This week marks 1 year until the CGGC gathers for our Triennial Conference Sessions. 2025 will be a momentous occasion for our denomination. It will be 200 years since John Winebrenner first began the movement that we now call the Churches of God, General Conference.
While not all the details for this celebration are set in stone, we wanted to provide some initial information so churches and delegates can “save the date” and mark it down on their calendars.
Date: July 14th - July 17th
The 2025 Triennial Conference will be held in the 3rd week of July. Church leaders, regional leaders, delegates, and other guests will likely arrive on Monday the 14th, while the Conference officially kicks off on Tuesday, July 15th. Sessions will run throughout Wednesday the 16th, and finish Thursday morning, July 17th.
Location: Best Western Harrisburg North, 150 Nationwide Dr, Harrisburg, PA 17110
Conference will be held at the Best Western Premier, the Central Hotel and Conference Center in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the town that started it all. We’ll have rooms reserved at the Best Western, but Harrisburg will have plenty of additional options for guests to stay at and will be drivable for many of our churches in the ERC.
Likewise, we are currently planning for tours of some historic sites, both directed and self-lead, to take place early in the week before Conference begins.
Theme: Innovate: New Measures Now
Our theme for this conference captures and holds in tandem two significant ideas. First, that we have a significant history worth celebrating, especially after 200 years, and second, that we need to innovate now, and keep innovating so we can have another 200 years to celebrate in 2225. Why wait until 2025 to start innovating when you can read innovative ways of reaching people for Christ in all of our Global Advocates from this past year?
- Like this story about house churches from Pastor David Robinson: “Asking (and Answering) the Right Questions”
- Or this story from Christina Gray about a Christian non-profit coffee company: “Non-Profit Coffee Profits the Kingdom”
- How about a story about Prison Ministry from Sugar Grove Church: “Breaking the Ice with Pie”
During our last conference, we dared to reimagine what the future of the CGGC will be like, and we’ve been having a lot of conversations with innovators over these last 3 years. We’ve told stories about how new models of church (and ancient models of church) are fitting together with the prevailing model of traditional Sunday services, and we hope to bring an innovative approach to church, informed by our past, but leading us into the future.
The truth is, we need to Innovate, but that has always been the case. Our tag line “New Measures Now” references John Winebrenner’s “New Measures”, which were innovative methods and liturgies that challenged people in the early 1800’s, and even saw Winebrenner locked out of his own church. New, innovative approaches to saving souls for Christ is in our DNA, and our history is steeped in doing whatever it takes to reach the lost. We probably don’t need to return to the anxious bench that Winebrenner championed, but we do need to pick up and carry on the same spirit and willingness to do something new to reach the lost.
Keynote Speaker: Pastor Matt Lake
As the lead pastor of First Church Williamsport, in Williamsport, PA, Matt Lake is well positioned to speak to us about maintaining our history while bushing boundaries on new ways to reach our communities for Christ. Pastor Matt brought a message of innovation and encouragement to our Western Regional Conference last year, and we were so impressed that we’ve asked Pastor Matt to speak to all of you, next year, at the 2025 Triennial Conference Sessions as our keynote speaker.
You’ll also hear a panel of innovative church leaders from within our denomination will give practical examples of how to start something new in your church.
Over the coming weeks, we’ll have a lot more to share about Triennial Conference, and we’ll be diving deep into our history, always with an eye toward the future and God’s kingdom. Also, we have some really exciting announcements that we (and I personally) can hardly wait to share.
CGGC eNews—Vol. 18, No. 29
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