(Tribe Conference 2016)

Jeff Goins is a super dad.

How do I know? Who else would dress up like Robin, green tights and all, to make a point in front of more than 400 bloggers, writers, and creatives?

But dressing up like Robin was only the setup. The payoff came when his son, came out dressed as the dark knight himself- Batman. When Jeff asked his son “Who are you?” he replied in the deepest voice a young kid could “I’m Batman!”

After a brief interview on the couch, Aiden left and Jeff kicked off the 2016 Conference with 3 Rules for Being a Sidekick, aka The Rules for TribeConf 2016.

#1: Be Present

You need to show up. Not just in the sense of physically being there. How many times have you been some place but your mind was somewhere else?

I picture me while I’m on my smartphone at my daughter’s volleyball game. Or watching TV while my other daughter is showing my a gymnastic move. I’m there, but I’m not totally there.

This is not unlike Luke Skywalker. He longed for more than what he had. He wasn’t present to see what was around him. He might have noticed Obi-Wan keeping him safe (at least in the book about Ben)

We need to keep our minds on where we are. On what we are doing. There is a time and place to look to the future. Just make sure you aren’t missing out on the present.

#2: Be Helpful

We need to be attentive to what’s going around us. When we do, we will hear what people are saying they need help with, but when we truly listen, we’ll hear what they aren’t saying.
When we understand people’s true needs, we can be helpful. To be helpful, we need to be brave.

#3: Be Brave

Being brave doesn’t mean you aren’t scared. According to Merriam-Webster, being brave means “having or showing courage.” What is courage? They define it as “mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty.”

One of the bravest (whiniest) characters in Star Wars is C3P0. I know, I know, he’s “just” a droid. But he and R2D2 are the characters that we follow through out the original trilogy.

He exhibits bravery by going along with what needs to be done, not unafraid, but despite his fears.

We need to act. We can’t wait to be unafraid.

The world needs us to step up and help them. We need to be brave and see what their needs are.

The world’s number 1 is to know and obey Jesus. We should never back down from using words to share the Gospel. It only takes a few seconds to tell people.

The world also needs help with food, clothing, shelter, and a whole host of other things. But we should not neglect telling the Gospel, or introducing the Gospel to people.

What Are You To Do?

So what are you going to do? How can you be present, helpful, and brave?

Please share below an action step you are going to take, or steps that we could take.