Together! It’s used twice in those 4 verses. The church is joined together in Christ and is being built together in Christ as a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. How glorious then is the theme of our 2026 Pastors & Leaders Conference, “Together in Christ.” It captures God’s grand design for the church, and it captures the purpose of what pastors and leaders ultimately do in serving, caring for, and building their church. The main sessions and specific breakout sessions for our 2026 conference are all designed to equip pastors and local church leaders to continue to build their church together in Christ for His glory alone.
One of the ways God preserves and strengthens his saints is by refreshing them as they spend time with others. Paul often speaks of relationships with churches and fellow workers that have “refreshed” him and others (1 Cor 16:18, 2 Cor 7:13, Rom 15:32)
Jon Payne
Joel Shorey
Rick Gamache
Pete Payne
Mickey Connolly
Mark Prater
Josh Blount
Tommy Hill
Bob Kauflin
Brian Chesemore
Walt Alexander
Ricky Alcantar
Jared Mellinger
Dave Taylor
Eric Turbedsky
Bill Patton
Tommy Hill
Bob Kauflin
Jace Hudson
Marty Machowski
Andy Farmer & Pete Payne
Steve Whitacre
Bill Kittrell
Bob Kauflin
Jim Donohue & Rich Richardson
Tommy Hill
Bob Kauflin
November 19, 2025 – May 31, 2026
$175 per person
June 1 – October 16, 2026
$225 per person
November 11 – 13, 2026
$225 per person
Special conference rates have been negotiated with Hilton Lake Buena Vista Palace (where the conference is being held):
You can reserve a room online here.
Or you can call 855-757-4984. Be sure to request a room under the Sovereign Grace Pastors Conference room block.
Reservations must be made by October 17 to guarantee the special conference rate, although availability is not guaranteed until that date.
If traveling by air, the nearest airport is Orlando International Airport (MCO).
If driving, the address of the hotel is 1900 E. Buena Vista Drive, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830.
AUDIO MESSAGES:
All messages will be available as free downloads at www.sovereigngrace.com after the conference.
NURSING MOMS:
A private area near the general session room is available for moms who wish to hear the message while nursing their infant. As well, we have a couple pack-n-plays available for your use in that room.
WI-FI:
Wi-fi is not available in the meeting room. It is available in guest rooms for guests staying at the Hilton Lake Buena Vista Palace.
Jon Payne
Marriage is an incredible gift of God’s creativity and kindness, but often our marriages are snared in the day to day temptations of our struggling hearts and this fallen world. This session is designed to raise our gaze toward the beauty and privilege that God plans for our marriages. More than that, it will remind us of our commission to proclaim the relationship of Christ and his church to our generation and the next through our God-given union as husband and wife.
Joel Shorey
This breakout will explore the unique opportunities and challenges that singles
face in life and in ministry especially in a culture that fosters endless adolescence. The content of this session is intended for all church leaders both single and married. Single leaders will be envisioned to continue pursuing a Christ glorifying life, and leaders of all seasons will be equipped to better disciple singles in their churches.
Rick Gamache
God speaks to us in his Word and we speak to him through prayer, and it is a
beautiful and empowering conversation. It’s through that conversation that we get
to know just what a treasure Christ is. This session is intended to equip the
pastors and leaders of His church to treasure Christ more, and thereby, serve His
people.
Pete Payne
The Christian life is a life of Spirit-empowered imitation. When Paul writes in Ephesians 5:1, “Be imitators of God, as beloved children” he points to parenting later in Ephesians 5 as one of the highest privileges granted to believers in this life: a God-given opportunity to represent and imitate the relationship between the Father and Son and thus bring glory to our Father in heaven. Parenting is a divinely ordained task, intended to magnify the gospel and made possible only by the power of the Spirit. As parents, we are to imitate the love of the Father for Jesus and for us. Our children, through their obedience and honoring of us as earthly parents, learn what it means to obey and honor their Father in heaven and thus represent Jesus to a watching world. This breakout will explore what it means to be “imitators of God” in our parenting.
Mickey Connolly
When Moses writes “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom” in Psalm 90 he isn’t speaking of figuring out how long one will live but how well we live regardless if the days are many of few. Once a person reaches 60 or so they can expect changes physically, materially and spiritually. This breakout will explore how to “get a heart of wisdom” for those latter years so that you may glorify God by finishing well.
Mark Prater
The Holy Spirit sovereignly bestows gifts on every believer and empowers them for the purpose of building up the church and bringing Christ glory. For pastors and leaders to effectively serve the church by using the gifts God has given us, we daily need the Spirit’s presence and power. This session will equip you to benefit even more from the Spirit’s help and arm you with practical ideas to encourage others to use their gifts dependent on the power the Spirit supplies for the building up of the church and the glory of God.
Josh Blount
This breakout will explain the biblical foundations for our complementarian beliefs about marriage, masculinity, and femininity. We will see why God’s wise design gives us hope and faith to build our marriages, families, and churches into the goodness of God’s plan even amid a confused and hostile culture.
Tommy Hill
Often the administrative details, and the financial management of the church are minimized but they are vital to the church’s health and its mission to advance the gospel. If you’re involved in administrating all the details, and/or stewarding the church’s finances, this session will equip you to aim for administrative excellence and pursue financial integrity for the good of the church, the strengthening of gospel mission, and the glory of Christ.
