So many church leaders have poured their hearts into children's work, youth work and adult evangelism … only to watch those very people walk away later. And whilst many of our churches have grown over the years, it's often the case that, as people have joined, others have left.

That's why, in Spring 2006, Spring Harvest and Care for the Family, in association with Reaching the Unchurched Network (RUN), gathered together hundreds of people, mainly church leaders, for the Building a Prodigal-friendly Church conference. During those three days, we focussed on why people leave the Church, how we can retain them, how we reach those who've already gone, and the principles of making those who return feel like they belong.

The conference included keynote addresses by Jeff Lucas, Rob Parsons, Nicky Gumbel, Marion White and Dary Northrop. Please telephone ICC on 0845 6071672 or visit www.essentialchristian.com if you would like copies of the plenary or seminar talks.

During the conference, there were many opportunities for delegates to share their experiences and insights. We made a note of the comments of those who contributed to the group discussions and you can view them by clicking on the links below:

Plenary 1* (58.7KB)

Plenary 2 and 3* (56.0KB)

Plenary 4 and 5* (54.8KB)

We trust you will find these helpful. If you didn't attend the conference, we would love to keep you informed of what's happening in this area (including an exciting curriculum to be published in 2007), together with details of Care for the Family's work.

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