Our 2026 location is at the Marriott Sanibel Harbour Resport & Spa in Sanibel, Florida.
A block of rooms have been reserved for a discounted rate. Hotel dates for the conference are from Monday-Thursday, but you may extend the discounted rate before or after the event.
Karoline M. Lewis is the Marbury E. Anderson Chair in Biblical Preaching at Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN, where she has taught since 2007.
Lewis is the author of A Lay Preacher’s Guide: How to Craft a Faithful Sermon (2020), Embody: Five Steps to Leading With Integrity, SHE: Five Keys to Unlock the Power of Women in Ministry (including an accompanying facilitator guide, participant guide, and DVD) and John: Fortress Biblical Preaching Commentaries, as well as numerous articles and book chapters. She was one of the 100 religious scholars in the United States to contribute to the Values and Voices Campaign.
Ordained in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Lewis holds degrees from Northwestern University (B.A.), Luther Seminary (M.Div.), and Emory University (Ph.D., New Testament Studies and Homiletics). She has served as Treasurer of Academy of Homiletics and Regional Coordinator for the Upper Midwest Region of the Society of Biblical Literature. Lewis is the Program Director of the Festival of Homiletics and Chair of the Homiletics and Biblical Studies Section of the Society of Biblical Literature.
Lewis leads conferences, workshops, and retreats internationally on the Gospel of John, the New Testament, interpreting the Bible, preaching, leadership, and women in ministry. She is a contributing writer for Working Preacher, co-host of the site’s weekly podcast, Sermon Brainwave, and regularly authors the Dear Working Preacher column. Visit karolinelewis.com for resources on preaching, leadership, and being a woman in ministry.
One of the critical elements of the Larger Church conference is community. Many of our members share that it was at this conference that they met other pastors who they could lean on to ask questions, find support, and grow in their leadership.
In 2018, our Larger Church Conference recognized the work of an amazing woman and partner in ministry, Beth Lewis. We wanted to bless her for her work with our group as well as the work she has done for the church of Jesus! So we decided to create a Luther Seminary endowed scholarship in her name. The Beth Lewis Scholarship will be a blessing to a young person pursing their call to serve the church of Jesus too. Blessed to be a blessing enacted once again! If you would like to give to the scholarship fund, please go to the link below and honor Beth and bless the church too!
Give to Scholarship Fund.
Click on designation and select other and type in “Beth Lewis Scholarship”.