Rural Impact Leadership Conference 2025 focused on nurturing thriving rural churches through building up of pastors and leaders
While the winter winds and snow blew across the greater Minnesota landscape, 85 rural/small-town pastors and leaders gathered for the fourth annual Rural Impact Leadership Conference (RILC) on March 15, 2025, at Alexandria Covenant Church in Alexandria, MN.
In addition, 33 individual attendees from California, Idaho, Illinois, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Washington, and Saskatchewan joined online. And new this year we had online watch parties ranging from 5-15 participants in Hutchinson and Worthington, MN, Manhattan, Montana, Durbin, Manitoba and Nelson, British Columbia.
“A wonderful conference and a wonderful host church!”
The day included times of worship opening and closing the conference, along with presentations by Dr. Martin Giese and Rev. Kara Stromberg based on Psalm 1. The framing question they each answered was: How do we stay effective in our calling to the mission of the Church in what may be the most difficult and complex time in history? A few of their guiding insights were to delight and meditate on God’s word, and to be rooted and resilient in our relationship with God which prepares us to faithfully weather and impact our times!
“Worship was amazing”
Practical instruction was also offered addressing strategic ministry areas through the day’s nine workshops: Building the Team Today for the Church Tomorrow; Five “Shifts” Needed to Share Christ in Rural Areas; Suicide Prevention and Response in Ministry; Church Revitalization Made Slightly Less Difficult; Gen Alpha: Resilient Ministry with Kids; From Trauma to Triumph: What to Know and Do Related to First Peoples and First Peoples Ministry in North America; Leadership Math; Stepping Off the Hamster Wheel; and Addressing Pornography Directly and Compassionately.
“I am used to feeding and equipping others; it was so great to be fed and equipped!”
For those onsite, exhibitors offered an array of resources including published materials and trainings on rural ministry, children, youth, and family ministry, congregational revitalization, along with a rural ministry certificate program. In addition, mental health supports and resources for local pastors and churches, mission opportunities and other specialized ministry services were presented. All of these provided further ways to resource thriving churches.
“I found the whole day great! Such helpful and relevant information shared, and encouragement extended.”
Here’s what a few other participants shared about their experience:
- “I was on-site, but I noticed how all of the speakers did well in relaying their conversations with both those on-site and those online.”
- “RILC provided good information, broken into small bites.”
- “I found the topics relevant, and the speakers knew their subject matter.”
- “The livestream was easy, and I loved having access to the presentation slides and for some their notes as well.”
- “This conference is such a wonderful opportunity for me to hear experts speak. From my perspective the conference went very well! Inspiring music, great opening session and well-done choice of topics to engage in.”
- “With our group, everyone felt the sessions were timely and helpful”
Once again, we are praising God for our partners, for all of the participants and presenters and the presence of God’s Spirit that provided a rich day in the nurture of thriving rural churches! We hope you will plan to join us next year on March 14, 2026!
