Innovative Church Conference- Granger, Indiana

Well, I did promise you a report on the "Innovative Church Conference"in Granger, Indiana- in summary, it was GREAT! Not only was it excellent in its presentation and content, but David and I found that we were ministered to by the conference! It was a place of healing and strengthening and vision for us. I think that the one thing about the Granger Church that David and I were most impressed with was the ATMOSPHERE at the church. Everyone you met- from the parking attendant to the usher to the welcome attendant to the one who served you coffee in their "Starbucks" style coffee shop- seemed to be someone who genuinely cared.

The primary principle of evangelism that they used was STORY- that is, that there are three stories- MY story, YOUR story, and GOD'S story- and, the place where they intersect is a very powerful place! It is obvious that they trained these people in how to talk with new people, and how to "engage" them in telling their story- just by asking simple questions (where are you from, what do you do, who is in your family, etc.), and allowing them to go as far or as deep as they wanted to go. You could literally enter into conversation with many different people in many different settings, and find yourself "intersecting" with these 3 stories in multiple settings with anyone there!

The other thing that was so refreshing and "ministering" to us was the openness and vulnerability of the leaders of the conference. I must admit that I went to the conference feeling somewhat inadequate, losing confidence, even questioning certain tenets of my faith at times. I just listened for a while- but, before I knew it, I felt I could just "be myself", and be open with others about these things because it was NOT ABOUT ME- it is about GOD in me! Other leaders felt these things- they were all "in process", and "on a journey"- and, maybe they had gone to places similar to where I was headed, and they could pull up alongside of me and help me to make the NEXT STEP that I needed to make to follow the Lord's leading. But, it was not about a prescribed plan, or a 10 step process to become successful in ministry. It was about REAL people, with REAL problems (as well as gifts), serving a REAL God!

A third thing that we got out of the conference was EXCELLENCE and CREATIVITY in the use of the arts to communicate the message of Christ! The productions, the dramas, the videos, the music was of professional quality. The transitions between the message and the use of various art forms was seamless. It was not "gimmicky"- believe me! It was EXCELLENT in its use of pictures and music to enhance the presentation of the message, not distract from it. I found that these things brought out memories and emotions that truly engaged me with the theme of the message, and caused me to connect in very real ways not just with the speaker, but with the Holy Spirit. They did not compromise the message, or even compromise the presentation of the message, but rather they "leveraged" the culture to truly engage people with the message.

The fourth thing that I got out of this event was time to get to know David Griffith. Spending 3 days together, having hours of discussion together, riding in the car together through traffic jams and commuter delays, getting stuck in the airport together for 5 hours, processing this conference together helped us to hear each other's hearts, and I can truly say that we are of one heart and mind in reaching people in our area for Christ! This man is the real deal (Dave, if you are reading this, tell your wife I said you are the real deal...), and I believe that the Lord put us together for a purpose- both at the right time, both going through similar experiences, both with the same passion for reaching "postmoderns" with the gospel. Quite frankly, we needed each other, just to affirm that we are not crazy! Outside of the box, maybe- off the charts, maybe...but, both of us feel that God is doing something new and different- and we are also "In Process" to discern what that is, and then to have the courage to DO IT!

So, once again, we thank God for you, and for those of you who gave so that we could attend, and for those of you who prayed that God would speak to us through this conference.