Brian Chesemore
We all desire that our local churches would be characterized by rich relationships. But do we see how essential the value of humility is to reach this goal? Join us as we marvel in the humility of our Savior and as we seek to reflect His character, personally and corporately. We’ll consider the difference humble leaders make in a local church, how each member’s growth adorns the gospel, and how humility positions us to thrive relationally.
Walt Alexander
The gospel is good news of great joy, and few things are more out of place than a sullen Christian! Yet, joy is not easy to maintain amidst the uncertainties of life. We must learn to fight for joy. Charles Spurgeon—the great-hearted, laughter-loving, deeply-zealous Prince of Preachers—has much to teach us.
Ricky Alcantar
The goal of this session is straightforward but ambitious–To reclaim the transformative virtue of Christian gratitude as the secret springboard of the Christian life. We live in a world in which the concept of gratitude is valued in the broader culture, but the distinctives of a Christian practice of gratitude have been sadly lost. Yet, when rightly reclaimed and practiced, Christian gratitude is transformative on every level of the Christian life, and it will transform your church.
Jared Mellinger
Do people know you as an encourager? A life of encouragement reflects the character of God and transforms the local church. Sadly, the ministry of encouragement is on the decline in our day, and the enemies of encouragement are many. But the Lord empowers his people to spread joy by identifying his activity in others and refreshing the hearts of those around us. We all need the Spirit of God to daily give us eyes that see grace in others, a heart that responds with gladness, and words that promote continued faithfulness. This session will equip you to create and maintain a culture of encouragement in your relationships, your church, and your home.
Dave Taylor
Discover why generosity makes sense – not just functionally, but spiritually and eternally – and how it leads to deep and lasting joy. This session will explore the thinking behind generous living, showing how the gospel reshapes our view of money and possessions and frees us from a mindset of fear or scarcity. As Jim Elliot famously said, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose,” reminding us that true wisdom lies in something so different than the mindset of comfort and accumulation that the world has to offer us. So join us as we unpack the reasoning, the freedom, and the delight that comes from giving well, and learn how generosity can transform both your life and the lives of those around you.
Eric Turbedsky
How do we die to ourselves without losing ourselves? Where do we find the strength to persevere and endure with joy? Who lives as if they have nothing to lose and everything to gain? We do. This session will encourage and equip you to continue to serve Christ and your church with a joyful selflessness.
Bill Patton
Even the most devoted Christians can sometimes despair of change when progress is slow or when we fall again into familiar patterns of sin. In this session we will explore the many ways God helps us in our lifelong quest for godliness, and how to help others grow in godliness.
Jace Hudson
Life-giving groups don’t happen by accident—they’re cultivated by leaders who draw people into genuine fellowship around the living and active Word of God. In this breakout, we’ll explore practical ways to shape small groups where fellowship deepens, discipleship flourishes, and God’s Word becomes the shared center of life together.
Marty Machowski
Jesus surprised his followers with the attention and care he gave to children. Passing on our gospel heritage is no less important today. This breakout session will encourage and equip everyone who teaches or serves children—whether in Sunday school, mid-week ministry, or the nursery. Together we’ll explore the beautiful privilege of passing on the person and work of Jesus Christ to the next generation, and we’ll consider practical ways to make the gospel clear, memorable, and life-shaping for young hearts. Come be refreshed with renewed vision, biblical encouragement, and simple tools to help you point children to Jesus with confidence and joy.
Andy Farmer & Pete Payne
David Powlison once said, ‘Ninety-five percent of counseling is informal and relational conversation. So, we are all counselors. The question is whether we are sound counselors or not.’ Sound biblical counseling includes the content of what we say, the way in which we say it, and the reason we are saying it in the first place. This session is designed to help us to be sound counselors in our ministries, our friendships and our families in a way that our counsel is grounded in God’s Word, and serves God’s interests in people’s lives.
Steve Whitacre
D.A. Carson has written, “The church is never more than one generation away from extinction.” By God’s grace, we are working to create family and church cultures that treasure and transmit the gospel. Join us for “Prime Time” and learn how to disciple teens in the church and how to equip parents to disciple teens in the home.
Bill Kittrell
Are there compelling reasons to take the gospel to the campus? Yes. Most
importantly, every church is called to take the gospel to the nations including the
community where they live. College campuses are always an influential part of
the community they are a part of and they almost always have many nations
represented in their student body! And most college students are a prime age for
making life changing decisions. Surely we should offer them a full and clear
presentation of the good news about Christ in prayerful hope that the Lord will
open their eyes to these life altering truths!
Bob Kauflin
You don’t have to be a biblical scholar, unusually godly, or a great musician to lead congregational worship well. But theology, motives, and skills all play a part in leading singing that’s Scripturally rooted, Christ-exalting, passionate, and edifying. Whatever your current experience and gifting, this session will help you identify ways you can grow and in doing so serve your church.
Jim Donohue & Rich Richardson
Many Christians feel guilty when the word evangelism is mentioned, and most feel fearful and ill equipped to talk to others about the gospel. What do we do about this? How can we grow personally and how can we help those we lead? This session will help to biblically motivate you and practically equip you to reach out to others with the good news of the gospel.
