02.18.07 Keeping It Creel

I want an institute.  It just sounds more legit.  Todd works for the Creel Institute, “a teaching and training division of the Strategy Group LLC, a full-service strategic marketing firm established in 1990 and based in Wichita, Kansas.” It helps churches and para-ministries become more strategic, directed and ultimately more effective.  That’s what their site says.  What it doesn’t say is that they also promote concerts...well, mine anyway.

Several years ago, when I was on tour with Bebo Norman, I played a college in Arkansas.  I played four songs like I did every night on that tour.  Sitting somewhere in the crowd was a student named Todd who had never heard of me before.  But after the show we met.  He bought a CD.  And now, six years later, he works for the Creel Institute and brought me in to play at their Immerse Conference: “A day of awareness, understanding, encouragement and equipping: for parents of teens, youth workers, mentors and teachers.”

Immerse was a brilliantly concise, no-time-wasted, briefing on Generation Y, their unique needs and wants, and how to practically raise and teach and befriend them.  The day started with a guy (I’ll get his name and post it here so you can look him up) who researches Generation Y for corporations like Pepsi and Victoria’s Secret.  He’s not just a guy - he’s considered the foremost expert by the Creel Institute on this generation.  Needless to say, worth listening to.

Then a psychologist spoke about the psychological makeup of the generation - where they get their value, specifically.  Like baby Boomers, they’re very performance oriented it turns out, easily confusing their deeds with their worth.  Also interesting, what little I got to hear.

Lastly, a founder of the Creel Institute, Laurie Carney, spoke about the practical ways to incorporate all this knowledge into our work with teens today.

My role was simple: I played for half an hour and spoke briefly to encourage and thank this group of parents and mentors for loving their kids enough to learn about them.

Sometimes, youth leader conferences (OK, often times) feel like they’re designed for youth, not adults working with youth.  Beach balls bounce through the room as I try to lead people in singing to God.  Moving lights, goofy comedians, gimmicky lectures, loud music, are staples of these events.  So the price is high and the vibe is king but I walk away wondering how useful, how truly insightful and ministry-changing these conferences are in the end.  Well, Immerse had a cool name but that’s where the youthiness ended.  Instead of paying for entertainment and a vacation from a church office in sunny SoCal, attendees paid for expertise, for encouragement, for real tools for understanding how this generation processes the world around it and how it best understands love...in Kansas.  Worth every penny I think.

Then, after the noon music time, I took a much needed nap, making up for the four hours sleep I got the night before.  Then Todd hosted me again for a full concert at the Murdock Theatre, a beautiful place built in the 1930s.  It was our smallest crowd on this tour so far, but what we lacked in numbers we made for in after and before show conversation.  I got to pelt Todd with questions I’ve saved up about Generation Y and just get to know him as a non-Institute guy too.  I was shocked to find out that such a wise and well-spoken guy was only 24 (!).  What??

If you ever have a chance to attend anything run by the Creel Institute I wouldn’t hesitate.  There’ll be no fog machines, I’m betting, but there will be great people and a load of inspiration and insight.

Check out their blog Keeping It Creel and Todd’s too.

SOME PICS:

Murdock Theatre:

We’re staying at a hotel where the Sierra Club AND the National Guard are having get togethers.  That’s a lot of testosterone.  After the show last night, Brody and I infiltrated the Sierra Club meeting, tried to look like we were interested in all the dead stuff and firearms and camouflaged dune buggies and even then stopped by the bar for some wild turkey.