Conference Focus - Ed will be sharing the results of his groundbreaking research on parenting and spiritual formation at home. Ed will be answering the question, “For parents who have developed children to be faithful and passionate Christ followers as adults, what exactly is it they did to produce such spiritual champions for Christ?”
Ed Stetzer has planted, revitalized, and pastored churches. He has trained pastors and church planters on five continents, holds two masters degrees and two doctorates, and has written dozens of articles and books. Ed is a contributing editor for Christianity Today, a columnist for Outreach Magazine and Catalyst Monthly, serves on the advisory council of Sermon Central and Christianity Today’s Building Church Leaders, and is frequently cited or interviewed in news outlets such as USA Today and CNN.
Ed is Visiting Professor of Research and Missiology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Visiting Research Professor at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, and has taught at fifteen other colleges and seminaries. He also serves on the Church Services Team at the International Mission Board.
Ed’s primary role is President of LifeWay Research and LifeWay’s Missiologist in Residence.
Conference Focus - How can I do it all? It used to be just ‘children’s ministry’ or just ‘youth ministry’ and now it’s ‘children and family ministry’ or ‘youth and family ministry’—the expectations have increased but the resources haven’t. I want to set up a D6 ministry…but, how can I do it all?
Doug Fields (DougFields.com) has been a pastor to teenagers and ministry leader for over 30 years, serving the past 18 years at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, CA. Amidst the growing demand of speaking, writing and ministry consulting, Doug resigned from Saddleback Church in September 2009 to pursue ministry opportunities that best aligned with his gift for relational leadership and still allowed him to engage in his first love: in-the-trenches ministry to teenagers and youth workers.
Doug is the author of more than 50 books, including Purpose Driven Youth Ministry which is a Gold Medallion award- winning book and a youth ministry textbook used all over the world. He is the founder of Simply Youth Ministry, and later partnered with Group Publishing to bring these two leading youth ministry resource providers into collaboration for wider, global impact.
Of all these things, Doug would say his greatest accomplishment is marrying way out of his league to Cathy, his wife of 25 years, and having three teenage children; Torie, Cody and Cassie.
Conference Focus - Want a kid without the attitude? Tired of letting your kids call the shots? There’s a conspiracy going on, right in your own home – the ankle-biter battalion and the hormone group each have a game plan guaranteed to drive you up the wall. Here’s a five-day action plan that really works! A Monday through Friday action plan to set your kids attitude, behavior, and character on a different course. Dr. Leman will be answering the question “How do we get our children and teenagers to understand the authority of the parent and the ultimate authority of God in the home?”
Internationally known Christian psychologist, award-winning author and New York Times bestselling author of “Have A New Kid by Friday”, radio and television personality, and speaker, Dr. Kevin Leman has taught and entertained audiences worldwide with his wit and common sense psychology.
A best-selling author, Dr. Kevin Leman has made house calls for FOCUS ON THE FAMILY with Dr. James Dobson as well as hundreds of radio and television programs including TODAY, CBS’ THE EARLY SHOW, OPRAH, and THE VIEW. Dr. Leman is a frequent contributor to CNN’s American Morning. Dr. Leman has served as a consulting family psychologist to GOOD MORNING AMERICA.
As the founder and president of “Couples of Promise”, an organization designed and committed to helping couples remain happily married, Dr. Leman conducts an annual cruise for couples only. Dr. Leman’s official website is www.lemanbooksandvideos.com.
Conference Focus - Many church leaders now realize that, when it comes to spiritual formation, what happens in the home is more influential than what happens at church. Yet the question that remains is simply, “How do we equip the home to be the primary place where faith is nurtured through our existing ministry structures?” Mark Holmen, a full time missionary to the Faith@Home movement and former Sr. Pastor will launch our conference with a “how to” methodology for Faith@Home that works in any congregation. As the one who has made the term “Faith @ Home” a part of the vocabulary that so many churches are now speaking, Mark will be answering the question “What steps do I need to take to be a more Faith @ Home focused church?”
Mark A. Holmen is a husband, father, pastor, consultant, speaker and author of Faith Begins At Home – The Family Makeover with Christ at the Center, and Building Faith At Home—Why Faith At Home Must Be A Church’s Top Priority. From October of 2002 through February of 2009 Mark served as the Sr. Pastor of Ventura Missionary Church and during those years he developed and implemented a model for becoming a Faith At Home Focused Church that gained so much attention and recognition that is has grown into a national and international Faith At Home movement supported by the Willow Creek Association and Focus on the Family. Mark, his wife Maria and daughter Malyn currently live in Ventura, California where they now serve as full-time Missionaries for the Faith At Home movement. www.faithathome.com.
