One Voice Conference

God's truth leads Christ's Church.

In a world of shifting standards, we stand firm on the unshakable

foundation of Scripture. We celebrate and affirm the inerrancy of God’s Word.

Join us as we discuss why it matters, what’s at stake,

and how to lead with bold, unwavering confidence.

In a world of shifting standards, we stand firm on the unshakable foundation of Scripture. We celebrate and affirm the inerrancy of God’s Word. Join us as we discuss why it matters, what’s at stake, and how to lead with bold, unwavering confidence.

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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 21

OPTIONAL PRE-CONFERENCE

8 - 9 am | Clause A Q&A

OFFICIAL START

10:00 am | Welcome & Worship

10:55 am | Session 1: Firm Foundations: Holding Fast to Biblical Inerrancy - Greg Strand

11:45 pm | Lunch + Business Meeting

1:15 pm | Session 2: Costly Compromise: The Perils of Abandoning Inerrancy – Eric Tully

2:15 pm | Break

2:30 pm | Session 3: Guarding The Gospel: Protecting The Truth From Drift – Eric Tully

3:15 pm | Break

4 pm | Session 4: Standing Strong: Trusting The Transformative Power of the Word of God – Bill Kynes

5:30 pm | Dinner on your own

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22

9 am | Breakout Session #1

10:15 am | Brunch & Worship

11:55 pm | Breakout Session #2

12:45 pm | Break

1 pm | Breakout Session #3

1:50 pm | Break

2 pm | Worship & Communion

2:30 pm | Conference Ends

Get practical in breakout tracks.

Breakout tracks are designed to engage your whole team.

Attend all three in your ministry niche or pick and

choose based on your needs and interests.

Breakout tracks are designed to engage your whole team. Attend all three in your ministry niche or pick and choose based on your needs and interests.

We’ve curated a wide range of breakout tracks to support and strengthen leaders in every corner of church life. This year, you can look forward to tracks on Women in Ministry, Pastoral Succession, Church Multiplication, NextGen, Kids & Family Ministry, Church Operations, Building Better Elder Teams, Theology, Preaching Old Testament Narratives, Worship & Production, and Communications.

Whether you’re a pastor, staff member, elder, ministry leader, or volunteer, this is your space to be equipped and encouraged for the work of the local church. We’ll be announcing specific sessions and speakers soon, so stay tuned—there’s more good stuff to come.

Children's Ministry Track

Screenwise: Navigating Digital Distractions in Children’s Ministry – Daryl Peters
Explore how digital media and screen time impact children’s spiritual, emotional, and cognitive development. This breakout will offer practical strategies for reducing digital distractions and fostering meaningful, tech-wise engagement. Learn how to create ministry spaces that emphasize real connection, biblical focus, and authentic worship in a tech-saturated world.

Nurturing Young Souls: Soul Care in Children’s Ministry – Josh Cervone
This session equips children’s ministry leaders to recognize and support the spiritual and emotional well-being of kids. Learn how to foster a Christ-centered environment where young hearts feel safe, seen, and spiritually nurtured. By prioritizing soul care, leaders will cultivate resilient, connected children who are deeply grounded in their faith.

Every Child Belongs: Building an Inclusive Special Needs Ministry – Donna Patrick
Discover practical ways to create an inclusive ministry where every child experiences the love of Christ and the joy of belonging. This class will equip your team to meet the unique needs of children with disabilities through adaptive strategies and intentional care, making your church a safe, welcoming space for families impacted by special needs.

Equipping Elders for Healthy Churches

What Makes a Really Good Elder? - Greg Scharf
What qualities truly mark a faithful elder? In this session, you’ll examine biblical foundations and practical wisdom for identifying the character, heart, and posture of effective spiritual leaders. Whether you’re serving as an elder now or raising up the next generation, you’ll leave with clarity on what makes an elder thrive in both calling and character.

Identifying Prospective Elders - Greg Scharf
Every healthy church needs a pipeline of leaders. This breakout will help you recognize, evaluate, and encourage men who may be called to serve as elders. With biblical guidance and practical insights, you’ll learn how to discern spiritual maturity, shepherding potential, and ministry readiness in those you are discipling.

Equipping and Deploying Qualified Elders - Greg Scharf
Once elders are identified, how do you prepare them to serve well? This session explores how to equip leaders with the skills, habits, and spiritual depth they need to shepherd God’s people. You’ll also consider best practices for deploying elders into meaningful service that strengthens the church for long-term health.

