Dear Friends in Ministry,
If you are a pastor, missionary, evangelist or other Christian spiritual leader, I want to invite you to be a part of the WE Connect Regional Spiritual Leaders Roundtable we are hosting at Antioch Church in downtown Dallas on Thursday morning, September 15th from 9:00am to 1 pm.
WE Connect is a ministry network filled with wonderful servants of the Lord I have personally been a part of for many years and that has added tremendous value to my own life and ministry. I am honored to host this event featuring several 18 minute presentations by seasoned pastors and church leaders centered around the theme, “Building Unity in the Midst of Diversity,” followed by periods of open Q&A. There is no cost or registration fee to attend and I encourage you to bring as many other spiritual leaders with you as you possibly can.
Given the increasingly polarized state of our civil society, no subject could be more timely or relevant for every Christian leader. Although the church of Jesus Christ has too often been divided by too many things, including race, culture, age, economic status, political persuasions, doctrinal nuances, and even stylistic preferences, I believe the church alone holds the primary keys to healing our fractured nation. Jesus is calling every one of us to mobilize our people for the ministry of reconciliation our country so desperately needs.
“We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them.” (2 Cor. 5:20 The Message)
The urgency of this call was driven home to me recently when law enforcement officers who are part of our spiritual family battled the El Centro College mass shooter from our church property, while people from our congregation marched in the Black Lives Matter protest nearby. Only the Holy Spirit can help you or me bring unity to the midst of such diversity, but as we do, we experience fresh, deep anointing from heaven upon our ministries!
“How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony! For harmony is as precious as the anointing oil that was poured over Aaron’s head…” (Ps. 133:1-2 NLT)
Every session in this unique WE Connect Roundtable gathering is designed to help you bring unity in the midst of diversity as you shepherd Christ’s flock in today’s world. Some presenters, for example, will focus on how local churches can help heal and overcome racial wounds in their communities. Others will equip you to lead your people beyond the tensions that sometimes arise between generations and faith traditions. Each one of them will challenge you, inspire you, and give you practical “takeaways” you can implement wherever you serve.
If you need any additional information including lodging information or directions, please contact our Antioch Ministry Coordinator, Emily Barnes, in our church offices via phone: 972-392-3992 or email: emily.barnes@teamantioch.com.
Please help our Hospitality Team prepare to welcome you by RSVP’ing to Emily via return email to let us know you are coming and to tell us how many people you intend to bring with you. This will enable us to host you with “Texas-sized” hospitality while being good stewards of the resources the Lord has entrusted to us. If your travel plans allow you to arrive the evening before, we would love to have you join us at Antioch Church for our Midweek Prayer Service from 6:00-7:30pm and/or at our Antioch School of the Spirit from 7:30-9:00pm.
Teresa and I look forward to seeing you soon!
WE Connect – Building Unity in Diversity
Antioch Church, Dallas Texas - Thursday, September 15, 2016 9am-1pm
Roundtable Presenters and Topics
Randy Skinner, Strategic Justice Initiatives / Feed3 – Addressing the Spiritual Roots of Racial Tension
Randy’s extensive background working in civil rights, intercessory prayer, economic development, criminal justice, and racial reconciliation, while choosing to raise his own family in the inner city, strategically positions him to help local churches heal historic wounds and transform their local communities. His many roles have included: Executive Director of the Dallas Justice Revival; Chairman of the Dallas City Ethics Commission appointed by the Mayor; Director of the National Conference on Crimes Against Children; Member of the Congressional Black Caucus Scholarship Committee; and the Racial Reconciliation Department of the Promise Keepers Men’s Movement.
Pastor Samuel Fenceroy, Mount Olive Church of Plano - Building A Multi-Racial Church
Sam will share practical ideas on how to lead a diverse congregation, drawn from a unique life story that includes his transition from entrepreneur and wealthy business owner in South Dallas to successful church planter in the suburbs of North Dallas. In spite of his own encounters with racism, by embracing the truths God planted deep within his heart, he has raised up a vibrant, multi-ethnic church committed to touching the nations of the world.
Pastor Ralph Holland, Mundo de Fe – Building A Multi-Ethnic, Multi-Lingual Church
Ralph will share specific suggestions concerning how to minister in settings that are both multi-cultural and multi-lingual. With his rich experience as Founding Pastor of Mundo de Fe, the largest Hispanic ministry in the DFW Metroplex, along with his apostolic role throughout Latin America and beyond, he brings wise answers to questions like: “Should we use simultaneous translation?” and, “Should we raise up distinct congregations that share a common building or raise up one congregation that ministers to multiple constituencies?”
Pastor Tom Lane, Gateway Church – Building A Multi-Generational Church
Tom will share steps to building fruitful transgenerational ministry gleaned from his own experience. As Lead Executive Senior Pastor of Gateway Church, he played a key role in the exploding growth of that congregation. Today, he also serves as Campus Pastor of the recently planted Gateway Dallas and leads the way in effectively reaching people of all life stages from the former facilities of Hillcrest Church which are located in a neighborhood whose primary demographic is mature adults.
Pastor Steve Dixon, Christian Life Cathedral – Building A Multi-Denominational Church
Steve will share practical steps you should take when building a congregation made up of people who come from vastly different denominational backgrounds. His counsel will help you strategically position your ministry to glean the good from each of those varied streams without compromising your specific and God-given vision, as he highlights aspects of the church-planting model he developed while birthing a thriving local church in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Pastor Mark Brand, Antioch Church – Lessons Learned Along the Way
Mark will share lessons he has learned and mistakes he has made during his leadership journey transitioning Antioch Church from a prosperous, white suburban congregation to a racially, economically, and age-diverse downtown church. Antioch now reaches people “from the crack-house to the penthouse” and “looks like heaven” as it impacts the nations by nurturing emerging leaders from around the world.
Antioch Church - Travel Information
Antioch Church, 805 Elm Street, Dallas, TX 75202 / www.teamantioch.com / 972.392.3992
- Upon debarking from your arriving flight, before leaving the secure area, follow the signs to the SkyLink Connection train and ride it to Terminal A, Gates A15-A17.
- When you exit the SkyLink Connection train, follow the signs saying, “Ground Transportation,” until you see signs saying, “DART Bus / TRE Train / DART Train.”
- Follow the DART Train signs (not the TRE Train signs!) down the elevator, out the downstairs doors of the terminal, and along the sidewalk to your right for a couple of hundred feet until you come to the DART train station.
- Purchase your ticket from the machine with cash or credit card and board any train. (This is the beginning of the line, so it is impossible to board going the wrong way.)
- Ride the train for approximately 50 minutes until it stops at the West End Station. When you exit the train, you will be directly outside our building.
- Antioch Church owns the entire city block located at the corner of Lamar & Elm Streets including two parking lots.
- To park for free on Thursday morning, plan to arrive before 9:00am and set your GPS to 805 Elm Street, Dallas, Texas.
- Park in the lot at the corner of Elm and North Austin Street, directly across the N. Austin St. cul-de-sac from the 7/11 convenience shop. The church entrance is located at the end of the cul-de-sac, directly adjacent to the DART station platform.
- If you are arriving by car on Wednesday and would like to park your vehicle in our lot overnight, please contact Emily in our office and we will be happy to arrange that for you free of charge. Please note that the lot is not manned or guarded from the late evening hours through the very early morning hours.
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