Network Day 2009

The Bi-Annual MVNU Women in Ministry Network Day will be held Tuesday, April 28, 2009. Dr. Nina Gunter, a general superintendent in the Church of the Nazarene will be the keynote speaker. Her topics will be "How Big is your Basket" and "Step Up to the Plate."

Plenary sessions and workshops will be at the Lakeholm Church of the Nazarene.Lunch will be served at MVNU Dinning Commons.

Cost will be $45 if registered before April 7 deadline, and includes materials, meals and snacks. After deadline, cost will be $50.


There are two convenient ways to register for 2009's Network Day...

1. Register online at https://admv.mvnu.edu/cgi-bin/public/forms/cl.cgi
2. Register in advance by calling the department of Church Relations on the MVNU campus (888-470-0050 or 740-397-9000, ext. 4110)

Meet Dr. Nina Gunter
Dr. Nina Gunter was elected to serve as a general superintendent in the Church of the Nazarene June 2005. She is the first woman to be honored with the highest office in the church.

At the time of her election, Dr. Gunter was serving her denomination as general director of Nazarene Missions International (NMI), a position to which she was elected in 1986.

Dr. Gunter was called to preach at the age of 12 years. Upon answering her call to ministry at age 14, her pastor asked her to speak in the next church service. Thus began her many years of ministry. Dr. Gunter is a preacher, teacher, and author, having written The Traveler’s Psalm, Our Defining Moment, Christian Perfection, and The Cross—Seize It! Share it! She has a new leadership book due for release in spring 2009 published by Beacon Hill Press.

She is married to Dr. D. Moody Gunter. They have two married sons, Dwight and Dwayne, and four grandchildren, all of whom serve our Lord in the Church of the Nazarene. When time permits, Dr. Gunter enjoys fishing, along with other hobbies and pursuits.


Dr. Gunter's complete Bio can be found at http://www.nazarene.org/ministries/superintendents/bios/gunter/display.aspx

Workshops

Biblical and Theological Foundations for Women in Ministry in two parts

(Tracy Ogden Johnson)

How do you respond to those who disapprove of your call? Tracy Ogden Johnson will help you formulate a clear concise answer. She provides biblically based resources that will enable a better understanding of the role of women in ministry and leadership so that they might gain confidence in their roles. Tracy empowers women to “reclaim the call” despite those who would discourage them. This workshop encourages women to celebrate their call. Join us for a brief overview of Biblical interpretation and principles connected to the place of women in the church. Workshop includes time for discussion

Bio: Tracy Ogden Johnson is an experienced pastor with over fifteen years in full time pastoral ministry. Currently, Pastor Tracy Ogden serves as pastor of the Ravenna First Church of the Nazarene in Ravenna, Ohio. She has a special passion for those preparing for ministry consequently finds great joy in serving as the coordinator for the Certificate of Ministry Preparation Program on the East Ohio District She values education and earned degrees from West Liberty State College and the Candler School of Theology/Emory University in Atlanta. The love of her life is Darryl, her husband of 19 years.

Spiritual Disciplines (Carla Sunberg)

Do you ever feel like you are trying to live and minister in the midst of a storm? We have forgotten how to get the horse in front of the cart in ministry. The result is that we are exhausted in working for Him. Together, let’s learn how to live life and lead from the secret place of intimacy with our Lord. See and practice what a delightful Hour with the Lord, on a daily basis, would do for your ministry!


Bio: Currently, Carla Sunberg is the pastor of Evangelism and Outreach at Grace Point Church of the Nazarene where her husband serves as senior pastor. Carla is the Nazarene representative to the board of Wesleyan Holiness Women Clergy and chairs the USA/Canada Women Clergy Council for the Church of the Nazarene. She has a rich background as a missionary’s daughter and as a pioneer missionary with her husband to the former Soviet Union; where she served as the director of Compassionate Ministries and then the Director of Theological Education. They have two daughters, Christa, a senior at Olivet Nazarene University and Cara, a sophomore at Olivet.

Carla’s passion is to help people come to Christ and then grow in their relationship with Him. The difficult years of living in the former Soviet Union immediately following the collapse of communism brought significant change in Carla’s spiritual life, learning much about total dependence on the Lord!

Contact Information: Rev. Carla D. Sunberg, Pastor of Evangelism, Grace Point Church of the Nazarene, 8611 Mayhew Rd., Fort Wayne, IN 46835, 260-485-2110, www.gpnaz.org

Outreach on a Dime (Carolyn Greene)

Ostrich Outreach is practiced by those who simply have no idea what to do consequently they simply stick their head in the sand and hope things will take care of themselves. If this is you then this workshop will encourage you to get your head out of the sand, get out and enjoy the journey.

Outreach should infuse every decision you make. When it does, it will ignite your passion. Carolyn will help you discover the benefit of developing a tailored outreach strategy for your unique situation based on Scripture. She will provide practical advice and suggest some creative ideas that you can adapt to fit your budget and church.

Bio: Carolyn Greene is an inspiring and authentic communicator who shares powerfully and sincerely. She is dynamic speaker, storyteller and Bible teacher with a powerful and inspirational testimony. Carolyn brings life-changing insights to those needing encouragement and direction for their own journeys. Registered evangelist and ordained elder with over twenty years experience as children’s minister, clown, outreach pastor, and 12 years as a senior pastor. As a mother to ten children, Carolyn describes herself as a traveler running on sheer grace. She holds a MDIV from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and earned her “Ph.D.” at the School of Hard Knocks. www.instepliving.com

Juggling Family & Ministry: Sorting the Urgent from the Important
(Lisa McCleese)

The call to vocational ministry presents exciting opportunities and is filled with meaningful and rewarding work. It is easy to fall under notion that your first priority in ministry is the work at hand through the local church or para-church organization in which you’ve been placed. After all, you’re doing God’s work – what could be more important? Unfortunately, when we look at ministry in this way, we will soon find our personal and family lives coming apart at the seams. How can you fulfill your call from God while taking care that your family’s needs are also met? How do you set and keep proper boundaries in ministry? How can there possibly be enough time to do all this and take care of you too? We will look at these questions and more during our time together. This workshop will include time for discussion and questions.
Bio: Pastor Lisa McCleese led a rough life until the Lord found her in her mid twenties. Lisa spent several years in secular employment prior to her call to ministry in her thirties. Now having served in ministry several years, she is able to make some helpful suggestions that will help you manage your ministerial career. Lisa offers helpful insights into the difference of vocational ministry and secular career and their respective effects on the family.
Today Lisa is a very busy woman. For over eight years, she has served as the Associate Pastor at Galion First Church of the Nazarene. Her many duties include leading worship, overseeing the educational programming, administrative pastoral duties, pastoral care, and pulpit supply.
Lisa has been married to husband Paul for nearly 10 years and has two grown children, Brandon, an electrical engineer in Indianapolis, Ind., and Cassandra, a junior at Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tenn.