All Located in Mountain-Laurel 1 Room
(Snacks, beverages, and SED Help Desk will be located here)
Concordia Seminary: https://www.csl.edu
Lutheran Heritage Foundation: https://lhfmissions.org
Concordia Publishing House: https://www.cph.org
Lutheran Church Extension Fund: https://lcef.org
Church Press: https://www.churchpress.com
Child Beyond International: https://www.childbeyond.org
Higher Things: https://higherthings.org
MALIM: https://malim.org
SED Witness and Wellness Tables – including Rev. Dr. Yared Halche’s new book Witnessing Beyond Borders
View your travel booklet from Ashville’s City of Commerce
Attractions:
The Biltmore Estate: They have given us a promo code that gives a $10 Discount. Tickets can be reserved online Click here to get tickets! Use promo Code: “sedpcw24”
Botanical Gardens
The North Carolina Arboretum
Biltmore Village for Shopping
Food & Breweries:
Twisted Laurel Downtown Asheville
Tupelo Honey
Luella’s Bar-B-Que
Shanghai Dumpling House
New Belgium Brewing Company
Highland Brewing Company
Guests can dial “0” from any house phone or text 828.539.1880 to connect with our front desk team on any needs including first aid.
First-aid items at our front desk in Pritchell.
Agenda
Monday, April 8
- 2:00 PM – 4:30 PM: Registration Opens
- 4:00 PM: Check-in to hotel
- 4:00 PM: Exhibitors Hall Opens – Room ML1
- 4:30 – 5:30 PM: Main Session – Jim Henry
- 5:30 – 6:30 PM: Dinner at Ridgecrest
- 7:00 – 8:00 PM: Breakouts
- Sabbath as a Foundation of Physical Wellness: Rev. Andy Jones – Jim Henry
- You Do You – An individualized perspective on eating and exercising well in His service: DCE Shawn Maassel and Rev. Gary Pomrenke – ML2
- Worker Mental Wellness: Megan Miessler – ML3
- Wellness Coaching: Rev. Dr. Travis Guse – ML4
- Cultivating Curiosity in Ourselves: Rev. Dr. Matt Borrasso – ML5
Tuesday, April 9
- 7:00 AM – 7:30 AM: Sunrise Stretch & Flow: at
- 7:15 AM – 8:15 AM: Breakfast at Ridgecrest
- 8:15 AM – 9:00 AM: Free time
- 9:15 – 9:30 AM: Opening Devotions – Jim Henry
- 9:30 – 10:30 AM: Main Session – Jim Henry
- 10:45 – 11:45 AM: Breakouts
- Mental Wellness in Relationships and Congregations: Megan Miessler – Jim Henry Auditorium
- Nurturing the Spirit: Cultivating Mental Wellness Through Biblical Practice: Rev. Andre Okai – ML2
- Sabbath as a Foundation of Physical Wellness: Rev. Andy Jones – ML3
- Managing Stress & Burnout: Rev. Dr. Travis Guse – ML4
- Extending Intellectual Hospitality to Others: Rev. Dr. Matt Borrasso – ML5
- 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM: Lunch at Ridgecrest
- 1 – 2 PM: Main Session – Jim Henry
- 2:00 – 5:30 PM: Free Time
- 2 – 2:30 PM: Open Discussion with Speakers in breakout rooms
- 2:30 – 4:00 PM: Optional Mini-golf Tournament (FREE) – Register
- 5:00 – 6:00 PM: Optional cocktail hour at Emmanuel Lutheran
- 6:00 PM: Worship & Communion Service at Emmanuel – 51 Wilburn Pl, Asheville, NC 28806 – Apple Maps – Google Maps
- 7:00 PM: Anniversary Dinner
Wednesday, April 10
- 7:00 AM – 7:30 AM: Sunrise Stretch & Flow
- 7:15 AM – 8:15 AM: Breakfast at Ridgecrest
- 8:15 – 9:15 AM: Free time & Check-out
- 9:15 AM – 9:30 AM: Morning Devotion – Jim Henry
- 9:30 – 10 AM: Presidential Report – Jim Henry
- 10 AM – 11 AM: Main Session – Jim Henry
- 11 AM: Drawings for prizes (must be present to win)
- Blessing and Departure
Speakers and Topics
Rev. Mike Newman, Texas District President
Monday & Tuesday Plenary Speaker
Focus: Struggle Well: 7 Shelters for Ministry Storms
“How can you establish and maintain emotional health in ministry? The headwinds and crashing waves of church work can easily throw God’s servants off balance and into troughs of personal challenge. Is there an antidote to this struggle? Rev. Michael Newman will introduce you to seven God-given shelters that will shore up your emotional well-being as servants of Jesus. With Daniel of the Old Testament guiding the way, you will be equipped and refreshed for healthy ministry that endures and glorifies God.”
