Training Opportunities

Big Bucket

Includes a potpourri of seminars, with everything from women's issues to teen culture to parenting, and more.

Schedule

Life Mapping: Discovering Your Life Theme and How It Affects the Course of Your Ministry

Brooklyn Lindsey

Seminar Series #6

Nashville - Nov 24 9:00 AM-10:30 AM

Your life is a map illustrated with majestic landscapes and dark, shadowy trails. Each map—each life—is different, diverse by its stories, context, and emotions. You’ll interact with your story by creating your own life map and then learn how your stories shape your ministry. Discover how both the positive and negative experiences in your life culminate to make your own unique ministry setting.

Who's Your Momma: Women Over 30 in Youth Ministry

Crystal Kirgiss

Seminar Series #6

Nashville - Nov 24 9:00 AM-10:30 AM

What can middle-aged women offer youth ministry? More than anyone can imagine. If you’re over 30 and female (momma or not), this seminar is for you.

Get Fit For Life...NOW

Lee Claypoole

Seminar Series #5

Nashville - Nov 23 3:30 PM-5:00 PM

Offering a practical approach to a life of health and fitness, this seminar will reveal the steps Lee took to lose more than 100 pounds and go from a 44- to a 30-inch waist in less than a year. Lee will share exercise tips, a nutritional and diet plan that works, along with other simple steps to get control of your life and health.

Creating Multi-Sensory Worship Experiences in Your Youth Ministry

Dan Kimball

Seminar Series #4

Nashville - Nov 23 1:30 PM-3:00 PM

Worship is more than just singing and listening to someone teach. And students have different learning styles. Yet we often limit our teaching by using only words and not considering the variations of learning styles among our students. We’ll look at specific ways to design and create worship experiences using art and interactive prayer stations. We’ll give plenty of examples, as well as discuss how to find and develop volunteer teams to make this happen.

The Scandal of Grace

Shane Claiborne

Seminar Series #3 - Super Seminars

Nashville - Nov 22 2:00 PM-4:30 PM

With new eyes can we look at people we don’t even like and see the One we love? Let’s imagine a revolution that’s gentle and magnetic, a revolution big enough to set both the oppressed and the oppressors free. With hard stories from the streets of Philly and the war zone of Iraq, Shane will invite us to reflect on the scandal of God’s inclusive love…in a world that’s starved for grace.

Christianity: Modern and Postmodern

Tony Campolo

Seminar Series #3 - Super Seminars

Nashville - Nov 22 2:00 PM-4:30 PM

Thinking church leaders understand the necessity of helping young people develop a Christian worldview, but they’re not always cognizant of how the ideologies of secular intellectuals such as Charles Darwin, Sigmund Freud, Adam Smith, and Karl Marx have subtly undermined their attempts to do so. In this seminar we’ll explore the impact of their perspectives and consider ways to help thoughtful young Christians integrate biblical teachings in an overarching mindset that takes the challenges of such secular intellectuals into consideration.

Needle and Thread: The Importance of Creativity, Storytelling, and Writing For Your Ministry and For Your Life

Shauna Niequist

Seminar Series #2

Nashville - Nov 22 8:00 AM-9:30 AM

Shauna will read from her book, Cold Tangerines, answer questions, and share ideas and stories about creativity as a lifestyle, the writing and publication process, and the ways that storytelling can enrich our lives and ministry experiences.

Confident Parenting for Youth Workers

Jim Burns, Cathy Burns

Seminar Series #1

Nashville - Nov 21 4:00 PM-5:30 PM

The title of this seminar is a bit of an oxymoron. Some of the least confident parents are often those who work in the church on either a volunteer or paid basis. Parenting isn’t easy, yet there are some important principles youth workers must look at to become more effective parents ourselves. Here are a few of the topics we’ll cover: • Finding Replenishment for Overcrowded Lives • Overcoming Negative Family Patterns • Creating a Grace-Filled Home While Providing Healthy Discipline • Teaching Our Own Children a Healthy Sexuality • Developing an Atmosphere of Affection, Warmth, and Encouragement in the Midst of a Ministry-Oriented Family Jim and Cathy promise no easy answers, but if you’ve ever felt humbled by the task of raising your kids to become responsible adults who love God, then this session may be for you.

Missions 101: How Do I Know Where To Go, What To Do and How To Get There

Sheryl Shaw

Early-Bird Seminars

Nashville - Nov 21 10:00 AM-11:30 AM

So you’re a youth minister and you want to take your youth on a mission trip. Now what? How do you decide where to go? How do you decide what to do? Should you use an agency or use your own contacts? Are there steps to get your group ready for missions? How do you handle the finances? In this workshop we’ll answer all of these questions and more. We’ll also talk about how a mission trip can change the lives of your students instead of just being the next great adventure.