Cataylst Dallas Retrospective: Day 2: Main Event

Well dear friends, this is Erin reflecting on the second day of Cataylst Dallas did not disappoint.  This year's theme is "Be Present," and we were met bright and early at 7:00am by the Catalyst Be Present Bees with a "Lonestar State" breakfast (breakfast taquitos) and welcome to the 3500 attendees.  DJ Promote kept us busy while waiting for the seating to open; he has a divine talent for mixing tunes that enterianed both young and old.  Check him out on his blog at http://www.thepartystartsnow.blogspot.com/.

Video 1: AdoptionJourney.org

We started the morning off in worship lead by the Cataylst House worship band and it was truley awsome.  All the songs lead us into moments of reflection with the speakers.  They taught us to be "Be Present."  One of the best take-aways from the speakers was the following quoate, "It is out of our failures that gain our greatest triumphs." --John Maxwell.  Next Andy Stanley took the stage, and like previous times at Cataylst brought a messege that made you think out the things in your life that have overlooked. "Your only unique rolein this world is father or mother to your child. Everything else, you can bereplaced." and "Great leaders create an environment where they get to stand back and watch it work without them." were some of his best.

Video 2: Trade of Innocents

Next came the grossest thing ever.  The audience made a giant ball of ABC gum\.  This brought a new denifition to world of fellowship.  They had each of us chew some Big League Chew and the pass it down (with rubber gloves) to centerstage, where it formed it massive gum pile. And yes, a guy took a bite and chewed it for a prize.

Video 3: Land of 1000 Hills

We returned from our dinner break to the musical stylings of Gungor and the after dinner teaching of Matt Chandler.  God thru him brought a strong messege on our "Be Present" Theme.  "Ministry is a STUPID trade-off for a relationship with Jesus Christ." and  "God doesn't have to force people to love Him; He just shows them who He is." -- Matt Chandler

After this amazing day of inspirational teaching, I felt a. that my toes had been stepped on, and b. my eyes had been opened. It was a refreshing experience that still fuels me right now.

Video 4: The Last Letter

Erin McGinnis is the Media Arts & Services Coordinator for LHF, and freely admits his faith isn't strong enough to take a bite out of a massive ABC gum ball, no matter how great the prize.

Catalyst Dallas 2012 Retrospective, Day 1: Labs - Melissa

Melissa and Erin McGinnis are currently attending the Catalyst Leadership Conference in Dallas. They will each be posting a retrospective of each day. Below is Melissa's retrospective, interspersed with videos from different organizations represented at the conference.

Video 1: BookShout

Session 1: Mark Batterson

Author of Soulprint, The Circle Maker, and others, this guy exudes humility, honesty, and the Presence of God. He spoke with a fervor that was tangible, touching each person in the audience. He spoke of prayer not as just a conversation with God (though that is important), but as a way of keeping ourselves so wrapped up in God that we let go of our own expectations and watch Him make changes and the amazing impact. In his own words, “When you pray regularly, you can live in the expectation that God will change everything.” He told numerous stories about how prayer were answered in his life, the lives of his friends and those who’ve contacted him after reading his books, a US Congressman, and in his church. He spoke of “drawing a circle,” giving focus to our prayers and setting a canvas for God to paint a masterpiece, which he elaborates on more in his book The Circle Maker. I could’ve listened to him speak twice as long or longer. I have always said that I am no “prayer warrior,” and that prayer was something I needed to “work on,” but after hearing him speak, I realize how significant a part prayer really is to ministry.

Session 2: Chris Seay

The founder of Ecclesia Church Houston, Chris Seay is one of those people that immediately comes to mind for me when I think of “street ministry.” His insights on reaching the lost are so open, honest, and simple, he could truly be called a modern-day Paul. His main point is that to reach your neighbor, you have to find common ground and build a true relationship upon that, rather than constantly dwell on what differentiates. His point, which aligns with Paul’s style of ministry, is that if your neighbors are watching “The Sopranos,” then you should be familiar too, so that you have a basis to understand them and relate to them in a relevant and dynamic way. He is clearly passionate about this, and his passion is infectious. In this session, I felt reaffirmed in my own views regarding relationships and relevancy, and reigited to keep pressing on.

