In this episode of the Care Ministry Podcast, host Laura Howe is joined by Rebecca Bailey for a rich conversation on how spiritual formation functions as preventative care within church care ministries. Together, they explore why care and formation cannot be separated, how spiritual formation shows up across Hope Made Strong’s five-part Model of Care (self, community, peer, pastoral, and professional), and why care is less about fixing problems and more about being present and becoming formed alongside one another. This episode invites leaders to move beyond reactive care toward cultivating cultures that sustain people before crisis hits.

• “If in our care ministries we’re focused on the doing and the fixing, then we will miss the being and the becoming.” –Rebecca Bailey
• “Spiritual formation is happening on the inside and the outside—it’s circular. What happens between us forms us.” –Rebecca Bailey
• “Care has historically been reactive in the church. Spiritual formation helps us think about care as preventative.” –Laura Howe
• “Spiritual formation isn’t about adding more programs. It’s about becoming more intentional with what’s already happening.” –Rebecca Bailey
• “Good spiritual formation in care ministries keeps teams from absorbing what they were never meant to carry.” –Rebecca Bailey

• Hope Made Strong Book Club
• HMS Amazong store 🇨🇦Link, 🇺🇸Link
• Download the Model of Care

Website: HopeMadeStrong.org

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In this episode of The Care Ministry Podcast, Laura Howe is joined by psychologists, spiritual directors, and Soul Shepherding founders Bill Gaultiere and Kristi Gaultiere for a deeply honest conversation about empathy, burnout, and spiritual formation. Drawing from decades of counseling, ministry leadership, and personal experience, the Gaultieres unpack why empathy is “oxygen for the soul” and how self-judgment, emotional disconnection, and over-functioning can quietly lead caregivers toward compassion fatigue. They explore what empathy truly is (and what it is not), how Jesus models empathy throughout the Gospels, and why receiving God’s empathy is essential for sustainable care, healthy boundaries, and long-term ministry fruitfulness.

• “Empathy is oxygen for the soul. Without it, we may survive—but we won’t thrive.” –Kristi Gaultiere
• “The instrument we bring to others isn’t our skills or our training—it’s who we are with God.” –Bill Gaultiere
• “We often don’t care what someone knows until we know that they care.” –Kristi Gaultiere
• “True growth happens when empathy is joined with truth and responsibility.” –Bill Gaultiere
• “If we try to empathize with everyone, everywhere, all the time, we will drain our soul. Empathy must be stewarded.” –Kristi Gaultiere

• Soul Shepherding
• Get your Book Club book!
• Care Ministry Collective

Website: HopeMadeStrong.org

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In this episode of the Care Ministry Podcast, host Laura Howe sits down with Jennifer Bowen, Executive Director of Shalem Mental Health Ministries, to reflect on hosting a Local Church Mental Health Summit in Canada. Jennifer shares the heart, strategy, and lessons learned from hosting a multi-day summit that brought together pastors, therapists, educators, and ministry leaders to explore faith and mental health together. The conversation covers why embodiment and hospitality matter, how to scale summits to fit any community, and why collaboration across sectors is essential for sustainable care. This episode is both practical and visionary for leaders considering hosting a local summit or partnering more intentionally around mental health.

Quotes

• “Mental health is part of our health journey. The brain is a beautiful, complicated, and fragile organ—and sometimes it goes a bit funky.”
  — Jennifer Bowen
• “We wanted to embody mental wellness in the entire experience, not just talk about it from a stage.”
  — Jennifer Bowen
• “The in-between moments—the hallways, the meals, the conversations—were as rich as the sessions themselves.”
  — Jennifer Bowen
• “This wasn’t about one voice leading the conversation. It became a mural of many voices coming together.”
  — Jennifer Bowen
• “The local summits are meant to be a choose-your-own-adventure—designed around the capacity and context of your community.”
  — Laura Howe

Resources

• Host a Local Summit

Connect with Hope Made Strong

Website: HopeMadeStrong.org

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In this episode of the Care Ministry Podcast, host Laura Howe sits down with Mark Strickland and Matt Timpson from Milton Bible Church to explore what intentional, sustainable care looks like in a mid-sized church. Together, they unpack why Milton Bible has chosen to remain “decidedly mid-sized,” how administration can strengthen (not replace) relationships, and how care systems can support people without becoming cold or program-driven. The conversation offers practical insight into connect groups, prayer pathways, boundaries in care, documentation, and building a culture where people are truly seen—without trying to meet every need alone.

Quotes

• “Administration should feed ministry and feed what’s pastorally happening in the church—not the other way around.”
  — Matt Timpson
• “We don’t want to just go wide. We want to go deep.”
  — Matt Timpson
• “When you get beyond a certain size, the organic care that once happened naturally starts slipping through the cracks, and systems help bridge that gap.”
  — Mark Strickland
• “You can have great systems, but if people aren’t actually engaging with other people, something essential is missing.”
  — Mark Strickland
  “Care doesn’t mean solving the problem. It means walking with people and connecting them to hope.”
  — Laura Howe

Resources

• Care Ministry Cohorts
• Milton Bible Church

Connect with Hope Made Strong

Website: HopeMadeStrong.org

Socials: Facebook – Instagram – Twitter – YouTube

In this episode of the Care Ministry Podcast, Laura Howe and Rebecca Bailey kick off the new year by introducing prayer as a foundational care strategy within a holistic care ministry. They unpack how prayer fits into six core care pillars and explore why prayer should be more than informal or assumed.

