u09 reflections & praises, part II: questions worth asking

What was the message that came through at Urbana 09?

What drew the participants to this Urbana? What did they leave with?

What do the students arrive thinking the Gospel is? What do the students leave thinking the Gospel is?

What is the Gospel?

Did we present the biblical basis for missions clearly? Was it heard? Or was it drowned out by prescriptive methodology?

What is the intended missiology of Urbana? What missiology was communicated?

What was our main message? Was it communicated?

Those were some of the questions that were raised after Urbana 06, and ones that I think we'll also address for U09 later this week at the Missiology Review. I think this will be one of the funnest parts of Program- thinking through the message that was communicated and the implications/effects that it'll have on the next generation of missionaries. In some ways, it'll be the most sobering and potentially heaviest (emotionally, spiritually) debrief meeting since the conclusions aren't only about "improving" the next Urbana, but about how it will be affecting the mission field for years to come. With that said, I think there will also be many occasions and stories to celebrate over, pray for and hope that God will multiply the fruits.

Today as I was printing out pictures of Urbana for the Review, I couldn't help but tear up. I wonder what happened to the girl who bravely stood in front of 16,000 others with the bright, yellow glo-stick. I wonder what her story is- how did she get to Urbana? What was her view of God and the Gospel? How did God prepare her for the morning session on the 30th? What did she hear? One month later, how is she living out the Gospel? What are the plans God has for her? I don't know her story and I may never hear of her again, but this brings me so much joy and hope- hope that what God has dreamt for her will be so much more than what she could've ever imagined it to be when she stood up with hundreds of others to accept Christ has her Lord and Savior on the morning of Dec 30, 2009.

For me, these are the images and stories that bring those questions above to life.

things that make me happy: an "organic" conference schedule

I meant to blog about this earlier last week, but forgot to. Ah well, such is life.

I first heard about the Verge Missional Community Conference from DJ Chuang's blog (who seems to have a part of my dream job of participating in conferences around the country...sigh). I'm always interested in seeing how ministries identify their ethos, prioritize their values and develop their program when planning conferences. All of this is acutely seen and experienced by the participants onsite, but one can usually catch a glimpse of the planning process and the conference culture through the website.

One thing that caught my eye on the website was that on the schedule page, that's all that they had- the schedule. You don't know who's speaking on what or which plenary will be the crowd-pleaser with the big name speaker...all of the sessions are designed to connect with the rest in order to create a more cohesive (thus more effective and fruitful!) program. The entire conference is a 3-day journey that the group is meant to walk through together. Finally, it communicates the idea that the program is developed and centered around ideas/themes, and not big name speakers. I love that each session builds upon the ones before and that the themes are clear and purposeful. It's so encouraging to see organically designed conferences that center around themes and movements as opposed to big names or for the sake of having a big, flashy event.

I'd be interested to hear how the conference went for the participants. Until then, I will keep myself busy and happy by prepping for the U09 Missiology Review taking place later this week, yay.