The Center for Spiritual Renewal (CSR) will merge its East and West operations effective Jan. 1, 2026, as longtime CSR West Director Robby Booth transitions to serving as a full-time senior pastor.
Robby will now be based in Manteca, Calif., to continue as senior pastor of New Hope (Manteca 2 Foursquare Church) after two years in a bi-vocational role. He will offer some counseling at the church.
While this marks a major transition for CSR, Daniel Mundt, D.S.L., director of Leader Health and Development, is pleased that Robby will continue serving the Foursquare family as a pastor and counselor.
“Robby has decades of serving our church as a pastor and in his role as CSR West director,” Dan says. “There’s no way we could calculate the benefits Robby and his wife, Bonita, have brought to Foursquare. We wouldn’t be as healthy as we are without their leadership.”
Paul Kuzma, who currently serves as director of CSR East, notes that his relationship with the Booths goes back 30 years, when they met and had several discussions while Robby was supervisor of the historic Western District.
“It has been deeply meaningful to me to serve alongside them these past 10 years,” Paul states. “Their impact has been monumental, and I am really going to miss our interaction.”
Robby and Bonita’s impact
Robby says cutting back on his counseling practice will allow him to be more “hands-on” in church leadership, including in-person staff and leaders’ meetings, strategic planning and leadership development.
“There’s nothing quite like ‘ministry of presence’ and being there more will allow for that,” says Robby, who has had a five-hour commute to Manteca each weekend while simultaneously leading at CSR.
Still, Robby approaches the upcoming transition with mixed feelings. He is excited about cutting back on his work hours to achieve a better work/life balance, and getting to see his children and grandchildren more often. However, he will miss the joy of leading pastoral retreats.
“The most rewarding element of my work with CSR has been seeing leaders flourish again, seeing the yokes broken from their lives, and watching as they get healed and delivered,” Robby explains. “And, watching as they hear the voice of God regarding personal struggles.”
As for Bonita, she is looking forward to more time with the New Hope church family and their own family.
“I will miss seeing all of the awesome pastors and PKs we have been blessed to serve the past 16-plus years,” Bonita says. “We have laughed together, cried together and prayed together, hearing their hearts and how the Lord touched and healed them.”
Robby served 11 years of his tenure under former President Glenn Burris Jr., who calls Robby and Bonita examples of servant leadership.
“They lead with compassion and grace,” Glenn affirms. “Hundreds, perhaps even thousands, have been able to reset the direction of their lives to this couple’s counsel and care. What a godly legacy.”
“The most rewarding element of my work with CSR has been seeing leaders flourish again, seeing the yokes broken from their lives, and watching as they get healed and delivered.”
—Robby Booth
Ordained Minister Tammy Sevcov, who serves on the board of directors, says Robby and Bonita are the kind of people who genuinely love others.
“Once they know you, they love you, and you can feel it in every interaction,” Tammy observes. “They serve selflessly and with integrity. I’ve personally been so grateful for their care and ministry, and I know many others whose lives have been forever changed because of the gifts they have been to the Foursquare family.”
The Booths are living testaments to the heart of Christ, says Jim Scott, D.Min., former COO and district supervisor. He says the couple has faithfully poured themselves into the lives of pastors, leaders and their families with unwavering compassion, wisdom and grace. Their decades of pastoral care and counsel have offered a refuge for the weary and a guide for those navigating seasons of lost hope and great difficulty, Jim shares.
“Their sacrificial ministry, which has been almost always ministered quietly and without recognition, has brought healing, restoration and renewal to generations in our Foursquare Church,” Jim states. “In many cases, the healing ones have become healers for others.
“The ministry of Robby and Bonita,” he continues, “leaves an enduring legacy of faithfulness and encouragement that reflects the very character of the Good Shepherd, whom they know intimately and have served so well.”
Continued care through CSR
Credentialed ministers receive one week at either CSR location at no cost each year. The House on the Hill in Los Angeles’s Echo Park, where Robby and Bonita have been based for 16 years, will continue to offer retreats for every credentialed minister and their spouse—with self-directed retreats, beginning in 2026.
The CSR at CrossPointe Conference Center in Christiansburg, Va., also offers pastoral retreats and sabbaticals that can include pastoral counseling. Ministers can also choose to bring their families to CSR at CrossPointe.
Paul Kuzma will become the director over both CSR at CrossPointe as well as House on the Hill, beginning Jan. 1, 2026. As director of Leader Health and Development, Dan Mundt oversees CSR.
While he will miss Robby’s influence and regular contact with pastors, Paul says CSR will continue offering counseling services to licensed ministers and family members. In addition, when needed, Paul will serve as a case manager for situations needing nuanced referrals.
During the past few years, Paul explains, the program has developed a “caregiver collaborative.” Made up primarily of certified pastoral counselors, they will be the main sources of referral for pastors and family members when Paul’s caseload requires support. Robby will be among those in the collaborative offering support to local leaders.
“The collaborative also includes licensed counselors and therapists, psychologists, certified life coaches and certified spiritual directors who are available when their need or specialty is called for,” Paul explains. “When able, we sponsor three sessions for pastors and family members when we refer them to a member of the collaborative.”
Dan says a positive aspect of the merger is the availability of more individuals to provide care for both English and Spanish-speaking pastors. An increase in virtual methods is also making pastoral counseling and other mental health services more available, a trend that began during the COVID pandemic and has continued. Half of Paul’s sessions are done virtually and nearly a third of Robby’s, Dan notes.
“Pastors may be like other executives; in a sense they’re an executive over a church,” adds Dan. “Sometimes they care more about the people they care for than themselves. With burnout everywhere in our society, there’s no question there is a need for more counseling and pastoral care. That’s exactly why Foursquare prioritizes care for our pastors and their families.”
What is the Center for Spiritual Renewal?
Learn more about how the Center for Spiritual Renewal (CSR) serves credentialed ministers and how to take advantage of this free annual benefit for pastors.
