Caring for the Heart & Soul of the Preacher

Held in Joy: Cultivating Intimacy and Connection for Joyful Living! Rev. Hazel Owens

This workshop explores joy as something nurtured through relationship, intimacy, vulnerability, and being deeply known. For preachers and ministry leaders who often pour into others while carrying private burdens, this session creates space to consider how connection shapes our capacity for joy. Participants will reflect on what gets in the way of closeness, how ministry demands can strain relationships, and how tending the bonds that sustain us can become a sacred practice of choosing joy. They will leave with new insights and practical tools to cultivate and welcome intimacy in their relationships.

Rev. Dr. Reginald Blount will lead us into honest theological reflection about the state of our joy. How much joy are we truly experiencing? What has been stealing it? What have we normalized that God may never have intended us to carry? This opening plenary will create space to tell the truth about life and ministry—and invite us to consider what it means to recover, choose, and embody joy.

Join us for a special live recording of the Called & Crafted Podcast as Rev. Arionne Yvette Lynch leads an engaging conversation with ministry leaders and creative voices exploring the relationship between creativity, calling, and joy.

Together, we'll discuss how embracing creativity can renew our ministries, sustain our spirits, and help us faithfully navigate the challenges of leadership. From preaching and worship to storytelling, art, and innovation, this conversation will explore how creative expression becomes a pathway to deeper purpose, resilience, and lasting joy.

Come be part of the audience for this interactive podcast experience as we celebrate the imagination God has given us and discover how creativity can rekindle joy in ministry and beyond.

Inviting participants to move beyond simply acknowledging the need for joy to embracing and embodying it. Rooted in the biblical witness that the joy of the Lord is our strength, this keynote will help preachers wrestle with what it truly means to live in God's joy—not as denial or escape from life's hardships, but as a faithful way of living rooted in God's presence, sustained by God's strength, and expressed through every aspect of life and ministry—especially in difficult times.

Joy and Grief: Rev. Dr. Rae Karim

Rev. Dr. Rae Karim will explore the sacred relationship between joy and grief, offering a compassionate, biblical perspective on holding both at the same time. Together, participants will reflect on how lament, healing, and hope shape our faith and discover that choosing joy isn't about moving past our grief—it's about trusting God's presence within it.

Join Rev. Dr. Karim for a meaningful conversation that affirms the complexity of the human experience and invites us to embrace a joy that is honest, resilient, and rooted in God's enduring love.

Neurodivergence + Preaching: Rev. Dr. Sarah Lund

This session is an opportunity to explore how neurodivergence can shape, stretch, and bless the preaching life. Rather than treating neurodivergence as something to overcome, this session would invite participants to consider how different ways of thinking engage Scripture, prepare sermons, proclaim good news, and participate in worship. We hope the conversation will encourage preachers to embrace neurodiversity as part of God's good creation while exploring how preaching and worship can become more accessible, authentic, inclusive, and joy-filled.

Sometimes the most faithful thing we can do is laugh. This interactive session invites participants to experience the healing power of laughter through guided laughter yoga—a unique practice that combines intentional laughter, playful movement, and mindful breathing to reduce stress, foster connection, and renew the spirit.

No yoga experience, special clothing, or flexibility is required—just a willingness to let go and be present. Come laugh, relax, relate, and choose joy as

Joy in Practice: Rev. Dr. Jon Robinson

How do we cultivate joy when life is demanding, ministry is exhausting, or the future feels uncertain?

In this practical and engaging workshop, Rev. Dr.Jon Robinson share his personal story of how choosing joy became a daily discipline rooted in faith rather than circumstance. Through Scripture, reflection, and actionable practices, participants will discover ways to nurture joy in their personal lives, ministries, and communities. Join Rev. Dr. Jon as we learn how small, intentional practices can help us embody a resilient joy that sustains us, strengthens our witness, and reflects the hope of Christ in every season.

In this interactive session, participants will explore practical mindfulness techniques that support emotional well-being, stress management, and personal renewal. Led by Dr. Kelly Miller, Director of the University of Indianapolis Student Counseling Center, the session introduces participants to simple, evidence-based practices that strengthen awareness of the mind-body connection and promote healthy responses to the demands of life and ministry. Through guided mindfulness exercises and practical instruction, participants will leave with tools they can incorporate into their daily lives to reduce stress, build resilience, and cultivate greater presence as they seek to faithfully choose joy.

The Compelling Preaching Initiative Experience cohort: Rev. Dr. Shonda Gladden

What makes the Compelling Preaching Initiative more than a preaching program? In this workshop, Rev. Dr. Shonda Gladden offers an inside look at the transformative experience of the CPI cohort, exploring the core values that shape preachers both in the pulpit and beyond.

Participants will discover how the Initiative cultivates theological reflection, authentic community, courageous proclamation, and holistic formation. Along the way, we'll uncover what many participants come to recognize as the program's "seventh unkept secret"—wellness. Far from being an afterthought, caring for the whole preacher is foundational to sustaining a vibrant ministry and a joyful life.

Whether you're considering applying to the Compelling Preaching Initiative or simply seeking a healthier, more sustainable approach to ministry, this session offers a glimpse into an experience that forms both compelling preachers and flourishing people.

Cranes in Your Sky: Preachers Navigating Depression and Anxiety

Led by Rev. Dr. Dominique Robinson

What does it mean to choose joy when life feels heavy? How do we proclaim hope while navigating our own seasons of depression, grief, burnout, or emotional exhaustion?

