Leonardo Da Vinci once said “I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing isn’t enough; we must apply. Being willing, not enough; we must do.”

The Young Leaders Summit had been a source of wisdom for me—a river wide of expertise have flowed but. I’ve been a young leader of the church for almost 10 years now, still I cannot deny the fact that I do not know everything about leadership.

When the news about the Summit was relayed to me, I knew I needed it and so I prayed for it and waited for approval of my leave from work. Thankfully, it was accepted, but only for two weekdays, so I had to attend late on our first night. I also missed the get-to-know-one-another party. Well, my dog died so I didn’t feel like talking to anyone at that time so I headed to our room and had a good night’s rest.

That morning and the days that followed, I realized that knowledge isn’t the only thing I needed—that information about what we do as leaders isn’t the only thing to consider. We also need to be reminded that we’re not alone; we’re not the only ones experiencing heartbreaks and failures in our ministries and that at the end of the day, God still loves us and that won’t change.

It hit me that, I, just like many the other leaders, I am human, which means that conflicts, misunderstandings and imperfections do happen. The journey of following Jesus isn’t a fairytale.

The journey of following Jesus isn’t a fairytale.

We talked about essential things during the Summit, things that would help us. There were several things that stuck to my mind: Godly use of social media—using it for ministry; how to raise fund as a ministry, managing our finance; and program planning.

I used to think that as a leader, I should be perfect, that I should not make mistakes; that I have to hide who I am to protect the image I want everyone to see. But this Summit was God’s way of reminding me to “Come as I am.”

Alex Ganaden, (2nd from right) at the Young Leaders Summit in November 2016

The Summit was a time of refreshed awakening for young leaders of the church. I find courage and inspiration in knowing I am not alone and that other leaders also experience the same struggles and successes as I do.

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Alexis Sol Ganaden from the West Middle Philippines Annual Conference attended the Young Leaders Summit held on November 2016 in Subic Bay, Zambales province, the Philippines.