Last month Pastor David Clark hosted a Pastor’s Institute in the AZ/CA District. He has been hosting these institutes once a year since 1999. We are so thankful for his continued partnership with Grow in Grace.

“I think it was the summer of 1998, I was attending Summer Quarter at WLS. I mentioned to Prof. David Kuske how much I appreciated the opportunity to do work at a level that I could not do by myself, in circuit meetings, or at conferences. I told him I wished I could encourage more pastors to attend because I thought it would be helpful in their ministries. I knew it was helpful in mine. He told me that he thought money might be available for a WLS professor to come out to the District for an institute if I would arrange it. So I did. Starting in January of 1999, I have invited a WLS professor to come and present. (I think we have missed three years because of COVID and a District function which prevented it). Obviously, coming to Arizona in January isn’t a hard sell for people from WI! Today this is funded entirely by those who choose to attend,” comments Pastor Clark.

“I look at this as stewardship of my ministry. The better I can understand the Scriptures or sharpen the tools with which I study the Scriptures, the better the job I can do offering it to God’s people. For me, and for the men who choose to come (this is completely voluntary), we have a chance to be students and listeners and learners in a way we can’t otherwise. We grow and, as a result, God’s people grow. Isn’t that why we do what we do? I received my STM in 2004, but I still need to keep growing. It’s part of my faithfulness to Jesus and part of my desire to serve his people.”