As a wife and mum of three children, juggling both ministry and family is not easy, but for Vanessa Vanderbusch, she takes joy that she can engage in ministry and be challenged to continue to grow and develop as a leader.
Vanessa was invited in 2018 to participate in the Emerging Leaders Initiative (ELI), a program to provide practical projects/initiatives that will enable the next generation of leaders to gain valuable experience while working out real ministry issues.
She had previously been invited but was not able to participate. This is a common challenge for mums in ministry who are also busy raising a family. This second time around was different as Power to Change was able to provide the necessary resources for Vanessa to join in this valuable training.
Over the last year Vanessa has had the opportunity to work with a team of three others along with a coach. Their project has focused on Mobilisation (equipping the organisation with best practices to recruit/mobilise people to join with Power to Change full time). They are one of a few other ELI projects with participants throughout Oceania (Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands). Each project has a different initiative to develop and then potentially implemented.
Even though not initially excited about the project, she’s come to realise the significant impact the work she and her team have had in bringing positive change to the culture of Power to Change, particularly in how we engage with those who could join with us in fulfilling the Great Commission.
While seeing the great potential of this work, she’s also been surprised at how the ELI project has enlarged her perspective of the whole organisation of Power to Change, not just her specific campus strategy.
One of the great blessings on this journey has been that it’s not all about the project itself, but also about developing both her character and leadership skills. All of the participants gather together a few times over the course of 18 months as a large group to hear from other leaders and work through development processes. In between the large group gatherings each team then meets with their coach to work in more detail on their projects. The desired outcome is both developmental and practical. Vanessa shares, ‘Having a coach has helped me in my growth and I now feel better equipped in leading well and making my time count.’
Opportunities don’t always avail themselves multiple times, but for Vanessa the second time around has been a blessing. She’s encouraged in her own growth and development, and in being a part of something that will bring about practical change to propel the organisation forward.
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