LEAD Cohorts are online meeting places for small groups of MB pastors and leaders – or anyone interested in learning more about a specific topic or gathering with like-minded people.

LEAD Cohorts are FREE to all participants. The only cost is for books or materials, if recommended by the cohort leader. LEAD Cohorts typically last three months and meet online every two weeks for about an hour.

The next session of LEAD Cohorts will begin this Fall. Watch your email inbox for information in early September. Below is a listing of the cohorts that were offered this Spring. You can expect to see some of these and possibly some new topics later this year. Online registration will be available. If you have additional questions, please email Janae Shafer.

About Nothing for Those Who Want to Talk About Something - Luke LeViere and Jason Quiring
In community we can dream of fun possibilities, have a context to handle difficult stuff and celebrate each other’s victories. Out of relationships ministry partnerships happen. This cohort is about building and strengthening relationships through organic conversations – what’s on your mind this week? This cohort is for people looking for friends, real friends who love the Lord and want to build His Kingdom together. No other agendas, please. For male pastors only.

Luke LeViere is pastor of Good News Fellowship in Ferndale, Wash. Jason Quiring is lead pastor of Greenhouse Community Church in Saratoga Springs, Utah.

Cohort will meet every other Wednesday at 3 p.m. (CST) beginning Feb. 7.
Feb. 7 & 21; Mar. 6 & 20; Apr. 3 & 17 ; May 1 & 15

Anabaptist Essentials: Jesus. Community. Reconciliation.
While growing up in south Texas and also while studying at Tabor College, I remember being asked what being Mennonite Brethren meant and to explain how it was different from other churches. This "concise, informative and insightful" book gave me tangible and applicable language and understanding on where we come from as Mennonite Brethren and also why and how we can "live out a more radical commitment to Jesus." This cohort is for anyone who wants to come to the table around the conversation of our Anabaptist roots as MBs, for the sake of his kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.
Recommending Reading: Anabaptist Essentials by Palmer Becker

Joanna Chapa is a Multiply Regional Mission Mobilizer for the USMB churches east of the Rockies. She grew up in the Rio Grande Valley in deep south Texas, surrounded by mucha familia and being a part of the GracePoint Church in La Grulla, Texas. She graduated from Tabor College in 2009 and lived and served with Multiply in Peru for close to 5 years.

Cohort will meet every other Monday at 7 p.m. (CST) beginning Feb 12.
Feb. 12 & 26; Mar. 11 & 25; April 8 & 22; May 6 & 20

Children's Ministry Leaders – J.L. Martin
Join other Children's Ministry Leaders (staff or volunteer) as we encourage each other and learn together. We will cover a variety of topics related to Children's Ministry as determined by the cohort.

J.L. Martin is the Bookkeeper/Event Planner/Social Media Coordinator for USMB. Previously, he served as Pastor of Children and Family at Hesston (Kan.) MB Church. J.L. served in children and youth ministry contexts for more than 20 years. He enjoys coffee, Spartan races, reading and working out.  He and his wife, Bethany, have four children and live in Hesston.

Cohort will meet every other Thursday at 11:00 a.m. (CST) beginning Feb. 1
Feb. 1, 15 & 29; March 14 & 28; April 11 & 25; May 9

Connection and Encouragement for Pastors’ Wives – Jen LeViere
Pastors’ wives, unite! It may not be a title that you ever thought you would be tagged with, or maybe it is what you dreamed of as a girl! Either way, you have a unique ministry to your husband, your church and your community. This group will meet to be a safe space for conversations and support, to encourage and collaborate, and to build friendships with sisters near and far! For pastors’ wives only. Capped at 10.

Jen LeViere serves at Good News Fellowship Church in Ferndale, Wash., where her husband, Luke, is the lead pastor. They have four kids: Adele (12), Jacob (10), Selah (8) and Mercy (5).

Cohort will meet every other Monday at 9 p.m. (CST) beginning Feb. 5.
Feb. 5 & 19; March 4 & 18; April 1, 15 & 29; May 13

Contemplative Conversations – Chandelle Claassen
This cohort will be reflective and interactive within a relaxed setting meant to care for your soul. We will immerse ourselves in various scriptures in a personal way via a spiritual practice called Lectio Divina or "Divine Reading."

Chandelle Claassen is a trained spiritual director and certified life coach and member of the USMB LEAD Coaching team. Chandelle lives in North Newton, Kansas.

Cohort will meet every other Tuesday at 2:00 p.m. CST beginning Feb. 6
Feb. 6 & 20; March 5 & 19; April 2, 16 & 30; May 14

Discover Your EQ and How to Raise It - Ed Boschman
In their book Emotional Intelligence 2.0, authors Bradberry and Greaves clarify that EQ is critical to success in every aspect of our lives. The four core EQ skills are self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and relationship management. The book, required for this cohort, includes a code to access a powerful EQ assessment, which will measure your EQ and provide a launch point for our discussion and a personalized, proven strategies action plan to increase your EQ. Wanna ramp up your life’s impact at home, among friends, in board meetings, in public and while preaching? Join me. (Limited to 6 participants).
Recommended Reading: Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Jean Greaves and Travis Bradberry

Ed Boschman, former USMB executive director, is a LEAD Coach and former member of the ICOMB executive committee. He lives in Lynden, Wash.

