It's a unique format in that it's composed entirely of questions and answers about the somewhat ethereal ideas surrounding tribes, creating tribes, and killing tribes.
This e-book is valuable for anyone leading or creating a values or interest based community (and it's free!). And even if you haven't read TRIBES (tho you should), the new e-book has some valuable insights that will help you better lead/create your tribe.
HUGE thanks to Don and Wendy Everts for lettine me crash with them last night...I'm really bummed I forgot to get a picture with Don and the family. Their kids are incredible!
Don Everts - Bonhomme Presbyterian Church Don and I had breakfast this morning, and I had the chance to hear more about Don's story and WHY HE MOVED FROM BOULDER, CO TO CHESTERFIELD, MO???!!! Trust me, there is a reason regardless of how insande it might seem at first! :) Actually, his story is inspriing because he and his wife are following a clear call from the Lord. The author of 9 books, including Jesus With Dirty Feet, shares about his call to take the gospel to "Suburban America"...
Matt Kearns - Missouri Baptist Convention Matt has been coming to Catalyst for 7 years now and has become a good friend to the whole team...I had to get up to Kirksville, MO to see him and the team regardless of the drive. I had the chance to sit in on the last half of a training day that Matt led for campus leaders for the Baptist Student Union all over the state of Missouri. Matt even gave me a chance to talk to the group and share a little more about Catlayst...can't wait to have the entire group down to Catalyst in October! Just wish I had more time to really dig into Matt's story!
Here are some pics from dinner with Matt and the team!
It's late and time for me to get some rest...will be flying back to Orange County tommorrow morning. It's been a great week in St. Louis!
LV
Posted by Catalyst Roadtrip at 07:19 AM • Permalink •
As a leader, discouragement is one of your biggest enemies. It will cause you to feel defensive, defeated, de-motivated and make you less effective.
Discouragement often comes when your expectations are not met or your desires are not realized. Maybe things didn't turn-out the way you had hoped, or you didn't get the thing you wanted, or something terrible went wrong.
When one of these happens, these steps might help you get un-discouraged:
1. Remember that God is in control of all things Just like with Job, He allows us to suffer challenges, difficulties, pain. His ways are not our ways - He LOVES us so deeply, but our goals often do not line-up with His - so if things don't work-out the way we want, remember, they DO work-out the way He wants, and what He wants is actually best for us.
2. Remember God works all things for your good Not only is God in control, but He's actually on your side. As it says in Romans 8:28 - God works all things together for the good of those who love Him... Also, He disciplines those He loves (Heb 12:6, Rev 3:19) - so negative things happening to you may be discipline to mature you. Maybe you wanted something or an outcome that's not for your good. Trust God that He really does this - look for it and you might even see the positive things He's doing from what was discouraging you. His ways are not our ways - but His end result is for our good.
3. Praise & Thank God "...and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance" - Romans 5:2-3. We have much to praise and thank God for. Cultivating a heart of praise and thanks - especially when you're discouraged - helps you get out of yourself, realize that your life is but a vapor, and our Amazing, Glorious God is doing something wonderful in history, but He's also meeting your needs every day, and giving you some pretty great stuff to enjoy too! Furthermore, according to scripture, we can even thank God for suffering, because it's for our good!
It's fun to wallow in self-pity. Our flesh loves to feel wronged or like things are unfair. There is something alluring about despair. But this is all a lie that the enemy uses to destroy us or make us ineffective.
But God's way is better! Rejoice in your disappointments, praise and thank God, remember that He's in control and working it out for your good! Seek first His Kingdom, and all will be added unto you.
