Last week, over 75 GCI leaders joined with about 5,000 others at the Exponential Conference in Orlando, Florida. In addition, about 45,000 church leaders from 93 countries watched the conference on live video streamed over the internet. Those in Orlando from GCI included church planting teams, ministry developers, regional and district pastors and pastoral leaders from established churches. Several GCI leaders (pictured below) traveled to Orlando on behalf of GCI churches in the Caribbean, Latin and South America.
Exponential has grown to be the largest gathering of church planters in North America (and possibly on earth). Its theme this year was Discipleshift, emphasizing the importance of recapturing the church’s Great Commission focus on multiplying mature disciples of Jesus who then disciple others.
The conference included day-long pre-conference seminars addressing topics related to church planting and transformation. The main conference had five plenary sessions and five workshop tracks, with dozens of selections in each track, all focused on one of the conference’s primary themes related to shifting to a more intentional focus on disciplemaking.
Here are comments from several GCI participants:
This has been a wonderful, difference-making experience. It has helped me visualize what and how we can help our pastor make disciples.
WOW…. such a new experience and wonderful spiritual feeling to take home and share.
Such a worthwhile conference… so many resources to glean from!
Praise God for such information and the dedication shown for reaching people to become disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ.
In 2014, the Exponential Conference is titled, Seek and Save, Rethinking Evangelism. It will be held in Orlando on April 28-May 1. For further information, go to www.exponential.org.
A “digital access pass” to most of the Exponential 13 plenary sessions and workshops is available for $69 at www.exponential.org/extend/. Also, various e-books from Exponential speakers are available for free download at https://www.exponential.org/
