LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The 2025 Lead Defend apologetics conference is just around the corner.
Lead Defend and Lead Defend Foundations are scheduled March 8 at Immanuel Baptist Church and the City Center in Little Rock.
Lead Defend is a leadership and apologetics conference for college and high school students and young adults of Arkansas, while Foundations is aimed at students in grades 6-9.
The conference equips the next generation to defend their faith. Students experience powerful worship, engaging messages, and practical breakout sessions.
Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM) and Church Health Strategist Chris Larmoyeux said some people think apologetics is only for “intellectual people” or is simply about arguments or debates.
“But God has called us to love Him with our mind and be prepared to respectfully give reasons for the hope we have in Christ,” he said. “Between the powerful main sessions and practical breakouts, Lead Defend has something to offer everyone.”
Lead Defend provides an environment that can strengthen the faith of believers and also help break down barriers to belief for unbelievers.
BCM Strategist Lynn Loyd said Lead Defend is unique in its scope.
“There is not another conference like it that provides training and encouragement to middle schoolers, high school and college students,” Loyd said. ““Lead Defend is unique in its reach. The topics and subjects covered are to help students have gospel conversations back home on their school campuses.”
A Cooperative Program ministry of the Arkansas Baptist State Convention, the event features nationally known guest speakers, such as Jamie and Tara Dew, Sean Emory and Lee Strobel, along with breakout sessions led by a variety of ministry leaders from Arkansas.
“I’m thrilled to be speaking at Lead Defend and pray that it will be helpful for the students. I’d encourage students to pray each day between now and then that God would use the time to strengthen them. I’d also encourage students to come with open hearts and minds, ready to learn and grow,” Jamie Dew said.
Tara Dew said she “can’t wait to be with the middle and high school students at Lead Defend in a few weeks.”
“May we love God more with our hearts, souls and minds after this time studying apologetics. And I pray that we would learn how we can share the good news of God’s love with others around us,” she said.
March 8 is going to be a jam-packed Saturday. The conference will kick off at 10 a.m. and conclude around 5 p.m.
For more information or to register, click here. Early bird tickets for Lead Defend are $35 per person. After Feb 20, tickets are $45.