The main conference is sold out. Register for the Pre-Conference here!
Or, sign up here for our monthly newsletter to keep in touch.
February 19–20, 2027
While the main conference is sold out,
we DO have more spots for the Pre-Conference. Read more about that here.
Keynote Speakers
Schedule
Breakout Speakers
Breakout Topics
Promos
Page
Menu
Tara Dew
ABOUT
Tara Dew is a national speaker, author, and Bible teacher. She has loved Jesus for as long as she can remember, trusting Him to be her Savior at the age of five years old at a Billy Graham Crusade. She felt called to ministry in the high school youth group, where she also met her husband, Jamie. They have been married for 25 years and have been blessed with two sets of twins: Natalie & Nathan and Samuel & Samantha. Her primary ministry is to her family, as many hours of each day are spent homeschooling their four children.
Rachel Lovingood
ABOUT
Rachel is an author, teacher, and speaker. Her ministry is primarily to women’s groups and ministry wives. She and her husband have been involved in ministry for the past 36 years. Rachel also speaks to groups of students from middle school to college age. She firmly believes that God’s Word is transforming and the best way to live the abundant life is by following Christ daily.
Amy Petersen
ABOUT
Amy is a Bible teacher, podcast host, and ministry wife with more than 25 years of experience walking with women in local church life, personal discipleship, and community ministry. She is married to Brandon, and together they’ve raised three boys (one still raising) and now have a daughter-in-law who is pure delight and testifies to God’s sweet faithfulness and answered prayers.
Amy Williams
ABOUT
At NOBTS, Amy is the Director of the Museum of the Bible and Archaeology where she gets to educate visitors about the history of the Bible and the Biblical context. Also, she currently has the privilege of serving the local church with her husband as pastor’s wife at Williams Blvd Baptist Church in Kenner, La. She and her husband have served with the International Mission Board, and with the North American Mission Board, as church planting missionaries and strategist. As a woman called to serve along side her husband in ministry, she considers it a pleasure to participate in Thrive program where other women are also being equipped to serve the Lord and the church well.
2027 Schedule
Pre-Conference (Friday) Optional Add-on
| 12:00 – 1:00pm | Check In | Luter Student Center (LSC) Hallway |
| 1:00 – 1:20pm | Get to Know the Plenary Speakers | Atrium |
| 1:30 – 2:10pm | Breakout 1 | Atrium & Admissions |
| 2:20 – 3:00pm | Breakout 2 | Atrium & Admissions |
| 3:10 – 3:40pm | A Message from the NOBTS President | Atrium |
| 3:40 – 4:00pm | Networking & Snack | LSC |
Abide (Friday)
| 4:00 – 6:30pm | Check In | Legacy Plaza |
| 5:00 – 6:30pm | Dinner* | Dining Hall |
| 6:30 – 7:30pm | Plenary 1 | Leavell Chapel |
| 7:30 – 7:45pm | Break | Legacy Plaza |
| 7:45 – 8:45pm | Plenary 2 | Leavell Chapel |
| 8:45pm | Late Night Taste of NOLA | Legacy Plaza |
Abide (Saturday)
| 7:00 – 8:30am | Breakfast* | Dining Hall |
| 8:30 – 9:30am | Plenary 3 | Leavell Chapel |
| 10:00 – 10:45am | Breakout 1 | |
| 11:15 – 12:00pm | Breakout 2 | |
| 12:00 – 1:00pm | Lunch | Quad |
| 1:00 – 1:45pm | Breakout 3 | |
| 2:00 – 3:00pm | Plenary 4 | Leavell Chapel |
| 3:00pm | Send Off |
Alecia Bryant | Lifeway Christian Resources
Alecia Bryant serves as the Publishing Team Lead for The Gospel Project for Students at Lifeway, where she lives out her dream of helping others encounter God through studying His Word. When she’s not writing or teaching, Alecia enjoys traveling, reading, leading worship, and listening to podcasts that range from theology to true crime. She and her husband live in West Monroe, Louisiana, where they are raising their two incredible children and one handsome (and very hairy) golden retriever.
Rebekah Callahan | NOBTS & Leavell College
Rebekah has been following and loving Jesus since a young age. She is especially passionate about discipleship and seeing others grow in their love of and obedience to God through His Word. She serves at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (NOBTS) as a faculty member and as the associate dean of students in the Office of Spiritual Formation and Student Life. She and her husband, Chris, have been married since 2017 and have a beautiful 1-year-old daughter, Vivian.
