2025 District Leadership Conference

Personal Calling: A Disciplemaking Accelerant

What were you made for? Most Christians know what they have been saved from but not what they have been saved for. They are aware of the general call to love God supremely and others sacrificially but the idea of personally calling seems like something set aside for a few “super-Christians.” A key to fueling multiplication of disciples to the third and fourth generation is found in helping people discover the depth of their unique purpose and the scope of their gospel influence. In this workshop you will:

• Explore how personal calling fuels a disciple-multiplying culture
• Identify keys to helping people discern their personal calling
• Take a few simple personal calling tools for a test drive

Presenter Bio: Shane Stacey is the Co-Founder of Clarity House, a training and consulting organization that equips church teams across the country to lead with a shared vision fueled by disciplemaking clarity. For the past 28 years, Shane has served in and alongside local churches as a pastor, coach, and consultant, including a decade on the Evangelical Free Church of America (EFCA) national team, helping local and regional leaders build disciplemaking cultures rooted in a way of life in Christ.

Before launching Clarity House, Shane served as the Executive Director of Denominee, where he helped over 40 denominational and network teams lead with greater synergy, bringing increased value to the churches they serve.

Shane is currently a non-vocational leader at River City Church in Minneapolis, MN, where he lives with his wife, Heather. Together, they have three young adult children: Isaac, Gavin, and Ruth.

“Your Word Is Truth” Vs. Truthiness, Post-truth, Misinformation, Disinformation, Fake News, and Conspiracy Theories (8:30am only)

We live in a day marked by a crisis of truth and a crisis of trust, a crisis of content and a crisis of character. This is not only reflected in society, but it is also manifested by Christians and in the Church. Our task is to preach and teach the truth of the Scriptures. Part of that also consists of debunking and refuting lies. We will not live by lies, nor will we allow lies to be perpetuated without addressing them. In this session, we will address the significance of truth, as spoken and lived, contrast it with the various worldly alternatives to truth, and address how we love God and how we love others at this moment in this cultural context by speaking the truth, living/modelling the truth, and encouraging one another to live by truth.       

EFCA Doctrinal Survey: Results, Assessments, and Comments (10:15am only)

Every five years the EFCA conducts a doctrinal survey of all senior/lead pastors (not all are credentialed) and all credentialed in the EFCA (not all are ministering in the EFCA). We have now conducted this survey three times, with the last one completed a short time ago. Results of our doctrinal survey (posted October 2024) do not carry the same weight as the Bible, as God’s Word is the absolute and final authority, sola Scriptura. Biblical truth is not determined by a majority perspective. But, doctrinal surveys can be helpful as a data point regarding the beliefs of survey respondents. In this session, we will consider the results, assessments, and comments of the doctrinal survey, what we can learn about the doctrinal beliefs of the EFCA through the survey, and how you, and the church where you serve, reflect the survey respondents.

Presenter Bio: Greg Strand has two Masters’ degrees and a Doctor of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS). He serves as Executive Director of Theology and Credentialing for the EFCA at the national office in Minneapolis, MN, a role in which he has served for over twenty years. Greg provides oversight to the Board of Ministerial Standing (BOMS), serves as chair of both the Spiritual Heritage Committee (SHC) and the Theology and Missiology Advisory Council (TMAC), plans the Annual Theology Conference, and helps pastors, leaders and churches think through issues biblically, theologically, historically, and pastorally. He also serves as adjunct professor of Pastoral Theology at TEDS. Greg is husband to Karen, father to three, father-in-law to three, and grandfather of eight. Greg is a member at Northfield EFC in Northfield, MN, and he likes to run, bike, hike, and camp.

The Value of Special Needs Ministry Within the Church & What It Can Look Like 

In this workshop, we will…

• See why it’s important to reach those in the community who live with special needs
• Talk about why the body of Christ needs those with special needs
• Examine our attitudes towards those living with special needs
• Discuss how equality within the body of Christ can be upheld 

Presenter Bio: Naomi Norris serves on the EFCA Disability and Special Needs Ministry team and is a spokesperson for the value of special needs’ ministries within the Church. Having raised multiple children with special needs alongside her husband, Rob, she has real, everyday life experience in ministering to people with special needs.

Having built their own real estate investment business over the last 30 years, Naomi and Rob, a graduate of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (TEDS), are now semi-retired and live in Newport, NC, with their 24-year-old son, Josh, who is mentally challenged and cannot live independently, and their 7-year-old son, Joel, whom they adopted from relatives who live with drug addiction. 

Rooted in Love: Building Healthier Marriages for Stronger Churches

A thriving church is built on the foundation of strong, Christ-centered marriages—especially among its leaders. In this session, we’ll explore practical, biblical strategies to strengthen your own marriage while setting a powerful example for your congregation. Discover key principles for cultivating a God-honoring relationship, equipping couples in your church, and fostering a culture where marriages flourish. Through biblical insights, real-life applications, and practical ministry tools, you’ll leave encouraged, empowered, and ready to invest in marriages that strengthen the very heart of your church.

Presenters’ Bio: Living the “sweet life” in Sugar Land, Texas, Eric and Jenny Fridge are parents of four children—two married and two in college—and proud grandparents after 30+ years of marriage. They love spending time with their growing family and enjoying the outdoors year-round, especially summers at the lake. The Fridges are passionate advocates for family, missions, adoption, and foster care, encouraging couples to embrace life’s greatest adventures.

