i know this is late, but i still have yet to find a big bag of money that says "laptop" on it. when i do, i'll be sure and post more frequently and punctually (sp?). i will start with my overall impression of the conference "experience". registering, the atmosphere, etc.
everyone knows willow is huge, and so i expected registering to be a massive pain with lots of confusing signs and walking into the wrong room. i was extremely pleased to find people instead of signs, and very clear direction as to where i needed to go. when i got to the registration room, i walked up to a short alphabetized section, said my name, and was handed a journal and an event bracelet that doubled as a USB flash drive. stinkin' cool. i then proceeded to the main auditorium where david crowder rocked off my face and played a hoe-down.
the first session was with dewitt jones, a national geographic photographer. the large LED wall in the sanctuary was INCREDIBLY bright and his photography slides looked amazing. i was a little on the fence in terms of dewitt's talk. honestly, he seemed to teeter on the edge of a new-agey-philosophy. he said things like (and when i say like this is not verbatim, but close) "if you just believe, it will happen". this was in regards to say, taking a great photograph. hmm. something that struck me was he never once mentioned story or Jesus. he did tell some cool stories, but never referenced the ultimate story teller. so ultimately, i was left feeling a little uneasy about his words despite some good ideas, and some spiritually nebulous.
during the break there was much socializing to do, snacks outside, a coffee shop inside, and the conference had a event specific blog to peruse for more content. it felt intimate while being huge. kudos to willow for being able to pull that off, very impressive.
the next speaker was nancy beach. honestly i expected to not enjoy her session, perhaps because i was sexist, but i definitely had unjustified preconceived notions. from the beginning of her presentation i was hooked. nancy spoke to some philosophies that i am passionate about, such as missional living in and outside of the church. she also brought up great points about how artists tend to focus on the negative and can be cynical. i definitely find this to be true, and the charge of her speech was to be a person of hope.....not to deny the things going on in the world, but to "hold a newspaper in one hand, and the Bible in the other" - Karl Barth. i felt like that was the theme of her talk - living in the contradiction. how do you relate to lost people but ultimately point them to Christ through relationships. in fact, her talk bordered on more a discussion more on practical living rather than art, and i thought it was a great platform for the message. she encouraged everyone to not be insulated in the subculture and world of "ministry" but go out into the world and love people. i think i was more excited to actually see this message being preached in front of thousands of people who aren't part of an acts 29 church, and to see them embrace it and hopefully put it into practice so as to tear down some of the stigmas surrounding the church.
the one last thing i want to talk about in this post is the drama before nancy's session. it was probably the best drama i've ever seen in a church. the topic was homosexuality, and a christian apologizing to a homosexual and asking him to be friends again. first of all there's not many people who would touch this issue in a dramatic format. secondly, if it was done, the potential for major cheese is extremely high. thankfully, willow dealt with it amazingly well and delivered and incredibly realistic, awkward, tense, and thought provoking presentation. in short, brilliant. in the next part i'll review the breakout sessions and donald miller.
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