SESSIONS

THE YOUTH CULTURE TRENDS THAT IMPACT DISCIPLESHIP – Room A1

Discipleship doesn’t happen in a vacuum. The cultural landscape our students are growing up in has a profound impact on their spiritual formation. This interactive workshop will identify the current youth culture trends that have the most impact on your students’ discipleship, and how we can adapt our discipleship strategies to accordingly.

ENOUGH: A CONVERSATION ON GIRLS’ MINISTRY – Room A4

Together we will look at our own hearts and thinking and then soak in the truth of Galatians that brings freedom over our frenzy and fears…the very thing the girls we minister to need so desperately. Meleah will share truth and also invite everyone to join in conversational tools that will hopefully enrich our time together in the session and might be helpful in your ministry. We’d be honored to have you join.

GOING DEEPER IN LIFE-TO-LIFE DISCIPLESHIP – Room A2

Would you like to intimately know the heart, personality, background, experiences, fears, accomplishments and aspirations of your students?
Would you like to know the current spiritual status of your students?
Would you like to know how to break through the facade and carry on deep and meaningful discussions?

No doubt, it is our desire to do our part to present students complete in Christ. Join Matt Brinkley who has invested a lifetime committed to this clear and life-changing investment. This seminar will provide you with the Biblical foundation and inspiration along with practical tools to personally meet and nurture each student in their spiritual journey providing a clear pathway for spiritual maturity.

THE LEADERSHIP PATHWAY – Assembly Room

The Leadership Pathway is a tool designed to help you answer the question, “How do I develop leaders in my ministry?” Join Doug Franklin as he teaches through this simple, practical, and straightforward approach to leadership development that can help you train and equip student leaders and even adult volunteers. You’ll learn five steps that include: Invite, Discover, Equip, Risk, and Sharpen.

WHEN THE LZ IS HOT! – Room 201

Ministering to teens when suicide, substance abuse and sex are at play.

THE RURAL ADVANTAGE – Room 202

There is a beauty in rural church.  Every church has been given unique tools to grow its members closer to Jesus and each other. Regardless of your location, budget or the big church down the road, God has a plan for your ministry! Join us as we dig into the positives of what God has given us and how to use them.

THE YOUTH MINISTER’S FAMILY – Room A3

Your family may be just you and your spouse or maybe you, your spouse and kids. Regardless, you want to have a family that loves Jesus, loves one another and loves the church. In this breakout we’ll talk about the different seasons of the youth pastor’s family life.

WHY YOU NEED PARENTS AND THEY NEED YOU – Room 203

It’s pretty easy to slot your student ministry into a focus on just … students. But what about their parents? Their families? Your church family? We’ll focus on the attitudes and actions that make a difference in a student ministry’s approach to parents that is a win for families, for the church … and for the students.

HOW TO DISCIPLE A STUDENT – Assembly Room

It doesn’t take a degree to become a great discipler. Join Doug as he takes an intentional look at the “why” and the “how” behind discipleship. Learn practical tips and tricks for building meaningful relationships, sharing personal stories, asking intentional questions, helping students make life applications, and holding students accountable. Even if you’ve never been discipled yourself, you’ll learn guiding principles that can be applied to your own discipleship relationships or taught to other volunteers on your team.

WHAT EVERY STUDENT NEEDS FROM A VOLUNTEER – Room A4

For the last 20 years, Mike has worked as a volunteer lay leader in student ministry at Woodland Park Baptist Church. With his experience in the trenches, Mike has learned how to connect with students on a deeper level. Mike’s breakout session will focus on how to effectively connect with and disciple students in our crazy busy culture. During this breakout, you will gain great practical insight as a leader on how to engage your students in a meaningful way.

MISSIONAL STUDENT MINISTRY: FROM ATTRACTIONAL TO ATTRACTIVE – Room A1

As student leaders we can obsess about attracting students to events and only measure attendance. What if we changed the script? What if we cared as much about the number of students living on mission as event attendance? Join a conversation about what it means to move your church ministry or small group from attractional to missional discipleship.

SELF-CARE: THE LAST FRONTIER? – Room A2

As those who work in youth ministry, we are often bombarded by endless opportunities to serve, care, and love. Self-care can become another item on a list of things to do that continually gets dropped to the bottom. In this workshop, we will explore how self-care is less about what we do and more about what (or Who) we worship, and we will talk about how self-care can be a reorienting act of repentance.

MIDDLE SCHOOLERS! – Room A3

Middle schoolers! You’ve got to love their energy! Or do you? Let’s talk about how to leverage the middle school students in your youth group to create a GREAT youth ministry culture now and in the future. We’ll discuss middle school ministry in all different youth group size contexts and how to impact them as they’re making some of the biggest decisions of their lives.

THE POWER OF THE MEDIA AND THE POWER TO OVERCOME – Room 202

The youth of today are constantly bombarded with messages and images of sex, drugs, alcohol and violence. In this session we will look into the source of the messages, the effect they have on our youth and how we can combat against the messages and rescue our youth.