Posted by Ashley Williams at 06:30 AM • Permalink •
Last night I posted a video from an interview with John Harris (click here to be taken to the video), and this morning i received an email from Mark Jones, Worship and Co-Lead Pastor at FBCM) that offers further testimony to how God has been at work in their church...even BEFORE the tragedy of Pastor Fred Wilson's murder:
"We can fully bank on the thought, “GOD IS IN CONTROL!” How, you might ask? For us at FBCM, suffering the death of our Senior Pastor was a complete shock. Two things to show the truthfulness of that first statement. 1) Two years before his death, Pastor Fred was given a sabbatical leave of three months. He set up a leadership structure to fully lead the church during his absence. When his death occurred and we were immersed in chaos, we were able to default immediately to this model. What a blessing arranged ahead of time by God," Mark Jones
God IS in contorl and continues to author a story far greater than our understanding...please continue to pray for John, Mark, and the rest of the community at First Baptist Maryville, IL as they continue to navigate through the process of mourning of loss...
LV
Posted by Catalyst Roadtrip at 03:16 PM • Permalink •
What a day! I'm in Chesterfield, MO right now hanging out a Starbucks looking back on a very full day in St. Louis. Today I had the chance to meet with staff from one of the largest churches in the St. Louis area (Windsor Crossing Community Church in Chesterfield, MO) AND the lead pastor of a church that started over a year ago with 7 people (New Life Community Church, also in Chesterfield, MO)...and several churches in between.
It was a chance to ride from one end of the church spectrum to the extreme other. I'm learning that mega churches are far and few between in St. Louis and the surrounding suburbs...
John Harris - First Baptist Church Maryville, IL It was also a day of extremes on an another level...this morning, amidst celebrating what is happening on the front lines of churches in the area, I had the chance to meet the staff from First Baprist Church Maryville, IL and hear about one of the most tragic stories that many of you are already familiar with... John Harris is an old high school friend who is now serving as the Young Adult Pastor at FBC Maryville, but his story is EXTREMELY UNIQUE.
Do you remember the story of the pastor who was shot and killed in IL earlier this year (March)? John was there and tells the story of what happened...and how the church is slowly recovering from one of the most surreal moments imaginable:
(video interview with Randall Littleton at Windsor Crossing will be posted next week, stay tuned to hear about one critical component to a dynamically healthy team!)
Jason Bowman - New Life Community Church 12 years ago Jason was strung out on drugs & alcohol and couldn't hold a conversation for longer than 30 seconds...when he was sober! His brain was, as he says, "completely fried!" Today he is the lead pastor of a church that was down to 7 people a year ago and is now averaging about 70 each week. His story is extreme as is his heart for telling people about Jesus. I had an absolute blast hanging out with him and listening to the stories of how God is changing him from the inside out and using him to help liberate others...his story is incredible. Check this out...
Windsor Crossing Community Church When I asked people about churches to visit in St. Louis several people mentioned Windsor Crossing Community Church in Chesterfield, MO. Greg Holder is the Senior Pastor and was out of town, but sevearl of their staff took some time this afternoon to sit down and share some of their story. HUGE thanks to Natalie Laslie, Randall Littleton, Eric McClerren, Bill Swaringim, & Andy Sharpe for sharing a glimpse into the story of The Crossing. Next week I will post a video highlighting insight from Randall and Andy about how a concerted effort to fight gossip and embrace conflict in a healthy way is a CRITICAL piece to a healthy team. And they ALL confess that it takes time, practice, and even more practice, but a culture of trust and safety slowly begins to emerge. It was an fantastic conversation...
Erik Lawson - Element Church It was a marathon day but before it was all said and done I had the chance to meet Erik Lawson, founding pastor of Element Church. We only had about 30 minutes together but even in that short time it was clear that Erik has a humble heart for others. Element Church is one of the fastest growing churches in St. Louis and in three years has already grown to ever 1000, which is HUGE for churches out here. I was bummed he had to take off, but really respect his reason - he was getting home to be with his family. I wish more pastors felt the freedom to protect their evenings for their family!
It was a great day, and already looking forward to my last full day in St. Louis tomorrow! More soon,
LV
Pictures from today...
A full day, a great day...
LV
Posted by Catalyst Roadtrip at 06:28 PM • Permalink •
