Workshop Presenters & Resources
Dr. Xeem Ntxhw Yaaj
DEXCOM Member
Cultivating a Culture for Men's Ministry
Xeem Ntxhw Yaaj is from the twin cities Minnesota. He is married to Tshaus Thoj Yaaj and together they have 4 adult children, 1 son-in-law and 2 grandchildren. Xeem Ntxhw currently serves as a member of DEXCOM and an elder at Hmong American Alliance Church. In the past Xeem Ntxhw has served on the Hmong District Men’s Ministry team, the Hmong District Bylaws committee, the local men’s ministry team and the local Young Couples committee. Xeem Ntxhw earned a Juris Doctorate degree in 2001 and has been practicing law for 20 years. He believes that learning is a life-long process and continues to read books on different topics and continues to take college courses.
Workshop Description:
There is a disparity in church attendance and ministry participation between men and women. Studies show that on average women attend church and participate in ministry at a higher rate than men. This phenomena is not only seen in the Hmong churches, but also in the mainstream churches. This workshop will explore some of the reasons for this phenomena and ways to create a culture that will be inviting to men. This workshop will also go over the organizational relationship between the Hmong District Men’s Ministry and the local church ministry and the direction of the Hmong District Men’s Ministry.
Dr. Xeev Neeb Hawj
Former DS & Missionary/Sr. Pastor Hmong Faith Allince Church, La Crosse, WI
Cultivating an Understanding of a Hmong Worldview for Ministry
The presenter of this worshop has been in the ministry for more than thirty years, he is coming from Bible, theology, anthropology, world religions, cross-culture communication, cross-culutre leadership management, the contextualization of the Gospel message, and holistic ministries and this presentation is going to be done both in Hmong and English.
The purpose of this workshop is to provide the attendees the core of presupposition of Hmong worldview which consists of the analysis and synthesis of Hmong ideology, metaphysic, epistemology, and axiology that contribute to the moral, ethical, attitude, behavior, and social norms of the Hmong people for incarnational message of the Gospel and the holistic ministries of the churches, pastors, evangelists, missionaries, and even decision making of Hmong civil leaders.
Kx. Xeev Tuam Thoj
NextGen Ministries Director, HKM
Cultivating a Culture for English Ministry
Toua Thao is the Director of Next Generation Ministries at the Hmong District of the Christian & Missionary Alliance. He and his wife, Susan, are the proud parents of two sons, Ezekiel & Israel, and a daughter, Shiloh. Pastor Toua holds a Master of Divinity from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. He is passionate about Jesus, the church, and the gospel reaching the ends of the earth. Pastor Toua and his wife consider the honor of serving the Lord a privilege second to none.
IS AN ENGLISH SPEAKING WORSHIP SERVICE NECESSARY FOR YOUR CHURCH? If it’s not, no worries! But if it is, then this workshop is for you. Kx. Xeev Tuam will explore and present ideas essential to the building of a Christ-centered ministry, focused on the salvation of souls.
Dr. Ntxoov Laaj Hawj
Church Ministry Director, HKM
Cultivating Church Vision
Dr. Shahlahng Herr has been in the Ministry for 24 years. He is currently serving as the Hmong District’s Director of Church Ministry. He has a passion for biblical preaching and teaching. His passion is to assist the churches in becoming biblical both in preaching and doing.
He has a BA and a MA from Crown College, one in World Mission and the other in Church Leadership. He completed his Dmin at Anderson University with a concentration on Biblical Preaching.
He lives with his wife, Zoua Anne Herr and their four lovely daughters in Winder, GA, where he served as pastor before coming to the District Office. When he is not working, he loves snowboarding and cruising on his Honda motorcycle.
Xh. & N. Xh. Xeem Tij Thoj
Disciple-Making Pastor, SPHAC, MN
Cultivating a Culture for Soulcare
We believe that the Lord wants to do a good work through us but before he can, he wants to do a good work within us. “We can’t take people where we haven’t been” There are certain tools that the Lord has blessed us with in order to work out our faith. Life change is hard and it is a process. If you want to begin leading with a healthy soul, we hope that you will start to take care of it.
Dr. Txawj Teev Vaj
Former DS & Sr. Pastor HAAC, Retired
Cultivating a Culture for Peace-Making
Prior to coming to the United States, Dr. Timothy (Txawj Teev) Vang served in the Hmong/America Special Guerrilla Unit (SGU) during the American Secret War in Laos from 1971-1975.
He is married to Lydia Joua Xiong in Appleton, Wisconsin in 1979 and together they have 6 children, 3 boys and 3 girls. He has two grandsons.
Dr. Vang was a founder of the Fox Valley Lao/Hmong American Association from 1979-1980 and has spoken at various community events including public school, university students association, Hmong non-profit organization on the topic of leadership, new year celebration, banquets, and funerals of Hmong community leaders.
From 1984 to 1986 Dr. Vang has served as a church planter in Eau Claire and La Crosse, WI. He has also pastored the Hmong Alliance Church in Boulder, CO for 2 years, Sacramento Hmong Alliance Church for 6 years, and Hmong American Alliance for 17 years.
During his time in ministries, he has also served as the District Superintendent of the Hmong District of the Christian and Missionary Alliance for 3 terms for a total of 9 years.
Dr. Vang earned his Bachelor of Science from Cincinnati Bible College, his Master of Divinity from Canadian Theological Seminary, and his Doctor of Ministry from Fuller Theological Seminary.
Stephanie Xiong
COAH, Michigan
Cultivating a Culture for
Special Need Ministry
Stephanie resides in metro Detroit, Michigan with her husband and has been serving at City on a Hill Church in Warren as children's ministry coordinator for the past 5+ years. Stephanie received her Master's degree in Special Education with a concentration in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and has worked with children diagnosed with Autism for 5+ years as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA). She completed the CMA's Children Disciplemaking Leadership Certificate (CDLC) program in 2022 and has a passion for teaching the Word to children!
WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION
Close to half of special need families do not attend or participate in church services and activities, which is often due to the feeling of being excluded or unwelcomed in the community. One of the things that churches can do to prevent this, is to prioritize equipping and educating ministry leaders on these important topics. Creating an inclusive ministry environment and inviting individuals with special needs into our congregations is essential to sharing the gospel to all.