Emily Dean | NOBTS & Leavell College
Emily Dean serves as Assistant Professor of Ministry to Women at NOBTS. She and her husband, Dr. Jody Dean, live in the New Orleans area where Jody also serves as Professor of Discipleship and Ministry Leadership at NOBTS. They have two children, a daughter in college and a son in middle school. Emily is the author of Women Leading Well: Stewarding the Gift of Ministry Leadership by B&H Academic.
Tara Dew | NOBTS & Leavell College
Tara Dew has loved Jesus for as long as she can remember. She is married to her high school sweetheart, Jamie, and they are blessed with two sets of boy/girl twins, called “The Dew Krewe.” Tara serves at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary as the President’s Wife, teaching in the Ministry to Women academic programs and directing Thrive: A Ministry Wife Certificate program. She is a national Bible teacher and speaker, and has authored two books, Overflowing Joy: What Jesus Says about a Joy-Filled Life (2024) and Overflowing Peace: What God Says about a Peace-Filled Life (2026).
Christine Gill | Louisiana Baptists
“Christine Gill serves as the Women’s Missions and Ministry Strategist for Louisiana Baptists, where she equips and encourages women to grow in their relationship with Christ and live on mission. She earned degrees from Baylor University and New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and served for two years as an IMB missionary in Botswana. With backgrounds in both counseling and ministry, Christine is passionate about discipling and supporting women as they serve in their churches, communities, and around the world. She and her husband, Brad, serve together in collegiate ministry at Louisiana Christian University and LSU of Alexandria while enjoying time with their growing family.
“
Betsy Gomez | Ekklesia Comunidad Biblica
Betsy Gomez writes and teaches to help women connect the gospel to their everyday lives. Originally from the Dominican Republic, she has authored Spanish books on the gospel and biblical womanhood, and her book “Young True Woman” is available in English. She serves from the overflow of the work God is doing in her home with her four children and in her local church, Ekklesia, in Irving, Texas, where her husband, Moisés, is the lead pastor. She is (slowly) pursuing an MA in Ministry to Women at SEBTS.
Madison Hinton | NOBTS & Leavell College
I am a born and raised Mississippi girl turned NOLA resident. I’ve been married to my husband Conner for 10 years, and we have a 5 year old son who has brought the most joy in our lives. I love people, but prefer to get to know someone over a hot cup of coffee where we discuss tv, local NOLA happenings, and the grace Jesus has shown to us!
Sara Iles | NOBTS & Leavell College
Sara is wife to Terry and mom to two sweet girls. She serves the NOBTS community and the Student Life office as the Coordinator of Campus Common Goods. Sara spends her days homeschooling, gardening, and hanging out with NOBTS and Leavell College students. She enjoys teaching the Bible and shopping for plants.
Amanda Mejias | Lifeway Christian Resources
Amanda Mejias serves as the Lifeway Girls Brand Specialist and is the author of This Is Girls Ministry and teen girls Bible study This Is Friendship. She is passionate about building relationships and creating resources that equip the local church. Amanda is co-host of the podcast His Glory, Her Good, which was created to encourage and equip women in youth ministry. Amanda is wife to her wonderful husband, Brandon, and lives out her dream of being a working mom by the beach in Pensacola, FL.
Diane Nix | NOBTS & Leavell College
Diane has been a Pastor’s wife for over four decades. She married her husband, pastor/professor Dr. Preston L. Nix, a professor of evangelism and evangelistic preaching at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary in 1983. They have two biological daughters (ages 27 & 29), two spiritual daughters (42 & 43), two special grands, and two sons-in-law. She and her pastor/professor husband served as lead pastor and wife in Texas and Oklahoma for 21 years. During the last 20 years, she and Preston have served in 15 interim Pastorates. The two of them love the local church.
For the past 17 years, she has hosted the SBC Women’s Expo, and for 20 years, Diane has served on the board to help plan the SBC Women’s Monday Morning session held each year at the SBC annual meeting.
Sandy Vandercook | NOBTS & Leavell College
“A life-long educator, Sandy has been teaching English and education courses for 26 years at NOBTS, where she currently serves as Associate Vice-President for Accreditation and Assessment.
Sandy has been married for 33 years to Philip, whom she met at First Baptist New Orleans where they still are members, and they have two amazing daughters and one son-in-love. Philip is the Executive Director of Global Maritime Ministries, a not-for-profit ministry focused on sharing Jesus with international seafarers and others whose work brings them to the ports along the lower Mississippi River.
Sandy’s deepest desire is to make Jesus known to ALL people and sees her work of preparing students as an important task in getting the Gospel to the world.”
