Last week I had the honor of speaking at the Napkin Conference for my good friend Pastor Benny Perez.

What were some of the highlights of the Conference for me?

1. Being able to see the church that my friends Pastor Benny and Pastor Wendy and their team have built.
2. Meeting some of hero’s and connect with people I love, honor and respect.
3. Connecting with some great kids pastors from around the country.

Here are some of the take aways from each session.

Opening session: Mycal Rosales

1. Determine you are called to that idea.

Function under authority
Fast – pray and seek God.

2. Determine if your idea lines up with the vision of the house

3. Determine that your idea can stand up to opposition
Seek wise council –

4. Determine if your idea has a healthy place to live
Greatest Ideas will die in an infectious environment

Napkin 2012 – Mycal Rosales: Small Groups

John 13:12-15
1. Lead by example

I do it
You do it
I watch you do it
Your on your own

2. Evaluate

Ask good questions.
Asking questions makes you vulnerable

Allows you to connect on a whole different level.

3. Be confident
You have to be confidant if you want others to confide in you

4. Hold people accountable
Confront in love – ask follow ups – ask open ended questions

5. Set expectations
People can’t read your mind tell them what you expect.

Napkin 2012 – Dave and Becky Wakerley

Dave –
My job is not to get everything done but to make sure everything gets done

1. Do not let familiarity blind you. – God can work through anything even vomit.

1 Cor. 2:10

What are you declaring over your church? What are you building

2. Improvise  – not making stuff up – its reshaping something.

Improvising – The idea is motion it’s the courage to keep going.

3. People before role.
Phillipians 2:3

People aren’t a list to complete. If we think about tasks more than people we are not thinking about the future.

Be like Kermit do something beautiful with crazies!

Becky –
Deut 23:13

Sometimes you have to be first. You have to set the standard and create the culture.

15 min of fame – come rehearse lead and leave – had to smash it and start over

Work on making our before better in uptown

Work on vision and goal – for your team.
Dress to impress – fun color – plug in smile welcome think fun!
Preschool drumbox guitar – elementary video with a guitarist – preteen – full band

Napkin 2012 – Jim Wideman
Churches don’t work on their structure that’s why you don’t grow.

3 areas that affect growth.
1. Organizational structure
2. People to serve
3. Facilities

People need to serve more than you need the help.

You burnout when you stop following.

The further removed you are from something the less it has your heart!

Napkin 2012 – Ryan Frank – excellent communication

10 tips to keep your audience from dozing off.
1. Perpetration is everything
2. Connect with the audience
3. Keep your slides simple
4. Don’t use notes unless you frozen
5. Create conversations
6. Ask good questions
7. (Sorry Ryan had to use the restroom before my session)
8. Tell a story
9. Remove physical barrier
10. Wrap up with good review

One more thing – Never stop learning!

I am a big local church guy. I loved that Napkin was created, facilitated, and taught by kids pastors. If you get a chance to go to Napkin next year do not miss it. It was a smaller conference but I really liked that. People were really connecting with each other and with the speakers. There were only general sessions no breakouts so the whole experience was shared. Mycal and her team did a fantastic Job. I talked to many kids pastors that were encouraged and ultimately the church was strengthened. Great church and great conference.