E2 Conferences to Return in 2022

The Missouri District’s Encourage and Equip (E2) Conferences are held every other year at five locations throughout the district. The last conference was held on March 7, 2020 in Springfield, just as the world was about to change. A lot has happened since then. From late January through the end of March, we will once again hold these conferences as support for congregation leaders and volunteers.

This year’s conferences will certainly address the backdrop of how congregations have been affected by the global pandemic on both a short-term and long-term basis. This year’s topics will include topics that are both regular areas of interest (e.g. community engagement, teaching faith in the home) and timely responses to our congregation’s work during the pandemic (e.g. the relationship of the church and technology, and ministry during anxious times). Missouri District staff and leaders from across Missouri will serve as conference presenters.

The conferences are held on Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon. The dates and locations of the conferences are:

Kansas City (St. Matthew – Lee’s Summit) – January 22, 2022
Southeast Missouri (Saxony Lutheran High School, Jackson) – January 29, 2022
St. Louis (Concordia – Kirkwood) – February 5, 2022
Central Missouri (Calvary Lutheran High School, Jefferson City) – March 5, 2022
Springfield (Faith – Springfield) – March 12, 2022

The conferences are designed for church leaders (lay leaders, as well as church staff) to be able to attend and find topics of interest to them and of benefit to the congregation. What congregations that have participated in the past have found most helpful is the conversation that attendees have on the way home or over lunch, to discuss what was helpful for their congregation to consider for strengthening their work and life together. There is no cost to attend the conference, but we ask that you register so that we can have enough materials for everyone. For the schedule, breakout sectional information, and the registration link, go to mo.lcms.org/e2-conference-equip-encourage . The link also includes a short video of testimonials from past participants at previous conferences that would be great to share with church leaders.

We hope that your congregation will attend one of these conferences in early 2022.