Leading Change - Day #3

I'm home from the Leading Change class at Luther Seminary.  The class ended at 3:30, and I had an uneventful ride home.  It's good to be home to see Karin and the boys.  Tomorrow I'll be leading a session at the Vermeer Teacher Workshop at PCHS on spiritual formation for teachers.

The Leading Change class was great.  Today we talked about types of change and about theoretical frameworks for understanding and working with change.  I gained some new ways of describing and talking about the process of change, and a better understanding of the way the world and the Church is changing right now.  As was noted in the class -- "Change is inevitable; growth is optional."  So I learned some things about how to handle change in ways that are fruitful and productive for the congregation.  It was an excellent class that will be very helpful for ministry.

It was also enjoyable to sit together with a group of Lutheran pastors for three days.  It was like sitting in on another family's reunion.  It was interesting to meet others who struggle with the same kinds of denominational and congregational and ministry issues.  The ELCA, like the CRC, is an ethnic denomination (Scandinavian) which is struggling with the reality of a low multi-ethnic constituency (I think one of them said about 3.5%), and with the trend in the USA toward a constantly growing multi-ethnic percentage in the population as a whole, both the CRC and ELCA are facing very serious viability issues now and for the next 25-50 years.  We share a lot of things in common, and it was good to talk with them about ministry and leadership.

It was also wonderful to celebrate the Lord's Supper with the Luther Seminary community.  The minister had a great sermon on Isaiah 6:1-8, and it was wonderful to be nourished together at the Lord's table.

Leading Change - Day #1

(Written Monday evening, posted on Tuesday morning)

The first day of sabbatical began with a migraine.  I guess I may really need a sabbatical!

The drive to St. Paul was uneventful.  On the way I started listening to The River of Doubt, a book about Theodore Roosevelt’s expedition to chart the River of Doubt, a tributary of the Amazon River in Brazil.  It’s a fascinating story, and I’m looking forward to finishing the book on the way home on Wednesday.  Teddy Roosevelt would be an interesting person to have as a dinner guest.

The Leading Change class is a good one so far.  There are 14 of us in the class, plus the two instructors.  One instructor and I are the only ones who are not Lutheran pastors.  Half of us are men, half are women.  The first day has been good for giving us handles for discussing change.  We talked about Newtonian and Quantum physics(!) as an analogy for understanding how people understand change, and we learned about our own personal change styles – and how different styles need to work together to bring about change in congregations.  We need those who will help us to hold to our traditions and handle the details, those who will be visionaries and agents of change, and those who hold the two together so a congregation can move forward into the future together.

It was a good day of learning – but my head hurts.  It will be good to get some sleep tonight.  It’s also good to see my in-laws.  All in all, it’s a good (early) start to the sabbatical.

Off to Luther...

Tomorrow morning (Monday) I will be heading to St. Paul, MN for the "Leading Change" class at Luther Seminary.  I'm excited to begin my sabbatical (even if it is technically a week early), and to take the class.  Here's the class description from the Luther website:

Congregational leaders often find themselves leading in the midst of change, yet are underequipped for leading through such times. While there is an abundance of materials available, few pastors and lay leaders have intentionally crafted their own framework for leading change, one that substantively draws from theological and theoretical resources and/or is sufficient for working with the complexities of change today.
Through presentations, discussions, and case studies, this class will help church leaders develop their own framework for leading change, using both theological and theoretical resources. Because change is always situated in the messiness of ministry, participants are invited to come with a ministry situation that can serve as a living case study. These case studies will not only ground the theology and theory, but will also challenge leaders to develop their learning in the complexity of real-life ministry settings.

Tomorrow's class begins at 1:00pm and goes until 5:00pm.  The three sessions tomorrow include welcome & introductions, the sharing of cases (I assume this is sharing the cases the students are bringing from their ministry settings), the course overview, "Change and Cosmology," and "Your Personal Change Style."

While the class looks inviting, and I'm excited for the sabbatical to start, I'm also feeling a little bit blue as I think about leaving the people of Pella I for a summer.  The student pastor from Calvin Seminary is here, and he's great (he preached a great sermon tonight) and has a great family, but it's hard to let go of Pella I and the people.  Maybe it's good that I'll be away for three days this week before the full sabbatical starts next week Monday -- it will help me to ease out of ministry and into sabbath.

Get Ready, Get Set,...

This morning I picked up the rental car for the two classes during the next two weeks, so the sabbatical is about to happen.

I'll be leaving Pella early Monday morning (June 8) for St. Paul, MN, for a class at Luther Seminary on "Leading Change."  The class starts at 1:00 Monday afternoon and goes until 3:30 on Wednesday afternoon.  Topics for some of the various sessions of the class include: "Biblical Perspectives on Change," "Theological Perspectives on Change," "Types of Change," and "Leading Adaptive Change."  The class members will also bring case studies from their congregations to share and discuss together.

While I'm there, I'll be staying with my in-laws, George & Ginny.  They run a pretty fair bed-and-breakfast!  ;-)

Tomorrow (June 7) I will be preaching in the morning, with our summer intern, Pastor Scott, preaching in the evening.  Monday night I will be missing our Council meeting.  I'm starting the process of letting go of ministry.  On the one hand, it feels good because I'm feeling less stressed.  On the other hand, it's hard to let go of ministry to people you love.  But I know Pastor Steve and Pastor Scott and the elders and deacons and others at Pella I will handle things just fine -- because they are capable and, most importantly, God is in control.