Conference Focus - Chris Yount Jones will be using her 20+ years of experience in working with Children’s Ministers to help lead the audience as one of our three Emcees.
Christine Yount Jones has over 20 years of children’s ministry experience. She has a BA in English Education (University of Oklahoma) and an MDiv in theology (Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary). She is the author of 10 books and hundreds of articles related to children’s ministry. She is the executive editor of Children’s Ministry Magazine and serves as Group’s children’s ministry champion, responsible for research, development, and innovation in children’s ministry resources.
Conference Focus - Brian Haynes will be presenting on the Legacy Milestones Model and will be answering the question “What is Family Ministry?” and “What does Family Ministry look like?”
Brian serves as Associate Pastor at Kingsland Baptist church in Katy, Texas overseeing spiritual formation. Brian is the creator of the Legacy Milestones strategy designed to inseparably link church and home to equip the generations. He is the author of the new book, Shift: What it Takes to finally reach families today. Brian is married to his high school sweetheart Angela and they have three daughters, Hailey, Madelyn, and Eden. Brian is a graduate of Baylor University, Southwestern Seminary, and Liberty Theological Seminary where he earned a Doctor of Ministry for his work in discipleship and family ministry.
Conference Focus - Carey Casey, as the CEO of the National Center for Fathering and Fathers.com, has a lot of experience in helping fathers become the men God has designed them to be and to fulfill their role as the leader of their home. In this session, Carey, through his engaging ability to tell stories, will share practical and proven ways to grow a healthy church that re-engages dads in the spiritual formation process. Carey will be answering the question “How can we re-engage fathers in the spiritual development process of their own children (at church and at home)?”
Carey Casey is Chief Executive Officer of the Kansas City-based National Center for Fathering, joining the Center in March, 2006. Casey joined the Center after 18 years in various roles with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, where most recently he was president of the FCA Foundation, gaining significant leadership experience with a large, successful, national nonprofit organization. He is also author of the book, Championship Fathering (2009). In 2009, Carey was asked to serve on the White House Task Force on Fatherhood and Healthy Families. He also serves as a member of the National Fatherhood Leaders Group. His career has also included serving as chaplain at the 1988 Summer Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea, chaplain for the Dallas Cowboys under Hall of Fame Coach Tom Landry, and chaplain for the Kansas City Chiefs. In high school, Carey played in the 1971 Virginia State Championship football game—the game that was later dramatized in the award-winning movie, Remember the Titans. Carey is still friends with former Titans coach Herman Boone and many of the other people who were portrayed in the movie. Carey received his bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. As a running back, he helped lead the school’s football team to the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship in 1977. Carey and his wife Melanie live in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. They are parents of four children and have four grandchildren.
Conference Focus - Ryan Rush and Jon Cannon will be sharing insights together about building a D6 culture in your church regardless of size in a session called, “Big Church, Small Church.” They will be answering the question, “How does the D6 Model look according to church size, and how does it impact ministry to single and young adults?”
Jon Cannon is the founder and Senior Pastor of Victory Free Will Baptist Church in O’Fallon, Illinois, which he and his family planted in 1999. Victory is a D6 Church and has become intentional in building families who drive faith at home. He is also the founder of Priorities Matter Ministries (PrioritiesMatterMinistries.org), which focuses on “prioritizing your life and walking in God’s favor”. Jon has been in ministry for 23 years. He attended Trinity Baptist Bible College in NC and earned his Master’s Degree in Pastoral Counseling from Andersonville Theological Seminary. Jon has been married for 26 years to his high school sweetheart Debbie, and has two children Tyler 20, and Kristen 17. He also enjoys writing on his blog at JonCannon.org.
Conference Focus - Comedian Tim Hawkins will be providing comic relief.
Tim Hawkins has indeed become one of the most in-demand comics in the country. His arsenal is unique: high-energy stand-up, physical comedy, slick guitar skills, a thousand faces and voices, and improvisational chops. It all combines to create an unequaled comedy experience. With four kids of his own and a wife who is winning her battle with breast cancer, Hawkins gets new material daily from the perils of marriage and parenting.
