and I really could have ended up one another’s arch enemies. Â If you know J.R. and I, then you immediately get why.
He and I might be the two best looking men that are a part of the missional movement of the church. Â I know for a fact that he and I are the two best looking men on the board of .
But do we fight? Â No. Â Do we try to bring the other down to raise ourselves up? Â Not recently.
Instead, we took the road less traveled.  We  got to know the person behind the beauty, and (at least I) discovered, he is a great guy that I respect a great deal.
So, I am very excited to let you know about a conference that J.R. has guided into being. Â It is called, . Â Let me share an excerpt from the conference site…
The idea for this conference came from two sources: A post from J.R. Briggs, a pastor at Renew Community in Lansdale, Pa and the wildly popular site .
A few dangerous questions were asked:
-What if we offered a space that is gutsy, hopeful, courageously vulnerable for pastors to let go of the burden to be a Super Pastor?
-What if we could hold an event that was free from the thrills and frills of other pastors conferences?
-What if we came together as epic failures and sought not successful models or how-do’s but instead celebrated faithfulness in ministry because of the reality of Jesus?
-What if we were reminded that we’re not responsible for being ‘successful’ in ministry, but we are responsible for being faithful to the calling that God has laid out for us – regardless of the outcome?
-What if we had a conference that was not led not by famous pastors who are household names, but by scandalously ordinary ministers and leaders who are faithfully attempting to join with God – even in the midst of glaring obscurity and anonymity?
I love those questions!
In my experience I have run into countless examples of two extremes.  I have been to many events 
where either those that are speaking or those that are attending find ways to let everyone know about the numeric success they have experienced.  Sometimes this is subtly done, and other times, less subtly so.  I have also seen examples of those that are so broken, usually by their reletive lack of numeric success, that they become bitter and ultimately frustrated with the very group they were trying to reach.
I can say that I have been in both of those camps. Â During my time at [nlcf] I have experienced multiple seasons of numeric growth and also multiple seasons of having lower numbers. Â Times where I have given in to the temptation to let others know how “well” we are doing and others where I have grown frustrated that the people I am trying to reach don’t want to be reached!
The thread that runs through all that, is that it is primarly about me. Â My kingdom building, my success.
Yes, we get that numbers matter. Â Each of those numbers is a person who matters a great deal to God. Â To that extent, there is an important place for hearing from people that have seen God bless their efforts. Â So, this conference doesn’t deny the value of that. Rather, it honors the fact that the life of faith is a challenge. Â That living our lives in an honest way before our Messiah will mean that at times we will face frustration, confusion, difficulty and failure. Â And in a culture that so highly values numeric success, not demonstrating that success; while not a failure, can certainly feel like it.
So, having a space where men and women can gather and be honest about what hasn’t gone right, what hasn’t shown results and what hasn’t been pleasant, could be a great thing. Â A space that doesn’t worship failure, but one that worships Christ in the midst of it; a space, not to be cynical, but honest, is necessary.
So, go if you can and encourage friends in the ministry to do so as well.
I like the idea so much, I am going to encourage all 2,000 people that attend our church to consider it as well. Â Wait, did that just drop out? 🙂
Peace, Jim
“I didn’t fail the test, I just found 100 ways to do it wrong†Ben Franklin
