Southport Heights Christian Church
7154 South McFarland Road
Indianapolis, IN 46227

Reaching Out To A World In Need

August 4, 2008

Greetings:

I wanted to give you a heads up about the fifth annual INDIANAPOLIS CONGRESS OF ELDERS. We will meet on Oct. 18st at Post Road Christian Church on the east side of Indianapolis. This unique event will...

• Encourage Elders as they serve Christ and his Church
• Enable Elders to learn from their fellow Elders
• Strengthen the partnership between Elders and Ministers
• Give us a chance for fellowship
• Enable us to learn from each other’s successes... and from things not so successful

Over with the past four years we've met at Southport Heights Christian Church, Central Christian Church in Carmel, and Chapel Rock Christian Church. We want to move this around every year. Our attendance has already grown, and this fall's turnout will be even larger.

Part of the reason for us to work together is to remind ourselves that we are all part of a larger fellowship. We need to share our stories, both successes and disappointments. We're in this together. We need each other. This will be a chance for the leaders of Christ's church from all over the Indianapolis area to gather in one place, worship our Lord, and help each other better appreciate our roles as leaders in the Church.

This event is open to any pastoral staff or Elder serving in your congregation. If you have someone you are grooming for an eldership role, they are also welcome. Go to www.congressofelders.org for samples of precious year's schedules, workshops, and case studies.

Our main session's speaker will be Roy Lawson. Dr. Lawson is well known among our churches. He is the former minister of our host Post Road Christian Church, back when it was known as E. 38th St. Christian Church. Mark Taylor, Editor of the Christian Standard will also be with us for the day, and will bring a gift from Standard Publishing for each elder that attends the Congress.

The schedule will include times of worship. There will be discussion workshops on a variety of leadership issues. A prayer partnership between elders of different churches will also be offered. Case Studies of real life leadership dilemmas will be discussed at the main sessions [this is always the most entertaining portion of the day]. Lunch will be provided.

We are writing to you now to ask for several things.

1. Pray for the success of this leadership event.
2. Please reserve this date on your church and personal calendars.
3. Make certain that all of your Elders and staff know about this opportunity and encourage them to participate.
4. Please be thinking about topics and speakers for the workshops. We would to love to showcase whatever your congregation does well. If you know of someone who would be a great resource for a workshop, I'd also like to hear from you. We need your recommendations. You can call Jon Vance at Fortville Christian Church [485-4934], or go online to our site's recommendations pages.

The cost for the day will be $17 per person, which we hope will cover all expenses including a wonderful lunch. The Congress will meet Oct. 18st from 9:00 a.m. to about 4:00 p.m. We hope to have the rest of the 2008 information posted at www.congressofelders.org soon.

We'd love to have you and your Elders be a part of the 2008 Indianapolis Congress of Elders.

Because of Him,

Dr. Dave Soucie
dave@southportheights.org