ABHMS introduces ministrElife online platform at Thursday’s ‘Space for Grace’ luncheon
PHILADELPHIA (ABNS 11/16/18)—Yesterday’s luncheon at American Baptist Home Mission Societies’ (ABHMS) Space for Grace national conference in Philadelphia was sponsored by ministrElife, ABHMS’ new online platform specially developed for American Baptist ministry professionals and lay leaders.
Those in attendance received a sneak peek of the new platform that addresses the 21st-century professional, networking and personal needs of those in ministry, whether full time, part time, bi-vocational or volunteer. From pastors, worship leaders, choir directors, Bible study leaders and Sunday school teachers to chaplains, pastoral counselors, professors, seminarians and everyone between, ministrElife will partner on the ministry journey from educational preparation and job searching to finding and fulfilling a call and retiring.
“What if we [American Baptists] had a LinkedIn or Facebook among us?” ABHMS Executive Director Dr. Jeffrey Haggray asked rhetorically, explaining the rationale behind the platform’s establishment. “ABHMS has created such a platform, and we have named it ministrElife. We built it not because we could but because someone needed to.”
Moving into the user testing phase, the new platform will be tweaked, according to user response, during the first half of 2019 before being officially launched at Mission Summit in Virginia Beach.
Providing the highest quality interactive content, ministrElife features five distinct sections that meet specific needs: “Employ,” “Extend,” “Engage,” “Equip” and “Enlighten.”
The easy-to-use, fully online “Employ” section uses several compatibility ratings to match job-search candidates to the right employment position. Features include a basic profile, American Baptist Personnel Services (ABPS) profile, ABPS Help Center, job boards, organization pages, digital signature and global search.
“If you already have an ABPS profile, everything is carried over to the new platform,” said Jill Duroseau, ministrElife team lead.
An unmatched suite of digital communication tools, “Extend” allows a user to sit at his or her own desk, while meeting with or ministering to someone in another part of the country or world in real time. Features include video chatting, online meeting rooms, Webinar viewing and creation, survey viewing and creation, podcast listening and creation, activity dashboard and digital signature.
Including discussion forums, chat, video chat and global search, “Engage” features public, private and anonymous live, online communities organically created by like-minded users based on their needs.
Duroseau was answered with applause when she told the luncheon crowd, “You’ll be able to chat in your own language, and someone will receive it in theirs.”
“Equip” offers access to Bible study tools, culturally diverse sermons, and online and offline access on any device to an array of subjects, such as Christian living, Christian education, Baptist history and beliefs, church leadership, preaching, pastoral ministry and discipleship.
Providing tools, coaching and mentoring, “Enlighten” includes educational offerings, video on demand, professional resources, global search and the latest news.
To view daily highlights from Space for Grace, visit abhms.org.
American Baptist Home Mission Societies partners with American Baptists to promote Christian faith, cultivate Christ-centered leaders and disciples, and bring healing and transformation to communities across the United States and Puerto Rico.
American Baptist Churches USA is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with approximately 5,000 congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.
