Friday May 20, 2011
I wanted to share with you today, my reflections on the final leader we had for our Transformational Leadership Course. Her name is Jean Stairs, and she is the Principal of the Queen's School of Religion. Well, she will be until today. After 20 years of being with the college, 10 years as its principal, Jean is stepping down from this position. She came to our course, with herself being in transition, and was able to joke about her term coming to an end. She has been asked several times what she is doing after May 20th. Well, there is a group here in Kingston, I think in Ottawa as well, who have been predicting the end of the world will be on May 21st, so Jean has been saying that she's going out with a bang! The school itself has undergone a lot of transition lately, no longer being called Queen's Theological College, but now known as the Queen's School of Religion, taking on a name that reflects the fact that the college has taken on the Department of Religious studies for the university, and that the growing population is really undergraduates taking religious studies. There is also a process underway to re-connect the school with the main university. The university broke away in 1912, to pursue growth as a secular institution, but now if reuniting with the school that initially gave it its birth, 100 years after the split. Needless to say Jean knows all about transformational change, and has done a tremendous job bringing the Queen's School of Religion into a new and healthy future.
Jean would argue that a key element of transformational leadership is exercising welcome with hospitality. How we make people of different backgrounds with different ideologies, beliefs and cultures made to feel welcome in our context will bring about transformational change. To make people feel welcomed, given all their unique characteristics, you have to be willing to adapt how you do things to include elements of who they are. For instance, to truly welcome someone of an African culture into our church life, strongly dominated by White Anglo Saxon Protestant people, we would create opportunities to include some aspects of the African culture and way of life into our worship life. Authentic hospitality and welcome means that people of various cultures and backgrounds would find in our congregation something that clearly felt like home to them, saying loudly, this is a place I belong.
Hospitality and welcome in this light is far more than saying we are glad you came today, and please join us for coffee afterwards. Hospitality and welcome become elements of adaptive change when we are willing to change who we are and what we do in our church life, work, and worship, to incorporate the faith practices of another who is not from our dominant culture. This is something to think about as we set out this fall towards developing a second service with Franco-Ontarians in mind. God, willing, this will come to be, but will we keep our distance from one another, or will we find ways to come together as sisters and brothers in Christ, in the spirit of welcome and hospitality?
That's it for today folks. Because of the long weekend, my next blog will not be until Tuesday.
Bye for now...Ed
Thursday May 19, 2011
It's warm and sunny, and beautiful in Kingston today. With the sun out, I really notice how lush and green everything is, and the beautiful tulips serve as a nice colourful contrast against the quickly, growing lawns. An absolutely gorgeous day. The construction workers putting up a new building across the street are relieved to have a day of work where they don't get rained on. You can see and feel a more upbeat tempo to their work.
Today, I want to talk to you about the leadership of Linda Privitera in our course. She is an Anglican Priest from St. Michael's and All Angels Parish in Ottawa, and she is also an artist, and uses art as a means of education in leadership. For instance, one thing she often does with faith groups is ask them to make a collage. Each person is to pick 3 to 5 pictures from various magazines that best reflect what their faith or beliefs are, and once they have their collage together, they explain what it means. Inevitably, the pictures people choose get them to talk about their faith in ways that they never have before, and open up unique doors to talk about what they really believe. Linda believes that many of us are visual learners in the church, and looking at the words in the bible does not invoke within us an ability to say what we believe, but a picture that captures our imagination, can open those floodgates and get people talking. Maybe we should have a "Faith Collage Session" sometime this fall, and see where art and the spirit leads us.
The other bit of leadership that Linda provided was a Case Study. She gave an example of a challenge in her parish, and got us thinking about whether it was a technical problem, that only needed an easy solution to fix it, or an adaptive problem that needed some in-depth discussion to flesh out a direction the parish should journey on, without an obvious conclusion. I don't have permission to share the details of the Case study, so I won't Suffice it to say, that the challenge did have a technical fix, but underneath it was an adaptive challenge that needed addressing. You know how in church life, we sometimes pick the little things to squabble over so we do not have the face the big things which may mean loss and change. Linda would argue that the little things are technical fixes, and the biig things adaptive challenges. A healthy parish or congregation finds the courage to ask the tough questions that lead the Body of Christ towards adaptive change. I believe we are on such a journey, and have not shied away from the challenge that is facing us. Instead, we have a direction that God is calling us to follow. We cannot be 100% certain of the outcome, but we know where we are going...together...on the way. That is what everyone on this course would call an adaptive challenge leading towards hope-filled and life-giving change. Well done, good and faithful servants.
That's it for today folks. Talk to you tomorrow.
Ed
Wednesday May 18, 2011
Hi folks. Checking in once again from the city of Kingston. A nice place to visit, but I'm getting a little tired of living here. Way back in April, it was so refreshing to get away, just to be in a new town, and to have all this time to read, and study and learn. But ever since the classroom course finished last week, I find myself wishing this Sabbatical will quickly come to an end. It feels like I'm putting in time, until I can get back to work. I'm getting homesick for my family and my church. It's time to come home.
Okay, enough self-reflection for one day. Another leader who was a part of our course last week was James Loney. You may recognize his name from the news a few years back. Jim, and three other men, were a part of an International Peace Keeping Group working in Iraq, when they were all kidnapped and held captive for 118 days. Unfortunately, not all of them were released. Their American brother in peace, Tom, was killed in captivity.
The leaders of the course invited Jim to talk about his experiences and to reflect on qualities of transformational leadership from them. James talked about the Exodus story. Do you remember how God hardened the Heart of Pharaoh each time Moses went to him and said :Let My People Go." Well, Jim turns the story on its head. He claims the stubborn refusal of Pharaoh to let go is his own doing, and that the biblical writers put God in the picture of Pharoah's actions, because they don't want to give Pharaoh the power of refusal.
Jim argues, that Pharaoh has that power, and he abuses it by not letting the Israelites go, despite all the damage he does to his kingdom, and to his people. Jim goes on to argue, that Pharaoh is held captive by his own refusal to let go. Every time, he says no, Pharaoh digs a deeper hole for himself and his nation. He is caught in events he cannot control, that have power over him, mocking his own power to refuse to let go.
Jim argues that the same holds true in our life experiences. We are damaged, and the consequences are deep, when we do not let go, when we attempt to control, and are not willing to release our power in order to change things that need to be transformed.
Then Jim told this story...Their captors kept saying that the plan all along was to let then go, as soon as they received the ransom money from their respective countries. Every time Jim and his fellow captors asked if there was any news, any information of when they might be released, the kidnappers would say that there wasn't, and that they were held captive as well, in handcuffs, having to wait for news from their respective countries.
Jim believes there is truth in this statement. When we refuse to let go, what are the consequences of our refusal? We become embroiled in a scenario we no longer control, and can only get out of it if we let go. Just as there was no freedom for the captives who longed to be released, there was no freedom for the kidnappers who were caught in this game of negotiating with governments who publically stated they did not negotiate with terrorist. Their action catches them in a cat and mouse game they do not control, and do not know how it will end. Will they get the money?. Will the nations and families refuse ransom? And if none comes, do they kill everyone, some of them...what do they do? Jim argued that the only thing that transforms their situation is if they let go, let go of their captives, let the people go, so they can be free to do as they please.
This from a man held captive for 118 days. I was blown away by his courageous message, and his endless hope that peace will come if we learn to let go...let go of our supposed power, let go of the things that keep us in a state of captivity, rather than in a state of freedom. It made me think of what I need to let go of to be free. Hopefully, it makes you think of what you need to let go of to be free as well.