Rev. Andy Jones
Pastor at First Lutheran Church in Concord, CA. CPH Author of
Wednesday Morning Plenary
Curiosity as a Foundation for Biblical Fluency: Curiosity is an act of love. As human beings, we are interested in and curious about the things, people, and places we love. One way we show our love for God is to spend time in His Word, particularly time being curious and interested. Curiosity and asking questions are key components to improving our biblical fluency. This session will seek to re-ignite wonder. It will provide attendees with space, time, and some helpful starter questions for digging into the words of eternal life.
Breakouts:
Sabbath as a Foundation of Physical Wellness: In creation, God establishes rest as part of the rhythm of the world. Yet we are surrounded by people living overscheduled, hectic lives. In a society that values hustle culture and finds virtue in not taking time off, the practice of Sabbath rest is counter-cultural. Sabbath is a confession that we are indeed made in God’s image. This session will consider how rest is necessary for our physical wellness and the abundant life Jesus seeks to give us. We will also walk through how to begin or improve your practice of Sabbath.
Megan Miessler, DCE, LCSW
Counselor at Lutheran Counseling Services in Florida
Breakouts:
Worker Mental Wellness: More and more in today’s world people that struggle with mental health are looking for leaders who are authentic about their own lives. They are not looking for those who set a perfect model but instead, people who can walk next to them because they have the same experiences. How can you be more authentic about who you are and what you are struggling with? How can being more authentic in your daily life actually help your own mental wellness? Join Megan Miessler, LCSW, DCE, as she leads a session on how authentic conversations can lead to mental wellness.
Mental Wellness in Relationships and Congregations: Our pews, classrooms, communities, social media platforms, and even homes are filled with all different types of people who have their own struggles. How do we know when those in our lives need more help? What should we be asking or looking for in others to alert us about their mental health? In this session, Megan Miessler, LCSW, DCE, will focus on mental wellness in others and things we need to be aware of when working with people who are suffering and hurting.
Rev. Dr. Matt Borrasso
Pastor at Trinity Lutheran in Lexington Park, MD
Breakouts:
Cultivating Curiosity in Ourselves: This session focuses on what intellectual wellness means for an individual and aims to provide resources and reasons for cultivating curiosity.
Extending Intellectual Hospitality to Others: This session focuses on what intellectual wellness means for a community and aims to provide resources and reasons for extending intellectual hospitality to others.
Extending Intellectual Hospitality
Rev. Dr. Travis Guse
Travis Guse is the Executive Director for Wellness and Coaching in the SED
Wellness Coaching: In this breakout session, we will explore what wellness coaching is (and isn’t), as well as its benefits for your own self-care. Many times, we fail in our wellness vision for ourselves because we don’t have someone in our corner to help us translate our wellness goals into reality. Change can be tough. However, you don’t have to go it alone – learn how a wellness coach can help!
Managing Stress & Burnout: Join us for this very practical breakout session on navigating the turbulent waters of stress and burnout. Discover practical strategies to reclaim your peace, reignite your passion, and cultivate resilience in the face of daily life and ministry challenges. Through interactive discussions and empowering exercises, you will discover new ways to maintain balance and motivation in both your personal and professional life. Don’t let stress dim your light – empower yourself to thrive!
Breakouts led by the SED Wellness Team
You Do You – An individualized perspective on eating and exercising well in His service: Join Rev. Gary Pomrenke and DCE Shawn Maassel as they share what is working for them as well as other current thoughts on eating well and caring for our bodies. You’ll gain some strategies for making your own wellness plan and taking steps forward, based on what fits your preferences and schedule.
Nurturing the Spirit: Cultivating Mental Wellness Through Biblical Practice: Join Rev. Andrew during this breakout session, we will explore the importance of maintaining a spiritually healthy mind in confronting adversities, including the challenge posed by the adversary, Satan. Additionally, we’ll delve into biblical practices essential for nurturing a spiritually resilient mindset.