This month I am sharing Advent reflections and stories. They gather up moments that I love. And they bring to life blessing and promise, silence and singing, grief and vulnerability, and moments of joy and hope. I am also recording…
Read More3MMM | Episode 42: Blueprint Stories
Sometimes help is literally in the palm of our hands and we cannot see it. Sometimes our ability to see or imagine or welcome the things we need in life is blocked by the kind of deeply seated beliefs and…
Read More3MMM | Episode 26: Future Stories
My training in psychology prepared me to look with careful attention to the past and to analyze how stories from family and childhood experiences that shape our lives. Not just our personal stories, but also stories embedded in religious rituals…
Read MoreAdvent II : Learning Stories of Advent
Learning Stories of Advent (2011) One of the many gifts of following the church year and circling through the life of Jesus and the life of the church every twelve months, is its orientation of newcomers into the practice of…
Read More3MMM | Episode 233: Celebrating My Ordination
The end of March often arrives, and I realize that I didn’t mark the anniversary or celebrate my ordination. This year I’m celebrating on March 19. It is the day I was ordained. And I’m happy to share a few…
Read More3MMM | Episode 230: Advocating for Women
Imagine advocating for a place where women and lgbtiqa+ people preach and lead most Sundays. A place where seminary students seek to learn from wise pastors. Where every age person from youngest to eldest has a place and a role…
Read More3MMM | Episode 226: Notice, Appreciate, Wonder
Happy New Year’s Eve! This is not a post that will scream about the last minute, or rush you to give, buy, do, support, or show up somewhere. Instead it is a post that looks back a little and forward…
Read More#PandemicPastoring Report (2022) Download + News
#PandemicPastoring Report (2022) Download + News | Learn about the Author | Watch the Webinar ++++++++++ Pre-order the #PandemicPastoring Study Guide The #PandemicPastoring STUDY GUIDE is available NOW! We are living in a new era of ministry. We need to…
Read MorePastoral Imagination Book
Welcome to the Pastoral Imagination book page. You can observe and imagine doing ministry. Yet until you enter it with your whole self, alongside people in everyday situations, you cannot know fully how a calling comes to life. ~Eileen Campbell-ReedPastoral…
Read More3MMM | Episode 156: #MeTooReckoning Workshop Available!
Thanks for stopping by to learn more about the #MeTooReckoning Workshop. We believe there is a reckoning underway, and we want this new self-paced workshop to help you navigate it. Access for the #MeTooReckoning Workshop NOW Available The course is…
Read More3MMM | Episode 217: Vocational Grief
Gratitude is rightly our focus during clergy appreciation month, yet as part of our acknowledgement of clergy today, let’s also attend to the reality of vocational grief. While it can be hard to name and process, and typically remains out…
Read More3MMM | Episode 215: Facing Brick Walls
Facing Brick Walls “Nobody ever liked Eileen anyway.” Ouch. “Eileen, I’m really hoping that you will be our next pastor.” Oooof. These words, and many variations on them, polarized the congregation when I left it over 20 years ago. What…
Read More3MMM | Episode 214: Making Connections
This weekend I spent time renewing and making new connections with Baptist friends. As an extrovert I found this mostly energizing. I know it’s not everyone’s idea of fun. And maybe you would rather make connections with one person over…
Read More3MMM | Episode 213: Everyday Ministry Puzzles
For women in ministry and lgbtiqa+ ministers*, everyday ministry puzzles are an unavoidable part of living into one’s calling and work. When I listen to the ministers I study, seminary students, friends, and colleagues in ministry, I hear stories about…
Read More3MMM | Episode 212: Called to Ministry
Blessed are you who are called by God to serve the church… Then along comes someone saying surely you misheard. Or that you don’t know what you are doing. They practically shout, wrong number! They are the ones who are…
Read More3MMM | Episode 211: Back to School Wisdom
What back to school wisdom would you offer someone who is beginning seminary? This season is back-to-the-routine and back-to-school time for many of us. So this week we invited pastors, professors and recent seminary graduates to share some words of…
Read More3MMM | Episode 210: Elizabeth-Anne’s SBC Story
Editor’s Note: This week we welcome Elizabeth-Anne’s SBC Story about calling and ministry. Elizabeth-Anne Lovell is part of the 3MMM Team, teaches Jesus in the Gospel and Film at Belmont University, and is a brand new mom. It’s Not You,…
Read More3MMM | Episode 209: Rural Ministry Gifts and Challenges
This week I am focusing on rural ministry gifts and challenges related to time, place, and power. The reason for this focus is that I will meet with a group of pastors and congregational leaders later this week. In anticipation…
Read More3MMM | Episode 207: Lost Things
a poem for lost things (behind the desk edition) prescription eyeglasses photo book of grandchildren heart stickers rolodex original watercolor painting (unframed, 4 x 6) paper clips bugs (dead and alive) receipts cosmetics, lots of cosmetics (two entire boxes) bic…
Read More3MMM | Episode 206: Adam DJ Brett’s Favorite Things
EDITORIAL NOTE: We are offering a summer series of “My Favorite Things” this year. And this week, 3MMM Team Member Adam DJ Brett is on the blog. Adam holds a Ph.D. in religion from Syracuse University, where he studied religion,…
Read More3MMM | Episode 205: How Women Thrive in Ministry (Part 2)
Last week I began answering the question of how women thrive in ministry. My inspiration for responding to this question came from Baptist Women in Ministry (BWIM) Executive Director, Rev. Dr. Meredith Stone. She asked recently: If we imagine…
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