Refusing to Acquiesce

Saddleback Civil Forum on the Presidency

This weekend I was able to catch some live coverage of the Saddleback Civil Forum on the Presidency, held on Saturday night. Pastor, author, and philanthropist Rick Warren “interviewed” each of the presidential candidates separately with the same set of questions posed. I thought the forum was fascinating. Despite the fact that it was held at a church venue, the authenticity of both Obama and McCain seemed real, as did their answers to the questions they were grilled with. In an interview Warren gave with CNN prior to the event, he stated his intentions were “to ask all of the tough questions.” It seemed to me that holding a forum on the presidency was not at all about pushing a religious agenda - it was merely to provide a way for the American people to see and hear from the presidential candidates in a way that did not - like the general public debates - pit them against each other, doomed to point/counterpoint issues to death instead of connecting in an authentic, meaningful way with America. “I just intend to ask [the questions] in a civil way,” said Warren. “This is called a civil forum, which means you can disagree without demonizing the opposition. I think everybody wants to hear questions not just about those ‘moral issues,’ but also about a lot of other things, too. I’m trying to stake out a common ground for the common good.”

The event aired live on both television and radio, so I’m sure thousands of people heard it. Warren asked each man questions from 4 different segments:

• Leadership: What is the personal character, competence, and experience of each candidate?
• Stewardship: What is the role and responsibility of the presidency? The Constitution? The role of America?
• World View: Hard questions about beliefs, evil in the world, etc.
• America Internationally: What is America’s role in the world?

Obama went first. I thought his answers were smart and calculated - you could tell he takes his candidacy seriously, as he does democracy and the issues at hand. He is not a loose cannon. He conviced me, as well as countless others, of his brilliance as a communicator. Thoughts, ideas, and beliefs, no matter how simple or complex, were easy to understand. He did not ramble. He stuck to the point. He seemed honest and without agenda. Highlights for me came in a number of areas: of course his stance on abortion was an eagerly anticipated topic. Warren asked Obama his thoughts about when a fetus becomes a human life - a very blunt and to-the-point question. While Obama did not respond with a definitive answer to that question, he communicated a handful of things: a) abortion is without a doubt a moral and ethical matter, regardless of where you stand, b) he doesn’t feel qualified to decide when life begins, and c) he fully supports a woman’s right to choose, and really does want to lower, if not eradicate, the number of abortions that happen every year in America. Obama focused more on the communal, societal factors that surround the issue of abortion: are we providing our women with everything they need to be able to make the decision to keep a child? Do they have access to health care? Will the community step up to take care of these women and provide hope for them - hope that will increase the number of women who choose to give birth instead of aborting their children? Obama likes the word hope. I also liked Obama’s acknowledgment that evil exists, and his call to Americans to be a part of the solution - to do what we can to make things better for our fellow man. I can get behind that kind of thinking. Then again, it’s not something we haven’t heard a million times before.

Warren segued into his time with McCain by bringing the candidate to the stage following Obama, and the three men shared a moment of hand-shaking and acknowledging the generous applause. Obama then exited, and it was McCain’s turn to respond to the questions. You immediately noticed the a change in body language - Obama sits closer and leans in as he talks with Rick Warren and answers the questions he is asked, while McCain sits much further away and leans back. I thought this dynamic was particularly interesting. You can tell from McCain’s interactions with Warren that he is a seasoned political pro. For the first time McCain came across as genuinely concerned with a better America, and the wisdom he’s gathered from years of service to this country was pretty obvious. He was much quicker to respond - whether this meant that he was measurably more prepared and clear with his views than Obama, practiced at regurgitating his shtick, or just different in his manner and personality, remains to be seen. It was nice to see McCain responding - as opposed to reacting - to the grand issues of our country and world. When candidates debate on the same stage, the actual issues themselves are often immediately left behind in a wake of political am-nots and are-toos. This always reminds me of marital disputes - nothing ever gets accomplished when each party is more focused on the other than themselves. Hence the real need in this country for real civil discourse. Anyways, McCain hit on some important issues, like national security, health care, taxes, education, and the economy in a good way. He really is not a carbon-copy Republican like so many think he is - sure, he’s closer to Bush than Obama, but he’s still his own. I can only hope that if he’s elected he can hold to the things that make him unique. I think that it might be a lot more of a challenge for him to remain that “liberal conservative” if he’s elected than it would be for Obama to stay strong with his plans were he to find himself in the Oval Office. Time will tell…

