You are currently browsing the monthly archive for August, 2008.
A lot of us at The Journey North have been talking about the Civil Forum, hosted by Rick Warren at Saddleback Church on Saturday, August 16… I have posted below the video’s from youtube, featuring both John McCain and Barack Obama answering questions from Pastor Rick Warren. (Also, you can access the full transcript here.)
Barack Obama Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.1
Barack Obama Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.2
Barack Obama Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.3
Barack Obama Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.4
Barack Obama Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.5
Barack Obama Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.6
John McCain Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.1
John McCain Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.2
John McCain Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.3
John McCain Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.4
John McCain Saddleback Presidential Forum pt.5
Some of my friends know that I serve our community as a volunteer Brainerd Police Chaplin. I hung out with the Officer Brewer last night doing a ride along. The thing I love about doing a ride along (beyond getting to know the officers better) is that the time flies. These guys and gals are some of my hero’s. The police never know what kind of call is going to come over the radio. They do know that whatever the dispatcher asks of them they are going to do right then and there. No hesitation. No delay.
This spring my good friend Chris Reinertson and I were talking with 
Mark Batterson (Lead Pastor of National Community Church) about his new book Wild Goose Chase (available next week on the 19th). I stared reading an advance copy of it this past week and last night at about 3am as we were flying down Hwy 210 to back up a Baxter officer who had a DWI, my mind turned to the Wild Goose Chase and a bunch of things came into focus for me.
Otro dia, otra aventura. Translation: Another Day, Another Adventure
The book begins with a Kierkegaard conviction that boredom is the root of all evil. There are all sorts of reasons that Batterson believes that many people live safe and sanitized lives. He writes, “We need to quit living as if the purpose of life is to arrive safely at death. Instead, we need to start playing offense with our lives. The world needs more daring people with daring plans.” But to many of us live in ways that keep us from risk taking.
Over and over I would hear calls come in, and then time and time again feel the immediate surge of the engine as the car sprung to life. As we went from routine to high intensity, I wondered, “How many times I have passively treated the Holy Spirit and the promptings I have received with ambivalent neglect?” Not Officer Brewer, when dispatch calls, he moves into action.
Last week, (while I was at the Willow Creek Leadership Summit) I had a chance to hear one of Batterson’s friends, Gary Haugen tell an amazing story about leaving his job as an attorney for the US Department of Justice. The book retells how he was on loan to the Untied Nations as the Lead Investigator of the Rwandan genocide. Batterson writes about how Gary and many others like him have determined not to just play life safe but to take huge risks for God. Gary left all the security behind and started an unbelievable ministry called the International Justice Mission. It makes me wonder what would happen if all of us who call ourselves Christ followers actually moved into action when we were “dispatched”.
The book starts with these words, “The Celtic Christians had a name for the Holy Spirit…An Geadh-Glas, or the Wild Goose’.” The Wild Goose motif works great in the fast reading, very engaging, thought provoking book.
Last week, I heard Bill Hyble’s talk on Leadership Axioms. I have been thinking a lot about the phrases I use to guide my leadership. It was great coming to the final pages of this book and finding some of Batterson’s nugget phrases already broken out for me to further consider. Here are just a few of them:
- Set God-sized goals
- Pursue God-ordained passions
- Don’t let fear dictate your decisions
- Take off your sandals
- Burn sinful bridges
- Blaze new trails
- Don’t make a living, make a life
- Quite putting eight-foot ceilings on what God can do
- CHASE THE GOOSE
I have a second copy and will be randomly selecting someone to mail it to. If you would like to be in the running for a free copy just tell me the Title, and Author (with a link) to the book you most enjoyed this year. I’ll be send the book out early next week.
Sunday was another awesome day at The Journey North. Twenty-four (24) more people decided to make their faith in Jesus known through the act of baptism. Watch as these men and women (of different ages, backgrounds and races) all used this time to say to the world that they will stand with one another as they seek to honor God by letting Christ be their life leader.
Paul Steinbrueck
Paul Steinbrueck serves as a husband, father of 3, church elder, small group coach, and CEO of OurChurch.Com.
Whenever I go to conferences, I have posted notes on my blog and then go and read other notes from great blogers. At this summit, I lost my note book after day 1 and so I turned to a trusted blog I love to read and a conference junkie Paul Steinbrueck. His notes are great and I hope they are a blessing to you.
Bill Hybels
Bill Hybels is the founding and senior pastor of Willow Creek Community Church and chairman of the board for the Willow Creek Association. He convened The Leadership Summit in 1995 following a God-given prompting to help develop the spiritual gift of leadership in the local church. A highly sought-after conference speaker on issues related to Christian leaders, Hybels is the best-selling author of more than 20 books including Courageous Leadership and the upcoming release, Axiom: The Language of Leadership.
