After our INNOVATE conference one of our volunteer leaders copied me in on an email he had sent to some other friends at Granger - several of whom weren't necessarily involved in guest services at all.
Check this out. Here's the email:
I have been very blessed to spend the past three days at Innovate and
Wired Churches. About 1,000 people filled our facility to share,
learn and dream bigger dreams. If you want to find out what some of
our visitors thought, go to Tim Steven's blog - www.leadingsmart.com
Tim has links to several bloggers that were at Innovate and have
already posted a lot of their take on the conference. Just look for
his post about Many Bloggers at Innovate.You can find plenty of post conference details in the blogosphere, but
I want to share a few observations with you:1. There are people all across this country that are inspired by God
to reach the community surrounding them. They are passionate about
mission and they are committed to engaging people right where they
are. We are far from alone in this venture.
2. It is a privilege to serve with so many great people. Some of this
team and many others were there volunteering time and effort to insure
that our visitors felt welcome and enjoyed their total experience
here. Plus we had opportunities during down time to spend a little
more time just getting to know each other.3. You make a difference. Over and over I heard visitors express
their amazement at the dedication and spirit of our First Impressions Team.
Many have been to GCC for weekend services too and they were quick to
affirm for others that the experience at Innovate is much like our
weekends. One of the vendors at the conference told me as we wrapped
up that the volunteers at GCC is an incredible group. He travels to
conferences and church events all over, but rarely does he see so many
people like you that treat visitors so well without sacrificing any
love and respect that we show for each other.4. People committed to a life in the paid ministry experience great
moments.Many were eager to share the great things going on in their ministries
during the breaks as we visited with them. Many also experience heavy
burdens. One of our volunteers spent some time with a visitor that
seemed to isolate herself in the back of the auditorium. Her job
requires so much time during the weekend that she only gets to
experience worship 3 or 4 times a year at her home church. She just
wanted the chance here to soak in some of the conference and rest from
all the burdens back home.If you ever have an interest in helping with the Wired Churches
ministry, you can contact Lindsay Wasik at the church. It's a
fantastic experience
Keep making a difference! God loves you and so do I.Steve
Steve gets it. He understands our vision. He knows it's not about him. And while he's serving he's modeling. He's casting vision in this email. You can cast vision any time, any place. Steve did.
I'm so grateful to serve with Steve and hundreds of others just like him.
Can you feel it? People matter.
