WHO IS THIS FOR? ANYONE WHO LEADS THE YOUNG YOUTH/YOUNG ADULT PASTORS YOUTH/YOUNG ADULT LEADERS WORSHIP PASTORS & TEAMS CREATIVE PASTORS & TEAMS SENIOR PASTORS
DON’T SKIM OVER THIS Two things you have to understand about me as you begin to know and partner with what we are doing: 1) I LOVE THE LOCAL CHURCH. I have literally given my entire life to it - serving, leading and promoting it to this generation of young people. I believe in this statement first spoken by Bill Hybels; “The local church is the hope of the world.” We are NOT a Para-church ministry that believes we are the answer. We believe YOUR LOCAL CHURCH IS THE ANSWER. 2) I AM DETERMINED TO SEE THE CHURCH OF THE FUTURE BRING TO REALITY THE DREAMS WE ONLY DREAM AT NIGHT. Don’t let me lose you here. Every church leader of today will pour out their life as an offering and advance the movement of the church as far as possible. I just believe the church of the future will take us exponentially further than anything we have ever seen. This presents a two-fold task for us who are the youth and young adult pastors as well as the worship and creative leaders of today. WE MUST put our young people into action IN THIS HOUR. They are the church, now. We must be encouragers, initiators, leaders, helpers, promoters, etc. to engage a young generation to embrace the cause of the local church NOW. Their generation desperately needs a movement of young people to quit playing games and be the church to their city. THE SECOND part of this requires us to think in terms of longevity: WHAT YOU DO TODAY WILL EFFECT HOW THE CHURCH OF THE FUTURE LOOKS. Think about it this way, how much of your thinking today is a direct result of the way your parents led and taught you? RIGHT NOW is when we need to plant visions and dreams in our young people about the church of the future and what it can be; a church with NO LIMITS - a church that reaches into EVERY SPHERE OF LIFE. This is a snap shot of my heart and the heart of Youth America. If any of this stirs you up, come partner with us and lets make this happen. I am a man that loves results, almost to my fault. But in this it simply motivates me to give everything I have to see THE CHURCH sweep the entire world off their feet and into the arms of Jesus. TOGETHER WE CAN DO THIS. Grant Pankratz - Youth America Leader
Youth America Leadership Conference will have some of the most powerful night sessions you have ever been a part of. Forget the guest speakers or the worship team. This conference is God-breathed and He is planning to make a lasting impact in your life.
SNAPSHOT OF CONFERENCE The morning general sessions will not be your typical “morning sessions”. They will be an all out full court press session focused on both the practical and spiritual side of ministry.
NEW THIS YEAR: The afternoons will be FILLED with breakout
sessions - more than you could ever attend by yourself. You will need a team. Almost every topic you could ever think of will be presented as a breakout session in the afternoon. These sessions won’t be taught by just anybody, but by major youth pastors around the nation. The intent is that these audiences will be small and will cultivate conversation with Q&A. Every session will be recorded so you will not miss out on anything!
WORSHIP & CREATIVE This year we are putting a MUCH GREATER emphasis on the worship and creative side of the Youth America Leadership Conference. Not only have we intentionally brought in more guest speakers to speak to this area, but also through our breakouts, we have provided much more time and focus in the areas of worship and creative. This area, led by our Worship Pastor Natalie Boyce, will cover a vast spectrum of knowledge in the areas of worship and creative ministry in church. Everything from production, songwriting, worship leading, building a worship team, making your services more creative, being intentional with creativity, how to be creative with a limited budget, practical tips and training for singers and musicians‌the list goes on and on.
Carl Lentz
Hillsong NYC Brooklyn, NY
Keynote Speakers
Carl and Laura Lentz pastor Hillsong Church NYC. Their passion is to serve the city, preach the gospel and lead a church that reflects who Jesus Christ is. In a little over a year, Hillsong NYC is impacting thousands with a vision to keep moving forward throughout the five boroughs of NYC. They live in Brooklyn with their 3 children, Ava, Charlie and Roman, and a steady stream of houseguests who end up sleeping on the couch. They believe that with Jesus as Lord, life can be quite an adventure!
Kari Jobe
Gateway Church Southlake, TX
Kari Jobe is a singer, songwriter, two-time Dove Award winner and an Associate Worship Pastor at Gateway Church. For more than 15 years, Kari has been involved with worship groups that have traveled and ministered worldwide, and she has co-written with songwriters such as Chris Tomlin, Ed Cash, Paul Baloche, Klaus Kuehn and Mia Fieldes. Her songs, including “You Are For Me,” “We Are,” and “You Are Good” have been recorded numerous times on live worship projects. Kari’s deepest desire is to see the world changed by the reality and nearness of God’s presence.
David Perkins New Life Church Colorado Springs, CO
An Associate Pastor at New Life Church, David leads the Desperation conferences and internships that empower young people to live in desperate pursuit of God. David spear heads the Desperation National Youth Conferences which mobilizes and equips youth ministries from across the nation. David also serves as the director of the Furnace which trains college students in prayer, local church ministry, and global missions. David and his wife, Renata, have three children, Dawson, Alivia, and Adelyn.