Notes from his talk are at Live Intentionally
Brad Anderson
Vice-chairman and CEO of Best Buy, Brad Anderson leads by creating a culture of accountability and unleashing the power of people. In 1973, after leaving seminary without a degree, Anderson joined a local stereo store as an entry-level sales person. Impressed by his customer-focused success, his supervisor partnered with Anderson to grow the chain into Best Buy, a $19.2 billion retailer of technology and entertainment. Today, Anderson oversees 140,000 employees throughout North America and China and was recently named one of “The Best CEOs in America” by Institutional Investor Magazine.
Notes from his interview with Hybles are at Live Intentionally
Catherine Rohr
At age 30, Catherine Rohr is the CEO and founder of the nonprofit Prison Entrepreneurship Program (PEP). Under her leadership, the program recruits volunteer senior business executives who provide training, mentoring, and support to prison inmates. The participants in this one-of-a-kind program have achieved a 98 percent employment rate and have launched 40 entrepreneurial businesses. Currently PEP is refining resources to replicate its model in facilities nationwide.
Notes from her interview with jim Mellado are at Live Intentionally
Chuck Colson
Chuck Colson is the chairman and founder of Prison Fellowship Ministries, the world’s largest outreach to prisoners, ex-prisoners, crime victims, and their families. He has written more than 20 books including Born Again and his latest release, The Faith: What Christians Believe, Why They Believe It, and Why It Matters. In addition, Colson is the founder and chairman of the Wilberforce Forum, the Christian worldview teaching and advocacy arm of Prison Fellowship, and producer of his daily radio broadcast, “BreakPoint,” heard through more than 1,000 outlets.
Notes from his talk are at Live Intentionally
Craig Groeschel
Craig Groeschel, Founding and Senior pastor of LifeChurch.tv, has a passion for leading people to become fully devoted followers of Christ. From its modest beginning in a two-car garage in Oklahoma City, LifeChurch.tv is one of the country’s first multi-campus churches reaching more than 18,000 people with 40 weekly worship experiences in 12 locations including an Internet campus. Known for his creative and relevant Bible teaching, Groeschel has authored four books including the upcoming release, IT.
Notes from his talk are at Live Intentionally
Bill Hybels
Bill Hybels is the founding and senior pastor of Willow Creek Community Church and chairman of the board for the Willow Creek Association. He convened The Leadership Summit in 1995 following a God-given prompting to help develop the spiritual gift of leadership in the local church. A highly sought-after conference speaker on issues related to Christian leaders, Hybels is the best-selling author of more than 20 books including Courageous Leadership and the upcoming release, Axiom: The Language of Leadership.
Notes from his talk are at Live Intentionally
Gary Haugen
Gary Haugen serves as president of International Justice Mission (IJM), an international agency that rescues victims of violence, sexual exploitation, slavery, and oppression worldwide. Haugen founded IJM in 1994 after working with the U.S. Department of Justice and the United Nations. He is the author of various articles on international law, foreign affairs, and human rights and has completed the much anticipated book, Just Courage. Haugen and the work of IJM have been featured on “Dateline NBC” and “The Oprah Winfrey Show.”
Notes from his talk are at Live Intentionally
Bill George
As professor of management and ethics at Harvard Business School, Bill George teaches from personal experience on the topics of leadership and leadership development. He is the author of the best-selling books True North: Discover Your Authentic Leadership and Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the Secrets to Creating Lasting Value. George is the former chairman and CEO of Medtronic, the world’s leading medical technology company. Under his leadership, Medtronic’s market capitalization grew from $1.1 billion to $60 billion, averaging 35 percent annual growth.
Notes from his talk are at Live Intentionally
Wendy Kopp
Wendy Kopp is the founder and CEO of Teach for America, a nonprofit organization that recruits the nation’s most promising college graduates to teach in America’s most distressed urban and rural communities. Kopp’s long-term goal—to build a force of civic leaders with the insight and credibility to make fundamental changes in all sectors—exists to provide every child with an equal chance in life. This leadership vision was recognized by U.S. News & World Report when Kopp was named one of “America’s Best Leaders.”
Notes from his talk are at Live Intentionally
John Burke
Lead pastor at Gateway Community Church, John Burke and his congregation are dedicated to helping unchurched people become a unified community of growing Christ-followers, no matter what their background or past. He is the author of the book No Perfect People Allowed: Creating a Come-as-You-Are Culture and also author of the book, Soul Revolution, which will be released at the Summit. Burke is the founder and president of the Emerging Leadership Initiative, a collaboration of progressive, like-minded churches partnering together to provide the foundation for a church planting movement aimed at reaching postmodern America.
Notes from his talk are at Live Intentionally
Efrem Smith
Senior Pastor of The Sanctuary Covenant Church, Efrem Smith serves close to 1,000 people with the vision to be an urban, multi-ethnic, relevant, holistic, and Christ-centered community. He is an internationally recognized leader, speaker, and consultant on diversity and multi-ethnic issues. Smith has held leadership positions in both church and parachurch organizations such as the Boys and Girls Club of America and Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He is the author of numerous articles and books, including The Hip Hop Church.
Notes from his talk are at Live Intentionally
