Posts Categorized: Leadership

Unglued Church

Sustainable church Learning from the farm-to-table journey By Ayana Teter Several weeks ago, I was scanning the Netflix library in search of a thoughtful documentary and took a chance on one entitled Sustainable. It was a video essay that detailed one group’s perspective on the farm-to-table journey by highlighting the rich and deep relationships between those… Read more »

Unglued Church

Long Illusions God’s miracles are all around us By Sarah Robbins   Sometimes it takes too long to be able to see what’s going on. I am an impatient person. Having something block my vision or distort what is really going on always feels like a big waste of time to me. I get annoyed…. Read more »

Unglued church

Mind the Gap Closing the space between our values and actions  By Susan Rothenberg   When my son and I visited London for the first time a few years ago, he was completely fascinated by the London Underground. For weeks prior to our trip, he researched stations, lines, and pretty much had the whole system… Read more »

Unglued church

The power of questions Leaders don’t have to have all the answers By Susan Rothenberg It took me a while to realize that the dumbest question I could ask either of my children is, “How was school today?” If you’re a parent, you already know how a child usually responds: “Fine.” The caring, concerned mom… Read more »

Small matters

God says GO! Uh, who me? By Sue Washburn A few years ago I was getting ready to preach a real, live sermon. I was about halfway through my seminary internship at a church and the pastor told me I’d be preaching the Sunday after Christmas. Me! Preaching! I started researching right away. It was… Read more »

Speak out

Help! Our pastor is leaving! Effective transitional (interim) ministry By James E. Roghair   “We can’t waste any time! Everything will fall apart.” When a pastor leaves a church, the inclination of the congregation is to take off on a mad dash down one of two paths. It might rush to replace the pastor with… Read more »

A mote in Minerva’s eye

Patience and the Praying Mantis An invitation to pray for humility in the President-Elect and the church By Anita Coleman “Dear God, let me run toward, rather than away from, correction. Reduce my pride, increase my humility, and help me be malleable to good advice. Amen.” That’s a prayer from the book The President’s Devotional… Read more »

Unglued Church

A Garden You Never Get to See Planting seeds for the future By Susan Rothenberg  I don’t know much about hip-hop. Until this summer, I didn’t know much about Alexander Hamilton beyond the ten-dollar bill in my wallet. After reading rave reviews of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hit Broadway musical, Hamilton, I decided to watch some YouTube… Read more »

Unglued church

Blind Spots Seeing the dents, dings, and beauty by Ayana Teter So it has recently come to my attention that perhaps I’m not the best driver, or parker, to be more precise. I realized this as I was examining my bumper after an altercation with a taller-than-average concrete parking barrier. You see, I was on a pastoral mission… Read more »

Unglued church

Walking the walk Staying faithful in the face of challenges By Mark Roth Recently, I’ve had the chance to meet with the leaders of several congregations. I have brought with me one simple question: What most excites you or challenges you about your church? The answers have been amazing: diverse, honest and optimistic amid the fears…. Read more »