Conference Focus - Why should your church embrace family ministry? Because in the Scriptures God has revealed to us that in order to advance the Great Commission, He created two institutions - the church and the family. The family is a vital engine of the Gospel. Rob’s prayer is that God will use His Word during our time together to convict our hearts and expand our vision - so that we might embrace His plan not just to reach the next generation, but the ends of the earth. Rob will be answering the questions “How do we change the DNA of our church and how long will it take to see fruit from these changes? AND What can I do if my senior pastor is not on board with a faith at home model?”
Rob is the Family Pastor at Wheaton Bible Church in Wheaton, IL. Before becoming the Family Pastor, he served as a Youth Pastor at Wheaton Bible Church from 1993-2004. He is the author of the book God’s Grand Vision for the Home and his new book Visionary Parenting will be releasing in July of 2009. He and his wife Amy have founded a ministry called Visionary Parenting, which inspires parents and grandparents to disciple their children, and equips churches to build biblical family ministries. Rob, Amy, and their five children live in Wheaton, IL where he attended Wheaton College. After undergrad, Rob then completed an MA in theology at Wheaton College Graduate School, an MDiv from Trinity International Divinity School, and a Doctor of Ministry in Christian Leadership from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary.
Conference Focus - Research shows that around 75% of students currently attending your youth group will leave the church within 5 years after high school graduation: many of whom will not return to the church. Vicki will be presenting “Top 3 Family Faith-Busters” that are running rampant in many Christian homes today. More importantly, she will address ways to get parents on board to become faith-builders rather than faith-busters. Vicki will be answering the question “What are some ways we can make our youth groups less autonomous and more family-friendly without sacrificing our commitment to reaching kids whose parents don’t/won’t attend?”
Vicki Courtney is a best-selling author, speaker, and the founder of Virtuous Reality Ministries which reaches over 150,000 moms and girls a year through books, events, and online resources. She has done hundreds of radio and newspaper interviews and appeared on CNN, Fox News, and CNN Headline News as a youth culture commentator to address various issues impacting tweens and teens. A mother herself to three children, she seeks to provide tweens, teens, and their parents with the tools necessary to navigate today’s promiscuous culture. Some of her books include: “Your Girl,” “Your Boy,” “Between” (a series for tween girls) and “TeenVirtue” (a series for teen girls). Two of Vicki’s books in the “TeenVirtue” series are ECPA Christian Book Award winnners (2006; 2008). Her latest title, “5 Conversations You Must Have With Your Daughter”, is a CBA best-seller and the recent recipient of a Mom’s Choice Award. Vicki and her husband, Keith, reside in Austin, Texas with their youngest son, Hayden, who is in high school. In addition, they have a son and daughter (Ryan and Paige), who attend college at Auburn University.
Conference Focus - Steve will be sharing from the perspective of a student minister and answering these three questions: 1. What do the practical steps of transition look like? 2. What are the biggest obstacles we face in transition? and 3. The purpose of targeting families could appear that we have an inward ministry focus. Some have wrongly viewed this shift as families over unchurched community and world. How does this model position the church for greater missional effectiveness?
Steve has served in student ministry since 1988 and joined the team at Providence in May of 1999. He received a Master of Arts degree in Christian education from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. His undergraduate degree is from Carson Newman College in Jefferson City, Tenn. He is currently a PhD student at Southern Seminary in Louisville, KY. Steve and his wife, Tina, were married in 1989. They are blessed with three children - Sara, William and Tyler.
Conference Focus - Jim has been a longstanding voice of influence in student and family ministry. He will be speaking on “how” to get parents involved in the spiritual development of their students. Jim will be answering the question “How can I actually help parents to engage in the lives of their kids when it comes to spiritual formation and discipleship?”
Jim Burns is President of HomeWord and host of HomeWord’s radio broadcasts heard on over 800 releases a day around the country. Jim speaks to thousands of people around the world every year. He is a three time Gold Medallion Award winning author and has written books for parents, students, children, youth ministry and church leaders. Jim has over 1.5 million resources in print in over 20 languages. His most recent resources include The Purity Code, Teaching Your Children Healthy Sexuality and Accept Nothing Less; God Made Your Body; How God Makes Babies; Confident Parenting, Creating an Intimate Marriage; Closer: Devotions to Draw Couples Together; The 10 Building Blocks for a Happy Family; and The Youth Builder. Jim and his wife, Cathy, and their daughters Christy, Rebecca, and Heidi live in Southern California.
