Exploring the Key Elements of Southland’s Church Renewal Mentorship Model for Adaptation into Mentorship Model Practices with the Evangelical Missionary Church of Canada.

Abstract

This portfolio explores the impact and influence of Southland Church’s Church Renewal program on pastors in the Evangelical Missionary Church of Canada (EMCC). As a pastor in the EMCC, I was given permission to explore pastors’ experiences of mentorship and how their mentorship experiences through Southland had positively or negatively influenced their development. This exploration was accomplished through a series of interviews with those who had completed a portion of Southland Church’s mentorship model. Throughout this portfolio I shared my own leadership experience and journey, incorporating my philosophy of ministry in regards to mentorship. The experiences of these pastors were collected through interviews, in order to assess the outcomes of this mentorship model. Interview data was coded and analyzed for similarities between pastors. A set of recommendations and best practices for the EMCC was developed from the research, and shared with an expert panel that included denominational leaders. The interactions of the expert panel identified outcomes and conclusions for this portfolio. The recommendations focused on accountability in mentorship, cohort-based learning, and clear parameters for the mentoring relationship. The discussion of these outcomes led to the creation of a model of local church leader mentoring that was based on the identified values of mentorship by the expert panel, and will become the framework for my role in developing leaders at my local church.