Sometimes you end up with an unexpectedly rich experience.  Last night and today over 120 grouplife practitioners have gathered for a time to refresh, share ideas, and prepare for the next run.  So good to see many long time friends.  So good to meet so many new friends.

Honestly…the passion all of us share, the mission we are on, the race we are running, cannot be run alone.  I’m glad you’re part of the tribe that runs with me!  And at the same time, I want to encourage you to find some brothers and sisters  in the cause that you can gather with.

One great way to find a few kindred spirits is to join the Small Group Network.  It’s free.  It’s just about everywhere.  And you’ll find a kind of encouragement and camaraderie born of shared passion and commitment.

Wish you were here!

Looking for a discipleship strategy that works?  Heard about Real Life Ministries but can’t make it to Post Falls, ID?  You can join Jim Putman and the Real Life Team in Houston, Texas on January 17th.

Take advantage of a unique opportunity to hear Jim Putman (Senior Pastor and founder of Real Life), Brandon Guindon (Executive Pastor of Real Life) and Aaron Couch at a one day workshop at The Met in Houston, Texas.  You’ll also hear from Sal Sberna, Senior Pastor of The Met about how the Real Life discipleship strategy has worked for them.

At $59 per person, this is a can’t miss training opportunity.  Interested?  You can find out more and register right here.

Looking for inspiration and training?  Join 3000 pastors and small group leaders for the RightNow Conference.  Featuring inspiring speakers like Dave Ramsey, Jen Hatmaker, J.D. Greear, and Matt Carter, RightNow has also become known as one of the best training opportunities in the country.

When: November 7th to 9th, 2012

Where: Watermark Community Church in Dallas, Texas.

The best part?  I have two registrations that I’m giving away!  It’s a $500 value!

You must do TWO (2) things.  And you MUST DO BOTH to win.

1. Use the comment section to tell me why you’d like to win.  You can comment right here.
2. Tweet or Facebook the following line: “RT @MarkCHowell: Win 2 Free Registrations to RightNow, a $500 value  http://bit.ly/RpZrK4″

The contest ends on Wednesday, October 10th, at noon (PT).  Thanks for playing!

The contest is closed. I’ve notified the winner. Stay tuned for my next contest, coming soon.

Join Andy Stanley and the North Point Groups team for Re:Group, their first-ever small groups conference!  November 12th to 14th at North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Georgia.

You’ll be inspired and equipped with the nuts and bolts of building a small group culture for adults.  And they’ll do it in typical North Point fashion with main sessions, numerous breakouts, time for interaction, a few surprises, their most recent learnings–and lots of fun.

I’ve got 2 FREE registrations to give away! It’s a $500 value!

You must do TWO (2) things.  And you have to do both to win.

1. Use the comment section to tell me why you’d like to win.  You can comment right here.
2. Tweet or Facebook the following line: “RT @MarkCHowell: Win 2 Free Registrations to Re:Group, a $500 value  http://bit.ly/StZzLf“

The contest ends on Wednesday, October 3rd, at noon (PT).  Thanks for playing!

Getting ready to launch the fall session of your women’s Bible study?  Looking for a resource that will encourage and re-energize the women in your congregation?  You might want to check out the upcoming Living Proof Live Simulcast, scheduled for September 15th.

Featuring Beth Moore and worship leader Travis Cottrell, this event could be just the thing you need to jump start women’s ministry this fall.  Broadcast live from 8:00 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. (Eastern), Microsoft Silverlight* provides an easy way for you to begin the simulcast at a more convenient time if you live in another time zone.

Beth Moore is no stranger to most women’s ministries, making the simulcast an easy event to promote.  If you’re preparing to launch a fall program that includes one of her DVD-driven studies (i.e., James: Mercy Triumphs, David: Seeking a Heart Like His, etc.), the simulcast could provide the one-two punch you need to increase your registrations.

Pricing is based on the size of your ministry, Bible study or small group; making the simulcast suitable whether an individual small group would like to view it in a home or a women’s ministry uses it to launch the fall ministry season.  You can find out more and sign up right here.

Looking for a great conference focusing on small group ministry?  I can’t tell you how often I’m asked to recommend a conference that is designed for small group ministry leaders from the ground up.  Several times a week at a minimum.  What do I tell them?  The best thing going in terms of content and cost is TWELVE Plus: Saddleback’s online small group conference.  Period.

May 16 & 17.  Three tracks (Essentials, Experience, and Planning).  Many of the most knowledgeable small group ministry practitioners.  Tremendous application potential.  And it can be had for as low as $50!  That is a great deal!

Couple things to know immediately:

First, you’ve got to register by March 30, 2o12 to take advantage of the lowest pricing.  At $50 this is a great value by itself.  In addition to the two day conference, you’ll have access to the content for 30 days after!  That’s huge.  You can find out more or register right here.

Second, Group licenses are available and could be a phenomenal way to develop staff and volunteer teams.  On top of that, you can pick up an area license and open up the conference to the other churches in the area.  Don’t miss out on the opportunity.   You can learn about these opportunities right here.

