“Teach us and train us, and we’ll share the gospel.”

Tim and Bethany Spears are applying a proven paradigm ― meet people where they are ― to train church leaders in a digital first, post-pandemic reality.

Like many businesses and groups, when the pandemic first affected their ministry, they took advantage of video streaming platforms such as Zoom or Facebook. Now, nearly two years later, tens of millions of Filipinos live their life online for friendship, learning and growing.

Therefore, the Spears reimagined their ministry. A seemingly temporary shift in early 2020 from a traditional educational model is, at least for now, validating an online, learning community.

The Spears remain open to continuing more traditional methods of education. For now, however, The Cloud Seminary’s online-only format makes a complementary method for ministry training.

The Cloud Seminary started among the Waray-Waray people in 2019. The Spears are still committed to those 3.7 million Filipinos. At the same time, the new reality in the last two years generated an expanded vision for serving leaders without geographic limits.

Being digital first, for now

Before the pandemic, the Spears’ ministry assigned research papers and significant reading homework in Christian books and articles. The Cloud Seminary now offers theological education and ministry training for anyone with a Bible and a social media account.

“Now it’s interactive and much more text focused,” he said. “The students work together in cohorts to answer questions. All the assignments are geared around questioning and answering, which happens in digital formats.”

Since the pandemic continues to disrupt life and shift people into digital-first opportunities, the Spears currently use a multi-dimensional model. The seminary may be able to offer more-traditional methods in the future.

For now, an emphasis on deep study of the Scriptures and finding community in local churches and social media fits the moment.

“That’s their culture, that’s where they’re coming from,” he said of frequent social media interactions. “We want to give them depth, but we want to do it in a way that’s engaging and meeting them where they are.”

Related: Being social on social media: How Converge churches make a gospel impact online

The Spears have developed a Facebook campus with Facebook classrooms for live instruction. Every classroom has worship songs that align with the content.

Plus, groups include supplemental files like optional readings and videos. Students can also message one another. Condensed versions of live lectures also go on YouTube for students in areas with unreliable internet service.

Recent research showed the Spears that 73 million Filipinos use Facebook, YouTube and Facebook Messenger. The Spears are experimenting with digital breakout groups, study halls and other formats to increase students’ commitment and engagement.

“We’re trying to use apps that are familiar to students,” he explained. “The long-term vision includes serving students who don’t want to go in-person or can’t.”

Online ministry really benefits rural areas

The Spears are Converge global workers helping the Philippines’ churches in rural and underserved areas. The Eastern Visayas region lacks theological resources and trained ministry leaders.

Filipinos often leave rural areas to find work and education in the bigger cities on other islands. That includes young people, Tim said, who go to seminaries and Bible colleges in big cities and never come back.

“There’s a huge need,” he said of ministry for rural churches. “We felt a calling to this specific region.”

Related: Theological education in the Philippines comes from the cloud

Being Bible first

The Spears have continued teaching class after class to equip Filipino believers as ministry leaders in their churches. They have no plans of stopping: their flexible faithfulness benefits the Filipino churches.

Tim explains that the churches offering The Cloud Seminary within their ministries are seeking to build a forest of trees, not a field of bushes.

“There is this huge need to give deep content to really solidify the churches. You’re going to see transformational, exponential growth because of the depth of that root,” he said. “We have to move beyond facilitations for young Christians, for new pastors, new leaders.”

Filipino students ask challenging, sincere questions in their courses. That reminds him of the disciples gathered with Jesus, being taught and equipped to go out into other villages on their own.

Related: What missionaries desire most

“We’re trying to instill in them to go to the text and come away with applying it to ministry,” he said.

‘Teach us and train us,’ they told Spears. ‘And we’ll share the gospel.’

Early on, the Spears used a more traditional method that included required reading of theological articles and books. But that eagerness for God’s word guided the Spears to limit readings outside the Scriptures to students who have more commitment or capacity.

Spears doesn’t plan to stop offering those materials as supplementary resources. At the same time, he wants to see his student deeply engaging God’s word and learning to use that in ministry. So, in January 2021, The Cloud Seminary shifted so the Bible was the only required textbook.

Courses at The Cloud Seminary now last for 12 sessions. Each session emphasizes a particular Scripture.

In the Ephesians course, for example, the students invest significant time reading the Scriptures about the history of redemption and plan of God from eternity past.

In December, students in Ephesians NT 001 reflected through Facebook on a challenging question drawn straight from Scripture: “What does it mean to grieve the Holy Spirit?”

Ministry everywhere can happen anywhere

They’re planning a move to the United States to base their ministry here. They’ll still travel to Tacloban for in-person retreats and conferences a few times a year.

By staying in the U.S. most of the year, reliable internet and electricity enable the Spears to host classes without interruptions or technical difficulties. But, even from a distance, the connection remains with churches who form learning communities.

“The Cloud Seminary is using the internet as a world where we teach, network and develop resources,” he said. “Now the vision is reaching beyond Visayas.”

Converge International Ministries is praying for a gospel movement among every least-reached people group ― in our generation. Learn how Converge can help your church reach the nations with the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ.