging a golf club. He’s also an enthusiastic cook and occasional scuba diver.

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!