NYWC Notes: The Unexpected Leadership Journey... Leading From the Pages of your Life

The Conference officially kicks off tomorrow. Today was spent in a Critical Concerns Seminar, which is an extended seminar.

Dan Webster was youth ministry before there was youth ministry. He started at Crystal Cathedral (which is about 1 mile from where we are staying).
Then he moved on to Willow Creek Church in the 80s to establish the world's first megachurch youth ministry.
You may have heard of those two churches.
We will find out more about what has brought him to his current role with Authentic Leadership, Inc.

I feel like I took a drink from a fire Hydrant from Dan today. Some highlights:

• Ironically enough, Dan asked us to start it off by saying, "I'm in" as a way of declaring that we were going to engage in the time.
• "Every major move of the Spirit in my ministry was preceded by a personal change in my life."
• The beginning prayer of every leaders should be, "Lord, change me first."

Change Leaders are:

1. Teachable not arrogant (disciplined in listening)
2. Known for integrity not talking (disciplined in doing)
3. About anonymity not Noteriety (disciplined in giving recognition and affirming others)
4. About Christ-Dependence not Co-Dependence (Disciplined in confession)
5. Living Last not First (Disciplined in Serving)

• A great definition for Integrity... Living ONE life.
• There is two types of leadership... "L" leadership; "l" leadership. "L" leadership is meant to be disignated only to God.
• This is not the time to place too much confidence in human leadership.
• This is not a time to overcommunicate an overconfidence in ourselves.
• Following God will ruin your life.
• We will end up in Circumstances we didn't plan on... we have to learn to adjust to our reality.
• We will reach points of surrender we didn't anticipate... brokenness is the bridge that takes us from commitment to surrender.
• We will be drawn to an intimacy we haven't known... "I wanted to get ministry done... now I realize God wants to change me."

This affirmed in me the reality that I've been called to live a radical intimacy with Christ. That's the extent of my calling. Effective ministry will only happen as a product of that.