The Eastern PA Annual Conference, scheduled for May 21-23 at the Wildwoods Convention Center in New Jersey, will offer small-group gathering opportunities, known as Focus Groups, during three mealtime break periods. Any EPA Conference committee or organization may host a …
Youth Leaders Day ignites shared learning, support for youth ministries
Post-pandemic youth ministry is hard. So hard, in fact, that the leadership of EPA&GNJ Next Gen Ministries recognized the folly of going about it alone. The United Methodist Church of West Chester in EPA became a hub of inspiration on …
Pastor to lead monthly spiritual retreats for clergy in 2024
The Eastern PA Conference Cabinet and Leadership Development Office sponsored three, one-day spiritual renewal retreats in 2023 to offer needed respite to weary pastors. They were so well-received that the supportive mental and spiritual health initiative will now become a …
Camps to welcome EPA&GNJ youth to Confirmation Retreats in April
This spring two Eastern PA Conference Camp & Retreat Centers are eager to welcome youth from across EPA and the Greater New Jersey Conference to their 2024 Confirmation Retreats in April, where they can enjoy the beauty and diversity of …
At EPA camps ‘tis the season for discovering faith, beauty and much more
“How many lessons of faith and beauty we should lose,” wrote Thomas Wentworth Higginson in 1861, “if there were no winter in our year!” Our three year-round Camp and Retreat Centers are getting a head start on the big chill, …
Leadership Academy Preaching Institute hires director, coordinator
The EPA&GNJ Leadership Academy’s new Lilly Endowment-funded Preaching Institute (LAPI) hired a new director and coordinator January 1. The Rev. Darryl Stephens, who chairs the Order of Deacons in the Eastern PA Conference and teaches at Lancaster Theological Seminary, will serve as director. …
EPA&GNJ members “Journey with Paul” in Greece
Evoking the season and spirit of Epiphany, which signifies the revelation of Christ to the world, 23 members of the Eastern PA and Greater New Jersey conferences began 2024 in Greece on a revealing “Journey with Paul.” Since January 4 …
Leadership Academy uses Teachable online courses to train church leaders
EPA&GNJ’s Leadership Academy has launched its first online courses for training church leaders, using Teachable, one of the nation’s top online learning management systems. The multimedia, fully accessible digital platform enables creation and hosting of a variety of instructor-led courses …
IGNITE’s 2 Youth Leader Days to empower youth ministry
Join fellow youth ministry leaders for a day of enrichment, networking, and skill-building at the IGNITE Youth Leaders Day. EPA&GNJ will fan the flame of its IGNITE creative youth ministries with two upcoming events designed to empower youth leaders and …
You are what you read
Those who know me know that I love to read. I may not always remember books in detail, but I absorb them. They become a part of me. As a pastor, I move a lot. During one of my moves …