Catalyst—done

Rich and I finished the Catalyst conference this past week. I’ve got nothing but great stuff to report. So, here’s my “Reading Rainbow” update.

We got to the first day just in time for some amazing worship and the first keynote speaker, Andy Stanley. As if it needs to be said, he was great. Rich commented that he could go home right then—that just hearing what Andy had to say was worth the trip. I talked him into sticking around for a little while longer.

The two days were a great mix of information, food for thought, and entertainment. When we arrived for the second day, we were all met with pillows on our seats. We set a new world record for the biggest pillow fight. After lunch, all 10 thousand of us were armed with rubber balls in order to take on the current dodgeball champions (which happened to be a team of youth pastors).

This was my first Catalyst conference, and it certainly won’t be my last. All of the speakers were excellent, including Marcus Buckingham, Louie Giglio, Kevin Carroll, and Donald Miller. Donald Miller said some especially thought-provoking stuff (which I may bring up in future blogs). I think some of the week’s events can be heard on the Catalyst Podcast.

Catalyst is doing excellent work for church leaders; I hope we can take a bunch of folks next year. I know I won’t want to miss it.