Surprises!

Tim and Lisa attended the Global Leadership Summit this week. This is an annual event in North America, hosted by the Willow Creek Association in Chicago. Willow Creek believes that the best leaders are passionate about their own leadership development. Every year some of the world’s best leaders share their insights at the Summit.

We were disappointed not to attend the Summit in August in North America and then very surprised to see that there was a Summit here in Nairobi! This week’s program was the DVD of this summer’s speakers : Gary Haugen (founder of International Justice Mission), Brad Anderson (CEO of Best Buy), Catherine Rohr (CEO of Prison Entrepreneurship Program), TD Jakes (pastor of a church of 30,000 people).We were even more surprised to have Bill Hybels speaking IN PERSON. We have been reading Hybel’s books on leadership for years (Courageous Leadership, Holy Discontent, Axiom). It was an unexpected pleasure to meet him in the flesh! Many Kenyans wondered why we wanted our picture taken with him…..

Bill Hybel’s closing comments were to commend the courageous leaders here in Kenya. He remarked that it takes more skill to lead here among the corruption, poverty, disease. It was a very touching moment to have one of the world’s greatest leaders humbly express his gratitude for how community leaders in Kenya are changing their world.