By the way, James Loney's Book, "Captivity," an account of his 118 days in captivity, is available in hard cover in book stores. I bought one, and the author was gracious enough to sign it for me. It was a sacred privilege to spend time with this man.
That's it for today folks. Talk to you tomorrow.
Ed
Tuesday May 17, 2011
No rain today folks...Cloudy, a bit cooler than what constitutes normal for this time of year, but at least I didn't need an umbrella. Hope the same was true in Ottawa. Now all we have to do is wait for the earth to dry out. To bad you can't pick it up and ring it out like a dish cloth. Oh well, it will dry up. In the meantime, avoid the puddles, unless you really do like to jump in them.
I wish to continue my reflections on last week's course, in particular the people who offered leadership. Today, I'll introduce you to Patty Evans, a person very highly involved in the United Church of Canada, at the congregational level right up to the General Council. She is a passionate instructor of Transformational Leadership, and teaches with a conviction that unless we engage fully in this path, we cannot expect hope-filled change in our churches to occur.
Patty argues Transformational Leadership has specific characteristics that all leaders are called to utilize. First of all, all church leaders should build up informal authority, and de-emphasize their formal authority. What really counts in the eyes of people is not the authority one holds by position, but the authority one holds because of who one is. You can't get a congregation on a journey towards fulfilling a mission by saying "I'm the minister, and because I hold that title, we are going to move in this direction." One has to build up the credibility necessary to lead change. People will invest in new directions if they truly believe the leaders of the church can be trusted and have the best interest of the congregation in mind...Otherwise, forget about it.
Patty also argues that transformational leadership means everybody owns the mission, and needs to be involved in the changes that are called for. It's no good if only the leaders of the church are leading the charge. People need to believe that they are invested in the church's mission, and have roles to play within it. Once the leaders have helped define those roles, and given people their tasks and responsibilities to fulfill, they trust that those who have said yes, will do the work.
If there is resistance, or things go by and nothing seems to be happening, it is not the responsibility of church leaders to gripe and complain about inactivity. Patty argues that Transformational leaders ask why things aren't happening with everyone at the table getting an opportunity to respond. Transformational leaders assume that there are good reasons for setbacks that have not been heard, and once spoken, transformational leaders encourage comments and responses that are supportive and empowering so the work of the church's mission can continue. And when there are not good reasons, transformational leaders do not run in to rescue, but do what is necessary to encourage and support people in the fulfillment of their responsibilities, even turning up the heat to limits that are sustainable by the church, not for the sake of exercising one's power over another, but for the sake of the church's mission, and remaining focused on its fulfillment.
Patty argues that Transformational leaders protect the voices of resistance and uncertainty, keeping them at the table so their opinions are known to all, and not just to a few, allowing for learning’s and adjustments in the mission when that is called for.
Patty argues that Transformational leaders have to be willing to live with uncertainty, with not knowing for sure how things are going to turn out. What they need to be certain about is direction, remaining open to what the outcome will be, living comfortably with a disequilibrium that can be very frustrating to all people in the congregation. No successful change comes about easily, and Patty would go so far as to say, if it does, then we have engaged in a technical fix to a problem, and not in an adaptive challenge that leads to transformational change.
There are all kinds of thoughts that are going through my mind when I go over what Patty taught us, and it leads me to conclude that our mission to welcome all families of whatever form to our community of faith, and to say this is a place where they can belong in the blessed community of Christ, and build a space that reflects our desire to fulfill our mission with our community...that's not a technical fix...that's an dative challenge leading to transformational change. May God bless us and sustain us and challenge us through this faithful journey to be the church God calls us to be.
That's it for today folks. Talk to you tomorrow.
Ed
Monday May 16, 2011
Hello folks. I'm sorry that it's been a while since I posted a blog, but I was fully engaged in my week long intensive course, off campus, no where near my office, and no opportunity to Blog to you what I was experiencing. So this week, I thought I would tell you the highlights of my course work.
There were five leaders in this course, so for I thought I would tell you what each leader brought to our learning over the next five days. First, there was John Buttars. He's a retired United Church minister, who has been highly involved in the life of Queen's Theological College, and is also a trained Spiritual Director
John believes that Transformational Leadership begins with self-care. Self-care for John is being intentional about practices that address our spiritual, emotional and physical needs. One of the things that he challenged us to do was to intentionally discover and implement practices that met our needs in all three areas, and to commit ourselves to doing them for 100 days. John believes this is long enough to determine whether or not this will be a practice that will help us to know God's presence in our lives, and long enough to establish a discipline in the practice. For John, discipline is the key. One cannot be sure if the practice of self-care will really be beneficial, if one only tries it for a few days, and then brushes it off because there is no time. 100 days engaged in the practice before assessment on it is done.
I have never done a single practice of spiritual, emotional and physical care for 100 days in a row. I read my bible in as many days of the week as I can, but I know some days, I just don't get to it. I have a journal that I write to God at the end of the day, but I know there are days I miss. I think I will continue doing these things on a hit and miss basis, but John wanted us to commit ourselves to one activity, for 100 days in a row.
When my turn came around, I chose walking every day. I love to walk, and if I am intentional about emptying my mind of all those nagging thoughts racing around in there, and just notice God's nature, and God's people, maybe I will become more aware of God's presence as well. Or while, walking, if something has happened during the day that has given me great joy, or unfortunate sadness, then in the walk, I can just be with my God exactly the way I am feeling. For 100 days in a row. I'm not going to like it when it rains. Pray for me.
How about you? What one activity could you commit yourself to intentionally for 100 days; a practice that meets either a spiritual, emotional, or physical need for you. Maybe it's reading a good book, maybe it’s a hobby like cooking or an art like drawing. What could you say yes to for 100 days and see how God is with you in that practice during that time? It could be transformative people. Think about it.
Well that's it for today. Talk to you tomorrow.
Ed
Friday May 6, 2011
Well, my friends, It was another warm day in Kingston. Two sunny days in a row. Could it be that wet and cold is finally over! Praise God!
One of the things that I haven't told you about that I'm doing on Sabbatical is attempting to improve my french. It is a vision of the Worship Committee that we work with the Ministries In French Committee of Ottawa Presbytery towards establishing a second service at Queenswood, perhaps done totally in French, perhaps done bilingually. We want to see if there are Francophone protestants in our community whom we could serve through a worship service, welcoming them into our fold and extending hospitality by providing a service that emphasize the presence of their maternal language. So, every day I study my French Book..."Intermediate French For Dummies." This is a step up from "French for Dummies.' I'm no ordinary dummy, you know. It's a very good grammar book, and I'm learning a lot, but I could use the help of all you who can speak french when I get back. Talk to me in French, so I get the practice. The more French I speak, the more confident I will become. It is my lack of confidence, more so then it is my vocabulary, that holds me back, so please help me out by speaking French to me, and I will strive to be brave and respond in French to you.
Next week, is the week long intensive course at the Providential Spirituality Center. That means I won't be at my office, and perhaps unable to contribute to my blog every day. You may very well get all my entries at the end of the week. The course instructor asked us to reflect on some questions before we start as preparation. These are a little different than the earlier batch I sent you, because the questions are more personnel. I have made them available to you through an attachment. Feel free to read them. They will reveal a little bit more about who I am.
That's it for now, folks...Take care and God bless.
