Staff Retreat

We just got back from our staff retreat in Florida. Not sure exactly what city we were in but it was somewhere near Destin. I've been taking hits about starting my first week out spending time on the beach in Florida, but trust me...we worked. Don't get me wrong, we had a lot of laughs while working, but for the most part only took time out for meals and one afternoon off. Just so you know, Florida is as hot as you think it is in July. Here are a few things I learned.

1. People wondered how I kept the pace I kept up north, but Jeanne makes me look like I was standing still. It was a sight to behold seeing the Oxygen (youth group), Master's Commission (internship program), Youth Source (youth pastor mentoring and resourcing company), the church (she's the senior pastor's wife) and her speaking schedules all on one calendar. One word ... WOW!
2. Working hard with people you love makes working hard not hard.
3. The structure of Master's Commission here is like something I've never seen. If it works as well in real life (which I'm told it does) as it appears on paper, they've got it goin' on big time. If I had implemented what I've seen here in two weeks up in Granger, I think we would have averaged 1,500 students in the middle school ministry, not 500...not to mention the 50-150 interns we could have easily prepared for ministry of some sort every year. I'm still trying to wrap my arms and mind around all of that...it's huge!
4. Master's Commission Atlanta is going to do some things in the future that will shake up this world. I think God has strategically located it in Atlanta for a reason.
5. The Cadre - the mentoring of youth pastors - is a big deal. I watched Jeanne, after we worked (9:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.) and had dinner (7:30 - 9:30 p.m.) faithfully answer email after email. She takes care of people really, really, really well. I love that and hope it's very contagious.
6. Jeanne talks about Sam like Mark talks about Sheila. I love that.
7. I still love students like crazy. After driving 5-6 hours home, we had youth group that night. I was in an 02 group (like Eagle's Nest) named Chosen and totally loved it. We spent some of our time playing basketball. They have a gym here, so I'm a very happy girl. Guess what I found out? Kids in Atlanta are the same as they are in Granger. They're hungry to be loved, desiring for people to call them by name, carrying baggage they've picked up along the way, come in all shapes and sizes, wanting to know they matter and have purpose...

There are probably a couple of dozen other learnings, but some I'll save for later and others I think were meant just for me.