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Momentum Marketplace
Grace Church of Greater Akron (Bath Campus), Akron, OH
Initiative: Curriculum creation for pilot program
2022 Grant: $25,000Representing Christ in the Marketplace
Grace Church has a belief that goes like this: Know It. Live it. Give It Away. “It” is the gospel…the story of Jesus. That belief runs through everything Grace does, but it’s especially evident in its children’s and youth ministries. The church devotes major resources and energy toward shaping a God-centered worldview during a person’s prime developmental years. Part of this focuses on the premise that God’s calling on one’s life can be strong, equally as strong as those called to serve in ministry. But without the right tools, resources, and guidance, you might miss it.
This Grace Church tenet resonates with Senior Pastor Jeff Bogue and with Kadi Cole, who has a long-history of working at and with Grace Church, along with her positions as an author and executive director of leadership development for Momentum Ministry Partners. They’ve both been touched by stories of young people who have expressed an unwarranted feeling of guilt or shame over not experiencing a sense of calling into vocational ministry.
Both Bogue and Cole believe these young people need inspirational examples of how a non-ministry vocation can still be of great service to their primary call to serve God. They need to see leaders whose business journey is the result of an overflow of love for Christ.
“Your calling. Your career. These two things are the same, not separate,” said Cole.
Business leaders also follow a sacred calling
In early 2022, Senior Pastor Bogue and Cole began working together to develop a program at Grace that would connect high school students with local business leaders. They came up with creating a kind of “marketplace”— where these leaders could provide spiritual discipleship to students, encouraging them to use their gifts to glorify Christ in business as well as in the church. In order to have a program, the team knew they would need to develop a curriculum first.
Grace Church applied for and received the Kingdom Advancing Grant to create the curriculum and support the first pilot program at Grace Church. Cole said they were grateful and honored to receive the grant. "It’s the perfect name for this grant—Kingdom Advancing—because that is exactly what we are trying to do. Advance the Kingdom to our upcoming generations by expanding our understanding of where God works and who He wants to use.”
In the fall of 2022, Grace Church launched Momentum Marketplace as a six-week pilot program. The curriculum offers a framework for high school students to learn how a business leader can be “called” to serve in the marketplace—how they can be “on mission” throughout their lives.
In development, the team took the time to define the mentor relationship and vision cast the ideal mentor. The relationship model helped mentors understand their role. “We didn’t want them to become a ‘parent’ or ‘older sibling,’” said Cole. “We believed the mentor’s role is more like an aunt or uncle – someone that you’re connected with your whole life.” In turn for the students, when a mentor from the business community comes alongside them, the leader shows the student they have deep value, something to offer in service of the Kingdom, and are worthy of investment.
Filling an unknown, unmet need
As director of finance for Grace Church, Monika Kirbawy helps the church and Momentum Marketplace stay on budget. But number crunching led to a personal involvement. “I’ve been a part of Grace for a long time and I’ve taught fourth through fifth grades, too. To see students that I taught at age 10 still engaged in the church filled my heart,” said Kirbawy. She sees that the intergenerational relationships have the potential to uniquely bless the church.
“It’s something special when adults step up to pour into the students’ lives. By seeing someone ahead of them who’s investing in their future, it gives students a reason to come back to church.” Monika Kirbawy, Director of Finance
And word quickly spread. Following the first retreat, Kirbawy’s husband saw the potential immediately, too. “He was so encouraged and wanted to know how he could get involved.” She wondered how many in the business community with incredible giftings may be simply waiting for someone to recognize their unique abilities and invite them to share. “We were filling a need for business leaders we didn’t even know was out there.”
The pilot program was the first installment of the Momentum Marketplace program. Grace is working toward the next phase of the pilot, where they will implement it at more of their campuses in the spring as part of a larger plan to formalize the curriculum and materials so the program can be replicated in local churches nationwide.
“One of the students that participated said he wrestled with guilt for not feeling called,” said Todd Shoemaker, Student Ministries Pastor for Grace Church Bath Campus. “But now, he says he feels seen and experienced a calling by the church to represent Christ in the marketplace.”
“God makes working a human experience,” said Cole. “And that calling lasts into eternity. Hearing this from community leaders was an extraordinary experience for the students.”