After more than twenty years in local church ministry, Eric now serves as Executive Director of Pathways for Little Feet, a national nonprofit supporting adoption and foster families. Eric also serves on the EFCA TX-OK District Board of Directors and is the Elder Board Chairman at their church, Cornerstone Community Bible Church (EFCA) in Rosenberg, TX. Jenny, a dietitian and former homeschool mom and teacher, now works as a Community Development Representative at The Sanctuary Foster Care Services, dedicating herself to empowering families in the challenging world of foster care.

Beyond the Walls: Creating a Real Outreach Plan for Your Church

Reaching people outside the church can feel overwhelming—where do you start, and what actual needs exist? We’ll explore the different types of brokenness that exist in various types of communities. We’ll talk about how to connect with these hurting and, sometimes, vulnerable populations. You’ll learn different evangelism approaches for different types of people, and by the end of the workshop, you’ll have a high-level plan to reach a segment of your community. Whether your church is just getting started with outreach, or looking to refresh your community engagement, this is the workshop for you!

Presenter Bio: Pastor Jaron Jones is the Lead Pastor of Shine Bible Fellowship in Houston, TX, which he planted in 2016. He and Shine are passionate about pursuing deeper relationship with Jesus through practical and relevant biblical teaching, authentic relationships with others and “being known OUTSIDE the four walls of the building” by serving the vulnerable in their local context. The end goal is to shine brightly to radically transform families, the community, city and beyond!

As a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary and with more than 18 years of ministry experience, Pastor Jaron currently serves on the EFCA TX-OK District Board, is a former resident of the Houston Church Planting Network (HCPN) and served one year as a chaplain resident at the Texas Medical Center. Born and raised in St. Louis, MO, Jaron is the (self-proclaimed) biggest Cardinal baseball fan in Houston, and along with his beautiful wife of 18 years, Eboni, Jaron has the joy of parenting their three children: Chloe, Kendal and Kyler.

Pathways to a Healthy Small Groups Ministry

Do you want to cultivate a healthier small groups’ ministry at your church while building a disciplemaking culture? During this workshop, we’ll discuss key essentials for a healthy small groups’ ministry while enjoying lots of interaction, group discussion, and mutual encouragement. You’ll have the opportunity to engage in both strategic and organic learning as you get to know other churches’ small groups’ ministries.

8:30am Co-presenter: Karen Paulson, Disciplemaking Director at Grace Bible Church in Laredo, Texas

10:15am Co-presenter: Justin Pickard, Executive Director of Crossover Community Impact in Tulsa, Oklahoma

Lead Presenter Bio: John Watson has enjoyably engaged in small groups ministry for four decades while serving in urban and rural EFCA churches in Chicago and Nebraska and serving with Intervarsity Christian Fellowship in Texas. Over the last 4 years, John has been coaching and training pastors and leaders in the EFCA TX-OK District in establishing and maintaining healthy small group ministries as the District Small Groups Director. John also serves as the District Director of Credentialing, coming alongside pastors and leaders as they work through the EFCA credentialing process.

John has been married to Grace for 41 years, and they live in San Antonio. They are very proud of their three grown children and two granddaughters. John enjoys spending time with his church community group and with his new neighbors. He also enjoys the outdoors, reading, history, traveling, bicycling, jogging, walking, hiking, and exercising in the gym.

El Corazón de un Hacedor de Discípulos

Hacer discípulos es de la mayor importancia para cada iglesia y creyente. Por esta razón, a menudo dedicamos una gran cantidad de tiempo y recursos a aprender de otros cómo llevar a cabo esta tarea. Sin embargo, en este esfuerzo, se olvida la postura del corazón delante de Dios. Esta sesión ayudará a diagnosticar el corazón del líder y a alinearnos con la motivación correcta para hacer discípulos.

Presenter Bio: Adrian Castillo is the Pastor of Somos Grace, the Spanish-speaking congregation of Grace Bible Church in Laredo, TX. Prior to this role, he served as the Youth pastor and Associate Pastor before starting Somos Grace four years ago. Married to Daisy for 18 years, Adrian and his wife have three kids: Sarika (17), Adrian (14) and Adaline (10). 

Evangelismo o Discipulado, ¿Pueden trabajar juntos efectivamente? 

¡Te puedes imaginar un día en el que “hacer discípulos” sea la norma para la iglesia local! En esta sesión veremos cómo los cristianos cotidianos podemos entablar relaciones con personas (dentro y fuera de la iglesia) para que puedan mostrar el amor de Jesús y ayudar a las personas a confiar y seguirlo. Las iglesias son conocidas como lugares para hacer discípulos, donde se crean personas parecidas a Jesús. 

Presenter Bio: Gonzalo Mateluna graduated from the Universidad Tecnológica Metropolitana de Chile as an Industrial Engineer, a profession in which he worked for almost 12 years in Chile. He then felt called to vocational ministry, moved to the States and graduated from Baptist University of the America with a Bachelor of Arts in Biblical and Theological Studies and a Bachelor of Arts in Music. He is currently the Pastor of Worship, Hispanic Ministry and Outreach at Vista Community Church in Castroville, TX. He and his wife Daniela have been married for 13 years, and they have two sons, Mateo (11) and Gonzalo (8).