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Greetings in Christ! Are you experiencing the same strange time warp that I am? It seems like weeks ago that I emailed you with our last Group Leader Email. Coronavirus is affecting so much, including our hour-to-day-to-week experience!
COVID-19 Updates
As a reminder, we offered a resource on virtual fundraising and extended our group scholarship application deadline last week. Refer to the emails in the links to the right for all of that information.
I want to give you a bit of more information that should help in your planning in the midst of this crisis. As a reminder, our regular cancelation policy is in place until April 30th. You can cancel your registrations and receive a refund for everything except the $100 non-refundable deposit until that point. We will be reevaluating this policy after the government social distancing orders expire on April 30th and will be in touch with any changes after that.
Typically our late fee of $25/registration is applied on May 1st. Understanding that groups are not able to do traditional fundraisers right now and therefore may not have the funds to make full payments before May 1, we won't be charging late fees until June 1.
Again, we are still planning on seeing you at Watermarked this summer. That being said, if a conference is canceled due to the Coronavirus, you will be given the option to receive a 100% refund, including the non-refundable deposit. Please continue to pray with us that our conferences will continue without interruption!
Catechesis Information
And now for something more optimistic. All of the teaching that takes place at a conference is encompassed in the word Catechesis. The mission of Higher Things is to support the church in passing on the faith by teaching the next generation the Gospel of Jesus Christ: that they are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, as revealed in Scripture alone. One of the ways we do this is to ensure that the teaching which takes place at the conference clearly proclaims Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
You will participate in four plenary (all together) sessions taught by two LCMS pastors over the course of each conference. These sessions will focus on teaching the conference theme, Watermarked. On top of that, all conference registrants will have the opportunity to attend six breakaway sessions taught by the pastors and leaders that brought them to the conferences. These classes will cover a variety of topics and allow the registrants to choose what to give more in depth study to.
We are excited to offer a panel session this summer at each conference, as well as fireside chats in the evening for more personal conversation with some specific pastors and leaders. Be watching for more information when you arrive on campus for how those will work.
Pastors and leaders are encouraged to continually teach their youth throughout the week by being available to answer the questions the youth will inevitably ask. We believe the best people to teach our young people are the ones the Lord has placed in their pulpits on Sundays, as well as other leaders and parents. This is one reason why our breakaway teachers are chosen from a pool of those registered.
Finally, I'd like to provide you with pre-conference Bible Studies. These Bible Studies were written by our Catechesis Coordinator, Rev. Brett Simek and give an opportunity to do some "prep work," so to speak, while you wait for the conferences.
Watermarked Bible Study - Part 1 (A Watermarked Birth)
Watermarked Bible Study - Part 2 (A Watermarked Life)
Watermarked Bible Study - Part 3 (A Watermarked Death)
That's all of this week. Blessings on your weekend!
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