I just returned to Minneapolis from a week in Charlotte, NC, USA. I attended the combined Christian Coaches Network conference (last Monday and Tuesday) and the Association of Marriage and Family Ministries conference (Wednesday-Friday). What a blessing to spend time with other Christian coaches, with a rich blend of experience, professional coach training and callings. A great opportunity for brand new Christian coaches to learn from experienced pioneers in the field of Christian coaching – and for all of us to share with each other in the ways God is using coaches who are Christians to further his purposes and glory.
This was the third CCN conference I’ve attended. The first was held in Virginia Beach, VA, USA, in 2003. The second was in Seattle, WA, USA, in 2004. It is surely fun to meet friends in person after getting to know each other over the phone. (It’s also a bit odd for me because I find I create a sense of physical presence when I’ve shared phone calls with people – then when we are actually physically present with one another my original sense is far enough off that I have to adjust. Job “hazard” I guess – and a small one at that.)
The biggest blessing I experience when getting together with CCN coaches is noticing how God is working in a variety of ways – using different coach training programs (including secular ones) and different backgrounds/styles/experiences to ignite different callings (from ministry to business) in Christian coaches all for his purposes. I love the diversity and this reflection and presence of the body of Christ in our profession.
Those of us who extended our time in Charlotte to spend time with the larger AMFM group enjoyed giving to and receiving from them. I’ll write more about this in my next post. Look for several upcoming posts with more about this time for Christian coaches in Charlotte.
As always, let me know how I can serve you, either here at the blog or via e-mail at linda@lifestoriescoaching.com