Worship: Leading with Freedom

Leading with Freedom of Function – Ryan Bailey
Worship ministry doesn’t come with a one-size-fits-all blueprint. In this session, Ryan Bailey shares lessons learned from embracing his strengths and leading out of his unique context. You’ll be encouraged to let go of comparison and lean into the freedom of leading as yourself—not as someone else’s expectations.

Leading with Freedom of Form – Janine Judd
Too often, worship leaders walk away from conferences feeling like they need to adopt someone else’s style. This session offers a different path—freedom to find joy in the form that fits your community best. Drawing from her own journey, Jeanine invites you to release unnecessary pressure and discover the fruit that comes from serving faithfully in your own context.

Leading with Freedom in Worship – Norby Colon
Norby Colon brings a perspective shaped by his passion for songwriting and the unique team he leads. In this session, you’ll explore how freedom in worship doesn’t mean fitting an industry mold but embracing what God is doing through your gifts and your community. You’ll leave reminded that you don’t have to do it all—you just have to lead authentically where you are.

Next Gen - Tools and Rhythms for Healthy Leadership

Next Gen ministry can be both deeply rewarding and uniquely challenging. This three-part coaching track is designed to give leaders space to reflect, recharge, and reset their approach to ministry. Through guided conversations and practical insights, David Boerema will help you develop tools and rhythms that strengthen your soul, shape your leadership, and sustain you for the long haul.

Church Operations

Team Culture: Building Thriving Teams for the Long Haul – Joel Lingenfelter & Danielle Wittmaier
Healthy teams don’t just happen—they’re built through intentional culture. This session unpacks practical ways to create an environment where staff and volunteers feel valued, grow, and stay engaged long term. Learn how to build trust, celebrate wins, navigate conflict, and cultivate a culture people want to be part of for the long haul.

Church Operations Round Table – Joel Lingenfelter & Tim Ryan
From spreadsheets to Slack, the tools we use can either complicate ministry or help it thrive. This round table explores how to leverage technology—AI, OneDrive, Office 365, Google Docs, Teams, Slack, Discord, and more—for smoother operations and greater mission impact. Bring your questions and ideas for a collaborative, practical conversation that will spark fresh strategies for your church.

Theology Refresher

A three-part journey on Biblical Transformation, Spiritual Formation, and the Means of Grace led by Greg Strand. We’ll explore how we grow into the likeness of the Son, what hinders growth, and how God uses ordinary means to form us—while clarifying what “spiritual formation” is (its history and current interest) and assessing recent approaches with their strengths and weaknesses. The sessions build on one another; attending all three provides the fullest picture.

Women in Ministry

Ages and Stages: Walking with Women Through Life’s Seasons – Panel Discussion
Women experience unique joys, challenges, and spiritual needs at every stage of life. This session equips leaders to walk alongside women from young adulthood to later years with practical insights and strategies tailored to each season.

Turn Conflict into Connection: Mastering Difficult Conversations – Cindy Parker
Learn Jefferson Fisher’s simple, proven method for handling tough conversations with calm and confidence. Through practical tools and real-life examples, you’ll discover how to stay composed, set clear boundaries, and build genuine connection—transforming tense moments into opportunities for growth and understanding.

Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Evaluates the Gospels – Cindy Parker
Can we trust the Gospels? Drawing on his investigative background, Detective J. Warner Wallace tested the reliability of Scripture with the same rigor he applied to cold cases. In this session, you’ll explore how historical evidence and eyewitness accounts point to the truth of Christianity, equipping you to answer common objections with clarity and confidence.

Church Communications

Brand Identity: Developing & Maintaining a Clear Image, Voice, and Quality for Your Church – Michal Whitehead
A strong brand identity helps your church communicate with clarity and consistency. In this breakout, you’ll learn how to define and maintain your church’s image, voice, and visual style so that everything from your website to your bulletin reflects who you are and what you value.

Social Media: Effective Strategies for Content Creation and Engagement – Sarah Soloman
Social media can feel overwhelming, but it’s one of the most powerful tools for ministry connection today. This session will give you practical strategies for creating engaging content, building authentic community, and using social platforms to extend your church’s reach without burning out your team.

Website Development: 10 Essentials of an Engaging Website – Michal Whitehead & Sarah Soloman
Your website is often the first impression people have of your church. This breakout covers the 10 essentials every church website needs—from clear navigation to compelling content—so visitors can quickly find what they’re looking for and take their next step toward connection.

Next Level Leadership

Leading through Chronic Stress and Cancel Culture – Joe Henseler
Ministry leaders today face relentless pressure—criticism online, cultural pushback, and the personal weight of shepherding people. This session equips you to lead with resilience in the face of chronic stress and cancel culture. Learn how to guard your heart, stay grounded in your calling, and lead with courage even when the spotlight feels harsh.

