Pastor Brian is in Sacramento today. He's in a class on "History and theology of the Covenant" that started yesterday and continues through next Thursday. This is the longest and most intensive class for orientation and ordination. I went through it in 2000. It's kind of like Covenant boot camp: you feel bonded to the other students who endure the class with you.
So pray for Pastor Brian as he concentrates on the huge amount of material that the class covers. And pray for his family. It's tough to be away for so long (even though he'll be back for the weekend) and I know they miss him.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
eye hand coordination
The town hall meeting on Monday was the best-attended yet (I think). The topic at hand probably stimulated a lot of interest: the budget. Dialog was robust (to say the least), and got me thinking about the relationship between the leadership team and the rest of the church community.
I think Paul nailed it in 1 Cor. 12 when he described the relationship between the head and the rest of the body (it helps to be divinely inspired). There've been a lot of thoughts going on inside the head (the leadership team) but they haven't been communicated well to the rest of the body. So the rest of the body has been unable to act in a coordinated way with the head's intentions. When the leadership team communicates clearly, the rest of the body has responded admirably (as in the case of the overwhelming response to the appeal to complete the internship fund).
The head also needs communication from the rest of the body. Although the head sets the direction, there are lots of adjustments that have to made along the way. The head may say, "Walk down this path so we can get home." Then the left foot has to let the head know, "I'm on the ground now, it's time for the other foot to move forward." Or the foot may say, "I'm in the mud! Flail the arms to get us balanced!" You get the picture.
One caveat: it helps for the communication to be gracious and appropriate. I appreciated the apologies that were voiced on Monday. It's not helpful when the communication to the head or the hand arrives in the form of stabbing pain. The natural response is to attend to the pain rather than a coordinated effort to move forward. I trust we will learn to communicate more graciously in these public meetings so that apologies aren't needed as much in the future.
The town hall meetings and community meetings are opportunities for communication between the leadership team and the rest of the body, but not the only ones. Let's utilize well all of the venues we have and also create new ones, keeping up what Bossidy & Charan ("Execution: the discipline of getting things done") call "robust dialog".
I think Paul nailed it in 1 Cor. 12 when he described the relationship between the head and the rest of the body (it helps to be divinely inspired). There've been a lot of thoughts going on inside the head (the leadership team) but they haven't been communicated well to the rest of the body. So the rest of the body has been unable to act in a coordinated way with the head's intentions. When the leadership team communicates clearly, the rest of the body has responded admirably (as in the case of the overwhelming response to the appeal to complete the internship fund).
The head also needs communication from the rest of the body. Although the head sets the direction, there are lots of adjustments that have to made along the way. The head may say, "Walk down this path so we can get home." Then the left foot has to let the head know, "I'm on the ground now, it's time for the other foot to move forward." Or the foot may say, "I'm in the mud! Flail the arms to get us balanced!" You get the picture.
One caveat: it helps for the communication to be gracious and appropriate. I appreciated the apologies that were voiced on Monday. It's not helpful when the communication to the head or the hand arrives in the form of stabbing pain. The natural response is to attend to the pain rather than a coordinated effort to move forward. I trust we will learn to communicate more graciously in these public meetings so that apologies aren't needed as much in the future.
The town hall meetings and community meetings are opportunities for communication between the leadership team and the rest of the body, but not the only ones. Let's utilize well all of the venues we have and also create new ones, keeping up what Bossidy & Charan ("Execution: the discipline of getting things done") call "robust dialog".
Sunday, September 23, 2007
who woulda thunk?
It was a slow news week, so I decided to create some news. Actually, it's something I've always wanted to do, but since my daughters both decided to go ahead and do it, I thought, why not? So I did it, too: I got my ear pierced and I now have a nice little gold cross adorning my left ear.
It's really interesting to note people's reactions. Some are amused, some are repulsed, some are mystified. Winnie calls it my "midlife crisis". A grandmother who visits our church regularly stopped me in the hall and told me, "It's beautiful!" Someone else told me it fit my persona, but was a bit unusual for someone in my stage of life (was that code for "but at YOUR age?!")
I guess it all highlights something that we all know, but often try to deny: what we do with our bodies has meaning. We are embodied spirits, i.e., our bodies and spirits are integrally connected. "I can worship with my mind and heart, I don't really need to actually bow down or raise my hands." "Sure, I'm not at Sunday worship with everyone, but I'm there in spirit." But we need our bodies to cultivate spiritual habits. That's what's so hard about spiritual disciplines: they require physical discipline, not just good intentions. Our character is shaped by what we do, not by what we think. "Faith without works is dead."
So I wonder what sort of spiritual meaning would have been expressed by getting my nose pierced...?
It's really interesting to note people's reactions. Some are amused, some are repulsed, some are mystified. Winnie calls it my "midlife crisis". A grandmother who visits our church regularly stopped me in the hall and told me, "It's beautiful!" Someone else told me it fit my persona, but was a bit unusual for someone in my stage of life (was that code for "but at YOUR age?!")
I guess it all highlights something that we all know, but often try to deny: what we do with our bodies has meaning. We are embodied spirits, i.e., our bodies and spirits are integrally connected. "I can worship with my mind and heart, I don't really need to actually bow down or raise my hands." "Sure, I'm not at Sunday worship with everyone, but I'm there in spirit." But we need our bodies to cultivate spiritual habits. That's what's so hard about spiritual disciplines: they require physical discipline, not just good intentions. Our character is shaped by what we do, not by what we think. "Faith without works is dead."
So I wonder what sort of spiritual meaning would have been expressed by getting my nose pierced...?
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