Training Events in February

This past month, our church family committed to working toward our “T” goal by participating in new training programs hosted by some of our key ministries, including Celebrate Recovery that recently trained 100 volunteers in the CR Leader Program. Our members have also taken to heart Pastor Rick’s vision to grow by six percent—in training, in ministry, in giving, in attendance, and in all aspects of our church.

“We’ve been working hard on surpassing that six percent,” says Membership Pastor Tommy Hilliker. “In most of our ministries, we’ve increased volunteers by 25-35%.”

Our Counseling Ministry alone has 500 members who are currently participating in a 30-week training course. This remarkable commitment to leadership encourages more ways to minister to our community.

Check out some of the exciting ways our members are getting equipped to be global leaders in the church, in business, and in the community.

CHURCH COUNSELOR TRAINING:

This month, 375 volunteers, ministry leaders, and staff were trained on biblical counseling as a step toward becoming certified counselors in Saddleback’s Counseling Ministry. Over the course of 30 weeks, members attended three-hour weekly training sessions covering the biblical counseling model to work with a variety of counseling needs.

Part of the program included Premarital Counselor Training, held Mondays from February 13–27. Taking place in the Refinery’s Multipurpose Classroom, this husband-and-wife ministry trained 10 couples on how to become mentors to others who are engaged. Those who participated in the program completed a six-week curriculum.

STORYTELLING TEAM:

On February 7, Saddleback’s Storytelling Team hosted Writer’s Night, a bimonthly training designed to help volunteer writers sharpen their writing skills. Every Writer’s Night focuses on a different topic and equips writers with lessons and exercises to help them develop content. This month, the team presented a Donald Miller video to demonstrate how to communicate clearly and tell stories that matter. In attendance were 29 people, of which 17 were current members of our storytelling ministry.

SADDLEBACK KIDS SUMMIT:

Closing out January was SK Summit, an evening honoring volunteer leaders who serve children across our campuses. Along with showing them appreciation, the event was a time to offer encouragement and build community for the entire ministry family.

Leaders from our southern campuses met at the Lake Forest Worship Center on January 20, while those from the northern campuses gathered at the Anaheim Worship Center on January 27. Attendees were treated to dinner, dessert, and entertainment, followed by a special message from Executive Children’s Pastor, Steve Adams.

“Pastor Steve shared this year’s ministry vision though our theme, Hope,” says Children’s Ministry Communications Coordinator, Joseph Maulorico. “In total, we had 1,200 volunteers leaders attend!”

To learn more about serving in Saddleback Kids, visit saddlebackkids.com.

BIBLE STUDY METHODS:

February marked the kick-off of Bible Study Methods, a seven-week course hosted at Saddleback Irvine North and Lake Forest. Between now and the end of March, the new curriculum based on Rick Warren’s Bible Study Methods, offers instruction in 12 different methods of Bible study.

Despite the rain, 50 people came to the first meeting at Irvine North, making the study a powerful piece of Saddleback’s 201 Maturity map.

“We started Bible Study Methods this month to train adult leaders,” says Irvine North Pastor, DJ Crawford. “It’s a chance to learn Pastor Rick’s methodology so that members can apply it to lead small groups, to train future participants in various classes, and to assist members in other lifelong learning initiatives.”

The Bible Study Methods course was beta tested at our Anaheim campus. Irvine North and Lake Forest are now the first campuses to fully implement the course for their members. Hosted at Irvine’s Tustin Ministry Center on Fridays, and the Refinery on Thursdays, weekly meetings take place from 7:00–9:00 PM, and include an optional dinner starting at 6:30 PM.

“I highly recommend joining Bible Study Methods,” says Teaching Pastor Tom Holladay. “The course digs into all types of Bible study methods, and gives an in-depth look on how to better study the Bible.”

For more information, contact maturity@saddleback.com.

SMALL GROUP HOST TRAINING:

Several of our campuses held gatherings to train small group hosts, including Saddleback San Clemente. Meetings were held on January 29 and January 31 for 12 hosts who have made a commitment to lead small groups.

Following suit was Anaheim that offered host training on February 25 with Pastor Jim Sonnenburg. The goal behind the gathering was to bring the hosts together to share best practices, pray for one another, and offer training on building community. Getting in on the action was our online campus that trained 15 volunteers in small group hosting.

WORSHIP SUMMIT:

Another exciting training event this month was our three-day Worship Summit, where worship leaders and directors from all our regional campuses came together for a time of encouragement, fellowship, and song-writing. 

“February marks five years since Pastor Rick asked us to really champion worship at Saddleback,” says Global Worship Pastor, John Cassetto. “The Summit was a time to increase alignment with strength, coaching, and mentoring during this special season.”

The retreat was also an opportunity to discuss what’s in store for Easter, and to show appreciation for the well-grounded worship leaders at all Saddleback campuses.

To learn more, visit saddlebackworship.com.

PEACE LEADER TRAINING:

To help take the Good News to the last 3,000 unreached tribes, Saddleback Church is training other church leaders on global PEACE. Demonstrating this very act was the three-day PEACE Leader Training event hosted by Saddleback’s PEACE Plan Pastor, Mike Constantz. Held at Saddleback’s Rancho Capistrano campus from January 31—February 2, the gathering was attended by 44 missions leaders from other churches, who came to hear about Foundation, Mobilization, Transformation, and Expansion through The PEACE Plan. For the full story, click HERE.

Saddleback’s Online Campus Pastor, Jay Kranda hosted First Steps to PEACE for members of our online campus. A total of 420 volunteers viewed the online training that equips small groups to adopt African countries in prayer. Held on February 9, the online training is a step toward engaging the online community in the PEACE Plan.

INTRO TO MENTORSHIP TRAINING:

On February 4, our Women’s Ministry trained women on how to become Godly mentors. Held in the Plaza Room, the two hour morning session was attended by 14 volunteers. In addition to this latest group, the ministry has trained 42 mentors in July 2016, 40 in August 2016, and 32 in October 2016. Plus, this month, Saddleback LA just launched Saddleback Women at their campus!

CAREER COACHING MEETINGS

Each week, our Anaheim campus hosts career coaching for those in occupational transition. Job seekers are trained on resume writing, interviewing, personal branding, networking, salary negotiations, and how to use tools such as LinkedIn. Led by Career Coaching Minister, Jim Fagan, the Thursday night meetings have been attended by more than 120 members in the past 10 months. For more info, contact careercoachinganaheim@saddleback.com.

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As these ministries equip and train our members to be global leaders, they also help move us one step closer to meeting our Daring Faith "T" initiative. Between all 17 of our campuses, we now have over 800 ministry opportunities where you can serve and train to be a leader! To learn more about future training opportunities, email Maturity@Saddleback.com.