conversations from the couch

A ton of youth workers have been asking for the entire conference schedule (including complete track session & workshop details) in print format! (this should make it much easier to present to get budget approval!) Here you go… download the new 2009 NYMC 8-page brochure (it’s so new it’s not even back from the printer until Tuesday!) Look for it in the mail and inserted in the upcoming issue of Group Magazine, and if you need extra copies for your team or other youth workers who might be interested, simply shoot me an email at kgilmour@group.com and I’ll send you what you need this week!

Don’t forget to register for the extra discounts by tomorrow! Remember–the team sizes have been made more accessible–now there are great group rates for teams of 4+ and 8+! If you don’t know who is going to attend from your team–that’s ok! Just register additional attendees with the word “unknown at this time” and you can lock in the great rates by this early bird deadline and go back into your registration and add the names later on! ALUMNI–register with your alumni code for the extra $40 per person off! (yes–includes anyone on your team, even spouses or new fo;lks who haven’t attended in the past) If you need your code, email me at kgilmour@group.com!

I think it started as an idea during an Affinity Group leaders meeting at NYMC 2008 (Brandon or someone came up with this I think) Everyone wanted to keep the conversations going beyond the conference and give youth workers a place to keep going back to so the relationships and discussions that started at NYMC didn’t just vanish at the end of the 4 days. A few Affinity Groups started their own blogs and Facebook pages, but we have FINALLY pulled this all together in one online community!

Check out NYMCconnect.com and get started by joining an affinity group. All of the Affinity Group leaders from last year are getting plugged back in now to start some discussions, and we’re hoping a bunch of folks can reconnect here, and new people can also get talking before NYMC. It’s just starting out–so help this get rolling by jumping in and starting a discussion!

recap of the last 3 weeks…

-NYMC now has a Facebook Page! (and so do I…such a bad thing for my time management efforts)

-We’ve added 1 new track, 12 new workshops, 5 new affinity groups

-Ideas for a new and extremely cool late-night and pre-conference “facets” are rolling out

-hashing through a total revamp of the marketing campaign–we’re trying to capture “who we are” a little better

-hosted a youth ministry denominational summit at Group and explored how we can work together

-Making some friends with churches and networks in the Columbus area–I love meeting people who have a desire to serve and be a part of this dream

-2 babies born to our peeps on the NYMC web team this week (and 3 if you count Andy Brazelton’s baby) means the website won’t be updated for another week 

-and more new community conversations happening on the blog soon…stay tuned!

Six months ago we gathered in Cincinnati for 3 days of incredible conversations at the Group /SYM National Youth Ministry Conference. My prayer is that you returned to your church equipped and refreshed by the experience. More importantly, I hope what impacted you at NYMC is still evident in your life. I know how easy it is to leave on a conference high… but what matters most is if something (or someone) at the National Youth Ministry Conference made a lasting difference.

I’d love to hear how you’re doing today…

Would you please take a minute to share your story. It would mean a lot to me. So many people thanked me during the conference and told me great stories and I wish I would have written them all down.

What should you write? Well, maybe an idea impacted your ministry, or you’re still in touch with a friend from an affinity group, or you quit youth ministry to work at Wal-Mart. We really want to know how you’re doing now, because our ministry isn’t about time at a conference, it’s about you. Hearing your voice helps us serve you better this next year.

Doug

OK–for those of you who are new to the NYMC blog–this is the behind-the-scenes report on all conference happenings as they move from brainstorm to execution, plus breaking news, cool stuff, and the good, bad and ugly parts we’re probably not supposed to share. The year-long journey of planning a conference is a huge part of our team’s real-life ministry to youth workers, and we thought we’d share the the glimpses of holy grace that compensate for the gritty frustrations along the way. You’ll get inside the heads and hearts of the folks on the conference team who are thinking/planning/praying for youth workers needs. And, your comments and input on the blog give us the feedback that makes the conference great!

FYI for returning readers: the blog took a hibernation when I took a sabbatical of sanity. (the event team continued on with some exciting staff/company changes, but I (Kami, the self-appointed NYMC blogger among a variety of other conference roles, took a time out.) Since this blog is about the real truth behind our conference ministry–here’s the scoop: I returned from NYMC 2008/Cincinnati in February full from the experience, but ultimately broken by the long journey that took us there. Part of it was the sheer strain of the amount of work on a tiny staff, but it went beyond that. I had felt God’s call on my heart to serve youth workers so loudly that it drowned out the balance in my life for anything else. I totally neglected my role as a wife, mother and friend, and rationalized my workaholic ways all in the name of God. It became clear that my own prideful addiction to performance/achievement/affirmation overtook what began as authentic calling to ministry. Exhausted, disallusioned, broken and bitter I wrapped up some final projects, left my position at Group and limped home to heal my life.

It’s now been 5 months and I’ll share bits and pieces of that healing time in future posts. I’ve learned that committing to ministry of any kind means committing to continual personal and spiritual recovery and renewal along the way. My friend Megan Hutchinson from Saddleback and NYMC 2009 Track Leader for Helping Hurting Kids has said it best: just breathe.

So, with a great big breath I’m throwing a healthy leg back on this conference pony. I’m totally inspired when I watch the NYMC promo video, and reminded about healthy spiritual balance in the words of the accompanying song, Sweetly Broken, by Jeremy Riddle. I’ve been there. I’m grateful for the amazing team that continued planning NYMC 2009–I’ll re-introduce the whole crew (and new faces) soon. Thanks to Doug Fields for refusing to believe I could really walk away, and a huge thanks to Rick Lawrence for carrying this torch high and keeping it burning so brightly along with everything else on your plate: you are a true champion!

Cloud of WitnessesThis is a cool shot from an activity in Doug Fields’ message on Saturday night. Everyone wrote a “faith blocker” and tossed it into the air. People were asked to pick up one of the papers that landed near them and pray for that person and their faith blocker. It was a cool, interactive community experience.