By Marissa Postell Sullivan
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – At ETCH (Equipping the Church and Home), Lifeway’s NextGen team equipped ministry leaders to respond to the speed of culture with wisdom, intentionality and urgency. The annual NextGen ministry conference took place at Brentwood Baptist Church in Brentwood, Tennessee, Oct. 27-29.
This year at ETCH, nearly 900 preschool, kids, student and family ministry leaders from more than 30 states gathered to connect, collaborate and learn from experts in their ministry areas. Conference leaders encouraged attendees to connect with people who do what they do and learn from others who know things they need to know.
Chuck Peters, director of NextGen ministry at Lifeway, said ETCH is designed to strengthen Lifeway’s partnerships with ministry leaders and their churches, energizing and inspiring them for effective kingdom ministry.
This year’s ETCH theme—Velocity—challenged next-gen leaders to evaluate where they’re behind, where they need to accelerate and how they can faithfully carry the unchanging truth of Jesus into an ever-changing world.
Peters explained velocity isn’t only about speed but about direction. Acknowledging it’s impossible to keep up with culture, Peters called ministry leaders to focus on direction. “The velocity of the church is countercultural,” Peters said.
Like escaping the current of a riptide, Peters told leaders the answer is not to go with the flow of culture but to turn and go the way of Jesus. “We are rescuers of a generation that is caught in the current of the culture,” Peters said. “Our velocity needs to accelerate to match the speed of the culture but in the direction of the cross.”
Equipped to lead with boldness
Author and teacher Preston Perry opened the conference encouraging attendees to walk in boldness in the face of persecution. Teaching from Acts 4:1-13, Perry challenged ministry leaders to remain bold when persecution comes from all sides.
He told attendees they shouldn’t be surprised when Christians are persecuted for doing good things because “our good deeds will always expose the idols of men.”
Perry reminded leaders boldness isn’t a product of their own effort but of their intimacy with God. “Boldness isn’t doing what men are scared to do,” Perry said. “It’s about doing what God has emboldened you to do.”
Encouraging leaders to rely on God for boldness in gospel proclamation even amid persecution, Perry said, “The world will always be more impressed by the power of God displayed in you than your intellect.”
Equipped to lead amid a changing landscape
Shelly Melia, professor and counselor, equipped ministry leaders to navigate the changing landscape of Generation Alpha, answering three foundational questions about this generation: Who are they? What changes should we pay attention to? What do they need from us?
Melia reminded leaders Generation Alpha is made up of children and students born 2010-2024 and articulated cultural changes that impact this generation, its experiences and behaviors.
Effectively reaching Generation Alpha, Melia said, requires focusing on relationships, prioritizing parents, and saturating them in Scripture.
While being welcoming is important, Melia said next-gen leaders need to focus on creating belonging. More than hearing content and information, Melia said Generation Alpha needs the church to know and love them.
Recognizing that many parents of this generation are not equipped to disciple their children, Melia called leaders to intentionally disciple the young adults in their churches even before they have children and to prioritize parents’ roles in discipleship by teaching them how to disciple their kids.
Finally, Melia explained Bible-saturation allows the church to normalize suffering and offer hope for this young generation. “A faith that lasts understands suffering is a normal part of the experience of being human,” Melia said. “Generation Alpha needs help connecting hope to their suffering.”
Equipped to lead from the source
Closing out the conference, author and theologian Elizabeth Woodson pointed attendees to Jesus as the source of their ministries, reminding them of who He is and how He empowers the ministry they do. “Your ability to do ministry comes from your source,” Woodson said. “And your source is Jesus.”
Drawing from Scripture, Woodson reminded leaders Jesus is sovereign (Colossians 1:15-17), love (Ephesians 5:1-2), faithful (Matthew 1:1) and eternal (Revelation 19). Although ministry leadership provides wonderful opportunities to be discontent, hurt by those you serve and in need, Woodson encouraged attendees to cling to Jesus as the source for their ministries.
Woodson told next-gen leaders ministry leadership is also a wonderful opportunity to see God be God. Challenging leaders to persevere through difficult ministry moments or seasons, Woodson reminded attendees that every bad thing has an end date but Jesus does not. “The cost of you giving up far outweighs the benefit,” she said.
Sharing from her own story, Woodson acknowledged the temptation leaders face of believing ministry depends on them and reminded them the goal of their leadership is not to please people but to glorify God.
“What we are called to do, we cannot do without Him,” Woodson said. “If He is your source, anything in ministry is possible.”
Energized for ministry
Through main-session speakers, worship, breakouts and opportunities to connect with other next-gen ministry leaders within their own teams and from across the country, ETCH presented leaders with space to learn, be inspired and enjoy shared laughter.
Zac Workun, Lifeway’s student ministry specialist, encouraged leaders to allow fun and laughter to remind them of the goodness of God. One way Lifeway brought the fun to this year’s ETCH Conference was through a main session with magician Stephan Bargatze that filled the room with laughter.
Main sessions included worship led by Isaac Pittman, allowing ministry leaders to experience focused times of worship when their roles are often marked by interrupted worship in their local churches.
Lifeway’s investment in leaders at ETCH stretched beyond main sessions and into breakout sessions and Lifeway’s “Solution Zone,” where church leaders interacted with Lifeway’s NextGen team and explored resources to equip their ministries.
This year’s ETCH Conference provided several pre-conference events. New2Ministry was a one-day intensive for new preschool and kids ministers. Other pre-conference sessions included “NextGen Ministry Essentials,” “Developing Biblical and Theological Literacy for Kids” and “Reversing the Tech-Driven Collapse of Discipleship in Kids and Teens.”
Breakout sessions during the main conference included:
- Parents, Youth Ministers and the Big Dance of Ministering to Families
- Welcoming Children With Disabilities: A Guide for Children’s Ministers
- Getting the Most From Technology in Kids Ministry
- Building Connections With Preschoolers and Their Families
- My Pleasure: The Dos and Don’ts of Leading and Keeping a Team
- Beyond Behavior: A Trauma-Sensitive Approach for Church Leaders and Volunteers
The ETCH 2025 digital pass, with access to watch main sessions and listen to audio recordings of more than 60 breakouts, will be available for purchase at Lifeway.com. Registration for ETCH 2026—to be held Oct. 5-7, at Brentwood Baptist Church in Brentwood, Tennessee—is open now at etchconference.com, with early bird pricing available for a limited time.
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Marissa Sullivan is a writer for Lifeway.
In operation since 1891, Lifeway Christian Resources is one of the leading providers of Christian resources, including Bibles, books, Bible studies, group curriculum, Christian music and movies, Vacation Bible School and church supplies, as well as camps and events for all ages. Lifeway is the world’s largest provider of Spanish Bibles. Based in Brentwood, Tennessee, Lifeway operates as a self-supporting nonprofit. For more information, visit Lifeway.com.
