B = Breakfast included L = Lunch included D = Dinner included
Overview
Itinerary
Purpose
Arrangements
Price
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Faith Travel Conference Overview
Join us October 16 – 19, 2023, at the Hilton Branson Convention Center for our Faith Travel Conference. The city of Branson and the Holy Land attraction in nearby Eureka Springs, AR will provide the context for this continuing education event for clergy and faith leaders as current, prospective, and interested journey hosts interested in preparing, sharpening, and refining the substance of their engagement with fellow travelers who embark with them on a faith travel experience.
Our conference itinerary will balance collegial, substantive engagement through presentations, workshops, and experiences such as the Holy Land Tour in Eureka Springs, AR as well as fun activities and great dining experiences. We will attend shows at the Sight and Sound Theater and The Great Passion Play. We will also visit the inspiring campus of Hard Work U. Your conference registration fee includes three nights’ room accommodations, ground transportation during the conference, and nearly all meals as well as admission to all attractions and shows. Special conference fee discounts and incentives are available. If you are interested in hosting a journey, you may even attend this conference at virtually no cost.
Your Host for the Conference
Your host for our conference, sponsored by Purposeful Journeys by MCE, is our Founder and CEO, Mike Malone. Your host holds degrees from Valparaiso University, Concordia Seminary—St. Louis, Saint Louis University, and the University of Chicago. Rev. Malone served Lutheran congregations for nearly twenty years as a parish pastor. Mike has also developed and taught university courses over more than seven years.
You may also consider your host to be the city of Branson, MO which proudly presents itself as a city of faith, family, and patriotism. While we will discuss other domestic and international faith travel destinations at the conference, Branson, MO continues to be a great faith travel destination that offers an impressive array of fantastic possibilities for an effective faith travel experience.
Speakers and Workshop Leaders
Our presenters and workshop leaders are all preparing to embark with their fellow travelers on a purposeful journey to Israel. Rev. Dr. Kirk Clayton and Rev. Bryan Drebes are partnering to host A Miraculous Journey in January 2024. Rev. Dr. Matthew Rosebrock and Rev. Don Stein will be hosting Sights of Faith in July 2024. Our presenters and workshop leaders bring both solid theological and academic credentials as well as their deep motivation to deliver an effective faith travel experience to those who will join them on their journey to the Holy Land.
Rev. Dr. Kirk Clayton
Rev. Dr. Kirk Clayton is a 2000 graduate of Concordia Seminary—St. Louis. In 2017, the Rev. Dr. Clayton earned his PhD and continues to study, write, and speak on the topic of Apologetics, especially in defense of the resurrection within an increasingly secular society. As a boy, Pastor Clayton traveled to the Holy Land. He is eager to return to the Holy Land and reflect on his experience with others who will share the journey with him.
Rev. Bryan Drebes
Rev. Bryan Drebes loves to travel and engage people of other cultures, perspectives, and backgrounds. In the summer of 1999, Pastor Drebes taught English to Chinese middle school teachers in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China. In 2017, Pastor Drebes led a group to Germany for a once in a lifetime experience. Those who joined him in Wittenberg, Germany in 2017, celebrated the publication of the 95 Theses by Martin Luther on the very day that momentous event occurred 500 years prior.
Rev. Dr. Matthew Rosebrock
Rev. Dr. Matthew Rosebrock is a pastor, theologian, and author interested in the intersection of theology and culture—specifically, the visual arts, visual culture, and aesthetics. He writes and presents regularly on these topics in academic, church, and public settings. He loves to help people make connections between the Church’s theology and visual language in service to the Gospel. Dr. Rosebrock also teaches online courses at Concordia University St. Paul. In 2017, Rev. Dr. Rosebrock received his Ph.D. in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary.
Rev. Don Stein
His travels in Israel left an indelible impression on, Rev. Don Stein which he seeks to share with others. He continues to deliver public presentations grounded in his experience of the Holy Land. Prior to matriculating at Concordia Seminary—St. Louis, Missouri, Pastor Stein worked for Congress in Washington, DC and in other positions. He holds a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. Pastor Stein now serves as pastor to God’s people at St. Andrew Evangelical Lutheran Church in Rockton, Illinois.
