Prayer Emphasis Will Be Featured During April Conference
The Church of God Strategic Missional Leadership Conference, scheduled for April 7-9, 2011, will have a major emphasis on prayer.
The conference is a combination of two events. The original date for a church planting conference in Cleveland, Tennessee was snowed out in January. A major prayer event, led by Doug Small and the Church of God Prayer Initiative, had already scheduled an event for the April weekend, so the two have been combined, but will feature separate workshop tracks.
Side-by-side with a church planting emphasis, the prayer emphasis will include than forty workshops offering topics designed to address a wide range of subjects on prayer leadership at different levels – the pastor, the prayer leader, the intercessor, the family, the prayer evangelism director, and tools and resources. The workshop leaders include pastors, local church prayer leaders, members of state prayer teams and a variety of guests from prayer ministries across the nation.
The conference will feature general sessions where featured speakers from both emphases will address the delegates. Pastor Larry Stockstill who serves as the leader of the Bethany World Prayer Center will challenge the group on prayer. Stockstill will also speak at a special ticketed luncheon of pastors, prayer leaders and spouses. According to Doug Small, those attending will receive a complimentary copy of Stockstill’s newest book.
Beverly Pegues, director of the ‘Pray through the 10/40 Window Project’ and a specialist on the unreached peoples will share on Saturday morning. Pegues brings a wealth of knowledge about pockets of people around the world who have yet to hear the gospel. After she speaks, a special time will be facilitated with her and Dr. Roland Vaughn, former director of Church of God World Missions, to learn about how churches can adopt a nation or a people group for prayer.
Speakers from the Church of God are well known local church prayer leaders. They include Diane Daggerhart, former prayer leader of the Cary, N.C. Church of God; Leta Padgett with Twin Rivers Church in St. Louis; Mary Rosenburger of Evangel Cathedral in Baltimore; Melody Rasnick, a children’s prayer specialist; Lana Whisman with Mt. Olive Ministries in Cleveland; Lance Colkmire, editor of the Evangel, and children’s leader, will share a workshop as will Randy Turpin, author and pastor, and former instructor at the Pentecostal Theological Seminary in the area of prayer ministry. Carletta Douglas, a state prayer team leader will lead a workshop as will Pam Brewer, director of prayer ministries for the Heartlands Region. Jacob King, director prayer ministries for the state of North Georgia, will lead a workshop along with David Franklin, the missions director in Bartow County, Ga. Darrel Buttram, prayer leader in West Virginia will lead a workshop as will administrative bishop, Wayne Wicker.
Each evening, following the general session, Doug Small will facilitate a corporate prayer time. Thursday evening will be focused on prayer for Great Awakening in the USA. Friday evening will be focused on prayer for the nations. Special guest and video vignettes will inform the prayer process. On Saturday morning, Doug Small will share information about the National Prayer Leader’s Network and the “Praying Church Movement”.
