Pastor Strong College Station
“Nobody understands a pastor quite like another pastor,” said Troy Allen, pastor at FBC College Station.
In 2024, when Allen was invited to lead a cohort in the Brazos Valley for the new Pastor Strong initiative — a 5-month journey designed to support pastors’ ministry and personal resilience — he accepted eagerly.
“The Pastor Strong Cohorts provide built-in community … It’s a space where guys know, ‘When I need counsel, I can go to them and they are trusted,’” Allen said.
He highlighted that his participation in the cohort gave him helpful language to navigate a time of change in his church.
“We read Tempered Resilience by Todd Bolsinger, and one of the things he said that really stuck with me is ‘People don’t fear change. They fear loss.’ That really changed the way I thought about change in the church,” he said. “It helped being able to say that from the front, ‘We are not losing things necessarily but redoing the way we do them.’”
Allen emphasized that the most impactful part of the cohort was the retreat in Colorado.
“This time purposefully designed around rest is really the keystone of the cohort,” he said. “It allows pastors to get away from their ministry context and be around other guys that understand what’s going on … Everything that happens in and around that retreat is so beneficial. Most pastors don’t realize how much they need rest until they are forced to rest.”
When the Pastor Strong Cohort concluded last year, four members from Allen’s group decided to continue meeting. This year they have been connecting regularly to fellowship and support one another.
“We collectively keep a list of books and are working our way through it … things that are in that vein of pastoral health and wellness and leadership development,” said Allen. “It’s been neat to see how our relationships have grown through Pastor Strong and continuing on. These are guys we can count on. We can reach out to this immediate group of men to be encouraged. We are praying for one another.”
There are six Pastor Strong Cohorts planned in cities across Texas in 2027. Pastors are encouraged to join to develop as leaders, find rest and soul-care and, and build lasting connections with fellow pastors in ministry.
“I am a huge proponent of Pastor Strong. It’s been beneficial for me,” said Allen. “And I’m so thankful for the investment Texas Baptists is making in this ministry and for putting this at the forefront. Not as many guys are going into or staying in ministry, so making this investment for long-term pastoral health is critical.”