A Letter from the Executive Director

I have a confession. I’ve done it again. I have let control almost prevent creativity.

Our upcoming “Many Rays, One Rising” conference includes plenary sessions seeking to foster practical sharing and engagement of attendees around topics of mission, diversity, communications, and strategies for the future. We have a range of experienced leaders to catalyze your thinking; to help you envision how you can incorporate the tools they offer into your programs.

I have begun having video calls with each panel to connect with them and plan. Leaving space during the sessions for you to share thoughts and questions has been a priority since day one, and that’s not too hard to do with good time management. It’s alright to control that. However, what they helped me let go of is the sense that a more traditional approach to structuring a panel is best. Their investment and creativity are going to make the panels much better.

I love learning these lessons over and over.

CVN staff are doing a terrific job of controlling all the components of conference planning that we must. We are also working to create ways for you to share control; to co-create with us and others. We seek to offer spaces and conversations that invite your energy and insights. We desire engagement that reduces our need to control. We trust that this community will go deeper in great ways if we understand our roles, boundaries, and goals.

Later this month, registered conference attendees (as well as all CVN membership) will receive information about how to prepare for the gathering. We hope you can think and pray about these prompts and come ready to engage. If we plan well, you’ll be able to impact the conference, conversations, and ideas for the future maybe more so than in past years. Because of the example of our panelists, I am more aware of what is required to ensure that that happens.

Balance is important. We need balance between world and psyche; spirit and soul; light and dark; right and left; upper and lower. We need balance between remaking the world and remaking ourselves (Bill Plotkin). We seek to balance structure and space in November. We pray for planning and execution that allows all of us to read between the lines of our lives and ministries. We pray for inspiration from others – and opportunities to experience ourselves.

Please pray for CVN to balance control and trust even better in coming weeks. We’ll pray that our efforts might be part of helping you find whatever balance you need.

With you in service,

Yonce Shelton
Executive Director