EquippingU: Dynamic Influence

EquippingU Dynamic Influence is a two-year training track for pastors and leaders of Alliance churches with 200 or fewer people in attendance. Participants will meet online for four two-hour sessions each year. The training will cover timely topics including how small churches can grow during a pandemic. We are here to help pastors in small churches find resources, lead well, and help their churches thrive.

For more information, contact: EquippingU@cmalliance.org
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Meet The Presenters

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    Terry Smith
    Vice President for Church Ministries
    Rev. Terry Smith was appointed as vice president for Church Ministries with The Christian and Missionary Alliance and began serving in this role on December 1, 2017.

    Terry has served with the C&MA since 1981. He pastored Alliance churches in Florida and in Pennsylvania as well as served in the role of church-planting director in three districts, He was elected superintendent of the Eastern PA district in August 2014. Terry also served on the C&MA Board of Directors prior to being appointed as vice president for Church Ministries in December 2017.

    A graduate of Toccoa Falls College, Terry also holds a master’s degree from Crown College. He is the author of Changing Course: Leading Older Churches in a New Direction.

    Terry has been married to Ruth since 1977. They have two married, adult sons and five grandchildren.
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    Karl Vaters
    Author, Pastor and Mentor!
    Karl Vaters is the author of four books.

    The Church Recovery Guide: How Your Congregation Can Adapt and Thrive after a Crisis
    100 Days to a Healthier Church: A Step-By-Step Guide for Pastors and Leadership Teams
    Small Church Essentials: Field-Tested Principles for Leading a Healthy Congregation of Under 250
    The Grasshopper Myth: Big Churches, Small Churches and the Small Thinking That Divides Us
    Karl produces resources for Helping Small Churches Thrive at KarlVaters.com.

    His heart is to help pastors of small churches (up to 90 percent of us) find the resources to lead well, and to capitalize on the unique advantages that come with pastoring a small church – something virtually every pastor will spend at least some of their ministry years doing. He also believes that big and small churches can and should work together more often – to the benefit and blessing of everyone.

    He also hosts the podcast, Can This Work In a Small Church? in which he and his guests talks about universal church leadership issues, then dig deeper into how those issues look different when we approach them from a small church context.

    In 2022, he’s doing a limited-series called the Bible Reading Coach, a weekly podcast designed to help anyone read through the entire Bible in 52 weeks.

    Karl has written for many publications, including ChristianityToday.com, Outreach magazine, Church Law & Tax, and more. He also serves as the Small/Mid-Size Church Ambassador for Compassion International.

    Karl has been in pastoral ministry for over 40 years. He is the teaching pastor of Cornerstone Christian Fellowship, a healthy small church in Orange County, California, where he has ministered for almost 30 years with his wife, Shelley. They have three children and two grandkids.
Sessions:
  • 1674676783-2bc3095824cbd4e7
    Session One, 2022
    The Post-Pandemic Church: What’s Working In Churches That Are Thriving
    As we've gone through the last two years, some churches have not just survived, but thrived, while others are struggling or dying. Wh... View more
  • 1674677027-73a05f09c3915211
    Session Two, 2022
    Redefining Success in Ministry
    In this session, Karl Vaters will talk about how chasing a false view of success almost drove him out of ministry. Then he’ll share t... View more
  • 1674677377-676790a074cac9b9
    Session Three, 2022
    Big Churches, Small Churches: What’s the Difference, and Why Does It Matter?
    Over 90 percent of churches are small, but over 90 percent of pastoral resources come from a big-church standpoint. Why? And why does... View more
  • 1674677521-a8d5f1b454cf6244
    Session Four, 2022
    How to Discover and Use What Your Church Does Well
    Every church does something well. Or it can. The key is discovering what that “something” is, then doing it with all your heart as Go... View more
  • 1689103814-09cba93980502082
    Feb 22, 2023 – 12:00pm ET
    The Next Decade: A Scouting Report from Boots-On-The-Ground Pastors
    When the spies went into the Promised Land, ten of the twelve came back with a bad report. But there were two with a minority report.... View more
  • 1689103826-15a72149e01fdfdf
    May 10, 2023 – 12:00pm ET
    Finding & Mentoring Volunteers In Today’s (And Tomorrow’s) Small Church
    Everything is up in the air right now. Much like the world before the Reformation, people are questioning their entire worldviews, in... View more
  • 1697733836-01bf1ac8f463c2e7
    Aug 16, 2023 – 12:00pm ET
    A New Way To Look At Vision-Casting
    Do you have a unique vision for your church? Better yet, do you need a unique vision for your church? According to Scripture, the vis... View more
  • 1639686580-5b829a4a6f0fd244
    Nov 29, 2023 – 12:00pm ET
    De-Sizing the Church
    We have an unhealthy relationship with “bigness” in the Church—especially in the American church. And it’s killing us. The rate of ch... View more
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