The Antioch School and BILD will have a presence at the 2012 Verge and Exponential conferences, two national events related to church planting and missional communities.
The vortex of influence related to church planting has shifted considerably. No longer are denominational departments the main place where intentional church planting strategy is being pursued. Here are two of the emerging networks that are serving all types of denominational and independent church planters:
Verge is a network of churches, church planting movements, and resources related to “missional communities.” They emphasize the intentional and incarnational roles of a church as a community living out the gospel. Verge is holding the Verge Missional Community Conference in Austin, TX on February 28-March 2, 2012.
Exponential is an “aggregator” of what God is doing related to church planting. They try to find champions who are providing leadership in various channels and then position them to aggregate others who could benefit from development in those areas. Exponential is holding the Exponential Conference in Orlando, FL on April 23-26, 2012.
We are right in the midst of this vortex of influence and will have a presence at both of these conferences. In both events, we will have exhibits and be recruiting church planting apprentices. We even have a limited number of discounted registrations for the Exponential conference–email our office if you have interest in those registrations. Also, take note that we will have an After Hours session on “Church Planting Apprenticeships” during the Exponential conference.
There are three ways that church planters can take advantage of apprenticeships with us:
- Individuals who are called to church planting but don’t have a “home” to provide guidance and support can become part of an intensive apprenticeship program with the Ames-Des Moines CityChurch and earn certificates and degrees from the Antioch School.
- Others who are already active in church planting but need mentoring and further training can build apprenticeship programs right where they are through the Antioch School.
- Still others who are part of intentional efforts to reach key U.S. cities can take part in the Antioch Initiative’s Strategic City apprenticeships that includes Antioch School certificate and degree programs.
The apprenticeship concept is at the core of the use of BILD resources and Antioch School programs. We look forward to seeing how God works at these two upcoming events. It seems that we are on the “verge” of going “exponential” through apprenticeship.