All tagged transition
We’ve all had negative experiences with all kinds of organizations. Retail is one thing, but at church we simply can’t afford to accidentally send a message that says, “We don’t care if you are here or not.” Because Jesus wants to be in relationship with us, we are naturally inspired to be in relationship with others. That requires conversation and warmly welcoming new people.
Since ministers are not prosthetics but rather flesh and blood, and thus a separation is more like an amputation, then it is unsurprising when bleeding and shock occurs.
If you find that you absolutely must get a particular job, then you end up broadcasting a message to a search team (and just about everyone else) that they must affirm you and validate your plans for the future.
There are various methods that churches can use to search for and hire ministry staff. Regardless of which process is used, all of us in the kingdom of heaven benefit when we share our best practices for hiring.
Dr. Hebbard explores the common wounds that arise from church leaders and the need for others to understand their causes, signs, and what churches can do to move toward healing.
Ministry transition, even ministers leaving ministry, begs we ask honoring questions. A recent gathering of ministers revealed three questions worth exploring around the fellowship table.
The truth of God’s saving grace through faith becomes realer than real when experienced in life, interacting with those who wear skin. We need to have, to be, a friend.
Reflecting on years of teaching young students, I am reminded of exercises captioned “Listen and do.” Might this be a simple, yet awfully mature, set of ancient instructions?
A Grateful Haiku:
Gratitude unties
resentment’s tangle leaving
fresh eyes for God’s gifts.
Beware of the lure of calm waters. Not every minister must be a “whitewater adrenaline junkie,” but paths toward missional goals often contain obstacles ministries must leverage.
Does a reluctance to ask for help translate to a theology of prayer? It may. This week, 10 other “first things” take the place of the pride that binds.
One way human nature reflects the imago Dei is in our instinct toward relationality. May we prayerfully and mindfully bridge these spaces in fresh ways.
Liminality: it’s the ultimate “are we there yet?” And in fact, we’re not. If we’re honest, we’ll admit we don’t even know where there is, exactly, and lead with the spirit of contentment enjoying the missional pit stops with God while holding the destination loosely.
We’re all about savoring the moments as they come for the wonderment they contain, regardless of what was expected or seems comparatively lacking.
We have spiritualized or prioritized the methods over the mission to the point that we think they are one and the same.
Gratitude, simplicity, taking time. How difficult it can be to digest our own advice; how often we remain shielded from the perspectives of others. Pause; breathe.
Over the years I have heard many stories of spoken and unspoken expectations on the spouse. This has varied from the assumption of specific ways they would be involved at church to expectations regarding employment.
Our idea of control is an illusion. We have very little say in what happens around us or to us; we only have a say in how we react and respond to the challenges that we face.
Becoming a minister of a small church means, for better or worse, you have married into a family.