Video 2: Christian Healthcare Ministries

Session 3: Jon Acuff

This was easily the session I most looked forward to today. Jon Acuff is the author of the books Stuff Christians Like (which he signed my copy of today!), and Quitter. He also writes the Stuff Christians Like blog, and works for financial guru Dave Ramsey. He is delightfully funny, and hearing him describe his own thoughts running through his head make me feel less concerned about the circus that performs in my head constantly. In all seriousness, however, what he had to say was incredibly insightful. He outlined three things that leaders need to remember:

1.  Don’t compare. (Direct quote: “You cannot compare your
beginning to someone else’s middle.”)

2. Be smart about social media.

3. Ignore the voices. – He elaborated on how the voices we hear in our heads are
never positive.

He also talked about Jesus in his leadership was “Present” (“Be Present” is this year’s Catalyst theme). All in all, Acuff did not disappoint. Open, honest, insightful, witty, and relevant (not wanting to overuse that word, but it was consistently so all day), he pinpointed some of the things that I personally struggle with (especially comparisons and those nasty little voices).

Session 4: Carlos Whittaker, Amena Brown, & Michael Gungor

This session was almost a sightseeing experience. It was directly aimed at worship leaders, which I am not, unless you count leading kids in "Every Move I Make." Carlos Whittaker is a worship leader and recording artist, Amena Brown a poet (and a fantastic one), and Michael Gungor the lead singer of the band Gungor. Although I greatly enjoyed the session, it was the conversations afterward that truly inspired me. With Amena Brown, I was able to express appreciation for her work and laugh a bit (she has a great sense of humor), and with Carlos Whittaker and a young college student from Oklahoma--we had a brief but meaningful conversation about being the people God created us to be.

And I got to take this photo, where I look awful. I was making a comment and accidentally snapped the photo before I was ready. 

Video 3: A21 Campaign

 

Session 5: Reggie Joiner

The closing session of the day, Reggie Joiner, like Chris Seay, spoke on reaching outside our own world to minister in a meaningful and direct way to those who need to hear it. He used a example of a girl named Jen that he and others have been ministering to; she is a Taoist, churched as a teen, but walked away because of questions and doubts she had that were never answered. He talked about relating to our neighbors as friends first, rather than just a mission, even to the point that we will still be friends with them even if they never believe what we believe. His passion was evident, and, like with Chris Seay, I felt ignited to press in and build relationships with those around me who do not know Christ. Again, I could’ve listened to him speak much longer than he did, and it is because I was so attuned to what he said that I did not take good notes and cannot write more.

Reggie Joiner is the creator of ORANGE Ministry.

Video 4: Kammok International, LLC

I am REALLY looking forward to Day 1 of the Main Event!

Melissa McGinnis is the Children’s Ministry Director for LHF.

Coming This Week: CATALYST Experience

From Wednesday, May 8, through Friday, May 11, Erin & Melissa McGinnis will be attending the CATALYST Dallas Leadership Conference at Bent Tree Bible Fellowship in Carrolton, Texas.

We are excited to bring you, our readers, a daily retrospective of each day's sessions, as well as short video clips featuring different organizations set up at the conference.

It's going to be an amazing time of learning, fellowship, laughs, worship, and teaching. We are blessed to be able to share it with you. Be Present!

