By Marv Knox

For almost a dozen years, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship has invested in its future and in the future of CBF churches by pouring resources into some of its youngest ministers. 

And those clergy say the investment has made an immeasurable impact on them and on their ministries. 

The Fellowship created its CBF Fellows program in 2012 to help ministers in their “first call” start strong. Every-other year, it launches a new cohort of up to 16 young clergy who learn the ropes of ministry from CBF staff, veteran ministers, coaches and each other. 

CBF started the program with a grant from the Lilly Endowment and this February initiated its sixth cohort of Fellows, all in their first five years of ministry.  

The Fellows program strives for two goals, noted Kelly Rhodes Adams, director of CBF’s Clergy Support Ecosystem. First, it seeks not only to protect Fellows from isolation and burnout, but also to empower them to thrive as pastors. And second, it supports each Fellow’s congregation as they nurture their minister. 

“This sets up a model CBF replicates across the decades—beginning with early support for Fellows, later with Thriving in Ministry cohorts that support mid-career ministers, and all along the way, participation in peer learning for long-term success,” Adams said. “We hope to support clergy through the lifespan of vocational ministry.” 

That’s particularly crucial during the Fellows’ first years, she added. “If we give ministers resources and tools so they can respond proactively early in ministry, perhaps we can reduce burnout down the road. To help them thrive in ministry, we resource them early with connections and networks that will sustain them in ministry long-term.” 

The 2024-25 cohort is “a great group of ministers,” she reported. “The 15 Fellows represent a variety of ministry positions—from a pastoral resident, all the way to associate pastor and pastor, to youth, missions and digital discipleship ministry. The varying roles bring enrichment to the group.” 

Their diversity extends beyond the jobs they hold. They also are diverse in gender, race, geography and education.  

The new Fellows came to the program through an open application process that involved interviews with former Fellows.  

“We examined commitment to congregational ministry: Will they hang in there?” Adams reported. “All these Fellows exhibited a commitment to the church. They are very bright. They are thinking differently about ministry but not thinking, ‘I need to leave this setting.’ They are committed to congregational ministry.” 

The Fellows alumni left the interviews holding their early-career peers in high regard. “They were impressed with the ways these people—young in ministry—have articulated a clear sense of calling and commitment to their vocation and creative ways they are ministering,” Adams said. “We can all learn from each other.” 

The Fellows cohort meets at the CBF office in Decatur, Ga., twice this year and once next year, and they’ll attend the CBF General Assembly both summers. In-between, they’ll experience an immersion trip together. They also have a coach they meet with to discussion their vocational goals, contextual challenges and joys in ministry.  

Their sessions will give them opportunities to learn more about themselves through personality inventories and other reflection exercises. They will spend significant time getting to know each other and systematically meet CBF staff.  

Learning activities will develop across time, Adams said: “With this cohort, we’re trying to meet expressed needs. We want to ‘mine the wisdom of the room.’ There are things these ministers excel in that they can teach each other.”  

Not only do Fellows benefit from their experience, but the Fellows program strengthens CBF and Fellows’ congregations, she observed.  

“When you help ministers flourish early on, it contributes to the vitality of the church,” she said. “When ministers get ahead of the curve on self-awareness and carry that through ministry, strengthened clergy strengthen churches.”  

And Fellows veterans pay forward benefits they received, she noted. For example, several members of the CBF Ministries Council are former Fellows, “and the ways they help our team think about issues is valuable.” Former Fellows serve on other CBF councils, advisory boards, and state and regional boards. “We’re in good hands,” she stressed. 

Likewise, former and current Fellows expressed gratitude for the good hands that poured blessing into their lives and ministries. 

Carol McEntyre, senior minister at First Baptist Church in Greenville, S.C., participated in the first Fellows cohort in 2012— “perfect timing” to coincide with her first senior pastorate.

“The most significant value I gained from being a Fellow was the opportunity to gather with a cohort of young leaders who were also reading, reflecting and thinking deeply about church leadership,” McEntyre said. “It was such a fantastic opportunity to learn from each other and our facilitators.” 

“The Fellows program plays a critical role in providing new ministers with additional leadership training that complements their seminary training,” she added. “By offering the support of seasoned facilitators and a community of colleagues, Fellows create an environment where emerging leaders can grow, learn and develop their leadership skills. Ultimately, the Fellows program helps cultivate a new generation of leaders who are better equipped to serve their congregations.”  

