From Your 2027 Event Co-Chairs

In a vision God gives the prophet Ezekiel, God commands to a valley of dry bones, “I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. I will lay sinews on you and will cause flesh to come upon you and cover you with skin and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord.”

In a world where systems and algorithms are designed to show us nothing but awful things in the name of profit or social media engagement, it’s easy to feel like we are stuck in our valleys where the things that sustain us have dried up and nothing works no matter how hard we’ve tried. Then, we begin to believe in the possibility that they no longer can and ask ourselves, “Can these bones live?”

And yet, God’s vision to Ezekiel vividly illustrates that we can reconnect and revitalize to new ways of being and doing our call to ministry together while still relying on the foundations of the things that have sustained us before, even if they need to look a little different to be more inclusive, welcoming, and inviting. Through this God-given hope,  even the driest of bones can resurrect so that we can rediscover and redefine what matters. 

The APCE Annual Event will be held in Portland, Oregon from January 27-30, 2027, either in-person at the Marriott Downtown Waterfront or via Annual Event Online. Each day, we will look at different questions we ask ourselves about how we do the ministry of Christian education, moving through the breath, sinews, flesh, and spirit of this collective ministry in the world we live in.

So join us in Stumptown, Rip City, PDX, or whatever nickname you know Portland by to ask and explore “Can These Bones Live?: Rediscovering What Matters.”

We hope to see you there!

Anna Sheetz and Brendan McLean,