Most of us have attended a ministry or worship conference before. Some of us attend them regularly. But here are some important cautions we should consider before putting the next ministry or worship conference on our schedule.
8 Cautions About Attending Your Next Worship Conference
1. Envy
If envy is the first emotion you experience when encountering other ministry leaders…you should stop attending worship conferences.
2. Contempt
If contempt for the accomplishments of others causes you to publicly claim their success must only have been possible through stylistic superficiality or theological compromise…you should stop attending ministry conferences.
3. Imitation
If your post conference pattern is to imitate and implement everything you see without considering how or if it might fit in the culture or context of your own congregation…you should stop attending conferences.
4. Fruit
If congregants dread your return home after a conference since it always means you are going to immediately change something or start something new…you should stop attending worship conferences.
5. Criticism
If you are critical of your ministry volunteers when they can’t imitate what you observed and experienced at the conference…you should stop attending ministry conferences.6If you always return home disappointed in the place God has called you now and long for the place He will call you next…you should stop attending ministry conferences.
6. Calling
If you question your calling because it seems like everyone there was younger, more recognized, more gregarious, and well-spoken…you should stop attending conferences.
7. Comparison
If you are constantly looking to the left or right to see how you measure up instead of fixing your eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of your faith…you should stop attending ministry conferences.
8. Or the Benefit of a Ministry or Worship Conference
If, however, you can attend those conferences and filter the valuable insights through the context of your own uniquely positioned and distinctly designed congregation; if you implement what you observe out there only after determining how it might complement the gifts of those you already have in here; and if reevaluation instead of revolution and contentment instead of covetousness are your post-conference defaults; then by all means attend a worship conference as much as your budget and calendar will allow.
This article about the dangers of attending a worship conference originally appeared here, and is used by permission.