Your Faith Travel Conference as Continuing Education
We encourage clergy to both view and present this conference to their lay leadership as a continuing education experience. We have developed this conference in a way that clergy can take the time to attend our faith travel conference as time toward continuing education rather than vacation. We believe we have created a conference experience that will be a fun, educational, enjoyable, inspiring, and worthwhile event that is sure to stimulate conversation around faith and ministry. While we have witnessed firsthand how faith travel can empower congregations to grow numerically and spiritually by sharing fellowship in faith travel experiences, we also recognize that faith travel may not fit at a particular time in a particular ministry setting. Nevertheless, we have created our faith travel conference to be as fun and relaxing for participants as the experience promises to be educational and inspiring. Special conference fee discounts are available. Ask how you may attend this conference at virtually no cost.
Day 1 – Welcome!
Monday, October 16, 2023
Conference participants are encouraged to arrive so that they may check in by 4:00 PM CST into the beautiful Hilton Branson Convention Center. At 6:00 PM, conference participants will be welcomed with a reception followed by dinner and a presentation. D
Day 2 – A Holy Land Experience
Tuesday, October 17, 2023
A wonderful breakfast will be offered at our hotel. After breakfast, we will participate in workshops focused on a faith travel experience in Israel. We will enjoy lunch at the hotel before departing for Eureka Springs, Arkansas where we will tour the attraction where The Great Passion Play is presented. We will tour The Holy Land exhibit that features a full-sized replica of the East Jerusalem Gate and Marketplace to Biblically inspired exhibits which include Moses’ Tabernacle in the Wilderness, Bethlehem Inn and the Nativity, the Upper Room, the Garden Tomb, the Walk with Peter, and other exhibits which depict life in Bible times. We will also visit the Bible Museum which includes rare Bibles including an original 1st edition 1st printing 1611 King James Version, the only Bible signed by all of the original Gideons in 1898, the first Cherokee Bible, as well as a page from the Gutenberg Bible. We will enjoy The Great Passion Play together before returning to our hotel in Branson. B, L, D
Day 3 – A Visit to Hard Work U
Wednesday, October 18, 2023
After breakfast served at our hotel, we will engage in serious reflection on our experiences in Eureka Springs, AR as we consider our role as journey hosts on a journey to Israel. After lunch, we travel to Hard Work U for a tour followed by dinner in the impressive Keeter Center. This unique college, the College of the Ozarks, has become known for the reputation this institution has cultivated over many years. Informally, as a testament to the experience who attend this college, the College of the Ozarks has become known as Hard Work U. Our tour will reveal why this institution of higher learning is so impressive. Students who attend this college work throughout their time as students so that they graduate debt free. The restaurant in the Keeter Center models the reputation of this college as a student run, student sourced venue that offers incredible ambiance and great food. After dinner, we will depart for the Sight and Sound Theater to enjoy a show before returning to our hotel. B, L, D
Day 4 – We Depart to Continue our Work
Thursday, October 19, 2023
Breakfast will be provided at the hotel. Our conference host will be available through checkout time and beyond, if requested, to answer questions or discuss how faith travel, and especially a journey to Israel, can enliven and empower congregations to grow numerically and spiritually. We depart friends and colleagues to continue our work. B
Purpose
Our faith travel conference in Branson, MO is a continuing education event for current, prospective, and interested journey hosts created for the purpose of preparing, sharpening, and refining the substance of their engagement with fellow travelers who embark with them on a faith travel experience. We will be especially focused on a journey to the Holy Land.
To stimulate our conversation, we will travel to the Holy Land exhibit in nearby Eureka Springs, AR. We will also attend the Great Passion Play and a show at Sight and Sound Theater. We will engage one another through workshops, presentations, and great dining experiences. Your conference fee offers an all-inclusive experience as possible including hotel, meals, comfortable ground transportation, shows, and admission fees.
