Small-town churches can’t escape the genuine and painful problems that face rural North America.

At the same time, many Jesus’ followers across rural regions are uncovering exciting possibilities as they explore creative and practical approaches to loving their neighbors.

Rural Renewal Summit is a two-day digital event that will introduce you to other ministry leaders serving in small-town and rural contexts to provide examples and inspiration for being the Church and addressing the needs unique to your community.

Small towns were once the core of North America, and churches literally stood in their center.

Decades of population and economic shifts, combined with practical challenges like crumbling infrastructure and a lack of healthcare, have taken their toll. Rural regions, and the churches that bind them, now find themselves in unfamiliar territory.

The aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic has brought new complexities, particularly in areas where remote workers, seeking more affordable rural settings, have moved in. Unfamiliar with and often uninvested in these communities, they bring new opportunities and new challenges.

While so much has changed, the need for local bodies of Christ is as important as it ever has been. For centuries, churches have been at the forefront of healthcare, education and social services. Christian congregations are known for being economic engines and important networks for their broader communities. But perhaps most importantly, the Church is called to provide a sense of belonging and community for the marginalized and dispossessed.

But if rural North America has changed, what does it look like for the rural church to experience renewal? It will begin with rediscovering the mission at the heart of the Gospel, where God sends Jesus to minister to the small towns of Galilee and Jesus sends his church to the whole world. It will require remembering that Jesus and the early church fed the hungry, healed the sick, and established new families unlike anything in the broader empire. It will be driven by visionary pastors and lay-leaders who take risks and try new approaches to reach those who have no church home.

At the Rural Renewal Summit, you will:

• Meet other small-town church leaders who understand the struggles you are facing
• Hear stories from real-life practitioners who are forming new and different expressions of church that uniquely connect with their rural settings
• Explore practical approaches to church leadership and discipleship developed by fellow rural ministry leaders

Small-town North America has changed and will keep changing. The Rural Renewal Summit will give you new hope for what God can do in your town, your church and in the lives of the neighbors you love.

Details:

Friday

• 7:30-8:30pm ET: Session 1
• 8:30-9:30pm ET: Session 2

Saturday

• 10-11:30am ET: Session 3
• 11:30am-12:30pm ET: Breakout Session
• 12:30-1:30pm ET: Lunch
• 1:30-2:30pm ET: Breakout Session
• 2:30-4pm ET: Session 4