Today was my final day in Seattle, WA. With the help of Wade Olnger the last 5 days have been absolutely incredible. It's been an honor to spend a week in one of the most beautiful areas of the country, and so incredibly refreshing to talk with leaers who are deeply committed to making an impact in the lives of people in their community.
Late Morning
Today we met with Dave Browning, founding pastor of Christ the King Community Church, International (CTK) and author of a new book, Deliberate Simplicity. Dave shares insight from his experience leading an expanding mulitsite church movement reaching across the United States and seven countries around the world. Our conversation was rich with refreshing honesty...some thoughts and questions from our conversation:
- "Am I OK with this being God's church and not mine?"
- "Am I OK with things happening that I don't want or wouldn't have planned?"
- "Church is a lot messier than I realized, and that's OK."
- "We are trying to allow for a church structure that isn't so focused on keeping mess at a minimum, order at a maximum, and everyone lined up in manageable order."
- "Control is something we (pastors) want to have; nobody wants to really talk about it, but we find ourselves doing church in a certain way because it allows us to control it."
What was so refreshing about time with Dave was the spirit in which he spoke - he wasn't seeking to make a point at the expense of anyone else or share his thoughts as if he was revealing something new. Humility was the tone. Dave said, "I'm just trying to stay open and teachable."
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Afternoon
Later in the afternoon I had the chance to hang out with my newest Seattle host, Loran Lichty, and the staff at New Life Church in Renton, WA.
Loran introduced me to Pastor Troy Jones and the staff at New Life. It was late and I caught everyone as they were leaving so we didn't get a lot of time to connect; just thankful that I had a chance to meet them.
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Loran let me tag along with his family for dinner at The Rock Woodfired Pizza in Renton - amazing pizza! My brother flew in from New York City tonight, and the two of us are going to take the weekend to drive back to Orange County along the Pacific Coast. Can't wait!
Huge thanks to Wade Olinger for his significant part in making this week in Seattle so successful AND for serving as my host for the first three nights. Thanks to the Lichty family for hosting me the last two nights...hope to get back to the Great Northwest again soon!
LV
