Coaching is a newer practice in the social sciences and has taken off in the business sector as well as for personal growth.
Its focus is on the future results or outcomes that a person wants to achieve.
So many leaders feel stuck, and uncertain about their next steps.
A coach helps a person with tools that help produce habits and actions toward a goal.
We regularly meet leaders at CPC and online that ask us how they can move forward in their ministry leadership while facing some challenges and obstacles that seem insurmountable.
That’s why INCM launched the Leadership Coaching Program in 2020.
Meet Sarah
Sarah Ables is the volunteer VBS director at her church in Ohio.
She is bi-vocational and could have passed up coaching thinking it was for “full-time” leaders.
But she responded to the invitation anyway.
She shared, “I was lost when I started the coaching journey. I had wrongly assumed I knew more than God and was trying to put myself in a place I wasn’t called to be in. Through coaching with INCM I gained clarity and understanding, I found my voice and the confidence I needed to be the leader God has called me to be. I was given tools to help me continue to move forward in my leadership and my calling while being encouraged to listen to what the Holy Spirit was doing in my life and my ministry. I have no doubt that where I am today is because of this program.”
And Sarah now feels like she’s doing what she’s meant to do, with the support of other leaders and friends.
She shares, “…Coaching also gave me a dedicated community. Each of these people is more than just a person I met through a program. They are dear, sweet friends, and I am so thankful for them.”
Coaches Who Care
Leaders from across the world have benefitted from INCM Certified Coaches who understand the unique challenges and joys of children’s ministry and working in the church, and who know that God wants them to move forward no matter what obstacles are ahead of them.
In 2020, we began with 12 trained coaches and equipped each of them with tools to pass on to leaders who needed to gain momentum in their ministries.
By using the Christian Coaching Model, coaches seek to invest in leaders to help them move from being “stuck to where God wants them to be.”
Our coaches believe God is actively involved in the life and ministry of a leader, and that He wants to give them direction and the next steps along the way.
That year, we helped over 60 individuals, in groups of 4-5 people, not only to process their leadership but also to give them tools to work on time management, setting goals, growing their skills to follow through, and assessing their current workload, among many others.
One of those leaders was Tracey Mayo, a children’s ministry veteran with nearly 20 years of experience.
She was happy and content in her role, even after seeing the church leadership shift and change over the years.
Tracey shared, “This was a game changer for me! I loved being in coaching. I learned so much about myself and how God intended for me to do ministry…[My] coach helped me navigate big changes that were coming.”
Little did she know when she was in coaching that her church would hire a new lead pastor, and the children’s minister was going to step down.
During the coaching program, Tracey determined with the help of her coach and the Holy Spirit that she was ready for a change and applied for the children’s minister position, even though she had mastered her preschool role.
She could have stayed in a safe and comfortable role that she could do in her sleep.
However, God had different plans.
She stepped into the lead role of children’s ministry and has grown exponentially as a leader as a result of being coached.
She is now an INCM Certified Coach helping other leaders step into their leadership more fully.
The Future of INCM Leadership Coaching
As we start 2023, INCM has trained 31 Certified Coaches, seen nearly 100 participants go through the program, and is making plans to expand the program in the next year.
We believe children’s ministry leaders need coaching to do important work for kids and families in churches across the world.
INCM is dedicated to meeting the needs of leaders as we seek to connect you with the resources, training, and community you need to continue to reach the next generation.
If you are interested in receiving coaching, check out our program launching soon.
