Church Solutions Wrap-Up

The 2009 Church Solutions Conference wrapped up early today-it has been a great week in Phoenix. A few closing thoughts:

• My deep appreciation to the Church Solutions staff: they know how to run a good conference! Publisher Katherine Kennedy, Group Editor Karen Butler, and Education Coordinator Amy Reed were everywhere at once, making sure everything was just right. As a frequent speaker at national conferences, I really appreciate their passion and dedication to their job. Thank you, ladies, for another superb event!
• There were 30 presentation slots, full of great content and gifted speakers. I could only be in one place at a time, but I overheard lots of good comments about the presentations. It's great to be a part of a group that believes in sharing their knowledge and experience for the church at large.
• Church leaders from around the country were soaking up more than just the sunny Phoenix weather - they were fully engaged in the presentations, ready to take the knowledge gleaned back to their own turf, put it into their context, and give it a try.
• Keynote speakers John Jenkins and Jerry Colangelo gave inspiring talks to the crowd - and the crowd responded with enthusiasm.
• The expo hall had a good mix of vendors who were eager to interact with conference participants, listening and explaining their services and products.
• The NACDB, of which my company is a proud charter member, seemed to be everywhere. Our association had a good turnout for the annual meeting on Monday, and most of those stayed for the conference the rest of the week. Our members were front and center in the education sessions, taking notes and asking questions, all to better help their church clients back in their home areas.

I will be reviewing my notes and gathering some notes from friends, and hope to post some of the best "Learnings" over the next few weeks.

I'm ready to head back to Charlotte to family and friends - I only wish I could take the sunny weather with me!

Leading from the Future - Ron Martoia

The latest from the Church Solutions Conference:

The biggest barrier to progress in human history has not been ignorance,

but the illusion of knowing.

- Daniel Boorstin

Ron Martoia is a former pastor and church planter who now consults with churches and corporate executive teams as a transformation architect. His presentation today was a fascinating glimpse into the rapid changes of our society today - and how they mirror past "hinges" of historical movements.

He encouraged us to stretch our mental model away from the way things should be done (reactive thinking) and learn to differentiate between accommodation and assimilation.

He also talked about the powerful differences between logos (doctrine and dogma) and mythos (the power of a story to change a life). When mythos gives way to logos, fundamentalism is the result. He urged church leaders to rediscover the power of the story and weave that into the lives of our churches today.

Martoia's depth has challenged me to look beyond the past and the present, not being content with what has been and what is, to what could be.

Innovation's Dirty Little Secret

Most innovations fail.

Larry Osborn's session at the Church Solutions Conference had a great title, and it did not disappoint. The subtitle, Confessions of a Serial Innovator, had me hooked from the moment I saw it - and he spoke with some great content. There is a lot of great material I could post about, but the most powerful and thought-provoking comments were a set of eight questions which I think every church leader should be asking themselves about all of their ministries - not just ones that are considering beginning.

• How are we going to market this in a way that gives us maximum flexibility?


• How can we prepare for a quick and relatively painless exit?


• How are we going to communicate if things go slower than expected?


• How are we going to communicate if we need to shut the whole thing down?


• How are we going to communicate if we need to go back to the old way?


• How are we going to absorb and limit the financial burden?


• What benchmarks will cause us to pull the plug?


• What benchmarks will cause us to keep going even though things are slow?

Ask yourself these questions - and be honest with the answers.