kevin and jenna [dot] com

Catalyst Conference Blog Post #2

October 30th, 2008

I wanted to mention some of the speakers that were there.  I really enjoyed the variety - preachers, authors, corporate business leaders, etc.  This list is not comprehensive, and you can find the full list on the Catalyst website, of course, but I wanted to give my opinions and feedback.

One of my favorites was Dave Ramsey.  Kevin and I completed his Financial Peace University course (it has been taught in our church for several semesters now).  So, he’s pretty learned in his views on money and the economy.  We have friends who listen to his radio broadcast (in bigger cities) and he does tv shows too.  At the end of his speech (mostly about being a leader in your work environment), Dave talked a little bit about the recent stock market situation.  He said he had the tendency to want to get very pessimistic about it, because he’s watching some of his closest friends do interviews on tv with very pained and fearful looks on their faces.  But, he said ultimately, it’s all in Who we put our trust in… if we put our trust in money, we will fail.  But if God is our trust, then we will not fail.  Amen!

I really enjoyed Paul Young, author of The Shack.  Wow.  And, if you’ve never read the book, I cannot recommend it strongly enough.  (William) Paul Young had some very powerful things to say… I’m still pondering these things and watching them play out in my life.  He said the weekend the book character Mack spent in the shack represented 11 years of his life when God had to truly break him in order to teach him.  He spent only $300 in “advertising”, yet this book has sold 14 million copies, hit #1 on the NY Times Best Seller List, and he will tell you it was all an accident… he was only intending it to be a Christmas present for his kids.  He knows there are flaws in the book, because after all, he’s only human, and he really did intend for it to be a fiction work.  But my, how this book has people thinking.

I think my other favorite was Matt Chandler.  He pastors The Village Church in Highland Park, Texas (near Dallas).  He has quite the delivery, he’s so very down-to-earth and quirky, but most importantly, he’s not afraid to share the Truth just as it is, without watering it down.  And, if you don’t podcast him, you should.

Entry Filed under: Faith