SPIRE HUDDLES

HUDDLES: 1:30 - 4:30pm

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 15

MOBILIZING YOUR CHURCH TO REACH YOUR ONE’S Garry Poole — Lincoln A The Great Commission is so clear and direct, yet our churches naturally drift inward. This challenge has been exacerbated during the pandemic. Join us as we huddle to talk practically about how to get our churches back on mission. The opportunity to reach people has never been greater and now is the time be intentional about equipping your ninety-nine to reach their friends, family, and neighborhoods.

PREACHING TEAMS Drew Sherman —Governor’s Ballroom A Don't go alone! Together is better! Across the board, lots of pastors are realizing the power of developing a preaching team - whether it's a staff team, pastor friends, or even volunteers. We will be hearing from leaders who have put such teams together and the way to make them work well. The formats and methods vary, but there are best practices you should learn. We will focus our breakouts to help you envision this together, and possibly even form a team right there on the spot!

EFFECTIVE ENGAGEMENT Greg Curtis — Lincoln D Connecting the lost to you, Jesus, and others has never been more important...and maybe never more difficult. It's time for a complete practical re-think about engagement, connections, and steps that make sense. We will be studying digital engagements strategies and best practices any church can use. Now is the time to figure this out because digital church is here to stay!

MEASURING DISCIPLESHIP Greg Wiens — Lincoln E Building community and making disciples in a post-Covid world is a challenge. Most churches are really grappling with how effective they are at making disciples. Consider some new online ways to measure how well people are following Christ via the ministry of your church. STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP Melissa Sandel — Washington B A new normal is here and now is the time to make strategic decisions to adjust to this new reality. We will be discussing a wide array of ministry topics including staffing, budgeting, growth strategies, and more. Join us and our veteran team of leaders to learn how to think these important topics facing every church. Our breakouts will feature huddles for various size churches and teams, contexts, roles, and more.

VIBRANT SMALL GROUPS Tyler Perott — Governors Chamber D&E You've probably experienced the difficulty of creating and maintaining vibrant community via small groups especially now in our post-Covid world. It's time to rethink our strategies while focusing on key principles that will always be true to matter the size, context, or format of your church. Join us as we re-think this together and hear from leaders that are re-inventing this pivotal aspect of church. Our breakouts will feature huddles for various size churches, contexts, capabilities, and more.

UBERIZATION OF MINISTRY Matt Engel — Jackson A The church has been the last main dominate player in the social “economy” to not break itself from traditional pipeline thinking (Yellow Cabs) to Platform Thinking (Uber). This shift in opportunities available to pastors and leaders today to think more like Uber and less like a Yellow Cab has enabled new approaches within ministry and impacting ministry at a faster rate than ever before in some churches! Now that ministry tools can be curated, and trust is now distributed to individuals there has never been a more opportune time to equip and release the saints for the work of service and unlocking of their passion. This is what has always wanted to happen!

MENTAL HEALTH Dr. Paul Alexander — Presidential Chamber A Studies continue to show that our communities are struggling with mental health issues and addiction at an all-time high. Your church is on the front lines of these challenges. Join us as we learn about the seriousness of these challenges and ways we can equip our churches to be more proactive than ever at dealing with them. We will hear from leading local church experts and together learn how to quickly implement new strategies.

COMMUNICATIONS & MARKETING Tyler Sansom — Presidential Chamber B Attention is the new commodity of life and people are more distracted than ever. If you aren't strategically communicating as a church, you likely aren't going to get the response you desire. The digital revolution has only made this more important. We will hear from experts and look at methods, channels, copywriting, social media, and more. Our breakouts will be designed around pertinent topics and roles. Don't miss this important huddle

CHILDREN, STUDENTS, AND FAMILIES Scott Rubi — Governors Ballroom C The families in your church are on the front lines of today's challenges and face increasingly difficult circumstances in which to flourish. We will be looking at these challenges and hearing from national experts about how the local church can enter this reality and make a difference in the lives of children, students, and parents. If you are a children, student, or family ministry pastor or team member you must be there! Our breakouts will feature huddles for various size churches and typical roles in this area of the local church.

HEALTHY ELDERS, HEALTHY CHURCH Tim Cole — Lincoln C Overseers have a high responsibility in church life. They have a biblical, important role in every church, and especially the church that wants to grow, reach people, and make disciples. Join us as we hear from elders and leaders that have strategically thought through and designed healthy governance models that allow church to do just that.

AVOIDING PASTOR BURNOUT Wes Beavis — Lincoln B The dropout rate among pastors has never been higher. We must guard our hearts and minds and put into place a lifestyle and work environment that is healthy for the long haul. Come and be encouraged and renewed! There will be a special time of prayer during this huddle. You are not alone! We are here for each other.

CREATIVE ARTS WHAT NOW? LEADING CREATIVELY AT THE INTERSECTION OF EXHAUSTION AND EXPECTATION Tim Foot — Presidential Boardroom A Ben Gowell Brian Taylor Dan Leverance Caleb Miller Come join the conversation as some of the top Arts Leaders in the country discuss the biggest questions and issues in the post-pandemic church as we face the challenges and momentum of “regathering” in a season where most of the ministry never stopped.