Discipleship happens best in small groups. The real spiritual growth that helps people become more like Jesus happens day by day, life on life, in the communities we call small groups. But discipleship is messy, can be complicated, and is just plain hard work.

Most of us would like to launch healthy new groups with inspiring and competent leaders... or bring needed change to our existing small groups. But our reality is challenging: we've run out of ideas, hit a wall, or perhaps don’t even know how to begin. What can we do?

Group Life South is a training/networking/motivating conference just for you. We’re close (if you live in the southeast US), convenient (one Saturday morning), and cheap*. You'll hear from four nationally known small group experts who have wrestled with the same challenges you now face. You'll sit in the same room with these practitioners and your peers from across town and across the region, asking tough questions and getting the answers you need.

WHO SHOULD COME

If you are a small group leader (or want to be), a pastor, church staff person, or lay leader, this conference is for you. You can come by yourself, but your experience at Group Life South will be even better (not to mention cheaper**) if you attend with a group.

WHAT IT COSTS

* What do you mean by cheap? Individual registrations are just $39 per person.

** Even cheaper: Bring a group and purchase a registration 10-pack for $290. Save $100!

Friendship Attenders ONLY: If you regularly attend Friendship Church, enter Discount Code "gls2011fumc" to take $20 off your registration... that's just $19 per person.

CONFERENCE SPEAKERS

Bill Willits is the Executive Director of Ministry Environments and one of the founding staff members of North Point Ministries, the parent organization for North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, GA.

Read Bill's full bio…

Keith Stanley is The Pastor of Local Disciple-making at The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, AL. He is responsible for the small group ministry and implementing principles from David Platt's Radical at Brook Hills.

Read Keith's full bio…

Tommy Gray is Lead Pastor of Friendship Church in Athens, AL, and has served as a United Methodist pastor for 28 years. He planted ClearBranch Church (Trussville, AL) as a small group, growing to 1,600 as a church of small groups.

Read Tommy's full bio…

Dave Treat, Discipleship Pastor, Friendship UMC, Athens, AL. Former Area Pastor at Willow Creek Community Church and small groups conference/training designer for the Willow Creek Association.

Read Dave’s full bio…

CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

Registration opens at 8:30 AM. The first main session: Creating Community (With Bill Willits) begins at 9:00 AM and the last session: Stump the Chumps! (With Bill Willits, Keith Stanley, Tommy Gray and Dave Treat) wraps up at 12:30 PM. In-between you’ll choose one of four simultaneous workshops based on your needs and interests: Connecting (With Bill Willits), Radical Together (with Keith Stanley), Leading a Disciple-Making Church (With Tommy Gray), or Advanced Small Group Leadership (with Dave Treat). Read full schedule and complete session descriptions…

CONFERENCE LOCATION

The conference is held at Friendship Church in Athens, Alabama. We’re just 2 miles off I-65, 90 minutes south of Nashville and 90 minues north of Birmingham. See full directions and details…

MORE...

Visit the full conference website at http://friendshipumc.org/glsouth.html. You can email us at grouplife@friendshipumc.org or call us at (256) 232-4906.