KING OF PRUSSIA, PA (ABNS 10/10/25) — American Baptist Churches USA is pleased to announce the 2026 Everyday ABC Conversations, a series of quarterly online conversations bringing together clergy voices that include local pastors and regional leaders. With great enthusiasm we share our 2026 theme, God’s Grace! We will reflect on the ways God’s Grace is experienced and expressed in our lives, our churches, and our communities.
Please join us at 3:00 pm (ET) on Thursdays, March 26, June 18, September 17, and December 3, 2026, as we look at the ways God’s unmerited favor is experienced and expressed in the life of believers, the church, and in ministry.
God’s Grace is the free and unearned love of God, offered to all through Jesus Christ. It is the foundation of our faith, shaping how we live, serve, and extend compassion to our neighbors. Throughout the 2026 Everyday ABC Conversations, we will explore the many ways God’s grace meets and shapes us—in our personal journeys, our congregational life, our ministries and our communities. During the Everyday Conversations we will gather for a time of reflection followed by small groups for fellowship and to discuss application in our settings. To register, visit www.abc-usa.org/events .
Rev. Dr. Gina Jacobs-Strain, General Secretary for ABCUSA, shared, “We are blessed to have gifted speakers to reflect upon God’s persistent grace. Every believer knows the joy of God’s unmerited grace and each of us stands on level ground at the foot of the cross. In these times it is essential for believers to share God’s grace in the world around us. I believe these Everyday ABC Conversations will deepen our faith individually and collectively. I am looking forward to our American Baptist family participating in these Conversations so that we can grow together in faith and application. I am excited about the ways we will be blessed!”
The 2026 schedule includes the following dates and speakers (all events begin at 3:00 PM ET ):
Thursday, March 19, 2026 - Rev. Dr. Brian Johnson is Executive Minister of American Baptist Churches of Michigan. He served five years as Associate Pastor in Illinois and over 15 years as Senior Pastor of Crossroads Community Church in Stockbridge, Michigan. He also served as an ABC-MI Region Board member and consultant. He currently serves on the boards of Green Lake Conference Center, Northern Seminary, and the Ascent Steering Council. - Rev. Mark Mahserjian-Smith is Regional Executive Pastor of the American Baptist Churches of Pennsylvania and Delaware (ABCOPAD). After nearly 20 years as a local church pastor, he began serving ABCOPAD in 1999, advancing from volunteer to Central Area Minister, Regional Pastor for Mission and Communication, Acting Co-Regional Executive Pastor, and Regional Executive Pastor in 2024. His ministry includes extensive U.S. and international mission work. Thursday, June 18, 2026 - Rev. Steve Bils is Executive Minister of the American Baptist Churches of the Central Pacific Coast. Before Portland, he served on ABC Nebraska staff and held multi-staff pastorates in Florida and Nebraska. He has served as the Executive Director of Child Evangelism Fellowship and has equipped pastors and missionaries as the Professor of Pastoral Studies and Dean of Texas Bible College. - Rev. Dr. Eugene Downing is the senior pastor of New Hope Baptist Church in Denver, Colorado, where he has led since 2011, fostering local, national, and global partnerships. Dr. Downing began ministry in 1996 at First Baptist Church of South Richmond and pastored Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church in Pittsburgh. He serves on civic and nonprofit boards, has taught at Point Park University, and is the author of Navigating Life with God. Thursday, September 17, 2026 - Pastor Ver ónica Cotto-Santa served as Associate Executive Minister for Christian Education and Leadership Development for the American Baptist Churches of Puerto Rico from 2018 to 2025. She led initiatives supporting pastors and families, developed a domestic violence awareness program for churches, and coordinated an annual educational event drawing over 500 participants. Previously, she served children and youth in Puerto Rico and New Jersey. - Rev. Nikita Giselle McCalister is President of American Baptist Churches USA (2024 –2025) and serves as Regional Associate Minister for the Metropolitan Detroit Area, Transitional Consultant for ABC-Michigan, and Associate Pastor of Covenant Baptist Church, West Bloomfield, MI. She has served in regional and pastoral leadership across several states and contributes to national and international ministry initiatives. Thursday, December 3, 2026 - Rev. Jerrod H. Hugenot is the Executive Minister of the American Baptist Churches of New York State (ABCNYS). Ordained in 2004, he began ministry in Kansas and Vermont before joining ABCNYS staff in 2013 and serving as Associate Executive. He supports congregations in pastoral transitions and helps identify resources for ministry and mission. - Rev. Ben Sullivan is the American Baptist Home Mission Societies’ Mission Liaison for Native American Ministries. A lifelong American Baptist, he grew up in a Kiowa congregation and was shaped by his family’s deep involvement in Native American ministries. He serves as Executive Director of the Christian Center in Anadarko, Okla. The Everyday ABC Conversations are a series of dialogues centered on faith, ministry, and topics relevant to our shared Christian journey. These conversations provide an opportunity to consider how faith is intertwined with our daily lives and ministries. Each Conversation is approximately an hour.
American Baptist Churches USA is one of the most diverse Christian denominations today, with approximately 5,000 congregations comprised of 1.3 million members, across the United States and Puerto Rico, all engaged in God’s mission around the world.
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