Transcript:

What Happened at the Leadership Team Retreat?

Benjamin Kreps:
Hey everyone, this is Ben Kreps. Welcome to the Mark Prater podcast where we aim to connect our global family of churches with our Executive Director. Hey, Mark, how are you doing?

Mark Prater:
I'm doing great. Ben, how are you?

Benjamin Kreps:
I'm doing good. So I saw last week on Twitter (by the way, your Twitter handle is @MarkKPrater like the website) you posted that you were at a retreat for the Leadership Team and asked for prayer. And so I wanted to connect with you and hear about what Leadership Team retreats are all about. I mean, what happens at a Leadership Team Retreat?

Mark Prater:
Well, let me start by giving you the typical day. What does a typical day look like at a Leadership Team Retreat?

Benjamin Kreps:
So we're assuming it involves drinking beer and complaining about Sovereign Grace. Is that pretty much like substance of it?

Mark Prater: 

That's about all we get accomplished. That's right. Haha. 

No, we get together three times a year. In fact, we talked about this in our last retreat: Should we continue to do three retreats a year? Is that too many? Should we go to two? And because we're spread out geographically, we find that those retreat times are just so important for us to build relationally, to talk, and have conversation that doesn't have to be hurried about big picture issues in Sovereign Grace. And we just found that (both on a relational level and a strategic level, if you can say it that way) the retreats are really helpful.

Benjamin Kreps: 

That's wonderful. So three times a year, for how long? Three days?

Mark Prater: 

We started Monday, about 11:00 AM, and ended on Thursday at about 11:00 AM. So it's a full schedule. 

Kind of a typical day during our retreat, we'll rent an Airbnb, so we'll just all stay in the same house. It's another chance just to be together. Just hang out together. We love that as well. We usually get started around 8:30 or 9:00. 

And we just begin by praying: Whether there's specific things we're praying for related to Sovereign Grace (typically we're praying for our pastors and churches and certain churches that are on our heart) and then we will meet and after prayer we'll just discuss items until about 4:30. We typically have lunch brought in. 

And about 4:30 we'll just take a break, just to clear our minds, do some exercise. Typically most of the guys go work out. And then we'll gather back together, usually about 6:00 and we'll go to dinner and we'll continue the meeting over dinner and we'll typically be meeting until 10:00. So it's a full day that has both, again, the relational and the strategic component to it.

Benjamin Kreps: 

That's great to hear that we have a fit, healthy Leadership Team. Everybody's working out. So what kinds of things did you talk about and cover and pray about over this past week?

Mark Prater: 

We had a really good retreat because we were able to take some time and just talk about big picture issues. So actually, the first session, I just take time to specifically encourage the Leadership Team. And then after that, we take some time to pray. 

And then this past retreat we just really answered the question: How do we move our family of churches forward in mission? What can we do as a Leadership Team? 

I asked each of the guys in the Leadership Team to answer that question and bring specific thoughts. And they had done a lot of work beforehand, and it was a really, really good conversation. 

Some of the ways that we answered that question were to refocus on church planting. We talked about how to focus not so much on the "how" of church planning, but the "why" of church planting. And because of the work that Ian McConnell did and the National Church Planting Group continues to do, we've got the "how" pretty much down now in terms of our process. What we really need to talk more about is why do we plant churches in more of an inspirational, vision casting way. 

We also talked about how do we make our pastors in our churches more aware of what's happening globally in Sovereign Grace. That alone, will stir us in mission. 

We talked about making evangelism more of a priority, and Mickey's leading us in some ways of doing that. So we just had a great conversation about that.

Benjamin Kreps:
That's wonderful. I know that Dave Taylor and I have been talking about possibly doing an Emerging Nations Team podcast to help assist in that, helping people to know what's going on globally.

Mark Prater:
Let me just encourage you to do that. Stop talking about it and do it actually. I've said that to the guys at the Leadership Team because the other thing that we talked about as a Leadership Team (especially we devoted to): the topic of how do we strengthen our influence and our leadership as a Leadership Team. 

So a couple of things we talked about: Beyond the Sovereign Grace website, we're going to have department websites. 

So church development: Mickey hopes to have that up by March 1st and the Pastors College website up by March 31st. It's going to have a bunch of new resources on it. And then beyond the podcast I'm doing and the Ordinary Pastor Podcast, I believe Jeff is going to start one fairly soon, which will be really, really good. So those are just some of the ways. 

So if you and Dave could do one on emerging nations, that would just add to the voices that will serve our pastors.

Benjamin Kreps:
Yeah. What we're aiming to do it. So look for that sometime soon when we can coordinate between Australia and Pennsylvania. We'll figure it out. 

So the important question you asked (just to end this conversation): You guys talked about why is it that we plant churches at Sovereign Grace? 

So give me the short answer: the elevator pitch. Why does Sovereign Grace plant churches? What was your conclusion as you talked about that at the retreat?

Mark Prater:
Our conclusion, which is really our heart, is to reach those who don't know Jesus Christ as their Savior with the good news of the gospel. That's ultimately why we plant churches: to see people born again through the preaching of the gospel, through local gospel outreach. 

And as you know, as you read through the New Testament, it happened through church planting. And really all of that should be for the glory of God. 

So it's not really about Sovereign Grace, in that sense. It really is about fulfilling the Great Commission that Christ has given us for the glory of God. And that's why we plant churches.

Benjamin Kreps:
Amen. Well, I think everybody watching this would also say amen to that and our shared mission together. So thank you Mark for leading our Leadership Team, for caring for them at that retreat. We are grateful for you. And to all our viewers, thanks for taking time to watch this podcast. God bless you. We'll see you next time.