“The deeper connection to other ministers and to CBF afforded by the Fellows program remains the most consistent and deepest impact on my life,” noted Daniel Potter, minister to students at First Baptist Church in Columbus, Ga., podcast director for Youth Ministry Conversations and a member of the 2016-2018 Fellows cohort. 

Potter also pointed to a statement from longtime CBF staffer Bo Prosser as his best lesson in Fellows: “People go where they know they are cared for and prepared for.”  

That concept shapes multiple facets of life and ministry, Potter observed. “This idea has challenged me to view each person I serve as an individual, to try my best to grow the depth of the relationships we share, and then to make good on the promise that, with God’s help, I will walk alongside them as they seek to encounter Christ and grow in their faith.” 

Fellows created a “community of friends” for Tyler Tankersley, senior pastor of Ardmore Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, N.C. His 2018-2020 cohort got waylaid by Covid, but some became dear friends, “and a few of them I speak to nearly every day,” he said. 

That sense of connection shaped his best Fellows lessons. “Ministry cannot be done alone,” he explained. “And pastors need spaces where they can enter the room and not have to explain what their life looks like; they need spaces where people just innately ‘get it.’ When I am faced with a difficult ministry situation or a dilemma I’ve never faced before, some of the first people I turn to were members of my CBF Fellows cohort. 

“Nothing CBF has done for me has had the impact like my time in CBF Fellows has had,” he said. “I gained friends who feel like family, confidantes to turn to when I am struggling, and a perspective on the importance of community for the health of my soul.”  

Kan’Dace Brock learned “never to be afraid to take risks and try something new” during the Covid-extended 2020-2023 cohort. “The freedom in knowing it was okay to try something new or outside the box encouraged me as a lead pastor, wife, mother and friend,” said Brock, lead pastor and co-founder of The Message Church in San Antonio and founder/CEO of two nonprofit ministries. 

Brock also cherishes the “cohort of brilliant leaders, friends and family” she experienced. “The encouragement received from our cohort mentors in the exchange of ideas, intimate conversations and real life for my fellow cohort members was the gift I didn’t know my soul needed,” she said. 

She praised CBF for investing in ministers through Fellows. “We must provide a space such as Fellows for ministers to come together and ‘let their hair down’ without judgment, shame, side-eyes or prosecution,” she said. “Ministry is tough, and Fellows provided a soft place to land when I didn’t feel like I had one.” 

Eric Fulcher, minister of formation and Church of the Nations at University Baptist Church in Baton Rouge, La., participated in that 2020-2023 cohort. He also cherishes his Fellows relationships. 

“I struggled to find my way in CBF early in my ministry career, and the Fellows program gave me an opportunity to develop friendships with other ministers in the cohort, as well as incredible mentors in the faculty,” he explained. “These relationships gave me a place to process ministry questions and find how my gifts fit into my ministry context.” 

Fulcher’s best Fellows lesson was learning “there is no script” for ministry. “I often wondered if I was doing things ‘right’ or if the programs I oversaw were similar to those of my colleagues,” he said. “Hearing about so many different ways of doing ministry helped me see more clearly context matters, and each context is unique. It helped me find a greater sense of confidence in trying new things, being okay with making mistakes and giving me a place to discover my unique skills for ministry.”  

Members of the new Fellows cohort say the program is already shaping them and their ministries. 

Madison Harner-Watts, associate pastor for families at Weatherly Heights Baptist Church in Huntsville, Ala., started full-time ministry during the Covid pandemic. She applied for Fellows in part because “I knew I’d need partners who have experienced these particularly unique challenges,” she noted. 

“I’m looking forward to the camaraderie and togetherness that this program provides,” she said. “I know there are healthy benefits for me personally and spiritually by being part of this group of people. Another sounding board and community to spur on lifelong learning goals is one of the aspects I most appreciate about being part of the Fellows.” 

“The greatest insight I’ve had so far is the value in having both experienced mentors and close colleagues who are having similar experiences to me,” said Sean Timmons, associate pastor of youth and families at West Main Baptist Church in Danville, Va. “It’s one thing to have someone who has experienced something before helping you walk; it’s another thing entirely to have someone who is learning and growing alongside you.” 

And Timmons looks forward to what’s in store with Fellows: “I hope this program will prepare me for a long and fruitful time in ministry, while also giving me dear friends and colleagues who I can support and who can also support me as we serve God together in varying capacities and contexts.”  

This story was originally published in Fellowship! magazine. You can view a digital version of the magazine here and subscribe for a print version here.