Be honest… Do you judge a book by its cover? I do. I’ll admit it. I judge things every day based on what I see. If you are honest, you will agree that you do, too. I judge books, movies, posters, flyers, and people. Every day. In one glance. Our eyes bring images into our minds, and our minds associate the images with something. Here’s what I mean about images/opinions coming to mind… What does a homeless person look like? (take time to picture him in your mind. There. Hey! You’re so judgmental!) What clothes do the people from the
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What do toilet plungers, bacon soda, hissing lizards, and frozen mayonnaise have in common? Preaching Rally games, of course! Having silly games is crucial to the Preaching Rally. Without the chance to loosen up, have fun and laugh together, attendees would not return to the Preaching Rally. Lest we think games are somehow non-spiritual, or playing games at a preaching event is diminishing the importance, consider the following thoughts on why we include games at our Preaching Rally: They are simple. We do not do over-the-top crazy games. Instead, we keep them simple. No game lasts more than 20 minutes,
Read more →One of the terms I unashamedly ripped off of Stillwater’s Men’s Advance is the team leaders–or chiefs. The Preaching Rally is divided into several different areas, listed below. A chief is designated over each area and is given the responsibility and authority to do as much as possible to make his or her area run smoothly. Registration Oversee “PR_Master” spreadsheet of all potential churches attending Track number of registered attendees Call through list for potential attendees Collect funds and updated information from churches that attend Report pre-PR and post-PR numbers to RR Hospitality Greet each guest Distribute booklets,
Read more →Reverse Engineering When smart people reverse engineer something, they take the finished product apart to see how it was made. Countries do it with captured ships, competing companies do it with hot-selling products, and we do it with our Preaching Rally. You might have read the advice, “Begin with the end in mind.” Start with what you want, and reverse engineer the process. Or, figure out what it took to build what you wanted. For us, we had a one-day youth conference in mind. We had a particular goal of how it should look and feel. Starting out, I had
Read more →I Love Board Games I love board games. Thick, meaty board games. You know what I mean? The best board games have a back-story to what you are trying to accomplish. Each mission is different and memorable because of the storyline behind it. I play every Tuesday. Here we are–grown, bearded men with kids of our own–laughing and carrying on like pirates (if it is a pirate game) or astronauts (if it’s a space game) or alchemists (if it’s that game). We immerse ourselves in the story. Themed games are the most memorable games. The best themes–game OR conference themes–permeate
Read more →I have a few babies. As of this writing, I have Abe, Charlotte, Gwen, and the Preaching Rally. Yep, the Preaching Rally is my baby. That is, it takes up time, it involves some baby food and fruit roll-ups, it spits up on me a little, it keeps me up at night, and it’s a LOT of work. Yet, it is so rewarding. And fun. The Preaching Rally has been my baby since 2011. Interning at Bible Baptist Church in Stillwater, OK, I was exposed to the planning and executing of the Men’s Advance, an annual men’s conference for almost
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