Episode: When Ministry Finds You—and When It’s Time to Let Go
Bishop Jeff sits down with the Rev. Trish Nelson—C4SO’s newly returned Canon for Ordinations—to trace an unlikely journey from marketing professional to ordained priest to diocesan canon. Trish is candid about what she got wrong early in ministry, what changed in her over 30 years, and the framework she now uses with every person who feels drawn to Holy Orders.
Quote to Ponder
“You are locking arms with people who are diligently working out being people of character in a way that might not be top of mind in another industry. There is a charity and a peace and a great desire for you to succeed — not because of the great amount of cash you’re gonna make, but because we want you to succeed for the reputation of the kingdom.”
—Trish Nelson, on what ministry offers that other vocations don’t
Episode Highlights
- How Trish walked into Christ Church in 1993 knowing nothing about Jesus and wound up ordained a decade later
- The shift from marketplace thinking (“How did my employee review go?”) to kingdom thinking (“It’s all pointing to him”)
- “Ad-ministry”: the philosophy that routine administrative tasks are sacred opportunities to be Jesus to one another
- What she actually did to hand off well at Christ Church
- Three things every healthy transition requires
- Why spiritual direction is the first thing she recommends for anyone sensing a call to holy orders
- The case for the laity: why in Anglican tradition, most ministry doesn’t require a collar
- What she tells young people who are weighing ministry against other careers
Resources Mentioned
About Our Guest
The Rev. Trish Nelson serves as C4SO’s Canon for Ordinations, a role she previously held under Bishop Todd Hunter and has now returned to under Bishop Jeff. She spent over three decades on staff at Christ Church Overland Park, serving in children’s ministry, youth ministry, adult ministry, and finally as director of administration before retiring from parish staff life in early 2025. A former marketing professional with a master’s in marriage and family therapy, Trish is also a spiritual director and brings a deeply relational, formation-centered approach to her work with clergy candidates across the diocese.