Ed
Thursday May 5, 2011
I can't believe I am saying this, but it was a beautiful, sunny day in Kingston, the kind of day that makes you forget about all the terrible weather we have been experiencing, the kind of day you hope lasts into the weekend and beyond. So I must confess folks, I choose to enjoy the day. I went out for long walks in the sunshine, and enjoyed every moment of it. (my apologies to everyone stuck inside today. You have my heartfelt sympathies) After lunch, I spent some time wandering around downtown Kingston looking for a flower shop, wanting to send a potted Mum plant to my mom, a family tradition for Mother's day for as long as I can remember affording to do so. I'm not sure I was looking very hard, because when I decided to go into the local coffee shop and ask if they knew where the nearest florist was, they pointed out one that I had walked by, on more than one occasion. Good thing I stopped to ask for directions, eh!
I did have the pleasure of reading the Doctoral Paper of my friend who is on Sabbatical with me, and tonight over a few "pops", we will talk about his thesis. Richard Chung describes himself as a 1.5 Korean Canadian who serves as a minister in the United Church of Canada. His thesis is about how our church and its leaders need to create an environment to allow all people of ethnic backgrounds to experiment with their theology, and link it to their contextual setting, their culture, their language and their identities. He says identities, because the contexts of Richard’s paper are second generation Korean Canadians, who have two identities, Korean and Canadian.
Richard believes strongly that the Christian Church would benefit greatly if Korean Christians and all Christians of various ethnic backgrounds had an opportunity to truly discover who they authentically are, given their backgrounds and multiple identities and what they believe. North American Christian society tends to encourage people from different backgrounds not to concentrate on their ethnicity, but focus on the faith, the one commonality that we all have in common. Richard sees this as a continuation of colonial society, where the dominate culture insist that you live out the Christian faith as we perceive it, and not worry about your culture, language or race, and how that may speak to your faith. Richard would argue that from a White North American perspective, we see faith as having only one language, lived out as we have traditionally done so for many years. Richard argues that faith has a multiplicity of languages and identities, and that we need to encourage all Christians of many different ethnic backgrounds to paint the many walls of faith with their own colour, and not with our traditional North American one, which is "white."
I must admit, I'm not sure if I truly understand Richard's argument. His vocabulary greatly exceeds mine, and I found it difficult to follow his entire argument. I am bringing my questions with me tonight at supper, and I have great faith that Richard will open new doors for me to explore in my own faith journey.
Well, that's it for today folks...Talk to you tomorrow.
Ed
Wednesday May 4, 2011
Hi folks, well we had a day without rain in Kingston, but it was still a day without sunshine. First thing first, right. Hopefully the sun will come out tomorrow.
I went out to dinner last night with the other minister on Sabbatical, a Richard Chung from Kelowna B.C. It's a lot sunnier there, he says, and he laments deeply the gray weather he has had to endure in this city. It makes him seriously homesick. We had a great night talking about church development. His congregation is involved in a 17 million dollar development project that includes the construction of a Condominium tower, and a new church for the congregation. Like us, they tried to look at the possibility of including affordable housing, but could not find a partner who would share the expense with them, so they are developing starter Condo's; property people can by that are below market price, exactly what Phoenix hopes to develop with the townhouse homes built on our property. There are a lot of similarities between the projects, including the frustration of how long it all takes, but from what Richard says, they are closer to the end than we are. Richard feels he will be able to teach me a great deal about our development, and how to lead our congregation in this new and exciting change. The opportunity for him to do so occurs next week, during the week long intensive course where we are to present our adaptive challenge, and learn from the presenters and one another. Richard seems to know a great deal in this area, and has a lot of experience, so I look forward to his wisdom and teaching.
I finished reading the book, "The Practice of Adaptive Leadership," by Ronald Heiftez. It was long, but good, and it ended with the encouragement to experiment in your organization and church. Try new things, and don't focus so much or whether or not it is the answer to all our problems. An experimental mind-set in the decision-making process suggest that a organization and church is willing to search many options towards the fulfillment of their mission, and are not afraid to learn from the failures as well as the successes. If we get caught up in always needing the right answers, than what happens when we discover there are none?
Heiftez also reminded our readers that if you are asking people to make sacrifices for the sake of the mission you believe in, then make sure you show them that you are willing to make sacrifices too. I took some time to reflect on that point, because I think it’s an excellent one. I believe that it's important for all leaders to show the people they have the privilege to serve that they are willing to make the same sacrifices that people are being asked to make. I believe I can grow in this area of leadership, and plan to do so when I return from Sabbatical. I want us to be a community of faith where everyone is willing to sacrifice for the mission that God calls us to fulfill, including myself. I hope and pray that is exactly who I present myself to be when I return.
That's it for now, folks. Talk to you tomorrow.
Ed
Tuesday May 3, 2011
Well, my friends. It's the day after the election, and we have two major results; a Conservative majority, and the NDP as the official opposition. Depending on our political preferrences, some of this is good news, and some not so good, but one thing is sure, last nights results were not boring. I guess if you have enough elections in a seven year span, eventually people vote for a change. The next four years should be very interesting.
I'm getting near the end on my book, "The Practice of Adaptive Leadership" by Ronald Heiftez. I should be done it tomorrow. Today, Heifetz encouraged all adaptive leaders to strive to stay connected to our purposes, to encourage our organizations and churches courageously in the work they are committed too, and to be prepared to inspire people at every opportunity.
Heifetz claims that one of the hardest things to do when leading adaptive change is to stay focus on the mission. There are so many distractions in our life together, that it becomes easy to forget what God wants us to do while meeting all the daily expectations of others. Heifetz says we need to be honest and communicate clearly what expectations we believe we can meet to provide for people's needs, and what expectations we cannot, in order to have the energy, time, and focus to meet the mission God calls us to fulfill. Not everyone will be happy about some of their expectations being put aside, but if we are committed to the mission, this needs to happen, and we need to honestly talk to people about their losses as we move forward with God's hopes and dreams for us.
Heiftez argues that leading an adaptive change requires a great deal of courage by everyone involved in it. There will be times when people in the church believe that you are doing the wrong thing. There will be occasions when we wonder if we have the skills and competencies to lead the change. There will be occasions when even the leaders of the church worry about whether we have taken the right path. There is always fear of what might be lost as we risk following God's mission, and there is always concern about whether we have the stomach to make tough decisions and risk failure.
Heifetz says, because all of the above is true, we need to engage the mission courageously. Make sure that there is no gaps between our words and our actions, that we are actually doing what we are promising. Make sure that we stay focused on the present, and what we need to accomplish at God's beckoning now, and not allow the disappointments of the past to undermine our hope. Make sure we keep our relationships with one another open, listening to everybody's feedback, and not be afraid to make corrections on the way, if that is what is called for. Most importantly of all, we need to remind ourselves that we believe our purpose, our mission to be true, and hold it up to enable us to keep focus and remain courageous.
The people who lived in darkness, says Isaiah, have seen a great light. If we believe our mission from God to be a welcoming, accepting people of families of whatever form, to say to the community in all its various combinations that you have a home with us where you can belong, then let that be our light, our hope, and our courage in the days ahead.
The preacher is about to leave the building...And the people said...Amen
Take care and God bless.
Ed
Monday May 2, 2011
Well folks, half-way through the Sabbatical already, and its still raining. I believe after today, though, more sunshine and less rain. Alleluia! and Amen!
I went to St. Helen's Anglican Church to worship on Sunday. I went to the 11:00am service. I got there just as the 9:15am service was leaving. Do you remember how crowded the hallway use to be when people were leaving the 9:30 service, and others were coming for the 11:00am one? Well, that's how it was like at St. Helen's on Sunday.
They are starting to fund raise for their capital project. On October 15th they are having a special Harvest supper and Silent Auction at their church. I saw a few of our Anglican friends at our Orpehus Concert on Saturday. Might be nice if a few of us can go. They are going to sell tickets for the event, and are looking for an outside catering group...Hmmm.