Strategic Planning for All Leaders Who Hate Strategic Planning – Jeff Martin
Most ministry leaders know planning matters—but too often it feels corporate, overwhelming, or ineffective. This session offers a different way forward. You’ll learn a simple, 5-phase model to rally your church around clear vision and tangible next steps—without burning out or building a 50-page binder no one uses. This is right-sized strategic planning that keeps both your mission and your soul intact.

Developing Lay Leaders – Matt Saxinger
Churches grow stronger when everyday people step into leadership. This breakout will help you see the potential in those around you and learn how to invite, encourage, and invest in them. You’ll walk away with fresh vision for raising up lay leaders and practical ideas for sharing ministry in a way that multiplies impact and prevents burnout.

Multiplication

Multiplication as Discipleship: A Pathway for Every Church – Mike Sciara
Multiplication isn’t an extra burden for pastors—it’s the natural overflow of discipleship. This session will introduce a simple framework of connecting, partnering, and sending that any church can apply, regardless of size or stage. Drawing from Scripture, practical district examples, and insights from the ReachNetwork, you’ll see how multiplication becomes most powerful when it’s woven into the discipleship pathway of the local church.

Leading Your Church Through Change – Scott Sterner
Every church faces a gap between where it is and where it hopes to be. This session explores how to guide your congregation through meaningful and lasting change by aligning missional priorities with practical steps forward. Rooted in Scripture and informed by principles of innovation and organizational leadership, you’ll learn intentional ways to lead with clarity, courage, and care.

All People

Engaging Hispanic Culture – Panel (Moderator: Jose Torres)
How can churches better engage Spanish-speaking communities and foster unity in diverse congregations? This panel will explore the richness and diversity of Hispanic culture, highlight recent growth trends in the church, and offer insights to strengthen fellowship and ministry impact. Panelists include Jeffey Tintle (Faith Church, Allentown, PA) and Pastor Pablo & Leyla Martinez (Hope Bible Church EFCA / Hope Iglesia Bíblica EFCA, Hummelstown, PA).

Disability and Special Needs Ministry – Jim Baker
Accessibility and inclusion are not afterthoughts—they’re part of gospel-shaped ministry. This workshop introduces Universal Design principles and how they can be applied in church planting and ministry settings to reduce barriers and create welcoming environments for individuals and families impacted by disability. Facilitated by Jim Baker, a member of the EFCA Disability/Special Needs Ministry Team and ReachGlobal International Specialist (Ukraine Response Team).

Stand Alone

Preaching Old Testament Narratives – Eric J. Tully
Old Testament narratives are rich with history, theology, and timeless truth—but preaching them with clarity and relevance takes skill. In this session, Dr. Eric Tully, professor of Old Testament and expert in Hebrew linguistics and prophetic literature, will guide you in understanding how these texts work and how to communicate them faithfully. With insights drawn from his research and publications, Dr. Tully will help you move from exegesis to sermon with confidence, so your preaching connects the ancient stories of God’s people to the lives of today’s church.

Pastoral Succession Planning – David Gerhet (IPM) & Montvale EFCA Leadership Team
What happens when a church loses its pastor—or when a pastor senses it’s time to step aside? Both moments can feel overwhelming, but they’re also opportunities for wise leadership and intentional planning. In this breakout, the leadership team of Montvale EFCA will share their real-life story of navigating pastoral succession. You’ll gain practical guidance for elders and church boards on how to lead well in transition, as well as insights for pastors on how to prepare their congregation for a healthy handoff.

In a culture increasingly shaped by relativism, the church must stand firm on the authority of God’s Word. This year’s plenary sessions will challenge and encourage us to uphold the truth of Scripture—not just in theory, but in faithful practice.

Our speakers will explore the theological, historical, and pastoral implications of biblical inerrancy. From understanding what inerrancy is and why it matters, to recognizing the dangers of compromise and the transforming power of God’s Word, each session is designed to strengthen your confidence in Scripture and your calling to lead.

Meet our plenary speakers below and get ready for sessions grounded in truth and filled with encouragement.

Greg Strand

Executive Director of Theology and Credentialing for EFCA

Eric Tully

Director of the PhD (Theological Studies), Professor of Old Testament and Semitic Languages for TEDS

Bill Kynes

Interim Director of Regional Chapters and a Council member for The Gospel Coalition

CALLING ALL AUTHORS

We’re excited to showcase books written by leaders, pastors, and ministry partners from within our district. If you’ve published a book and would like it considered for the conference book table, submit it for review below.

SUBMIT YOUR BOOK