Patrick Grach - thoughts on life and leadership

An Afternoon with Rick Warren

I had the privilege of going down to Capitol Hill, DC yesterday to sit in a pastor's forum to listen to Rick Warren speak. He pastors Saddleback Church and authored Purpose Driven Life.

I'll be honest, I initial was hesitate to expect too much from him, you know, not believing all the press and hype. Then, I learned while listening to him, there's a reason he's gained the influence he has. God has entrusted him because he's faithful and has a great heart for people. He doesn't take himself all that seriously, and even stated, "see, I'm not that much to look at... but neither are you. That's right, God uses humans!"

I took four pages of notes, most I'll share with my leaders. So, here are a few nuggets:

• never confuse significance with prominence- our nose may be prominent, but our heart is significant,
• how would history be different if we said "no" when God asked us to obey?
  
• focus on growing people, not building churches,
  
• there are seasons to life, learn to respond appropriately during the seasons of life,
• spiritual growth doesn't happen by accident. We grow through commitment, not before commitment- we commit to something, then grow up,
• humility isn't denying our strengths; it's being honest about our weaknesses,
• "A rising tide raises all the boats in the harbor"- when we grow, we bring others with us.

Good stuff. It's great when, as a pastor, you get pastored. Yesterday afternoon, a group of us pastors got pastored by Rick Warren. That was refreshing!