I read some more of my book today, "The Practice of Adaptive Leadership by Mr. Heiftez. He focused on the leaders of organizations in my readings today, calling on all leaders to be willing to expand the depth of their leadership skills. He thinks we should be willing to gain skills or use leadership styles that we are not comfortable with. For instance, if you are a leader who is kind of a hand's on guy, who struggles to let your people lead in their various responsibilities, Heiftez argues that you need to back down and let them lead. Be there to support them when they ask, but don't jump in while they are fulfilling their leadership role. I think he was speaking to me when he I read that!
Heiftez also argues that we need to remember that we are more than any leadership role that is assigned to us. People in every organization will lay expectations upon leaders, according to what they believe a person should be doing in that role. Heiftez says we need to do our best in fulfilling our roles, but not based on numerous expectations of people, but rather on the mission, the purpose of the organization. So no matter what our leadership role is in the church, we need to ask ourselves at the end of the day: Am I fulfilling the church's mission through my role?" If you can answer yes, that's fantastic. If you answer no, either change your leadership role to reflect the mission, or drop the expectations of your role that have nothing to do with the mission. It's not possible to do everything for everybody, so is what we are doing in the church in the name of Jesus Christ, reflecting God's mission for us. That's the standard Heiftez argues we should lift up, and I would argue God calls us to fulfill.
That's it for now folks...Talk to you tomorrow.
Ed
Friday April 29, 2011
Well, today was the big wedding day between William and Kate. I'm sorry to say that I did not get up early to watch it. I'm willing to stay up late for NHL playoff games, but I did not disturb my sleep for the newly weds. I bet that some of you did though, or at least taped it. Was it a good wedding? You can tell me about it on Saturday. I will see you at the Orpheus Concert.
This was my day for Spiritual Direction. I went into the afternoon unsure about what I was going to talk about, but that sneaky Spiritual Director has a way of making sure the conversation gets around to God and my relationship with the Divine One. Have you ever wondered what you would say to God if you had the almighty's attention for 10 minutes, perhaps more? My Spiritual director seems to believe we do, every day. So I'm going to take some time to talk to God, not about the weather, or how great the Canucks are playing right now, but share some things that have been on my heart for too long now, that I've been dying to say. No longer resisting, just being totally honest with God about something that only God and I need to talk about it. I don't know how I will feel after that. I'm not sure how God will feel, but I'm going to do it anyway.
I want to advocate that you consider doing the same. Do you have something on your mind, or more importantly, deep within your heart that you want to share with God. Don't wait till your dead, and you get to heaven to talk it about it with God...Do it now. It doesn't need to be prayer, although you can certainly frame that way if you wish. You can just talk to God, say here it is, I've been meaning to share this with you for a while, so here it goes...What might happen to you if you do that? Only one way to find out.
I did some reading from the book "The Practice of Adaptive Leadership" by Ronald Heiftez. There were no big earth-shattering revelations today. It was kind of boring actually. Heiftez talked about the importance of knowing our selves well when we are leading an adaptive change in our organizations. We need to aware of were our loyalties lie because they can inadvertently hinder the change we are hoping to bring about. We need to acknowledge that as leaders, we are a part of the organization we are seeking to change, and should not pretend that we are not as much a part of the problem as anyone else is. We need to be aware of how God has wired us, so we are conscious of how we respond to certain people and certain issues. What do we get excited about? What triggers in any setting will set us off, and get us off track and away from the mission...that kind of stuff...helpful, but not new.
That's it for today folks. Talk to you again on Monday.
Ed
Thursday April 28, 2011
Well, it was another warm day in Kingston, but it was accompanied by some very powerful winds. There is a construction site right across from the Theological Hall, and the workers had to stop, because the winds were making everything unstable on site. Too much debris was blowing around.
The Theological Hall shares its facility with the Drama Department, and today, the Club offered three performances of Peter Pan to very excited elementary children who came to see the performances. While reading away in my office, I could hear the chorus of "Yo Ho Yo Ho A Pirates Life For Me." The kids loved it and cheered wildly, and I interrupted my reading to listen to that wonderful song. I believe that every now and then, God interrupts our busyness with voices or sounds that call us to stop and take notice of the joy and beauty that is around us. Of course we need to be open to those opportunities, or we will just keep on doing whatever we are busy with.
The chapters that I read today were not what I would call exciting reading. Heiftez in his book, "The Practice of Adaptive Leadership" talked about the inevitability of conflict whenever your organization is considering an adaptive change. He argues that there are always some people who have something very important to them that they fear losing because of a proposed change. Heiftez says, you need to find a way to keep these people at the table. Don't push them so hard that they get up and walk away. Help them to accept the reality of loss, and to come up with actions or experiments that might minimize those losses.
Above all, says Heiftez, it is a mistake to silence people who are resisting change. Their perspectives and viewpoints need to be an active part of the process, because they could be naming the elephants in the room that no else is willing to raise, realities that must be dealt with, as the organization moves forward towards the fulfillment of its vision.
For example, as we move towards becoming a more welcoming and hospitable community of faith for those in our community, and draw closer to raising the resources we need to build a new facility that reflects that vision, we cannot avoid the elephant in the room that some people have had the courage to name, the increasing challenge of meeting our day to day operating budget. We need to come up with multiply interventions that deal with this reality, and no idea should be too crazy to consider. The more creative and imaginative ideas we have, the better, and it is the voices of dissent who have kept this issue alive for us. Perhaps we need to listen to them, and faithfully respond, without losing site of our overall mission. This is possible, for all who have eyes to see reality, and ears to hear all viewpoints, and for all who are willing to take risks as we journey towards the mission God calls us to fulfill.
Think about what we can do to address the elephant in the room...Our day to day financial operations. Dare to risk letting me know what your ideas are, or better yet, show up at he September Council meeting, and share them with the whole group. We need to move towards the fulfillment of our mission for tomorrow while facing the hard facts of today, together, we can find a way to do both.
That's enough for today folks...Take care and God bless.
Ed
Wednesday April 27, 2011
Kingstonians and myself are experiencing interesting weather during these last days of April. Yesterday, I got caught in the worst deluge of rain I have ever been caught in . I was just leaving the restaurant where I had supper, and was heading towards the B & B where I am staying, when the heavens opened, and I got drenched, head to toe. I had to stand on the porch and ring out my socks before I went in. I was dripping.
Today, the sun was out. It must have been near 20 degrees, and I can feel the humidity in the air. An absolutely gorgeous day that made one think that summer had arrived. The inconsistent weather makes me wonder what is coming next. Could it be?....Nahhhh.
I did some reading in the book, The Practice of Adaptive Leadership by Ronald Heifetz. He argues that people start to get nervous when you put forward a proposal that means change. You have to expect resistance, maybe even opposition. Not everybody is going to be crazy about new ideas, because change usually means that somebody is going to lose what they have always enjoyed, and they don't want to see it go.
Heifetz says we should not present an adaptive change without realizing that it will result in resistance and rejection. That being the case, how do we move forward in the face of opposition
Good adaptive leaders take the time to understand the interests, the loyalties and the fears of everyone who has a stake or might be effected by the change. In other words, relationships counts, and we need to ensure that they remain healthy, especially when we do not agree with one another. We always should be working at strengthening our relationships within the church. Never take them for granted, and maintain strong connections with everyone, because when a church is following a mission of being the welcoming and hospitable presence of Jesus Christ in the community, and is planning to build a new building that reflects that mission, everyone is impacted by that. It is best, therefore, to stay connected, and ensure people through all the processes of change, that your relationships with one another are still the most important aspect of your church life.
