Our own Juliana R. shares her experience at the recent Cripplegate Conference.

On the first Friday of June, our church’s YAMily (Young Adult Ministry family) set out to the annual Cripplegate Conference at Immanuel Bible Church in Springfield, Virginia. What started out as a three-day Young Adult Bible Conference in 2015, has evolved into a Bible conference for all ages.

As the Cripplegate Conference’s website reads, it is a weekend full of “expositional preaching, God-centered music, and practical application”. Both times I have attended this conference I have been left with chills, new knowledge, and a deeper love for Christ.

I was a Christian for about four months when I attended this conference in 2018. I have grown so much since then in my walk with the Lord, personal convictions, and how I reflect on God’s Word.

The speakers at The Cripplegate Conference take a large overarching theme and reaches believers and unbelievers alike. Having been to this conference twice now, I can really see how God is using the various pastors from different churches to come together and exposit Scripture to help us better understand them.

This year’s conference theme was “The Law”, answering the question: What is the purpose of God’s Law and how should we, as Christians apply it in our lives? Throughout the seven sessions, we were blessed to learn about Mosaic Law, how Jesus revealed God’s Law to those he interacted with, Legalism, and The Law in evangelism.

Attending the conference felt as if for three days I retreated from all of the concerns of everyday life and worldly issues to a rich community of believers. I love being surrounded by like-minded Christians from across the country eager to hear God’s Word preached and worship Him.

During the conference, we are given a long break away from Immanuel Bible Church to enjoy time with friends and explore the area. Even then, when we go out into the “world” we get to do so with our Sisters and Brothers in Christ. I love that we had the opportunity to eat some Chick-fil-A (provided by Immanuel Bible Church) and then spend time in fellowship exploring a new area, praying over dinner, and getting excited for the next set of sessions.

A personal highlight of the conference is the Q&A portion on Saturday night. This year’s Q&A was particularly interesting to me because it convicted me concerning worldly media. A question was asked about the Christian’s conscience concerning different avenues of media we take in.

The speakers shared their thoughts on the topic and read some passages of Scripture to aid them in their comments. I was challenged to consider what media I am subjecting myself too that goes against God’s Law. Television sitcoms, romantic comedies, social media… how can I narrow the amount of sinful and questionable content I am taking in daily?

Being that the conference is an annual one, we see many of the same attendees and speakers year after year. It is very encouraging to see how God uses this conference to bring the same people back and even grow the number of attendees from a particular church. I was in awe that the pastors of Immanuel Bible Church remembered details about Calvary’s attendees’ lives!

Jordan knew that Caleb and I had been engaged since the last conference and congratulated us. Jesse, as he spoke with many of us, and commented on our growth year after year. It is a wonderful blessing to see pastors, not only invested in their congregation, but us as visitors each year.

Overall, this conference was a great way to kick off the summer months. I was so encouraged by sermons, Scripture, and other believers to continue glorifying God as I strive to follow His commandments. The announcement of next year’s conference theme can’t come soon enough! Hope to see more of you down in Virginia next year!

As Juliana shared, the conference is for all ages. We hope you can join us next year. Learn more about the conference on their website!