I was reminded that networking is my spiritual gift this past week, when I went to a concert.

I found out that Third Day, Tenth Avenue North and Trevor Morgan were going to be in town about three days before the concert.

Trevor and I grew up at Frazer Memorial UMC in Montgomery, AL.  We haven’t seen each other for probably twenty years but through the wonders of Facebook, we’d been in touch for about the last three years. He arranged for some will call tickets to be left for me.

During the welcome of the concert a friend who works for Air1 Radio spoke from the stage.  Trevor opened up and it was really cool to see a friend on stage.  I texted my Air1 friend after Trevor was finished and we got to chat during part of Tenth Avenue North. He asked about things and I told him about working for Hospice. He told me he had been thinking about doing an interview with a Hospice to let their listeners be informed about the good that it offers.

About this time, Trevor called me and we got to hang out for 15-20 minutes during an intermission backstage.  It was so much fun to catch up and hear his heart for ministry.  It was also very encouraging to have another friend who is still walking passionately after Jesus that I grew up with.  Though I like Third Day, after we talked I headed home because I had more work to do.

While driving home I called my hospice boss and told her that we might have a chance to spread the word about the work of Hospice to our region.  She was thrilled.

I think everyone has stories of friendships leading to other connections and opportunities but I think I have more of them and that’s why networking is my spiritual gift.

If you are reading this, you are one of my connections that I am blessed to have and I’m so grateful to be able to connect friends, churches and ministries together to help advance the Kingdom.

Networking not only fuels your ministry passions, but gives you a priceless perspective you just can’t get inside your “comfort bubble.” It might not be sexy to change your little corner of the world, but your little corner of the world is the entire world to some people in your community. And when you’re faithful with little things God has a way of entrusting you with bigger things.

March/April 2011 issue of Group Magazine

I just read the Nov/Dec issue of Group and found what I wrote for the TOOLS section. It is an honor to get to write about Networking for Rick knowing that it gets to resource youth workers across the country and around the world. Here it is for you:

There is a guaranteed way to come away frustrated from your attempts to partner with other youth ministries in your area: sign on with them and hope they will meet your needs and are there to serve you.  If you enter into this adventure, instead with the  goal of serving  other youth workers and helping them  succeed, you will never run out people to serve. When you are a blessing to others you experience  a great blessing yourself. Adopt another youth worker and commit to pray for that person for  a month. At the end of the  month take him out for coffee and let him know you have been praying for his ministry.  Share anything that you have sensed on his behalf as you have prayed.  That is a blessing that any of us would love.

Henri Nouwen

While in Dallas, on the first leg of my Texas Triangle Road Trip, Doug Clark, Mark Whitaker and I met with network coordinators from the Dallas metro area and a few from other areas of Texas. All of those interactions are worthy of 3-8 blog entries but for now, I’ll remain focused. During our time together, we began praying for God to raise up other metro network coordinators so Mark would be able to help Austin, Houston and San Antonio use the applicable the principles he has learned in his 20 plus years of running Youth Outreach Network.

Yesterday morning I became facebook friends with Scott Austin from San Antonio. The night before I was cruising through Community Bible Church’s staff page, ?hoping to connect with their youth pastor. ?If you clicked the link you can see it’s easy to get lost there and my ADD brain saw his pic and “Pastor: Next Gen Ministries” ?title so I thought, that must be him with the cool cutting edge/hip title. (Which it really is, by the way.) ?So I found him on facebook, sent him a message introducing myself basically saying I was in town and if he had time it’d be fun (otter) to get together and meet.

He responded that morning and was able to meet for lunch so we did. ?As we began sharing our stories and I heard him explain what he did I thought, “This will still be fun but I’m an idiot, I contacted the wrong guy”. ?See. . . Scott has been a youth pastor, loves youth ministry and the NNYM but his role at CBC is really overseeing 3,000 children/students from cradle to college. ?In my mind I had the wrong guy but within God’s?sovereignty I had met the right guy.

After we talked about a lot of things Scott had shared his experience with the Orange Conference, Reggie Joiner and his passion to train leaders and his heart for youth pastors. ?We talked a little more and before we left I said something along the lines of, “Scott, I’m a good DTS guy and I normally don’t say stuff like this but you’re an answer to prayer. A group of us prayed a few days ago that God would raise up people to lead the youth pastor networks in Austin, Houston and San Antonio and here we are today.”

We met and now we have to work out details and confirm what we believe is God’s will but what an exciting thing to be a part of! I’m looking forward to getting to to know Scott and working together because we are united on a lot of things but I realize it only happened because God used my thorn in the flesh (ADD and all the adventures that comes with it) to introduce me to the person he’s been preparing for a long time. By the way, my first meeting of the day was JUST as exciting but that’s a story for another day.

It’s an incredible experience being somewhere that is a natural fit on almost every level. Thanks for being willing to support this ministry (through encouragement, prayer, financially, remember $10 = 25%) which allows me to play hide and seek with Jesus as I look for what he’s up to next.