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Monday, October 24, 2005
My Encounter With Steve Sjogren
So this past weekend (Friday Evening through Saturday) we had a Tennessee Area Vineyard Men’s Conference which featured Steve Sjogren as the key speaker. Steve is a church planter, many times over and is the founding pastor of Vineyard Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio which I am told is the largest Vineyard church in the US, with about 6,000 people in average attendance. He is also the author of a mess of books, a motivational speaker and all around cool guy. Yes, I just called a man pushing 50 an all around cool guy… He wore a black t-shirt, loose fit jeans and a hair style that was younger than himself without looking out of place, although the loafers with no socks gave it all away!
But what is a look with nothing to back it up? Well, it’s vain of course! Duh!
Steve Sjogren definitely has the goods. Even if you are not impressed with his credentials, his experience or his black t-shirts, reading his thoughts or better yet, hearing them expressed to you is nothing short of refreshing. Personally, there were so many un-orthodox and out of the main-stream things that he talked about, I wondered if he had been reading my thoughts! Obviously, the difference is that while I was right at home with his concepts and had owned them as my own even before hearing the name Steve Sjogren, he has years of experience with these things, while my side is still largely theory…
So, you can imagine how excited I was to learn that there was going to be a “private session” with Steve for the Pastors, Staff Members and Church Planters on the weekend! I double checked with Jon Sterns, who Pastors The Franklin Vineyard and is the Area Pastoral Care Leader (APCL) in charge of the Vineyards in TN and had put the conference together. He confirmed that I was invited – Woot!
It was a round-table type of meeting where Steve did Q&A with us. The topics were all over the place, but he handled them with ease and Jon did a great job of keeping things on track as far as time was concearned. Towards the end, I had a desire to ask Steve about what techniques he employed to motivate his people in general, but more specifically his “pew sitters” to get off their butts and do something (in Jesus name)! I stuck up my hand to ask the question, but Jon indicated that we were nearing the end of our time together and that he would like for Steve to share any advice or details about any mistakes we should try to avoid.
OK – I rarely filter myself and while I wrote out a detailed account, I have since deleted it as it pertains to something that Steve shared in confidence… and I want to respect that.
Let me just say that what Steve shared was simply a piece of his own personality that had been used against him by the enemy and that he had planned to let go of his natural tendencies in that area. No sin, no mind altering situation…
After a group photo, the people dispersed as our next session was to be starting shortly. I waited patiently in the corner for Steve as one man was speaking and praying with him… I felt way out of my place, but strangely at peace with what I was about to say.
Steve turned and I introduced myself as we started walking toward the cafeteria door and I told him how much I had appreciated all that he had shared in the previous sessions. I also told him that I was somewhat familiar with his work, as Patti would often read books and we would then discuss them. In fact we had just gone through one of his in May. I then told him that I was taking a risk in saying this and that I felt way out of my league, but that I agreed with 99% of what he had to say… And while I may be about to put my foot deeply in my mouth, I also know that God has spoken through a donkey in scripture and I am definitely an ass! But the whole thing he shared as something to avoid was a bunch of crap in my opinion. I shared ever so briefly about how my own experience was actually quite similar and brought it back to Steve by noting that while he was in the throws of talking about getting away from this part of his personality, he was actually “doing it again” as he shared. I encouraged him to be fully Steve, as God had created him. Regardless of if he has experienced pain!
Some people thought Evel Knievel was a fool to get back on his motorcycle and jump some ridiculous number of flaming obstacles after a near death crash on his previous attempt, but that was how he was made! That was his personality, his nature… If he wasn’t flying over something on a motorcycle, he was denying something special that he himself was.
Steve, in my opinion, needed to get back in the leathers, don that cape and hit the throttle again! Would he be successful? Would he crash and burn? Does it matter on this side of the ramp? You’ll never know unless you jump!
Anyway, he seemed to receive the words of some well meaning punk kid…
As we left the cafeteria he asked my deal and I started to tell him that I was going to be planting a church… not much detail at all. There just wasn’t time, which sucked, because this is a guy who’s brain I could sit and pick all day.
As we got near the conference room, Steve’s attention was taken by another and then another and well, it goes with the territory for someone like him I suppose… So I went to use the restroom.
As I was washing my hands, I noticed Steve. As I dried my hands, he was at the sink washing his. Not one for bathroom conversation, but feeling compelled to say something, I simply said, “…And Steve. Thanks”. I was thanking him for not slapping me, but I don’t know if he knew that. He looked me in the eye and said, “Could I give you my personal email address? I’d love to talk with you some more”.
