Rediscovering Hope and Courage
Why WayFinder Matters for Church Leaders Today
By Jess, Leader at The Colossian Forum
In partnership with Better Together’s Community of Churches
In the midst of all the pressures facing pastors today, two words stand out as both a lifeline and a launching point: hope and courage.
As a leader with The Colossian Forum, I’ve had the privilege of walking alongside pastors and congregational leaders through our WayFinder formation journey—a path now offered in partnership with Better Together’s Community of Churches. And what I’ve seen again and again in those early moments of engagement is powerful: leaders rediscovering hope… and then courage.
The Need for New Virtues in a New Season
WayFinder is centered on the cultivation of five key virtues, all of which we’re actively measuring and nurturing. But hope and courage rise to the surface quickly, especially for leaders who have been carrying the weight of ministry through the last few years—years marked by disruption, division, and exhaustion.
I know this because I’ve lived it. In my own years of pastoring, I experienced the growing realization that ministry today requires new skill sets—ones that aren’t just technical, but relational, spiritual, and deeply formational.
Learning Communities for Such a Time as This
What we’re finding is that leaders don’t just need more information—they need a community of formation. A space to reflect, process, and be equipped in real-time for the complexity of congregational life today. That’s why the WayFinder journey is so crucial. It doesn’t add more to your plate; it reframes what’s already on your plate through a lens of grace, growth, and shared wisdom.
One area where this is especially important is in conflict. Many leaders never had the chance to develop a healthy framework for understanding how their own story—family background, past church experiences, even current dynamics—shapes the way they show up in conflict. And yet, conflict is where much of our leadership is either formed or fractured.
WayFinder offers space to name those dynamics, examine them through a theological lens, and gain practices that lead to transformation.
Hope, Courage, and the Possibility of Change
Let’s be honest: ministry can feel overwhelming. The pace of change, the weight of expectations, the ever-present "next thing"—all of it can steal your sense of purpose and possibility.
But through this journey, I’ve watched leaders recover their hope. And that hope isn't a vague optimism—it’s rooted in our deepest theological convictions. It’s what anchors us.
And once hope is rekindled, something else rises: courage.
Not a bravado, but a Spirit-given steadiness. The kind of courage that empowers you to face hard things with clarity, to embrace practices that actually work, and to lead your people through challenges with grace.
An Invitation to Join the Community of Churches
If you’re a pastor or congregational leader longing for this kind of renewal, we invite you to join the Better Together Community of Churches.
In partnership with The Colossian Forum, you’ll step into a relational network of leaders walking the WayFinder journey together—learning, growing, and leading from a place of formation rather than fatigue.
✅ Practical tools for leadership
✅ Shared learning around conflict, change, and resilience
✅ A supportive network of peers
✅ Rooted in deep Christian theology and spiritual practice
You don’t have to lead alone. And you don’t have to lose hope.
Join us. Be formed. And rediscover what’s possible.
