Trinity Team Attends the Onward Leadership Institute

Trinity Team Attends the Onward Leadership Institute

By Susan Koehler, Director of Communications

During the week of September 23, four of our staff members traveled to Kansas City to attend the Onward Leadership Institute at the Church of the Resurrection. A large United Methodist Church pastored by Rev. Adam Hamilton, this location hosts an annual conference designed to equip church leaders with vision, inspiration, and practical tools for making an impact in their congregations and communities.


From left to right, Rev. Anna Brook Opalinski, Candace Duclos, Susan Koehler, and Melanie Gonzalez attend the 2024 Onward Leadership Institute.

Attending the conference were Melanie Gonzalez, Church Operations Administrator; Candace Duclos, Director of Christian Education; Susan Koehler, Director of Communications; and Rev. Anna Brook Opalinski, Associate Pastor. Each of us benefited from both general sessions that built a conceptual framework for the institute and individually selected break-out sessions that focused on skills and tools related to our specific roles within the church. Themes that permeated every session of the Onward Leadership Institute were as follows.

Being the Hands and Feet of Christ

According to Rev. Adam Hamilton, the most thriving and successful churches are those that reach outward to serve their communities. Video interviews with service-oriented church leaders demonstrated strategies for identifying and ministering to specific needs in diverse environments. Whether integrating migrant communities, caring for the unhoused, or providing support and encouragement to service workers in the community, each church found a way to reach out and make a difference in the world around them.

Attendees were also introduced to the Church of the Resurrection’s Kindness Campaign, which began as a response to divisive partisanship that had negatively impacted friendships, families, and community interactions. Each year, a different theme is introduced, always with the intention of spreading kindness from neighbor to neighbor. This year’s them for the Kindness Campaign is “Do Unto Others.” Yard signs, social media posts, buttons, and random acts of kindness could be found all around Kansas City.

The Church of the Resurrection shares resources for this campaign with any churches wishing to participate. Many of those in attendance had already implemented the Kindness Campaign in their own communities and shared inspiring stories of success.  

RestorationMany speakers focused on God’s work of restoration in the world. Rev. Adam Hamilton spoke about the gap between “the world as it is and the world as it should be.” He encouraged church leaders to work in this gap, restoring creation and humanity to the way God intended.  

Rev. Dr. Paul Chilcote advocated for a more complete view of God’s work in the world. He pointed out that Christians often focus on man’s fall and God’s redemption. Instead, Chilcote pointed out that the fuller story of God’s work begins with creation and leads to restoration. 

Author Brian McLaren, a well-known voice from the Center for Action and Contemplation, spoke directly to our critical role in the restoration of God’s creation. He pointed to our tendency toward fragmentation as a catalyst for fear, anger, and partisanship and advocated for a more holistic view of the world that would help us work as a team for the greater good.

Ministry for the 21st CenturyRev. Dr. Candace Lewis, President Dean of Gammon Theological Seminary, detailed the changes in models of church growth movement since the 1990s. She discussed multiple waves of church growth over the decades, such as the Mega-Church Movement, the Purpose Driven Life, and Fresh Expressions. She stressed the importance of working to be fruitful within the context of our time and place, and pointed out repeatedly that “God does not give us trees; God gives us seeds.” It is in nurturing those seeds over time that we achieve true fruitfulness.

Throughout the conference, participants were introduced to the growing role of technology in the church. A tour of the Church of the Resurrection facilities gave attendees a behind-the-scenes look at their full production studio, state-of-the-art sound and video components, and the mechanical systems operating within the building. 

Electronic tools are vital to 21st Century ministry. Through user-friendly apps, social media, and other facets of an active online presence, participants learned how to achieve an effective “digital ministry” as a conduit for communication, connection, and outreach.

Church CultureA final theme of the Onward Leadership Institute was church culture, which is the foundation of its identity. Break-out sessions focused on identifying and evaluating church culture in an effort to help churches grow in a healthy direction. 

Dr. Kara E. Powell focused on church culture as it relates to young people. She advocated for intergenerational mentoring, tangible prioritization of youth ministry, and intentional implementation of evidence-based strategies for growing and serving the next generation.

Overall, conference leaders stressed the importance of a positive church culture that reflects the image of God at an elemental level — through individual words, deeds, and attitudes. A church that is healthy on the inside is equipped to be effective in carrying God’s message of love into the community.

While at the conference, Trinity’s team was able to enjoy some authentic Kansas City barbeque and take in some of the local culture. Thanks to modern technology, we were also able to work remotely to assist with the planning and communication involved in the postponement of our Bicentennial Celebration due to Hurricane Helene.


Upon Rev. Williams’ recommendation, the team enjoyed a delicious meal at Jack Stack BBQ.

With news of the impending storm, the team worked remotely to assist with the postponement of Trinity’s Bicentennial Celebration.

The Leadership Institute at the Church of the Resurrection is an annual event open to pastors, staff, and lay leaders. Thousands of church leaders have been inspired by the institute over the years of its existence. Trinity’s four attendees to the 2024 Onward Leadership Institute have returned with renewed inspiration, practical knowledge, and bold ideas for supporting our church’s culture and its work of restoration in the community we serve. the community we serve.

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