Spurgeon Pastors’ Conference set for April 26

posted on Feb 15, 2011 by Staff

SPURGEON PASTORS' CONFERENCE

This year’s C.H. Spurgeon Pastors' Conference will take place on April 26 with breakout sessions beginning at 8 a.m. in the Trustees Classroom Building. The conference’s theme is “Maximizing Your Ministry.” The keynote speaker for the event is Bryant Wright, president of the Southern Baptist Convention and senior pastor of Johnson Ferry Baptist Church in Marietta, Ga.  He will speak at the 10 a.m. chapel service. There will also be breakout sessions available from 8-9:50 a.m., then two lunch sessions will take place from 11:10 a.m. to noon, and 12:10-1 p.m. (Lunch is free to all attendees, but to help us plan, everyone having lunch with us needs to pick up a ticket at the Student Development Office (call (816) 414-3735) by Thursday, April 21.  Otherwise, the meal will cost $5 at the door.)  The conference will wrap up with a Question & Answer session with Mr. Wright from 1:10-2 p.m. 

Breakout session leaders include Terry Fox of Summit Church in Wichita, Kan., Mark Hoover of New Spring Church in Wichita, Kan., Ben Stroup from Nashville, Tenn., and MBTS faculty members Jerry Sutton and Rustin Umstattd.  Breakout session topics are listed below. 

Regular classes that day will be redirected to the workshop sessions and roll will be taken.  The course is available to students for 1 credit hour, and the cost is $50.  To enroll, contact the MBTS Registrar’s Office at (816) 414-3756 or e-mail registrar@mbts.edu.

Conference Schedule

8 - 8:50 a.m.------------------------------Breakout Session #1------------ Trustees Classroom Bldg: Top floor

• Ben Stroup: Tapping Social Media for Maximum Ministry----------------------------------------- Rm. 101

• Rustin Umstattd: Cultural Awareness for Maximum Ministry (Answering Rob Bell)------- Rm.107

• Terry Fox: Pastoral Skills for Maximum Ministry----------------------------------------------------- Rm. 109

• Rodney Harrison: Planting Churches for Maximum Ministry------------------------------------- Rm. 102

9 - 9:50 a.m.------------------- Breakout Session #2---------------------- Trustees Classroom Bldg: Top floor

• Aaron Loy: Leading Worship for Maximum Ministry------------------------------------------------- Rm. 101

• Mark Hoover: Planning Sermons and Services for Maximum Ministry------------------------ Rm. 109

• Fern Sutton: The Importance of Forgiveness for Maximum Ministry---------------------------  Rm. 107

• Jerry Sutton: Effective Preaching for Maximum Ministry------------------------------------------- Rm. 102

10 - 11 a.m.-------------------- PLENARY SESSION: Bryant Wright-------------------------------------------- Chapel

11:10 a.m. - Noon----------- Breakout Session #3------------------------Trustees Classroom Bldg: Top floor

• Ben Stroup: Tapping Social Media for Maximum Ministry------------------------------------------ Rm. 101

• Rustin Umstattd: Cultural Awareness for Maximum Ministry (Answering Rob Bell)-------- Rm.107

• Terry Fox: Pastoral Skills for Maximum Ministry------------------------------------------------------ Rm. 109

• Rodney Harrison: Planting Churches for Maximum Ministry-------------------------------------- Rm. 102

Free Lunch(!!) outside LifeWay Store-------------------------------------Trustees Classroom Bldg: (bottom floor)
(Pick up your ticket for a free lunch in Student Development Office by April 22)

12:10 - 1 p.m.----------------- Breakout Session #4-------------------------Trustees Classroom Bldg: Top floor

• Aaron Loy: Leading Worship for Maximum Ministry------------------------------------------------- Rm. 101

• Mark Hoover: Planning Sermons and Services for Maximum Ministry------------------------- Rm. 109

• Fern Sutton: The Importance of Forgiveness for Maximum Ministry----------------------------- Rm. 107

• Martin Pohlmann: Maximizing Your Ministry Through Biblical Preaching---------------------- Rm. 102

Free Lunch(!!) outside LifeWay Store--------------------------------------Trustees Classroom Bldg (bottom floor)
(Pick up your ticket for a free lunch in Student Development Office by April 22)

1:10 - 2:45 p.m. ------------------PLENARY SESSION: Q & A with Bryant Wright--------------------------- Chapel
                                   “Questions for the Southern Baptist Convention President"

Speaker Bios:

Bryant Wright serves as President of the Southern Baptist Convention and as senior pastor of Johnson Ferry Baptist Church in Marietta, Ga.  He was a successful businessman before answering God’s call to ministry. He is a respected Bible teacher, pastor, husband, father and community leader.  Wright uniquely connects God's unchanging truth with a diverse culture through compelling and creative teaching. He has authored four books, One Minute of Your Time, Another Minute of Your Time, One Minute of Your Day, and Seeds of Turmoil. He received a B.A. in English from the University of South Carolina, and a M.Div. from Southern Seminary. In 2007, Wright received an honorary doctorate from SEFOVAN, a seminary in Madrid, Spain. Wright and his wife, Anne, have three sons, two daughters-in-law, and three grandchildren.

