Are you plugging in and still shorting out?

DUE TO AN INADEQUATE NUMBER OF REGISTRATIONS THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED UNTIL FALL!

Churches using new technology and social networking are getting the upper hand on attracting members. Workshop speakers will help congregations embrace technology without blowing up the church! Workshop speakers include:

Sunday morning worship leader is Keith Robinson, founder and director of The Emerge Experience, who brings an inspirational message of hope and love to thousands of students in the Des Moines area in Iowa. Keith is also the student community director at Berean Assembly of God of Pleasant Hill, Iowa, and coordinates their Wednesday night gathering of hundreds of students at Berean’s Student Community, emergexperience.com.

Des Moines Presbytery’s director of communications Kim Coulter and friends will lead and expert panel discussion on Doing More With Less. Experts include: the Rev. Jim Bonewald of Knox Presbyterian Church, Cedar Rapids; Jan Davison of Westminster Presbyterian Church, Des Moines; Danette Griffith of Central Presbyterian Church, Des Moines; and the Rev. Claude Jones of the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary in Dubuque.

Meredith Kemp-Pappan is from the Office of Evangelism and Church Growth at the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in Louisville, Kentucky. A candidate for ordained ministry, she holds degrees from West Texas A&M University and Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. Currently, she is pursuing a master’s in spirituality from Bellarmine University. Meredith’s devotionals are featured on AllWomen.ning.com, a social media Web site sponsored by the Office of Racial Ethnic and Women’s Ministries.

The Rev. Susan Phillips, tries to be a disciple and pastors First Presbyterian Church in Shawano, Wisconsin, seeking theology with passion, community with discernment and love with justice. Her life as a mama, spouse, servant, friend, is filled with art and artists and inter/faith creativity. In the midst of dramatic and global changes in society, the churches’ cultures are changing. If you are an early adopter of new faithful expressions in the 21st century or if you are suspicious of all these changes, join The Emerging Church Conversation and see what God is doing in our midst.

Andrew Yeager-Buckley, electronic marketing associate with the Presbyterian Publishing Corporation of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in Louisville, Kentucky, is the new Web site manager for the development of electronic and viral marketing strategies for resources such as TheThoughtfulChristian.com and ThePresbyterianLeader.com. Andrew is also a youth ministry volunteer and will speak on The OCC: Exploring the new Online Christian Community and Social Networking Possibilities.

President and CEO Kent Zimmerman is from The Wallace Centers of Iowa located in Des Moines. For more than 40 years, Kent has brought his creative marketing expertise to numerous public, private, and non-profit organizations. His session, Thinking Outside the Box, highlights the process and provides the tools that will enable congregations to comfortably examine their future and begin moving in a new direction.

Register now online for Plugging In Without Shorting Out, Friday, April 16, through Sunday, April 18, at the Downtown Marriot, 700 Grand Ave. in Des Moines. Cost is $175. Small and rural church members are encouraged to attend!

The conference is sponsored by the Transformation Team of the Presbytery of Des Moines, Iowa. Conference brochure, 3-day schedule and registration form are now available.