Potomac Conference to Hold Two "Impact: Camp Meeting Re-imagined" Events

The Potomac Conference will hold two “Impact: Camp Meeting Re-imagined” events next month. This new camp meeting format, where regional meetings are held each year and a conference-wide meeting is held once every five years, kicked off in 2017. The Virginia Valley Region event will be held at the Shenandoah Valley Academy Campus in New Market, Va., June 8-9, and the Hispanic event will be in Washington, D.C., June 15-16.

Nicholas Miller, professor of church history and director of the International Religious Liberty Institute at Andrews University (Mich.), and Lincoln Steed, editor for Liberty magazine, will be the main speakers for the Virginia Valley Region.

With “Religious Liberty” as the theme, a Q&A panel of religious liberty educators and thought leaders will be held, as well as discussions and presentations of what religious liberty looks like in local churches and schools. Several seminars will be offered Sabbath afternoon, from topics on how to carry out an ongoing health ministry in your local church (presented by Adventist HealthCare) to tips on successful personal witnessing (presented by It Is Written).

An all-day tour of historic Monticello or Montpelier will be offered on Sunday, June 10. Miller and/or Reed Richardi, associate pastor of the New Market (Va.) church, will serve as guides and share facts relevant to religious history.

Arnaldo Cruz, pastor of the Pilgrims Spanish church in the Southeastern Florida Conference, is the keynote speaker for this event, themed “Impacto 2018: Pentecostés Ahora Plus” (Impact 2018: Pentecost Now Plus).

Arautos do Rei, a men’s quartet, and Christian songwriter Felipe Garibo, will perform over the weekend. Arautos do Rei first started in 1962 and was linked to the radio program The Voice of Prophecy, the first evangelical radio program in Brazil. Garibo, a Mexican singer, has traveled throughout Central and South America, Mexico and the U.S. to present and exalt Christ through his music.

Children’s programming will be available at both events. Please check pcsda.org/impact2018 for more details.

“We want to engage as many members as possible in the mission of the church,” says Bill Miller, president. “In 2017 our overall attendance—among the three Impact venues—was double what we have had in previous years while holding camp meeting at a single location. This format is allowing us to reach the needs of specific regions and bring a powerful event to people’s front door.”

Next year meetings will be held in the Tidewater and Maryland/D.C. area. A conference-wide Impact will be held May 1-2, 2020.