Cohort will meet every other Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. (CST) beginning Jan. 17
Jan. 17; Feb. 7 & 21; March 6 & 20; April 17; May 1

Ethiopian Pastors and Leaders, Tariku Semone 

የኢትዮጵያ ቤተክርስቲያን መጋቢዎችና መሪዎች
ይህ ህብረት የኢትዮጵያ አብያተክርስቲያናት መጋቢዎችና መሪዎች በመደበኛነት በጋር በመሰባሰብ ግንኙነታቸውን የሚያጠናክሩበት ፣ ስለ አገልግሎት መረጃዎችን የሚለዋወጡበት ፣ በጋራየሚመካከሩበት ፣ የሚጸልዩበት፣ ቃሉን የሚያጠኑበት ና የሚወያዩበት ፣ በየ ወሩ የመጨርሻ ማክሰኞ የሚደረግ ልዩ የአንድነት ፕሮግራም ነው።

Ethiopian Pastors and Leaders: (English translation) This cohort is geared for Ethiopian pastors and church leaders who desire to network and fellowship online on a regular basis to strengthen relationships, discuss and exchange information and ideas for ministry, pray together and much more. The discussion will be held on the third Tuesday of each month in Amharic and sometimes English.

Tariku Semone has served as a pastor at Ethiopian Christian Fellowship Church in San Jose, Calif., for more than 20 years. 

Cohort Date and Time TBD

Growing Together in Jesus – Fred Leonard
Let’s gather and make time for spiritual mentoring to grow to be more like Jesus as we grow in our leadership ability.

Fred Leonard is lead pastor of Mountain View Community Church in Fresno, Calif. Fred has a passion for developing church vision and equipping and releasing men and women into ministry.

Cohort will meet every other Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. (CST) beginning TBD

Leading Through Uncertain Times—Stephen Humber
It has been said, "After centuries of stability and slow, incremental change, in less than a generation our world has become VUCA: volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous." Tod Bolsinger has written a book for church leaders about a kind of leadership that is essential in our times—adaptive leadership. Join in to learn and discuss this vital kind of leadership.
Recommended Reading: Canoeing the Mountains by Tod Bolsinger.

Stephen Humber leads one of the two mobilization teams in the U.S. for Multiply. He lives in Denver, Colo.

Cohort will meet every other Tuesday at 3:00 p.m. (CST) beginning Jan. 30
Jan. 30; Feb. 13 & 27; March 12 & 26; April 9 & 23

Leading Worship Well – Kim Bontrager
Planning and leading worship for a church is awesome! It's also humbling and relentless and—at times—overwhelming. Those of us who carry this role weekly find ourselves holding lots of things in tension. So... let's talk about it! Our conversations will range from theology to best practices for leading a team to avoiding burnout. We'll get to know each other as we dive into our own real-life situations and questions. This cohort is for anyone who carries the primary responsibility for planning and leading musical elements within weekly worship gatherings.

Kim Bontrager leads the worship arts ministry at Ridgepoint Church in Wichita, Kan.

Cohort will meet every other Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. (CST) beginning Feb. 7
Feb 7 & 21; March 6 & 20; Apr 3 & 17; May 1 & 15

La descripción general del Nuevo Testamento – Daniel Rodriguez
Aprenderemos el tema y proposito de cada libro del nuevo testamento y mas acerca del contexto historico y teologico del Nuevo Testamento.

New Testament Survey – Daniel Rodriguez
Join us to learn the theme and purpose of each book of the New Testament and more about the historical and theological context of the New Testament.

Daniel Rodriguez is the Central District Conference Minister. He lives in Omaha, Neb.

Cohort will meet every Wednesday at 6:45 p.m. beginning Feb. 21.
Feb 21 & 28, March 6, 13, 20 & 27; April 3, 10, 17 & 24; May 1 & 8

Teaching Apologetics - Jeremy Matlock
How can you incorporate apologetics into your teaching ministry? With three decades of experience simplifying and communicating arguments for the faith to youth and adults, Jeremy will help you understand major apologetic topics and be able to teach them yourself. The cohort will be a lively combination of lecture and discussion covering topics like God’s existence, the resurrection, the Trinity and absolute truth.

Jeremy Matlock is lead pastor of Hillsboro (Kan.) MB Church. He has also served as pastor of adult discipleship and assimilation, a mission mobilizer, a missionary in Russia and China and a high school Bible/math teacher. 

Cohort will meet every other Thursday at 3:00 p.m. (CST) beginning Feb. 8
Feb. 8 & 22; March 7 & 21; April 4 & 18; May 2 & 16

Youth Ministry Realities – Russ Claassen
Get to know other youth workers as we engage in passionate discussion focused on the realities we face as youth workers. We will explore topics relevant to the group. Sessions may include anything related to youth ministry--from personal leadership development and spiritual growth, to recruiting and training volunteers, parent ministries and talking about Jesus with teens. The possibilities are endless. This cohort is for anyone who works with youth in your local church--volunteers, small group leaders, youth pastors, etc.

Russ Claassen is Southern District Conference youth minister. Russ lives in North Newton, Kansas.

Cohort date and time TBD

PLEASE NOTE:
Dates and/or times on registration forms may not be accurate. The correct information is listed in the descriptions to the left. Once registered, you will be contacted by the cohort leader with more details and information. Thank you. 

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