Heifetz also argues that maintaining healthy relationships includes those who resist the change and actively oppose it. He says we should intentionally spend time with them, ask for their input on our initiative, listen carefully to what they have to offer, and let them know that we value their perspective and insights.
All above all else, resist any temptation to 'straighten out' those who are not on board. There is not a single person on this earth who likes being told that they shouldn't feel the way they do about something they are passionate about. It is much better, argues Heifetz, to truthfully acknowledge the sacrifices that people are being asked to make, and how unwelcomed and difficult those sacrifices are for some people. Agree to disagree, to learn from different perspectives, but do not attempt to correct. It's disrespectful, and it doesn't work.
Speaking only for myself, I hope I keep these learning’s in my heart and mind as we move forward with fulfilling our mission, and building our new church. I believe there is a lot of wisdom in Heifetz's words that is very applicable to one's faith and one's purpose as a follower of Jesus Christ.
That's it for today folks. Talk to you tomorrow.
Ed
Tuesday April 26, 2011
Hi everyone. I hope you all had a wonderful Easter with your friends, and your family, those inside and outside the church. I went to Good Friday Service at St Andrew's United in Cumberland. They did a traditional Tenebrea service that was very moving, and the choir had some very appropriate music, but as I listened to them,. I found myself missing ours. I went to Navan-Vars United for Easter Sunday, a small, informal, friendly congregation like ourselves, and the minister gave a very good sermon. He compared the resurrection to a Rita McNeil Song, "It's A Working Man I Am, which she sings with The Men of the Deeps. He argued how the chorus was very much a story of resurrection for all with ears to hear. Look it up online, and read the words of the chorus. I think you will understand what he meant.
I did some more reading today from "The Practice of Adaptive Leadership" by Ronald Heifetz. He argues that there are five characteristics of every good adaptive organization, this being an institution like a church, able to change and adapt when circumstances warrant it.
The first is being willing to name the elephant in the room. Heifetz argues that in a highly adaptive organization, no issue is too sensitive too be raised at an official meeting; no questions are off limits. Crises are identified early on, long before they reach unmanageable proportions. I sometimes wonder if my leadership has focused too much on things that are going well, and waiting too late to bring up the elephant in the room, like our financial challenges. Anyway, its out now, so it will be interesting to see how we respond to what we know. Are there other elephants in the room that you can think of that we perhaps need to bring out in the open?
The second characteristic is having in leadership people who are willing to share responsibility for the organization's future, over and above their individual roles and functions. When this is the case, you will notice people commenting on and raising issues that are not within their own portfolios. Also, cross-functional problem-solving is routine, and people deep down in the organization worry about issues and concerns that go beyond their immediate assignments. If you have been to a Council meeting, or an Annual meeting, you will discover that Queenswood displays this second characteristic very nicely.
The third characteristic is an understanding within the leadership of the organization that its people do not expect its leaders to always have the answers for them. Everyone struggles to find solutions together. In such an organization, "sticking to one's guns" and never budging from what you believe is right is not the highest value. Valuing people for their different opinions and suggestions is. An adaptive organization does not strive to ask: "What is the right way for us to go?", but: What do we believe is the best thing to do in the service of the mission?" I believe that our church is moving in this direction, and I have every confidence that we will continue to do so.
The fourth characteristic is knowing that the talent within your organization need clear on-the-job guidance, in order to make it possible for all willing volunteers to make their greatest contribution, and to maximize their greatest potential. As a church, we need to grow in this area. We tend to ask people to do things for us, and do not give them clear directions or training for the task they have graciously said yes too. I will pledge to change this, and I hope and pray you will assist me in that responsibility.
The final characteristic is a willingness to learn new ways of interpreting what is going on around you, and learning new ways to carry out the work of the mission. We always need to exhibit an openness and commitment to learning. There is never a time in our life when we ever stop learning. God has so much to teach us, it's not possible for us to learn it all, but we are called to follow and to be always willing to learn. In the love of Christ, we have to acknowledge what we do not know, and to be willing to search for what we need to discover. We have to make room for people who are willing to experiment and make mistakes, seeing them as founts of wisdom, and never marginalizing their efforts. Every plan we come up with for our church life is our best guess of what God calls us to do today. God may, through others, show us something new tomorrow, and we need to ready for all who present us with new ways of understanding what God wills us to be.
That's it for today. Talk to you tomorrow.
Take care and God Bless.
Ed
Thursday April 21, 2011
Today, there was no rain in Kingston. It was still cold, but at least the opportunity of things drying up happened. Good Friday here is suppose to be sunny and 10 degrees. That weather doesn't seem to fit the tenor of the day, but at this point, we'll take it.
I read some more from my book, "The Practise of Adaptive Leadership," by Ronald Heifetz. He makes the argument that adaptive leaders have to help organizations to go beyond what has always worked in the past as a means of solving every challenge that pops up these days. We in the church should know that which worked in the 60's is not going to hold water in this century, so it's time to come up with alternatives that help us to adapt to faith in the 21st century. John Gagner, a former U.S. Cabinet Secratary put it this way: "all to often, on the long road up, leaders become servants of what is rather than shapers of what might be." Our church needs leaders to be shapers of what might be, and I believe we have the spirit, the creativity, and the desire to be just that. Besides, Heifetz is helpful because he gives us some tools that we can use to become more adaptive in our church life. I can't wait to try some of them out on you when I return.
I also underwent some spiritual direction today, which is really working out great. Here's a couple of exercises you may wish to try. Read a story in the bible, whichever one you feel like, but don't read it to learn something. Read it like you are a part of the story, indentify with a chracter in the story. If you come across a phrase that jumps out at you, or moves you, or gives you an Aha! moment, stay with the phrase for a while. Don't read on, just say it over in your head and let God speak to you through it. You may be surprised to discover what God is trying to say to you.
Secondly, the next time you go for a walk, clear all the thoughts from your head, and just take in everything around you. If we believe the divine is in everything, then notice the things all around you as you walk. Where are the moments, the opportunities where you see or hear God in this stroll. Stay with it a while, and breathe in the presence of God to nurture and strengthen your spirit. I find these two exercises are helping me deepen my relationship with God. Perhaps they may do that for you as well.
Take care, everyone, and have a Happy Easter.
Ed
Wednesday April 20, 2011
It was raining all day in Kingston. It was cold when I went out for a brief walk to get some fresh air and lunch, and all I succeeded in achieving was getting wet. They say April showers bring May flowers, well, we have had more than our fair share of the April part, let's hope the flowers and the sun come out in May.
I started reading a new book today called: "The Practice of Adaptive Leadership" by Ronald Heifetz. This is the book that comes greatly recommended by the instructor, so it should be interesting. I hope so, because it has the feel of a textbook, 23 chapters long. Anyone want to read it for me?
It's beginning is actually quite interesting. Heifetz argues that we need to be practitioners of adaptive leadership. He stresses that leaders in every organization need to have good diagnosis skills before venturing forward with action. He compares diagnosis to the activity of dance on a dance floor. When your dancing, being active in an organization, it's really difficult to see what's happening in your organization. Heifetz argues that good leaders get off the dance floor, and onto the balcony, to get the overall picture of what's happening with everyone on the dance floor.
It you can be still, and in a position where you can see the whole picture, you can diagnose what is occurring in your organization. You can observe everything that is happening, which makes it possible to come up with interpretations of what you see, how some things should stay the course, and how others things need to be let go, because they are not contributing to the joy of the overall dance. Having given interpretations, you may be able to propose some alternatives that help people to dance more effectively, or find meaning in the activity that they are engaging in on the floor.
