Before you head out for your weekend, here are three things that I have read this week that have been challenging for me. Hope they do the same for you.
Have a great weekend!
#1
Hospitality is about creating genuine connection, and that connection happens only once the guest has let their guard down.
Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect , Will Guidara
I am reluctant to use guilt from the pulpit or anywhere else for that matter. Guilt may be a productive short-term motivator but it is a hindrance of a long-term relationship. Near the top of my pastoral agenda is creating genuine connection where people let their guard down because trust has been nurtured. A place where difficult conversations are entered into confidently because of commitment to one another. Motivating by guilt does nothing to further that cause.
#2
The only way someone can be of help to you is in challenging your ideas.
Awareness: Conversations with the Masters, Anthony de Mello
I don’t agree with all of de Mello’s quote but he does make a point. At the heart of Christ’s ministry he comforted the afflicted and afflicted the comfortable. I am confident that I would be part of the latter group. Am I ready to be challenged by Christ directly or through others he has placed in my life? A better question is, “Am I secure enough in who I am and whose I am to hear criticism/challenge without becoming defensive, shutting down, or pushing others away?”
#3
I was a pastor: I would stay with these people for as long as necessary to acquire an imagination and develop a faith to follow Christ right here, in this congregation, in this place, with this family, in this workplace.
The Pastor: A Memoir, Eugene H. Peterson
Having been a pastor in one congregation for over 20 years, I am sometimes asked how much longer will I serve here? The easy answers is…as long as the Bishop wants me to. The next level of answer is …as long as it takes for God to teach me what I need to know in order to love him and his people like he does. Heaven knows I have a long ways to go. The places, relationships, and situations God plants us in is the soil of sanctification. It is not only true for pastors but everyone. Our faith grows when we follow Jesus right where we find ourselves…as long as it takes.
todd nelson 