We arrived on Wed night, met up, and headed to dinner. We had reservations at 8:15 which is 1:15 AM back in Texas, which explained our hunger. It was great, but we yearned for bed, so wWe arrived on Wed night, met up, and headed to dinner. We had reservations at 8:15 which is 1:15 AM back in Texas, which explained our hunger. It was great, but we yearned for bed, so we did not linger.
I was up early the next morning, which meant it was noon back home. I went for a walk on the beach and took pictures of birds. Both were beautiful. Then the team met for breakfast. It took a bit of navigating a maze to make it next door to the recommended baker. It is attached to Macy's Department Store. It came highly recommended. The doors to the store did not open until 9:30. We thought it was strange that a popular baker would open so late, but we waited at the locked doors. The opening time came and went. The doors remained locked. We could an escalator up and the doors on that level were opened. We found the bakery. It was packed. That is when we realized that if we had walked 350' further, we would have found the outside entrance to the baker.
We sat and had an amazing breakfast. Then it was time to head to the conference center. Our first stop was at the printer. We picked up 400 conference books. The registration had grown to 435 so we ordered more books and then drove north to the mountains. The hills were sharp and thrust into the sky. Green foliage dripped from them like icing on a cake. As we went up, the clouds came down and we were enveloped in mist. We broke through the swirling haze and came out onto a conference center perched right on the bottom of high verdant cliffs.
We dropped off books, consulted with the technical people, did sound checks, edited our conference slides, and saw that this was one of the best-prepared conferences we had ever seen. The HIM conference has a long and storied history (Read Here).
We had a few hours, needed to return to the printer and get dinner in time to see the first talks of the opening of the conference. So we started the 30-minute drive back to the city. The printer was a delightful man and got everything ready for us. We got back to the hotel and then marched off to the mall next to the hotel. Our meal was a joyful time of storytelling and sharing. I dropped into bed and fell asleep easily.
The next morning started at 5 AM, which sounds early but is 10 AM Texas time. Starbucks and a bacon egg sandwich were the fuel. We arrived at 7:20 AM and settled into the Green Room. We made final adjustments to the line-up and outlined each session. We prayed and then headed into the room. It was filled with eager learners. Well over 350 actually showed up and about the same joined online. The online group represented 40 different countries.
We taught eight sessions. Rick taught the first and last sessions and he started each other session and then quickly turned it over to another teacher. I was joined by Brent Gentzel, Dave Minton, and Ashley Eure. Each of them did an excellent job. The overarching message is that completing the Great Commission will require healthy churches. The more healthy churches we have, the greater the possibility that those churches will invest in the four goals of the FTT movement - Bible, Believers, Bodies of Christ, and Breakthrough Prayer.
My session was on the 5 purposes of the church and how to organize a church around those purposes. People laughed at the right moments, they did not walk out until I was, they spoke encouraging words after I was finished and even one person asked for an autograph - I think they confused me for Rick. It was a good first effort. I had no business being on the same stage with these very accomplished leaders. I think that is more role on the team, "If Kyle can do it, any can do it," My presence is a hopeful sign that obedience in the right direction is the most important characteristic, not popularity nor church size.
After 8 hours of teaching, we stopped. We were not done, but we needed to stop. The stage was filled afterward with questions and laughter. Some of the team needed to head straight to the airport. Other of us returned to the hotel. It was a good day.e did not linger.
I was up early the next morning, which meant it was noon back home. I went for a walk on the beach and took pictures of birds. Both were beautiful. Then the team met for breakfast. It took a bit of navigating a maze to make it next door to the recommended baker. It is attached to Macy's Department Store. It came highly recommended. The doors to the store did not open until 9:30. We thought it was strange that a popular baker would open so late, but we waited at the locked doors. The opening time came and went. The doors remained locked. We could an escalator up and the doors on that level were opened. We found the bakery. It was packed. That is when we realized that if we had walked 350' further, we would have found the outside entrance to the baker.
We sat and had an amazing breakfast. Then it was time to head to the conference center. Our first stop was at the printer. We picked up 400 conference books. The registration had grown to 435 so we ordered more books and then drove north to the mountains. The hills were sharp and thrust into the sky. Green foliage dripped from them like icing on a cake. As we went up, the clouds came down and we were enveloped in mist. We broke through the swirling haze and came out onto a conference center perched right on the bottom of high verdant cliffs.
We dropped off books, consulted with the technical people, did sound checks, edited our conference slides, and saw that this was one of the best-prepared conferences we had ever seen. The HIM conference has a long and storied history (Read Here).
We had a few hours, needed to return to the printer and get dinner in time to see the first talks of the opening of the conference. So we started the 30-minute drive back to the city. The printer was a delightful man and got everything ready for us. We got back to the hotel and then marched off to the mall next to the hotel. Our meal was a joyful time of storytelling and sharing. I dropped into bed and fell asleep easily.
The next morning started at 5 AM, which sounds early but is 10 AM Texas time. Starbucks and a bacon egg sandwich were the fuel. We arrived at 7:20 AM and settled into the Green Room. We made final adjustments to the line-up and outlined each session. We prayed and then headed into the room. It was filled with eager learners. Well over 350 actually showed up and about the same joined online. The online group represented 40 different countries.
We taught eight sessions. Rick taught the first and last sessions and he started each other session and then quickly turned it over to another teacher. I was joined by Brent Gentzel, Dave Minton, and Ashley Eure. Each of them did an excellent job. The overarching message is that completing the Great Commission will require healthy churches. The more healthy churches we have, the greater the possibility that those churches will invest in the four goals of the FTT movement - Bible, Believers, Bodies of Christ, and Breakthrough Prayer.
My session was on the 5 purposes of the church and how to organize a church around those purposes. People laughed at the right moments, they did not walk out until I was, they spoke encouraging words after I was finished and even one person asked for an autograph - I think they confused me for Rick. It was a good first effort. I had no business being on the same stage with these very accomplished leaders. I think that is more role on the team, "If Kyle can do it, any can do it," My presence is a hopeful sign that obedience in the right direction is the most important characteristic, not popularity nor church size.
After 8 hours of teaching, we stopped. We were not done, but we needed to stop. The stage was filled afterward with questions and laughter. Some of the team needed to head straight to the airport. Other of us returned to the hotel. It was a good day.