As at any event of this magnitude, there were all kinds of people at the event, which took place in Lake Forest, CA, protesting, demonstrating, and causing all kinds of chaos. With all the news crews, reporters, journalists, video cameras, etc., things were bound to be lively. I didn’t care to find too much out about what happened outside, since the event itself is where the good stuff happened. Overall - and I’ll say I saw about 80% of the full broadcast - I think it was one of the most engaging political dialogues I’ve ever seen. I was genuinely drawn to each candidate as he answered the questions. I gave each guy a shot, and was eager to hear more about what they had to say. I think this was in no small part due to how convoluted politics is in this country. The mayhem and scandal that seems to follow politicians around and gets amplified to oblivion by the media really draws the focus away from the heart of this nation and the real issues that we’re all dealing with on a daily basis. So, when civil discourse actually happens, it’s like a brand new thing, and people get interested really fast. I’d like to see this happen more often. Maybe then the American public would have more of a clue about its leaders. I’ve written about how much I want the president to communicate more with the people. I don’t think it’s too idealistic to hope that that is something that will change in the coming years. The Saddleback Civil Forum on the Presidency demonstrated that it IS possible for people of differing opinions to convene and hold meaningful, unscathing dialogue about issues. The more it happens, the more people will want to replicate it.

Have I decided who gets my vote yet? Do I know everything about everything? Not so much…

The HRMS Naperville Sprint Triathlon, and a 3-year milestone

This past Sunday morning Laura and I got up at 4:45am, ate some Raisin Bran and made our way over to Centennial Park in downtown Naperville, IL to compete in the HRMS Naperville Sprint Triathlon with about 2500 other people. A 400M swim, 20k bike, and 5k run. Laura finished her first sprint tri a little over a month ago, and she did awesome. It was definitely fun to do this race together. Sunday turned out to be a stunning day - barely any clouds, blue skies, plenty of sun, a bit of a breeze … I was most apprehensive about the swim, mostly because I didn’t train a whole lot for it. Once I was in the water, it almost immediately became apparent that I would surely die. The race was a time trial start, which meant that 4 people were racing into the water every 5 seconds, and by the time I was swimming, the pool was so crowded with people that I couldn’t really swim my pace - I kept getting kicked and elbowed by people, and it was general chaos. As I neared the final leg, one of the lane dividers broke and a ton of people were swimming at each other. Somehow I made to the end of the swim, and running to the first transition I was really exhausted. Laura is a much better swimmer than I am, and she was able to avoid all the craziness.

Once we were on our bikes, I was able to catch my breath and get some non-chlorinated water. It took all of the first lap (1/2 of the distance, about 6 miles) to settle down and ease into a regular heart rate and breathing pattern. We finished the bike together, dropped off our bikes, threw on our shoes, and headed out for the 5k run. After the first mile, our legs had shaken off the bike-ride-tightness and we found our pace. By the time we made it to the finish line, we felt great and could easily have run another 5k. Our finish time was 1h 34min, which bettered Laura’s earlier finish time from the last race. That was a goal we were hoping to achieve, so it was cool to accomplish that, too.

The highlight was finishing a triathlon with my wife - sure, it felt great to finish a triathlon, but training and compete with my wife right next to me was awesome. Laura is much more hardcore a triathlete than I am: she is planning on running in the Chicago Tri next year, which is way longer and harder: a completely different kind of triathlon. For me, I’m done doing triathlons for a while. I hate swimming. I can’t imagine having to swim a mile in the choppy open water of Lake Michigan. A frantic 1/4 mile in a pool was enough for me.

