The Alliance for Mission and Renewal Podcast

AMR
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Christianity
  • Updated Semiweekly

An alliance for the unity, faithfulness, and flourishing of the PCA. a4mr.substack.com

  1. 4d ago

    How Wisconsin Learned to Plant Churches Together

    In recent years, the Wisconsin Presbytery has transformed its approach to starting and supporting new churches. In 2012, it consisted of only six established congregations, and nearly two decades had passed since a new PCA church had been planted in the state. Today, the presbytery includes twenty-four churches and six active church plants, with more prospective leaders in development and plans to establish additional congregations in the years ahead. In this conversation, Derek Radney speaks with Dan Breed, Mark Kaiser, and Josh Golackson about how that growth happened—not through a single program or unusually large churches, but through a shared commitment to planting churches together. They describe the development of the On Wisconsin network, a three-path approach to identifying and training planters, and a presbytery-wide culture in which existing churches, new plants, ruling and teaching elders, and multiple committees all contribute to the same mission. A major part of that strategy has been expanding the pastoral pipeline. Wisconsin churches are identifying men already present in their congregations, encouraging them to consider ministry, helping make seminary financially accessible, and giving them years of hands-on training within local churches. That approach has opened new pathways for candidates who might never have imagined pastoral ministry as an option and has helped prepare leaders who already know the communities they hope to serve. The interview also explores the less visible work that makes sustained church planting possible: building trust across a presbytery, raising money among relatively small churches, coordinating pastoral development, and creating systems that keep candidates from falling through the cracks during the long process from initial interest to church planting. Underlying this interview is a conviction about Presbyterianism itself. Church planting does not have to be the project of a few unusually entrepreneurial pastors or congregations. Presbyteries can actually function in a connected way—sharing resources, developing leaders together, accepting real sacrifice, and treating the growth of another church not as a loss, but as a common gain. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit a4mr.substack.com

    How Wisconsin Learned to Plant Churches Together

  2. Sep 30

    Raising Up the Next Generation of Pastors

    The PCA is facing a growing challenge: how will the denomination raise up enough pastors and church planters for the years ahead? Demographic changes, the cost of seminary, and the increasing difficulty of pastoral ministry have all contributed to concern about the future pastoral pipeline. In a recent AMR conversation with Tom Gibbs and Ligon Duncan, Derek Radney explored the scope of that problem. This interview turns to a more practical question: what can local churches actually do about it? Jason Helopoulos, senior pastor of University Reformed Church in East Lansing, Michigan, describes how his congregation has built a ministry training program designed to identify, prepare, and send future leaders. The program includes internships for those considering seminary, residencies for men currently in seminary, and fellowships for post-seminary candidates who need further preparation before receiving a call. The conversation also addresses some of the practical obstacles churches face when considering this kind of investment: funding, staff time, congregational support, recruiting candidates, and the reality that not every participant will ultimately enter PCA ministry. Helopoulos explains how URC has approached those challenges gradually, including through support raising and by connecting the training program directly to the church’s broader commitment to church planting. At the heart of the interview is a relatively simple conviction: churches do not have to wait passively for future pastors to appear. They can intentionally identify people, invite them to consider ministry, give them meaningful experience, and invest in their preparation. Helopoulos’s encouragement to other PCA churches is to begin where they are, take appropriate risks, and see raising up future leaders as part of the church’s own participation in the Great Commission. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit a4mr.substack.com

  3. Aug 20

    Who Will Fill the Pulpits?

    The PCA is approaching an important long-term question: How will the denomination raise up enough qualified pastors to serve its churches, plant new ones, and lead growing ministries in the decades ahead? A large generation of pastors is nearing retirement, the PCA continues to grow, and RUF and other ministries are expanding into new places. At the same time, fewer young men are imagining pastoral ministry as a possible vocation, financial barriers can make seminary difficult to pursue, and pastors are leaving pulpits because of burnout, early retirement, and other pressures. These converging factors raise questions about the entire pastoral pipeline—from identifying and encouraging potential ministers to training, supporting, and placing them well. That work cannot belong to seminaries alone. It requires local churches, presbyteries, campus ministries, seminaries, and the wider denomination to see themselves as partners in raising up the next generation. In this conversation, Derek Radney speaks with seminary presidents Ligon Duncan and Tom Gibbs about the challenges and opportunities ahead—and how the whole church can work together to prepare pastors for a lifetime of faithful ministry. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit a4mr.substack.com

