More than 1,000 men gathered at the Glaubenszentrum (Faith Center) in Bad Gandersheim, Germany, Oct. 22-25 for an annual men's conference featuring American pastor Bayless Conley and his son, Harrison, according to German Christian news site C-Heute.
The conference ran under the motto "Standhaft," German for "steadfast." Its program combined plenary teaching with afternoon training sessions, prayer for Germany's government, a street evangelism outing in Hanover and a welcome address from the town's mayor, according to C-Heute and the local newspaper Gandersheimer Kreisblatt.
Founded in 1975, the interdenominational Glaubenszentrum runs a Bible school and a 1,000-seat conference venue in the northern German state of Lower Saxony, German evangelical news agency IDEA reported. More than 3,200 Christians have trained there, and most graduates of its one- to three-year programs go on to serve as volunteers or staff in independent evangelical congregations, known in Germany as free churches, or enter mission work, according to IDEA.
Bayless Conley, a pastor based in Los Alamitos, California, founded Cottonwood Church with his wife and is known in German-speaking countries through his broadcast "Antworten mit Bayless Conley" ("Answers with Bayless Conley"), according to the conference website.
He and Harrison spoke about faithfulness and perseverance in faith, work and family in challenging times, IDEA reported. They urged the men to hold fast to God's word and build their lives on Jesus as a firm foundation.
Afternoon training units covered evangelism, marriage and fatherhood, business, everyday life and vocation.
"We men must become and remain steadfast in all areas of life: in faith, in the family, in our work," Achim Ginsberg, who heads print and editorial work at the Glaubenszentrum, wrote in a report on the conference quoted by the Kreisblatt.
Two in-depth seminars were added to the program this year. Sam Childers, an American known as the "Machine Gun Preacher," spoke about his work with children caught up in civil war in East Africa. Henning Steen, a cardiologist and professor, examined the human heart from both a scientific and a spiritual perspective.
Participants also joined an evangelistic outreach in Hanover, the state capital. Organizers said two people decided to follow Jesus during the outing, C-Heute reported.
Extended prayer times during the weekend focused on participants' families and, as Ginsberg put it, "our country and our government."
On the morning of Saturday, Oct. 24, Bad Gandersheim Mayor Niklas Kielhorn addressed the gathering. He quoted "Männer" ("Men"), a 1984 song by German singer Herbert Grönemeyer, along with two verses from the Apostle Paul's letters to the Corinthians, and encouraged the men to take a stand in society.
"As organizers, we are moved again and again by the men's openness in prayer and in conversations," the Glaubenszentrum told IDEA. The center said participants are now challenged to put what they heard into practice.
Organizers hold the conference every year because they see a need for spiritual equipping, encouragement and honest fellowship. Organizers also credited God for weather that proved milder than forecast, allowing outdoor parts of the program, including coffee breaks, sports and food stands, to proceed as planned.
"We are extremely grateful for God's work at this conference," Ginsberg said in his report.
Parts of the conference were livestreamed and remain available on the Glaubenszentrum's YouTube channel.