The focus and purpose of our Faith Travel Conference for current and interested eligible journey hosts will be to:
- Provide a forum to refine their approach to sights, especially in the Holy Land
- Analyze conditions for an effective faith travel experience
- Explore the power of faith travel to grow a ministry numerically and spiritually
- Engage in discussion around the power of place in faith travel
- Discuss how to begin planning and preparing for a faith travel experience
- Thoughtfully consider how to become a great journey host
- Consider other potential faith travel destinations with a special focus on Israel
Branson, Missouri, and the Holy Land exhibit in nearby Eureka Springs, AR, provides the context for our conference. Branson is a city that proudly presents itself to the world as embracing values of faith, family, and patriotism. Branson offers a great faith travel destination with many opportunities to appeal to various groups within congregations as well as an intergenerational appeal.
Consistent with our philosophy in creating travel experiences for cohorts of fellow travelers, this conference will balance rich experiences of sights and attractions that are sure to stimulate serious conversation over faith and ministry with time to relax and reflect as well as other experiences that promise to be just plain fun.
This Conference as Continuing Education
We encourage clergy to both view and present this conference to their lay leadership as a continuing education experience. We have developed this conference in a way that clergy can take the time to attend our faith travel conference as time toward continuing education rather than vacation. We believe we have created a conference experience that will be a fun, educational, enjoyable, inspiring, and worthwhile event that is sure to stimulate conversation around faith and ministry. While we have witnessed firsthand how faith travel can empower congregations to grow numerically and spiritually by sharing fellowship in faith travel experiences, we also recognize that faith travel may not fit at a particular time in a particular ministry setting. Nevertheless, we have created our faith travel conference to be as fun and relaxing for participants as the experience promises to be educational and inspiring. Special conference fee discounts are available. Ask how you may attend this conference at virtually no cost.
We recognize from direct experience that the time of a pastor is very valuable. We believe pastors who choose to invest their time in participating in this conference will come away with ideas and perspectives that will serve their congregations well for the time invested.
Our Philosophy
We hope you will measure the quality of your journey, not by the quantity of sights you see, but by the invaluable experiences you absorb.
Balance of stimulating experience, serious reflection… and just plain fun.
One word describes our intention for your journey: balance. We believe each place we visit should relate to whole story, the arc of a narrative. We believe in creating journeys formed and shaped as narratives; journeys that are serious, purposeful, and fulfilling with time to reflect with fellow travelers or alone while providing opportunity for experiences that are just plain fun.
Expert interaction and rich personal encounters
Rather than a trip led by a tour guide trained to disseminate information from a script, we endeavor to seek experts to lead you on a journey who are available as a resource for as much depth as you desire or to leave you to your own reflection.
One beautiful base location
Too often, group travel can leave you feeling like you are part of a herd of a large group of strangers hustled from sight to sight, packing and unpacking everyday of your trip. With us you will stay in one beautiful base location that serves as a base for our excursions. Changing hotels as few times as possible during a journey allows greater opportunity to experience people and culture.
Meticulously planned; yet flexible journey
How does a trip become a journey? Carefully selected excursions that form a narrative, staying in one beautiful base location, with time and flexibility for reflection, and activities that are just plain fun.
Cuisine as a delectable complement to culture and conversation
Cuisine, and the wonderful dining experiences we share in an eclectic array of venues, provide a delectable complement to your rich encounters with the culture and the delightful conversation you enjoy with fellow travelers.
Arrangements
Arrangements for your conference will be handled exclusively by Purposeful Journeys:
Transportation to and from the Conference
Conference participants are expected to provide their own transportation to and from the conference unless otherwise agreed with Purposeful Journeys. Deluxe coach transportation will be provided during the conference.
Hotel Accommodations
Hotel accommodations will be provided by the Hilton Branson Convention Center—Branson, MO.
Meals
Meals are included with your conference registration fee as specified in the final itinerary. Meals provide time for us to relax, reflect, and discuss all that we have seen and experienced as conference participants that day. See the current, tentative itinerary for details.
Ground Transportation
Ground transportation during the conference will be provided as specified in the final itinerary.
Sightseeing and Events
Your conference registration fee includes tickets all attractions and shows including The Great Passion Play and Sight and Sound Theater as well as tours and dining experiences.