Conference Focus - Jason Houser, Don Myers, and the Seeds Family Worship band will be leading us in worship.
Seeds Family Worship was planted when worship leader, Jason Houser, was asked to write some songs to help kids remember the verses from his church’s summer Bible school.
Jason began writing songs and singing them for the kids and families at church. The songs were well-crafted, catchy, and taken straight from scripture. Families liked them. . . a lot.
From just a handful of songs, Seeds Family Worship was planted – providing God’s Word set to music for thousands of families all over the world. We are gladdened by stories of worship times at home, scripture memorized, and object lessons taught using Seeds songs. The fifth Seeds Family Worship album – The Power of Encouragement – has just released. In total, Seeds has grown to 58 portions of scripture set to music!
The team at Seeds Family Worship continues to create great, scripture-based music. But, we also see God’s call to further equip churches and homes with ways to encourage families to worship together. We want to hear the needs, joys, and hopes for family worship in your church.
Tell us how Seeds can be a more effective resource for family worship. As we work together, we can better tend the plots entrusted to us.
While we plant and water, we know that God is the grower of seeds. We can’t wait to see what happens!
Conference Focus - The Skit Guys will be providing comic relief as well as weaving thematic illustrations to make the conference experience and content come alive.
Tommy Woodard and Eddie James are The Skit Guys. They have been best friends since high school. Think of them as the wise guys in class who had everyone laughing and managed to make a career out of it. They’ve been teaching God’s word using comedy, drama and whatever category talking action figures fit into for over twenty years. They recently released two new books through Zondervan called, Instant Skits and Skits That Teach. They have also produced other plays, skits, and videos covering a wide variety of topics that are available to download through their website.
Conference Focus - Mark Matlock is the lead Emcee. Mark works with students, student ministers, and churches from all across the country and has a passion and track record for discipleship, family ministry, and biblical parenting. He is creative, funny, and filled with scriptural insight. Mark has the unique ability to weave together the different personalities and content in live event settings in a way that makes the learning experience fun and interactive.
Mark Matlock is passionate about discipleship and the transformational power of the Word. For more than 15 years he has worked with students, and his remarkable teaching style engages teenagers in a way that they really connect with what he's talking about. Incorporating wacky fun into his messages, students never know what to expect next from Mark. The founder of WisdomWorks and an ordained minister, Mark is committed to coming along youth leaders in the local church, and his hope is to challenge and equip students for lifelong faith. He is currently a Sr. leader with Youth Specialties. Mark can be heard regularly on Christian radio with the nationally-syndicated WisdomWorks Radio segments. He's also the author of several books for students including his latest, What Does God Want From Me, Living a Life That Matters, Don't Buy the Lie, Smart Faith, Freshman, and Dirty Faith. On the web: www.planetwisdom.com
Conference Focus - Ryan Rush and Jon Cannon will be sharing insights together about building a D6 culture in your church regardless of size in a session called “Big Church, Small Church.” They will be answering the question, “How does the D6 Model look according to church size, and how does it impact ministry to single and young adults?”
Since his arrival as Senior Pastor at Bannockburn Baptist Church in 2004, Pastor Ryan has led the implementation of a comprehensive, cross-generational effort to connect church and home life. “Faith Breakthroughs”, a process that serves as the centerpiece of this strategy, has become a launching point for other churches with the same family-centered goals. Ryan has been ministering to families for almost two decades, and has shared the practical truths of God’s word with thousands from across the country. He served as the Family Pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Virginia, before moving back home to Central Texas. He has hosted radio and television programs on the subject of family life, and is the author of Home on Time: Life Management by the Book - a look at Psalm 90, a study that is helping lead families away from the chaos caused by living within the framework of a disorganized life.
Conference Focus - Larry Dan Melton is one of the most creative children’s pastors in North America. He will be sharing (via interview) some of the most creative and inovative methods he has discovered in reaching children and families today. Larry says “Who can you call in the middle of the night when your 10 year old won’t stop crying because what happened at school? Imagine partner parents who have been there and done that with those who are in the middle of the storm. Maybe it’s a single mother with her son, or coaching a dad through tough talks, or helping a family transition through the teenage years. Wouldn’t it be nice to have parent mentors in every age group to help families live out D6?”
Larry will be sharing some of his most creative ideas and what he has been able to do to integrate them into his ministry to strengthen the entire family.
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