Attending the right church leadership conference at the right time can completely change the trajectory of your leadership and your ministry.
Unfortunately, too many pastors and churches waste resources attending church conferences that aren’t the right fit for them or their teams.
This list is designed to help you avoid that fate. Below, we’ll list out 10 church conferences we recommend, share a brief overview of each, and explain what makes them unique. We’ll also provide details on how to learn more about each conference.
Why attend a church conference in 2025 at all?
As Carey has repeatedly pointed out: “Content is everywhere.”
In the post-COVID world, much of what you hear at church conferences can also be found in the event speakers’ podcasts or books.
*One notable exception to this is The Art of Leadership Live. At our leadership conference specifically designed for pastors, Carey teaches all new content that has been tailored to the questions submitted by attendees ahead of the event. Learn more about it here!
But for most conferences, why would you want to attend if all of the content is available for free on a podcast?
In a world where content is everywhere, real connection has become increasingly more valuable.
Attending a pastor’s conference allows you to connect with your team and other pastors on a much deeper level.
So, if you’re a lead pastor, you’ll likely have an opportunity to meet other lead pastors who understand the weight you’re under.
If you bring a few strategic members of your team, you’ll get to know them personally in a whole new way. Not to mention this is also a great opportunity for leadership development.
Many church conferences are also starting to cap attendance so you get to interact with the speakers personally throughout the event. This is how we’ve designed our conference, The Art of Leadership Live. We’ll share a bit more below.
The 10 Best Church Conferences in 2025
Let’s dive into the 10 best church conferences pastors can attend in 2025. In no specific order…
“The Preaching Cheat Sheet is an enormous help each week during sermon prep. It keeps me focused on the task at hand; clearly communicating God’s Word to people who need to hear it.” – Mark Sneath
1. For Church Planters: The ARC Conference
If you’re in the church planting world, you’re probably familiar with ARC. This church conference offers a unique opportunity to build meaningful relationships with other planters.
According to ARC, Arc Conference is:
“For church planters, pastors, and leaders to build relationships with one another and receive resources that will help the local church thrive.”
ARC Conference will have four different global events this year. You can find the best one for you here: https://www.arcconference.com/
2. To Grow Your Leadership: The Global Leadership Summit
The Global Leadership Summit is one of the largest leadership conferences in the world. With events happening all over the world, the impact of this conference is hard to measure.
Here’s the invite from the GLN Team:
“Join us for two impactful days of encouragement and wisdom from 12+ leading experts representing the best of ministry and marketplace to equip you as a change agent in today’s world.”
If you want to grow as a leader or if you’re looking for a great event to bring business leaders who attend your church to, this event will challenge you to think higher and lead better in 2025.
3. If You Want to Grow Your Church: The Art of Leadership Live
Obviously, we’re a bit biased, but we believe The Art of Leadership Live is the best conference for pastors to attend to grow their leadership and their church.
At this application-only limited-ticket event, the world’s top church leaders gather together to talk about the leadership and ministry challenges we’re all facing today.
All of the content is new, you get access to the speakers, and there is a ton of time built in for you to process what we’re learning with other leaders.
You’ll want to get your application in soon as spots are filling up fast. You can learn more and apply to attend here.
4. For Pastors Who Need a New Growth Strategy: GrowLeader Conference
Chris Hodges and the GrowLeader team do a great job of breaking down the framework they’ve used to grow Church of The Highlands into one of the largest churches in America.
According to the GrowLeader team:
“The GrowLeader Conference is carefully designed just for pastors and church leaders like you. If you’re looking for innovative and actionable strategies to grow your church and empower your team, this is the place to be!”
Many pastors who use the GrowLeader ministry model take their entire team to this conference every year. If you’ve never been, it’s definitely worth checking out.
If you’re looking for innovative and actionable strategies to grow your church and empower your team, you can find out more here.
You can also listen to Carey’s interview with Chris Hodges on the podcast here.
