I've been serving in ministry for over 30 years, and find myself at another job transition. Brenda & I are excited about what's ahead, as we believe that God uses ministry transitions in a leader's life to cause them to pause and reflect on their journey and where they need to grow, to bring greater clarity to their calling and best contribution to God's kingdom, and to move them into the next assignment that he's prepared them for and will give greater kingdom impact as result. I believe that my next assignment will be in an Executive Pastor (XP) role, coming alongside a visionary lead pastor to develop clear strategies to accomplish the disciple-making vision that God has given to him.

I have two streams of ministry strengths: one is my passion for disciple-making, and along with that comes the foundational practices of prayer and fasting. The other is organizational leadership, bringing structure, strategies, systems and staffing to the church, helping it increase in health and effectiveness at accomplishing its core mission.

In order to be best prepared for this next assignment, I have signed up for an XP Cohort, and would also like to sign up for a series of online classes through XPastor.org. The XP Cohort is a ministry of CDF Capital - you can read more about it at: https://www.xpsummit.org/cohorts/

The normal cost is $7500, but my friend Nathan Elson is the VP of Marketing & is offering me a discounted price of $6000 to participate in the Cohort that begins in September. That will cover the three onsite visits to mentoring churches in Sept/Oct, Feb/Mar, and May. In addition, I'll need to cover airfare and rental car, so that additional cost is estimated to be $1500.

The other training that I'd like to participate in over the coming year are the online courses taught by David Fletcher, a veteran XP and professor at Dallas Seminary. The cost for those courses is $450. You can read more about the courses on XPastor.org here: https://www.xpastor.org/product/bundle-of-all-8-courses/.

I've had a number of friends and those I've discipled ask, "How can I help?" And a few have said, "If you need financial support, let me know." We're encouraged by the kindness and generous hearts of those that God has put into our lives.

So... Here's the ask: Would you be willing to invest in my continued development with a financial gift to help fund these two education and mentoring opportunities? The total goal is $7950.

Thank you, and may the Lord bless you as you continue to seek to follow Jesus and engage in His kingdom mission!

Dave Stewart