It’s been 15 years since the creation of Instagram, 10 years since Obergefell v. Hodges, five years since the COVID-19 pandemic, and five minutes since the last online firestorm. With changes emerging so quickly, it’s no wonder that so many of us feel like we are ministering on our heels; always reacting, never advancing. How can the PCA as a whole, but especially its rising generations, meet the needs of our day and the days to come? By looking forward together.
On October 16-18, we will gather in Littleton, Colorado, for the Looking Forward Together summit. The goal of this gathering is for millennial and Gen Z men and women in the PCA to discuss and proactively address four key areas of change.
Ministry Changes – The number of people entering vocational ministry continues to decline, and the replacement rate of those leaving the mission field is especially bleak. How can the PCA recruit, train, and sustain ministry leaders to labor for Christ over the long haul? Scott Cook, alongside panelists Zachary Groff, Mike Wenzler, Bethany Belue, and Megan Jung will discuss ways to prevent future leaders from burning out, even as they pour themselves out for the sake of Christ and his church.
Social Changes—Men and women are different. Their chief end is the same, and yet God created them male and female after his own image (Genesis 1:27). This foundational truth ought to have profound impacts on the way the church disciples the sexes. Stephen Spinnenweber and Marissa Bondurant – together with panelists Matt Adams, Joe Cristman, Courtney Denton, and Meaghan May – will consider how our differences as men and women need not divide us but unite us in our mission to glorify God and enjoy him forever.
Demographic Changes—Within two decades, ethnic minorities will become the majority in the U.S. This momentous change is not just demographic; it’s deeply missional. Join Charles Mcknight and panelists Marcus Nobles, Grant Taylor, and José Portillo as they discuss how emerging leaders in the PCA are uniquely positioned to shape how our church reaches and reflects the full kaleidoscope of the next generation.
Technological Changes—Social media has become today’s public square—where pastors livestream sermons to shut-ins, missionaries share updates across continents, and churches invite their neighbors with a click. But it is also where outrage spreads faster than truth, envy quietly erodes contentment, and discipleship is driven by algorithms. In this session, speaker Harrison Ford and panelists Leslie Janikowsky, Jake Meador, Brad Edwards, and Caleb Wait will consider both the promise and the peril of social media for the PCA and ask how our congregations and agencies can engage it without being deformed by it.
That’s what we will be doing, but why should you come? Or, if you are not a millennial or Gen Z-er yourself, why should you encourage your church’s young leaders to attend?
First, attendees will not be passive listeners; they will play an active and vital role during and after the summit.
In addition to hearing from speakers and panelists, attendees can share and benefit from each other’s experiences during table discussions. In keeping with the theme of the summit, the schedule will provide opportunities for attendees to spend time together, with offsite opportunities to fellowship built in as well. We hope that the relationships that are forged will be as enriching as the summit’s content.
Second, we want this summit to have “legs.” To that end, after the summit, attendees may (not “shall,” let the Presbyterian understand) join a working group that will focus on one of the four summit topics and consider new ways that the PCA can meet today’s pressing needs and tomorrow’s new challenges. As these working groups meet virtually over the course of the next year, we hope that seeds will be sown in each group that will prove fruitful in the years to come.
We’re grateful for the PCA agencies, seminaries, and mission agencies that are sponsoring this event.
Whether you feel invested already or have been looking for an opportunity to connect and collaborate with brothers and sisters in the PCA, we invite you to come. We are looking forward to working together for the sake of the gospel and the good of the PCA.
To register for the summit, click here.