On saying goodbye to a loved home…
As I write, our home packers are filling boxes and blanketing furniture. Tomorrow the removal van will whisk our earthly goods into storage for a month as we wait for our new home to be completed. When you read this it’s likely that our possessions will be in storage and we will be in our nomadic month, housed courtesy of family, friends and timeshare. Yes, our house (no, our home) of 17 years is sold, and will soon be part of an earlier chapter in our life. True, each ending is also a beginning and Rosemary and I have much to look forward to and gratitude is an underlying theme of our...
Read MoreBuilding in a Pause: Observing, Welcoming and Naming as a Path to Spiritual Growth
I’ve spend a fair amount of time thinking about spiritual formation – perhaps not too surprising since I’ve written a book on it (Stirrers and Saints) and have spent most of my life as a pastor or trainer of pastors. Naturally I always point people back to the tried and trusted resources of scripture, prayer, confession, worship, study, service, church involvement and the like. More recently I have been paying attention to what fosters deep inner growth – not simply the change of a few obviously unhelpful behaviours, but a genuine shift in posture to God, others, self...
Read MoreDeciding or Discerning: It’s not always the same…
It was a discussion we were having on our Uber ride to a Baptist World Aid Board meeting. We agreed that we were all familiar with the steps that go into making good decisions. There are many valuable models but here is a common 7 step approach: 1 Clarify the decision to be made (So simple to say – sometimes complex in practice) 2 Gather relevant data to guide your decision (Tap into more than one source) 3 Identify alternatives (And there are almost always some, so beware of those who insist there aren’t) 4 Weigh evidence (An important stage. Avoid echo chambers. Genuinely...
Read MoreReflections on Transitioning to Retirement: 5 Years On… (Part 2)
My first post on my journey towards retirement focused on what I have been doing in the 5 years since I completed my 17 year stint as principal of Vose Seminary. I worked with the philosophy that an abrupt change from the 60 hour working week of that era to a shattering zero would be unwise, and I’ve now moved to a hopefully long term sustainable 35-40 hour work week. I should probably add that whereas my 60 hour week often involved dealing with stressful situations, I’ve been moving away from stress. There is not none (and would you really want a totally stress free existence?),...
Read MoreRefresh: And Every Step an Arrival – The Gift of the Present Moment
Today’s Refresh post, originally published on 12 Jan 2016, explores the thought provoking Rilke line, “and every step an arrival” which serves as an important reminder to note the present moment and embrace it as a God inhabited space. Refresh: And Every Step an Arrival – The Gift of the Present Moment I am presently reading Eugene Peterson’s wonderful biography The Pastor which has on its front cover Rilke’s memorable line ‘every step an arrival’. It reflects Peterson’s own conviction that when all is said and done, the work of a pastor is not...
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