Here’s a link to everything else you’d like to know about TWELVE Plus: the Global Online Gathering for Small Group Ministries and Ministry Leaders.  I can’t say enough about it.  Will I see you there?

Looking for a fantastic small group leader training opportunity?

I want to invite you to join us for GroupLife Midwest 2012: Staging Ground for the Leadership Expedition!  February 3 & 4, 2012 at Parkview Christian Church in Orland Park, Illinois (southwest Chicago).

We’ve lined up a great speaker (Steve Gladen, Small Group Pastor at Saddleback) and an all-star cast of breakout speakers:

• Bill Donahue
• Rick Howerton
• Mindy Caliguire
• Garry Poole
• Eddie Mosley
• Casey Tygrett
• Jason Anhalt

So many times small group ministry conferences are designed to meet the needs of small group champions (paid and volunteer, small group pastors and directors).  GroupLife Midwest is designed to help you to train and encourage your small group leaders.

Friday night, 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. and Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.  February 3-4, 2012.

Don’t have a budget for leader training?  No worries…it’s FREE!  Can’t afford to put your group leaders up for the night?  Join us on Saturday morning!

Update: Online registration is closed.  Walk-ins are welcome!  You can register and choose breakouts at the door on Friday night or Saturday morning.

Have a question?  Want to let us know you’re coming? Email Me and I’ll get you squared away.  We don’t want anyone to miss the best lineup of small group experts at any conference in 2012.

Have you made plans for September 14-15, 2011?  That’s when 2011′s biggest online grouplife event happens.

2 days.  3 tracks.  8 sessions.  Featuring 36 top small group thinkers…this is a seriously good list.  The best news?  Through June 29th you can register for as low as $25!

Three Tracks

Essentials Track: This is a highly interactive track taught by Saddleback’s small group pastor Steve Gladen, with small groups director Carolyn Taketa and author and small groups pastor Bill Search.  You’ll learn the principles that God has used to create one of the most successful small group ministries in the nation at Saddleback Church, one that has been successfully used in churches around the world of all sizes and virtually all denominations.

In eight sessions over two days you’ll learn how your church can start and grow a healthy small group ministry, can’t-miss principles, and how to connect your community and your church for spiritual health.  Steve is joined by two dynamic leaders of small group ministries in other churches.

Experience Track:  This interactive track is taught by over a dozen working small group ministry leaders at churches of all sizes around the country.  Each topic explores what happens when you apply ministry principles that work in one size church into practice in other types and sizes of churches.  You’ll gain street-level insights from leaders who have hit the walls and found ways over, around, through or under them.  You’ll gain breakthrough ideas and practical knowledge to successfully apply exponential small group ministry principles in your church (Full disclosure: I’m presenting in the Experience Track).

Planning Track: In this track, Ron Wilbur, Chip Kelly and Ben Reed will take you through the process of mapping out an 18-month plan for your small group ministry using the essentials of exponential small groups.  You will tailor the plan to your church, your issues, your road blocks and your strengths and weaknesses.  You’ll have some initial prep work to do before the event to help you get even tailored to your church.  You’re encouraged to enlist any other members of your team, staff or non-paid, who need to be invested in the ministry for the implementation phase.  Embedded in the planning process are the 50 key area learnings that came out of the successful Saddleback model that now has more people in weekly small groups than attend weekend services.

My Personal Recommendation

Twelve is going to be great!  It will be an easy way for you to expose your team (key leaders, coaches, other staff, even prospective team members) to some of the very best grouplife thinking.

Plan a two day confab at your offices.  Invite pastors and point people from nearby churches.

This will be an investment that will pay off in a big way.  Yes, I am doing a session (teaming up with Mac Lake), so you’d expect me to be enthusiastic.  But these speakers are the experts I listen to.  This is a no-brainer.

Register: It’s easy to register.  You can do that right here.

Learn More:  Need more information?  You can get everything you need right here.

I’m looking forward to some great interaction at Radicalis in just a little over a month!  Hope you’re planning to check it out.

In case you aren’t aware, Radicalis is a great conference.  4 days with a super wide variety of speakers (this year the list includes Matt Carter, Steven Furtick, Dave Gibbons, Pete Wilson, Shawn Lovejoy, and Serio De La Mora).  You can see their bios right here.

They’re actually billing it as 14 Conferences in 1 (so you can bring your whole staff).  You can see the list of all they’re offering right here.  Looking this list over, I’m going to have a hard time choosing where to be at any one time.

I do know this though, I always run into the coolest people and have the best time connecting during the breaks.  Hope to see you there!

By the way…their best pricing ends on January 31st.

Story, the conference for creatives, is coming to Chicago on September 23-24.  I’m trying to figure out a way to go.  Part of my strategy is to post this link (if I post the link I get entered into an “occasional drawing to win some creative resources.”  Hoping I can trade the resources to go to the conference!).