On the way to the Texas Discipleship Conference, entitled STAND, my wife asked me a simple but profound question: “What do you hope to get out of this conference?”
I stammered to come up with a good response. Honestly, I did not “expect” much. Don’t get me wrong, I always enjoy going and always learn something, but the truth is that after attending conferences for twenty years, they tend to blend in together. But this conference would be different.
Let me say at the outset, the host DFW Church of Christ went above and beyond the call of duty. They didn’t just go the second mile –they did a marathon! It was obvious that a lot of time, planning, and effort went into every aspect of the conference. Even after a long day of classes, the Dallas brothers and sisters served at the huge block party with generous and giving hearts.
But the excellent planning is not what made the conference impacting –it was the powerful movement of the Spirit. Messages were bold but laced with grace and humility. Mike Fontenot from the Hampton Roads Church delivered a dynamic keynote address from 1 Timothy 3:14-16 about the mystery of the church. Among the many powerful points, Mike challenged us to view the church, the bride of Christ, with the same heart that God has for her. He posed the probing question: “Would we criticize a bride in front of the groom on the wedding day?”
Things did not end there. Mike’s message was followed up by the 2020 Vision Plan presented by Mike Taliaferro from San Antonio. The challenge put before the Texas churches was to plant ten new churches by the year 2020. We were called to a day of prayer and fasting on September 15th to make a decision to commit to the proposal, exhorting us that this cannot be simply the leadership’s plan, it must be the heart of all the disciples in Texas. In view of this, we were encouraged to prayerfully consider our part, whether it is going out on a mission team, contributing financially, or simply rising up to fill in the ranks when the teams are sent out. All of us were called to participate as disciples of Christ, who signed up to “go anywhere and do anything.” As Mike aptly put it,” It’s not enough to cheer for church plantings; it takes sacrifice.” This was no pep rally; it was a faithful call higher.
Classes, too, were fantastic. The messages were preached with deep conviction, but tempered with a notable spirit of humility garnered from years of living faithfully. Mark and Connie Mancini, who recently returned to the full-time ministry, did a great job teaching us sound principles for raising children. (They have just recently baptized the last two of their three children.) Terrie Fontenot’s lesson for the women was deeply impacting, calling the women to put God’s Word to practice. Moreover, there was a dedicated time of sharing from “everyday” disciples. Brothers and sisters shared openly and candidly about their own trials and failures to encourage us to “stand” faithful no matter what.
The conference closed out in a big way on Sunday with the Dallas Church celebrating their 20th anniversary. It began with a powerful hour of music and worship. Travis Bartlow, one of the elders, shared about a Bible Talk he participated in twenty years ago when the Dallas church was first planted. The topic of the Bible Talk (which he still had notes from) was “What will you be doing in 20 years?” It was noted that we will only remember the conference twenty years later if we make decisions on that day.
Finally, Todd Assad preached a message called “STAND the Test.” He called the men of the church to lead, to be men who are “dangerous,” to advance God’s kingdom boldly and passionately.
Let me say at the outset, the host DFW Church of Christ went above and beyond the call of duty. They didn’t just go the second mile –they did a marathon! It was obvious that a lot of time, planning, and effort went into every aspect of the conference. Even after a long day of classes, the Dallas brothers and sisters served at the huge block party with generous and giving hearts. But the excellent planning is not what made the conference impacting –it was the powerful movement of the Spirit. Messages were bold but laced with grace and humility. Mike Fontenot from the Hampton Roads Church delivered a dynamic keynote address from 1 Timothy 3:14-16 about the mystery of the church. Among the many powerful points, Mike challenged us to view the church, the bride of Christ, with the same heart that God has for her. He posed the probing question: “Would we criticize a bride in front of the groom on the wedding day?”
Things did not end there. Mike’s message was followed up by the 2020 Vision Plan presented by Mike Taliaferro from San Antonio. The challenge put before the Texas churches was to plant ten new churches by the year 2020. We were called to a day of prayer and fasting on September 15th to make a decision to commit to the proposal, exhorting us that this cannot be simply the leadership’s plan, it must be the heart of all the disciples in Texas. In view of this, we were encouraged to prayerfully consider our part, whether it is going out on a mission team, contributing financially, or simply rising up to fill in the ranks when the teams are sent out. All of us were called to participate as disciples of Christ, who signed up to “go anywhere and do anything.” As Mike aptly put it,” It’s not enough to cheer for church plantings; it takes sacrifice.” This was no pep rally; it was a faithful call higher. Classes, too, were fantastic. The messages were preached with deep conviction, but tempered with a notable spirit of humility garnered from years of living faithfully. Mark and Connie Mancini, who recently returned to the full-time ministry, did a great job teaching us sound principles for raising children. (They have just recently baptized the last two of their three children.) Terrie Fontenot’s lesson for the women was deeply impacting, calling the women to put God’s Word to practice. Moreover, there was a dedicated time of sharing from “everyday” disciples. Brothers and sisters shared openly and candidly about their own trials and failures to encourage us to “stand” faithful no matter what.
The conference closed out in a big way on Sunday with the Dallas Church celebrating their 20th anniversary. It began with a powerful hour of music and worship. Travis Bartlow, one of the elders, shared about a Bible Talk he participated in twenty years ago when the Dallas church was first planted. The topic of the Bible Talk (which he still had notes from) was “What will you be doing in 20 years?” It was noted that we will only remember the conference twenty years later if we make decisions on that day.
Finally, Todd Assad preached a message called “STAND the Test.” He called the men of the church to lead, to be men who are “dangerous,” to advance God’s kingdom boldly and passionately. All in all, there was a pervasive spirit of unity and excitement. Old bonds were renewed, and new ones were made. The fellowship was electric. There was a tangible sense that the Spirit was on the move, stirring our hearts.
Epilogue: I might not have been able to give a good answer to my wife about what I expected to get from the conference, but I got more than I could have asked for. It was the best conference I have ever attended. I can’t wait to find out what happens.
James Gitre
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