On June 13-14, pastors and leaders will fellowship and train to be “Firmes y Adelante” (Steadfast and Forward), the Send Conference’s Spanish-language theme. The two-day conference, sponsored by the North American Mission Board (NAMB), will take place in the Karl F. Dean Ballroom (level 4) of the Music City Center in downtown Nashville, alongside the English-language conference in the same building.

Send Conference is a two-day gathering of pastors, families and churches across North America learning and celebrating what it means to be on mission together for the sake of the gospel. With specialized tracks for every member of the family, participants gain the tools and connections to become a movement of people – the Church – sharing the gospel with a world in need.

“During this gathering we are going to be casting the vision for Hispanics within SBC life,” said Julio Arriola, executive director of Hispanic relations and mobilization with the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) Executive Committee. “This will be a historic event and I expect many more people than we have seen in previous years.”

Beginning Sunday night, June 13, the event will feature worship led by Camp Kirkland, the Florida Worship Team, Arriola and Samua Calderon as well as a message from Ramon Medina, pastor of Champion Forest en Español in Houston, and a discussion with Dr. Miguel Nunez about the future of the church in a post-pandemic world. Nunez is a pastor, writer and doctor specializing in infectious diseases.

“We know the pandemic has changed the way churches do some things and we know that pastors and leaders have questions about what it will be like moving forward, and Dr. Nunez, as a pastor and a doctor, can speak to these concerns,” Arriola said.

On Monday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., pastors, leaders and lay people will have the opportunity to participate in training sessions for men and women specially designed for the local church to be better equipped in different areas of ministry. Among the topics are:

• Family
• International missions
• Church planting
• Evangelism
• Discipleship
• Leadership
• Theological training
• Finance

Hosted jointly by NAMB and the International Mission Board, the event was moved to the Music City Center in early April to provide abundant space conducive to holding a meeting that is efficient, effective, and safe for every attendee while adhering to local COVID-19 protocols. NAMB President Kevin Ezell said he “couldn’t be more thrilled” about the shift.

“This is a year we all need to be together, for a lot of reasons,” Ezell said. “This provides a great opportunity to do that. This venue will enable us to have a lot of creative options and provide the best experience for those who attend.”

Arriola said the Hispanic Leadership Council played an important role in planning the Hispanic activities on Sunday and Monday.

For more information about the SEND Conference Español visit sendconference.com/espanol.

(EDITOR’S NOTE – Keila Diaz is Hispanic life correspondent for Baptist Press.)