In 2015, several likeminded leaders met to discuss the need to build unity among leaders involved or interested in Native/First Nations ministry. As a result of those conversations, the United in Christ Conference was born. Co-sponsored by Oak Hills Center for Indian Ministries and CHIEF, Inc., the first conference was held in 2017 at Oak Hills College in Bemidji, Minnesota.

The first United in Christ Conference was an international conference, attended by delegates from Canada, the United States, and several countries in South America. That first conference saw over 300 people in attendance and many leaders went away from that conference encouraged and inspired to do more for Christ. As a result, new ministry projects were launched and new initiatives begun, all with the intention of seeing more indigenous people come to faith in Christ.

The second national conference was to follow two years later, but due to the Covid pandemic, the event had to be delayed several times. But after much patience and many adjustments, the second UIC conference was held in Bemidji, Minnesota, July 15-17. 

The conference featured plenary and break-out sessions with excellent content. The event also provided an opportunity for several exhibitors to connect with those in attendance. Clear and Simple Media (CSM) had the privilege of being one of those exhibitors. During the three days of the conference, we engaged in multiple conversations to share what we do and see how we could help the ministry leaders who attended. 

In addition to being an exhibitor, CSM had a large role in the production of the sample of a new discipleship magazine that was introduced at the conference. TRANSFORMED will be a full-color, 32-page magazine printed quarterly. The mission of TRANSFORMED is to help indigenous believers become more like Jesus, to think biblically, and live as passionate disciples of Christ. The long-term goal is that the magazine will be written by indigenous believers, for indigenous believers. While the first issue of TRANSFORMED will not debut until January 2022, CSM partnered with CHIEF, Inc. to produce a 12-page “sample” issue for the conference. The sample issue contained articles by indigenous Christian writers to give a sense of how the magazine will read and a sense of its content focus. The inside back cover featured an article by Will Graham, written specifically for the magazine, encouraging the leaders at the conference to serve God faithfully and share the gospel as widely as possible. Will Graham is the grandson of Billy Graham, and now a leader in the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.

If you are interested in knowing more about TRANSFORMED, contact CHIEF, Inc. via email: info@chief.org and request information about the new magazine project.