Ron Vanderwell
Some people try to tell you what to do. Others help you see things more clearly. Ron Vanderwell has always been the second kind of person. Some of his best fruit has grown on other peoples’ trees.
Ron has served as a senior pastor, church planter, and Specialized Transition Pastor in the Christian Reformed Church. For decades Ron has helped others follow Jesus more closely through his preaching, leadership, coaching, and consulting. You can read more of his perspectives at substack.com/@ronvanderwell
For reasons he still doesn’t fully understand, Ron once ran up the second largest down escalator in the world to see if it could be done.
It took a long time.
Posted in: The Morning After the Storm: Reflections on Synod 2026
Amen!
The most important thing with a gathering like our Synod is not "what are we going to do?", and certainly not "what must we NOT do?". Those are important questions, but not nearly as important as asking: "what is GOD doing?"
Your reflections matched much of what I observed at Synod this summer. I think you nailed it and helped us realize it a little more deeply.
I carry deep concerns about our denomination, but also a deep sense of hope. My hopes and fears through all these years are not based on us, but on our Lord and what he may or may not be doing.
Thanks for your reflections!
Posted in: The Unhelpful Pastor
That's a great question, Anna. Short (but largely unsatisfying) answer: slowly, over time. If at all.
Longer, and much more difficult answer: this is a long, slow, difficult but extremely important aspect of what may be a pastor's REAL job--equipping the saints to do the work of ministry. A church may hire a pastor to preach and keep the church on track, but Christ may CALL the pastor to help shape that church into his image. That will inevitably involve several important aspects of strategic leadership:
* learning to see a bigger reality than many in the congregation have currently noticed,
* discerning how to break down that larger reality into smaller, achievable steps that can be taken right now,
* helping identify allies and key partners in the congregation to steadily keep the church moving (perhaps stumbling) in that direction without getting distracted.
Leadership is really hard. That's why a lot of pastors overlook it. That's also why I find coaching to be so worthwhile.
Posted in: Sent Together
Yes! Church is a team sport and every one of our congregations is part of Christ’s one church.
Posted in: People Who See Dead People
Thanks—the concept really made me think!
Posted in: Ten Years from Now
Thanks, Kristen. Yes, it's something that we all need to do together.
Posted in: Ten Years from Now
Keith, I totally affirm the value of a congregation working through some important directional questions before welcoming a next pastor. As a trained Specialized Transition Minister I've worked hard helping different churches prepare for important transitions.
However, I wrote this article against the backdrop of a specific congregation that God seems to have paired me up with. I first connected with them as they were concluding their search and call process. During my time with them I've been able to help both the church and their young pastor prepare for a more intentional start together. And so the perspective reflected in the column.
Posted in: Because Jesus Didn't Die to Start a Country Club
Agreed. It's easy to forget when the pressure is on to run all our programs.
Posted in: Because Jesus Didn't Die to Start a Country Club
Thanks, Kristen.
Good point about the "exclusive" thing--it amazes me how easily we as the followers of Christ can come off quite differently than He ever came off to people. He got in a lot of trouble for befriending the wrong kind of people. We can accidentally end up resisting the very people He seemed to seek out.
Posted in: Because Jesus Didn't Die to Start a Country Club
Thanks, Kristen.
Posted in: Congregational Feedback: Surveys vs. Listening Circles
One of the best (and most difficult) parts of "being church" is that we need to do it together. It's a team sport. At many points he most important thing is not being right, but helping each other be better. This article presents some helpful strategies for setting up productive church conversations.
Posted in: "Censorship" on The Network
Wow...just scrolled through all of the comments here.
My mom was right--being a family is hard...but it's important.
Let's remember that.