By Y Bonesteele
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Lifeway’s 2021 ETCH Family Ministry Conference will bring together family ministry experts to train today’s leaders in kids, students, Next Gen and family ministries.
Aptly themed “Reunite,” this year’s conference hopes to equip and reenergize teams ministering to family units after a difficult year for churches, ministries and families. Because of the pandemic and other issues facing our nation, parents, students and children have unique stressors and ministry needs leaders need to address.
“Reunite is an important theme this year, not just because ETCH only had a virtual option in 2020, but because we want to purposefully recognize the importance of ministry leaders finding community with other church leaders,” said Ben Trueblood, director of Lifeway Students. “We aren’t meant to do ministry alone, and it’s often relationships with other ministry leaders where we find encouragement, challenge and vulnerability to talk about the difficult things involved in ministry leadership.”
ETCH (Equipping the Church and Home) aims to train leaders for ministry to every individual in the family unit in this post-modern, post-Christian 21st century.
“Our heartbeat is for everything at the conference to be practical, applicable and actionable to help you minister more effectively in your community,” said Chuck Peters, interim director of Lifeway Kids.
Reunite will focus on Ephesians 4, challenging ministries to “walk worthy of the calling you have received” (Ephesians 4:1), overcoming challenges with God’s strength and guidance.
This year the hybrid options will allow many to choose to come in-person to fellowship and network with other ministry leaders or choose to participate in the live simulcast with their ministry teams in the convenience of their own locations.
“We’ll be gathering with about 400 attendees in an intimate, in-person setting in Nashville, and hosting hundreds more through our live simulcast of the event,” Peters said. “If you can’t come to the event, we’re ready to bring the event to you!”
This year’s live ETCH Conference will be held October 11-12 and is currently sold-out for the in-person conference. Ministry leaders and teams, however, can still register for the online simulcast with multiple-tiered pricing available to fit the needs of parents, leaders and church teams.
At the 2021 ETCH Family Ministry Conference, leaders can attend three main sessions and their choice of four breakouts. Plus, they’ll receive a Digital Pass for 30 additional new, pre-recorded breakout sessions to view later.
Speakers include:
- Jonathan Evans, author, speaker and former NFL fullback
- Noe Garcia, pastor of North Phoenix Baptist Church
- Sissy Goff, author, speaker and director of child and adolescent counseling
- David Thomas, author, speaker and director of family counseling
- Mark Croston, author and national director of Black Church Partnerships at Lifeway
- Ben Trueblood, author and director of Lifeway Students
“Training and collaboration are more important post-pandemic because our culture is changing rapidly causing churches to be challenged in new and different ways with greater frequency,” Trueblood said. “ETCH is specifically designed to address this need for church leaders.”
An individual simulcast pricing starts at $49 which includes three main sessions and four breakout sessions aired live (with an additional two weeks of access). An individual simulcast plus is $99 and includes a Digital Pass to access 30 extra, new, pre-recorded breakout sessions. A church/group host package starts at $149 for up to five people with additional pricing for larger groups.
For more information, visit etchconference.com.
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Y Bonesteele is a writer for Lifeway Christian Resources.
