Loving Individuals with Disabilities

Dani Shaffer

Carol Tufano

Matthew 28:18-20

Disability is both a part of a person and created by the environment. In order to love those with disabilities, we must go beyond the common approaches to overlook or completely separate these individuals, instead integrating them by making appropriate accommodations. This workshop explores what integration in this context looks like, as well as the Xenos models for offering this to those with disabilities. This includes what discipleship and involvement in the adult ministry may look like for these individuals.

Loving Muslims in an Age of Terrorism (Part 2) - The Quran, Islam and the Gospel

Fouad Masri

Hebrews 1:1-2

As we understand God's call to share his love with those he abundantly wants to give to, we seek to understand the faith of these very people. This workshop outlines the key beliefs of Islam from the person of Muhammad, the Qur'an and the Hadith, the way to heaven, and the pillars of the Islamic faith. After describing some similarities between Islam and Christianity, the focus shifts to the key differences that are essential in helping bridge Muslims to the Gospel of Jesus.

Loving Muslims in an Age of Terrorism (Part 3) - Speaking Like Jesus - Sharing Your Faith with Muslims

Fouad Masri

John 1:4-41

In order to speak like Jesus when sharing our faith with Muslims, we need some basic attitudes and foundational knowledge. We are called to be ambassadors for Christ, to be loving, which means that we also show respect. We are called to be friendly, to create a friendly environment when sharing about Jesus instead of arguing or criticizing. We then seek to use bridges to help move Muslims to understand key truths about Jesus. Finally, our approach must be Bible-based, drawing on the power of God's Word. As we focus on these principles and examine how Christ spoke to those who did not know him, we can gain insight for our own communication and learn to build more effective bridges to the Gospel.

Loving Our Cities

Randy Chestnut

Jeremiah 29:7

God makes, grows, and uses cities, and He has a purpose for them. The more we understand this purpose and begin to see His heart for the city, the more we will have a heart for our city. We can make the choice to love where God has placed us, and there are many ways we can build relationships with the people of our community and be a blessing to them. We have to show that we are a church with the community, not only in it and for it.

Evangelism - Heart Issues and Practices

Phil Franck

Sherri Fojas

2 Corinthians 5:8-21

The starting place for evangelism is both part of our identity and mission as a Christian. There are many heart issues that prevent us from fulfilling our identity and mission including but not limited to: fear, risk aversion to inviting non-believers to bible studies, forgetting power of prayer, and neglecting quiet time with God. There are many tools a Christian can embrace to help evangelistic efforts including prayer.

Portraits of Love - Scriptural Stories of Hospitality

Rich Mendola

2 Kings 4:8-17

Hospitality is a major way of showing love to outsiders or strangers, something that God calls us to do. Not only is hospitality commanded but it is also illustrated throughout Scripture, especially through two passages examined in this workshop. Abraham offered hospitality to the messengers who were sent by God as did the Shunammite woman toward the prophet Elisha. Through these examples, we see practical ways of showing hospitality which can be applied to our hospitable efforts in our own cities.

Sharing Jesus with Hindus

Danny Walker

Cheryl Walker

2 Kings 4:8-17

Success in witnessing is simply taking the initiative to share Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results to God. Tips for taking the initiative to share Christ to the Hindu audience include: 1) be positive, 2) go to them, 3) ask, listen, and share, 4) speak their language, 5) stick to Jesus, 6) be a story teller, 7) be prepared for common objections, 8) pray powerfully, 9) love genuinely, and 10) don't avoid pointed questions.

Motivating Disciples to Become Faithful Evangelists

Catrina Bogart

Doug Patch

2 Kings 4:8-17

The great commission, Matthew 28:19-20, calls us to both evangelize and disciple. One of the main components of a personal discipleship relationship is to coach a disciple in evangelism. We have a role to motivate change when a disciple is not evangelizing and should use a biblical framework towards change. Practical tips are given on how we can personally be involved in the evangelistic efforts of our disciples.

God is Love

Jim Leffel

John 13:35

This presentation explores two key areas of love in the Christian context. First we must explore the meaning of love, which leads us to the message of love, known as the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Finally, we can explore the mission of love, the call to go out and share this with the rest of the world.