MISSIONWORKS 2025

Join us for MissionWorks, a dynamic day of worship, learning, and connection as we explore what it truly means to “Walk by Faith, Not by Sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).

In a time when the world wrestles with division, displacement, and uncertainty, we are called as God’s people to move forward with courage and compassion—trusting the One who leads us beyond what we can see.

Come be encouraged, challenged, and inspired as we hear powerful stories of mission and ministry—near and far—that witness to God’s love in action. Whether your heart is for local communities or global partnerships, MissionWorks will strengthen your faith and renew your vision for what is possible when we walk boldly in Christ.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

REV. DR. DONALD NG – FORMER PRESIDENT ABCUSA

Don Ng was the Senior Pastor of the historic First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco, founded in 1880, for 17 years and served as President of the American Baptist Churches, USA from 2014-15.  He was the first Asian American in this elected position.

Presently, he is serving on the Friends of the North East Christian University, Nagaland, India; Advisory Council of Andover Newton Seminary at YDS, the American Baptist Foundation, the American Baptist Historical Society; the ABC Creation Justice Network, and Co-convener of MMBB Asian Colloquium.

He graduated from Gordon College, Andover Newton, and completed doctoral course work at Temple University. He received an honorary Doctor of Divinity from the Berkeley School of Theology in 2013. In 2014, he received Andover Newton’s “Spirit of the Hill” award.

Don is married to Joy Shih Ng and blessed with six amazing grandchildren who make him proud.

REGISTRATION

Online registration is closed as of 10/22/25.  However, you will be able to register at the door.

SCHEDULE

BOOKLET

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 25

8:30am Registration/ Exhibition Tables
9:00am – 9:30am Opening Convocation
9:45am – 10:45am  Workshop Session 1 (1-A, 1-B)

 

1-A History of Missions at Home and Around the World – Rev. Diane Badger

1-B Shalom-seeking Eyes for Faithful Churches – Liza Cagua-McAllister
11:00am – 12:00pm Workshop Session 2 (2-A, 2-B)
 

2-ARefugee Ethics and Ministry in a Shifting Policy Landscape – Dr. Glenn Butner

2-B Imagining a Sacred Economy: Living into God’s Abundance – Elizabeth Grady-Harper
12:15pm – 1:15pm Lunch
1:30pm – 3:00pm

Concluding Worship/ Communion

Keynote – Rev. Dr. Donald Ng

PARKING

Parking is available in public parking lots for free (see map to the right). 

Note: You can ignore the “3 hour” parking parking) sign there.  You will not get a ticket unless you park overnight.

Street Parking is also available for free, but limited.

OFFERING

The 2025 MissionWorks Offering will support The ACE Center for New Americans.

ACE Center for New Americans helps refugees and immigrants navigate their path to self-sufficiency, inclusion, and active citizenship.

Their mission is simple — to advocate for, celebrate, and empower “New Americans.” They do this by developing programs to meet their critical, educational, health, and immigration needs, while creating opportunities to celebrate diversity, and the inclusion of their respective cultures and traditions.

 8 Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. 9 Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.  Proverbs 31:8-9

 

WAYS TO GIVE

MAIL a check or money order to TABCOM, 189 Prescott St., Groton, MA 01450

WEBSITE: Go to https://tabcom.org/payments and follow the steps below:

  • Name & Address—type in your name and address
  • Donation or Payment Details: type in MW2025 Offering
  • Donation or Payment Amount: type in the amount you want to give.

Use the QR CODE and follow the steps above:

WORKSHOPS/ PRESENTERS

WORKSHOP SESSION 1-A | A HISTORY OF MISSIONS AT HOME AND AROUND THE WORLD

Even before the founding of the Massachusetts Baptist Missionary Society in 1802, Massachusetts Baptists have had a rich history of missions going back into the 1700s.

Join us as we learn how our passion for missions began; who were the people founding and supporting this passion for missions and how our support for missions has grown over the years.

REV. DIANE BADGER – TABCOM

Diane Badger has worked for TABCOM as the administrator for the Commission on Ordained Ministry ushering candidates for ordination through the maze of paperwork and requirements to become ordained ministers.

Reverend Diane L. Badger is an ordained American Baptist Minister.  She graduated from Eastern Nazarene College with a Bachelor’s in Business Administration.  She served in Nonprofit Administrative and Financial positions for nearly twenty years prior to being called to the pastoral ministry. She received her Master of Divinity from Andover Newton Theological School in May 2009 and was ordained that same year. While still at seminary, Rev. Badger was called to be the pastor of Community Baptist Church of Marion, MA and served there until 2014. During that time, she also served as a hospice chaplain on Cape Cod.

Rev. Badger has served on the Executive Board of the Old Colony Baptist Association since 1998, first as clerk and now as treasurer.

