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7 Ways to Guard Our Hearts at a Christian Conference

4. Value every brother and sister in Christ. Following on from the previous point, it is tempting to have your radar beeping for the famous or high-profile people that may be at the conference. But if you are trusting God to orchestrate your informal connections, then remember that He may be more excited about you loving an “insignificant” brother or sister than your need to shake hands with someone who is in demand. The “least of these” applies at the conference, and it applies when Big Name is standing right next to you too.

5. Care for the “profile people” as people. It is easy to elevate well-known speakers and authors as if they are super-Christians. They are brothers and sisters in Christ. If you have opportunity to interact, do so lovingly and with sensitivity to them as people. Express gratitude for their ministry, but get beyond that too. Show interest in them as people, not just as founts of knowledge about your pet subjects. If they have just spoken, recognize that they may be feeling discouraged or drained. I stood by as one “fan” missed every cue from a “profile person” who was obviously drained and heading for his room. After a while I was tempted to step in and rescue the speaker from the onslaught of questions and lack of sensitivity.

6. Don’t forget your family role too. If you are married but attending the conference alone, then be sure not to abdicate your responsibilities at home. My wife does an amazing job at home when I am away for a few days, but it is a thankless task. That is, unless I thank her. Phone calls, texts and notes all show that you appreciate them. Sometimes your spouse will just need to talk. Sometimes you may need to comfort or discipline a child over the phone. It may not feel as exciting as the opportunities in front of you, but it may be the most important ministry you do all week.

7. Be a builder, not a destroyer. If you put leaders together, inevitably you are creating opportunity for constructive evaluation of everything about the conference. What did you think of his third point? Do you like the music? What was going on with the stewards for the main meeting? Ministry leaders can’t help evaluating ministry when we are participating in an event, but we can help the tone of our evaluation. The insecure will criticize and tear down. The mature in Christ will be careful to build up others in every circumstance. There will be avenues for constructive criticism—use them to help things improve. But don’t use conversation to elevate yourself and tear down beloved brothers and sisters in Christ.

Attending a Christian conference is an incredible privilege. Next time you get that opportunity, why not prayerfully go through these points before you dive in to the crazy schedule?