6 Years

So today marks the 6 year anniversary of the day that Bethany and I started dating. Though there have been ups and down, (more ups than downs) I am so happy to be with her. She is the most wonderful person I have been around and she makes my day better when I see her. So here's to you, babe! And here's to six more years...Thanks for being you!

Wow!

So lately I've been having a tough time with life. I am finishing my last semester of college, and I have no idea what I am going to be doing in three months. I have no idea where I am going to be, or what I'll be doing for work. Really, I have felt really crappy. Now this isn't a cry for attention or for words of empathy or any of that. I just needed a place to get this all out, and to let everyone know how amazing somebody is. It's just that the past several weeks have began to wear on me.

Today, I met Bethany for lunch. She could tell that I was off a little bit. So tonight she showered me with encouraging words for about 10 minutes straight. She is the best friend a person could ever ask for. And on top of being my best friend, she is also my girlfriend, which is really icing on cake. Bethany Goodman is an amazing woman!

So guys, if you are taking notes on what to look for in a woman...let me say this:

Look for a girl who can be your best friend. That is what is going to carry a relationship.

Pictures from Day One

Here are some pictures from day one speakers and other entertainers...

Worship @ Catalyst

I know my readers (all 3 of you) are probably tired of reading this, if you did read all of my updates on this conference...

The worship @ Catalyst has been some of the most amazing worship times I can ever remember having. It has been a long time since I have been able to unwind and freely worship the God who so desperately wants to be idolized. Even though going into this trip I was tired, and a bit beat down, it has been such a refreshment to my soul, and has made the wheels in my head turn like never before. I can't wait for tomorrow's sessions, but more than that, I can't wait for the worship portions. I needed an awakening this week. Thank God for awakenings.

Afternoon Sessions

The afternoon sessions kicked off with an interview with George Barna. To be honest, I didn't take any notes on this one. I got in there a little bit late and really didn't have too much of a desire to listen. We'll call it the "after lunch funk". I'm sure he had some great things to say, but I couldn't get past the fact that the man looked exactly like Peter Gammons.

The following session was incredible. It was an interview that Andy Stanley did with John Maxwell. The talked a lot about what Marcus Buckingham talked about (see previous post), only with more detail. They unpacked the idea that good leaders need to build into young leaders. Now, not everyone has the make-up to be a leader. Maxwell said that people spend a lot of time trying to develop the skills that are currently a level two or three (out of 10), when they should be trying to strengthen the skills that are at a level 7 already. Really, it's a waste of time to spend a lot of time trying to become better at something you really weren't made to do.
Awesome session!!! And Maxwell cried, so that made the day.

After this session, there was some comedic stuff, (I'll give you more about this later) then another session. Surprise guest speaker Jeff Foxworthy did some stand-up (classic red neck jokes) and then did about 15 minutes of "preaching" while all the while referencing the fact that he once got fired from a church. We're all pretty sure he is very proud of this. But it was really cool to hear Foxworthy talking about the church and quoting Scripture. Awesome!

And in the final session of the day (and this guy had a difficult task...finishing a long day of fantastic speakers) Gary Haugen talked about the injustice that occurs in the world. He says that injustice is really just the abuse of power. Here are some startling statistics:

• Today there are 25-27 million slaves throughout the world.
• Each year there are 1 million children forced into prostitution each year.

The question that he repeatedly asked was, "How will they know that God is good?" It is unfortunately a good question, and one that nobody has an answer to. We've got to make a difference.

First two sessions: Catalyst

We are on a lunch break from Catalyst. The first two sessions were this morning and they were unbelievably awesome.

The first session was Andy Stanley talking about the reality that leadership is temporary and that every Kingdom, every church, every ministry is God's anyways. So we must be diligent, fearless, and humble as leaders of today's churches and businesses. Because leadership is temporary, it can end at any time. The leadership that I have, and or ever will have is a loan from God. One quote that sticks with me from this session was, "Arrogance and greed can't see themselves in the mirror". Leaders have to be humble enough to know they aren't in control and that only the sovereign God of the universe is. Awesome, awesome stuff. See Daniel 4 and 5 for the text he used.

The second session was given by Sir Marcus Buckingham (Yes, he's British). Marcus has written several books about leadership and management, mostly from a secular point of view. He spent a good hour talking about how one of the biggest problems with today's churches and businesses is that managers spend too much time focusing on a person's weaknesses rather than affirming their strengths and building up their skills. He said that up to 86% of people who work in the United States spend little time each day working using their best strengths This means that most people spend their time at work doing things they aren't great at, and probably don't even enjoy doing.. Thus, work suffers, production suffers, business suffers, and most importantly, people quit or lose their jobs.

What an idea...this one is going to get some awesome unpacking for the next several hours, several days even.

I might add...Catalyst does an awesome job of keeping people entertained between sessions. They have a comedian who has a large part in making Catalyst and they have a couple of good bands that make sure there is a constant energy in the room.

Third session is at 2:00 eastern, and the final one today at 4:00. More to come.

Charlie is currently eating lunch with author John Maxwell while Jake, Justin, and I enjoyed a wonderful chicken sandwich from Chick-Fil-A.....what a rip off!!!!

OH My Gosh

So we just enjoyed a magnificent dinner @ the Bugaboo Steakhouse and we returned immediately to our hotel for the evening. Upon returning Justin and Jake ventured to the front to request an ironing board and iron. As they entered the hotel lobby, they noticed a long section of ceiling dripping water. Now, not related to this, the fire alarm has gone off three different times since we've checked into our hotel (4 hours ago).

At the same time they are retrieving an ironing board, Charlie and I mosey up to our room. I have to use the restroom (don't worry, it was #1). Now, I didn't turn the light on because there was no one else in our room. Now, Charlie hears someone knock at the door and assumes it is Jake and Justin, so he yells, "Roomservice!" and opens the door. It was two men who work for the hotel maintenance crew. They need to check something in our room.

You guessed it! Our room is the room that is causing the leak. Our toilet has been running for hours.

Now, I unknowingly am using our bathroom, and in walks one of the maintenance guys. I did not turn the light on. He opens the door to me standing and shooting into the bowl. WOW!

So right at this very second, he is water vacuuming our room, because it is more wet than a sponge dipped in water, and we are trying to find a new hotel to stay at because our hotel is completely booked.

So after the guy vacuums our room, he decides to sprinkle some sort of carpet deodarizer on the floor...and his plan was to leave it there until tomorrow morning. The only problem is that this carpet crap smells 10-times worse than the musty pee/water smell.



HOLY MOLY!!!!

What an awesome start!

Cattail-Ist

So, we just arrived in our hotel in HotLanta and the four of us have been without internet for approximately 35 hours. We have been craving wi-fi like a pregnant woman craves peppermint orange juice. We had been praying that once we arrived we would be able to check our emails, sports scores, myspace's, etc...And alas, we are here, and we have free wi-fi. What a glorious afternoon this has become.

Here you see us all in our most satisfying positions...laptops on laps.