THE LOST ART OF RELATIONSHIP
join him on a trip to Burney, California with a pastor from Cuba who oversees the Assemblies of God there. This trip was to attend a men’s conference where I found out that I would be speaking for thirty minutes the next day to a group of about one hundred men. Talk about always being prepared!
This relationship that began with Dr. Sam has continued and grown stronger each time we meet. He invited me to be part of the District Men’s Ministries Board, which assists in decisions for the annual men’s conference where about 1,500 to 2,000 men attend each March. This opened up and continues to open up more opportunities to expand my community with other pastors and leaders in ministry.
A month before that conference invitation, I was walking in my neigh- borhood to get fresh air and to think. I really wanted to get connected into the business community and marketplace in the greater Roseville area but didn’t know how I was going to break through the barrier of not knowing anyone at all. During the walk, it hit me, “Why not email the mayor of Roseville?” “Who was the mayor?” “I wonder if she would respond to my email?”
My next thought was, “It never hurts to ask!” That’s what I did that night. I sat down, wrote an email introducing myself and my wife, letting her know that we were new to Roseville, and we wanted to build community in the marketplace. I hovered over the send button for about five minutes while re-reading the email for content and spelling. Then I did what seems natural but can be very difficult when taking a chance; I hit send.
The next day, while checking my emails, I saw a response from the mayor of Roseville. She had taken the time to write me back. It wasn’t a form email. It was thought out and included an invitation to coffee for my wife and me at a local coffee house named Bloom Coffee & Tea.
We met her on July 31, 2014. She spent an hour with us and didn’t rush off even though she had an appointment. Mayor Susan Rohan understood the importance of relationship. When I mentioned my desire to get involved in the marketplace and get connected, she recommended two things. One, she suggested getting involved in the Roseville Chamber of Commerce (of which I was already on that path).
Second, she recommended I attend a Rotary Club lunch where around one hundred business leaders from the greater Roseville area gather for a lunch event every Thursday from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. To my surprise, she connected me through text message to one of the former mayors of Roseville, Jim Gray.
On to the next connection to expand my community!
My father-in-law was involved in Rotary in the central coast of California