Page 13 - February 2018 | Catalyst Magazine

THE FUTUREAfter 41 years in itinerant evangelism, the Manleys felt a clear call from God to come o the road for the purpose of starting the Cross Style School of Practical Min- istry. e basis for this school required a church body to partner in the lives of the students and in the ministry training. In September 2009, twenty-two years after the dream began, Cross Style Church of the Nazarene was established in Lebanon, Tennessee with Stephen as the lead pastor.Over the last several years, Cross Style Church has aggressively ministered within the community. Whereas some churchescribed to Jesus.Now that a ministry foundation has been laid in the community, Stephen and the Cross Style team o cially launched the Cross Style School of Practical Ministry in 2013. e out ow and ministry poten- tial as well as the practical investment in the lives of these students cannot be over- stated. Students spend between a semester to two years at the school and are ground- ed in the Word of God and learn how to practically live the Truth of Scripture out in practical ministry. It is the passion of everyone in Cross Style, especially Ste- phen, to have the opportunity to invest in and train up the next generation of lead- ers, pastors, evangelists, missionaries, and ministers.As such, the Cross Style School of Practi- cal Ministry is focused on three types of individuals: high school graduates who want to spend a summer, semester, or year grounding themselves in the Word to have a Biblical lter before entering college; individuals called to ministry and want practical ministry training; and laymen who want to take their depth and intimacy with Jesus and their Biblical understand- ing to another level. Summer internships, much like the original evangelist intern program Stephen began, are still available for those who desire to spend a summer immersing themselves in the Word of God and learning servant-hearted ministry through practical hands-on experience.Stephen, now in his 70s, has joked that he has been doing things backwards. Often pastors retire into evangelism but he has been slowly moving out of evangelism to become a full-time pastor. Stephen still travels in evangelism, averaging one meet- ing a month and several camps throughout the summer, but his focus has become the church, school, and community within Lebanon, Tennessee. If you were to ask him when he might consider retiring forContinued on next pageare inward focused, Stephen has wanted from the beginning for the pastoral sta , the congregation, and ministry students to be outward focused. e church now runs an emergency-housing program for the homeless and needy, provides food boxes and serves a daily free hot bu et din- ner to the community. Cross Style is in- vested in nursing homes, the community little league, the local Kiwanis Club, and has recently started a transformation pro- gram for those with addictions and people coming out of prison or jail. e ministry opportunities have been expanding and opening up in ways that can only be as-february 2018CityLight.org 13