:: CATALYST WEST :: APRIL 23-24, 2009 ::
Recently, I went to the CATALYST WEST conference in southern California. The conference was packed with great speakers. I took some notes on what they said and am putting them on my blog so that 1) I can re-evaluate what each speaker said and hopefully gain something from it, and 2) you might be able to gain something from my notes as well.
Here is the first installation.
:: Andy Stanley ::
Uncertainty is why we have jobs. Uncertainty is why we need leaders.
Life is uncertain, but God is not uncertain.
Uncertainty is not an indication of poor leadership, uncertainty is the arena in which great leadership is found.
Uncertainty is when God shows up.
Clarity :: As a leader it is okay to be uncertain, but it is not okay to be unclear.
Flexibility :: Plans change, vision remains the same.
In uncertain times, to be clear we need to go back to the original thing we were called to.
Joshua 1:10-11 :: So Joshua ordered the officers of the people: "Go through the camp and tell the people, 'Get your supplies ready. Three days from now you will cross the Jordan here to go in and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you for your own.' "
The reason a lot of churches are dead is because people long abandoned the vision and fell in love with the plan.
No decision was sacred, but he never changed the vision. (referring to Sam Walton, founder of Walmart)
BE HONEST (when sharing vision)!
Leadership is not making decisions on your own; it's about owning them once the decision has been made.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Thursday, May 21, 2009
teachable moment?
Two in one day? You may say I'm getting carried away... and I might agree. I'm just feeling contemplative.
Some think God is trying to teach us something in every situation. The other day, through [Lemony Snicket's] a series of unfortunate events (I couldn't help it), I ended up having to clean coolant off of my car. I lifted my windshield wipers to clean the windshield and the wipers as well. I then opened the hood to clean off any coolant in the engine compartment... forgetting that one of the wipers was still up. I cracked my windshield, cracks going from the bottom of the windshield all the way to the top.
Don't worry, though, I paid to have it fixed.
Which brings me to my point: What is God trying to teach me in this moment?
I am stupid.
Seriously. I am not nearly as smart as I think I am. God has a sense of humor and was just using my windshield to remind me that He knows more than I do. Lesson learned for now. I'll forget and have to pay another $155 to replace my windshield again... or something else that I break in my stupidity.
Some think God is trying to teach us something in every situation. The other day, through [Lemony Snicket's] a series of unfortunate events (I couldn't help it), I ended up having to clean coolant off of my car. I lifted my windshield wipers to clean the windshield and the wipers as well. I then opened the hood to clean off any coolant in the engine compartment... forgetting that one of the wipers was still up. I cracked my windshield, cracks going from the bottom of the windshield all the way to the top.
Don't worry, though, I paid to have it fixed.
Which brings me to my point: What is God trying to teach me in this moment?
I am stupid.
Seriously. I am not nearly as smart as I think I am. God has a sense of humor and was just using my windshield to remind me that He knows more than I do. Lesson learned for now. I'll forget and have to pay another $155 to replace my windshield again... or something else that I break in my stupidity.
Play in the yard?
I visited my parents last weekend and went to church with them. While sitting in church a thought struck me so I started writing. Here is what I wrote:
"Before I make this analogy, I'll say this: analogies are frustrating in that they will always be incomplete or fall short or fail on some level. Yet there is still value in them because they [in this case] help us to better understand who God is.
With that out of the way, here's the analogy:
God guides like a parent. Sometimes he says [something like] 'clean your room before you go play' (specific guidance). Other times he says, 'go play just don't leave the yard/street' (general guidance). The tough part is learning to discern the difference!"
NOTE: anything in [brackets] I added to clarify.
My mentor, Brian Holland, has said something like this before. I'm just stealing the idea from him... because it's a good one. And I don't bring this up for no reason. right now, I am trying to figure out what God, my Dad, wants me to do... play in the yard or clean my room? What do you want, Dad?
"Before I make this analogy, I'll say this: analogies are frustrating in that they will always be incomplete or fall short or fail on some level. Yet there is still value in them because they [in this case] help us to better understand who God is.
With that out of the way, here's the analogy:
God guides like a parent. Sometimes he says [something like] 'clean your room before you go play' (specific guidance). Other times he says, 'go play just don't leave the yard/street' (general guidance). The tough part is learning to discern the difference!"
NOTE: anything in [brackets] I added to clarify.
My mentor, Brian Holland, has said something like this before. I'm just stealing the idea from him... because it's a good one. And I don't bring this up for no reason. right now, I am trying to figure out what God, my Dad, wants me to do... play in the yard or clean my room? What do you want, Dad?
Friday, May 1, 2009
El Hombre
"You know how I want people to remember me?" [El Hombre] asks. "I don't want to be remembered as the best baseball player ever. I want to be remembered as a great guy who loved the Lord, loved to serve the community and who gave back. That's the guy I want to be remembered as when I'm done wearing this uniform. That's from the bottom of my heart."
How many professional athletes would say that? And how many would truly think that? Very few. It's one thing to say that, and maybe even think it, but it is another thing entirely to live it.
El Hombre. The Man. Read the Article Here.
How many professional athletes would say that? And how many would truly think that? Very few. It's one thing to say that, and maybe even think it, but it is another thing entirely to live it.
El Hombre. The Man. Read the Article Here.
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