In her spare time, Rev. Badger does research on genealogy and Massachusetts Baptist History uncovering our past before it gets lost in the mists of time.

WORKSHOP SESSION 1-B | SHALOM-SEEKING EYES FOR FAITHFUL CHURCHES

Churches across New England are faithfully serving, yet many find themselves weary—holding on through shrinking attendance, limited resources, leadership challenges, or social issues that feel impossible to untangle. You are not alone in these struggles. God’s Spirit is still at work, even when our sight feels dim. Through interactive exercises, stories, and practical tools, this workshop will explore the unseen dynamics shaping church and community life, and the surprising ways God is moving us toward shalom– holistic restoration and shared thriving across every dimension of life. Together we will courageously look beneath the surface of the challenges we face, share wisdom, and identify new steps of faith—trusting that God’s promises are bigger than the challenges before us.

LIZA CAGUA-MCALLISTER, – EMMANUEL GOSPEL CENTER (EGC)

Liza Cagua-McAllister is a Jesus-follower dedicated to advancing shalom in complex contexts of every size. As Systems Consultant at the Emmanuel Gospel Center, she’s especially interested in how biblical theology and the discipline of systems thinking can shape how churches and everyday Christians advance good in our communities—not just with compassion and justice, but with wisdom about how human systems actually work.

For over 20 years, Liza has worked with churches, nonprofits, community organizations, and institutions addressing some of our most pressing challenges. As a systems practitioner and trainer, she has equipped youth leaders from 26 U.S. cities, lectured in master’s and doctoral seminary classes, and facilitated citywide and national conference tracks for Christian leaders looking to make a difference. Whether dealing with racial healing, housing justice, foster care, church systems, or her own teenagers, Liza has learned that there are always more shalom-seeking opportunities within reach than we realize, and God is always doing abundantly more than we can hope for or imagine.

Though she has a BA in Sociology from Harvard, the best thing Liza learned there was that Jesus is real! She lives in Boston with her blended family of 7: 4 fantastic kids, a tenacious grandma, and the best husband ever. This is her first TABCOM and she’s delighted to participate in encouraging, challenging, and learning from fellow shalom-seekers from the American Baptist tradition.

WORKSHOP SESSION 2-A | REFUGEE ETHICS AND MINISTRY IN A SHIFTING POLICY LANDSCAPE

This workshop will introduce basic frameworks and ministry tools for working with communities of displaced persons and thinking about refugee ethics (and more broadly immigration ethics.) It will begin by using the holy family’s flight to Egypt from Matthew 2 as a framework for learning about international and domestic refugee policy, key obstacles refugee communities face, and important ethical principles from Scripture and moral theology that can help us think about refugee ministry. It will then explore several major policy shifts in 2025 that are reshaping what it looks like to stand in solidarity with displaced persons. The workshop will balance teaching with interactive learning.

DR. GLENN BUTNER, JR. – GORDON-CONWELL THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

Glenn Butner is Associate Professor of Theology at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.

He has written five books, including Jesus the Refugee: Ancient Injustice and Modern Solidarity (Fortress Press, 2023), and he is currently writing a book on the ethics of borders for Baker Academic (forthcoming 2026/27).

In ministry, Glenn helped coordinate a multi-church Ukrainian resettlement network in Kansas, he has served as a board member for The Kefa Project, and he has volunteered with refugee ministries in several states.

Glenn lives in Rowley, MA with his wife Lydia and their three children.

WORKSHOP SESSION 2-B | IMAGINING A SACRED ECONOMY: Living into God’s abundance

As church and faith-based organizational leaders we need to be intentionally and actively cultivating within ourselves and our communities a radically counter-cultural understanding of our personal relationship with money and the larger economy. This workshop was designed to challenge participants to examine their own views of money, consumerism, scarcity and abundance and position them to disciple and lead their communities to do the same.  We’ll discuss how to challenge dominant narratives focused on material gain and explore how fostering a different economic vision is a vital aspect of discipleship and ministry.

Outcomes:

  • A deeper understanding of Biblical teachings on money and generosity
  • A greater comfort with speaking about money in participant’s context
  • Ability to lead and guide conversations about money and generosity

ELIZABETH GRADY-HARPER – BOSTON FAITH & JUSTICE NETWORK

Prior to joining the Boston Faith and Justice Network, Elizabeth worked as an attorney primarily in the field of immigration law, helping immigrant families become citizens or legal permanent residents of the United States. She has also worked with survivors of domestic violence under the Violence Against Women Act helping them obtain the immigration benefits the law affords them, first as an employee of several law firms in the Boston area, and then in her own firm started with two colleagues.

In 2023 Elizabeth earned her Masters of Theology Studies at the Boston University School of Theology. Elizabeth is passionate about helping Christians engage in our call to act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with God and seeks to use her gifts to this end, both at BFJN and as an elder and speaker at her church.