USMB has announced a slate of workshops to be held during USMB Gathering 2020, July 21-25, 2020, in Independence, Missouri. Workshops have been designed to equip attendees for increased impact in stewardship, leadership, evangelism and ministry.
Convention workshops
Ten workshops will be offered Friday during the National Convention, including the following five in Track 1 at 1:15 p.m.
Jon C. Wiebe, president and CEO of MB Foundation, will explore how pastors, lay people and churches can maximize generosity while growing strong disciples.
Convention speaker Kadi Cole, author and leadership trainer, will share best practices on how to relate to, develop and equip female leaders in the church.
USMB pastors and leaders and Mennonite Central Committee staff will comprise a panel that addresses what panelists have learned from visits to the U.S.-Mexico border on MCC-led tours.
Luke Haidle, pastor of Living Hope Church in Henderson, Nebraska, and Jeremy Jordan, pastor of Cross Timbers Church in Edmond, Oklahoma, will provide practical lessons on navigating church rebranding and renaming.
Nzuzi Mukawa, Congolese national MB leader, will offer a workshop about how God is using the current diaspora to spread the gospel and will also serve as a convention speaker.
Five workshops will be offered Friday in Track 2, beginning at 2:30 p.m.
Kadi Cole will host a free consultation hour and accept questions about church growth strategies, multi-site churches, leadership development, women in leadership and time management.
Ron Klassen, executive director of Rural Home Missionary Association, will explore the distinctive characteristics and strengths of small, rural churches, or what Klassen calls the town and country church. Klassen is also speaking earlier in the week at the Pastors’ Conference.
Boris Borisov, pastor of Pacific Keep Church in Spokane, Washington, will offer strategies for the church that wants to get involved in their local context. In the workshop, Borisov will address the importance of place, how to map a neighborhood and how to get involved in what God is already doing in the community.
Don Morris, USMB national director, and USMB church planters will explain the U.S. national plan for church planting developed by a USMB-led task force following the release of Multiply for U.S. church planting, including next step strategies for global mission. Church planters will share stories about how God is working in our newest MB churches.
Kyle Goings, youth pastor at First MB Church in Wichita, Kansas, will share strategies the church can use for connecting with Millennials and those in Generation Z.
Pastors’ Conference workshops
Two workshops will be offered during the Pastors’ Conference Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.
Rob and Jen Reimer, of Renewal Ministries International, will discuss how developing a healthy marriage requires learning how to grow through conflict.
Ron Klassen, executive director of Rural Home Missionary Association, will speak about what a healthy church looks like in small, rural contexts.
Prayer team forming
Multiply staff member Stephen Humber and Jana Hildebrandt, pastoral staff member at First MB Church in Wichita, Kansas, are assembling a prayer team to pray leading up to and during USMB Gathering 2020 events. Their goal is to gather a team representing all five districts.
The prayer team, currently numbering about two dozen, is meeting online once a month prior to the July to pray for the event participants and attendees.
Join with others in the USMB family in Independence this July, expecting profound spiritual resurgence and transformation as we strive toward increasing our impact. For more information, visit: www.usmb.org/gathering2020.