It's sound so simple doesn't it. Heifetz says it isn't. The moment you start suggesting changes to how people dance, you are going to run into resistance. You know the old adage: "People resist change" Heifetz argues this is not true. What they resist is loss, because of change. Interpretations of and alterations to the dance your organization is participating in means that somebody has to give up or alter the way they are doing things, their activity which they cherish, and don't want to lose.
So does an adaptive leader just bull over their concerns and go head strong into the change anyway. No! Good adaptive leaders recognize that change means loss. Good adaptive leaders understand that the pain of loss is real, should not be ignored, and the people who do suffer loss because of change need to be valued and cherished. Good adaptive leaders, if their diagnosis has been well done, thoughtfully and prayerfully considered, should propose interpretations and alterations to the dance that bring meaning and purpose to the organization. The people who suffer loss, as well as the people who benefit from change need to buy into alterations that are proposed. They need to believe it will benefit the organization, benefit the whole, especially if it means individual loss.
Perhaps the most important thing I have read from this book is Heifetz claim that one's whole person, heart, mind and soul, needs to be fully invested in the people of the organization. It's not good enough to come up with ideas that change everything, and leave people worried, confused and nervous. Adaptive leaders must care for all in the organization, and all in the organization must know that the leaders care. No heart, no moving forward, Jesus could have said that.
Ed
Tuesday April 19, 2011
The sun actually came out today in Kingston. It was quite a pleasant afternoon. Could this be a sign of greater things to come? Let us hope so
I finished reading my book, "Leadership and The New Science by Margaret Wheatly. I know I'm not suppose to shout this word during Lent, but I don't care: HALLELUIA! THE BOOK IS DONE, AND AGAIN I SAY HALLELUIA!
Actually, it finished on a lighter note, reminding us of the importance of storytelling, because every time we are spinning our tales to one another, we stop taking life so seriously, we stop worrying about getting things right, and we experience our relationships with one another in a more playful way. The best ideas for any organization come when we know we can't know everything, and we allow our creative imaginations to proclaim ideas that are new and exciting possibilities for change. Lewis Thomas, a quantum physicist, once said: "Whenever you can hear laughter and somebody saying: 'But that's preposterous'! you can tell that things are going well, and that something probably worth looking at has begun to happen.
Wheatly argues that all organizations, including churches, participate in the dance of the universe through our relationships with one another, and while we are dancing, knowing the steps ahead of time is not important, being willing to engage with the music and move freely onto the dance floor is what's key. We do not know every dance step that must be taken as we move towards fulfilling our mission of becoming a church family that welcomes and accepts and makes everything ready for the people of our community, but we are out on the floor, participating in the dance, and having an impact in God's creation, and that my freinds, feels like faithful, joyful service in Jesus' name.
Of course, the leaders of all organizations, including churches, need to notice that they have people out on the floor dancing with them, each with strong desires for recognition and connectedness, and if we truly wish to show our respect for all dancers, then we need to let them know how much we value their relationships
So let me say how much I value each and everyone of you. It is a privilege to be your minister. It is great to be dancing with you towards our new tomorrow. It is amazing how much of yourselves you pour out for the sake of our mission, such sacrificial love, there are no words that could adequately express my thanks. You are truly a blessed people of God, and I give thanks to the Creator that I have the privilege to know you and to work with you.
Take care and God bless.
Ed
Monday April 18, 2011
And now for the continuous story of "Leadership And The New Science." Wow, what a book. It only has eight chapters, but it's taking me four days just to get through seven. I'll be glad to return this sucker to the Library.
Eventhough it is hard to read, the book gives you plenty of good stuff to chew on. Margaret Wheatly, the author, advocates an open-minded philosophy for every organization. Let your people explore new ideas, raise new questions, and suggest new programs, No matter how crazy the idea may sound at first, don't dismiss it right away. Give people time to chew on it, and see what pearls of wisdom and meaning lie within it perhaps leading the organization in a purposeful and hopeful direction.
There's one catch though. Your organization needs to provide a framework that all the idea people should work within. To use the example of a church, a congregation should have as a frame of reference its core values and beliefs which the leaders have the task of communicating. In our church, perhaps that would be our mission statement, and the mission we are striving to live out. The unifying stable presence, besides God, argues Wheatly, is what your organization believes it is truly about. If your people know what that is and buy into it, then they are welcome to suggest any idea within the boundaries of the church's core values and beliefs.
So if we believe our mission is to be a welcoming, accepting presence to the people of our community, so much so they we believe God calls us to provide a place where the community knows it belongs, and to share our hospitality and love so people feel they belong, that any idea that promoting that mission should never be dismissed. It should be welcomed, talked about, perhaps altered, and decided upon together as the body of Christ.
All information is to be welcomed and accepted. As long as it speaks to our mission, we encourage it, and we do not attepmt to manage or control it, nor the people who bring the new information. If we all agree on what God is calling us to do and be, and work within that mission, than every idea is welcomed, even if it takes us in a direction we did not see coming. Perhaps that's what inclusion really looks like.
On a lighter note, Kim mentioned to me that some of you still believe that I am praying for s..., and that's why we had those fl...... on the weekend. I assure you, I have stopped praying for that stuff which shall not be named. In no way, am I dreaming of a white Easter.
Ed
Friday April 15, 2011
Today, a group of ministers got to gether, two who had been on Sabbitical, two who currently are; (me, being one ofcourse) and one who will be on Sabbitical next year. We had an opportunity to me with the Bakers, the people who generously financed the scholarships for this Sabbitical, not just to thank them, but to tell them what we hope to achieve from the experience.
It was great listening to each of them. One did the Restorative Justice Course, which she believed was iimportant to her ministry, because she was a minister in Belleville, and did one of the funerals for a victim of Colonel Williams Crime. The course was very healing for her, and her community, helping to provide a way forward for many hurting people. Another was applying what he learned from Sabbitical to his chaplaincy work at the University of Toronto, discerning how to be an effective leader to so many students who say they are spiritual but not religious, and seeing that often heard phrase as a door that opens towards faith exploration. Another talked about how he could bring transformational leadership to his congregation through a huge building project, costing about 17 million dollars, Kind of puts our project in perspective, doesn't it. Another talked about learning to become a leader who helps congregations to move from maintenance to mission, from moving beyond surviving to live out the mission God calls them to do, regardless of where or where they will not be in five years. .
I talked about how we are on a mission, a mission to build a church that reaches out to the community, seriously doing what we can to provide for their needs and say that in our building, they are welcomed seven days a week. I said I needed to develop some leadership skills that will help us to do that, not just through a new building, but as a body of Christ. Our life together lived for the sake of those Christ calls us to serve, just outside our doors. I said I needed to learn how to make the mission the priority, in and of itself, and that secondly, we see our project as a means of increased revenue for ourselves. I hope this Shaw Transformational Leadership gives me the skills to be an effective leader during our time of transition and change. I hope and pray that we can all find a way to enthusistically and lovingly, live out our mission of welcoming and hospitality and belonging for and with our community.
I'm getting ready now to catch my train, so I'll wrap it up. Talk to you again on Monday. In the meantime, Take care and God bless.
Ed
Thursday April 14, 2011
Today, eventually turned out to be a nice, sunny day in Kingston, although this morning had a nippy wind making the walk to the college a little more uncomfortable then I would have liked.
I spent more time attempting to digest this book I'm reading about Quantum Physics and organizational leadership. I hope that what I'm about to write sounds coherent.
Wheatly argues that the most important aspect of any organization is relationships. How people relate to one another will ultimately determine what an organizations' mission will be. People disect ideas, they reshape tasks, they bring goals to life, so every organization should encourage interactive relationships that work well and effciently, and not focus so much on what the outcome will be. It will arise out of the parts relating well to one another.