I told him I was a little to busy for that but he could look me up when my new book hit #1 on the NY Times Best-Seller’s List… NOT!
I shot him a note this evening after work. I know he counsels with several church planters and I am hopeful that this is what he had in mind, but, we’ll see!
Lesson learned and re-learned. Be who you are… even if it hurts.
Later-
Ray
But what is a look with nothing to back it up? Well, it’s vain of course! Duh!
Steve Sjogren definitely has the goods. Even if you are not impressed with his credentials, his experience or his black t-shirts, reading his thoughts or better yet, hearing them expressed to you is nothing short of refreshing. Personally, there were so many un-orthodox and out of the main-stream things that he talked about, I wondered if he had been reading my thoughts! Obviously, the difference is that while I was right at home with his concepts and had owned them as my own even before hearing the name Steve Sjogren, he has years of experience with these things, while my side is still largely theory…
So, you can imagine how excited I was to learn that there was going to be a “private session” with Steve for the Pastors, Staff Members and Church Planters on the weekend! I double checked with Jon Sterns, who Pastors The Franklin Vineyard and is the Area Pastoral Care Leader (APCL) in charge of the Vineyards in TN and had put the conference together. He confirmed that I was invited – Woot!
It was a round-table type of meeting where Steve did Q&A with us. The topics were all over the place, but he handled them with ease and Jon did a great job of keeping things on track as far as time was concearned. Towards the end, I had a desire to ask Steve about what techniques he employed to motivate his people in general, but more specifically his “pew sitters” to get off their butts and do something (in Jesus name)! I stuck up my hand to ask the question, but Jon indicated that we were nearing the end of our time together and that he would like for Steve to share any advice or details about any mistakes we should try to avoid.
OK – I rarely filter myself and while I wrote out a detailed account, I have since deleted it as it pertains to something that Steve shared in confidence… and I want to respect that.
Let me just say that what Steve shared was simply a piece of his own personality that had been used against him by the enemy and that he had planned to let go of his natural tendencies in that area. No sin, no mind altering situation…
After a group photo, the people dispersed as our next session was to be starting shortly. I waited patiently in the corner for Steve as one man was speaking and praying with him… I felt way out of my place, but strangely at peace with what I was about to say.
Steve turned and I introduced myself as we started walking toward the cafeteria door and I told him how much I had appreciated all that he had shared in the previous sessions. I also told him that I was somewhat familiar with his work, as Patti would often read books and we would then discuss them. In fact we had just gone through one of his in May. I then told him that I was taking a risk in saying this and that I felt way out of my league, but that I agreed with 99% of what he had to say… And while I may be about to put my foot deeply in my mouth, I also know that God has spoken through a donkey in scripture and I am definitely an ass! But the whole thing he shared as something to avoid was a bunch of crap in my opinion. I shared ever so briefly about how my own experience was actually quite similar and brought it back to Steve by noting that while he was in the throws of talking about getting away from this part of his personality, he was actually “doing it again” as he shared. I encouraged him to be fully Steve, as God had created him. Regardless of if he has experienced pain!
Some people thought Evel Knievel was a fool to get back on his motorcycle and jump some ridiculous number of flaming obstacles after a near death crash on his previous attempt, but that was how he was made! That was his personality, his nature… If he wasn’t flying over something on a motorcycle, he was denying something special that he himself was.
Steve, in my opinion, needed to get back in the leathers, don that cape and hit the throttle again! Would he be successful? Would he crash and burn? Does it matter on this side of the ramp? You’ll never know unless you jump!
Anyway, he seemed to receive the words of some well meaning punk kid…
As we left the cafeteria he asked my deal and I started to tell him that I was going to be planting a church… not much detail at all. There just wasn’t time, which sucked, because this is a guy who’s brain I could sit and pick all day.
As we got near the conference room, Steve’s attention was taken by another and then another and well, it goes with the territory for someone like him I suppose… So I went to use the restroom.
As I was washing my hands, I noticed Steve. As I dried my hands, he was at the sink washing his. Not one for bathroom conversation, but feeling compelled to say something, I simply said, “…And Steve. Thanks”. I was thanking him for not slapping me, but I don’t know if he knew that. He looked me in the eye and said, “Could I give you my personal email address? I’d love to talk with you some more”.
I told him I was a little to busy for that but he could look me up when my new book hit #1 on the NY Times Best-Seller’s List… NOT!
I shot him a note this evening after work. I know he counsels with several church planters and I am hopeful that this is what he had in mind, but, we’ll see!
Lesson learned and re-learned. Be who you are… even if it hurts.
Later-
Ray