Full Price
The Faith Travel Conference registration fees are as follows:
- Single Hotel Room Occupancy–$1,350
- Double Hotel Room Occupancy–$1,150
- Triple Hotel Room Occupancy–$1,000
- Quad Hotel Room Occupancy–$975
Once your application to attend our faith travel conference is approved, you will receive a statement that reflects your desired hotel occupancy as well as any discounts.
Discounts Available for Attendees Paying Full Conference Fee:
There are several discounts available to reduce your conference registration fee. You may even attend the conference at virtually no cost. For those paying a full conference fee, the following discounts may apply:
- Host Discount: When you apply, use FTCBranson2023 as your promotional code to save $200 off of your conference fee.
- Early Bird Application Discount: Submit your application to attend our Faith Travel Conference by the specified early bird sign up date and receive $100 discount.
- Payment in Full Discount: Pay the balance of your conference registration fee by the due date of your first payment and receive a $100 discount.
Special Discounts For Prospective Journey Hosts
- Agree to host a purposeful journey to the Holy Land and attend the Faith Travel Conference at virtually NO COST
- For qualified prospective journey hosts who are not ready to commit to hosting a purposeful journey, the conference fee will be $600 which includes admission for both the attendee and their travel companion. Prospective journey hosts travel as a single attendee can attend the conference for $400.
Current Very Special Opportunities and Incentives
A Miraculous Journey-January 22 – February 1, 2024
We have one space available for a prospective journey host to share a room with an LCMS pastor as you Rev. Dr. Kirk Clayton and Rev. Bryan Drebes as fellow travelers on a journey. This opportunity comes with the following incentives:
- Receive two additional spaces over and above the spaces reserved journey hosts and their travel companion. All four spaces will be reserved for fellow travelers who will travel essentially free on a journey you host.
- You and your travel companion, or a representative you send in your place, may attend our Faith Travel Conference in Branson, Missouri, October 16-19 at essentially no cost including your room, meals, ground transportation, shows and admission fees.
Sights of Faith-July 8 – July 18, 2024
- Join Rev. Dr. Matthew Rosebrock and Rev. Don Stein as a fellow traveler to the Holy Land and receive the following incentives:
- Receive a $500 discount over and above current available discounts for which you are eligible.
- Receive two addtional spaces over and above the spaces reserved journey hosts and their travel companion. All four spaces will be reserved for fellow travelers who will travel essentially free on a journey you host.
- You and your travel companion, or a representative you send in your place, may attend our Faith Travel Conference in Branson, Missouri, October 16-19 at essentially no cost including your room, meals, ground transportation, shows and admission fees.
Your conference fee includes:
- Deluxe coach transportation as specified in the final itinerary
- Single or Double occupancy hotel room
- Meals as specified in the final itinerary
- Admission fees as specified in the final itinerary
- Only goods, services, or activities as explicitly included in the General Terms and Conditions.
Your conference fee does not include:
- Gratuities for service staff, coach driver(s) and guides
- Alcoholic beverages, bottled water, after dinner drinks
- Travel insurance
- Any goods, services, or activities expressly excluded in the General Terms and Conditions.
Remittance Schedule:
- Deposit of $150 is due with your application.
- Once your application to attend our faith travel conference is approved, you will receive a statement that reflects your desired hotel occupancy as well as any discounts.
- Final payment must be received no later than the date specified on your statement and remittance schedule.
When approved as a conference participant…
…you will receive an invoice and a remittance schedule from Malone Clan Expeditions, LLC doing business as Purposeful Journeys and may receive a link to a password protected page on our website that will offer details and updates about your journey.
General Terms and Conditions
Malone Clan Expeditions, LLC doing business as Purposeful Journeys will administer your conference. You must accept the General Terms and Conditions at the time you submit your application. Please refer to the General Terms and Conditions for any applicable additional fees that may apply in certain situations and circumstances such as any deviation from the group flight itinerary or your requirement of a single room.
Please complete the application form. Once your application has been approved, you will receive a statement with any outstanding balance with any payment terms. We sincerely appreciate your interest in our Faith Travel Conference. Blessings on your discernment of your decision to host a faith travel experience. We are delighted you are taking the step of submitting your application to participate in our Faith Travel Conference. We look forward to notifying you of your acceptance as a conference participant.
