Small churches are wonderful precisely the way they are, yet there often remains a frustrating belief that, for these churches to be what God wants, they must become larger. Certainly, growth would be nice, but it is God who makes things grow (1 Corinthians 3:7). Let us remove this pressure and simply be the church, regardless of size.

Hosted by Shawn Johnson, this pathway took place in ACU’s Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building on Tuesday, September 17, 2019.

Sessions

The Gifts of the Small Church: Paying Attention to the Local in Ministry (Jason Byassee)

Small churches often struggle with what seems an inevitable decline in finances, numbers, young people, and hope. Yet ministry has always been local, even when lots of those small groups collect into larger ecclesial bodies. This session reflects on a God who is always pouring himself out in churches that have no choice but to think “small.”

The Less-Traveled Path to Christ: Families, Autism, and the Church Today (Jennifer Allen)

Autism, depression, anxiety, ADHD, and developmental delays often keep kids (and parents) away from church. Allen shares her family’s journey of having a child diagnosed with autism and how the less traveled path to Jesus, though oftentimes rocky, offers beautiful vistas that neurotypicals seldom witness.

We’re All in This Together: Partnering with Your Community for Ministry (Kent Jobe)

Looking for some practical ways to partner with your community for maximum kingdom impact without sacrificing truth? This session provides proven methods used to build bridges using the resources already present in your community.

Can Anything Good Come From Nazareth? Re-imagining Small Churches as Fresh Expressions of the Kingdom (Austin Wright)

God calls the church to be faithful and fruitful, yet churches mistakenly measure success numerically. This session attempts to re-define faithful and fruitful ministry by imagining small churches as fresh expressions of the kingdom.

A Church Which Relates to Culture: The Hurdle of Discovering a Fitting Spirituality (J. Omar Palafox)

Spirituality is a community’s mosaic of stories through various contexts. Learn how the church can gain perspective when it comes to discovering a fitting spirituality in culture, without trivializing faith.

Speakers

JENNIFER ALLEN

After an extensive career in broadcasting, Jennifer Allen (ACU graduate 1985) searched for answers when her oldest son hit the kinder years with great difficulty. Upon learning he had autism, she left her career to better understand the diagnosis and care for her child. The lack of information encouraged Jennifer to elicit a team of autism experts to provide original, daily content for anyone seeking to live their best under the autism/Asperger’s diagnosis. Now a 501c3 non-profit, Aspergers101 has grown exponentially under the guidance of its CEO/Founder, with such programs as the televised documentary “Coping to Excelling”; securing Texas legislative laws that benefit those on the spectrum, such as the “Driving with Autism” initiative; leading numerous autism/Asperger conferences, state-wide training, and live-streaming workshops; and providing daily content on Aspergers101.org. Jennifer’s awards include the ACU Gutenberg Award, SABJ Small Nonprofit of the Year Award, United Way for Health and Wellness Volunteer of the Year Award and the ACU Distinguished Alumni Citation. Jennifer and Herb have been married 30 years and are so very proud of both their sons, Samuel and Charlie.

JASON BYASSEE

Jason Byassee is the inaugural holder of the Butler Chair in Homiletics and Biblical Hermeneutics at Vancouver School of Theology, where he teaches preaching, Bible, leadership, church history, and writing. He studied at Davidson College and Duke University, where he earned a Ph.D. in systematic theology. He is a contributing editor to Christian Century magazine and was previously an executive director of leadership education at Duke Divinity School. He has served as a research fellow in the New Media Project at Union Theological Seminary in New York. His work has appeared in Christianity Today, Theology Today, Books & Culture, Sojourners, United Methodist Reporter, and First Things. He has served on boards for the Journal of Scriptural Reasoning, the School for Conversion, and The Other Journal. Jason writes on such diverse topics as theology, church history, politics, liturgy, popular culture, and spiritual practices. His primary vocation is to reinvigorate today’s church with the best of ancient and contemporary wisdom for creatively faithful living. He is the author or co-editor of 12 books, including Mentoring for Ministry: The Grace of Growing Pastors (Cascade, 2017) and Trinity: The God We Don't Know (Abingdon, 2015). He is married to Jaylynn Warren Byassee, who serves on the pastoral staff of First Baptist Church in Vancouver, British Columbia, and together they have three boys, ages 14, 13, and 10.

KENT JOBE

Kent Jobe is originally from Early, Texas, and is a 1996 graduate of Harding University. He received his master’s degree in ministry from Southern Christian (now Amridge) University in Montgomery, Alabama, and is currently pursuing his Doctor of Ministry degree through the Harding School of Theology in Memphis. Since June 2001, Kent has served the College Avenue church of Christ in El Dorado, Arkansas—first as the youth and family minister, then as the discipleship minister, and now as the senior/preaching minister. Kent and his wife Cara have three children: Derek, Austin, and Brylee.

SHAWN D. JOHNSON

Shawn D. Johnson is the minister at the Cisco Church of Christ and the campground director at Lake Cisco Christian Camp. In his library there is a copy of the 1922-1923 Abilene Christian College Lectureship Book that was passed down to him from his grandfather. He is the voice of the Cisco Loboes football games. He and his wife Robyn have three children: Alyssa, Zack (married to Kali), and Heather.

J. OMAR PALAFOX

J. Omar Palafox is a Mexican missionary from Guadalajara. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Bible and a master’s in ministry from Lubbock Christian University, and a Master of Divinity from Abilene Christian University. Today he is a Ph.D. candidate in intercultural studies at Fuller Theological Seminary in California. In his experience, he has been a mentor, teacher, coach, and disciple maker in Latin America and the United States. His ministry is the expansion of ASHREI, a resource network for spiritual formation, while he teaches in Lubbock high school as a world languages professor ministering at the Colgate Bilingual Church of Christ. He has been married to his wife Tana for over 20 years, and together they have two children, Emma and Maicah. He is a Hulk and soccer fan.

AUSTIN WRIGHT

Austin Wright is the pulpit minister at the Nocona Church of Christ in Nocona, Texas. Austin earned his B.A. and M.A. degrees in Christian ministry at Abilene Christian University. Currently, Austin is pursuing his D.Min. at Fuller University. Austin’s leadership focuses on re-imagining how the church can partner with God reconciling the world by rooting itself in its local geography and context.