By Catalyst
You are known. Do you know that?
Today, 13,000 leaders joined us at Catalyst 2013 in Atlanta—leaders who are known by their churches, organizations and networks. With corporate ladders, social networks, salaries, stages and microphones, leaders today are constantly told that success, or lack thereof, define them. But here, we know that we are made to walk in the confidence that comes by being known by the Creator of the Universe.
Andy Stanley, Senior Pastor of North Point Ministries and Author of Deep and Wide, opened the day by reminding the Catalyst audience what it means to be known, wholly and truly by God. Everyone has appetites. When fed, these only increase. As leaders we must be sure this appetite is satiated in God’s knowing us. Like John the Baptist, we were created to point to the one who knows us and created us for His glory.
As leaders, sometimes we face obstacles that seem too big to conquer upon first glance. In the second session of the day, Malcom Gladwell, author of Outliers, challenged the conventional approach to hardships through his discussion on the popular story of David and Goliath. Although Goliath was a mighty giant, his size was the very thing that forfeited the agility he needed to defeat David. Contrary to popular opinion, David was not the underdog in this story. He was the favored victor and his confidence in his identity in Christ propelled him fearlessly into victory.
After lunch and time to think on the morning’s messages, Catalyst opened back up in a sweet worship session by All Sons and Daughters followed by a word from Jason Russell, activist, filmmaker and co-founder of Invisible Children. Russell proved that second chances exist in the Kingdom of God. We are not defined by our greatest failure nor our greatest success. Rather, we are defined by the love of God. Although we falter, the love of God for us is something never will.
The spirit of worship continued to fall on the arena as John Piper revealed what pure satisfaction in Jesus looks like when we wholly embrace our identity in Him. Piper said, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.” Bringing glory to God is not something that simply satisfies God, but it propels us to reach our full potential for joy—a joy that is not made to simply maintain, but a joy that spills over onto our co-workers, our neighbors and our congregations.
Angela Ahrendts, Chief Executive Officer of Burberry and one of Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women, shared with the audience how she brings authenticity into the culture of Burberry. She reminded the room full of leaders that the legacy we are all building today will be the one that the next generation steps into and builds off of. Citing authenticity as the most important factor for her success as a leader, she asked: “If we are not authentic around people, how will they ever be able to trust you or let the barriers down around you?”
Following Ahrendts, Lecrae Moore, Grammy Award winning Hip Hop Artist and Co-founder of Reach Records, took the stage. Today, he was not performing his well-known music, but instead sharing his testimony with the room full of open hearts and ears. Ephesians 2 is his story, and he challenged everyone present to accept it as theirs. God redeemed Moore from a life of self-proclaimed hedonism and instilled in him a love for Jesus that he cannot contain. Moore quickly denounced the polarization between ministry and the secular world and challenged this division by offering a Biblical worldview as the means to bring God glory in every area of our lives.
After dinner, the crowd quickly became reenergized during worship with the Passion Band, who ushered in a wave of expectancy before Judah Smith shared a powerful word about the joy we can know when we embrace childlike faith and dance because He still loves us despite what we may have done in our pasts.
Catalyst gripped the hearts of 13,000 church leaders today and challenged us all to go deeper into what it means to truly be known by God.
Being known by God shapes the way we approach hardships and the way we view our circumstances. It changes the way we find joy and bring joy to others. Being known shapes the way we recover from failure and celebrate success. It changes the way we view everyday responsibilities and perform routine tasks. Being known changes everything.
Huge thanks to our friends from See Spark Go for the incredible coverage of Catalyst this year.