We're excited to have some great thoughts on Session 4 from Dan Kimball. Dan is the pastor of Vintage Faith Church in Santa Cruz, CA, and author of the recent book They Like Jesus But Not The Church.  Also, check out his blog, Vintage Faith at www.dankimball.com.

Session 9:

I think this is the 5th Leadership Summit I have experienced. It seems that Bill's leadership passion and as well as sharing vulnerability grows each year. It causes me to want to listen more intensely as a result. I found that there was some brilliance in ending the Summit with the message he did in telling the story of Mother Teresa. Not just because of how God used her life with the Missionaries of Charity, but talking about her struggles. Her struggle when she felt God was impressing on her heart something, it didn't go the way she planned. But it took a very long time and many, many requests to see the vision she had become reality.

What personally struck me in listening to her story, was remembering so many times how I wished something would happen in ministry but it didn't. Or when I have asked for something from the person I reported to, but was told no. I then would question if it was God leading me or was it just my own ideas if they didn't happen as I thought they would. Or the times when it didn't go like I had hoped and I would be discouraged and then give up easily. But listening to her story, especially how most of her ministry she didn't have a sense of His presence for long periods of time was an unexpected application for me. Despite the lack of sensing His presence emotionally, she had yielded her life and determined to seek and love God all the more.

Bill raised was excellent questions about this. If we feel God is leading us in a direction like He did with Mother Teresa, what do we do when God taps you on the shoulder and also asks us to step up? Do we live a life of "Carte Blanche yieldedness" no matter what our current situation?

When the message ended with that video and the whole "send me" theme - it gives me a lot of hope. The way God can use us to bring the light and love of Jesus to others on this earth. But Bill's direct whether or not we are living a Carte Blanche yieldedness to God is something I know I need time to stop and slow down to ask myself. The problem is, tomorrow I am in a meeting all day, and tomorrow night too. Then Sunday is quite full. Then Monday starts the week again. I am realizing I had better stop a bit, as I may think I am yielding, but am I really yielding the way Bill described? I hope I am. But it does mean really stopping, slowing down, praying and doing some self-heart examination. So the question is, when are we post-Summit going to take some time to be asking ourselves the questions Bill raised? For me, it looks like Thursday of next week. I am marking in my schedule to use several hours that day to reflect on this and pray and think about the questions Bill raised, so I don't let too much time go by before I do so.

This is why I appreciate what the Leadership Summit is about - learning from others, asking hard questions, and gaining hope as we follow Jesus together.