Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, CA, has announced that for the first time in ten years, his church will host the Purpose Driven Church Conference to provide American pastors with new material, new tools, and new hope for their congregations.
"Having been in ministry for 36 years at Saddleback Church, I've learned that one of the keys to effectiveness, to keeping the church growing, is to be fast, fluid and flexible," Warren says in a video message announcing the conference. "You've gotta be spontaneous so you can make changes with the Spirit when the Spirit moves different ways."
"God said to me, 'I really want you to focus on helping churches break through plateaus,'" the pastor added. "I already know the plateaus your church is gonna go through, because not only did Saddleback go through them, but I've helped hundreds and even thousands of other churches go through those plateaus."
Purpose Driven Conferences, which was last held in the United States in 2006, will update and teach the paradigm for church health and church growth to pastors and their wives from June 28-30 at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California.
According to the event page, the conference is a "unique and comprehensive learning experience that will be the catalytic force of renewal for you, your entire church, and the community around you."
Warren's bestseller, The Purpose Driven Church, was published in 1995, and went on to become the second most "helpful" book 10 years later, according to a nationwide study of pastors by The Barna Group. Since then, over 400,000 pastors around the world have been trained in the Purpose Driven paradigm.
"Pastor Rick Warren has been busy preparing new tools, methods, and lessons that he has learned since he wrote The Purpose Driven Church over 20 years ago," reads the event page.
In 2006, the conference drew church leaders and their wives from 51 countries and 46 states.
Warren explains: "It'll save you an enormous amount of heartache, because I'm going to share all the mistakes I've made and stuff I had to learn the hard way. It's wise to learn from experience, but it's wiser to learn from the experiences of others, and I can save you a lot of time and money. You don't have the time to make all the mistakes yourself."
Those who are unable to attend the conference in person can participate via live streaming and on-demand viewing following the conference. For more information, visit the event page.