Today is also our 3-year anniversary. It’s hard to believe that I’ve been married for 3 years already. Time really flies. Looking back briefly on the last few years, I have no regrets. There have been challenges, but they’ve all been worth the investment - marriage is an incredibly rewarding thing when two people love each other enough to dig in for the long haul. I am grateful to Laura for being so supportive and loyal, and willing to work through life with me. And for helping me understand women a teeny tiny bit more than I did when I was single. Women are still crazy though, there’s no changing that …

Congrats on your 2nd triathlon, babe. Here’s to many more years of marriage - any chance I could get a raise in my allowance?

Willow Creek Leadership Summit 2008: Thoughts and Recap

So, it’s Wednesday and I feel removed enough from the Summit to gather some thoughts and put a bookend on everything. I’ve worked at Willow since April, and as I’ve said before, since my first day a lot of my time has been spent working on Summit-related stuff (writing projects, articles, the eNewsletter, website stuff, and more). It’s easily been the event that’s helped me get to know a ton of people here. I think the Leadership Summit is a great representation of what the Willow Creek Association is all about, and coming here without a full picture in my mind of exactly what Willow stood for, it was a great way for me to find out. Sure, there are a lot of more technical things that go into the Summit, which are all uber-important since they make the Summit happen. There is copy to be written, print media to be designed, and lots of meetings, with even more decisions to be made. This is reality everywhere. But as I sat in the auditorium on Friday at the end of the last session, I was reminded that all the work happens because there are people out there that are “pushing the envelope” in their lives, looking for ways to live and lead in ways that matter to God - ways that don’t build barriers between people but tear them down. Faith that moves mountains. Grace-filled, compassionate love for every human being. A sharp, courageous willingness to move. Solid biblical Truth. I think that lots of people who attended the Summit this year, whether in South Barrington or at a satellite site, would agree that the things we witnessed and heard God used to change and challenge us. The speaking faculty was potent.

Bill Hybels spoke in both the opening and closing sessions, and was - as I’m told - his usual self: engaging, a little edgy, and sold to the cause of leadership and the local church. I laughed at his musings, opened my mouth in surprise a few times, and zoned in a few times on God’s speaking in my own life. I thought Bill’s final session about Mother Teresa was awesome. And how could it not be? The woman was the most unlikely hero - someone who probably would turn over in her grave if she knew how much press she was getting these days. Probably the best example of a true disciple of Jesus this world has ever seen.

It was Gary Haugen, John Burke, Efrem Smith, and Catherine Rohr that really made the Summit for me though. In the past, the Summit has seen big names like Colin Powell and Bono. This year, the speakers were lesser-known, but no less deserving of recognition. Haugen’s session on justice was incredibly moving. He challenged us to lead in the things that matter to God. There is no question that many Christian leaders spend their lives pursuing things of little to no consequence. There is too much at stake for us to waste time leading like Pharisees when all hell is breaking loose around us.

John Burke and Efrem Smith spoke about leading in an emerging culture. This, of course, has been something that I’m passionate about. All you have to do is go back over all the old posts to get the picture that the things that are important to me right now are all about how people need to know the real Jesus, not the trumped-up, religious effigy so many think he is because of how Christians behave. The idea that we need to “get dirty” with culture really resonates with me. Not that the culture is dirty and I am clean. No, it ain’t like that at all. Look: the church is meant to be a community in which “sexually active, drunk athiests” can experience the love of God. There’s no question about that part.

Efrem Smith spoke about the growing multi-ethnic, multi-racial, multi-cultural world that surrounds us. Having grown up in Chicago, I have benefitted from all the experiences I’ve had with people from all kinds of racial groups, ages, religions, etc. How easy it is to focus on the things that devide us! Efrem was a surprise for me - he was really energetic, empassioned, comical. I think God used him to really stir and challenge a lot of people at the Summit. I would love to check out his “hip-hop church” the next time I’m in Minneapolis. It sounds amazing.

