CFW 4th annual conference in November: "Making All Things New: Imagination and Innovation Required"
After the conference was over and the huge relief of having finished an event we’ve been planning for a year, we felt the need to hear from our attendees how they might have experienced God in distinct ways that weekend.
The accounts of encouragement, conviction, and inspiration that have poured out of that weekend exceeded my expectations. Kept private, this impact can be easily lost in the melee of our individual lives. Collectively, we can see God’s Spirit at work. And that is worthy of praise. So, I wanted to share a few of these responses.
One conference participant wrote us that his experience “was honestly life-changing. As an artist, I have been searching for a proper, godly community who can encourage, push, and support fellow artists. I found that place at Redeemer. David Brooks’ words [that] work is our common humanity and worship unto God... gave me a deeper sense of purpose and quite honestly, courage to step out and begin to work in the talents that I have been empowered with.”
Another said, “I certainly felt the moving of God’s Spirit throughout the conference... specifically the presentation of poems by Christian Wiman, and, of course, the oneness of voice among attendees singing the hymns at the end together. It was really beautiful to participate in as well as to behold.” And others remarked of Brooks and Wiman that “it felt holy listening to them in that room.”
Of Friday events, an out of town guest commented, “I was not expecting such diverse and creative presentations. At first, I was a bit lost in all the new experiences, trying to make sense out of it. But, God has opened my eyes to see what you were trying to do: entrepreneurship (creating business) is an incredible expression of God-given creativity.”
A participant that is rebranding his family plumbing business said of the expo that he hopes “to incorporate the Adventure Project’s water well program into our model. I am watching for Godly invitations as we move forward in our work. God bless you.”
A married couple is already implementing imaginative change after hearing Tim Keller and Margaret Newman, whose conversation left them “asking ourselves what areas in our own life lack imagination. We took the question beyond work and applied it to the way we parent, how we order our home and even how we plan our menu.”
And still more were deeply moved by Richard Middleton’s talk, calling it “extraordinary. He made me feel all space is sacred, that imagination is crucial (as in the Cross). Everyone I spoke to liked him enormously, felt moved. Wanting more. Desiring imagination. Wanting to review his words and the Word. The weight of his love of the Lord just kept pressing on my heart.”
These are just a few of the hundreds of testimonies of impact from the conference. I hope these words serve as a reminder to you as they have been for us of the new things that God is doing in our midst and city. It is easy to have our faith slip into the background of our day-to-day work, but stories like this are a vivid reminder of this calling we have received to allow the gospel to penetrate more deeply into every facet of our lives.
In the next few months, you can expect to see full videos of the conference talks, available on our website, to hopefully fan the flames of imagination and innovation that might have ignited that weekend
Thank you for subscribing to the Redeemer Report. If you would like to support the work of Redeemer in NYC, please use the button below to make a gift.
Articles in this Issue
|
The city, the church, and the futureTim Keller |
|
|
January is Missions Month at Redeemer!Christina Stanton |
|
