Catalyst West Coast 2012

Whenever you go to a conference as packed and informational as Catalyst, it takes a few days to decompress. To really pull out all the learning and nuggets, to really evaluate what happened, it takes some distance. I like to look at stuff a few days, weeks, or months later to see what sticks.

But that doesn't mean you can't pull some fun nuggets out right away. So here's a few things I got out of my two packed days at Catalyst West Coast.

1. Christian Comedy Exists. That's right, I said it, Christian comedy is real. Jonathan Acuff, who created the blog Stuff Christians Like and turned that into a book of the same name, is hilarious. He's also real. Reading his book of posts has been funny and insightful, so was his talk. He had a couple nuggets that hit me square — namely that if you have 1,000 compliments and one critique you still only have one critique.  Your message won't connect to everyone, there will always be some critics, but you can't let that dominate your thinking. As he said, "Haters only get loud when you do stuff that matters."

2. You can't be everything to everyone. Andy Stanley set the tone early by talking about the limitations of ministry, time, and the demand that's out there. He noted that the more successful you are, the less accessible you are. And that's true. But you don't have to spend all your time trying to disprove the theory. Instead, focus on one person and pour yourself into that person. If you model that, others will do likewise.

3. This new generation needs to change its approach. As Craig Groeschel noted, respect is earned and honor is given. The younger generation has a lot to offer, but can also learn a lot from those that have gone before. We need to honor them, learn from them, and work to maximize the potential and talent we have.

4. And, finally, I love Donald Miller. It's true. I got to attend a special lunch Q & A. Afterward, I went to have my book signed and wanted to say something profound and engaging. After all, it was hearing him speak two years ago and reading his book that helped me fully form Faith in Film, my passion project, into a class. When it was finally my turn, of course, I panicked. All I could think to say is, "hi, my name is Matt, and I love your books." Momentous moment fail. But hearing him speak was, again, nothing short of inspiring. Even helping me put that moment in perspective. He said, "Every failure is a correction, not a judgement." We are always correcting our course and overcoming conflict. But, as he noted, what unites us as Christians should be stronger than what divides us.

What a special two days.