Andrew Lim is taking on the ambitious task of putting together a men’s conference for all those blokes with nothing to do when Sydney women head off to EQUIP. He has John Chapman on board, but can he organise everything else without going bust? Find out as he blogs his experiences over the coming weeks…
1. Get inspired
I can tell you the exact date " 27 March 2006. It hit me, after years of percolating in the back of my head. Why not put on a Christian men's conference at the same time as another well-known women's conference (in 2 months' time)? There must be loads of guys whose wives/girlfriends/significant others/prospective girlfriends/church women are at this conference, so why not organise something for the blokes? Otherwise, left to our own devices, us blokes will squander the time playing cards/golf/Xbox while our women folk are getting equipped for Christian ministry.
2. Get ideas
What to call it though? How about "TRAIN"? That sounds manly, and it reminds me of 1 Timothy 4:7 "train yourself to be godly". And what about the aim? How about to inspire and encourage men's ministries in local churches and other contexts? That sounds professional. OK, what's next? Oh yeah, location! How about right here where I work? Cathedral sits 600-700. Chapter House for overflow if we need it. Great.
3. Get counsel
(Um" not legal counsel" just" advice" ). My grateful acknowledgements to the following people: Danny A, Phillip J, Jim R, and Michael L. What privilege to have access to such a "mastermind"!
4. Get programmed
What about the program? Well, you've got to have some sort of speaker. So I call the grand-daddy of them all, on advice, but I'm not hopeful " Chappo. He says, "Brother, do you know people usually book me 1-2 years in advance, and you want me to speak at your do in 6 weeks?!" "Yes", I say. "Well"
, I'm free." The program falls into place pretty quickly after that.
5. Get graphic
I lock in Easter Monday (?) with my resident graphics genius and we power away on the theme, the look, the design, and the wording for 5 hours broken by a well-deserved KFC feed. Done! And it looks brilliant!!
6. Get to market
Ever heard that theory called 6 Degrees of Separation? Let's test how many tentacles this network has, as I think through every conceivable connection that I have that could get the word out. How else can I let people know about a brilliant NEW evangelical men’s conference called TRAIN set to explode onto the scene on Saturday 27 May 2006, 9:45am-12:30pm at St Andrew's Cathedral, corner George and Bathurst Streets, Sydney, cost $10 at the door? Hang on! Just thought of another one"
Andrew is Sydneyanglicans.net's resident digital scholar and the pastor of the new Asian Bible Church (ABC), a congregation of St Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney.