www.catalystdallas.com

Just Between You, Me, & God 5/7/2012

Back from a week of vacation and trying hard to get back in the routine of daily life. It’s easy to get pulled off course. Day light savings time sends us in a spin twice a year, long weekends, a holiday in the middle of the week, even an alarm clock that didn’t go off when it should have can disrupt our whole mode of operation. Don’t get me wrong, I like vacations, but I get used to my routine also. It sort of keeps me balanced and going in one direction. You get up at a certain time, there are certain things you do at certain times and in certain places. We sometimes call them habits and if you’re not careful they can become ruts. So what is your daily, weekly, monthly, yearly routine like? Is God a part of your daily routine or do you just work Him in once a week, or maybe every other month or so, or is it just that once a year visit around Christmas or Easter? We had a visitor at our little church on Sunday. I happened to greet him as he came in and I welcomed him and ask if he was new to our community. I got an answer I wasn’t expecting. He had been working down South and was on his way home to a town just North of us but he wasn’t going to make it back in time for worship service at his church. He saw our sign and decided to stop in and share in worship with us on his way home. One of his routines is to worship God on Sunday whether he is at home or away on business, that’s how important God is in his life. Going to church on a regular basis has become less of a routine in more and more lives. There are only so many hours in a day so whenever we delete something from our schedule that gap is quickly filled in with some other activity. In Hebrews 10:25 Paul tells us, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another---and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” Christianity is all about relationships, with Christ and with each other. There is power in numbers and when we come together with Christ in worship and fellowship, amazing things can happen in people’s lives. Please be faithful in your church attendance and participation and if you are not involved in a church, find one. Zig Ziglar once said, “If you’re letting a hypocrite stand between you and God that just means that the hypocrite is closer to God than you are.” Have a blessed week and bless someone this week with your attendance at church. Thanks for all you do, Pastor Dean

Pastor Dean Hanssen is the Ministries & Outreach Pastor for LHF.

Just Between You, Me, & God 4/23/2012

So who is qualified to serve the Lord? Like any other profession, there are schools and universities that offer courses and degrees in Philosophy, church organization and leadership, evangelism, and church planting. Those are all great and they supply a wealth of knowledge that is important in holding to the truths of organizing, efficiently running, and leading a church from the pulpit. But what about the rest of us, who is qualified to serve the Lord? Actually; none of us. We all fall short of the Glory of the Lord, even the most seasoned of Pastors, because we are all sinners. The great Apostle Paul even struggled in Romans 7:18-19, “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do---this I keep on doing.” The truth is that all of us, as believers, are called to serve the Lord. The fact that we are not qualified only brings Glory to God when we serve. In his book “The Apostles, Becoming Unified Through Diversity”, Gene Getz takes a look at the 12 Disciples that Jesus picked to learn and carry on the Gospel message after He was gone. In the introduction he looks at Jesus’ choices from the eyes of an imaginary management consulting firm. “To: Jesus, Son of Joseph, Woodcrafter’s Carpenter Shop, Nazareth 35922, E-mail: Jesuscarpenter.com. From: Jordan Management Consultants, Jerusalem 26544, E-mail: JMC.org. Thank you for submitting the resumes of the twelve men you have picked for management positions in your new organization. All of them have now taken our battery of tests; and we have not only run the results through our computer, but also arranged personal interviews for each of them with our psychologist and vocational aptitude consultant. It is the staff’s opinion that most of your nominees are lacking in background, education, and vocational aptitude for the type of enterprise you are undertaking. Simon Peter is emotionally unstable and given to fits of temper. Andrew has no qualities of leadership. The two brothers, James and John, sons of Zebedee, place personal interests above company loyalty. Thomas demonstrates a questioning attitude that would tend to undermine morale. We feel it our duty to tell you that Matthew has been blacklisted by the Greater Jerusalem Better Business Bureau. James, the son of Alphaeus, and particularly Simon the Zealot have radical leanings, and they both registered a high score on the manic-depressive scale. Thaddaeus is definitely sensitive, but he wants to make everyone happy. One of the candidates, however show great potential. He is a man of ability and resourcefulness, meets people well, has a keen business mind, and has contacts in high places. He is highly motivated, ambitious, and responsible. We recommend Judas Iscariot as your controller and right-hand man. All of the other profiles are self-explanatory.” It’s not what you can do; it’s what God can do through you. Your application has been turned in and approved and God is just waiting for you to get started. Accept His call and get started today. Not sure what you can do? Ask your pastor, he’s been waiting for you. God bless you for all you do for the Kingdom, Pastor Dean.

Pastor Dean Hanssen is the Outreach & Ministries Pastor for LHF.

Review: Wildflowers From Winter

To be released on May 8, 2012, this debut novel from Katie Ganshert takes the reader into the story of Bethany Quinn, a professional girl in a professional world, who seems to have it all together: great job at a busy Chicago architectural firm, fabulous lawyer boyfriend, and the promise of success ahead. She believes in “standing on one’s own two feet,” and has no use for God or the church Then she gets a call from her mother back in Peaks, Iowa, that sends her life in a tailspin. Her grandfather’s illness, her childhood friend Robin’s tragedy, and the prospect of returning back to the place she worked so hard to escape all combine to frustrate, irritate, and sadden Bethany as she makes her way “home.”

