Archives for 2013

This is part of the series Catalyst 2013.

Malcolm Gladwell’s message today was excellent and full of counterintuitive insight, as always. I’m very appreciative also that he chose to be here. With his new book out this week (David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants), he could have been anywhere in the world today, and he chose to be here, at Catalyst. Thank you, Malcolm Gladwell!

Here are my notes.

Brad Lomenick (preisdent of Catalyst): “Gladwell could have been anywhere in the world today, and he chose to be here, with Catalyst.”

Gladwell: “It’s great to be back. I think this is my third time. It’s always a pleasure to come to Catalyst.”

Gladwell begins by retelling the story of David and Goliath, highlighting details we often overlook and pointing things out that we often don’t pay attention to.

Was David Really the Underdog?

David had a slingshot. Goliath was a heavy infantry. Most people favor the heavy infantry because of their size. But heavy infrantry–Goliaths–are sitting ducks for slingers. Slingers are quick and nimble. Goliath is large and slow.

Everyone was thinking David would be going up to fight hand-to-hand with Goliath, according to the heavy infantry model. Even Saul was assuming this when he tried to give David his armor. But David wasn’t planning on hand-to-hand combat. Why would he? He was planning on fighting with his sling.

“So we have a lumbering giant operating under a false assumption, and a nimble kid with superior technology and filled with the Spirit of the Lord. And yet we think of David as the underdog. Shouldn’t we think of the person filled with God’s Spirit has having every advantage in the world?”

Doesn’t the verse tell us not to look on outward appearances, but the heart, as God does? And if you look at the heart, isn’t David the favorite?

“We radically understimate the power of the heart.” [My note: Amen!!!!]

The Underdog Town that Stood up to the Nazis

Gladwell then tells the story of a town that famously stood up against the Nazis during WWII.

The most extraordinary story from the history of the town was when the false government that was opposing it and in league with the Nazi’s during WWII came with a large, complicated itinerary, and nothing went according to plan. The people in the town made sure the food at the banquet was really, really terrible. Half way through someone “accidentally” spills soup down the false government minister’s suit; no one shows up for the parade; a guy preaches on “he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.”

Then the kids, talking to this senior minister from the fake government, reads a letter to him stating they are hiding Jews, and they will not turn them over.

The story of this town is famous for its resistence to the Nazis, and the incredible courage of the people who lived there, and how they were one in a million during a time when real courage and bravery were in dire need.

But the way the story is often told is misleading. There is nothing extraordinary about the people who lived there; they were simply people who had an accurate assessment of where power truly lies. They knew themselves. Most people would say “you versus the Nazis is a lopsided battle.” But they didn’t see it that way. They would have said “we have a whole bunch of weapons of our own.” Ex: half the year, the mountains were filled with snow, making it hard for the Nazis to hunt Jews. And there were all sorts of people willing to help hide the Jews. “Shouldn’t they have been concerned the Nazis would just obliterate the whole town?” The Nazis had bigger fish to fry.

But the most important weapon the people of the town had is that they had been through this before. 100 years before the Catholic church and ruthlessly persecuted the Protestants in the area. The Hugenot pastors were rounded up and murdered by the state, their children put in orphanages, the church was banned. They were forced to conduct all of their worship services in secret. But what did they learn during that process? How to band together, how to be strong, and most of all the power of their own faith. The French threw everything at them you can, and God protected them. So the Nazis came, and they were like “we’ve seen worse.” They were ready.

A woman tells the story of the first time a Jewish person came to her door asking for refuge. It never occured to her to say no, or that it would be dangerous. She didn’t think of herself as an underdog.

Now, here’s the question: There were millions of Christians in France during WWII, singing many of the same hymns, worshipping the same God. Why was this village the only one that gave refguge to the Jews?

Because the other Christians didn’t understand how powerful their faith made them. They thought they were underdgos. They looked at “Goliath” and said “there’s no way I can beat that guy.”

We under estimate the power of our faith, and that has real-world consequences.

If the millions of Christians had stood up against the Nazis, how many millions of Jews might have been saved? [My note again: Amen and well said.]

Misunderstanding Goliath

We not only misunderstand David; we also misunderstand Goliath. We think of him as this mighty warrior. But the Bible shows us that there are all sorts of things inconsistent with this notion.

For example, he has to be led down to the battlefield by an attendant. What? Why is that? And there is a mention of how slowly Goliath moves. That’s odd. Why is the writer of this account pointing out these things? Then there’s the fact that it takes Goliath so long to figure out what David is up to. Goliath sees David coming and is insulted. He shouldn’t be insulted, he should be worried. But he is oblivious to what is happening. And Goliath says “am I a dog that you should come to me with sticks [pluarl]?” But David didn’t have sticks. He had a sling. He had one stick, not two.