Chad Veach The City Church Seattle, WA
Chad Veach is a pastor at the City Church in Seattle, WA where he lives with his wife Julia and their daughter, Georgia. In his former church he lead a youth and young adult ministry that saw over 1000 young people in attendance weekly. Chad and Julia have a passion to lead a generation to Jesus through a simple devotion to God. They love coffee, the Lakers, and people.
Dan Lord
The Life Church Memphis Memphis, TN
Pastor Dan is a one of a kind! He brings life and passion wherever he goes and his zeal for God’s house is contagious. Prior to moving to Memphis, Dan served as youth pastor for 13 years at South County Christian Center, in St. Louis, MO. He has served on the pastoral team at the Life Church of Memphis for 7 years and has seen the church grow from 600 people in one campus, to over 3,000 at four campuses. Pastor Dan currently serves as an executive pastor overseeing various ministries in the church including: leadership and campus development.
Breakout Jason Laird
Healing Place Church, Baton Rouge, LA
Jason Laird serves as the Student Ministries Pastor and is responsible for overseeing ministry for students ages 12-30 at Healing Place Church in Baton Rouge, LA. He is also the Chancellor of Healing Place School of Ministry. Jason has been a crucial force in leading the church to serve their cities through a movement called “SERVOLUTION�. In his spare time Jason enjoys taming lions for a traveling circus.
Josh Turner
Celebration Church, Jacksonville, FL
Josh Turner serves as the Student Ministries Pastor at Celebration Church. He has been leading middle school, high school and college students for over eight years. Josh believes wholeheartedly in advancing the Kingdom of God by stepping outside of cultural and denominational boundaries to reach the next generation. Josh graduated from Florida State University, which is also where he met his wife, Rebecca. Together they have two children: Ayden and Riley.
Jeremy Horn
Christ the Rock Church, Memphis, TN
Jeremy has been a worship pastor at Christ The Rock Church in Memphis, TN for the past 15 years. In addition to leading at CTR he is also a recording artist and songwriter for Ardent Records. He is a lifelong student of songwriting and a lover of great songs that serve local churches. Jeremy and his band travel monthly to lead at worship events across America. He and his wife Denise have three kids Judah, Liam, and Daisy.
Sessions Jason Kimbrow
New Life Church, Conway, AR
Jason Kimbrow is the Executive Pastor of Student Ministries at New Life Church in Conway, Arkansas. In 2004, Jason and his wife Ashley started Elevation, a ministry for college-age students. Since then, Jason and Ashley have seen Elevation grow exponentially, as they continue to oversee to it along with New Life’s internship program, junior high, and senior high school ministries. Jason and Ashley have been married for almost ten years and have two boys, McAllister and Pierce.
Dustin Woodward
Copperpointe Church, Albuquerque, NM
Pastor Dustin Woodward is the Lead Student Pastor of Copper Pointe Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Together with his wife Mandy, they are ministering to over 1,800 students a week through weekly services, satellite campuses, and Bible Clubs. Dustin is a gifted communicator and teacher, convicted about speaking the truth as plainly as possible. God has given him a vision and a passion for helping people meet Jesus and each week he shares God’s word and it’s practical application in our daily lives.
Chris Smith
Peoples Church, Oklahoma City, OK
Chris Smith is the youth pastor of People’s Church in Oklahoma City, OK. People’s Church is a multi site church with a campus in Oklahoma City and Midwest City. Chris oversees student ministry at both campuses and he’s been in full time youth ministry for 8 years. His pride and joy are his beautiful wife Jamie, his son Jace and daughter Cali. He is also a HUGE Colts, Yankees, Thunder and Buckeye fan.
Our Team Grant Pankratz
Leader of Youth America
Monica Pankratz
Natalie Boyce
Worship/Creative Pastor
Chandler Boyce
Communications Director
Brett Mehl
Leader of Youth America
Youth/Worship Pastor
Kirk Pankratz
Scotty Haynes
Senior Pastor of Church of the Harvest
Leaders Director
Y Early Bird Rate
By September 24, 2013 $45 for a group of 10+ $65 for single
Regular Rate
By October 22, 2013 $55 for a groups of 10+ $75 for single
Late Rate
After October 22, 2013 $75 for a group of 10+ $95 for single
On Campus Lodging
$25 for entire conference per person.
For area hotels go to youthamerica.org
Sample Schedule
THURSDAY NOV. 7 5pm-7pm Registration 7pm-9pm Night Service
FRIDAY NOV. 8 9am-NOON General Sessions 1pm-4pm Breakouts 7pm-9pm Night Service 9pm-10:30pm After Party
SATURDAY NOV. 9 9am-1pm General Sessions/Breakouts CONFERENCE ENDS AT 1PM SATURDAY NOVEMBER 9.
Contact Info
Phone: 405.401.4965 Email: info@youthamerica.org Website: www.youthamerica.org Twitter: @youthamerica Facebook: facebook.com/youth.america Instagram: @youthamerica
Physical Address Youth America 6800 N Bryant OKC, OK 73121