In this honest and compassionate workshop, Rev. Dr. Dominique Robinson invites participants into a deeper conversation about the intersection of preaching, mental health, and the gospel. Rather than treating joy as forced positivity or pretending everything is okay, we'll explore the biblical understanding of joy as a source of strength, resilience, and God's abiding presence—even in life's darkest moments.

Together, we'll examine how pastors and faith leaders can care for their own mental well-being, preach with authenticity, and create spaces where congregations can embrace both lament and hope. Join Rev. Dr. Robinson for a thoughtful conversation that reminds us that choosing joy isn't denying our pain—it's trusting that God is with us through it.

This workshop explores the connection between sermon preparation, embodied confidence, spiritual formation, and the preacher's own joy. Drawing from his own replicable process for preparing and preaching sermons without notes, Rev. Jerry Davis will invite participants to consider how careful exegesis, thoughtful sermon development, spiritual attentiveness, and personal grounding work together to produce compelling proclamation. 

More than a method for preaching without notes, this session explores how emotional regulation, physical wellness, and daily spiritual rhythms shape the preacher's presence in the pulpit. Participants will be challenged to reflect not only on how they prepare sermons, but on how they prepare themselves, discovering that compelling preaching often emerges from a life that is intentionally tended, strengthened, and made joyful.

Choosing Joy Together: Cultivating Joy in Congregational Life: Rt. Rev. Daran Mitchell

Joy is rarely cultivated alone. In this facilitated conversation, participants will reflect together on what it means to create congregational cultures marked by joy, connection, belonging, celebration, and authentic Christian community. Through guided dialogue and shared wisdom, pastors and ministry leaders will explore how they can nurture spaces where people are seen, supported, encouraged, and invited to flourish together. Rather than offering a traditional lecture, this interactive session creates room for honest conversation, mutual learning, and practical reflection on how choosing joy together can transform both our congregations and our ministries.

Preachers are called to proclaim hope, courage, and transformation in a world weighed down by injustice, violence, and uncertainty. Yet, in these difficult socio-political times, even the preacher’s own heart can grow weary. This keynote invites you to explore what it means to care for your own soul while continuing to speak life into a world aching for good news. Together, we will wrestle with the question: how do preachers remain rooted, resilient, and renewed—able to pour back into themselves so that they can pour forth a word of hope, justice, and healing for others?

Our Conference Pastor, Rev. Dr. Anastasia Holman is Director of Chaplaincy Education for the Indiana University Health System. She is an ACPE Certified Educator and Board-Certified Chaplain (BCC) with the Association of Professional Chaplains (APC) and the National Association of Veterans Affairs Chaplains (NAVAC). She currently oversees the Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) Program for the IU Health System. She previously served as the Manager for Spiritual Care and Chaplaincy for the North Suburban Area of IU Health. Anastasia serves as Co-Faculty for the Religion and Spirituality in Medicine Scholarly Concentration at IU SOM.

Discover storytelling as a sacred practice that nourishes the preacher’s own soul before it inspires others. Learn to weave personal and biblical stories into your ministry as a rhythm of spiritual formation that renews authenticity, creativity, and joy in preaching.

Are you weary after years of ministry?  Are you still called by God, still passionate about the work, but just plain exhausted (or getting there)?  This workshop makes the case that you can--and should--consider renewal leave as one practical way to recharge your spiritual batteries.  Whether you apply for a big grant and a guided process or choose to go it alone, our time together will help you move toward the goal of taking some intentional, life-giving, spiritually restoring time away from the daily tasks of ministry.

This session explores the many faces of grief—because it’s so much more than loss through death. Together, we’ll reflect on how and when grief shows up, and how to navigate it in healthy, faithful ways as preachers, pastors, and ministry leaders who are also human.

Practical tools and boundaries for sustainable ministry.

Preaching can feel like pouring out while slowly running dry. In this workshop, we’ll name the early signs of burnout and depression that too often go unnoticed until it’s too late. Together, we’ll explore practical tools, resources, and pathways of care that remind you: you are not alone, your well-being matters, and healing is possible.

Disappointment, disconnection, and discouragement can steal the spark from preaching. But joy is not optional—it is the strength God offers you daily. This uplifting workshop will help you reclaim joy as a spiritual discipline, showing you how to cultivate it intentionally in the midst of challenges. Step into practices that reignite your passion, fuel your preaching, and renew your life.

When ministry demands never stop, your soul can quietly wither beneath the weight. This session invites you to rediscover the ancient practices of Sabbath, spiritual direction, and solitude—not as luxuries, but as lifelines. Through them, God longs to restore your spirit, rebuild your strength, and remind you of the joy that first called you to preach.

The pressure is relentless—raising money, leading meetings, administrating programs, and caring for the flock. But in the stillness, God waits to meet you. This workshop is an invitation to pause and embrace silence, not as escape, but as sacred encounter. In those quiet moments, you will find clarity, courage, creativity through the sustaining presence of God to carry you forward in ministry.

A session focused on how creative practices like storytelling, poetry, and reflective journaling can serve as spiritual self-care, helping preachers avoid burnout and nurture joy.

Vendors/Vending/Wellness Fair

Preview our brand new Illuminating Preaching LAB!

Walk & Pray The Labyrinth

Schedule at the Health Pavillon for a visit to:

• Biofeeback Mini Demonstration Session

• Heated Lava Bed Mini Sessions

• Zero-Gravity Massage Table

• Mindfulness Group Mini Session

Art Therapy, Guided Journaling, Prayer, Playdoh, Coloring, Art / Rest & Reflection Space