What I learned at Catalyst Dallas Part I

Last week I told you my 5 goals for Catalyst Dallas. Today will be a summary of what I learned. The list is too long for one post, and I will finish the second part later. The theme of the conference was Take Courage.

1. Scot McKnight from Jesus Creed taught me that what we do now is only a small glimpse of the kingdom. Our job is to paint a leaf and let God put all the leaves together to form forests and trees. When we try to determine what the entire forest looks like based on our one leaf, we will be short sighted from our lack of perspective.

2. Lecrae Moore, Christian hip hop artist, taught me that we can’t ignore people and expect to rehab a city. In order to be on mission we have to be willing to engage. We need to go where people are now, contextualizing ourselves, so they can understand what we are saying. We need to love. He described a selfless love where we give up our own life for the good of others. Lastly we need to rehabilitate. Redemption of all things, including people, music, art, needs to happen.

3. Jon Acuff, author and creator of the well known site Stuff Christians Like, taught me that fear may paralyze me from pursuing my dreams, that I need to have patience pursuing my dreams, and it is important to define my “enough.” What is enough?

4. Michael Hyatt, former CEO and current Chairman of Thomas-Nelson publishers and writer of Intentional Leadership, discussed the important of leading from the heart. Our hearts define who we are. They define us. Our hearts can be either healthy or unhealthy. We need to constantly refresh them through God, good friends, and rest.

5. Andy Stanley, lead pastor of North Point Community Church in Atlanta, taught me that a single act of courage is often the tipping point for something extraordinary to happen. Too often we miss out on an opportunity because we are afraid to act on it.

6. John Perkins, social justice advocate and author of “Let Justice Roll Down,” discussed the effects of racism on the church. We minimize the gospel. The gospel brings together people who are very different, and we should work towards that.

7. Gary Haugen, CEO of International Justice Mission, discussed the two potential reponses to fear. We can either seek safety or we can seek courage. When I do something in an effort to follow God I want to know where I am going, what it will cost, and whether I will succeed. God usually does not tell us these things. If he did, we would not learn to trust him.

8. Scott Belsky, author of “Making Ideas Happen,” taught me more than I could briefly summarize. His book is a great resource to help you get from a good idea to seeing your idea realized. One of the key points for me is that I need to be more organized in order to make my ideas happen, the few that exist in my head.

Do you have fears that keep you from doing more? Are you painting a leaf?