Conferences, more conferences and yet more conferences…
We asked the champion of 9:38 conferences, Reuben Mann, who currently holds the record on 9:38 conference attendance, about his experiences...
I love 9:38 conferences. It all started with a 9:38 Student Conference a few years ago. I headed over to the conference, keen about telling people about Jesus, but clueless. Ian Garrett explained clearly from the Bible what the gospel is, what gospel ministry is, how to do it and much more. The conference got me thinking… if I could teach the Bible for the rest of my life, how cool would that be?!
I had the first of many chats by the cappuccino machine with other students, similarly keen and clueless, dreaming dreams of serving God. After a few more of these conferences I graduated and started working as an engineer with an eye towards possible paid gospel work. I’m hugely grateful to friends who encouraged me to head along at this point to the 9:38 Annual Conferences. It would have been easy to cruise in a comfortable engineering career but each year the conference lifted my eyes to the fields that are white for harvest. More than that, I drove home from the conference thinking, ‘Boy, I need to tell my colleagues about Jesus!’ A brilliant part of all 9:38 conferences is chatting with small-group leaders, guys and girls already in paid gospel work, and picking their brains on the way forward. Another fantastic thing, whichever of the conferences you go to, is the broad range of seminars where you can find out about Urban Priority ministry, children’s work, marriage/singleness, women’s ministry, pastoral work and all sorts.
These Annual Conferences led me to two years of a 9:38 Apprenticeship with my church. Having bought the tapes from the previous few years I was delighted to be allowed to go along to the Apprentice Conferences. They model and teach how to understand and teach the Bible, to evangelise and disciple. They blow you away with passion for gospel ministry! There were more conversations by the cappuccino machine. In fact the conferences have helped establish gospel friendships that I trust will last for life. Simon is a chum whose towel I borrowed when I forgot mine on that first Student Conference. One year he didn’t show up at the Annual Conference and I thought, ‘What’s gone wrong?!’, but fortunately he turned up later at the Apprentice Conferences. Now his room is opposite mine at theological college. Poor Simon! Let’s keep going to these conferences, learning together and spurring each other on as we seek to spread God’s fame, whether paid or unpaid, full time, part time or whatever.