Braelyn Weaver | Mississippi Baptist Convention Board
Braelyn Weaver is the Women’s Consultant for the Mississippi Baptist Convention Board. She graduated from NOBTS with a Master’s of Divinity in Women’s Ministry in 2024. Braelyn has been married to her preschool sweetheart, Wyatt Weaver, for 5 years and they have a mini schnoodle named Nola!
Because He Lives: Rejoicing in the Resurrection | Sara Iles
In a world that seems chaotic and uncertain, what is our foundation for hope and joy? 1 Peter 1 offers believers unshakeable truth rooted in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In this session, we will walk through this beautiful passage and rejoice together in everything Christ’s resurrection accomplishes. We will worship our Savior as we discover that “life is worth the living, just because He lives.
Glorious Hope for Ordinary Days | Betsy Gomez
The ordinary is where we spend most of our time. Our lives unfold as we serve, wait, work, care for others, and remain faithful, often in ways that go unseen. In this breakout, we will camp at Colossians 1:27 and consider how Christ in us and the glory ahead mean that even the most mundane moments can be lived with purpose, perseverance, and joy.
The Good Wait | Alecia Bryant
How could waiting possibly be good—even sacred? Life rarely follows our timelines, so we wait for answers, direction, healing, joy, restoration, and relationships. But what if our urgency to rush ahead causes us to miss something beautiful and holy now? In this session, we’ll turn to God’s Word to expose the lies we believe about waiting, explore how waiting can produce hope instead of disappointment, and discover that God often does His deepest work in us while we wait. The God who leads us the longer way is not late—and in His capable hands, the wait is good.
Hope in the Already But Not Yet | Braelyn Weaver
The Bible talks about the Kingdom of God as an already and not yet. We can think about our sanctification in the same way. We are sanctified by what Christ has done for us on the cross and we are becoming sanctified through the power of the Holy Spirit. This session explores the hope of being and becoming who Christ has called us to be!
Maintaining Hope When God Says "No" or "Not Yet" | Sandy Vandercook
Life doesn’t always unfold the way we ‘d hoped. How do we have hope if the answer to our prayers is “no” or “not yet” rather than “yes”? Scripture doesn’t always explain God’s purposes, but it consistently reveals His character. How do we hope amidst disappointment, then? Hope is not found in getting the answer we wanted; instead, hope is found in knowing the God who gave the answer.
Not Alone: Embrace the Hope in Seasons of Loneliness | Amanda Mejias
Whether it’s a shifting friendship, a pivotal season of motherhood, an empty apartment, a new job, or an anticipated move, every person faces a season of loneliness. And in those lonely seasons, the enemy loves to whisper lies that we begin to believe and start to question: “Am I unlovable? Does no one see me? Will I be alone forever? Does no one care? Am I the only one? Has God forgotten me?” Let’s discover together how to fight the lies of our feelings with the truth of God’s Word in order embrace the hope we have in being known, seen and loved by God.
Praying with Hope | Emily Dean
Have you ever felt like giving up when you have been praying for something for a long time? Do ever wonder whether it’s even worth it to keep praying? In prayer we not only experience answers but also relationship with God. Join us as we examine how prayer can lead to renewed relationship with God in hope as we pray without ceasing.
Renewing the Mind: Finding Hope for Your Mental Health | Christine Gill
Hope begins with truth. Our thoughts have a profound impact on our mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. In this breakout, we will explore how Scripture equips us to recognize unhealthy thought patterns, renew our minds, and cultivate hope even in the midst of life’s anxieties. Participants will discover practical, biblically grounded strategies for developing healthier thinking and experiencing the peace that comes from fixing their minds on Christ.
Sharing our Hope | Tara Dew
You have been entrusted with the gospel! This good news gives hope not only for eternal life, but also for today. Join Tara for this breakout to find out how to push past common obstacles and learn tools to more confidently share your faith with others!
Steadfast! Hoping Beyond Hope! | Diane Nix
Life often brings seasons that test our faith, stretch our endurance, and leave us wondering how to take the next step. Many times, taking a deep breath is more than we can bear. Whether you’re carrying personal burdens, facing challenges, or simply feeling weary, God’s Word reminds us that our circumstances do not define our future. Because Christ is our hope, we can remain steadfast even when life feels uncertain.
Suffering with Hope | Madison Hinton
We will all face sufferings in our lives. From unanswered prayers for good things to the brokenness of the world because of sin, sufferings are present. How, as Christians, can we press on through the various sufferings life will bring? Hope in Christ.