There is a growing consensus that Goliath was suffering from a disease of [My note: I can’t remember the term–I’ll call it Giantism]. And one of the symptoms of this is sometimes double vision, for example. This is likely why Goliath thought he say stick_s_ in David’s hands. And why was David led by an attendant to the valley floor? Because he couldn’t see well; so he needed a guide.

What people did not understand was that the very thing that made the giant so intimidating was actually the source of his greatest weakness.

The Key Point: You Are Not an Underdog

We live in a world full of Goliaths. But we need to remember two things. First, that giants are not always what they same. And second, that someone with nimble feet and the best technology who is filled with the Spirit of the Lord, is not an underdog.

(For more on Gladwell’s book, and to see the video of the TED talk he recently have on it, see my post on his new book.)

This is part of the series Catalyst 2013.

This was a fantastic message by Any Stanley to kick off Catalyst today. Here are my notes.

The theme of Catalyst this year is Known. So Andy Stanley’s message is: Known Survivor: Surviving Your Appetite for Known.

Now with social media we know that everyone, including your grandmother, has an appetite to be known.

One thing about an appetite is that if you feed it, it grows; and, it is never fully satisfied.

The Desire to be Known

You have in you an appetite to be known

You will never hear “I have enough friends, followers and mentions; my church is large enough; we don’t want any more campuses; I’ve sold enough books.”

If you get this wrong, it will make you weird! Sometimes the appetite can get so big it tips you over.

How do you survive your appetite for known?

It’s not from numbers. There is no amount of known that will satisfy your appetite to be known.

Almost titled the message “How Known is Known Enough?”

“Some of you are saying ‘I don’t struggle with this, but I’m sure glad my senior pastor is here to hear this.'”

But it’s in all of us to want to be known.

Even when you’re preaching, you can be thinking at the same time “Is she texting or taking notes? Does she have an emergency or does she just not like my message?”

You can’t help this. So what do you do with it?

Especially since there is no amount of “known” that will fully satisfy anyone.

The Laws of Applause

Part of this is the because of the “Laws of Appluase.” (“I just made this up.”)

1. What’s applauded as exceptional the first time will be expected the next time.

Exceptional becomes expectional.

A lot of leaders get derailed right here.

2. Applause is intoxicating.

Those most applauded for feel most entitled to.

“I’m just not sure about senior pastors having reservied parking spots.” [Amen!!!] This is an entitlement. And the worst thing about a reserved parking spot is that it’s a public entitlement.

You don’t have to give in to this!

Haven’t you seen this wreck people’s careers? Wreck people’s churches?

3. Applause is addictive

If you get it once, you want it again. You can start looking for it, manufacturing it.

It is here that you can become a victim of “known.”

Known and the Challenge of Leadership

Here is the real challenge for Catalyst leaders: To lead, you must be known. So the solution can’t be “I’m going to become a hermit and stop leading.” As a leader, you’ve actually been called to be known. You’ve been called out into the spotlight. God wants you to use your skills, be published, have churches use your curriculum, and have your church grow. To lead means you have to be known.

The question is: How do we keep it from ruining us? How do you avoid becoming a victim of hte laws of applause.

The good news is that we aren’t the first generation to deal with this.

So let’s look at John the Baptist.

Surviving Your Appetite for Being Known

There is an amazing statement John the Baptist makes that gives us a clue about how to survive being known.

Mark tells us that thousands of people came to hear John the Baptist, potentially tens of thousands. And it was not an easy place to get to where he preached. Suddenly he went from obscurity to everyone in the region hearing him speak or on their way. He is a phenomenon. He is known.

The word gets back to Jerusalem. So the Pharisees send some folks and people ask “are you the Messiah?” And he says no, and not the prophet either. So they say “who are you?” And he quotes from Isaiah “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘make straight the way for the Lord.'” In other words, “I’m just a sign.”

Then the next day Jesus comes, and John says: “Look.”

The next day John saw Jesus passing by again, and he said “Look.” Then John lost two followers–they followed Jesus. Things are starting to decline, right?…

Some came to John and said “Rabbi, that man [Jesus], the one you testified about, he is baptizing.” As if to say, “What is he doing? You’re the baptizer. This is your deal. What’s he thinking? He’s stealing your show. And he’s even going multi-site, because he’s got his disciples baptizing too. And everyone is going to him.”

