some big ideas

This past week I went to www.thewhiteboardsessions.com conference with Greg from The Community.  This event is about ideas.  There were 7 speakers who spoke 30 minutes each.  It was good and an honor to serve there with Ben Arment who created the event.

So, today I want to share with you just a few pieces of what I brought home:

Jonathan Falwell -- To many of us are trying to wear someone else's armor.  We spend too much time trying to be something we are not.  Then we fall.√To many of us are trying to wear someone else's armor.  We spend too much time trying to be something we are not.  Then we fall.

Falwell -- Pride and grace can't co-exist.

Falwell -- After Walt Disney has build Disney Land, he had a dream to build Disney World.  During construction Walt died.  At the dedication of Disney World someone said to Walt Disney's wife that is was a shame that Walt never saw this.  She replied, "he did see it. That's why it's here."

Tony Morgan -- People are looking at options.  Sometimes we offer so much that people get stuck.  Too options will lead people to be confused about the next step they should take.  Having fewer options helps people step forward with Jesus.

 

Perry Noble --- Surround yourself with people who love Jesus and love you, but love you enough to tell you the truth.  Listen to your coach and not the fat guy in the stands yelling at you.  Don't focus on what you don't have.  Focus on what you do have and what God is doing.

James MacDonald --- great story from his life about conflict at church when someone called him a donkey.  It hurt him deeply and he couldn't stop dwelling on it.  One day he was having lunch with one of his mentors who said "even the donkey Jesus rode on knew the palm branches were for the guy on his back and not for him.

Eric Mason -- We often reduce grace to what we think.  We often reduce love in terms of simply giving.

Mason --- According the the Gospel it SAVES lost people and TRANSFORMS saved people.  Even the disciple struggled with keeping the Gospel central in their lives.

I will close with a thought I shared with our leadership team last night.  As Mason said, we must keep the Gospel central in our lives, our ministry and beyond.  Any time we take the GOSPEL out of the center we reduce GOD to a size WE can manage.

Romans 1:15-17 (NASB) --- So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome. For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."

Jesus is all we need.  It is all about Him.  The only time that Jesus will be central in our churches it when Jesus is central in our lives.  Not easy.  But right.  My prayer is that we will focus on Him and that others will be changed by Him as they see Him in us.

Hebrews 12:2 (NASB) --- fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

(For more notes from this meeting go to my blog at http://e-devotion.blogspot.com)