You really need to download this free E-book.

It is excellent.

Click HERE to go to his blog to download it

Had a great morning speaking at Emmanuel Chapel, Henbury. It’s a small chapel in a relatively poor estate in west Bristol (not far from Cribs Causeway). A pastorate from Woodlands Church have been involved in taking services and supporting the chapel for a few months. I arrived this morning to Bacon Butties, great coffee and a warm welcome.

The service was great – worship, really funny kids sketch and then me… I spoke on Daniel 1 – how we must engage with our community and culture, even if it is hostile.

I spoke to one older person at Emmanuel who does just that. She prays like crazy for her community. She spends time on Saturday evenings working with children and teenagers, some of whom are involved in drugs, alcohol and anti social behaviour. She loves her neighbours.

To engage… how we do it is the question

Found this from Chuck Swindoll on the “Out of Ur” blog – you can get to it via the Delicious links… anyway thought I’d reproduce it here as it is brilliant.

1) Whatever you do, do more with others and less alone

2) Whenever you do it, emphasize quality not quantity.

3) Wherever you go, do it the same as if you were among those who know you best.

4) Whoever may respond, keep a level head.

5) However long you lead, keep on dripping with gratitude and grace

So I’ve messed around with the blog for a while… I’ve changed the theme, colours, pictures and more.

And then simply came back to what it was.

I think that’s often a really good benefit of change. Making yourself try out some new things. Its fine if the old stuff works best.

Bob Jackson (well known CofE chap) makes this stark statement:

“Most churches need to make a choice between having a comfortable death and uncomfortable life”

He cites statistic after statistic showing that churches who won’t change decay and decline. Those that do change grow. I’m now part of a “context” based training group that looks to work out the theology of the classroom in the cut and thrust of the real world. Both churches are great places that long to have an impact on the city of Bristol and do so in very different ways. The leaders in both churches are up for being uncomfortable but alive.

How about in our individual lives… are we willing to “comfortably die” or experience life with all the discomfort and challenge that it brings?

Final quote from Bob Jackson… think it can apply to both our church communities and our own lives:

“We do not advocate change for the sake of change; we see change as the condition for survival”

I’ve been listening to a really interesting and challenging talk by Patrick Dixon (check out www.globalchange.com on the Delicious links). His title was “Doubling your productivity” or something like it…

He is an exceptional entrepreneur and works with a varied portfolio that includes church leaders, business leaders and politicians around the world. He began the charity ACET which looks to tackle the AIDS crisis internationally.

I’m still processing so much of what he says in his talk but it got me asking several questions… it might seem terribly introspective, but I am the only person that I can change for the better (with God’s help) so I want to give it a go. Below are the 10 questions that I’m thinking through at the moment… which one strikes you as the most important?

1. What roles and responsibilities do I currently have?

2. What gifts/talents/skills/passions do I have?

3. Where and when am I most effective in ministry?

4. Where and when do I come alive?

5. Are there new opportunities to take advantage of?

6. Does anything need to drop?

7. What are the distractions/habits/attitudes that need addressing?

8. How am I serving those who are less advantaged than me?

9. Who are the people that I should be investing in?

10. What do I want to be remembered for in 5 years time?

“If the gospels are any indication, Jesus Christ showed scant regard for modern management wisdom. He was not looking for managers, but for learners and leaders – disciples and apostles.”

Last Saturday I went to a church conference at Woodlands Christian Centre in Bristol with Mark Stibbe (once vicar of St Andrews, Chorleywood and now leader of The Father’s House Trust).

Had a fantastic day – not only with the main sessions which were excellent, but Mark gave those of us who are training for Anglican ministry an hour or so for a Q and A. I just wanted to share some of the main insights that he gave in response to  my question “How do we thrive and survive in full time Christian leadership”.

He split his answer into 4 bits – looking after ourselves physically, relationally, spiritually and intellectually

Physically

He placed an emphasis on the importance of regular hard exercise as it gives our body the chance to reset itself and let out tensions and frustrations.

Intellectually

For many, when our minds are not stimulated, our whole body begins to atrophy. Our ministry stagnates and we live off our past experiences and knowledge. It doesn’t just have to be learning about theology, but just simply stretching our minds into new areas of interest. I’m guessing that Suduko doesn’t count though…

Spiritually

Mark pointed to Moses as our example for this… he went outside the camp and stayed in the Tent of Meeting where he met with God. When he came out his face shone and the people watched in awe. We need to have our place of encounter with God EVERY DAY. It should be the most important thing that we do.

Relationally

We need to recognise that we cannot do this alone – we need a “prayer shield” of people who are committed to praying for us and praying with us regularly. We need to spend time with people who will inspire us, hold us accountable for our behaviour etc, who will both encourage and offer constructive criticism. We need to laugh a lot with those we spend time with…

Challenging but helpful stuff to think through… feel free to add other suggestions to it as well

Well I’ve paid my entrance fee now so that’s all the motivation I need to get started… May 10th here I come!

First run this morning for ages – only a 30min run but I REALLY felt it on the way back. I’ve got a training schedule to work to which I’m already a week behind… hmm. Just hopefully going to avoid injury which I’ve not managed to do the last 2 years.

I was great to get out again though.

Planes that crash don’t usually have the happy ending that this one did… the pilot’s decision making and flying abilities are being applauded by all.

There’s something that interests me about this whole event. A small Canada goose was able to bring down a multi million dollar plane. Tiny brings down massive.

Some of the passengers didn’t quite realise just how fortunate they were and how close to death they had come – they wanted to ensure that their carryon luggage was placed in the life boats. In the midst of being saved some stick to being selfish.

It will be the small things in my life that will define what my life is like. It will be my attitudes and thoughts that will determine my “success” as a Christian leader. If I attend to my relationship with God, my marriage, my friendships, my health, my attitudes etc then I’ll make good decisions in emergencies.

If not then I’m likely to be a plane wreck.

How is your soul today?

Over the next couple of weeks I’ve got to write an essay comparing leadership and pastoral care… I have my pile of books ready to read over Christmas, which will inspire me to write yet another master document…

Or on Jan 5th, I’ll pull an all-nighter.

As part of our Theological Reflection module we were given the opportunity to do the Myers Briggs personality test, I think to make us more “self aware”.

I’ve done it before and was fairly sure where I’d come out… and sure enough I’m an ENFJ (that’s extraverted, intuitive, feeling, judging).

I think that it is a useful tool… but it has limitations. I find the whole personality profiling stuff fascinating as it has a huge impact on teambuilding, leadership and much more. However, the key to it all has to be that it is helping us understand just WHO God has made us to be.

For those who are interested there are some good insights at www.teamtechnology.co.uk on Myers Briggs and especially on how it relates to leadership styles.

I did get the highest score in the group on the extraverted scale (61 for those who care). That makes me a winner…