CO-FOUNDERS OF WARDS OF WISDOM ASSOCIATES
Bishop Lawrence and Rev. Dr. Virginia Ward
Seasoned leaders helping people, churches, and organizations prepare wisely for what comes next.
Our Story
Bishop Lawrence and Rev. Dr. Virginia Ward founded Wards of Wisdom Associates out of a shared calling to help leaders navigate change with wisdom, integrity, and Christ-centered clarity. After decades of ministry, education, mentoring, and leadership development, they recognized that many pastors, emerging leaders, churches, and organizations needed more than information. They needed trusted partners who could listen carefully, honor their context, and help them prepare wisely for what comes next.
Wards of Wisdom brings their experience together in one family-led practice devoted to strengthening leaders, bridging generations, and helping people move from discernment to practical action.
Our Purpose
Wards of Wisdom Associates exists to equip leaders, strengthen organizations, and help generations navigate change with wisdom, clarity, and purpose.
Drawing on decades of leadership, ministry, education, and organizational experience, we help people prepare for transitions, develop their capacity to lead, and build a meaningful future.
Wisdom for a Change.
Bishop Lawrence Ward
Co-Founder and Managing Partner
Bishop Lawrence Ward brings more than 30 years of senior pastoral leadership, board leadership, teaching, coaching, and organizational development. He is Pastor Emeritus of Abundant Life Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and serves as Bishop and Presiding Elder for the New England District of the United Pentecostal Council of the Assemblies of God.
His experience includes leadership development, instructional design, workplace theology, change management, succession planning, strategic thinking, and mentoring leaders across generations. He helps leaders discern what is changing, clarify what comes next, and move forward with wisdom and practical strategy.
Rev. Dr. Virginia Ward
Co-Founder and Managing Partner
Rev. Dr. Virginia Ward is a seasoned leader and inter-generational minister focused on equipping the next generation of leaders. Rev. Dr. Ward’s local and national involvement in the training and development of leaders spans three decades.
Along with her husband, she co-founded Wards of Wisdom Associates and serves as Co-Founder and Managing Partner. The practice provides support to individuals, churches, and organizations that are committed to transformative change and leadership development. Together, they combine pastoral leadership, scholarly insights, and practical strategies to inspire and equip leaders for enduring impact.
She previously held the position of the first Black female Dean and Assistant Professor of Youth Ministry and Leadership at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary’s former urban ministry program in Boston. The former Center of Urban Ministerial Education (CUME) offered urban theological education with a focus on practical ministry, preparing individuals from diverse ethnic backgrounds for various roles. She taught youth ministry, leadership, and urban ministry development courses for the former urban program. Additionally, she served as the former Grant Director for two Lilly Endowment grants, Thriving Congregations and #MyFaith, a youth initiative.
After an initial study in Management at Northeastern University, Rev. Dr. Ward pursued education in ministry and is a graduate of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary completing studies in Urban Ministries, a Master of Arts in Youth Ministry, and Doctor of Ministry in Emerging Generations.
Rev. Dr. Ward has served in various ministry organizations, including DeVos Urban Leadership Initiative (DVULI) as a trainer, BMA TenPoint as a trainer and consultant, and InterVarsity as the New England Director of Black Campus Ministries and a consultant. Additionally, she serves on the boards of Born out of Necessity (BOON), a ministry supporting black youth, and the Urban Youth Workers Initiative (UYWI). A third-generation minister, Rev. Dr. Ward is an Associate Pastor at Abundant Life Church where her husband, Bishop Lawrence Ward, is Pastor Emeritus.
Rev. Dr. Ward has contributed to the Every Woman’s Bible with Tyndale House Publishers, and co-authored 5 Views on the Future of Youth Ministry: Perspectives on What Could or Should Be and It’s Personal: Five Questions You Should Answer to Give Every Kid Hope. She is conducting a research project evaluating ethnic and multi-ethnic youth and family ministry in the Greater Boston area.
She resides in Boston with her husband and they have two adult sons.
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