Kindling Publications

Conferences & Retreats

If you are interested in having us speak in your area, please contact us and we will prayerfully consider it. Make certain to specifiy which conference or retreat you are interested in so we can send you the appropriate information.

"Managing Your Own

Household Well"

Men's Retreat

In this conference, Matthew covers a lot of ground with men in a relatively short amount of time in the two areas of marriage and parenting, and it's all about God's purpose and design for our families.

In the first half, he focuses on a man's role as husband and aspiring to love our wife as Jesus loves His church and unselfishly gave Himself up for her. In the process, he takes a penetrating, lively, and sometimes painfully honest look at many of the issues implicit in leading, communicating, staying heart connected all the time, and maintaining intimacy.

The second half is devoted to a man's role as father and having vision for the entire season of life called "parenting." Subjects covered included aiming your children from infancy "in the way they should go," our responsibility in training and disciplining our children, keeping our children's hearts with ours, sheltering our families from evil influences, parenting together in harmony with your wife, the differing aspects of raising sons and daughters, launching our children into adulthood, and much more.

What makes this men's conference especially unique is because these truths are shared with an ongoing, direct linkage between men being proven in the "managing of their own households well" and being qualified for leadership in the church (1 Tim. 3:4, 12). This conference will speak to men in all stages of life, from single to newly married to men well down the road who need encouragement and refreshing.

"Seeing and Entering the Kingdom" Conference

Jesus and the apostles constantly taught, preached, and demonstrated the kingdom of God. Why is it then that we hear and really know so little of this kingdom in our day and time when it is what Jesus explicitly told us to "seek first"? In this conference, Matthew will take an in-depth look at the kingdom of God and how we are to see, enter, and express His kingdom and His reign in our daily lives and function together as His body.

This is a revolutionary call for Christians to awaken to Jesus and His domain, "put on and wear" who we are in Him, and abide more consistently in/with Him, and is unlike anything you will ever hear in Sunday sermons. Come ready to not only go through a lot of scriptures, but to more fully discover the spiritual reality behind them of this unseen realm where Jesus reigns at the center and leads, speaks to, and shepherds His people.

Preparing for the Coming Storm Conference

Jesus exhorted us to "discern the signs of the times" and be ready for Him when He returns. The purpose of this conference is to go well beyond a general belief "that we are living in the last days" to actively discerning the context of the time through which we are running our race and living awake to Him. What are some of the local, national, and global trends that are working together right now to bring about the rule of "the man of lawlessness" (Antichrist) that we read about in the scriptures? How do we keep ourselves unentangled from "the course of this world" and remain faithful? What can we do now to prepare ourselves and our families to stand firm in the coming days of increased suffering, hardship, persecution, and oppression? This conference explores these and related subjects and offers real encouragement for overcoming in this time in which we are privileged to live.

"Joyful Journey Together" Family Retreat

Godly family life requires a lot of hard work, sacrifice, and laying down of life, and yet God intended it be a journey that is full of joy and blessing. In this conference, Matthew and Maranatha share on a whole spectrum of subjects that they have found to be the proven ingredients of a rich, heart-connected home life together. The content covers the two areas of marriage and parenting, and it's all about God's purpose and design for our families.

In the first section on marriage, Matthew shares with the men about aspiring to love their wife as Jesus loves His church in/through the many aspects of leading, communicating, managing, staying heart-connected all the time, and maintaining intimacy. At the same time, Maranatha shares with the women about God's perfect design in relating, submitting, and giving to their husbands. All along the way, we will look at many motives and issues of our hearts in how we relate in marriage, as well as give many practical helps in how to deliver love to one another.

The second section of the conference is devoted to parenting. Throughout all the content that is covered, emphasis is made on the need to shield and train our children in a way that keeps their hearts with ours and accurately represents the Lord to them so that they will be naturally equipped to one day be true followers of Jesus. We give a lot of practical examples and helps from our own life. Subjects include love constantly flowing in the home, teaching contentment, dealing with motives of the heart, spotting hidden rebellion, differences in training sons and daughters, having vision for "releasing your arrows" into adulthood, and much, much more.

By the end of the weekend we hope to have passed on some real tools in cultivating rich family life and building and maintaining a strong, unified, Christ-like home. This conference is designed for the entire family to come and share together, and encouragement can be found for everyone in every season of life.

"Her Lamp Does Not Go Out At Night" Women's Retreat

Do you have eyes to see that one of the enemy's schemes is to destroy you and your family? One of the inroads he uses is the basic ideals of feminism that now permeate most cultures of the world, teaching women to be independent, controlling, and self-willed. Have you embraced the Lord's way in being a joyful, always available, "keeper at home" (Titus 2:3-5, 1 Tim. 5:14-15)?

More than anything at this retreat, Maranatha lays out the heart behind being a devoted worker at home. It is meant to inspire, to challenge, to give you lots of ideas, and to get your brain clicking and your ideas flowing. We will look at godly motherhood, being a trustworthy wife, and how to keep everything going while being full of the Lord's life. There will be a lot of Biblical truth along with practical help to encourage you in maintaining an atmosphere of peace and joy in your home, teaching contentment to your children, instilling in them a love for learning, practicing heart-hospitality, managing & scheduling, maintaining order, helping your children enter into their own true walk with Jesus, being a safe place for the hearts of everyone in your family, and much more.

This retreat is for women of all ages and stations in life and could also be a wonderful mother-daughter time. There is a lot of flexibility in the format and venue of this particular retreat, so contact us for the various ways to set one up.

"No Turning Back" Ladies Conference

This exciting and life-changing conference encourages women to live whole-hearted for the Lord in every aspect of life. Maranatha will share on some of her favorite topics: making no provision for the flesh, looking only to Jesus as source, laying down your rights, loving fervently from the heart, finding real joy in everything, being done with frustration, resisting the world's pull, experiencing Jesus' life every moment, and so much more. She will take you on a journey through numerous scriptures, share real-life stories, and give a lot of practical help. We don't need to have Jesus relegated to quiet times and Sunday morning meetings—He wants everything. Wouldn't it be great to enjoy His life in the midst of daily life and to be able to apply what we read in the scriptures? This can be a wonderful time for sisters who walk together to be challenged in the same truths and to have accountability with one another.

We now offer a retreat exclusively for married couples. The format and feel is very different from our other conferences as this is a time to be encouraged, strengthened, and challenged in your marriage. We will have sessions for husbands and wives, together, looking at vital issues such as communication, heart intimacy, cultivating your friendship, matters of trust, staying in love everyday, building each other up in your walk with the Lord Jesus, and much more. There will also be times of Matthew speaking exclusively with husbands while Maranatha shares with just the wives, as we focus on many important issues within marriage. The retreat is designed to deepen your connectedness and bring it into ongoing daily life, giving hope and direction for moving forward together as one. Please contact us for the complete details on how to host a Marriage Retreat.

Matthew is also available to share in your local saints' gathering on any of the subjects covered in his articles and teaching series, from making a place for the Lord in your midst and meeting under His headship to matters of marriage and family to separation from the world and living in the last days.

Please contact him with your request and it will be prayerfully considered.