The goal of leaders in this quantum world is not unlike being an conductor for an orchestra. We play a crucial role in selecting the melody, setting the tempo, establishing the key, and inviting the musicians to play, but that is all we do...the music comes from from something we cannot dierect.
In a quantum world, the more you circulate your ideas and mission, says Wheatly the better. Organizations have to take their mission statements off the wall, and into the corridors, seeking out every person in the organization for feedback. Wheatly argues that the only way an organizations' mission can grow is through the participation of as many people as possible. In a quantum world, there are no unimportant players.
So, if we wish to build ownership for our mission, which I believe is to be a welcoming, accepting community of faith of families of whatever form, and to be a place where the community believes they belong and are welcomed, then we need to give the mission over to everyone, and allow the creative process to come from those who will be changed by its implementation, which would be the people of our congregation.
Wheatly argues that we are never successful if we merely present a finished plan to any organization. It doesn't work to just ask people to sign on when they haven't been involved in the design process, when they haven't experienced the plan as a living, breathing thing. Our church needs to be a better job of sharing our mission with everyone, of taking it off the wall and welcoming people to shape, adjust and claim it as their own. so it becomes something everyone can invest in, and not just a piece of paper people can read and assent too.
Anyway, I hope that made sense. I'm still sruggling with the highly scientific language of this book to get at how this can apply to our church life together, and hopefully I communicated with you in clear and concise ways.
On a more lighter note, the hockey playoffs have started, which means I will be getting less sleep until those pacific coast teams are eliminated, and I hope the Canucks will win it all, so maybe I'll try and grab some power naps in the afternoon. I have to tell you something I saw today that I found very funny. I was walking back to the college after lunch, when I saw this on a mailbox outside a home. It was a picture of the Philadelphia Flyers Logo, with a red circle around it and a red diagonal line across the centre. Underneath the logo were these words: "No Flyers Please."... I concur on many fronts.
Ed
Wednesday April 13, 2011
Today, I spent some time with my spiritual director, working on my personnal relationship with God. One of the questions he kept asking me over and over again, especially after I shared something with him was: "What do you believe God thinks of that? My initial reaction was to say, "How do I know what God thinks, ask God yourself, but then I realized, that's the point. My spiritual director wants me to share what I feel and believe with God, and then listen, patiently listen, until I feel like I hear God saying something back to me. That's pretty cool. I'll think I'll try it. I encourage you to do the same.
I've started reading a new book, called "Leadership and the New Science , Learning about oraganizations from an orderly universe, by Margaret Wheatly. The new science that Wheatly talks about is Quantum Physics, which compells us to see all the elements and particles of life as being in relationship with one another, and not separate entities that we can explore on our own, or that have meaning on their own.
Every organization, like the church, has diverse elements that constitute the whole. Wheatly argues that each element does not work separate from the other elements, doing its own thing. All the elements in a quantum world, are in relationship with one another, and the organizations' meaning or purpose is derived by how each element relates to one another. We live in an interconnected world, and we live in an interconnected church, and we are fools if we believe that we can be in community without relating to each other for the sake of the whole.
I'm not sure if that makes sense. I'm having a hard time trying to analysis the meaning of this book, but one thing that I believe I understand fis this: If all the elements are in relationship, and need to be in relationship for the organization to reach it's potential, then it's stupid to attempt control as a means of success. It's not possible to gain control, because it's not possible to perdict how all the elements will relate to one another, so the wise leader gives up the notion of control and joins the party of discovery.
There is a great quote in the book that I believe best emphasizes that point: "I want to act from the knowledge that life is dynamic connectedness. I want to move into a universe I trust so much that I give up playing God. I want to stop holding things together. I want to surrender my care of the universe and become a participating member with everyone I work with."
My head is spinning from all that I have read today. I'm going to the chip stand for a greasy hamburger and fries. Nothing like comfort food to ease the troubled mind.
Ed
Tuesday April 12, 2011
The pace of academic life at the college has slowed down greatly since classes have ended. It's pretty quiet in the hallways, so there are not many students to talk too during the day. As a result, I have more time for prepatory reading then I bargained for, unfortunately for me, our professor has no problem recommending books that I absolutely need to read.
I finished "The Practicing Congregation." by Diana Butler-Bass today. She argues that the solution to revitalizing mainline protestant churches is for us to reintroduce Christian practices into our congregations.
For her, Christian practices of hospitality, spiritual exercises, family devotions, and the emphasis on Sabbath keeping creates a congregation that is an open community that welcomes people to find meaning, purpose and hope in their lives.
An organization called Faith Communities Today (FACT) did a survey whose results showed that mainline protestant churches placed the least emphasis on the above practices, more so than any other religious group. FACT argues that this is one of the reasons for decline in mainline protestant churches, and that if we became intentional about emphasizing hospitality, spiritual exercises, family devotions and Sabbath keeping, we would show a marked increased in vitality and growth.
I'm not at all convinced it's that simple, but Butler-Bass makes a good point from this data. We need to be more than a Rotary Club or the Chamber of Commerce who meet together on Sunday morning. We need to re-institute spiritual practices that will help people make sense of their world, and assist them in living a Christian way daily. With that in mind, someone asked that I call together the Soul Companions Group when I get back. I believe I will, and look at other spiritual practices we can offer to our community and ourselves.
That's all from Kingston, today, talk to you tomorrow.
Ed
Monday April 11, 2011
On Sunday, I had the pleasure and privilege of worshipping at Resurrection Lutheran Church. In many ways, their worship service ressembles an Anglican service. They have a service book with written prayers and responses that the congregation follows throughout the service. They serve communion every Sunday, mass being an important aspect of their worship. They stand for every hymn, something that we use to do all the time, but no longer do, and frankly, I like the change we have made there. All of the scripture readings from the Lectionary are read in church, and the congregation stands for the introduction of the gospel, but sit down when it is read. Rev. Mei Sum Lai is a wonderful woman who I am just getting to know, and it was a delight to worship with her and her congregation. Incidentally, they have a very good, all women choir, and the minister is the choir director! Finally, the service started at 10:00am and finished at 11:15am. I felt like I was home.
I've started a new book called "The Practicing Congregation, Imagining A New Old Church, by Diana Butler-Bass. I'm about half-way through it, and she makes some interesting observations that may resonate within our context. She argues that in contempory life, the public authority that churches use to have in society and in schools has been replaced by individual authority. Butler-Bass argues that people approach their faith with individual authority. The institution or denomination no longer influences their faith choices, but individual churches do. If people come to a church and like what they see, Butler - Bass argues that we may have a more loyal parishioner then someone who comes just because they have always been United Church. People church shop these days, and if we are the church they pick, maybe their personal choice of us will result in us having a very committed church goer. I believe recent additions to our church life prove the author is correct.
Butler-Bass also talks about tradition. She argues that vital congregations receive the traditions of their past, and educate today's worshippers about them, because many people do not know the church's stories, or the Bible stories anymore. When I attended Orlean's United, they were doing an six-week educational series in their children's time to teach the kids the Lord's prayer. We need to be teachers of our church's traditions.
Butler-Bass also argues that we need to be more than receivers of traditions. We need to create new traditions, and make them an integrated part of our church life. Traditions are not just handed down, they are created. So when we do something new in our church life or in worship that we really like, then let's call that tradition as well. Butler-Bass argues that tradition is not just handed down, it is also formed and reshaped in ways that will vitalize a congregation, as long as that church does not use tradition just to protect the past, but uses it to create a better future.
That's all for today folks...Talk to you tomorrow...God bless each and every one of you.
