Today I am in Tampa for the last gathering of the coaching network I have been a part of.  I have mentioned this from up front from time to time and even referenced it in yesterday's post.  

Some of you might be wondering what a coaching network is.  In November of last year I was at a conference for pastors here in AZ lead by a guy I respect and have learned a lot from through various resources and books.  His name is Nelson Searcy and he leads a church in New York City called, are you ready for this, The Journey.  I know I know... but I promise I did not find out about the guy until 95 and by then our Journey was already over a year old!  

Anywho... at the conference here in AZ Nelson put in a plug for his coaching network and I put in to be a part of it.  It was a long shot, but I thought the worst that could happen is he could say no (thanks dad for that advice).  The reason it was a long shot is because for this network close to 100 people applied for it from around the country and they only accepted 18.  Imagine how shocked I was when I received a call saying a spot was available to me!  

So once a month for 8 months I have been flying to Tampa and meeting with 18 other pastors from across the country.  We have talked about church leadership, evangelism, trends in ministry, and have read tons of books.   I lost track around 20, but let's just say I have not read so much since college!

A special thanks at this point to the elders of Journey for supporting me in this development.  By far this has been the most enriching and motivating time for me as a leader in my 15 years of ministry!  I have grown personally and "professionally" (if I can use that word) in so many ways I can't believe it.

All of this makes me want to ask you... are you growing and developing in your personal and professional life?  If not, take advantage of the turn of this calendar year and get a plan together to grow.  You might not have a formal network to join, but you can find a few others to help you as you help them.

On the journey with you,

Joe Darago

Lead Pastor