It deserves thoughtful structure, training, and follow-through. From understanding different types of prayer to building clear systems for prayer requests, follow-up, confidentiality, and team support, this conversation offers both theological grounding and practical guidance for churches that want prayer to be an intentional, trustworthy entry point into care.

Quotes
“Prayer is the most accessible entry point into caring for your congregation — and that’s exactly why it needs intention.” –Laura Howe
“If we don’t provide training and conversation around prayer, we assume everyone knows how to pray — and we miss a lot.” –Rebecca Bailey
“Prayer ministry is not a gossip chain, and it’s not a substitute for pastoral or professional care. It’s an intentional way to enter someone’s life in a tender moment.” –Laura Howe
“Different lived experiences shape how people pray — and that’s what helps others feel seen, heard, and understood.” –Rebecca Bailey
“When prayer requests go unanswered, it can quietly reinforce stories of shame, rejection, or not belonging.” –Laura Howe

Resources
Care Ministry Cohort

Connect with Hope Made Strong
Website: HopeMadeStrong.org
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Today, Laura Howe speaks with Dr. Chris Adams, Executive Director of the Mental Health and the Church Initiative at Biola University’s Rosemead School of Psychology. They dive into the essential practices of healthy caregiving within ministry, highlighting how care leaders can show up with empathy and wisdom without carrying the full emotional weight of others. Chris shares his personal journey from pastoral ministry to clinical psychology, offering practical insights on boundaries, supervision, and cultivating emotional and spiritual resilience in leadership.

Quotes

• “I didn’t have the skills to not carry people’s pain.” – Chris Adams
• “I believe in equipping people to be the church—what it looks like to be the hands and feet of Jesus.” – Chris Adams
• “Our own woundedness can drive our ministry if we’re not aware.” – Chris Adams
• “God is not glorified by burned-out leaders.” – Laura Howe
• “If you don’t have a biblical understanding of boundaries, the need will drive your ministry.” – Chris Adams

Resources

• Mercy Multiplied
• Boundaries by Cloud & Townsend
• Care Ministry Cohort

Connect with Hope Made Strong

Website: HopeMadeStrong.org

Socials: Facebook – Instagram – Twitter – YouTube

In the final week of the Advent series, Laura and Rebecca explore the theme of love…not just the love we offer others, but the radical invitation to receive love ourselves. They reflect on the vulnerability of love, the five needs for Christian connection, and how community becomes the soil where love is planted and grown. This episode brings a practical and deeply spiritual close to the Advent journey, reminding leaders that God's love flows to us before it flows through us.

Quotes

• "We love because God first loved us—and that truth changes how we show up for others." — Rebecca Bailey
• "Love isn’t about doing more. It’s about being known and embraced—even in our mess." — Laura Howe
• "The five needs for Christian connection are prayer, authenticity, adventure, laughter, and service. These bond us in love." — Rebecca Bailey
• "Leaders often focus on being loving—but accepting love is just as sacred." — Laura Howe
• "A cord of three strands isn’t quickly broken—and community gives strength in tension." — Rebecca Bailey
  
  

Resources

• Advent Guide
• Care Ministry Cohort
  
  

Connect with Hope Made Strong

Website: HopeMadeStrong.org

Socials: Facebook – Instagram – Twitter – YouTube

In this third week of the Advent series, Laura and Rebecca dive into the theme of joy, not as fleeting happiness, but as a deep, sustaining posture of the heart. They reflect on how joy can coexist with sorrow, stress, and fatigue, and how it’s often found not in perfection, but in presence. Through personal stories, theological insights, and the Advent Guide, they invite leaders to explore what true joy looks like, especially during a busy, overwhelming season. This episode is a gentle yet powerful reminder: joy is available even in the in-between.

Quotes

• "Joy is not toxic positivity. It doesn’t ignore the pain—it stands with it and still proclaims hope." — Laura Howe
• "Joy is a posture of your heart, not the result of your circumstances." — Rebecca Bailey
• "If we don’t take time to reflect, we lose sight of God’s faithfulness, like spiritual object permanence." — Rebecca Bailey
• "Even in burnout and fatigue, joy can be recalled—it becomes a marker of God’s sustaining presence." — Laura Howe
• "Sharing our joy with others is worship. It builds connection and reminds us that God is good, even here." — Rebecca Bailey

Resources

• Advent Guide
• Care Ministry Cohort

Connect with Hope Made Strong

Website: HopeMadeStrong.org

Socials: Facebook – Instagram – Twitter – YouTube