LAST CHANCE TO BE PART OF THE 2020VISION CONFERENCE EXPERIENCE!
Register now for the two-day Orlando conference at www.pcacep.org/2020Vison. This conference will feature a great selection of resources for youth and children’s ministry that were not available at the first two conferences. You will be able to purchase these on site. Also, all conference participants will receive a cd containing the keynote addresses by Brian Chapell/St. Louis conference and Al Baker/Philadelphia conference. Come enjoy March in Orlando and catch the 2020Vision!
2020 Vision: Growing the Church through Ministry to Youth and Children
St. Louis Conference – January 18-20, 2011
“If your goal is to inspire, then you reached your goal. I feel like I have something to take back to my church. And this was just the first day!” Dana Williams
The Church grows when its members are equipped for ministry through the teaching of the word, prayer and fellowship with the saints. The Church grew during this 2020Vision conference at Covenant Seminary. Despite the snow storm which brought about the cancellation of the last day of the conference, the 100+ attendees received two days of training and encouragement that they could take back home to their local churches.
The first evening’s worship service was a great gathering which led us all to the throne of grace. Stephen Estock, chair of the CEP committee and Dan Myers, worship leader from Kirk of the Hills PCA directed out hearts toward thanksgiving, confession, repentance and readiness for the preached Word. Bryan Chappell opened the Scriptures from the book of Judges and we saw the Gospel in a new and fresh way through the life of Gideon.
The second day was filled with teaching on the family, worship, church leadership and understanding ministry to youth and children. Danny Mitchell, Eric Larsen, Mark Dalby, and Donald Guthrie were just a few of the workshop leaders who brought us great teaching. Great Commission Publications, Covenant Seminary and Christian Education and Publications of the PCA held a morning plenary featuring the resources available through their agencies. We were all challenged to ask the following questions:
- Does my church have a vision to see disciples grow up from our children and youth by the year 2020?
- How well prepared are the parents to disciple their children?
- Is the gospel transforming lives in our leadership so that we may be models for the next generation to follow?
- What steps must I (we) begin to take to develop a 2020 Vision?
Answering these questions together, we must become very intentional about the kind of ministry we will pursue in the next decade to realize our vision for the year 2020 – His church filled with strong Jesus men and Jesus women!
Thursday evening became the closing session as snow covered the ground while we worshipped together. Singing, “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, have mercy on us. Grant us peace”, we were being given a visual picture of the work of Christ who makes us whiter than snow. Dan Doriani gave instruction from the book of Hebrews and we gained a new perspective on the “cloud of witnesses” as they encourage us to not grow weary in doing good. We went out into the snow, knowing that the same Spirit of Faith who called the saints before us to endure would continue to work within us.
After the first two workshops on the opening day, one Covenant Seminary student remarked, “This is very bold teaching on the church and our call to make disciples from the children and youth. Where are all the people who need to hear and learn these things?” If you were not there, you have another opportunity to be a participant in the 2020Vision conferences. On March 11th -12th at Orangewood PCA in Orlando, FL we will hold our final 2020Vision conference. You can register now online at www.pcacep.org/2020Vison. Some of the keynote speakers from the Philadelphia and St. Louis sites are featured on this site, also. CEP hopes that your church will benefit from 2020Vision and the call to grow Jesus’ church through ministry to youth and children.
Get the newest Children’s Books here at www.cepbookstore.com !
GOD’S NAMES
by Sally Michael
This new book from P&R is a great tool for parents and teachers who want to have interactive dialogue with children as you discover God’s character together. I say “together” because the parent and teacher will probably learn more than the child in these short, yet rich, messages focused on the names of God and their meanings. The learning is interactive because each chapter is filled with questions. The questions are answered as you study and discuss the nature of God.
Jehovah-Rohi – The Lord My Shepherd
Do lions need people to take care of them? How about monkeys, whales, snake, or eagles? They don’t, do they? God has made these animals so that they can take care of themselves. But sheep are different. Most sheep need someone – a shepherd – to take care of them.
This is just part of one lesson as the parent/teacher leads children through this mini-primer on the character of God as revealed by his names.
THE TEN GIRLS/BOYS WHO USED THEIR TALENTS
THE TEN GIRLS/BOYS WHO DIDN’T GIVE IN
THE TEN GIRLS/BOY WHO MADE A DIFFERENCE
THE TEN GIRLS/BOYS WHO CHANGED THE WORLD
If you want to interest your children in Christian biographies, these books published by Christian focus are the place to start. Each book has ten short stories with an added “Fact File”, “Keynote”, “Think”, and “Prayer” addendum to encourage children to ponder on what they have learned through this person’s life. Have you ever read about Betty Stam, Bethan Lloyd-Jones, Isobel Kuhn? These more obscure biographies are included along with Ruth Bell Graham, Amy Carmichael and Corrie Ten Boom. Children will want to learn more after reading these short stories, thus beginning a journey into following the lives of the saints who have gone before us. For me, reading these books has been a wonderful introduction into the lives of those who have not made the history books but should have. Order today at www.cepbookstore.com