Weep with Me | Rebekah Callahan
The Bible is clear about a Christian’s experience with grief. We do not grieve as the world does because we have something to cling to – hope. Yet often there can be misunderstandings about grief that cause more pain than hopeful living. In this breakout, we will explore what it means to truly grieve with hope and also learn some practical ways to come alongside a friend in a moment of loss and grief.
Worship by
Featuring Jaleesa McCreary from The Worship Initiative,
along with Nate Jennigan and Crescent City Worship
FAQs
Where will registration check-in be?
Registration check-in will be held on the Legacy Plaza porch (in front of Leavell Chapel), located in the center of campus when you go past the guard shack. Once you arrive, please approach one of our registration volunteers to have the QR code on your ticket(s) scanned and to receive your wristband for the weekend.
How will I receive my meals during the event?
All food will be plated by our trusted Dining Hall staff and the Chicken Salad Chick lunches will be individually boxed with a few of our volunteers distributing them. All break-time refreshments will be individually served and you will be able to pick them up as you go by. And for those that purchased a meal plan, both meals will be served in the Dining Hall. Saturday’s lunch will be served to all ladies on the Quad.
Will lodging be available?
Yes! Providence Guest House is our hotel that is located directly across the street from the Seminary campus at 4104 Chef Menteur Hwy, New Orleans, LA 70126. If you would like to make a reservation, please contact the hotel front desk by calling (888) 886-7276. Please note that space is limited. And when booking with the Providence Guest House, please use promo code ABIDE2027.
If you would like more info about hotels in the area, please contact Linda Jackson at phdirector@nobts.edu.
How do I register my church group?
For groups of 10 or more, choose the “Group Leader” registration type and fill out the form with your (the group leader’s) information. In said form, you will be asked to select the amount of tickets you would like to reserve for your group, then a 5% discount will be automatically applied to your order. Please contact Meagan Anne Willson with any questions about your group registration at conferences@nobts.edu.
How should I dress for ABIDE?
Our women’s conference is designed to make everyone feel at home. So come as you are! You can come straight from work, dress up if you’d like, or be more comfortable and casual. Just make sure to bring a light sweater/cardigan in case you’ll get cold.
Is there a map of campus?
Yes! Just click here to see it.
What should I bring to ABIDE?
If you don’t bring anything else, make sure to bring your Bible! We will be learning from God’s Word all weekend. (If you don’t have a Bible, please let us know and we would love to provide one for you.) You will also want to bring a pen or pencil so that you can take notes in the booklet we will provide for you. Lastly, please be sure to have your tickets with you when you arrive. You can either print them out or show us the confirmation email on your phone.
PS: Make sure to check the weather forecast before you come! Bring a rain jacket and/or umbrella if necessary.
Can I bring my teenage daughter with me?
Yes! This conference is designed to minister to women, and we have many high schoolers that choose to come with their moms or women’s ministry groups from church. If you believe that your teenager can learn from and engage with the content, please purchase a ticket for her as well!
If I have food allergies, can I still purchase the meal plan?
There will be a gluten free lunch option from Chicken Salad Chick for Saturday’s lunch that is included in the ticket price. However, since allergies are prevalent in today’s culture, please look closely at the menu that will be served through the meal plan. Unfortunately, in our Dining Hall meal plan, we are not able to accommodate beyond those meal options. So, if you have an allergy to something that is being offered, we ask that you make other arrangements for your meals.
Can I get more info on the food for allergy purposes?
Sure thing. Click here to see the food content for Chicken Salad Chick.
Will childcare be provided during this event?
Unfortunately, we are not able to provide childcare for this event.
Will there be resources available for purchase?
Of course! Lifeway will be selling resources during the event that will help you and your ladies go deeper into the Word of God. They will accept credit/debit cards as well as Apple Pay and Google Pay. If your church has a Lifeway Resource account, they will be able to charge the account at that time. Please be sure to have your account information with you during checkout to ensure a speedy checkout process.
In addition, Worldcrafts will have items available from artisans around the world. (Click here to see some of what they offer.) And the breakout sessions will be available for purchase when you buy your tickets.
Course Credit Offered
CEWM6392 – ABIDE – Special Topics in Women’s Ministry Leadership (E. Dean)
LCWM2362 – ABIDE – Contemporary Models in Women’s Ministry (E. Dean)
CEWM8302 – Abide DMIN Class
Downloads
11×17″ Poster
8.5×11″ Poster (option 1)
8.5×11″ Poster (option 2)
Bulletin Flyer
Slide
