Catalyst Recap – Part 2
This is a continuation of my thoughts on the 2008 Catalyst conference. See Part 1 here.
After the lunch break, Steven Furtick, the youthful pastor of Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC, spoke on the process that is between the promise and the payoff. Referencing 1 Kings 18:41-46, he said we needed to keep the vision in sight even when we can’t see anything at present. He became really passionate when encouraging us to be faithful and do our best wherever we are, whether you’re preaching to 20 people in a small town church or pastor to 2000 at a mega church, whether you’re a musician struggling as you play to small crowds or headlining a tour. The quote of the talk is: “God’s preparing you for what He’s prepared you for.” I had not heard of Furtick prior to the conference but he was one of my favorites. Since hearing him at Catalyst, I’ve downloaded and listened to several of his sermon podcasts and enjoy them. He is really passionate and in love with Jesus. Looking forward to hearing more from him in the future.
Next up was Brenda Salter McNeil, author of “A Credible Witness.” She was very a very passionate and energetic speak, and you could tell she was enjoying her experience at Catalyst as she preached on Acts 2:1-12. She said we needed to stop retreating to committee meetings when we don’t want to do something or feel unsure and need to be completely sure. She talked about God wanting to shake things up, just like He did with the disciples at Pentecost, just like He always wants to do. Quote: “If we are looking at God then there is no way we can stay the way we are.” One point she made that struck me was about the Pentecost, when the disciples started speaking in tongues. She likened this to a playground where many mothers are calling out to their children, and through all the noise, each child recognizes and understands his mother’s voice over all others. Very cool analogy!
Seth Godin, world renowned business blogger and author of many books including Purple Cow, followed Salter McNeil with a talk based on this newest book, Tribes (which he gave to all twelve thousand Catalyst attendees for free!). It seemed he had given his talk a few too many times, as it seemed canned, rushed and too scripted, and the slides, which seemed to changed every few seconds, were a bit distracting. Still, he had some interesting thoughts and insights. He talked about the three main tribes – church, work and community – and that we shouldn’t take the power of these tribes for granted. Even with the growing world population, the world is becoming small, so much so we’re down from six to four handshakes/degrees of separation. He said we needed to do something that people criticize, not play it safe in the middle ground. He went on to say that most people ask two questions when invited to participate in something – “Who is going to be there?” and ‘Who is going to lead us?” One point he made that caught my attention was that a leader needs to lead, not control, and that most people want to be sheep. He ended with 4v2 – do something FOR the tribe, not TO the tribe.
The final session of the first day was Craig Croeschel, author and pastor at Lifechurch.tv. My friend Dan had previously recommended him, so I’ve listened to some of his sermons and was looking forward to hearing him in person. Groeschel’s talk centered on his latest book, IT – how to get IT and keep IT, and how to find IT when you’ve lost IT. He explained that 1) God makes IT happen, 2) that IT’s not a model or system, 3) that the upside of IT is seeing lives changed and 4) the downside of IT is being attacked and criticized. There was an emotional moment for both Craig and the audience when he talked about getting IT back and three things we should pray about – stretch me, heal me, ruin me. He said we need to let God break our hearts with the things that break His. He implored us to not insult the work of God by saying careless things about it and said there is a big difference in building “His” church and building “my” church.
Thus ended Day 1 of Catalyst. Posts about Day 2 to follow…
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Still remember you emailing me about Car-Part's website.
never flown?! that blows me away! typo in the 'caliper'. 