I must admit that I am not one for romance novels, Christian or otherwise, and only read this novel at my husband’s request, as he received it as part of Waterbrook Multnomah’s Advance Reading Copy Program*. I had very little expectation, aside that, until I read the back cover synopsis, I thought it might have a frontier or Amish setting.

I was very wrong, on every count. Ganshert’s characters are believable and though not always loveable (by her design, not poor writing), they are memorable. I personally can relate to Bethany’s desire to “never go home again,” as I myself wanted to “escape” my small hometown. Her story moved me, and I could see why she had no use for the God that she’d known as a child through her mother and Pastor Fenton (a deliciously despicable character). Each character was well-written and the story had a constant forward momentum, with many twists and turns but still realistic. Robin’s story is incredibly touching, and your heart will ache with her in her struggles. You will feel sympathy and disgust for her mother, swoon a bit over Evan, the farm hand on her grandfather’s farm and the ultimate love interest for Bethany, and laugh along with Evan’s humorous family. By the end, my near-disdain had made a 180-degree turn into delight, and I found myself so absorbed I literally couldn’t put it down. I laughed, cheered, and cried rivers of tears, both joyful and sad. I was completely blown away by Ganshert’s attention to detail, and when the “big secret” that had been brewing in the plot and stewing in my mind was finally revealed, I was completely surprised. All this takes place in a modern-day setting, in a place that anyone who’d lived in “small-town America” can relate to easily.

The only complaint I have regarding the writing is that from chapter to chapter, the story point-of-view, and therefore, narrative voice occasionally changes from third-person omniscient (the most common voice of novels, where we see and know everything, including what is not purposely revealed by the characters) to first-person (specifically Bethany), without warning. The first time I thought pages were stuck together. That being said, the copy I read was the ARC program copy and had not gone through the very final stage of editing. Still, after the first time, it wasn’t hard for me to shift my brain with the following changes.

I am very pleased that Wildflowers From Winter has changed my mind about Christian romance novels. This novel is the first in a planned series, and I am eager to get my hands on the next novel, Wishing for Willows. Thank you, Mrs. Ganshert, for a truly uplifting, delightful experience!

www.katieganshert.com/books/wildflowers-from-winter (You can read the first chapter here)

 *For more information about Waterbrook Multnomah’s Advance Reading Copy (ARC) Program, visit them online at www.waterbrookmultnomah.com. 

Melissa McGinnis is the Children’s Ministry Director for LHF, and is a huge fan of Waterbrook Multnomah. Her husband Erin McGinnis received this book as part of the Advance Reading Copy Program (not the Blogging for Books Program). Neither was compensated in any way for this review. Opinions are strictly those of Melissa McGinnis; Erin’s opinion is that “it must be good, because she didn’t surface for three days.”

Every Life is Beautiful

Our Miracle Baby came to into this world on November 2, 2006, a sweet little girl with intense blue eyes.  My hand was the first thing her little fingers wrapped around as  I stood with our family looking through the glass at the first granddaughter.


Now let's jump back six years to a young newly-married couple living a typical college town in East Texas.  I had just taken my wife to see her "lady doctor."  I was a fish out of water in this place.  They had done blood tests and were talking with us about them.  My mind was spinning as I heard the doctor say things like "you will have to try drugs therapy, or adoption."  In short, we couldn't have kids..Now, to be blunt, I had thought to much about having kids; at that time I was more worried about grades, classes, and bills.  Something in you changes when hear those words--You're not supposed to have children.


Fast forward five years where we had relocated to Austin and had gotten involved in a small group for married couples.  Through working in the church kid ministry my wife and I had taken care of most of the couples' children.  We knew both the parents and their kids quite well.  God granted us a miracle that year.  As the topic of children came up my wife said to the other ladies that she couldn't have children.  By my Lord's grace we found out that she was pregnant the very next week.  So in short, while my wife's tongue had professed what the tests and doctors had drilled in to her head, at that very moment life was growing inside her.  For me, every life is beautiful.

Erin McGinnis is the Media Arts and Services Coordinator for LHF.