2009 Convention Workshop Schedule
Download a printable version here.

The following icons denote seminars appropriate for: 

MOPS Mentors         Leadership Basics 

Leadership in Depth     Mothers of School-Age Kids

Special Interest Workshops
Thursday 5-6pm

Eating Disorders: The Battle Within Deborah Hoffman, PsyD
In this workshop you will understand the external and internal pressures that can lead to a distorted body image, the signs that someone might have an eating disorder, and resources available.

Help, I’m a Single, Step or Blended — Parent Family! Dennis Franck
Single-parent, stepparent, and blended-parent families now outnumber nuclear parent families in our society, and are only three of the 10 or more types of families MOPS and the Church must minister to today. The challenges of building healthy families of these types can be overwhelming at times. Paying the bills, agreeing on discipline styles, dealing with a former spouse, getting everything done, having time for yourself, and wishing others understood are just a few of the many difficulties facing these families. We’ll discover the challenges and responses of these parents, see several ministry models which could be used, list resources, and discuss some ideas to assist them in their journey.

MOPS 101: Launch a ministry with life-changing potential Shelly Radic
Utilize recent MOPS learning and tips from experienced MOPS leaders to launch a group with life-changing kingdom influence on moms and families in your community. Explore practical applications of six key indicators for successful groups: purposeful passion, authentic relationships, developing leaders, community awareness, spiritual growth and resourcing resources. A must for new groups and leaders.

Training and Cultivating Tender Hearts Virginia Dixon
You shape the character and conscience of the next generation. Creating a legacy of heritage is perhaps the greatest calling for Christian women of this century. In this workshop, you will discover how to become “intentional” about utilizing the stories of your cherished values, traditions and heroes ... your heritage ... to strengthen both your family and those within your sphere of influence.

Adoption TBD

Mothers of School-Age Kids Alex Kuykendall
MOPS is launching a group experience designed to encourage, equip and develop mothers of school-age kids. This new ministry arm will provide relevant community for mothers of school-age kids while developing leaders and sharing God's hope with moms and their families. Discover what this group can look like in your community and how it can build on your MOPS ministry for maximum kingdom impact.

Session A Workshops
Friday 12:30-1:45pm and Friday 2:30-3:45pm (These workshops are repeated in Session B)

(A1 and B1) How Am I Smart? A Parent’s Guide to Multiple Intelligences Kathy Koch
In this workshop you will be inspired to learn that all children have eight intelligences that can be awakened, strengthened, paralyzed, focused, and trained. Each intelligence will be defined and explained so you can determine which ones are strengths for your children and how children might be getting into trouble through their greatest strengths.

(A2 and B2) An Overview of Grace-Based Families Dr. Tim Kimmel
Dr. Kimmel will give you a simple and transferable plan for raising kids through the power of God's grace. We'll address the standard push backs that parents (and church leaders) have to using grace as your primary dynamic for relating and leading your children. You'll see why it automatically draws the best out of children and conditions their hearts to trust in God.

(A3 and B3) Kid Concoctions John and Danita Thomas
Need engaging, entertaining, and educational tips on how to make learning fun and exciting through the creation of unique arts & craft projects? Let John & Danita Thomas, the creators of the Kid Concoctions, show you how … by promoting learning skills, promoting family interaction, provoking thought, stimulating creativity, and building self-esteem.

(A4 and B4) Two Essentials for Healthy Family Relationships Dr. Jennifer Thomas
This practical workshop will review ways to show appreciation for members in your family and help you learn how to recover from offenses that others may have done to you. You will also learn how to remove barriers with family members by providing apologies that convey sincerity.

(A5 and B5) As You Go, Go Deep With Jesus Dr. Sue Edwards
If ever a woman needs to go deep with Jesus, it’s when her children are preschoolers. She needs to sit in silence to prepare for the day. But when? Her life is jam packed with diapers, dishes, and Dora. Going deep with Jesus requires uninterrupted time – or does it? God knew that the pace of family life would make going deep difficult. He told mothers to talk about God to their children when you sit at home and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you get up. To learn how, join mother, grandmother and full-time professor at Dallas Theological Seminary, Dr. Sue Edwards, in this practical and inspiring workshop.

(A6 and B6) Speaking Your Man’s Language Rick Johnson
This workshop will help a woman understand how to use the extremely powerful influence she has on the man in her life and empower him to become all he was meant to be. Share the secrets to bringing about positive change in your man and show how to recognize and affirm his good qualities.

Session C Workshops
Saturday 12:00-1:15 pm

(C1) Engaging Spiritual Seekers in Life Changing Discussions Garry Poole
Discover an innovative approach to reaching out to people far from God and identify the essential ingredients to create a non-threatening environment for spiritual seekers to explore the claims of Christ and encounter biblical truths at their own pace. Learn a step-by-step process to facilitate informal, on-going discussions and find out how to unleash your evangelistic potential even if you don’t see yourself as an evangelist or apologetics expert.

(C3) Writing in the Mothering Season: Finding Your Voice Carla Foote
As a mom, you are living in a season full of writing material, but short on time! This workshop will offer practical ways to collect writing material and hone your skills while refining your voice. Information on writing for publication will also be included.

(C4) Rockin’ Relationships Lisa Bergren
Once you become a mom, every relationship you have is rocked on its foundation. It might’ve been so small, you barely noticed the blip on the screen; or so seismic in scale that you’re still trying to put things to rights. In this workshop, we’ll go through the principal ways new moms struggle or succeed in relationships and perform a brief “self-diagnostic” to see if there’s something YOU might want to address in yours.