The statement John makes here is huge. He says: “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven.” John would say to them, and say to us, is: “The reason I’m known; the reason for the crowds, is because God has given me this opportunity for this time. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. Relax. It wasn’t me who made me known, and I’m not known for the sake of being known. God had a purpose in it, it wasn’t my idea, and now my time is up.”

Note the “only”! Heaven decides all things.

John survived extraordinary “knownness” because he understood what is often a cliche with us: “I am known in order to make him known.” The moment you focus on the amount of known, your history. You are known to make him known.

Surviving known, then, is this: Remember who it’s _from_, and remember who it’s _for_.

A great word from Andy about his dad, Charles Stanely: “One thing I’ve never seen in my dad is arrogance. He’s 81 and doing book tours right now! He’s always been known. And I’ve never seen him arrogant.” When people would ask him why not, he would say “because I know that God could cut it off in a minute.”

Your appetite for known will never be satisfied by a number. Only a name. A _who_, not a _how_ or a _how many_.

There is no number of friends, followers, fans, campuss, books sold, songs sold that can satisfy you. John the Baptist got it right: it’s a name, a who, not a how many.

The solution is to live for an audience of One.

Andy then gives a great story of the time he preached for the president, and received a personal, hand written thank you.

So, what if Jesus was telling the truth in all his parables, and in all his teaching, like the parable of the talents, and there is a moment when we open the envelop at the end of days, and open an envelop from Jesus saying “well done. You don’t let ‘known’ screw you uo. You never forgot who it was from or who it was for.” Shouldn’t this fuel inject, energize everything we do in ministry and life?

So: preach hard, work hard, go multi-site, publish, lead extraordinary worship, and do everything in your power to leverage your talent, and continue to always remember who it is from and who it is for. Never forgot that it’s from the one who _knew you first_ and knows you _best_, and has given you a stewardship of knownness for the sake of making him known.

This is part of the series Catalyst 2013.

I am in the pre-conference lab right now, “Just Lead! A Survival Guide for Women Leaders and Those Who Lead Them.”

If it seems strange that I’m in a a workshop for women leaders, let me clarify that this is by accident! I tried to go to John Acuff’s session and couldn’t find it. So, having gotten back late from lunch, I jumped into this session because it’s the next one I saw and I know that the presenters are top notch.

This lab is led by Jenni Catron, executive director at Cross Point Church, and Sherry Surratt, CEO of MOPS International. Together, they are authors of Just Lead!: A No Whining, No Complaining, No Nonsense Practical Guide for Women Leaders in the Church.

Here are two of the key points, which are fantastic. First, “you can lead well, or you can lead alone. But you can’t do both.” Well said.

Second, as most of us have experienced, insecure leaders are among the hardest to work for. Sherry gave a great summary of why this is so:

Insecure leaders try to control everything. They avoid risk. They are closed in their relationships. They don’t hire 10s, because they are afraid the 10 will outshine them. They fail to affirm and empower others. Insecure leaders create environments of insecurity.

There is probably nothing that will limit your leadership like insecurity. And insecurity leads to fear, and makes you think small.

When people pretend, they over compensate, and other people see through it.

Excellent points.
For more on insecurity in leadership, and what to do about it, check out John Maxwell’s article: Why Insecure Leaders are So Bad.

This is part of the series Catalyst 2013.

I’m a huge fan of good usability. Whenever I work on a website or consult on web strategy, the core principle I advocate for is making the site as easy to use as possible. Further, this should be our mindset not only with websites, but with everything. For at the end of the day, it’s hard for your product or service or experience to help people if they find it confusing.

Creating good usability is actually a leadership task, because the essence of what leaders do is create clarity. Good usability makes things clear for people, and therefore is actually a form of good leadership.

That’s why the minute I walked in to the arena here today at Catalyst, I felt right at home. Everywhere around the arena they have people like the guy below holding up signs that say “need help?” If you need to figure out where to go, or where you can find a can of Diet Coke, or where to register, there’s no guessing. Just ask one of these people.

That is awesome. You can’t get any more clear than that. And, best of all, this is a model of good leadership right where you would expect it — at a leadership conference. Leaders make things clear. And here at Catalyst, what this shows me is that that task of leadership is evident not just in the speakers and teaching, as important as that is, but right down to the details of finding your way around.

Love it. That’s an example to learn from.

This is part of the series Catalyst 2013.

I’ll be live blogging Catalyst today through Friday. The labs are today, and the main sessions are tomorrow and Friday.

I’ll shoot to post a summary of each session, highlighting some key points and giving some of my reflections.

For those who are headed to Catalyst this week, here are 16 things you need to know to help you make the most of it from Brad Lomenick’s blog.

To keep up with things, stay tuned to my blog, follow me on Twitter, and follow Catalyst on twitter.