Harbor, Pepperdine Bible Lectures

Elder Selection: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Jerry Morgan, Doyle Corder

We will review different elder selection issues and processes and offer some examples of good process than can be a blessing to your church and its leadership.

Take Courage! Fear Can't Keep Faith from Rising Up!

Sara Jackson, Emily Lemley

Sisters. Well-loved. But...life is still real with great griefs and true temptations. How do we take His courage when we feel overwhelmed and alone in the dark? Our stories and others' stories shine light on what God is doing to strengthen all of us right now.

Color Blind: 5 Ways To Begin Racial Reconciliation

Jana Unruh

A Midwestern, mostly white church prays to become 'Color Blind'. Learn from our beginner's successes, mistakes, and take away 5 practical ways your church can begin racial reconciliation. Come and be part of this critical conversation with engaged members, ministry and elder panelists from Overland Park Church of Christ in Kansas City.

The Golden Triangle of Growth: How Your Dreary Spirituality Derives From a Disregard of One of These Three

Chris Altrock

Life with God is described in Scripture as abundant and dynamic. Yet often we or our churches experience spirituality as dull and dreary. Dallas Willard discovered that the vibrant life intended for us comes through an emphasis on three things. Each is as valuable as gold, as vital as the side of a triangle. Explore this "golden triangle" and discover which of these three may be missing from your or your church's spiritual life.

Awake My Soul

Jacob Parnell, Kyle Sapp

Explore the relationship between human beings' capacity for appreciating music and the Holy Spirit. Equip yourself with tools that will enable you to communicate with other music-lovers the beauty, creativity, and majesty of God.

InterGenerate: How Churches are Becoming More Intentionally Intergenerational

Holly Allen 

This session will address challenges churches are facing as they bring the generations together and will describe three emerging intergenerational ministry practices.

Good Church. Bad Church. Black Church. White Church. (Part 1)

Fate Hagood

Real talk conversations about the "what is's" and "what ain'ts" of Blacks, Whites, Race, Unity, and whatever's of our "One" church. What's really going on? Don't be scared. We're all friends here.

Preaching to the Powers

Eric Gentry

Why would Wells Fargo rob customers? Why would prison guards abuse inmates? How could a Church do the unthinkable? The influence of the "principalities and powers" is evident all around us. Naming those powers, and preaching to them, is the ministry of the church (Eph 3). But how do we begin? Join us for a critical and constructive look at the powers in pop-culture, politics, and the church.

Surrendering to Hope, Part 1: Guidance for the Broken

K. Rex Butts, Christine Fox Parker

"God's Stories in Our Stories" and "Lost Sons, Finding Hope"

I Have Called You Back...Without a Bias (From Every Tribe and Language-Rev 5:9)

Eleni Melirrytos

Reaching the Next Generation: My Experience Leading a Church Filled with Millennials

Caleb Borchers

Caleb is the church planter for a new church in Providence, RI and the majority of the members are Millennials. He will share his experience in leading those in this age cohort which so many church leaders have found challenging. Come learn ways to connect with America's new largest generation.

Recovering the Lost Gospel (Part 1: A Salvation Bigger than Guilt Management)

Dan Bouchelle, Mark Hooper

As America becomes more diverse and Americans serve in more unreached countries, we are encountering self-imposed limitations on our ability to connect to people from a different worldview. How do you tell good news to people who experience their brokenness as in some form other than guilt? This class will enlarge our understanding of the Gospel to help us form a relevant message to the majority of people worldwide and in our cities who come from Honor-Shame cultures.

What is the Spirit Doing in Latin America? (World Christian Broadcasting's Passion for the People of Latin America)

Rex Morgan, Nick Cumming

Live Newsworthy with Norsworthy Podcast

Luke Norsworthy

Christians Make the Best Atheists, Part 1

Luke Norsworthy, Jonathan Storment

We don't have temples for the old Greek gods like Zeus, Aphrodite, or Hermes but we are still just as enticed into worshipping them today. We need to learn to be better atheists towards these gods.

Keynote (1 Corinthians 12-14)

Don McLaughlin

"The Pneuma-Form Church"

In the Power of the Spirit: The Holy Spirit in the Churches of Christ

Richard Beck, Mark Love

While Churches of Christ have not exactly been known for their emphasis on the Holy Spirit, Richard and Mark suggest now is the time to embrace a life made possible by the power of the Spirit. Come find out why.

Poured Out (Part 2: The Charismatic Spirit)

Leonard Allen

Membership in the one body of Christ meant charismatic membership (1 Cor 12:4-11, 27-30). The charismata or grace-gifts are richly varied and given to every member for the sake of building up the body. To be baptized into Christ through the Spirit means initiation into active, Spirit-gifted membership.

Ministry Insights from Elijah (Part 1: Confronting the Chaos)

Randy Roper 

In life and in ministry, we often feel overwhelmed by God's calling. The job seems too big, the opposition too strong, or the expectations too high for us to succeed. God called His prophet Elijah to stand amid the chaos of a changing world and point people to God. He calls us to do the same.

Crave: Tackling Teenage Desires in an Age of Authenticity

Jordan Coss, Corridan Coss

In this lecture, husband and wife student ministry duo, Jordan and Corridan Coss, will discuss some of the most significant cravings teenagers experience. Instead of focusing on the negative aspects of these desires, attention will be placed on their positive value in light of C.S. Lewis' argument from desire. In this light, their cravings actually drive them toward their creator as positive markers on the quest to the One who can truly satisfy them. It will be argued, based upon field tested strategies, that this is a successful approach to communicate the gospel to teenagers in our current context described by Charles Taylor as "an age of authenticity." The goal of this hour is to equip people to better spiritually engage with teenagers whose "attention to experience" serves as their compass to spiritual truth.

How to Lead Without Losing Your Soul

David Ayres

Contemplative leadership is desperately needed in the church. Yet, it seems that a life of contemplation is often directly at odds with strong, visionary leadership.What do detachment and submission have to do with vision-casting and goal-setting? Is it possible to be a gifted leader and a gifted pastor or are those categories mutually exclusive? Come join us and explore a way forward!

Listen to the Heartbeat: An Interpretation of Landon B. Saunders' Ministry Philosophy.

Ross Cochran 

Landon's ministry to those with little or no church experience has intrigued us. This session is an attempt to discern the philosophical commitments of Heartbeat.

The Baptism of Jesus

Brian Offutt

What could you accomplish in ministry if you knew that God was with you, that he has empowered you and that he loves you? This class will take a closer look at the baptism of Jesus and the steps that he took in preparation for ministry. The beautiful thing about this passage is realizing that what's true for Jesus at his baptism is also true for me and you at our baptism. I look forward to seeing you in class as we study this powerful passage together.

Ancient Words Come Alive, Part 1: How to Read the Bible Without Losing Your Faith

Wade Hodges 

How is it that the Bible can be both an invitation to faith for some and an obstacle to faith for others? This class will explore the importance of clarifying our assumptions about what the Bible is, how it works, and what we can legitimately expect from it when we read it.

How to Really Succeed in Business: Being Salt, Yeast and Light in the Workplace

Jeff Pierpont

How can you have a positive impact on your co-workers every day? By exploring what it means to be the aroma of Christ at work.