Wednesday, October 19

Morning Breakouts (11a.m.–12:30 p.m.)

Get Off Your Assets: Rusty Eshleman

Learn how to deploy the Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) strategy to identify and mobilize the gifts of individuals, associations and institutions in your community.

Reading Your Context — Becoming An Expert In Cultural Exegesis: Dave Hood

The Church is designed by God to be the transforming and empowering center of the community, so your context will always inform your mission. Learn how to ask the right questions, build right relationships and invest your resources so that you will change the world, starting with your own neighborhood.

Loving our Neighbors — Why and How: Marcia Florkey, New Path Servants/Staff

Join New Path Outreach staff and servants as we look deeper into outreach ministry to discover the “why” and not just the “how” of loving our neighbors. New Path will share stories and practical applications to inspire and equip you and ensure your outreach plans will achieve your missional call.

“Burning Bush” Lay Leaders: Ginghamsburg Lay Leaders

Enjoy this panel discussion of lay leaders as you hear how God gave each of them the vision, passion and plans for starting powerful new lay-led ministries. You will be inspired!

Drawing Local Tribes Together — Radical Church Collaboration For Mission: Geoff Geyer, Rolling Plains United Methodist Church, Zanesville, OH

Explore the strategic value of linking arms with other local congregations to have a greater kingdom impact. See examples of what can happen when local congregations pool resources and work together—even across denominational barriers.

Afternoon Breakouts (3:30–5 p.m.)

Missional Worship: Ginghamsburg worship, music, media team

Let’s face it… worship is still the number one opportunity you have each week to motivate your congregation to be about God’s mission. Explore the worship design considerations as well as deployment of music and media on Sunday mornings to gain mission momentum.

Orchestrating Excellent Events: Marie Flora

Explore vision and implementation strategies for designing missional outreach events your church family won’t want to miss—and will bring friends when they come!

Converting Your Operating Budget To A Missional Budget: Nate Gibson

How do you morph your local church operating budget of yesteryear into the missional budget required to be an effective “on mission” church in today’s ministry landscape?

Breaking the Mission Mold — Beyond Check Writers To “Hands And Feet” Servants: Chris Shank, Living Word United Methodist Church, Wildwood, MO

How do you break the missions mold from simply writing checks in support of missions to also transforming the church to be part of the mission, serving as the hands and feet of Jesus locally, nationally and globally? Living Word Church cast the vision of becoming a missional church to its congregation, and established a Go! All Church Service Day in May 2010 that deployed 453 volunteers in 2010 and 558 in 2011. Living Word will share how a church of any size can organize, plan and implement a Go! All Church Service Day, as well as a “Needs Pool” ministry that matches current community needs with just the right individuals, families or small groups to fill them.

Orphans — Serving The God Priority: David Arruda, New England United Methodist Conference

If the Bible is clear about anything, it is clear about the priority God places on widows and orphans. In this breakout, Pastor David Arruda will share simple ways your local church can change the lives of orphans and foster children throughout the world.

Thursday, October 20

Morning Breakouts (11a.m.–12:30 p.m.)

Q&A With Alan Hirsch

A great opportunity to ask this leading Church mission strategist and author any question you may have about how what it means to live out the call of Jesus as a missional church.

Small Group Community — Serving In Mission With Passion: Kevin Applegate

Small groups aren’t just for fellowship and studying the word but actually doing the word. Empower small groups to take on ministry in their communities, discovering the passion and purpose of God in their life and group.

Student Ministry On Mission: Chris Freeman

Mission trips are not just one week a year. How do you expand your ministry to be missional year round? Join the student ministry team to discuss breathing new life into your student mission ministry.

Passport — A Kids Quest To Missions: RaNae Street & Team

Explore how children, and their entire family, can become sensitive to a hurting world and then live out age-tailored missional opportunities to serve others in their own home, at their church, in the local community and far beyond.

Growing Missional Members: Carolyn Slaughter

It just wouldn’t be a Ginghamsburg conference if we didn’t share about the high-bar membership process at Ginghamsburg Church that has been developing strong Jesus followers who are committed to worship, cell, serving and the tithe, for nearly 30 years.

Afternoon Breakouts (3:30–5 p.m.)

Q&A With Rudy Rasmus

Bring your questions for Pastor Rudy, a funny, mission-challenging, on fire radical Jesus follower and Pastor of St. John’s United Methodist Church in Houston, Texas.

Rebuild, Restore, Renew — Bringing Life Back To Your Local Church: Dave Hood

How does a struggling and declining church find new life and begin to grow again. Come and learn the transferable biblical principles that Fort McKinley Church put into practice to grow from 40–400 in just 3 years and become a missional force in its community. (You will visit the Fort McKinley Campus for this breakout.)

Paradigm Shift in Church Planting — Enhancing Your Missional Footprint: Tom Sampley, Ginghamsburg Church Planter

Learn what is evolving in the missional church planting movement and its effects both here and internationally with "how to" methods you can take home and apply in your church setting or place of calling.

Look–No Strings, Really! — Rebuilding Burnt Bridges by Sowing Seeds: Ron Slager, Stockbridge Avenue United Methodist Church, Kalamazoo, MI

Explore ways to restore connections to a community largely abandoned by white-flight-plight and alienated by Christians’ self-focused proselytizing. Discuss how a faith community, of any size, can begin a movement of rebuilding and renewing relationships, ecumenically, politically, corporately, racially, socially and spiritually to transform a city, one life, one block at a time—no strings attached.

Short-Term Missions without Long-Term Harm: Craig Maxwell

Each year, more short-term mission teams are being sent all over the world from developed countries. While at first glance that's a great trend, it also raises the concern that at times churches may be accomplishing more harm than they are good. Learn practical principals for sending teams that will bring about long-term positive impact instead of long-term harm.

Or, choose from one of the following field trips for your Thursday afternoon session:

• Food Pantry and Furniture/Car Ministry
• Gently Used Clothing Resale Ministry
• Refurbished Medical Equipment/Supplies Ministry
• Clubhouse After School Tutoring/Teen Leadership Training program

Friday, October 21

Morning Breakouts (11a.m.–12:30 p.m.)

The Ginghamsburg System Of Congregational Care: John Jung

Mission only happens when those within the church family also receive the care they need. Learn about our integrated care system, which involves a lay led pastoral response team, a professional Christian Counseling Center, and a series of support groups, all designed to meet people at their point of need.

The Next Step Recovery Program — Reaching The 12 Step Community: Next Step team

Explore the elements that compose a holistic recovery program, including worship experiences, 12 Step meetings, and community meetings for people in various stages of recovery.

Lay-Led Committees — Fuel For Mission Momentum Or Roadblock?: Bill Weikert, Ginghamsburg Leadership Board Chairperson

Do your lay leadership committees help to vision, fund and fuel the mission? Or, can they at times become part of the problem instead of the solution? Spend time with Ginghamsburg’s Leadership Board chair to explore opportunities for powerful mission-driven boards and committees.

Saving a Church by Serving the Mission: Jeff Raker, Cornerstone United Methodist Church, West Chester, OH

Hear what can happen after a church has experienced a train wreck in its senior leadership. For three years, everything was about survival; but then...a decision was made to be radically missional. Includes great inspiration and practical project ideas from a church that went through the fire and decided to thrive.

Marriage on Mission: Tony Miltenberger

Serving as a leader in ministry is difficult, but when your ministry conflicts with your relationship with your spouse things get tough. Review practical tools for keep the balance between a productive ministry and a healthy marriage.