Scott Manke

Why you want to talk to him:

• Envision Chicago | You want to take a short-term mission trip domestically, or you want an experience for your church that inspires them to live on mission in their own community.
• Alliance Chicago | You feel called to plant a church in the city of Chicago or you simply want to be involved in seeing the people of Chicago meet Jesus.

It was the early 90’s in the Bronx.  Scott Manke had just been saved at a charismatic church in Long Island and was figuring out the whole Jesus thing while working to deliver medical supplies in New York City – in the down-and-out neighborhoods like the Bronx – and was gaining a heart for the city.  The church maintenance guy, a gruff fellow with a reputable beard, was the most influential person in Scott’s life.  He also happened to be related to the pastor, whose life was diverting from the straight and narrow.  Together they watched and processed what Jesus wanted to do with that and with them.  That’s when he heard an advertisement on the radio for Nyack College.  Scott had been on a break from college, and he decided this was the time to return, as a psych major but graduated as a business major.   

Ministry started after graduation with a church plant in the Bronx launched from New Life Fellowship.  Once Scott was licensed with the Alliance he headed to Chicago for a graduate degree in Intercultural Studies.   Psych, business, and intercultural studies…  That’s the perfect start for the creative out-of-the-box ministry strategist that Scott has become.  It didn’t take long for the Midwest District to find him and ask him to do church planting in Chicago – the very beginnings of Family Empowerment Center.  Now in this new formalized role almost twenty years later, Scott is excited to be caring for inner city pastors well and engaging the city in creative non-traditional ways.

When it comes to his family, Scott is a huge fan of spending time with them.  When prodded how he likes to spend time with them, he said, “yes” to every example.  He just loves spending time with them.  He loves taking walks with his wife, Natalie, and watching her compassion and heart for the broken people around her.  Natalie is a tremendous information-gatherer, he adds, and is currently pursuing a graduate degree in counseling.  Scott also thoroughly enjoys hunting and fishing and being in the peace and quiet of God’s creation. 

When it comes to impactful scripture in his life, Scott says there have certainly been passages that have been influential in his life, “but it’s all about Jesus.”  A meaningful impactful life starts with loving God first and foremost, and then loving your neighbors well.  “When we love our neighbors well, they want to know our Father, which gives us opportunity to tell them about Jesus.”  He reiterates, “We can’t love people without our own personal relationship with the Lord being in a healthy place.” 

As Scott and Natalie, themselves, have experienced hitting the wall of burn out in ministry and survived, they now recognize the importance of wholistic soul care practices.  They also recognize that our young emerging leaders (as well as some of our older ones) need to be mentored and coached in this area so that when they do hit the wall (because they will) it will be less damaging at 25 mph rather than 100mph.