Heather Zempel is the Pastor of Discipleship at National Community Church in Washington DC. She is one of the plenary speakers at our Group Life Conference this October, serves on our Group Life Advisory Team, and authors the excellent blog Wineskins for Discipleship.

How many Small Group pastors do you know who also served as environmental policy advisers on Capital Hill? How many discipleship experts open up a conversation by saying "I was thinking about the modulus of elasticity yesterday..." and then apply an engineering truth to the challenge of spiritual formation? You can read about it here.

From Dave Treat

Nearly 50 of the best ministry minds in Group Life represent the vision, goals and longings of over 12,000 churches in the Willow Creek Association. Along with your voice, these are the voices that will shape the future of the Group Life movement.

Most of these leaders were with us in Long Beach, although a few could not make it. If you want to see the best of what's happening in Group Life, visit their web sites and lean into what these leaders have learned. You can see the list any time by clicking here or clicking the link at the right labeled Advisory Team.

We are still reviewing our notes and collection of post-its from last week's Group Life Summit in Long Beach... the flu has taken it's toll and we are running behind. In the meantime, I thought I would point you to the awesome comments made by some of the participants in their own blogs.

Eric Metcalf, New Thing Network Adult Ministry Champion. In Big Ideas for Small Groups. Start with the first post here... more follow.

Heather Zempel, Discipleship Pastor for National Community Church, Washington, DC. In Wineskins for Discipleship. Start with the first post here... more follow.

Herschel Thompson, Pastor of Small Groups for the Journey Church. On the Journey Groupslog. First post here, more follow.

These are all I know about... if you were in Long Beach and are blogging about it, let me know.

Moody Radio's Midday Connection has been named 2008 NRB Radio Program of the Year. Midday Connection is a live 55-minute radio program designed to encourage women, with a focus on growing the whole person: body, mind and soul. Hosted by Anita Lustrea and Melinda Schmidt, the program brings listeners relevant content about marriage, parenting, the workplace, finances, and issues that affect their spiritual lives.

On Thursday, March 13th, Bill Donahue and Henry Cloud were the guests of host Anita Lustrea and discussed the dynamics of small groups and emotional intelligence. 

Just in case you weren't near the radio then, you can listen to the broadcast here.

What happens when 35 innovators are locked in a conference room with enough post-it notes, paper and colored markers? You get to see the innovation process at work! Today was the first day of our "Group Life Summit," a gathering of the sharpest knives in the drawer, the top dogs, the paradigm pioneers. Pick the metaphor, it doesn't get any better than this! Leaders from NorthPoint, Mosaic, Mariner's, National Community, Community Christian Church and others have joined our team in Long Beach, California for three days of intensive brainstorming.

In addition to the sheer honor of being in the same room with the best Group Life minds in the country, Bill Donahue, Greg Bowman and I have the privilege of picking those brains and mining the information for new ways to equip and support small group leaders. The photo is from one of the exercises created by Sharon Swing, former VP with the Willow Creek Association and now an independent consultant. As you can see... the ideas were flowing, and we'll pick up where we left off in the morning.

Keep us in your prayers... the ideas flowing out of this gathering may ultimately support your small group ministry!