Stan Long, Craig Garriott, Maria Garriott
The Baltimore Antioch Leadership Movement (BALM) is a ministry of Columbia Presbyterian Church dedicated to developing and multiplying Christ-centered, cross-cultural leaders for disciple-making movements, church planting, and renewal in Baltimore and beyond. BALM advances this mission through theological education, gospel-to-life coaching, and justice-mercy integration, partnering with organizations like Metro Baltimore Seminary (MBS). BALM's executive leadership team helped launch Metro Baltimore Seminary in January 2019, where they design and lead Church Planting and Urban Ministry degree tracks for MDIVs. Metro Baltimore Seminary offers an accredited MDIV degree for approximately $6,000, a cost significantly lower than typical programs because all deans and teachers are supported by their churches or missional non-profits like BALM.
BALM’s Mission: To develop and multiply Christ-centered, cross-cultural leaders for disciple-making movements for church planting and renewal for Baltimore and beyond.
BALM advances this mission in saturated prayer through;
- Theological Education (Head)
- Gospel to Life Coaching (Heart)
- Justice-Mercy Integration (Hands)
BALM partners with:
1) Metro Baltimore Seminary (MBS) to provide affordable, accessible, accredited theological education and leadership through Church Planting and Urban Ministry degree tracks.
BALM’s executive leadership team joined Chapelgate Presbyterian Church leaders to envision and launch Metro Baltimore Seminary in January, 2019. BALM designed, sponsors, and leads as overseeing deans the Church Planting and Renewal track and the Urban Ministry track for MDIV’s at MBS. The BALM executive leadership team also teaches MDIV courses and mentors students. The reason that MBS only costs approximately $6,000 versus $60,000 for an accredited MDIV degree is because MBS has no salaried staff. All deans and teachers are supported by their churches, other employment or missional non-profits like BALM.
2) Pastors, Churches and Emerging Leaders to create internships and residencies for church planting and renewal while providing mentoring/coaching and support.
In addition to mentoring/coaching MBS students, BALM staff mentors/coaches existing church planters and leaders who are functioning in urban and cross-cultural contexts. Maria Garriott, Special Projects & Intercultural Development Coordinator for BALM, is mentoring/coaching church planting spouses and women in ministry, drawing from her years of experience and her training and staff role with Parakaleo. We also work with existing church planters and pastors to create internships for emerging leaders in the field. In addition, we oversee two disciple-making leadership residencies (Springfield Fellowship House and 41st Fellowship House) for disciple-making leaders who want to be part of missional communities. We guide leaders from our decades of ministry experience, focusing on gospel-to-heart and life-on -life mentoring.
3) Mercy-Justice Ministries to equip leaders in wholistic mission.
Understanding that Jesus came with the gospel powerful in Word and deed (Luke 24:19), that the Lord seeks worshippers who do justly, love mercy and walk humbly with God (Micah 6:8), BALM seeks to equip emerging leaders in mercy ministry. One way we develop MBS students in the Urban Ministry Track and other disciple-making leaders in mercy ministry is by partnering with disciple-making churches or disciple-making missions in urban communities to strengthen their gospel works. These provide additional and important forums for leadership development while advancing our gospel witness. (For example, BALM led the New Song Community Church Landscaping project in Fall 2019 which mobilized 70 volunteers, including many MBS students, and raised$12k. The July 2020 MBS@Freedom Church-Baltimore classroom renovation project and scholarship drive for 20 students raised $20k.)
