It's Orange Conference week. One of the things I look forward to the most each year. The list of things I love about the Orange Conference would be really long, and I've mentioned many in other posts (like here and here). So, here are 10 reasons I'm excited for Orange Conference 2017.
Hanging Out With Our Team
We're taking some more people from our church this year, and we'll get to hang out with a good friend of ours who has been doing an internship at Gwinnett Church. She's helping with the conference and it will be fun for our team to be together while we're down there.
Co-leading a Breakout with Jim Wideman
Jim and I are leading a breakout called A Couple of Ministry Hacks (get it?). I've learned so much from Jim over the years, and it will be an honor to lead with him. I'll actually get to talk about lessons I've learned from him and then applied to help me grow as a leader.
Frank Bealer's New Book The Myth of Balance
Frank's new book The Myth of Balance, about making job and family commitments work together, pre-releases at the conference. I totally agree with the premise, and I'm excited to see how his ideas come through in the book.
Interviewing Jeff Henderson
I'll be interviewing Jeff Henderson for the podcast while I'm in town. We'll talk about a new thing Jeff is helping launch, and I'll try to get as much wisdom out of him as I can squeeze in the time frame we have. Jeff is a great leader and I've learned a ton from him over the years.
More Phase Books
More Phase books are being released at the conference this year, and I'm excited to see them.
The Art of Group Talk Books for Small Group Leaders
These books are also being released, and I'm excited to get these in the hands of our amazing small group leaders.
Conversations With Leaders
The thing I probably look forward to the most every year is catching up with friends and making new ones. There are already a number of leaders I'm planning to connect with, and I know I'll get the chance to meet some new folks as well. (Let me know if you're going!)
Learning How to Be For Our Neighbors
The theme of this year's conference is something I'm passionate about, and I'm eager to learn how our church can do a better job of being for our neighbors.
The NextGen Extras
Kenny Conley, the track leader for NextGen Pastors, always organizes extra things to help us connect while we're at the conference. I'm looking forward to every bit of that!
Surprise!
I'm always surprised by something–usually multiple things–at the Orange Conference. I look forward to seeing what will surprise me this year.
