From the beginning of the PCA, Christian Education and Publications (CEP) has focused on upholding the basic tenets of the denomination’s teaching. In fact, CEP coordinator Charles Dunahoo believes the core values of the denomination represent the very essence of Christian education. “I was one of the founders of the PCA; in fact I was the youngest,” Dunahoo said. “So from the very beginning it was a part of our key mission to be faithful to the Scriptures, true to the Reformed faith, and obedient to the Great Commission—that is Christian education.”

From training camp counselors at Ridge Haven, to leading women’s conferences, to publishing a variety of discipleship materials, CEP seeks to teach men, women, and children at every level of the PCA. “The importance [of CEP] is in understanding how to disciple with a Reformed worldview. We provide both the training and the materials needed to equip ministry leaders,” Dunahoo said. “From time to time we talk about what the PCA would look like if we weren’t around—it would look very different.”

This year, CEP launched a new website (http://equip.pcacep.org) to make its resources more available to the public. “The website is becoming more of the centerpiece of our ministry,” Dunahoo said. Key enhancements include a user-friendly online bookstore, the use of e-publications to further develop CEP’s ministry to youth leaders and women of the church, and book reviews written by staff.

Equipping Women for Discipleship

CEP has also seen significant growth in its women’s ministry. The 2010 Women’s Leadership Conference brought together 250 women from more than 30 states for ministry training and encouragement. This year the conference was wider in scope, expanding its training to all women who seek to grow as leaders, from small group Bible study leaders, to PCA staff women, to local women’s ministry leadership. “The conference is now filled with women who mirror local churches,” said Jane Patete, CEP’s women’s ministry coordinator. “It’s a wonderful intergenerational representation of seasons and circumstances, a wide variance of theological and ecclesiastical knowledge.”

Dunahoo affirms ministry to women as a vital aspect of CEP’s overarching mission of making kingdom disciples. “It’s discipleship training and mercy ministry,” Dunahoo said. “Our emphasis is integrating the women’s ministry into the overall ministry.”

CEP offers both training for women’s ministries and a wide variety of materials geared toward women. “We’ve been editing and updating a number of the women’s studies and built in a three-year discipleship program that can be used in churches,” Dunahoo said. Discipleship materials include topical studies on biblical womanhood such as Spiritual Mothering and Your Home—A Place of Grace, as well as a series of studies based on books of the Bible.

Utilizing Partnerships

One key aspect of CEP’s ministry involves partnerships with other PCA agencies. Each year CEP partners with MNA to host the Mercy Ministries Conference, with MNA focusing on the “doing” part of mercy ministry and CEP focusing on the training. This year CEP joined with MNA to produce The Gospel of the Kingdom, the 50 Days of Prayer devotional written by Mike Ross. The devotional, based on the Sermon on the Mount, was designed to guide believers through prayer for the 50 days leading up to General Assembly.
CEP also partners with Covenant College  to sponsor the Youth Excelling in Leadership (YXL) Conferences. YXL is a growing ministry for high school students who demonstrate leadership.

In its role as the publications arm of the PCA, CEP recently produced two adult Bible studies: Job: A Lesson in Comfort, written by Frances Poston Bennett, and a study on the Gospel of Mark, written by Charles Dunahoo.

To learn more about CEP, visit www.pca-cep.org.