Simple Steps to a Healthier Church Conference

Pastors and church leaders from eight associations came together November 18-19 for the second annual Simple Steps to a Healthier Church Conference. The joint project of Connie Hancock (Springboro Baptist), Tom Pendergrass (Urbancrest Baptist), Brad Cunningham (Liberty Heights) and the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio was hosted this year by Urbancrest Baptist Church, Lebanon. Breakout sessions included Pastor and Preach (Hancock), Reach and Send (Pendergrass), Plan and Pay (Cunningham) and Teach and Train (Steve Hopkins, SCBO).

Each pastor and leader left the meeting with a notebook and USB drive full of helpful tools for leading the church. Here are comments from pastors who attended Simple Steps:

• Connie gave some practical ideas that I implemented right away.  Being able to learn from guys who have done it for years is a huge benefit.
• The conference helped me to have some clarity in direction.  For nine years I have been spinning my wheels as a pastor and to be honest had really began to think about throwing in the towel (which is totally unusual for me).  The discouragement was so strong it caused me to begin to think that way.
• It is refreshing to discover we’re going in the right direction. It does take 10 degree movements over time, not 180 immediately, which causes whiplash and hard hearts. I wish I would have known that truth 10 years ago.
• Administration is one of my weaknesses and I found this to be really helpful! I have been asking for some of this kind of help for years, going back to when I pastored my first church. I can't tell you how helpful this is for me and the stuff on the thumb-drive is awesome! This may be the single best help I have had in church administration in my 6 ½ years of pastoring.
• Not too many conferences offer so much practicality and resources.  And none do that at the price we paid to attend this one!
• Amazing ideas and the interaction from other pastors that have been through similar situations was a vastly intangible asset gained from the conference.  The open and honest communication was fantastic.
• I have already introduced to my church “The Basket of Hope” idea for less fortunate families in our congregation, and in our community. They loved the idea, and volunteering to supply basket items. Now this is fun!
• My Deacon Board is on fire…whoa boy…one thing at a time. Again, it’s fun to be excited doing kingdom work. Next year, I plan to bring another ministry leader, maybe the Sunday School Leader, or the Hospitality Leader, or the Missions Leader, or the Outreach Leader. I’m sorry…I get a little excited… Unless I am dead, I plan to attend every year!
• Thank you for having the conference. It was a real blessing and a wonderful confirmation of several things I have been considering for our ministry.  We are a small plateaued church that needs to make some changes in order to grow.  Some changes have to do with facilities while others have to do with the way we do things in general. Pastor Tom has a testimony that every pastor needs to hear. It gave me courage to believe that it's not too late to trust God to meet every need the Church and members have regardless of resources. We preach that He is our Source but in practice, we too often look to people.  Thank you again!