Ed
Friday April 8, 2011
I finished my book today, "Good to Great" by Jim Collins. It's conclusion is a rather simple idea, but profoundly true. Collins argues that good companies or churches have a core set of values that they truly believe it, and that guide all their actions. He says that there are no right values, just core beliefs that fit our church community. Those beliefs could be different in another church and that's okay. What we are passionate about and reallly value in church life doesn't have to be the same in every congregation. It's just need to be right for our context.
So if what we truly believe is that we can be the best welcoming church in our community, so that all people who come really feel that this church is a place where they can belong, and we believe that God wants us to be that kind of church, that why wouldn't we want to be great at it?
Collins argues that we need Big Hairy Audacious Goals that wiill help us live out the mission we are passionate about, so we will be a welcoming, accepting Body of Christ that believe Jesus wants us to be. Everything else we let go of. We are called to be great at what we believe is of value to our faith community. a mission that gives us meaning and purpose in God's world. Queenswood United is a welcoming, accepting church, a place where all people can come and belong. Let's make decisions that will make us great at fulfilling this mission, and this mission only.
I also spent some time with a spiritual director this afternoon. I'm trying to strengthen my own personal relationship with God, and I believe the best time to do that is when I'm not so busy. The Spiritual director doesn;t talk much. His job is to help me on a more experiential level, to know God in the depths of my soul, and to deepen my relationship with the Creator. He's got his work cut out for him, but I'm glad he is willing to help me on that journey.
Ed
Thursday April 7, 2011
I don't know how things are in Ottawa, but I think it's finally starting to warm up here. The sun came out this afternoon, and it felt like spring might actually be returning. I'll wait and see.
One of the advantages of being on Sabbitical is I get to go to different places to worship. On Sunday, I went to Orleans United, (checking out the competition so to speak) I really enjoyed worshipping with them, and they had listed in their newsletter a couple of things that we might want to think about doing.
Every Friday morning they have a Coffee and Conversation time at 9:00am. They do not say who runs this program, but I believe it would be worthwhile to put aside some time each week when people can drop by the church, simply to chat with me about whatever over coffee. Friday mornings is probably best for my schedule.
The other thing was a newcomers evening. Once a year the elders of Orleans host a meeting with all newcomers who have been attending Orleans United for the past year, just to see how they are doing, if their needs are being met, and just to get to know them better. I think that's something our Congregational Life Committee may wish to consider doing...Sorry Carol.
I believe both of these ideas falls well into our mission of welcoming people from the community into our church family. There is no reason we could not advertize the coffee and conversation beyond our congregation, and an event for newcomers certainly has the potential to reach out and meet the needs of those in the community. I would challenge the Council to put both items on the agenda for conversation and action at your next meeting. Nice of me to suggest work while I'm away.
One of the things I had to do in preparation for this course was fill out a questionnaire that our instructor sent out to all paticipants. I filled it out today, and have attached it, if anyone is interested in looking at it.
Ed
Wednesday April 6, 2011
I did not have what I would call a very exciting day today. I spent the day in my office trying to get through some of the assigned reading for the course, but even a mundane activity like that can teach you something about yourself, and your church.
Jim Collins, in his book, "Good to Great." argues that we should focus our energy, discussions and debates on one thing that our church believes we can be great at, and do that better than any other church. He argues it should be something we are passionate about, and something that we can continue to have absolute faith in, no matter what obstacles or roadblocks we may encouter.
Just as important, and perhaps even more so, once we agree on the one thing that we are passionate about, than we have to stop doing the things that do not relate to that which we can be best at. For instance, if we believe we can be the best at being a welcoming, accepting community of faith of all families of whatever form, than all our activities in our church life should focus on that reality only. We would be called to make sure all our worship services, social events, pastoral events, fundraising events, educational events, and meetings had as its focus how to be best at welcoming and accepting people into our church. If the activity did not meet that standard, we should not do it, we should let it go, because it would be activity that would drain our energy on something that God is not calling us to do.
Personally, I could see a lot of my extra church activities in Presbytery and Conference as falling outside the mission of being a welcoming community of faith to all families of whatever form. Collins challenges me to look at those activities and wrestle with why I am doing them. Yes, there are always obligations outside of our everyday responsibilities, but there is wisdom in knowing what are the things we are truly passionate about as followers of Christ, and what is the one thing as a church that God calls us to be the best at, not to stroke our egos, but to serve God's people. Should not everything outside that mission be examined and let go? Should not all of us be asking ourselves that question in our church life? If God calls us to be a special community of faith in a certain area, let's do that, and do it with the faith that we will do it well!
Ed
Tuesday April 5, 2011
Today was getting to know the College Community Day. I spent a significant amount of time this morning talking with Richard Chung, a minister in Kelowna B.C. who is on Sabbitical as well. We talked a great deal about the life and work of Theological Colleges, and the daunting task of training ministers for church work in this day and age. We agreed that the church has to work harder at getting more young adults passionate about ministry as a vocation, something they would choose to do as a first career, rather than putting off the call to serve as a second career. Getting young people passionate about the church at any level is a struggle, but I believe the church is something to be passionate about. We must find the faith to proclaim that message in a way that speaks to youth and young adults.
I also went to Tuesday chapel at the College today, and believe it or not, the service was longer than one of mine. It was the last chapel of the year, being led by the graduating class, four in number, each of them taking a turn to reflect on how their theological education has helped developed their faith, their calling, and their person. It was quite moving. Coffee hour afterwards was just as long, and I had the distinct pleasure of talking with students about their journey towards ministry. What a privilege to hear the joys and hopes, the trials and tribulations of students determined to serve God in this church.
I did do some reading, but not enough to report on today. Incidently, I encountered the longest line-up I have ever been in. There is a Tim's Horton franchise on campus, and in the morning, there are a lot of students needing their caffine fix. Next time, I'll bring a book.
Ed
Monday April 4, 2011
You would never know it was spring in Kingston. Cold, rainy and wet. Not a pleasant day at all. Fortunately for me, with only a few ventures outside for food, I stayed in my nice, dry office.
I'm doing some prepatory reading for my course, from a book called "Good to Great," by Jim Collins. The author focuses on the business world, making suggestions as to how good companies make the leap to greatness. At first, I thought the professor was a little strange assigning a business book to read for a church course, but I'm beginning to understand the reasons why.
The book calls for leaders who are humble and modest, and quick to give anybody else praise but themselves for successes. Concern for the companies success is more important than one's personal gain or fame. Good leaders have a vision, a direction that the company can drive towards, but Collins argues that's it more important to have good people first, than to know where you are going. The right people in ther right seats can drive the bus wherever it needs to go, but if you have the wrong people on the bus, only there because of the direction it is heading in, then what happens it you discover that 10 miles down the road, you need to change direction. Better to have the right people first, then decide where you want to drive the bus.
Good companies make an honest and diligent effort to learn the truth about their reality, in order to make good decisions. Don't avoid the brutal facts of the situation. They need to be confronted while pursuing a vision, because the brutal facts of reality may serve to refine that vision. The truth is not intended to make a company weaker or dispirited. It's purpose is to help shape the vision so the company becomes stronger and more resilent.
Collins argues that great companies make room for the truth to be heard by asking questions to seek understanding and learning, by engaging in dialogue and debate - not coercion, by talking about mistakes without blaming, and by building in red-flag mechanisms that enable people to raise a red flag when that is needed. All these things feed a vision, and allow for participation and ownership by everyone in the company.
Now, think about our vision as a church to serve our community even more than we currently are, by building a new space we readily and affordably make available to our community, while maintaining that welcoming, accepting spirit of Queenswood United, given to all who enter on whatever day of the week it is. Do you, like I, see how the above may speak to us and our vision?
Ed