(C5) The Adventure of Hearing God’s Voice Margaret Feinberg
By attending this workshop, you will learn six unforgettable questions to ask yourself to help filter through what you think may be God’s voice in your life.

(C6) Coach Mom’s Dream Team Checklist Brenna Stull
Do you long for your family to live and play as a unified, all-star team? Get out your whistle and chalkboard, Mom, and achieve that dream by doing 3 things: Instill value, allow choices and set boundaries.

(C7) Boy-sterous Living! Loving Life with Boys Jean Blackmer
If you live in a world where bugs are cool, safety is an afterthought and “talking” is torture then this workshop is for you! Join other moms of boys in a lively, fun, workshop discussing the joys and challenges of raising sons such as understanding their competitive nature, overcoming the superman complex, and trusting God through it all. By choosing to celebrate the laughter, passion, noise and endless energy boys bring to our lives, moms will discover the joy and contentment in the everyday life of raising sons.

(C8) Green Mama Tracey Bianchi
We will discuss God’s call throughout Scripture for stewardship and care of His marvelous creation. You will leave with practical tips and everyday tricks to raise greener, more eco-friendly families that leave God’s planet better for future generations.

(C9) "Oh, Honestly!" Sharing the Reality of Our Lives With Candid Perspective Carol Kuykendall
Who are you - a person who shares her struggles, or one who seems to have it all together? The truth is, we're all broken and the more of life we live, the more we recognize the rhythm of brokenness and renewal in our faith journeys. So why not be honest about it? Our time together will help you identify your unique life experiences that are teaching you about God and yourself, giving you a new freedom and effectiveness in relating to others.

(C10) Who’s in Charge Here? Getting the most out of Leadership in Community Liz Selzer
“I don’t have time to take care of ...” “I don’t think I know how to do ...” “I am nervous to try ...” Are these the voices you hear in your head as you think about stepping into leadership? Are they the real voices you hear when you ask others to step up? How do we make the most of leading side by side with other women? In this theme year of Together on Planet Mom, learn some practical ways to appreciate and charge up your ministry team.

(C11) Nurturing Emotional Safety in Kids Beth Racine
This workshop addresses the needs of parents who are looking to create an emotionally secure atmosphere within the home. “Creating Emotional Safety,” will is a practical seminar that will provide you with the relational tools necessary to help a child to develop their identity in Christ alone.

(C12) Reverb! Authentic, Interactive, Engaging Presentations Shelly Radic
Re-verb /réevərb/ v. to have prolonged or continuing effect. Share words and ideas that reverberate in your audience through authentic, interactive, engaging presentations. Explore and practice concepts for public speaking that will continue to changes lives long after you step away from the microphone.

Session D Workshops
Saturday 2:00-3:15pm

(D1) God’s Story in You. The Power of Relational Evangelism Liz Selzer
Uncomfortable talking about Jesus with people who don’t know him? Unsure of what steps to take? How do we go about reaching out to the women in our life and tell them about the hope that we have? This practical workshop will give you the “how to’s” of living and telling a God story so irresistible that is leaves people wanting to know more.

(D2) Stress Strategies: Achieving Balance While Being S-T-R-E-T-C-H-E-D Sabrina Black
Do you ever feel trapped or misunderstood? What about overworked, overwhelmed or over-extended? Does there often seem to be too much to do and too little time? Are you feeling over-engaged or disengaged from life? If you have answered YES to any of the above, this workshop is for you. Those who feel S-T-R-E-T-C-H-E-D will gain resiliency and renewed capacity by applying eight essentials for beating stress and avoiding burnout.

(D3) Making Work at Home Work Mary Byers
This workshop will help you understand whether working at home is a feasible opportunity for you. Covering different aspects of working at home such as creating a professional image and how to preserve your profit, Mary Byers will give helpful hints to make working at home work.

(D4) Taking Control of Economic Stress Beth Flambures
In this workshop you will receive practical help on how to survive economic stress. We will explore setting up an easy household budget to best mange the high demand for every dollar. You will also receive great tips on where to look first in your spending to save thousands of dollars each year, and how you can involve your children in the financial fun!

(D5) How Better Moms Find Time to Make a Better World Valerie Bell
This workshop will encourage you as a mother of preschoolers to establish a lifestyle marked by a life-time commitment to a Christian worldview and a service orientation.

(D6) My Neighbor Kids’ Keeper? Mary Beth Lagerborg
In this workshop we’ll examine principles to help us develop our own “Neighborhood View.” and we’ll get practical and look at specific ways to build relationships in the neighborhood, as well as ways to say “no.”

(D7) But We Can’t Go to Africa: Mom’s and Kids Serving Together from Home Tracey Bianchi
Moms want to make an impact on the chaos in the world around them but with young kids at home most of us can’t just pack up and head to Africa. In this workshop you will discover how you can make a difference right now, today, in your life-stage, and how to do it serving alongside your children.

(D8) Nurturing Emotional Safety in Kids Beth Racine
This workshop addresses the needs of parents who are looking to create an emotionally secure atmosphere within the home. Nurturing Emotional Safety is a practical seminar that will provide you with the relational tools necessary to help a child develop their identity in Christ alone.

(D9) Living and Laughing Together Ken Davis
This workshop will give a humorous look into marriage and family dynamics.

(D11)Teen Moms in Your Community Rebecca Schmalstig
Let’s talk about the who, where and how’s of Teen MOPS. Attendees will interactively discuss how unique our Teen Moms are, what needs they have and how we can better serve the young women who attend our Teen MOPS meetings.