Staff Conference Day One Recap

Yesterday was day one of Staff Conference 2011.

What does it take to set up for the conference?  Here's a few pictures of the set up process: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/album.php?fbid=172922536078349&id=124088484295088&aid=29821

While Matt was busy in St. Louis setting up, I for the first time made good use of my last name and was the bus captain for the trip down from Madison.  I was grateful the only reasons we pulled over were to clean off the windshield, check the door that was slightly ajar, and reset the bus computer system. 

Once at the conference it was fun to reconnect with several Southern California people from my staff day's there.  It makes me so proud that so many of them are still on staff and thriving in their current roles.

I was pretty exhausted for the first session that night, but was still encouraged by a few things that were said from up front.  Alec introduced the theme of the conference, "campuses renewed, and related that idea to Jeremiah 29.  He quoted how Jeremiah commands the Israelites to settle down in Babylon and seek the peace and prosperity of the towns they lived in.  Often staff today work on campuses that feel foreign and unknown.  There can be a tendency to just seek the peace and prosperity of the Christians on those campuses.  But we are called to do much more...we are called as a movement to minister to the entire campus since that is our movement's home.  Alec mentioned how in many ways, God's purpose in this world not to bring just you and me out of exile, but the whole world." and we need to work at broadening our focus.

In all, it was a good start the the conference.  Ready for day 2.