5. To Change How You Think About Evangelism: The Alpha Conference
Carey has been a big fan of Nicky Gumbel and Alpha for years.
According to the Alpha team…
“What if you could set aside 48 hours to be reignited as a leader?
You can.
That’s why we created The Alpha Conference! Every year, we build an experience designed to serve you – not just as a ministry leader, but also as a follower of Jesus.”
We really appreciate the Alpha discipleship model. If you are looking for a new strategy for making disciples that’s proven, Alpha is it.
You can also listen to Carey’s interview with Nicky on the podcast here.
6. For NextGen Pastors: THINQ Summit 2025
The THINQ team does an amazing job of helping you faithfully navigate culture as a next-gen leader.
In our opinion, every next-gen pastor needs to attend this event. To emphasize how much we trust this team, listen to Carey’s podcast with Grant and Cheyanne here.
The THINQ Summit 2025 is being held on October 2-4 in Nashville, and you can find the rest of the details here.
7. If You’re 25 or Under: Passion Conference
Passion isn’t just a conference, it’s a movement. It’s a move of God that’s a can’t-miss experience for young Christians.
According to the Passion team:
“From its start in 1997, the Passion movement has had a singular mission—calling students and leaders from campuses across the nation and cities around the world to live for what matters most. For us, what matters most is the name and renown of Jesus. We believe in this generation and are watching God use them to change the climate of faith around the globe.”
You’ll have few opportunities to be surrounded by 50,000+ other Christians your age. Don’t miss this one.
Louie Giglio was one of Carey’s earliest guests on the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast. You can listen to their first episode here.
8. For Multiplication-Focused Pastors: Exponential
Exponential hosts multiple events, but they’re all around the same idea. “God didn’t create you to be a “ministry manager.” He created you to be a Multiplier.”
Exponential teaches you to make five key shifts as a ministry:
- Shift #1: From Reaching to Making
- Shift #2: From Informing to Equipping
- Shift #3: From Attending to Attaching
- Shift #4: From Striving to Thriving
- Shift #5: From Accumulation to Deploying
If you feel called to make disciples who make disciples and plant churches that plant churches, Exponential is the conference for you.
9. For Creative Pastors: C3 Conference
The right conference for the lead pastor will often look different than the right conference for creative pastors.
C3 Conference might be the right conference for your creative pastor. According to their team:
“C3 Conference is a two-day experience for pastors, staff members, and leaders in your church who desire to learn how to creatively advance the church and transform culture one life at a time. Join us for 48 Hours of intentional community, coaching, creativity, and collaboration!”
If you’re looking to be on the cutting edge of ministry branding, sign up for C3 Conference here.
10. If You Want To Learn From A Thriving Church: Christ Fellowship Conference
Just like GrowLeader Conference, Christ Fellowship Conference is hosted by a church, for your church.
According to their site:
“As a pastor or church staff member, have you found yourself thinking…
- Reaching new people is difficult
- Developing a team is hard
- Rethinking the norm is challenging
- Expectations are insurmountable
- My team is getting burnt out
- There’s simply too much to do and not enough time to do it
If you have, you’re not alone. This is why Christ Fellowship Conference exists. Come get encouraged and equipped to lead strong in your ministry!”
Learn from a team doing ministry well here.
Three Questions to Ask to Get the Most Out of a Conference
To get the most out of any conference, have everyone on your team ask themselves these three questions:
- What is one important application step I will take from this experience personally?
- What is a strategic relationship you can continue to invest in after this conference?
- How does our ministry need to improve as a result of this conference?
Too often, we have an inspiring conference experience, but nothing changes about our ministry as a result. When this happens, we’ve essentially wasted church dollars on a conference that led to zero change. (Not to mention travel and lodging experiences…)
By asking these questions, you will maximize the conference’s impact on you and your team.
So… which conference will you attend?
If you decide to sign up for an event after reading this article, please let them know we sent you, and let us know how it goes!