Mark Hoover is a straightforward communicator who is known for making the truth of God’s Word understandable for everyone through compelling and creative teaching methods. He has served NewSpring Church in Wichita, Kan., for over 25 years, leading it during times of transition and explosive growth. Hoover is also seen on NewSpring’s weekly television broadcast which airs throughout the region. He is originally from Fort Worth, Texas, where he grew up in a pastor’s home. He first began preaching at the age of 16. After several years of youth meetings and frequent preaching opportunities, Hoover entered full-time ministry in 1977. He earned his Bachelor of Science in pastoral studies from Arlington Baptist College, graduating in 1978. From 1977-1985, Mark served as associate pastor at churches in Mansfield, Houston and Fort Worth, Texas.  Hoover and his wife Mary Alice have been married since 1977, and they have three sons, two daughters-in-law and two granddaughters.

Terry Fox has served as a senior pastor for over 30 years, and is the founding pastor for Summit Church in Wichita, Kan.  He has been visible across America through interviews with national media such as FOX News, NBC’s Hardball, The New York Times and The Washington Post.  He has a strong media ministry and is presently co-host of the Answering the Call radio talk show which is heard on stations across the Midwest.  Fox receives numerous invitations to speak throughout the country and has been blessed to be pastor of strong and fast growing congregations that have reached many for Christ.  He is a graduate of Ouachita Baptist University in Arkansas.  Fox has served as chairman of major committees within the Southern Baptist Convention and other religious institutions, including three years as chairman of Trustees for the North American Mission Board.  Fox has been a strong leader in the cultural war, defending family values.  He was instrumental in getting the Marriage Amendment passed in Kansas.  He and his wife, Barbara, have three grown children.

Ben Stroup is a writer, blogger and consultant who helps individuals and organizations navigate the new rules of conversation to achieve maximum impact through content strategy. He is an advocate for compelling content in a "post-paragraph" world and believes meaningful conversations are the most prized and coveted assets of one-person consulting firms, international charitable organizations and multibillion dollar enterprises. Ben, his wife, Brooke, and their two sons, Carter and Caden, live in the Nashville, Tenn., area.

Fern Sutton is a licensed professional counselor for Light Counseling in Lynchburg, Va., an adjunct professor and clinical consultant at Liberty University, and a member of the American Association of Christian Counselors.  She holds a B.A. in Christian Studies from Dallas Baptist University and M.A. in Counseling from Trevecca Nazarene University.  From 1999 until 2009, Sutton was a counselor at Woodmont Hills Counseling Center in Nashville, Tenn.  In 2005, she served as vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention Ministers' Wives.  As a senior pastor's wife, Sutton has enjoyed mentoring pastors' wives for many years.  She and her husband, Jerry, have two adult daughters and one son-in-law.

Jerry Sutton, accomplished Southern Baptist Convention pastor and administrator, joins the executive staff at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary as interim dean and vice president of academics. The “interim” in Sutton’s title means that he’s MBTS President Phil Roberts’ selection until the trustee meeting in April, at which point the trustees will be asked to ratify the decision. Sutton brings to Midwestern extensive experience from a variety of ministerial spheres. A Southwestern Seminary graduate, Sutton earned his Ph.D. in church history with minors in preaching and Greek New Testament. He served as the senior pastor of Two Rivers Baptist Church in Nashville, Tenn., from 1986 until 2008 and has taught courses at multiple SBC seminaries, including an adjunct professorship at Midwestern. In 2005, Sutton became the first vice president of the Southern Baptist Convention. Since his retirement from Two Rivers, he has served in the classroom as associate professor of Christian proclamation and pastoral theology at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and Graduate School in Lynchburg, Va. He has also served as a trustee at LifeWay Christian Resources and as president of the SBC Pastors’ Conference. A respected historian, Sutton authored the authoritative account of the conservative resurgence, The Baptist Reformation. He has published a resource for individuals seeking spiritual rededication entitled The Way Back Home, and his work, A Matter of Conviction: A History of Southern Baptist Engagement with the Culture, stands as both a historic description and centennial commemoration of the denomination’s interaction with American culture. His latest book is entitled, A Primer on Biblical Preaching. He and his wife, Fern, have two adult daughters.

Rodney Harrison serves as vice president for Institutional Effectiveness, as director of Doctoral Studies and as dean of Online and Distance Education at Midwestern Seminary.  He cames to MBTS following a fruitful ministry in church planting and mission service in California, the Dakotas and Minnesota. Harrison is the author of two books on church planting and has written material for LifeWay Christian Resources and the North American Mission Board. He holds a Doctor of Ministry in mission administration from Golden Gate Seminary and has done post-doctoral studies at Oxford University. Harrison and his wife, Julie, have three grown children: Joshua, Cassandra and Gabrielle.

Rustin Umstattd is the assistant professor of Theology at Midwestern Seminary. He earned his doctorate and a Master of Divinity from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He also holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Georgia Southern University and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Georgia Southwestern University. Umstattd comes to Midwestern having served 15-plus years in student ministry, with the last 10 being served at Matthew Road Baptist Church in Grand Prairie, Texas. His research interests include the theology of both the Trinity and the Holy Spirit.

Martin Pohlmann is president of the Baptist Theological Seminary in Johannesburg, South Africa, and a national executive member of the Baptist Convention. He has also served as president of the Baptist Convention and as a lecturer in systematic theology and homiletics. He is married to Wendy, a former school teacher, and has two grown children, Stephen and Angela, and a grandchild, Levi.