Nike Adebajo shares how our colleges create an environment for student formation, how ministerial formation is mutual - and how for all of us, our Christian faith is continually being shaped 

 

Imagine a couple who have been married for four decades or more. You may notice something intriguing over time: gestures, mannerisms, small habits and even ways of speaking have grown increasingly alike. Psychologists describe this as convergence or assimilation.  After decades of shared life, they have been steadily shaping one another. Their relationship has formed them.   

The same is true of all of us. Our outlook, habits, responses and values are continually being shaped by the experiences, relationships, cultures and subcultures we inhabit, the media we consume, books we read, the voices we choose to follow online, and the communities (virtual included) in which we participate. Formation is not optional. Whether we recognise it or not, intentionally or unintentionally, consciously or unconsciously, we are always being formed.  We are, ifyou like, being shaped, fashioned or moulded. Scripture recognises this reality, ‘Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm’ (Proverbs 13:20). The company we keep influences the people we become. 

Our Christian faith is continually being shaped. Personal Bible study and prayer matter deeply, but they are not our only Christian formative influences. The company we keep, the sermons we hear, the content we access online, the books we read, and the festivals and conferences we attend all form us. The question is not whether our faith is being formed, but what or who is forming us and into what or whom we are being formed. 

For some, Christian formation takes place largely within the familiar context of one local church or tradition, for example, those who, all their lives, have been in the same church where the demography has remained unchanged. For others, it is enriched by their welcome of and interaction with the diverse expressions of our Baptist movement, including those who bring perspectives from our global Baptist family, as well as encounters with other Christian traditions.  

Ministerial formation takes place against this wider backdrop. For the women and men called to accredited ministry and who join a Baptist college community for three years or more, college provides a place of intentional formation. They are not simply places where Ministers-in-Training (MiTs) are educated, they are communities in which future ministers are shaped for faithful service. This intentionally holistic formation includes: 
 

Knowledge:  

Students gain biblical and theological understanding, study ethics and the contemporary context in which they will serve.  
 

Practical skills for ministry: 

Students learn to preach, lead worship, provide pastoral care, conduct baptisms and funerals, lead churches through change, engage in mission and evangelism, and exercise wise leadership, and so on. These skills are developed through both the overt curriculum and the hidden curriculum of shared life within college and placement communities, where theory and practice continually inform one another. 

Colleges also attend to Baptist distinctives because ministerial formation prepares students to serve within the Baptist tradition.  This includes believers’ baptism, congregational discernment, covenantal relationships and shared participation in the mission of God. This is why all students study Baptist History and Principles as a vital part of formation. 
 

Character: 

There is a third essential element: the development of Christ-like character and Christ-centred spirituality. Jesus says in Luke 6:40: “Everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher.”  Paul expresses a similar longing to the Galatians, ‘My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you’ (Galatians 4:19).  

Baptist Colleges therefore place significant emphasis on the formation of character and spirituality by attending to our Baptists Together MARKS of ministry: Mature as a disciple of Christ, Accountable to others, Relational in approach to leadership, Kingdom-focused and Servant-hearted and sacrificial. These are cultivated through worship, prayer, mentoring, shared life, honest feedback, and faithful service.  

Knowledge, skills and character are not discrete boxes, they are constantly interacting with one another. What students learn in theological study may strengthen their preaching, deepen pastoral care, or sharpen their engagement with justice and mission. The interplay of knowledge and skills can lead to competence in ministry. Skills exercised with Christlike character build credibility and authenticity. Character deepened by knowledge nurtures quiet, godly confidence.  


All of this takes place in community: within college and placement contexts. Formation is always contextual and might even appear ordinary: in a difficult conversation, a sermon that doesn’t quite land well or a pastoral visit that stays with us. There are places where theology meets practice and where relationships reveal the kind of people we are becoming. 

Underpinning this whole process is reflective practice. Colleges seek to cultivate in ministers the discipline and habit of reflecting on life and work, learning from experience with theological insight and biblical understanding. Not only asking the question ‘What happened?’ but also, ‘What was revealed?’ ‘Where was God at work?’ When asked honestly and regularly, such questions enable experience to become genuinely formative, helping ministers attend not only to what they do, but to who they are becoming.  

Ministerial formation is also mutual. Contexts do not simply receive ministry from ministers; they also shape them in return. The people among whom we serve influence the people we become. Colleges create an environment for student formation, but all those involved in this formation – tutors and other staff – have the delight of being formed by our students. 

Formation does not end at accreditation, ordination or settlement. Continuing Ministerial Development (CMD) recognises that ministers remain lifelong learners of Christ. They are called to grow in wisdom, emotional resilience, spiritual maturity, covenantal relationship, critical reflection and faithful practice throughout (thankfully not all at once) the whole of ministry. Like the couple who have spent decades growing together, it is about becoming the kind of people whose instincts, desires, reflexes and character are increasingly shaped into Christ. It is an invitation into a significant journey of lifelong discovery, and, by grace, lifelong transformation. 

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Nike Adebajo is the Formation Lead at St Hild Centre for Baptist Ministry

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