Our 2013 Spring Bible Conference
I am SO EXCITED! Since before our Tabernacles Conference in St. Louis this past October, I have been pondering and waiting for guidance on where to hold the Spring Bible Conference. I had a couple places in mind and there seemed to be some signs that one location in particular was appropriate—and it still may be a venue for the future—but, a very unusual set of circumstances has occurred so that it is now astoundingly clear where we are to meet next spring. I cannot go into the amazing details here of how this came about, but I will share it in another venue; either in my blog or more likely, at the Conference itself. When you hear the full story, you will praise God for all of His “coincidences” that fell into place to make this like a giant flashing billboard with 90 decibels of sound effects to go with it! The 2013 SKM Christ our Passover-Resurrection Bible Conference will be held commencing Friday, March 29th and running through Sunday, March 31st. The location is here in this verse:
Ezekiel 22:30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.
The location is the Family Center in Gap, Pennsylvania! The word “gap” occurs only this one time in the Bible, but an alternate rendering for the Hebrew word is “breach” and how many times have we been speaking of healing the breach?! That was one of the primary themes of all four of our meetings at Manassas! …Healing the breach between North and South, black and white, men and women, soul and spirit, and more.
Since I realized we would not be going back to Manassas (anytime soon), you must understand that I did not go seeking for a place named “Gap” or “breach.” In fact, Gap, PA is such a tiny crossroads that I did not even realize I had been in the tiny town of Gap until I returned home! While there, I had met the lady who handles the bookings for conferences at the Family Center. When I told her we had held meetings in the Philadelphia area for ten years, she invited me to hold a conference there. I thanked her and told her I would consider it. It wasn’t until I got back to my office and looked it up online that it leaped out at me: Gap, Pennsylvania! My heart leapt for joy! In view of the other “coincidences” that happened, it didn’t take a “rocket surgeon”:) to know this was the place. Here’s the link.
This gathering will be different in that we cannot have the venue on Sunday as they already have a regular Sunday worship service there, so we will have a two-day conference with Sunday being left open TBD (to be determined). Shannon, the Family Center’s Conference Coordinator, provided me with a list of nearby hotels. Given that we are not using a hotel venue for our Conference, it is not likely that I can negotiate group rates unless I guarantee a minimum number of guest-nights. That I cannot do and be “on the hook” if we fail to meet the quota. So here is the list Shannon provided and here is a website link with the details of those and many more hotels in the area. This is “Pennsylvania Dutch” – Amish country.
Revere Tavern—Best Western in Paradise, PA: 717-687-7683; Bird In Hand Family Inn, Bird in Hand, PA: 800-347-5457; Sleep Inn & Suites in Ronks, PA: 717-687-5226; Clarion Hotel @ Historic Strasburg Inn—Strasburg, PA: 717-687-7691 Shannon wrote me: “These places are all within 8 miles of here. My Mom works in reservations at The Bird In Hand Family Inn…it is a nice place.”
Invited to minister at this conference are all of you to one another informally. The formally invited teachers are Rob Corry, Pennsylvania; Stephen Jones, Minnesota; Ron Oja, Minnesota; and James Bruggeman, North Carolina. That is all I am going to commit to at this point due to our two day restriction. That could change. We will be gathering—at least for fellowship—on Sunday, so please do consider it as the typical SKM Friday through Sunday Bible Conference. SKM Conference Registration fee: $0. Please let me know you plan to attend. A quick phone call to my office and leave a message is best. (828-277-7733)