  4. Jul 22

    The Long Road to BCO 34-1: An Interview with Mel Duncan, Howie Donahoe, and Derek Radney

    In this conversation, former PCA General Assembly Moderators Howie Donahoe and Mel Duncan join Derek Radney to discuss the proposed revision to BCO 34-1 and the doctrine of assumption of original jurisdiction.Drawing on decades of experience in the PCA's judicial process, they trace the history of BCO 34-1, explain why previous attempts to revise it fell short, and walk through how the current proposal seeks to provide a clearer, more workable process while preserving the Presbyterian principle of respecting lower courts. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit a4mr.substack.com

  5. Jun 26

    After the General Assembly: Reflections on Trust, Unity, and the Work Ahead

    The 53rd PCA General Assembly brought record numbers of overtures, voting delays, and several significant decisions—but it also revealed something more encouraging. In this conversation, Derek Radney, Geoff Ziegler, and Eric Bonkovsky reflect on why the Assembly ultimately fostered confidence rather than anxiety, how face-to-face statesmanship prevailed over online controversy, what the Assembly’s decisions say about the health of the PCA, and the important conversations that still lie ahead. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit a4mr.substack.com

  6. Jun 11

    2026 Overtures Round Table Discussion (Part 3)

    Join Derek Radney, Steve Tipton, David Coffin, and Howie Donahoe for a roundtable discussion exploring the overtures and key questions facing the PCA ahead of the 2026 General Assembly. In Part 3, the panel discusses the judicial, administrative, and polity overtures under consideration this year. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit a4mr.substack.com

  7. Jun 1

    2026 Overtures Round Table Discussion (Part 2)

    Derek Radney, Steve Tipton, David Coffin, and Howie Donahoe join for round two of a roundtable discussion exploring the overtures and key questions facing the PCA ahead of the 2026 General Assembly. In Part 2, the panel discusses women as deacons, the Danvers Statement, the Lord’s Supper, among other topics. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit a4mr.substack.com

  8. May 27

    The PCA’s Directory for Worship: A Conversation with the Ad Interim Committee

    Derek Radney speaks with Nate Shurden, Joel St. Clair, and Chad van Dixhoorn about the Directory for Worship and the work of the Ad Interim Committee. The conversation covers the committee’s process, the historical Reformed background of the directory, and the hope that it will serve the worship, unity, and long-term health of the PCA. Derek Radney has served as a pastor at Trinity Church (PCA) in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, since 2012, after studying at Wake Forest University, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and Duke Divinity School. He and his wife, Sally, were married in 2005 and have four children. Joel St. Clair (MDiv, Westminster Theological Seminary) is the Senior Pastor of Mosaic Community Church in Silver Spring, Maryland. He coaches youth soccer, serves as a guest lecturer at Reformed Theological Seminary, and has contributed to Heal Us, Emmanuel. He lives in Silver Spring with his wife and four children. Nate Shurden is the Senior Pastor of Cornerstone Presbyterian Church in Franklin, TN. Before moving to Franklin to plant Cornerstone, Nate served as Minister of Discipleship & Young Adults at First Presbyterian Church in Jackson, MS, and the Assistant Editor of reformation21, the online magazine of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals. Nate is a graduate of Bannockburn College (Franklin, TN) and Reformed Theological Seminary (Jackson, MS). Nate is an adjunct professor at New College Franklin and a visiting lecturer at Reformed Theological Seminary (Nashville/Atlanta). Nate is a regular contributor to Ligonier Ministries, Christward Collective, and He Reads Truth. Nate has been married to Christy for twenty-five years, and they have five children. Dr. Chad Van Dixhoorn is Professor of Church History and Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte and a leading scholar of the Westminster Assembly. He is ordained in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and has served as a pastor in Cambridge, U.K., and Vienna, Virginia. He and his wife, Emily, have five children and a son-in-law. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit a4mr.substack.com

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