CULTIVATING A CULTURE OF WORSHIP – Room 201

Leading student ministry music teams and shepherding students in times of song can be exhilarating, crushing to your last thread of self-esteem and sanity, hilarious, and inexpressibly beautiful. How do we cultivate windows of time for students to encounter Jesus through song and prayer? How can we shepherd our music teams? And most importantly, do all student music teams undergo a brain wipe immediately after rehearsals?!? Zach Smith has experienced over a decade of navigating these waters both on youth ministry staff and as a band member of As Isaac. And together, we’ll explore these questions, share a couple stories, and prayerfully leave with hearts that have been freed up to be more contagious lovers of Jesus.

BUILDING AND BEING PART OF A THRIVING VOLUNTEER TEAM – Room A4

You ever find yourself at the beginning of a new school year trying to figure out who else you can beg or even bribe to be a small group leader?  Not only do you not have enough volunteer leaders, but the leaders you do have don’t seem to really know what they are supposed to be doing. Having more volunteers, who are passionate and well equipped to lead students closer in their relationship with Christ, is essential to building a healthier youth ministry.  So, how do you get there? In this session, we will talk about recruiting volunteers, equipping them to have a sense of purpose and passion for youth ministry, and leading them to a place where they are building into teenagers as well as helping to build the youth ministry.

GOING DEEPER IN LIFE-TO-LIFE DISCIPLESHIP – Room A2

Would you like to intimately know the heart, personality, background, experiences, fears, accomplishments and aspirations of your students?
Would you like to know the current spiritual status of your students?
Would you like to know how to break through the facade and carry on deep and meaningful discussions?

No doubt, it is our desire to do our part to present students complete in Christ. Join Matt Brinkley who has invested a lifetime committed to this clear and life-changing investment. This seminar will provide you with the Biblical foundation and inspiration along with practical tools to personally meet and nurture each student in their spiritual journey providing a clear pathway for spiritual maturity.

DEVELOPING A VIBRANT SPIRITUAL LIFE IN YOUR STUDENTS – Room 203

Devotional prayer that fills the heart with awe for God.  Stillness, peace, and freedom from anxiety through connection with the Almighty in private and corporate prayer and worship settings.  These are skill sets that can be developed, and that are needed by students more than ever. This challenging seminar is a “how to” session on developing vibrant spiritual lives in students as well as their student leaders.

WHAT EVERY STUDENT NEEDS FROM A VOLUNTEER – Room A4

For the last 20 years, Mike has worked as a volunteer lay leader in student ministry at Woodland Park Baptist Church. With his experience in the trenches, Mike has learned how to connect with students on a deeper level. Mike’s breakout session will focus on how to effectively connect with and disciple students in our crazy busy culture. During this breakout, you will gain great practical insight as a leader on how to engage your students in a meaningful way.

DOING DIVERSITY WITH DIGNITY – Room A1

A Kingdom approach to teens who are experiencing a wide range of sexual preference and sexual identity choices.

10 FIELD-TESTED TIPS FOR AWESOME BIBLE TEACHING – Room A2

There are a lot of moving parts in your youth ministry. But helping teenagers know God through the Bible is at the very core of what it means to be a youth minister. Andy Blanks has been creating resources that help youth workers teach teenagers the Bible for nearly twenty years. This interactive workshop will equip you with the strategies you need to facilitate dynamic times of meaningful Bible study with your students.

A LEADER WORTH FOLLOWING – Room 201

John Maxwell says, “as a leader, the first person I need to lead is me. The first person that I should try to change is me.” Leadership isn’t easy and any one who says it is probably hasn’t been leading very long.  Whether you are a youth pastor, a worship leader, or a small group volunteer, each role challenges us to to take a deeper look at how God has individually wired us to lead, where to focus our energy and what makes a leader worth following. In this session, we’ll discuss why self-aware leadership is necessary for personal growth and how it will overflow into effective ministry.  Come hear Danny Hesterly practically define leadership according to the Gospel: self-aware and servant-hearted with the ultimate goal of becoming the greatest advocate for your students to discover Jesus.

HELPING OUR TEENS NAVIGATE HEALTHY DAY TO DAY RELATIONSHIPS – Room 202

More teens are lonely, depressed and overwhelmed than ever before. Despite all the connectivity of phones, social media and other technology, they are struggling to develop healthy, meaningful, authentic relationships. Teens often feel helpless to do anything different than what society has dictated. We will address the challenges presented by society, social media, peers and the pressure from within to make choices that are not always consistent with their belief system.

CHURCH & CAMPUS PARTNERSHIPS – Room A3

The local school campus can be one of the greatest avenues for ministry in your community.  Do you desire to start a partnership with your local campus? Are you looking for fresh ways to minister to your local schools?  What if the schools actually came to you with ministry opportunities?  This session will help lay the groundwork for initiating relationships, finding creative ways to meet real needs, and engaging your entire local church in the partnership.