Hard to encapsulate Catherine Rohr. She was the most intense woman I’ve seen in a long, long time. Her Prisoner Entrepreneurship Program, which is astounding in and of itself, reflects her fearless leadership in a way few could match. As a young woman working with convicted drug dealers, murderers, and other criminals, Catherine was blatantly sold to leadership and the importance of trusting God and leading with courage despite not knowing how things will turn out. Rohr was feisty in her banter with Hybels, which I loved. Jimmy Mellado’s interview with Rohr was unforgettable.

I know most of the people I’ve heard from, and on many of the blogs I’ve read, this year’s Summit is being called the “best ever,” which I think is way cool. It doesn’t take a bunch of big-names to do big things. Not that big-names are always bad … I just loved getting a chance to hear from such dedicated, gifted, relentless leaders that are sold out to their causes. It reminds me of my generation, and fills me with pride to be a part of it. Every time I read the Bible, and read about Jesus’ life, I can see him out and about doing things with the people around him. He didn’t spend a bunch of time arguing inside the synagogues and coming up with programs. He walked. He reached out to lepers, prostitutes, outcasts and unlovables. He embodied leadership. I want to live more like that.

Willow Creek Leadership Summit 2008: Day 2 Beginnings

I’m back in the little room next to the main stage here at Willow. Craig Groeschel is speaking right now, and I’m watching his talk on a TV screen (not as good as the real thing, but the content makes the venue less important). I don’t think most people have any kind of idea how much work goes into website programming and operation - there’s a lot to do here while the Summit goes on. I loved perusing all the blogs yesterday, realizing how many people there are out there that are engaging the Summit and talking about the things God is doing in their lives right now.

I really wanted to write more about John Burke and Efrem Smith, the two guys that spoke in the final session yesterday, but I haven’t had much time for creative contemplation yet due to the demands of my job. To be sure, I will be chewing on what they talked about in the very near future. They declared in no small way how important grace is in tearing down the walls (yea DC Talk) that divide us and prevent us from being the love of Christ to people in the world. This means embracing the emerging culture around us, and - wow, Groeschel just did a little dance - responding to the vibrant multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-racial world in which we live.

There was also a great response to Wendy Kopp, the president and founder of Teach for America, who interviewed with Bill Hybels yesterday. Talk about a woman who is leading fearlessly!

I’ve found that a lot of the blogs out there are simply outlining the sessions - lots of fragmented thoughts and regurgitations. I can’t wait until there are some meaty posts to read that grapple with the challenges and issues presented here at the Summit. I’m sure these will start surfacing as the day goes on.

Willow Creek Leadership Summit 2008: A Gasp for Air

I’m just coming back up for air after a whirlwind first day at The Leadership Summit here in South Barrington. We heard from Hybels, Haugen, George, Kopp, Burke, and Smith. Each one had a great challenge to leaders, and I’m going to try to get to them more in depth sometime soon. But for now, I’m going to head home and let it all soak.

Working at Willow gives me a unique perspective into all the things that go on behind the scenes to make the Summit possible. There are leaders here that are tirelessly giving of themselves, their time, and to some measure their sanity, to make sure no balls get dropped. I have a deep respect for these people, and it’s a joy to be a part of a team that is so fearlessly devoted to leaders and the cause of leadership for the sake of Jesus.

No person attending Summit is too good for change - becoming better leaders means stepping away from who we are in and of ourselves and towards who we can only be through the power of God. Nothing we can say will make a difference in the lives of the people we lead, or the people that we come into contact with who don’t know Jesus - all good things are given to us if we live in humble fearlessness. Regardless of cause, God has brought each and every person here for his own reasons. May we all open our eyes to what that means in our lives and in our leadership.

See you all tomorrow.