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Committed to a culture of discipleship and spiritual formation within our student body, Taylor is equally devoted to supporting churches and pastors beyond our campus walls. This fall, the Office for Spiritual Life & Intercultural Leadership (SLIL) led several initiatives focused on supporting and connecting with churches. This culminated with a Chapel service on National Pastor Appreciation Day, the second Sunday in October.
As Reverend Greg Dyson, Campus Pastor and Vice President for Spiritual Life & Intercultural Leadership, put it, "We need to love who and what Christ loves. Christ clearly loves the church and gave Himself for her. Pastors have a special assignment from God. It's a heavy load, and when we love our pastors, we're loving the church and loving the God who made us."
Each year, SLIL identifies a group of churches connected to Taylor and seeks to remember and support their pastors in significant ways. They are currently walking alongside pastors from 19 local churches, offering prayer, encouragement, and appreciation.
"A ministry doesn’t belong to the pastor. It belongs to God. A pastor is caretaking that ministry, and for us to honor what they're doing is important," Rev. Dyson said. "We hope they feel loved, cared for, and appreciated."
Taylor’s connection with churches does not stop there. Each year, SLIL organizes Church Week, a time for the campus community to intentionally focus on the importance of the local church. Taylor invites local pastors to speak during Chapel services and encourages students to get involved with a nearby congregation. As part of this year’s Church Week, Taylor welcomed 27 churches and ministries to campus for a fair. Many senior pastors were present, connecting face-to-face with students.
Taylor also partners with a variety of churches through the Rural Ministry Initiative, which seeks to foster meaningful connections between ministry leaders and support them by providing resources, training, and mentorship.
"It’s important for us to recognize that Taylor is not a church," Rev. Dyson said. "We are the church, but not a church." Taylor is dedicated to fostering spiritual growth in our students, and the local church plays an invaluable role in that process.
Senior Sadie Hakes, the SLIL Presidential Fellow, helps coordinate events like this. She reflected, "I'm really encouraged that there are so many churches for us to interact with and connect students to. There's such a wealth of knowledge and love for the Lord, and it's sweet to see how the Lord uses the church in so many different ways."
Alongside building relationships with churches, Taylor sought to give thanks for those who shepherd the flock. During the Friday Chapel of Church Week, Rev. Dyson called the student body to write cards of appreciation for their pastors. He illustrated the power of gratitude by presenting a personal note to his own pastor, K. Paul Maurer, who was the Chapel speaker that day.
SLIL designed postcards for students to write their notes on and mailed the cards on their behalf. In total, 141 churches received cards from our students, including four international churches.
A couple weeks later, Taylor held a Sunday service on National Pastor Appreciation Day. While the day usually celebrates pastors directly, Taylor decided to honor this group in a nontraditional way—by acknowledging their children.
Having served as a pastor for 35 years before coming to Taylor, Rev. Dyson offered his personal insight. "For a pastor, their flock does not end with their congregation but extends to their own personal family," he said. "Appreciating a pastor means appreciating their families. The places that were the most meaningful to me were the places that cared for my family deeply."
That Sunday, Rev. Dyson asked all pastors’ kids—regardless of age—to stand to their feet to be honored. Alumni, students, parents, faculty, staff, and others rose, and SLIL presented each with a small gift and a note of appreciation.
"We saw some people who were in their 50s and 60s. And maybe for some of them, their parents have gone on to be with the Lord. But they never lose the moniker of being a pastor's kid," Rev. Dyson said.
Just as pastors’ families often play an unseen role, a group of ministry leaders serves Taylor’s leaders in a significant way. The Ministry Advisory Council, composed of 10 pastors engaged in Kingdom work across the country, provides discernment and encouragement to the President and the Vice President for Spiritual Life & Intercultural Leadership. Twice a year, the Council gathers on campus for a time of prayer and discussion, edifying one another and offering wisdom.
"As a campus pastor, I also need to get fed, encouraged, and helped, and these pastors are the ones that I often call and visit and share my burdens with," Rev. Dyson expressed. "They are important, and I have an endless number of reasons to appreciate them."
From council members to local pastors, Taylor University is thankful for those who join in our mission to develop servant-leaders marked with a passion to minister Christ’s redemptive love, grace, and truth to a world in need.