In a culture saturated with global leaders I was reminded of a leadesrhip principle foundational at its core.  Leadesrhip is influence.  But our conversation this morning with Ron Jones from Immanueal Baptist Bible in Springfield, VA peeled back the layers of this seemingly simple leadership anchor.  As we were talking about what it's like to lead global leaders Ron cut right to the heart of the issue and reminded us that regardless of who we lead, "It takes time to build trust and confidence.  When we make tough decisions on weak relationships we get in trouble."  Leadership is influence.  Influence is relationship.  And relationship is trust.  We had a blast learning from Ron Jones this morning!

Bethany Hoang (from IJM) and her husband Anthony opened up their home and invited us to dinner tonight.  We've turned their peaceful home into the Hoang Hostel...and we've been treated like kings!  If you want to see a couple pouring out their lives for the sake of Christ and His Bride around the world look no further, Bethany and Anthony are amazing.  Tomorrow morning Justin and I are headed to spend the morning with Bethany and her team at IJM.

PICTURES (from yesterday & today with a shot of my favorite place in Washington D.C.! :))
(TOP, L-R: Lincoln Memorial, with Joshua Symonette. BOTTOM, L-R: Ron Jones, Bethany & Anthony Hoang)

More soon from the Catalyst National Tour in Washington D.C.!

Sunday in the D.C. area was a blast!  From meeting the crew at Grace Community Church in Fulton, MD to having the chance to spend time with Rich Hurst and the staff at Frontline from McLean Bible Church in Vienna, VA...it was a day chalked full of new friendships capped off by a trip to DCA where I picked up Justin Sogoian, the newest addition to the Catalyst National Tour.  Tonight was Justin's first ever visit to Washington D.C., and as any good friend would do, I took him to the greatest spot in the city...

Thanks to Mark Norman, Tim Siemens, Tony Sheng, and the rest of the staff at Grace for this morning's warm welcome, can't wait for One Day in November!

Joshua Symonette invited me to his home for lunch in Alexandria; really hoping our interview plans work out later this week!

Rich Hurst & the staff at Frontline made me feel like a VIP when I visited McLean Bible tonight - another meeting that has strong potential for quality interviews later this week...it was a great day!

HOW TO JOIN THE CATALYST NATIONAL TOUR IN WASHINGTON D.C.!!!

• Meet us at Ebenezers Coffee Shop Thursday night at 8PM

What a way to start this trip to Washington D.C.!  I feel like I could go home now and take weeks to process the insight and stories shared today - HUGE thanks to Charles Lee and Jeff Shinarbarger for facilitating an incredible day of conversation centered around the issue of "justice," AND can't miss this chance to say thanks to Jesse Phillips for being one of the biggest servants I know!

Below you will hear from Charles Lee, founder of The Idea Camp, and have a chance to see a list of people I met with today...

(more interviews with friends from the Idea Camp coming soon!)

Charles Lee - New Hope South Bay & The Idea Camp
Charles Lee sat down to share some highlights from the D.C. Idea Camp and share some exciting news about what's on his horizon...

Personal Connections Today
Here is a list of people that I had the opportunity to personally connect with today - trust me, if you take some time to learn more about these new friends you will be blessed!

Tim Craig - Mt. Olivet UMC Pastor & Idea Camp Host
Bethany Hoang - International Justice Mission (IJM)
Greg Russinger - Just 4 One
Armondo Fullwood - Design 2020
Nicky Yates - Charity Water
Mark Horvath - Hardly Normal
Dawn Carter - Dawn's Blog
Greg Darley - Backstage Leadership
Ryan Sisson - Eleho
Justin Wheeler - LiNK - The North Korea Crisis
Daniel Kim - Newsong Church Irvine

More from the D.C. area soon!  Tomorrow I will be heading to Grace Community Church in Fulton, MD - host for this fall's Catalyst One Day November 16th!

Just a quick update - I'm at the airport waiting to fly out to Washington DC, looking forward to the week ahead!  Tomorrow I will be at The Idea Camp and then will be all over the greater DC area through next Friday.  If you are in the area or know of anyone in the area that would like to connect please email me at lv.hanson@catalystspace.com.  Stay tuned for more from the road!

(also, just a reminder, I will be posting a video from our time at Lockerbie Central UMC in Indianapolis, IN - great conversation with these guys!)

• What is your favorite monument in Washington D.C.???