Connecting Ministries 2023
Join speaker and author, Lisa Harper, as she dives deep into God’s Word with laughter and tears. Join us on Friday night for a limited number of VIP tickets where you can ask Lisa questions and hear real life examples of how God has worked in Lisa’s life. You won’t want to miss this event!
VIP Friday, February 10, 2023: 6:30-9:30 PM (doors open at 6:00 PM)
Saturday, February 11, 2023: 9 AM-2:30 PM (doors open at 8:30 AM)
First Baptist Church~123 Church Street, Decatur, AL
Purchase 2023 Decatur, AL Ticket
Discounted Group Rates- Hilton Hotel (Coming Soon)
Meet the Conference Speakers- Refine 2023
Lisa Harper
Rarely are the terms hilarious storyteller and theological scholar used in the same sentence, much less used to describe the same person but then again, Lisa Harper is anything but stereotypical! She’s been lauded as a gifted communicator, whose writing and speaking overflow with colorful pop culture references that connect the dots between the Bible era and modern life. Her style combines sound scriptural exposition with easy-to-relate to anecdotes and comedic wit.
Best-selling author and pastor Max Lucado calls Lisa one of the “best Bible tour guides around,” and author/actress Priscilla Evans Shirer adds, “Her God-given ability to not merely teach the Word but package it in a way that stirs the heart and calls to action is incomparable. When she speaks, ears perk up!”
Lisa’s vocational resume includes thirty plus years of vocational church and para-church ministry leadership, including six years as the director of Focus on the Family’s national women’s ministry where she created the popular Renewing the Heart conferences attended by almost 200,000 women. Her academic resume includes a Masters of Theological Studies with honors from Covenant Seminary and she is currently working on her doctorate at Denver Seminary.
Now a sought-after Bible teacher and speaker, she’s been featured on numerous television and radio programs and is a regular on TBN’s globally syndicated Better Together show. She’s spoken at hundreds of national and international women’s events, as well as in churches around the world. But she’s also very invested locally and has been leading a weekly neighborhood Bible study for many years.
If you can’t find Lisa studying, teaching, or riding a motorcycle, she’s probably typing on a keyboard somewhere because she’s had 13 books published ~ including the recent children’s book, Who’s Your Daddy?, and has written and filmed 5 best-selling Bible study video curriculums, including Job: A Story of Unlikely Joy.
Yet when asked about her credentials, the most noticeable thing about Lisa Harper is her authenticity. During a recent interview, she said, “I’m so grateful for the opportunities God’s given me but don’t forget, He often uses donkeys and rocks!” She went on to describe her greatest accomplishment to date as getting to be Missy’s mama. Because in April 2014, after a difficult two-year journey and several adoption losses, she finally got to bring her little girl home from Haiti and she’s been smiling ever since.
Cheryl Goss
Cheryl Goss is a women’s conference speaker, Bible teacher, encourager, and founder of Connecting Ministries. She is passionate about helping women find their own passions and gifts by claiming the story God has given them. Cheryl’s mission—personally and through Connecting Ministries—is to reach all women, regardless of denomination, generation, or background. She wants to connect with each woman she meets on a personal level and make them feel comfortable, accepted, and loved. Her passion is to share God’s Word in a way that speaks to each woman where she is so that they leave encouraged and wanting more of Him.
Cheryl came to know Christ after she walked through many dark trials during her childhood and young adult years. Once she came to know Him and the love He pours on us each day, He gave her a passion of sharing the Word of God and walking with others as we live out our messy lives. Cheryl leads a busy and sometimes chaotic life, but she has been happily married to the man who showed her to Christ. She is the wife to Ryan and mother to Timothy, Peyton, Layla, and Mia. Cheryl is passionate about seeing lives changed through the love that can only come from our Lord and Savior. Her family resides in Decatur, AL.
Ingram Franklin
Ingram Franklin is mentor, worship leader and aspiring cosmetic entrepreneur. She native of Trinity, AL, a graduate of Austin High School and serves at God’s Love Covenant Church under the leadership of Pastors Carl and Regina Willingham. Ingram spends themajority of her time traveling to fulfill her calling. She enjoys mentoring at the local Boys and Girls Club.Ingram believes that she is called to show the world that normal does not exist. A fearfully and wonderfully made creation doesn’t have to conform, compare or compromise. They only have to conceive the power to become the gift that God created them to be!
Morgan Cheek
Morgan Cheek is passionate about seeing God in all things and inviting others to do the same. She is a wife to Hugh, a mother to two in heaven (Bailey Grace and Ally) and one on earth (James). She lives in Birmingham, Alabama; and when she is not reading or writing she is probably doing something active-whether outdoors or as a fitness coach in the Orange Theory Fitness studio. Morgan is the author of, “On Milk and Honey: How God’s Goodness Shows Up in Unexpected Places”, “Are We There Yet? One Sojourner’s Journey Through Dross Consumed and Gold Refined” and “Even in Darkness”. She co-hosts the podcast, Grief Sown. You can find the musings (and hopefully) encouragements of her own heart and life on Instagram (@seedsandleaven).