We believe divine “calling” can create a clear blueprint for YOUR entire life!
The VOCA Workshop (online) and LifeBridge Seminar (live) walk you through a practical process of hearing God’s voice [VOCA in Latin] afresh.
Clarify your calling. Develop a focused plan. Overcome burnout.
Over the past 20 years, Bridge Ministries, Inc. (in Michigan) has coached hundreds of Christians through a powerful process: The LifeBridge Seminar.
Now, the VOCA Workshop is our way of making LifeBridge available to Christians around the world through online coaching communities. We believe that your calling is powerful and, once fully grasped and activated, will deeply impact your life, church, community, and culture for the Kingdom of God!
Our mission is to bring VOCA / LifeBridge to every state in the USA and around the world, to prepare Christians to fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus Christ!
Receive a Free Calling Assessment. Click here to fill out our Calling Questionnaire.
LifeBridge is not a mystical process. It IS about allowing God’s Spirit and God’s Word — especially the pattern of the call of Abraham (Genesis 12 and 15), of Moses (Exodus 3-4), and of Jesus’ disciples (Matthew 4) — to deeply intersect the unique person God has designed you to be.
LifeBridge emerged from Dr. John Studebaker’s intense struggles with ministerial burnout in the late 1980s to early 1990s. By discovering God’s unique call on his life, he was able to overcome his deep burnout and begin to walk in the joy and energy provided by this call. Then, in his Ph.D. studies (Trinity International University), John was able to closely examine several “call narratives” in the Bible (i.e. Abraham, Moses, Jesus’ disciples) and from these develop a process to help others find and fulfill their unique calling. What resulted is a high-impact tool for helping Christian men and women to reach their full potential in their life, faith, and ministry.
John is Executive Director of the BMI Oasis, a retreat center for Christian workers in Michigan (www.bmioasis.com). He is a certified Life Coach (in the Tom Patterson LifePlanning process).
John is also Professor of Theology with the LEMA Seminary, which is teaching African Pastors in Uganda, Nigeria, and Michigan. Your donation of $100 toward the course will support one African Pastor-student through LEMA (four half scholarships are available upon request).
VOCA: THE LIFEBRIDGE WORKSHOP IS BRIDGE MINISTRIES, INC.’S PROPRIETARY PROCESS THAT INCORPORATES TEACHING VIDEOS, STUDY GUIDE WORKSHEETS, A CONFIDENTIAL COMMUNITY (FACEBOOK PAGE), PARTNERSHIP/ACCOUNTABILITY, GROUP COACHING, AND PERSONAL COACHING.
IT IS DIVIDED INTO 3 INTERRELATED SECTIONS:
Your PURPOSE allows you to re-orient each activity in life toward your “upward call” in Christ. You’ll write a Purpose Statement, which combines your origin, destiny, and identity in Christ. Through the group coaching session you will begin to activate your Purpose Statement in your personal life, family life, and ministry life.
Your MISSION is distinct from, but energized by, your Purpose. You’ll write a personal Mission Statement based on your unique God-given design–your Heart Motivations, Spiritual Gifts, Talents, and Passions. The group coaching session will enable you to make this statement clear and actionable. You’ll use this statement to create boundaries in your life, overcome roadblocks, and focus your daily activities around life-themes.
VISION allows you to “hear God’s voice” as you create a focused, practical plan for your personal life, relationships, and ministry. You’ll “looking ahead” at the next 12 months and ask God to expand your vision. You’ll then create “Vision Statements,” goals and “faith steps,” thus developing step-by-step plans for activating your mission on a daily basis.
You will work with a partner (during and after the workshop) to activate your plan, to re-assess your plan on a regular basis, and to encourage one another to continue in this life-giving journey!
We call it LifeBridge because hearing God’s voice creates a high quality of LIFE. Participants are then re-energized to serve Christ as a unique BRIDGE for the gospel!
The Lifebridge process facilitated by John was like giving birth. . . hard work but with a joyous outcome! I would recommend it highly to anyone wrestling with God and with themselves!
The truths I discovered about myself have become essential for my life and ministry. Dr. Studebaker understands the enormous significance of holy calling as well as the importance of practical, Spirit-led, step-by-step processes for truly living out that calling in one’s personal life, relationships, and ministry. He will enable you to identify core truths about yourself that should guide your critical vocational and personal decisions.
I enjoyed time with John as he artfully facilitated and guided my wife and I through our Life Mission statements. He is gifted at getting right to the heart of each topic by asking great questions.
1The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.”
2“I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing” (Genesis 12:1-2).
God did not only have a unique, specific call for Abraham. He has one for you as well. Ministerial burnout, vocational confusion, relational conflict, and even family struggles are almost always resolved through a fresh, specific, practical hearing and activation of God’s call.