By Matthew Spandler-Davison

There are two key factors that often lead to a pastor’s short tenure: loneliness and a feeling of ineffectiveness. As our association was revitalized, pastors began to pray for each other. We’d meet, often informally, for lunch or breakfast, simply to check in with one another.

The antidote to much pastoral discouragement can be found in deliberate and purposeful fellowship with other pastors. Not just any pastors, but likeminded pastors. Fostering this kind of fellowship was our aim when 3 other pastor friends and I started a pastoral fellowship eight years ago, which we now call the Pastoral Fellowship for Practical Theology. In this article I will explain how we started this fellowship, who we intend to bring together, what we hope to accomplish, what our meetings consist of, and the fruit we’ve seen so far.