Catalyst One Day

What an awesome way to spend a Monday! Today I was blessed to attend Catalyst One Day at my home church, Grace Community Church. The conference included some key talks and seminars on leadership development and momentum within the church, and was led by speakers Andy Stanley and Craig Groeschel. Leaders from evangelical church movements all over the region were present, which bloomed some pretty awesome conversations and new connections. It was a day unlike many I've experienced lately. I was able to laugh harder than ever, contemplate and think until my brain hurt, and feel God's calling for the group deep within my heart. As my friend John and I were standing in the lobby before the event, we simply felt amazed by all of the deep thinkers, leaders, servants and catalysts for God gathered in one place. Here are my top ten points that I took out of the day:

1. New things create sustained momentum, while minor tweaks will not last.
2. We can't change the things God has taught us in the Bible, but we can use different presentations to make the Word adapt to the cultures we minister to.
3. Limitation is a breeding ground for innovation.
4. The difference between where you are and where you want to be is the pain you need to endure .
5. We need new mindsets to reach new people. We can't let what we did limit what we do.
6. Only you can seek God on your own behalf, and its a necessity if we want our lives to bear fruit. We have to be full-time Christ followers, not full-time workers.
7. We need to eliminate all the clutter in our lives to find brokenness before God.
8. Programming is answers to questions or specific needs. It is circumstancial and can always change.
9. We need to be more committed to the mission of reaching nonbelievers than the programming.
10. Jesus didn't say how to make disciples in the Great Commission, he simply told us to make it happen.

Of course there are so many more great things that were said, but it would take me all day to list them all. Overall, it was a great time, and an awesome way to gain more understanding and appreciation for what God wants each of us to do. We all play a role in the Plan. We are all Catalysts.