April 15 – 17, 2011 – Camp Christian | Get a Map

Did you ever think about how it was that the Bible came to be? What does it mean to say that something made it into the Bible? Have you ever read a crazy story in the Bible and wondered “How in the world did that get in there?” Or maybe you have wondered about what the Bible says about sexuality, fairness, families, or even how it could possibly relate to your life.

This year at camp, we’ll be tackling the some of these questions and more about the Bible. With the help of our keynote speakers, each day we will explore a little more on the journey that is our relationship with the Bible.

Register online at register.advanceministry.org
Mail-in Form | Scholarship Form

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The “Isms” of Young Adult Life and what the Bible has to say about it!

Advance Ministry Spring Retreat | April 15 – 17, 2011

Monroe Lodge – Camp Christian | Get a Map

Keynote Speaker: Rev. Debbie Saxe

As young adults we are faced with many Isms in our lives, but if we are called to follow Christ how do we balance serving God and all the Isms of life. How do we overcome the Ism? Especially when Isms are based on things we deal with in every day life like SEXism, RACEism, CLASSism, etc. We have AtheISM and AgnosticISM, but do we have ChristianISM?

Come join us as we talk about the “Isms” of Young Adult Life and discuss what the bible says about Isms. Who better to help us examine these issues than our keynote speaker, Rev. Debbie Saxe an Advance Conferee herself? Rev. Saxe will help us to look at both the science and the spirit of the Ism, as well as discuss where Isms come from and what role they play in our lives.

Register online at register.advanceministry.org
Mail-in Form | Scholarship Form

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Get Personal With God
Advance Ministry Summer Conference | August 15-22, 2010
Camp Christian | Get a Map

What does it mean to have a personal relationship with God? What does it look like? How do the things we do affect our relationship with God? For a lot of us it’s a hard thing to understand. Join us as we spend a week delving into what it truly means to have a personal relationship with God, and what we can do to nurture that relationship.

The Keynote speakers for the year are Rev. Allen Harris, Rev. Margo Conner, Rev. Jim Bane, Rev. John Rumburg, Rev. David Turner, Rev. Audrey Conner, and Amy Gopp; Executive Director of the Week of Compassion.

The cost of this event is $320 for the full week and $50 per day a la carte registration. Partial registration scholarships are available for those in need. Also, many churches are willing to assist you. Read more…

Advance Ministries Scholarship Fundraiser was a day of fun, food and talent. The event consists of a talent show, silent auction, and cook out, with all of the proceeds going to the Advance Ministries scholarship fund. This year there were many wonderful acts consisting of multiple musical numbers such as, a bluegrass group and many acts from Advance Conferences past and present. We were also privileged to participate in a magical act by Bruce Anschutz. Read more…

Get Personal With Yourself
Exploring the Individual
Advance Ministry Spring Retreat | March 12-14, 2010
Monroe Lodge – Camp Christian | Get a Map
Keynote Speaker: Rev. Denise R. Mason

This weekend, we’ll take the time to stop and look at ourselves. What does it mean to have a healthy relationship with your self? What does it mean to really know your self? The majority of our time we tend not to want to focus on our true selves, rather on what the world perceives us to be. Our keynote speaker, Rev. Denise R. Mason, the pastor of The Community of Reconciliation Church in Pittsburgh, PA, will help us to examine ourselves, and to question what we as individuals need, versus what we want, spiritually, emotionally, intellectually, physically, and socially.

Register online at register.advanceministry.org or mail in this form.

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Christina Weldy
The 2009-2010 year for Advance Ministry kicked off to an amazing start. The weekend of September 18-20, thirteen members of Advance participated in a mission trip to Hiram Farm Living and Learning Community. Rev. Roger McKinney was our fearless leader as we demolished an old building in order to salvage wood for new buildings to be erected. We also assisted in constructing wooden frames for the green houses, created produce signs, and fed some of the animals on the farm, all while being in fellowship with one another. The weekend was a successful one, and strong ties have been made between Advance Ministry and Hiram Farm. We look forward to assisting them more in the future.

For more information about the Hiram Farm, go to hiramfarm.org.

Get Personal With Each Other
Diving into Personal Relationships
Advance Ministry Winter Retreat | January 1-3, 2010
Monroe Lodge – Camp Christian | Get a Map
Keynote Speakers: Rev. Becky and Dr. Micah Baird

As young adults, we are in the midst of questioning our identities. We feel pressure from society to find that special someone, get married, have children, and to be successful. But what if God has different plans for some of us? Does our happiness depend on whether or not we find a significant other? And if we do find ourselves in a relationship, how can we still be the individuals God created us to be? As we gather together at Camp Christian for another incredible retreat, our keynote speakers Rev. Becky and Micah Baird will help us tackling these questions as we discuss love relationships, living the single life, and explore how God is present in both.

Register online at register.advanceministry.org or mail in this form.

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In the middle of August Advance Conference takes place to provide young adults ages 19-29 a refuge to grow in their faith and fellowship. This year was no different, with topics pushing us to “Seek God” within aspects of our daily life. We learned about what it truly means to live with God and what that means for us and our community. We were fortunate to learn all while being surrounded by our own loving community.

Each year three camp participants are elected to be the next officers; this year’s officers are Jon Bernard, Brittany Stricklen, and Christina Weldy. We are very excited for the upcoming year and have already begun planning this year’s retreats and conference. Read more…

As some of you might know, we have an exciting mission trip opportunity coming up at Hiram Farm Sept. 18-20. For those of you that don’t know Advance Conference has partnered with Hiram Farm, which is a community project born out of the desire to provide inspiration and meaningful work for the individual growth of people with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Hiram Farm was just started up in June and could use our help on a variety of projects to help develop the farm. For those of you interested in taking part in the mission trip, could you please contact Nate Dicken at n.dicken@yahoo.com or Clint Messner at camessner@gmail.com to let us know so that we can determine how many people are coming and what type of food arrangements we need. Read more…

By the Advance Conference Officers: Susan, Laura, & Ryan

The power of the Advance ministry never ceases to amaze me! The spirituality of the April Spring Retreat, “Dance with God,” was amazing and inspiring. During this retreat we dis-cussed how the different rhythms and songs we encounter in our lives distract us. We were led by Rev. Jay Gamelin, a tal-ented musician and speaker, who infused new life in our praise with some desperately-needed new songs. We celebrated in song and devotion as we explored how to better listen for the rhythm of God and how to live in harmony with it; to be led in the great dance which is, was, and always will be. On April 24th, Advance attendees gathered again in music and in God?s presence for the Annual Advance Fundraising Concert. The display of talent people put forth to support the Advance Minis-try was truly an amazing representation of God?s gifts!
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